New to Bodybuilding, going it on my own and feeling lost

[fitfaith84]

Hi all..
I am fairly new to bodybuilding.. I got into it through a friend who does Bikini competitions and the small amount of advice and help she did give me before dropping out of my life recently was helpful, but I'm also on the fence about whether or not it was all good advice because she, too, was completely self-taught for her first comp.

I'm NOT looking to compete but I do have personal goals I want to reach for various reasons. The journey is important to me and is helping me see my own health and body in a different way than I ever have. I like feeling strong and having muscle. In the past, I have exercised a lot but only done cardio.

I'm 4'10" and last I weighed myself, about 103 lbs. 112 lbs is the most I have ever weighed while not pregnant (I have 2 kids), and I felt pretty "fluffy" at that point. I have been a very unhealthy 82 lbs at one point... I think that I have some body dysmorphia going on and I have had eating disorders in the past but am pretty healthy about food at this point. I love eating, but have to force myself to get enough calories in a day so that I can workout, I think because of my eating disorder in the past, I simply don't get hungry often and I get full quickly.. Building muscle is a great motivator for me to eat what I need to.
I think due to my unhealthy past, I have some joint issues that come up here and there. I used to dance and that has helped me with having good form from the beginning but I also have some injuries from that.

Sorry, lots of prefacing here, just trying to give a clear picture of my situation.
Starting last summer I was taking weight-lifting classes in which we did low weight, high reps, full body workouts. Maybe 2x a week, and the rest I would do cardio. I loved the feeling of building muscle and wanted to take it further. I have branched out to working muscle groups in the gym 5-6x/week and 30 min cardio 6x a week. I follow a lot of fitness people on instagram, which helps me to learn new workouts, new ways of using machines and free weights, etc. I have had serious gym anxiety, worried everyone is looking at me and thinking I'm an idiot LOL... (honestly does it matter, if you see someone using a machine wrong maybe just offer help? Sigh) I think that came from this "friend" who would always text me from the gym and tell me about all the people around her doing everything "wrong". As if she's the expert, I guess. I've worked hard to overcome that and just go and do what I need to do. I google exercises for each muscle group and make up my own sets every day.

It's worked well for me but I'm coming to a point where I'm hitting issues with diet and with minor joint issues, etc, wondering how to address them.

I've had a knee problem for a couple of weeks that I think began because I left my good running shoes at a friend's house 400 miles away and have been waiting for a chance to go get them, did some high intensity cardio and twisted it a little. Now whenever I squat heavy, I get pain for a couple of days that worries me because I don't want it to get worse. I ordered a knee brace on amazon and wore it for one leg day.. didn't love it. I didn't feel like it helped with the knee pain afterward, and when I took it off, that leg felt incredibly unstable. I had someone tell me Ishould try "patella bands"? I go to a massage therapist who really knows her stuff and is helping me with the muscular issues in that leg. Just wondering what course of action an experienced lifter would take. I decrease the weight that I press and squat on leg days if I need to and have stopped doing high-impact cardio for now. Just do the elliptical at this point which is boring af, but oh well?

As I've started lifting heavier, I'm finding my hands are hurting so much that it's hard for me to do the reps I want to do.. not because my muscles are giving out, but my hands are. Are there gloves of some sort that people wear when this starts to happen?

I've had carpal tunnel on and off since I was 7 years old and that is starting to be an issue sometimes... does that mean I need to adjust my grip or wear wrist braces?

Yesterday I did chest and back, and when I went to do chest flyes my left shoulder completely gave out.. slightly dislocated and I dropped the weight. I haven't dared try again after that first rep, honestly, and it was a lower weight than I had been doing the week prior. Wondering if I burned those muscles out too hard or something, if I just need a good upper body rest for a day or two, or if I should be looking at if it's more serious than that.

ETA ONE MORE - I've started getting lower back pain VERY infrequently ... I've never had this before, although I have upper back/neck stuff that I watch carefully. I watch my form like CRAZY, super careful with how I stand, squat, pulling my core in, butt under, all of that. At what point do I need to look into lower back support when lifting?

I think that covers my current lifting questions.. lol... so on to diet.

