Where are my gains part deux

[Ckdjim]

Hey all. It’s been awhile since I’ve posted so I’ll get everybody up to date. 45 yo in December, current weight and height..268/80” also type 2 diabetic controlled with meds. I’ve been lifting for a year now, first started with Starting Strength then Fierce 5. I had to take a month off in August due to wife’s surgery, work, etc. I’ve gotten slowly back into it but am now trying a power hypertrophy UL 4 day split. So here’s my questions..
1. When I came back after my month off I’d lost a lot on my 1RM. They were all pretty much at a stand still before my break but getting back it seemed like it was hard to even bench my old reps weight. What happened?
2. Except for a little bit of noticeable muscle in my bis and tris and losing a few lbs of bw I can tell no difference in my body at all. No pecs, still have same legs, just me with a bicep I can see when I flex it otherwise it’s just a normal arm. Why do I have such a hard time with this? Dr says everything checks out great except my sugar levels are around 7.1 and he wants them around 6.5. Shouldn’t I be seeing more than this after a year of x5 programming?

[ironwill2008]

Hey all. It’s been awhile since I’ve posted so I’ll get everybody up to date. 45 yo in December, current weight and height..268/80” also type 2 diabetic controlled with meds. I’ve been lifting for a year now, first started with Starting Strength then Fierce 5. I had to take a month off in August due to wife’s surgery, work, etc. I’ve gotten slowly back into it but am now trying a power hypertrophy UL 4 day split. So here’s my questions..
1. When I came back after my month off I’d lost a lot on my 1RM. They were all pretty much at a stand still before my break but getting back it seemed like it was hard to even bench my old reps weight. What happened?
2. Except for a little bit of noticeable muscle in my bis and tris and losing a few lbs of bw I can tell no difference in my body at all. No pecs, still have same legs, just me with a bicep I can see when I flex it otherwise it’s just a normal arm. Why do I have such a hard time with this? Dr says everything checks out great except my sugar levels are around 7.1 and he wants them around 6.5. Shouldn’t I be seeing more than this after a year of x5 programming?

Based on your post history, you jump from one program to another, and you lack nutritional discipline.

Review all the advice you've previously received in your past threads.

[Ckdjim]

Based on your post history, you jump from one program to another, and you lack nutritional discipline.

Review all the advice you've previously received in your past threads.

That’s the thing. I stuck to a program (Fierce 5) for 9 months and not a thing to show. I read about eating to gain muscle but how the heck am I supposed to do that when I’m trying to get my blood sugars back down? Man I’m trying! I’ve worked out even when I haven’t felt like it. I’ve followed F5 until I was just like this isn’t working! Now I don’t know whether to bulk, cut, or what to do. I try to follow everyone’s advice but it doesn’t work for me. I’ll admit I need to get my diet to low carb and dr wants me to lose some weight, so how do I do that and gain muscle? How do I do heavy compound lift programs when my middle age joints suck? Everyone seems to say stick with the program but at what point do you realize the particular program ain’t working? I’m not trying to rant but I’m at my wits end here.

[ElrondHubbard]

That’s the thing. I stuck to a program (Fierce 5) for 9 months and not a thing to show. I read about eating to gain muscle but how the heck am I supposed to do that when I’m trying to get my blood sugars back down? Man I’m trying! I’ve worked out even when I haven’t felt like it. I’ve followed F5 until I was just like this isn’t working! Now I don’t know whether to bulk, cut, or what to do. I try to follow everyone’s advice but it doesn’t work for me. I’ll admit I need to get my diet to low carb and dr wants me to lose some weight, so how do I do that and gain muscle? How do I do heavy compound lift programs when my middle age joints suck? Everyone seems to say stick with the program but at what point do you realize the particular program ain’t working? I’m not trying to rant but I’m at my wits end here.

Why are you eating to gain muscle when your primary problem is diabetes? Get that damn blood sugar under control, lose weight, get healthy. Only then can you expect a healthy response to weight training.

[CommitmentRulz]

Any muscle you've gained in hiding under a layer of fat. Your health issues should direct your diet until that is under control or taken care of. I'm surprised that you're surprised you lifts suffered significantly after taking a month off. (I hope your wife is doing well.)

[ironwill2008]

That’s the thing. I stuck to a program (Fierce 5) for 9 months and not a thing to show. I read about eating to gain muscle but how the heck am I supposed to do that when I’m trying to get my blood sugars back down? Man I’m trying! I’ve worked out even when I haven’t felt like it. I’ve followed F5 until I was just like this isn’t working! Now I don’t know whether to bulk, cut, or what to do. I try to follow everyone’s advice but it doesn’t work for me. I’ll admit I need to get my diet to low carb and dr wants me to lose some weight, so how do I do that and gain muscle? How do I do heavy compound lift programs when my middle age joints suck? Everyone seems to say stick with the program but at what point do you realize the particular program ain’t working? I’m not trying to rant but I’m at my wits end here.

Your medical issues---and the orders of your attending physician---will supersede anything you read on this website. If you feel your problem is with your nutrition, you need to have this discussion with your doc. I, for one, would certainly never attempt to provide nutrition advice for a diabetic.




Good luck.

[Ckdjim]

[QUOTE=ironwill2008;1563658421]Your medical issues---and the orders of your attending physician---will supersede anything you read on this website. If you feel your problem is with your nutrition, you need to have this discussion with your doc. I, for one, would certainly never attempt to provide nutrition advice for a diabetic.

I understand you guys are trying to help. I know my diets crappy. I’m thinking of starting over from square one but with a low carb diet. At this stage of over a year in would it hurt to start SS from the beginning to get my lifts back up? Or is there a certain point where SS should be ditched for a UL or PPL

[EjnarKolinkar]

They were all pretty much at a stand still before my break but getting back it seemed like it was hard to even bench my old reps weight. What happened?

You took a full month completely off training and became somewhat de-trained. One coudl reduce that effect by doing something instead of nothing. Even if one only does one placeholder workout a week strength loss will be reduced. Similarly if one could get 2 workouts done in a week one would tend to retain more strength. A simple approach of big bang for the buck compounds can be very effective during these periods. Something to consider going forward, as problems interfering with training are somewhat common.

At this stage of over a year in would it hurt to start SS from the beginning to get my lifts back up? Or is there a certain point where SS should be ditched for a UL or PPL

It's a common practice to start with something basic and frequent to get lifts back up after a period of no training. Would depend on how much you lost on your lifts and how fast your are getting them back on the U/L split. Changing programs can become a habit, so watch out for that whatever you decide about training.

[drkelly74]

I'm not a doctor, but I would think priority 1 should be losing some fat down to a healthy level by eating healthy and doing cardio.

[OldFartTom]

Nicer biceps or having healthy eyes. What's your priority on body parts?

If your doc says you should lose weight, then you should lose weight. Why are you even asking about this?

Maybe... just maybe after the diet you might gain muscle more easily (insulin and muscle growth have a relationship) as the muscles may be more sensitive to it. But back to eyes versus biceps, just do as your doc tells you.