Thread: I've hit the wall

Gaining wieght is usually related to your diet. Post your diet and I'm sure many members will be happy to help.

Originally Posted by Work IN Progress

I train my butt off 4 sometimes 5 days a week in the gym.
I haven't gained a pound or gone up a pound in weight on anything in months.
I know this happens and you have to push through it but I could use some motivation since I train alone. Believe me its not for a lack of trying. I eat plenty of calories and the only time i dont eat clean foods is on the weekend usually. Any tips. Should I change the methods of the way I train.

You think the iron in the gym will somehow magically transmit some of its weight to you and make YOU heavier?

I know how frustrating this can be. I also know this is 100% your diet. There's really only one way to gain weight: eat more. Even on gear, you don't eat more, you don't gain.

How many calories are you consuming? FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal <- enter a typical "day" and get back with your calories; grams pro cho fat.

stats and diet

Originally Posted by Built

You think the iron in the gym will somehow magically transmit some of its weight to you and make YOU heavier?

I know how frustrating this can be. I also know this is 100% your diet. There's really only one way to gain weight: eat more. Even on gear, you don't eat more, you don't gain.

How many calories are you consuming? FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal <- enter a typical "day" and get back with your calories; grams pro cho fat.

^^^^^^ This. ^^^^^^

29 years old
Training heavily for the last 12 months before that I took time off and got soft and weak
Almost 5'7"
178 Lbs after a piss in the morning
Don't know body fat but im not chubby so it cant be that high
Breakfast is the same everyday
8 egg whites 1 yellow 1 bowl oatmeal This never changes
2 protien shakes minimum Sometimes 3 if im hungry and its too late to eat
Creatine Glutamine in the shakes
Depends on lunch. Sometimes I make chicken sometimes I make burgers Sometimes I Have a Turkey sandwich. Fruit everyday with lunch and most days I eat plain steamed rice. I make enough for two meals so I have it for dinner too
For Dinner is a protien just depends what im in the mood for. Chix Fish Red Meat
I dont eat much pork product cuz i have cholesterol issues but i take meds for it and Flaxseed everyday Some Veggie for dinner and a Carb Rice or Noodle or Baked potato
Skim Milk with every meal 10 oz at least.
Weekends are my downfall. I eat a lot more dirty food Pizza Wings Beer but my calories are still there just a little less Protien
Its not adding up. Im 3000 cals or over everyday Always close to two g's protien per lb body weight Maybe I need more carbs.

I also dont sleep great. 5-6 hours at night
sometimes I have a nap before the gym Depends

I cycled twice once in the spring Once in the summer and kept 25 lbs also on basically the same diet
Been off gear for months now

I can tell you right now you are not eating enough in general but definitely not enough carbs. too keep the body in an anabolic state you need to keep insulin levels low and stable. proteins and fats cause the lowest increase in serum insulin levels after feeding so it's essential to consume some carbs with just about every meal. typical bulking macros are close to 30% protein, 50% carbs and 20% fats. increase your cals by 10% each week, everyone gains weight with a high enough caloric intake.

resistance training only provides the necessary stimulus for growth the diet provides the calories and actual bodybuilding blocks through the various nutrients that it should provide.

Originally Posted by LAM

I can tell you right now you are not eating enough in general but definitely not enough carbs. too keep the body in an anabolic state you need to keep insulin levels low and stable. proteins and fats cause the lowest increase in serum insulin levels after feeding so it's essential to consume some carbs with just about every meal. t... [clip]....

um... I don't understand this at all.

Originally Posted by Work IN Progress

29 years old
Training heavily for the last 12 months before that I took time off and got soft and weak
Almost 5'7"
178 Lbs after a piss in the morning
Don't know body fat but im not chubby so it cant be that high
Breakfast is the same everyday
8 egg whites 1 yellow 1 bowl oatmeal This never changes
2 protien shakes minimum Sometimes 3 if im hungry and its too late to eat
Creatine Glutamine in the shakes
Depends on lunch. Sometimes I make chicken sometimes I make burgers Sometimes I Have a Turkey sandwich. Fruit everyday with lunch and most days I eat plain steamed rice. I make enough for two meals so I have it for dinner too
For Dinner is a protien just depends what im in the mood for. Chix Fish Red Meat
I dont eat much pork product cuz i have cholesterol issues but i take meds for it and Flaxseed everyday Some Veggie for dinner and a Carb Rice or Noodle or Baked potato
Skim Milk with every meal 10 oz at least.
Weekends are my downfall. I eat a lot more dirty food Pizza Wings Beer but my calories are still there just a little less Protien
Its not adding up. Im 3000 cals or over everyday Always close to two g's protien per lb body weight Maybe I need more carbs.

At 180 lbs, 3000 cals should be maintenance for you. I don't know why you only eat the whites of the eggs - the yolks are more nourishing, higher in calories and full of healthy, natural, testosterone-boosting fat. Pork tenderloin btw is a very low-fat meat.

Cholesterol is more a product of gear-use and high fructose consumption/insulin resistance than it is dietary cholesterol or fat.

You need to eat more.

