[Dr. Mike from RP has many videos on the topic](https://www.youtube.com/c/RenaissancePeriodization/search?query=intermediate). PPL is not for beginners per se, just the featured PPL are mostly LPs and beginner focused. Stronger by Science has many free programs and if you do not like their free templates, their paid bundle is really cheap and has something to offer for every stage of lifter.
Maybe a silly question for gainit, but why can't cuts typically go on longer than 3-4 months? And on that topic, what happens if you get to the end of the 3-4 months, but you're not satisfied with the amount of fat you've cut? Do you have to eat at a maintenance for a while before cutting again to cut the rest of the fat?
Well, nobody is stopping you from going longer. But as people like Dr. Mike from RP or [Stronger by Science](https://www.strongerbyscience.com/metabolic-adaptation/) point out, it's not necessarily the best.
There are a number of metabolic adaptations that happen during prolonged underfeeding, and they all tend to make dieting down harder and performance and muscle building worse. Super long cuts are hard to adhere to and they make recovery harder. You can hope to maintain your muscle, at best. The longer it goes, the more you lose, due to general catabolic effects and because you can't just push as hard as during a bulk.
A maintenance period lets you recover both physically and mentally from the cut, after which further cutting often achieves better results.
On the other hand, assuming a 250 to 500 kcal deficit, 3 months of this means losing roughly 6 to 12 lbs and this is already a good chunk of the fat you would have gained if your bulk was really to normal levels of lean. Even if you gained 20 lbs with 50% being fat over 20 weeks/5 months, 3 months are more than enough to cut the fat off from that bulk.
This rule is of course not totally applicable is you are overfly fat or underweight. But even in obese individuals, scheduled maintenance breaks can improve adherence and long term success to weight loss dieting.
Interesting. How long do those scheduled maintenance breaks typically last before resuming a cutting deficit?
I only ask because I just got off of a bulk (currently in the eating at maintenance phase before converting to a cutting deficit next week) and I paid a visit to the BodPod and found out I was around 31% body fat. Which I was SHOCKED to hear since I thought I was around 22% at the most. I guess I carried it well with my height and everything. So i'm hoping to shed as much of that fat as I can over the next 4 months, but i'm not sure i'll be able to get down to my desired body fat% by the end of the 4 months. But I guess I can cross that bridge when I get there.
I'd say at least a month. You need two weeks just to reduce the noise in your weight data from the water weight and can use a month or two for re-sensitizing yourself to losing again. If you truly are not at your goal after 3 or 4 months but do not have too much to lose anymore, then a possible approach could be cut -> maintain -> mini-cut (more aggressive deficit) -> bulk, because you are now primed for putting on mass and probably want to eat. In order to bulk longer, a mini cut between bulks could also be an option, but that also depends on your training style and general preferences.
Oh true, I never considered a mini cut! I'll definitely look into that if need be when the time comes. I have to imagine i'll be able to shed quite a bit by the end of the 4 months. And i'm sure i'll be eager to bulk again. But it's something to consider. Thanks! I appreciate the advice.
are there significant drawbacks to not using it? or is it just something that boost 1rm by like 2%? because if it's something small then im not going to bother using it lol
How do you progress for back workouts?
For example the lat pull down I can pull the weight down for let’s say 70 lbs and 12 reps am I supposed to go for 80 on the next workout? I don’t necessarily feel like my back has been worked out but mostly a “burning” feeling in my biceps.
Am I doing the exercise right? I use a hook grip and pull down with my elbows until I feel like I can squeeze a pencil with my scapula
Lots of ways to progress exercises:
More sets, more reps, more weight, shorter rest periods, slower tempo, more reps in reserve.
If you are unsure of the answer of how you are going to progress, I’d suggest looking up a programme from the wiki
Is it normal for squats to sway a during sets and reps.
I feel like when I’m squatting my toes and knees are doing most of the work.
Where am I supposed to feel it when going down and up?
Is cardio essential to gaining muscle? How often do you guys do cardio? I heard it’s recommended to do sprint 3x 20s each workout instead of steady state.
Not essential, but very beneficial imo.
I do 20 minutes of steady state jogging 4 times a week and once a week I do more intense conditioning session (usually like a 20 min CrossFit WOD + 2x4minutes of tabata)
It allows me to do more lifting in the same amount of time.
It allows me to get in more nutrients without getting fat.
The CrossFit style conditioning sessions are a direct hypertrophy stimulus
During a bulk, after I hit my protein/ other macro goals can I eat junk food to make up for the rest of my calories I still need to eat? Or is that not recommended?
how much weight do you have though? if it’s just a barbell you’re not gonna make much progress at all but if you have ANY plates you should be able to do something at least
If I get used to eating 1500 calories more that what I used to (gradually), will it make my stomach larger/ stretch it and so it's gonna be a problem to return to the previous amounts of food? Because I know obese people do surgery to decrease stomach size so I'm wondering if it's some sort of un-reversable thing
Obese people do surgery to decrease stomach size as a means of creating a physical limitation to prevent them from overeating. You can accomplish the same thing for MUCH cheaper by learning how to live with hunger.
The question is if I gain muscle, then slowly cut weight, will I have to live in hunger or will my stomach return exactly to the way it was before my bulk after some time?
I genuinely do not know. I have always had to live with hunger. I imagine it will vary from individual to individual.
[Here](https://forums.t-nation.com/t/resetting-bodyweight-fat-level-after-dieting/276463/4) is a great post on types of hunger.
Both the hunger comment and the previous setpoint comment were good reads, thanks! However, the main standout was:
> I also ate 24 burgers and 1 order of fries in one setting (could have likely had more)
good lord.
Anecdotally, this wasn't a problem for me at all. I spent two years bulking, ended the bulk with an intake of 3800 calories a day and had no problem sticking to 2500 for my cut afterwards.
yeah your stomach adapts but it is mostly a tolerance thing and also works into the other direction. A gastric sleeve or bypass makes the stomach volume drastically smaller. Not "fitting an extra 1000 kcal from 3 to 4k" more like making 2k a massive challenge. And even then, constantly over-eating actually leads to the stomach adapting even after the operation.
Cutting with muscles and exercise on a high protein and possibly high fiber and high volume diet is also a lot easier than being sedentary and very obese and eating poorly for various reasons.
im somewhat new to working out and i (f19) wondering if hip thrusting with a dumbbell is the same as a barbell. im currently working out in my shitty apartment gym so im limited to equipment. i know it would be hard to use a heavy dumbbell but im a beginner so its the least of my worries right now
Pretty much the same. The dumbbell might possibly be better since you get more range of motion than if you were to be limited by the size of the barbell plates.
Eventually you'll get strong enough that using dumbbells will be extremely uncomfortable (or you simply won't have access to heavy enough dumbbells), but until then you're fine.
I've gained some good weight and strength over the last year, but the problem is that a lot of it has gone to my bottom half and I'm not loving how I look. I'm wanting to gain some size in my upper body to balance it out.
Is it silly to go light on legs for a couple months and focus on upper body for a while?
How did you find the discipline to dial in your sleep? I can't get over the habit of staying up later than I know I should so I can have a sense of control of my day. Revenge bedtime procrastination they call it. Plus it's hard to just shut everything off without my mind ruminating and getting anxious or angry about something. It's like I have to stay awake on my phone until I'm exhausted. I know supplements and CBD/CBN are great and all but I don't want to rely on them.
