Finally.

Broke through my long-standing plateau with the pressing… at least, technically. Been stuck at 12 reps on the AMRAP for a while, got 13. Feel good to have broken through. But is it really a break-through? or just a good day? Next week will tell.

I didn’t do DB Rows. Something’s feeling weird in my lower back. It started yesterday, feels better today, but still not awesome. B rows really tax my lower back because that 350-Method makes for a LOT of reps (each side), and DB Rows involve a bit of a twist to get a full range — so my lower back gets a good workout here. I didn’t feel like making anything worse (since it does feel like it’s improving), so I did cable rows instead. But I’ll tell you…. I didn’t feel I got as much out of the cable rows as I did the DB rows — education moment. I’m not sure if it might be the sets/reps, or the exercise itself. I’m tempted to do cable rows again next week with a slightly lighter weight to try to have a more apples-to-apples reps-to-reps comparison. But in the end, tho I don’t care much for DB Rows, I’m learning that really high-rep DB Rows seem to do something for me.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Overhead Press
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 60 x 5
  • 75 x 4
  • 90 x 3
  • 110 x 2
  • 125 x 1
  • 115 x 13 (AMRAP)
  • 115 x 6 (50%)
• Dips (350 Method)
  • BW x 14
  • BW x 11
  • BW x 8
• Chin-ups
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 3
  • BW x 3
• Cable Rows (350 method)
  • 110 x 20
  • 110 x 15
  • 110 x 11
• DB Curl (350 Method)
  • 25e x 18
  • 25e x 15
  • 25e x 13

That was ok… not great, but ok.

I’m really working on my front squat form. I feel like I lean too far forward. I think to some extent I can’t help it, just how I’m built. But I do think I can do better than I have been. I’m really working on keeping my chest full and up, thinking about keeping upright, keeping my chin in and head “up” (neutral). I am thinking I may want to try putting my heels up on something (probably just some 5# plates). Anyways, as a result today things went a little slow, but not too bad. I do think I could have gotten more reps on the AMRAP but simple enough I was losing the bar from forward lean each time. Of course that tells me it’s my torso, my form, etc… So, there’s much to work on.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Front Squat
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 110 x 4
  • 135 x 3
  • 165 x 2
  • 185 x 1
  • 155 x 8 (AMRAP)
  • 155 x 5 (50%)
• Leg Press (350 Method)
  • 315 x 17
  • 315 x 13
  • 315 x 11
• Lunge
  • 45 x 15
  • 45 x 12
  • 45 x 12
  • 45 x 12
  • 45 x 13

You know you’re burning out when you don’t even have the motivation to bench press. 😉

Really, it’s not benching that’s the issue — it’s the massive amount of reps. Rep work isn’t my favorite thing, but no question it’s what builds muscle. Still, I look forward to getting back to when “high reps” means “8 reps”, but I know those days aren’t for many more months while I continue on the diet plan. I have to focus on building (retaining/maintaining) muscle while I shed the fat. It’s all good, and I’m learning a lot.

All in all, a fair day. No real complaints. I expect I’ll have another weight bump here soon, which makes me happy. I repeat, it’s great to see forward progress in the gym again. I do miss it so, especially because I know what my next goal is and that won’t happen unless I see forward progress in the gym. Every day, a little better. No complaints.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Bench Press
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 100 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 190 x 2
  • 215 x 1
  • 190 x 14 (AMRAP)
  • 190 x 6 (50%)
• Incline Press (350 Method)
  • 95 x 20
  • 95 x 14
  • 95 x 10
• BB Row
  • 155 x 8
  • 155 x 8
  • 125 x 12
  • 125 x 10
• Wide Pronated-Grip Pulldown (350 Method)
  • 110 x 18
  • 110 x 17
  • 110 x 14
• BB Curl (350 Method)
  • 45 x 18
  • 45 x 15
  • 45 x 11

You don’t want to go, but you go anyways. That’s how you get better — consistency over time, and putting in the time.

I’m dealing with burnout. Insufficient rest coupled with long, intense work days, coupled with filled weekends, and over time it builds on you. Taking steps to deal with it, but it’s still present. Lack of motivation is always a tip-off for me.

And I didn’t want to go to the gym — I wanted to just go back to bed. But you roll out and go, because you know it’s best. Besides, after the 3rd set of squats, I felt better. In fact, I felt really good. That 250 went up like cake — gee, what a great thing food is. 😉 Cranking out the AMRAPs I felt like I could hit 20, but didn’t. It wasn’t my legs, but everything else. Basically my torso was saying “ok, I’m getting wobbly” so I felt it was time to rack it rather than risk it.

