Hello,
My name is Brian Sterling and I’m stuck at 165 pounds. I’m 20 years old and I’ve been that way since i was a freshmen in highschool. My fast metabolism gobbles up everything in sight and I still come up empty. I’ve put down jugs of weight gainers and creatine and couldn’t gain an ounce if my life depended on it. Can anyone help me besides telling me to eat more.
Sincerely,
Brian Sterling
According to your food log, how many calories and grams of protein are you eating per day?
Yes, experienced forum members, this is is a booby trap!
You have been 20 years old since high school?
Heh… uh huh… simple.
Sorry, Brian…you key is most likely to eat more, bottom line.
Refer to the “Massive Eating” and “Appetite For Construction” articles by John Barardi. Bag the “Weight Gainers” and creatine for now AND DO NOT use thermogenics if your life depended on it!
Yep, what everyone else said. If you don’t grow on massive eating then you won’t grow. Once you’ve gotten everything that has been listed in order then consider supplements other than a mutivitamin and protein powder/recovery drink.
And definately keep a food log. I had a buddy telling me to do that for about 2 years and I always just blew him off. You have no idea how much it helps. It’s kind of a pain in the ass at first, but once you get things memorized… it’s alot easier.
massive eating (and another by jmb) is a must read, also check “The Skinny Bastard Diet” by cy from issue 176, good luck you skinny bastard
If you were eating enough you would be gaining weight. You are eating enough to weigh 165 pounds, if you want to weigh 185 eat like a 185 pounder. I see a lot of people at my work who weigh 200+ and it doesn’t seem they have to try hard at all. That metabolism stuff is garbage.
Here is something different from the other posts. This isn’t as refined like massive eating but it worked for many people I’ve known some of which were smaller than you. eat every two hours and it doesn’t matter what as long ast through out the day you consume a pound of beef and a gallon of whole milk. I know a gallon of whole milk isn’t appealing but you gotta eat big to get big
Hello, my name is Big D and I am a workoutaholic… I have been this way since High School and find that despite the need for custom clothing I just can’t stop lifting. It has affected me physically and mentally. I sometimes find myself doing forearm poses on the shitter. Thank you… (sorry dude, I had to do it, follow the others advice 
I had been stuck at the same weight for a long time as well until recently. I was only around 150. I thought I was eating a lot, since I did eat 6 times a day, and about 3000 calories, but then I calculated the amount of calories needed from the Massive Eating article, and it turned out that I needed over 3500 calories per day to gain weight. I am now consistently gaining weight, am up to 160 (still not much), and am confident that I will be able to get up to 170 within 2-3 months. Just do the calculation, and you’ll be surprised how much you really need to eat to gain weight.
Actually last year i was in the same vote. Then Jesse (the guy who posted before me) gave me “the get-big diet for bodybuilders” I went from 148lbs at about 15% bodyfat to 191lbs at about 18%. Yeah i gained a lot of fat but it was worth it, Because after i was done with the t-dawg diet i was down to 173 at 11% and i could see abs for the first time.
Give this kid a break - it is totally possible that he’s eating like a horse and not gaining. I went from 138 to 170 pounds in a year and a half, currently at 10.5% bodyfat. But almost all of that was gained in 6 months, the last year has been almost constant at 170 pounds. And I have a foodlog that shows me getting over 6500 calories a day almost every day, and 300+ grams of protien easily per day. It’s not easy eating 6 to 7 meals a day. And yes, I’ve been checked for tapeworms and hyper-thyroidism. This is with zero cardio, and working out heavy four days a week.
My only advice: yes, eat more. More carbs, more fat, and drink at least a gallon and a half of water a day. It does work great at first, how to get over this latest hump I have no idea… Mag-10 will be ordered soon, Obi-wan you’re my only hope.
All you people that think that all you have to do is eat more are full of it. For example when I was in school I did keep a journal of my food intake. I was eating 7,000 to 10,000 cal./day. I did this for 4 months and guess how much weight I gained 5lbs. I remember it was winter in the midwest and my roomate and I would sleep with the windows open. I could go for a mile walk with a T-shirt on. I was always hot. Brian I would say just give yourself another 5 years and your metb. will slow down.
Instead of writing this post you should have been prepping food in the kitchen.
wow 6500 cals, hmm. Ok either you have the worst genetics in the world or you don’t know how to count calories. In order for you to get 6500 caloies at your weight you must eat ALOT of fast food. It’s not how many calories you eat it’s the quality of calories. My guess is that you are over training at 4 days a week. Try dropping your workout to 2 days, an upper body day (a) and a lower body day(b).
Brian, I’m going to give you the advice that I give everyone who comes to me for instruction in the gym (paying clients or not). 1. Go buy yourself a decent calorie-counter book. This will run you around $20 or so. 2. Keep track of everything that you eat for 10 days to 2 weeks. 3. Find out your AVERAGE calorie intake per day over that time. 4. Get back to us (me) here at the Forum with that number and we’ll tell you what to do from there.
These four points are my “What to do to begin to get yourself in shape” speech. This followed by my “Reality Check” speech: If you’re not willing to do the above, which is IN NO WAY difficult, you need to face the fact that you’re not serious about changing your body and stop wasting your (and everybody else’s) time pretending that you are. Tough love, bud, but them’s the facts.
Wow…I have to tell you, guys; I am ALWAYS open to learning and understanding.
However…some of these caloric imputs that have been claimed, while at the same time gaining little (if any) weight seem to almost defy the Laws of Thermodynamics.
With that being said, I ALSO realize that the Human system can do unusual things under unusual circumstances. It’s a biological system, not mechanical or electrical.
While Brian’s problem may not ONLY be diet, it most likely is ESSENTIALLY diet.
John he has to eat more. Yes some people have a metabolism that will use more calories, but you just deal with what life gives you and if you have to eat 500 more calories than your buddy to gain weight, eat 500 more calories.