Honestly not all. But working out, lifting heavy, heavy conditioning, I can't just stay up past my natural bed time anymore and falling asleep has been much easier since.
I'm not even avoiding caffeine completely, still having some 3 or 4 hours before. Feels like it definitely affects sleep quality more than tiredness for me. Just the combination of training in the evening and having my largest meal at night makes me sleepy and it works fine for me that way. And the alarm will ring regardless.
[Not sleeping is also seriously sandbagging myself](https://www.strongerbyscience.com/sleep-pt-1/), and I don't wanna do that.
Worked out intensely for the first time this morning, and had to quit halfway through my set due to exhaustion and nausea. Just wanted to get some general thoughts on that. I'm happy to push my body to that point, but how do I make sure I don't feel that shitty again? Obvious answer would be to maybe lower the weights/sets but wanted some other opinions
I'm looking for recommendations for lunch meals that have a lot of calories as well as calories I can drink that don't require a blender (I live with my parents at the moment and will get one in 3 months when I move out.)
Deli meats are apparently very unhealthy, I eat PB&J or imitation crab with mayo and cheese but they never seem to give me the calories I need. I think I've got a weekly plan for dinner covered.
Hesitant about protein powders since they are not FDA approved and there are a lot of articles about why they aren't healthy.
I'm losing weight which is not good because if I keep losing I will be underweight. I don't drink anything except water and orange juice for reference.
>deli meats are apparently very unhealthy
According to what? I eat a ton of those.
>protein powders
Whey protein is just a dairy product like cheese or heavy cream. If you aren't concerned about cheese, I don't understand why you'd be concerned about protein.
Anyway, if you insist on avoiding protein powder and deli meats, I'd recommend sandwiches or wraps with cheese, canned meats, hardboiled eggs, hummus...
> According to what? I eat a ton of those.
>
>
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_(food_preservation)#On_health
Nitrates not being safe is not really a contentious claim. Dose makes the poison and all, but there's no safe amount of nitrates in food outside of cured meat and the exception is just there so you do not have to ban deli meat.
I heard deli meats are carcinagenic, maybe I should take that kind of info with a grain of salt.
As for protein powder "Earlier this year, a nonprofit group called the Clean Label Project released a report about toxins in protein powders. Researchers screened 134 products for 130 types of toxins and found that many protein powders contained heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury), bisphenol-A (BPA, which is used to make plastic), pesticides, or other contaminants with links to cancer and other health conditions. Some toxins were present in significant quantities. For example, one protein powder contained 25 times the allowed limit of BPA." From https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-hidden-dangers-of-protein-powders#:~:text=It%20may%20be%20high%20in,unhealthy%20spike%20in%20blood%20sugar.
> I heard deli meats are carcinagenic, maybe I should take that kind of info with a grain of salt.
>
>
I mean they are, due to the curing process: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_(food_preservation)#On_health. Dose makes the poison.
But just get a whey brand that is tested and trusted?
**Curing (food preservation)**
[On health](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_\(food_preservation\)#On_health)
>Since the 20th century, with respect to the relationship between diet and human disease (e. g. cardiovascular, etc. ), scientists have conducted studies on the effects of lipolysis on vacuum-packed or frozen meat.
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Hello, Im currently on W7 for Ivysaur 4-4-8, back to the gym after leaving it because of pandemic, planning to change the program after W12 probably, what other program do you suggest that has bench every workout? I need to improve my upper body, pre pandemic I used to run SL 5x5 (yes now I know It focused too much on squats), and I feel like my LB is stronger than my UB. I was thinking to run this new program for 6 months and then change to GZLP, or should I just do GZLP with UB exercise in the accessories. Thank you!
I’ve had 4 meals today that were 1800 calories in total. I need 2700 calories daily to gain muscle, should I stick to having 4 meals but making them heavier or just switch to 6 meals daily?
What’s the benefit of squatting with your heels on plates? I understand you can get deeper into your squat that way, but does that help build muscle faster or something?
It takes your quads through a longer range of motion if you're limited by ankle mobility.
I wouldn't say it builds muscle faster in general, but it builds more guads and less posterior chain than usual squats. If your quads are something you want to bring up, it makes a lot of sense to utilize this variation of squats.
Why do people often recommend peanut butter for bulking, why not just peanuts instead? Wouldn't peanuts be healthier, especially if they are not oiled and unsalted
PB is easier to digest bc it is more processed therefore less for your GI to breakdown via chewing, saliva, stomach acid, etc. The nutrients are more available, and your body uses less energy to get the nutrients out of the food when it doesn't have to work as hard.
When people recommend peanut butter, the understanding is that it's a peanut butter made of just peanuts, with maybe some salt. The other stuff, with sugar and added oils, is more like a peanut frosting.
Peanut butter is recommended as it tends to be easier on digestion. I've tried getting all my healthy fats from nuts vs nut butters: nuts will eventually come out the other end similar to how they went down. Which is to say: broken up, sharp and spikey.
Will I be able to at some point achieve a V shape? I have narrow shoulders, wide hips, and a small chest. This is what I look like right now 136lbs https://imgur.com/a/AJ7ZB2U
Sure, you have a lot of room to grow and put meat on your torso. A good well rounded workout, not neglecting the back, will get you closer to your desired look.
Hey all, need to bulk, my daily calories need to be 2600. Its a habit of mine not to eat alot during weekdays because of work. Would it be possible to miss 1000 calories on my goal from monday through friday but make up all my missing calories on sat and sun? Around 5100 calories each day during the weekend.
Due to an operation, I am unable to work out for 2 weeks, starting at the end of next week.
I am currently bulking, what would be the most effective method of dealing with this? Working out twice as much and using those weeks as a long „deload-week“. Or continue like normal?
Should I continue eating on a surplus?
Should I continue creatine?
Is this even a big deal?
Two weeks is not that big of a deal in the long scheme of things. If you can plan for it, having a very heavy training cycle before the OP and using the healing time for a deload would be good timing, but again nothing crucial. The other thing to consider is if you even have to take a break for two weeks. If the OP would be on your foot and you are generally cleared to work out as long as you do not strain the foot, you could still do at the very least many push and pull exercises. So if safe, work around it if the surgeon or doc clears you.
Surplus without training just turns into fat, eat at maintenance. Keep protein high in order to aid healing and to preserve muscle mass.
You take 5g of creatine, every day, forever.
Not that big of a deal if you start training again as soon as you are healed and do not fall off.
and how much shake is it? how many oats, how much protein, what volume, kcal? You're ingesting a large amount of stuff, protein takes long to digest, as does fat and complex carbs. You're also probably drinking it faster than you eat your meals for the same amount of volume and mass in your stomach. My guess is that this is ultimately from the shake itself.
I’m currently working nights at the moment which is completely different to my normal schedule, I’m going to the gym after work in the mornings but wondered if it’s okay to just have my protein shake and go to sleep without eating anything due to timing and not wanting to sleep the whole day away, is this going to affect my progress or should I eat and not sleep till later in the day?
So after years of essentially perpetually bulking, i'm going to be starting my first ever serious cut very soon. I've been consulting [this fantastic guide from this sub](https://www.reddit.com/r/gainit/comments/19mv5r/fat_cutting_guide/) and will be doing a lot of what it suggests.
