New guy intro

[CJ]

I have actually just recently started adding more oil to my food that I eat. I read somewhere that I should be focusing more on carbs and fat over protein in order to bulk.

As for the eating before bed thing, I'll Definitely give it a try, but I know my doctor said to avoid that to avoid acid when I'm asleep. But only one way to find out

Can you sleep slightly elevated? If not, and you do get acid reflux, don't eat before bed.

That chicken you're eating for dinner? If it's breast, make it thighs. Or have beef or salmon some days. Those all have more calories in the same amount of food.

 

[CJ]

As for tracking exactly what I eat, I haven't been doing that but I definitely may start. I have usually just been estimating for the most part, so I could very well be...very off.

Tracking gives you concrete numbers that don't lie. Most who estimate are waaaay off, unless they've tracked before, because that builds a base of knowledge.

You don't have to track, but think of it like a map giving you directions to your desired destination. It's just faster and you'll actually get there.

 

[Mbb224]

I am 160lbs right now, and I say, 2800 cal, but that's probably just on a good day.

You look about 12% bodyfat to me

 

[Send0]

As for tracking exactly what I eat, I haven't been doing that but I definitely may start. I have usually just been estimating for the most part, so I could very well be...very off.

welp, I think I found your problem. You need to track your meals; including macros and calories. This means all food must be weighed as well to ensure accuracy.. otherwise you will definitely be off.

There's no way around this really. Don't worry, you're not the first person to join the forum who says they eat xxx amount of calories but doesn't actually log their diet, and you won't be the last. What I can say is people who ignore tracking are the same people who spin their wheels year after year with little to no progress.

 

[Send0]

I have actually just recently started adding more oil to my food that I eat. I read somewhere that I should be focusing more on carbs and fat over protein in order to bulk.

As for the eating before bed thing, I'll Definitely give it a try, but I know my doctor said to avoid that to avoid acid when I'm asleep. But only one way to find out

What? I'd like to know where you read that.

here's what you should do.

1. Set a target daily calorie goal

2. Prioritize getting *AT LEAST* 1g of protein per lb of bodyweight (each gram of protein= 4 calories)... 1.25g would be better though.

3. Eat 0.3g fat per pound of bodyweight. (each gram of fat = 9 calories)

4. Back fill remaining calories with carbs (fiber = 2g per gram of fiber... nearly all other carbs = 4 calories per gram).

So for 160lb of body weight, and eating 2800 calories a day, your macros would look something like the following:

160g protein
48g fat
432g carbs

(160x4) + (48x9) + (432 x 4) = 2800 calpries

 

[Rickt]

Yes, I am getting stronger. I do not do cardio in the gym. Most of my cardio happens just from work (I am a mechanic on Heavy equipment). I think my issue, judging based on what y'all have said so far, is that I have mostly just been shoving whatever I possibly could down, vs. keeping strict control over exactly how much I am taking in, so i'll definitely start to try and make that change

I can't believe it. But finally someone that seems genuine.
One thing I'm certain of is that with this attitude you will succeed and in no time be helping others.
Honestly your posative attitude makes it all worth it.
Best of luck.

 

[Rickt]

welp, I think I found your problem. You need to track your meals; including macros and calories. This means all food must be weighed as well to ensure accuracy.. otherwise you will definitely be off.

There's no way around this really. Don't worry, you're not the first person to join the forum who says they eat xxx amount of calories but doesn't actually log their diet, and you won't be the last. What I can say is people who ignore tracking are the same people who spin their wheels year after year with little to no progress.

Please don't spoil this and say "lifter this account is now banned" I couldn't take it.

 

[CJ]

I say make it even more simple.

Set your calorie and protein targets, and just worry about hitting those. This is the most important part.

If you want to track carbs and fats as well, that's fine, just don't stress about hitting certain targets exactly. Just don't do something weird like eating a crazy fad diet.

 

[Send0]

I say make it even more simple.

Set your calorie and protein targets, and just worry about hitting those. This is the most important part.

