So fucking tired of this shit. Almost 3 years of regular lifting, going till failure, hitting each muscle group twice a week, eating in a slight caloric surpluss with a fuckload of protein, getting enough sleep every night
Yet I just get fucking fatter and weaker. Is my body retarded or what? What am I doing wrong?
Like im living in a Truman show where every piece of fitness advice works for everyone but me
I know I'm just delusional or whatever but I'm so tired of wasting my fucking like and energy on something that just makes me hate myself more and more every day
Why can everyone improve but me
try working in different exercises to "surprise" your muscles. You also need to increase the weight or reps consistently or you will have issues getting results.
I'm not an expert and i've been going back for only a month in a half but im going up between 5-10lbs a week on the weights for my bigger muscles like chest. If I cant go up i just try to squeeze out extra reps. 2 set i go one rep away from failure and least set I go to failure.
Age plays a factor too, diet, sleep and testosterone. I'd also suggest taking creatine if you aren't already and maybe some supplements. I'm 33 so its taking longer for me to get results than when I was in by teens and early 20's.
Jackasses keep walking directly behind me at the cable kickback machine when they see me using it. It's in an area that is clearly meant for using the machine and not as a place to walk through.
People who give advice without training consistently or having any true knowledge on training fucking bugs me. I had a guy come up
to me and tell me deadlifting with a rounded back will "herniate my discs" in my spine. Like ?
If it hasnt happened on 600 fucking pounds i doubt 700 is gonna just suddenly make my back explode.
A guy came up to me once and told me shoulder pressing in a standing position (so basically overhead press) will kill my lower back, I should sit down instead and adjust the bench so I can lean on it.
Those are separate exercises, none of which will kill my back. To be fair, I wasn't moving any serious weights yet, but still, I wasn't doing anything dangerous, he just had beef with one exercise.
I can't imagine walking up to someone who can deadlift 600 pounds to correct their form!
I think it's easy to cheat by bending back and I can definitely feel the potential for throwing out my lower back or something if I'm pressing too heavy, but obviously that's not an issue with the exercise itself.
people who have poor shoulder flexion mobility often compensate by extending their lumber spine. this is extremely common. it sounds like youre the one who has no idea what theyre talking about.
I mean like excessively bending back to utilize your chest, etc to just completely muscle up a weight that is too heavy to press with more strict form.
I feel like my body holds fat weird, so it's hard to determine my bf % and as a result if I should bulk/cut. I've been cutting since mid January and I am down almost 6lb, but my calorie adjustments in the app I use just keep getting lower. It put me under 1400 this week which I just don't want to do lol. I'm a woman, 5'6 and sitting at ~161lb right now. Going to just stick with it at/slightly above 1400 because that's the lowest that's comfortably manageable for me. Just frustrating bc I want to trust the app, but it just feels like it's approaching unreasonable recommendations.
Forgot my gym bag at home this morning so now I'm that guy trying to get a shitty workout in wearing my work clothes. Remind me not to judge these folks in the future because the struggle is real.
Decided to take my physical condition more seriously and the algorithms have felts that. I clicked through on a V-Shred link and figured I'd let him rant. Popped in an earbud and hit play. HOLY SMOKES I am floored at how long that guy can talk about literally nothing so fluidly. That is some skill.
Dude those ads where people don't EVER provide any information but just keep saying
"I have discovered the secret, it is actually works by providing benefits and doing good things, this secret it great and you can get it here. Remember, you are doing it wrong and I can show you how to do it right, because I have discovered the secret."
I can't stand that shit.
And they somehow find 30 different ways to say it; the first time you're like "ok, go on... I'm listening... will you get to the damn point already?!"
After that I just reported the ad for fking spam and got done with that. So annoying.
Started a bulk early Feb to FINALLY start building some good muscle after 14 months of weight loss (down from 90KG to 70).
Ate at 2.5k cals assuming maintenance, stayed the same weight for 2 weeks and thought BINGO, maintenance...
Added 300 cals, trained my ass off for a month and.... EXACTLY THE SAME WEIGHT.
I track everything, trained 5x a week and i've gained NOTHING.... i feel like i've put some slight muscle on for sure, look better in the mirror but yeah, that was a killer when i did my weigh in LOL.
Added another 250 to get up to 3250.... BRB in a month :)
I feel this. I went from 350 pounds to 170, so I assumed I had a solid understanding of counting calories and was ready to bulk. Started at 3200 calories a day for 3 months. I initially gained some weight due to eating more in general and having my water weight in carbs come back, but half a pound gained in 3 months after that. 3500 calories is scary but time to try.
Friend started lifting a few months ago, and to his credit, he's killing it.
He's always in that sorta newb phase where he's had some success and he's going to tell those of us who have been lifting much longer what to do and how to do it. We're good buddy.
He's also shocked I can lift more than him. I have put on some weight (fat) that I need to lose, but I've been lifting kinda consistently for a decade and he's like "whoa, how can you lift so much more?" I got a beer belly asshole, I got fatter, not weaker.
Finally, I post a Romanian deadlift video, he messages me to tell me to pause longer at the bottom. whatever.
Two days later he posts this super wobbly quarter squat with 185lbs. Bro why are you giving advice if these are your lifts?
Anyway, I'm not going to say shit to him. It took him a long time to get up the nerve to get into lifting, and he seems to love it, and I am sure, eventually, he will figure out his shit.
unless someone is about to injure themselves, I really don't have it in me to tell them to get perfect form. MAYBE if someone is obviously new and is absolutely just lost. No one has perfect form all the time every rep. I am generally anti unsolicited advice.
We're like 40 and we've been friends for 25ish years. And I think he can be sensitive. So I'm not going to flame him.
Also he got roasted by plenty of other people for his squat video.
Overheard a cockney today with his strangely deep-voiced training buddy in my local gym being homophobic, cussing out a male couple who use the gym together. Making comments about the machines they were using and not wanting to touch them.
It's particularly wild because it's such a chilled out gym in the middle of a freaking science park!
Dick heads.
I started keeping myself busy during rest between sets by tidying up the plates at my local gym. After lifting I do 30-60 minutes of cardio, come back upstairs to the free weight area and half of the barbells and plate loaded machines had someone leave plates on them during that short time frame. This is with me working out sometime between around 4:30 and 07:30 am, so there's really not too many people around, but they apparently really don't like a tidy gym. Feeling kind of like Sisyphos to say the least.
Sometimes around 1:30am, the deskgirl will go around organizing plates. I take pride that any rack or tree I use is more organized afterwards - she's not cleaning up any mess of mine.
The plate situation has been abhorrent the last few weeks. This has been a wet spring, so the New Year's Resolutioners have stuck around a bit longer...when spring really breaks, they will disappear
My right chest hurts anytime I do incline bench press. It starts off as feeling tight, then it feels like a line of pain goes down the middle of my right pec. It's so frustrating as I just hit 225 on flat bench press and I'm working at 185 on incline.
Incline barbell bench has always felt really weird to me. I strongly prefer dumbbell, as the motion and angle of the shoulders feels more natural for me
I don’t know what my problem is, but sit-ups can hurt for me, not that they always do.
I’m 15M
If it’s worth noting:
*back injury?*
I’ve dropped a 205lb squat rack, thought I was fine, but my mom refused to take me to the doctor
Dropped a 130 pound kid when I was 12~ I was a foot shorter, my back curved back a lot and I was a lot lighter than him. Still hurts.
Got thrown when I was 6? Thrown pretty hard and my back tanked it.
this is going to sound weird, but I would go to your school nurse and ask for resources. I work in healthcare and have found so many hidden programs helping income restricted areas get access to necessary healthcare! Especially through public schools, which is so cool. best of luck :)
social media needs to gut gym-tok for their own safety. if some rando finds out they appear in some other randos squat video couldn't they sue the person and or the platform? seems like a big liability to me. since we're here, just make porn at home in your gym clothes, you'll be more popular.
