Powerlifting nutrition

[baseball007]

Starting the madcow 5x5 program. I’m going to be working out intensely mon wed fri and then light calve and ab work Tuesday and Thursday. Do I eat maintenance or surplus? I’m guessing surplus? Also should I increase calories on workout days or keep consistent for the whole week?

[Rags85]

You'll get better answers in the nutrition sub-forum, but eat at a surplus if you want to get as strong as possible, eat at maintenance if you want to stay more lean. This is more of a personal preference thing that should be in line with your goals. You will obviously make better gains on a surplus. That goes for all programs at all times.

[getbigordie18]

Starting the madcow 5x5 program. I’m going to be working out intensely mon wed fri and then light calve and ab work Tuesday and Thursday. Do I eat maintenance or surplus? I’m guessing surplus? Also should I increase calories on workout days or keep consistent for the whole week?

As stated above increase calories if possible for better gains.More calories allow for better recovery and increase in muscle size generally and overall strength gains. However, if you are looking to maintain a certain weight for competitive powerlifting I wouldn't suggest getting too much over the weight you plan on competing at. Good luck! The nutrition stickies have some good basic info on tracking calories, how much protein to eat, etc. I would say .6-1.2 grams of protein roughly per lb of bw on a bulk for cutting I increase my protein fro .8-1.5 grams of protein per lb of bw. hope this helps good luck!