If you want to track carbs and fats as well, that's fine, just don't stress about hitting certain targets exactly. Just don't do something weird like eating a crazy fad diet.

if someone can't backfill carbs/fats after accounting for protein intake, then they'd probably screw up the simpler approach you laid out as well. Plus they have to track carbs and fat anyway to make sure their daily caloric intake is accurate.

This is grade school math. It's already simple... why do people have to continue to dumb things down even further?

 

[CJ]

if someone can't backfill carbs/fats after accounting for protein intake, then they'd probably screw up the simpler approach you laid out as well. Plus they have to track carbs and fat anyway to make sure their daily caloric intake is accurate.

Not true. If he only counts calories and protein, the carbs and fats fill in however they fill in. Tons of people only do this.

I don't even try to hit certain C and F targets. There's a wide range that I'm acceptable with. I could have 30g of fat one day, and 150g of fat the next.

This is grade school math. It's already simple... why do people have to continue to dumb things down even further?

Because most get overwhelmed. Just like with most things, taking steps is often the best approach vs going all in.

 

[Santa]

I say make it even more simple.

Set your calorie and protein targets, and just worry about hitting those. This is the most important part.

If you want to track carbs and fats as well, that's fine, just don't stress about hitting certain targets exactly. Just don't do something weird like eating a crazy fad diet.

This is the approach I took when I stopped running and turned to lifting. A few years ago I weighed 155lbs at 6’2ish. I think I posted a pic somewhere. I now sit between 210-215 without tracking anything but protein. I know how to eat to maintain. If I wanted to grow I would track again.

@cryogenic It’s an absolute must that you track at a minimum protein and total calories. Put simply you don’t know how to eat yet. I was the same way. Food is nothing more to me than fuel, I don’t enjoy eating the way some people do so I was always tall and skinny.

It gets easier but the biggest challenge you will have is constantly eating to meet your daily target. Even now there are days I could get by on 1200 calories even tho I know I need 3-4000.

My go to protein shake was 1000-1300 calories. 2 scoops of whey, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, milk, banana, cup of blue bell ice cream (and if I needed it, I’d add olive oil). I would usually have this 2x a day in the beginning until my appetite grew to where I could meet my goals.

Once you get accustomed to eating enough, you can work towards the approach where you track everything (protein, fats, carbs..)

Good luck and welcome.

 

[Send0]

Not true. If he only counts calories and protein, the carbs and fats fill in however they fill in. Tons of people only do this.

I don't even try to hit certain C and F targets. There's a wide range that I'm acceptable with. I could have 30g of fat one day, and 150g of fat the next.

Because most get overwhelmed. Just like with most things, taking steps is often the best approach vs going all in.

if he's natty then he'd definitely want to have a target minimum fat goal for hormone purposes. Meaning he makes sure he gets that target amount of fat at a minimum. My assumption right now is that he's natty, but maybe I'm wrong.

Everything else I agree as not being a big deal. For me, structure and planning help keep me on track and makes things a no brainer in my world, and easy adherence. I consider the carbs and fats I calculate for my own diet as just a general guide of where I might want to be for that day. Those general numbers help me make good food decisions.

I have no problem with swapping fats for carbs... but I still think it all needs to be tracked.

 

[Santa]

Think about it tho. Fat people have numerous ways to lose weight and meet their goals. Numerous diet options, cardio, drugs, any combination of the above plus something I may have missed.

Skinny guys just have to eat. And from my personal experience, it was beneficial for me to learn, see, and experience what 3-4k daily calories felt like. So keeping it simple for a few months tracking protein and total calories was more than enough. Seeing the scale motivated me to continue eating and refine my diet more in-line with a proper distribution.

 

[Send0]

Think about it tho. Fat people have numerous ways to lose weight and meet their goals. Numerous diet options, cardio, drugs, any combination of the above plus something I may have missed.

Skinny guys just have to eat. And from my personal experience, it was beneficial for me to learn, see, and experience what 3-4k daily calories felt like. So keeping it simple for a few months tracking protein and total calories was more than enough. Seeing the scale motivated me to continue eating and refine my diet more in-line with a proper distribution.

