Where am I going wrong?
bex1086
Posts: 75 Member
I've been weight lifting on and off since 2020 and after Christmas I started following the Madcow programme. I had to decrease my weights because due to an injury I had some time off.
At the minute my max 5x5 for squat is 50, same with deadlifts, my bench is 22, row is about 25. These are feeling really heavy and I feel like I'll struggle to progress soon and I don't know why.
For reference I'm 5'1, weigh 55kg and am eating 1550 calories on average a day which is about 300 under maintenance.
I'm far from skinny, if anything I'm a bit chunky and quite flabby so I don't know why I'm struggling so much. I'm a bit frustrated because not only am I incredibly weak it's also not helping me look any better so I'm in no man's land at the minute.
To be fair I was eating quite a lot up until recently, haven't lost any weight since Christmas although I haven't really gained either which is surprised considering I was probably eating 3000 calories a day!
I need to knuckle down and stick to my calories and I'll keep up the training but how do I get better? I'm probably the weakest person in my gym which isn't a gym for athletes, there are people of all ages.
At the minute my max 5x5 for squat is 50, same with deadlifts, my bench is 22, row is about 25. These are feeling really heavy and I feel like I'll struggle to progress soon and I don't know why.
For reference I'm 5'1, weigh 55kg and am eating 1550 calories on average a day which is about 300 under maintenance.
I'm far from skinny, if anything I'm a bit chunky and quite flabby so I don't know why I'm struggling so much. I'm a bit frustrated because not only am I incredibly weak it's also not helping me look any better so I'm in no man's land at the minute.
To be fair I was eating quite a lot up until recently, haven't lost any weight since Christmas although I haven't really gained either which is surprised considering I was probably eating 3000 calories a day!
I need to knuckle down and stick to my calories and I'll keep up the training but how do I get better? I'm probably the weakest person in my gym which isn't a gym for athletes, there are people of all ages.
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Replies
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Are you working with a trainer to oversee your form? Are you doing your lifting daily? Every other day? Once a week?
There are physiological issues that could be causing weakness. I would suggest having a trainer watch you for a few sessions and see if they think you should be progressing faster. If that's the actual case, then you would need to start down that rabbit hole with a medical investigation or learning to work with your particular situation.0 -
I talk to the trainers regularly and they see no issues with my form and I was seeing a chiropractor who was into weight lifting and from what she saw when I did a quick demonstration she was happy with my form too. I lift 3 times a week, squats, deadlifts, row and bench twice then other things once a week.0
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Okay, so your form is good. Are those weights you're using in kg? I was thinking they were pounds (this is a U.S. based site...)
I would still suggest hiring one of those trainers to work with you. They would know how your progress is and whether or not there is some outlying issue.0 -
Yes they are kgs.
I did notice today that as soon as I hit 50kg for my deadlifts by back starts to round, this is an ongoing issue despite me trying to use the correct form. It's just that bit too heavy so I'm upping the amount I'm doing, will do a few more lighter ones and go from there.1 -
Are those max figures in kg and including the bar?
This may not answer your question, but I wonder about two things:
First, you said you had an injury and you had to lower the weight. What was it, has it fully recovered? How much time off did you have? It could take about a third or half as much time to regain strength compared to the time you took off.
Second, are you taking occasional deloads, say every 6-12 weeks or so?0 -
The injury was just a dodgy neck, I took a few weeks off and went back to lifting when I had the ok from my chiropractor. Prior to that I did keep stopping after a few months of 3 day training so I had to go back to the beginning again.
I've never really got past a 50kg deadlift and my squats start to struggle around 60.
I spoke to a trainer about why I am seemingly so weak and he said that for a person of my size 50kg wasn't bad going but I have seen women in the gym who don't seem any bigger do 80kg squats and heavier deadlifts and can't help but wonder why they can do it and I can't. I saw a newbie with a PT do a 30kg bench press, never have I been able to hit that even after 12 weeks of progressive lifting! I think my maximum ever bench press was about 25/26kg 5x5.0 -
Are you eating your lifting cals?
