do you eat way above your BMR when building muscle?

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jbob
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do you eat way above your BMR when building muscle?

Post by jbob »

Hello all.
I'm struggling with performance in the gym. It seems like I hit the wall. current max is now 100kg at bench (4 reps); 105kg (1 rep), and I think it stopped there. It's been like this for 3 weeks now. I can't lift more than that. And it's similar with other exercises as well (biceps, triceps). Legs are doing ok, but I'm stuck as well.
I tend to sleep enough and eat proper too. But I've never went crazy with food - I've never eaten more than it is recommended. Do you think I should eat as crazy? current calorie intake is about 3000 calories, although BMR is 2000 calories (well, at least according to this BMR calculator). So I'm eating 1000 more calories that I am recommended, am I'm sure I don't spend 1000 more calories per day just because of visiting the gym.
Should I eat even more? I am 185cm tall and weight 90kg. I do not want to over-eat as body fat percentage is not that low (somewhere around 15%+ I'd say) and I don't want to get fatter. What do you think? Going all-in on food? :)

Thanks.
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Boss Man
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Re: do you eat way above your BMR when building muscle?

Post by Boss Man »

BMR, (Basal Metabolic Rate), is the minimum amount of calories you're supposed to consume to maintain a healthy metabolism, so eating quite a way above that for the purposes of building muscle is highly desirable.

I feel as you've plateaued, there's a greater likelihood that you will need more calories as opposed to a new training system and you don't need a massive amount, but you could increase your calories by around 50 calories a meal in one of two ways.

5g protein, 5g carbs 1g fat, (49 calories).

5g carbs, 3-4g fat, (47-56 calories).

You may find that your protein intake is adequate, in which case go for the second option, as you only need around 1.2g protein per lb of body weight and certainly don't need more than 1.5g per lb, as excess protein can contribute to kidney stones and gout.
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