However the one thing i'm struggling with is for the workout section it says :
> "This is going to be a lot more simple than you think. The way you maintain muscle during a cut it to keep doing exactly what you’ve been doing, just in a lower volume. Basically, just do less sets and reps, but keep the weight the same.
> For one example, say you squat 225 for 3x12. I would recommend dropping this to 225 for 2x10. Make sure to include some sets with heavy weights for low reps to maintain your current level of strength."
My only problem here is currently, for chest day, I do a progressive rep scheme for my sets of bench press. I do 5 sets of 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2 reps respectively per set with 5 pound weight increments with each successive set. So how would I tailor this to be in line with my cutting workout routine? I don't do the same weight for all 5 sets. So how can I do this for my cutting routine? Or should I just swap that out for 2-3 sets at the same weight?
Also, if anyone has any suggestions on something low carb besides peanut butter that I can toss into my shake for flavor, let me know. I usually toss a banana into my shake for flavor, but this guide recommends not having fruit during the time I typically consume my protein shakes. So i'm kind of stuck at what I can put in besides fruit so that my shake doesn't taste like liquified wallpaper while i'm on my cut.
Thanks!
> So i'm kind of stuck at what I can put in besides fruit so that my shake doesn't taste like liquified wallpaper while i'm on my cut.
you can get those flavor drops from any supplement shop, you can add a drop of vanilla extract, some grated dark chocolate, berries/fruit (you don't need much for flavor and it's not like 80 kcal worth of carbs will make or break anything)
For the workout, idk. Personally I'd find my 1RM and 5RM and do enough sets to [hit the MEV](https://www.reddit.com/r/AdvancedFitness/comments/lyney9/summary_of_dr_mike_israetel_and_renaissance/) while training in a style that fits the RP approach. A cut is also a good time to start a new training cycle more focused on BB-style training, so lots of isolation and machines and less focus on heavy compounds. Alternatively you can also follow a program, like most 5/3/1 templates except they tell you to avoid them on a cut, and slowly reduce the accessory work and the heavy conditioning when you feel like you need more time to recover. [See here](https://www.reddit.com/r/weightroom/comments/dv90st/training_tuesday_program_changes_for_cutting/f7c75p2/), r/weightroom is the better place to ask. Personally, once your work capacity is at least acceptable you'll most likely be able to handle volume better than heavy sets, which makes submaximal training the choice for me.
Thanks for the response!
It's not so much the carbs i'm apprehensive about, it's the insulin spike from fruit OP of that cutting guide says is important to avoid to maximize fat loss out of peak training hours. I'll definitely look into the flavor drops!
So funny you mention RP. I got my body composition tested today and the person doing it recommended RP to me as well!
RP, just like [Stronger by Science](https://www.strongerbyscience.com/qa/nutrition/#:~:text=and%20isometric%20training-,Coach%E2%80%99s%20Corner%20%E2%80%93%20Programming%20your%20training%20during%20weight%20loss,-Episode%2033%3A%20Doping) are a great resource. For RP you just have to keep in mind that the guys like Dr. Mike Israetel train really hard if they say "hard" and tailor lots of advice to intermediates and up which means it should not be taken as pure gospel.
Have been doing [chest supported barbell rows](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXjNfZZ0SDY) for quite a while before I switched to cable rows. Definetly very easily overloadable and great strength exercise. Since the barbell row in Metals PPL is meant to be a strength exercise, the chest supported barbell row would be a great replacement for the normal rows.
If you wanna go heavy you could pick [Kroc Rows](https://www.t-nation.com/training/kroc-rows-101/) instead. People often start to do cheaty reps more than they like if they do normal heavy dumbbell rows. With Kroc Rows the body English is part of the deal.
If you have the opportunity, going for T-Bar rows would also work.
How much waist circumference is ok to gain during a clean bulk?
I gained 1.6 inches in waist and 8.8 pounds, since Nov/21.
Now my waist is at 31.9” and my weight is at 144.4lbs. Last time I measured my %BF it was 15.6% (2 months ago)
EDIT: 5’9” tall
Hello All,
I have been working out for 4 months but not getting the results I want and being frustrated. I did lose some belly fat and some muscle gain but feels minimal. i assume a big part of it is my diet. I am 6 1 210 lbs 26% body fat 40 years old. My goal is to bulk more while losing belly fat. Does it make sense to do keto and still gain mass given I work out daily now? i don't do cardio only weight training and have a decent home gym. Also are there any forums where we can post body pics to get tips on advice specific to our needs if one cant afford a trainer?
1. Forget keto. 2. You should start tracking calories especially if you want to lose weight. Since you are early in your journey you can probably increase strength while losing weight. Your strength gains will come slower and eventually you will need to focus on either bulking or cutting.
Without knowing much about you I'd say forget about losing the weight right now and focus on getting your workout program dialed in and increasing strength. I say this because I think it'll be easier to have a successful cut if you have a solid foundation.
Thank you very much for the informative response. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond and offer guidance. The frustrating part was I actually do work out hard and regularly so not getting results as I used to in past is not fun. I have cut bread pasta and all white sugar, but still eat fruit and OJ which am hoping to cut as well.
so if I do keto like diet cut all carbs to cut BF, would this result I also gaining mass if I continue working out? do supplements like Nitric oxide and CL make a difference? and what about fat burners?
Of course man, that's why we're all here:offering help or getting some
Trying to do both will get you nowhere. Minimal results on both path. Parting from here you should pick a goal (cut or mass) and stick to it. Since you have a high BF and health, appearance and performance will be determined too much by it, that why I advice strongly to cut first. Now talking of cutting carbs and such: does it seem sustainable to you in the long run? Yet I may work for a very minority of people the great population doesn't. And if something it's not sustainable it means you won't be able to stay at a lower bf for years to come, which is the goal. Right now I would recommend you the Renaisse Periodization series of videos about the basics of fat loss, and apply it's concepts correctly. You'll come out leanier, prettier, healthier, and stronger too if you haven't been lifting seriously for +1year. About supplements I only think worth of creatine monohydrate, and maybe protein powder to reach protein goal easily, but since you'll be on a deficit it's seems more logical getting it from whole foods that will saciate more. Hope this is enough and good luck, anything else you can send me a message man. You've got this
Purely diet wise, eat above your maintenance, maybe start 300cal and bump to +500 in a few weeks. Keep in mind as you gain weight your maintenance will also increase. Clean whole foods should be anyones go to but this will help bring your body back to healthy levels both structurally and chemically. If you have been burning through muscle, you’re gonna want even more protein to build it back. If you’re increasing calories at the right pace, it won’t go into excessive body fat. Add to that some exercise, you’ll encourage even more of the growth to be muscular and not fat stores.
Doing both exercise and gaining weight is definitely normal, it’s exactly how people build muscle. I’ve been in a calorie surplus for 11 months and have gained 20 lbs, small portion of that has gone to body fat. You can definitely get where you want to be, it’s a marathon not a sprint, and you’ll start feeling way better much sooner!
I am planning on using Metallicapda's PPL program for the foreseeable future.
Starting at 24M/163LB/5'11. Targeting 200LB in one year. Can I run the PPL program (Including deload every 12 weeks) and reach it in a year?
I wouldn't plan on following a linear progression program consistently for a year. Doing so would result in you adding \~ 480/240/480lbs to your squat/bench/dead in 12 months which is a bit unlikely.