I ask because at 1550 cals you are probably under fueling your workouts leaving you with little energy to progress.
Try eating at maintenance plus exercise cals for a couple of weeks and see if that helps.
If you find you are amply fueled at the above maintenance try dropping your cals from your TDEE by 200-250 for a smaller deficit.
I’m 5’1 too but 46kg and couldn’t progress well on your intake. Completely burnt out, upped my cals 150 regrouped and started progressing.
(At the time a number of folks were saying that lifting cals were so few they weren’t worth accounting. That works fine if you are a bigger, heavier person but for me, with a lower basic calorie need, every cal earned was needed)
Also pay no attention to what anyone else in the gym is lifting. That newbie may work construction, may have a better genetic disposition or a number of other reasons they look as though they can out lift you. It really doesn’t matter, you do you.
Cheers, h.
ETA: I used the MFP cals for weight training listed under ‘cardio’ and included my rest minutes.3 -
Back in my twenties I decided to become a bodybuilder. I didn’t hire a trainer because I thought it would be a waste of time and money. blew out my knee (bursitis) and had knee issues, and eventually arthritis and two knee replacements. A trainer would have been a better choice for me. Just saying.1
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middlehaitch wrote: »Are you eating your lifting cals?
I ask because at 1550 cals you are probably under fueling your workouts leaving you with little energy to progress.
Try eating at maintenance plus exercise cals for a couple of weeks and see if that helps.
If you find you are amply fueled at the above maintenance try dropping your cals from your TDEE by 200-250 for a smaller deficit.
I’m 5’1 too but 46kg and couldn’t progress well on your intake. Completely burnt out, upped my cals 150 regrouped and started progressing.
(At the time a number of folks were saying that lifting cals were so few they weren’t worth accounting. That works fine if you are a bigger, heavier person but for me, with a lower basic calorie need, every cal earned was needed)
Also pay no attention to what anyone else in the gym is lifting. That newbie may work construction, may have a better genetic disposition or a number of other reasons they look as though they can out lift you. It really doesn’t matter, you do you.
Cheers, h.
ETA: I used the MFP cals for weight training listed under ‘cardio’ and included my rest minutes.
My calories are based on my TDEE at 50kg minus 300 for the defecit for fat loss. That's based on 3-5 days a week of exercise which is pretty much what I do. Some weeks it's 3 days, some a bit more, very rarely it's 2 days so I don't eat back anything. I'm not only trying to increase my strength but get skinner too because I'm just a blob.
I'm really not in a good place at the moment because I hate the way I look so it's having an impact in the way I see myself and others at the gym.2 -
I hit a plateau in my weight lifting and here are a few things I learned:
(1) you really do need to eat enough protein. At least 1 g per lb of lean body mass.
(2) most of that protein should be animal based (eggs, dairy, meat- I was doing mostly soy)
(3) don't test ORM's more than once every two months or so.
I don't know if any of this helps you, but once I started eating a lot of eggs and not regularly testing my maxes, I saw my calculated maxes go up by 10-15lbs each in one month!! I had been stalled legit for YEARS. So FWIW, maybe check your macros.0 -
ok i just looked at your diary- you need to eat more protein! Try getting 120 grams per day and see what happens in a month! And let me know!0
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CorvusCorax77 wrote: »ok i just looked at your diary- you need to eat more protein! Try getting 120 grams per day and see what happens in a month! And let me know!
