Another good day.

I continue to work on my form with front squats. I’m finding a better groove. Interesting thing I noticed today was where my body wanted to bail out — it’s much sooner than with other exercises. I think it’s because there’s less tolerance for error: a little lean and the bar will dump, whereas with a regular squat you can lean a bunch and no problems. As well, it’s just uncomfortable: the bar puts pressure on your throat and clavicles, so the body wants to stop this quickly. I found myself pushing much further past the point of discomfort. The goal was 3 sets of 7 today, and I perhaps could have done 8’s, but I’m pacing myself a bit on these: I don’t want to take these to true failure, just push myself. So, insightful morning.

RDL’s were another technique point. I don’t feel like I’m still “getting” the movement, so I kept the weight light and really worked on things. It’s when I come out: I feel like I’m extending the back, not the hips. So I worked on keeping the bar close to the body, really letting it get low to get a good stretch, then raising up by pushing the hips through — or at least thinking that way, vs. thinking about lifting/extending the back. Still don’t quite have it, but I’ll keep at it.

Leg Press was funny. Sure, who cares how much you can leg press. Still, I’ve never put 405 (4 plates a side) on the sled. I’m always doing high-rep sets, so I just don’t get up there. But I wanted to do it today, just because. I mean, if I’m going to squat 405, I better leg press it first. So it was fun to work up to a higher, heavier weight. And I crushed it pretty well too — really had the mindset to just kill it and it went up easier than the 365 set did. I didn’t expect to get 10 reps, but I was happy that I did. Just fun.

After that, I did my extensions and curls superset in a 350-method style.

I’ll say that the work level of this session was pretty good — I felt a little queasy afterwards. Not that it’s a measure of anything, but at least I know I got some work in.

• Front Squat
  • bar x 10
  • 95 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 185 x 2
  • 215 x 1
  • 165 x 7
  • 165 x 7
  • 165 x 7
• RDL
  • 185 x 8
  • 185 x 8
  • 185 x 8
• Leg Press
  • 225 x 10
  • 315 x 10
  • 365 x 10
  • 405 x 10
• Leg Extensions (350-Method)
  • 55 x 23
  • 55 x 15
  • 55 x 12
• Leg Curls (350-Method superset with extensions)
  • 25 x 19
  • 25 x 12
  • 25 x 9

This was good.

Everything going up. Which is interesting, because usually around this point in a cut cycle is where things start to plateau and/or I go down. So I’m pretty happy right now… well, with progress. My weight continues to be strange; been talking with Nick @ Renaissance Periodization about it. TBD

Inclines continue to be strong. The AMRAP+50% sets just keep going up each week. Good sign.

DB Bench. Went up in weight, but also in form. I really let myself sink into it at the bottom, get a stretch, then explosive up. Still keeping tempo so that the eccentric is a 2-3 count, sink in, explode up. As much as I hate DB work, I cannot deny the pump.

Machine flies were funny. I find that on this machine it’s very easy to lose posture, so today I really exaggerated and that was good. It kept my torso, head, neck, etc. all where they should be, which really increased the properness of the movement. I dug it.

DB presses, went up in weight, and that too I also made sure I sunk down at the bottom and wasn’t cutting it off too soon.

Lat raises, I continue to improve posture for that — the more I keep truly straight spine (from top of my head all the way down), keep my chin tucked in, it sure makes my shoulders happier (and the movement tougher). And as soon as I finished the 3rd set, immediately to the 10# plate for as many front raises as I could muster. Lost count, but whatever as that’s not really important.

But really, good day. Good day.

• Incline Bench
  • bar x 10
  • 105 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 145 x 3
  • 175 x 2
  • 195 x 1
  • 145 x 13
  • 145 x 7
• DB Bench Press
  • 50e x 10
  • 50e x 10
  • 50e x 10
  • 50e x 8
  • 50e x 7
• Machine Flies
  • 80 x 12
  • 80 x 12
  • 80 x 9
• Seated DB press
  • 40e x 10
  • 40e x 10
  • 40e x 7
  • 40e x 6
• DB Lat Raises
  • 20e x 10
  • 20e x 10
  • 20e x 10
• Front Plate Raises
  • 10 x ?

Still searching…

Arm day, who doesn’t love it, right?

Triceps work was fine. I really do like using that v-bar for the pressdowns — it makes a difference. I found myself pushing harder through every rep today, going until I couldn’t: true failure, on just about every set (well, not the close-grips).

I’m still amazed at the pump cheat curls give me.

So I swapped in hammer curls. I was going to do them my normal way: arms dangling at sides, alternating. But I recall seeing a variation from Paul Carter where you do them simultaneously and at the bottom the outside end of the DB rests against your thighs. Thus there’s no abilty to swing, no momentum. It’s pure starting by contracting the biceps and brachialis. I liked it. I won’t use this variation always, but I think it’s appropriate for what I’m presently doing.

Incline curls tho. It was rough. I started with weight that was too heavy, but when I dropped weight I couldn’t really get the result I wanted. Sure I got higher reps, but I just didn’t have the tension, couldn’t get the squeeze. So, I think I may drop incline curls and instead try something like cable curls. That might get me the constant tension, ability to squeeze, so it’s a tempo like 4-1-1-0 type of thing. Ah well.

But overall, I cannot complain with the day.

• Close Grip Bench Press
  • bar x 10
  • 115 x 5
  • 135 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 175 x 2
  • 195 x 1
  • 155 x 15
  • 155 x 7
• Skullcrushers
  • 45 x 15
  • 55 x 12
  • 65 x 7
  • 65 x 6
  • 45 x 14
• Pushdowns (v-bar)
  • 45 x 14
  • 40 x 14
  • 35 x 15
  • 30 x 25
• BB Curls
  • 40 x 12 (strict)
  • 50 x 10
  • 60 x 8
  • 80 x 5 (cheat)
  • 80 x 5
  • 80 x 5
• Hammer Curl
  • 25e x 8
  • 25e x 8
  • 25e x 8
  • 25e x 8
• Incline DB Curl
  • 20e x 7
  • 15e x 12
  • 15e x 12
  • 15e x 8

I’m really starting to like back work.

First, today I did 7 pull-ups (palms facing away, pronated grip). At about 204 lbs. bodyweight.

I’ve never done that many in my life.

And strict ones too. Total dead hang, pull up, chin over bar, controlled descent, dead hang. No swing, no kip, no momentum. Seven.

Really really stoked about that.

Cool thing is, because of what I’m doing, how I’m doing it, etc. I’m really feeling it in my back. I’m really feeling the work. Which is something I’ve been working on the past some whiles with all my back work. Really move the shoulder joint through full range: fully forward, fully retracted, fully up, fully down. Pull with the elbows, as it’s more about the upper arm than the lower arm. Don’t focus on the hands because then it becomes “pulling” and you involve more forearm and biceps in making things go. Really make the back do the work. Moderately heavy weights, 8-15 rep range, and the reps only count if it’s full — but yet, keep doing the reps until you truly can’t, even if that means you get in a 1/2 rep or a 90% rep (instead of stopping when you THINK you’re done, because there’s probably more in you than you expect). And man, it just pays off.

Especially that last point. I mentally was tallying to 5 pull-ups but figured keep going. I hit 6 and part of me said “OK, stop now so you can have some in the tank for the remaining sets”. But no, I’ve really tried to make it so bodyweight stuff I push until I truly can’t. Number 7 came, awesome. I went for 8 and chin didn’t get over the bar. But even those partial reps I’ll take and work: hold it, struggle with it, try to get there, then lower slowly. That will still gain something and then the next rep WILL come.

So hey, awesome. 🙂

In other news.

T-bars I’m liking too. Really hits things differently. I need to throw these in more often.

I continue to like curl-grip pulldowns. It’s really all about that range of motion the upper arm goes through (vs. other grips), and I really get a lot of lat work here.

At the end I felt like “man, I need more work”. Then realized that I’m not throwing in things like drop sets, rest-pause. I really need to remember to do that on back days. Don’t know why I remember it for everything else but always forget it for back work.

So hey… a good day.

As for my weight… yesterday I was 202, today 204. I suspect I’m still losing tissue, just having a lot of water issues.

• Pull-ups
  • bw x 7
  • bw x 4
  • bw x 3
  • bw x 2
  • bw x 2
• T-Bar Row
  • 100 x 8
  • 100 x 8
  • 100 x 8
  • 100 x 8
• Curl-Grip Pulldowns
  • 90 x 15
  • 100 x 12
  • 100 x 8
• Cable Rows
  • 80 x 15
  • 90 x 12
  • 90 x 12
• BB Shrugs
  • 225 x 5
  • 225 x 12
  • 185 x 20
  • 185 x 16
  • 185 x 13

Yeah, I could come to like front squats.

The goal today wasn’t so much to crank out more fronts, but to try to keep dialing in technique. The two big things are to just drop straight down instead of sitting back, and then to keep the torso really up, tight, lead with the chest. In that, do not lean the head back, just draw the chin in. It’s a little hard when the bar is across your throat (I’m using the “bodybuilder” technique of resting the bar on your delts and arms crossed over it, instead of using the “clean rack” position), but that’s what I want to keep working on. Still, I get some work out of it like I haven’t felt before. I’m not sure more than 8 reps a set would do me any good, but for sure slowly getting up there in reps puts some work into me. I really am digging it.

Opted to do RDL’s instead of stiff-legs. I feel a get a little more out of them, but again another place where I want to keep brushing up on technique to ensure I’m truly getting the most out of the movement.

Other notes: leg presses ended in strip sets, and extensions/curls were superset with focus on squeeze at the top and slow eccentric.

• Front Squat
  • bar x 5
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 185 x 2
  • 215 x 1
  • 165 x 6
  • 165 x 6
  • 165 x 6
• Romanian Deadlifts
  • 185 x 8
  • 225 x 8
  • 225 x 8
• Leg Press
  • 225 x 10
  • 315 x 10
  • 365 x 10 (then strip set….)
  • 315 x 7 (strip)
  • 275 x 7 (strip)
  • 225 x 7 (strip)
• Leg Extensions
  • 55 x 12
  • 55 x 12
  • 55 x 12
• Leg Curls (superset with extensions
  • 25 x 12
  • 25 x 12
  • 25 x 12

I’m really enjoying this.

Just go in, lift, a little heavy, aim for a good pump, throw in something depending how things are going towards achieving that end, and just having fun. Really digging it.

I bumped up the weight on inclines. That’ll be good for a little bit while I work on bringing up the AMRAP+50% sets. I find myself wanting to be stricter with them, not sure why, but I think all the slower tempo stuff (2-0-1-0, 4-0-2-0) type stuff I’m doing seems to dovetail that direction. Of course, inclines are more for the movement, so work that.

But everything else is about the muscle. Like it or don’t, DB work really hits me better on a lot of things. The slower tempo, getting the stretch; heck, I even thought about changing the DB bench presses to something like a 3-1-1-0 type of tempo, with a pause at the bottom to really sink into the stretch. That happened a few times, by accident then by choice, and I kind of liked it. Instead of upping the weights, I may try that.

Only other thing of note was just some protocols:

On flies, again with a slower tempo on the eccentric, but also striving to ensure I make the handles touch at the peak every time — no touch, no rep. After the 3rd set of flies, drop set (10# selector each time) getting maybe 4-5 reps, and just going until you hit that weight where there’s really no more resistence.

On lat raises, after the last set I dropped to 15#, cranked out a few reps, then just did some partial burns. THEN immediately racked the DB’s, picked up a 10# plate, and did all the front raises I could — all the way up overhead each rep.

And this time I didn’t do any triceps work — they got enough work, and direct work is Friday.

Finished with about 25 minutes on the elliptical.

