Sometimes you gotta call an audible.

I forgot where exactly I read this, but it was a revelation. I find myself wanting to “good-morning” my squats every now and then. All the wisdom I’ve read up to this point says that means you need more posterior chain work, and so I’d think along those lines. Well, reading something (probably something Greg Nuckols wrote) made me realize that’s precisely wrong! The body is good at finding the most efficient pathway to do something, and so if my body wants to start good-morning-ing the weight up, it’s because that part of my body is strong! And this I know, because my deadlift is extremely ahead of my squat — I’ve got a strong back. I don’t need more posterior chain work — I need more quad work! I’ve got weak-ass quads. And this all makes sense given the experiences in squatting I’ve had over the past however long.

So, I’m changing things up to try to put more work into my quads. Have my assistance work focus there.

I was going to do it by front squats and leg presses, but once I got into the gym I called an audible and changed everything up.

First, instead of front squats I thought I’d try high-bar squats. Foreign to me, and that first set felt really weird. 🙂 Thing is, front squats are fine, but I spend a lot of time focusing on keeping the bar from rolling off, which isn’t where I want to focus! So I thought I’d try high-bar squats to see if that might work instead. Normally I am low-bar squatting, so going high-bar felt really strange. I’m also having a different stance, with my legs almost touching, toes pointed forward. Man, when you get down in the hole it feels so much deeper. So, all strange, and I’ll just work my way up with it. But the intent is to get some heavy-ish work that puts a little more emphasis on the quads. We’ll see how it goes.

Then, I was going to continue with stiff-legs and leg presses, but again figured no… if I’m supposed to work on building up my quads, then let’s spend what limited time and energy I have on that. So I went with good old leg extensions. I know powerlifters tend to frown on that, but Ed Coan used them so good enough. 🙂 If it means more work for my quads, if I can help them grow and thus be stronger, great. I’ll find the groove here in time, but the goal is higher-reps, build some muscle.

I then opted to drop the stiff legs and just do some leg curls. I think my posterior chain will get enough work right now in the normal course of squatting, so let me focus my assistance work elsewhere. See what happens.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

• Squats (model 1)
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 165 x 5
  • 190 x 4
  • 225 x 3
  • 250 x 2
  • 285 x 1
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
• High-bar, narrow-stance Squats
  • 155 x 5
  • 135 x 6
  • 135 x 6
• Leg Extensions
  • 40 x 15
  • 50 x 12
  • 60 x 12
  • 50 x 12
• Leg Curls
  • 40 x 15
  • 50 x 12
  • 60 x 8
  • 50 x 12
• Standing Calf Raises
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12

Carbs… sweet sweet carbs! 🙂

I’ve been on the (fat) loser train for a little over 3 months now, so it’s time for a break. I don’t really want to take a break, but it’s appropriate after such a long stretch, especially since I have another long stretch ahead of me. Officially weighed in at 219 yesterday, which was up a hair… but given I was 217 this morning, I am pretty sure I was just retaining something. So, taking a “mid”… following same basic dietary template, but adding in some carbs (including on my off days!!) and bumping up the fats a hair too. I’ll stay on this for about 4 weeks, expect to gain at most 5 lb. or so, but that should be just things like water, glycogen, etc…. no real fat or even muscle gain expected here.

So I did eat carbs yesterday. Not sure if that affected me today or was pure placebo… but I did feel good, and it showed in my work.

I continue to focus my later assistance work on tempo, with explosive concentric and a good controlled eccentric. Also trying to just make the muscle work. Like on the incline DB pressing, I don’t think about pressing, I just think about my pecs pulling my upper arms “together”. Yeah… the challenge really starts to become how hard you can make the muscle work, with as little weight as needed to make that happen It doesn’t satisfy the external ego, but it sure seems to be more internally satisfying and working.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

• Bench Press (model 1)
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 120 x 5
  • 145 x 4
  • 165 x 3
  • 180 x 2
  • 205 x 1
  • 225 x 1
  • 180 x 8
  • 180 x 8
  • 180 x 8
  • 180 x 5
  • 180 x 4
• Dips
  • BW x 8
  • BW x 7
  • BW x 7
  • BW x 6
  • BW x 6
• DB Incline Press
  • 45e x 12
  • 45e x 12
  • 45e x 9
• Machine Flies (350-Method)
  • 70 x 17
  • 70 x 17
  • 70 x 12

Yeah, slow and steady seems to make my back happy.

I continue to work on lifting more bodybuilder-like, and no question my back actually gets good work from that! I dig it.

