At one point or another since I was 16 (I’m 23 now) I’ve been trying to gain weight and get stronger, and while I’ve gotten stronger for the most part (I’ll list my maxes later) I’ve also added some flab to my midsection and thighs.
Now I’m at the point where trying to eat more is a struggle. Most meals now literally take me an hour or more to finish, even if itâ??s just a chicken breast and salad. I get real bad dry mouth that makes eating food like eating sand. It seems like the more I try to eat during a day, the less hungry I become as the day goes on.
But the weird thing is that while on vacation a few weeks ago, I was hungry all the time, and I ate my meals at the pace of a normal person.
Here are my 1RMs as of about a month ago:
Back Squat- 285
Bench- 200
Deadlift- 305
Press- 145
Snatch- 130
Power Clean- 185
I’m 5’10" 160. I figure I could use a good 20-25 lb of healthy weight at minimum. What can I do?
What variables were different while you were on vacation? was there a certain supplement that you were not taking while on the vacation? Maybe you are allergic to whey/dairy/wheat/gluten. One thing that helps me increase appetite is to add more volume to my training and decrease rest in between sets for the accessory lifts. Really try to get a sweat going when you train.
Stop eating chicken breasts and salad and start eating things you enjoy.
I know that was just an example of a meal, but the point is that you should be eating things you like to eat.
Also, those numbers are very low for someone training for 7 years. Especially the deadlift and bench press. That’s likely the reason youve put on fat at such a low bodyweight. Train harder/smarter and youll be able to eat more tastier foods (instead of chicken breasts).
Also stop eating around things that distract you. Like the computer or the tv. Eat at a table in a quiet room, finish the meal and carry on with your day.
[quote]d1chet wrote:
I get real bad dry mouth that makes eating food like eating sand. … But the weird thing is that while on vacation a few weeks ago, I was hungry all the time, and I ate my meals at the pace of a normal person.
[/quote]
Dehydration? Walking (moves food through intestines)?
Is this a fucking joke? Would you prefer being in my boat and feel hungry every single day? even after you’ve consumed 10 packets of instant grits, 2 lbs of ground turkey, a steam bag of broccoli and a huge salad?
[quote]Brian14 wrote:
What variables were different while you were on vacation? was there a certain supplement that you were not taking while on the vacation? Maybe you are allergic to whey/dairy/wheat/gluten. One thing that helps me increase appetite is to add more volume to my training and decrease rest in between sets for the accessory lifts. Really try to get a sweat going when you train. [/quote]
A lot of things…
-no access to whey or dairy in general
-really wasn’t able to have a real breakfast/lunch (was only able to have a protein bar for breakfast, and a can of tuna for lunch with some almonds as a snack)
-was doing more throughout the day (snorkeling, tours, etc), i was only able to get 4 workouts in during a 2 week vacation
-i noticed i was able to work up more of an appetite without drinking a shake post workout
you may need to up your activity level a bit. it also seems like you weren’t eating alot on vacation .Also if your so damn full all the time stop wasting your time on salads especially if they are lettuce
[quote]facko wrote:
Is this a fucking joke? Would you prefer being in my boat and feel hungry every single day? even after you’ve consumed 10 packets of instant grits, 2 lbs of ground turkey, a steam bag of broccoli and a huge salad?
[/quote]
are YOU fucking serious!??? of course those of us with no appetite or feeling full all the damn want to be hungry all the time so we can actually get all the damn calories we need.
how the fuck are you going to “learn to eat” when you’re full all the damn time???
[quote]facko wrote:
Is this a fucking joke? Would you prefer being in my boat and feel hungry every single day? even after you’ve consumed 10 packets of instant grits, 2 lbs of ground turkey, a steam bag of broccoli and a huge salad?
[/quote]
are YOU fucking serious!??? of course those of us with no appetite or feeling full all the damn want to be hungry all the time so we can actually get all the damn calories we need.
how the fuck are you going to “learn to eat” when you’re full all the damn time???[/quote]
Just speaking for myself, I “learned to eat” by approaching it like I would any other thing I wanted to get better at: I tracked, set goals, and used progressive overload.
Took one day and tried to eat as much as I could. Ended up being a measly 2.7cals, and I felt stuffed. After that I just started setting goals for myself: first, just hitting the 2.7k cals every day, then 2.9cals, 3.0kcals, etc. Ended up getting near 5k, which, for my activity level, was what I needed after having put on a good amount of weight.
[quote]facko wrote:
Is this a fucking joke? Would you prefer being in my boat and feel hungry every single day? even after you’ve consumed 10 packets of instant grits, 2 lbs of ground turkey, a steam bag of broccoli and a huge salad?
