Just not feeling it today.

But you go anyways.

No idea what it is… just woke up, had zero desire to do anything — even go back to bed. Did not want to lift, but figured I’d feel better after I started squatting. Sure enough I did feel better, but then I wanted the bag the rest of the session. No, can’t do that.

The session itself went well. Everything does feel stronger, progressing. It’s all good. I just feel “blah” today.

On split squats, the progression there was to take a wider/longer stance, so my feet were further apart. That ups things, plus it added more to the stretch in the bottom position. That was painful. 🙂

I am thinking about next week tho and looking forward to it. The progression changes to start to prime things for the strength phase. That should be excellent. 🙂

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 4

• Squats
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 135 x 3
  • 155 x 1
  • 185 x 5
  • 185 x 5
  • 185 x 5
  • 185 x 5
  • 185 x 5
• Pause Split Squats (rear leg on bench)
  • BW x 12
  • BW x 12
  • BW x 12
  • BW x 12
• Leg Press
  • 115 x 20
  • 165 x 20
  • 215 x 20
  • 255 x 18
• Standing Calf Raises
  • 40 x 20
  • 40 x 20
  • 40 x 15
  • 40 x 15

Pretty good stuff today.

Not much to say other than just happy to keep seeing things going up. Weights up, reps up. All in all good.

Only thing to note is on the lat raises, in an attempt to “get something out of it”, I’m really working on slowing the eccentric, plus keeping the rest time between sets short (1 minute). If I do that, I seem to get something out of it. So weight and reps may not be changing much, but at least with this approach I feel like I’m getting more out of it.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 4

• Bench Press
  • bar x 6
  • 95 x 6
  • 115 x 6
  • 135 x 6
  • 155 x 6
  • 175 x 12
  • 155 x 18 (AMRAP)
• Lat Pulldowns (curl grip)
  • 95 x 10
  • 105 x 10
  • 115 x 10
  • 125 x 10
  • 135 x 13
  • 110 x 19 (AMRAP)
• DB Rows
  • 55 x 10
  • 60 x 10
  • 65 x 10
  • 75 x 11 (AMRAP)
• Bent DB lat Raises
  • 12 x 12
  • 12 x 12
  • 12 x 12
  • 12 x 12

Week 4, and I’m liking where things are going.

Today was good…. well, sorta good.

Truly it was good. Everything moved well. Weights are going up, getting heavier. In fact, whereas last week I worked up to 205 for a “moderate” set, this was to be a work-up to 6 moderate/hard reps. Things were feeling really good so I adjusted and worked up to 235 instead of the planned 215. That felt right.

But I’m not sure what brings that about. Is it the progression? Was I a little too light to start? Was it getting lots of rest the past few days? Was it all the food consumed the past few days? That my body is getting used to training a little harder, a little heavier? I’m really not sure what to attribute it to at this point. But I’m just happy for it.

Tho, not totally happy, just because it feels horrible that 235 for 6 reps was “moderate/hard”. I’ve lost so much strength, it bums me out. If I look back over the years, it almost seems like I’ve made zero progress. But I have to remember, that’s not true. Losing 66 lbs. is a lot of progress! Building the muscle that I have (else that 66 lb. loss wouldn’t look as good), is progress. All it really tells me is the thing I really want is being stronger: not leaner, not bigger, but stronger. Sure, I do want the other things, but they are secondary. And this coming year is really going to focus still on the lean and big parts of things, not so much the strong part. So that still bums me out a bit. But hey… I’m healthier than ever before. I haven’t been this lean since… too many years. I still look better and am stronger, overall, than I have been at any prior point in my life. And I’ve got the good health to be able to do it, the time and money to afford the gym, the food, the coaching, whatever else.

Really, my gripes are minor annoyances in the grand scheme of things. And if I keep a perspective of years instead of months, then spending the whole of next year continuing on leaning out, but progressing to my key priorities then well… it’s all good. Make it a life-long journey, and just be patient.

As for specifics.

Squats went well. No complaints.

Curls and extensions, nothing to write about.

Calf raises. The 5-second pause between each rep continues to kill me. Just nuts. That said, I had to cut the last set short. Due to an old ankle injury, the flexion the foot/ankle gets put into in the bottom position sometimes causes ankle pain in the bad way. Well, one of the first reps of the 4th set just hurt bad; I tried to keep going, but the pain remained and was not going to be “worked through”. So I stopped short, thus just the few reps I got. Ah well.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 4

• Squats
  • bar x 6
  • 95 x 6
  • 135 x 6
  • 155 x 6
  • 175 x 6
  • 195 x 6
  • 215 x 6
  • 235 x 6
• Leg Curls
  • 50 x 8
  • 50 x 8
  • 50 x 8
  • 50 x 8
• Leg Extensions
  • 60 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 80 x 12
  • 85 x 12
  • 90 x 16
• Seated Calf Raises
  • 30 x 20
  • 30 x 20
  • 30 x 20
  • 30 x 4 (see notes)

Yes, I went to the gym on Christmas morning.

