GAINED 6-7lbs, stopped eating/working out like an idiot

[sven]

I'll just eat a banana and take spoonfulls of the almond butter and coconut oil, no special preparation, I'm far too lazy

I really like the banana and oil snacks, they are one of my best tools for keeping the body anabolic.  I cannot afford to go too long without eating or I will lose muscle.  Gotta stay anabolic

MRZ I would recommend you get as many foods as possible into your diet, after all variety is the spice of life.  I have developed food intolerances to certain foods because I ate them too much.  It's really crucial that you switch up your diet every now and then

As you can see my diet has changed A LOT since the start of this topic.  Still is changing. 

If you start feeling tired and fatigued, and are not growing, it could be something as simple as you are eating too much of the same food.   

[mrz]

which of the meats in ur list do u eat raw, and which ones do u cook?

[sven]

All raw baby...

but...

I go out to eat with my friends about 3 times a week.  Social reasons ya know

[sven]

Yo KD, I don't consider myself a hardgainer anymore the gains are really coming in quick now.  I noticed that if I eat big, then sleep immediatley after a workout the gains come on a lot faster.  Also resting a little more in general helps.  I know a lot of people don't have this luxury though.

Do you still consider yourself a hardgainer?

[sven]

Just out of curiosity, for those of you bulking...

How much rest do you get? Sleepwise, leisure?

I find that it is incredibly hard to bulk on a regular 8 hour a day sleep schedule. 
When bulking it I need at least 9-10 hours a day, not including naps.
Naps usually last an hour, overeating helps get a great nap in. 

If I'm not sleeping for at least 10 hours I will lay in bed awake for that long. For example if I only sleep 8, I'll lay in bed for an extra 2 hours.


is anyone else paying close attention to their resting schedule? anyone have any good strategies?

[KD]

Yo KD, I don't consider myself a hardgainer anymore the gains are really coming in quick now.  I noticed that if I eat big, then sleep immediatley after a workout the gains come on a lot faster.  Also resting a little more in general helps.  I know a lot of people don't have this luxury though.

Do you still consider yourself a hardgainer?

good to hear the gains are comming quick my friend, ultimately the numbers at that point don't really matter once you know what level is the 'breaking point' for weight gain. The GF round usually has 0 external fat and lower cals overall so I was indeed basing on that. I was expressing my own woes as much of anything that any non-pure-fat animal foods are actually quite low as usuable energy. These days I'm consuming little protein 1 lb max of lean and 0-12 eggs and the rest pure fats. I eat fruits really sporadically and minimally, but I like your system for future consideration. As for the hardgainer thing, I consider myself lucky in some regards these days because I'm not really consuming that much food and seem to hang in there despite upping my activity and intensity greatly.

I'm not exactly bulking but I've sort of shifted my stategy and goals in many regards. I thought I had a great frame for adding a bit of mass, but I'm focusing more these days on bringing my whole body up to speed and flexibility etc...so i can build evenly when appropriate. I'm becomming more vascular which I think is a good sign of my overall tissue change. Right now most of these efforts are concentrated in the cross-fit I'm doing and the biking I use for transport. In the winter  I'll probably nix going to cf on the other side of town and join a Gold's which is right by my house and hopefully employ what I've learned into pure strength training and less endurance stuff, and be otherwise more inactive and lazy.

I think the term applies still in that if I wanted to put on serious mass fast, it would be pretty challanging on a raw VLC diet, but I think my body has indeed changed from when I was probably around your age, in terms of ability to put on weight with less effort.

I don't know if I am resting more with activity, but rest has played a major role in my health. I was sleeping 12 hrs plus for awhile. I prefer 9 or even 10 or yes 7-8 hrs with a decent nap. I'm trying to focus on sleeping well before midnight, which I've accomplished somewhat by moving to a place without internet!

[mrz]

do you have any pre-post workout meals?

