losing progress

[Rebecca2853]

Hello, ive been working out for a while and noticed progress in the beginning (newbiegains i suppose) but lately progress has been small. Im gonna get started on one of the many programs here but what confuses me is that before i simply had slow progress. Now i feel like im actually losing gains. Not a ton strengthwise (a bit tho which is odd) but mostly looks. My arms are not as toned as they used to, and neither are my abs. I really dont get why, except that i have maybe increased the difficuty a bit, and added another restday, but could it also have something to do with my lifestyle? like working harder therefore needing to eat more than i am atm? I really need to figure out what is causing my gains to disappear since i worked so hard for it

[spradish]

Are you tracking how much you eat? It is really easy to out-eat your calorie burn, especially if you've increased activity. Has your weight increased?

[Rebecca2853]

Are you tracking how much you eat? It is really easy to out-eat your calorie burn, especially if you've increased activity. Has your weight increased?

No my weight is pretty much the same as always. How long should it usually take for muscles to recover? Cause my friend recovers so much faster than me and i dont know if i eat or drink too little maybe (she eats and drinks A LOT hahaha)? I dont really track what i eat. I did once but i kept forgetting it so i just kind of got away from it again

[kimm4]

What specific training program are you running and exactly how long have you been training? Do you have progress pics from when you started to recent? What's your height/weight?

[NerdyLady]

What specific training program are you running and exactly how long have you been training? Do you have progress pics from when you started to recent? What's your height/weight?

What an amazing gallery, Kim! Are you going to compete again?

[air2fakie]

Hello, ive been working out for a while and noticed progress in the beginning (newbiegains i suppose) but lately progress has been small. Im gonna get started on one of the many programs here but what confuses me is that before i simply had slow progress. Now i feel like im actually losing gains. Not a ton strengthwise (a bit tho which is odd) but mostly looks. My arms are not as toned as they used to, and neither are my abs. I really dont get why, except that i have maybe increased the difficuty a bit, and added another restday, but could it also have something to do with my lifestyle? like working harder therefore needing to eat more than i am atm? I really need to figure out what is causing my gains to disappear since i worked so hard for it

Hard to say w/out knowing your current routine but sounds like you may not have a good progression scheme, your exercises may not be well planned out and that your diet is not in order.

You may just be wasting your efforts - so you're doing the right thing by getting on a proven routine (which will build in enough recovery time for your muscles so that shouldn't be an issue). You should also start tracking your cals and make sure you get enough protein.

[Rebecca2853]

What specific training program are you running and exactly how long have you been training? Do you have progress pics from when you started to recent? What's your height/weight?

I am not running a specific program yet but i will get started on one. So that is prob why my progress has been slow -just odd that im now loosing gains. I began training two years ago, and sincei started i have gotten some progress but not nearly as much as i would like. I went from 0 to 10 pushups and from 0 to 3 pull-ups. But now everything else seems to be getting worse. Like my rows and bench ect.

I dont have a lot of pics from when i started but the ones i do have shows that my biceps for example have gotten a bit smaller (less toned) and so does my triceps.

Im 164,5 cm tall and weighs around 59-60 kg

[Rebecca2853]

Hard to say w/out knowing your current routine but sounds like you may not have a good progression scheme, your exercises may not be well planned out and that your diet is not in order.

You may just be wasting your efforts - so you're doing the right thing by getting on a proven routine (which will build in enough recovery time for your muscles so that shouldn't be an issue). You should also start tracking your cals and make sure you get enough protein.

How do i know how much i need to eat? and how much protein?

[Rebecca2853]

Hard to say w/out knowing your current routine but sounds like you may not have a good progression scheme, your exercises may not be well planned out and that your diet is not in order.

You may just be wasting your efforts - so you're doing the right thing by getting on a proven routine (which will build in enough recovery time for your muscles so that shouldn't be an issue). You should also start tracking your cals and make sure you get enough protein.

But atm my routine is something like this:
5 min walk on treadmill
5-10 min bodyweight warmups (crunches, pushups ect)
3 sets of chestpress machine
3 sets of cablerows
3 sets of dumbbell rows
3 sets of dumbbell skullcrushers (idk their name haha)
3 sets of tricep push-downs
3 sets of bicepcurls

and then i sometimes do facepulls, benchpress instead of chestpress machine, lat machine (i switch it up with these now and then)

This is what i do about 3 times a week and then i do legs and abs 2-3 times a week at home. And then i have 1-2 restdays

[air2fakie]

But atm my routine is something like this:
5 min walk on treadmill
5-10 min bodyweight warmups (crunches, pushups ect)
3 sets of chestpress machine
3 sets of cablerows
3 sets of dumbbell rows
3 sets of dumbbell skullcrushers (idk their name haha)
3 sets of tricep push-downs
3 sets of bicepcurls

and then i sometimes do facepulls, benchpress instead of chestpress machine, lat machine (i switch it up with these now and then)

