What am i doing wrong?

[Mysterion27]

Ok guys, Clearly iam doing something very wrong!! To cut a long story short. I began training just before christmas. I didnt do much lifting, It was mostly crossfit type workouts and while i lost a significant amount of fat, i felt i wanted to start focusing on strength and building some mass so in February i started following all pro's routine and since then i have done very little cardio so fat loss has slowed considerably, In fact i have arguably maintained my weight since then judging by both pictures although iam pretty sure the scales was going down slowly but i havent weighed myself in 4 weeks so who knows! It certainly doesnt look like i have lost any weight since beginning all pro's and that would be ok IF i was at least adding some mass but thats the problem. I look identical now to when i started lifting in February. There has been no change what so ever which is quiet demoralising given that i have trained 3 x a week for the past 2 and a half months and iam eating good 95% of the time so iam at a loss as to why iam seeing no change?

The first pic was taken about 2 weeks into all pro's and the 'now' pic was taken last week so theres about 2 months between pics yet no change! Ironically in those 2 months my Squat is up 10kg and so is my Bench by 10kg

Diet wise i eat between 180 - 200g of protein a day , I cycle carbs to around 150 on training days and less on rest days and i get between 60 - 70g of fat

I understand 2 months is not a long time but i should surely see some improvement especially if iam a newbie

[mavajo]

i havent weighed myself in 4 weeks so who knows!

Ugh. How about you weigh yourself first before you start a thread freaking out about how it's not working?

You look leaner in the second picture, IMO.

[Mysterion27]

Ugh. How about you weigh yourself first before you start a thread freaking out about how it's not working?

You look leaner in the second picture, IMO.

Lol but isnt weight kinda irrelevant ? Shouldnt i see a change in muscle size, not much of course but noticeable anyway? Surprised you think iam leaner in the second pic , For 2 months progress ... especially as a newb, i would have expected more!

[mavajo]

Lol but isnt weight kinda irrelevant ? Shouldnt i see a change in muscle size, not much of course but noticeable anyway? Surprised you think iam leaner in the second pic , For 2 months progress ... especially as a newb, i would have expected more!

No, you're not going to experience significant hypertrophy in a calorie deficit.

[Mysterion27]

No, you're not going to experience significant hypertrophy in a calorie deficit.

Even as a newb? .. Maybe thats where iam goin wrong, maybe my expectations are too high? I constantly read how newbs can gain size in a deficit let alone i see transformation pics here where guys go from fat/skinny to pretty buff in just 3 months and iam like wow

[mavajo]

Even as a newb? .. Maybe thats where iam goin wrong, maybe my expectations are too high? I constantly read how newbs can gain size in a deficit let alone i see transformation pics here where guys go from fat/skinny to pretty buff in just 3 months and iam like wow

You may gain some muscle as a newbie, despite the calorie deficit - but it's not going to be anything significant. And certainly nothing you would be able to see after only two months. Even in a calorie surplus, you're only looking at 4-6 lbs of muscle mass gained over a two month period under ideal conditions - and that's assuming you've got your diet and lifting program dialed in.

I agree with what you said in your last post - your expectations are probably unreasonable.

[sevenhm]

Lol but isnt weight kinda irrelevant ? Shouldnt i see a change in muscle size, not much of course but noticeable anyway? Surprised you think iam leaner in the second pic , For 2 months progress ... especially as a newb, i would have expected more!

Noob gains are blown out of proportion. Age is another factor. Imo you look pretty much the same besides the posture and distance in the picture. You're calculating your calories/macros wrong, or you're barely at a deficit. If anything you said you gained some strength but you see no visible change you're probably eating at your "maintenance". Pick a goal you either want to lose weight or you want to gain muscle you can't do both effectively. And you didn't make your long story short.

[Mysterion27]

Noob gains are blown out of proportion. Age is another factor. Imo you look pretty much the same besides the posture and distance in the picture. You're calculating your calories/macros wrong, or you're barely at a deficit. If anything you said you gained some strength but you see no visible change you're probably eating at your "maintenance". Pick a goal you either want to lose weight or you want to gain muscle you can't do both effectively. And you didn't make your long story short.

Haha i rambled on, sorry! To be fair , its likely that iam eating at maintenance because since i stopped all the intense cardio i was doing prior... weight loss seems to have come to a hault and because i am very inactive , its hard to eat in a deficit without starving myself! I really need to start walking more, maybe jogging for 20-30 mins on rest days etc Iam sure that would at least help the fat come off a little quicker!! I just hope that iam gaining muscle even if its negligible, To know iam on the right track is whats most important to me

[andrewlef]

This is at least the third thread you've posted about the exact same thing. And very recently too.

Building a good physique takes time, dedication, patience and hard work. Did I mention it takes time? Time measured in months and years, not days and weeks. Lift heavy and keep your diet in check. And post about something else now and then.

[Ataraxic]

This is at least the third thread you've posted about the exact same thing. And very recently too.

Building a good physique takes time, dedication, patience and hard work. Did I mention it takes time? Time measured in months and years, not days and weeks. Lift heavy and keep your diet in check. And post about something else now and then.

Noticed that, too. Starting to think he's trolling.

[Mysterion27]

Noticed that, too. Starting to think he's trolling.

The other threads were similar but were not asking the exact same question ;-) Dont let it bother you pal

[upchuck1383]

Sounds like you have zero goals. Define what you want and set a goal. IE add 50# to squat and deadlift, or achieve 12% body fat, whatever it may be. Then set up a plan to work towards that goal. If you are truly eating at maintanence and can't handle eating less then you need to do more work. If you don't know what that specific number is you have a lot of work to do. Pick a goal, read up on others doing the same thing and make a PLAN.

[Ataraxic]

The other threads were similar but were not asking the exact same question ;-) Dont let it bother you pal

So, you acknowledge the threads are similar, yet you keep making them on a daily basis? That's alarming.