* left elbow showing little sign of dips overuse. i can raise my right arm about an inch higher because my left elbow ROM cuts off a little. will skip dips until i get both arms with same ROM again. * elbow fatigue does not affect my pulling. did the 6x45lb plates on the hammerstrength rows again on back to back days.
* the 5-6 plates a side on the smith calf raise is a good weight. 7 plates is ok on the calves but too heavy to twist the bar back to lock position. i was wearing gloves before to get more grip on the bar. i laid the bar on the safety pins on 7 plates.
* left elbow feeling so much better but another day or two of rest would be nice. doing more seated chest press instead. did some leg raises too with a 10lb db. i prefer to do exercises standing up or with a vertical torso. i get dizzy when i lie down. i have a naturally low blood pressure. but it can be anything. bench press, situps..etc. i'm ok doing them but if there is another way, i prefer to not lie down.
* doing these bent knee leg raises for the abs using 15lb kb on each foot. starting slowly and building the intensity but would prefer not to get domd abs so i'm really taking it easy. * warming up on the hammerstrength rows with 5 plates now. will maintain with 5 to 5+25lb, and heavy with 6 plates. i'l build intensity on the seated machine lat pulldowns while i rest the horizontal pulls.
* feeling strong on the squat from the volumes. did paused 385x5 without any issues. will cycle with 315x5s when i'm not as strong and peak at 385-405x5.
* still taking it easy with my upperbody pushing to really get my left elbow back to normal. full range of motion is there now but its very vulnerable if i go high intensity too soon. the machine chest press at 10x125lbs is a good recovery routine. will go heavier soon and drop the reps to 5s. * machine lat pulldown feeling really good. the 210lb resistance could feel like my weighted chins bw+30lb. no balancing with this machine setup so i just focus on pulling with good ROM and form. can get to 240lb+ in the next few days.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets seated hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 5x45lb 5x1 sets | 6x45lb 5x1 sets machine seated chest press 125lb 10x2 sets machine lat pulldown 195lb 5x1 sets | 210lb 5x1 sets bent knee leg raises 30lb 5x2 sets
* maxed out the seated machine lat pulldown at 300lbx5 and was still able to get full ROM. this is a good weight. not too heavy and good enough for volume work. * seated chest press is already heavy at 200lbx5. machine maxed at 300lb but i'm no where near that anytime soon. * will do 270-285-300 on the seated lat pulldown.
* all gym closed. used the gym in my complex. not too bad. leg press machine full stacked at 300lb. it did the job. * did the chest press instead of shoulder press because the machine does not give me the full ROM on the vertical pressing.
* another sub 40F freezing morning. did 5 singles of 315 to get going. everything still feels easy even with my weight loss. i'm 192 empty. i cannot be 198lb+ for long because i start to accumulate fat. * another very strong upperbody horizontal pulling. dips are still doing good. bw volumes on days following 90lbx5s until i feel recovered. skipped the ohp and focusing more on the dips.
* thickening my legs again with higher backoff volumes and eventually top off again at 435-440lb. dips at 90lbx5s on back to back days. no tenderness or pain in elbow or shoulder. i prefer dips over overhead press because it feels better.. unless i start to break something again, il probably stick to this until 90lbx10s. * bw still at 194-196lb.
* resting the horizontal rows now and maintaining a top set of 5 reps on 5x45lb+25lb. will keep it there until i feel stronger to move the 25lb to another 45lb. thats the full stack of the hammerstrength machine. the 6th plate is only halfway loaded but it works. * dips still feel good. another 90lbx5 later and hopefully i can just maintain this pace without wrecking anything.
* the 6 plates on the hammerstrength row was not as heavy as i thought. got to the 5th rep with full ROM. dips stay on bw for now until i recover again. back to back 90lbx5 got me tired.
how did your back recover so quickly from the OHP? you went from "too strained to do them and jeopardizing squats" to "so strong" in a few days.
dec 12 was the last day of multi sets on the OHP. i only did single sets of 135x10s. dips to weighted dips improved too, so tricep is also firing strong. but most likely its the limiting to 1 set/workout as maintenance as i let the lowerback recover.
edit... i said so "strong with the 135lb" because i can get the 10th rep from a pause. not very strong overall at all because anything 160lb+ still feels very heavy.
