Weightlifting people, here! Ongoing chat thread...

Hope netball wasn't catastrophic, Maid, and that you're feeling better today.

Since you told me about Bret Contreras, Just (at least I think it was you), I've been following him on instagram - especially the progress pics he reposts. I look forward to hearing how you get on with your new split.

Excellent deadlift news, Oogle! You'll make great strides from here!

What rest intervals does your book recommend, Closet? Based on intuition mostly, I usually wait until at least my breathing has returned to normal. But if I'm not doing very long sets, or not lifting particularly heavy, I try to keep the rest as short as possible. Heavy deadlifts and squats definitely feel like they need a proper rest break though.

Upped the weight on bench this morning - managed 4 x 55kg then 4 sets of 3 x 55kg. I might have been able to push out another rep on at least a couple of those triple sets but bench is scary when it's heavy!

I'm getting back into my routine after a week off. I know that you can't really lose gainz in one week but I still feel like easing back into it.

I have a new split. I was doing upper/lower, four times a week. But my shoulders were not dealing with stress of chest and shoulders on the same day, twice a week. I realised that I am happy with my upper body and want to build my glutes. So I'm doing lower body 3x a week. Upper body is now chest and back one day, shoulders and arms another. This will maintain the upper body, hopefully not irritate my shoulders, and give more attention to the glutes.

After the week off, the shoulder strain seems to be better. I do have a pinchy nerve thing because I had a 10 hour flight in coach, but the old pain has abated and the pinch problem seems to be slowly getting better.

Nice Oogle. Sounds like a great session.

I'm feeling a bit directionless at the moment! I picked up my copy of 'Stronger, Leaner, Thinner' again last night and decided I'd just follow the 3x a week programme in there for 8 weeks starting today (I'd been doing a Nia Shanks programme that I downloaded for free prior to that). Started it today, but got a bit bored. All that resting in between sets. Hmmm. Guess I should stick with it a while longer. This is what I did, it was 'push and butt' today:

Warm up, etc
Incline bench press (barbell - 20kg) 3 x 8
Flat bench press (20kg BB) 3 x 8
Standing Shoulder press (15kg BB) 3 x 8
Side lateral raises (2 x 5kg DB) 3 x 8
Hip thrusts (20kg BB) 3 x 10

I felt a bit 'meh' at the end of that, even though I was lifting as heavy as I could. So I did a set of bike sprints (8 x 20s on 40s off) to get my endorphins going a bit.

Today I managed to deadlift my body weight 60kg. I had the aim to lift in by the end of December so really pleased I managed it today.

Good session actually

Deadlifts: 1 x 8 x 20, 1 x 8 x 30, 1 x 8 x 40, 1x 1 x 50, 1 x 1 x 55, 1 x 1 x 60
Squats: 3 x 10 x 30
Hamstring curls: 3 x 12 x 20
Walking lunges: 3 x aisle x 12
Lateral squat walk x 3
Kettlebell swing 3 x 20 x 8
Hamstring bridge 3 x 12

I was a sweaty, grinning mess by the end of it

Nothing too exciting today

Running intervals
Squats with bar only 3 x 8
Abductor 3 x 10 x 45kg
Adductor 3 x 10 x 35kg
Goblet squats with 5kg medicine ball 3 x 8
Lat pull downs (weight had worn off! About 35kg) 3 x 8

I went to the US (Arizona). I had so much yummy food and I had plenty of desserts, too.

My shoulder has a new problem now... I have a pinched nerve. I don't know how it happened but I did all the driving and sitting in a chair or car seat makes it throb. I haven't done any back or shoulder exercises yet. I'll do Yoga With Adrienne and hope it helps.

where did you go, Just? how's the shoulder after your rest?

Squats were good again this morning - 5 x 5 @ 75 kg. Depth felt a bit suspect on a couple of last reps, so something to work on before I add more weight I think. However, this is the first heavy squat day in a few weeks that I haven't failed a rep; didn't feel close to failure, even.

I'm climbing straight after work before cycling home with my heavy rucksack: I think I'll sleep well tonight.

I took a week off for a holiday. Ate everything under the sun and I'm hoping to see some good gains now that I'm back.

MaidofStars your PT knows what he is talking about! Most PT's I have spoken to think that women only care about being thin.

Closet theoretically you should lose fat if you eat at maintenance and lift heavy, I would have thought. And you would get stronger, if not necessarily build muscle (they're not the same thing - you can have a read online about strength vs hypertrophy)

Thanks for all the cut/bulk info. Food for thought!
What happens if you just eat at maintenance and lift heavy? Will I neither gain strength nor lose fat, I wonder?

Thanks for the info it’s grrat to get someone else’s perspective. I’ve no one really to ask in RL as my gym is basically a walk-in/out with no real trainer their just reception staff.

I am currently about 7lbs overweight & 20lbs if my ideal weight. So probably cardio & calories deficits are the way to go. I’ll up the cardio lots and hopefully get the body fat Percentage down then I can focus on the weights after that. I won’t cut them out completely.

On a separate note it's nice to see some vegetarians on the thread - so many people think that weight training means eating loads of meat! I'm vegan and somehow get enough protein!

I have managed to do a body recomposition, albeit in a very slow and disorganised way! In just over a year, my body fat percentage has gone from 34% to 24% whilst I have stayed at basically the same weight (grand total of 4lbs weight loss over that time.) whilst I am nearly the same weight I do look different - definitely have a bit of muscle definition now and am less wobbly! I think body recomposition only works in people who are a healthy weight anyway (or close to it) and are newbies as muscle gains come easier then. Progress has been very slow for me though - I was vaguely attempting to eat at a small deficit but could never be bothered to track. This might have worked in my favour a bit in terms of muscle gains, because building muscle in a calorie deficit is pretty much impossible.
I think the reason that bulk / cut works better for most people is because it's faster to see results. For most women, getting into the mindset of intentionally bulking is a difficult one though.

Snap with milk - I have a whey protein chocolate milkshake for breakfast pretty much every day. I eat a lot of cheese too.
Eggs do feature a lot, and I love a legume! Lentils are a staple and we have them in all sorts of things.
I don't eat tofu either (only because I don't like it) but I do sometimes eat Quorn stuff for convenience - everyone else in my family is an omnivore so for big Sunday roasts etc, if I can't be arsed making something fancy just for me, it makes sense to chuck an escalope in the oven.

Can anyone tell me how to lose weight but gain muscle? I am at a total loss!

I don't think about macros really. It was only recently I found out what a macro even was. I tend to think that recreational fitness enthusiasts such as myself are in danger of drowning in too much information, and most of us (NB I did say most) don't have the years of learning to give it proper context.

I do try to include different sources of protein in my diet (especially since I don't eat meat) but I have no idea how many grams per day I consume. I have been getting stronger and building muscle since I started training so I assume I'm doing something right.

Good session this morning - deadlifts I worked up to 5 x 3 x 100kg, which is the most I've lifted in maybe three months, and the first rep of each set felt like it floated off the floor. One of those freakish superpower days that make all the grind worthwhile. I wish I'd gone for a one rep max actually but I'm always a wuss about that. And bench is nearly what it was when I was strongest - 5 x 5 x 52.5kg.

I've been losing weight for the past couple of months and I think, as I'm approaching my goal weight, I'm in less of a deficit so I have more energy and am feeling stronger. I will never have a 'banging six pack', but I'm OK with that. I am quite pleased with the way my traps and shoulders are looking tho.