When you say eat more, what would a typical day be for you built when your bulking ie what meals? think i have the same issue, i think i eat alot but perhaps i dont!

Thanks Fellas
I will up my carb intake but I dont know about the yolks
My doc would shoot me if he found out i was eating that many yolks a day

Anyways, I appreciate your guys time and interest in lending a hand Ill work on the eats

OH YEAH
My cholesterol was up before the gear use. Actually dont get blood work till March. I take simvastatin for it everyday so i should be covered. I should say I hope im covered. Who knows

Originally Posted by davegmb

When you say eat more, what would a typical day be for you built when your bulking ie what meals? think i have the same issue, i think i eat alot but perhaps i dont!

Just eat more. Track your intake, track your weight. If you don't gain, increase the calories any way you like.

Originally Posted by HeavyBomber

um... I don't understand this at all.

insulin is the most anabolic hormone that the body creates, that being the case keeping insulin levels low and stable through out the day is essential to the muscle and muscle recovery process. proteins and fats cause the least and lowest amounts of insulin to be secreted after feeding, that being the case the consumption of carbs with every meal along with those proteins and/or fats creates for a more anabolic meal in general.

Originally Posted by LAM

I can tell you right now you are not eating enough in general but definitely not enough carbs. too keep the body in an anabolic state you need to keep insulin levels low and stable. proteins and fats cause the lowest increase in serum insulin levels after feeding so it's essential to consume some carbs with just about every meal.

I don't see why you'd think it was essential to consume a non-essential macronutrient with each and every meal.

Originally Posted by LAM

typical bulking macros are close to 30% protein, 50% carbs and 20% fats. increase your cals by 10% each week, everyone gains weight with a high enough caloric intake.

Nor do I espouse a "ratio" approach to dieting. Surely we've learned more than this by now?

Originally Posted by LAM

insulin is the most anabolic hormone that the body creates, that being the case keeping insulin levels low and stable through out the day is essential to the muscle and muscle recovery process.

Okay, here ^ you say you want insulin low...

Originally Posted by LAM

proteins and fats cause the least and lowest amounts of insulin to be secreted after feeding, that being the case the consumption of carbs with every meal along with those proteins and/or fats creates for a more anabolic meal in general.

And then here ^ you say you want it high.

Which one do you mean? You want it low, or you want it high?

Originally Posted by Work IN Progress

I also dont sleep great. 5-6 hours at night
sometimes I have a nap before the gym Depends

That is another problem. When you train your body needs to recover and that happens when you eat and sleep.Unfortunatly, many people don't realize the importance of sleeping.

Nothin I can do about the sleep. I sleep when Im tired. If im tossing and turning it dosent help my cause.

Melatonin. I cannot speak highly enough about it.

Originally Posted by Built

I know how frustrating this can be. I also know this is 100% your diet. There's really only one way to gain weight: eat more. Even on gear, you don't eat more, you don't gain.

Tren seemed to be an exception for me here :P

Originally Posted by Built

Cholesterol is more a product of gear-use and high fructose consumption/insulin resistance than it is dietary cholesterol or fat.

Great post ! Dietary cholesterol has little effect on serum cholesterol

Originally Posted by Built

I don't see why you'd think it was essential to consume a non-essential macronutrient with each and every meal.

Nor do I espouse a "ratio" approach to dieting. Surely we've learned more than this by now?


Okay, here ^ you say you want insulin low...

And then here ^ you say you want it high.

Which one do you mean? You want it low, or you want it high?

to be technical the brain only needs 5grams of glucose per hour to function normally per the Institute of Medicine, this comes out to roughly 130 grams of carbs daily.

personally I recommend a carbohydrate intake that is based on 2 main factors:

#1 the amount of LBM of the individual. science and common sense tells us that the body of a person with 10% body fat will partition nutrients differently than another at 20% body fat.

#2 the amount of high intensity exercise that they participate in. persons that are sedentary or partake in low intensity do not need a high carb intake

so I guess I still believe in ratios to a certain extent

The ratio approach falls apart as soon as you have the need to bulk (MUCH easier to remain nitrogen-positive) or cut (you need more protein while cutting than bulking). Best to target your needs to LBM than to total calories for this reason.

I went almost a year eating less than 130g in a week. I must be dead!

Im gonna check out that FitDay and see where im at.
Thanks for the input

You bet - post up your macros (the numbers beside the "pie chart") when you've got a typical-ish looking day in there.

Originally Posted by Work IN Progress

Nothin I can do about the sleep. I sleep when Im tired. If im tossing and turning it dosent help my cause.

If you have health insurance go for a sleep study if it covers one.

Originally Posted by Built

Cholesterol is more a product of gear-use and high fructose consumption

Interesting. Do you have any studies I could read to further understand this? Would love to know the connection between fructose and blood cholesterol.

Metabolic effects of dietary fructose in healthy subjects — Am J Clin Nutr

Originally Posted by Built

T
I went almost a year eating less than 130g in a week. I must be dead!

that number corresponds with the average amount of glucose circulating in the body in mg/dL. have to remember energy conversion of proteins and fats contribute to this value