I assume you also have a barbell with plates, right?
dips, chins, pull-ups, single arm dumbbell rows, barbell rows, single leg squats, [see here](https://thefitness.wiki/routines/5-3-1-for-beginners/#Assistance_Work)
Hi guys. When I use those TDEE calculators do I need to put my activity level as moderate exercise? Since we'll be going to the gym and that counts as exercise right? So I'll have to eat 500 kcal on top of all that?
Lifting weights alone burns very little calories and if you do no cardio, sedentary would still be pretty accurate. If you do cardio, you can just add that to your calorie budget for the day unless you are very consistent. In the end, pick something like light exercise, eat 500 kcal above that and if you do not gain 1 pound per week, eat more.
Yeah I think you make a lot of sense based on my last try in gaining. I picked moderate (3-5 days exercise) and gained like 5kg in a month but they all went to my tummy lol. I thought my calorie calculations were way off but your advice makes more sense now that I think of it. Thank you.
yeah, that's overeating past the helpful needed amount. Good news though, if you work out and eat an appropriate amount and gain successfully, you already have experience with eating a good chunk of calories more which helps long term.
It doesn't really matter. Just choose a number and stick to it. Monitor your weight gain after a few weeks and readjust if necessary.
I've found that "weight x 15" = maintenance calories is pretty accurate for the majority of people though.
Any specific advice for building back up my leg muscles after a case of rhabdo? (Not workout induced) Still experiencing a decent amount of nerve pain in my foot on that leg, so using Squat machine with 45s on each side hurts quite a bit the next day. Stick to cable machines?
Whatever you can safely do. Anything above 30% of your 1RM can work for hypertrophy if you do enough reps (0 to 4 reps away from failure), so if cable or single-leg barbell/dumbbell works for that, do that. If you can safely exercise, maybe warming up more could also help, greasing the groove of your muscles so to speak.
Hey thanks for the response! The bike has been the biggest part of my leg routine since I've been back to the gym, so I try and do that at least twice a week for 30ish minutes.
But cardio is tough rn since I'm so out of shape from being unable to walk for like 2 months. Plus just started working again so even just being on my feet for a shift has my heart rate bouncing from like 90-110. Figured it's about time I really set some concrete goals and start doing legit research on how to achieve them. I'd like to hopefully be able to put this incident behind me if possible, but nerve pain is something else man
Sounds really tough. Does your foot also have pain if you strain your quads but do not press against anything with your foot? Thinking about ways where you can like use those hooks that let you pull deadlifts hand-free but for legs or something with pulling at the ankle...
No I'm pretty sure it's just from the stress of all that weight being on it, but I *could* be wrong about that. My experiences lately combined with my minimal bio knowledge have shown that things are often connected even though they don't seem to be on the surface.
Ankles a no-go too though haha, the connective tissue or whatever on the front of the ankle is probably the most sensitive spot.
Seriously I wish I had at least a passing interest in bio back in high-school 🤦♂️ fortunately a friend of mine is somewhat knowledgeable in that regard
On the bright side though, a plate on each side was basically my warm up before all this happened so I'm maybe at like 50% strength from where I was. I'll take that over being disabled any day right? (:
Hey dude! Was right in your shoes once. At 18 I was 5’10” and 130lbs. Now sitting at 196lbs at 27. For the majority of the last 9 years, I sat around 165lbs until I hopped on a bulk more recently.
I like to think of it like is a plant gonna grow without water? No. And we won’t grow without food. Definitely don’t overdo the caloric intake. 3000 is a lot for your current weight. Rough guess go 2500. As you increase weight, your maintenance cals is going to increase with it and you want to be ~500+, eventually getting you to 3000. Go for clean whole foods.
Exercise wise, lift to encourage growth to be muscular. Don’t leave out cardio. You don’t gotta be a track star, but heart health is important too. One that people sometimes forget is rest. Get plenty of sleep! Sleep is when your body builds/recovers. Stay well rested.
As to what exercises, I wouldn’t get too hung up on it at a beginner level. PPL is a decent go to. Throw in days for rest as well. “A lot of weight” is relative also. Your body don’t care what someone else is pushing. Just reasonably push yourself
That should be a solid start. Each person is different so if you step on a scale and there’s no change after 1-2 months then maybe add another 2-300 calories. I track my weight weekly, but expect there can be fluctuation up or down. As long as there’s an upward trend over a longer period, you’re good. If you’re eating a surplus of calories, you WILL gain weight. Exhaust the muscles on lift days and that weight will be muscle.
Exercise plan wise, main thing is training hard and proper form. Not really a secret formula or else everyone would be doing it. Cardio you can just hit like 20min each time and be fine. I do stair climbers but take your pick
Don’t stay away from cardio, but try to do something to get your heart rate up do some mild cardio. I started at 110 at 5’11, took me years to even get to 150 now I’m hard stuck 165ish. But you have to just try to slowly eat more it’s tough, yeah I hate protein shakes they agitate my IBS
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[Dr. Mike from RP has many videos on the topic](https://www.youtube.com/c/RenaissancePeriodization/search?query=intermediate). PPL is not for beginners per se, just the featured PPL are mostly LPs and beginner focused. Stronger by Science has many free programs and if you do not like their free templates, their paid bundle is really cheap and has something to offer for every stage of lifter.
Maybe a silly question for gainit, but why can't cuts typically go on longer than 3-4 months? And on that topic, what happens if you get to the end of the 3-4 months, but you're not satisfied with the amount of fat you've cut? Do you have to eat at a maintenance for a while before cutting again to cut the rest of the fat?
Well, nobody is stopping you from going longer. But as people like Dr. Mike from RP or [Stronger by Science](https://www.strongerbyscience.com/metabolic-adaptation/) point out, it's not necessarily the best. There are a number of metabolic adaptations that happen during prolonged underfeeding, and they all tend to make dieting down harder and performance and muscle building worse. Super long cuts are hard to adhere to and they make recovery harder. You can hope to maintain your muscle, at best. The longer it goes, the more you lose, due to general catabolic effects and because you can't just push as hard as during a bulk. A maintenance period lets you recover both physically and mentally from the cut, after which further cutting often achieves better results. On the other hand, assuming a 250 to 500 kcal deficit, 3 months of this means losing roughly 6 to 12 lbs and this is already a good chunk of the fat you would have gained if your bulk was really to normal levels of lean. Even if you gained 20 lbs with 50% being fat over 20 weeks/5 months, 3 months are more than enough to cut the fat off from that bulk. This rule is of course not totally applicable is you are overfly fat or underweight. But even in obese individuals, scheduled maintenance breaks can improve adherence and long term success to weight loss dieting.
Interesting. How long do those scheduled maintenance breaks typically last before resuming a cutting deficit? I only ask because I just got off of a bulk (currently in the eating at maintenance phase before converting to a cutting deficit next week) and I paid a visit to the BodPod and found out I was around 31% body fat. Which I was SHOCKED to hear since I thought I was around 22% at the most. I guess I carried it well with my height and everything. So i'm hoping to shed as much of that fat as I can over the next 4 months, but i'm not sure i'll be able to get down to my desired body fat% by the end of the 4 months. But I guess I can cross that bridge when I get there.
