u/SeveralMall1844

weigh 102 kg at around 16% body fat and I’m 187 cm tall. I’ve been eating roughly 4,000 kcal/day, but my weight has been completely stable for about a month.

My activity level doesn’t seem particularly crazy either:

• ~8,000 steps per day
• Upper/lower split 4x per week, mostly heavy compounds
• The only cardio I do is HIIT on the rowing ergometer: 5 × 5 min at around 300 watts

So, could my maintenance really be around 4,000 kcal, or is there something I’m overlooking?

Would you increase calories to 4,300–4,500 to continue gaining weight? It just feels like an insane amount of food for someone who isn’t doing a ton of cardio — almost like marathon-runner levels of calories 😂

Has anyone had a similar experience with unexpectedly high maintenance calories?

Has anyone here had success after increasing from Elvanse 30 mg to 50 mg?

I'm currently on 30 mg and have basically no side effects. My focus is a bit worse than it was on Ritalin LA 30 mg, but it's much better for my impulsivity and hyperactivity.

I'm thinking about increasing to 50 mg to see if it improves my focus, but I'm worried that I might start getting side effects. Has anyone had a positive experience making this switch? If you did get side effects, did they eventually go away? If so, how long did it take?

Thanks!

I'm a medical student, and because I underwent a turbinoplasty (conchaplasty) myself four years ago (fortunately everything turned out fine), I became interested in Empty Nose Syndrome (ENS), which is truly terrifying.

An ENT specialist has recommended that I undergo another procedure to address my symptoms, but I've firmly refused. I've looked into the topic quite extensively and was surprised that I haven't found much information about attempts to treat ENS with opioids.

What surprised me is that opioids are known to reduce the sensation of suffocation and "air hunger" to the point that, at higher doses, people may even lose the urge to breathe. In addition, tapentadol and buprenorphine have analgesic effects on neuropathic pain (tapentadol through its norepinephrine reuptake inhibition, and buprenorphine has also shown benefits in certain neuropathic pain conditions), somewhat similar to SNRIs, which, according to posts I've read on Reddit, have achieved some success in people with ENS.

I'm asking purely out of curiosity: has anyone here ever tried low doses of tapentadol or buprenorphine to help alleviate symptoms while waiting for an effective disease-modifying treatment (such as the regenerative therapies being developed by Moderna)?

Does anyone know where in Europe it's possible to undergo the high-dose intranasal capsaicin procedure? I'm referring to the medical procedure using high-concentration capsaicin, not over-the-counter sprays like Capsinol, which I've already tried without success. There used to be a spray called Rinar as well, but unfortunately it was discontinued. 😞

I used Afrin for about 10 years. I've been off it for 6 months now, but my nostrils still take turns getting blocked, and I have to blow my nose every few minutes. During the last year I was using it, I also had to blow my nose frequently, which had never been a problem before. I've been tested by three different allergists, and they've all ruled out allergies. The ENT specialists just keep prescribing different steroid nasal sprays, but none of them have helped. Has anyone had a similar problem and managed to fix it?

Has anyone here managed to improve or get rid of non-allergic vasomotor rhinitis with a water fast? I remember doing a 21-day water fast a while back, and afterward I didn't need to use Afrin for quite a long time. Eventually, though, the congestion came back. I'm not using Afrin anymore, but my nose still gets blocked, and it's pretty frustrating. I'm thinking about trying another water fast, so I'd really appreciate hearing about anyone's experience or feedback.

I used Afrin for about 10 years. I've been off it for 6 months now, but my nostrils still take turns getting blocked, and I have to blow my nose every few minutes. During the last year I was using it, I also had to blow my nose frequently, which had never been a problem before. I've been tested by three different allergists, and they've all ruled out allergies. The ENT specialists just keep prescribing different steroid nasal sprays, but none of them have helped. Has anyone had a similar problem and managed to fix it?

Hello,

I'm a 25-year-old male, 95 kg (209 lbs) and 187 cm (6'2") tall. My current lifts are:

• Bench Press: 140 kg (309 lbs)
• Squat: 200 kg (441 lbs)
• Deadlift: 220 kg (485 lbs)

I'm currently running 5/3/1, but I'm getting pretty bored with the program and all the accessory volume. Do you think I could continue making progress on the Ultra-Max 5x5 program, which is run 5 days per week?

About two years ago, I ran the advanced version of Madcow (with periodization) and was very happy with the results.

Has anyone with similar numbers switched from 5/3/1 to Ultra-Max 5x5? How did it work out for you?

Thanks in advance!