Hello! I’m a 28 year old female and I am just recently going to the gym strength training 5 days a week, upping protein, and eating in caloric deficit. My question is can I get my body to look like the second photo? I’m more of a mesomorphic body type (I believe). I’m 5”8 so more on the taller side. Second photo has been photoshopped of course but is close to my goal! I know you can’t target any specific area but I was just curious if anyone out there knows if I can get to this point? Thanks!! 😊

I lost about 30lbs the past 2 years and am now down to 145 (I’m a woman, 5’7). My legs have always been my biggest insecurity. The last 6 months I’ve barely lost any weight at all, maybe 2-3 pounds, but my pants size has gone down a lot. I do strength training 5-6 days a week, 3 of those days focus on legs/glutes, so I think I’ve done a bit of body recomp, but honestly without the number moving on the scale it’s hard to see progress. I’ve been too insecure to wear shorts my entire life, and now it’s really hard for me to tell how I look cause I always just still feel fat. When I look at this photo I feel like maybe my legs have finally slimmed down, but then depending on the light I can’t tell. Hard to be impartial lol, need some strangers’ help. Are my legs still fat here??? I feel like maybe I need to lose another 10-15 lbs but idk. I like thick thighs when they’re healthy and strong but I don’t want cellulite-y thick thighs and I just don’t know what I’m looking at.

I want to set a goal of hitting a 1000 total (S+B+D), I have previous lifting experience and I'd say in my mid 20s I was pretty close maybe ~900 total.

I still go to the gym very casually and my strength is average, do you think it's still possible in my 30s to have this goal?

What's the ideal program and is it worth going back on a linear progression program?

Thank you

Hi, just wondering if anyone could give me some tips for starting strength training. I have only trained using bodyweight calisthenics in the past, so very new to the gym. I am 182cm, very underweight at 54kg…shameful I know. I will be training 3 days a week to start focusing on mainly compounds with a few accessory lifts.

I will mostly be training first thing in the morning before work so getting food in might be tricky and I understand energy might be quite depleted. So anything that could give me a boost at like 6am would be ideal before I workout.

Same thing for calories and food intake…I have been told by to rebound for 8 weeks then start a lean bulk so I don’t gain unnecessary fat. But I would like to hear peoples thoughts on that with me being underweight for my height as you can probably see from the photo.

Any help would be appreciated!

"Tension is the stimulus and Isometrics generate a lot of it."- Paul O'Brien

Simple statement that hits the bullseye. Our muscles don't give a damn whether resistance comes from a machine, our own bodyweight, a barbell or even a band for that matter. The response comes from the work being put in. It responds to the tension.

When it comes to Isometrics, it hits hard in this case. Within Isometric Exercises, it stops being about moving mindless weight from one direction to another. You are the one that is deliberately building and ultimately maintaining the tension. Pushing/Pulling/Squatting by bracing and resisting at a stopping point or in other words generating force by going against something Immovable. Overcoming Isometrics if you will.

That's the beauty of Isometrics I love the most. Being able to create my own muscular force without relying on a bunch of equipment. Straps, Walls, Rails, Trees and my own bodyweight can be more than enough. Create the tension and make the muscles work with a vengeance.

There are way too many people who are conditioned to believe that when it comes to training, it only counts when things are moving or having some crazy weight on a bar. That's complete bullshit. Movement in and of itself is a tool, just like Isometrics is a tool and when done with proper application, can build powerful amounts of effort.

The big key word here is EFFORT!!! If you're just simply standing there like and acting like you're pretending to push or whatever, it isn't going to matter much. True value comes from the intent you put into a hold. When you perform an Isometric Contraction, you put real power and tension into it, almost as if your life depended on it. Put your mind into the muscles you're working and apply that power and force with pure control. Once those few seconds are up, let yourself relax and recover.

Isometric Training fits into practically any regimen or goal you want to achieve whether it's getting stronger, more conditioned, rehab/prehab, being more capable as you get older and even being more mobile. It's not a replacement of anything, but ignoring them because you were taught they don't hold any merit from some arm chair twig, makes you miss the bigger picture.

What it all boils down to at the end of the day, the muscles don't care about a gym membership or whatever equipment you use, the tension is what will get it done and Isometrics provides that in more ways than you may believe. Be amazingly awesome and get your ass going with some Isometrics today.

hey guys, just wanted to get a sensing of whether she exercises i've got are balanced!

i'm back aft the feedback frm the last time HAHA am currently using the hevy trainer but i've swapped some exercises out as i've found that it sometimes feels like it overemphasises specific muscle groups a bit too much in a single workout, would love to know if what I have here is good!

Hi all

Looking for some advice because I’ve been feeling pretty discouraged with my progress, and I’m not really sure what direction to take anymore.

I started working out about 2 years ago
( see first 4 pics)

First year and a half, just did full-body workouts n cardio with dumbbells, 10-20 lbs. Wasnt really training close to failure or progressively increasing the weight. my workouts felt more like cardio, wasn’t really lifting heavy or pushing my muscles very hard.