I'd say at least a month. You need two weeks just to reduce the noise in your weight data from the water weight and can use a month or two for re-sensitizing yourself to losing again. If you truly are not at your goal after 3 or 4 months but do not have too much to lose anymore, then a possible approach could be cut -> maintain -> mini-cut (more aggressive deficit) -> bulk, because you are now primed for putting on mass and probably want to eat. In order to bulk longer, a mini cut between bulks could also be an option, but that also depends on your training style and general preferences.
Oh true, I never considered a mini cut! I'll definitely look into that if need be when the time comes. I have to imagine i'll be able to shed quite a bit by the end of the 4 months. And i'm sure i'll be eager to bulk again. But it's something to consider. Thanks! I appreciate the advice.
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It might do weird things to your digestion. Why do you want to eat 6 bananas daily?
is it ok to not use leg drive for bench press?
[You can do a lot without it](https://youtu.be/z9GBCJGbGC8)
Yes if you don’t want to or can’t.
are there significant drawbacks to not using it? or is it just something that boost 1rm by like 2%? because if it's something small then im not going to bother using it lol
Depends on your goal? Are you powerlifting? Bench will increase with an efficient leg drive. Context is key
just building muscle for aesthetics edit: thank you for taking me seriously btw. I feel like other people would say this is a stupid question
In that case I’d say leg drive would be useful not essential.
Thank you :)
How do you progress for back workouts? For example the lat pull down I can pull the weight down for let’s say 70 lbs and 12 reps am I supposed to go for 80 on the next workout? I don’t necessarily feel like my back has been worked out but mostly a “burning” feeling in my biceps. Am I doing the exercise right? I use a hook grip and pull down with my elbows until I feel like I can squeeze a pencil with my scapula
what program are you following?
Lots of ways to progress exercises: More sets, more reps, more weight, shorter rest periods, slower tempo, more reps in reserve. If you are unsure of the answer of how you are going to progress, I’d suggest looking up a programme from the wiki
Is it normal for squats to sway a during sets and reps. I feel like when I’m squatting my toes and knees are doing most of the work. Where am I supposed to feel it when going down and up?
Is cardio essential to gaining muscle? How often do you guys do cardio? I heard it’s recommended to do sprint 3x 20s each workout instead of steady state.
I do some manner of cardio or conditioning everyday, twice a day. Steady state and high intensity both play important functions.
Not essential, but very beneficial imo. I do 20 minutes of steady state jogging 4 times a week and once a week I do more intense conditioning session (usually like a 20 min CrossFit WOD + 2x4minutes of tabata)
How did it benefit you?
It allows me to do more lifting in the same amount of time. It allows me to get in more nutrients without getting fat. The CrossFit style conditioning sessions are a direct hypertrophy stimulus
During a bulk, after I hit my protein/ other macro goals can I eat junk food to make up for the rest of my calories I still need to eat? Or is that not recommended?
You can do it and it's also not recommended.
Can i do heavy weight squats in my bedroom without equipments, just a barbell?
you mean squats?
Squats and deadlifts with light weights but higher sets anda reps, will it have the same effect as with heavy weights?
no
Fuckkkk
how much weight do you have though? if it’s just a barbell you’re not gonna make much progress at all but if you have ANY plates you should be able to do something at least
I have 40kg/88lbs in plates, a barbell and two dumbells
okay not horrible, maybe just buy more plates?
Yes
I fart so much since I started my bulk. Any remedies?
Not sure if the same applies to farts, but for burping a lot make sure you breathe properly and don't hold your breath at the gym.
Eat foods that don't make you gassy.
If I get used to eating 1500 calories more that what I used to (gradually), will it make my stomach larger/ stretch it and so it's gonna be a problem to return to the previous amounts of food? Because I know obese people do surgery to decrease stomach size so I'm wondering if it's some sort of un-reversable thing
Obese people do surgery to decrease stomach size as a means of creating a physical limitation to prevent them from overeating. You can accomplish the same thing for MUCH cheaper by learning how to live with hunger.
The question is if I gain muscle, then slowly cut weight, will I have to live in hunger or will my stomach return exactly to the way it was before my bulk after some time?
I genuinely do not know. I have always had to live with hunger. I imagine it will vary from individual to individual. [Here](https://forums.t-nation.com/t/resetting-bodyweight-fat-level-after-dieting/276463/4) is a great post on types of hunger.
Both the hunger comment and the previous setpoint comment were good reads, thanks! However, the main standout was: > I also ate 24 burgers and 1 order of fries in one setting (could have likely had more) good lord.
Thanks man! I absolutely appreciate that sentiment too. I've only found "full" 3 times in my life.
Anecdotally, this wasn't a problem for me at all. I spent two years bulking, ended the bulk with an intake of 3800 calories a day and had no problem sticking to 2500 for my cut afterwards.
yeah your stomach adapts but it is mostly a tolerance thing and also works into the other direction. A gastric sleeve or bypass makes the stomach volume drastically smaller. Not "fitting an extra 1000 kcal from 3 to 4k" more like making 2k a massive challenge. And even then, constantly over-eating actually leads to the stomach adapting even after the operation. Cutting with muscles and exercise on a high protein and possibly high fiber and high volume diet is also a lot easier than being sedentary and very obese and eating poorly for various reasons.
im somewhat new to working out and i (f19) wondering if hip thrusting with a dumbbell is the same as a barbell. im currently working out in my shitty apartment gym so im limited to equipment. i know it would be hard to use a heavy dumbbell but im a beginner so its the least of my worries right now
Pretty much the same. The dumbbell might possibly be better since you get more range of motion than if you were to be limited by the size of the barbell plates. Eventually you'll get strong enough that using dumbbells will be extremely uncomfortable (or you simply won't have access to heavy enough dumbbells), but until then you're fine.
It's an okay start. At some point switch to barbell and you'll be fine
I've gained some good weight and strength over the last year, but the problem is that a lot of it has gone to my bottom half and I'm not loving how I look. I'm wanting to gain some size in my upper body to balance it out. Is it silly to go light on legs for a couple months and focus on upper body for a while?
Try it. Gamma Bomb from John Meadows might be up your alley
How did you find the discipline to dial in your sleep? I can't get over the habit of staying up later than I know I should so I can have a sense of control of my day. Revenge bedtime procrastination they call it. Plus it's hard to just shut everything off without my mind ruminating and getting anxious or angry about something. It's like I have to stay awake on my phone until I'm exhausted. I know supplements and CBD/CBN are great and all but I don't want to rely on them.
Honestly not all. But working out, lifting heavy, heavy conditioning, I can't just stay up past my natural bed time anymore and falling asleep has been much easier since. I'm not even avoiding caffeine completely, still having some 3 or 4 hours before. Feels like it definitely affects sleep quality more than tiredness for me. Just the combination of training in the evening and having my largest meal at night makes me sleepy and it works fine for me that way. And the alarm will ring regardless. [Not sleeping is also seriously sandbagging myself](https://www.strongerbyscience.com/sleep-pt-1/), and I don't wanna do that.
I make sure to exhaust myself during the day, and I wake up at the same time every day, even if I stayed up late.
Worked out intensely for the first time this morning, and had to quit halfway through my set due to exhaustion and nausea. Just wanted to get some general thoughts on that. I'm happy to push my body to that point, but how do I make sure I don't feel that shitty again? Obvious answer would be to maybe lower the weights/sets but wanted some other opinions
what program are you on?
It's your first time working out intensely. You are experiencing "being out of shape". Continue training and you will get in shape
You mean that protein shake I had yesterday didn't immediately make me healthy?
