Why Does Nothing Work?!?

**ShallowGrave** · 01-02-2003, 05:33 PM

I getting tired of this...did volume and gained about 10 lbs then lost it all plus some. Tried same routine with 2 sets and got gains back then lost of. Tried 1 set to failure style and strength is going up in almost everything but I'm not growing and I still feel tired and worn out all the time. I'm quitting smoking on Monday, and gains should prob improve a little but I don't see how their will be some magical transformation. I'm really tired of busting my ass and rearranging my life to accomodate a lifestyle conducive to lifting with no results. Funny thing is, my roomate who follows my routines as I modify them makes amazing gains and not only do I work harder and with better form, his nutrition is horrible. Genetics suck, I hope my parents get hit by a truck.

**back2it** · 01-02-2003, 06:53 PM

How often do you workout , how much rest do you get , how much sleep ? all are important .

**Sychokid** · 01-02-2003, 06:57 PM

Originally posted by back2it
How often do you workout , how much rest do you get , how much sleep ? all are important .

Yup. I have other things that might be causing this too.

1. Do you eat or get enough sleep? I think you are probably doing good in the training department but failing in these.

2. Do your workouts take you under an hour to complete? What does your split look like?

Answer those questions and I will post another response.

**mikeyj** · 01-02-2003, 07:02 PM

I know how you feel about the genetics things my mate does minimal exercises and eats like a pig but still has pecs and a 6 pack coming through.

**ShallowGrave** · 01-02-2003, 08:08 PM

lemme see...sleep I get at least 8 on a weekday. Weekends I get 9 or 10. Cardio, don't do any. Protein 150 grams a day calories about 3500...I've lifted 4 days a week, 3 days a week, and now only 2. My workouts when they were high in volume lasted about an hour but that was over a year ago now their around 40 mins or so. I'm just doing basic compound exercises right now for all major body parts with sets of calf raises and rear delt raises added in.

If I could pack in more food it would help, but I only weigh 140 and I honestly can't afford to buy any more food.

**Kane Fan** · 01-02-2003, 10:30 PM

sounds like youre getting enough sleep

so you say you gained weight but then lost it again?
are you sure you were gaining LBM cus I'm thinking maybe you were gaining more fat then muscle and maybe you lost some of the fat
cus I'm overweight and I have noticed that I look bigger in a mirror or something but my weight hasn't changed at all so more then likely I gained some muscle and lost some fat
I always hear that that can't happen but I only weigh myself like once a month at the most often so even if they are right it could be happening like muscle increases, then fat goes away
I thought maybe something like that might have been happening to you
also you say you lost the weight, but did that happen while on the same precise program/reps sets etc?

**hawkpfc2** · 01-03-2003, 05:57 AM

That should be food. Have patience. I grow in spurts myself and then don't gain for a while and then I can gain 2 lbs. in a week. Go figure. How long have you been lifting? If you are fairly new, probably gaining muscle while losing fat. Is your composition changing?

**hawkpfc2** · 01-03-2003, 05:57 AM

also, if you are highly stressed or have a bad attitude, it will cause your cortisol to rise which can cause the end of gains for some people.

**ShallowGrave** · 01-03-2003, 09:03 AM

Wlel, I don't really have any fat. I'm only 129 (down from 140 6 monts ago) at 5'10 and abs are clear as day. I'll stick with something for 6 months, see some gains, then all gains stop and weights on exercises actually starts going down. This even happened on a very low volume routine with 3 days rest in betweeen days.

I've been lifting on and off for 5 years.
I made ok gaines the first year (12 lbs muscle or so) but I haven't really gained anything since...maybe 3 lbs a year or so.

**WANNABEHUGE** · 01-03-2003, 10:59 AM

Id say jack up the protein....150 isnt that much....id say at least 200..of course i dont know your financial situation cuz you said you couldnt afford it...

**john the man** · 01-03-2003, 01:24 PM

I was at one time in high school approximately about 135 pounds and one thing that helped me gain more muscle mass and more weight and helped me keep it on is less reps and more weight on the exercises. Absolutely no cardio. One thing that helped me was the encyclopedia of bodybuilding by Arnold Scwarzennegger. He has fantastic ideas to gain or lose weight and proper training. One thing you can't buy on the shelves is persistence. Stay at and ask for GOD's guidance.

**BRIT_BEEF** · 01-03-2003, 01:41 PM

I think maybe you're changing your routine a bit too quickly, what this can do is leave you not knowing what is best for your body.
I agree with the other suggestions to increase your protein intake.

