Could be KCAL and Protein… I just don’t eat enough. I try to hit 3000 kcal a day, but most of the time end up around 2500 kcal…

But I am also afraid of gaining fat, since I am already “fat” if you look at my picture. I know, not obese or anything, but a big belly and skinny arms.

Thanks! :)

I never really was on a program. Just doing PPL with the exercises for that day.

Now I am trying GZCLP. The program says I should use weights based on 85% of my 5RM.

Which is quite good for me, now I am starting this program with a bit lesser calculated RM (or Training Max better said) and can focus on forms of the big lifts.

I hope this will work, I am just basically restarting “kind of” to test the weights and learn the movements correctly.

Alrighty, Im gonna do some light cardio today and try it tomorrow.

I will be doing A and B. A: Dumbbell Bench Press 5x5 + T Bar Row 5x5 and Squats 5x5 B: Pull Ups 5x5, RDLs 5x5, Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press 5x5.

Lets see how this goes :)

What I also find is weird (for me) I might be able to do 10 reps of 20 kg dumbbells, but I found it impossible to even lift the 22.5 kg dumbbells. So I’d be stuck on the 20 kg no matter how good I was at them cause my grip strength is too weak for 22.5.

Any ideas how I could fix this?

I will look into this. Thanks!

One question though (progression). Does this really want me to do 5 Sets of the same weight with 5 Reps?

So for example 1. Set 50 kg Benchpress 5 Reps. 2. Set, 3. Set, 4. Set and 5. Set also 5 Reps with 50 kg?

Doesnt that imply me choosing a weight with which I can safely do 10 reps for the 1. Set but still only do 5 Reps? Cause if I do 5 Reps with a weight I barely can do 7 reps with, how can I do 2. set with 5 reps? Yt alone the third, fourth and fifth set.

Or do I lower the weight after each set by 2.5 kg or something?

So if I start this wednesday and need to figure out the weight first, I should rather choose a “too light” weight than too heavy?

I am doing 6 Reps of 73 kg Lat Pulldowns currently. So for this I should basically choose maybe 60 kg and try 5 sets of 5 reps with 60. If that works good and it feels like I could have done more try 62.5 kg next time with all 5 sets. If I do 4 Sets with 5 Reps and the fifth set with maybe 4 I stay at 62.5 until I complete 5/5 and then I make a smaller increase again, maybe 1 kg now instead of 2.5 cause I barely made the fifth rep. So I dont increase weight on the first 4 sets now, I wait til I complete the 5/5

Thanks :-)

Maybe I try that. Is this 5x5 correct (5 Sets, each Set 5 Reps) I just do one day Bench Press, Rows and Squats - Rest 1 Day and then I do Deadlifts, Pull Ups and Shoulder Press 5x5?

I was today at gym. Not yesterday.

So PPLC I didnt do anything thursday. I accidently wrote thursday cause my previous plan was PPLPPL Rest PPLPPL Rest but I think it was just not enough recovery.

I have a wife and I don’t feel lonely.

But I noticed my third place “go to” places are very lonely and they were a place I use to be to socialise randomly.

Backthen: Going to the gym was an adventure, blast some weights and grab a cappucino with someone on the way out and talk about the routine, how they are progressing etc… PEOPLE TALKED.

Now? Everyone on the phones during sets, if they aren’t doing that they run around with headphones and walk and use the phone,…

It’s everywhere. I am not different now.

But trust me guys and ladies, it’s not having no partner. It’s the phones, it’s the phones. If they’d shutdown the internet people won’t be dating anymore and the human race would just end cause people can’t communicate in person anymore.

So you think I should maybe stick to only A version of PPL instead of PPL A and PPL B?

I usually swap A and B during the week, so Pull A, Push A, Legs A, Rest, Pull B, Push B and Legs B

What do you think for me as a natural beginner this could be: Upper (Back/ Chest) Body, Lower Body, Arms&Shoulders, Rest ?

MY arms are lacking huge, thats why I do more curls etc.

Ok so this should be fine?

I dont want to play around with rep Ranges too much and keep it at 8-10 and at 3x10 I increase weight for 3x8 til i hit 3x10 again

Thanks! Well I am reading a lot currently and just watched a video from mountaindog https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVfy6sGgiHw He saying naturals shouldn’t do that much volume?

I enjoy my PPLPPL routine more cause I can split my upper bod in two days and add more accessory exercises in.

But I feel like I should just focus on compound exercises for my upper days if I cant do PPLPPL.

So my upper days (one week) are mostly just the compound exercises (Pull Ups, Benchpress with Dumbbells, Lat Pulldowns, Incline Benchpress, T Bar Rows and Shoulder Press) I dont have enough energy for biceps and triceps isolations

Is it okay to have a PPLPPL (6 days) and a Upper Lower Upper Lower (4 days) routine and swap randomly between both?

Like next week I have 6 days time for gym, so I will do PPLPPL Rest. The week after I have 4 days time for gym so I wont do my PPLPPL instead do UL UL cause of work and privat activities?

While I will do Upper A (3 Back, 2 Chest, 1 Shoulder) Ill do Upper B (3 Chest, 2 Back, 1 Shoulder) the other day.

Yeah i meant Workouts.

Like how do ai know if I progress on A Version if ai do B next ?

Seems complicsted to see results if tracking though?