I think I'm making an assumption that everyone has a premium copy of MyFitnessPal, where it automatically breaks down a meal into total protein/carbs/fats for you... making it super simple. I can see if someone was having to track this manually that it would feel overwhelming.

Anyway, you and CJ are right... protein and calories matter most. Fat and carbs are both just energy sources, and a calorie is a calorie. So it doesn't really matter so long as it fits in your target caloric goal.

this is from one of my meals yesterday. All I do is enter food and the weight, and everything is calculated for me. It's an older version of MFP that I did not allow to be updated. At one point this feature was part of the free version of MFP. If a person is on Android and knows where to get APKs, then they could have the same features for free.

 

[Rickt]

This is the approach I took when I stopped running and turned to lifting. A few years ago I weighed 155lbs at 6’2ish. I think I posted a pic somewhere. I now sit between 210-215 without tracking anything but protein. I know how to eat to maintain. If I wanted to grow I would track again.

@cryogenic It’s an absolute must that you track at a minimum protein and total calories. Put simply you don’t know how to eat yet. I was the same way. Food is nothing more to me than fuel, I don’t enjoy eating the way some people do so I was always tall and skinny.

It gets easier but the biggest challenge you will have is constantly eating to meet your daily target. Even now there are days I could get by on 1200 calories even tho I know I need 3-4000.

My go to protein shake was 1000-1300 calories. 2 scoops of whey, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, milk, banana, cup of blue bell ice cream (and if I needed it, I’d add olive oil). I would usually have this 2x a day in the beginning until my appetite grew to where I could meet my goals.

Once you get accustomed to eating enough, you can work towards the approach where you track everything (protein, fats, carbs..)

Good luck and welcome.

Just a simple question. Do you find the protine shake slows down in digestion with olive oil. I also can get reflux from adding oil. Just wondering if it is me. My age. My digestive system or what. I can put oil on everything and no problem. But drink it and it sits there 4 hours. I put quater of a cup into a big shake. Lmk.
Btw great info.

 

[CJ]

I think I'm making an assumption that everyone has a premium copy of MyFitnessPal, where it automatically breaks down a meal into total protein/carbs/fats for you... making it super simple. I can see if someone was having to track this manually that it would feel overwhelming.

Anyway, you and CJ are right... protein and calories matter most. Fat and carbs are both just energy sources, and a calorie is a calorie. So it doesn't really matter so long as it fits in your target caloric goal.

this is from one of my meals yesterday. All I do is enter food and the weight, and everything is calculated for me. It's an older version of MFP that I did not allow to be updated. At one point this feature was part of the free version of MFP. If a person is on Android and knows where to get APKs, then they could have the same features for free.

View attachment 48421

Dammit, I wish my MFP did that.

 

[Send0]

Dammit, I wish my MFP did that.

Apple or Android?

 

[CJ]

Apple or Android?

 

[Santa]

Just a simple question. Do you find the protine shake slows down in digestion with olive oil. I also can get reflux from adding oil. Just wondering if it is me. My age. My digestive system or what. I can put oil on everything and no problem. But drink it and it sits there 4 hours. I put quater of a cup into a big shake. Lmk.
Btw great info.

I did learn not to drink my protein shake ‘bomb’ after 7 PM. Not everytime but on a few occasions I would have serious reflux in the middle of the night.

Honestly it’s been almost a year since I’ve relied on protein shakes for a significant amount of my calories. Once I got used to the amount of food I needed to eat, I noticed how much better I felt eating real food.

Still in a pinch it’s a quick 1000-1300 calories especially on days where I’m way down due to work, cardio, etc.

 

[Big-paul]

It seems to me you should still be gaining at 2800 calories.

Are you still getting stronger despite the lack of weight gain? Are you doing cardio in addition to your weight training? Or is your job physically demanding? If so the reduce the amount of cardio or physical work at your job if possible... add another 100-200 calories and monitor yourself closely.

Keep adding calories little by little every 2 weeks until you see the scale start to move. It's pretty much this simple.

I have found that in almost every case, hard gainers are not eating enough.

Bogus gear and fucked up training are a close second.