Need plateau buster strategies: can't surpass 190lbs

[eery]

When I was in college I struggled to even maintain weight eating everything I could get my hands on. My solution was making a 32 oz protien shake and melting an entire stick of butter in it, drinking it between dinner and bedtime. I found additional liquid much easier to consume than additional solid food. This added almost 3000 calories/day and allowed me to maintain. Sounds crazy but it worked for me.

the common theme here is doing whatever works for you to get more, or enough, calories in.

 

[IndividualMan]

I know, "eat more"

Age- 38
5'-11"
188lbs
Probably 16%ish bf, currently bulking.

Always been scrawny, my whole family is just small.

2 years ago I decided to do everything I could to put on some serious muscle.
1.5yrs year ago I discovered my test was really low and started trt.
1 year ago I did my first cycle.

Dec '23- 151lbs
Dec '24- 168lbs
Dec '25- 188lbs

So I've been pretty successful, although relatively slow.
People that haven't seen me in a while tell me how huge I am (relative...) and before/after pics are shocking to me.

Im not trying to be a competitive bodybuilder.
Just want to continue to grow and build muscle.
Stretch goal is 200lbs, 13%ish bf.

I just can't get past 190lbs.
I have 3 young kids, wife, and a very demanding corporate job, so its hard spend all day prepping food and eating.

Been at 4,500cals for 6 mo, and it appears like I need more.

My limiting factor seems to be appetite.
At 4500 cals, I feel like Im going to explode, and have a swollen gut like Im pregnant.

Most of my calories are around the 3 meals and late night snack.

Eq, or mk677 didnt touch appetite.
Ghrp6 actually does.

I need some input on different ways to get my calories up.
Tricks you've learned, dense, easy foods to eat. Other strategies.

Tldr: scrawny dude cant gain more weight, needs help.

Thanks

betaine HCL and digestive enzymes.
a good bit of fibre, not too much but dont skip it.
add extra cals with liquids (shakes primarily, maybe PreWo sugarslop water, non- zero cal enrgy drinks, etc. just choose the high cal option whenever possible. or you could go on a cut, get lean asf, and try breaking 190 again. I personally went back to 180 lbs and am growing way better now on a more conservative stack, steady lb/2 weeks while still looking leaner and leaner as time goes on.)

 

[RockyP]

Nothing makes me ravenous like cardio. I'd do some LISS 20 mins in the AM and again in the mid day / evening if you can (the second session always makes me hungry AF). As others have said, you can't get 5000 calories in 3 meals. 6 meals per day, at least.

Other tips for appetite - eat HIGH CARBS. There's a reason the big boys love eating Cream of Rice. Lots of carbs with minimal food volume. Regular rice is great too. Rice cakes with some honey on them. Dried fruits are also very dense sources of carbs, though they are simple (sugars), so not great to rely on them other than for around workouts.

You don't need as much protein as you think you do to gain mass. 200 g daily would be fine. be careful with the fats. They can provide extra calories but also slow digestion and make you feel more satiated, which isn't great for the next meal and the meal after that.

So instead of just plain chicken and rice, you can add 2 tbsp EVOO and a few eggs, make it a chicken fried rice. That will give you another 300 calories of good fats. And something like 200 - 300 g cooked rice with 5-6 oz chicken. Steak is great too, but harder to digest. Fish is easiest to digest, but just tastes like shit really (whitefish I mean). Salmon is good, but the fat can fill you up.

Also, protein shakes. Portable, easy, you can add in all kinds of shit for extra calories. Nut butters, banana, drink it down with 70 g of dried mangoes and that's another 550 calories on top of the protein and liquid.

You need to experiment with what foods agree with you and what you can digest. Cream of rice is always a winner, but I would add some fat to it with nut butter or something. It can really spike your insulin and leave you feeling lethargic especially if you only have it with whey. Adding some almond butter to mine totally fixed that.

Gear-wise, boldenone tends to bump appetite for most users.