IF & Building muscle

Est1969

Est1969

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44, male, 6"3, 197#, workout protocol: 5/3/1

I have been on a modified IF diet for 30 days now (modified in that I take BCAA pre and post workout during my fast window so it's not technically a true fast). I have achieved my goal of dropping my BF% to sub 10.

My eating window is 2pm to 7pm. At this point I am totally hooked on this eating habit and don't want to give it up. But I also want to put on more a little more muscle than I currently have. I want to keep the current feeding window so I can eat dinner with my family. But I also want to keep my 8am workout time as that fits with my job responsibilities, plus it is my favorite time to hit the gym.

Obviously the time gap between my workout and my feeding is not ideal. I am compensating by taking 10g of BCAA preworkout, and another 10g within an hour of finishing my workout.

For dinner, I am able to usually get down another 60g to 80g of protein. Eating has been a challenge because I really fill up fast (like Thanksgiving dinner full). I am assuming this is because of increased insulin sensitivity.

Is it even possible to accelerate building more muscle under this plan? Will eating more protein during my window help, or do I have simply too many hours between my workout and my meal to accomplish this? Same question for increasing workout intensity?

Thank you for any advice. Hoping to achieve my goals while keeping my workout/eating schedule as it is.

Regards,
 
The Solution

The Solution

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Is it even possible to accelerate building more muscle under this plan? Will eating more protein during my window help, or do I have simply too many hours between my workout and my meal to accomplish this? Same question for increasing workout intensity?

Thank you for any advice. Hoping to achieve my goals while keeping my workout/eating schedule as it is.

Regards,
yeah,
Eat in a caloric surplus, rinse, repeat and you will gain muscle/size.
Go look on martin's site, there is human evidence of it being done.
If you fill up fast alter your sources and what you eat at your meals, Use less fiber, but still make sure you are getting adequate micronutrients from fruits/veggies and a variety of foods. I can easily take down 3-4k calories in a 6-8 hour window. Just got again be smart with your food and choices.


Eat your calories in your window, Pretty simple.. NO other way around it.

Workout intensity is based off you and your mental aspect towards pushing yourself. You should always be training intense and always training heavy regardless of your goal

The key factor = Caloric Surplus and consistency.
 
Johnston

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Why is your eating window only 5 hours? Why not opt for 16/8? This is the Lean Gains approach. As 'The Solution' says, check out Martin's site at leangains.com. A wealth of info on there that will help you.
 
The Solution

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I know plenty of people that do 3-4k on a 3-4 hour window. Its personal preference. I personally would not keep the window that short for Muscle Protein Synthesis.
 
Est1969

Est1969

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Many thanks for the input. Greatly appreciated.

This is my first 30 days of experiencing IF, so I really am a fledgling in this. As someone who for years was very careful with my diet, I was totally amazed that I could completely go crazy on cheat foods like cheesecake, french fries, and tortilla chips and still burn off the fat. I am amazed by that. But now that I have indulged, I am ready to shift the focus and get "serious". I have found the info on Martin's site that pertains to me (that site is strangely organized and a bit tough to navigate, IMHO) and am planning to open up my eating window and follow his guidelines and see what happens.

Thanks again.
'69
 

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