fav13andac1)c said:

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I've also gone from 191 to about 220 after starting to lift in late February. Going on a cut has been on my mind. The way I see it, if I can lose 15-20 lbs, I may lose some strength, but I'm also giving my body some extra runway. I'm vizualizing a roller coaster graph; my lifts may go down some, but the next bulk they'll go higher than what they were before I cut. I haven't gotten a dexa scan but know I should. Let me know if I'm going about this the right way and if there are other things to consider. I know cutting or bulking is somewhat personal preference as well.

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I'd try to start small and lose 5-10 pounds and see if you can maintain where you are at. That should be doable in a month and lets you gauge the difference in energy vs. the programming you're doing.

Now, if you feel fat/sluggish at 220, it may be worth it to do the cut. But if you feel fine, I'd either just do a slight deficit or try to maintain where you are now.

jtraggie99 said:

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That's some impressive weight gain, almost 30 lbs in just over 6 months.

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I appreciate the positive spin. I'm sitting here thinking "Holy ****, 30 lbs???" Best tip I can give is ALWAYS eat your kids' leftover chicken tenders.

CC09LawAg said:

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fav13andac1)c said:

---

I've also gone from 191 to about 220 after starting to lift in late February. Going on a cut has been on my mind. The way I see it, if I can lose 15-20 lbs, I may lose some strength, but I'm also giving my body some extra runway. I'm vizualizing a roller coaster graph; my lifts may go down some, but the next bulk they'll go higher than what they were before I cut. I haven't gotten a dexa scan but know I should. Let me know if I'm going about this the right way and if there are other things to consider. I know cutting or bulking is somewhat personal preference as well.

---

I'd try to start small and lose 5-10 pounds and see if you can maintain where you are at. That should be doable in a month and lets you gauge the difference in energy vs. the programming you're doing.

Now, if you feel fat/sluggish at 220, it may be worth it to do the cut. But if you feel fine, I'd either just do a slight deficit or try to maintain where you are now.

---

That's a good thought. I don't feel sluggish or fat. Really just hoping to pop more and keep the strength gains going while not skyrocketing to 250. Thanks!

fav13andac1)c said:

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Providing an update:

As of this morning I'm at 295 on squat, 207.5 on BP, and 330 on DL. I've moved to 3x5 sets for all lifts except DL and will keep going until I hit a plateau. Extremely happy to still be progressing at this point. Now I'm wondering if 225 on BP is on the table (3x5) before switching programs!

I also just started using wrist straps for DL. I had all but given up on them because they would slip out of my hand when I would use them, only to realize that I was wrapping them over the bar instead of under the bar...*facepalm*. I missed 330 on Wednesday, and this morning with wrist straps used the correct way I did all 5 reps no problem. You live and learn, I guess.

I've also gone from 191 to about 220 after starting to lift in late February. Going on a cut has been on my mind. The way I see it, if I can lose 15-20 lbs, I may lose some strength, but I'm also giving my body some extra runway. I'm vizualizing a roller coaster graph; my lifts may go down some, but the next bulk they'll go higher than what they were before I cut. I haven't gotten a dexa scan but know I should. Let me know if I'm going about this the right way and if there are other things to consider. I know cutting or bulking is somewhat personal preference as well.

---

Great work man! If you are struggling on BP, switch to 5x3 and push further.

Thanks! Just to clarify, are you saying 5 sets of 3? I've switched to 3 sets of 5 so just double-checking.

Yes - more first reps, more rest, and same volume as a 3x5.

I actually came here to ask something similar.

I'm 10 months in and I've noticed the gains have slowed quite a bit. I assume most has to do with the newbie gains now being a thing of the past.

I usually do roughly 3x10 on each exercise. Do you guys think going lower rep and higher weight (3x5) would help sort of "kickstart" the gains again?

texasaggie2015 said:

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I usually do roughly 3x10 on each exercise. Do you guys think going lower rep and higher weight (3x5) would help sort of "kickstart" the gains again?

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3x10 for the major barbell exercises?

