r/rs_fitness

So I’m currently working on my body from a hospitalization for extreme muscle loss and blood loss. But I’m now fully recovered after half a year- and have been advised to grow some muscles and normalize working out-
But I have a goal of achieving a more muscular built and be generally a lot stronger, and looking stronger for that matter. I have a dream of being buff and it has been a dream for me for years. And I’m finally ready to try to get to that level now.
I’ve been going to the gym about 5x a week, doing some cardio and strength training every time. There has been no problems and I am feeling sm greater and stronger. I’ve gained weight and probably muscles too, I eat on a surplus and I continue to recover-
But today was the nightmare to come.
A person from the gym staff said they wanted to talk to be in their office, and they had something serious to discuss. I was a little taken aback but I followed.
When we sat down and started to chat she got right in to the point of accusing me of being too “underweight and working out WAY too much at the gym”, she said I’m there too often and that she doesn’t want to see me there anymore unless she got phone contact with my doctors, certificate of my recovery and my status.
And if I don’t want to- they will permanently ban me from all the gyms of theirs in my country. And she said that she doesn’t want to see me check in at the gym anymore cause she doesn’t want to feel like she’s responsible if I’m actually going downhill.

The gym has been such a motivation for me and it has strengthened me as a person and made my life a lot easier and funnier. I love seeing the progress and feel my best. Now I really don’t know what to do. I feel hopeless and sad. I’ve lost everything I’ve been working for. I really don’t know what I shall do, everything is fcked rn. I have my life and I hate this whole situation.
All because of my looks and past.

I’m so tired.

Edit: I’ve been going to this gym for 2+ months very often, no issues and no comments. I’ve gained almost 5 kgs and is over the normal weight limit- and actually gained 20+ kgs since April from my bedridden hospitalization- which they now advice me to build muscle since I was bedridden for such a long time and gained 2 kgs per week there- without ANY movement - I was even in a wheelchair. And this lady in the reception- I’ve only seen her 3 times… under all of these times I’ve been there. And no other staff have said anything bc I’m just building my body and doing my own business. I’m ready to take this next level just bc this specific girl thought I looked skinny and assumed I was sick….
I’m not sick, and the gym keeps me going. I wasn’t able to walk just some months ago, I couldn’t even get out of bed. Now I’m here doing cardio (like 20 mins incline walks) and workout with machines the rest of the time, with dumbbells too etc. No hard stuff, just learning the techniques and learning how to control my own body and muscles.

I've been lifting weights seriously for about 7 years. My friends think of me as the "fit one" and will occasionally solicit workout advice from me, which they usually don't take anyway lol but it's all good.

Anyway lately I've had multiple people ask me for advice about starting creatine. These are friends who average <1 day/week at the gym, some who maybe only go 1x/month or whatever. A friend who I know for a fact does 0 resistance training was just texting me a bunch of questions about what type of creatine she should buy, what time of day she should take it, etc. I politely answered her questions and told her what I do. I stopped short of telling her that with her current (lack of) routine, creatine is not going to have much noticeable effect and she should probably start by just making the gym a more regular habit first before she starts tinkering with supplements. That felt kinda rude to say so I left it off but it's the truth, no?

I guess creatine is basically harmless and if you add it to your routine even if you don't do resistance training, it's not going to hurt. And maybe you'll still get some of the cognitive benefits? But I feel like the real answer is, go to the gym and lift weights following some kind of progressive overload routine for like a year first. Once you have some kind of baseline muscle mass and are plateauing, then creatine can become a useful tool for getting more reps or more definition.

I personally do take creatine daily and have the subtle but noticeable results one hopes for. But I lifted weights for probably 5 years without any creatine supplementation before I added it to my diet. So I actually had a baseline that I could compare against. It seems as though some people have it in their heads that creatine is some kind of miracle working fitness substance that's going to take them from 0 to hero and misunderstand what it's actually proven to do. I guess this isn't really a big deal, it's part of the nature of things that the culture cycles through these so-called "fitness hacks" that get really trendy for a while and then fall away. It's just funny/slightly frustrating.

