Lifting weights and wearing tailored clothing?

[FlyingHorker]

I was bulking for the past 10 months and all my clothes are now snug. I also hate waste, and I'm too broke for buying bespoke everything.

Is it possible to maintain calories, continue lifting and increasing strength, yet maintain size?

I asked a couple people and they said no, muscle density will continue to increase, as will muscle nuclei and water retention in those muscles. Clothes will consequently get tighter

If true, I'm not really sure what to do.

@Alan Bee
@RickyTakhar

 

[Konnor]

In my experience, I gained most of my size in the first 2 years. I was happy with the size and stopped many of the things I was doing such as protein powder, no cardio, etc. I have been able to maintain right around the same size since while increasing in strength by incorporating cardio a few times a week and getting protein only from food. You could also train in multiple ways to keep the same size while also altering your body only slightly. Work on strength but implement low weight/high rep and calisthenics a couple times a week. I’m no expert, but this has seemed to work for me.

 

[norMD]

How is your training regime?

Generally fewer repetitions with heavier weights create more strength and less volume. If you are doing 8 - 12 reps x3 switch to 4 reps x4.

If you really have been "bulking", mening eating everything you see and only lift weights you can reduce body fat by eating leaner and do some cardio.

PS you never need protein shakes

 

[Ebitdaddy]

My brother is a pro (competing at Arnold's) powerlifter and I lift a lot too.

Both of us can generally maintain the same clothing if we stay in the same weight range of about 185 to 200 lbs. I try to buy my clothes when I'm in the middle of that weight range.

 

[stuffedsuperdud]

I was bulking for the past 10 months and all my clothes are now snug. I also hate waste, and I'm too broke for buying bespoke everything.

Is it possible to maintain calories, continue lifting and increasing strength, yet maintain size?

I asked a couple people and they said no, muscle density will continue to increase, as will muscle nuclei and water retention in those muscles. Clothes will consequently get tighter

If true, I'm not really sure what to do.

@Alan Bee
@RickyTakhar

The short answer is yes-ish. If you watch weightlifting or powerlifting competitions, you'll see the same guys showing up year after year in the same weight class, but their performance will always be inching upwards. The longer answer is,once you exhaust your noob gainzzz, i.e. you are past the point where you get stronger just from looking at a barbell, your change in size will also level off. How big are you now? Age? What kinds of weights are you moving? (e.g. if you're young and healthy and you're currently squatting 85kg sets 3-5, your current pants are probably not long for this world, whereas if you're older or squatting more like 150kg for reps, then you're probably more stable)

 

[FlyingHorker]

In my experience, I gained most of my size in the first 2 years. I was happy with the size and stopped many of the things I was doing such as protein powder, no cardio, etc. I have been able to maintain right around the same size since while increasing in strength by incorporating cardio a few times a week and getting protein only from food. You could also train in multiple ways to keep the same size while also altering your body only slightly. Work on strength but implement low weight/high rep and calisthenics a couple times a week. I’m no expert, but this has seemed to work for me.

So basically don't use any more protein powder?

How is your training regime?

Generally fewer repetitions with heavier weights create more strength and less volume. If you are doing 8 - 12 reps x3 switch to 4 reps x4.

If you really have been "bulking", mening eating everything you see and only lift weights you can reduce body fat by eating leaner and do some cardio.

PS you never need protein shakes

I've been clean bulking, not dirty bulking.

I used to run Push/Pull/Legs 6x a week.

I switched to 5/3/1 Three days a week, mainly focusing on increasing the big 4 lifts. Final set for compounds as many reps as possible.

For supplement lifts, it's 50% of perceived 1RM, 5x10

My brother is a pro (competing at Arnold's) powerlifter and I lift a lot too.

Both of us can generally maintain the same clothing if we stay in the same weight range of about 185 to 200 lbs. I try to buy my clothes when I'm in the middle of that weight range.

So if I maintain calories and lift, I will still gain muscle?

 

[FlyingHorker]

The short answer is yes-ish. If you watch weightlifting or powerlifting competitions, you'll see the same guys showing up year after year in the same weight class, but their performance will always be inching upwards. The longer answer is,once you exhaust your noob gainzzz, i.e. you are past the point where you get stronger just from looking at a barbell, your change in size will also level off. How big are you now? Age? What kinds of weights are you moving? (e.g. if you're young and healthy and you're currently squatting 85kg sets 3-5, your current pants are probably not long for this world, whereas if you're older or squatting more like 150kg for reps, then you're probably more stable)

I always thought that was CNS adaptations and not muscle gain?

I'm fairly small. 68kg. 25.

Bench 56x5, DL 97x3, OHP 38x5, Squat 68x8

Well ****. I'm not sure what to do now. My desire to maintain size, gain strength, and buy tailored clothing seem to directly contradict each other.

 

[stuffedsuperdud]

I always thought that was CNS adaptations and not muscle gain?

I'm fairly small. 68kg. 25.

