Thought of this while doing my rare log update haha.
Due to Elhers-Danlos making my joint stability non-existent when I started, I had to begin with embaressingly puny weights, and each small jump felt immense. Like with “bench pressing,” I had to start with a 3lbs DB floor press, and the jumps to 5lbs, 8lbs, and 10lbs all felt immense. It was the same with every single movement, with me being unable to do an unweighted rep on certain lifts (like just bending over and getting back up for an RDL).
If anything, progression is a lot eaiser now since my joint stability is a lot better. Still, despite the progress, I am truthfully annoyed that I never got any rapid progress when starting out. Even the most embaressing “weak beginner” stories will be about someone barely able to bench the empty bar. It took me so many jumps to do an empty 45lbs bar to a full ROM!! Haha.
Anyone else never get the mythical newbie gains? Am I the only one haha?
I’ve seen people get close to a 400lb squat just running things like Starting Strength without any of the programming adjustments. I’ve also seen people peak out when 200lbs became too much of a grind and they weren’t quite up for GOMAD (lol).
I think I got good “newbie” gains but I also think it’s something people worry about/focus on too much. At some point some of these guys that got great newbie gains might have to go backward and build back up after an injury as slowly as you had to to reach those little milestones in the beginning anyway.
Just progress how you can progress in whatever possible way you can at that time. This kind of adversity you went through at the start makes you better prepared for progress in the future anyway. Some people never had to be as humbled and learn the lessons you had to.
All beginner gains refers to is the phenomenon that, the further away you are from your max potential, the faster you progress toward it.
The first time someone throws a ball (usually as a youth), they are terrible at it. After an afternoon of trying, they are significantly better at it. You might even double the speed of the throw in the span of that time, simply because you got so much better from where you started.
And then there are MLB pitchers that might spend 5 years to add 1 more MPH to their fastball. But no one talks about the “beginner gains” of a youth baseball player because we all “get it” when it comes to real sports.
For some reason, lifting is mired in mysticism of biological alchemy. It’s really no different. Rapid progression in lifting as a beginner is a product of rapid skill acquisition. Beginners hit “the wall” once they cap out on those skills and have to actually start building some muscle to make the weight go up.
You were definitely in a unique situation wherein your body was not stable enough to allow for that rapid skill acquisition. In turn, it absolutely makes sense that you saw rapid growth ONCE you could get your connective tissue stable.
I saw the same thing coming back from ACL reconstructive surgery. This was my first squat workout when I was cleared post surgery
22 days later I did this
I didn’t get 110lbs stronger in that time: just better.
For some reason, lifting is mired in mysticism of biological alchemy.
Haha. This is why I pretty quickly stopped watching lifting advice videos. They were demoralizing if anything. Especially the ones that claimed naturals “maxed out” their potential in 5 or so years. Or that 90% of all lifetimes gains for naturals come in the first year. How are you gonna say that to someone who needed a year to go from wall pushups to 1 full push up? A lot of the stuff I’d watch just seemed made up like magic, so mysticism is a good way to put it.
In turn, it absolutely makes sense that you saw rapid growth ONCE you could get your connective tissue stable
To be fair, I’m still not stable enough to see rapid growth, but the growth is still far better than when I started. At the very least I have my coordination back, which I didn’t before even at like 25% of my max on lifts. But yeah, it’s almost like I get a sudden burst of “newbie gains” every time my joints stabilize more. Obviously my muscles aren’t getting that much stronger in those short timeframes. Getting “better” is a good way to phrase it.
