Phil Nolan Gaining Weight

[Sportsman5]

Honestly I wouldn't get too excited. Dude is clearly a "hard gainer" as some say, and IF he gains any decent amount of weight in the next 2ish months, it'll mostly be fat, and he will lose a fair amount of it through the season. He certainly won't be gaining during the season. You're supposed to make gains in the off-season so you can dedicate your energy to practice and performance in-season. If I were the strength trainer, I would have the team lift no more than twice a week in-season, mainly for maintenance. I would like to see the progression of strength gains in his big compound movements: sumo dead lifts and squats, dip, chin up.

How big he can get himself before serious practice starts is as heavy as we will see him all year. I wouldn't expect him to break 225 before he graduates.

gaining weight during the season is possible, but usually players don't because travel makes it hard to stay on a regular eating schedule and injuries (whether big or small) limit intensity of weight training. If he can eat consistently and avoid injury he can gain. Most players are limited by at least one of the factors and some are limited by both. It would be nice if the team could make shakes for the players when they go on the road with them. A mix of protein powder (unfortunately the ones permitted for the schools to provide to the athletes are crap because of BS rules), an oil high in monounsaturated fats such as macadamia or almond oil, and waxy maize starch.

 

[kansashusky]

I'm 22, have been lifting consistently 3+ times a week for over a year now, am a fairly easy gainer, and there is no way I have gained more than 10 lean pounds. The way an athlete should be training in-season, combined with his being a hard gainer, I just don't see him gaining more than 5 lbs a year. Again, seeing his compound lift progression would give some kind of gauge as to how much of what he's gained is from bone and fat.

Comparing your routine to a college athlete at the D1 level is laughable. Kid is 19 still growing and is 6-10. You are 22 and your growth plates have probably closed. He has a nutritionist and works out daily. You bet he will be over 225 and I think will have 8 boards a game this year.

 

[CL82]

Nice to see Nolan bulking up some. Sounds like good muscle. I'd love to see what the UConn strength coach can do for Brimah & Facey before the season begins and the subsequent seasons. A burrito or milkshake or two couldn't hurt either. Is there a Moe's on campus?

In Storrs Center.

 

[babysheep]

Are you 6' 10"? It is easier putting on wait when you have a huge frame to work with.

Tell that to Anthony Davis (220) or KD (230 at 24)

I say this is about body types: ecto- vs endo- vs mesomorph, not about raw dimensions of the body.

 

[Sportsman5]

I'm 22, have been lifting consistently 3+ times a week for over a year now, am a fairly easy gainer, and there is no way I have gained more than 10 lean pounds. The way an athlete should be training in-season, combined with his being a hard gainer, I just don't see him gaining more than 5 lbs a year. Again, seeing his compound lift progression would give some kind of gauge as to how much of what he's gained is from bone and fat.

If you gained 10lbs of muscle in your first year of training, than that is about average results. Just to give one example of an easy gainer I helped a 19 year old athlete go from 195-215 at 6'2" in 5 months. He had been training upper body for several years prior, so his gains could have been even greater if his upper body gains hadn't already begun to plateau. In 5 months being 100% natural he gained the 20 lbs (a lot of it muscle) and could dead lift 500 lbs raw after never before lifting lower body.

Big gains are definitely possible if the player is committed and they are genetically gifted. What is difficult to tell is how Nolan will gain muscle once his frame stops growing. If he truly did grow and inch in height than his body is still fueling growth of things in his body besides muscle. Once this stops many people can gain muscle much easier.

 

[superjohn]

Seriously babysheep, you're 22 years old and have been lifting for three years, quit trying to be an expert here. I've been lifting for a much longer time than you and I can tell you that just by looking at Nolan you have no clue whether he is a hard gainer or not. He's a 6'10, highly conditioned athlete at 19 years old who I'm guessing just picked up serious weight training fairly recently. Everyone responds differently to training and diet but I can tell you that trying to compare yourself to a 6'10 D1 basketball player is just silly. I've been lifting for many years and can put up some good weight but no matter what I lift my build is very different than that of a 19 year old 6'10 basketball player. I do know enough to say that Nolan has the frame to easily be 225 in the next few years.

 

[BearJWS]

In Storrs Center.

Road trip. . Is it a violation if I buy Nolan, Brimah & Facey burritos at Moe's???

 

[CL82]

Road trip. . Is it a violation if I buy Nolan, Brimah & Facey burritos at Moe's???

Yes, unless you are willing to buy every student one, or unless they are Miami players.

 

[HooperScooper]

I'm 22, have been lifting consistently 3+ times a week for over a year now, am a fairly easy gainer, and there is no way I have gained more than 10 lean pounds. The way an athlete should be training in-season, combined with his being a hard gainer, I just don't see him gaining more than 5 lbs a year. Again, seeing his compound lift progression would give some kind of gauge as to how much of what he's gained is from bone and fat.

I did it in college in 3-4 months. Depends what you're starting with (I was a rail). And remember he's 6-10. That's a lot of body to add weight to. It's not hard to gain 13 pounds of lean muscle on a 6-10 frame.

