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Are you sure you were eating enough? Eating more is almost always the answer to plateaus. Also squats are the best exercise for all-around strength, not just le

by pvnick 13y ago

Are you sure you were eating enough? Eating more is almost always the answer to plateaus. Also squats are the best exercise for all-around strength, not just legs. Squatting more weight does wonders for other things like bench and overhead press.

conroe64 13y ago
I wasn't drinking a gallon of milk a day, as recommended by Rippletoe, although I was eating more. It gave me a big belly, gastrointestinal problems and gained about 10 lbs, which was another issue, too. I could have eaten even more though. But I don't get the whole eat until your stuffed mantra either. It seems so unnatural and unhealthy.
- dpmehta02 13y ago
  Getting enough sleep is important as well. Anecdotally, I have experienced subpar lifting performance when I average less than 8.5 hours/night for a few days. I also plateaued on Squats during SS after about 4 months, so I lowered my work weight to 80% during my middle squat day (Wednesday in a MWF routine), as Rippetoe suggests, and I immediately broke out of it.
- foobarqux 13y ago
  Assuming you are younger than 35 and starting essentially untrained then if you only gained 10 lbs after several months you weren't eating nearly enough.
  - conroe64 13y ago
    I'm 38 and have been weight lifting on and off for around 20 years, but never was very successful at it. I think I maxed around a 225 bench at one point, but now I'm much less than that. Anyway, I just discovered HIIT training, which has made a world of difference. I'm actually gaining strength and mass every time I work out, and I'm eating less now than I did on SS. SS works for some people, but I think it depends on your genetics. Or maybe your right and I'm not eating enough. However, my system just can't handle that much food without GI problems. Also, I was getting a big fat belly along with it. HIIT training has been working for me and after 2 months the gains are still there and better than those I was getting on SS. There also is more evidence that it works than SS has, I believe. Like I posted on another thread, checkout the boise experiment: http://boiseexperiment.com/HeavyDuty/?page_id=308 http://boiseexperiment.com/HeavyDuty/?page_id=308 Anyway, each to his own.

by pvnick 13y ago

conroe64 13y ago

I wasn't drinking a gallon of milk a day, as recommended by Rippletoe, although I was eating more. It gave me a big belly, gastrointestinal problems and gained about 10 lbs, which was another issue, too. I could have eaten even more though. But I don't get the whole eat until your stuffed mantra either. It seems so unnatural and unhealthy.

dpmehta02 13y ago
Getting enough sleep is important as well. Anecdotally, I have experienced subpar lifting performance when I average less than 8.5 hours/night for a few days. I also plateaued on Squats during SS after about 4 months, so I lowered my work weight to 80% during my middle squat day (Wednesday in a MWF routine), as Rippetoe suggests, and I immediately broke out of it.
foobarqux 13y ago
Assuming you are younger than 35 and starting essentially untrained then if you only gained 10 lbs after several months you weren't eating nearly enough.
- conroe64 13y ago
  I'm 38 and have been weight lifting on and off for around 20 years, but never was very successful at it. I think I maxed around a 225 bench at one point, but now I'm much less than that. Anyway, I just discovered HIIT training, which has made a world of difference. I'm actually gaining strength and mass every time I work out, and I'm eating less now than I did on SS. SS works for some people, but I think it depends on your genetics. Or maybe your right and I'm not eating enough. However, my system just can't handle that much food without GI problems. Also, I was getting a big fat belly along with it. HIIT training has been working for me and after 2 months the gains are still there and better than those I was getting on SS. There also is more evidence that it works than SS has, I believe. Like I posted on another thread, checkout the boise experiment: http://boiseexperiment.com/HeavyDuty/?page_id=308 http://boiseexperiment.com/HeavyDuty/?page_id=308 Anyway, each to his own.