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@ 1R
Right now, I am crushin' the following daily:
1.) Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey
2.) Optimum Nutrition 2:1:1 Recovery
3.) Optimum Nutrition Casein
I have been seeing results, but as with every result, I want to keep pushing on. With a main focus on muscle GROWTH, is adding a weight gainer like True Mass or Serious Mass the right next step?
My concern is that adding a 2000 calorie shake to my daily routine might slow me down more then amp me up.
With lifting mentors/inspirations like Hickory Tein and Fight Catabolism, it's hard not to push yourself to go BIG.
I'll offer a little advice from my own experience. Back in college, I wanted to get bigger (I came in at 6'4 185 lbs). I was a First Baseman and power hitter, and I needed to pack on some mass. However, I went about it the wrong way. I just started eating everything in site--cookies, egg nog, bagel bites, the whole thing of bread when out to dinner. You name it. I even ate an entire block of cheese while playing poker one night (and slammed through whole pints of ice cream routinely). Did I get bigger? Yes. Did I get fat? Yes.
About 15 months after I started the weight gain diet, I was at 240 lbs. Then, I had a great conversation with 1R's founder, Rob, and he set me straight. He taught me the importance of protein pre and post-lift, complex carbs, healthy fats, and having steady protein stores throughout the day. Six months later, I was down to a lean, but now strong 210 lbs.
If I had to do it again, I'd do three things: 1. Eat at least 1.5 times my bodyweight per day of protein; 2. Eat a huge breakfast each morning replete with complex carbs and protein; 3. Eat a huge dinnner after 1 hour after the post-lift shake. Within all of that, I'd focus on complex carbs, lean protein, and healthy fats (almonds; avacado; fish oil; olive oil). Bottom line: You need to eat a ton of calories (prob 5000 for your size) to get bigger, just make them healthy calories to ensure you put on the right kind of weight/mass.
A weight gainer can help you get there as long as it isn't filled with sugar, saturated fat, and wasted calories. If you take one (as I have in the past), target it for the time of day you generally don't get good calories. Do you already eat a big healthy breakfast? If so, don't replace it with a shake. Maybe you lag in the afternoon for a snack. Take it then. Whatever works in your nutrition profile. Good luck.