I would start with a 5x5 and then do appropriate accessories for that muscle group in 3x6-10. I would probably use a 1 RM calculator to determine what you're doing for 10, see what it says you should do for 5, and then shave 10 or 15 pounds off that to give you a little runway while your body adjusts.

Then increase weekly in 2.5 to 5 pound increments depending on your comfort level and frequency of workouts.

Another alternative would be to go a bit heavier and do a 10x3 - 10 sets of 3. It's more time consuming so probably less accessory work depending on your schedule - I usually do an accessory lift in between on those workouts. So if I'm benching, I do pullups in between to save time.

Edit to add: As another example, running 5/3/1, I will do escalating sets to a heavy weight, then back off and do a 5x10 on the barbell movement. But that is more of an intermediate program and probably overcomplicating where you are - I'd try the tried and true vanilla 5x5 Stronglifts type structuring to see if it gets you over your plateau.

fav13andac1)c said:

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Thanks! Just to clarify, are you saying 5 sets of 3? I've switched to 3 sets of 5 so just double-checking.

---

Run the three sets of 5 until that last set (or the last rep of each set) is really challenging. Not quite seeing god or the white light, but while its going up you definitely have the thought you may not make it.

Then switch to five sets of 3. This should give you a little bit more runway to keep adding weight to the bar for a few more weeks/month.

After that, probably time to start thinking about intermediate programming for the bench.

You are doing great!

I'll also add, depending on your appetite for aggressiveness with progressive overload, if you like doing the higher reps schemes, this is something I've been doing for my wife that she has been very successful with. She isn't nearly as "into it" as I am, so this works for what she wants to accomplish.

Workout A:
3x5 Squat
DB OH Press 3x10
3x10 RDL
3x10 Lat Pull
Arm Accessories

Workout B:
3x5 Hex Bar DL
3x10 Squat
3x5 Bench
3x10 Cable Row
Shoulder & Ab Accessories

I have her go up to 4 sets, then 5 sets, then she goes up 5 pounds on each barbell lift and either increases reps or small weight jumps (2.5 pounds) on any dumbbell or cable stuff. Goal is to lift every other day but that obviously doesn't happen with life, but she usually gets about 3 in a week.

She hasn't missed a lift yet and is making slow and steady progress without feeling like she's being ground to dust.

texasaggie2015 said:

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I actually came here to ask something similar.

I'm 10 months in and I've noticed the gains have slowed quite a bit. I assume most has to do with the newbie gains now being a thing of the past.

I usually do roughly 3x10 on each exercise. Do you guys think going lower rep and higher weight (3x5) would help sort of "kickstart" the gains again?

---

You had a hell of a run with those newbie gains! Great work.

I would suggest now really thinking about what direction you want to head. Im not sure what your whole program entails, however, I doubt an across the board 3x5 to all lifts is necessarily a good idea.

Not sure how much, squat, press, deadlift, bench you are doing, but maybe you should take a look at running a beginner strength program. Starting Strength, StrongLifts, Madcow, GraySkull....something like that.

IMO, accumulating strength is very rarely the wrong move. I think most folks should run up their linear progressions (adding about 5 pounds to the bar every workout, or even every other work out), see where they end up. THEN, if they want to do something "hypertrophy" focused (and not focused on outright max strength, if you are stronger, you are bigger), the lifter is in a much better position to really get alot out of that program because they are so much stronger.

Plus, good things happen to your health and body when you train it with force going all the way through it. Plus, the chasing numbers bug can be fun (so long as don't go crazy).

FWIW right now I do a 6 day PPL split

texasaggie2015 said:

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FWIW right now I do a 6 day PPL split

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That's alot.

Im betting if you ran a 3 day a week strength program, your body would respond really well. Just cutting alot of that volume out will give it some breathing room to recover, adapt, and get stronger. (Not too be too general here, but dudes getting the most out of 6 days a week long term are usually on the juice).

Your body has to have time to recover and adapt. You build muscle OUT of the gym. Not in it.

Just something to consider.

Interesting - I guess the way I was looking at it, I was still only hitting each muscle group twice a week which was time to rest between. Possible I've been doing it wrong, I'm a newbie.

texasaggie2015 said:

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Interesting - I guess the way I was looking at it, I was still only hitting each muscle group twice a week which was time to rest between. Possible I've been doing it wrong, I'm a newbie.