I also think it’s been a good mental shift to forget about how many reps I did before and to just keep going — hit whatever I hit. It’s a better mental approach, because then I’m focusing just on trying to do the damn best I can instead of trying to beat something, which all too often limits me because somehow an arbitrary marker is placed.

Stiffs went well. Remembered to used mixed grip on the AMRAP set AND to keep my arms “loose” so that there was no curl in the supinated hand. Worked out nicely, and here too was another case of everything else could keep going but the torso peeded out first.

So the split squats made up for it. Ho-lee-crap. Here I worked to keep myself centered and vertical. So, torso upright the whole movement; that my torso went perfectly up and down, remaining centered between my feet (instead of coming forward, lunge-like); and not trying to focus on either leg doing the work, just letting both legs do the work. I swear, that kicked my ass pretty hard and was just painful… here’s a place where I pushed as much as I could, through whatever burn/pain I was feeling as much as I could. Man, those suck. 🙂 But I swear I get a pump like no other.

So yeah… didn’t want to go, but as I know… you go anyways, and you’re happier and better in the end.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Squat
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 115 x 5
  • 145 x 4
  • 175 x 3
  • 225 x 2
  • 250 x 1
  • 205 x 16 (AMRAP)
  • 205 x 8 (50%)
• Stiff Legged Deadlift
  • 135 x 5
  • 165 x 4
  • 200 x 3
  • 250 x 2
  • 285 x 1
  • 235 x 15 (AMRAP)
• Split Squats
  • BW x 20
  • BW x 20
  • BW x 20
  • BW x 20
  • BW x 15

You know… I kinda don’t like this day. 🙂

I realize it’s because it’s tons of high-rep work. I don’t mind high-rep work in theory, but it just drives me nuts. And when it’s unilateral work, it’s even worse. It’s really a matter of time. Like on the DB rows… to crank 25 reps… well that’s really 50 reps because you do each arm. And it just drags… and drags… and I hate it. Can’t I just go back to 5×5 work? 😉

That said, I do think it’s paying off. I haven’t taken any pictures yet to do before/after comparisons, but I can see some stuff in the mirror, I notice it when I go about my day. This program, eating more food (huzzah!) and so on does seem to be paying off.

Speaking food, plan seems to be to get me up to 220 and hover there for a bit… once we know it’s good, then we’ll probably stay there for about a month. Right now still playing with food levels to get me up there, and once I’m up there then we’ll stop adjusting intake and hold steady. After that levels well, a “mid” basically, then we’ll hit 3 months of cutting to try to drop down again. I don’t know how much true weight I’ve put on (vs. just water/glycogen bloat), but at least 5 lbs is that so probably 15 of tissue. So 20 lbs in 12 weeks? Should be do-able since I ought to shed a bunch of it up front due to bloat reduction. My HOPE is that 200# will see me where I actually want to be, but honestly I could see maybe a hair more beyond that (like 190??) not sure, but yeah… I’m aiming for lean. Bottom line, I’ll be bummed to stop eating so well and having lifting progress, but I’ll be happy to be finally hitting the end goal of the Defattening Project.

Anyways… digression.

Today I’ll chalk up as a 80% day. I really didn’t want to finish… again, hate the reps, and the fact that almost everything today is 350-methods and AMRAPS. Ah well. I actually did alright tho. I’m working at pushing myself with things like dips and chin-ups because it sure feels like I’ve stagnated and I think it’s because I don’t have normal overloading abilities there so I just have to push.

And push I did, trying to keep going and truly fail. So that happened on the press AMRAP. Press is my slowest progressing lift, and I’ve been at 12 for a couple weeks. That 12th was pretty slow but I figured go for 13. I got half-way up, held it… kept pushing… but it didn’t go. And so I lost a rep on the 50% set, but whatever. But then on dips and chins I just keep cranking until I couldn’t. Like on the last set of dips I went for a 10th rep, got to the bottom and almost dropped through… truly failed. I think that’s how I have to push with the bodyweight stuff, if I want to break through. Else I’m always stopping myself too short.

