48M kind of disappointed in 2-years' gym progress. Maybe I need some help

@dekaewaii Thanks! I guess where I'm most disappointed in results is the lack of change in size in my chest, arms, legs. I know my body fat is high, and I know why that is. It's the lack of muscle growth that has me flustered.
 
@nowhereman Do you have a smart watch? If you do you should measure your heart rate while you are training. Honestly 90 min of training 5 days a week is overkill. Condense your 90 min to 60 min, and keep your heart rate up. Chances are you aren’t working out as hard as you think. Look up reps in reserve.

Eat more protein, less fat. If you want to lose fat you need to know what you are putting in your body. It’s super easy to misjudge your calories if you simply eye ball your portion sizes. The average American has a shit diet, so if that’s your baseline for comparison you need to raise the bar.

You can easily achieve a body recomp in 6 months, your diet is your biggest issue.
 
@nowhereman Hey - I'm no expert but I've had similar frustrations. I don't go to the gym as much as you. I typically lift weights twice a week and then mostly run. I've really upped my lifts when I do go to the gym over the last couple of years... but when I look around the gym I see guys who lift lighter than me look way more muscled.

I think it's bodyfat %. In order to see the muscles I'm going to try to cut my weight a bit. Not sure if it's the same for you, as I say I'm no expert, but that is my thinking.
 
@nowhereman Aside from the program issues noted, in terms of not necessarily aligning with your goals, I'd say to just cut some weight. Any muscle you may have developed is not going to be that visible and losing some weight can make a huge difference in terms of looking like you lift weight.
 
@nowhereman Take it from another man who’s been in the gym for 3 years working out hard. As you did.. the only thing that made the difference for me was. Focusing on my protein.. for the 3 years of working out. I didn’t prioritize shit.. I tried to diet or lose weight but never prioritized protein.. so when I did lose weight I also lost muscle along with fat.. after 3 years I decided to prioritize my protein and it’s made the biggest change in my physique and makes my muscles noticeably bigger and my fat is actually going away..

I’m 41 btw

I do focus on trying to get consistent sleep 8-9 hours a day now.. my diet is on point and I workout 4-5 days a week
 
@nowhereman Find out what your macro nutrient goals are

And calculate it then do a 500 caloric deficit but out of anythjng else make sure you walkways hit that goal

Let’s say you are 200lbs you can calculate either .8gm of protein per lb or 1gm per lb you should be eating every day..

Always hit that number and decrease your fat intake and keep carbs reasonable
 
@nowhereman Switch up your training style. You've been doing strength programs with average or below average genetics a minimalist strength training approach isn't going to give you the results you want. I lifted for around two years and made decent progress taking a similar approach to you. I did ask the big lifts in my garage gym. Over the passed year I switched up to a more Bodybuilding style of training and the progress has been great. I'll be 40 this year so I'm no young buck by any means. The YouTube channel Basement Bodybuilding really changed my perspective on bodybuilding. The dude was putting up near elite numbers on all the big lifts and although he looked athletic he still struggled to look like someone who definitely lifts. Agree switching up his approach he made a lot of progress. I've tried the same thing and had similar results. I also have young kids so I've done this in pretty short sessions around 45mins each. I've been going longer on lower body days lately though.
 
@nowhereman I'd look into Mike Israetel and Renaissance Periodization on YouTube or the aforementioned Basement Bodybuilding. Renaissance Periodization has the RP Training App or RP fitness app. I forget what it's called but there's a sparsely populated sub on it. It's the only fitness app I think I'd trust. I plan on getting it next time I hit a plateau but I've been having a lot of success with my current routine that I've developed over the years. My main constraints are garage gym equipment and time so finding a program that meets both of those things can be a little hard.
 
@nowhereman If you don’t get your diet in order, especially at 48 you just aren’t going to see the results you want. In your 20’s maybe you can out work a shitty diet, but those days are long gone brother. You gotta dial in the diet if you want to see the progress you want.
 
@nowhereman I’m the same age, but I’ve been training for hypertrophy for yonks
12 reps at 50% for warmup, then 10 reps at 60-70, 8 at 70, 6 at 80% and if there’s anything left in the tank - 4 at whatever I can manage. Increase reps by one every time you cycle that routine. Increase weight then reset the reps every 4-5 weeks

Gains are so slow, but endurance is great. I’ve started booking a trainer once a week for form check and routine update

Don’t forget cardio and legs. I still try and do a trail run or outdoor run once or twice a week, but if I’ve over stressed the legs, then I will just do a couple of assault bike or treadmill sessions to keep the heart rate up at high levels.

… but the sucky part is ditching beer 4-5 days a week, sugary drinks pretty much ever, and watching the macros.
 
@nowhereman I was basing it off 1RM but I’ve far exceeded that now for most exercises like cleans and bench - but back squats have stagnated at 110kg. I’m not too worried about that - I’ve got a deformed cam joint and a bit of spinal arthritis so I’ll always struggle with that one
 
@nowhereman I'm 50m spent years in the gym getting nowhere.(started training at 15) I have degrees in sports science and in nutrition so should know what I was doing. Strength went up like you, but I didn't look like I lifted.

Went to see Dr and asked to be tested for low testosterone and my numbers came back half the lowest end of range. I'm in UK so took almost a year of testing before I was put on TRT. Now on lowest dose and actually been seeing results in the gym , 3 months in, I now look like I've put some effort in at the gym. My T numbers show I now have average levels. Not super high, or even high, but average.

Not saying you have low T or it's the answer for everyone, but it may be worth getting tested, especially if you have any other symptoms.
 
@kimmac23 I hadn’t thought of this before, but I take Sertraline. It’s apparently known to adversely affect testosterone levels, so maybe that’s part of the problem.
 
@nowhereman You've clearly added some muscle mass in these two years. Awesome work!

Based on what you've said I suspect it's your diet that's holding you back for achieving the progress you'd like to see.

Likely culprits:

- too little protein

- too many calories. Especially calories with little to no nutrients (e.g. alcohol, processed foods)

I almost always recommend focusing first on fat loss. Get to a healthy bf%, then focus on building muscle. For 2 main reasons:

- Losing the excess fat is a very easy thing to see and track. This gets a big win under your belt early in your fitness journey

- Being leaner puts you in the most productive state to build muscle
 
@nowhereman From being in exactly the same space….. If I bulked I got fat, if I cut I got scrawny. Great diet, good program hard work.

How is your mental state? Focus/drive?

Get your bloods checked. I’m betting on low/mid range T.
 
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