Concern on squats / deadlifts same day

[Jacks1019]

Sure. I spent 18 months on 2000 calories a day. Once I figured out I needed enough protein I settled on 200g/day with 100g carbs on a paleo diet. Started at 305 with low 40s bodyfat.

That worked for a long time and I hit a wall, neither losing fat nor getting stronger. I’m around 17.5% bodyfat now and decided my body needed a rest and I should focus on strength for a while.

I went to 2500 calories a day recently, with most of the calories going to carbs. That got me an excellent month of strength gains. Missed a rep on bench on Thursday and added another 250 calories.

Going to keep adding calories slowly as needed to generate strength gains. Figuring i’ll top out calories around 3250. 3000 is a pretty good estimate of my maintenance level.

I realize Robert that you are not an advocate of paleo and would recommend far more carbs and much lower fat. My body has responded extremely well to what I’m eating and I beat the snot out of my pancreas from 40 years of overdosing on chocolate cake so I’m reluctant to make that shift.

[Robert Santana]

Chocolate cake is high in both fat and carbohydrates. I want to emphasize that I am recommending lower fat and higher fiber carbohydrate sources. Go as far as you can with what you are doing but at some point you will need more. Congratulations on the weight loss though, that feat is not marginal. But you are not 300+ anymore so your insulin sensitivity has improved.

[Jacks1019]

Ok, I’m back. Got a tutorial with Josh at Starting Strength Houston on Tuesday. He reworked both lifts in line with all the guidance given on this thread. We also discussed moving my programming to 1x5 on deadlifts and 3x5 on squats twice a week each in an LP, startling with lighter weights so I can reinforce the new form.

Videos of new lifts below. Would appreciate any thoughts as this was day 1:

Squats: YouTube

Deadlifts: YouTube

Another question for Robert - I think my testosterone has always been low (cause I was 300 pounds and didn’t move), but more recently is down because of a calorie deficit and low carbs. Current level is about 300, up from 215 a year ago. I clearly need to move calories to an over fed state and need to boost carbs. How long before i know whether diet is going to move me up enough? Do i go get retested in 3 months and if level hasn’t moved much despite more food then I see a doctor about it?

[Robert Santana]

Videos are private. Glad you connected with Josh, he's a good guy and good friend of mine. I would suggest training, eating, and getting stronger over the next 3-6 months and re-testing it. What was your free and SHBG?

[Jacks1019]

Videos are public now.

Rechecked the data. I was at 295 total, and 10.2 free testosterone a year ago. Currently am 385 and 11.9, respectively. SHBG was not tested. My recent fasting blood glucose was 93 despite eating very little sugar - my understanding is this is a sign of excess cortisol. I expect this is my major issue with my testosterone.

Has anyone had good luck using vitamin c to bring down cortisol?

[Robert Santana]

Squat - these are high, you are too vertical, and your knees aren't sufficiently out. Bend over, shove your knees out, and sit back into it. More than you want to. Wear a tee too, skin gets slick, which becomes an issue when its heavy.

Deadlift - Hips are too low and you aren't pulling enough slack out of the bar.

10.2 ng/dL free testosterone is insanely low. Get that retested with a SHBG test. You may need replacement therapy so go see someone who does that sort of thing.

I am unaware of vitamin c altering cortisol levels.

[jfsully]

Videos are public now.

Rechecked the data. I was at 295 total, and 10.2 free testosterone a year ago. Currently am 385 and 11.9, respectively. SHBG was not tested. My recent fasting blood glucose was 93 despite eating very little sugar - my understanding is this is a sign of excess cortisol. I expect this is my major issue with my testosterone.

Has anyone had good luck using vitamin c to bring down cortisol?

10.2 free is insanely low. Get that retested with a SHBG test. You may need replacement therapy so go see someone who does that sort of thing.

I am unaware of vitamin c altering cortisol levels.

I wouldn’t assume that 10.2 is “insanely low,” it depends on the assay. Some labs report T in ng, some in pg, which makes a big difference, you should check your lab‘a reference ranges. It actually is probably consistent with a total T of 295, which is getting low, although still in “normal range” by most lab reckonings.

Regardless, 385 is low enough that some people with that level will feel a benefit from replacement. If you are managing your recovery well and still have “low T” symptoms, find a doc who will try T replacement, if you’re interested in that.

A fasting blood glucose of 93 is stone cold normal and is an excellent result. I would not assume that cortisol or sugar intake is a problem at all, based on this. To manage cortisol, which is an odd goal but OK, you should train, eat well, and get plenty of sleep.