Not able to increase weights at gym

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Replies

  • skeo
    skeo Posts: 471 Member
    Bump, lots of good information in here.
  • Lofteren
    Lofteren Posts: 960 Member
    2 things:

    1) You're not eating enough food to get stronger. I absolutely guarantee that's why you feel like crap while you lift.

    2) You're not doing any real lifts. Run a good lifting program like stronglifts or starting strength and you'll gain a lot of strength very quickly.
  • onefortyone
    onefortyone Posts: 531 Member
    Yes, as soon as you said you are doing the same routine but feeling like you can't complete it, I figured you can't be eating enough. I eat 1600 calories a day PLUS my exercise calories, and I have only been strength training for a few weeks, and I have already been able to increase my weights, plus lost 6lbs.

    I know you are scared of the weight gain, that is normal for all of us, and probably even more so for people recovering from an ED. But your metabolism is not set in stone. If you eat more, you will be strong enough to work out more, and your body will eventually realise you're not starving any more, and your metabolism will speed up. Your weight will likely fluctuate during this process, but I definitely think it's worth it. I have heard of people 'fixing' their metabolism this way.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    what are you doing exactly...there is more to weight training than just randomly picking up a dumbbell and knocking out sets and reps...to make gains you need to have a properly programmed routine and you need to follow that routine.

    I would add that strength gains come slower in a deficit of energy, but you should be making some gains over the course of 1.5 months with a properly programmed routine.

    this, I would suggest familiarizing yourself with 5x5, strong lifts, starting strength etc..< pick one of these programs and stick with it for 8-12 weeks the programs are built on progressive overload so you should see increased strength and increase in amount of weight lifted….

    also, underrating can harm your gym performance….

    also, why no compounds - barbell chest press, barbell squat, deadlift, etc???
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    I edited my post and added my routine. I am not wanting to make huge gains. I just want to increase my strength and endurance. I do not want to put on size. Just lean out.

    OP - as a female eating 1400 calories a day you are not going to put on "size" unless you start eating ALOT more…so you can lift heavy, eat in a deficit, and get the results that you want.
  • HMVOL7409
    HMVOL7409 Posts: 1,588 Member
    Eh, double post...
  • HMVOL7409
    HMVOL7409 Posts: 1,588 Member
    Lots of good advice in here already listed. Want to emphasize to eat more and choose a well rounded, reputable program built on the focus of compounds. What you're currently doing is not going to yield much results, if anything.

    ETA-Get off the smith and under a barbell...
  • Dlacenere
    Dlacenere Posts: 198 Member
    My answers would be the same as others - add some real compound moves - you can start with the bar and work your way up - barbell squats, deadlifts, bench press etc.....I know that when people say you are not eating enough it's easier said than done when you have the issues that you say you are dealing with as far as metabolism etc.. However if you really want to see a difference you need to start reverse dieting - just add 50-100 calories per week - take it slow so your body and metabolism adjusts with each increase. People will tell you to either do that or to just do a full reset, starting high - stay off the scale and let your metabolism adjust and then cut - but it sounds like this may be too much for you mentally right now - and I get that. I was there once too eating less calories and not losing but I raised gradually and between that and my lifting routine, my body completely transformed. You will have a lot more energy too. Check out the eatmore2weighless group on here, lots of people in your situation and lots of great advice.
  • Wilbur_NOLA
    Wilbur_NOLA Posts: 120 Member
    Let's dispel the myth once and for all...lifting heavier weights won't cause you to increase your mass just like lifting light weights for higher reps won't make you get leaner.
  • NRBreit
    NRBreit Posts: 319 Member
    Seems like everybody is ignoring the fact that it's REALLY HARD to gain strength once you're past the initial newbie/CNS strength gains. Sure, a new lifter can quickly add lots of weight on a stronglifts program until they start failing on the lifts. Then, what do they do? They stop the program and try something else. Heck, I'm pretty stoked if I can add 10 lbs. to a major compound lift after a couple months of dedicated lifting on a calorie surplus. If it was easy, everybody would be benching 3 plates and squatting compact cars. And once you've gotten to intermediate lifting, I think most of us can forget about any strength gains when running a calorie deficit.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,989 Member
    Eating enough protein? Getting enough rest? Eating enough period? Drinking enough water?
    This.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • Hazelnut79
    Hazelnut79 Posts: 27 Member
    I know this will sound crazy, but I my metabolism is all messed up. I used to have eating disorders and have taken diet pills for years. It seems like if I eat more, then I just gain weight. That is the last thing I want. If it was weight from muscle that would be fine but I can eat more one day and the next day the scale has jumped! Its so frustrating. I was also told not to eat back exercise calories bc that is defeating the purpose of calorie deficit. I just suck at this. LOL. Im so confused.