Another friend got me into Keto diet back in April. I have read a lot of conflicting opinions on this and that is understandable. It has worked really well for me as far as just feeling really good... once I realized you have to carb cycle. Oh my gosh. I went for 6 weeks under 25 g of carbs a day without a single cheat day and started getting bloody noses, chills, all kinds of issues. Someone talked some sense into me and now I have at least one day a week that I try to carb load and that has helped. I've only lost about 8 lbs on the diet but with building muscle, I'm not sure I have much more I could lose and stay healthy. I honestly don't care about my weight at this point, I care how I feel and how my clothes fit. I have no idea what my body fat % is... it's been guessed from pictures at around 21% last I checked, and I did one of those stupid things at the gym where you hold the machine. I'm told it's wildly inaccurate, but it also said about 21%. That was 2 months ago and I know I've made progress in that direction. I'd like to be around 18% for a photo shoot I am working toward.

About a month ago I tried to switch to Paleo ... I felt like maybe Keto was not sustainable long term and I'm really missing eating fruits! I don't miss sugar and I don't miss most carbs, but natural sugars... especially this time of year? I have peach trees and I wanna eat those things. LOL. However, as soon as I added carbs back in I felt like crap again and realized how many unpleasant things had stopped happening to my body since I went on Keto. I was bloated and gassy constantly, sluggish, brain fog, and my PMS went through the roof. I gave it about a week and then couldn't take it anymore. I don't think it was just my body in shock from not having carbs either, because that is how I ALWAYS felt in the past.

Now I'm wondering if I would fare better if I simply eliminated grains but allowed myself carbohydrates in vegetables, potatoes, etc. Maybe some oats? I wouuld love to see a nutritionist but as a single mom struggling financially (more than ever right now) it's not feasible for me to pay a personal trainer, although I would LOVE TO DO SO, or to see a nutritionist.

So... that's a really long post and a LOT of questions but I hope that some advice can be offered. Please be gentle... I am trying hard to be healthy more than anything else. <3

[kitpapa]

Hi all..
I am fairly new to bodybuilding.. I got into it through a friend who does Bikini competitions and the small amount of advice and help she did give me before dropping out of my life recently was helpful, but I'm also on the fence about whether or not it was all good advice because she, too, was completely self-taught for her first comp.

I'm NOT looking to compete but I do have personal goals I want to reach for various reasons. The journey is important to me and is helping me see my own health and body in a different way than I ever have. I like feeling strong and having muscle. In the past, I have exercised a lot but only done cardio.

I'm 4'10" and last I weighed myself, about 103 lbs. 112 lbs is the most I have ever weighed while not pregnant (I have 2 kids), and I felt pretty "fluffy" at that point. I have been a very unhealthy 82 lbs at one point... I think that I have some body dysmorphia going on and I have had eating disorders in the past but am pretty healthy about food at this point. I love eating, but have to force myself to get enough calories in a day so that I can workout, I think because of my eating disorder in the past, I simply don't get hungry often and I get full quickly.. Building muscle is a great motivator for me to eat what I need to.
I think due to my unhealthy past, I have some joint issues that come up here and there. I used to dance and that has helped me with having good form from the beginning but I also have some injuries from that.

Sorry, lots of prefacing here, just trying to give a clear picture of my situation.
Starting last summer I was taking weight-lifting classes in which we did low weight, high reps, full body workouts. Maybe 2x a week, and the rest I would do cardio. I loved the feeling of building muscle and wanted to take it further. I have branched out to working muscle groups in the gym 5-6x/week and 30 min cardio 6x a week. I follow a lot of fitness people on instagram, which helps me to learn new workouts, new ways of using machines and free weights, etc. I have had serious gym anxiety, worried everyone is looking at me and thinking I'm an idiot LOL... (honestly does it matter, if you see someone using a machine wrong maybe just offer help? Sigh) I think that came from this "friend" who would always text me from the gym and tell me about all the people around her doing everything "wrong". As if she's the expert, I guess. I've worked hard to overcome that and just go and do what I need to do. I google exercises for each muscle group and make up my own sets every day.

It's worked well for me but I'm coming to a point where I'm hitting issues with diet and with minor joint issues, etc, wondering how to address them.

