What is the cause of not getting a pump?

[LaxPro]

I'm guessing it's got something to do with the fact that i'm cutting and on a calorie restricted diet...

but what's the science behind it? something about not having enough glycogen in your muscles?

this was the scenario, i went to the gym early this morning, didn't get a lot of sleep the previous night (maybe 3 hours) but i still had tons of energy and was ready to rock and roll. i got to the gym and started with weighted dips, my strength was fine and my form was impeccable, but for some reason, after the four sets i didn't have much of a pump going. and this pretty much carried throughout the rest of the workout. towards the middle/end portion i felt as if my triceps were giving out a bit easier.

I didn't eat my last two meals of the day the previous day so maybe that is where i went wrong... replaced them with a large blue icee and two granola bars and a bowl of cereal (ugh hanging out with friends who don't lift and succombing to pressure)

anyway, just finished the workout about 30 mins ago, and chugging down a myoplex shake... I plan to get the rest of my meals in from now on and not screwing up (i've learned my lesson lol). Another thing, i was also hitting triceps for 6 sets after chest day (monday) but am thinking of not doing that anymore as i don't want to overtrain my tris, which are already a major weakpoint for me, while on a calorie restricted diet.

don't really know where i'm going with this post, hopefully ill get some responces, insights, inquiries, etc etc

[prototype01]

I'm guessing it's got something to do with the fact that i'm cutting and on a calorie restricted diet...

but what's the science behind it? something about not having enough glycogen in your muscles?

this was the scenario, i went to the gym early this morning, didn't get a lot of sleep the previous night (maybe 3 hours) but i still had tons of energy and was ready to rock and roll. i got to the gym and started with weighted dips, my strength was fine and my form was impeccable, but for some reason, after the four sets i didn't have much of a pump going. and this pretty much carried throughout the rest of the workout. towards the middle/end portion i felt as if my triceps were giving out a bit easier.

I didn't eat my last two meals of the day the previous day so maybe that is where i went wrong... replaced them with a large blue icee and two granola bars and a bowl of cereal (ugh hanging out with friends who don't lift and succombing to pressure)

anyway, just finished the workout about 30 mins ago, and chugging down a myoplex shake... I plan to get the rest of my meals in from now on and not screwing up (i've learned my lesson lol). Another thing, i was also hitting triceps for 6 sets after chest day (monday) but am thinking of not doing that anymore as i don't want to overtrain my tris, which are already a major weakpoint for me, while on a calorie restricted diet.

don't really know where i'm going with this post, hopefully ill get some responces, insights, inquiries, etc etc

Ok, a few things:

1. Sometime, pumps just don't happen... When this happens (to me) I think its because my reps aren't high enough and the weight is really high, so two things are happening. Either not enough blood gets pumped into the target muscle to create the pump sensation, or I'm cheating too much and keeping my target muscles from getting their pump.

2. You could feel awake and alert, but your body may not have the energy to carry out a intense anaerobic exercise.

3. Lifting arms right after chest (or back) is baaaad! For me chest REALLY fries my tries, my back messes my biceps a bit, but not as bad as chest does to my tries.

4. In my experience, if your target muscle is giving out and you still feel alert and wanting to kick ass, your diet could be off or muscle previously fatigued. (I say this because one day I drank nothing but Monster and No Fear energy drinks for like 6 or 8 hours playing video games, when I hit the weights I was dying to mil press 185 for reps... I was frustrated because easy weight was KILLING me, I felt awake obviously, but my body just couldn't generate the force needed to press the weight)

Hope this helps bub.

[RU4A69]

It's a result of insulin output. If you're on a cutting diet, you're pumps are prolly gonna suck

[Mtguy8787]

- Insulin affects circulation PWO..

- Who cares if you get a pump. Getting a pump has nothing to do with results..

[LaxPro]

- Insulin affects circulation PWO..

- Who cares if you get a pump. Getting a pump has nothing to do with results..

do you not get a pump when you work your tri's out?

[Mtguy8787]

do you not get a pump when you work your tri's out?

Rarely. This is because I use heavier weights, lower reps, and more sets for my tris. The only muscles I usually ever get a pump in are forearms & sometimes biceps. Occasionally in the pecs after cable crosses or something like that.

All a pump is, is blood being forced into & trapped in the muscle tissue. It means nothing. It does not mean you are getting a good or bad workout.

