BootyFlute

I did this for a while and I never ate before I went either, it just never set right with me, but I highly recommend trying to force yourself to learn to do it. Try protein shakes, or a teaspoon of PB on a half banana, or two dates. Something to wake your metabolism up. Then eat the rest of your breakfast after your workout. It's just really tough once you start putting weight on the bar because you lack focus and energy once things get heavy. But besides nutrition, my biggest recommendation is to concentrate on form. Watch all the videos you can, take videos of yourself and post them in the form check section. Start LIGHT so you can concentrate on your body and not the weight. Concentrate on your back angel, notice if your shoulders are rounding. Some of this will feel really strange at first, but making it your first priority will set you up for success. The first month or so should be all about form. Don't let your ego tell you to add a bunch of weight quickly (it most likely WILL feel too light at first) because if you jump ahead too quickly you really risk building bad form habits, or worse, hurting yourself (I threw out my back trying to squat with "big boy plates" before I was ready). Trust the process and it should work. Every time you add weight, you should be noticing your form to make sure you are not letting it slip. Other than that, give it hell. It is definitely not easy, but it is worth it. Good luck!

I was in your boat about 2 years ago. Im the same age as you and was doing 5x5. My form sucked donkey balls and I didn't know it so I always wondered when I was going to hurt myself. Then I hurt myself. A co-worker who knew their stuff came to the gym with me a few times and gave me some cues on form and it made a world of difference. I busted through all my PRs quick. All of a sudden I felt my body do what I expected of it, I felt my muscles engage vs. the old full body struggling trying to stand up. The weight wasn't to heavy at all, I just wasn't putting myself in the right position to move it efficiently. I finally felt confident. I also moved over to a 5/3/1 program for a slower, more controlled program that I feel suits my age and lack of rest. Plus, I really like those weeks on 5/3/1 were yo focus on that one really fucking heavy rep. I love completing that rep. Im still not lifting heavy compared to a lot of people on this board, but Im significantly stronger than I was, more defined, and down 25LBS (50LBS total, but the first 25LBS were just from changing up the diet.) Don't give up. You will get it, and when it all clicks you will have the skills and confidence to make all the gains you are willing to go get.

I would go for 2300 then. But you might give it a week before you start upping the calories. Really jumpstart the fat burn, then start slowly feeding your body so it doesn't freak out and actually start trying to store fat.

People may disagree, but as you are just starting out, I would suggest staying at your 2000 calories for a bit. Listen to your body, if you start to notice your energy fading, or feeling like you don't have the strength to progress in your lifts then try adjusting your macros before adding cals. Maybe add some healthy carbs on days you lift to give you energy, and some protein before bed and on off days to help in building muscle. When I started out on the 5x5 I thought I needed to up the cals to grow, and I did, I grew around the middle. I cut my calories back to near maintenance and continued to get stronger and not gain weight. I have now increased my calories to about 250 over maintenance on workout days only, and I am still gaining strength and keeping good energy. In my opinion "EAT BIG LIFT BIG" only works well once you actually start really lifting big. Everyone is different though, and depending on your metabolism and macros (for me, protein is for building muscle and I try and get a little more of it before bed and on off days when my body is rebuilding and healing, healthy carbs are for energy and brain function so I up those a little on workout days, and fat is only ever fat - healthy fats are good for you, tasty, and keep you from feeling hungry so fast, but I try to avoid excess fat at all cost) you will just need to spend the time testing what works for you.

Well, butter my butt and call me a biscuit. THIS is exactly the answer I was looking for. Okay, Im on it. See you in a couple of years. Thanks so much for the reply!

Sorry to hijack the thread, but I have a question about this... I had not seen these numbers before (disclaimer: I am not that smart) - and wonder who should be shooting to hit these ratios? Im 42, weigh 185, and workout to be healthy, fit, and keep some basic strength. Im working on a program that combines 5x3x1 and HIIT. Not looking to be a super strongman or ripped, but do want to keep working towards progressing muscle development. Are those benchmarks realistic for someone like me, or do you really need to be pushing hard to hit them. Right now I am much closer to hitting the upper body than I am the lower body, with my Deadlift 1RM at 260lbs.

I follow a blog called Art of Manliness (I need all the help I can get), and the owner of the site (Brett) got himself a squat lesson from Rippetoe. I have seen several of Ripp's videos, but for some reason this one really hit home the "lifting with the hips" technique he is so fond of. It immediately helped me feel more comfortable in my LB Squats. Soooooo, I know there is a lot of controversy about Ripp, but for anyone that is new to squating, this is a good watch... http://www.artofmanliness.com/2015/02/20/how-to-low-bar-squat-video/

So, potentially stupid question... In the video he starts out saying that to work the chest you want a wider grip... but then at the end of the video he is saying that you really need to squeeze the chest, and bring the elbows together, which ends up being a close grip... Which is it, or am I just being dense?

