Hi friends, I am very weak looking in my physical appearance. I have tried a lot to make my body get a good built up; including a healthy diet plan and tough work out sessions, but did not get any satisfactory results. Does anyone know the best way to get out of this skinny looks?

I've seldom seen weight lifting fail to increase muscle size, and if you're already skinny, you're one of the lucky ones. It's a lot easier to go from skinny to attractive than it is to go from fat to attractive.

What I *have* seen happen in the gym is unrealistic expectations from weight lifting. People put too little weight on the bar and go through the motions, and after a few weeks, give up and claim it doesn't work for them.

Countless studies have found that even people in their 80s and older still gain muscle mass from weight training much as people in their 20s do.

The target is to lift enough weight so that your muscles "burn" by the time you've completed your reps. This is usually in the ballpark of lifting 80% of your maximum lift capacity for about 8 reps. If you can lift more than 10 or 12 reps, you need to add more weight to the bar. Fewer than 6, and you've got too much weight on the bar. It's an iterative process, but a forgiving one. If you're feeling the burn, you're gaining muscle mass.

Another rookie error is getting too zealous, and working out more than three times a week. Your muscles get bigger as a result of the healing process that takes place on the days you *don't* lift. If you lift 7 days per week, you'll actually *lose* muscle mass. (For those who aren't skinny, but have a too-big butt, this is how you get rid of it - 7 days a week, 40% of your max-lift capacity, and 40+ reps per day. Not fun, but it works.)

And I don't know one way or the other about copper's importance, but I do know that most Americans (and most Europeans) don't get enough Vitamin D. The Recommended Daily Allowance is about 1/4th what it should be. It was selected to prevent rickets, not maximize your health. Take at least 1000IU/day (or get a half-hour's worth of sunshine with your shirt off). At that level, Vitamin D not only strengthens bones and muscles, it helps prevent cancer, which is the *real* benefit.

So don't overdo it, and don't give up. You'll see real improvements within 6 weeks. If not, get back to us.

And it should go without saying that you need to avoid all forms of steroids, unless you're hoping for an early death.