Member
I don't need to gain weight.
This is a question of how to meal plan and manage macros when you're already in the obese range.
I'm a 48yo male standing 5'7" and have been training since the beginning of November. I weigh 260lbs with an waist circ of 45" at the navel. No clue about BF% but I'd say a lot.
Current lifts are:
Squat-245 (reduced from 260 a couple of training sessions ago after reading your article on artificially low DL. My squat was eclipsing my DL. Worked like a charm BTW.)
Dead lift- 295
Bench press-165
Press- 125
Power clean- Work in progress. My shoulder mobility is garbage so I'm having great difficulty getting into a proper rack position and often end up throat punching myself with the bar. For now I'm doing the straight arm jumps with 95 on the bar just to have SOME weight to practice the movement. It feels weird pulling an empty bar.
So far everything has been progressing at 5lbs without a hitch. Presses may have to go to 2.5lb jumps by next month though.
The macros I'm trying to hit daily are p:250, C:300, F:<100. I focus on the protein and usually hit it, but the other two are difficult. Carbs are difficult to get in and the fat WAY too easy.
My first problem is that I don't really care if I lose weight, I just don't want to gain any more than I have. I'm perfectly happy to stay at 260ish as long as I'm getting strong although I'd be very pleased if the waist circumference were closer to 40 than it is.
My second problem is that I'm having a hard time getting all the food in. Am I really going to have to force feed myself to hit the macros or is a slight deficit OK as long as the weight on the bar keeps going up?
I appreciate any guidance you can give me.
Starting Strength Coach
How did you eat prior to this? Keep pushing your numbers and you may want to get some in person coaching on the power clean to speed things up. I usually make people run up their front squat on the light squat day so open up the lats and shoulders. They get heavy enough that shit stretches out fast it will just hurt like hell.
✓ Member
So, my advice is worth the price you paid, but I'm 5'8 46 yo, 278lbs currently. I've been consistently been hitting 200g Protein, 200-300g Carbs, and 50-100g Fat/day for a while. (Except for beer, so the alcohol grams are in addition to those numbers). Eating that much is tough. Despite being an unabashed carnivore 200g of protein is a struggle. I have to do 25-50g /day of whey protein. 200g of carbs has seemed to keep my training progress moving. But as a fat guy, maybe I don't need as many carbs to keep going.Originally Posted by Dumb-username73
Member
I spent 10 years working 12 hour night shifts in an ER and a lot of the time I wouldn't be able to eat at all until I was driving home. Then I'd inhale whatever I could get my hands on (Sonic) and crash as soon as I got home. I left that job for a dayshift gig 2 years ago but old habits die hard.
Now I bring 2-3 meals (rice and chicken) and a protein shake and when I eat all of it I've got around 150g of protein and about as many carbs by the end of the workday. I eat a normal dinner with the family and follow it up with a protein shake before bed to round out 250g. By the afternoon I feel like I'm force feeding myself.
I never thought of front squats for the rack position but it makes sense.. I didn't even know they were in the program and I don't have a light squat day yet. I can work them in if you think they'd help. I don't care if it hurts. I'll also have to arrange an in-person session. The closest SS coach is 2 hours away.
Member
If you are having trouble with catching power cleans, I've had some success getting someone familiar with it using what I called a "front rack scoop". Essentially, it's just unracking the bar like you're doing a front squat with it, and putting it right back. It lets you take your time and find the most comfortable way to hold the bar while it's racked, and you can repeat the motion a number of times to gain familiarity with it once you find the right place for your hands. You come out from the front rack position, and then you just get right back into it again under the bar. Repeat it a few times as a precursor to warming the clean up. I've seen it work, at least for getting someone used to catching the bar on the shoulders.
Starting Strength Coach
They are in the program for an advanced novice or intermediate that plans to focus on olympic weightlifting if you read Practical Programming. That said, Rip HATES front squats and I typically don't like using them other than for this specific purpose because they directly address the mobility problem that most people encounter in the power clean. They reliably work as well and since a recovery squat eventually comes I see no harm in it. Now if you are using the power clean for general strength and conditioning purposes then feel free to remove the front squat once it has accomplished its goal of getting your elbows up higher in the rack position. If you decide to pursue olympic weightlifting, then continue doing your front squats. Just want to be clear that front squats not in the program before Rip has me killed.
In terms of your diet, that sounds like a reasonable approach and I'm not sure where the problem currently lies. Have larger portions of rice, oatmeal, cereal, and fruits and you'll easily hit that carb target with blowing out the fat.
Member
Thanks for the guidance. I really appreciate it.
And if Rip reads this thread...I know that front squats are NOT part of the program. Don't kill Rob.
Starting Strength Coach
You are welcome. Enjoy the suck.
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