Date: Thu, 8 Jun 2000 09:47:58 -0400 From: "Thomas Incledon" Subject: Re: Strength_List: Opinions please... > OK, I am right at the limit for 242. I gain size easily. I could lose > about 20 lbs of blubber, but whenever I diet down I lose strength. I am > considering just eating my way up to the 275's (clean foods - lots of > 'em) and upping the training volume to get the most bang for my buck? I > will then trim down in the later part of this year. Any thoughts on > bulking and lifting performance? Scot: Gaining weight will make you stronger, but there are health risks involved if the weight gain is not lean body mass. Consider what you current blood pressure, resting heart rate, cholesterol level, and if possible homocysteine levels are. Match up your best performance to your current weight. After you gain weight review these same variables and then you will know if the weight gain was worth it from a health and performance point of view. I have recently worked with two powerlifters. In one case a ~30 year old, 200 pound male wanted to get down to 181, we did this and his squat increased, benched remained the same, deadlift increased. Squat increased most likely from widening his stance (a new position for him), deadlift increase was probably due to better set up (hips lower and he could use more of his legs which are a strength for him). In another case we tracked a young male gaining weight from 230 to 290. This was initially from the advice of some clown that wanted to put the young man on a combination of androgens and insulin. Luckily he abstained from using them, but he did try to gain the weight. he gained weight too quickly, most of it was fat and he moved slower and fatigued easily in the gym. Other subjective and objective measures indicated that he was increasing his risk factors for disease in a number of areas. We then set a diet training schedule where he gradually reduced his weight back down to 230 pounds. The goal of course was to maximize his lean body mass at this lower body weight. He is currently stronger than ever and looks/feels much better. I described these two cases so you can consider that losing weight doesn't mean you'll get weaker if done correctly. If body mass is too heavy, you have to do extra work all day long just to move around. You could compensate and not move around but that is not a good idea when considering health status. Later, Tom Thomas Incledon, MS, RD, LD, LN, CSCS, NSCA-CPT Director of Sports Nutrition Human Performance Specialists, Inc. 619 NW 90th Terrace Plantation, FL 33324 954-577-0689 hpsinc@mediaone.net Journal of Performance Enhancement http://members.tripod.com/JPE_Sportscience/