My Journey to failure of fat loss and muscle building

[Vas9309]

Hello everyone. I would like to apologize if its gonna sound stupid buti really dont know what else to do. I will try to keep this as short as possible.
I've been in the gym for 2 years now (with small breaks due to covid situation few times in my country), and i've tried to cut/bulk but in a way failed, in my cut (8 months) i got from 94 kg to 77 kg (the end of the cut), even though i lost a lot of cm's in my waistline i didnt really look like i wanted to (i guess i underestimated the muscle mass i had), so then i decided to bulk up, but i wanted to do a lean bulk because in my previous bulk to 94 kg, i failed badly with calculations and so i got more fat than i expected to, so currently im into a lean bulk but i dont seem to gain any weight plus that i feel almost always hungry and sometimes i even feel fatigued, i calculated my calories to be around 2900-3000, my TDEE is 2700, but at first i raised my calories slowly from 2000-2300, then to 2500, then 2700-2800-2850 because i wanted to reduce the chance of getting more fat, but then because i wasnt gaining anything, i decided to try with 3000, so now for a week im on 3000 calories, yet i feel hungry (most of the time, especially in rest days), tired (sometimes), ive tried with different routines throughout these 2 years , including the forums fierce 5 and coocicada ppl. I'm starting to feel discouraged, because i still have fat i want to get rid of, but i feel like thats impossible for me at this point, no matter what i did try with workout programs, calculations, bulk/cut etc it somehow just wont go away, so i would like to see if anyone has some tips for me? Because i've ran out of possibilities of what to do and what not to do.
Currently my stats are:
82 kg
29 years old
180 cm tall
my squat max 1 rep - 130 kg (140 kg in my dirty bulk)
my bench max 1 rep - 90 kg (105 kg in my dirty bulk)
my deadlift max 1 rep - 100-105 kg (130 kg in my dirty bulk)
my macros: 3000 calories
180-190g protein
300-400g carbs
80-85g fats (sometimes 90g)

workout right now:
chest+shoulders+biceps+abs
back+triceps+post delt
legs+abs

For the last few months (after a trauma i got from deadlifting in my cut) ive been focusing on form and contraction with lighter weights instead of heavy reps (2-4), so im usually doing 8-12 for most of my lifts with good form.

So its something like that:
Squats - 100 kg for 8-12 reps
Deadlifts - 60 kg for 8-12 reps
Bench press - 65-70 kg for 8-12 reps

I would appreciate any tips on my situation.

[air2fakie]

So you're unhappy because no matter what you did you haven't gotten the look you want even though:

- You've only been working out for 2 years
- You've taken a few small breaks from working out in that time
- You did a dirty bulk where you calculated everything poorly
- You currently think you're in a lean bulk even though you're not gaining weight & you're always hungry & fatigued
- You tried a bunch of different routines in 2 years
- You sound like you recently had been doing sets of 2-4 reps for your lifts
- Your current split sounds kinda crappy

Tbh it doesn't sound like you've been doing things right, so there's definitely room for improvement.

[faithbrah]

there's so much to unpack here, but i think one of the main things is that you're running a split that's too advanced for your level. i don't know how many times per week you're going to the gym, but 3 is too little with that split and 6 might be a lot more than you need. what happened when you cut down? were you not lean enough? can you make progress when you start bulking up?

[Vas9309]

there's so much to unpack here, but i think one of the main things is that you're running a split that's too advanced for your level. i don't know how many times per week you're going to the gym, but 3 is too little with that split and 6 might be a lot more than you need. what happened when you cut down? were you not lean enough? can you make progress when you start bulking up?

Well, when i did cut down, i saw improvements of my looks but i wasnt satisfied, i still had fat around my waistline and chest (mainly) that is too much, and i dont think i was lean enough, when i started with 2700+ calories, i saw improvements in my strength, but thats it.
As for the split when i was using coocicada's ppl i had good results, but i thought when i bulk i will change to a different one, the reason i chose chest+biceps and back+triceps is cause i wanted to be able to work arms harder, since they wont be as tired as from back+biceps and chest+triceps, dont know, that's why im here, im not saying i have a lot of experience. My strength however lowered in my cut, so in the big lifts squats from 130 kg (in the dirty bulk) got slowly to barely 120 kg, then 115, 110 etc, as for the bench it was the worst, and even to this day my bench is bad. When i was in the dirty bulk i used Fierce 5 intermediate, on my cut i used coocicada's ppl and i did p/p/l/rest/repeat, but after my cut i felt like probably these 6 days were too much for me and i tried something different.

[paulinkansas]

(after a trauma i got from deadlifting in my cut) .

I thought that said "after trauma from deadlifting my cat"

Switch your bicep tricep days around. Do biceps on back day and triceps on chest/shoulder day. You probably don't need more than 3-4 sets per workout for your arms. 3-4 is the most I do, 2x a week.

[Vas9309]

I thought that said "after trauma from deadlifting my cat"

Switch your bicep tricep days around. Do biceps on back day and triceps on chest/shoulder day. You probably don't need more than 3-4 sets per workout for your arms. 3-4 is the most I do, 2x a week.

Even if my arms are lagging? Even though right now i feel like everything is lacking and i have to lose more fat or just build more overall muscle..

[air2fakie]

Even if my arms are lagging? Even though right now i feel like everything is lacking and i have to lose more fat or just build more overall muscle..

It's oddly common for people who say nothing they do works to not want to hear that they should be doing something else.

[Vas9309]

It's oddly common for people who say nothing they do works to not want to hear that they should be doing something else.

