Hi everyone! My current goal is to gain 3 pounds of muscle overall (at least 1 pound by August 30). To do this I am trying to focus on lifting 3x a week, eating whole foods, getting enough quality sleep and minimizing stress. My current weights are:

Squat 115 pounds
deadlift 115 pounds
bench 70 pounds
rows 50 pounds
OHP 50 pounds

My weights are not progressing/increasing very fast and it's discouraging. Any advice you have is welcome. I am extremely grateful that my company gave us paid Fridays off for all of July and August! I think that will really help with my fitness and overall well-being.

Grandmoo - you could try adding carbs specifically around your lifting sessions, and having low carb on off days. What's your typical day look like (When you do you meals/snacks vs work out)?

I'd do something like add 30-40 grams of extra carbs to whatever your big meal is post or pre-workout and maybe 10-20 to the smaller meal/snack that is opposite that, then low carb on off days.

I guess I should mention my name is actually Susan, I go by 'Moo for short. ;-) Call me whatever you wish, I'm easy...

Also, I'm afraid this is going to look like "War and Peace". Sorry.

One of the trainers at my gym recommended I have at least a cup of "good" carbs (sweet potato, banana, oatmeal, etc) the night before I lift since I lift early in the morning. An example day (I'll use last night into today/tonight since it's a lift day):

Last night I had a cup of oatmeal (the kind you actually have to cook) with a small banana and a dollop (didn't really measure) of natural peanut butter before bed. I had eaten "low carb" up until then - and I don't really log much anymore, but I average around 50 total carbs/day. Some days more, some days less. The day before I lift I'm eating 75-100 grams of carb for the day.

This morning I had my 2 cups of coffee each with an ounce of heavy cream (I love low carb for that if for no other reason-lol) then headed to the gym. Immediately after lifting I have about 1/4 of my protein shake made with whatever protein I'm in the mood for - usually ChocoRite Cappuchino from Diet Direct - made with a cup of almond milk and ice to fill the shaker cup. After I shower I drink the rest of the shake on the way to work.

Early mid-morning I had a cup of cottage cheese with cinnamon and a bit of splenda, and around an hour later a container of Kroger Carbmaster yogurt. Lunch today was 126 gr of shredded steamed cabbage with 1-1/2 tbsp of butter and a pack of Starkist Tuna Creations Sweet and Spicy mixed in. Sometime between now and when I leave work I'll try to eat my 2 boiled eggs, if not, I'll have them as soon as I get home.

Supper/dinner (whatever you call it, the evening meal anyhow) is probably going to be a hamburger with some sharp cheddar cheese eaten on a low carb wrap and some kind of veggie to go with it - I'll decide when the time comes.

Maybe a half-hour or so before bed if I'm still hungry I'll have a smoothie made with a container of the low carb yogurt, a cup of almond milk, whatever protein I'm in the mood for, and flavoring if I didn't choose an already flavored protein (I've got lots of different containers of protein powder!).

So...the only real difference in my eating pattern is that I add the good carbs the night before I lift. I guess you might say that is my pre-workout meal? I'll have to do some figuring about what to actually add in order to not trigger my binge-eating, but I think that I can come up with something(s) that will work.

Thanks!

Hi everyone! My current goal is to gain 3 pounds of muscle overall (at least 1 pound by August 30). To do this I am trying to focus on lifting 3x a week, eating whole foods, getting enough quality sleep and minimizing stress. My current weights are:

Squat 115 pounds
deadlift 115 pounds
bench 70 pounds
rows 50 pounds
OHP 50 pounds

My weights are not progressing/increasing very fast and it's discouraging. Any advice you have is welcome. I am extremely grateful that my company gave us paid Fridays off for all of July and August! I think that will really help with my fitness and overall well-being.

I think my 2 big suggestions would be - 1) think about whether or not it makes sense to increase calories overall, or alternately, increased or slightly shifted around-workout nutrition. Most specifically - carbs on lifting days. Do you eat enough?

2) take form videos of each lift, plan to tweak them slightly and slowly to find the right movement. OHP took me at LEAST 18 months of continuous work before it really "clicked" and I felt like I was doing it right. Bench press has been slower - make a little tweak, improve lift slightly, then need another tweak, improve slightly again, etc.

I'm so behind here. I need to come back and read when I have time and don't have a headache. This morning I started my new Wendler 5/3/1 program. The only exercises were OHP and chin-ups. That's a tough party for a Monday morning. It was a progressive OHP, adding 5 or 10 lbs per set, and then 5x10 with just the bar. Then it was supposed to be 5x10 chinups. I did 5x5 to the best of my ability. The first couple sets were good, but the last three were mostly negatives. (I'm working out at home, so no assistance machine). My arms were shaking for the next hour or so. I was starving all day, I developed a headache in the late afternoon, probably from dehydration. I know I will sleep like a baby tonight. Tomorrow is DEADLIFT DAY! I'll need a few more carbs before bed

Went back to the chiropractor today with brand new elbow pain. :frown: Holy cats, that was a painful adjustment.
After we finish, she says, "Can you do just cardio for now? I know how you hate that, but I'm thinking you need to take a break from weights."

So, you know, that's less than awesome.
I see her again in two weeks. Two weeks of no lifting.
I may go mad.

Of course her reasoning was to give my elbow a rest, so I'm thinking light back squats are fine (I've already deloaded to 135 anyway, so that won't be a problem). I can do most ab/core work, though no planks, of course. No OHP, bench, row, DL.
I need to come up with a workout that doesn't engage my elbow much.
Even typing this post makes my elbow ache.

Suggestions, please? :flowerforyou:

Suggestions, please? :flowerforyou:


Squats shouldn't mess up your elbow at all. I'm thinking DL should also be fine, as your elbows are just locked then, but since I don't actually know what the issue is with your elbow maybe not? Elbows are integral to arm work though.

Is this an old injury? Is it recent? Is it overuse?

Either way - you might get a lot out of reading Eric Cressey's articles on elbows.

http://www.ericcressey.com/understanding-elbow-pain-part-6-elbow-pain-in-lifters

http://www.ericcressey.com/elbow-strength-and-conditioning-program-design

B lift day today.
gym still ridiculously hot, then when they did restart the air con (it trips out every 20 minutes..) there was a ghastly smell of cigarette smoke, and precious little cold air. I gave up on my HIIT at the end as didn't want that in my lungs more than I had to, apparently the gym backs on to a builders yard (dust) and a mosque (it's the start of Ramadan, so the smell was the fire/cigarette smoke from their courtyard). Way to go, gym. at least get some big fans to more the air around. *sigh*