Reply With QuoteThanks for sharing buddy. First, have you read my body composition article from last week? If not check it out.
Second, why have you only put 100 lb on your deadlift in ~3 months? this should have been accomplished in the first two weeks.
Member
Starting to stress about fat gain
Starting Strength has been amazing for me. I have cowboyed it up for years in gyms and not had the same kind of strength gains as I have simply lifting with barbells and toughing out squatting 3 X a week. I am starting to have some concerns though.
First off, the numbers:
Im a 33 year old male, 5'10". According to my smart scale, which I really think is being kind on BF%, I have gone from 197 lbs, 16.3% BF to 222 lbs, 19.2% BF since September 20th (my first lift day after a 3+ year hiatus from lifting at all).
Lift Progress:
Squat: 100 > 250
Bench: 125 > 180
DL: 155 > 255
OHP: 65 > 120
Clean: 90 > 120
eating between 3000-4000 calories a day on average
Linear progression is still going strong. I want to keep this going, but I am rapidly approaching a round biker physique that I'd rather not have. Almost every post I see around here is from skinny dudes worried that they are going to get fat, I don't see many from guys who were near or above 200 when they started. Should I start easing up on my calories? I'm honestly having a conflict of goals/limits. When I started SS, I said I didnt mind bulking up to 220, or 20% BF and then Id lean out a little bit.
Now I really want to hit 315 on my squat before I start trying to play the "lose the weight but not the lean gains" game that I hate so much. Which goal/limit should I adhere to?
While we're on the topic, how much can you expect to see your lifts go down during a cautious cut on something like Andys HLM? And is that still the way to go? Is it wise/advisable to start a cut in the middle of a linear progression program thats still really ramped up and working?
Starting Strength Coach
Thanks for sharing buddy. First, have you read my body composition article from last week? If not check it out.
Second, why have you only put 100 lb on your deadlift in ~3 months? this should have been accomplished in the first two weeks.
Member
I'm not sure. Just happened that way I guess. Perhaps I went to phase 2 too quickly? I've been putting 5 extra pounds on every workout and it feels like a lot of weight. It's definitely not keeping pace with the squat since it's not being performed 3 X a week. I did have to take nearly a week off around Thanksgiving but other than that Ive been pretty regimented other than a very occasional lighter day when I didnt feel well rested.Originally Posted by Robert Santana
Starting Strength Coach
This is why you should have added 20 lb per workout on week 1, followed by 10 per workout on week 2 @ a 3x/wk consistency. That would have you deadlifting what you are currently deadlifting at week 3 versus month 3. Then continue with the 10 lb jumps until you can no longer sustain them. My guess right now is that you are not pulling a sufficiently heavy weight. You are 220 lb, put some more weight on the bar and get that gap bigger. Your deadlift should be 50-100 lb above your squat by the end of the linear progression if all was done correctly. If you are wondering why this is important in the nutrition forum the answer is because the deadlift drives upper body muscularity more than any of the other lifts we do. You mentioned that you are concerned with excess upper body fat storage. I can guarantee you that if you keep getting stronger at deadlifting 19% body fat will look a lot different. Are you doing lat pulldowns as well?
✓ Member
Would you mind expanding on this a little? Does it drive strength progress in upper body lifts? Or are you saying it builds upper body mass? Thanks
Starting Strength Coach
It builds the most upper body muscle mass out of all of the lifts that we prescribe. Since you mentioned it, it also drives progress on the other lifts, the squat included.
Member
Robert i have a question, I am right now eating 4000 calories (after stalling early in the nlp because eating not enough) and now my deadlift is 115 kg and squat 110. How do i making the gap bigger between them( I had a couple of workouts lost because the gym in the army was closed)? To the deadlift i am adding 2.5 kg every training session and for the squat too.
Starting Strength Coach
I'd hold the squat and let the deadlift get ahead by at least 25 kg. The problem is that this wasn't done earlier and now you are paying for it with a suboptimal deadlift. I can't see why you can't add 5 kg to the deadlift right now. How much do you weigh?
Member
I have a similar issue, with a squat and deadlift only separated by 20 lbs. What do you mean when you say hold up the squat? Do you just repeatedly squat the weight you’ve been at and progress the deadlift or do you slow the rate of progression on the squat?
Starting Strength Coach
Either approach works. You just don't want to be in a situation where you are grinding squats three time per week and too tired to complete your deadlifts. Think about it like this.
Scenario 1: you ramp your deadlift up quick in month 1 and continue going up faster than you would on a squat. By the time your squat gets to thrice per week you'll be pulling heavy once per week and on your way to the end of your deadlift LP.
Scenario 2: you progress them together and your deadlift LP ends prematurely because your squat LP starts to fatigue the back and you end up missing pulls that you would have otherwise completed months before had you started out pulling heavier
I've seen scenario 2 happen time and time again. We don't want that so you can either do baby jumps on the squat to satisfy the need to add weight or you can repeat the same weight until your deadlift gets some headway. Neither is incorrect and your squat will catch up quick when the time comes so I honestly don't see an issue with it.
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