---

it depends on your PPL split, in my opinion. If you're spamming heavy compound lifts each day, I don't think it's sustainable. If you're doing 3 days of heavy compounds (strength focused) and then 3 days of more hypertrophy focused (and the inverse of the what you did on the first days, ie, more triceps and less chest) it's works well. That's what I aim for when I can get 6 days a week in

Thanks.

Yeah - totally possible I'm doing a few things wrong. I spent so much time researching and reading and trying to find the "perfect" plan and decided I just need to get in there and start doing something. This is just what I got in a groove doing and stuck with it.

texasaggie2015 said:

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Interesting - I guess the way I was looking at it, I was still only hitting each muscle group twice a week which was time to rest between. Possible I've been doing it wrong, I'm a newbie.

---

Nah, in the beginning, its not super critical. In the beginning, a person really isn't strong enough to push hard enough to need big time rest.

However, now that your gains are slowing, that's probably (again, don't know with certainty) what is happening. You are strong enough to really push it and you aren't recovering (and/or you aren't eating enough).

Not saying a 6-day PPL cant work. It all depends on the volume. For natural lifters, 8 to 12 sets per week per big body part (ie, back, lets, chest, arms, shoulders), is about the sweet the spot (on average).

I really would suggest just saying EFF it. Switch it up. Go for a 3-day full body strength training routine for as long as you can keep adding weight to the bar. (Its going to feel light and boring in the beginning...but then...it wont). maybe you get 6 months out of it? Now you have a strong base to go back to bodybuilding (which is what you are doing...with great success I may add, your hard work is absolutely paying off and you should be damn proud of what you have accomplished).

ttha_aggie_09 said:

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texasaggie2015 said:

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Interesting - I guess the way I was looking at it, I was still only hitting each muscle group twice a week which was time to rest between. Possible I've been doing it wrong, I'm a newbie.

---

it depends on your PPL split, in my opinion. If you're spamming heavy compound lifts each day, I don't think it's sustainable. If you're doing 3 days of heavy compounds (strength focused) and then 3 days of more hypertrophy focused (and the inverse of the what you did on the first days, ie, more triceps and less chest) it's works well. That's what I aim for when I can get 6 days a week in

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LOL! Man, a natural lifter would fall apart if they did the big heavy compounds with the required intensity going 6 days a week.

Oh for sure - that's the only reason I am not doing them. I have tried and it never yields anything positive. Maybe one day if I hop on that vitamin T. I'll continue to work out with the mortals for now though…

ttha_aggie_09 said:

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Oh for sure - that's the only reason I am not doing them. I have tried and it never yields anything positive. Maybe one day if I hop on that vitamin T. I'll continue to work out with the mortals for now though…

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LOL and with as heavy as you lift...goodness.

I think I finally got my squat problems under control.

I was doing some weird combination where I had the bar placed on my back for low bar but my stance wasn't wide enough, so when I went heavy I was killing my back.

I've widened my stance and am dealing with hardly any back pain and feel like when I'm coming out of the hole I'm really driving through my legs/hips now versus feeling like my lower back is doing all of the work.

Still need to get more reps in doing it with this stance but I think by the end of the year I'll see a significant jump in my max with this change.

How wide were you vs now?

Tex117 said:

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texasaggie2015 said:

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FWIW right now I do a 6 day PPL split

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That's alot.

Im betting if you ran a 3 day a week strength program, your body would respond really well. Just cutting alot of that volume out will give it some breathing room to recover, adapt, and get stronger. (Not too be too general here, but dudes getting the most out of 6 days a week long term are usually on the juice).

Your body has to have time to recover and adapt. You build muscle OUT of the gym. Not in it.

Just something to consider.

---

Took this advice a couple weeks ago and made a point to take an extra rest day both weeks since.

I've noticed more energy and more strength during my workouts. It's too early to see any gains from the extra rest but my muscles do appear "fuller" if that makes sense.

