[quote]Professor X wrote:
Don’t train or eat like an “ectomorph”. Train and eat like someone trying to make progress. Forget the nickname.[/quote]
A crucial concept worth repeating. Nate, let this sink in for a sec.
[quote]ns182 wrote:
I’m trying to maximize mass on an ectomorph frame without force-feeding (which wouldn’t be permanent).[/quote]
What do you mean “wouldn’t be permanent”? You need to eat enough calories to make the scale go up, whether that takes 3,000 calories or 6,000 calories. You have to figure out a way to get there and it might suck at first, but you’ll adapt.
Also, what, exactly, did you eat yesterday?
Generally you don’t want your bench to be so close to your squat. Do you deadlift or row, and if so, how much? For your size, that’s a good bench, but the fact that your lower body strength is so close could be an indicator of a strength imbalance which could set you up for injuries or slow progress down the road.
Do you currently have back pain and some injury that limits your training?
5/3/1 will not “tear you up” by any means. It’s literally designed to progress slowly and steadily and has a deload (a lighter/easier week) once a month.
No, not overtraining.
No idea what program you’re referring to.
A lot of guys in the Over-35 forum seem to love the 5/3/1 program, so I’ll make it simple, do this for the next 90 days then check back with results:
Important note though, if you don’t figure out how to eat properly (meaning enough and consistently), you will absolutely be wasting time. Check these articles to get a better handle on your nutrition: