Gain more weight. How tall are you? You need to gain at least 30# unless you're 4'11". You probably need to gain 60#. EAT MORE.
Just to let you guys know where I'm at; After doing crossfit for about 2 months I started "Starting Strength" on May 6th. So It's been a strong month of lifting and eating. Gains so far has been Back Squat from 115 to 180 (will be attempting 185), and bodyweight from 138 to 146.
Has anyone here done a back off week every 4th week? I really like the idea of this. I would probably make it exactly like the starting strength week but all weight will be 40-60%? Since starting SS my body has been in a perpetual state of soreness, my foam roller has helped facilitate some of it. I also over train very easily and when I do I get a upper respiratory cold, seriously every time. The only thing I will be loosing is a possible 15lb increase on my lifts but if I were to get sick or injured I would miss more than one week regardless.
Gain more weight. How tall are you? You need to gain at least 30# unless you're 4'11". You probably need to gain 60#. EAT MORE.
Taking a light day or two if you must is okay, but make sure you really need to. Really, the "stall-reset" procedure should take care of any kind of overtraining. Make sure that you are taking a light day because you absolutely 100% must - plenty of times in linear progression you have a day where you are like "There is no way this is going up for 3x5" and you try it and you make all your lifts. Also - gain weight, both on your body and on the bar.
Perpetual soreness is inversely correlated with burgers. Eat more of them.
I am 5'7".
I know exactly what you mean. Once my squat got past 165lbs I would be floored after the 3x5 because I actually did it.
Yea, since I started GOMAD I've noticed my recovery is way fast.
Seriously though I am eating a ton. I have even resorted to olive oil shots.
Last edited by ColdsnapBryan; 06-03-2010 at 09:04 AM.
I'm not just talking out my ass to be a jackass... I am discovering this fact through experience and testing.
Yesterday I had a triple burger with cheese, plus a baked potato and choc milk for lunch. Had roast beef, potatoes and carrots with a pint of milk before the gym. Hit the gym and had plenty of strength to spare. Came home and ate a decent sized rack of ribs and a pile of potato wedges with another pint of milk. Another pint before bed. Today I am not sore AT ALL.
So in all honesty, if you are constantly sore on this program, you need to eat more burgers.
I do pretty-much the same thing that Matt did here, except that I prefer a "cleaner" diet. Not "clean" as in, "I wanna be a bodybuilder and have nice abs" but clean as in "I did a lot of damage to my body with bad habits and laziness in the past, so I want to eat healthy, un-processed foods the majority of the time" ;-)
If you're like me, and you're perpetually sore, but you don't like the idea of eating the bread, sugar and starchy carbs NO PROBLEMO, you can still eat big:
pre-workout meal (1 to 1.5 hours before hitting the gym):
1. salad with 2 cups of spinach, 1 cup of peeled baby carrots, 1 cup diced cucumber 1/2 cup diced red pepper 1/2 cup diced jalapeno pepper, drenched in 1 or 2 shot glass(es) full of extra-virgin olive oil
2. two chicken drumsticks, two chicken thighs (leave the skin on, you'll need the fat)
3. 1 cup of lightly salted pistachios
Eat that. Hit the gym hard. Then, after your workout, eat the above, again, and if you're drinking your milk, have two HUGE glasses of whole milk along with it.
Before I started Rippetoe's and "eating big" I weighed 219 lbs. I was perpetually sore, had problems sleeping, yadda yadda yadda. I started training seriously, with the program, and eating better. A month later, I weigh 239/240 lbs, and my squat has gone up 60 lbs. I squatted 200 yesterday with NO soreness afterwards at all. And during my workout, I felt like I could have done way more.
I seriously cannot thank Rip, and the guys and gals on this forum enough for driving home the point "You gotta fucking eat" to me. Now, though we're all adimant about it, please don't misunderstand ... We're not suggesting you eat 20 burgers a day and get morbidly obese, we're telling you to eat for fuel, fuel for your resting metabolic rate plus fuel for working out plus fuel for recovery AND fuel to build new muscle.
Eat your burgers if you're not Paleo or Primal or whatever, or eat plenty of good, "clean" food if you're eating clean. But EAT. You will be healthier in the long run if you eat a little more and put on some good weight.
Speaking of eating ... God damn it I love waking up in the morning and eating a porterhouse steak with a 5 egg spinach and cheese omelet and kunzler bacon!