Strength gains 2 weeks in?!?

maegmez

I have just completed my first 2 weeks of SL 5x5, I follow the app and am still at a point where I am comfortable adding weights each workout. Is it possible or normal to feel stronger after just 2 weeks?

I can see a difference in my arms and have already lost some centimeters in my arms and thighs. I am eating at a deficit so know I'm not actually building muscle. My weight loss has stalled, have put on 2 pounds in less than a week but adding all this protein has had an effect, lol. Trying to drink more water to combat that.

No matter, I feel amazing and love lifting!

neandermagnon

yes it is normal to see strength gains right away - and you will see a lot of gains in strength without gaining actual muscle, due to neuromuscular adaptation, which is basically your nervous system learning how to engage more of the muscle fibres you already have when you lift, and also from learning better form, etc

I found that my muscles looked bigger after a very short time, which is basically them getting "pumped" i.e. more blood and glycogen in them. I'm doing this programme while eating at a surplus, and someone said in my second week to consider the "pump" as a preview... and now my muscles have grown to catch up so it was a sneak preview (I'm on week 10 but taken more than 10 weeks to get there due to a combination of life stuff getting in the way, and being lazy and inconsistent (I'm working on the latter one!!!)) - but if you're eating at a deficit you may get noob gains a little, and your muscles will get pumped, but you won't gain actual new muscle, but you should continue to lose inches and get a lot stronger :drinker: regards scale weight... ignore it. If you're losing inches you're losing fat.

bumblebums

I would be more worried if you didn't see any strength gains in 2 weeks. At the beginning of a novice program, you are supposed to increase the weights pretty much every workout. You can keep the gains going longer if you have smaller fractional plates and make 5 lb jumps for squats and deadlifts instead of 10 lb, and 2.5 lb jumps for benching and pressing.

The loss of inches during this timeline is not typical, though--I daresay it might have more to do what you were doing before you started lifting. The timing is probably just a coincidence. But it doesn't matter why you lost the inches--congratulations!

maegmez

Thank you both so much for your replies! As you can see, I have a lot to learn. For the first time in my journey, the number on the scale doesn't hold much weight anymore.

I'm glad that I'm on the right track with feeling stronger. Will keep in mind the smaller increments on the weights if needed. My biggest struggle is just getting the spring collars on and off, lol! Have just ordered some better collars.

I haven't lost inches, just a cm or 1/2 cm on the different areas. I'm only 6 pounds overweight now but about 31% bodyfat and that's what I really look forward to dropping. Just need to get the right amount of calories.

Also, if I do get newbie gains, will I at least be able to kee those if I'm still cutting? Not really sure if it would be better to eat at maintenance or above now or after I lose the 6 pounds or even if that matters since building muscle is better for burning fat.

So much info to take in.

Thanks again

bumblebums

Will keep in mind the smaller increments on the weights if needed. My biggest struggle is just getting the spring collars on and off, lol! Have just ordered some better collars.

I never use collars anymore. The weights stay on pretty well on their own. The only exception is deadlifts and power cleans, where the plates tend to "walk off" the bar every time it hits the ground unless they are collared.

I haven't lost inches, just a cm or 1/2 cm on the different areas. I'm only 6 pounds overweight now but about 31% bodyfat and that's what I really look forward to dropping. Just need to get the right amount of calories.

1 or 1/2 a centimeter is well within the margin of error of how most people measure their bodies. Between the tape stretching and you not hitting the exact same spot on the body each time you measure, you can be off by as much as an inch. I also find that my waist can expand by an inch or more from just water fluctuation.

Also, if I do get newbie gains, will I at least be able to keep those if I'm still cutting? Not really sure if it would be better to eat at maintenance or above now or after I lose the 6 pounds or even if that matters since building muscle is better for burning fat.

You will keep those gains while you are cutting--just make sure your deficit is not so large that it impedes recovery. For a novice, recovery is so efficient between workouts that you can increase the weight on the bar every workout, for many many weeks, and not get truly fatigued. Eating at maintenance might not be such a bad idea, actually, as it will help you make bigger gains in strength. Remember also that your maintenance level is a moving target while you are lifting. As I moved through the novice stage, my intake increased without any accompanying weight gain.

You've lost so much weight already (congrats, btw) that you obviously know how to do it--do not be afraid of a little weight gain for this purpose; it's much easier to lose weight than it is to build muscle, and you will never be able to build muscle as efficiently as you can during the novice phase of progressive barbell training.

maegmez

I would love to stop using collars but the weight lifting police would tell me off, dear hubby! He used to be a bodybuilder so it's great getting one on one for correct form. Friday, I pushed him into a SL session.....and he liked it, enough that he is joining me tonight! At least he is in charge of the pillars when he works out with me.

I agree that measurements can be off but my calves have def shrunk but I do walk and run so that would ring true about what you said earlier about the losses being from previous work. Have to admit my arms are thighs are harder to measure at same place. Will measure again at 4 weeks and see if its changed.

That's great about the newbie gains! That gives me so much motivation to keep going! I'm going to dedicate a month to eating at maintenance. I really want to build muscle and burn fat. I don't know what that means as far as my goal weight but I just have to get it in my head that the scale doesn't matter.