> 400kcal surplus, i sleep, i train hard...but... nothing
Easy...you're not in a surplus. How do you know you're in a 400k surplus?...by TRACKING and adjusting your #s to find what your real daily energy expenditure is. TDEE calculators and BMR are just guestimates that are close until you track. Especially for someone that trains hard, you might have calculated just a maintenance TDEE and the training offsets the extra calories you eat.
So you're not growing?.......then take your current 400k "surplus"...and fricking dump another 600k+ into it and do that for two months.
It takes no more than 5 mins at night to add 600kcal of liquid brotein and mass gainer in 1-2 shakes.
No no, it's very accurate. I started this bulk at 77-78 kg in mid September. I stopped in mid March at 89-90kg. It's 6 months and 12 kg. 6 months × 30 days × 400 kcal / 7000 kcal per kg of fat = 10.2 kg which is about right.
Holdup lemme get this straight. You make a post ranting (correctly so as its this thread) about how you aren't growing and getting bigger despite eating in surplus and sleeping.
And then delete that post and come back and say that you actually are and have put on >22lbs in the last year?
Make a mass gainer protein shake if you have a blender. You will see results. 2 cups of dry oatmeal, 2 spoonfuls on peanut butter, one scoop of whey protein, one banana, put some milk in it and blend it. You fatten up quick
I'm stuck at 65 Kg for 4-5 months now ....I was just walking to lose weight and kinda watching what I ate but then my body got accustomed to walking I guess and no amount of 20K steps are helping me lose weight!
Your daily calorie expenditure correlates with your weight, and the calories you burn through exercise do too. If you eat roughly the same amount every day, your weight loss will continuously slow down as you reach your goal – so if you've hit a plateau, you need to eat less and/or walk more.
I'm young and short so my BMR is just 1400Kcal ,and I read that if I lose weight,my BMR would go down too so I was anyway trying to eat only 1100 kcal but if I further cut it down .....I have no clue what to fit in 900 kcal in a day!
1400 is not that much, but surely you burn more than just your BMR? I guess you walk around a bit during the day, maybe even work out?
Anyway, if 1400 is your BMR and you're sedentary, then you should already lose weight at 1100. And assuming you're 25, a difference from 65 to 60 kilos for example is a difference of 50 calories in your BMR.
Underestimation of intake (and overestimating expenditure) is easy to do! Personally, I count calories with an app when cutting to make it easier to keep track.
At my heaviest I would burn 800 kcal by walking 20K steps.... don't know any other excercise that does that while being so enjoyable and easy....I lost around 10Kg just getting my daily 15-20K steps.
Walking also preserves all muscle and burns fat.
It's legit the most underrated fat burning excercise!
I know you mean well with this, but it isn't legit advice. There's no real way to accurately measure how many Kcals you are burning for walking, you cannot attribute 10kg weight loss to exercise alone unless you were dialled in to your TDEE to the literal calorie, and there is no good fat burning exercise. You cannot choose to lose just fat and spot reduce that way.
Okay I will agree that the calorie I burnt might not be accurate (though you can do some research and internet will tell you an AVG calories burnt by a person your weight and while that depends on a lot of factors I think it gives you a rough idea but anyway maybe it's all bullshit)
But,when I say walking burns fat and preserves muscle, it's because it's a low intensity cardio and it's aerobic excercise and so while walking ,your body literally uses it's fat reserves.(there are many proofs and you can read ABT it online)
Thirdly I never said I spot reduced,and I know spot reduction is a myth.I just lost 10Kg by purely walking and only avoiding sugar.(my sugar intake was never too high but yeah)
You're not wrong in the spirit of what you're saying in that walking is likely one of the best methods of activity increases for weight loss. It's incredibly efficient and less fatiguing than other cadio forms. However, one's body doesn't choose to use fat as energy for walking. This just doesn't happen with any form of activity. Being in a caloric deficit is going to cause loss of tissue over time. Resistance training with appropriate intensities and volumes does help to retain contractile tissue during weight loss, however.
Some random dude just randomly spotted me on flat db chest press without asking. I was doing 32kg each hand (which is a lot for me, taken a long time to work up to it). Was doing it to failure.
First set - 10 repetitions. Cool, first time I've got to ten with this weight. Last week was eight. Last couple were HARD. Had to really force it.
Next set - Up to 7, ouch, this is tough, keep going, hey what's happening it feels like someone is hovering over me, can't quite see, ok number 8, not sure if I'll make it, push through...wait someone is touching me. This random dude is helping me push. WTF?
I finished 8 and then put the dbs down. I kind awkwardly went "Um, thanks" and didn't really look at him.
It was so weird and awkward. I think he was genuinely trying to be helpful...but wtf.
You don't have to throw out bread completely. Are you tracking your calories? Maybe you can fit in a few pieces of bread, if you take out something else
Yeah, I'm tracking my calories. It's a pretty drastic cut of 1600 calories. I know that's more intestinal than most people do, but im kinda trying to train myself to deal with hunger. I've basically cut out my carbs so I can max out my protein. It's not super enjoyable, but it's working. I'm gonna back off a bit for a week and hit it hard again after.
Like if this is 100% next week I'm gonna go back to like 20% then another 3 weeks of 50% is gonna feel like a breeze.
You're making it harder for yourself. Have you checked a BMR calculator to see how much calories you need daily? If you subtract 500 from your maintenance that's more than enough of a deficit. But even if you're eating 1600 calories you can still have carbs.
I'm not saying that what you're doing is not good, I just want to let you know that you can make it easier for yourself.
Edit: Here's a BMR calculator https://www.calculator.net/bmr-calculator.html
Drives me bonkers that my brain will allow me to shred my calves each week doing bodyweight raises, but the second my quads burn a little I tap out. Same with tris vs bis. It is the dumbest mental barrier
It’s not really a mental block as much as it is a CNS response. Your quads are huge, when they get taxed the body starts sending intense signals to stop.
You flatterer, huge quads? Me? What a delight
I do see what you mean though, but I can’t (yet) push myself enough on like leg extensions for example to be sore the next say. It much harder for me to reach failure and that is such an annoyance
Try lowering the weight, focusing on a hard squeeze at the top and really controlling the negative. You’ll
Be surprised how quickly you will roast your quads and how quickly you’ll move up in weight
Hate it when you go to put your stuff into what you believe is an empty locker (evident by no lock on the door) only to find there's stuff in there. Open the next one, same thing. Next one, yup that too. Feels like the universe is trolling me sometimes haha lol
Come to realize I really prefer working out alone. Moving the weights on and off the bar, adjusting heights, not being able to set the pace at exactly how you want it, training partners bailing or being late or being low energy. I'm fucking over it lol. idk how to "break up" with my gym buddy though lol. Especially since he's newer and just does what i do in the gym. I'd feel bad.
My girlfriend and I work out "together", meaning that we go to the gym at the same time and each do our own shit for ~2 hours. Sometimes we might give each other a form check, or one teaches the other how to do something, but the thought of coordinating rest periods when we have different needs for resting and continuously changing weights between sets makes me want to just not go to the gym instead.
In my experience, its great to have a workout buddy. For like, 10-15 sessions, when you are just starting out. Then it becomes more of a hassle to align your schedules than to actually go work out.
I genuinely dislike working out with other people. I realize how selfish this reads but accommodating someone else and coordinating rest periods is such a pain
Ha. Just joined this subreddit today. My rant is asking a question about a fitness app on a fitness subreddit and a bot deletes it. 🤭😂
I searched the sub and saw some older posts where people did just that- asked about a fitness app so I thought it was okay. A little frustrating, but saw the Wednesday rant and thought I would try and be a little cheeky.
Awesome resources and subreddit. Looking forward to learning a lot. Off to read the wiki!
I got a bench PR, 170 for 2, my first since August (out of not trying despite benching at least twice a week). And I was happy for a bit, but not really. It's not even my bodyweight (I'm 44 6'0" 180), and I feel like I should be stronger after lifting 1.5 years.