You're not wrong but it's incredibly difficult trying to pack in more protein whilst sticking to my calories, trying to get a balanced diet with fruit/vegetables as well as not depriving myself completely.0 -
The thing is to get stronger you need to gain muscle which means you need to have a calorie surplus. If you have a calorie deficit then you will lose muscle and fat. It's why bodybuilders (not that I'm suggesting you wish to be a bodybuilder) will bulk for most of the year, eating lots and lifting heavy and then focus on getting lean for only a 12 week period before competing. I would say increase your calorie intake through out the day and then as you lift weights you will have more fuel in the tank to lift and then recover and rebuild. You'll notice more energy, then more strength and more muscle tone. Just keep your macro percentages right.1
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I've been weight lifting on and off since 2020 and after Christmas I started following the Madcow programme. I had to decrease my weights because due to an injury I had some time off.
At the minute my max 5x5 for squat is 50, same with deadlifts, my bench is 22, row is about 25. These are feeling really heavy and I feel like I'll struggle to progress soon and I don't know why.
For reference I'm 5'1, weigh 55kg and am eating 1550 calories on average a day which is about 300 under maintenance.
I'm far from skinny, if anything I'm a bit chunky and quite flabby so I don't know why I'm struggling so much. I'm a bit frustrated because not only am I incredibly weak it's also not helping me look any better so I'm in no man's land at the minute.
To be fair I was eating quite a lot up until recently, haven't lost any weight since Christmas although I haven't really gained either which is surprised considering I was probably eating 3000 calories a day!
I need to knuckle down and stick to my calories and I'll keep up the training but how do I get better? I'm probably the weakest person in my gym which isn't a gym for athletes, there are people of all ages.
First, take a long deep breath and look at what you have achieved so far. You’re lifting (great!), you’ve seen progress (great!), you’ve started to work out your calories (great!), and you are obviously determined to get stronger and better at lifting (awesome!). No that’s not patronising, but I think you might have lost sight of what you have already achieved. And comparison is the thief of joy - I used to lift in a powerlifting gym with a UK record holder. She was tiny but lifted stupid weights - it was difficult not to feel inferior.
Now let’s look at your aims. Getting stronger on a deficit is hard (but not impossible), physically and mentally. It’s why some of us choose recomp, where we eat roughly at maintenance and try to build muscle - it takes a long time but it does work. So you’re cutting calories for aesthetic reasons but you’re stressing your body by lifting heavy - it’s not surprising your lifts are not going up as you want. You may find that eating at maintenance for a while then cutting for a while is “easier” on your body ie there’s a good chance the weight you can lift will shoot up with proper nutrition. I may be a bit of an outlier in calorie terms, but I lift 4x per week, I’m 5’3, c54.5kgs and I eat between 2100-2300 to maintain. If I eat less than 2100 I don’t have the energy to lift and my recovery is slow.
I lost weight whilst lifting but then personally had to increase calories to improve the amount I could lift. I’m not very strong but I still work hard at it. I would also note that in the right lighting and when flexing I look ripped. In normal lighting I look like an average middle aged stocky short woman, with a lot of wobbly bits. Are you also being unkind to yourself, and maybe you aren’t as flabby as you think?
Lifting is a long game, and it sounds to me like you’ve made a pretty good start!
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claireychn074 wrote: »I've been weight lifting on and off since 2020 and after Christmas I started following the Madcow programme. I had to decrease my weights because due to an injury I had some time off.
At the minute my max 5x5 for squat is 50, same with deadlifts, my bench is 22, row is about 25. These are feeling really heavy and I feel like I'll struggle to progress soon and I don't know why.
For reference I'm 5'1, weigh 55kg and am eating 1550 calories on average a day which is about 300 under maintenance.
I'm far from skinny, if anything I'm a bit chunky and quite flabby so I don't know why I'm struggling so much. I'm a bit frustrated because not only am I incredibly weak it's also not helping me look any better so I'm in no man's land at the minute.
To be fair I was eating quite a lot up until recently, haven't lost any weight since Christmas although I haven't really gained either which is surprised considering I was probably eating 3000 calories a day!
I need to knuckle down and stick to my calories and I'll keep up the training but how do I get better? I'm probably the weakest person in my gym which isn't a gym for athletes, there are people of all ages.