Thanks again for the advice.

ttha_aggie_09 said:

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Oh for sure - that's the only reason I am not doing them. I have tried and it never yields anything positive. Maybe one day if I hop on that vitamin T. I'll continue to work out with the mortals for now though…

---

Don't do it.

Not intending to do it but never say never. I have zero reasons to do it

I'd say I had my feet slightly wider than my hips on my low bar stance previously - I probably widened it by about 6 inches.

Definitely getting very sore in some of the smaller muscle groups and in the posterior chain by widening my stance but feel way stronger in this position overall.

I think I benefited early on from the narrower stance because my quads were much stronger than my posterior chain so it helped me move the weight. As the weight has gone up my quads haven't kept up so I think to move into the 5/600 I need a more efficient moment arm.

texasaggie2015 said:

---

Tex117 said:

---

texasaggie2015 said:

---

FWIW right now I do a 6 day PPL split

---

That's alot.

Im betting if you ran a 3 day a week strength program, your body would respond really well. Just cutting alot of that volume out will give it some breathing room to recover, adapt, and get stronger. (Not too be too general here, but dudes getting the most out of 6 days a week long term are usually on the juice).

Your body has to have time to recover and adapt. You build muscle OUT of the gym. Not in it.

Just something to consider.

---

Took this advice a couple weeks ago and made a point to take an extra rest day both weeks since.

I've noticed more energy and more strength during my workouts. It's too early to see any gains from the extra rest but my muscles do appear "fuller" if that makes sense.

Thanks again for the advice.

---

Hell yeah man! Glad its working out and you are feeling good.

And for sure they look fuller, you arent hammering the sheet out of them every day.

CC09LawAg said:

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I'd say I had my feet slightly wider than my hips on my low bar stance previously - I probably widened it by about 6 inches.

Definitely getting very sore in some of the smaller muscle groups and in the posterior chain by widening my stance but feel way stronger in this position overall.

I think I benefited early on from the narrower stance because my quads were much stronger than my posterior chain so it helped me move the weight. As the weight has gone up my quads haven't kept up so I think to move into the 5/600 I need a more efficient moment arm.

---

Mark Rippetoe would be very upset. LOL

AggieBarstool said:

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It's ironic this has come up as it has, as I'm in the exact same boat.

I am 42 years old. I started going to the gym in June for the first time in my life in June. I've been doing a 3-day gym split and have seen some progress but I'm pretty much stalled on my 1RM for bench and chest presses. Meanwhile, I'm STILL in a slight caloric deficit (<250 cal/day). I'm started on a GLP1 medication in December (weight 240 at the time) and am still on it. I went from 240lbs in Dec. to 170 in June, then started my gym routine. Yesterday I weighed in at 162lbs. I currently eat 2400+ calories a day; protein and carbs 200+g/day. Average TDEE is ~2600, maybe a little higher if I have an intense workout. I do light at-home cycling on a recumbent bike to keep my recovery discomfort minimal. My wife is adamant that I cut back on the GPL1 meds, which I've given serious consideration to, but my food noise is real and hella strong. I almost feel I'd rather "stall out" on my gym progress than cut back on the GPL1 med and potentially gain back non-healthy weight.

---

I appreciate the honest feedback from Tex117, ttha_aggie_09, and CC09LawAg a page or so ago.

To answer some of the questions:

* I fell into the group-think opinion that GLP1s are a "forever" drug, so I never even considered titrating down and off. I've reversed course there. Hard to do, but I'll discuss with my PCP during my annual exam next month and come up with a plan. I'm generally in favor of taking fewer meds.

* I'm confident I lost muscle during my aggressive cut from Dec. '24 to June '25. My DEXA scan in August showed 9.9% body fat (don't recall muscle mass). I'm planning to have another later this year to have a before-and-after comparison. I KNOW I gained muscle mass -- I can see it -- but data to support that will be nice. That tells me I'm doing something right, but I gotta get into the nitty gritty now that the new-to-the-gym-gains-honeymood-phase is over. LOL!