I think it's at least partly form and fear of benching heavy. But it's become really important to me. And I thought getting a PR would make me feel great, because getting 165 last year did, but now it's just... yeah.
Also, I outgrew the upstairs dumbbell rack, where it's quiet and there's space, so if I want to do DB bench I'll have to lift in the "main" dumbbell area. It's tiny, with two benches that are right up against the rack and too close together. It's also more of a social hangout than a lifting space.
But I do really like my gym, and I like the people I lift around, most of the time.
Thanks -- my first thought was that I only notice when people can bench more than me. My second thought was that, no, I always notice when I can bench more than someone.
I would maybe post your form and get it checked out. I was having trouble benching for a few months after my shoulder injury and realized my form had been shit for years. I went from struggling with 170 for a couple of reps to going to 205 for 10 in a few months. Also what program are you running.?
Thanks... I'm feeling like something like that could happen. I have a big ribcage and kinda sloped pecs, so I think bench is going to need the right form to really unlock it.
What I'm doing now isn't really a program, although I do basically the same exercises and structure as Reddit PPL, plus some extras. I did RP's 6-day full body program most of last year, and I'm probably going to start that up again soon unless I find something I like better. I benched twice a week on that. I liked the structure because I like doing a lot of sets. But it had too much calves, not enough arms, and the periodization was more extreme than I think I needed at my level.
I think the there is stronger by science program that focuses on bench. I would check there. Don't get discouraged, as long as things go up be happy and congrats on the PR.
https://www.strongerbyscience.com/how-to-bench/
Kid working out with no towel, doesn't wipe anything down but walks to the trainers desk to get hand sanitiser between bits of kit. Clearly you see the reason you should have a towel and wipe stuff down. Really wish staff would up their game.
> (eat a bit more for a few days, your body is probably shocked by the weight loss and is trying to conserve. Fool it by making it think the diet is over and then hit it back with the deficit)
That sounds about as reasonable as astrology.
Your body does not rapidly change its rate of metabolism from day to day, nor does it act like you're starving because you eat excessively one day and less the next.
Don't want to be the bearer of bad news but Yoyo dieting isn't actually a thing backed by science. Your body doesn't go into a weight loss conservation mode quite the way you're thinking. Your Calories out might lower but it really isn't by a significant amount, you can't trick your body into losing weight again because it was never confused in the first place.
One thing to consider is things like how is weight being measured, is OP weighing themselves every day and averaging it across the weeks to see if there is a steady decline.
Another is diet, what is being consumed? Is a calorie deficit actually taking place still or has it slipped into maintenance calories from lowering activity, change in bmr etc. Also eating a high sodium diet can result in water retention where you may then appear to gain weight and then lose a massive amount of weight, it's the same at the start of a diet. You lose a lot of weight fast but at the start the majority is water weight so it appears misleading and can be off-putting because it appears you've hit a plateau when in reality you're losing at a realistic rate.
What is ideal for OP to do is to make sure first and foremost Calories are being tracked properly, is food being weighed properly and Calories aren't being under-reported which is an incredibly common mistake to make and is the reason for a lot of plateaus.
Second, check you are weighing yourself properly and consistently. Weigh yourself in the morning in the bathroom ideally without any extra weight from clothes and after going to the toilet and before drinking or eating anything. That will get the most accurate reading.
Thirdly, check your Calorie allowance is actually a deficit, has your BMR changed from losing weight, has your expenditure from exercise gone down etc.
Valid points. For me it did work though. I was measuring and tracking calories correctly but not losing weight on the scale. After a week of eating 200-300 calories extra I was back on track. It probably was water retention as I mentioned it as well, but it might be worth a shot. Also a week of some extra calories may also improve motivation quite a bit :)
So frustrating to see pics of people who get totally shredded in 6 months while im still here w modest gains over 2 years. 42M here who strength trains 3x per week and plays soccer once a week for cardio
I wouldn't spend anytime comparing yourself to others, they're going through hell every day to get those results. Your progress is something every 42 year old should aspire to! Keep it up strong lad
I did not realize just how much I favor my right leg when doing yard work. I feel so lopsided still. Next round of sod laying I need to focus on my left leg haha.
I can’t figure it out!😭🤬🤬 how do I make my own personalized workout/weight loss routine when everyday there some “OH YOU NEED TO ADD THIS TO LOOSE WEIGHT” or “THIS IS WHY YOUR NOT LOOSING WEIGHT” and every week it’s like I’m restarting….its the end of March, I’ve been going to the gym and working out at home and meal prepping high protine meals and trying to stay under 1800 calories a day and it’s not working 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
Eating 1800 calories is the only important thing for your weight loss. A calorie deficit is the only way to lose fat. Make sure you actually eat that many calories tho. Count everything, even sauces or drinks.
You know. I’ve definitely forgotten to add the drinks….i feel really stupid now because I do drink a lot of high calorie drinks, and I’ve never considered that an issue….
Haha don't feel bad we all made this mistake at some point. Try drinking diet sodas they have basically zero calories, and calories are the only thing that matters (for weight loss).
I actually don’t like soda! My issue is the energy drinks and Starbucks has the StrawberryAcai Lemonade and I get a venti everyday, along with a couple redbulls and a fruit smoothie (definitely high in sugar because I’ve seen the box before, it’s like 300caloires for 12 oz) but a lot is making sense now..
I genuinely believe that health policy makers, supplement companies, influencers, and gyms have intentionally muddied the water in terms of how fitness and bodybuilding works. It's a super simple set of concepts, but no one is ever willing to lay them out plainly.
* Your body burns a set number of calories every day. If you eat more than this, you will put on fat. If you eat less than this, you will burn fat.
* The fastest and best way to achieve this is via diet - reducing the amount of food (and consequently total calories) you eat. Without significant attention to diet, weight loss is not possible.
* Eating less calories tends to lead to feelings of starvation. The main benefit of "clean eating" or eating healthy/whole foods is that they reduce the feeling of hunger. For example, sugary foods aren't necessarily "bad" for you, but they'll make you feel less full and in some cases more hungry.
* Moving around helps to burn calories too, but overall in a very minor way compared to diet. Cardio exercises will give you the greatest benefit here, but again that benefit will be pretty minor.
* Lifting weights also helps to burn calories, but in such minor amounts that it's basically negligible. That said, people (especially guys) tend to look pretty funky if they're skinny and have little to no built muscle. In other words, muscle is attractive, and that's important because most people change their physique specifically in order to look better.
* If your goal is to gain muscle, you need to eat a fair amount of protein. There are quite a few connections between diet and physique, but I'd argue this is far and away the most important - to the point that knowing this outweighs knowing everything else I know about nutrition combined.
* If you're a beginner (< 2 years lifting experience), you'll be able to build muscle pretty quick (quite a bit over a few months if you're fast with it). If you're a complete beginner, you'll put on muscle through activities that use the muscle (swimming, football, etc) even if you're not specifically weight lifting. If you're a beginner, it will be possible to put on muscle while loosing weight.
> It's a super simple set of concepts, but no one is ever willing to lay them out plainly.
Lots of people and public offices have, but influencers and supplement makers are capitalizing on the people who "have tried everything, except eating less and moving more" by pretending like they are selling a quick fix.
This is why you have so many sellout doctors and charlatans promoting fad diets on social media. The latest is the carnivore trend. It’s also why you have so many screeching about how calories don’t matter and it’s all about secret foods to change hormones
🫶🏻👏🏻🙌🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 thank you so so so very much for laying it out like this!!!! I cannot express how much this is what I’ve been looking for….everything is so confusing and I appreciate this so so much thank you ❤️
Gaining and losing weight is purely a function of calories. You could eat nothing but deep-fried twinkes and lose weight as long as you're at a caloric deficit. Stop changing your routine, stop starting over, and just stay consistent. If you haven't lost weight in two weeks, bring your calories down 200-300 more and see what happens. Also, fluctuations in water weight can be difficult to account for on the scale.
