r/Gymhelp

Hi everyone!! I am 21F and have been lifting rather inconsistently for the past 5 years. I have taken about a month and a half away from the gym due to sickness and I am looking to get back into it this week, I feel like I’ve forgotten everything I’ve ever known about lifting and working out….
Any tips on how to ease back into it? I’m nervous and not sure where to start.
What type of split would you suggest to someone beginning again?
TIA ;)

I'm a 24-year-old male, 5'10" (178 cm), currently weighing 80 kg.

I started going to the gym in February this year and have been training consistently ever since. I work out 5 days a week and have rarely missed a session unless something urgent came up. For the last two months, I've also been taking whey protein and creatine.

My primary goal is fat loss, especially around my belly and chest, as those areas seem particularly stubborn.

I follow an Arnold split: Chest + Back, Arms, and Legs.

I'm not a huge fan of cardio, but I still do a 20-minute incline treadmill walk after every workout except leg day.

I've definitely become much stronger over the past few months and have been progressively overloading my lifts consistently. However, I haven't seen much change on the scale—I started at 85 kg and now weigh 80 kg.

This is the part I feel I have the least control over.

I work from home as a software engineer, so I rarely eat outside or consume junk food. I've also completely cut out sweets and intentionally avoid sugar; it's been over 6 months since I last had any.

Most of my meals are home-cooked, and I generally eat relatively small portions. I don't weigh my food, but I don't think I overeat.

A typical day looks like this:

Pre-workout (6 AM): I usually train on an empty stomach because I don't feel like eating that early. Occasionally, I'll have a banana.

Post-workout: Whey protein with sprouts.

Breakfast: 2 eggs.

Lunch: A small portion of rice with home-cooked vegetables.

Evening snack: A cup of black coffee.

Dinner: 1 roti with sabji.

That's pretty much my routine every day.

Given all this, I'm struggling to understand what I'm might be missing. I feel like I'm doing most things right, yet the stubborn fat around my belly and chest isn't going away as much as I'd expected.

I'd really appreciate hearing from people with more experience. Is there something obvious I'm overlooking, or any changes you'd recommend to make my fat-loss journey more effective?

Used chatgpt to rearrange the thoughts and readability.

Hi everyone,

I started working out back in 2023 and consistent for about a year. I then took a long break, but I’m finally planning to hit the gym again.

I’m a bit confused about supplements this time around. During my first year of working out, I didn't see much muscle growth or physical progress. Because of that, I'm wondering: should I start taking protein powder right away?

Also, if I do decide to take it, should I buy it directly from my gym trainer/owner, or is it better to research and buy a trusted brand online/from a supplement store on my own? I just want to make sure I focus on my workouts and get the best results this time.

Would love some advice on what steps I should take.

Thanks!

How Much Do You Know About Diet and Fitness? Answer these 10 Questions>> https://www.myhealthfuldiet.com/

https://preview.redd.it/bv9q8oah5dah1.jpg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=08559f89145a0985430febdf67e25a13a614158b

How do you take small creatine ammounts with yout while traveling (air travel)? Having a small transparent plastic contairer with creating inside looks far from nice?

Any suggestion?

Hey, so I’ve been going to the gym for a long time but have always struggled training legs.

I’ve been trying to hack squat but can’t for the life of me fix the knee pain or pressure I feel on my knees when squatting. I’ve tried a lower narrow stance, a middle white stance and a super high up wide stance and nothing works. I always point my toes out slightly too. Any advice would help a lot.

I had to stop using the leg extension machine too as the heavier I got, even with good form, my knees would be shot.

As a beginner in the gym (F21), I feel really bad/guilty on the days I don’t exercise/gym or hit my step count (usually due to work commitments). Even though my body is tired and I genuinely don’t have the time, I feel terrible about it. Logically I know you can’t go to the gym everyday, but it makes me feel uncommitted or lazy. Does anyone else experience this? How do you combat it?

Hey!

I need some help in creating a routine/fixing the routines I written down below. I feel somewhat lost when I look online and kinda get overwhelmed by all of the different options out there. Currently I'm quite unsure if my routines are somewhat good for the goals I have in mind: A leaner physique with a V-taper, defined and bigger chest, wider shoulders and back as well as and thicker arms. When it comes to legs I don't really care that much about them. I do want some muscle mass to em but not MASSIVE ones.

I am currently following 3 different routines - 2 for upper and 1 for lower body.

Upper A
- Incline bench press (smith machine) 3x10-12
- Lat pulldown (cable preferably - sometimes machine) 3x12
- Seated cable row with Bar grip - 3x12
- Cable fly 2x10
- Triceps rope pushdown - 3x12
- Hammer curl - 3x12
- Lateral raises - 3x12
- Rear delt reverse fly (cable) 2x10- 2x10

Upper B
- Pull up 3 sets to failure
- Incline bench press (smith machine) 3x10-12
- Bench press flat / chest press machine 2x12
- Seated cable row with V-grip 3x10
- shoulder press (machine/dumbbells) 3x12
- Single arm tricep pushdown 3x12
- bicep curl 3x12
- Lateral raises 3x12
- Reverse curl 2x10 (optional one i do from time to time)
- Rear delt reverse fly (cable) 2x10

Leg routine
- Squat (barebell/smith machine) 3x10
- Romanian deadlift/regular deadlift (barebell) 3x10
- Hip thrust 3x10
- Seated leg curl 2x12
- Leg extension 3x15-20 (Got a recommendation to do higher reps and lower weight due to an old injury acting up)

That's about it!