* Since my post a few weeks ago, I can confidently say my weight has remained consistent, fluctuating btw. 162-166lbs, give or take. I need to get better about stepping on the scale consistently so I can correlate dietary choices the day before with the weight recorded. Of course I notice I retain water / gain weight after salty foods or over-consumption of carbs. The good news, however, is this has remained generally true as I've worked through upping calories (from 2500 to nearly 3000/day), eating more carbs, and keeping protein around 150-200g/day. This tells me that somewhere along the way, I underestimated my maintenance calories and need to adjust. Along the way I've given myself the freedom, mentally, to say that it's okay to GAIN weight, as long as I'm doing it in support of strength gains and not just eating junk food and excusing it as "I'm bulking up for the gym."

* I'm 5'11 - 6'0"

* Last week, I hit a new 1RM on bench press, so hopefully this is an indication I'm doing something right and broke the stall. I'm working with a trainer who's got me on a plan of progressive overload while I'm in the gym. Still trying to figure out form and leg drive. Also, I'm embarrassed to admit that what I THOUGHT was progressive overload before really... wasn't. My mind was playing tricks on me and I thought I was benching to near failure, but I realize now that I'm not. I'm going to keep following "the plan" my trainer has me on and constantly remind myself that gains come from pushing to the point of near failure.

* The food noise is the only real obstacle left to figure out. This is a topic for another thread, but my mental health the last month or so has been in the toilet. Snacking has been treatment of choice. Thankfully we don't keep a lot of junk in the house, so the damage is minimal. The only real hit is to my calorie goals. My doc and I are working through the mental health but it's been slow going. The last two weeks have been especially hard: near total apathy has led to inconsistent routines at home and at the gym. I see things improving this week due to some change-ups, so I'm hopeful we're going to be back on track.

Thanks again, all, for the perspective and positivity. We got this!

Good work, and it sounds like you're on the right track.

Don't be too hard on yourself - the best part of this lifestyle change is in the process, not the results.

Focus on making yourself a little bit better every day and the results will come.

AggieBarstool said:

---

AggieBarstool said:

---

It's ironic this has come up as it has, as I'm in the exact same boat.

I am 42 years old. I started going to the gym in June for the first time in my life in June. I've been doing a 3-day gym split and have seen some progress but I'm pretty much stalled on my 1RM for bench and chest presses. Meanwhile, I'm STILL in a slight caloric deficit (<250 cal/day). I'm started on a GLP1 medication in December (weight 240 at the time) and am still on it. I went from 240lbs in Dec. to 170 in June, then started my gym routine. Yesterday I weighed in at 162lbs. I currently eat 2400+ calories a day; protein and carbs 200+g/day. Average TDEE is ~2600, maybe a little higher if I have an intense workout. I do light at-home cycling on a recumbent bike to keep my recovery discomfort minimal. My wife is adamant that I cut back on the GPL1 meds, which I've given serious consideration to, but my food noise is real and hella strong. I almost feel I'd rather "stall out" on my gym progress than cut back on the GPL1 med and potentially gain back non-healthy weight.

---

I appreciate the honest feedback from Tex117, ttha_aggie_09, and CC09LawAg a page or so ago.

To answer some of the questions:

* I fell into the group-think opinion that GLP1s are a "forever" drug, so I never even considered titrating down and off. I've reversed course there. Hard to do, but I'll discuss with my PCP during my annual exam next month and come up with a plan. I'm generally in favor of taking fewer meds.

* I'm confident I lost muscle during my aggressive cut from Dec. '24 to June '25. My DEXA scan in August showed 9.9% body fat (don't recall muscle mass). I'm planning to have another later this year to have a before-and-after comparison. I KNOW I gained muscle mass -- I can see it -- but data to support that will be nice. That tells me I'm doing something right, but I gotta get into the nitty gritty now that the new-to-the-gym-gains-honeymood-phase is over. LOL!

* Since my post a few weeks ago, I can confidently say my weight has remained consistent, fluctuating btw. 162-166lbs, give or take. I need to get better about stepping on the scale consistently so I can correlate dietary choices the day before with the weight recorded. Of course I notice I retain water / gain weight after salty foods or over-consumption of carbs. The good news, however, is this has remained generally true as I've worked through upping calories (from 2500 to nearly 3000/day), eating more carbs, and keeping protein around 150-200g/day. This tells me that somewhere along the way, I underestimated my maintenance calories and need to adjust. Along the way I've given myself the freedom, mentally, to say that it's okay to GAIN weight, as long as I'm doing it in support of strength gains and not just eating junk food and excusing it as "I'm bulking up for the gym."