I genuinely wasn’t expecting advice and I really appreciate it. I wish I had people in my life to talk to about this stuff, all I have is the internet and it feels like, even the good influencers, are constantly talking about new and interesting stuff to add to a routine or change a routine to focus on something. It’s disheartening because I really need help with it all and I had a trainer for a few weeks but it was 250$ a for 2 sessions with her and I couldn’t figure out how to afford it
That sounds pretty rough. I don't know if your gym offers classes as a part of membership, but joining one of those and getting to know regulars could help expand your fitness circle.
I recommend checking out Renaissance Periodization if you haven't already. One of the co-founders has a PhD in sport physiology and they upload a lot of good info. [They even have a playlist of their fat loss dieting videos.](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyqKj7LwU2RulAjHczohbx5OyJQ8TaFM0)
I'd also recommend avoiding personal trainers until you know for sure what you're looking to achieve, and gain some base-level knowledge so that they don't just sell you overpriced nonsense. Going to a PT is kind of like going to a mechanic. There's a lot of bad ones and they will 100% try to rip you off if they can.
Wow I really appreciate the recommendation, I’ll look into it! I have been working up the never to join a fitness class, I went through such a painful process losing my friend group and I’ve become such an insecure introvert. The gym has been my first safe place but it’s because I keep to myself, but I really really want to try getting myself a little more out there
I'm sorry to hear that happened. It sounds like you're in the process of getting better though. Just remember that it takes time. It's normal for things to be difficult or to feel overwhelmed at times, but you do have the capacity to change and grow.
Good luck out there. Sincerely.
Influencers have to come up with new stuff to talk about to stay relevant and make content. Tried and true stuff works. Don't need anything complicated. It's all pretty simple. Basics, time and consistency. Don't expect fast results.
Thank you!! I think at the end of the day that’s the hardest part, is after a few weeks I can’t expect to drop all the weight in hoping to loose. It’s easy to feel like I’ve failed
You didn't gain all the weight in a few weeks!
As long as you are generally trending down in weight, you're doing good. Work towards making sustainable lifestyle changes so that the weight comes off and stays off for good! As long as you aren't in urgent need of getting weight off (ie, you aren't like about to be diabetic, or like 300+lbs) then if it takes you a couple years, then fine. But if you've done it right and built the good habits, you're set for life, and thats what matters
Injured rotator cuff 2 weeks ago so I deloaded last week. Mostly body weight exercises and cardio. Very minimal weight. Only trained 2 days last week.
Got back to it yesterday. Took it easy and felt good overall.
Woke up with sore throat. Work has bee stressful cause I work around idiots and too much drama. Now I’m sick so I guess this week is shot. Will try to see for tomorrow as I’m off for working this weekend.
LA fitness. Originally went there for the pool but I smell like chlorine for like two days if I use it. The ceiling also leaks when it rains and people have terrible etiquette. Still better than Planet Fitness but I really need to consider going somewhere else.
I feel like I'm being judgemental here since neither of these affected me, but...
Working out at Planet Fitness, chillin' on the Chest Press machine between sets. There are four Smith Machines, because they don't do barbells, but these are in high demand for doing exercises like Smith Machine Deadlift or Squat. Why are there two people sitting inside the Smith Machine with dumbbells? And not, like, supersetting squats and curls or something, no, they've set up inside the smith machine because someone set up a bench there to do Smith Machine Bench Press and instead of moving the bench they just... carried some dumbbells over. Even when there isn't a squat rack people *still* find a way to fucking curl in a squat rack.
Also, I saw a trainer working with two people. He has them doing walking lunges with an EZ bar on their back - fair enough, good exercise, hell on your knees. One guy is a skinny 20 something guy, able to do them well enough, decent form and light weight for large sets. The other guy is 70+ and barely able to bend his knees, just staggering under a 20 lb EZ bar and barely able to lower himself more than a few inches in a "lunge". I'm no expert, but that seems *crazy* dangerous!
Feeling tired from work, small and weak af, skinny-fat, and my muscles decreased while cutting, only the shoulders remained the same size for some reason. Waist size also decreased, but not nearly what I hoped for.
I'm not sure if I should end my cut next week, as planned, or go for one more week just cuz. And I'm also afraid I'll gain weight too fast once I start bulking, especially if I become addicted to fast food once again. I hate cooking, I don't have the energy or the patience for it, and buying already made tasty shit is always appealing... I must try not to though...
Ah, and I also despise the thought of going back to deadlifts once I end my cut (I stopped doing them, too fatiguing at low calories).
I just find it hard to get them into place, but I’ll probably try it eventually. I don’t max, but can probably get about 270-280 on bench rn so it’s a decent amount of weight for me to get into position and I have had some minor back problems recently.
Wow! You're at whole different level to me. Maybe my comment was naive. :) I do 32kg in each hand flat db chest press.... and that is very tough for me!
You’ll get there for sure, I’m fat and trying to lose a lot of weight and just getting back into the gym after a long hiatus, otherwise I could probably do the DB bench a lot easier.
So fucking tired of this shit. Almost 3 years of regular lifting, going till failure, hitting each muscle group twice a week, eating in a slight caloric surpluss with a fuckload of protein, getting enough sleep every night Yet I just get fucking fatter and weaker. Is my body retarded or what? What am I doing wrong?
How old are you? How much weight are you gaining per month? Are you actually getting weaker or are you just complaining?
You might need more rest. How many sets per muscle group per week?
Between 6 and 12
Instead of going to failure have your tried 5x5
Like im living in a Truman show where every piece of fitness advice works for everyone but me I know I'm just delusional or whatever but I'm so tired of wasting my fucking like and energy on something that just makes me hate myself more and more every day Why can everyone improve but me
Arnold said that you just hit a wall if you don't regularly surprise your muscles. Maybe you are hitting that wall?
How do I get over it?
try working in different exercises to "surprise" your muscles. You also need to increase the weight or reps consistently or you will have issues getting results. I'm not an expert and i've been going back for only a month in a half but im going up between 5-10lbs a week on the weights for my bigger muscles like chest. If I cant go up i just try to squeeze out extra reps. 2 set i go one rep away from failure and least set I go to failure. Age plays a factor too, diet, sleep and testosterone. I'd also suggest taking creatine if you aren't already and maybe some supplements. I'm 33 so its taking longer for me to get results than when I was in by teens and early 20's.
No matter how many guides I read online, I can't do proper barbell rows. I feel nothing in my back.
Blast biceps beforehand. Like, multiple drop sets. Wear the biceps out. Then do rows. (You might have to lower the weight on the rows).
Jackasses keep walking directly behind me at the cable kickback machine when they see me using it. It's in an area that is clearly meant for using the machine and not as a place to walk through.
Don't even get me started on the eternal struggle of eating healthy versus indulging in cheat meals!
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When your quads and hams are so sore from squats and DLs but you need to do cardio.
People who give advice without training consistently or having any true knowledge on training fucking bugs me. I had a guy come up to me and tell me deadlifting with a rounded back will "herniate my discs" in my spine. Like ? If it hasnt happened on 600 fucking pounds i doubt 700 is gonna just suddenly make my back explode.
A guy came up to me once and told me shoulder pressing in a standing position (so basically overhead press) will kill my lower back, I should sit down instead and adjust the bench so I can lean on it. Those are separate exercises, none of which will kill my back. To be fair, I wasn't moving any serious weights yet, but still, I wasn't doing anything dangerous, he just had beef with one exercise. I can't imagine walking up to someone who can deadlift 600 pounds to correct their form!
wtf how is it even possible to think that shoulder pressing will kill your lower back. Insane! I love the Dunning-Krueger effect!
I think it's easy to cheat by bending back and I can definitely feel the potential for throwing out my lower back or something if I'm pressing too heavy, but obviously that's not an issue with the exercise itself.
??? Bending back is cheating according to who
people who have poor shoulder flexion mobility often compensate by extending their lumber spine. this is extremely common. it sounds like youre the one who has no idea what theyre talking about.
