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You want to get big? Bigger? Gain weight that’s not centered around your waistline? This is possible; do not doubt that this is possible. In this article, I want to concentrate on what you have to have to be successful.

 

The ideal thing would be a gym that you can get to three times a week and that you can afford to join and stay a member of. This gym, to be suitable, should have a few features. It should have squat racks. It should have a place to deadlift and do cleans. It should have a decent bench press. It should have bars that are straight, and the sleeves rotate. It should allow chalk. If you have such a place and can afford to, join it.

 

If you can’t find a place like that, then you have to build your own gym at home. You need a decent bar. If you are young or on a really, really low budget, then I suggest "play it again sports" or a similar place that sells used stuff. Look around. If you can find an old bar that says "York" on the collars that is under $100 and is fairly straight, then buy it. If not, then go for the cheapest bar or bar/plates combo you can buy, with the knowledge that you will need to start saving right away for a decent bar to be bought when you destroy the one you just purchased. It will happen, but don't concern yourself with that right now.

 

If you can afford it, buy a good, new bar. Look around the Internet and you will see what you need if you have half a brain. Don’t consider buying a new bar unless you can afford one that is over $300.

 

You also need at least 200 lbs. of plates to start. You can find them cheapest at used sporting goods stores, garage sales, or on Craigslist. I have seen weight plates--and bars also for that matter--practically given away at garage sales many times.

 

The last things you will need are squat stands and a bench press, or just a bench... in that order. You can get by with a pair of squat stands or a squat rack. A squat rack or stands and a bench are better. A squat rack or pair of stands, and a bench press are best.

 

Things that are good but not absolutely necessary, are a pair of shoes that have a fairly solid heel of about 3/4 of an inch. You will need to get these eventually if you are serious, but you don’t have to have then to start.

 

So, now here we are. Do you belong to an appropriate gym? If not, do you have at minimum a decent bar and some weight--better yet, also a pair of squat stands or squat rack? Even better--these things plus a bench or bench press?

 

This is not a high bar to get over. When I started, I got squat stands by digging post-holes behind the house and putting 4 by 4's in them so I could squat. Figure it out however you want, but if you want to get bigger, figure it out.

 

We will talk about what to do once you have the necessary set-up in the next article.

 

Glenn Pendlay - Glenn Pendlay has a Master’s Degree in Exercise Physiology and has published a number of papers in Endocrinology. After competing in the Junior World Powerlifting Championships in Moscow, Glenn was invited to study Olympic lifting under Alexander Medvedyev, and has since emerged as the top weightlifting coach in the U.S. In 1999, Wichita Falls Weightlifting was founded with Glenn as its Head Coach, and during this time Glenn produced over 90 national champions, over 20 medalists in international competition, and his athletes have broken as many as 10 American records in a single year.

 

He has coached successful athletes all the way from 10-year-old School Age National Champions, to a Senior World Team member and Pan American medalist, to a Masters World Champion and World Record holder. His teams also competed successfully for team championships, including six men’s collegiate national team titles in seven years, and a string of three Junior National team titles in a row! Glenn is now the head strength coach for the California Strength Academy in San Ramon, CA and is personally coaching three of the six lifters on the U.S. Pan-Am Team.