My completely subjective experience with, and advice for, starting a strength training program (as an absolute beginner)

[maria37]

@jordangeneration As a newbie lifter, you can pretty easily gain muscle in a deficit. I'm still making gains after lifting for the majority of two years and being in a deficit most of that time as well.

 

[lifeunlocked]

@jordangeneration I looked up my sedentary maintenance calories for the weight I want to be, and I generally stick to that number plus 100-200 calories on days I am really hungry. I also try to prioritize protein: I aim for 25% of my daily calories to be from protein.

 

[nishan]

@lifeunlocked I love this breakdown! I often get so bogged down by a large goal, especially a vague one like "get fit." But you've broken down your process into such manageable steps.

Do you think you'll stick to PPL for the foreseeable future? Congratulations on all your tremendous projects and thank you for sharing with the community!

 

[lifeunlocked]

@nishan I’m definitely going to stick with my current routine until the end of September. In October I might try out a new one, but for now, even if it isn’t the most perfect and ideal lifting program for a beginner, I want to keep sticking to it, just to cement the habit of lifting 3 times a week.

The app I mentioned has all of the recommended routines I have ever seen in the sidebars of fitness subs programmed into it, so it’s really easy to switch programs, whenever I decide to do it.

 

[nishan]

@lifeunlocked Very cool. Just downloaded the app. Thanks for replying.