    I had some disordered eating habits when I was younger and thought I had permanently screwed up my metabolism. I felt like if I ate enough to have the energy to exercise, I would gain weight, so I always just dieted and had very little energy. I finally got sick of having so little energy so I decided to start a exercising (doing mostly high intensity circuit training and heavy lifting) and eat to fuel that. Initially, I did gain about 8 lbs very quickly, but within about 6 months of eating relatively high calories (I'd guess about 2200 but I wasn't counting) my metabolism seems to have reset itself - I've lost what I gained and can now lose about a pound a week by eating 1800 calories (plus my exercise calories).

    Despite feeling discouraged at the weight I initially gained, in retrospect it was totally worth the 6 months or so of feeling a little icky about myself in order to be able to eat enough that I'm not hungry and have energy to actually do things. I can't say for sure you'd have the same experience, but it might be worth a try if you're willing to spend a few months on it.
  • HMVOL7409
    HMVOL7409 Posts: 1,588 Member
    Seems like everybody is ignoring the fact that it's REALLY HARD to gain strength once you're past the initial newbie/CNS strength gains. Sure, a new lifter can quickly add lots of weight on a stronglifts program until they start failing on the lifts. Then, what do they do? They stop the program and try something else. Heck, I'm pretty stoked if I can add 10 lbs. to a major compound lift after a couple months of dedicated lifting on a calorie surplus. If it was easy, everybody would be benching 3 plates and squatting compact cars. And once you've gotten to intermediate lifting, I think most of us can forget about any strength gains when running a calorie deficit.

    No ones ignoring what your saying as it's very valid. However, what your doing in terms of lifting greatly matters too...
  • caseythirteen
    caseythirteen Posts: 956 Member
    Seems like everybody is ignoring the fact that it's REALLY HARD to gain strength once you're past the initial newbie/CNS strength gains. Sure, a new lifter can quickly add lots of weight on a stronglifts program until they start failing on the lifts. Then, what do they do? They stop the program and try something else. Heck, I'm pretty stoked if I can add 10 lbs. to a major compound lift after a couple months of dedicated lifting on a calorie surplus. If it was easy, everybody would be benching 3 plates and squatting compact cars. And once you've gotten to intermediate lifting, I think most of us can forget about any strength gains when running a calorie deficit.
    That's true but she's not there yet. Bicep curls and tricep kickbacks aren't taxing her system. She will basically be starting from scratch once she starts a true strength training program so she has lots of room for improvement and strength gains. She can worry about this part of it many months down the road.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    Seems like everybody is ignoring the fact that it's REALLY HARD to gain strength once you're past the initial newbie/CNS strength gains. Sure, a new lifter can quickly add lots of weight on a stronglifts program until they start failing on the lifts. Then, what do they do? They stop the program and try something else. Heck, I'm pretty stoked if I can add 10 lbs. to a major compound lift after a couple months of dedicated lifting on a calorie surplus. If it was easy, everybody would be benching 3 plates and squatting compact cars. And once you've gotten to intermediate lifting, I think most of us can forget about any strength gains when running a calorie deficit.

    Valid points, just not applicable here, she's no where near that point.

    Like others have already said...start to eat more and follow a better program involving more compound lifts.

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