Calling all formerly obese men who now lift

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SteveMFP123
SteveMFP123 Posts: 298 Member
edited November 2015 in Fitness and Exercise
Hey, I'm just wondering if you guys could tell me what your initial lifts were? (day one) Deadlift, bench press, squat, rows etc. I just want to see what you guys could manage back in the beginning. I've started 5x5 stronglifts and I feel a bit embarrassed at what I can do but I guess everyone has to start somewhere.
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  • peleroja
    peleroja Posts: 3,979 Member
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    Is a tux required or can they wear dark suits?
  • tulips_and_tea
    tulips_and_tea Posts: 5,712 Member
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    It's good to have a point of reference I suppose, but it's really not a comparison. The main thing is keep track of where YOU started and keep building on that. What matters is the progress you're personally able to make.

    Don't be embarrassed. Everyone else at the gym is there doing their own thing. I go to the gym late afternoon and it just happens to mainly be younger guys in the weight room at that time. The amount I lift in comparison to them is laughable, but I don't care and neither do they.
  • dhimaan
    dhimaan Posts: 774 Member
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    Initially bench 80 lbs, OHP 40 lbs, rows 40 lbs. Now everything has tripled.
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
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    Hopefully, you're not starting near your 5R max at the beginning of Stronglifts -- you're supposed to start easy -- progressing 5 pounds each time (10 for deadlift) makes it plenty hard soon enough, so work on getting form down cold while the weights are easy. Unless you want to waste a bunch of time deloading in a month or two.
  • Willbenchforcupcakes
    Willbenchforcupcakes Posts: 4,955 Member
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    Comparison is the thief of joy. Are you doing better then you were a week, a month, a year ago? Then keep going.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    I think I was squatting and benching 20lb DBs. I started DL at 135 because that was the smallest weight I had.
  • beatua1
    beatua1 Posts: 98 Member
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    I started squat, bench and DL at 135, OHP and row at 95. Squat didn't start getting hard until 185, DL started getting hard at about 225, Bench at about 165, OHP 110 and row about 135.

    I did all of these exercises in High School 20 years ago (I threw), so I already had a pretty good feeling for proper technique.

    Note, if you have never done these exercises, you should start well below the weight that feels difficult so you can learn proper technique.
  • feisty_bucket
    feisty_bucket Posts: 1,047 Member
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    Iron_Miss_Canada wrote: »
    Comparison is the thief of joy. Are you doing better then you were a week, a month, a year ago? Then keep going.

    Yeah, well-said. The only metric that matters is your full effort, every time.
  • kahicky
    kahicky Posts: 11 Member
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    Bench 185, dedlift was 225 terrible form, couldnt do more then 2 pull ups couldnt run 1 mile, i had to use 95 lbs for squats it was extremely difficult to keep my balance. But it was like 6 months and all my lifts shot up my endurance also. Its a long pproccess to build up form, strength, muscle and lose fat, but its the most rewarding feeling, esspessially getting comliments on your improvement, so dont be emberassed of what you can lift now its only temporary.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member
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    bench 95 now 225
    everything else basically doubled or tripled. I was pretty weak to begin with because I did the 'starvation thing', where I severely limited calories, dropped a bunch of weight and lost muscle with it. Glad I woke up and realized that wasn't sustainable so I started working out, eating better and 15 years later still enjoy lifting.
    Eat right, work hard...you will do great things
    Good luck
  • SteveMFP123
    SteveMFP123 Posts: 298 Member
    edited November 2015
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    hill8570 wrote: »
    Hopefully, you're not starting near your 5R max at the beginning of Stronglifts -- you're supposed to start easy -- progressing 5 pounds each time (10 for deadlift) makes it plenty hard soon enough, so work on getting form down cold while the weights are easy. Unless you want to waste a bunch of time deloading in a month or two.

    I feel like I definitely have some wiggle room. I managed to do what the 5x5 app suggested for most of the exercises fairly easily, although I struggled with the standing shoulder press, I just couldn't do the recommended 20kg which I know is really light for you guys but my body is so weak right now, I was morbidly obese my whole life and literally never did any physical activity, plus I lost all my weight through calorie counting alone so while I'm nearly 100lb lighter I'm still in bad shape, something I'm trying to fix now.

    I'm currently sore in all the right places and it feels oddly pleasant, I think I would have felt cheated had I not had a little pain as strange as that sounds. I currently have very limited equipment so I will need to grab some more stuff soon, I bought a 5ft York bar which holds up to 125kg and it has been working well for me, plus I have about 30kg of weights which seems to be enough for the first 2 weeks of 5x5, after that I'll have to buy more plates but they're so expensive, £32 for 2x10kg. I'm going to have a look on eBay and see if I can find some bargains.