First, take a long deep breath and look at what you have achieved so far. You’re lifting (great!), you’ve seen progress (great!), you’ve started to work out your calories (great!), and you are obviously determined to get stronger and better at lifting (awesome!). No that’s not patronising, but I think you might have lost sight of what you have already achieved. And comparison is the thief of joy - I used to lift in a powerlifting gym with a UK record holder. She was tiny but lifted stupid weights - it was difficult not to feel inferior.
Now let’s look at your aims. Getting stronger on a deficit is hard (but not impossible), physically and mentally. It’s why some of us choose recomp, where we eat roughly at maintenance and try to build muscle - it takes a long time but it does work. So you’re cutting calories for aesthetic reasons but you’re stressing your body by lifting heavy - it’s not surprising your lifts are not going up as you want. You may find that eating at maintenance for a while then cutting for a while is “easier” on your body ie there’s a good chance the weight you can lift will shoot up with proper nutrition. I may be a bit of an outlier in calorie terms, but I lift 4x per week, I’m 5’3, c54.5kgs and I eat between 2100-2300 to maintain. If I eat less than 2100 I don’t have the energy to lift and my recovery is slow.
I lost weight whilst lifting but then personally had to increase calories to improve the amount I could lift. I’m not very strong but I still work hard at it. I would also note that in the right lighting and when flexing I look ripped. In normal lighting I look like an average middle aged stocky short woman, with a lot of wobbly bits. Are you also being unkind to yourself, and maybe you aren’t as flabby as you think?
Lifting is a long game, and it sounds to me like you’ve made a pretty good start!
My main hang ups r.e. the way I look is my post 2 section pouch. It's been almost 6 years since the last one and despite trying my hardest I absolutely can not shift it. I have a shelf that sticks out just above where they cut me open and it makes me very self conscious in clothes.
I'm also not in proportion, tiny waist, small shoulders and upper half but big hips and chunky thighs and a bum that sticks out for miles. The thing that baffles me is that people have said they wish they had my figure but I absolutely hate it!
I'm tracking my calories for a 6 week period and will see what I weigh at the end of it and adjust as necessary. I keep saying once I'm at goal weight I'll eat at maintenance but my goal weight keeps getting lower and lower so it never actually happens 🙄0 -
claireychn074 wrote: »I've been weight lifting on and off since 2020 and after Christmas I started following the Madcow programme. I had to decrease my weights because due to an injury I had some time off.
At the minute my max 5x5 for squat is 50, same with deadlifts, my bench is 22, row is about 25. These are feeling really heavy and I feel like I'll struggle to progress soon and I don't know why.
For reference I'm 5'1, weigh 55kg and am eating 1550 calories on average a day which is about 300 under maintenance.
I'm far from skinny, if anything I'm a bit chunky and quite flabby so I don't know why I'm struggling so much. I'm a bit frustrated because not only am I incredibly weak it's also not helping me look any better so I'm in no man's land at the minute.
To be fair I was eating quite a lot up until recently, haven't lost any weight since Christmas although I haven't really gained either which is surprised considering I was probably eating 3000 calories a day!
I need to knuckle down and stick to my calories and I'll keep up the training but how do I get better? I'm probably the weakest person in my gym which isn't a gym for athletes, there are people of all ages.
First, take a long deep breath and look at what you have achieved so far. You’re lifting (great!), you’ve seen progress (great!), you’ve started to work out your calories (great!), and you are obviously determined to get stronger and better at lifting (awesome!). No that’s not patronising, but I think you might have lost sight of what you have already achieved. And comparison is the thief of joy - I used to lift in a powerlifting gym with a UK record holder. She was tiny but lifted stupid weights - it was difficult not to feel inferior.