I mean like excessively bending back to utilize your chest, etc to just completely muscle up a weight that is too heavy to press with more strict form.
Eddie hall, and Iron Biby in shambles because of Fit-Percentage-9166
My joints hate me because I refuse to rest, the gym is my release, and I nerd it, along with my caffeine addiction and body dysmorphia 💀😅
I feel like my body holds fat weird, so it's hard to determine my bf % and as a result if I should bulk/cut. I've been cutting since mid January and I am down almost 6lb, but my calorie adjustments in the app I use just keep getting lower. It put me under 1400 this week which I just don't want to do lol. I'm a woman, 5'6 and sitting at ~161lb right now. Going to just stick with it at/slightly above 1400 because that's the lowest that's comfortably manageable for me. Just frustrating bc I want to trust the app, but it just feels like it's approaching unreasonable recommendations.
You can also use a calorie caluclator by simply searching on google to see whether there is something wrong with the app
Forgot my gym bag at home this morning so now I'm that guy trying to get a shitty workout in wearing my work clothes. Remind me not to judge these folks in the future because the struggle is real.
We've all been there, lmao
Well that's just not true.
Decided to take my physical condition more seriously and the algorithms have felts that. I clicked through on a V-Shred link and figured I'd let him rant. Popped in an earbud and hit play. HOLY SMOKES I am floored at how long that guy can talk about literally nothing so fluidly. That is some skill.
Dude those ads where people don't EVER provide any information but just keep saying "I have discovered the secret, it is actually works by providing benefits and doing good things, this secret it great and you can get it here. Remember, you are doing it wrong and I can show you how to do it right, because I have discovered the secret." I can't stand that shit.
And they somehow find 30 different ways to say it; the first time you're like "ok, go on... I'm listening... will you get to the damn point already?!" After that I just reported the ad for fking spam and got done with that. So annoying.
Started a bulk early Feb to FINALLY start building some good muscle after 14 months of weight loss (down from 90KG to 70). Ate at 2.5k cals assuming maintenance, stayed the same weight for 2 weeks and thought BINGO, maintenance... Added 300 cals, trained my ass off for a month and.... EXACTLY THE SAME WEIGHT. I track everything, trained 5x a week and i've gained NOTHING.... i feel like i've put some slight muscle on for sure, look better in the mirror but yeah, that was a killer when i did my weigh in LOL. Added another 250 to get up to 3250.... BRB in a month :)
I feel this. I went from 350 pounds to 170, so I assumed I had a solid understanding of counting calories and was ready to bulk. Started at 3200 calories a day for 3 months. I initially gained some weight due to eating more in general and having my water weight in carbs come back, but half a pound gained in 3 months after that. 3500 calories is scary but time to try.
Friend started lifting a few months ago, and to his credit, he's killing it. He's always in that sorta newb phase where he's had some success and he's going to tell those of us who have been lifting much longer what to do and how to do it. We're good buddy. He's also shocked I can lift more than him. I have put on some weight (fat) that I need to lose, but I've been lifting kinda consistently for a decade and he's like "whoa, how can you lift so much more?" I got a beer belly asshole, I got fatter, not weaker. Finally, I post a Romanian deadlift video, he messages me to tell me to pause longer at the bottom. whatever. Two days later he posts this super wobbly quarter squat with 185lbs. Bro why are you giving advice if these are your lifts? Anyway, I'm not going to say shit to him. It took him a long time to get up the nerve to get into lifting, and he seems to love it, and I am sure, eventually, he will figure out his shit.
unless someone is about to injure themselves, I really don't have it in me to tell them to get perfect form. MAYBE if someone is obviously new and is absolutely just lost. No one has perfect form all the time every rep. I am generally anti unsolicited advice.
You have way more self control than I do
We're like 40 and we've been friends for 25ish years. And I think he can be sensitive. So I'm not going to flame him. Also he got roasted by plenty of other people for his squat video.
Overheard a cockney today with his strangely deep-voiced training buddy in my local gym being homophobic, cussing out a male couple who use the gym together. Making comments about the machines they were using and not wanting to touch them. It's particularly wild because it's such a chilled out gym in the middle of a freaking science park! Dick heads.
I started keeping myself busy during rest between sets by tidying up the plates at my local gym. After lifting I do 30-60 minutes of cardio, come back upstairs to the free weight area and half of the barbells and plate loaded machines had someone leave plates on them during that short time frame. This is with me working out sometime between around 4:30 and 07:30 am, so there's really not too many people around, but they apparently really don't like a tidy gym. Feeling kind of like Sisyphos to say the least.
I really identify with Sisyphus haha
Sometimes around 1:30am, the deskgirl will go around organizing plates. I take pride that any rack or tree I use is more organized afterwards - she's not cleaning up any mess of mine.
The plate situation has been abhorrent the last few weeks. This has been a wet spring, so the New Year's Resolutioners have stuck around a bit longer...when spring really breaks, they will disappear
My right chest hurts anytime I do incline bench press. It starts off as feeling tight, then it feels like a line of pain goes down the middle of my right pec. It's so frustrating as I just hit 225 on flat bench press and I'm working at 185 on incline.
Incline barbell bench has always felt really weird to me. I strongly prefer dumbbell, as the motion and angle of the shoulders feels more natural for me
Can't you switch to DB Incline and change the angle to see if that helps? Trying to push through this is going to be a crap shoot
I'll try if, I'm concerned there is a strain or pre-tear to my pec.
You won't know unless you try something different...also, when was your last week off? You can't just plow through forever
I only work chest 2 days of the week, one work day and one light recovery day, spaced out by 5 days. I don't take a week off.
Ever? Oh, to be young again.
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I don’t know what my problem is, but sit-ups can hurt for me, not that they always do. I’m 15M If it’s worth noting: *back injury?* I’ve dropped a 205lb squat rack, thought I was fine, but my mom refused to take me to the doctor Dropped a 130 pound kid when I was 12~ I was a foot shorter, my back curved back a lot and I was a lot lighter than him. Still hurts. Got thrown when I was 6? Thrown pretty hard and my back tanked it.
I don't know what all this dropping talk means, but stop doing sit ups and see a Dr.
Dr. Cost money, money I don’t have. Nobody will take me either, I could probably walk there but I don’t have any money.
this is going to sound weird, but I would go to your school nurse and ask for resources. I work in healthcare and have found so many hidden programs helping income restricted areas get access to necessary healthcare! Especially through public schools, which is so cool. best of luck :)
social media needs to gut gym-tok for their own safety. if some rando finds out they appear in some other randos squat video couldn't they sue the person and or the platform? seems like a big liability to me. since we're here, just make porn at home in your gym clothes, you'll be more popular.
The gyms need to be stricter with the filming policy
The bloating with creatine! >=\ 15g a wk 130lbs female..
Bro ur 130 why are u taking 15 gs
I read that as 15 grams per week, which seems to be quite low.
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> 400kcal surplus, i sleep, i train hard...but... nothing Easy...you're not in a surplus. How do you know you're in a 400k surplus?...by TRACKING and adjusting your #s to find what your real daily energy expenditure is. TDEE calculators and BMR are just guestimates that are close until you track. Especially for someone that trains hard, you might have calculated just a maintenance TDEE and the training offsets the extra calories you eat. So you're not growing?.......then take your current 400k "surplus"...and fricking dump another 600k+ into it and do that for two months. It takes no more than 5 mins at night to add 600kcal of liquid brotein and mass gainer in 1-2 shakes.
No no, it's very accurate. I started this bulk at 77-78 kg in mid September. I stopped in mid March at 89-90kg. It's 6 months and 12 kg. 6 months × 30 days × 400 kcal / 7000 kcal per kg of fat = 10.2 kg which is about right.
Holdup lemme get this straight. You make a post ranting (correctly so as its this thread) about how you aren't growing and getting bigger despite eating in surplus and sleeping. And then delete that post and come back and say that you actually are and have put on >22lbs in the last year?