[stealth_swimmer]

It could be any one, or a combination of the following. (might even be something else)

*not drinking enough water - try to drink 1-1.5 gallons spread evenly throughout the day. I try to have 2-3 quarts before working out(not all at the same time obviously)

*not enough carbs - remember you should have at least the same amount of carbs, in grams, as protien and ya want them to mainly be complex carbs. Save simple high GI carbs for postworkout

*not enough sleep - sleep depravation sometimes can cause a lack of a pump the next day so try to get 8-9 hours a day

*preworkout nutrition - sometimes people overdo their preworkout nutrition by making it a really heavy meal, or they may have it too close to a workout. The normal sized meal should be 3-4 hours preworout, and 2 hours preworkout you should have a light meal consisting mainly of complex carbs. Your stomach shouldn't be totally full when you workout, just enough to where your not hungry, otherwise it will detract from workout intensity as well.

*poor mind to muscle connection - more often than not, this is the culrpit. It doesn't matter whether you do high or low reps, you should ALWAYS get a pump. You don't necessarily have to "chase" the pump...it should come naturally. Always make sure you can feel the target muscle and that the target muscle is the muscle getting hit the hardest. Squeeze at the top for a peak contraction and HOLD for a second or two before lowering down the weight in a controlled fashion.

*lack of periodization - this is also a common culprit. Too many people stick with one routine forever. I agree that you should basically stick to what works for you best, but even that will start to wear off after a while. Vary your training. Every 4 weeks you can switch an exercise depending on your goals and what areas need more emphasis. Or you can use a different rep range(heavy, moderate, or relatively light poundages). Maybe try both You should notice better pumps. Not only that but when it starts to slack off, you can go back to what works for you best normally, and you should notice better gains AND pumps come more easily than when you were doing it before.

[FreddyC]

I use to get the same problem as you.

Then I tried drop sets and it all changed, try searching for it.

[Blimp2Pimp]

It could be any one, or a combination of the following. (might even be something else)

*not drinking enough water - try to drink 1-1.5 gallons spread evenly throughout the day. I try to have 2-3 quarts before working out(not all at the same time obviously)

*not enough carbs - remember you should have at least the same amount of carbs, in grams, as protien and ya want them to mainly be complex carbs. Save simple high GI carbs for postworkout

*not enough sleep - sleep depravation sometimes can cause a lack of a pump the next day so try to get 8-9 hours a day

*preworkout nutrition - sometimes people overdo their preworkout nutrition by making it a really heavy meal, or they may have it too close to a workout. The normal sized meal should be 3-4 hours preworout, and 2 hours preworkout you should have a light meal consisting mainly of complex carbs. Your stomach shouldn't be totally full when you workout, just enough to where your not hungry, otherwise it will detract from workout intensity as well.

*poor mind to muscle connection - more often than not, this is the culrpit. It doesn't matter whether you do high or low reps, you should ALWAYS get a pump. You don't necessarily have to "chase" the pump...it should come naturally. Always make sure you can feel the target muscle and that the target muscle is the muscle getting hit the hardest. Squeeze at the top for a peak contraction and HOLD for a second or two before lowering down the weight in a controlled fashion.

*lack of periodization - this is also a common culprit. Too many people stick with one routine forever. I agree that you should basically stick to what works for you best, but even that will start to wear off after a while. Vary your training. Every 4 weeks you can switch an exercise depending on your goals and what areas need more emphasis. Or you can use a different rep range(heavy, moderate, or relatively light poundages). Maybe try both You should notice better pumps. Not only that but when it starts to slack off, you can go back to what works for you best normally, and you should notice better gains AND pumps come more easily than when you were doing it before.

He nailed it on the head. poor mind to muscle connection is probably the culprit. One other thing is some ppl are either overtrained (which does not happen overnight, takes many training sessions, or simply overreached where there CNS is burned out, so you are not capable of physically lifting as heavy as you can, and therefore your pump suffers.

I have really noticed that deloading every 4 weeks, and then taking a 1 week break every 3-4 months is the "smart" in the "train hard, train smart"

You kill it in the gym, but use the rest and deloads as a recovery time. Don't think you aren't growing, because you are probably growing most at these points. So get those calories down. I ate between 3500-4000 cals on the deloading weeks and gaining .5lbs...most of which is muscle and dropped .2% BF.