Can't gain weight on this stack

[bobsaget5]

I stepped on the scale for the first time in a long time this morning. I began cutting down from 220 in March. By June I was around 205 pounds. Very lean for my standards, but flat, and weak. Soon after I began another cycle of ABE + EP to try and gain back lean mass without the fat. My training was going well, I was looking full again, regaining strength, but I was still receiving comments from people about how much weight I lost. As a former anorexic, I rarely am pleased with such comments. So I pressed on in the gym, using the mirror as my guide. Some of my shirts were still sitting loose, but I felt like I was getting bigger, and leaner even. I KNOW that my upper chest has grown some. And I have all the strength I had 220 + more. My diet has been nothing short of what it was back when I was bulking. These past few weeks I figured I must weigh around 210. I was just as lean as I was at 205 but I felt bigger. Well I finally hopped on the scale last night and my heart sank. 204 pounds, at the end of the day too. It's no more than a number, but I become so attached to them. All I can think about now is how skinny I am. 204 pounds is nothing for a 6'4'' guy. That's what goes through my mind all day. Regardless of what I look like, I tell myself that I CAN'T look big with these numbers. I look and feel better than I ever have shirtless, but I'm barely filling out large shirts. Not very motivating for a guy who's been lifting hard for 4 years.

I was really hoping that an 8 week cycle would bring me back to 210 or 215 leaner than I was before. Turns out that I haven't gained a pound, maybe even lost one or two. I'm 6 weeks into the cycle. Again, I'm really pleased with how I look shirtless, but I feel like a twig in clothes.

 

[Synapsin]

Hey Bob,

From what I'm reading, you lost some BF and gained some muscle, without gaining weight overall (so a recomp). In essence you did gain lean mass without the BF like you originally wanted Honestly that is what most people would hope for from a stack like that. The easiest way to gain some weight is to increase your calories even more. Also, what time of day you check the scale, etc, can affect your weight, as can water in take. I can wake up as 205 and end the day at 210, so don'be too discouraged my friend. Generally the lower one's BF, the bigger they look

 

[max silver]

If you absolutely must use a scale to judge your progress by, purchase yourself a Tanita bodyfat scale. With this you can track how much lean mass you are carrying, a scale by itself is only one tool to gauge your progress by. And if you feel the need to fill your shirts out, just get some new shirts. No sense in worrying about filling out a shirt perfectly that you were wearing before dropping a bunch of fat.

 

[Quads_of_Stee]

I would not use a scale, there are a ton of other variables like hydration, glycogen storage, food in you etc. Definitely go off the mirror, it takes a huge amount off of your mental state when you stop using a scale