Help! I'm not growing!

[skinnyman]

uhm after the incredible gains i got... i injured my wrist

i won't be able to lift for a while...

 

[imported_goal220]

Switch to inclined dumbell curls after you heal. I swear by them. The weight for curls will go down but this is because you are truly isolating the bicep and for goodness sake, squat, squat, and squat. The quadraceps are the largest muscles in the human body. If you don`t like doing squats my suggestion is that you keep doing them until you love them.

Up your protein intake to at least 1gram per pound.

 

[stan]

I'm on my 2nd week of 10s and did some measurements, and I haven't been developing.. at all...

So I read through this thread to see what I could have been doing wrong.

I do the exercises mon-wed-fri, so that isn't the problem..

You can see what exercises I do Here and I don't think they are the problem..

I always go check my weight in the gym, and it's always around 83-84 kg and it's been this way since january..

I've got some fat on me which I'd like to get rid of for summer, so I added HIIT in the mornings..

But I believe that my problem is that I'm not taking in enough calories.. and not enough protein.. But I'm terrified about gaining weight if it's fat.. I really want the six-pack for summer, but I don't know how well I'll do in cutting so I don't know when to start cutting for summer.. If I over calculate the calories, and don't start the cutting phase at the right time, then I'll never get the six-pack for summer.. and I really want it for this summer.. God do I want it for this summer..

I also tend to eat sloppy calories when bulking..

obsessed much? perhaps a tad.. I'll probably add HIIT in the evenings after my exercise if I start eating more just because of paranoia..

S.

 

[skinnyman]

Summer seems near, eh? Where do you live?
i think it's really either you bulk or you cut.
i fixed my calories and proper lifting forms and really saw gains.
read Eating for Size in the articles section to help you with your calories.
i read this post by vicious. this will help you.. hail vicious

Quote[/b] ]
Eating for a 10-12x-a-week routine
Training twice a day means that you'll be experiencing acute post-workout effects (for 3-4 hours right after workout) for up to 44% of your waking hours. That means twice as long acute elevations of mRNA, net protein synthesis, glycogen depletion and uptake, growth hormone, testosterone, elevated cortisol / lowered insulin, growth hormone, and metabolic rate. It also means that, compared to a normal 3x-a-week schedule, your body will be experiencing the acute effects of post-workout at least FOUR times as much as your normal routine. None of that takes into account the overall summation effect and increased microtrauma, the stuff we usually pay attention to when we talk about caloric intake during bulking.
Yeah, you need to eat.
Assumptions
1) DC's program requires that (natural&#33 trainees eat at least 2g/lbs protein. Although there's little evidence from scientific domestic studies that eating protein beyond 1g/lbs (which is considered a lot anyway) will benefit you beyond extra calories, most serious DC trainees strongly abide by this. I don't think it hurts; it's relatively difficult for your body to convert protein into energy or excess fat. You have two training bouts where mRNA and protein synthesis levels will be acutely elevated as well as the overall summation effect. And, frankly, do you really want to eat all those extra calories in carbs and fat? I think that rec goes up to even 3g/lbs, but for this diet (and the fact that the carb intake would be higher than a normal DC bulking diet), we'll leave it at 2 g/lbs protein.
For increasing glycogen stores, Bryan recommends:
2) A total of 7-10g/KG carbs over a 24-hour period. Because the protein intake is so high that some of it will convert to glycogen, we'll leave it at 7g/KG.
For post-WO replenishment, Bryan recommends:
3) At least 0.7-1g/KG carbs right after workout and again 1-2 hours after. Since this is a baseline recommendation and that your body right after lifting is really good at using carbs for anything but fat storage, let's increase the carb intake right after workout by 50%, but keeping the rec for 1-2 hour the same.
4) The net carbs from your post-WO feeds will of course be deducted from the total carbs. During 5s and post-5s, because we assume you'll have reasonably high glycogen levels, you may just drop the extra, non-WO carbs. It's actually not a lot.
5) No presumptions for fat intake besides EFA preference.
6) Trainee is 10-15% If he is higher (or lower), then estimate your LBM and use that.
7) Eat as you normally would on your rest day; that is, your normal caloric rate with 300-500 extra calories.
Recommendations
1) Protein: 0.943g / kg
2) Post-WO Carbs: 1.5g / kg
3) Post-WO Carbs, 1-2 hours later: 1.0g / kg
4) The net, non-WO carbs: 2g/kg. You may drop this during 5s.
And in the Queen's Olde-English:
1) Protein: 2g/lbs
2) Post-WO Carbs: 0.71g/lbs
3) Post-WO Carbs, 1-2 hours later: 0.47g/lbs
4) Net Carbs: 0.94g/lbs. You may drop this during 5s
Scenario
Say you're a 150lbs 12% skinny man . . .
Let's use calculations for Eating for Size as a reference:
MR = lbs / 2.12 * 24 * 1.5 (very high activity level )
MR for 150lbs skinny man = 2547 calories
150lbs skinny man with 500 caloric surplus = 3047 calories
Bulking Diet:
1) Protein: 300g
2) Post-WO Carbs: 106g
3) Post-WO Carbs, 1-2 hours later: 70g
4) Net carbs: 141g
5) 70g fat. (Assuming 5g fat per 25g protein and EFA supplementation)
Total protein intake: 300g
Total carb intake: (106 + 70) * 2 + 141 = 495g
Total fat: 70g
Total calories: 3800 calories ~ 52% carbs, 32% protein, 16% fat
For 5s/post-5s:
Breakdown: 350g carbs, 300g protein, 70g fat
Total calories: 3230 calories ~ 43% carbs, 37% protein, 20% fat
These numbers can vary depending on your protein sources. It's still a lot of food.

