Being a former ectomorph, I can say I know first hand how difficult and frustrating it is to strive and try to get stronger with little or no results to show for. Over the years I followed countless training programs and tried all sorts of supplements and protein, went in over training and even injured myself without realizing that it was this very follower approach that led me nowhere and into trouble in the first place. I'll explain myself. Like countless other trainees across the globe I was literally devouring muscle magazines in the mistaken hope to find one day the secret workout and/or supplement that finally helped me overcome my stuck in a rut position. Needless to say all these "champions" routines where as useless as each other for normal guys like you and me with a normal life and normal genetics and who want to stay large and clear from steroids. Likewise all the proteins advertized in those very magazines could not make up for my constant state of overtraining since there is only so much your body can absorb, the rest building up as fat reserve.

All this would be bad enough itself, but is even worse for hard gainers and natural ectomorphs who never seem to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Those training routines can only work for drug assisted individuals, not you or me, and will lead to certain failure. It was only by taking a long sabbatical traveling that I found the right mind frame to discard all previous notions that more is better. Once back to training after several months away I just followed my instinct as to what my body was telling me. Having given up hope to make substantial gains I just started training again with a view to maintenance wit a "beginner's" program, that is doing very few sets of one exercise only per body parts using only main exercises like squat, bench press, military press, chin ups, rower, dead lift and that's it! No biceps, no triceps, no specific isolation exercises. Full body workouts, no complicated time consuming split routines with 15 sets per body parts or other insane programs, and no supplements. I had found the keys to a hardgainer and ectomorph workout. Soon I started flourishing.

I wish I had listened to my body or found the right information that is so easily available on internet today. Back in the 70ies and 80ies when I was young there was not such an opportunity and all information available was monopoly of the muscle magazines and supplement industry that deliberately misled and still mislead countless gullible suckers like me with training routines that work only for drug assisted trainees, not for normal people let alone for ectomorphs. Once led into failure and overtraining it is then easy for these desperate souls to buy and consume anything advertised on these very same magazines.

But you don't need to waist years like me to find a solution. There are few honest people and trainers out there today who were once in the same shoes and us and make a point of delivering a truthful and realistic hardgainer and ectomorph workout for normal people or hard gainers like you and me.