5x5 when does gains start?

[nails]

On week 7 of 5x5 all my lifts have gone up well.Was completely trashed after the volume phase,and have been eating more than ever.My weight at start 205 and now still 205.I'm getting frustrated.Are the final 2 wks. goina show something or should I cut my losses now?Been working out steady for last 4 yrs.this program sounded good,I'm stronger,but where's the bodyweight?

 

[djeclipse]

Are you eating enough? Are you getting stronger?

 

[RipStone]

Are you eating enough? Are you getting stronger?

Well he said his lifts are up so I would assume he is getting stronger.

To the orginal poster, if you arent gaining weight then you arent eating enough, thus you will struggle to put on size. Bottom line, eat more.

 

[nelmsjer]

Did you take measurements? Has your bodyfat changed/lessened? Have you gained muscle and lost fat at an equal rate? Do you look better? Do your clothes fit differently?

Are you eating 6 times per day? Are you prioritizing post-workout nutrition, specifically? Are you tracking your calories?

Let us know. If you answered "yes" to the first set of questions, you're golden. If you answered "yes" to all of the second set of questions and you wanted to gain weight, then you didn't make the appropriate calorie adjustments after analyzing the numbers. If you answered "no" to the second set of questions, I can almost guarantee you have no clue about how much you're eating.

 

[BiggT]

I agree....assess your calories. Even if your training is total shit or you're sedintary and you take in more calories than you burn, you gain weight, it may be fat, but you'll gain weight.

Would you post what you typically eat in a day? An honest assessment, post what you DO eat, not what you know you SHOULD eat and you'll get the best advice.

 

[nails]

Thanks for the replys.I usually have a bowl of oatmeal,about an hour later steak&egg sandwich on whole wheat bagel.Lunch is a couple of chicken or tuna sandwichs.Supper is alot of different things, steak,pasta,chicken,ect.all good whole foods and I eat till I'm stuffed.I usually only have 1 protein drink a day.If I have to eat much more than this it's going to be tough.How can anyone?I cant eat till I puke kind of defeats the purpose.And yes I am stronger on the 5x5 but I'm also looking for additional mass.Thanks

 

[BiggT]

This probably isn't what you really want to hear, and it is gonna sound like I don't know what to tell you, so I am just rattling something off for the sake of posting, but it really is true, and your answer really is this simple.

You're just not eating enough. You may feel stuffed, you may think it is a lot of food, but it obviously is not above maintainence level for you, and you just need to eat MORE. Stay stuffed all day, take a weight gainer if need be, add olive oil to your shakes, just add more calories.

To be honest, a bowl of oatmeal and steak, egg, and cheese bagel is not enough food for a muscular 205lb guy who is looking to grow. Eat more, it's that simple. Anybody can gain bodyweight on any routine (or no routine at all), just eat more than you burn, if you aren't gaining, eat more, if you still aren't gaining, eat more. It can be a chore, but it is really the only answer.

 

[nails]

Thanks BiggT,I guess I'll just have to condition myself to do it.

 

[Protobuilder]

a bowl of oatmeal,about an hour later steak&egg sandwich on whole wheat bagel.Lunch is a couple of chicken or tuna sandwichs.Supper is alot of different things, steak,pasta,chicken,ect.all good whole foods and I eat till I'm stuffed.I usually only have 1 protein drink a day

At 205??? No wonder your body weight is staying the same. You described 4 meals and one protein shake, so maybe 6 "meals" if the shake is a whopper. Where's the protein at breakfast? Where's the post-workout nutrition? Unless those meals are gigantic, you're probably not eating enough, plain and simple. You have to be in a caloric surplus to gain weight. So, either you're gaining fat or muscle. But if the scale doesn't move AT ALL, it's highly likely that you're not eating enough. And I say that b/c it's just damn hard to stay 205 but lose weight and gain muscle at the same time. Most likely, just not eating enough.

Do you write down the exact amount of calories that you take in?

 

[Madcow2]

All any resistance program can do is get you better at the lifts. If you don't eat enough, you won't gain. For this you need caloric excess. If caloric excess is present and your program blows, you will gain weight by getting fat. If caloric excess is present and your program is good (i.e. getting stronger) you will gain weight and it will be muscle and some fat likely (depends on mix/amount, state of the individual etc...). However - if caloric excess is not present and you have a good program, you will get strong but not gain weight - you are totally dependent on body recomposition and unless you have substantial bodyfat (i.e. a diet with significant caloric excess already in place) that's a slow to impossible road for an experienced lifter.

This is the biggest fubar in BBing and too many people hamstring themselves. Read this at least once and preferably twice - I'll probably redo my descriptions to make sure people read it as it's frustrating as hell to screw this one up with all that hard work: http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4866519&postcount=465

 

[Jim Ouini]

I started my recent 5 x 5 at ~198-200 (depending on the scale) and was eating 'at maintenance' during the volume phase (didn't gain a pound).

I happened to start deload/intensity right around the new year so I told myself I needed to up my calories (kind of worried about missing my 3 x 3 lifts) so I added Udo's oil to all my shakes and threw in a hamburger helper (tried to at least, not as consistent) around 10am and a bowl of cereal with milk around 7pm (didn't do it all at once, first started with the oil, then the HH, then the cereal)

I also have an oatmeal/ANPB/banana/protein powder/aforementioned oil shake first thing in the morning and right before bedtime, although these were already a staple (sans the oil)

Now finishing up Week 8 and I'm at about 205 (the scale at the gym had me @ 200 in Wk1 and last Wed said 207 but I don't think it's calibrated very well).

At any rate, just to reiterate what the others have said - I weighed myself, saw I wasn't gaining, upped my cals until I started seeing the scale move in the direction I wanted. The good thing about 5 x 5 is you know the program is solid so it's a good weight gain (mostly )

 

[anotherbutters]

I've had two of Jim's shakes every day since he first recommended them to me. Cheers again Jim!

 

[Jim Ouini]

Glad it's working for ya. But I have to give credit where credit is due, Anthrax Invasion gave me the recipe awhile back.

Now add some Udo's oil

 

[nails]

Wow,as stupid as this sounds it never dawned on me that even eating more than I ever have in my life it still wasn't enough.I guess my next move is to finish up this 5x5.Start my second,and eat moooooore.Thanks for all the advice.Oh yea whats udo oil and wher do I get it?

 

[Jim Ouini]

http://www.udoerasmus.com/products/oil_blend.htm

That's just my oil of choice. Like Biggt said you can add olive oil or whatever healthy oil you like.

1 tbsp = 125 cals. So I add 2 tbsp each to am/pm shakes and I get an easy 500 cals per day.

EDIT: Oh yeah, I'm being more diligent about getting 200g + of protein per day. I added an extra scoop of protein to each of my shakes

 

[anotherbutters]

It's a blend of good fats, pretty tasty too.

Seriously, if you're having a hard time eating more, throw a pint of milk, a banana, some ANPB, whey and oats (and some Udo's oil ) into a blender and hey presto - 800 calories that you can drink in less than a minute.

 

[rmt99e]

I dont know, i guess it depends on everything your doing...somehow i gained 5 pounds in about a week or two on my new 5x5.