And yes, I listened to Christmas music while I was lifting. 🙂

Today was really good. Everything felt strong. There was forward progress on everything. I am happy.

And today? I’m just glad I’m in a mass phase — it’s time to carb load on homemade apple pie. 😉

Merry Christmas, y’all!

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 3

• Incline Press
  • bar x 8
  • bar x 8
  • 85 x 8
  • 105 x 8
  • 125 x 8
  • 145 x 8
  • 165 x 10
  • 135 x 13 (AMRAP)
• Dips
  • BW x 8
  • BW x 6
  • BW x 5
• Wide-Grip Lat Pulldowns
  • 130 x 8
  • 130 x 8
  • 130 x 8
  • 130 x 8
  • 130 x 10
• Low Cable Rows
  • 85 x 12
  • 95 x 12
  • 105 x 12
  • 115 x 16
• BB Curls
  • bar x 100

Dang, that hurt. 🙂

So there’s progression, and I’m happy to be making it again. I mean, I was making a lot of good progress on the bathroom scale, but I’m happier making progress in the gym.

Squats went well. It’s “light”, but this has been really good for helping me focus on form. Had to eagle-claw-grip the bar today — feeling a lot of elbow and wrist pain.

Pause split squats. The thing to improve today was the pause part. I’ve been pausing, but not as strictly as I should. So today was about getting all the pausing in, while keeping my own balance (no external help). That certainly ratcheted things up. I tell you, the pump you get off these is crazy.

Leg presses. Man, when I do these I have to think about John Meadows, because there’s just such a pain, such a burn, but you can keep going well beyond that point of pain. It’s crazy. 🙂

And speaking of that, doing calf raises with a strict 5-second pause between each rep, man, that really adds up to some serious pain. I’ve tried lots of calf exercises in the past, but nothing seems to burn and pump like these extended pauses. Geez.

So hey, a good day.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 3

• Squats
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 115 x 3
  • 135 x 1
  • 155 x 5
  • 155 x 5
  • 155 x 5
  • 155 x 5
  • 155 x 5
• Pause Split Squats (rear leg on bench)
  • BW x 15
  • BW x 13
  • BW x 10
  • BW x 10
• Leg Press
  • 95 x 20
  • 155 x 20
  • 205 x 20
  • 245 x 25
• Standing Calf Raises
  • 40 x 20
  • 40 x 19
  • 40 x 15
  • 40 x 15

Didn’t start out good, but went well otherwise.

I shouldn’t really say that. The only thing that wasn’t good was that I didn’t go up in reps on my final work set of inclines. But looking back, it was a stronger set than last week’s set, so I’ll take that as some indicator. Besides, everything else went up to some degree in all other areas today, so I’d like to hope that I’m getting back in the groove of things.

Creatine. Eating more food. Who knew? 😉 And I’m not putting weight back on too quickly either.

I’m more excited about next week, because things ramp up a little more. A little less light, a little more heavy. Still a ways to go, but just happier. 🙂

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week X

• Incline Press
  • bar x 8
  • bar x 8
  • 85 x 8
  • 105 x 8
  • 125 x 8
  • 145 x 8
  • 165 x 8
  • 135 x 12 (AMRAP)
• Dips
  • BW x 8
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
• Wide-Grip Lat Pulldowns
  • 125 x 8
  • 125 x 8
  • 125 x 8
  • 125 x 8
  • 125 x 8
• Low Cable Rows
  • 85 x 12
  • 95 x 12
  • 105 x 12
  • 115 x 12
• BB Curls
  • bar x 100 (100 rep protocol)

It’s a deceptive day.

It looks easy on paper. But it’s work. 🙂 It’s only week 2 and it’s really not tons of work, but I can see how, over the coming weeks, this ramps up. And of course, you have to put the work in to ensure you get worked. It’d be very easy to fart this day away.

My body is quickly adapting to the 2x/week stuff. Again, part of it is the program’s modulation where you get worked, but not trashed, because you’re working more frequently. Very happy with things so far, but again, it’s only week 2.

Did the split squats a bit better today. Last week I was holding on to something for balance. This week I tried to be as free-balancing as possible, only touching something to keep from totally falling over. Did a pretty good job, and it make things more difficult.

Otherwise, things were what they were.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week X

• Squats
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 115 x 3
  • 125 x 1
  • 135 x 5
  • 135 x 5
  • 135 x 5
  • 135 x 5
  • 135 x 5
• Pause Split Squats (rear leg on bench)
  • BW x 10 each leg
  • BW x 10 each leg
  • BW x 10 each leg
  • BW x 10 each leg
• Leg Press
  • 95 x 20
  • 155 x 20
  • 205 x 20
  • 245 x 20
• Standing Calf Raises
  • 40 x 20
  • 40 x 16
  • 40 x 15
  • 40 x 15

That went fine.