Anyways, onwards.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Overhead Press
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 60 x 5
  • 75 x 4
  • 90 x 3
  • 110 x 2
  • 125 x 1
  • 115 x 12 (AMRAP)
  • 115 x 6 (50%)
• Dips (350 Method)
  • BW x 16
  • BW x 11
  • BW x 9
• Chin-ups
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 5
  • BW x 3
  • BW x 3
• DB Rows (350 method)
  • 50e x 25
  • 50e x 20
  • 50e x 15
• DB Curl (350 Method)
  • 25e x 16
  • 25e x 12
  • 25e x 10

Had to make another short morning due to schedule.

Got the front squats in. One thing I found myself working on was my chest. I worked to keep it really “inflated” and “up/out”. That made my torso much more solid and the reps came out easier. But it also changed the path of things and felt really strange… today’s form was a bit of a mess. But that’s what I’m working on.

That said, I think the front squats may be something I don’t work up to 20 reps for. All signs from prior reading was that front squats are good up to about 12 reps or so and then so many other things break down and give such that you won’t get the benefit to the legs. Back squats yeah I’ll keep cranking those up to 20 reps per protocol, but fronts I’ll stop around 12. Which I hit today, so I’ll be bumping weight up on that.

Weighed in at 219 this morning. Weight is where it should be for now. Happy to continue eating. 🙂

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Front Squat
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 85 x 5
  • 105 x 4
  • 135 x 3
  • 155 x 2
  • 175 x 1
  • 145 x 12 (AMRAP)
  • 145 x 6 (50%)
• Leg Press (350 Method)
  • 275 x 30
  • 275 x 20
  • 275 x 15

Yes, I took yesterday off. I had a long weekend, exhausted. The best thing was to not lift but instead to sleep.

Today went quite well.

I upped my bench weight. I was calculating off an EDM of 240, and since I hit the 15 rep mark on the AMRAP set it was time to up the weight and go back to around 8 reps on AMRAP. I recalculated the EDM at 255 and off I went. I was surprised that the 215 felt so easy, and I cranked the 190 for 12 reps. I am not sure what to attribute it to. Did I recalculate wrong? Is my body still ramping up after being deprived for so long? finally food (carbs!), creatine, etc.? Hard to say, but here I am. I see no reason to adjust, just hopefully means progress will continue.

And everything else went up too. More reps on everything. I simply cannot complain. Again, it feels good to be making forward progress in the gym again.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Bench Press
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 100 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 190 x 2
  • 215 x 1
  • 190 x 12 (AMRAP)
  • 190 x 6 (50%)
• Incline Press (350 Method)
  • 95 x 22
  • 95 x 14
  • 95 x 12
• BB Row
  • 155 x 8
  • 155 x 8
  • 125 x 12
  • 125 x 8
• Wide Pronated-Grip Pulldown (350 Method)
  • 110 x 20
  • 110 x 16
  • 110 x 12
• BB Curl (350 Method)
  • 40 x 25
  • 40 x 18
  • 40 x 15

Biggest thing I can say about today is that I don’t think I push bodyweight exercises as much as I should.

I tend to move steady with them, not explosive. Nor do I always push them as much as I should.

For example, that last dip rep… I was almost failing and did NOT want to do fewer reps that I did last week, so I just put more explosive into the movement and cranked it out. I bet I could have done another one that way. So… why aren’t I? Why aren’t I pushing this more?

Which leads to the next issue, that I really should push my bodyweight works (dips, chins, etc.) further. Why am I caring to save one for later? Why not push it all the way? So I only get a half-rep out… fine… count it as a half-rep, especially if I ensure I don’t drop it but then take the half-rep, the few seconds of struggle “holding” it, then ensure I let down slowly. That’s how you get more chins eventually, and that’s how I’ll break through the plateau.

I really need to push myself more… not sure why I treat the bodyweight stuff differently, but here’s to breaking that treatment.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Overhead Press
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 60 x 5
  • 75 x 4
  • 90 x 3
  • 110 x 2
  • 125 x 1
  • 115 x 12 (AMRAP)
  • 115 x 6 (50%)
• Dips (350 Method)
  • BW x 16
  • BW x 10
  • BW x 8
• Chin-ups
  • BW x REP
  • BW x REP
  • BW x REP
  • BW x REP
  • BW x REP
• DB Rows (350 method)
  • 50e x 23
  • 50e x 18
  • 50e x 15
• DB Curl (350 Method)
  • 25e x 21
  • 25e x 15
  • 25e x 12

Today was another brief day.