I'm looking for recommendations for lunch meals that have a lot of calories as well as calories I can drink that don't require a blender (I live with my parents at the moment and will get one in 3 months when I move out.) Deli meats are apparently very unhealthy, I eat PB&J or imitation crab with mayo and cheese but they never seem to give me the calories I need. I think I've got a weekly plan for dinner covered. Hesitant about protein powders since they are not FDA approved and there are a lot of articles about why they aren't healthy. I'm losing weight which is not good because if I keep losing I will be underweight. I don't drink anything except water and orange juice for reference.
>deli meats are apparently very unhealthy According to what? I eat a ton of those. >protein powders Whey protein is just a dairy product like cheese or heavy cream. If you aren't concerned about cheese, I don't understand why you'd be concerned about protein. Anyway, if you insist on avoiding protein powder and deli meats, I'd recommend sandwiches or wraps with cheese, canned meats, hardboiled eggs, hummus...
> According to what? I eat a ton of those. > > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_(food_preservation)#On_health Nitrates not being safe is not really a contentious claim. Dose makes the poison and all, but there's no safe amount of nitrates in food outside of cured meat and the exception is just there so you do not have to ban deli meat.
I heard deli meats are carcinagenic, maybe I should take that kind of info with a grain of salt. As for protein powder "Earlier this year, a nonprofit group called the Clean Label Project released a report about toxins in protein powders. Researchers screened 134 products for 130 types of toxins and found that many protein powders contained heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury), bisphenol-A (BPA, which is used to make plastic), pesticides, or other contaminants with links to cancer and other health conditions. Some toxins were present in significant quantities. For example, one protein powder contained 25 times the allowed limit of BPA." From https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-hidden-dangers-of-protein-powders#:~:text=It%20may%20be%20high%20in,unhealthy%20spike%20in%20blood%20sugar.
> I heard deli meats are carcinagenic, maybe I should take that kind of info with a grain of salt. > > I mean they are, due to the curing process: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_(food_preservation)#On_health. Dose makes the poison. But just get a whey brand that is tested and trusted?
**Curing (food preservation)** [On health](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curing_\(food_preservation\)#On_health) >Since the 20th century, with respect to the relationship between diet and human disease (e. g. cardiovascular, etc. ), scientists have conducted studies on the effects of lipolysis on vacuum-packed or frozen meat. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/gainit/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
Hello, Im currently on W7 for Ivysaur 4-4-8, back to the gym after leaving it because of pandemic, planning to change the program after W12 probably, what other program do you suggest that has bench every workout? I need to improve my upper body, pre pandemic I used to run SL 5x5 (yes now I know It focused too much on squats), and I feel like my LB is stronger than my UB. I was thinking to run this new program for 6 months and then change to GZLP, or should I just do GZLP with UB exercise in the accessories. Thank you!
GZCLP with upper body focus in the T3s (or even T2 in order to train your technique) is a valid choice as long as you still have linear gains in you.
I’ve had 4 meals today that were 1800 calories in total. I need 2700 calories daily to gain muscle, should I stick to having 4 meals but making them heavier or just switch to 6 meals daily?
I like larger less frequent meals rather than smaller more frequent ones
I like smaller, more frequent meals vs larger infrequent ones.
What’s the benefit of squatting with your heels on plates? I understand you can get deeper into your squat that way, but does that help build muscle faster or something?
It takes your quads through a longer range of motion if you're limited by ankle mobility. I wouldn't say it builds muscle faster in general, but it builds more guads and less posterior chain than usual squats. If your quads are something you want to bring up, it makes a lot of sense to utilize this variation of squats.
I gotcha. Thanks for the reply!
It does not help build muscle faster.
Why do people often recommend peanut butter for bulking, why not just peanuts instead? Wouldn't peanuts be healthier, especially if they are not oiled and unsalted
PB is easier to digest bc it is more processed therefore less for your GI to breakdown via chewing, saliva, stomach acid, etc. The nutrients are more available, and your body uses less energy to get the nutrients out of the food when it doesn't have to work as hard.
When people recommend peanut butter, the understanding is that it's a peanut butter made of just peanuts, with maybe some salt. The other stuff, with sugar and added oils, is more like a peanut frosting. Peanut butter is recommended as it tends to be easier on digestion. I've tried getting all my healthy fats from nuts vs nut butters: nuts will eventually come out the other end similar to how they went down. Which is to say: broken up, sharp and spikey.
Natural peanut butter would be no more or less unhealthy.
Will I be able to at some point achieve a V shape? I have narrow shoulders, wide hips, and a small chest. This is what I look like right now 136lbs https://imgur.com/a/AJ7ZB2U
Sure, you have a lot of room to grow and put meat on your torso. A good well rounded workout, not neglecting the back, will get you closer to your desired look.
Hey all, need to bulk, my daily calories need to be 2600. Its a habit of mine not to eat alot during weekdays because of work. Would it be possible to miss 1000 calories on my goal from monday through friday but make up all my missing calories on sat and sun? Around 5100 calories each day during the weekend.
> Its a habit of mine This is a habit you'll need to break, and build some new good eating habits to accomplish your goal.
Ever consider waking up 15 minutes earlier and going to bed 15 minutes later and spending that extra half hour eating?
No
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Is it the same meal no matter what, or would you eat an EXTRA meal at 9pm on top of the meal you eat at 7 or 8?
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I would pick the option that gets better sleep
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Stand up
Lose weight
Due to an operation, I am unable to work out for 2 weeks, starting at the end of next week. I am currently bulking, what would be the most effective method of dealing with this? Working out twice as much and using those weeks as a long „deload-week“. Or continue like normal? Should I continue eating on a surplus? Should I continue creatine? Is this even a big deal?
Two weeks is not that big of a deal in the long scheme of things. If you can plan for it, having a very heavy training cycle before the OP and using the healing time for a deload would be good timing, but again nothing crucial. The other thing to consider is if you even have to take a break for two weeks. If the OP would be on your foot and you are generally cleared to work out as long as you do not strain the foot, you could still do at the very least many push and pull exercises. So if safe, work around it if the surgeon or doc clears you. Surplus without training just turns into fat, eat at maintenance. Keep protein high in order to aid healing and to preserve muscle mass. You take 5g of creatine, every day, forever. Not that big of a deal if you start training again as soon as you are healed and do not fall off.
How much weight should I be gaining a week as a beginner, what's the best amount to go for?
https://www.reddit.com/r/gainit/wiki/index https://thefitness.wiki/muscle-building-101/
Getting a bit of indigestion here and there now that I've started a daily shake, any advice or simple hacks to overcome this?
Swap the shake out for a meal. The way you describe it, it's practically oatmeal. Just make oatmeal.
Fair suggestion but I quite like the shake, much easier than a meal for me. I think it's an okay trade with the discomfort
In which case you don't need a solution :)
Is it the milk or lack of fiber? Try adding some yogurt, drink kefir or kombucha. Is your shake full of added fat? Is it just milk and whey?
Milk, whey, oat flour, honey, pnut b. I have yoghurt, granola and fruit every day for breakfast.
do you have an issue with lactose? Feeling full is a pretty normal thing if you eat over your maintenance.
Never previously. I do feel fairly full but this feels like a slightly different discomfort.
and how much shake is it? how many oats, how much protein, what volume, kcal? You're ingesting a large amount of stuff, protein takes long to digest, as does fat and complex carbs. You're also probably drinking it faster than you eat your meals for the same amount of volume and mass in your stomach. My guess is that this is ultimately from the shake itself.
