Lost motivation

[GlockSquat]

I hit a PR of 370 for a belted squat a few weeks ago and afterwards my right knee was bothering me. The next week was a deload week but I decided to just take the week off totally since I was hurting and hadn't had a full week away from the gym in probably a year or so. Well, when i came back my legs were super sore to the point that I cut the workout short. I foam rolled hard for a week and finally got my quads back to being painless. Well, not it's two weeks without squatting. I come back and my 370 squat has not morphed into a failed 350 squat. WEAK. I hit a single with 315 that felt heavy. I notice I am also getting fat at 30% bf range. So, I start lowering my calories and try to focus on losing some fat after all I'm almost 41 and need to lean out just to be healthier. Well, I try to keep working out but the increased weakness is very depressing. So . . . I binge on some fast food and beer. Now I'm fat AND weak where just a month or so ago I was stronger then I've ever been in the squat. I don't know, I've been at this stuff pretty hard since mid-2013 and I've yet to hit the magical 405 squat and my deadlift (which Rip says should be 500) has meandered in the 300's forever with only once getting a 410 deadlift a couple years ago. I'm starting to wonder if any of this is really worth it. I can't be fat and be healthy but I also don't want to be just another weak guy at the gym. Maybe it's time to just lose weight and put strength training to the side while I focus on general health? I feel lost. Any advice? Has anyone else been here?

[Cheesepuff]

First, let me say I would kill to have your lifts. I'm 63, was progressing ok, but got two injuries. Yesterday was the first time in weeks I could Squat and empty bar without pain.

I know another lifter, who is also considerably younger, and he progress considerably better. He has now hit a point where it is all heavy, after a long run of reasonably easy progress.

If you want to be "strong"... 315, 350 and 370 on the squat are all strong.

If you want to lose weight, cut your carbs and add some hit. (Good Calories, Bad Calories - Gary Taubes... also of course Jordan Feiganbaum) You may curtail your lifting some to get there. So what???

We all can't be Joe Pena. But it sounds like you are certainly stronger and healthier than you were, and you now have options you didn't have.

You can just keep doing 350 until it is real easy. Then move slowly in the direction you want to go, because largely, you're already there.

I find lifting to be a joy. Even yesterday, where my lifts frankly sucked. But I lifted, made progress (from resets), only one lift is potentially within weeks of a PR.

Life is a journey, not a destination.

Listen to better music. (aka less angry music)

I don't lift for numbers. I lift to be better. Decide what better is for you. Decide what kind of better it is "worth it" to be. Go there, who cares how long it takes or what anyone thinks. You are in this, for YOU.

[Ivey]

I don't lift for numbers. I lift to be better. Decide what better is for you. Decide what kind of better it is "worth it" to be. Go there, who cares how long it takes or what anyone thinks. You are in this, for YOU.

63 years of wisdom right there!
-ivey

[Meshuggah]

For me it's all about chasing the numbers. When I can no longer lift certain poundages that I have set for myself, I'm done with it.
Just going through the motions with light weights is not something I ever care to do.

[GlockSquat]

For me it's all about chasing the numbers. When I can no longer lift certain poundages that I have set for myself, I'm done with it.
Just going through the motions with light weights is not something I ever care to do.

Pretty sure you're known as a troll account but if not, what do you do when you hit a wall and stop progressing? Are you one of the guys that doesn't care if they are obese? IME, the only way I get very strong for me is when I get fat. Tired of being a fat ass but don't want to be weak either. I do agree that if my weight training has to become light weights and walking then I'm out.

[Meshuggah]

Pretty sure you're known as a troll account but if not, what do you do when you hit a wall and stop progressing? Are you one of the guys that doesn't care if they are obese? IME, the only way I get very strong for me is when I get fat. Tired of being a fat ass but don't want to be weak either. I do agree that if my weight training has to become light weights and walking then I'm out.

Troll account?!?! Feel free to check out my training log(s) if you think I'm a troll. I'll be 56 next month and can still deadlift over 500 pounds. (and there's more on the way)
I constantly rotate exercises to prevent staleness. Being fat is not cool, I'm 210 lbs @ 5' 10" If I start feeling sloppy, I cut the carbs for awhile.
Good luck with your training.

[Charlie Davies]

Me too. I get setbacks and injuries, get too fat, and have taken layoffs due to discouragement.

But when I lift regularly my back doesn't go "out" and I sleep better. So now I just keep lifting even if I'm not planning on PRs.

I got a new minor bench 3rm recently, by accident. Just happened to have a run of shoulder health, and a good day in the garage.

My grand strategy -- just keep showing up.

[GlockSquat]

Decided to just eat and drink this weekend. Monday I start back hopefully not too weak. Whatever.

[I_iz_a_fatass]

I just finished a week off because I was just too beat up and ass-dragging to do anything effectively after stretching out LP as far as I could. Boy, am I paying for to after today's medium stress session. My lumbar is not happy with me at all.

[Mark E. Hurling]

You're still young. You can probably get to those goals you want with a few runs and cycles up and then backing off again. Just be patient and recognize that it will take a while because of slower gains.

I've been lifting on and off since my late teens and I'm coming up on my 67th birthday. Since the 1960's, I've tried not quite everything, but a lot of things that came and fell out of fashion over the decades and wasted my time and potentially top gains I could have made. What the hey, nothing to be done about that now. All things considered, I have been reasonably lucky and have not lost much strength from my peak in my early 40's. In fact, I bumped up my DL about 20 lbs. from a 405 gym lift to a 425 gym lift when I got SS coaching at a seminar 5 years ago. I haven't managed to get over 400 for a year and a half. My bench press has fallen off about 20 lbs. too from that period of time.

This will happen to all of us one day. Not you, and not now, but someday. In spite of that, I refuse to go quietly and simply give up. I am going to continue to push to maintain or even re-expand the edge of my envelope until the 3rd or 4th time The Reaper comes for me and I don't whip his ass again. Giving up is not in me.

Relax, regroup, recharge, and get back and hit it again.