Having a really hard time - help please!

[Olkomp]

OK, just acidentally deleted a post that took me 20 mins to write. Fuck that, will have to shorten it.

I'm 20 yrs male, 172 cm, 67 kg. Been doing SS for 3 months, though only eating "enough" for the last 3 weeks, where I've gained 0.6-0.8 kg each week on a 3800 kcal diet with 150 g protein. Gained 4 kg in total.

My lifts:

Squat 105 kg, Press 45 kg, DL 125 kg, Bench 60 kg, Row (sorry) 60 kg

Now, I'm a small guy and I struggle A LOT sometimes, esp. on the upper body lifts. Today was workout day, and I always struggle after a 2 day break. Last time was saturday, and I smashed squat (102.5 kg) and bench easily.
Today however the squats were 200% harder, barely managed 3x5 with 107.5 kg though. My press stayed the same once again for 3 times in a row (45 kg 3x4). My grip gave up after the 1st rep on the DL, even struggled with the mixed grip, + it felt REALLY heavy. Will have to reset by 10 kg I'm afraid.


I feel like I could use more volume, or at least would benefit from changing 3x5 to 5x3, at least on press / bench / row. This way I could add 5 lbs everytime, I'm sure. Is this adviseable? I have some 1 lbs plates at home. Should I start microloading?


It feels like I do everything right: I eat a lot, rest, do mobility work, foam roll, warm up, watch form videos, posted form checks on BB.com, however I'm always doing the same fucking weight. Just feels like I can't get that LP going, only for like 1-2 weeks at a time.


As assistance work I used to switch between BW dips (1x15, 2x10) and BW pull ups (3x8). Also did 3x8 Hanging Leg Raises last 2 weeks because I feel my lower abs are weak. Then I usually do 3x15 face pulls with light weight (5 kg) to better my posture. Did no AS. work today though.



Sorry for a long post, just trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong. If you need more info, just write. Maybe I should switch program to 5x5 or something? I'm want to focus 100% on strength. Thanks in advance.

[Tom Campitelli]

You are five and a half feet tall and you weigh 148 pounds. You are going to need to get bigger. Lots of women weigh more than you and they are not fat. Here is Cecily Basques squatting 350 pounds (158 kg) at the meet I held in October. She weighs almost exactly what you do. Maybe a pound more. I bet you that she could squat 315 pounds for a set of five.



Cecily lacks a biochemical advantage that you have—high levels of testosterone. You, my friend, must acknowledge your hormonal gifts and put them to use. When you fail on a weight once, it is not time to deload. It is time to get really pissed and go after it again next time. Fuck gravity. It is laughing at you. You think 350 pounds felt light for Cecily? No. Next time you feel like quitting, remember what Marlon Brando advised:



Stop trying to add five pounds to your presses. Use smaller jumps. Eat more. Eat more protein. The weight will always feel heavy. ALWAYS. You make the weight on the bar go up by the power of your will, not because it feels good. It feels bad. You are forging your body. It is hard, uncomfortable work. Embrace that. Banishing weakness requires suffering on your part.

I cannot vouch for form checks on BB.com. I can, however, vouch for them here. There may be things you are doing wrong. In the meantime, put some Bolt Thrower on your headphones for your work sets and make the weights go up. If you need a light day on the squat on Wednesday, take it, but find some weights you can move, make well chosen jumps, and keep going after it. Learn to clean, too. Did I mention that Cecily can clean a lot of weight, too? Be like Cecily.

[Olkomp]

Hey, thanks for the good and motivational response. I'll try and eat more then, and see how it goes. I'll definitely post a form check vid some time soon. Good to know that there are professionals who can help out!

Thanks again, appreciate your time.

[Derf123]

Wow Tom, Euro time is doing great things for you.

[Tom Campitelli]

Wow Tom, Euro time is doing great things for you.

It's the rain.

[scottster]

Cecily Basques looks fantastic. Thanks for posting that, Coach Tom. I too will try to be more like Cecily.

[Tom Campitelli]

#BLC, bro.

[Seth_H]

I've been doing a mini-LP after an injury and failed the last rep of 315x5x3 on Monday. This is exactly where I stalled out on my original LP. I thought about switching to back-off sets to run out the rest of my LP. Then I read this thread. Hit 315x5x3 yesterday.

Thanks, Tom.

[Tom Campitelli]

Excellent. To be clear, once your LP has run its course, it is good practice to move on. However, this stuff will always be difficult. That is why it is valuable.

[djsilvera]

The weight will always feel heavy. ALWAYS. You make the weight on the bar go up by the power of your will, not because it feels good. It feels bad. You are forging your body. It is hard, uncomfortable work. Embrace that. Banishing weakness requires suffering on your part.

That's a goldmine of fucking-do-it. You and Paul Horn need to start a T-Shirt company.