* I'm 5'11 - 6'0"

* Last week, I hit a new 1RM on bench press, so hopefully this is an indication I'm doing something right and broke the stall. I'm working with a trainer who's got me on a plan of progressive overload while I'm in the gym. Still trying to figure out form and leg drive. Also, I'm embarrassed to admit that what I THOUGHT was progressive overload before really... wasn't. My mind was playing tricks on me and I thought I was benching to near failure, but I realize now that I'm not. I'm going to keep following "the plan" my trainer has me on and constantly remind myself that gains come from pushing to the point of near failure.

* The food noise is the only real obstacle left to figure out. This is a topic for another thread, but my mental health the last month or so has been in the toilet. Snacking has been treatment of choice. Thankfully we don't keep a lot of junk in the house, so the damage is minimal. The only real hit is to my calorie goals. My doc and I are working through the mental health but it's been slow going. The last two weeks have been especially hard: near total apathy has led to inconsistent routines at home and at the gym. I see things improving this week due to some change-ups, so I'm hopeful we're going to be back on track.

Thanks again, all, for the perspective and positivity. We got this!

---

Glad to hear you have a plan! And making the decision to start coming of the GLP-1.

Also, glad to hear you recognize that some of your gains are the "novice" gains, and you will need a plan to keep building muscle and making gains. (Some folks get the early gains, say to themselves, I can loose weight and gain muscle at the same time! Yeah, for like 3-6 months. Then they get discouraged and quit because its not awesome all the time).

I don't think "food noise" is something that necessarily needs another thread (unless you just want to get other opinions than us meatheads). It is very much a part of this kind of stuff. I have my own struggles with it and its taken me years to get hammered out. (I wouldn't eat).

As for scale weight, here is what I do. It may help you. Only weigh yourself on the mornings (after all your business), that you work out. Write it down in your "Notes" App on your phone with the date. This allows you to see the trends which is WAY more important than any one day kind of reading. Water retention, carbs, salt, mysteries, can all account for you swinging + or - 5 pounds easy. While hard, its better to focus on the trend for the MONTH rather than any given day.

And again, I would focus more on the waistline. Take a measurement. (And/or mark it on a belt). This isn't a bad way to track how the weight gain is distributing. More muscle...waistline barely goes up (it will a little bit, can't help that, and thats fine). More fat, waistline goes up. A DEXA about every 15-20 pounds of gain. (Or, can do one every 6 months). This should give you piece of mind when you see the scale going up.

Know that this is all a bit trial and error for what exactly works for you. While the general rules are helpful, it very quickly becomes exceedingly personal.

Hopefully, you will get to a point where you can enjoy the process rather than some ultimate "End Goal."

You have the right mentality and will get this figured out!

Glad to hear all is going well and you seemed pretty locked in! Good to hear your trying to tackle the mental health stuff too. I've been fortunate to not have had a whole of problems there but most people I know don't ever address it with someone and it often leads to really bad things in their personal life.

Keep up the hard work and just remember that the longer you train, the hard it is to replicate the newbie gains. The good news is that if you continue to be a student of the game and find ways to improve your training and/or form, you might really surprise yourself on what you can accomplish - you just have to be consistent. And always try to be better than last workout, last week, last month.

AggieBarstool said:

---

AggieBarstool said:

---

It's ironic this has come up as it has, as I'm in the exact same boat.

I am 42 years old. I started going to the gym in June for the first time in my life in June. I've been doing a 3-day gym split and have seen some progress but I'm pretty much stalled on my 1RM for bench and chest presses. Meanwhile, I'm STILL in a slight caloric deficit (<250 cal/day). I'm started on a GLP1 medication in December (weight 240 at the time) and am still on it. I went from 240lbs in Dec. to 170 in June, then started my gym routine. Yesterday I weighed in at 162lbs. I currently eat 2400+ calories a day; protein and carbs 200+g/day. Average TDEE is ~2600, maybe a little higher if I have an intense workout. I do light at-home cycling on a recumbent bike to keep my recovery discomfort minimal. My wife is adamant that I cut back on the GPL1 meds, which I've given serious consideration to, but my food noise is real and hella strong. I almost feel I'd rather "stall out" on my gym progress than cut back on the GPL1 med and potentially gain back non-healthy weight.