Im not saying i wont try something else, ive tried different things, but i could try a different routine, just not sure which one would be suited for my level of experience etc.

[TolerantLactose]

For the last few months (after a trauma i got from deadlifting in my cut) ive been focusing on form and contraction with lighter weights instead of heavy reps (2-4), so im usually doing 8-12 for most of my lifts with good form.

So its something like that:
Squats - 100 kg for 8-12 reps
Deadlifts - 60 kg for 8-12 reps
Bench press - 65-70 kg for 8-12 reps

People use mind-muscle connection to go easy on the effort. That's a deliberate misunderstanding of the concept. The last reps of a lighter weight should feel at least as difficult as the last reps of a heavy weight.

You haven't seemed to have committed to your cut or to your bulk. i don't think it's a stretch to say you haven't committed to your training either.

[Vas9309]

People use mind-muscle connection to go easy on the effort. That's a deliberate misunderstanding of the concept. The last reps of a lighter weight should feel at least as difficult as the last reps of a heavy weight.

You haven't seemed to have committed to your cut or to your bulk. i don't think it's a stretch to say you haven't committed to your training either.

Well it seems you may be right, even though i thought i put a lot of efforts in my workouts, calculations etc for the last year, after the first year where i failed badly with the bulk. I will try my best to change that.

[xsquid99]

You're stuck in the natty cycle trap of "I look too fat when I bulk" and "I look too skinny when I cut".

I'm confused on your running of Fierce 5 and Coolcicada PPL but then saying that you were focusing on 2-4 reps, which neither of those programs call for.

Seems like your diet is kind of all over the place as well.

If there's one thing that you need to understand about bodybuilding in general, is that CONSISTENCY breeds results. Sticking with a diet, sticking with a program, etc. over the long term day in and day out is what results in progress. Also, I'm not a huge fan of doing those major compound lifts for high reps. Maybe once in a while if you're trying to build some muscular endurance then great, but doing squats and DL's for high reps can usually result in cardiovascular failure (out of breath) before you approach actual muscular failure.

Maybe stop cutting/bulking. Just eat at maintenance for 8-10 months and stick to a program as well and just focus on getting stronger.

[Vas9309]

You're stuck in the natty cycle trap of "I look too fat when I bulk" and "I look too skinny when I cut".

I'm confused on your running of Fierce 5 and Coolcicada PPL but then saying that you were focusing on 2-4 reps, which neither of those programs call for.

Seems like your diet is kind of all over the place as well.

If there's one thing that you need to understand about bodybuilding in general, is that CONSISTENCY breeds results. Sticking with a diet, sticking with a program, etc. over the long term day in and day out is what results in progress. Also, I'm not a huge fan of doing those major compound lifts for high reps. Maybe once in a while if you're trying to build some muscular endurance then great, but doing squats and DL's for high reps can usually result in cardiovascular failure (out of breath) before you approach actual muscular failure.

Maybe stop cutting/bulking. Just eat at maintenance for 8-10 months and stick to a program as well and just focus on getting stronger.

Thanks, I appreciate your time for this post. As for the 2-4 reps, that was when i was trying to build up the strength, for the lifts and sadly when i got my injury on lower back from deadlifts. I do understand that i failed with cut/bulk cycles, and i will listen to your advice and try to find whats best for me right now. I will try to have a good form on the big lifts with heavier weights, even though i feel a bit stressed from deadlifting with heavy weights still, cause it got me almost 2 months away from the gym, and doctor visits, pills etc. I will try my best to get stronger, without injuring myself, and try to stop thinking about that trap, because i do realize its the truth, thanks again.

[xsquid99]

Thanks, I appreciate your time for this post. As for the 2-4 reps, that was when i was trying to build up the strength, for the lifts and sadly when i got my injury on lower back from deadlifts. I do understand that i failed with cut/bulk cycles, and i will listen to your advice and try to find whats best for me right now. I will try to have a good form on the big lifts with heavier weights, even though i feel a bit stressed from deadlifting with heavy weights still, cause it got me almost 2 months away from the gym, and doctor visits, pills etc. I will try my best to get stronger, without injuring myself, and try to stop thinking about that trap, because i do realize its the truth, thanks again.

So maybe don't deadlift then. I rarely deadlift anymore, its not a "must do" exercise.

[air2fakie]

Thanks, I appreciate your time for this post. As for the 2-4 reps, that was when i was trying to build up the strength, for the lifts and sadly when i got my injury on lower back from deadlifts. I do understand that i failed with cut/bulk cycles, and i will listen to your advice and try to find whats best for me right now. I will try to have a good form on the big lifts with heavier weights, even though i feel a bit stressed from deadlifting with heavy weights still, cause it got me almost 2 months away from the gym, and doctor visits, pills etc. I will try my best to get stronger, without injuring myself, and try to stop thinking about that trap, because i do realize its the truth, thanks again.

2-4 reps sounds fine for DL. That likely wasn't the root cause of your injury, it likely was a combination of your form & programming (volume, intensity, frequency, work capacity, progression, etc.).

[Vas9309]

So maybe don't deadlift then. I rarely deadlift anymore, its not a "must do" exercise.

I simply wanna do it, cause most people say "its fundamental" and also its in Fierce 5 as well, thats why i wanted to do that.

[Vas9309]

2-4 reps sounds fine for DL. That likely wasn't the root cause of your injury, it likely was a combination of your form & programming (volume, intensity, frequency, work capacity, progression, etc.).

Its possible, when i got the injury i did front squats, then deadlifts and the rest were isolation work.