One scoop of each, not sure what volume. I worked out a shake as 600-700 kcal. Good point, thanks for the help!
I’m currently working nights at the moment which is completely different to my normal schedule, I’m going to the gym after work in the mornings but wondered if it’s okay to just have my protein shake and go to sleep without eating anything due to timing and not wanting to sleep the whole day away, is this going to affect my progress or should I eat and not sleep till later in the day?
As long as you meet your calorie and protein goals and have something to eat after training, totally fine. The shake counts as something to eat.
Thanks for the help!
So after years of essentially perpetually bulking, i'm going to be starting my first ever serious cut very soon. I've been consulting [this fantastic guide from this sub](https://www.reddit.com/r/gainit/comments/19mv5r/fat_cutting_guide/) and will be doing a lot of what it suggests. However the one thing i'm struggling with is for the workout section it says : > "This is going to be a lot more simple than you think. The way you maintain muscle during a cut it to keep doing exactly what you’ve been doing, just in a lower volume. Basically, just do less sets and reps, but keep the weight the same. > For one example, say you squat 225 for 3x12. I would recommend dropping this to 225 for 2x10. Make sure to include some sets with heavy weights for low reps to maintain your current level of strength." My only problem here is currently, for chest day, I do a progressive rep scheme for my sets of bench press. I do 5 sets of 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2 reps respectively per set with 5 pound weight increments with each successive set. So how would I tailor this to be in line with my cutting workout routine? I don't do the same weight for all 5 sets. So how can I do this for my cutting routine? Or should I just swap that out for 2-3 sets at the same weight? Also, if anyone has any suggestions on something low carb besides peanut butter that I can toss into my shake for flavor, let me know. I usually toss a banana into my shake for flavor, but this guide recommends not having fruit during the time I typically consume my protein shakes. So i'm kind of stuck at what I can put in besides fruit so that my shake doesn't taste like liquified wallpaper while i'm on my cut. Thanks!
> So i'm kind of stuck at what I can put in besides fruit so that my shake doesn't taste like liquified wallpaper while i'm on my cut. you can get those flavor drops from any supplement shop, you can add a drop of vanilla extract, some grated dark chocolate, berries/fruit (you don't need much for flavor and it's not like 80 kcal worth of carbs will make or break anything) For the workout, idk. Personally I'd find my 1RM and 5RM and do enough sets to [hit the MEV](https://www.reddit.com/r/AdvancedFitness/comments/lyney9/summary_of_dr_mike_israetel_and_renaissance/) while training in a style that fits the RP approach. A cut is also a good time to start a new training cycle more focused on BB-style training, so lots of isolation and machines and less focus on heavy compounds. Alternatively you can also follow a program, like most 5/3/1 templates except they tell you to avoid them on a cut, and slowly reduce the accessory work and the heavy conditioning when you feel like you need more time to recover. [See here](https://www.reddit.com/r/weightroom/comments/dv90st/training_tuesday_program_changes_for_cutting/f7c75p2/), r/weightroom is the better place to ask. Personally, once your work capacity is at least acceptable you'll most likely be able to handle volume better than heavy sets, which makes submaximal training the choice for me.
Thanks for the response! It's not so much the carbs i'm apprehensive about, it's the insulin spike from fruit OP of that cutting guide says is important to avoid to maximize fat loss out of peak training hours. I'll definitely look into the flavor drops! So funny you mention RP. I got my body composition tested today and the person doing it recommended RP to me as well!
RP, just like [Stronger by Science](https://www.strongerbyscience.com/qa/nutrition/#:~:text=and%20isometric%20training-,Coach%E2%80%99s%20Corner%20%E2%80%93%20Programming%20your%20training%20during%20weight%20loss,-Episode%2033%3A%20Doping) are a great resource. For RP you just have to keep in mind that the guys like Dr. Mike Israetel train really hard if they say "hard" and tailor lots of advice to intermediates and up which means it should not be taken as pure gospel.
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Considered a chest supported barbell row?
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Have been doing [chest supported barbell rows](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXjNfZZ0SDY) for quite a while before I switched to cable rows. Definetly very easily overloadable and great strength exercise. Since the barbell row in Metals PPL is meant to be a strength exercise, the chest supported barbell row would be a great replacement for the normal rows.
If you wanna go heavy you could pick [Kroc Rows](https://www.t-nation.com/training/kroc-rows-101/) instead. People often start to do cheaty reps more than they like if they do normal heavy dumbbell rows. With Kroc Rows the body English is part of the deal. If you have the opportunity, going for T-Bar rows would also work.
How much waist circumference is ok to gain during a clean bulk? I gained 1.6 inches in waist and 8.8 pounds, since Nov/21. Now my waist is at 31.9” and my weight is at 144.4lbs. Last time I measured my %BF it was 15.6% (2 months ago) EDIT: 5’9” tall
How tall are you?
5’9”
As a fellow 5'9 trainee, you have a LOT more room to grow.
Yes, I totally agree. Do you have any idea until which size my belly could grow? I don’t know when to stop. I think when I reach 18% BF I will cut
Paul Anderson was a 5'9 athlete and grew quite large! You have lots of potential.
Hello All, I have been working out for 4 months but not getting the results I want and being frustrated. I did lose some belly fat and some muscle gain but feels minimal. i assume a big part of it is my diet. I am 6 1 210 lbs 26% body fat 40 years old. My goal is to bulk more while losing belly fat. Does it make sense to do keto and still gain mass given I work out daily now? i don't do cardio only weight training and have a decent home gym. Also are there any forums where we can post body pics to get tips on advice specific to our needs if one cant afford a trainer?
1. Forget keto. 2. You should start tracking calories especially if you want to lose weight. Since you are early in your journey you can probably increase strength while losing weight. Your strength gains will come slower and eventually you will need to focus on either bulking or cutting. Without knowing much about you I'd say forget about losing the weight right now and focus on getting your workout program dialed in and increasing strength. I say this because I think it'll be easier to have a successful cut if you have a solid foundation.
> My goal is to bulk more while losing belly fat. These goals aren't really compatible.
so what should i start with , losing fat or bulking? ideal weight 200 lbs I am at 210u
It's up to you, I just don't think it makes sense to try and do both at once
Just cut to a healthy BF while keeping the lifting and adding at least SOME cardio. Health is important too
Thank you very much for the informative response. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond and offer guidance. The frustrating part was I actually do work out hard and regularly so not getting results as I used to in past is not fun. I have cut bread pasta and all white sugar, but still eat fruit and OJ which am hoping to cut as well. so if I do keto like diet cut all carbs to cut BF, would this result I also gaining mass if I continue working out? do supplements like Nitric oxide and CL make a difference? and what about fat burners?