3-6 Sets a week.

If I do Flatbench Press and Incline Benchpress the same day I have 3 Mid Chrst Sets and 3 Upper Chest Sets.

If I do it again on thursday I have 6 Sets of mid and upper chest?

Maybe I should ramp it up to 4 Sets per exercise but then I still only got 8 Chest Sets. 10 is friggin amazing

Should I do the same 4-6 exercises of my pull push leg days or should I mix things up?

Example Push A:

• Flat Benchpress Barbell
• Incline Benchpress Dumbbells
• Seated Shoulder Press Dumbbells
• Triceps Pushdowns
• Lateral Raises (Cable)

So next push day rinse repeat or should I do Example Push B:

• Flat Benchpress Dumbbells (last time barbell)
• Incline Benchp. Barbell (last time Dumbbell)
• Standing Shoulder Press (last time seated)
• Triceps Skull Crushers (last time pushdowns)
• Lateral Raises (Dumbbell, last time Cable)

?

Am I still considered beginner after 6 months? Iam 32 and started lifting in December 2024

Pull I didn’t add, was on my phone.

Pull Day 1 (Tuesday)

• Pullups (can do like 5-6 currently) I try to aim for 5 Sets
• T-Bar Row 2 Sets of 8, 1 Set 12
• Face Pulls (Cable) 3x8-12
• EZ Bar Curls 3x8-12
• Cable Hammer Curl 3x8-12

Pull Day 2 (Friday):

• Lat pulldowns 4x8-12
• Seated Rows 3x8-12
• Dumbbell Shoulder Shrugs 2x8, 1x12
• Cable Curls (short EZ Bar attached): 1x6, 1x8, 1x12
• Dumbbell Hammer Curls: 1x6, 1x8, 1x12

I don’t know if it would just be smarter only doing Pull Day 1 or Pull Day 2, but not mixing both. But my main goal is honestly trying to get better at pull ups. But I think I am missing out if I don’t do lat pulldowns… So dunno?

Maybe in general it’s smarter only doing 1 variation? Push 1, Pull 1, Lower 1, Push 1, Pull 1, Lower 1 instead of doing the next PPL with Push 2, Pull 2, Lower 2…?

Yeah kind of.

I go for strength on my Upper and Lower day, so about 5-8 reps but to keep tracking simple I am currently just aiming for 3 Sets and not changing around to 4 for some.

And on my PPL days I choose the weight to aim for minimum of 10 and maximum of 12. If I ever reach 12 or miss judge the first set and suddenly find myself doing more than 12 I go for 2-3 RIR with the set and increase weight for the next set.

So basically the first two workouts (Upper Lower) 3 Sets 5-8 Reps and the other PPL workouts I do 3 Sets of 10-12. I increase weight or add a set the next time if I get all 3 Sets with the maximum Rep target. So 3x8 = I increase weight next time a bit and go back to 3x5-6 or I add another set and see how it feels.

Yeah will practise the DL but you are right it is the same movement though. Just scared if I do it slitely wrong it will break my back lol.

Currently playing around though and seeing what happens if I do different things. Like instead of increasing weight, adding a set or something I do the reps slower or decrease rest time between sets or try a super set with another muscle.

Last week I did dumbbell benchpresses but instead of 3x10-12 I did 1x12, rest for 45 seconds and used the same weight to see how many reps I get. Rested another 2 minutes after that and repeated. So it was kind of like 2 Sets in a row 3x. First Set 12 Reps, Rest 45 seconds, did as many reps as possible (think it was 8 reps then). Rest 2 minutes. Second Set lower weight, 12 reps, rest another 45 seconds and went for another try on how many and the same with the 3. Set

Had my last nightshift, didn’t want to skip leg day today but it would have been smarter to just go tomorrow and change my PPL routine this week to ULPPL.

I halfassed every exercise and did nothing on my plan. Started with RDLs, didn’t feel anything (bad form), went to do Bulgarian Splitsquats but couldn’t even hold proper form, did only 2 Sets instead of planned 4. Went over to the seated leg curl and just did 2 Sets to failure with medium 60% of my normal weight. The only good thing were the calf raises on the smithmachine, but even they sucked cause a friend of mine told me to change angle of legs. Sure he might be right, but I didn’t do my planned 5x8 Sets on the Calf Raises either cause I changed angle and adjusted weight and somehow ended up with 2 Sets of 8 (how I wanted) and the other 2 with this weird messed up “trying around” Calf Raises cause my friend was watching at 25 Reps without feeling anything.

Honestly I should lay down and go back to the gym later and start from scratch. That was just a waste of time lol.

I like when my friend is in the gym but he always comes up to me explaining what he would do and blablabla and that takes the flow out of my workout.

Yeah my workout isn’t perfect, I am new (since 5 months) but still I just want to do my exercises and not play around with stuff I don’t know.

Just let me do the stuff I know with proper form (Latpulldown, Seated or T Bar Rows, Biceps EZ Bar Curls, Cable Hammer Curls etc…) and don’t come up trying to teach me how to do a standing bent over barbell row. Like I am wasting energy on trying that. I will do it in a year or two but not now.

I’m just doing basic things and I’m happy with that. Got my PPLPPL or my Upper Lower Cardio PPL Routine I swap between each week but I keep the workouts relatively same.