I cannot gain muscle, no matter what I do

[allysmiles3]

@moxieb I think I need a goal weight, because if I continue at the current rate for the next 40 pounds, I will have gained 80 pounds of mostly fat.

Is there no chart that more accurately represents what weight lifters should be at, relative to their height, to bench 225, for instance?

 

[moxieb]

@allysmiles3 Most people gain fat when they gain muscle. I'm suggesting that it's hard for most people, and likely impossible for you, to get stronger while staying thin. It hasn't worked for you to gain some fat and some muscle. So, try going all in.

If you want to set an arbitrary weight to stop and check in because you feel you need to, I think that's fine. If you hit 225 while being as consistent with training as you're reporting, I suggest that you will be stronger.

Strength standards don't really apply to your situation because you are not competing, nor are you comparing yourself to others. The question is very simple here: you are hypothesizing that it is impossible for you to both gain muscle and to get stronger. The control here is you, right now at 150 lbs. The variable would be you, six months from now, at 200 pounds (or 225 or whatever).

Height is irrelevant to strength standards in general, even if we were looking at them. If you're curious about what is considered a "good lift" at a particular bodyweight, you can check out strengthlevel.com. for what it's worth, your proposed 187 bench press at 150 bodyweight would put you in the intermediate class. If it is in fact 160, you would be in the novice class.

ETA: I looked at the form check videos you posted a year back. There is no perceptible bracing in any of them. Has your bracing improved? Watch this:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL92BxTOBNaZB9df3ckfE9uTmH5io3lLs0&si=tFo-s_BS9EzrczaY

 

[allysmiles3]

@moxieb i am 185 bodyweight. not 150.

I definitley brace on my squat. maybe it's not visible in those videos or maybe i wasn't always so good at it.

> height is irrelevant

how could this be the case? a 6 foot guy and a 5 foot guy who weigh the same would be expected to lift the same?

 

[karalea11]

@moxieb If he only puts on fat and not muscle when he gains weight, would gaining weight do any good? (Serious question btw. Maybe weight gain can help strength for some reason other than adding muscle?)

 

[moxieb]

@karalea11 Most people need to gain fat concurrently with muscle. I suspect that OP just has a higher fat to muscle ratio than most. He probably has to gain a lot of weight to gain relatively little muscle and strength. But if he gains enough weight while on any good program, he will certainly get stronger.

Comparing self to others is a recipe for disappointment.

Compromising the main goal to try to accomplish others concurrently will lead to slow--or no--results.