Bench 56x5, DL 97x3, OHP 38x5, Squat 68x8

Well ****. I'm not sure what to do now. My desire to maintain size, gain strength, and buy tailored clothing seem to directly contradict each other.

How tall are you? What's your jacket and pants size (sorta helps predict how much frame you have to hang musculature onto)? Any injuries that might impair progression in squat/bench/dead/clean/snatch?

 

[FlyingHorker]

How tall are you? What's your jacket and pants size (sorta helps predict how much frame you have to hang musculature onto)? Any injuries that might impair progression in squat/bench/dead/clean/snatch?

Somewhere between 5'9-5'11 (no idea my true height, no one ever seems to measure correctly).

Jacket size used to be 36, but I had to let out the entire back and armhole for that jacket.

Pants size is now a snug 32, should be more like a 33. I have a big ass and my thighs got thicker during the bulk. A bit of stomach fat gain as well.

I have plantar fasciitis/arch pain, but that hasn't been an issue even going barefoot on deadlifts or squats.

I messed up a rib round my thoracic spine on DL, but that is now fine.

Occasional ass pain after deadlifts if I don't stretch my hip out enough on a foam roller before and after

 

[stuffedsuperdud]

Somewhere between 5'9-5'11 (no idea my true height, no one ever seems to measure correctly).

Jacket size used to be 36, but I had to let out the entire back and armhole for that jacket.

Pants size is now a snug 32, should be more like a 33. I have a big ass and my thighs got thicker during the bulk. A bit of stomach fat gain as well.

I have plantar fasciitis/arch pain, but that hasn't been an issue even going barefoot on deadlifts or squats.

I messed up a rib round my thoracic spine on DL, but that is now fine.

Occasional ass pain after deadlifts if I don't stretch my hip out enough on a foam roller before and after

Okay so based on your height, weight, age, male-ness, and current clothing size, I am inclined to believe that you are still well in the noob-gainz stage of training and it'd be kind of wasteful of do any high-end MTM or bespoke right now. In the interest of time, since you want your nice tailored stuff sooner rather than later, I would suggest you stop doing 5/3/1, as that is a veeerry slow progression originally intended for elite-level powerlifters such as Jim Wendler, who was pretty deep into the zone of diminishing returns. Instead, switch to a more aggressive linear progression such as Bill Starr 5x5 (StrongLift 5x5 is usually recommended but the StrongLifts guy is a giant DYEL tool..**** him) and power through the novice stage. Aggressive progressions are not for everyone but generally work well for young, relatively untrained guys such as yourself. I suspect that things will get really hard around when you are squatting 125kg or so for 5, and and deadlifting maybe 140x5. Bench and press might be around 55 and 85? But that's a very loose guess, and by then, you'll probably be in a more stable state of jacked. Of course you will need a slight calorie surplus, due to the conservation of mass, but but don't go bonkers, because then your tailor will be overwhelmed concealing your fat. A little bit of postworkout carb goes a long way. Clean bulking is always good of course, but you don't need to be some bodybuilding monl: if a bit your caloric surplus comes from dirtier sources, well, part of the fun of being a 25 year old guy is that, if you are lifting hard, your body turns just about anything into muscle.

 

[FlyingHorker]

Okay so based on your height, weight, age, male-ness, and current clothing size, I am inclined to believe that you are still well in the noob-gainz stage of training and it'd be kind of wasteful of do any high-end MTM or bespoke right now. In the interest of time, since you wan't your nice tailored stuff sooner rather than later, I would suggest you stop doing 5/3/1, as that is a veeerry slow progression originally intended for elite-level powerlifters such as Jim Wendler, who was pretty deep into the zone of diminishing returns. Instead, switch to a more aggressive linear progression such as Bill Starr 5x5 (StrongLift 5x5 is usually recommended by the StrongLifts guy is a giant DYEL tool..**** him) and power through the novice stage. Aggressive progressions are not for everyone but generally work well for young, relatively untrained guys such as yourself. I suspect that things will get really hard around when you are squatting 125kg or so for 5, and and deadlifting maybe 140x5. Bench and press might be around 55 and 85? But that's a very loose guess, and by then, you'll probably be in a more stable state of jacked. Of course you will need a slight calorie surplus, due to the conservation of mass, but but don't go bonkers, because then your tailor will be overwhelmed concealing your fat. A little bit of postworkout carb goes a long way.

Gotcha, well ****. So far basic linear progression on 5/3/1 has worked.

SL 5x5 and SS suck, they have lots of marketing behind them. Their upper body volume is terrible.

I'll have to look into Bill Starr 5x5.

Wait, if my goal is to maintain weight as much as possible while upping strength, shouldn't I continue to maintain calories? I'm confused

 

[stuffedsuperdud]

Gotcha, well ****. So far basic linear progression on 5/3/1 has worked.

SL 5x5 and SS suck, they have lots of marketing behind them. Their upper body volume is terrible.