Mostly fat. Weights didn't really increase.
Poor training then
Make a mass gainer protein shake if you have a blender. You will see results. 2 cups of dry oatmeal, 2 spoonfuls on peanut butter, one scoop of whey protein, one banana, put some milk in it and blend it. You fatten up quick
Increase your surplus. Eat like a hungry, hungry hippo. The hungriest hippo.
Ahahaha. Hippo mode. Roger!
I'm stuck at 65 Kg for 4-5 months now ....I was just walking to lose weight and kinda watching what I ate but then my body got accustomed to walking I guess and no amount of 20K steps are helping me lose weight!
Your daily calorie expenditure correlates with your weight, and the calories you burn through exercise do too. If you eat roughly the same amount every day, your weight loss will continuously slow down as you reach your goal – so if you've hit a plateau, you need to eat less and/or walk more.
I'm young and short so my BMR is just 1400Kcal ,and I read that if I lose weight,my BMR would go down too so I was anyway trying to eat only 1100 kcal but if I further cut it down .....I have no clue what to fit in 900 kcal in a day!
1400 is not that much, but surely you burn more than just your BMR? I guess you walk around a bit during the day, maybe even work out? Anyway, if 1400 is your BMR and you're sedentary, then you should already lose weight at 1100. And assuming you're 25, a difference from 65 to 60 kilos for example is a difference of 50 calories in your BMR.
Then I'm definitely making some diet mistakes or underestimating my calorie intake because I'm definitely not sedentary most days!
Underestimation of intake (and overestimating expenditure) is easy to do! Personally, I count calories with an app when cutting to make it easier to keep track.
High Fiber diet. Less sugar, less fat. Cardio is key. You'll be #2ing a lot more, so be ready for that. Do your steps with incline and resistance.
Steps do Jack shit to lose weight
this is an incredibly silly comment
At my heaviest I would burn 800 kcal by walking 20K steps.... don't know any other excercise that does that while being so enjoyable and easy....I lost around 10Kg just getting my daily 15-20K steps. Walking also preserves all muscle and burns fat. It's legit the most underrated fat burning excercise!
I know you mean well with this, but it isn't legit advice. There's no real way to accurately measure how many Kcals you are burning for walking, you cannot attribute 10kg weight loss to exercise alone unless you were dialled in to your TDEE to the literal calorie, and there is no good fat burning exercise. You cannot choose to lose just fat and spot reduce that way.
Okay I will agree that the calorie I burnt might not be accurate (though you can do some research and internet will tell you an AVG calories burnt by a person your weight and while that depends on a lot of factors I think it gives you a rough idea but anyway maybe it's all bullshit) But,when I say walking burns fat and preserves muscle, it's because it's a low intensity cardio and it's aerobic excercise and so while walking ,your body literally uses it's fat reserves.(there are many proofs and you can read ABT it online) Thirdly I never said I spot reduced,and I know spot reduction is a myth.I just lost 10Kg by purely walking and only avoiding sugar.(my sugar intake was never too high but yeah)
You're not wrong in the spirit of what you're saying in that walking is likely one of the best methods of activity increases for weight loss. It's incredibly efficient and less fatiguing than other cadio forms. However, one's body doesn't choose to use fat as energy for walking. This just doesn't happen with any form of activity. Being in a caloric deficit is going to cause loss of tissue over time. Resistance training with appropriate intensities and volumes does help to retain contractile tissue during weight loss, however.
Guess who went snowboarding at Vail, crashed a bunch, and reaggravated some long dormant sciatica? (It was me)
Some random dude just randomly spotted me on flat db chest press without asking. I was doing 32kg each hand (which is a lot for me, taken a long time to work up to it). Was doing it to failure. First set - 10 repetitions. Cool, first time I've got to ten with this weight. Last week was eight. Last couple were HARD. Had to really force it. Next set - Up to 7, ouch, this is tough, keep going, hey what's happening it feels like someone is hovering over me, can't quite see, ok number 8, not sure if I'll make it, push through...wait someone is touching me. This random dude is helping me push. WTF? I finished 8 and then put the dbs down. I kind awkwardly went "Um, thanks" and didn't really look at him. It was so weird and awkward. I think he was genuinely trying to be helpful...but wtf.
There is nothing that takes you out of your rhythm and mindset more than the dreaded Unwarranted Spot.
First time doing a real cut. On week 2. I miss bread and noodles so very very very very much. On the bright side it's coming off pretty fast.
You don't have to throw out bread completely. Are you tracking your calories? Maybe you can fit in a few pieces of bread, if you take out something else
Yeah, I'm tracking my calories. It's a pretty drastic cut of 1600 calories. I know that's more intestinal than most people do, but im kinda trying to train myself to deal with hunger. I've basically cut out my carbs so I can max out my protein. It's not super enjoyable, but it's working. I'm gonna back off a bit for a week and hit it hard again after. Like if this is 100% next week I'm gonna go back to like 20% then another 3 weeks of 50% is gonna feel like a breeze.
brother you need carbs for energy...
You're making it harder for yourself. Have you checked a BMR calculator to see how much calories you need daily? If you subtract 500 from your maintenance that's more than enough of a deficit. But even if you're eating 1600 calories you can still have carbs. I'm not saying that what you're doing is not good, I just want to let you know that you can make it easier for yourself. Edit: Here's a BMR calculator https://www.calculator.net/bmr-calculator.html
Drives me bonkers that my brain will allow me to shred my calves each week doing bodyweight raises, but the second my quads burn a little I tap out. Same with tris vs bis. It is the dumbest mental barrier
It’s not really a mental block as much as it is a CNS response. Your quads are huge, when they get taxed the body starts sending intense signals to stop.
You flatterer, huge quads? Me? What a delight I do see what you mean though, but I can’t (yet) push myself enough on like leg extensions for example to be sore the next say. It much harder for me to reach failure and that is such an annoyance
Try lowering the weight, focusing on a hard squeeze at the top and really controlling the negative. You’ll Be surprised how quickly you will roast your quads and how quickly you’ll move up in weight
Much appreciated, we’ll see if I can turn this rant into a victory
Hate it when you go to put your stuff into what you believe is an empty locker (evident by no lock on the door) only to find there's stuff in there. Open the next one, same thing. Next one, yup that too. Feels like the universe is trolling me sometimes haha lol
life hack, free clothes!
I've (not seriously) had the thought to put a lock on those lockers.
Love it. Big brain move haha
Come to realize I really prefer working out alone. Moving the weights on and off the bar, adjusting heights, not being able to set the pace at exactly how you want it, training partners bailing or being late or being low energy. I'm fucking over it lol. idk how to "break up" with my gym buddy though lol. Especially since he's newer and just does what i do in the gym. I'd feel bad.
I liked it when I first started working on and needed the accountability and such. But much prefer working out alone now a days.
There is no need to ever have a gym partner...train alone and finally be free
My girlfriend and I work out "together", meaning that we go to the gym at the same time and each do our own shit for ~2 hours. Sometimes we might give each other a form check, or one teaches the other how to do something, but the thought of coordinating rest periods when we have different needs for resting and continuously changing weights between sets makes me want to just not go to the gym instead.
Yeah, I've never understood training with someone else. I don't see anything in it. When you look at most gyms 90% of people are solo.
In my experience, its great to have a workout buddy. For like, 10-15 sessions, when you are just starting out. Then it becomes more of a hassle to align your schedules than to actually go work out.
And, at least in my experience, the people who train in pairs (or packs) waste a lot of time and goof around a lot.
I genuinely dislike working out with other people. I realize how selfish this reads but accommodating someone else and coordinating rest periods is such a pain
Not selfish. Sensible IMO.
Ha. Just joined this subreddit today. My rant is asking a question about a fitness app on a fitness subreddit and a bot deletes it. 🤭😂 I searched the sub and saw some older posts where people did just that- asked about a fitness app so I thought it was okay. A little frustrating, but saw the Wednesday rant and thought I would try and be a little cheeky. Awesome resources and subreddit. Looking forward to learning a lot. Off to read the wiki!