    And thank you everyone for posting, seeing your progress really makes me want to get stronger.
  • nordlead2005
    nordlead2005 Posts: 1,303 Member
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    I lifted in highschool and college (over a decade ago) and lifted on/off before starting on SL5x5 (last lifted ~8 months before SL5x5, but didn't make much progress then and didn't stick to it for too long, maybe 2 months). I was 220lb at 5'11", and I'm now 182lb. I've been lifting (minus ~2 months off) since February 10th, so 7 months total.
    Lift:     start, current (all 5 reps, in lb)
Squat:      125,     245
Deadlift:   115,     255
Bench:      120,   167.5
OHP:         50,     105
Row:         55,   137.5
    My deadlift still has a lot of room to grow. I expect I can go up another 40lb with sooner than later even while losing weight. It was my most lacking lift since I never really did it prior to SL5x5. Everything else is a struggle to increase, but is still inching up.

    Had I not lifted previously I would have started with closer to 45lb across the board for everything but deadlift and row as both of those the bar needs to be off the ground. If you want a comparison to a lifter your own weight, then go to http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.html and look at your weight range. A beginner is someone who lifts with proper form and has been at it for 2 weeks. This is a 1 rep max and since you are doing SL5x5 you would be lifting less, you can use the calculator linked on that page for an estimate. Also, depending on what weights you started with you could be behind, but that is perfectly ok as in the long run you'll improve rapidly with SL5x5.

    As others said though, it is about what you can do and your own improvements. There are plenty of people who can lift significantly more than me, but I'm quite happy with my achievements in 7 months time.
  • ovidnine
    ovidnine Posts: 314 Member
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    I have no idea. I started 5x5 at the bar like it suggested. I felt like an idiot squatting the bar, and deadlifting whatever it has you start with (95 maybe?) But it was good for me. Got me working on my form and it progressed quickly enough that I got over my initial embarrassment because, like you said, everyone has to start somewhere.

    I didn't try and find what my maxes were because I didn't want to be depressed where they were at compared to the last time I had lifted which was in college 10 years prior.

    I'm not "strong" now, but I'm certainly stronger than I was 2 years ago when I started lifting again. Two years from now, I should be stronger than I am now.

    Don't feel bad where you're at. Just start lifting, take your time, use proper form, and remember, this is a process, a journey. And you started it, which is what matters.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    My boyfriend started (and quit) lifting after I did. The only lift he out lifted me on during his 6 months of training was the bench press. I never once thought he should be embarrassed. You have to start light. Form is so important. Plus it's awesome that you even started at all.
  • piperdown44
    piperdown44 Posts: 958 Member
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    After not lifting for well over a decade I started with just the barbell (45lbs) for each lift. Didn't care what others might have thought as its for me, not them.
    While squats are still my weakness I'm now up to in pounds 1rm:
    265 bench
    285 squats
    335 deadlift
    155 OHP
    165 rows

    Once I'm done being on a calorie deficit all those numbers will go up.
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
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    The bar.
    Seriously. I could do more but I started with that, as that was the recommendation.
  • scottver2
    scottver2 Posts: 53 Member
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    I weighed 325 at one point. Couldn't do a single pushup, so I didn't even try to bench. Could squat 135 once, and didn't even dream of doing a pullup. Currently I weigh 190, bench about 300lbs, squat 375, and can do ridiculous amounts of weighted pullups. So, don't let your initial numbers get you down. Anything is possible with dedication.
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
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    Started at around 200 lbs and these lifts
    Squat: 60
    Bench: 75
    OHP (Many months later): 65
    Deadlift: 115
    Rows: 40

    Current PRs @ 180 lbs:
    Squat: 270
    Bench: 190
    OHP: 121.25
    Deadlift: 285
    Rows: 145 (don't do them often)

    Mind this is with three hard resets for unrelated-to-weightlifting medical issues.
  • NeonStrikeVi
    NeonStrikeVi Posts: 61 Member
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    SteveMFP123 wrote: »
    I feel like I definitely have some wiggle room. I managed to do what the 5x5 app suggested for most of the exercises fairly easily, although I struggled with the standing shoulder press, I just couldn't do the recommended 20kg which I know is really light for you guys but my body is so weak right now, I was morbidly obese my whole life and literally never did any physical activity, plus I lost all my weight through calorie counting alone so while I'm nearly 100lb lighter I'm still in bad shape, something I'm trying to fix now.

    I'm currently sore in all the right places and it feels oddly pleasant, I think I would have felt cheated had I not had a little pain as strange as that sounds. I currently have very limited equipment so I will need to grab some more stuff soon, I bought a 5ft York bar which holds up to 125kg and it has been working well for me, plus I have about 30kg of weights which seems to be enough for the first 2 weeks of 5x5, after that I'll have to buy more plates but they're so expensive, £32 for 2x10kg. I'm going to have a look on eBay and see if I can find some bargains.

    And thank you everyone for posting, seeing your progress really makes me want to get stronger.

    Hey, I am saying this in the nicest possible way but I'm actually glad I've seen this thread. I'm in the exact same position as you, struggling with the recommended starting weight. If you'd like, add me as a friend and we could work through the program together :)
  • McCloud33
    McCloud33 Posts: 959 Member
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    If you're doing SL5x5 just keep doing it and before you know it, your weights will be "respectable"...whatever that means.

    I had a post a few months back that might give you a little inspiration
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10034892/nsv-gym-respect#latest

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