This is what i do about 3 times a week and then i do legs and abs 2-3 times a week at home. And then i have 1-2 restdays

That routine is actually better than a lot of the ones ppl say they do on here, altho if you were going to stick w/ it I'd drop the tricep pushdowns and add lat pulldowns, and possibly switch out the skullcrushers or curls for an overhead press. But the main thing is that if you're not seeing gains and actually losing muscle, I doubt you have a set scheme to progressively overload (increase your weights) every week or so & may not be eating enough. That's how you gain muscle.

I think it's better to switch to a beginner routine from the stickies in the Workout forum or some other site - they'll have guidelines on how to progress and how to push through stalls. If you follow them, you'll see gains.

If you feel you're losing muscle, you may not be eating enough, putting on fat, or you may even be losing fat on your arms and therefore feel like you're losing muscle. Hard to say w/out pics.

[air2fakie]

How do i know how much i need to eat? and how much protein?

How much you need to eat is an individual thing & depends on your goals - you should read the stickies on the Nutrition forum page which have a lot of useful info. For protein - 1g per lb of bodyweight is a general rule of thumb, but some ppl recommend more.

[Rebecca2853]

That routine is actually better than a lot of the ones ppl say they do on here, altho if you were going to stick w/ it I'd drop the tricep pushdowns and add lat pulldowns, and possibly switch out the skullcrushers or curls for an overhead press. But the main thing is that if you're not seeing gains and actually losing muscle, I doubt you have a set scheme to progressively overload (increase your weights) every week or so & may not be eating enough. That's how you gain muscle.

I think it's better to switch to a beginner routine from the stickies in the Workout forum or some other site - they'll have guidelines on how to progress and how to push through stalls. If you follow them, you'll see gains.

If you feel you're losing muscle, you may not be eating enough, putting on fat, or you may even be losing fat on your arms and therefore feel like you're losing muscle. Hard to say w/out pics.

Really? thats really good to know cause i actually like these exercises a lot and would like to keep doing them if it makes sense to do them. But yeah i should probably use the other programs instead then... Its just so hard to find one i like... And my rutine worked in the beginning so i would really love to make it work again. But ofc i wouldnt know how. I have been increasing weight overtime but pretty slowly due to my slow progress. The only increase ive had are these:

Chestpress - started at 15 kg is now on 27
Skullcrushers - started at 7 is now on 9 (not much)
cable row - started at 15 is now at 20-25 depending on the day
bent-over row - started at 7 is now at 12,5 kg
and then ive had some minor progress on the other things as well but not that much.

I really want to do overhead presses but i cant seem to get the form right. My shoulder always ends up hurting. idk why
Would you need both before and after pics to determine if i put on fat or the oposite or is picture from now good enough?

[kimm4]

What an amazing gallery, Kim! Are you going to compete again?

Thank you. I have a long comp history so for me it's more of a, "been there done that." With that being said you never know.

Really? thats really good to know cause i actually like these exercises a lot and would like to keep doing them if it makes sense to do them. But yeah i should probably use the other programs instead then... Its just so hard to find one i like... And my rutine worked in the beginning so i would really love to make it work again. But ofc i wouldnt know how. I have been increasing weight overtime but pretty slowly due to my slow progress. The only increase ive had are these:

Chestpress - started at 15 kg is now on 27
Skullcrushers - started at 7 is now on 9 (not much)
cable row - started at 15 is now at 20-25 depending on the day
bent-over row - started at 7 is now at 12,5 kg
and then ive had some minor progress on the other things as well but not that much.

I really want to do overhead presses but i cant seem to get the form right. My shoulder always ends up hurting. idk why
Would you need both before and after pics to determine if i put on fat or the oposite or is picture from now good enough?

Is there a reason you don't use barbells? Machines have their place but if you want to make some decent gains do more barbell and db work. What ever program you run keep it focused around the heavy compound lifts and throw in a bit of isolation to balance things out. Go heavier and really push yourself out of your comfort zone.

As for you diet you'll need a proper calorie intake based on your goal. Your estimated maintenance should be somewhere around 2100 calories.

[air2fakie]

Really? thats really good to know cause i actually like these exercises a lot and would like to keep doing them if it makes sense to do them. But yeah i should probably use the other programs instead then... Its just so hard to find one i like... And my rutine worked in the beginning so i would really love to make it work again. But ofc i wouldnt know how. I have been increasing weight overtime but pretty slowly due to my slow progress. The only increase ive had are these:

Chestpress - started at 15 kg is now on 27
Skullcrushers - started at 7 is now on 9 (not much)
cable row - started at 15 is now at 20-25 depending on the day
bent-over row - started at 7 is now at 12,5 kg
and then ive had some minor progress on the other things as well but not that much.