I'll have to look into Bill Starr 5x5.

Wait, if my goal is to maintain weight as much as possible while upping strength, shouldn't I continue to maintain calories? I'm confused

I reread your original post. Yes, I believe that since your current lifts are kinda low, you can get pick up strength without getting bigger. Part of that might be CNS adaptation (though I'm skeptical about all things CNS) but mostly you're probably learning to engage more of your existing musculature for any particular lift, i.e. you're making more efficient use of what you have. This strategy won't last for that long though. This means you'd be okay to buy your suit now, but the second you decide that you want to get stronger beyond this, you will outgrow it.

I wouldn't be so quick to knock something like SS/SL and saying that "it sucks." I agree the upper body volume is insufficient, but your current OHP and bench are low, and I generally recommend simplicity above all else to get your 5RM OHP and bench to something more like 55/85. After that, you can worry more about volume. BTW I think the SS/SL 1x5 deadlift is really low too, esp if you want nice traps for your jacket! 5x5 ramping up, with 3x10 shrugs at the end, will get you there much faster.

But what was important to me about stuff like SS/SL/Bill Starr is that it gets you to your new equilibrium physique relatively quickly, so that you can buy your suit. with 5/3/1 you make progress monthly and it might be years before you feel like a tailored jacket is a good purchase.

 

[FlyingHorker]

I reread your original post. Yes, I believe that since your current lifts are kinda low, you can get pick up strength without getting bigger. Part of that might be CNS adaptation (though I'm skeptical about all things CNS) but mostly you're probably learning to engage more of your existing musculature for any particular lift, i.e. you're making more efficient use of what you have. This strategy won't last for that long though. This means you'd be okay to buy your suit now, but the second you decide that you want to get stronger beyond this, you will outgrow it.

I wouldn't be so quick to knock something like SS/SL and saying that "it sucks." I agree the upper body volume is insufficient, but your current OHP and bench are low, and I generally recommend simplicity above all else to get your 5RM OHP and bench to something more like 55/85. After that, you can worry more about volume. BTW I think the SS/SL 1x5 deadlift is really low too, esp if you want nice traps for your jacket! 5x5 ramping up, with 3x10 shrugs at the end, will get you there much faster.

But what was important to me about stuff like SS/SL/Bill Starr is that it gets you to your new equilibrium physique relatively quickly, so that you can buy your suit. with 5/3/1 you make progress monthly and it might be years before you feel like a tailored jacket is a good purchase.

Well this is admittedly stressful.

As for my upper traps, never had an issue engaging or growing them. I did 4x15-20 power shrugs with straps for a month or two and my upper traps grew quite a bit. Lats and lower traps are my problem areas.

So it sounds like you're saying it's best for me to suck it up and blast through noob gains phase and deal with the tailoring later?

 

[bdavro23]

Occasional ass pain after deadlifts if I don't stretch my hip out enough on a foam roller before and after

Be very careful with this. Your sciatic nerve runs down your hip to your legs. Irritation from a disc issue can manifest in this area with zero back pain and can lead to very serious **** if you ignore it. I ended up with 2 ruptured discs and a bulging disc for my trouble and it took me two years to recover. I'll never lift as heavy again and I had to learn correct movement patterns during a very involved recovery.

Most people move incorrectly and employ their backs much more than they should. I was included in that group.

As for getting strong without getting big, you can do it by skipping the negative movement. This guy is pretty interesting and has done some revolutionary work with the hex bar:

Ryan J. Flaherty

Ryan J. Flaherty is a top trainer in athletic performance, using science based training Ryan's passion is to help athletes achieve their full potential.

ryanjflaherty.com

Good luck

 

[FlyingHorker]

Be very careful with this. Your sciatic nerve runs down your hip to your legs. Irritation from a disc issue can manifest in this area with zero back pain and can lead to very serious **** if you ignore it. I ended up with 2 ruptured discs and a bulging disc for my trouble and it took me two years to recover. I'll never lift as heavy again and I had to learn correct movement patterns during a very involved recovery.

Most people move incorrectly and employ their backs much more than they should. I was included in that group.

As for getting strong without getting big, you can do it by skipping the negative movement. This guy is pretty interesting and has done some revolutionary work with the hex bar:

Ryan J. Flaherty

Ryan J. Flaherty is a top trainer in athletic performance, using science based training Ryan's passion is to help athletes achieve their full potential.

ryanjflaherty.com

Good luck

Yeah I have 0 back pain as of right now.

How do I know if I'm going down that road? Foam rolling my hips before/after deadlifts has worked so far.

I used to round my upper back while doing them, but I stopped that. Also learned to engage my glutes more on deadlifts by keeping my hips wider than usual.

Not sure what to click on for that Flaherty guy, but it sounds like you're saying focus less on the eccentric/negative portion of a movement? As I understand it, that's usually where a lot of muscle growth occurs, so you're saying if I drop it, muscle growth will drop?