Newbie Epiphany About Calories

[BigVrunga]

I have always had problems with making size gains. I eventually concluded it was probably just genetics (easy excuse, right). After doing a lot of lurking on the AM forums I began to think twice about this. Somebody mentioned using fitday.com to keep track of their calories so I thought I would do the same.

I was pretty shocked with what I found out: I had probably been eating about 1700-2000 calories a day. No wonder I couldn't gain any mass! I have quickly seen a difference in body compostition in only a few weeks just by bumping up my caloric goal to about 2500-2750 on a 40/40/20 macro ratio. My weight has gone up slightly, but I actually have more striation in my muscles and my pants are more loose around my waist.

Moral of the story? I was considering using supplementation (even possibly AAS), but with some good research I found that I have a lot of room to improve naturally (I'm 5'8 and floating around 159...lots of room to improve there).

My god, a convert!!!

Welcome to AM.com bro...very glad to have you

BV

BV

[HeIsLegend]

yeah i just did fitday starting today after i read about it here i ate like 2522 calories 47 grams of fat 389 carbs 145 g of protien. i never knew how much or how little i was eating i need to cut though get rid of the belly flab

[stxnas]

So how's it working out for you so far HeIs?

I have still been trimming up some, and adding a little size slowly. My vascularity in my arms is getting to be non-stop now and I haven't had that in years. Oh, and btw, I was able to still trim up some at 2500 calories per day using the above split. I'm probably and ecto though and I aim to workout 3-4 times per week. I also do a moderate five minute warm up b4 lifting and a 5min+cool down after weights. I have back problems and found that this is necessary in order to be able to walk later!

Oh, and I'm still working for the abs too bro! I'm looking for a good read on nutrient timing now as I think I might be able to cut down my carbs some, especially on off days.

Sorry I didn't see your post sooner. Good Luck Bro.

[HeIsLegend]

ehh its been working pretty good when i come back from vacation im going to start making a meal plan for everyday and stick to it i think this may be the bext plan I am 5 foot 10 and about 190 lbs not sure on body fat but I have most of my fat in my stomach and chest area so I think I'm gonna aim for somewhere around 2200-2500 calories a day? any suggestions on how many grams of carbs I should be consuming at those calorie range??

[stxnas]

Well, first off what are your goals? Mine, for example, is to gain lbm (lean body mass) as I'm 5'8 and only 162. I know a pretty standard macro nutrient split to obtain this is a 40/40/20 macro split meaning 40% cals from protein, 40% cals from carbs, and 20% cals from fats (shoot for EFAs). Do some searching and find out how many cals you need for maintenance of lbm. From there find a macro split that meets your needs and apply it accordingly.

It sounds as if you are trying to lose body weight. If so you may want to start a thread in weight loss forum. Try searching AM for varioius macro splits or macro nutrients . A lot of bros also suggest various types of cardio: HIIT or Low Intensity cardio. There seems to be a lot of debate on those two.

I hope I was able to help some, but I am pretty green with this stuff too. Hopefully a more experienced bro will step up with some good suggestions so we can both learn.

[juggernaut333]

What kind of caloric total are good guidelines for ppl to start for gaining lbm?bw times 20 seems to be a good general consensus to start at and then adjust from there yes?perhaps as high as 25 if one has a fast metabolism...

god bless the blender is all i gotta say as otherwise its a real ***** to get in all those calories sometimes.