History on me:
-Trained religiously between the ages of 17 and 22 (hit 185 @ about 10%bf, maybe less, after being mentored by bodybuilder from the gym)
-Let life get in the way and quit until last March (when I was almost 27)
-Have been working out at home off and on doing some SS type stuff till last month
-Started going to a gym last month now here comes the problem;
I designed my own program and it has become an ever evolving format as I try to make it fit my life with time spent in the gym, and I deal with figuring exactly what I am currently capable of. It went from a push-pull 4day(8-10 exercises; varying reps), to a P-P-L 5day a week (6-10 exercises, all the same reps, plan was to change the rep range every three weeks but I started with 12 and started bogging down on the push day. Now I am trying to morph it into a Push-Pull-Legs-Arms with pyramiding sets.
There is a slight measure of insanity to this, and the ever weakening chest sessions seem to be the thing that is causing me the most confusion. A large part of me is seriously considering scrapping the whole thing and going to a beginners 5x5 to build up my strength before taking on something else. This has a little to do with my ego as I am one of the weakest guys in the gym when I go and I cant help but let it erk me. Spending a few months working on strength definitely wouldn’t hurt my future endeavors.
Sorry for the convoluted post but I guess I was just hoping someone who has come back after a long layoff or has been around people who have might have some advice to help me get my mind right.
My suggestion would be to pick a structured program such as SL or 5/3/1 BBB and follow it to the letter for a minimum of 6 months, and ideally a year. Remember that building strength AND aesthetics is a long time goal. I also feel that for someone without years of experience under their belt, having set volume and rep ranges is good. build a base, and then venture out to learn what works best for you.
[quote]jbpick86 wrote:
This has a little to do with my ego as I am one of the weakest guys in the gym when I go and I cant help but let it erk me. Spending a few months working on strength definitely wouldn’t hurt my future endeavors.
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Don’t let that bother you. I started out squatting 95lb painfully while other people in my gym were quarter squatting 225lb or squatting 175lb (public gym, lots of weak people but beginners don’t know that!)
By the time I left that gym for my current one (moved) I had just hit 240lbx3. Now I was one of the stronger squatters around the time I went to the gym (again, public gym, so absolutely meaningless)
Point being- Don’t let the weight other people use intimidate you. Heck, there’s a guy who squats around the time I do in my new gym who does 315lb front squats and the like. There are also numerous people who actually squat 230+ to depth. Watching them squat is a joy. I can actually learn from others now.
[quote]jbpick86 wrote:
This has a little to do with my ego as I am one of the weakest guys in the gym when I go and I cant help but let it erk me. Spending a few months working on strength definitely wouldn’t hurt my future endeavors.
[/quote]
Don’t let that bother you. I started out squatting 95lb painfully while other people in my gym were quarter squatting 225lb or squatting 175lb (public gym, lots of weak people but beginners don’t know that!)
By the time I left that gym for my current one (moved) I had just hit 240lbx3. Now I was one of the stronger squatters around the time I went to the gym (again, public gym, so absolutely meaningless)
Point being- Don’t let the weight other people use intimidate you. Heck, there’s a guy who squats around the time I do in my new gym who does 315lb front squats and the like. There are also numerous people who actually squat 230+ to depth. Watching them squat is a joy. I can actually learn from others now.[/quote]
It never actually bothered me before as I felt my numbers were not severely outclassed but at the time I go now (5:00pm) there are 11 touch’n’go 315+ benchers, two of them are going up to 405. Squats and deads are not quite as impressive but still pretty big. It also doesn’t help that two of those guys are guys I used to work out with way back and I kind of feel that twinge of guilt for letting myself go as I used to could have buried them in a push-pull.
Its more a reminder of how bad I fucked up and how bad I want to be back in that club than really being intimidated. In reality, they are all super nice guys and I guess I should count myself lucky to have that level around me to feed off of.
Thanks to the other guys as well, helped me decide what I already knew and have been fighting. It is time to deconstruct I think, get back to the basics, build a foundation and branch out from there. Basically, I need to repay my dues.