 

[HooperScooper]

Signs that summer is coming to an end: The days become noticeably shorter, nights get crisper, reports that UConn player _______ has gained ______ pounds (of solid muscle).

Difference now is we don't have JC flubbing the numbers. So they're more believable.

 

[Danzz]

I'll be happy to donate 20 lbs . to Phil. It is up to him to turn it into muscle.

 

[babysheep]

Seriously babysheep, you're 22 years old and have been lifting for three years, quit trying to be an expert here. I've been lifting for a much longer time than you and I can tell you that just by looking at Nolan you have no clue whether he is a hard gainer or not. He's a 6'10, highly conditioned athlete at 19 years old who I'm guessing just picked up serious weight training fairly recently. Everyone responds differently to training and diet but I can tell you that trying to compare yourself to a 6'10 D1 basketball player is just silly. I've been lifting for many years and can put up some good weight but no matter what I lift my build is very different than that of a 19 year old 6'10 basketball player. I do know enough to say that Nolan has the frame to easily be 225 in the next few years.

He's gained 13 total pounds in a year on that huge 6'10 frame that is allegedly super easy to add weight to. That's what makes it seem like he's a hard gainer. I'm not comparing myself to anyone (or pretending to be an expert on anything); I'm saying, from the general consensus that I've been exposed to, that gaining actual muscle isn't super easy. I was just using myself as a kind of example because I feel I've been gaining at a fairly average pace. I get that he's only 19, but then why is dude still only 210? You think he never picked up a bar all through high school?

 

[babysheep]

In 5 months being 100% natural he could dead lift 500 lbs raw after never before lifting lower body.

You understand how borderline impossible this is to believe, right?

 

[sammydabiz]

I'm 22, have been lifting consistently 3+ times a week for over a year now, am a fairly easy gainer, and there is no way I have gained more than 10 lean pounds. The way an athlete should be training in-season, combined with his being a hard gainer, I just don't see him gaining more than 5 lbs a year. Again, seeing his compound lift progression would give some kind of gauge as to how much of what he's gained is from bone and fat.

Sheep,
Not a knock against your training routine, but there's a huge difference b/w you hitting the gym every other afternoon and a scholarship athlete engaged in Div 1-A Strength & Training Program.
When I grad hs I was a 5'8" 177 rb
By my junior year in college I was 5'9 196, with 8% body fat. My S&T program was individually designed from the amount of weight & reps, to how much protein I consume at each particular time of day. We had our own cafeteria, recovery pool, food (anytime of day/night) it was very hands on. And this was just for the football team (no other sports shared our space, food, resources, equip.)

I'd like to believe that the extra lb's Nolan has put on is mostly lean muscles, rather than just water & fat

 

[babysheep]

Sheep,
Not a knock against your training routine, but there's a huge difference b/w you hitting the gym every other afternoon and a scholarship athlete engaged in Div 1-A Strength & Training Program.
When I grad hs I was a 5'8" 177 rb
By my junior year in college I was 5'9 196, with 8% body fat. My S&T program was individually designed from the amount of weight & reps, to how much protein I consume at each particular time of day. We had our own cafeteria, recovery pool, food (anytime of day/night) it was very hands on. And this was just for the football team (no other sports shared our space, food, resources, equip.)

I'd like to believe that the extra lb's Nolan has put on is mostly lean muscles, rather than just water & fat

edit I'd love to hear you lifts and nutrition because I'm roughly your size

I totally get that. I definitely have not had the resources PN has probably had. Just from HS lacrosse and from what I've learned about general athletic training, it's my personal uncertified opinion that in-season training should be mainly about practice and performance, and that any kind of lifting should be more for maintenance to keep joints strong and in their proper axes of movement during the season (there's nothing that exposes muscle imbalances like DL and front squat). Serious training that is aimed at real strength gains (beyond how they don't build mass like hypertrophy programs) can pull away from your performance and if imbalances aren't caught, can directly possibly cause injury through the facilitation of bad muscle recruitment patterns in your big movements.

I'm no expert.

Now, I'm sure some of the gains have been muscle. If you're moving heavy s-it around, your muscles are going to grow. I'm just not gonna hold my breath over a kid who clearly does not gain as well as your average person. 13 total pounds in one year, all while explicitly pursuing a bulk and growing an inch, says a lot.

 

[Adios]

I'm no expert.

As if we already didn't know.

 

[superjohn]

edit I'd love to hear you lifts and nutrition because I'm roughly your size

I totally get that. I definitely have not had the resources PN has probably had. Just from HS lacrosse and from what I've learned about general athletic training, it's my personal uncertified opinion that in-season training should be mainly about practice and performance, and that any kind of lifting should be more for maintenance to keep joints strong and in their proper axes of movement during the season (there's nothing that exposes muscle imbalances like DL and front squat). Serious training that is aimed at real strength gains (beyond how they don't build mass like hypertrophy programs) can pull away from your performance and if imbalances aren't caught, can directly possibly cause injury through the facilitation of bad muscle recruitment patterns in your big movements.

I'm no expert.

