Quote:
Originally Posted by
gettoasty 
I did SPBR and at 145-150lb, stalled on all my lifts
I stopped the program after getting sick in early 2012 / small injury and really fucked up my schedule. Now, I hopped onto whatever the hell my brother is doing, going at a rate of 2x a week 'M' and 'W,' I dropped DL completely and my current lifts
Basically I can lift a plate now with ease, hooray! I think once I get back on track going 4x a week as before, I should improve steadily...
Trying to hit 185lb on bench/squat by mid-to-year-end. I know its laughable but my diet with 0 supplements i.e. protein shakes et al really make recovery / gains hard for me. I have been eating a lot more carbs to gain weight so now I am about 155lb (5'10). I think I am most like 'Flame' but dude is much stronger. I have similar goals, wanting to stay lean with muscle and agile enough to still shoot the 13" jumper on the court. My core + chest is also very soft, physiologically, how do I keep it firm rather than flabby? Also knucks, how to address knee problems with doing squats? I am ineligible for the Bulgarian method. My knees don't hurt but they feel odd. Bro says stance too wide.
Please feel free to rip me apart. And Jarude, it's not like I chose not to listen, but tweaked it to where I can actually follow through on my own grounds. I can say my strength compared to 1.3 years ago is much improved but I'm still a beginner.
Why didn't you progress?
Supplements and protein shakes are no excuse for not make any gains in a whole year. They are not a must in any sense and they don't have anything special that normal food doesn't have. Just eat a lot, lift as heavy as you can with good form and progress will def come since you're a beginner.
People who start out going to the gym are so afraid of eating big. It takes a lot more food and effort to gain size (muscle or fat) than people think, granted you work our a fair bit of course. I've eaten 4000 cals (1000 cal surplus), of which 2000 cal are carbs, 3 days a week for half a year and I've only gained 15 lbs. I was pretty lean though when I started bulking (as I believe you should be), but just get enough protein, eat above maintenance, and it will work.
If you want to get into lifting again, be sure to fix yourself first. Check your mobility for your whole body and start addressing whatever posture problems you have. I've made a lot worse strength gains than I expected simply because I've been forced to deload the big lifts a lot of times, due to improper form caused by bad mobility / posture.