I also think it's funny that the same female friends of mine who are wary of resistance training because they don't want to get bulky are now suddenly interested in creatine. I don't consider myself a truly bulky lass by any means but creatine has definitely helped me grind out more upper body reps and increased the bulk of my shoulders and arms. W in my book, they would probably call that an L though lol

Edited:
I am and always have been too small. My build is lean/athletic and do a lot of walking but am literally paranoid about cardio because it’s already so difficult for me to gain weight. I was a rock climber climbing 4-5 times a week for a few years and still pretty tiny. I have a super small chest and the only way I ever gained fat was like ten years ago when I was an alcoholic and ate PUFA/fast food and had slightly more curves.

I’m 31 so atp don’t think my body is changing majorly unless I find a way to trick it

Any advice on type of workout, supplements or dietary focus for anyone who has been in a similar position and gained healthy weight? I just don’t know how to keep weight on me and hate being small fry.

PLEASE ONLY WOMEN RESPOND!
have small breasts, and gaining weight is the only natural way I could potentially make them bigger. Obviously, the whole “decreasing body fat %” approach goes against that.
I really like the look of women who aren’t “skinny” but have a lot of muscle and look strong, curvy and athletic. For example, some fitness influencers share before-and-afters where they were already muscular but much skinnier and later became significantly bigger and curvier while continuing to build muscle. I’m not sure how much of that look comes from muscle vs. fat (Lift with Sarah on YouTube is one example that comes to mind).
I don’t want to gain a bunch of fat and just look softer. Ideally, I’d like to gain some weight, build a lot of muscle at the same time, and still have a fit/strong physique.
I know there’s no way to target where fat is gained or lost (I usually gain from my belly and butt), but is it realistic to gain enough weight to potentially increase my bust while deliberately building muscle so that the rest of my body somewhat remains fit?
Note: I’m 170 cm, 57 kg with around 18% body fat

Hi everyone! Was hoping to get some feedback on my current routine and see what more I can do to increase muscle.

For reference, I am a 6'2 male at around 200-205lbs. I've been lifting since college, so about 9ish years but I am not a bodybuilder by any means. In the past few years I burned out on lifting and as a result stopped caring as much. (used to try and do a six day PPL split for a few years) Recently I pulled my lift days back to 3 days a week and it's been a nice adjustment, however I feel like I'm missing something with it and could be doing more.

My routine is as follows:

Monday - Upper A

• Bench press: 4x5 ## been trying to increase the volume on this one and getting better. Currently around 205 x 5.
• OHP: 4x5 ## currently around 115x5 but I'm worried about form
• Seated Rows: 3x12
• Bodyweight pull ups: 3xfailure ## lately failure has been 4. does not feel good, wish I could do more!
• Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 3x12 ## currently around 55lbs I think?
• Hammer Curls: 4x12 ## these felt tedious when I was doing one arm at a time, so I started doing both arms and it feels better
• Tricep Pushdowns: 3x12

Wednesday - Lower

• Squat: 3x5 ## around 225lbs right now, again worried about form all the time. Extremely worried about tweaking my back and getting fucked up as I've done this before a few times.
• Hex bar deadlift: 3xwhatever ## this one is tricky. I do not like deadlifting, and have never been able to get the form down. Literally fumbled a gym crush over this. I find my hex bar deadlift is comfortable but at times I realize I'm just squatting. Might replace with something else.
• Leg press: 3x6 plates ## the old reliable.
• Lying Leg Curls: 3x12
• Standing Calf Raises: 4x20 ## this is nice but I'm currently around 320lbs for 20 reps and still don't have huge calves. Skill/form issue? Should I be going slower?

Friday - Upper B

• Incline Bench Press: 4x12 ## 135lbs right now but I feel I can go higher
• Lat Pulldowns: 3x12
• Lateral Raises: 3x15
• Triceps Extension: 3x12
• Preacher Curl: 3x12

Outside of this I don't do much cardio in the gym. I try to get out on the bike a fair bit when I can on weekends/with friends and walk in my neighborhood often. I try to get in and get out within an hour after work because I'm tired, and unfortunately I don't have time in the morning to get to the gym before work at 8am (gym opens at 7am). I also find that Monday feels pretty heavy in comparison to the other two days and often goes for longer than one hour.