I've had a knee problem for a couple of weeks that I think began because I left my good running shoes at a friend's house 400 miles away and have been waiting for a chance to go get them, did some high intensity cardio and twisted it a little. Now whenever I squat heavy, I get pain for a couple of days that worries me because I don't want it to get worse. I ordered a knee brace on amazon and wore it for one leg day.. didn't love it. I didn't feel like it helped with the knee pain afterward, and when I took it off, that leg felt incredibly unstable. I had someone tell me Ishould try "patella bands"? I go to a massage therapist who really knows her stuff and is helping me with the muscular issues in that leg. Just wondering what course of action an experienced lifter would take. I decrease the weight that I press and squat on leg days if I need to and have stopped doing high-impact cardio for now. Just do the elliptical at this point which is boring af, but oh well?

As I've started lifting heavier, I'm finding my hands are hurting so much that it's hard for me to do the reps I want to do.. not because my muscles are giving out, but my hands are. Are there gloves of some sort that people wear when this starts to happen?

I've had carpal tunnel on and off since I was 7 years old and that is starting to be an issue sometimes... does that mean I need to adjust my grip or wear wrist braces?

Yesterday I did chest and back, and when I went to do chest flyes my left shoulder completely gave out.. slightly dislocated and I dropped the weight. I haven't dared try again after that first rep, honestly, and it was a lower weight than I had been doing the week prior. Wondering if I burned those muscles out too hard or something, if I just need a good upper body rest for a day or two, or if I should be looking at if it's more serious than that.

ETA ONE MORE - I've started getting lower back pain VERY infrequently ... I've never had this before, although I have upper back/neck stuff that I watch carefully. I watch my form like CRAZY, super careful with how I stand, squat, pulling my core in, butt under, all of that. At what point do I need to look into lower back support when lifting?

I think that covers my current lifting questions.. lol... so on to diet.

Another friend got me into Keto diet back in April. I have read a lot of conflicting opinions on this and that is understandable. It has worked really well for me as far as just feeling really good... once I realized you have to carb cycle. Oh my gosh. I went for 6 weeks under 25 g of carbs a day without a single cheat day and started getting bloody noses, chills, all kinds of issues. Someone talked some sense into me and now I have at least one day a week that I try to carb load and that has helped. I've only lost about 8 lbs on the diet but with building muscle, I'm not sure I have much more I could lose and stay healthy. I honestly don't care about my weight at this point, I care how I feel and how my clothes fit. I have no idea what my body fat % is... it's been guessed from pictures at around 21% last I checked, and I did one of those stupid things at the gym where you hold the machine. I'm told it's wildly inaccurate, but it also said about 21%. That was 2 months ago and I know I've made progress in that direction. I'd like to be around 18% for a photo shoot I am working toward.

About a month ago I tried to switch to Paleo ... I felt like maybe Keto was not sustainable long term and I'm really missing eating fruits! I don't miss sugar and I don't miss most carbs, but natural sugars... especially this time of year? I have peach trees and I wanna eat those things. LOL. However, as soon as I added carbs back in I felt like crap again and realized how many unpleasant things had stopped happening to my body since I went on Keto. I was bloated and gassy constantly, sluggish, brain fog, and my PMS went through the roof. I gave it about a week and then couldn't take it anymore. I don't think it was just my body in shock from not having carbs either, because that is how I ALWAYS felt in the past.

Now I'm wondering if I would fare better if I simply eliminated grains but allowed myself carbohydrates in vegetables, potatoes, etc. Maybe some oats? I wouuld love to see a nutritionist but as a single mom struggling financially (more than ever right now) it's not feasible for me to pay a personal trainer, although I would LOVE TO DO SO, or to see a nutritionist.

So... that's a really long post and a LOT of questions but I hope that some advice can be offered. Please be gentle... I am trying hard to be healthy more than anything else. <3

Hey! I can probably answer some of your questions. Though it would be easier in a conversation lol.

Check your private messages

[kitpapa]

But to answer some of your questions you should probably be on a 3x a week beginner program. The injuries and such may be coming from imbalance in your workouts.

As far as the keto thing...it may or may not be a gluten sensitivity or whatever, pnly your dr can tell you that.

Also...WELCOME! Mom of 4 here. Congrats on wanting to take the journey into lifting!

[fitfaith84]

I was doing 3x a week for about 6 months. It feels like not enough at this point. I hate missing gym days....

[kitpapa]

I was doing 3x a week for about 6 months. It feels like not enough at this point. I hate missing gym days....