[KD]

I personally don't have much of a system with this stuff, but I've never done alot of experientation with post-workout meals or windows and such. Usually I'll eat whenever I get home after a workout. technically I let the food (like marrow) warm up a bit. So I probably miss any advantages of 30 mins to one hour of whatever they recommend.

I don't like to eat before a workout in any capacity. I used to do all my workouts at home in the mornings on any empty stomach. Now that I'm working out in the evenings, I like to space out my meals prior to workout as far as possible. But I've done CF after eating like 1:30 before, which would be totally gross on any other kind of diet I would think, so I believe digestion does indeed work pretty fast. I would never do this intentionally however. Eggs might be your best bet for either or perhaps some kind of raw or fermented milk or kefir, although those don't work for me right now. I've eaten a few fruits after workouts a few times and felt good (until the next day..haha!), then jumped into eating an hour later or so. I think ultimately this is due to the proper hydration in fruits, rather than any carb content, which in the quantities consumed was quite low.

[sven]

Protein and fats only after workout up to 3 hours after.  There is a great show on superhuman radio explaining the science behind it featuring Dr. mauro di pasquale... although I can't locate it yet.  When I find it I'll post link

[mrz]

hey sven most of your carbs are from fructose which do not really replenish muscle glycogen.. have you tried dextrose or potatoes/oats?

[sven]

How do you figure these don't fill up glycogen?  I've always found mine to fill up very nicely with fructose.

Dextrose drains me.  Potatoes and oats are sugarbombs, they drain me even harder.  They can even make me pass out it is so intense, along with stomach cramps.  So these aren't used.  Replenishing glycogen isn't one of my top priorities after a workout anyway.   

What methods do you use for replenishing glycogen?

[mrz]

well why im asking is ive been reading a lot and fructose (in fruits), supposedly doesnt replenish glycogen in the muscle... just liver.. i dont know ive just been eating one cooked potato a day for carbs.. ill see how i feel, if i feel crappy i might switch back to bananas..

[sven]

Very interesting, I'll have to look into it this more

[greywolve]

ive actually always managed to gain muscle just fine while intermittent fasting, i guess maybe im not a hard gainer, but i generally just have a huge meal at night and it seems to work fine. i mainly eat according to my appetite. the last 3 weeks especially ive noticed an increase in appetite and size ever since moving up to more difficult bodyweight exercises.

[achillezzz]

sven you said you do shakes with 5 egg yolk with lemon + 2tbsp honey

You blend it all? why addinh lemon to the shake? honey for taste right?
Good luck hitting 200lbs lol

[achillezzz]

sven you said you do shakes with 5 egg yolk with lemon + 2tbsp honey

You blend it all? why addinh lemon to the shake? honey for taste right?
Good luck hitting 200lbs lol

I ask because when blending eggs I heard its does something with the enzymes inside of it.
So better avoid blending but drinking rocky style?

[Caveman]

Any update, Sven? I'm curious..

[ForTheHunt]

I ask because when blending eggs I heard its does something with the enzymes inside of it.
So better avoid blending but drinking rocky style?

Causes loss of enzymes due to oxidization, so you are right.

[sven]

I ask because when blending eggs I heard its does something with the enzymes inside of it.
So better avoid blending but drinking rocky style?

I add lemons because I suffered two campylobacter infections from supermarket bought raw eggs. Lemons greatly reduce a future risk.  Just personal preference.  Even though I get my eggs from a farmer now there is no way I will ever risk it again.  The infection drained 8 pounds from me in a week(this was back in February of 2010).  You are right it is better to eat them rocky style. 

[sven]

Hey all!  It's been over 6 months since my last login in I've missed you all

Unfortunately there is nothing exciting to update.  Once I hit 170 I've been maintaining it and going through the motions as far as weight training.  My calories have been cruising around 2000-3000kcal per day, sometimes less.  Since taking up sobriety for 5 months my muscle mass doesn't wither away so quickly anymore.  

