Can I Gain More Muscle by Increasing Big Lifts?

I am confused on the notion of diminishing muscle gains over the course of training time…

If I’m naturally skinny, if my big lifts haven’t increased for over a year (I wasn’t actively increasing the weight), and I have a large margin to improve on, would I gain more muscle? Or does the fact that I have been lifting for 3+ years mean I can’t gain more muscle?

I’m 6’2, 147lbs and am trying a cut from ~17% bf, for the next few weeks (2 weeks in right now)…

Yes, increasing your numbers on thebig lifts should help you gain more, certainly at 147 @ 6ft 2 you have a ton more size building potential to tap into.

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I am confused about why you’d go to the gym and never increase the amount of weight on the bar?

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Following programs that include things like super high volume, thus using lower weight for reps. Also a health issue had me feeling fatigued the entire winter and I just couldn’t get much done at the gym.

There is no timer in your body that amplifies your myostatin after a set amount of time has gone off. You have LOTS of room for growth.

Diminishing returns isn’t over the course of training time: it’s over the course of training RESULTS. That OFTEN correlates with time, but that’s assuming effective training.

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6’2 147lbs? The word cut should never come out of ones mouth.

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This doesn’t seem right. Are you sure?

If your big lifts actually haven’t increased in over a year, this should be a big red flag that you’re doing something fundamentally wrong.

Just to clarify: you’re 147lbs at 6"2, with moderately high bf and you’ve been training consistently for over 3 years? Unless there’s some big piece of the puzzle I’m missing, you need to completely rethink what you’re doing because it is absolutely not working.

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Either the op is completely is undereducated on this subject. Or someone is trolling .

Not trolling… Genuinely want to know what I should be doing

Weight and height is accurate, bf% is just a guess but it’s in that neighbourhood. Like I said above, I have followed some bad training advice… Any suggestions you could make?

How…how are you guessing your bodyfat%?

5/3/1 is a pretty effective training protocol. There are LOTS of articles on this website that discuss how to run it. In that same direction, there are lots of articles with training programs in general on this website, and they all work.

When you train, beat the logbook. This means, do MORE than you did last session. Either more weight on the bar, more reps with the same weight, more sets than last session, shorter rest times, faster bar speed, etc etc. Find SOME way to progress. Progress is how you progress. Also, ensure you eat well enough to support this progress, which will mean gaining weight.

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What this guy says.

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I think your lack of progress has a lot to do with the fact that you’re “cutting” at 6’2 147

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Seemed like a good move since I’m not as lean as I have been in the past. When do you recommend doing a cut?

When you have extra mass to cut.

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Just going off pictures and I can’t really see my abs (can see the top two)… might sound stupid but that’s what I did. I will look into 5/3/1 and your other tips. Thanks!

Even at 15%+ bf?

Send us some pics

Body fat is literally meaningless unless you’re overweight or obese. And on top of that, you dont have an accurate measurement to even know what your body fat is

You won’t gain muscle by trying to “cut”

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For clarification when you mean increase your lifts do you mean max 1 rm or for a certain rep range?

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