Week 2 and again, feeling the groove of things.

I continue to be surprised at how much curl-grip pulldowns work my lats. I don’t think it’s the curl grip as much as the full-range of motion, in that with the curl-grip I can really get the upper arm pulled through and “retracted”.

Anyways, it was what it was. A solid day. Nothing much else to report.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 2

• Bench Press
  • bar x 6
  • 95 x 6
  • 115 x 6
  • 135 x 6
  • 155 x 6
  • 175 x 8
  • 155 x 17 (AMRAP)
• Lat Pulldowns (curl grip)
  • 85 x 10
  • 95 x 10
  • 105 x 10
  • 115 x 10
  • 125 x 13
  • 100 x 18 (AMRAP)
• DB Rows
  • 50e x 10
  • 55e x 10
  • 60e x 10
  • 70e x 10 (AMRAP)
• Bent DB lat Raises
  • 12e x 12
  • 12e x 12
  • 12e x 10
  • 12e x 10

Getting in the groove of things.

This week feels better than last. I’m finding my groove, my weights, my reps, whatever I need to do here.

I do appreciate the lighter weights and more reps, as it’s really making me dial in better technique and finding that groove. Gotta love it.

All in all, a decent day. Really looking forward to the progression here.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 2

• Squats
  • bar x 8
  • 95 x 8
  • 115 x 8
  • 135 x 8
  • 155 x 8
  • 175 x 8
  • 185 x 8
  • 195 x 8
• Leg Curls
  • 45 x 8
  • 45 x 8
  • 45 x 8
  • 45 x 8
• Leg Extensions
  • 55 x 12
  • 60 x 12
  • 65 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 75 x 18
• Seated Calf Raises
  • 25 x 20
  • 25 x 20
  • 25 x 20
  • 25 x 20

Today was pretty good.

I don’t know what to attribute it to: the fact I’m getting more food, the structure of the programming, or what, but today went really well.

For example, on inclines I’ve been working up to a single at 175 (no where near a max, just a warmup) then AMRAP at 155. The past some weeks it was evident I was losing strength, stalling at 10 reps for the longest time, then falling to 9. But today, hitting 165 for 8. Could it be the more food? Could it be 3 minutes of rest between each set (whereas before it was only about a minute). Who knows. But I’m happy with how things went. There’s hope!

So that said, one thing about Paul’s programs is that sometimes his writing isn’t crystal clear. So I made the best interpretation I could. Like on inclines. From the way the program reads, it seems it should be 5 sets, working up to a top set of 8-12, followed by a drop and AMRAP. So those work-up sets… are they 8-12 reps each? Because this ramp up is so similar to his traditional 5,4,3,2,1,AMRAP,50% structure that well… I could be just confusing it. BUT, if it’s unclear, then I’ll err on the side of “what the point of the program?”. The point is hypertrophy, so getting lots of volume, hitting 8 reps on each set of the work-up, do that. It won’t be a bad thing.

Same with the curls. Paul basically just said “empty bar, 100 reps”. So… 100 reps, how? Could be taken a lot of ways, especially given how Paul’s talked about “100-rep sets” in other places (e.g. it’s 100 reps, non-stop, 1 set). But I dunno… I knew 100 reps with a 45 lb bar in 1 set wasn’t going to happen. So I opted to take the “inverse protocol” where you get as many reps as possible, then rest for as many seconds as you have reps remaining, repeat until you total 100 reps. That ended up working out for me like 20-something reps to start, then a lot of sets of 10-ish, then some sets of 5-ish, then basically 1-2’s right at the end. Maybe had 12-15 “sets” total in there? Basically a lot of work, and one hell of a pump.

But all in all, today was pretty good. It feels like the “A” days focus on the main movement with some assistance work, but the “B” days are there to really get some extra volume and “grow” — esp. since they allow a little more time then for recovery before the next session. Not sure if that’s an intentional part of program structure, but it sure makes sense.

Digging “Inception” so far. We’ll see how week 2 goes.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Inception program

Week 1

• Incline Press
  • bar x 8
  • bar x 8
  • 85 x 8
  • 105 x 8
  • 125 x 8
  • 145 x 8
  • 165 x 8
  • 135 x 11 (AMRAP)
• Dips (5-0-1-0)
  • BW x 6
  • BW x 4
  • BW x 4
• Wide-Grip Lat Pulldowns
  • 120 x 8
  • 120 x 8
  • 120 x 8
  • 120 x 8
  • 120 x 8
• Low Cable Rows
  • 80 x 12
  • 90 x 12
  • 100 x 12
  • 110 x 12
• BB Curls (100-rep protocol)
  • bar x 100