Hey everyone,
I’m 17 years old, about 165 cm tall and weigh around 75 kg. I’ve been going to the gym for about 2 years, but I only started taking it seriously around 5 months ago.
My problem is that I don’t seem to be getting stronger or building noticeable muscle. For example, I’ve been stuck at 10 kg dumbbell curls for over 2 months now, and my weights in general aren’t really increasing.
I train 3 times a week and try to follow progressive overload (usually 3 sets of 8–10 reps). I also play football twice a week, but otherwise I’m not very active.
I eat around 120 g of protein per day and take 5 g of creatine daily. I’ve also noticed that I haven’t really been sore after workouts for a long time, which feels a bit strange to me.
One thing I’m unsure about is calories. I’ve heard that eating more helps with muscle growth, but I would describe myself as “skinny fat,” so I feel like I might already be a bit overweight. That’s why I’m hesitant to eat more.
I also sometimes feel discouraged because people my age at the gym seem much stronger and progress faster than me.
Does anyone have advice on what I might be doing wrong or what I could improve? I’d really appreciate any tips. Thanks for reading! 🙏