Thread: Do you ever not feel it?

I lift from a different perspective. Either I am lifting more than I did the last time I worked out or less. If I am lifting less, then why? Am I cutting or am I gaining? Am I motivated during my workout, or am I unmotivated. If I am unmotivated, then why? I don't really care about anything other than results: cause and effect. Pump and tightness are neither a cause or an effect that has any relevance on results.

I am in the same boat as Kelju.

I lift for strength, so anything besides progression in strength is irrelevant to me. I actually find the pump counterproductive because of the tightness involved.

But to answer your question. Yeah there are days where I don't "feel it" in the muscles, but I don't adapt my training due to that. Whether or not you feel it, if you do the movement correctly, the primary movers WILL be worked, there is no way around it.

Thanks for the replies. I have been getting stronger what seems like every time I go to the gym. I been out for awhile and so I expected some rebound gains. Since being put on TRT I feel like the gains are similar to how they were when I was 10 years younger and I love it. I am trying to increase muscle endurance while also increasing strength. I love low reps but I think I'll see better growth with higher volumes vs heavier contractions. So when I posted this I had just done chest/shoulders and I had that good kinda sore for about two days afterwards. So fufu as you mentioned there is no way around working the appropriate muscles. I just didn't feel like I was getting a great workout, and was weaker than I was last week. Maybe the getting weaker part got my head out of the game. My shoulders have also been giving me pain on chest days so I think by the time I warm them up to where I'm not hurting my chest movements are starting to lack because my shoulders are already fatigued.

here is a little trick for you: do flat dumbbell flies then as you feel your pecs getting stretched and tired continue with dumbbell presses...this way your chest gets the workout before your triceps get tired.

I have good days and bad days. More bad than good , but he good days are incredible.

Some times I will just walk from the workout and go find some hot ass to look at doing cardio. park it right behind her. Clen/t3 combination seem to cause this feeling for me alot. I also have noted if I don't get enough cals. During the day my workouts at 5 pm are can be iffy.
I just shift my focus so I don't leave the gym with a sour taste. Hot ass fixes that, 30 min of good cardio does that and if I'm really in a pinch 20 min in the tan bed will do it.

Yeah happens from time to time, no big deal, carry on and hope for better pumps the next time.

Originally Posted by dieseljimmy

Some times I will just walk from the workout and go find some hot ass to look at doing cardio. park it right behind her. Clen/t3 combination seem to cause this feeling for me alot. I also have noted if I don't get enough cals. During the day my workouts at 5 pm are can be iffy.
I just shift my focus so I don't leave the gym with a sour taste. Hot ass fixes that, 30 min of good cardio does that and if I'm really in a pinch 20 min in the tan bed will do it.

I usually lift at night too because I work too early to consider doing it before. So usually I'm ready for a nap when I get off work but find myself heading to the gym so I can try to beat the crowd. I also like to do cardio first because I know I wont do it after I lift...lol...I try to park it near some hot ass if possible. If I have nothing to stare at that 30 mintues of cardio feels like forever!

MMC is not my strong suit. Certain muscles I have to touch them to even get a vague mental connection to them. I'm just like Alligator level not real advanced. I have always focused on progression as mentioned upthead. If I'm on my progression I'm growing and the workout was good. If I'm off it or maintaining it better be cuz I'm dieting hard and doing cardio.

Not sure if that's what you're getting at... I can't rely on MMC to judge the quality of a workout. That said there are nights that are just OFF. If I dress out and hit the floor and am still not feeling it I leave. I usually need some combo Of sleep/food and am all better the next,t day. For me that is the right thing to do. Forcing through has only ever made things worse.

Originally Posted by Agentyes

MMC is not my strong suit. Certain muscles I have to touch them to even get a vague mental connection to them. I'm just like Alligator level not real advanced. I have always focused on progression as mentioned upthead. If I'm on my progression I'm growing and the workout was good. If I'm off it or maintaining it better be cuz I'm dieting hard and doing cardio.

Not sure if that's what you're getting at... I can't rely on MMC to judge the quality of a workout. That said there are nights that are just OFF. If I dress out and hit the floor and am still not feeling it I leave. I usually need some combo Of sleep/food and am all better the next,t day. For me that is the right thing to do. Forcing through has only ever made things worse.

I really enjoy feeling it. Like the other day I stumbled on a pull down hammer strength machine that I could feel my lats almost cramp with every rep. I'm in love with this machine now. I really like connecting my mind to the muscle being worked. I want to feel it work. I know if I hit the gym and my lifts are down I know its usually lack of sleep...lack of food...or maybe something bothering me like a sore muscle limiting my drive which is probably a good thing.

Originally Posted by TrojanMan60563

I really enjoy feeling it. Like the other day I stumbled on a pull down hammer strength machine that I could feel my lats almost cramp with every rep. I'm in love with this machine now. I really like connecting my mind to the muscle being worked. I want to feel it work. I know if I hit the gym and my lifts are down I know its usually lack of sleep...lack of food...or maybe something bothering me like a sore muscle limiting my drive which is probably a good thing.

One more reason I love aas
I had just about zero mmc to my lats until the first day they went crazy var pump from meadows rows. Connection still exists

~A

Originally Posted by TrojanMan60563

I really enjoy feeling it. Like the other day I stumbled on a pull down hammer strength machine that I could feel my lats almost cramp with every rep. I'm in love with this machine now. I really like connecting my mind to the muscle being worked. I want to feel it work. I know if I hit the gym and my lifts are down I know its usually lack of sleep...lack of food...or maybe something bothering me like a sore muscle limiting my drive which is probably a good thing.

I'm exactly the same way, I like to FEEL the target muscle working. The more I feel it, the harder I can work it.

On the days I can't get a good MMC I'll do a pre-exhaust routine. Find a good isolation exercise for the target muscle. That helps me establish a good MMC. Once I've got that I can transition into a heavy compound movement and really hammer the target muscle. Super-sets of isolation/compound movements work too. My favorite right now is for lats. I'll do dumbell pull-overs to get a good stretch and MMC followed by barbell rows.