BUT this is a perfect time for a growth phase...  I suspect the gains will come quickly with a good program and diet shock.  I'm 168 today and would like to hit 180 by the end of March.

So, any ideas on training? New diet ideas?  Has anyone had progress lately?  Any good logs going right now?  Bulking? Cutting?  Your goals?  Let's Discuss!!  I've been out of the loop


I will start my growth phase this weekend.  Will include more info on this run so we can all learn from experience:
-Full workout log
-Bodyfat
-Daily diet
-Bloodwork(if I can convince the student healthcare center to do it for cheap) hopefully a full blood profile and total testosterone in addition

Just to be clear I won't be turning this topic into a daily log, but give updates on significant gains and improvements

Would like to experiment with high frequency approach for maximal bulk (train 5 days a week, adding weight every week to the exercises) with multi-joint exercises more specifically :
-Deadlift
-Squat
-Overhead barbell press
-Pull-ups/rows
-Dips/Bench Presses

Thoughts?

[sven]

oh yea pictures included too.  They'll be better than those awkward photos I took before

[ForTheHunt]

I'm gaining well now..

And it's a different kind of gain. Carb gaining is much more water bloated muscle look which you lose very very fast if you don't eat like a beast.

Primal diet gaining (keto) I gain size slowly, but strength really fast. But the strength is there to stay. My muscles feel more condensed and there's definitely more strength per pound.

I'm really liking it this way.

[KD]

Hey all!  It's been over 6 months since my last login in I've missed you all

So, any ideas on training? New diet ideas?  Has anyone had progress lately?  Any good logs going right now?  Bulking? Cutting?  Your goals?  Let's Discuss!!  I've been out of the loop

Hey,

 I admit I did wrongly assume you might have taken up keg-stands and co-eds as a large part of your exercise routine.  


I'm up over or ~170

http://www.rawpaleoforum.com/off-topic/not-all-dieticians-are-as-anti-paleo-as-i-previously-believed/msg62214/#msg62214

heres the latest pic and also alot of my perspective on this subject in general. I personally think its worth reading

Would like to experiment with high frequency approach for maximal bulk (train 5 days a week, adding weight every week to the exercises) with multi-joint exercises more specifically :
-Deadlift
-Squat
-Overhead barbell press
-Pull-ups/rows
-Dips/Bench Presses

Thoughts?

bench/dips
http://www.rawpaleoforum.com/exercisebodybuilding/today%27s-workout/msg62679/#msg62679
clean and jerks/deadlift/pull-ups/pendlay rows
http://www.rawpaleoforum.com/exercisebodybuilding/today%27s-workout/msg62065/#msg62065
squats/impact
http://www.rawpaleoforum.com/exercisebodybuilding/today%27s-workout/msg61379/#msg61379
push press
http://www.rawpaleoforum.com/exercisebodybuilding/today%27s-workout/msg60736/#msg60736

[sven]

And it's a different kind of gain. Carb gaining is much more water bloated muscle look which you lose very very fast if you don't eat like a beast.

Primal diet gaining (keto) I gain size slowly, but strength really fast. But the strength is there to stay. My muscles feel more condensed and there's definitely more strength per pound.

Can you briefly describe what you eat in a day or two, and maybe a little on your recent training?  How are you energy levels throughout the day?  If that is you in the profile pic then yes you are a beast.

[B.Money]

Are any of you guys registered over on any lifting specific forums? I have a log that I log pretty much every workout over at www.ironaddicts.com . It would be awesome to see some raw guys over there learning and posting up logs regularly, since I am the only one.

I would highly recommend getting active on a board, and posting up a log. Ironaddicts is small and kinda like here where everyone (for the most part) gets along and has similar minds, and offers each other advice. Pretty tight knit.

Oh, also this site looks like a bodybuilding site, but its very much so strength emphasis. The site originally got popular by making the "get stronger to get bigger" concept. Like I said, it would be awesome to follow some of you guys on there, or if you guys are on any other sites post it up!