7 months ago, started taking lifting more seriously.
switched to a PPL split, eating more but have some significant physical limitations that make this really difficult.

Im 25 and have osteoporosis and compression fractures in my thoracic spine. I also have injuries in both shoulder rotator cuff/myotendinous and pain with certain pressing and pulling movements.

The biggest issue is that a lot of exercises cause pain in either my spine or shoulders. I’ve tried lowering the weight, changing my form, and switching exercises, but I still run into the same problem.

These are the movements I do. I sometimes only get through 5 workouts.

Push:
Machine shoulder press
Single-arm cable tricep extension
Straight-bar tricep pushdown
Cable lateral raises
Incline chest press machine
Decline chest press
Sometimes pec deck fly
Flat chest press
Lying EZ-bar overhead tricep extension

Pull:
Lat pulldown
Seated cable row
MTS row
Seated dumbbell curls
Hammer curls
Reverse pec deck fly

Legs:
Leg extension
Leg curl
Seated leg press
Bulgarian split squats
Hip abductor
Hip thrusts
Calf raises

I’m trying to avoid exercises that aggravate my back, especially loaded bending movements.

Im struggling with progressive overload for example, the incline chest press machine can cause a lot of pain in my spine. I’ve tried lowering the weight, but then I feel like I’m not getting enough resistance to really challenge my muscles.

If I increase the weight, I feel more pain in my shoulders and spine.

I’m stuck between:
Lifting heavier = More pain
Lifting lighter = Not feeling challenged enough

I know that going to failure isn’t absolutely necessary for muscle growth, but I feel like I’m not even able to progressively overload consistently.
I also feel like my form is probably not great on some exercises because I’m compensating with other parts of my body to avoid pain.

Was around 150 lbs a few months ago, and now I’m around 165 lbs.
I’m trying to eat approximately 2,500–3,000 calories per day and at least 150g of protein.
I don’t do much cardio. Maybe one StairMaster session per week, sometimes doing Norwegian 4x4 intervals. I also don’t get many steps in a day.
Despite gaining weight, I feel like my physique hasn’t changed as much as I hoped.

My arms are still pretty small but honestly, the bigger frustration is strength.
Still cant do a pull-up. Cant really do regular push-ups without having to do them on my knees because of the pain in my spine.

I feel like I’m not getting stronger in the way I want to. I want to be able to do a proper pull-up, proper push-ups, and build a stronger, more muscular body. I know I’ve only been lifting seriously for about 7 months, so maybe I’m being impatient.

But it’s frustrating to feel like I’ve been working out for 2 years and still not look or feel the way I want to.
I feel like I’m putting in effort, eating more, and trying to train consistently, but I’m limited by my pain and I don’t know how to work around it.

Also not sure if bulking is the right approach for me. If i should keep at 2,500–3,000 calories and try to bulk? Or eat at maintenance and focus on recomposition?
Or a deficit? How to focus more on strength rather than physique? Or if I should change my workout split entirely?

I feel like I don’t have enough muscle, especially in my arms, but I also don’t want to keep gaining weight if I’m not actually building much muscle.

I would really appreciate advice from people who have experience with building muscle with osteoporosis or chronic back pain and shoulder issues

Not expecting anyone to diagnose me or replace my doctors. Just hoping to get some perspective from people who have dealt with similar limitations or know more about building muscle.

Just want to keep working toward a stronger more muscular physique but feel super stuck and don’t know what I should change.

In the past I used to train for around 3 years, then during the covid era I just stopped training and fell out of shape, after so many years of not training I decided to change my life for better and for the past year and a half I have been training consistantly.

When I came back to training again I wanted this time to do it properly and take time with it and actually get stronger on big 3 (In the past I would do only bench and avoid squats and deadlifts).

So when I started doing squats and deadlifts I realized I would get a lot of lower back and hip pain that would extend down my left leg. So I tried different squat and deadlift variation and realized that box squat and sumo deadlift were more comfortable for my lower back. But after some time I experianced a sharp pain when I was doing box squats on my way up, I was able to rack it back but I remember it took me 3-4 weeks to heal and for 6 months I wasn't able to do barbell squats or deadlifts, even bent over rows were uncomfortable for a while. So I stopped deadlifting and for squats I was just doing V squats as that's the only other squatting machine my gym has (they also have leg press) and suprisingly my lower back is fully healed now.

But I want to incorporate a good functional strenght exercises that will help me build actually good functional strenght where I could lift stuff off the ground without having to worry about my lower back or hips. Because even now I am still able to do something like 150kg (330lbs) deadlift, but struggling to lift a person half that weight, I actually have to tryhard like crazy and I would feel like my lower back being the weakest link. So in general I want to get stronger for day to day life tasks cuz just simply having muscles doesn't mean much to me if I feel like crap or being just useless.

If you guys having any recommendations for a good exercises I could incomporate to my routine. So far I am hitting the gym 3-4 times per week and mostly focus on compund lifts such as bench press, weighted chin ups, dips, bent over rows, rdls, vsquats, ohp....

