When you lift, it’s not just your muscles getting stronger. It’s every tissue. Your weak points will shift around, and from time to time, even following all best practices, which you should, you will have minor injuries. Healing is gains. Listen to your body. Change rep counts when you plateau. Your most powerful tool for shifting your body composition is your kitchen. Never hold your breath while lifting. Have a spotter for benching and deadlifts. If you do bench without a spotter, practice beforehand lowering the bar onto your chest and rolling it down to your waist; this is how you safely fail out a lift, keep the bar off your head and neck. Don’t lock your joints. Structure your workouts with muscle group complementarity and such that the riskiest lifts come first, before you work out, and tire out, your stabilizing muscles. The first 2 weeks will produce lactic acid like a MFer but it gets better; if you massage muscles, massage towards the heart and never away from it. Stretch and rest between sets, a bit longer between 2nd and 3rd than before 1st and 2nd. Don’t drop your weights on the floor. Clean equipment after you use it, every time.