 

[vicious]

Stan,

The problem is that you're trying to cut and bulk at the same time. That's a big no-no because, basically, it gets you neither here nor there. There is a way to use HIIT to facilitate bulking, but I wouldn't recommend it in your situation at all.

If you want to bulk:

Throw out HIIT, throw out cardio activities (like basketball), devote a bulk of your carbs after your workout. In general, eat a lot of calories. On rest days, you can eat a more moderate amount but at least hit maintenance plus 200-300 calories. I read that you're 175 @ 12.5% That's a good place to start bulking. Are you eating at least 3000 calories or so on your workout days?

If you want to cut:

Then, what you're doing is probably good. Use HIIT with all of your workouts. Move most of your carbs to the 4 hour window after workouts. Do it at least 4-5x-a-week. Do a carb refeed once a week. A 4/6-pack is 8-10% territory. A Fight Club pack is 5-7% territory. It ain't fun.

Whatever the case, it's either/or. Many people don't commit to bulking because they're terrified of gaining fat. Many people don't commit to dieting because they're terrified of losing what they have. If you are not these people, then you're the lucky few who actually actually succeed with bodybuilding.

cheers,
Jules

 

[skinnyman]

question though... by rest days you mean including SD?
or can you eat at maintenance during SD..?
thanks in advance

 

[vicious]

Quote[/b] ]question though... by rest days you mean including SD?

I mean the days that you don't work out. Basically, you don't want to eat as much on your non-WO day as your WO day. Obvious, I know, but one reason why people pick up too much fat during bulking is that they do a crappy job of managing their caloric intake when they're NOT lifting. You still need a surplus over maintenance (200-400 calories), but it really isn't necessary to eat the entire pig on the weekends. Save the pig during deadlift days!

Exception is when you're relatively depleted in glycogen. Then you do a carb refeed on the rest day, to replenish stores, which means Pasta Bowl days at the Olive Garden or the Cheesecake Factory.

During SD, you want to eat maintenance but understand that, if you've gained muscle, your BMR has picked up too. Over a 2-week SD, you'll lose some size due to water loss. Don't worry about that -- all of it will come back during the 1st week of 15s.

cheers,
Jules

 

[skinnyman]

hi just to let everyone know, thanks to these guys who posted.. bulking stage...ii'm gaining ~2lbs per week now [of course some of those fat..] i'm just in my last week of 10s

and i'm thinking of cutting next cycle.

vicious - what do you mean by using HIIT with all the workouts? run like hell afterwards?