Pretty good day, really.

• Incline Bench Press
  • bar x 10
  • 105 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 145 x 3
  • 175 x 2
  • 195 x 1
  • 145 x 12
  • 145 x 6
• DB Bench Press (3-0-1-0 tempo)
  • 45e x 10
  • 45e x 10
  • 45e x 10
  • 45e x 10
  • 45e x 10
• Machine Flies (4-1-2-0 tempo)
  • 80 x 10
  • 80 x 10
  • 80 x 10 (then drop sets)
• Seated DB press
  • 35e x 10
  • 35e x 10
  • 35e x 10
  • 35e x 10
• DB Lateral Raises
  • 20e x 10
  • 20e x 10
  • 20e x 8, drop set to 15e, then partial burns
• Front Plate Raises
  • immediately after last lat raises, 10# plate for AMRAP

That went well.

Again, arm days are welcome because it’s a day of work but light work. It fits well with the diet plan because I get to eat more food since it’s a gym day, but it’s somewhat light on work so it’s a bit of a rest/break. So I dig it for that.

Overall structured well. Again, it’s about chasing the pump and just having fun.

Triceps work went well. One thing of note was on pushdowns I used that v-bar pushdown handle. I’ve never used it before, always either the rope or a straight/cambered bar. I tried it just because I hadn’t, and gosh if I didn’t like it. It’s hard to describe, but I felt like I actually got better isolation on the pressdown. I dug it.

Biceps wasn’t as good. Curls started out with 3 strict warmup sets, then 3 low-rep cheat sets (all the focus on eccentric). This was pretty cool, and I was floored at the pump I got just off that. Incline DB curls hit me harder than expected, but good. Then concentrations didn’t do a whole lot. I think next time I’ll start with BB/cheat curls, then hammer curls (love those), and finish with inclines. Should work well.

It’s just a day.

• Close-grip Bench Press
  • bar x 5
  • 115 x 5
  • 135 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 175 x 2
  • 195 x 1
  • 155 x 14
  • 155 x 6
• Skullcrushers
  • 45 x 15
  • 55 x 12
  • 65 x 8
  • 65 x 6
  • 45 x 12
• Pushdowns (v-bar)
  • 45 x 10
  • 40 x 10
  • 35 x 14
  • 30 x 15 (then a couple rest-pause sets)
• BB (cheat) curls
  • 40 x 12 (strict)
  • 50 x 10
  • 60 x 8
  • 80 x 3 (cheat)
  • 80 x 4
  • 80 x 4
• Incline DB curl
  • 20e x 8
  • 20e x 8
  • 20e x 7
  • 20e x 6 (then ran the rack: 15, 12, 10)
• Concentration Curl
  • 20e x 12
  • 20e x 12
  • 20e x 12

Days like this I like.

Back day. I somewhat planned it out last night, and enjoyed what I did today. Just doing what I wanted, with some logic to it, and having fun.

Started with pull-ups. I know I’ve been on a chin-up streak, but I figured the change would do me good. These pull-ups are full dead-hang at the bottom, with about a 2-0-2-0 tempo — not that I’m trying for that, but if I go any faster on the descent I’ll kill my shoulder joint. But for sure I make sure to go all the way down to a dead hang and start with no momentum or anything. So to get 5 out of that on the first set? I’m stoked! Given this whole session was shorter than other sessions, I might extend this next time so that I do like I’ve done before: where I just keep doing sets of pull-ups until I can’t get any more then switch to chin-ups and do the same. We’ll see.

Then I did t-bar rows. Need a good row and I thought these would be a nice variation. I used 25# plates so I could get more range of motion. Put end of the barbell in a corner, 4 25# plates, grabbed the close-/V-grip handle and cradled the bar in it, and away I went. This worked well. Really trying to get that full range, pulling with/from the elbows.

Curl-grip pulldowns surprised me. I did these during Inception and they really surprised me at how well I responded to them, so I went with them again.