Well after 6 months noobie gains will typically slow. It does not mean you are not working hard but just a natural slow down in progression.
If you want to do more and the body can handle it that is fine but there is such thung as too much. Our muscles heal with rest. Yours may not be getting enough

[fitfaith84]

Well after 6 months noobie gains will typically slow. It does not mean you are not working hard but just a natural slow down in progression.
If you want to do more and the body can handle it that is fine but there is such thung as too much. Our muscles heal with rest. Yours may not be getting enough

Point taken... I took 6 days off while on vacation, and my friend there (really wish he lived here because he's the most helpful person I've encountered with this), talked with me about overtraining and how I might benefit from taking a little break. I think it was beneficial but I was REALLY missing the gym when I finally was able to go back. It's odd to me that my shoulder gave out on me AFTER a good break from lifting. Maybe I should have gone lighter going back into it.
Balance is always something that I struggle with... if I have a goal I tend to move heaven and earth to reach it, but sometimes to the extreme.

Yesterday although I'd only lifted 3 days in a row since returning from that break, I went to a 1 hour plyo/cardio class instead of my usual routine. It felt good to use my muscles in a different way. I'm considering doing something like that twice a week and cutting back on lifting just a little bit, maybe only lift 3-4x a week for now.

I do want to be healthy. It is hard to know what to do when, up to this point, the few people in my life who seem to know what they're doing don't want to share their knowledge, just put me down for not having it already. Frustrating. In my position all I can do is learn by trial and error, but error can be scary in this case.
That alone has nearly made me quit multiple times, but this is important to me. I really appreciate your kindness, Stephanie. It seems like a rare thing in this community.

[fitfaith84]

Whoa! You definitely need to stop exercise that uses your knees, shoulders and low back as long as you have any type of pain or dysfunction there. Do NOT use braces and workout anyway! Weightlifting belts are not low back support fyi. They are used by people who are so strong that they need to produce extra intra-abdominal pressure than what can naturally be done. Do not ever use one because you're having back pains. I highly suggest that if you want to keep lifting you get to a physical therapist who can treat your current issues and give you guidance on how to move your joints, aka good form. If your goal is really health above all else you are failing right now. Take it easy, slow and use a weight that you can do good form through the entire movement for every single rep.

Thanks for the info.
Again, a physical therapist, personal trainer, etc are not an option at this point, but I'm going to cut down weight for now.

[fitfaith84]

Umm so several responses disappeared? What the heck?

[katya422]

If you have health insurance in the US it is likely that you can see a nutritionist via your doctor/insurance plan.

IMO there isn't one perfect way of eating for everyone. Do check out the stickies on setting your protein and fat intake.

If grain products make you feel bad you don't have to have them. The best diet is the one that you can stick to and that helps you reach your personal goals.

[fitfaith84]

If you have health insurance in the US it is likely that you can see a nutritionist via your doctor/insurance plan.

IMO there isn't one perfect way of eating for everyone. Do check out the stickies on setting your protein and fat intake.

If grain products make you feel bad you don't have to have them. The best diet is the one that you can stick to and that helps you reach your personal goals.

I'll look for the stickies, thank you. I don't have health insurance at all, but I've read a lot about dieting since I started Keto. There are a million opinions out there of course... The one thing that I try to really stay consistent with is proper protein intake when I'm building muscle. I was told by a few people that if I wanted to switch to something closer to a competition prep diet I would simply switch my fat and carbohydrate macros (right now I keep carbs 25-30g and fats around 90g). I've thought about buying a macro coaching program, I've found some that are not crazy expensive. Anyway, I'll look around.

[LunaLifts]

If you have health insurance in the US it is likely that you can see a nutritionist via your doctor/insurance plan.

Small note, dietitian, not nutritionist. Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist, but a registered dietitian is a safer bet (and more likely to be referred to by a doc).

Agreed to your post, just wanted to make the distinction, even though OP said she's uninsured.

I've thought about buying a macro coaching program, I've found some that are not crazy expensive. Anyway, I'll look around.

IMO, they're all a waste of money unless you're trying for a sport, or competition. In general you need a minimum of .8g per lb of body weight in protein, and .4g per lb of body weight in fat. The rest can be whatever you choose, all carbs, more protein and fats there's a lot of room to play with, and focusing on getting the minimum of what you need gives you a lot of flexibility. Though, of course, you should still get plenty of nutrient rich foods included in any macro scheme.

[okayest]

Umm so several responses disappeared? What the heck?

Weird. I wonder if I said something against the rules?