I will say, I think lighter loads are coming as well. Yeah the ego never likes to go down in weight, but the reality is the body doesn’t know — it’s about the stresses. For example, I often find when I am standing with dumbbells that my posture craps out, which means I’m now supporting this weight in a sub-optimal way, which winds up being bad for me. But when I make sure I’m having good posture, well… the weight can be too much. Small stabilizers start to feel stressed and fatigued before other things, which is kinda good… shows that I’m always struggling with good posture, and strengthening those little guys will help. Or like the position of the DB’s when I’m doing shrugs — in front of me I can move more weight, behind me I can’t, but the more in front the worse it is on my upper spine and posture. So it’s just stuff I need to continue to play with, and get more strict about. But it’s all good for the short-term if it means better long-term payoff — I must remember that I’m primarily in this for my health, to make sure that as I age I am strong, mobile, etc..

That said, I also think I’m refining what I do heavier and as a movement and what I will do more for a heavier muscle thing, or a lighter pump thing. Like I think I may find some benefit eventually in refining my back work so I still do maybe 4 sets of some sort of heavier row, as a movement more than a muscle (e.g. traditional BB rows, t-bar rows, etc.). But then follow it up with 4 sets of a lighter, stricter row (e.g. cable rows). Not sure what I’d do more as an isolation here tho. But like for legs, squats heavy movement; then leg extensions would be lighter, slower, strict; and leg presses would be somewhere in between. Or here with biceps, I’m finding it a little better to work them on something heavier for maybe like a 4-5×5-8, then like 3-4×8-15. Those sorts of progressions seem to give me better work.

Of course, the real test will be once I can eat again. 😉

Still, the discipline of figuring a lot of this out now is all being done to prime me for things in a few months when I’m done with Defattening and can start building up again.

Another thing that I’m thinking about playing with are less straight sets and doing other sorts of progressions. So it could be that I just rep to failure across multiple sets, which is sorta what the 350-method works. But I also see lots of bodybuilders that do progressions like 5 sets with like 15 reps, 12, 10, 8, 6, 6 or something like that, starting with a lighter weight and then working up the weight and lowering the reps. Never tried that sort of progression, but finally curious to try.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

Chins

• BW x 7
• BW x 6
• BW x 3
• BW x 3
• BW x 3

Cable Rows

• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10

BB Shrugs

• 65e x 12
• 65e x 12
• 65e x 12
• 65e x 12
• 65e x 12

Wide, Neutral-grip Lat Pulldowns

• 130 x 10
• 130 x 10
• 130 x 9
• 130 x 8

Hammer Curls

• 30e x 8
• 30e x 8
• 30e x 6
• 30e x 5

BB Curls (350-method)

• 35 x 25
• 35 x 20
• 35 x 15

I still don’t regret taking a day off the other day. It really was the right thing.

Then yesterday I did my usual trip for cardio. and today, back to lifting. I do miss lifting, just one day away was not what I desired. But I desire being recovered and rested, instead of beat-up. I can’t eat my way to recovery, so I have to really be mindful of sleep. Been thinking more about it and how I can improve my sleep efforts too. But another topic for another time.

Official weigh-in today: 218, down 2 since Sunday. Huzzah. See, taking Tuesday off meant I also ate like an off-day, so it was 2 days in a row of almost no carbs, and much hunger. But if “hunger is just fat leaving the body”, then so be it. Seems it’s paying off, so you just keep going through it. But that said, that bowl of oatmeal this morning was awesome. 🙂

I keep working on lifting in a bodybuilder style: explosive concentric, slow eccentric. I found myself today really trying to be even more getting the muscle to do the work, instead of making the movement. I found that especially on face pulls, of all things. That pull can very much be the arms doing the work, or at least carrying a fair portion of the load. I found myself really working to remove the arms from the mix and let the motion focus on just the shoulder… retracting the shoulder to get the blades to touch, “flying” the elbows out to the side and that THAT is only done by contracting the rear deltoid. I even lowered the weight because it was more about trying to just get those muscles to do the work. It’s taking time, but I’m getting there… building that so-called “mind-muscle connection”… thinking more about really just having the muscle move the weight by pure contraction, instead of the body working in concert to move the weight. It’s different for me to really focus on that, but kinda cool to branch out and try this.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

Press

• bar x 5
• bar x 5
• 60 x 5
• 75 x 4
• 90 x 3
• 110 x 2
• 125 x 1
• 110 x 11 (AMRAP)
• 110 x 6 (50%)

Upright Rows

• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10

Side Laterals

• 20e x 10
• 20e x 10
• 20e x 8

Face Pulls

• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12
• 70 x 12

Close-Grip Bench Press

• 145 x 8
• 145 x 8
• 145 x 8
• 145 x 7

Triceps Pressdowns (350-Method)

• 45 x 15
• 45 x 13
• 45 x 13

The log of no log.

