# Stuck and not sure what way to turn



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

Hi Andy I have been training for nearly 2 years for the first year and a half things were going great gaining on any workout I tryd but for the past 3/4 months I've had little results I have tried all proven traing regimes switching all of it up for muscle confusion I eat 6 meals a day plus protein/creatine/aminos and so on but I have definately hit a brick wall I just can not seem to gain any more muscle despite what I try I.e plateu busting techniques like dropsets not to many of course rest pause super sets pyrimyd sets super sets and it's just like nothing is working the only thing I could think is that maybey it's because I'm doing low reps and sets with heavy weights I thought maybe I should make a change and up the reps and lower the weigh.this is really particularly my arms I think they are to small for the rest of my body i weigh 190lbs and I am 5ft 6inches my biceps are 16inch with chest at 46 inches calfs 16 inch wrists 6 inch forearm 13 inch.also I only train at home do you think that could hinder me at all any help what so ever would be greatly appreciated no matter what it is iam just a bit frustrated with giving my all and seeing nothing from it thanks very much for your time kind regards Andy R.


----------



## justin case (Jul 31, 2012)

you're lost mate, been reading too many mags thinking this will work for me.....you got to get back to basics, back to stuff that works for mere mortals not people in mags.

train your 5 major body parts, 3x times a week and train them hard, keep your routine simple but intense, aim to add weight on a weekly basis.

there are so many people like you, and a lot of them will just give up instead of taking a step back and doing it the right way...ego and magazine enchantment are the biggest killers of people getting started in body building.


----------



## gingernut (Dec 11, 2006)

When you say tried everything, how long for?it can take 6 weeks for a new regime to show a noticeable difference & some weeks you'll naturally lift more, others less even when making progress.


----------



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

Hi mate yes I no I go to 8 weeks with what ever I do but my shoulders/traps seem to grow but my arms are at the same size as they were after1 year of training any ideas.?? Thanks pal


----------



## dave_c (Jul 31, 2011)

read brawn, nuff said.


----------



## jordan_ (Mar 5, 2011)

Brawn lol.


----------



## dave_c (Jul 31, 2011)

jordan0689 said:


> Brawn lol.


you dont like it?


----------



## jordan_ (Mar 5, 2011)

Some of the stuff is ok


----------



## justin case (Jul 31, 2012)

Forget Steroids: 5 Full Body Workouts For Serious Gains | Muscle & Strength

if you read this article, it will explain why you and many others are at the place you are now....all you need to do is swallow your pride and follow the advise and you will be back making good progress again.


----------



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

justin case said:


> Forget Steroids: 5 Full Body Workouts For Serious Gains | Muscle & Strength
> 
> if you read this article, it will explain why you and many others are at the place you are now....all you need to do is swallow your pride and follow the advise and you will be back making good progress again.


Thanks for taking the time to help with good advice thanks again Andy.


----------



## crazycal1 (Sep 21, 2005)

mate i read your other post for andy, try doing less exercises less frequently and i bet you`ll start growing.

i bet abbreviated training is the one thing you havent tried.

brawn is a fantastic no bullsht read, i`ll warn you tho, it wont tell you what you want to hear, just what works for everyone.


----------



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

TheCrazyCal said:


> mate i read your other post for andy, try doing less exercises less frequently and i bet you`ll start growing.
> 
> i bet abbreviated training is the one thing you havent tried.
> 
> brawn is a fantastic no bullsht read, i`ll warn you tho, it wont tell you what you want to hear, just what works for everyone.


Thanks for that mate not only have I not tried it I'd never heard of it just had a quick look at what it's about and it looks interesting nice 1 :yo:


----------



## crazycal1 (Sep 21, 2005)

2x a week training is usually the resort of the desperate..

sounding abit cheesy, it changed my life.


----------



## Tom84 (Dec 12, 2005)

carpcrew28 said:


> Hi Andy I have been training for nearly 2 years for the first year and a half things were going great gaining on any workout I tryd but for the past 3/4 months I've had little results I have tried all proven traing regimes switching all of it up for muscle confusion I eat 6 meals a day plus protein/creatine/aminos and so on but I have definately hit a brick wall I just can not seem to gain any more muscle despite what I try I.e plateu busting techniques like dropsets not to many of course rest pause super sets pyrimyd sets super sets and it's just like nothing is working the only thing I could think is that maybey it's because I'm doing low reps and sets with heavy weights I thought maybe I should make a change and up the reps and lower the weigh.this is really particularly my arms I think they are to small for the rest of my body i weigh 190lbs and I am 5ft 6inches my biceps are 16inch with chest at 46 inches calfs 16 inch wrists 6 inch forearm 13 inch.also I only train at home do you think that could hinder me at all any help what so ever would be greatly appreciated no matter what it is iam just a bit frustrated with giving my all and seeing nothing from it thanks very much for your time kind regards Andy R.


If you are doing very low reps (eg lower than 6 at plus 75% of max) then yes you might want to change up to some higher rep sets. There are two entirely different forms of hypertrophy, sarcoplasmic (to oversimplify stimulated by higher rep sets) and myofibrillar (more stereotypical strength based training). Either the volume of sarcoplasmic fluid in the muscle cell increases or actin and myosin contractile proteins increase in number and add to muscular strength though the muscle size increase is smaller. You can change your physical appearance drastically without getting too much stronger.

The other obvious change to make is to your diet. What exactly are you eating and when. Weight training only stimulates the hypertrophic process, without a proper diet its a complete waste of time. Its my personal opinion that in natural athletes 90% of the differential is through diet. Most routines work. They affect muscle glycogen entirely differently though and thus require different nutrition to be effective. You should pair your training type with your current nutrition.