[quote]jbpick86 wrote:
It never actually bothered me before as I felt my numbers were not severely outclassed but at the time I go now (5:00pm) there are 11 touch’n’go 315+ benchers, two of them are going up to 405. Squats and deads are not quite as impressive but still pretty big. It also doesn’t help that two of those guys are guys I used to work out with way back and I kind of feel that twinge of guilt for letting myself go as I used to could have buried them in a push-pull.
Its more a reminder of how bad I fucked up and how bad I want to be back in that club than really being intimidated. In reality, they are all super nice guys and I guess I should count myself lucky to have that level around me to feed off of.
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Ah, ya. That would be a shitty feeling =/
But, still, you can only get better and get over those feelings if you train, right?
When I first walked into my lifting club, the guys were lined up with 150kg on the bar… They invited me over, I ended up squatting with the girls… Forget your ego, just do what you have to do to get past suck level.
I’ve been back into lifting for about three or months now (32 years old) after about three years off. I get that hugely disappointing feeling of “you should have seen me back then” that creeps in now and again. I lost over 100 pounds on my squats, 10 pounds of lean muscle, a full suit size in my chest and back, but at least I gained a ton of body fat. Life of having a busy professional career (100+ hour weeks are not rare for me).
A few thoughts from my own experience (and from Arnold’s Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding) in getting back into lifting:
You are where you are: You have to have the strength of character to just be honest with yourself. If it helps, try to avoid thinking of absolute weights (i.e. I’m only benching 50 lbs DBs). Look only towards the changes, such as: I’ve added weight to my press; my form is much better on this weight than in the past; or my workout shirt is tight in the shoulders now. If you need to, think of weights by code words, such as colours - I’d like to move up from the “red” weight to the “green” weight. Whatever it takes.
Age means more rest: you’re older, sadly. You’re not going to recover as fast. You’re listing a really high-volume workout (5 day lifting a week) for a natural gent to recover from. And when you say “ever weakening chest sessions” I immediately think you’re overtraining. Consider a three day split, and focus on intensity in the workout. You can ramp it back up after you’ve adapted (which will happen).
Consider less of a split: full-body workouts, focused almost exclusively on compound exercises, have worked well for me. A sample template would be something like, 8 exercises, 3 sets in 8 to 10 range, major compounds (bench/push-ups, wide pull-ups, Arnold press, Romanian DLs, squats, cable row and then address weaknesses - for me, rear delts, due to all that desk time). I find I recover faster and can keep a high level of volume, i.e. two to three times a week. Getting back into lifting, you don’t need to worry about isolation or direct arm work, as much as building a base of strength and re-training your body to handle stress and recover positively.
Also, last thing: always someone better, always someone worse. Just keep showing up. Revaluate every 6 to 8 weeks, but in the interim, just concentrate on lifting form, recovery, nutrition and thankfulness for having the time and ability to change yourself into your goal.
Going to the gym can be hard at times, but for me, I look forward to my work out 95% of the time. Because i am doing a program that I enjoy and I am seeing results. At 48, that’s a good thing.
I hate 5 days split. Don’t care if it is the best BB hypertrophy in the world (I am not saying it is, just illustration), I hate it. So why do it?? I instead found a program that fits my lifestyle.
[quote]InfoMaverick wrote:
… Some great advice and a much appreciated post.
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Yeah. I think the best thing for my attitude that I have done is readjust my PR’s to my current levels instead of my used to be levels. I have basically just tried to forget those old lifts ever happened and start from here. Nothing more than I mind trick to give a little encouragement but it seems to be helping. I have went back to a basic 5x5 with a little arm work because I enjoy it (my wife does too) and it doesn’t hurt one way or the other as long as I don’t overdo it.
I wrote in my training log that I have actually greatly enjoyed the program switch to more of a weight on the bar over aesthetic approach. I guess that is the accountant in me coming out enjoying something quantifiable.
InfoMav, thanks for taking the time to write that. Above and beyond, my friend.