The Age Old Question - Page 2

Mike ODonnell · 09-15-2008, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebastian Milla

Hey guys, I'v been on the original mass gain program for about six weeks now and im just about to go into my third week of the strength mesocycle. Here's my question, I don't seem to be gaining all that much mass. I Started the program at 164 and now I m 166 but i feel that that is mostly fat. During my first hypertrophy mesocycle I was in Peru so pwo was a little iffy, as in no carb load after my workouts so i started doing 10 blocks of carbs 5 blocks of protein after my strength workouts. I am progressing steadily with the weight but I'm not seeing a lot of muscle mass. Am I just impatient or should I supplement? I'm 17 so I think I could handle it recovery wise seeing as I get at least eight hours of sleep a night. Thanks.

Eat more protein on off days, like 1g/lb of BW at least. More fat on off days. Only lift 2-3x a week...if you can't gain on 2x a week, your workouts and eating are all wrong. Eat plenty of pwo carbs after workouts (whole food). I like 1 on/2-3 off for workouts and pwo loading. You can do cardio on off days and keep the carbs lower with the fats a bit higher. Workout days should be all about carbs/protein and lowered fat intake. If you want to gain, eat more.....and as a trainer buddy of mine says "The best thing for putting on muscle is to go buy yourself and XBox" (meaning you workout couple times a week and then just eat and rest)

You can also read this post about gaining muscle and how most people just don't eat enough....or run around way too much
http://www.theiflife.com/2008/08/26/...aining-muscle/

James Evans · 09-16-2008, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben Moskowitz

If those are kg's he's probably not a novice.

If those are kg's I'm not sure he needs mass gain:

Quote:

I Started the program at 164 and now I m 166 but i feel that that is mostly fat.

Sebastian Milla · 09-16-2008, 04:59 PM

in response to the speculation, no it was not in kgs. If that had been in kgs I wouldn't be here

i was only saying i wasnt a novice because from an interview i read with rip he said that SS was for scrawny kids that had never set foot in a gym before. I DID buy the book, I really liked it and i gave it a good shot, but i just wasnt progressing at all on my squat, bench, or anything. right now i think ill just finish another two cycles of the PM gainer program and eat some more (I am at the point where my body seems to be handling 20 blocks like its cake). I've been reading around the boards and it sounds like mass gain is a straight up desacration of quality nutrition in general (a certain article about oreos...). However, if i end up staying at mutherloving 164 for another two months i will either kill something or try starting strength again.

i cant afford the milk tho

Steven Low · 09-16-2008, 07:47 PM

You should probably do SS.

Just eat a lot of healthy stuff if you can't afford the milk (well, as much as you can). Some people have even told me that it's cheaper with the gallon because they bought less food overall...

Craig Loizides · 09-16-2008, 09:03 PM

Here are Rippetoe's barbell strength standards. I think these are from Practical Programming. Your numbers put you mostly in the novice level.
http://www.crossfit.com/cf-journal/WLSTANDARDS.pdf

There's nothing wrong with the mass gain program but you should probably give SS another try at some point. I think a lot of people following SS start too close to their max and increase the weight too quickly (I know I did the first time I tried it). The important thing is to make small consistent gains for as long as possible.

And eat a lot and rest as much as possible.

Frank Needham · 09-17-2008, 05:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebastian Milla

i cant afford the milk tho

Nice responses from others here. Too bad the above is the case. Do you really want to get bigger? If so, find a way to buy the milk. It works. At 17 your metabolism is so high you could probably eat double what your eating now and still have a struggle gaining. Just for perspective I'll offer up that I weighed 155 at 5'10" in HS. At 21 I weighed 172. This was mostly due to having done squats and milk in HS (didn't even know what it was at that time).

James Evans · 09-17-2008, 09:02 AM

Sebastian,

Be patient, these things come.

SS works and the beauty of it is in its simplicity. Just take it steady from day to day and don't get greedy with the weight increases. How much did you improve from your starting weights?

I have little interest in mass gain these days because I no longer compete in a sport that requires me to be hyooge, but I do believe that people who have got decent numbers in the weightroom look like they have decent numbers in the weightroom.

Do you still live with your folks? Are you eating them out of house and home? You could get a part time job. Milk isn't that expensive, certainly in comparison to some of the rubbish we can spend our money on these days.

Sebastian Milla · 09-17-2008, 04:55 PM

right, so in response to everything I guess my issue with SS is that I felt I could do more. My squat, I can't tell you how bad it was, I'd just funk out after a couple sets and it just didnt FEEL right. I wasnt eating until I was "sick" but i felt very full and i was eating a lot, but i really think it all went to fat, straight. true, my food quality blew but it wasnt anything horrible either, whole grains, whey, as much milk as possible (two cups per meal), and meat, cheese, eggs, I really did go all out. By the end of the month I was up ten or fifteen pounds or so but I can guarantee you it was water weight and fat. I'm looking for the real deal, and it doesn't have to be aggressive either, right now it seems like my lifts are going up with PM so i'll either stick with that or jump to Mike O' Donnell's Hollywood Bod thread.

James Evans · 09-18-2008, 05:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebastian Milla

right, so in response to everything I guess my issue with SS is that I felt I could do more. My squat, I can't tell you how bad it was, I'd just funk out after a couple sets and it just didnt FEEL right.

and yet:

Quote:

My squat, I can't tell you how bad it was, I'd just funk out after a couple sets and it just didnt FEEL right.

I don't follow? You felt like you could do more but the squats were fucking you over?

Sebastian Milla · 09-18-2008, 07:50 AM

as in ancillary exercises to HELP the squat, like the front squat. I think that for some reason I hit a wall almost immediately with the bench and squat. the press was going pretty slow too, the only thing that went up really was the deadlift. I did pendalay rows instead of power cleans and if that was the deal breaker I stand corrected.