Building Back Up

GreenMachineX said:
Well, establishing a deficit isn’t the issue. Im going to shoot for 3k kcal each day and continue the same daily activity/workouts. That should still be a decent deficit.

Edit: I think back to every mountain bike trail ride where I ate the same kcal as any other day…I was completely trashed the next day to the large deficit I induced.
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hmm I think my mindset here was when you said that maybe your lifting frequency is too high for good recovery and I was considering other ways of getting more movement in/NEAT without it always needing to be a gym session, but if even MTB trashed you then I'm not sure. Maybe you are just too much of a beast in your sessions and you need to put in a rev limiter.
 
Dustin07 said:
hmm I think my mindset here was when you said that maybe your lifting frequency is too high for good recovery and I was considering other ways of getting more movement in/NEAT without it always needing to be a gym session, but if even MTB trashed you then I'm not sure. Maybe you are just too much of a beast in your sessions and you need to put in a rev limiter.
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Ohhhhh I gotcha. Yeah, I’m not too worried about digging a deficit as much as recovering sufficiently which I think is just because the deficit ends up being too aggressive while training too close to failure. Just guessing here. I don’t really know. Starting back training tomorrow.

Another thing I’ve been considering and talking to Grok through is the impact my sarcoidosis plays in all this. From Grok:

Yes, sarcoidosis can absolutely make calorie deficits harder to tolerate.

Why This Happens

Sarcoidosis involves ongoing low-grade systemic inflammation. Even in stage 1 (mainly lymph nodes), many people experience:


  • Higher baseline fatigue and malaise
  • Increased sensitivity to physical or metabolic stress
  • Greater difficulty recovering from training or energy restriction

When you drop calories (even moderately), the body has fewer resources to manage that inflammation. This often shows up exactly as you’ve described — achiness, headaches, feeling “garbage,” sleep disruption, and quicker onset of those symptoms compared to someone without the condition.


The recent illness amplified this further, which is why the deficit felt especially rough.


Practical Implication for You


  • Milder deficits (or true maintenance with high protein + training) will generally feel better and still allow slow recomposition.
  • Aggressive or prolonged deficits are more likely to trigger the systemic symptoms.
  • Prioritizing sleep, electrolytes, and recovery becomes even more important.

This doesn’t mean you can’t make physique progress — it just means the margin for error is smaller. Staying closer to maintenance while keeping protein high and training progressive is often the more sustainable path with sarcoidosis.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Yessir, but I might push the deficit to 500kcal every so often and just deal with whatever issues arise.
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And like Grok alluded to, shifting macros towards protein overfeeding can be a real strategy at times. In addition to being way more full if hunger is an issue, the same calories of protein essentially waste some calories on the gluconeogenesis. So you get better recovery potential off the deficit you create, whatever the net calories end up.
 
Rough workout 😅 Couldn’t catch my breath during squats again. Dialed the weights/reps back a little, but it was still difficult.

Bench 3 x 6 x 225
Squat 2 x 5 x 225
Inverted Row 4/4/4
Back Extensions 4/4/4
Crossbody Lateral Raises 3 sets
Triceps Pressdowns 2 sets
Olyfront Squat 2 x 5 x 95

Threw in a couple easy sets of Olympic style front squats for kicks. I was able to hold the rack appropriately, so I may start building that up.
 
Sorry you are still having issues getting winded with squats. Does it just seem more taxing, or do you feel like you just cant get enough air.
 
FWIW Hubberman just had Layne on for a short session, he has some discussion on what percentage of a fat, carb, and protein calorie your body actually retains/utilizes. It's not really new information for most of us, but its always good to hear old stuff presented in a new way to trigger the lightbulb moment.

GreenMachineX said:
Olympic style front squats for kicks. I was able to hold the rack appropriately, so I may start building that up.
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still one of my favorite things even though I don't toss them in too often anymore. I keep thinking I will but I'm usually a bit too spent after squats to take them for a ride.
 
Yeah, squats with limited oxygen supply is simply a miserable situation. Good on you for fighting through it! Do you have an inhaler, or access to bronkaid? I bet either would help tremendously by opening up the bronchial tubes. Plus supply some energy in the process.
 
MrKleen73 said:
Yeah, squats with limited oxygen supply is simply a miserable situation. Good on you for fighting through it! Do you have an inhaler, or access to bronkaid? I bet either would help tremendously by opening up the bronchial tubes. Plus supply some energy in the process.
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I was prescribed an inhaler before for my sarc but hated how it made me feel. Although, it’s time I made an appointment with a pulmonologist to get a follow up on the sarcoidosis; maybe I can get a script for oral albuterol (helps with fat loss)…
 
GreenMachineX said:
I was prescribed an inhaler before for my sarc but hated how it made me feel. Although, it’s time I made an appointment with a pulmonologist to get a follow up on the sarcoidosis; maybe I can get a script for oral albuterol (helps with fat loss)…
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You can get Primatene Mist ephedrine inhaler otc at a pharmacy that carries it in most states.
 
Hyde said:
You can get Primatene Mist ephedrine inhaler otc at a pharmacy that carries it in most states.
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That was what I was thinking. I just didn't know if there were areas that still didn't allow ephedrine.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Just still a bit nervous about ephedrine.
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Why nervous, if you already mentioned it above I must have missed it. The doses in bronkaid are pretty small so it is unlikely you would be uncomfortably jittery unless you tend to have a poor reaction to it.
 
MrKleen73 said:
Why nervous, if you already mentioned it above I must have missed it. The doses in bronkaid are pretty small so it is unlikely you would be uncomfortably jittery unless you tend to have a poor reaction to it.
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It’s just been a decade since I’ve used anything other then caffeine.
 
GreenMachineX said:
It’s just been a decade since I’ve used anything other then caffeine.
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Understood, if you are having a hard time breathing the relief would be immense, but you have to do what you are comfortable with.
 
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