Then finally cable rows. Again, full range, very strict, really making sure to pull with the back and not the arms. Really work the shoulder extension and retraction, pull from the elbows, etc..

So the structure here was pretty simple: “big” width exercise, “big” thickness exercise, then a variation on each for higher reps. By then end of that, I was actually feeling it in my back muscles. I’ve been enjoying discovering what my back responds to, and actually ensuring I feel it and get the back worked — not the “rest of the body” as I make the motions. It’s been a cool discovery.

Ended with some BB shrugs. I liked Paul Carter’s approach of a couple heavy low-rep sets, then crank some higher-rep sets.

So that was that. Well, and about 20 minutes on the elliptical.

Good day.

• Pull-ups
  • bw x 5
  • bw x 4
  • bw x 3
  • bw x 3
  • bw x 2
• T-bar row
  • 100 x 8
  • 100 x 8
  • 100 x 8
  • 100 x 7
• Curl-Grip Pulldowns
  • 90 x 15
  • 100 x 13
  • 110 x 8
• Cable Row
  • 80 x 12
  • 90 x 12
  • 90 x 11, then drop set, going down 10# each time, getting about 4-5 reps per drop, down to the 50# selector
• BB shrugs
  • 225 x 5
  • 225 x 5
  • 185 x 15
  • 185 x 15
  • 185 x 15

More experimentation.

So it’s a squat day, but not normal squats — front squats. Simple enough, my quads are weak relative to everything else. Sure, I’m weak relative to everything else, but since you have to do assistance work and have it support where you need improvement, well, front squats are what I need. Thing is, they haven’t been that great for me: I hate them. But I was doing them with my feet close together, heels slightly elevated. I went back and looked at some instructional videos from Mark Rippetoe and Dan Green, and really, just squat.

So I kept my feet flat, fairly “normal” foot positioning. I did work on keeping my chest up and leading with my chest out of the hole. Plus I worked it so the descent was just dropping straight down, not trying to sit/reach back like you do with the traditional squat. Man, what a difference! Today was to be about working up with an over-warmup, then just getting some work sets in. Trying to find technique, figure things out. Really went well. Before if I struggled to keep upright, it was mechanics, not my muscles. Today mechanics just felt natural and good, no fighting things. I did find I was going deeper than I needed to, but I know that’s because with the other front squat form I had to feel like I was going ass-to-grass in order to just be parallel; but here not so much. So I’ll work on that, and other things. But overall, this was pretty good. I could actually like front squats now 🙂

Everything else then was geared as I’ve been wanting to do: just have some fun, chase a pump.

Stiff-legs were trying to get a little “heavy” hamstring work. Frankly I think I got more back work out of it. I may go back to RDL’s.

Leg press was just a work up, then after the last set I did strip sets. I didn’t have 2 training partners to strip off plates for me, but I’d push to failure, rack it, take a plate off each side, then back into the press and crank out what I could. Didn’t really keep track of the reps, just did what I could do.

Extensions and Curls were similar. First, I did them as a superset. Then it was about being slow on the eccentric, getting a squeeze, and on the last set I did rest-pause. Again, didn’t keep track of reps, just a couple rest-pause sets to crank out a little more.

After that, I was pretty spent. I had to do time on the elliptical but just didn’t want to: gassed. But I cranked out what I could, got about 20 minutes, and that’s that.

Not bad day.

• Front Squats
  • bar x 5
  • 95 x 5
  • 125 x 4
  • 155 x 3
  • 185 x 2
  • 215 x 1
  • 165 x 5
  • 165 x 5
  • 165 x 5
• Stiff-Legs
  • 185 x 8
  • 185 x 8
  • 185 x 8
• Leg Press
  • 225 x 10
  • 315 x 10
  • 365 x 10, strip set to 315, 275, 225
• Leg Extensions
  • 70 x 10
  • 55 x 12
  • 55 x 12 (then 2 rest-pause sets)
• Leg Curls (superset with extensions)
  • 25 x 12
  • 25 x 12
  • 25 x 8 (then 2 rest-pause sets)