For a couple years I tried every workout you can imagine and stopped doing one after the other when I din’t get results overnight. I basically just threw some weight around without regard to diet and following a good program. Basically, I got zero results.
I found this site/forum and things started looking up. I decided to go with a total body program usually three times a week. More importantly, my diet is the number one focus of my life next to my family. I’m not seeing a lot of muscle gain but here is what has happened after 3.5 months:
Sex life- Just ask my wife. She now loves this site too! I’m guessing it’s the extra T from those huge compound lifts.
Mood- Much more postive and overall happier.
Work- I’m a cop. Now, when I encounter a “froggy” individual, I am much more confident because there is a 90 percent chance I’m much stronger than him because I do big compound lifts that make my head feel like it’s going to fucking explode.
So thanks everyone here for helping me!
I’m getting a call so I’ll post my question later.
Okay, so my question is this. Although I’m happy with my strength gains, and I am still moving up in weight consistently, I’m not seeing much muscle gain. Should I move on to a more elaborate program after almost four months of this?
I started with the Starr 5x5, then CW’s TBT. I feel my diet is pretty good. Lots of meat, veggies and good fats, around 2500-3200 a day. I almost never cheat. I drink Surge after every workout. I eat statchy carbs like oatmeal in the morning, and I sometimes load up on pasta after working out. Considering I’m still seeing gains, I’m hoping my diet is enough.
Despite my gains, I haven’t gained much noticeable muscle. I can’t help but think it’s the total body several times a week approach. Possibly I’m one of those who need more training on each body part AND more down time between training of each body part?
I know this has been discussed a million times on here, however, is 3-4 months on total body enough to see if it’s for me?
Btw. I’m 6-4 210, probably about 10-12 percent body fat. That’s another reason I think I’m eating enough if not too much, I haven’t lost a lot of fat. Oh well at least I’m strong and feel great.
[quote]Digity wrote:
I’m 140 and consuming 3000 calories per day. You’re 210 and consuming about the same as me…do see a problem here? You need to eat a lot more![/quote]
I forgot, everybody is the same…
How are you, “not seeing muscle gains”?
if you’re adding weight, you have to see a difference, otherwise it’s been almost water only if you’re weight yourself everyday.
You could switch to splits 2-3 muscle groups a workout or focus on 1 muscle a day.
I’d do TBT to maintain, or just burn as much weight as possible and for overall health, endurance etc. But personally if I do more then 2 muscles in a workout I generally won’t have the energy to do the 3rd one properly.
It depends on how your body feels. If I was in your situation I’d switch to either 1 of the aforementioned styles. If you want power and strength you can make your main focus the rep range of 1-5.
**not including warmup sets of higher reps, or burnout sets afterwards, negatives etc.
If you want shape size and a bit of endurance I’d go with 8-12 reps give or take 1-2 reps either way. I’m not into EXACT reps as I can’t predict how you’ll feel on any given day.
** This also excludes any warmup set/rep numbers and also excludes any givens for heavier lifting afterwards.
I tend to mix it up with high rep warmups for flushing, 8-12 in the middle, and lower reps and heavier weights if I’m gnashing at the teeth wanting to conquer 3rd world countries.
I’m working for a mix of aesthetics and overall fitness strength. Though I have this power lifting streak that pops its ugly head out if I workout more then an hour.
Oh one pointed question. With protein requirements for real gains being at least 1 gram per 1lb of bodyweight.
How many grams are you taking? A full 210? or more?
The more I re-read your posts the more it sounds like you want some muscle tone besides the strength. One thing to note ~ Keep it up. More often then not the first 3 months serious is when you get strength, the looks start coming into play month 4 and beyond.
Do you do any steady cardio? What about Interval Cardio? Jump-roping/Swimming?
if the scales are not rising, you need more calories. simple. i eat over 3000 just to maintain and i am only 185 at 10-12%bf, 2500 when trying to shed a little fat.
stick with the program, if your strength numbers are going up anyway its working and 4 months is still a relatively short time. good maybe add sets/reduce rest but without knowing exactly what you do i wouldn’t be so presumptious to advise.
congratulations on your attention to your diet, good work.
Thanks for the responses. I was thinking more calories as well, however, I still have some fat around the waist and a little under my arms. I figured if I was in a deficit situation, I’d be leaner than this.
I actually like the idea of killing 2-3 muscle groups in a workout and letting them heal for a week. I enjoy going to failure, TUT sets, and etc. With TBT I have to be really careful because I’ll be doing it again in two days.
My only fear is that I am short changing myself by only working each group once per week. This really is the most frustrating thing to deal with.
A guy I work with has been doing splits for a year or so. We are very similar in natural size, only he has a good amount of muscle I dont remember seeing a year ago. Like me he was tall and thin. Now, I can probably bench and squat close to what he does, however, he has much more muscle to show for it. He does three day a week splits push/pull/legs 3x10.
So confused, but I’m going to keep doing my program until I make a decision.
I understand the science behind TBT, but proof is in the proverbial pudding…right? I am going to eat more.