GOMAD alternatives?

[BastiatBB]

Hi coach,

I'm looking for advice for an alternative to milk for my 17 year old son. It's clear it is contributing to worsening acne. I have him upping his whey protein uptake to hopefully lessen the volume of milk needed, but so far it isn't helping (and might be making it worse). One complication is that he is allergic to tree nuts, so nut milk alternatives are out. And soy milk just isn't good for boys and their hormones, as I understand it. Hard to feed him enough food without GOMAD.

Son is currently 6'1 and ~188#. Current lifts:

Squat = 315x5
DL = 340x5
Bench = 187.5x3
Press = 125x3
W. Chins = +45x5

[Robert Santana]

Has he looked into any weight gainers? Do other dairy products such as yogurt cause the same symptoms?

[BastiatBB]

Just whey protein, which he mixes and drinks with milk. The two we have tried (and enjoyed) are chocolate Whey Protein Isolate by Muscle Feast and chocolate Whey Protein Isolate by WheyRx (Barbell Medicine). He also takes Carnation Breakfast Essentials High Protein Ready-to-Drink, both vanilla and chocolate, for some b/w meal and extracurricular protein and calories while at school.

He doesn't each much yogurt, so not sure if it effects him similarly. Ice cream on occasion. Cheese often on sandwiches, in Mexican dishes, on crackers. Couldn't say if there is cause and effect there, but my guess is no, or at least less so.

[Robert Santana]

Try out Optimum Pro Complex Serious Mass gainer and see how that works. FOodwise, what solid foods is he eating? Is there a reason he is trying to drink his calories?

[BastiatBB]

We'll give it a try - thanks, Coach!

Our understanding is that a gallon of milk a day is recommended for athletic teenage boys who aren't currently too fat. In practice, my son actually usually only drinks about half a gallon a day, with at least 3 servings including the protein powder. Regular, well balanced meals. On days we lift, I feed him 4 scrambled eggs, often with cheddar cheese melted in, sausage (2-3 links), buttered slice of toast, and a tall glass of whole milk after we get back from the gym. He's gaining wait, but too slowly. Your recommendation here should help a lot given all those extra calories!

[Robert Santana]

It works well if he will drink all of it. It looks like you are focusing heavily on fats and protein, which is fine because he is underweight but the bulk of his energy is going to come from carbohydrates so push the potatoes, rice, fruits, cereals, and sports drinks in addition to the high fat/high protein options you have listed.

[BastiatBB]

Much appreciated - will do!

[Devin Morrison]

Milk is hard to beat. It is cheap, nutrient-dense, accessible, and requires no prep. That being said, I was only a year or two older than your son when I was going through the LP and ran into a similar issue. I'll tell you what I did and hopefully, it'll prove useful, but Mr. Santana is always the man to listen to.

1. In order for me to eat more food, I had to be economical about when and how much of the foods I was eating that was satiating. I saved fibrous carbs, high-fat, and foods that otherwise "sat heavy" on my stomach for the meals that were both farthest from training and from one another. Since I trained in the afternoon (2:15ish) I simply made this breakfast and dinner on training and non-training days. These foods, for example, were potatoes (especially sweet), oats, sausage/pork, and whole-grains. This gave me a more consistent appetite throughout the day, which meant more food.

2. When I was in high school I brought a bottle of whole milk with two scoops of whey protein on days where I couldn't eat lunch before we actually ate lunch, since I was eating two meals. I'll assume your son is also in high-school and could benefit from a between meals shake. It doesn't have to be milk/protein either, any juice works.

3. Lots of white rice. Sprinkle some dextrose on it if his appetite isn't cooperating and see if that helps.

4. I found leaner cuts of meat and turning some of those whole eggs into egg whites proved beneficial. I wasn't eating fewer calories or protein, I just switched out the calories from fat that were there for carbs. This allowed me to eat more.

Most important this is just for him to find out how to keep his appetite up so he can eat more. If I didn't want to eat on non-training days, where-as I usually would because I had trained, I would go do non/low-impact cardio for half an hour and suddenly have an appetite. This didn't hurt me in the weight room so I continued and figure it helped me adhere to the program.

Best of luck to your son, he's got great #s.

[LucaTurilli]

Our understanding is that a gallon of milk a day is recommended for athletic teenage boys who aren't currently too fat.

Robert can correct me if I am wrong, but milk is recommended primarily for compliance reasons.

1. Underweight men, who have never eaten a large meal in their entire lives, will often find it easier to drink a substantial amount of calories versus consuming them in solid meals. Increases compliance.

2. The population that is underweight is often a teenage boy who doesn't have much money. Milk is arguably the most nutritious food available on a per-dollar basis. Therefore, a kid without much money can slam back 2000 QUALITY calories for $3. Increases compliance in the sense that money issues will not hinder his ability to consume calories.

3. While milk is good, I think the general consensus is that gaining weight from steaks, potatoes, rice would be a better option in general. The problem is that most guys who eat 1000 calories/day find it tough to suddenly slam down a bunch of big dense meals like these.

If dairy-based products are flaring up acne, lose the shakes for the protein and look into beef. Many cuts of beef are calorie dense, tasty, and easy to consume for months on end. One of my favorite go-to meals is to get 1.5 lbs of ground beef, make hamburger patties out of them, season them with worcestershire sauce and tony's - then broil them. On the side make one dry cup of white rice (makes two cups cooked). Make brown gravy from one of the little packets in the store and 1 cup of chicken bone broth (which has like 7g of protein per cup). Its delicious, affordable, and stacked with quality calories. Add a potato with butter. Eat these kind of meals 3x a day and there's no way he won't gain weight. No milk needed.


Also on the acne: when I was a teenager I had bad acne flareups and couldn't get it under control for anything. I eventually found some recommendation to get a tan from the sun, and that helped tremendously, although it didn't just clear me up entirely. Its worth trying, IMO.

[Robert Santana]

Instant mashed potatoes, instant rice, and cereal are my go-tos for quick carbs. It really is hard to beat milk on a per dollar basis when you factor in protein though. It's the world's cheapest weight gainer.