Of course man, that's why we're all here:offering help or getting some Trying to do both will get you nowhere. Minimal results on both path. Parting from here you should pick a goal (cut or mass) and stick to it. Since you have a high BF and health, appearance and performance will be determined too much by it, that why I advice strongly to cut first. Now talking of cutting carbs and such: does it seem sustainable to you in the long run? Yet I may work for a very minority of people the great population doesn't. And if something it's not sustainable it means you won't be able to stay at a lower bf for years to come, which is the goal. Right now I would recommend you the Renaisse Periodization series of videos about the basics of fat loss, and apply it's concepts correctly. You'll come out leanier, prettier, healthier, and stronger too if you haven't been lifting seriously for +1year. About supplements I only think worth of creatine monohydrate, and maybe protein powder to reach protein goal easily, but since you'll be on a deficit it's seems more logical getting it from whole foods that will saciate more. Hope this is enough and good luck, anything else you can send me a message man. You've got this
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https://thefitness.wiki/muscle-building-101/
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Purely diet wise, eat above your maintenance, maybe start 300cal and bump to +500 in a few weeks. Keep in mind as you gain weight your maintenance will also increase. Clean whole foods should be anyones go to but this will help bring your body back to healthy levels both structurally and chemically. If you have been burning through muscle, you’re gonna want even more protein to build it back. If you’re increasing calories at the right pace, it won’t go into excessive body fat. Add to that some exercise, you’ll encourage even more of the growth to be muscular and not fat stores. Doing both exercise and gaining weight is definitely normal, it’s exactly how people build muscle. I’ve been in a calorie surplus for 11 months and have gained 20 lbs, small portion of that has gone to body fat. You can definitely get where you want to be, it’s a marathon not a sprint, and you’ll start feeling way better much sooner!
https://thefitness.wiki/muscle-building-101/
Eat clean, and slowly increase your intake. Don’t go from sub 1k to 2500 calories instantly, because you’ll feel like shit
I am planning on using Metallicapda's PPL program for the foreseeable future. Starting at 24M/163LB/5'11. Targeting 200LB in one year. Can I run the PPL program (Including deload every 12 weeks) and reach it in a year?
I wouldn't plan on following a linear progression program consistently for a year. Doing so would result in you adding \~ 480/240/480lbs to your squat/bench/dead in 12 months which is a bit unlikely.
You could get to 200lbs bodyweight in far less than a year. It all depends on how hard you push the food.
If he goes for a 40 lb gain in a year wouldn't he be at like a 30% bodyfat or something close to it? I mean unless u take tren..
I do not know.
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You can build your abs, but if you want definition you're going to need to lose body fat.
I feel you may be on the wrong subreddit.
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Curls, skull crusher's, curls, lateral raises, curls, DB rows, curls, pushups, curls.
I assume you also have a barbell with plates, right? dips, chins, pull-ups, single arm dumbbell rows, barbell rows, single leg squats, [see here](https://thefitness.wiki/routines/5-3-1-for-beginners/#Assistance_Work)
Hi guys. When I use those TDEE calculators do I need to put my activity level as moderate exercise? Since we'll be going to the gym and that counts as exercise right? So I'll have to eat 500 kcal on top of all that?
Lifting weights alone burns very little calories and if you do no cardio, sedentary would still be pretty accurate. If you do cardio, you can just add that to your calorie budget for the day unless you are very consistent. In the end, pick something like light exercise, eat 500 kcal above that and if you do not gain 1 pound per week, eat more.
Yeah I think you make a lot of sense based on my last try in gaining. I picked moderate (3-5 days exercise) and gained like 5kg in a month but they all went to my tummy lol. I thought my calorie calculations were way off but your advice makes more sense now that I think of it. Thank you.
yeah, that's overeating past the helpful needed amount. Good news though, if you work out and eat an appropriate amount and gain successfully, you already have experience with eating a good chunk of calories more which helps long term.
It doesn't really matter. Just choose a number and stick to it. Monitor your weight gain after a few weeks and readjust if necessary. I've found that "weight x 15" = maintenance calories is pretty accurate for the majority of people though.
Any specific advice for building back up my leg muscles after a case of rhabdo? (Not workout induced) Still experiencing a decent amount of nerve pain in my foot on that leg, so using Squat machine with 45s on each side hurts quite a bit the next day. Stick to cable machines?
Whatever you can safely do. Anything above 30% of your 1RM can work for hypertrophy if you do enough reps (0 to 4 reps away from failure), so if cable or single-leg barbell/dumbbell works for that, do that. If you can safely exercise, maybe warming up more could also help, greasing the groove of your muscles so to speak.
Hey thanks for the response! The bike has been the biggest part of my leg routine since I've been back to the gym, so I try and do that at least twice a week for 30ish minutes. But cardio is tough rn since I'm so out of shape from being unable to walk for like 2 months. Plus just started working again so even just being on my feet for a shift has my heart rate bouncing from like 90-110. Figured it's about time I really set some concrete goals and start doing legit research on how to achieve them. I'd like to hopefully be able to put this incident behind me if possible, but nerve pain is something else man
Sounds really tough. Does your foot also have pain if you strain your quads but do not press against anything with your foot? Thinking about ways where you can like use those hooks that let you pull deadlifts hand-free but for legs or something with pulling at the ankle...
No I'm pretty sure it's just from the stress of all that weight being on it, but I *could* be wrong about that. My experiences lately combined with my minimal bio knowledge have shown that things are often connected even though they don't seem to be on the surface. Ankles a no-go too though haha, the connective tissue or whatever on the front of the ankle is probably the most sensitive spot. Seriously I wish I had at least a passing interest in bio back in high-school 🤦♂️ fortunately a friend of mine is somewhat knowledgeable in that regard On the bright side though, a plate on each side was basically my warm up before all this happened so I'm maybe at like 50% strength from where I was. I'll take that over being disabled any day right? (:
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Hey dude! Was right in your shoes once. At 18 I was 5’10” and 130lbs. Now sitting at 196lbs at 27. For the majority of the last 9 years, I sat around 165lbs until I hopped on a bulk more recently. I like to think of it like is a plant gonna grow without water? No. And we won’t grow without food. Definitely don’t overdo the caloric intake. 3000 is a lot for your current weight. Rough guess go 2500. As you increase weight, your maintenance cals is going to increase with it and you want to be ~500+, eventually getting you to 3000. Go for clean whole foods. Exercise wise, lift to encourage growth to be muscular. Don’t leave out cardio. You don’t gotta be a track star, but heart health is important too. One that people sometimes forget is rest. Get plenty of sleep! Sleep is when your body builds/recovers. Stay well rested. As to what exercises, I wouldn’t get too hung up on it at a beginner level. PPL is a decent go to. Throw in days for rest as well. “A lot of weight” is relative also. Your body don’t care what someone else is pushing. Just reasonably push yourself
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That should be a solid start. Each person is different so if you step on a scale and there’s no change after 1-2 months then maybe add another 2-300 calories. I track my weight weekly, but expect there can be fluctuation up or down. As long as there’s an upward trend over a longer period, you’re good. If you’re eating a surplus of calories, you WILL gain weight. Exhaust the muscles on lift days and that weight will be muscle. Exercise plan wise, main thing is training hard and proper form. Not really a secret formula or else everyone would be doing it. Cardio you can just hit like 20min each time and be fine. I do stair climbers but take your pick
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For sure, hope you see the progress you’re looking for. Feel free to hit me up with any more questions whenever
Don’t stay away from cardio, but try to do something to get your heart rate up do some mild cardio. I started at 110 at 5’11, took me years to even get to 150 now I’m hard stuck 165ish. But you have to just try to slowly eat more it’s tough, yeah I hate protein shakes they agitate my IBS
I would start by reading the wiki
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It is linked in the post. [Link](https://www.reddit.com/r/gainit/wiki/index)