Hey /fit/, moron here. I have something that's either a really stupid idea, or a "duh" thing that I should realize without needing to ask.
I'm scrawny as hell, and pretty weak. I've been trying to get stronger, with that sort of being my only focus, because I'm actually all right with my body shape. I like my mobility with how I am and don't really have an interest in getting jacked, I just want to be able to move more weight around. I've only been doing exercises that use heavy weight for low reps, 3x5 and 5x5 ranges for all the basic compound movements.
I don't seem to be putting on any muscle, and I don't seem to be getting any stronger - stuck at the same manageable weights for like a month.
A while ago, I tried doing my friend's program with them just as a social thing. He does a lot of bodybuilding sort of thing, more in it for looks than strength. I found out that when I do the high rep exercises for hypertrophy that I get big really quick, it's just all you know, soft and squishy.
So the question; I know some people talk about bulking that they're going to put on a lot of fat then work out to turn it into muscle. Do I like.. NEED to do the hypertrophy stuff before I can build stronger muscles, or do I just need to keep going at it and try to build that dense, hard muscle over what little bit I already have?
Like I said, either stupid line of thought or obvious yes.
3-5 reps = stronger mostly
8-12 = bigger mostly
More than that = endurance
If you're not getting stronger at those lifts you might have shit form or not enough protein in your diet
>>37823431
Protein is a problem, I know. Vegetarian whose allergic to nuts. All the eggs and pea protein. ;.;
>>37823438
Oh shit, you might need whey powder, my protein comes from chicken nuts and nutrigrain/oats
So is building hypertrophy as a stepping stone to strength not a thing? Because my diet didn't change at all; just my strength efforts have flatlined, and all other things the same switching to lower weight/higher rep was making me get big really fast.
If I was protein lacking (my current diet is 1.25g/lb) wouldn't that halt both aspects?
bump (are you allowed to bump on this board? :x)
>>37823678
No. You're thinking of it all wrong.
Eating more or eating less will only decide if you gain or lose mass.
Lifting weight or not lifting weight will decide whether the mass you gain will be muscle or fat.
Eat A LOT + lift = gain muscle + fat
Eat a little more than needed + lift = gain muscle (slow) and almost no fat
Eat just what needed + lift = body recomposition, that is : lose fat (extremely slow) and gain muscle (extremely slow) - this is only possible if you have some fat already, which you do not.
Eat less than needed + lift = lose mostly fat, but also a little of muscle
Each much less than needed + lift = lose fat very quickly but also lose much muscle.
Now for the difference between high and low rep : If you do high rep, you never get high intensity lifts so your body doesn't get (much) better at lifting heavy.
Lifting with low rep will make you gain muscle just fine. The problem is when you lift low rep but not intensely enough. That means the stimulus on your organism is not as strong as it would have been if you had done lighter weight with more reps. Another problem is that people who lift for strength often don't do accessory exercises (which kind of become mandatory at some point), which also restrict their growth.
It's not that low reps are less efficient at building muscle, it's just that it usually means the trainee doesn't workout as much.
My advice to you : eat more than now. It won't result in the monstrous jacked hypertrophy you're thinking about, 0 chance of that. But it will make you stronger.
Don't change your rep scheme, stick to low reps.
>>37824248
You're right that I don't bother with accessory lifts; I'll ask a friend of mine to help me figure out what I need to add in that regard.
I currently fluctuate between 115 and 120lbs. I'm eating about 2500 calories a day on the days I work out (5/wk), only about 2200 on my off days. Regardless of day, I'm eating 150g protein (mostly from pea powder), and I let my carb/fat ratio for the rest fluctuate because I don't want to be that stressed and was told it didn't really matter.
What do you mean by "lift low rep but not intensely enough"? Are you saying I should add more weight, or focus on explosiveness and speed in the exercises more?
>>37823417
Clean bulk. Look it up.
>>37824393
>lift low rep but not intensely enough
By that I mean that having an intense enough workout by doing 3x3 squats will require you to struggle for every set. And this requires (for me at least) way more willpower than doing 5x5 or 4x8 for instance.
Many weak guys hide behind low rep programs to not actually work their ass off in the gym.
If you do a heavy set of low reps of squats or deadlift, you should be left sweating, because it taxes your metabolism so much.
>>37824393
I'm 5'11', 170lb, 17% bf and I cut on 2800ca,l 7 days a week. Eat more, mate.
>>37824503
What would be the best way to correct this though? Just more weight, or other things that make the same weight more taxing/stressful?
I am usually left sweating from my lifts, but not shaking or literally dripping/leaving a river in my wake.
Right now my bench (for my workout pn 5x5 days, not 1rm or anything) is 95, squat 155, deadlift 225, overhead press 65. I know, weak af.
>>37824566
Literally eat more, seriously. Your body needs a fuel tank other than your stomach to be efficient.
Key to hypertrophy is total volume, whether that comes in low reps, high intensity or moderate weight, moderate intensity. So lifting 100 lbs 8 times should give you the same hypertrophic effect as lifting 200 lbs 4 times. Low reps high weight will get you stronger, since strength is an adaptation to heavy loads, but doing moderate (bodybuilding) rep ranges will allow you to accumulate more volume with less stress.
>>37824600
It's so hard to eat though. I'm forcing down what I'm already eating every day, my least meal of the day makes me feel like I'm about to throw up. :(
(my captcha was food @.@)
>>37824947
Just eat a little more at a time. You'll never stick to your current diet if it's as difficult to keep up with as you make it seem. Cut back to a baseline of ~2000 kcal on your off days, then slowly increase your intake by adding 100 calories or so a week to your daily intake. In 6 weeks, you'll be more thoroughly accustomed to eating more.
