calories up to 4500,need help!

**patrick1** · 07-19-2008, 08:15 AM

Stats
192lbs
5` 11"
age 46
BF 14% (only by bf calculater)
A few weeks ago i was taking in 3200 calories and the weight gain was ok.
then it stopped so i upped it to 3700, gained a bit then that stopped, and so on and so on.
for the last week i have been at 4500 and not gained anything.
My ratios are approx
380g protein 38.5%
90g fat 8%
585g carbs 54%
I have a physical job and now i am busy at work so thats why i take in so many carbs
is my fat intake to low
I eat 7 meals a day all good food,oats,chicken,sweet pots,tuna, 2 slices wholemeal, skimmed milk with whey and WMS
i have made good improvements i have in my opinion kept almost the same BF
waist measurement the same
any advise would be appreciated

**novastepp** · 07-19-2008, 08:24 AM

Originally Posted by patrick1

Stats
192lbs
5` 11"
age 46
BF 14% (only by bf calculater)
A few weeks ago i was taking in 3200 calories and the weight gain was ok.
then it stopped so i upped it to 3700, gained a bit then that stopped, and so on and so on.
for the last week i have been at 4500 and not gained anything.
My ratios are approx
380g protein 38.5%
90g fat 8%
585g carbs 54%
I have a physical job and now i am busy at work so thats why i take in so many carbs
is my fat intake to low
I eat 7 meals a day all good food,oats,chicken,sweet pots,tuna, 2 slices wholemeal, skimmed milk with whey and WMS
i have made good improvements i have in my opinion kept almost the same BF
waist measurement the same
any advise would be appreciated

with a very demanding job i could see needing to increase the cals. but at your size anything over that and you are probably going to be looking at fat gain. how long were your calories at 3200 and 3700 before you gave up on that? and what is your training schedule like?

**patrick1** · 07-19-2008, 09:03 AM

a couple of days after the weight gain had stopped i would increase the calories
i had a week where i wasn`t working and the gain was ok but when i started working again i actually lost a couple of pounds so i upped the calories again
i have been at 4500 for a week now with no gain
what do you think of my ratios?

**patrick1** · 07-19-2008, 09:07 AM

to be fair don`t know how i would increase intake
can`t fit much more in unless i add a few slices of wholemeal bread here and there
get most of my carbs from oats (400g a day) and sweet pot (500g)
training is,
body split over 2 training cycles.
chest in morning, legs (inc Calves) and abs in afternoon
rest next day
then back in morning,calves,shoulders,traps arms in afternoon
rest next day and so on training whole body over 4 days
been training 20 years doesn`t work for me if i split into 3 workouts
15 sets for legs, 12 sets chest,back,shoulders
6-8 sets for arms and abs
need a lot of rest days due to job i think!
thanks for reply!!

**patrick1** · 07-23-2008, 09:52 AM

anybody!!!!

**abbot138** · 07-23-2008, 10:13 AM

Your fat is fine, although its 17%, not 8% of your macros (fat has 9calories per gram). Your ratios look fine, calories are fine, food choices are fine. If everything is as you say, then just stick with it. If your all natural you shouldnt be gaining more than a pound or 2 a week anyhow. And sounds like your gaining strength if I read that correctly and your waist measurement is the same, so I dont see the problem, lol...Stay at the 4670, which is were your at right now, for 2-3 weeks before deciding to bump calories....As far as your training goes, you say you need more rest days due to your job, but your hitting every body part every 4 days. Why not try a more traditional training split without doing 2 a days. You'll still be off 3 days a week, but your giving your muscles more time to recover and grow, 7 days between hitting a muscle. You could also bump the number of sets you perform if you do it this way. Something like this:

Mon- Legs
Tue- Off
Wed- Chest/Tris
Thu- Back/Bis
Fri- Off
Sat- Shoulders/Abs
Sun- Off

16 sets or so for Back, Legs, Chest
12 sets or so for Bis, Tris, Abs
14 sets or so for Shoulders

**AdamGH** · 07-23-2008, 11:59 AM

just a fyi:

Your approximate daily caloric maintenance level is:2788 calories (kcal)

Your daily caloric goal in order to gain weight should be between:3038 to 3288 calories (kcal)

thats with a heavy workload. you might need to increase it a little more because of work. 4500 seems very extreme.

**patrick1** · 07-24-2008, 11:01 AM

thanks for advise
its been 6 days since i first wrote this thread and i have gained another pound maybe 2
i am around the 4500 give or take a few hundred
i asked the question because i too thought 4500 was very high and that maybe i was doing something wrong
i am into week 4 of 400mg test cyp (first cycle)
forget to mention that on non training days i speed walk for 30 mins get my HR up to 65%

**abbot138** · 07-24-2008, 11:09 AM

If your doing a true bulk and your wanting to gain as much as possible then dont do ANY cardio.

**patrick1** · 07-26-2008, 02:08 AM

thanks, i hear what your saying
i have decided to change my training routine to a 3 day split, i`m concerned about leaving so long between legs,they are my weak point and when i have in the past they have lost size or made no improvement at all.
i have read alot of times that muscle gain deteriorate after 4 days,
i will do the suggested set range, maybe this is more the problem not enough volume
this is planned change
sun, legs inc calves and abs
mon, rest
tue, chest, back, Bi,
wed, calves, shoulders,traps (only 4 sets) and triceps
thu, rest
fri, start again
this will give 5 days between body parts
what do you think!!

**testigator** · 07-30-2008, 11:11 AM

I hear a lot about weight but not as much about how you look/body composition. Gaining a pound or two in six days naturally is huge. I really wouldn't bump that cal number up at all for a couple weeks. Maybe don't weigh yourself as much and just use a mirror. Hows the body composition looking? Definitely skip the two a days and don't add cardio if you are getting it at work. I can't imagine you won't be looking better and feeling stronger with more rest and keeping the cals around 4000. Good luck. Awesome to see a 46 year old with that dedication to diet and training while working a demanding job without the sauce.

**patrick1** · 07-30-2008, 11:23 AM

cheers
feel a lot harder
according to tape measure not gained much around waste can see some abs slightly
like you say probably get enough cardio at work
calories are around 4300 4400 at present
i worry i`m having to many carbs and protein but i have to do to get the calories down
thanks anyway

**patrick1** · 08-08-2008, 11:35 AM

its been 3 weeks since i first started this thread
and i have only gained 2lbs
calories are about 4400 a day
and i have changed my routine in the last 2 weeks to train whole body over 6 days
still unhappy with progress
although do appear a lot more vascular when training
might now up calories to 4700 see what happens
will have to include a few more slices of wholemeal bread as can`t fit anymore food in