Strength and weight plateauing

I've hit a plateau in weight gaining and in my strength. I'm pretty much stuck at about 184lbs and I'm not able to bench press or curl anymore than I was 3 months ago. I think it's mainly because I'm not getting enough calories. I admit, I've never been a voracious eater, and that has a lot to do with chronic digestion issues. I know a lot of guys looking to bulk are very strict about how many meals they eat a day and will take in calories whether they are hungry or not. I generally don't eat unless I'm hungry and I pretty much just listen to my body and eat when I feel like it. Maybe that's the problem, I dunno.

I'm considering supplementing my diet with a weight gainer shake just for additional calories. What do you think of doing that? Anything I should know before looking for a good weight gainer? Any brands or types I should avoid?

First step is working on your chronic digestion problems, then getting on a structured 6meal a day eating plan and finally making sure your training routine is solid.

What foods are you currently eating now? Does any particular food give you digestive trouble? Are you taking any digestive supplements?

EFFORT said:

First step is working on your chronic digestion problems, then getting on a structured 6meal a day eating plan and finally making sure your training routine is solid.

What foods are you currently eating now? Does any particular food give you digestive trouble? Are you taking any digestive supplements?

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Lately, I've been developing lactose intolerance. I've not had much problem with dairy for most my life, now all of a sudden, I can eat a cup of yogurt and within 30 minutes am erupting from my bottom end. I've had some good meals go to complete waste before I started connecting it to dairy. Oddly though it seems to be hit or miss. Some days, dairy doesn't bother me, and some days it does. Weird. I also have a very sensitive stomach in general and eating too much can make me feel sick and bloated. I also get nauseated easily if I eat something that doesn't agree with me. I wish I was blessed with an iron stomach.

I usually eat a solid breakfast. Turkey sausage, eggs, potatoes, waffles, some fruit like banana or strawberries and I used to have yogurt with breakfast, but now I'm skipping it to avoid problems.

Only supplements I take is protein powder. If my stomach feels sick I may pop a ginger pill.

If you're not able to get as much milk and other dairy products in as you usually do, a good alternative would be soy. A great alternative to milk (fortified soy milk, that is), plenty of products that replace staples of diets (butter, oil, other such sh!t), and high protein foods like tofu and plain soy beans.

I'd say they were even better than regular dairy, but I'm a vegan. You evil, murderous meat eaters just don't understand me

1. Cut out dairy. The majority of humans are lactose intolerant to some degree, so having an issue with milk is understandable. Personally I had lactose intolerance as a kid, and while those bad symptoms disappeared, I still get some acne if I drink milk.

2. Go buy some HCl from the pharmacy. It's Betaine Hydrochloride; a digestion aid that will help get those big meals down.

3. What EFFORT said.

Now what about weight gainer shakes? Any advice on those?

I have taken gainers on and off with good results. You can actually make you own weight gainer for cheap. Most commercial weight gainers are full of dextrose and sugars that add a ton of calories but not much quality nutrition. If you are going to buy one, I would go with MHP's Up your Mass, CytoGainer, or Gaspari's gainer. They key thing to look for is where the carbs are coming from. Are they quality carbs like oats, barley, and grains? Or are they sh!t carbs like dextrose and simple sugars....

If you want to make your own gainer on the cheap, simply add 2 scoops of whey to 12 oz of almond milk (or lactose-free milk), 3/4 cup of raw oats, a spoonful of peanut butter, a banana, some lecithin or flaxseed and maybe a yogurt. Big calories, quality nutrition, and it's cheap.

Regarding your strength and size plateau, this is a natural part of training. Especially if you are natural; i.e. a non-steroid user. The likely culprit is your diet. I'd have to see a backlog of your routine to know if there are problems there. As a general rule you should follow a routine or exercise scheme for 3 weeks or until you cant add weight to the bar each week. EFFORT was correct about diet---aim for 6 meals a day. Eat even if you arent hungry. There are certain herbal and mineral supplements out there that can boost appetite, just do a bit of googling. Zinc helps. If I dont eat about 5 times a day I will slowly loose weight. It really is a battle sometimes; more so than training itself.

I will say though that cycling is important for the body to recover and grow. You cant stuff your face with food 12 months a year, you need to lay off for a while and eat moderately. It's ok if you loose 5-10lbs; you'll gain it back. Listen to your body's rhythms, but sometimes if you aren't progressing you just need to MAKE yourself eat. Your body will adapt in a couple of days and you'll find yourself hungry every few hours.