Rob Regalia III

Changing his workouts, diet and supplement regimen allowed this hardgainer to pack on serious size.

Written By Jim Stoppani, PhD

Updated September 28, 2023

Written by Rob Regalia III

Throughout my life, I’ve always been on the skinny side, around 125 pounds. I was always active and ate consistently, but could never pack on any weight. In 2011, I decided to start working out to build my strength. From that point on, my goal was to build strength and pack on size. A friend showed me around the gym one day – I didn’t realize how much I’d love working out until I stepped foot into the gym.

As I began working out more, I gained a few pounds. I started taking supplements to enhance and recover from my workouts. Along with supplements, I started eating about 5-6 times a day. After a year of this, I gained about 25 pounds of muscle. But I didn’t stop there: I started doing research on lifts and I experimented with deadlifts, bent-over rows and weighted dips, all of which helped me gain strength and size.

During my research, I came across Jim Stoppani and his passion for working out. I started following his program Shortcut to Size and pushed myself for maximum effectiveness, along with eating a proper diet. Jim taught me that diet plays a huge factor in gaining strength and lean muscle. I started eating more healthy fats, more lean protein and drinking at least two protein shakes a day. You have to live a little, so I allow myself a cheat meal at least once a week.

When it comes to supplements, I tried a lot of pre-workouts and none seemed to work until I discovered Pre JYM. The same with protein powders; I didn’t notice any significant strength or mass gains until I bought my first tub of Pro JYM. After that, I bought the JYM System. To this day, I’m taking Pre JYM, Pro JYM, Post JYM, Vita JYM, Omega JYM, Shred JYM and ZMA JYM and couldn’t be happier with the results. It pays to be educated!

My motivation came from my longtime family friend, Duen. I look up to him because he’s always the hardest worker, in and out of the gym. He showed me training techniques and what to train throughout the week. He’s actually my coworker as well, so every time I see him I’m inspired to maintain and improve my physique. He suggested I make changes in my diet, so that’s what I did. I began to eat more whole foods, protein and carbs along with regular training. From that point on, I made an effort to start working out five times a week and eating well throughout the week.

Success didn’t come easy for me because I had trouble putting on weight. I learned more of what to eat and what exercises to do in order to gain, which was my ultimate goal. Through any journey, there are obstacles: Mine is stress. Whenever I felt stressed, I noticed a decrease in muscle mass. Over time, I managed to control it by staying focused on my diet and workouts. What helped with stress was the great and positive feedback I was getting from family and friends. They noticed my muscle mass increasing, which was a confidence boost. People who haven’t seen me in years, or even since last year, notice I have put in my time at the gym. No matter how many compliments I receive, I stay humble. I’m still the same person I was four years ago, just with an added 80 pounds of muscle.

The best advice I can give someone trying to build mass, increase strength or get in shape is to make the decision to start living a healthy lifestyle and commit to it. First start with eating 5-6 meals a day of high-quality protein meals. Also, train with the JYM System. They’re all solid products that enhance your workouts and results. Lastly, enjoy the process of working out, eating right and living life. This is the only one we get, so make it count! #JymPowered!

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