I didn’t go to the gym today, by choice.

I woke up, and my body told me that sleep was more important. And not just sleep, but not beating myself further with squats and deadlifts… I needed the break to recover.

Don’t regret it. It was the right decision.

Change up. Let’s see where it goes.

As I mentioned before, whereas at the start of the diet my strength increased, slowly but still increased, for the past some whiles it’s been steady and more recently it seems to be going down. But it’s hard to get a bead on it because I’ll go down in some things but go up in others. Like on squats, that top work up weight feels heavier and heavier, but then the work sets feel stronger and strong. Go fig. But again, I have to remember that lifting right now is to support the diet.

On that front, I was officially 220 at yesterday’s weigh-in, so I “held steady” since the Thursday-prior weigh-in. But that’s not entirely true. I did have a cheat meal on Thursday-prior (2 slices of pizza… don’t go crazy now), and I did “bloat” a bit from it, but then by Sunday had lost the bloat. So on paper it’s steady but it really wasn’t, but good enough. This morning I’m 219, so we’ll see where it goes. If I’m 218-219 by Thursday, I’m good.

So while I’m contemplating dropping my weights, before I did so I figured to try changing the plan first. The changes are minor, but sigificant enough to try for a little while, assess, then continue from there. In this case, I was doing Base Building model 2 for bench, so I figured let’s drop back down to a model 1. Well, it’s not entirely model 1 because I wanted to keep the work-up to a heavier single, and to me that’s a matter of helping assess strength on the diet — a bit of a way to compare how model 2 was doing vs. model 1, since you can’t directly compare them.

Model 1 is a little less work, but still work. It’s also more reps per set, which may play into the diet plan. I mean, I got through the first 3 sets ok, but then sets 4 and 5? No gas in the tank, which makes sense. So now the question is, what happens over the next few weeks? Do things remain here? go up? go down? That will be telling. And yes, if the solution winds up being that I have to drop my weights, then so be it.

I also upped some other things, like another set of dips. I’m also going to do inclines for straight-sets now… did 3 today, might up it to 4, we’ll see; 8-12 rep range, bodybuilder style to really make the pecs work. Machine flies… shit… I only stopped where I did because it was driving me nuts… such slow movement, so many reps…. fucking killing me. 🙂 But it became more mentally tolerable as I went along; I thought about not doing it 350-method, but no… that’s good. Strive for a lot of reps, failure, good squeeze… etc..

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

• Bench Press (model 1)
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 120 x 5
  • 145 x 4
  • 165 x 3
  • 180 x 2
  • 205 x 1
  • 225 x 1
  • 180 x 8
  • 180 x 8
  • 180 x 8
  • 180 x 4
  • 180 x 4
• Dips
  • BW x 8
  • BW x 6
  • BW x 6
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
• DB Incline Press
  • 45e x 12
  • 45e x 12
  • 45e x 8
• Machine Flies (350-Method)
  • 70 x 18
  • 70 x 18
  • 70 x 12

Mmm… bicepts.

I’m doing well at sticking to “more bodybuilder-like” work. Fast, explosive concentric; slow controlled eccentric. And really focus on making the particular muscles in question do all the work, not just movement. I’ve said it before, but this really makes my back finally feel like it’s getting some work. I can’t wait until I can start eating in a manner that promotes growth!

To that end my 220 lb. weigh-in from yesterday… tho it’s fast, Nick @ RP isn’t worried too much. My strength hasn’t really changed. Sure it’s a little down, but overall it’s probably safer to say I’m holding steady given the long-term trend. And while we were going to start some diet maintenance at 220, we’re just going to keep going. I reckon on this current plan I’ll eventually stall out, so we’ll mid when that happens. I did have a cheat meal last night — 2 slices of pizza! And this morning woke up at 221, which isn’t surprising — it’s just the carbs. I’m sure come Sunday I’ll be 220, maybe 219. Not really concerned. Heck, if I can keep up this rate of loss, have a weekly cheat, yet still post 2-3 lb/week loss? I’ll take it!