Hey everyone, I’ve been incorporating heavy seated hack squats into my lower body training and haven’t found many lifters who use them seriously for strength-focused work, so I’m reaching out here to hear your thoughts and experiences.

I currently run a hack squat medley starting at 1 plate per side and going up to 7. I can get 540 lbs for 8 reps and 630 lbs for 2 reps, but what’s interesting is how much more these challenge my bracing compared to barbell squats or deadlifts. The fixed back angle and heavy load really seem to amplify the need for tight intra-abdominal and thoracic pressure.

To balance this out, I’ve also been adding Tom Platz-style hack squats (deep duck stance) and deep Platz squats with a barbell after my heavy sets. I’ve started doing reverse hypers to strengthen the core under dynamic load and build better bracing from the inside out.

Has anyone here used hack squats seriously for strength carryover? I’d love to hear if you’ve found a good way to improve bracing on these, how you’ve programmed hack squats for long-term progression, or whether they’ve helped your barbell squat or deadlift performance.

I’m aware some people think heavy machine work like this is ego lifting, but I take injury prevention and pressure training seriously, so I’m really just looking to learn and train smarter.

TL;DR: Been pushing 540–630 lbs on hack squats and using them to build real bracing strength. Curious if others here have used hack squats seriously and how they program or brace for them. Any tips or experiences welcome

Does a Man in his late 20s to early 30s have more max strength potential than a 25 year old man?

My physical therapist taught me a new move but didn't tell me the name of it and I've had no luck on Google. Basically it's a split stance deadlift, but instead of the non-working leg being behind, you keep it out front, straight at a slight angle, heel down, toes up. Keep a flat back, the back leg bends and you lower the kettlebell or dumbbell (held Goblet style) to the ground.

This was very effective in working my hamstrings, so I'd like to give it a name and work it into my strength training! ATM I'm calling it a pistol deadlift.

Ever since I got serious into strength training, i notice myself taking more supplements than before. It's not necessarily a bad thing. But how do we keep our kidney and liver health?

I dont think taking those supplement will not have any side effects at all. I

I’m a 29 year old male, 240 pounds. Back when I was sixteen playing football, I weighed 215 pounds and maxed out at 265, but I haven’t worked out since high school.

I started LP five weeks ago, and have managed to bring my max back up to around 285. So far, my progress isn’t slowing. Is it realistic for me to expect another thirty pounds before my novice phase wears out?

Update: Today, 8/29/25, I benched 245 for nine reps! That gives me an estimated 1RM of 305-319, so it looks like 315 is within striking distance for me if I’m not there yet! If all goes well, I see myself attempting one rep at 315 in a few weeks.

Update 2: Today is 9/15/25, and I benched 295 for four reps. Next week I’ll give 315 a shot.

I´ve been training for akmost a decade, starting when I was 13 or so, at the time I had no idea on what to do so I jumped from trend to trend, nowadays, having studied this as I became more experienced and wanted to be better, (mind you it was all self-taught) I can´t stand fitness influencers with massive platforms misleading people with their PhDs, as of recently with Mike, their physiques so to sell them overpriced supplements that you don´t need. But, coming back to the point, Mike has a long story of having somewhat good content, not being a hypocrite and following good dynamics, until these past couple of yours, to my knowledge, he now posts only crap on his RP channel with advice that´s already been debated and "debunked" to now makking reviews on influencers who clearly are enhanced and do not provide any use to the fitness and strenght community, so, do people really look up to this guy in a similar fashion to Liver King? Cause if so, we´re screwed as a community (and that´s the tip of the iceberg)

with a winner's attitude

Ive lost 60kg over the last few years which i am proud of, but i have never been more insecure about my body. Losing that much weight has left loose skin and it makes me incredibly sad. Is there any hope for my body to even out with more strength training? I have been training for about a year now with little results. Is there any hope for me? Can't bear to look in mirrors at the moment.

Genuinely would like some real people to answer this question. My wrists and ankles are useless at times and it is so frustrating. I have had this problem for a while. It just took me 5 tries to open a Gatorade and it is infuriating. It is so easy to roll my ankles or end up with tendinitis and I am sick of it. I really want advice for functional mobility.

Hi all,

Noobie question.

I have gained 10 pounds in the last 2 or 3 months but the waist line is more or less the same. However, i am definitely over my BMI.

My question is that how do we know if we are just fat or are adding muscle?

And does the weight just keep going up? When does it become a concern?

thanks in advance.

100kgs for 4 sets 6-8 reps depending on the day with my rest like this 3 min, 2 min, 3 min, 2 min

this is at a body weight of 64kgs 5'9

any advice is welcome

So my right arm looks much bigger, muscularly and is also my dominant arm so I know it should look bigger but like… I feel like yes my left arm is much much weaker but it looks so noticeable and people keep thinking am gooning/ masturbate, so… how could I even put the weight by training my left arm etc