I’m a 42 y/o 267 lb 6’1" guy…my BMI is about 33.0 (yes I know). I’ve lost about 80 lbs in 1.5 years via diet and 6x/week exercise.
I lift weights 3 days per week and I do cardio 3 days per week. I use Ripptoe’s strength training program (for the last 2 months) and vary my cardio among several machines at my gym.
I eat 1500-2000 calories per day and eat very clean. I use whey protein & avg 100-150 grams per day. Oatmeal, lots of fruit/veggies, chicken breasts/tuna/salmon & cottage cheese are staples of my diet.
Anyway, I’m stalled. My strength training is stalled…not seeing much in the way of muscle or strength improvement. My weight loss has stalled.
I’m now at 1.5 years later, in a good workout regimen but with tennis elbow and hemmroids from doing squats. My doc recommends I stop with the squats and deadlifts.
Anyway, I want to build lean body mass, but I need to get over this hump and lose weight. I really don’t want to starve myself to get the weight loss going again…but I also find if I push my calories up to 3k+ a day I start adding weight.
This entire site is nothing but training and nutrition articles so I can’t imagine that what you’re looking for isn’t in the article archive, but a couple of things do immediately come to mind.
The first is that you keep talking about weight loss and I don’t know if that’s just a shorthand way of thinking about it or if you actually don’t understand that weight loss is a poor goal. Fat loss is what you should be thinking about. Personally, I’d love to add about 20 lbs of weight as long as it was all muscle. Losing fat and losing weight are not the same thing. If you’re adding muscle at the same time you’re losing fat, then your weight isn’t going to change much.
“I eat 1500-2000 calories per day”
Whoa! 500 calories a day makes a huge difference for me. 500 calories is the difference between lean and fat for me. Losing fat and keeping or gaining muscle is a tightrope. There isn’t 500 calories of wiggle room in it. 500 calories is a cheat day for me.
Unless you’re weighing your food, it’s very easy to underestimate how much you’re eating. I’d also question “lots of fruit” as fruit is high in sugar (carbs). Personally, I have to limit my carbs to vegetables only to stay lean. No grains, no starches, and the only fruits I eat are berries in my post exercise shake.
The last thing is that you gotta do what you gotta do. If you’re not losing fat with the amount of food and exercise you’re doing now, then something has to change. Don’t forget that as you drop weight, your daily needs drop along with it and so while you may have been in calorie deficit at 2000 cals before, you’re no longer in calorie deficit at that level now.
I’d also be sure that I was getting plenty of fish oil and other good fats. Having too little fat in your diet makes it difficult to lose fat.
Don’t ever underestimate how difficult it is to be lean and muscular. Almost no one is. How many guys do you personally know that are lean and muscular? Being lean and muscular is an extraordinary achievement and it takes extraordinary efforts to get there.
Good job on your 80 pounds lost over the last year.
At this point, I honestly think your calories are too low. You might be stalled because your metabolism is down (due to low calories) and therefore not able to support the muscle/strength increases you want from Starting Strength (brilliant program, I do it myself).
One think you could do is up your daily intake (from protein, fat and high fiber veggies) by 500 calories a day and see what happens. Definitely do not go lower than where you are now.
As for the hemorrhoids from squats and DLs, I’d say you’re technique is wrong. You should not be bearing down when pressing/pulling the weight up.
That said, you might take a break from strict Starting Strength and do lighter weight with higher reps. If the DLs really bother your elbow, stop doing them for a while. Does proper squatting aggravate it? I assume you are doing exactly as Rippetoe instructions. If so, I’d be surprised.
You also are taking in a lot of Protein Powder. Not to be indelicate, but if that’s causing you some problems at the toilet, you might want to mix some milled flax with it, or lower the powder and up the beef and raw veggies.
How long have you been doing Starting Strength? If it’s been quite a few months, give yourself a week off. Seriously. Sometimes you have to take a break or risk overtraining.
If you go to 3000 calories a day with the right foods, you won’t gain fat.
Check out “Anabolic Diet” if you are not familiar with it. There are some threads here including an extremely long one. You can also read some blogs about others’ experience with it with the help of google.com. Are you can buy the book Dr. Di Pasquale wrote for PLers.
Focus on one goal at a time. If you want to lose fat you should seek to maintain your muscle and not worry about gaining right now. I agree you are probably in starvation mode right now. Up your calories but pay attention to what they are. Eat a large variety of veg. Eliminate all grains, sugar, potatoes, corn bans and milk. Your hemroids are probably from lack of fibre. If you eliminate the foods I’ve mentioned you will need a truckload of veg to get your calories and you will get loads of fibre. make sure you adjust your diet gradually because it will be a shock to your system.
A good rule of thumb: If man made it, don’t eat it.