When you are doing the dumbbell flyes (http://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/dumbbell-flys.html), really try and concentrate on using your chest to pull your arms up. It helped me to think about it this way... When you lower the dumbbells and your arms are opened up,squeeze your chest to pull the weights in toward your body, do not actually pull your arms in, just tighten up the chest. Then keep that tension on your chest and use it to lift the weight. Obviously your arms will be doing a lot of the work, but if you concentrate, you will feel it the next day. Also, you might want to add some wide stance pushups to your warm up and/or between sets and see if you feel those help engage your chest.

PB2 is great stuff in a protein shake. You can get it on Amazon.

What PaulG said. I usually have Fage in the house. http://products.usa.fage.eu/fage-total-0-353-oz 1 Cup has: Protein: 23 Cals: 130 Carbs: 9 Fat: 0 The ingredient list is Milk & Cultures. Simple.

I think nutritionally they are pretty equal. Even a publication like Mother Jones, who tends to err on the side of liberal, finds no appreciable difference (http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2010/04/steel-cut-rolled-oats-oatmeal). However, I like the texture of steel cut oats a million times better. I make them just like the instructions on the package say, but I cook them a little longer (uncovered for about 25-30 minutes) so they get a bit thicker. Make a shit ton of them at once because they last a week in the fridge, then you just scoop out a serving in the morning and nuke 'em. I eat them two ways... 1. Add a tablespoon of honey, a fresh sliced peach, a few drops of vanilla extract, & a few big shakes of cinnamon. 2. A teaspoon of honey, a teaspoon of almond or peanut butter, & a half of a sliced banana. (Throw the other half of the banana in the freezer to put in your smoothie later)

So my stance on supplements has always been that some supplements may be helpful (especially if you have a deficiency or restricted diet), but most are not worth it. Personally, I would rather buy a cart full of lean meat, dairy, and veggies and enjoy my meals while getting the bulk of the nutrients I need vs. spending the same amount of money on supplements and pills, only to have to eat ramen noodles all week. Then a friend posted this on her FaceBook wall and it made me wonder if I was missing the boat and cheating myself... http://www.t-nation.com/supplements/what-you-dont-know-about-workout-supplementation The thing is this... I am too stupid to understand what the hell they are talking about taking as their supplements. Check out this excerpt... DaFuk is "35 to 40 grams of a special functional carbohydrate blend"? Combine my ignorance with the fact that I never will be, or want to be, totally fucking YOKED like the beasts on that site and it leaves me scratching my head. What say you Nerds? Science or non-since?

This answers every one of my questions. I always read that you just have to "get under the bar and add weight". But once it got heavy, and adding weight felt impossible, I was concerned that I was doing it all wrong, or that I was doomed to be weakling. To have you lay it all out like this is exactly what I needed. You are now my honorary online coach, sorry there is no perks or pay that go with that role. Thanks!

As a quick update. I went ahead and stayed with my weight (I really didn't want to drop it yet), but went to the 3x5 schedule for my next lift day. I was able to get all my reps with good form on squat, but still a little weak on overhead press. I got all the reps, but had to add a little "jump" to get the bar going up on the last few. Deadlift felt pretty good, no issue there. I also plan to go with Kroc Rows (and maybe T-bar rows) instead of bent over barbell rows based on the suggestions of another board member on here. I guess "Stall" was the wrong word to use in my subject line and what I was really asking to begin with is this... when you all started lifting how long before it became really hard and how did you push through it. I don't have a coach or a lifting partner or know anyone that has ever really done this, so I am wondering if I am experiencing the same things as most people. Having never lifted consistently or heavy, and never having lifted to hit goals, it is just hard to imagine being able to add 15LBS a week at this point since the weight already feels really heavy. The program says to add 5LBS every workout, and people do it so I know it can be done, I just still have this little voice asking me how in fuck's sake I expect to be able to ever squat 220LBS. Sometimes do you just have to leave the weight where it is at for an extra day or two until you get all quality reps? Am I just a born whimp and should probably quit now before I hurt myself? Do some people really drink bud light-LIME? I am guessing that you just keep hitting it: Push, Pull, Repeat - until the weight moves. Sometimes that might take one try, sometimes it might take a week of trying. Either way, I plan on sticking with it and see what happens. Thanks again for all the info.