Hey everyone, I’m 13 years old and started focusing on my fitness last year after COVID because I was being judged at school (sad, I know). Anyway, I’ve lost a lot of weight and now I’m at a point where I’m somewhat skinny fat. I don’t have much fat, and I have a decent amount of muscle in my abs and legs, but my upper body isn’t doing too well.
THE ISSUE:
I’m struggling the most with my chest. My biceps, shoulders, and triceps aren’t great either, but they’re better than my chest. I have very little muscle in my chest, and there’s definitely nothing visible. I also find push-ups really challenging. I’m looking for some guidance because until now, I’ve mostly been doing ab workouts, some curls with a resistance band, and focusing on weight loss.
In my opinion, as a beginner, you should aim for 6 sets per week for each muscle group, training to technical failure. Focus on isolation exercises to ensure you adequately stress the muscle, since compound exercises primarily fatigue the main muscle they target. You can do this in a circuit format, which would take about 30 minutes, three times a week, focusing either on upper or lower body. A full-body workout that lasts an hour is often too much for most people. Make sure to allow at least 48 hours of rest between workouts for the same muscle group. This approach helped me gain 10 kg naturally in a year while maintaining a similar body fat percentage. The Weller Bands app offers some great circuit workouts.
Avoid anything with seed oils and consume plenty of animal proteins and fats.
Never use hormones or drugs, as they can disrupt your body, and you’ll need to rely on them for life (45 years of reliance), or the results will fade.
It’s a frustratingly common suggestion, but just do push-ups—don’t go overboard, as that could kill your motivation for the next time. The key is to do small amounts frequently. Try doing 10 push-ups every day, six days a week. If you can manage 2 or 3 sets, that’s fantastic, but always aim for a minimum of 10 each day. It may not seem like much, but when you think about it, that adds up to around 300 by the end of the month, which is a significant improvement from doing nothing and only takes a couple of minutes. This will help you build foundational strength not just in your chest, but also in your core and arms. Engage your core and glutes while pushing up, and pause at the bottom.
The key is to stick to just 10 daily. Don’t force yourself to do 30 every day, as that can feel overwhelming compared to just 10. Try to do them first thing in the morning, and continue with your other workouts or runs alongside this. Make this a regular part of your day, focusing on just a small number of push-ups. After six months of consistency, you’ll be surprised at how much strength you’ve developed.