Many guys want to build muscle, but they pack themselves into gyms without any real knowledge of what they're doing.  A few weeks or months pass by and they don't see any real difference, so they give up and stop.  This is the story of many men who were looking to gain weight but just didn't know how to do it.  If you don't go into the gym with a plan, then you're not going to come out of it with much.  You'll need to educate yourself on the art of weight lifting and learn how to make the muscle building plan if you want to gain real mass.

The first thing you need to know about planning your workouts is that you'll want to split your body parts up.  This makes it so that you can get the most rest per bodypart but still workout several times a week.  I prefer to do a 3-day split that has legs every day, and then shoulders, traps, and biceps on Monday; chest and triceps on Wednesdays; lats, spinal erectors, and abs on Fridays.  This ensures that I work every important part of my body and get the most out of doing it.

Now that you know how to make a split, you'll need to know what exercises to choose.  For most beginners, I recommend using a weight lifting plan that includes a lot of compound lifts.  These are generally lifts that are easier to complete with good form and also put the most stress on the largest muscles in the body.  Examples of compound lifts are the bench press, squat, and deadlift.  All of these exercises will help you build a tremendous amount of mass and are great for beginners.

While having a plan at the gym is important, you also have to realize that bodybuilding doesn't stop there.  If you want to gain real muscle, you'll need to eat like someone that does.  I recommend eating more than 3,000 calories a day, especially if you're a skinnier guy.  This will ensure that you get enough nutrients to replenish your muscles and build them up the way you want them.  While you should be making sure you get enough calories, you'll also want about a gram of protein per pound of bodyweight, as a general rule.  With that in mind, you can usually get away with 100-150g of protein - after that, you won't see much of a difference.

Remember to plan everything out and have a set goal for yourself.  If you have no goals or methods, then it's unlikely that you'll go far in the world of bodybuilding.  Just make sure you do plenty of research and avoid machine circuits at all costs!