Pls help

I need some help Veeky Forums, what am I doing wrong?

Pic is about 8 months change for me. I went up about 20 lbs (~150 - ~170). I posted in a recent cbt, had a few people respond that I've been doing something horribly wrong. But I just don't know what.

I had been doing Push,Pull,x,Push,Pull Mon-Friday. I made (slow) strength gains. PR's roughly went:

Bench: 155 up to 205
Deadlift: 200 up to 275
Squat: 145 up to 225

I know I'm not strong by any means, but I felt like I was making progress. But people pointed out in the CBT that it looks like I've put on no muscle at all. After every workout four times a week, I'd come back and have a 2 scoop protein shake, and generally ate over maintenance. Why has my muscle growth been such shit?

I'm currently planning on trying to cut while eating a shitload of protein to maintain what I do have. At this point I just want to look decent, even if I'm skinnier. Pls help me figure out what I'm doing wrong.

Idk but your chest and shoulders should be way more developed for someone who benches 205. Id say add some upper body accesories because that serms to be where you are lacking but keep bulking, you def put on a good amount of weight.

maybe a two week minicut wouldn't be a bad idea

I haven't made any progress on OHP because whenever I do it consistently my shoulder tweaks and I feel like I'm gonna snap something, so that probably contributes.

Is anything effective really going to happen in just two weeks?

add incline dumbbell bench and standing dumbbell press

25-30 degrees incline. More is not better.

You do not look anywhere near as bad as you think you do my friend.

What routine are you following? I see no leg day but I see squats mentioned.

also do not cut. stay the course my man

>that chest
>benching 205
First step is to stop lying. Unless that's your one rep cheat max.

Thanks for the advice man.

Generally what I was doing was this:

A: PUSH

4 x 5 - Bench
(3 x 5 - Squats)
4 x 5 - Incline bench
(3 x 5 - OHP)
3 x 8 - Machine flies
2 x 6 - Lateral and front raises
3 x Fail - Dips

B: PULL

3 x 8 - Pendlay rows
(3 x 5 - Deadlifts)
3 x Fail - Pullups/Chinups
3 x 8 - Facepulls
3 x 8 - Barbell curls
3 x 8 - Rear Delt Flies
2 x Fail - Cable row / cable pulldown
3 x 8 - Hammer curls


ABxABxx

Parenthesis meaning I'd do squats one day, OHP the other, but pretty quick I ended up quitting OHP essentially, occasionally just doing seated Arnold. And then on one of my pull days each week I'd do deads.

I listed it as PR. That was a two rep max, one time thing. Alone I usually top off at 195 or 185.

Nah fuck off. You aren't benching 195 either. If you aren't going to be honest here then fuck off. Also, fuck off with your photoshopped left pic.

on your A day swap inc bench with inc dumbbell bench and ohp with standing dumbbell press

You need a shoulder press. start light with dumbbells 3x8-10. Dont rush into upping the weight too fast.

same rep scheme with inc dumbbell bench.

on B day
swap hammer curls for reverse barbell curls for them forearm gains. 3x8-10 go light at first. you can use EZ bar.

go suck a dick

>phoshopped

Lel why the fuck would I shop my before photo? It's got favorable lighting and a good angle, sure, but what, I want to make myself look skinnier in my before shot? I have more pics from that time period if you want.

Also the literal point of this thread is to ask why I had increasing strength but it isn't really showing visibly. The lifts aren't impressive, I'm aware, but I'm asking for advice. I have no reason to not be honest.

>after pic looks worse than before pics
JUST

well your lifts are nothing special and you are at about 15% bf now. You look alright but most natties look unimpressive without sub 10% bf imo.

Thanks user, appreciate it. And you think I should keep eating at a surplus then?

Meh, some people have shit chest activation on bench. I got to benching 255, have a similar if not worse looking chest than OP (thicker, but still shitty looking) and finally just stopped caring about strength numbers on bench. Focus a lot more on cable crossovers and dumbbell presses now.

Angles and lighting.

eat closer to maint. you dont need to cut but you may be overeating.

protein is 1g/lb bodyweight. this isn't negotiable. your body will always prefer to use muscle over fat for fuel unless you have a damn good reason for it not to.

chest activation () is why i recommend inc dumbbell.

if dumbbell pressing is new to you go very light. you may be wobbly at first.

>protein is 1g/lb bodyweight. this isn't negotiable
broscience.

tell me why "better safe than sorry" isn't a good idea when it comes to this.

anyway, im out OP. good luck

Thanks man. Will implement your advice.

Do you think cable flies and db press has improved the look of your chest?

>tell me why giving shit bro science advice is bad
Because OP is an absolute novice who doesn't know the difference between bro science and real advice?

.80 per pound has been researched to be sufficient for professional athletes.

Wait left pic is how you started out?

Well you managed to regress it would seem.

u appear to cite scientific studies without understanding what a standard deviation is

u also appear to apply the results of one subset of a population across a broader set

Whereas you cite broscience. Which one is more credible?

If you're eating between 0.7 - 0.9 gram of protein / lb a day I wouldn't worry too much about synthesis not occuring, it definitely will occur if you're weight training.

Yeah. I go for one-arm cable crossovers, and really focus on crossing completely over my chest. Focus on the squeeze.

The problem with doing both cables at the same time is you either stop when your hands touch, or you focus too much on which hand is in the top each rep instead of focusing on the chest contraction.

Okay sweet.

I know rite.

If your goal was to stay that lean then you have been eating too much. Bear in mind that had you been eating less calories then you would have even less muscle than you do now and your lifts would be worse.

Also I'm willing to bet that your before picture there is making you look better than you were. A picture taken in the same conditions as the after pic would look even more like a hungry skelly.

Before picture definitely is more flattering than reality. I'll have to start eating leaner.