Anyways, I’m really looking forward to next week at this point. The changes I’ve been making in the program feel right and good, more focused towards the goals, each exercise with more purpose than just “it’s part of the template”.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

Chins

• BW x 7
• BW x 5
• BW x 4
• BW x 3
• BW x 3

Cable Rows

• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10
• 110 x 10
• 110 x 9

Meadows Shrugs

• 60e x 12
• 60e x 12
• 60e x 12
• 60e x 12
• 60e x 12

Wide, Neutral-grip Lat Pulldowns

• 130 x 10
• 130 x 10
• 130 x 8
• 130 x 8

Hammer Curls

• 25e x 10
• 25e x 10
• 25e x 10
• 25e x 9

BB Curls (350-method)

• 45 x 15
• 45 x 12
• 45 x 13

I should feel happy about getting down to 220 lb… but I don’t.

I weighed myself this morning and came in at 220 lb., which is awesome! I mean, that’s 45 lb. down since I started back in August. Go into the gym and cart around one of the big weight plates — that’s how much I’ve lost. That’s substantially huge! And looking in the mirror, I get happier each day with how things are looking, but I’ve still got a ways to go to be where I want to be.

Thing is, I’m not totally happy with this because of the rate of loss. I was 223 on Sunday — that’s 3 lb. in half a week. That’s way too fast. In fact, I was 226 the prior Sunday, so it’s 6 lb. in about 11 days. That’s just way too fast. I could attribute maybe 1 pound of that to the prior-prior week’s deload, but even still… too much too fast. Why did this happen? I don’t know. I haven’t changed diet or stress or workload or anything. Well check that, I did of course come off the deload then ramped back up. I’ve also been changing HOW I lift — more bodybuilder-like — which is a bit more stressing, more consuming of energy. Maybe that was enough to make the difference somehow? Burned more? I just don’t know. I’m bringing up the issue with Nick, so we’ll see. I was supposed to start another “mid” when I hit 220, but now I’m not so sure. Part of me wants to keep going. I mean, the finish line is in sight, I don’t feel too horrible, and so long as the current dietary plan is working might as well keep rolling on it until it naturally plateaus THEN mid. But again, we’ll see what Nick says.

As for lifts, I have been reading more, learning more, and thinking more. I did a minor adjustment today, but the big adjustments will come next week. I’m not changing things too drastically, but enough evolution where it’s not just following a printed template but moving away from that, retaining the principles and basic work, but finding what I need and adjusting to that. One thing evident in today’s is a desire to have some heavier arm work, then some rep work. Like I started doing close-grips 3×12, but I think what will hold me better is something like a 4×6-10, or around a 4×8. Straight sets, slightly heavier weight. Then something like pushdowns get to be for the pump, something 350-method or whatever. I want to see where such a thing gets me. Start by working things with more compound movements, heavier weights, slightly more sets, slightly less reps; then transition to more isolation movements, lighter weights, slightly less sets, slightly more reps.

And yes, explode on the concentric, slow on the eccentric, and really focus on feeling that muscle doing the work. So much of the back and shoulder work needs to think about originating from the elbows and thinking about moving the upper arm and/or the shoulder joint. Feel that muscle. Be more bodybuilder like. It really stresses things differently.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

Press

• bar x 5
• bar x 5
• 60 x 5
• 75 x 4
• 90 x 3
• 110 x 2
• 125 x 1
• 110 x 12 (AMRAP)
• 110 x 6 (50%)

Upright Rows

• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10
• 80 x 10
• 80 x 8

Side Laterals

• 20e x 8
• 20e x 8
• 20e x 8

Face Pulls

• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12
• 85 x 12

Close-Grip Bench Press

• 145 x 8
• 145 x 8
• 145 x 8
• 145 x 6

Triceps Pressdowns (350-Method)

• 40 x 20
• 40 x 20
• 40 x 15

Yeah… weaker.

The diet goes really well, for fat loss. I do hate how it’s affecting my strength, but I know that’s how it goes.

I mean, the 285 is turning into a real grinder, which isn’t how it should be. But then the 200’s go really well. Go figure.

I did try spacing my hands a little wider, and that seems to be happier on my elbows while still doing the “lat pulldown” tightness. I’m going to have to continue to get used to all these changes, but it seemed alright enough for me to stick with it for a bit without any further changes to see how it goes.

Oh, and yes… trying to drive my butt/hips up first but almost immediately follow it with the back and everything… yeah.

Funny thing. I’ve been reading more from Greg Nuckols on squatting. I’m still digesting it all and I could have it wrong. But the bottom line of what I get from it finally seems to run counter to so many things I’ve read in the past…but it makes more sense. Basically it’s what I’ve suspected but went about it wrong: if there’s any weakness for me it’s that my quads suck. I’ve got a wicked strong back and posterior chain, very evident by the great difference in terms of how much I deadlift vs. how much I squat. Plus when I do squat near-max loads, I do have a tendency to want to turn it into a good morning, which I fight heavily against. So yeah, time to fix the quads.

