How much should I lift to effectively double or even triple my arm size?

[bingbongbangbung]

I am 5'9 and weigh over 150lbs and I am in my mid 20s (profile age is fake). I am naturally quite skinny, with my arms being thin. I typically lift 30lbs dumbbells at least once a month to at most every other day, but usually lift once a week. I eat a mix of fast and healthy food, with the latter not really being high in protein. How much more do I have to lift and how much protein do I have to consume to get arms that are as big as my calves? I think maybe I should ditch dumbbells and go straight for those curls found in gyms, and start with 90lbs (45lbs each) to eventually 120lbs as my endgame (60lbs each). I also know that the way the weights are lifted and the amount of reps matters too, with lesser reps being better for muscle growth than more.

90lbs (45x2)

100lbs (50x2)

110lbs (55x2)

120lbs (60x2)

130lbs (65x2)

140lbs (70x2)

150lbs (75x2)

[Astarlessnightsky]

Its not about the weight but frequency and repetition.

lifting three sets of 10x12 kgs every day or every second day of the week is better than barely lifting 120kgs once, once a months.

Choose your weights so you can do three sets of 8~12 times, but struggle at the third set. If you can complete 12 or more for the third set, increase the weight slightly.

Also make sure you lift right to avoid injuries.

[bingbongbangbung]

Pretty sure the weight matters when frequency and repetition don't help

[bingbongbangbung]

Also I'd rather do less reps but they're harder to do and done properly, rather than more reps that are easier to do and/or not done correctly

[Astarlessnightsky]

Thats not healthy.

There is no shortcut.

[BoopBoopBeep]

You want size or tone? You said size, so that's fewer heavier reps. You want tone do 15 reps. You want size to 8-10 of the heaviest you can finish 2.5 sets of.

The problem you have is the frequency is non-existent. Once a month is the same as never. Once a week isn't much better unless you are burning out on super sets or something. Even then you've gotta really be hitting as close to max weight as you can. You can't lift 800lbs once and be like "okay I'm good for the month now"... that's not how it works. Work the muscle, tear the muscle down, let it rebuild larger. Lifting a ton once is not the same thing. Make sure you're getting enough protein too, once you actually start seriously doing this.

Look at the big picture. You can do this.

[WanderingLoveWizard]

Isolation excercises won't do shit but increase definition
Heavy compound lifts like bench press, shoulder press and rows will make your arms bigger. Coupled with a high calorie diet of course

I don't lift much any more, but when I did those are the only lifts I did and my arms got huge. I was a skinny dude too, even lighter than you (and taller)

[Whatthefluff]

This question doesn’t make sense. You have to go chronologically. You need to build up over time and max out a little bit once you have built more up.

[bingbongbangbung]

Ok so what do you recommend? I can currently do like 70-80 reps for 30lbs dumbbells before I can't go anymore

[Whatthefluff]

That’s an easy way to damage your muscles. You gotta go in reps of maybe 10-15 a set and take 2-5 mins in between. I aim for about 3 reps per machine or motion and my arms have gained significantly in only 2 or 3 months. Start off with the 30 and do like 3 sets of 15 per movement. And gradually move up the weight.

[bingbongbangbung]

Lol I do take breaks; like 5-10 minutes between a set of 15 reps

[Whatthefluff]

Good

[bingbongbangbung]

So should I go up to 50 or 60? I've done 40 before and it's not that heavy. I'm limited to 30 at home and I don't feel like paying for a gym membership atm

[Whatthefluff]

I guess 50, 20lb might be too drastic not being used to it

[pascal_climbs]

Adding muscle mass has little to do with weights, but with fatiguing the muscle to failure.

[bingbongbangbung]

You look young for a 34 year old if that really is you

[pascal_climbs]

My grandparents became over 100, so I have good genetic structure :P

[bingbongbangbung]

Yeah you look like you're a decade younger 😂

[Sonorous]

All I'm gonna say is that the recent studies support that the bulk of muscle comes from short & intense training sessions. Not so intense to where you can't recover quickly & not so brief to where you aren't able to complete the adequate amount of sets & reps.

[Anonymous]

Nothing made my arms bigger than when I started doing isometric static lifts. After 20 seconds they burned and my forearms grew. For big arms you want to focus on the triceps. Everyone always talks about lifting weights but isometric static lifts for 20-30+ seconds in 3x sets are superior because they activate muscle fibers dynamic lifts can't reach. Thus you should either build your own Isochain or buy one.

[ImHere22]

You should really talk with a personal trainer, not the InterWeb; the trainer can give you... personal training advice. Also, don't skip leg day.

[bingbongbangbung]

My calves are like roughly 3x bigger than my arms, while my thighs are approximately 7x bigger than my arms lol

[Billlewis]

Use 25-40 pound dumbells for curls, shoulder lifts, etc. dips are also helpful.

[bingbongbangbung]

I highly doubt 40lbs is gonna increase my arms to be as thick as my calves. My arms are 2.5 inches across at the wrist, 5 inches across at the forearm, and 4 inches across at the backarm (?). The wrist is only like 0.8 inches deep, forearm is 3 inches deep, and backarm (?) is 4 inches deep/high. There are literally teenage girls with bigger arms than me 😭