Stuck in a Rut!

[LrdViperScrpion]

Hi, I'm new to the forum but I have been working out for almost three years now. I am 17 years old, 137-140 pounds, and 5'6". I currently bench approx. 200 pounds. I realize that that is pretty good, but I have been stuck at 200 pounds for somewhere around a year now. Recently my workouts haven't even been leaving me tired. I tire myself out doing the workouts, but when I leave I still feel energetic and the next day feel only lightly or not sore at all. I do change my workouts about every 6 weeks, I consume about 2100 calories, with 150 pounds of protein, and try to get 8-9 1/2 hours of sleep (although lately I haven't been sleeping well). I also participate in Tae Kwon Do usually 4 days a week. My current workout is an alternating upper/lower body workout Mon., Wed., Fri., Sat. with three sets of 8 reps for each exercise. Anyways, any advice or altered workouts you could provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Triple Threat]

150 pounds of protein? You must be eating all day long!

 

[rks1969]

I was the same ht & wt as you at that age,but I was benching 405 for reps.Maybe you need to bump your training poundages a little.I understand all to well about sticking pts,but keep pluggin' away you'll get it eventually.Try to get in more protein (2g per lb bodyweight).You'll need to post your routine for better evaluation.

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

405? christ!!!
but uh yeah, my routine at the moment is,

upper body - Monday and Friday - lateral shoulder raises, triceps extension, preacher curl, pullup, cable row, and bench press

lower body - Wednesday and Saturday - squat, deadlift, leg curl, leg press, calf raises, and lunges

abs i do monday, tuesday, thursday, friday, but I am not having any trouble with abs, in fact they are shaping up quite nicely.

Hope this helps.

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

Oh yeah, and of course I meant 150 grams protein, sorry

 

[Arnold]

You need 5-6 days rest for each muscle group.

If you can work legs on Wednesday, then again on Saturday, something is wrong....you need to come work legs with me and you will be lucky if you can walk by Saturday!

 

[rks1969]

When I started I was lucky enough to have a friend that was quite advanced in bodybuilding/power lifting.He was a great inspiration/motivation to me.
In this routine of yours --- you hit each muscle twice a week.Is there a reason you do this?I've done this type routine before but the first day was heavy & the second was lighter.You can't do the same workout twice a week and expect to gain strength.
Example=MON--bench 4sets/6-8reps
barbell row 4sets/6-8reps
pullup 4sets/6-8reps
laterals 4sets/6-8reps
close grip bench 4sets/6-8reps (triceps)
preacher curl 4sets/6-8reps
FRI--this workout use dumbells (lighter weight)
incline flyes,d'bell rows,rear delt laterals,hammer
curls,tricep kickbacks @ 3sets/8-10reps

WED&SAT--you would probably do well to alternate squats & deads w/ each workout or weekly.You can use the same heavy/light days w/ these workouts.


This is MY current split:SUNDAY=chest,triceps
MONDAY=back,traps
TUESDAY=shoulders,biceps
WEDNESDAY=CARDIO(1hour)ABS
THURS=legs,calves
Most sets are 8-15reps depending on "feel" of the day.If you feel good CRANK IT!!!


HOPE THIS HELPS

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

There wasn't any particular reason that I do the same workouts twice a week. It was just a workout that I found as I was looking for a new workout to try. I didn't know that that was detrimental to strength gain. Thanks for the tip. Also, how in the heck am i gonna get around 260 grams protein? I have enough trouble consuming 150 grams as it is. Thanks.

 

[rks1969]

Up your protein gradually.Don't try to cram it all in to soon.Maybe you could try 1.5g/lb bodyweight @ first & go from there.You have to have the material to build the muscle.Do you use protein supplements??They make it so much easier to get your protein.
You'll go through alot of crazy routines trying to find your way.We all did it too.GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

Yeah, I use protein supplements, but i add some orange juice and banana so they taste good and i don't wanna end up consuming an insane amount of calories although i'm not even really sure how many calories I need to consume, but I don't want to end up getting fat.

 

[Scotty the Body]

Your most likly not progressing anymore because of your workout, stick with working muscles once a week.

Mon:Chest/Tri's
Wed:Legs/Abs
Fri:Back/Bi's
Sat:Shoulders/traps

At 17 I wouldn't worry to much about getting fat, keep the food you eat clean but eat, eat, eat. And then Eat some more.

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

just to make sure, what do you mean by keep the food i eat clean?

 

[Shmoo]

Originally posted by rks1969
I was the same ht & wt as you at that age,but I was benching 405 for reps.Maybe you need to bump your training poundages a little.I understand all to well about sticking pts,but keep pluggin' away you'll get it eventually.Try to get in more protein (2g per lb bodyweight).You'll need to post your routine for better evaluation.

When you were 17 at 5' 6" 140 lbs you were benching 405 for reps. That just seems a little hard to believe. But if you were what the hell are you benching now?

 

[Scotty the Body]

Originally posted by LrdViperScrpion
just to make sure, what do you mean by keep the food i eat clean?

Tuna, eggs, grilled chicken/steak, oats etc.

Food that isn't fried or full of fat is clean food.