How to fix them? I’m not sure yet.

It does seem that leg press will actually be good from the mass-building side, but I’ll need to change my technique to bring my feet closer together and let my knees come to touch my chest instead of out to the side. And then should I try front squats or maybe high-bar back squats? I don’t know yet. But it’ll probably be one or the other, but also with a stance change, like bringing my feet together, pointing the foot forward, and so on. Basically, trying to get more knee flexion/extension and involve the quads a lot more. Bring up dem quads.

Anyways… just thinking out loud, because The Defattening Project is nearing a close (tho still a few months away), and I want to make sure I have my game plan for the road ahead. 🙂

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

• Squats (model 1)
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 165 x 5
  • 190 x 4
  • 225 x 3
  • 250 x 2
  • 285 x 1
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
  • 200 x 5
• Stiff-Legged Deadlift
  • 225 x 8
  • 225 x 8
  • 225 x 8
  • 225 x 6
  • 225 x 6
• Leg Press
  • 185 x 10
  • 185 x 10
  • 185 x 10
  • 185 x 10
• Standing Calf Raises
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12
  • 70 x 12

Yeah… I’m getting weaker.

But I’m also getting less-fat, and that’s the focus.

Officially weighed in at 223 yesterday morning, and oddly was 221 this morning. I’m reluctant to think I dropped 2# in 24 hours of real weight… water? depletion? that’s my guess. This shows the dangers in tracking your weight on a daily basis. I mean, I track it daily to monitor and watch the short-term trends, but the only weights that truly matter are my semi-weekly official weigh-ins and then the long-term trend. 220 is in my sights, and well… the thing is that I’m unsure of what to do. Part of me says I should take a month of diet maintenance regardless — it’s been enough time on the loser-train, my body could use the break. But every week I think I’m done, I find I’m able to go another week and just keep pressing on and continuing to make progress. And when the light at the end of the tunnel keeps getting brighter and bigger, I’m more and more motivated to press on until truly I cannot press on any more.

But I have to temper my eagerness and excitement with reality — I can’t sacrifice my true health and well-being for this. So, that’s why it’s good to have a coach (Nick @ Renaissance Periodization) helping.

Anyways…. so yeah, I can tell my strength is going down. But that’s how it goes and while I’m not stoked about it, well… it is what it is and I have to focus on the bigger picture.

But part of that would be adjusting my weights so I’m making proper progress, especially in reinforcing good lifting habits, good technique, and so on. For the first time I thought about dropping my weights back, like 10# or something and going from there. But I’m not sure I will do that yet… I think I might actually try reverting back to Base Building model 1 first and see how that goes. I didn’t find myself progressing well enough on model 1, but again, this isn’t about progressing on my lifts right now. Model 1 may be what I need to do for now.

Other things were continuing with the effort to be more bodybuilder-like. The inclines and flies were explosive concentric, hold/squeeze, then a slower controlled lowering. And it was all about making the muscle do the work, not just trying to do the movement.

I switched from the Polquin Flies to just using Machine Flies. I feel the Polquin’s are really good for my shoulder, but that’s about it. And on the machine I can get a good squeeze at the top (where you can’t get that as much with dumbbells on the bench).

Oh… and on the “ups”. I continue to try to do some sort of pull-/chin-ups, like just 1 after each set of whatever. I decided that while chin-ups will be my staple right now on my back day until I’m stronger at them, that I’m going to try doing other “ups” during these “one-off” sessions. So after each set of inclines and flies today I just did 1 “up”, but with different sorts of grips. One maybe was a wide pronated grip, another was neutral grip, another was narrow(er) pronated, and just varying it up… then once I got to a point where I couldn’t do it with those grips, go back to chin-ups so I could still get the work in.

Anyways, things are what they are. Progress is progress.

Based upon Paul Carter’s Basebuilding

• Bench Press (model 2)
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 120 x 5
  • 145 x 4
  • 165 x 3
  • 180 x 2
  • 205 x 1
  • 225 x 1
  • 205 x 5
  • 205 x 5
  • 205 x 5
  • 180 x 5
  • 180 x 5
  • 180 x 5
  • 145 x 12 (AMRAP)
• Dips
  • BW x 7
  • BW x 6
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
• DB Incline Press (350 Method)
  • 40e x 16
  • 40e x 13
  • 40e x 12
• Machine Flies
  • 80 x 12
  • 80 x 12
  • 80 x 8