----------



## Tom84 (Dec 12, 2005)

dave_c said:


> you dont like it?


I think its outdated and overly simplistic. Its basically a short primer that could be summed up by saying 'use correct form, seven weeks is a number I made up which sounds interesting.' The guy has no professional qualifications though kudos for his marketing. If I wrote a book the FIRST thing I'd do would be to aim it at hardgainers (get the excuse in early) and then rally at drugs for a while (more excuses) then find the non existent problem in a nice simple fashion and answer it with almost completely irrelevant points with no backing (like the 7 week cycles or the emphasis on form) The justifications for actually doing this in the book are either non existent, based on nothing but assertions or make literally no sense. Read Sliced, UD2, The protein book, Championship bodybuilding etc...


----------



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

Parky said:


> If you are doing very low reps (eg lower than 6 at plus 75% of max) then yes you might want to change up to some higher rep sets. There are two entirely different forms of hypertrophy, sarcoplasmic (to oversimplify stimulated by higher rep sets) and myofibrillar (more stereotypical strength based training). Either the volume of sarcoplasmic fluid in the muscle cell increases or actin and myosin contractile proteins increase in number and add to muscular strength though the muscle size increase is smaller. You can change your physical appearance drastically without getting too much stronger.
> 
> The other obvious change to make is to your diet. What exactly are you eating and when. Weight training only stimulates the hypertrophic process, without a proper diet its a complete waste of time. Its my personal opinion that in natural athletes 90% of the differential is through diet. Most routines work. They affect muscle glycogen entirely differently though and thus require different nutrition to be effective. You should pair your training type with your current nutrition.


Hello mate thanks for that do you not agree with the brawn advice my diet is 8.00am porridge oats and egg whites and pur orange juice 10.00am 2 full eggs 2 egg whites and a cup full of pasta 12:30 pm big tunna sandwich and sci mx omni hardcore shake 2:30 to 3:00 brown bread 4 rations of bacon tomato an cottage cheese toast 5.00pm bowl of rice and sci mx omni hardcore them I train about 35 to 40 mins after that then I have my main meal about 7:30 pm which is either chicken or fish with boiled potatoes or rice with veggies then for a snack before bed I have some riveta's thanks again for your very educational advice much appreciated Andy.


----------



## Tom84 (Dec 12, 2005)

Try this

7am: Liquid egg whites, Extreme pro6 in water + 75g oats + 5ml measure flaxseed powder + green tea + grapefruit + Extreme Krevolution

9am: 150g chicken/Turkey, cous cous/brown rice/sweet potato + broccoli/spinach/fennel/celery root + EVOO + Omega 3 caps

12pm: 150g Extra lean steak/Chicken/Turkey broccoli/spinach/fennel/celery root/ + EVOO + + Omega 3 caps

3pm: Salmon/Mackeral, salad + cous cous/brown rice/sweet potato/bulgar wheat + broccoli/spinach/fennel/celery root + flax

6pm: 150g chicken/Turkey + cous cous/brown rice/sweet potato/bulgar wheat + red pepper/green beans/garlic cloves + Omega 3 caps

Extreme Liquid Fury (15 minutes pre training)

7pm: hour weight training, 30 mins HIIT

Extreme pro-6/Extreme Whey + 75g waxy maize starch or Extreme Build and recover (+ 20g leucine/Extreme BCAA's + Extreme Krevolution)

9.30pm: Calcium Caseinate/Extreme Pro6 + cottage cheese + 2x 5ml measure of flax seed + almonds/brazils


----------



## Tom84 (Dec 12, 2005)

Also with training - just do absolutely no isolation movements - ever (for the moment).

Train to lift the maximum amount of weight you can in most movements - essentially base your week around bench, squat, dead, military press, bent over rows, chins, weighted dips. I genuinely don't think you can go too far wrong if you do that


----------



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

Parky said:


> Also with training - just do absolutely no isolation movements - ever (for the moment).
> 
> Train to lift the maximum amount of weight you can in most movements - essentially base your week around bench, squat, dead, military press, bent over rows, chins, weighted dips. I genuinely don't think you can go too far wrong if you do that


I will definately give this a try it's obviously worked for you thanks for taking the time to write all that info down for me much apriciated Andy.


----------



## Tom84 (Dec 12, 2005)

carpcrew28 said:


> I will definately give this a try it's obviously worked for you thanks for taking the time to write all that info down for me much apriciated Andy.


I cheated slightly. As a MOD here I wrote a few of the diet threads so I copied from a pre-existing diet I've recommended. But no worries fella.


----------



## AChappell (Jun 1, 2011)

And my work here is done.... I think the guy's and gals will have pointed you in the right direction carp. Your up against the theory of diminishing gains, you can get so far with training and diet, but if you want to continue to make gains you really need to knuckle down and be consistent, with a better diet and training there after. Some brief advice for the coming months: stick to a program for a minimum of 6 weeks before, stop mixing up your training on a regular basis keep it consistent and try to add poundage, look to other area's for growth if your training is good maybe your diet is lacking try to be consistent with the plan Parky has given you for a similar period of time. If you can manage that without adding fat to your frame, try to increase your calorie intake thereafter. Good luck


----------



## AChappell (Jun 1, 2011)

justin case said:


> Forget Steroids: 5 Full Body Workouts For Serious Gains | Muscle & Strength
> 
> if you read this article, it will explain why you and many others are at the place you are now....all you need to do is swallow your pride and follow the advise and you will be back making good progress again.


Some good looking workouts in that link Justin.


----------



## carpcrew28 (Aug 12, 2012)

Thanks very much for that I've currently started a new routine and the diet parky laid out for me (nice one parky) I'm feeling confident again and have new hope so thanks for all the replies much appreciated Andy.


----------