I've recently started to just try and make everything go to failure which has been helpful, but it's difficult to remind myself every single time. I'd like to optimize things more and figure out my weak spots here. Obviously I'd like to be more lean but would prefer to build more muscle first before attempting to cut down. I basically feel like I'm not pushing myself enough - like my sessions just feel like I'm going through the motions and another thing I have to do in the day before I get home. Should I pay for a PT to show me my weak points as a refresher? Maybe do more cardio? I don't take any supplements, eat three meals a day and prioritize protein in most meals.

Let me know what you think and if I can change/add/remove anything from this.

- John Meadows/Mountaindog1. Formerly one of the best coaches in the game (RIP) & a prime example of a guy who didn’t have good genetics but worked his ass off to get freaky jacked & shredded. Has like 2 million instructional videos about training every different body part on his channel. This is the guy to defer to if you’re trying to learn how to execute movements, structure workouts, etc. Also has a bunch of good programs available online if that’s your thing.

- John Jewett. This guy is a little gay sometimes but he’s still a great resource for anything bodybuilding related & his training instructionals are valuable.

- Chris Tuttle. One of the best coaches in the game. Does a lot of podcasts & is a great source of knowledge on everything from training to diet to drugs etc… believe he’s a registered dietician. Also a good personality/entertaining to listen to. Doesn’t make instructional vids like Jewett or John meadows but give some of his podcasts a listen.

- Seth Feroce, Evan Centopani, Nick Walker: these are more guys that are great to watch as examples of how you should be training.

Hey everyone it's your favourite flight attendant. I don't even know how I ended up with this account name but here we are. I've been rather spoiled lately because I now live in the city I'm based and I don't have to share my bathroom or fridge with 12 people. I'm still a loner and very weak but my fridge is full of vegetables!! I've cut out a lot of people who started acting insane when I got my job and I feel a lot more at peace and ready to deal with my health.

I finally had enough money to get a DEXA scan a few weeks ago and the results were partially what I expected and partially not. The part I expected is that at 5'11 and 210lbs I measured in at about 44.8% body fat, which is higher than I thought and reflects years of accumulated stress and poverty and living/working in very abnormal scenarios. I do think it's typical for people to have higher fat measurements than they'd like on these scans. The part I didn't expect is my lean body mass came in at around 112lbs, which is between 8 and 15lbs less than I thought I had after lifting for several years (haphazardly this past year, but still).

My estimated BMR is like 1480 and I feel I now have a much better understanding of why I feel like shit all the time and why I struggle so much to lose weight or gain any strength while people on here blow past me. I thought my cutting cals were at least 1600 if not higher, but that's really only a cut with sufficient activity. Any well-intentioned advice I've gotten to eat more isn't quite right. A bulk at 2200 to 2500 causes rapid fat gain for me, and trying to eat higher carb low fat this past year was low key a disastrous decision. You would not believe how many chicken breasts I've eaten to get the results above.

Overall though, I feel very vindicated by the DEXA result and much more equipped to rectify the situation over the coming years. I've switched back to low carb higher fat and feel less like an alien, and been incorporating some Lyle McD stubborn fat protocols as most of it is in my legs. I can safely ignore anyone who insists I'm strong and shouldn't lose weight just because I can barely almost sometimes squat 100lbs and just do what I want and what I know works instead. Highly recommend DEXA if you have the means and also recommend having the confidence to follow your instincts.

And yes I'm doing a cut first. Even though there's nothing underneath. RIP

What are signs of a calorie deficit for you? I am a 5’5 male, decent muscle mass, bike 8 miles a day, & strength 4 days a week. I move around a lot in the day usually along with my workouts. I also do yoga 5-6 days a week. Anyway, I am currently eating around 3k calories a day. I feel HUNGRY. All of the time. I feel weak in the gym and hungry. It’s to the point where the food noise is so bad I’m willing to just get fat and live more peacefully. Any advice? I eat mostly Whole Foods.

Anyone else here who smokes a lot? Does it affect your performance? Do you workout high?

Lately I‘ve been going to the gym a lil stoned and the workouts have been amazing

Been lifting 3-4x a week consistently for the last 3 months. I love going to to the gym and feeling stronger, I’ve never worked on my upper body strength before. Noticing some changes in my body but feel like my clothes are tighter!! Been trying to eat at maintenance or a little bit less, hitting my protein goals, but have gained like 6 lbs? Went from 130 to 136 I’m a 5’7” female. Is this just a fluid retention thing? Should I be implementing some more cardio? Eating less? Any help is appreciated:-)