Now let’s look at your aims. Getting stronger on a deficit is hard (but not impossible), physically and mentally. It’s why some of us choose recomp, where we eat roughly at maintenance and try to build muscle - it takes a long time but it does work. So you’re cutting calories for aesthetic reasons but you’re stressing your body by lifting heavy - it’s not surprising your lifts are not going up as you want. You may find that eating at maintenance for a while then cutting for a while is “easier” on your body ie there’s a good chance the weight you can lift will shoot up with proper nutrition. I may be a bit of an outlier in calorie terms, but I lift 4x per week, I’m 5’3, c54.5kgs and I eat between 2100-2300 to maintain. If I eat less than 2100 I don’t have the energy to lift and my recovery is slow.
I lost weight whilst lifting but then personally had to increase calories to improve the amount I could lift. I’m not very strong but I still work hard at it. I would also note that in the right lighting and when flexing I look ripped. In normal lighting I look like an average middle aged stocky short woman, with a lot of wobbly bits. Are you also being unkind to yourself, and maybe you aren’t as flabby as you think?
Lifting is a long game, and it sounds to me like you’ve made a pretty good start!
My main hang ups r.e. the way I look is my post 2 section pouch. It's been almost 6 years since the last one and despite trying my hardest I absolutely can not shift it. I have a shelf that sticks out just above where they cut me open and it makes me very self conscious in clothes.
I'm also not in proportion, tiny waist, small shoulders and upper half but big hips and chunky thighs and a bum that sticks out for miles. The thing that baffles me is that people have said they wish they had my figure but I absolutely hate it!
I'm tracking my calories for a 6 week period and will see what I weigh at the end of it and adjust as necessary. I keep saying once I'm at goal weight I'll eat at maintenance but my goal weight keeps getting lower and lower so it never actually happens 🙄
I get it, I really do. I am pear shaped with a good peasant-build that holds onto fat in case of times of famine 😀 aesthetically, you can build good traps and lats which can balance out a triangle shape. You can lose fat all over but it won’t just come off your hated bits - the only time I thought my legs looked slim was when my face looked gaunt. Unfortunately genetics has a huge role to play.
The bit of belly which sticks out over your scar is more difficult, and depending on how you healed, it might actually be damage rather than fat per se. The only way to know would be to see a surgeon - but that obviously isn’t a quick or easy win.3 -
Definitely, my face can look really skinny buy my legs huge!
I'm trying to accept that I'm just built that way but when I try on dresses and people pull faces because I have bits that stick out it makes me feel awful. I would upload a picture so you can see what I mean but it isn't working.
Whatever I wear it highlights the curvier bits of me, I can't hide all of them at the same time sadly.0 -
Definitely, my face can look really skinny buy my legs huge!
I'm trying to accept that I'm just built that way but when I try on dresses and people pull faces because I have bits that stick out it makes me feel awful. I would upload a picture so you can see what I mean but it isn't working.
Whatever I wear it highlights the curvier bits of me, I can't hide all of them at the same time sadly.
This sounds dead patronising but - I think your issue is your self perception not the reality. You think people stare at your bits which stick out, but you’ve been told others envy your physique. How do you know they’re not thinking “damn I wish I had that *kitten*”?
And if your clothes are highlighting the bits you hate, go clothes shopping. Get new clothes. Try some self love and admire your physique for being strong enough to carry you through life. Easier said than done I know, and I probably only changed my perception of my body when I got cancer. Then I realised I might be about to die and the flabby thighs suddenly seemed less important.
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That is not true at all.stainlessneil wrote: »The thing is to get stronger you need to gain muscle which means you need to have a calorie surplus. If you have a calorie deficit then you will lose muscle and fat.
OP, as someone above noted your protein is far too low. That is going to prevent much muscle building, which is going to impede your progress in adding weight to lifts. If you add a scoop of protein powder per day that'll get you about 25g for 120 calories, and will get you much closer to a decent target of 100-120 grams.1 -
If you're trying on clothes and people are "pulling faces" in some kind of way? I'd not spend any more time around those people.
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