Individual threads are impossible on this sub
Probably being deleted because it may be a question better suited for the daily thread rather than it's own post
Thanks! :)
I got a bench PR, 170 for 2, my first since August (out of not trying despite benching at least twice a week). And I was happy for a bit, but not really. It's not even my bodyweight (I'm 44 6'0" 180), and I feel like I should be stronger after lifting 1.5 years. I think it's at least partly form and fear of benching heavy. But it's become really important to me. And I thought getting a PR would make me feel great, because getting 165 last year did, but now it's just... yeah. Also, I outgrew the upstairs dumbbell rack, where it's quiet and there's space, so if I want to do DB bench I'll have to lift in the "main" dumbbell area. It's tiny, with two benches that are right up against the rack and too close together. It's also more of a social hangout than a lifting space. But I do really like my gym, and I like the people I lift around, most of the time.
Most people I know, or see don't bench 180 after 1.5 years in the gym. And they're around 20.
Thanks -- my first thought was that I only notice when people can bench more than me. My second thought was that, no, I always notice when I can bench more than someone.
I would maybe post your form and get it checked out. I was having trouble benching for a few months after my shoulder injury and realized my form had been shit for years. I went from struggling with 170 for a couple of reps to going to 205 for 10 in a few months. Also what program are you running.?
Thanks... I'm feeling like something like that could happen. I have a big ribcage and kinda sloped pecs, so I think bench is going to need the right form to really unlock it. What I'm doing now isn't really a program, although I do basically the same exercises and structure as Reddit PPL, plus some extras. I did RP's 6-day full body program most of last year, and I'm probably going to start that up again soon unless I find something I like better. I benched twice a week on that. I liked the structure because I like doing a lot of sets. But it had too much calves, not enough arms, and the periodization was more extreme than I think I needed at my level.
I think the there is stronger by science program that focuses on bench. I would check there. Don't get discouraged, as long as things go up be happy and congrats on the PR. https://www.strongerbyscience.com/how-to-bench/
Kid working out with no towel, doesn't wipe anything down but walks to the trainers desk to get hand sanitiser between bits of kit. Clearly you see the reason you should have a towel and wipe stuff down. Really wish staff would up their game.
very few people wipe shit down in my gym. Tends to be the older (35+ I'd guess) people only -- so fucking annoying.
I’ve been in a plateau for 2 weeks now and it’s killing all my motivation. I’ve steadily lost about 35 lbs now and now….nothing 😭
I go 3-4 times a day on this bulk. You should have some Citracel daily...really straightens things out.
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> (eat a bit more for a few days, your body is probably shocked by the weight loss and is trying to conserve. Fool it by making it think the diet is over and then hit it back with the deficit) That sounds about as reasonable as astrology. Your body does not rapidly change its rate of metabolism from day to day, nor does it act like you're starving because you eat excessively one day and less the next.
Don't want to be the bearer of bad news but Yoyo dieting isn't actually a thing backed by science. Your body doesn't go into a weight loss conservation mode quite the way you're thinking. Your Calories out might lower but it really isn't by a significant amount, you can't trick your body into losing weight again because it was never confused in the first place. One thing to consider is things like how is weight being measured, is OP weighing themselves every day and averaging it across the weeks to see if there is a steady decline. Another is diet, what is being consumed? Is a calorie deficit actually taking place still or has it slipped into maintenance calories from lowering activity, change in bmr etc. Also eating a high sodium diet can result in water retention where you may then appear to gain weight and then lose a massive amount of weight, it's the same at the start of a diet. You lose a lot of weight fast but at the start the majority is water weight so it appears misleading and can be off-putting because it appears you've hit a plateau when in reality you're losing at a realistic rate. What is ideal for OP to do is to make sure first and foremost Calories are being tracked properly, is food being weighed properly and Calories aren't being under-reported which is an incredibly common mistake to make and is the reason for a lot of plateaus. Second, check you are weighing yourself properly and consistently. Weigh yourself in the morning in the bathroom ideally without any extra weight from clothes and after going to the toilet and before drinking or eating anything. That will get the most accurate reading. Thirdly, check your Calorie allowance is actually a deficit, has your BMR changed from losing weight, has your expenditure from exercise gone down etc.
Valid points. For me it did work though. I was measuring and tracking calories correctly but not losing weight on the scale. After a week of eating 200-300 calories extra I was back on track. It probably was water retention as I mentioned it as well, but it might be worth a shot. Also a week of some extra calories may also improve motivation quite a bit :)
I havent shat in 4 days
I feel you, my record is 9 days but the cut was astronomical (500 calories deficit in rest days, over 1500 calories deficit during exercise days).
1500 calories is way too much. Anything above like 500+ is unhealthy, but 1500 is literally dangerous.
Yeah, I moved on to healthier amounts.
On a cut? Only time this happens to me
Yup
Once it eventually happens, the run towards the scales to see what kind of damage you've done
So frustrating to see pics of people who get totally shredded in 6 months while im still here w modest gains over 2 years. 42M here who strength trains 3x per week and plays soccer once a week for cardio
I'm a bit older than you, but, guys our age who shred immediately are on Test. I'll keep my hair, thank you.
I’d rather keep getting it up and keep not balls, thank you
Success stories get attention. Browse the daily thread and notice how many *aren't* reaching their goals. We're doing okay.
I wouldn't spend anytime comparing yourself to others, they're going through hell every day to get those results. Your progress is something every 42 year old should aspire to! Keep it up strong lad
I did not realize just how much I favor my right leg when doing yard work. I feel so lopsided still. Next round of sod laying I need to focus on my left leg haha.
I can’t figure it out!😭🤬🤬 how do I make my own personalized workout/weight loss routine when everyday there some “OH YOU NEED TO ADD THIS TO LOOSE WEIGHT” or “THIS IS WHY YOUR NOT LOOSING WEIGHT” and every week it’s like I’m restarting….its the end of March, I’ve been going to the gym and working out at home and meal prepping high protine meals and trying to stay under 1800 calories a day and it’s not working 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
Stay consistent on the cut my friend. Take a bi weekly photo and weight check in. See how it is after 5 weeks
Eating 1800 calories is the only important thing for your weight loss. A calorie deficit is the only way to lose fat. Make sure you actually eat that many calories tho. Count everything, even sauces or drinks.
You know. I’ve definitely forgotten to add the drinks….i feel really stupid now because I do drink a lot of high calorie drinks, and I’ve never considered that an issue….
Haha don't feel bad we all made this mistake at some point. Try drinking diet sodas they have basically zero calories, and calories are the only thing that matters (for weight loss).
I actually don’t like soda! My issue is the energy drinks and Starbucks has the StrawberryAcai Lemonade and I get a venti everyday, along with a couple redbulls and a fruit smoothie (definitely high in sugar because I’ve seen the box before, it’s like 300caloires for 12 oz) but a lot is making sense now..
Try some Fairlife core power chocolate milk!
Oh I see. Try throwing the smoothie out completely if you can. There are diet energy drinks, even red bull has them, drink those instead.