[/quote]
are YOU fucking serious!??? of course those of us with no appetite or feeling full all the damn want to be hungry all the time so we can actually get all the damn calories we need.
how the fuck are you going to “learn to eat” when you’re full all the damn time???[/quote]
Dude, I was the same way. You have to teach your body to accept more food…and yes, that will mean being uncomfortable at times. be careful who you waste that much emotional energy on. Most of the guys giving you a hard time aren’t exactly huge.
Bonez was also right about eating what you enjoy. This is a LIFE LONG PURSUIT. The guys who really got swole weren’t eating shit they hated everyday unless they were dieting for a contest.
Learn how to eat “better”, but you don’t get extra points for suffering more for no reason. Most of the diet Nazis out there are also pretty freaking small.
SAUCE! Anything to flavour food up works, but spicy stuff works best imo. The 3 Cs. Chicken, Cheese and Chilli sauce is awesome. But like BONEZ and X have said you need to enjoy the food. I went through a time where it really seemed to take ages to eat food. Try and eat at times you can relax as well. If you are not able to relax when you are eating its going to mess with your digestion, which wont help when you are packing food down ontop of more food when bulking.
[quote]BONEZ217 wrote:
Train harder/smarter and youll be able to eat more tastier foods (instead of chicken breasts.[/quote]
This is such a good way to phrase it.
Adding LBM is the true golden ticket, and yet this fact remains elusive even to regular gym-goers…
[quote]BONEZ217 wrote:
Stop eating chicken breasts and salad and start eating things you enjoy.
I know that was just an example of a meal, but the point is that you should be eating things you like to eat.
Also, those numbers are very low for someone training for 7 years. Especially the deadlift and bench press. That’s likely the reason youve put on fat at such a low bodyweight. Train harder/smarter and youll be able to eat more tastier foods (instead of chicken breasts).
Also stop eating around things that distract you. Like the computer or the tv. Eat at a table in a quiet room, finish the meal and carry on with your day. [/quote]
I am the opposite. I can mindlessly put down more food if I am distracted watching tv. Makes me stop thinking about how full I am getting.
[quote]d1chet wrote:
At one point or another since I was 16 (I’m 23 now) I’ve been trying to gain weight and get stronger, and while I’ve gotten stronger for the most part (I’ll list my maxes later) I’ve also added some flab to my midsection and thighs.
Now I’m at the point where trying to eat more is a struggle. Most meals now literally take me an hour or more to finish, even if itâ??s just a chicken breast and salad. I get real bad dry mouth that makes eating food like eating sand. It seems like the more I try to eat during a day, the less hungry I become as the day goes on.
But the weird thing is that while on vacation a few weeks ago, I was hungry all the time, and I ate my meals at the pace of a normal person.
Here are my 1RMs as of about a month ago:
Back Squat- 285
Bench- 200
Deadlift- 305
Press- 145
Snatch- 130
Power Clean- 185
I’m 5’10" 160. I figure I could use a good 20-25 lb of healthy weight at minimum. What can I do?[/quote]
If it helps you, I’m your same height, about your same weight, my lifting numbers are about the same as yours, and am going through the same ordeal trying to gain. I started at 145 and am now 176. Did gain some fat like you did - not concerned about that at all. When I started i couldn’t eat more than 2100cals comfortably. I decided to stretch my stomach out little by little. I chose one meal to make bigger each day - the first meal of the day. The other meals could be smaller. The one bigger meal scheme worked tremendously better than spreading the calories out evenly throughout the day. Stretching the stomach is key. I’m up to 3000cals per day pretty comfortably.
I also have dairy issues like you, plus grain issues which makes it a little harder. For dairy sometimes I substitute things like almond butter: low-volume, high-calorie. Sometimes I take a lactaid and eat cottage cheese anyway (which has low lactose to begin with). Goat’s milk is also better in terms of bloatness and lactose intolerance. If I’m having more than 8oz, I have it with lactaid anyway.
Hearing everyone’s advice has been very helpful for me as well.
hey brah i agree its all about eating foods that you like, which makes you less likely to skip a meal and stall your progress. if you look at my thread below its a good example of how i’ve been doing this. i’ve only started it a week and im loving it already:
another tip which is also in that thread is that its much easier to drink calories than eat them. for example every day now i mix milk, peanut butter and whey in a blender, pour it into a bottle and take it with me wherever i go. whenever i need to fit an extra meal in i just chug half of it, which gives 500 calories and 47g protein. if you could get maybe 2 or 3 of your meals in liquid form like this it might solve A) the bloated feeling, and B) the fact that it is taking you so long to eat the meals.
i am not huge and i am not an expert, just some friendly advice
