workout routine with minimal gains

[AlexJolive]

hey folks,

I've implemented a new weights routine and have noticed minimal changes so think its time to ask for some insights about what i might be doing wrong.

I'm 167cm tall, 31 years old and 70kgs

I've always been scrawny and in the low-mid 60kgs, having done 10+ hours of cardio a week for the last few years.
I bought a barbell and started the below routine 3 months ago after cutting out my cardio, along with upping my calories by consuming mass gainer daily, with the hope of gaining some muscle mass.
Unfortunately so far the only gains i seem to have made have been subcutaneous fat, and minimal muscle change. I'm now at 70kgs, and id like to pack on some muscle.

I do this on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturday or Sunday for a total of 3 days per week.
I rest for 1 minute 30 seconds in between each set.
Ive upped the weight on each exercise by between 5 - 7 kilos since i started and added 2 reps to each as well

weighted lunge 43kg - 20 reps - 3 sets
bent over row 35kg - 14 reps - 3 sets
shoulder press 30kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
upright row 30kg - 30 reps - 3 sets
bicep curls 30kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
squat clean 35kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
bench press 43kg - 10 reps - 3 sets


Any feedback on what i might be doing wrong would be really helpful. id love to not be the skinny guy anymore.

thanks,
Alex

[SuffolkPunch]

To be blunt, the main mistake was trying to make your own routine. There are many pitfalls that novices always fall into. Whenever I see a novice made routine, the emphasis is always on "split", exercise selection and choice of reps. And it usually ignores underlying principles of progressive overload - or just pays lip service to it ("I increase weights when I can")

You've added a few kg in 3 months but if you ran (say) Fierce 5, it would have you upping the weight used every week. This is the key to progress when you are a novice.

Making your own routine will be something to consider doing in the future - but before that my advice is to use a ready made one and observe and learn how it does what it does.

[screaminggoat67]

hey folks,

I've implemented a new weights routine and have noticed minimal changes so think its time to ask for some insights about what i might be doing wrong.

I'm 167cm tall, 31 years old and 70kgs

I've always been scrawny and in the low-mid 60kgs, having done 10+ hours of cardio a week for the last few years.
I bought a barbell and started the below routine 3 months ago after cutting out my cardio, along with upping my calories by consuming mass gainer daily, with the hope of gaining some muscle mass.
Unfortunately so far the only gains i seem to have made have been subcutaneous fat, and minimal muscle change. I'm now at 70kgs, and id like to pack on some muscle.

I do this on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturday or Sunday for a total of 3 days per week.
I rest for 1 minute 30 seconds in between each set.
Ive upped the weight on each exercise by between 5 - 7 kilos since i started and added 2 reps to each as well

weighted lunge 43kg - 20 reps - 3 sets
bent over row 35kg - 14 reps - 3 sets
shoulder press 30kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
upright row 30kg - 30 reps - 3 sets
bicep curls 30kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
squat clean 35kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
bench press 43kg - 10 reps - 3 sets


Any feedback on what i might be doing wrong would be really helpful. id love to not be the skinny guy anymore.

thanks,
Alex

To be honest bro when it comes to gaining muscle genetics are everything if you have bad genetics it does not matter how hard you train you will never be jacked and I'm not saying this to be mean I'm just telling you the truth hard work can only get you so far you also need to have great genetics to be jacked

[SuffolkPunch]

To be honest bro when it comes to gaining muscle genetics are everything if you have bad genetics it does not matter how hard you train you will never be jacked and I'm not saying this to be mean I'm just telling you the truth hard work can only get you so far you also need to have great genetics to be jacked

This might be true if you want to be a champion bodybuilder or strength athlete. But for the average guy who wants to look good naked, pretty much anyone can achieve that with the right knowledge and mental fortitude.

Sounds like you've given up before you've started...

[paulinkansas]

What Suffolk said. Your program is similar to the Fierce 5 program. It's in the stickies up there ^^^. Try following that routine and its progression and I think you will see some results quicker than you would if you follow your current routine.

And 3 months of lifting is just scratching the surface, so to speak. Most of the knowledgable people on here measure their time of lifting in increments of years. You've got the rest of your life ahead of you. Lift on.

[TolerantLactose]

Ive upped the weight on each exercise by between 5 - 7 kilos since i started and added 2 reps to each as well

weighted lunge 43kg - 20 reps - 3 sets
bent over row 35kg - 14 reps - 3 sets
shoulder press 30kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
upright row 30kg - 30 reps - 3 sets
bicep curls 30kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
squat clean 35kg - 10 reps - 3 sets
bench press 43kg - 10 reps - 3 sets

Never mind that this selection of exercises is not one I would recommend, if you can perform 10+ reps for 3 sets at a weight, why are you not pushing weight progression more aggressively? A 5-7 kg increase should happen in the first few weeks, not the first few months at those weights and as a beginner.

[CommitmentRulz]

This might be true if you want to be a champion bodybuilder or strength athlete. But for the average guy who wants to look good naked, pretty much anyone can achieve that with the right knowledge and mental fortitude.

Sounds like you've given up before you've started...

This, without a doubt! ^^^^

[AlexJolive]

To be blunt, the main mistake was trying to make your own routine. There are many pitfalls that novices always fall into. Whenever I see a novice made routine, the emphasis is always on "split", exercise selection and choice of reps. And it usually ignores underlying principles of progressive overload - or just pays lip service to it ("I increase weights when I can")

You've added a few kg in 3 months but if you ran (say) Fierce 5, it would have you upping the weight used every week. This is the key to progress when you are a novice.

Making your own routine will be something to consider doing in the future - but before that my advice is to use a ready made one and observe and learn how it does what it does.

thank you for the feedback. theres such an overwhelming and sometimes conflicting amount of information out there that i've gotten off to a rocky start. I originally did this workout based on a youtube video workout i adopted, its been some time since i watched it though so I'm not sure i could find the link again to post it here.

having looked through the fierce 5 routine it doesn't look as if ill be able to do some of the exercises as I'm restricted by only having a barbell. Trying to buy the necessary additional weights in London at the moment has proven tricky.
do you have any recommendations for a barbell or barbell/bodyweight routine?

[SuffolkPunch]

Try All Pros routine - that works with just a barbell.

A key part is the progression plan. All Pro seems slow at first but it will crank up relentlessly after a few weeks.

If something doesn't make sense then ask on the forum. There should be no debate about the need for progressive overload - anything that says different should probably be avoided like the plague.