I had to get on the road… but also sleep continues to be deprived, but getting better. So I left out the lunges to avoid digging too deep into recovery needs as I’m deep enough. But that said, on my way out I did a bunch of walking lunges until I couldn’t do any more. So, something. 🙂

I must admit that leg presses are becoming something I can deal with more, because I cannot deny that the higher-rep work, with the narrower, more “forward” stance, just really kills my quads. I dig that.

Still trying to work on my front squat form. Always improving, but still a long way to go. I still think I’m getting too deep… probably be useful if I could have someone actively watching me and calling. But alas, I train alone. I’ll get there.

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Front Squat
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 85 x 5
  • 105 x 4
  • 135 x 3
  • 155 x 2
  • 175 x 1
  • 145 x 11 (AMRAP)
  • 145 x 6 (50%)
• Leg Press (350 Method)
  • 275 x 25
  • 275 x 20
  • 275 x 15

Things held, and in fact progressed a little bit. So, time to up the numbers!

With the way Paul’s programming works, now that I’m hitting 15 reps on the bench AMRAP it’s time to up the weight. While I hit the number last week, I opted to try it again this week because, coming off the fat-loss diet, I’m still getting my legs under me — did I just have a good day? or did I actually go up? Well, hitting things again with the bench and then everything else going up as well? Yeah, time to up the weight.

That feels so good! To be making forward progress like this again. Oh I know… I was also making forward progress in the fat-loss area, so all is good. But the ultimate goal is getting stronger, and that only happens if the weights and reps are increasing. 🙂

So next week, I’ll up things. I’ve been using 240# as my EDM for calculations. Fiddling with numbers a bit, I’m going to go 255#, which after doing the number crunching winds up being either a 5# or 10# increase each set. I think that should suffice and get the AMRAP sets back down to about 8 reps. I’ll adjust as needed.

One thing it made me think about was the whole “getting bigger” or “getting stronger”. My goal, post-fat-loss, is to get my strength back AND the big goal being 3/4/5 (300 or 3 wheels bench, 400 or 4 wheels squat, 500 or 5 wheels deadlift). So of course, that’s all about strength. But I’ve lost some muscle mass, and some strength too. So I’ve been wondering really what will I do once I’m totally done with the fat-loss? Honestly, I’m starting to lean towards building muscle, because I think that will be the immediate need post-defattening. But here’s the kick. I really want to keep trying Pauls’ protocols, but I keep floating back to 5/3/1 because I know that’s a very logical progression that will get me stronger (and a little bigger). Paul’s protocols don’t feel as straightforward, and on paper it feels like following his approach would make for solid – but slower – progress. But here’s what hit me today. If progress can be maintained on this “massing” program like this… like 1 more AMRAP rep each week, that’s about 8 weeks or so per “cycle” before you’d bump weight. And if when bumping weight you’re going to go up 10-15-20#, gee… isn’t that a rate of progress about the same as 5/3/1? So gee… of course, this program isn’t geared towards “stronger”, it’s geared towards “bigger”, but in part the two go hand-in-hand. And if I can focus on bigger but strength comes along at a reasonable rate… well gee, I could be alright with this. Because again, Paul’s programming seems to give me solid progress AND beat me up a lot less, so it’s great.

It makes me think that it might wind up being some sort of cycle, of like 2-3 months of his massing approach followed by 6 weeks of a Strong-15 short cycle, then back to 2-3 months of massing, Strong-15 short, etc. And cycle that way. I wonder what that might do for me.

I don’t know. Just thinking out loud, because well… happy to be back on the upward trend. 🙂

Oh… and it really sucks to get 2 reps into what you know will be 15 reps… and have to fart. What DO you do? Other than struggle to maintain focus instead of losing tightness because you either let the fart out or want to start laughing. 🙂

Based on Paul Carter’s “Guaranteed Muscle Mass” article.

• Bench Press
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 120 x 4
  • 145 x 3
  • 180 x 2
  • 205 x 1
  • 180 x 15 (AMRAP)
  • 180 x 7 (50%)
• Incline Press (350 Method)
  • 95 x 18
  • 95 x 14
  • 95 x 12
• BB Row
  • 155 x 8
  • 155 x 8
  • 125 x 12
  • 125 x 8
• Wide Pronated-Grip Pulldown (350 Method)
  • 110 x 20
  • 110 x 14
  • 110 x 12
• BB Curl (350 Method)
  • 40 x 23
  • 40 x 16
  • 40 x 13