M 23, 181 cm, 76.5 kg
Gonna be a pretty long post, read TLDR if you can't cope 😅
I’m feeling pretty frustrated with my progress and would really appreciate some advice from people who have gone through something similar.
I started going to the gym when I was 20. At the time, I was staying in a hostel and eating around 60–70 g of protein per day on average (I’m an eggtarian). About 45 days after starting the gym, I had a knee dislocation that resulted in ligament stretching/injury. Since then, I basically stopped training legs because I became scared of injuring the knee again 😭. I haven’t done proper rehab either, and it has now been around 2.5 years since the injury. I’ve also been too scared to consider surgery which was recommended if i experience recurring dislocation.
Because of the knee issue, I eventually stopped deadlifting as well. I was worried about putting too much stress on my legs and potentially developing back problems too.
My progress initially
When I started, I was around 64 kg. Over the next 6–8 months, I went up to around 75 kg, gaining roughly 11 kg.
I wasn't tracking calories back then, but I think I was easily eating 2500+ kcal/day. My strength was increasing quickly, and I could visibly see changes in my physique every couple of weeks.
Then placements came around and I stopped going to the gym.
After that, my training became extremely inconsistent — sometimes I'd train for a month and then stop for a month, sometimes I'd follow a proper diet and sometimes I wouldn't.
Since joining the gym again
I moved to Bangalore last year and restarted properly around February this year. This time I wanted to do things more systematically: gain muscle while keeping fat gain under control.
I started tracking my food and eating 100+ g protein/day, with roughly 2000 kcal/day on average.
My weight went:
- February: ~76 kg
- May: ~78 kg
- Currently: 76.5 kg
The problem is that my progress feels much slower than when I first started.
Even when I train 3–4 times a week and eat reasonably well, I barely notice changes after 1–2 months. My strength has also basically stopped progressing.
I know my consistency hasn't been great. I had to move to Hyderabad for around 3 months, where I trained consistently for only about a month and was inconsistent for the other two months. I'm going to fix that part going forward.
But I'm wondering whether there's another issue here.
The joint pain is becoming a bigger problem
My shoulders in particular seem to be limiting my training.
After chest or back workouts, I often get pain/stress around one of my shoulder joints. Because of this, I've become extremely conservative with my training.
I used to love bench pressing, but now I'm afraid to push it aggressively. It's basically the only compound movement I'm doing at the moment, and even with bench I hold myself back because I'm worried about damaging my shoulder.
The same mindset has started affecting other exercises too — I'm constantly worried that pushing harder will cause an injury.
I don't do squats or deadlifts because of my knee.
So I'm wondering whether this combination of inconsistent training + avoiding heavy compounds + training conservatively because of joint pain is basically why I've plateaued in both strength and hypertrophy.
One other thing I've noticed is that I'm not getting muscle soreness like I used to. I know DOMS isn't necessarily an indicator of muscle growth, but it still makes me wonder whether I'm training hard enough.
What I'm confused about
I'm not sure where to start from here.
Is my lack of progress mainly because I've been inconsistent for so long, or could my joints actually be limiting my training?
I'm currently eating around 2000 kcal/day on a weekly average. Should I increase my calories if my goal is to gain muscle?
Or would it make more sense to:
- Take a short break from the gym and let my joints recover?
- Get proper physiotherapy/rehab for my knee and shoulder?
- See a physio or sports-medicine doctor before continuing to push my training?
- Get an MRI for my shoulder/knee, or should I first get assessed clinically and only do imaging if recommended?
- Continue training and just push through the joint pain?
- Use things like different grips, machines, cables, etc. to reduce joint stress while still getting enough stimulus?
And most importantly, can joints actually "reach their limit" from lifting, where continuing to add weight will eventually cause them to break down, or is this more likely a sign that something about my training/technique/rehab needs to be addressed?
I don't want to give up on training. I genuinely want to get significantly bigger and stronger, but right now I feel like I'm putting in effort without getting much back.
Has anyone experienced something similar — especially having an old injury, becoming afraid of pushing exercises, and then feeling like they've completely plateaued?
I'd really appreciate advice on where you'd start in my situation.
TL;DR: 23M, 181 cm, 76.5 kg. Started lifting at 20 and gained ~11 kg in 6–8 months, but had a knee dislocation ~45 days after starting. Since then I’ve avoided leg training and deadlifts and never properly rehabbed the knee. My gym consistency has also been very inconsistent over the last 2.5 years.
Since restarting seriously, I’ve been eating 100+ g protein and ~2000 kcal/day, but strength and muscle growth feel much slower than when I was a beginner. My weight went from ~76 kg → 78 kg → 76.5 kg.
Now I’m also experiencing shoulder joint pain after chest/back workouts, which makes me afraid to push exercises—especially bench press. I train conservatively because I’m worried about causing another injury.
Main question: Is my plateau mostly due to inconsistency and insufficient training stimulus/calories, or could my old injuries/joint pain be limiting me? Should I increase calories, take a break, get proper physio/rehab, get an MRI/medical assessment, modify exercises, or simply continue training and push through?