---

I appreciate the honest feedback from Tex117, ttha_aggie_09, and CC09LawAg a page or so ago.

To answer some of the questions:

* I fell into the group-think opinion that GLP1s are a "forever" drug, so I never even considered titrating down and off. I've reversed course there. Hard to do, but I'll discuss with my PCP during my annual exam next month and come up with a plan. I'm generally in favor of taking fewer meds.

* I'm confident I lost muscle during my aggressive cut from Dec. '24 to June '25. My DEXA scan in August showed 9.9% body fat (don't recall muscle mass). I'm planning to have another later this year to have a before-and-after comparison. I KNOW I gained muscle mass -- I can see it -- but data to support that will be nice. That tells me I'm doing something right, but I gotta get into the nitty gritty now that the new-to-the-gym-gains-honeymood-phase is over. LOL!

* Since my post a few weeks ago, I can confidently say my weight has remained consistent, fluctuating btw. 162-166lbs, give or take. I need to get better about stepping on the scale consistently so I can correlate dietary choices the day before with the weight recorded. Of course I notice I retain water / gain weight after salty foods or over-consumption of carbs. The good news, however, is this has remained generally true as I've worked through upping calories (from 2500 to nearly 3000/day), eating more carbs, and keeping protein around 150-200g/day. This tells me that somewhere along the way, I underestimated my maintenance calories and need to adjust. Along the way I've given myself the freedom, mentally, to say that it's okay to GAIN weight, as long as I'm doing it in support of strength gains and not just eating junk food and excusing it as "I'm bulking up for the gym."

* I'm 5'11 - 6'0"

* Last week, I hit a new 1RM on bench press, so hopefully this is an indication I'm doing something right and broke the stall. I'm working with a trainer who's got me on a plan of progressive overload while I'm in the gym. Still trying to figure out form and leg drive. Also, I'm embarrassed to admit that what I THOUGHT was progressive overload before really... wasn't. My mind was playing tricks on me and I thought I was benching to near failure, but I realize now that I'm not. I'm going to keep following "the plan" my trainer has me on and constantly remind myself that gains come from pushing to the point of near failure.

* The food noise is the only real obstacle left to figure out. This is a topic for another thread, but my mental health the last month or so has been in the toilet. Snacking has been treatment of choice. Thankfully we don't keep a lot of junk in the house, so the damage is minimal. The only real hit is to my calorie goals. My doc and I are working through the mental health but it's been slow going. The last two weeks have been especially hard: near total apathy has led to inconsistent routines at home and at the gym. I see things improving this week due to some change-ups, so I'm hopeful we're going to be back on track.

Thanks again, all, for the perspective and positivity. We got this!

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As a medical weight loss practitioner, I just want to say that I think you have graduated to the level of being able to manage your weight without medication. You've got the right approach and mentality for weight maintenance.

I have thoughts about the food noise issue you mentioned, and having been there before I thought I'd tell you what has worked for me. Sometimes it's ok to just get your total calories in however you can, but just make sure the total grams of protein make it in in one form or fashion, and don't sweat the details of carbs/fats- that way you can have "bad days" but follow some basic guidelines so that you don't fall too far off track. A day of donuts and protein bars/snacks is perfectly fine- as long as calories and protein are accounted for. That way you can knock off some of those food cravings you get but not feel guilty about it- especially when you're going through hard times.

Tex117 also has a great approach.

Feeling really good lately. Life has been hectic, and I had zero desire to lift yesterday and felt exhausted but still hit my 460 single on deadlift. If my 85% TM estimate is right, that would put my max at about 540 which I would be thrilled with.

I probably won't hit my 1500 goal this year like I had planned, but I'm making progress. Had some things come up that are making lifting a backup priority so I'm good as long as I'm moving forward.