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HiIm 40 years old male 6'2". My body type: Very tall narrow shoulders and I have strange rib cage shape. Never had pecs I used to get laughed at due to my body type. Skinny, no meat, no chest (just bone), long fingers, no shoulders, no v shape, big head....I also have rounded shoulders along with some spinal creature my left trap/shoulder is naturally raised due to those skeletal issues (I call it my “lump”).I have had to adjust my training to accommodate my freakish body (spinal pain, nerve pinching, sway back / arching back and postural issues etc.My spine is slowly collapsing according to progressive x-rays. I’m bummed over this. But the chiropractor thinks I’ve done very well considering what I have had to “work with”. I can only hope to slow this down. Come on deadlifts and a miracle...My weight:I was 63kgs (138 pounds) until I was late 20s. Then I only got to 65 kgs by the time I was 30. I finally got to 68 kilos in my mid 30s. I finally got to 72 kilos a few years ago.Health:IBS diagnosed in my late 20s after a life being in digestive pain, unable to enjoy food and instead enjoyed constant pain, bloating, excessive and gross amounts of mucous and digestive irritability lets-not go-into-it-the-rest-of-it.20 years later and after a long journey / battle I don’t have the daily pain and can eat more and not suffer as much. I exercised and ate for health and fun: light gym, dancing and Pilates. 10 years ago I added gluten free carbs to my diet this time and I went from 65kgs to 68kgs. But my guts and bowel movements really noticed it and although I don’t believe my health went backwards some symptoms don’t seem to have ever alleviated, even today. This also bums me out but a fact I have to live with. No carbs = no weight gain. But eating more means more problems for my guts and overall health and wellbeing. And IBS is a challenge nutritionally. I think I’ve done pretty good after 20 years of trial and error. Ive yet to meet or read of anyone who is "cured" of IBS. I find my guts prefer less carbs but this means staying skinny but it was important to feel good and healthy while dealing with the IBS. Eventually I made a decision to try to bulk again a 2 years back when I read about IF and CBL. The reality is with IBS there is not magic diet or pill, way of eating that just fixes your symptoms for good. So I thought why not give it a go again and fuck the pain.Starting weight at prep phase: 72 kilos (158 pounds). I only lost maybe 1kgs (2 pounds) during the 10 day prep phase. 14 months later on Density Bulk:Now I’m 80kgs (176 pounds)I started with Strength Accumulation and was getting now where - little fat loss or muscle/ strength gain. I then switched to the Density Bulk protocol. I had to up my carbs to get any results with this. And I decided to CBL on some off days, which has paid off.Now I am 80 kilos (176 pounds). But have gained some fat too. For the first time I have some rolls of fat on my waist. But I also have pecs for the first time ever!!!. And my butt is bigger after all the deadlifting. And I feel good. And people have only just started to notice.My deadlifts continue to develop in strength: I can now deadlift 112.5kgs (248 pounds).Box Squats have increased to 95kgs (209 pounds).Chest bench press has only gotten to 37.5kgs (82 pounds). I remember when I was only 63kgs I could barely press the bar!!Chest, shoulders and calves seem to be the hardest/ slowest for me to gain strength. I suffer from tightness and sometimes pain/ discomfort with some shoulder exercises.Finding a Training routine that works for ectomorphs!!!!!!!!!!. Workouts: 4 times per week. Kung fu: 2 hours a weekWalking: 40-60 min a day (to work and back).I finally found a routine which helped me gain strength and I enjoy the method that he suggests. Also, this routine doesn’t burn me out. http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/grow_ectomorph_growI have modified some of the exercise routines and I have also added an additional workout for my biceps / arms.Dietary notes:I have experimented a lot over 14 months for bulking results on CBL.Protein 150+ gms a dayCarbs CBL 250-300gms CBL Off days 100- 200 (not every off day) • I have Glucose in my PWO shakes.• I stay away from caffeine as it keeps me awake every night and I prefer to sleep (even tea!!).• No creatine for me (it seems to makes me itch badly) - but I do everything else in the shakes as per the CBL book.Trying to eat too healthy didn’t work for me and I re-read over and over in the CBL book the principles of adding in higher GI foods. So I added ice cream and sweets etc when I felt like it. Every night though, I am still bloating. I bloat less on the more sweeter stuff though. If I mix too many food types I bloat.In the morning if I have eaten too much, my stomach still feels full/ bloated. This doesn’t happen so much with the higher GI foods/ sweeter stuff.However I do wonder how my colon and intestinal health is going with all the carbs and sugars. I am having some new health issues.For the first time in my life I am filling my clothes!The future:I’m trying to figure out if I keep going or if I swap to the strength accumulation protocol to lean out a little. My goal was to get to 90kgs 198 pounds before trying to shred.Most mornings I feel great! (Until I eat, which has been typical for me my entire life).Thanks for reading.Ps I'm too body conscious to post pics.
Sounds like you have found what works for you! That's great!!Maybe pictures with your regular clothes on? 🙂 If not, that's understandable. Good luck with your future plans.
That is great you're finding what does work, and making you happy. I too have a digestive tract disease, and find it a challenge to make it work for me. There is no cure, but making nutrition work for what you need it to helps. Eating the wrong stuff made me hate life and my guts, but after keeping a consistent routine of what I ate and how much, I'm feeling better. I'm mentioning this because maybe you can apply it as well sir. I typically have potatoes and rice for the majority of my carbs, I do have some gluten free starches like waffles or other stuff I personally make. I do buy GF stuff once in a while. Your gut biome will adjust to what you're feeding it if you do keep a similar routine in check for a while. So definitely keep up the good work
Thanks for the encouragement. 🙂My staples were rice and glucose and coconut water for a long time. Im going to shift it again to potatoes and see how I go. I am fairly methodical and can stick to my targets/plan 95% of the time. Its nice to hear from someone else on a similar journey.But to be honest, my guts react for no reason on foods with no real pattern at times. I put this down to the brain / gut connection as described here http://www.ibsclinic.org.au/causes.php?pageId=584&moduleId=186.This explains to me why one day my guts could be ok then on the same good food for no reason I would badly react. Then some days if I eat something which I normally shouldn't my guts are ok. But I'm through the worst of that. It was a confusing and enduring ordeal and one which many with IBS can relate to.--- some times there is no pattern ---
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