Its easy to gain weight but if you can keep your food clean, the amount of fat you gain will be a lot less.

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

Ok Also, can anyone post replies on how they keep away from junk food, i'm normally quite good at it, and have lost a lot of the fat i used to have, but suddenly i have been craving it, and i don't want to lose the fruits of my labor?

 

[rks1969]

Originally posted by Shmoo


When you were 17 at 5' 6" 140 lbs you were benching 405 for reps. That just seems a little hard to believe. But if you were what the hell are you benching now?

You can't stay on top of the pile forever.Due to such heavy lifting I suffered problems w/ my wrists & shoulders.At one point I couldn't close my fingers enough to pick up a pencil much less decent weight so I stopped lifting for about 5-6 years.Now that I'm older(32) I can still bench 405lbs. but using max weight constantly only keeps you broken down.
You remember high school don't you?---Seems like the only ?? anyone ever ask was"HOW MUCH CAN YOU BENCH?"Today, lifting to me is all about trying to look good,be healthy & not trying to impress others w/ my training numbers.

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

exactly all i ever hear is how much can you bench, and although i don't care so much about bench as all around strength and fitness, it does bother me that my bench press does not increase at all.

 

[Scotty the Body]

Originally posted by LrdViperScrpion
Ok Also, can anyone post replies on how they keep away from junk food, i'm normally quite good at it, and have lost a lot of the fat i used to have, but suddenly i have been craving it, and i don't want to lose the fruits of my labor?

Have a cheat day where you can have some of that junk food you're trying to avoid. Just keep it to once a week and don't go overboard. i've found that I don't even like stuff like pop and junk anymore once I cut it back to once a week.
It won't hurt your diet and will keep you sain to.

 

[the ripper]

to rks 1969...

if u weighed 140lbs at 17yrs old and can bench 405 you'd probably be famous and be in Guiness WR book. keep in mind that's more than double your weight.

NICE TRY BUDY!!!!

 

[rks1969]

I don't have any reason to lie about any poundage I've ever used.There have been many double even triple bodyweight bench pressers.Before you dismiss things that people tell,you might want to know what your talking about.I'm sure you could find this info online or maybe someone here could tell you where it's available

 

[the ripper]

i agree with u rks that there are double body weight bench pressers out there. for ex; i weigh 160 and can bench 270, only once. i'm getting there slowly but surely, i've been training for 5 years. but in your case u state that at 17yrs old u did sets with 405. in my opinion it takes years of experience and years of strength training in order to lift that heavy...u were 17 and weighed 140... DOES ANY 1 AGREE???

 

[Scotty the Body]

I was checking on the net for record lifts but all I could find was a site that had a record of over 600lb bench by a teen. It didn't say who the teen was or what his weight was.

Some people are stronger than others, doesn't always mean they're bigger.
Look at me and you Ripper, I'm 205 at 14-16%bf and my bench is at 250.

 

[LrdViperScrpion]

I'll buy it, there are a couple of teens at my school that can bench around 3-400 pounds, so I don't find that incredibly hard to believe, although it is certainly amazing. But I have consumed more protein, gotten more rest, and switched up my chest workouts, but no matter what, i seem to be trapped at 200 pounds. What's worse, yesterday, i did chest and today i don't even feel any soreness at all, as if I didn't even work them?!!

 

[Scotty the Body]

Here's a routine Gopro gave me, might be worth a try:

Week 1

Bench Press 3 set x 4-6rep
Incline Press 3 set x 6-8rep
Decline Flyes 3 set x 10-12rep

Week 2

Decline Bench 3 sets x 6-8reps
Incline Dumbells 3 sets x 6-8reps
Flat Flye 3 set x 6-8rep
Weighted Dips 2 set x 6-8rep

Week 3

Incline Fly 2 set x 8-10 supersetted with.....
Bench Press 2 set x 8-10rep

Pec Deck or crossover 2 x 8-10 supersetted with Incline Bench 2 set x 8-10rep

Weighted Dips Drop Set....enough wt. to get 4-5 reps, drop the wt. and get another 4-5, take all wt. off (just bodyweight) and go till failure.... only one set of this.

Repeat after 3 weeks. Your chest will grow like a weed!!

 

[rks1969]

Originally posted by the ripper
i agree with u rks that there are double body weight bench pressers out there. for ex; i weigh 160 and can bench 270, only once. i'm getting there slowly but surely, i've been training for 5 years. but in your case u state that at 17yrs old u did sets with 405. in my opinion it takes years of experience and years of strength training in order to lift that heavy...u were 17 and weighed 140... DOES ANY 1 AGREE???

You're right ripper,it does take a few years to reach that level.I had been lifting for about 4 years before I could do that.As you'may have seen, some people are stronger at certain lifts.Maybe it's genetic or something,but everyone will excell at a particular lift.

 

[Brad8299]

Hey you can go to http://www.usapowerlifting.com

then go to records to see what the max lift is for that weight class.

 

[the ripper]

thanx 4 your opinions guys. i still find it hard to believe that a young teen of 140lbs can bench 265 lbs over his own weight, {8 plates total}. if u did that in front of me, i couldn't sleep 4 weeks. i'm still very skeptic, anyway i partially believe u, sorry about that. take care