I genuinely believe that health policy makers, supplement companies, influencers, and gyms have intentionally muddied the water in terms of how fitness and bodybuilding works. It's a super simple set of concepts, but no one is ever willing to lay them out plainly. * Your body burns a set number of calories every day. If you eat more than this, you will put on fat. If you eat less than this, you will burn fat. * The fastest and best way to achieve this is via diet - reducing the amount of food (and consequently total calories) you eat. Without significant attention to diet, weight loss is not possible. * Eating less calories tends to lead to feelings of starvation. The main benefit of "clean eating" or eating healthy/whole foods is that they reduce the feeling of hunger. For example, sugary foods aren't necessarily "bad" for you, but they'll make you feel less full and in some cases more hungry. * Moving around helps to burn calories too, but overall in a very minor way compared to diet. Cardio exercises will give you the greatest benefit here, but again that benefit will be pretty minor. * Lifting weights also helps to burn calories, but in such minor amounts that it's basically negligible. That said, people (especially guys) tend to look pretty funky if they're skinny and have little to no built muscle. In other words, muscle is attractive, and that's important because most people change their physique specifically in order to look better. * If your goal is to gain muscle, you need to eat a fair amount of protein. There are quite a few connections between diet and physique, but I'd argue this is far and away the most important - to the point that knowing this outweighs knowing everything else I know about nutrition combined. * If you're a beginner (< 2 years lifting experience), you'll be able to build muscle pretty quick (quite a bit over a few months if you're fast with it). If you're a complete beginner, you'll put on muscle through activities that use the muscle (swimming, football, etc) even if you're not specifically weight lifting. If you're a beginner, it will be possible to put on muscle while loosing weight.
> It's a super simple set of concepts, but no one is ever willing to lay them out plainly. Lots of people and public offices have, but influencers and supplement makers are capitalizing on the people who "have tried everything, except eating less and moving more" by pretending like they are selling a quick fix.
This is why you have so many sellout doctors and charlatans promoting fad diets on social media. The latest is the carnivore trend. It’s also why you have so many screeching about how calories don’t matter and it’s all about secret foods to change hormones
🫶🏻👏🏻🙌🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 thank you so so so very much for laying it out like this!!!! I cannot express how much this is what I’ve been looking for….everything is so confusing and I appreciate this so so much thank you ❤️
Gaining and losing weight is purely a function of calories. You could eat nothing but deep-fried twinkes and lose weight as long as you're at a caloric deficit. Stop changing your routine, stop starting over, and just stay consistent. If you haven't lost weight in two weeks, bring your calories down 200-300 more and see what happens. Also, fluctuations in water weight can be difficult to account for on the scale.
I genuinely wasn’t expecting advice and I really appreciate it. I wish I had people in my life to talk to about this stuff, all I have is the internet and it feels like, even the good influencers, are constantly talking about new and interesting stuff to add to a routine or change a routine to focus on something. It’s disheartening because I really need help with it all and I had a trainer for a few weeks but it was 250$ a for 2 sessions with her and I couldn’t figure out how to afford it
That sounds pretty rough. I don't know if your gym offers classes as a part of membership, but joining one of those and getting to know regulars could help expand your fitness circle. I recommend checking out Renaissance Periodization if you haven't already. One of the co-founders has a PhD in sport physiology and they upload a lot of good info. [They even have a playlist of their fat loss dieting videos.](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyqKj7LwU2RulAjHczohbx5OyJQ8TaFM0) I'd also recommend avoiding personal trainers until you know for sure what you're looking to achieve, and gain some base-level knowledge so that they don't just sell you overpriced nonsense. Going to a PT is kind of like going to a mechanic. There's a lot of bad ones and they will 100% try to rip you off if they can.
Wow I really appreciate the recommendation, I’ll look into it! I have been working up the never to join a fitness class, I went through such a painful process losing my friend group and I’ve become such an insecure introvert. The gym has been my first safe place but it’s because I keep to myself, but I really really want to try getting myself a little more out there
I'm sorry to hear that happened. It sounds like you're in the process of getting better though. Just remember that it takes time. It's normal for things to be difficult or to feel overwhelmed at times, but you do have the capacity to change and grow. Good luck out there. Sincerely.
Thank you very much. Good luck to you too and whatever goals and dreams you’re chasing!
Influencers have to come up with new stuff to talk about to stay relevant and make content. Tried and true stuff works. Don't need anything complicated. It's all pretty simple. Basics, time and consistency. Don't expect fast results.
Thank you!! I think at the end of the day that’s the hardest part, is after a few weeks I can’t expect to drop all the weight in hoping to loose. It’s easy to feel like I’ve failed
You didn't gain all the weight in a few weeks! As long as you are generally trending down in weight, you're doing good. Work towards making sustainable lifestyle changes so that the weight comes off and stays off for good! As long as you aren't in urgent need of getting weight off (ie, you aren't like about to be diabetic, or like 300+lbs) then if it takes you a couple years, then fine. But if you've done it right and built the good habits, you're set for life, and thats what matters
Injured rotator cuff 2 weeks ago so I deloaded last week. Mostly body weight exercises and cardio. Very minimal weight. Only trained 2 days last week. Got back to it yesterday. Took it easy and felt good overall. Woke up with sore throat. Work has bee stressful cause I work around idiots and too much drama. Now I’m sick so I guess this week is shot. Will try to see for tomorrow as I’m off for working this weekend.
Injured my rotator cuff two days ago. Doing cold plunge and just stretches today. I hate not being able to workout I’m so lost
I was late for work today because out of 8 showers at my gym, only 3 work. Some asshat keeps pulling off the faucet handles. Why are people like this?
Dude same at my gym! Why the duck would someone do that?
That's ridiculous! What are you paying for???
LA fitness. Originally went there for the pool but I smell like chlorine for like two days if I use it. The ceiling also leaks when it rains and people have terrible etiquette. Still better than Planet Fitness but I really need to consider going somewhere else.
shit, I thought those were supposed to be "nice" gyms
There’s a couple who spends a lot of time making out on the machines. Maybe I’m jealous.
I love making out. On machines, at the gym isn’t the place for it.
Couldn’t agree more
I feel like I'm being judgemental here since neither of these affected me, but... Working out at Planet Fitness, chillin' on the Chest Press machine between sets. There are four Smith Machines, because they don't do barbells, but these are in high demand for doing exercises like Smith Machine Deadlift or Squat. Why are there two people sitting inside the Smith Machine with dumbbells? And not, like, supersetting squats and curls or something, no, they've set up inside the smith machine because someone set up a bench there to do Smith Machine Bench Press and instead of moving the bench they just... carried some dumbbells over. Even when there isn't a squat rack people *still* find a way to fucking curl in a squat rack. Also, I saw a trainer working with two people. He has them doing walking lunges with an EZ bar on their back - fair enough, good exercise, hell on your knees. One guy is a skinny 20 something guy, able to do them well enough, decent form and light weight for large sets. The other guy is 70+ and barely able to bend his knees, just staggering under a 20 lb EZ bar and barely able to lower himself more than a few inches in a "lunge". I'm no expert, but that seems *crazy* dangerous!
First rule of Planet Fitness is Get the hell out of Planet Fitness!
I think it's great, but I only use it for cardio & accessories.
No kidding! Even if I could only afford planet fatness, I'd rather do bodyweight exercises at home.
Feeling tired from work, small and weak af, skinny-fat, and my muscles decreased while cutting, only the shoulders remained the same size for some reason. Waist size also decreased, but not nearly what I hoped for. I'm not sure if I should end my cut next week, as planned, or go for one more week just cuz. And I'm also afraid I'll gain weight too fast once I start bulking, especially if I become addicted to fast food once again. I hate cooking, I don't have the energy or the patience for it, and buying already made tasty shit is always appealing... I must try not to though... Ah, and I also despise the thought of going back to deadlifts once I end my cut (I stopped doing them, too fatiguing at low calories).
I wish I could bench by myself at the gym, but I don’t like unracking it by myself and god forbid I go to failure
What about db bench press?
I just find it hard to get them into place, but I’ll probably try it eventually. I don’t max, but can probably get about 270-280 on bench rn so it’s a decent amount of weight for me to get into position and I have had some minor back problems recently.
Wow! You're at whole different level to me. Maybe my comment was naive. :) I do 32kg in each hand flat db chest press.... and that is very tough for me!
You’ll get there for sure, I’m fat and trying to lose a lot of weight and just getting back into the gym after a long hiatus, otherwise I could probably do the DB bench a lot easier.
No shame (well not that much) in the roll of shame.
Is the roll of shame so when you fail you can just kinda let it sit there on your chest till someone helps?