Night Elf Warrior in Training needs Diet Help

[Cardinal_22]

Greetings All,

Cardinal reporting for duty, looking to join the rebellion.

About me:  I'm a 38-year old hardware engineer, specializing in instrument design.  I have been physically active on and off during most of my life, moving from a long stint in competitive swimming into powerlifting around the time I went to college.  I enjoy going to the gym after a hard day at work.  I like the feeling of being physically fit.  Working out is its own reward for me.

 

About my issue:  I have been challenged with an elf build & classic hardgainer body type.  At 6' 0" tall, I weighed in at just 125 lbs in high school.  I've bounced around a little bit depending on how much gym time I put in, but currently I'm still only 165 lbs, 11% bodyfat.  To put things into perspective, this is the biggest I've ever been.  By a lot.  Over the years I have tried hard to gain weight without much success.  These attempts include taking protein powders and weight gain supplements (anyone remember "mega mass 2000"?); eating large amounts of meat, fish, and starches; and more recently the GOMAD diet recommended over at the 5x5 stronglifts program.  None of this has really helped me gain any weight at all.  What it DID do was help my cholesterol skyrocket like nobody's business.  This leads me to my problem:  high cholesterol.

Well, OK... to be honest, the real issue is my LDL number, but cholesterol is also borderline high.  I've shifted my diet around a lot in the last year.  I pack a lunch for work (no fast food) and I always keep a box of granola bars around for snacks, or mixed nuts, or dried fruit.  Plus, I cook and eat like a madman at dinner.  I really only go out to eat on the weekends with my girlfriend, and that's only when the two of us are too tired to cook.  Regardless, I just can't figure out how to eat enough calories to grow (this is a REAL problem for me) and simultaneously keep my doctor from having a heart attack every time I stop by.  My personal numbers have been bad long enough that my doctor has threatened to put me on statins if I can't get it under control very soon.  I am utterly opposed to taking Lipitor unless I have no other choice.  That's why I'm here.

 

I can beat this.  I know I can.  And hopefully I can trade those high LDL numbers with my low squat numbers while I'm here.  I've never kept a food log before, but I think it's time to start.  This is goal number one:  if I can figure out where the garbage is going in, I can get it out.  As part of my strategy, I am trying to recruit a close friend who has virtually the same problem to also join the rebellion.  That way, the two of us can PVP challenge each other to get our numbers down, eat healthier, maybe gain a little weight in the process, and have fun doing it too.  But regardless of whether he joins or not, I'm still interested in reading the diet forums to sponge up as much information as I can find.  I do enjoy cooking and hope to be able to contribute a few recipes if they are compatible.

Thanks for your time, and I'm looking forward to meeting all of you.

 

--Card

 

[Basement Cat]

Welcome to the rebellion, Cardinal! (or should I say your Eminence? )

 

Good luck with your goals and keep us posted!

[AKLulu]

Welcome! You can always find somebody to PvP with on the forums too I think there are several people around that are trying to gain weight/muscle (and I don't even frequent the Warrior guild). Look around a bit and don't be afraid to ask questions.

I also think you can beat your cholesterol problems without resorting to statins, but I can't say I'm very knowledgeable on the topic. I know that there have been new studies about cholesterol misconceptions coming out pretty frequently and I really like the overviews that Mark Sissons and Chris Kresser give on the subject. They might be worth a read, but I find the primal and Paleo diets to make sense, so if you don't really agree with those, there might be a few bits that don't ring true for you.