I really want to do overhead presses but i cant seem to get the form right. My shoulder always ends up hurting. idk why
Would you need both before and after pics to determine if i put on fat or the oposite or is picture from now good enough?

I suggest you get on a proven novice routine and follow it for 3-6 months or so. That way you'll be forced to progress, push thru stalls, etc. There's no point sticking w/ a routine that's not working or getting backwards results - once you gain some muscle and experience, you can decide whether you want to stick w/ what got you there, move to another proven program, customize your own, etc.

To compare before and after I'd need pics of both since I have no idea what you looked like before. But no pics are necessary unless you want someone else's opinion, the point is you're not happy w/ your results and not making progress. It kind of doesn't matter much what you looked like before or now, since it's all relative to where you want to be.

As mentioned above, you should figure out what your maintenance is. Then look in the mirror - if you want to put on muscle eat at a surplus, if you want to lose fat, eat at a deficit - if you want to try to do both (which can be difficult), you'll hover a little under maintenance and see how your body responds.

Regardless of what you do for diet and training, do it consistently.

[Rebecca2853]

Thank you. I have a long comp history so for me it's more of a, "been there done that." With that being said you never know.



Is there a reason you don't use barbells? Machines have their place but if you want to make some decent gains do more barbell and db work. What ever program you run keep it focused around the heavy compound lifts and throw in a bit of isolation to balance things out. Go heavier and really push yourself out of your comfort zone.

As for you diet you'll need a proper calorie intake based on your goal. Your estimated maintenance should be somewhere around 2100 calories.

Well actually i do about 50% db exercises. As for the barbells its just that i dont know a lot of exercises. I only know the benchpress which i do sometimes. And how do i know if im going heavy enough? I keep hearing people talk about going too hard is bad but i dont know what that sweet spot is.

Yeah okay my goal is pretty much to get stronger and more toned haha. Pretty basic. Btw i dont know if age does any difference but im only 18 haha. For some reason my profile wont save whenever i try. So it keeps saying that im a 49 male but im not aha. just 18 year old girl haha.

[Rebecca2853]

Thank you. I have a long comp history so for me it's more of a, "been there done that." With that being said you never know.



Is there a reason you don't use barbells? Machines have their place but if you want to make some decent gains do more barbell and db work. What ever program you run keep it focused around the heavy compound lifts and throw in a bit of isolation to balance things out. Go heavier and really push yourself out of your comfort zone.

As for you diet you'll need a proper calorie intake based on your goal. Your estimated maintenance should be somewhere around 2100 calories.

Also i dont have anyone i can ask about form so im very careful about bigger compound exercises like deadlift and stuff. Also the benchpress. Ive been doing a few reps of bench here and there but im not 100% sure about my form so i dont wanna go too heavy

[Rebecca2853]

I suggest you get on a proven novice routine and follow it for 3-6 months or so. That way you'll be forced to progress, push thru stalls, etc. There's no point sticking w/ a routine that's not working or getting backwards results - once you gain some muscle and experience, you can decide whether you want to stick w/ what got you there, move to another proven program, customize your own, etc.

To compare before and after I'd need pics of both since I have no idea what you looked like before. But no pics are necessary unless you want someone else's opinion, the point is you're not happy w/ your results and not making progress. It kind of doesn't matter much what you looked like before or now, since it's all relative to where you want to be.

As mentioned above, you should figure out what your maintenance is. Then look in the mirror - if you want to put on muscle eat at a surplus, if you want to lose fat, eat at a deficit - if you want to try to do both (which can be difficult), you'll hover a little under maintenance and see how your body responds.

Regardless of what you do for diet and training, do it consistently.

okay ill try that. Do you have any preograms you recommend? There are so many and i bet there are not equally good

[air2fakie]

okay ill try that. Do you have any preograms you recommend? There are so many and i bet there are not equally good

Fierce 5 and AllPro are two in the stickies that seem to work for ppl - so take a look and see if either seems to be something you'd like to try. Try to stick to the guidelines.

I think you'll also find the Nutrition stickies to be helpful - diet will be just as important whether you're trying to lose fat or gain muscle.

[Rebecca2853]

Fierce 5 and AllPro are two in the stickies that seem to work for ppl - so take a look and see if either seems to be something you'd like to try. Try to stick to the guidelines.

I think you'll also find the Nutrition stickies to be helpful - diet will be just as important whether you're trying to lose fat or gain muscle.

Thank you! ive heard about the fierce 5 so i think ill give it a go