My diet isn't the best although its a far cry from where I was a year ago. I've started eating more protein since I started SL but need to find a good calculator for my caloric needs and the right amount of protein. Also, don't know if I need to eat high protein every day or only on SL days. I do have to use protein powder to get my numbers up bit at least it's not adding fats and sugars.

Also, I use the app and its only 3 exercises and on deadlift day, it's just one deadlift. Is that enough or should I be adding 1-2 more SL exercises.

Sorry for all the confusion on my end and all the questions. I can't thank you enough for the great advice!

bumblebums

I would love to stop using collars but the weight lifting police would tell me off, dear hubby! He used to be a bodybuilder so it's great getting one on one for correct form. Friday, I pushed him into a SL session.....and he liked it, enough that he is joining me tonight! At least he is in charge of the pillars when he works out with me.

I agree that measurements can be off but my calves have def shrunk but I do walk and run so that would ring true about what you said earlier about the losses being from previous work. Have to admit my arms are thighs are harder to measure at same place. Will measure again at 4 weeks and see if its changed.

That's great about the newbie gains! That gives me so much motivation to keep going! I'm going to dedicate a month to eating at maintenance. I really want to build muscle and burn fat. I don't know what that means as far as my goal weight but I just have to get it in my head that the scale doesn't matter.

My diet isn't the best although its a far cry from where I was a year ago. I've started eating more protein since I started SL but need to find a good calculator for my caloric needs and the right amount of protein. Also, don't know if I need to eat high protein every day or only on SL days. I do have to use protein powder to get my numbers up bit at least it's not adding fats and sugars.

Also, I use the app and its only 3 exercises and on deadlift day, it's just one deadlift. Is that enough or should I be adding 1-2 more SL exercises.

Sorry for all the confusion on my end and all the questions. I can't thank you enough for the great advice!

Eating at maintenance sounds like a good plan, and great about your husband being supportive! About protein--you need it every day, not just on lifting days, because your muscles repair themselves between sessions. You actually get stronger *between* lifting days, not on lifting days. It's unfortunate that the MFP method of tracking exercise calories doesn't account for this. I basically eat the same amount every day and get about the same amount of protein every day, a minimum of 1 g per lb of body weight. You can get away with less than that--about 0.8 g per lb of body weight is a common recommendation.

I highly recommend picking up the book Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe. It talks about form for all the main lifts and for accessory lifts (your husband might like to read it, too--a lot of bodybuilder lore is aimed at hypertrophy and can be off the mark about training for strength, which is what SL is about). The nature of novice gains is discussed in depth in another book of his, Practical Programming for Strength and Power Conditioning. The difference between novice and intermediate trainees is how long it takes them to recover and rebound from a training session--for novices, it's about 48 hours, so if you lift on Monday, you will be *stronger* on Wednesday. Your body sort of overcompensates for the novel stimulus. Intermediates take a week to recover, so an intermediate will actually be weaker on Wednesday or even by Friday; you have to structure the workouts in a periodized manner so that increases only happen once a week or even less often. The novice phase can last as long as three to nine months, though, so milk it for all it's worth while you can.

bumblebums

*double post*

grandevampire

The novice phase can last as long as three to nine months, though, so milk it for all it's worth while you can.

Hey bumblebums, jumping in with a q, (sorry for hijacking, maegmez!) if I have not seen linear improvement for nearly that long, any thought on why that might be? I was able to increase by 2.5kg/5lbs only 3 or 4 times, if that before feeling like I hit a wall. Am still increasing (very slowly now, a kg a week, if that), but maybe that still falls within the norm of n00b gains?

Speed doesn't actually matter to me, it's not like I can change how my body wants to progress, but just curious vis à vis what you said above!

(It is possible I just need to eat more. I am aware that my feeding lags behind whenever I get careless.)

bumblebums

The novice phase can last as long as three to nine months, though, so milk it for all it's worth while you can.

Hey bumblebums, jumping in with a q, (sorry for hijacking, maegmez!) if I have not seen linear improvement for nearly that long, any thought on why that might be? I was able to increase by 2.5kg/5lbs only 3 or 4 times, if that before feeling like I hit a wall. Am still increasing (very slowly now, a kg a week, if that), but maybe that still falls within the norm of n00b gains?

Speed doesn't actually matter to me, it's not like I can change how my body wants to progress, but just curious vis à vis what you said above!

(It is possible I just need to eat more. I am aware that my feeding lags behind whenever I get careless.)

It's hard to know without more information. But it's important to eat enough (maintenance or more), sleep enough, rest plenty (no half-marathon training between lifting sessions), and have good form--otherwise what I said does not apply. One way to tell when the linear nature of gains breaks down when you start regressing--that is, you are unable to lift weights you could previously do.

grandevampire

It's hard to know without more information. But it's important to eat enough (maintenance or more), sleep enough, rest plenty (no half-marathon training between lifting sessions), and have good form--otherwise what I said does not apply. One way to tell when the linear nature of gains breaks down when you start regressing--that is, you are unable to lift weights you could previously do.

That could explain a lot. The ideas you floated are spot on. Not eating maintenance and half-marathon training between lifting sessions. I have to get my butt in shape for the 16K race I have coming up in 5 weeks, so I'd better at least get on the maintenance calories boat. Thanks for the reminder.