**BuckyBoy** · 01-03-2003, 02:04 PM

Originally posted by ShallowGrave
I'll stick with something for 6 months, see some gains, then all gains stop and weights on exercises actually starts going down. This even happened on a very low volume routine with 3 days rest in betweeen days. I've been lifting on and off for 5 years.

I am by no means an expert but this almost sounds like plateauing to me.

When your gains stop are you stopping exercising all together? I ask because you say you have been lifting on and off for 5 years.

One thing that I have discovered is that I get bored with a routine and don't get intense with it after a while. So I start looking to change it up about every 1 - 1.5 months. My feeling is that if I am bored, my body is bored as well.

Change is good!

**back2it** · 01-03-2003, 02:19 PM

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ShallowGrave
[B]lemme see...sleep I get at least 8 on a weekday. Weekends I get 9 or 10. Cardio, don't do any. Protein 150 grams a day calories about 3500... If you weigh less than 150 and are eating as much as you say ,You are eating more than 23 calories per lb and that is certainly enough for most people to gain weight . There may be a medical problem . Have you been checked for overactive thyroid . It is also possible that you have a digestion problem and are not absorbing a lot of the food you are eating .

**ShallowGrave** · 01-03-2003, 03:03 PM

overactive thyroid? how would someone get checked for that?

**back2it** · 01-03-2003, 03:35 PM

Originally posted by ShallowGrave
overactive thyroid? how would someone get checked for that?

Only a Doctor could do it .

**Mataz** · 01-03-2003, 03:45 PM

I think quiting smoking will be a BIG HELP

**ShallowGrave** · 01-06-2003, 08:25 AM

ok...had my last ciggarette yesterday afternoon. I layed in bed till 5am staring at the ceiling and got up at 6 for work so if this rambles forgive me. I'm gonna get the thyroid thing checked when my insurance kicks in but my dad got me thinking when I talked to him the other day.

Is it possible to have too much intensity? I do every set like its my last going to failure and beyond (even when I did volume)
I'm always so sore that I can barely move. I know soreness doesn't equal growth but I've always thought you needed to give each rep your all to make any gains. Is it actually possible that I work too hard and would do better If I went a little easier on myself?

**FreightTrian** · 01-06-2003, 08:52 AM

you might try getting some supplements Creatine and Glutamine will help you recover a little faster.

Plus, dude you have to eat like a house! 150g of protein a day won't grow any muscle, try cooking a bunch of chicken breasts and eating them through out the day. Get your protein up! Remember think MEAT!! Every meal make sure your swallowing some meat.

YOu can do it man, just keep at it!

Good job on Loosing the cigarettes! People who workout at the gym and smoke are usually laughed at! Smoking has no benefit to your workout or your life.

Oh yeah and FYI the hyperthyroid thing is most likely not happening in your case. My wife has this and it doesn't effect too many males. Plus, you would feel like your heart is beating too fast. Hyperthyroid speeds up your heartrate a lot and its a noticeable effect. Plus the swolen glands give it away also.

**hawkpfc2** · 01-06-2003, 09:30 AM

Are you having any other health issues, any kind at all?
Ben

**ShallowGrave** · 01-06-2003, 10:06 AM

actually, I have always felt like my heart beat a too fast and my glands are usually swollen...I just always thought that was how they were supposed to feel.

I don't have a problem eating, however food is expensive (relative to my small income) and I simply can't afford to buy anymore. 150 grams of protein for a (today's weight) 132 lb male should be enough to gain muscle. Several studies have shown 1.6 grams of protein per kg of body weight (or 96 grams of protein) is sufficienct to build mass.

As far as supps, I take glutamine but not creatine because even in doses as small as 2g it murders my stomach.

No health problems that I know of. Accordingy to my army physical I am perfectly fit except for a below average body-weight.

**BuckyBoy** · 01-06-2003, 10:07 AM

Originally posted by ShallowGrave
Is it possible to have too much intensity? I do every set like its my last going to failure and beyond (even when I did volume)
I'm always so sore that I can barely move. I know soreness doesn't equal growth but I've always thought you needed to give each rep your all to make any gains. Is it actually possible that I work too hard and would do better If I went a little easier on myself?

Are you still sore when you are working out? How much recovery are you giving your body parts before you work them again? I find a little soreness isn't to bad occasionally but I try not to do it all the time. If I am still really sore from a previous workout I will either skip this workout or swap it out with a bodypart that isn't sore.