Now, I'm sure some of the gains have been muscle. If you're moving heavy s-it around, your muscles are going to grow. I'm just not gonna hold my breath over a kid who clearly does not gain as well as your average person. 13 total pounds in one year, all while explicitly pursuing a bulk and growing an inch, says a lot.

Nolan does gain as well as your average person? You are talking complete nonsense, Phil's muscle weight gain is pretty evident since last season. For someone who is no expert, you are trying pretty hard to act like one. As for hearing about other peoples lifts take it to bodybuilding.com, nobody wants to hear about how much you press or deadlift and most people that talk about how much they lift are full of it 90% of the time.

 

[babysheep]

I don't recall talking about my personal lifts at all. Is someone mad up in here?

 

[joober jones]

I'll be happy to donate 20 lbs . to Phil. It is up to him to turn it into muscle.

I'm in for 40.

 

[superjohn]

I don't recall talking about my personal lifts at all. Is someone mad up in here?

You said you wanted to hear about the other posters lifts and you earlier called out someone who clearly has a background in strength training and you basically said he was making up the numbers he had one of his clients putting up. I'm not mad at all I'm just calling you out for spewing what I think is a bit of bullspit. I've seen Nolan get bigger during the season last year and just from the little video and pics I've seen of him this offseason he has gotten bigger since the season ended. You claim he puts on less weight/muscle than the average person and I think this is pure nonsense and I'm calling you out on it, not mad though.

 

[babysheep]

Listen son, you're clearly upset over something because you're taking yourself to conclusions that nobody has led you to. I'm interested in how others have progressed because I'm interested in my own strength development and like hearing other perspectives and methods. Anyone who has done any amount of lifting will be a little skeptical that some kid went from nothing to 500lb dead lift in 6 months, unless he's one of the most genetically gifted people on earth. That's not just me. I'm just been saying that 13lbs in a year for someone who is explicitly trying to gain weight and has a lovely 6'10 frame to put it on sounds like they a bad gainer. You're clearly flailing around grasping for things to talk about. You're just acting mad ITT.

Go bust you some nuts or something and calm yourself down.

 

[huskyniner]

Let's just hope he doesn't approach "Uncle Phil" status.

 

[Burnsbros23]

Its hard to gain weight when ur still growing. Lets assume Phil is done growing he should put on another ten pounds in the next year. that puts him at 223 as a junior very very reasonable.

 

[61cygni]

How has SouthTampaBill not weighed in on this yet?

 

[mauconnfan]

I'll be happy to donate 20 lbs . to Phil. It is up to him to turn it into muscle.

LOL I have 30 more..........hope he can make it 20 yr old 30 though........

By the way I have a few more after that I'm not quite done

 

[Sportsman5]

You understand how borderline impossible this is to believe, right?

He has truly great genetics. I also put him on a customized training protocol from day one. College players do not train as well for their bodies as he was. The programing in college is very generic and very similar for all players regardless of weak points and bio-mechanics. Only NFL players use as good of a protocol as he was using, but they have already started to plateau from training hard in college for 3-5 years so very few players get drastic results. These types of results usually come from division 1 level football players or future NFL players when they are in high school.

Clearly Phil has not and will not get as drastic results as some, but the human body is capable of great things. I wouldn't doubt his capabilities.

 

[babysheep]

He has truly great genetics. I also put him on a customized training protocol from day one. College players do not train as well for their bodies as he was. The programing in college is very generic and very similar for all players regardless of weak points and bio-mechanics. Only NFL players use as good of a protocol as he was using, but they have already started to plateau from training hard in college for 3-5 years so very few players get drastic results. These types of results usually come from division 1 level football players or future NFL players when they are in high school.

Clearly Phil has not and will not get as drastic results as some, but the human body is capable of great things. I wouldn't doubt his capabilities.

Yeah, absolute freak genetics. He must be known to some degree. Did he not go on to play professionally? How did he progress beyond those first 6 months? What's this guy's name, if you don't mind? What kind of protocol did you use?

Not trying to interrogate you here.

 

[pj]

Boone was fat? You don't know how any of these players react to weight training and diet. Nolan can easily beef up with good weight training and diet, he has a solid frame to begin with for a 19 year old.

You don't need to be fat, but you do need fat -- you can eat it. It sounds like the diet they are pushing on these athletes is too protein rich. They would gain lean tissue faster with more saturated fat. By the way, gaining bone mass is good. Somebody lumped bone with adipose fat.

 

[UChusky916]

I just hope the weight he has added has been good weight.

Last year, Olander bulked up in preparation for a larger role at the 5 and he was noticeably slow-footed.

I think Nolan will be our starting center and I think he will provide at least what Chuck did in 2011 which is all we need from him.

 

[UConn311]

You don't need to be fat, but you do need fat -- you can eat it. It sounds like the diet they are pushing on these athletes is too protein rich. They would gain lean tissue faster with more saturated fat. By the way, gaining bone mass is good. Somebody lumped bone with adipose fat.

Not to nitpick but saturated fat isn't good for gaining lean mass, saturated fats are solid at room temp, think butter. Unsaturated are typically liquid at room temp, things like olive oil.

Sorry I hate these kind of posts too