How many calories should I be eating while doing the NLP?

I am 20(M) 5'8" and currently weigh 138lbs.

I have been training for about 8 months now. I gained about 4 lbs in the last 2 months eating 3000 calories a day but haven't noticed any strength gains.

How many calories should I eat a day when doing the program?




Lift stats:
•Squat: 200lbs for 5 (parallel depth)

•Bench: 135lbs for 5

•Deadlift: 220lbs for 1 (my weakest lift because of grip strength)

A Clarification | Mark Rippetoe

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Originally Posted by Robert Santana

A Clarification | Mark Rippetoe

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Thank you. Read through the whole thing and it looks like 4000 kcal is a good point to start at and see how my lifts progress?
Only thing is I'm worried about getting too fat

If you don't want to get too fat then keep your fats lower, carbs higher, and don't sandbag your deadlift. I mean it, drive that deadlift up quickly in the beginning so that it surpasses your squat by 50-100 lb by the end of the first month. Most of your muscle mass on this program comes from squats and deadlifts, with squats producing the bulk of your lower body musculature and deadlifts producing the bulk of your upper body musculature.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Robert Santana

If you don't want to get too fat then keep your fats lower, carbs higher, and don't sandbag your deadlift. I mean it, drive that deadlift up quickly in the beginning so that it surpasses your squat by 50-100 lb by the end of the first month. Most of your muscle mass on this program comes from squats and deadlifts, with squats producing the bulk of your lower body musculature and deadlifts producing the bulk of your upper body musculature.

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Thank you very much for all the help, Robert. Really appreciate it. I have decided on 200 P, 600 C , 70 F. That's roughly 4000 kcal. I will definitely focus on getting that deadlift up. 🙏

You are welcome. Should work well, let me know.