And as FeightTrian said, Glutamine will help the recovery time. And eating big helps tons, just try and keep it clean so you aren't adding to much fat in the process. I have that problem myself.

All in all I think you are going at it to hard. Take some time off and rest. Let your body recover from all of the soreness. And then when it feels like it is completely gone, take a couple more days off for good measure and then hit it again.

**littlemark** · 01-06-2003, 10:08 AM

I hope this helps some. I too used to smoke, and couldn't gain a lb no matter what i tried. I quit, and suddenly i could gain or lose weight much more easily. I don't know factually, but I think smoking screws with some peoples metabolisms like crazy. (It did mine as the only thing I changed was stopping smoking, and I began to gain) I guess the bottom line is stick with it, it can only help in the long run.

**chris008** · 01-06-2003, 10:54 AM

Like littlemark mentioned I also smoked in my teens and could not gain a pound. I promised myself that year that I would get fit.
I started lifting, quit smoking, and bought myself a few weight gainers. By the beginning of the year after I gained 46lbs. Hope this helps

**BuckyBoy** · 01-06-2003, 11:07 AM

Originally posted by littlemark
I hope this helps some. I too used to smoke, and couldn't gain a lb no matter what i tried. I quit, and suddenly i could gain or lose weight much more easily. I don't know factually, but I think smoking screws with some peoples metabolisms like crazy. (It did mine as the only thing I changed was stopping smoking, and I began to gain) I guess the bottom line is stick with it, it can only help in the long run.

This actually makes sense. What one thing happens to most people when they stop smoking? They gain weight. Usually it is in terms of fat because they start eating like a horse to take up where they were smoking, plus food starts tasting so much better. So if you are resolved to eating clean and you quit smoking you are eating more of what is good for you. And you body pays back your hard work and clean eating by giving you muscle rather than fat.

**ShallowGrave** · 01-06-2003, 12:01 PM

well I agree with all the smoking comments...its one of the many reasons I have this nicotine patch numbing my arm.

As far as frequency goes, I never worked out until I was absolutley free of soreness in all body parts which would sometimes be 3 days

**back2it** · 01-06-2003, 03:06 PM

Originally posted by ShallowGrave
ok...had my last ciggarette yesterday afternoon. I layed in bed till 5am staring at the ceiling and got up at 6 for work so if this rambles forgive me. I'm gonna get the thyroid thing checked when my insurance kicks in but my dad got me thinking when I talked to him the other day.

Is it possible to have too much intensity? I do every set like its my last going to failure and beyond (even when I did volume)
I'm always so sore that I can barely move. I know soreness doesn't equal growth but I've always thought you needed to give each rep your all to make any gains. Is it actually possible that I work too hard and would do better If I went a little easier on myself?

You can overtrain very quickly if you are using forced reps and negatives . It is not recomended that you do that at every session . Mentzer used it once in a while like 1x a month or something like thay and watched for signs of overtraining . Like elevated morning pulse , not being able to add weight to exercises on a regular basis , cutting weight to complete the normal # of reps and sets , not gainig weight or strength or even losing it . That may be what you are experiencing .

**clutch154** · 01-07-2003, 06:26 AM

Originally posted by ShallowGrave
actually, I have always felt like my heart beat a too fast and my glands are usually swollen...I just always thought that was how they were supposed to feel.

I don't have a problem eating, however food is expensive (relative to my small income) and I simply can't afford to buy anymore. 150 grams of protein for a (today's weight) 132 lb male should be enough to gain muscle. Several studies have shown 1.6 grams of protein per kg of body weight (or 96 grams of protein) is sufficienct to build mass.

As far as supps, I take glutamine but not creatine because even in doses as small as 2g it murders my stomach.

No health problems that I know of. Accordingy to my army physical I am perfectly fit except for a below average body-weight.

Do me a favor and add up how much money you would spend on cigarettes on average for a month and post it...I bet that money, spent wisely, could help you with your bodybuilding goals. Congradulations on quitting by the way.

**ShallowGrave** · 01-07-2003, 06:36 AM

I did that a week ago...$1460 over a year. As far as the smoking thing goes...I quit. I'm not trying to quit, or attempting to quit, or trying not to smoke, I quit. Tho I will be wearing these nic patches for a while.

**costasoldatos** · 01-07-2003, 10:48 AM

You only have to increase your calories about 300 or 400 above maintenance to build muscle. Try taking a week or two off in case you have exposed yourself to overtraining in the past. Then when you come back train monday thursday and sunday or monday. and cut back on the volume and train to failure.

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