Looks like estrogen related fat storage to me. I’d also recommend having your hormones checked.
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I wouldn’t sweat not having safety bars currently, I trained on just squat stands for a couple of years in my garage and never had any issues.
Worked up to 165kg squat on them and 100kg bench. I don’t think I’d go any heavier with no safeties though.
As for your training…choose a well established program which there are so many of and just stick to it for a couple of full cycles.
I’m always a firm believer in consistency trumps all.
My suggestion is to get a solid base of strength using 5/3/1 MadCow or some type of simple linear progression program that fits your schedule.
I feel like this approach will help you develop more muscle in the long run if you eventually do switch to a higher volume, more reps program etc.
I had my testosterone tested in my early 30’s out of curiosity. I forget the exact measurements but it was on the higher end of normal. Off the top of my I think the top range of their test was 31nmol/L and I think mine was 26. That was only a test for testosterone though. It didn’t give any testosterone to estrogen ratios
Strength, muscle, weight loss- are all a function of consistency over time.
Thats probably what you need most. Consistency & time.
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I should say the squat stands I have don’t have safety rails. I have wondered if that’s put me off really pushing it.
Use sawhorses
@tlgains Has some experience with that approach.
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You had me frantically scrolling for pictures through my log and my phone.
Luckily I remembered the ones I ordered
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Your set up and @flappinit ‘s COVID home gym during Building the Monolith are 2 of the most inspiring stories from here
Just prime examples of “get to yes”
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….
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So I thought maybe you weren’t pushing your sets, and then you said you don’t think you’re pushing your sets, so now I really think you’re not pushing your sets.
Anyway, I’m firmly with @SkyzykS that it’s consistency over time. I’ll add that if you’re trying to add a rep or weight over time, it’s almost hard not to get bigger and stronger.
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. I was going to see how the consistency over time thing landed, then recommend some coaching.
Its one thing to push as hard as you think you should, but a whole other ball game to push as hard as somebody else thinks you should.
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That does make sense. Would explain why the deadlift went up but the others didn’t. I felt like I was but I did keep getting stuck at 50-52kg until I got someone to spot me just in case and I got up to 55. I’ll have to look into making some kind of safety rail.
I think blindly following MacroFactor didn’t help all the time either. It was big help having the calories automatically adjust but whilst the majority of the time it had me around 2000 at a few points it dropped as low as 1750. Could really feel it.
What would you suggest calorie wise? Slight deficit or maintenance?
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I’d never even thought of those. I’ll look into some over the weekend.
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Just wanted to jump in: OP I think you’ve set yourself up for success quite well, and with a few adjustments you’ll be well on the way.
First, Greyskull is a great program! I use the base rep scheme for many of the programs I write for my own clients. However, success with any barbell program requires a good level of proficiency on the lifts. This brings me to my second point:
As mentioned, the success of any program hinges on consistency, effort, and safety. The effort and safe technique side can be hard to learn independently, especially if you’ve got a history of pain flare ups which may limit you subconsciously. Connect yourself with a coach in your area who focuses on coaching the barbell exercises. They can help build your technique on the lifts, and show you how to push your sets the right amount. Coaches experienced with powerlifitng, strongman or athletic development will have these skillsets.
Lastly, I think a small calorie deficit will help you alot. However, if you’ve been maintaining weight at ~2000kcal, you don’t have much room to drop further. I would try to create a calorie deficit by increasing daily activity. A great step (if you aren’t already there) is 10k steps per day. If you’re already there or don’t have means to track steps, add a 30min brisk walk daily. You can also “split” your 30min walk into 3 x 10min walks spread throughout the day. This is often more practical. If you need to progress from there, a 20kg/44lb weight vest is a fantastic tool to burn more calories & build more muscle during your walks.
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So another ditto here for what @j4gga2 said.
As one of the last remaining dinosaurs that still really likes calorie counting in a lot of situations, I actually don’t think you need to purposefully chase a real tight number right now. If it’s comfortable for you, go for it, but I think you’re in the building great habits phase. None of this to take away from you, by the way; excellent job getting work in and coming here and receiving advice well.
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Likes? Your a sick man. For me its a necessary evil…
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I guess “likes” is a strong word, but I prefer it to other mechanisms of caloric control
Runnin an LP in anything less than a healthy caloric surplus is very limiting. I would not recommend greyskull for that.
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No to be honest I was just going to set MacroFactor to a 5% deficit and let it work it out based on my scale weight. Unless it goes insanely low for whatever reason.
I like tracking personally. One thing I’ve found is even though I’ve got out of shape I actually have a pretty small appetite when it comes to proper food. I had to get into the habit of having breakfast. Though I obviously ate too much it came from smaller amounts of “bad”,
Cheers, I’d rather not bash my head against the wall not doing things the right way
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Sometimes eating more boosts the metabolism with the right workout regimen. I eat around 3700-5500 calories depending on the day and damn near have a sixpack.
Eating less is great with a non strength program to lose weight, though.
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Bloody hell! lol. Well I’m going to base it on my weight. I’m content to not lose weight, or at least fat, for the time being so I’ll try a very small deficit. If I stall again I’ll try eating at maintenance and see how that goes and so on.