* used a different gym and the calf raise machine is different. topped out at 6 plates. used the 5x45lb to see how it feels first. * been doing non-workout logged backoff machine high reps with very light weight. sets of 10s mostly single arm rows (vertical and horrizontal) + machine dips. tried the hack squat machine but i bottom out. i don't like the feel of the leg extension.
* dip station too narrow on this other gym. chinning bar too wide too. did high rep-light rep 10s on the vertical/horizontal rows and on the seated shoulder press.
Tue Dec 20
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 overhead press 135lb 10x1 sets dips bw 10x2 sets seated hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 4x45lb+25lb 5x1 sets | 5x45lb 5x1 sets chins bw 10x1 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets machine seated one arm row narrow neutral 25-50lb 5-10 reps per set machine seated one arm chins pronated 40-50lb 5-10 reps per set machine seated chest press pronated 80-120lb 5-10 reps per set
* 405 paused are very easy lately after days of no backoffs. i'm 425-435lb this morning. will still keep it easy while i work on the little compounds. machines after doing heavy compounds are a very good combo. the stacks show heavier but with the pulleys, i know the actual resisitance. will log using equivalent db weights. after i figure out a good layout for the machine volume backoffs, i will just put a range of weights and reps. its usually 5 reps on the heaviest and 10s to start out.
* did hack squat to get myself going this morning. it was another very cold morning. i did them in chucks and had to tiptoe at the bottom so i don't bottom out. got my core temp going a little. * bunch of machine upperbody compounds again for volume work without burning me out.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 overhead press 135lb 10x1 sets seated hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 4x45lb+25lb 5x1 sets | 5x45lb 5x1 sets dips 50lb 5x2 sets machine seated one arm row supinated 80lb 10x2 sets
Fri Dec 23
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 overhead press 135lb 10x1 sets dips bw 10x4 sets machine seated one arm row supinated 90lb 10x2 sets
* horizontal pulling on the hammerstrength machine strongest today at 5x45lb and a 25lb. didn't know the machine can take another plate but saw somebody doing 6 plates the other day. the heavy set was still with full ROM at the back otherwise i would not have done it. back off at 5plates x10 felt light. * weighted dips at 90lbx5 still feeling good. will top it off at 90lbx10s. bw low recently at 194-198lb. been avoiding too much sweets and ended up eating mostly mangoes. too much fiber fills me up.
don't forget scoob - the point of a heavy top single is to progress the sub-max 5+reps. thats how you build leg mass. increasing your 1RM makes your current submax weights a lot easier . you do more of those submax to really thicken up.
* lowerback strained a little from the 2 sets of 10x135lb overhead press yesterday. not jello enough to skip the squats but would feel a lot better later if i skip it this morning. * did dips for upperbody push instead. felt not so comfortable with the first 10. tried the machine with very light weight. felt so much better. grip width are the same. big difference in the thickness of the bar. i was doing daily sets of 30-40rep bw consistently at some point and realized that it was in a dip station with not-fat grips.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405-315 overhead press 135lb 10x1 sets machine dips 135lb-185lb multi sets of 10 reps each. hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 4x45lb+25lb 10x1 sets
* that 135lb 10x1 today is not a good idea. stuggled with the last rep and probably toasted my lowerback again. seated machine dips feel good but i have to find a way to strap myself so i can at least go bw on the resistance. anything 180lb+ lifts me up already.
* i used the dip station facing backwards, gripping the ends in a half pronate / half neutral grip and it worked. bw dips feel comfortable. only thing missing now is more height on the dip station so i don't have to bend my knees. seated calf raises now at min 6 plates and a 25lb. * bw still in the 198-202lb range but still able to see abs. anything above 202 is noticeable fat gains. i can still wear medium sized compression tops and not look fat.
* so strong with the 135lb overhead press. i can get the 10th rep now from a pause. * will add weighted dips again shortly. these 20 reppers for conditioning is enough. @ 200lb bw, my bwx10 dips are harder. i'll only max out at 14-16reps with good form. i used to do bwx20s at 188-192lb. i need to get stronger on my vertical pull too.
* ohp feeling strong. will go light x10s in the morning, then 165lb 5x 2-4 sets in the afternoon. will also use the hammer strength seated iso rows soon.
* horizontal pulling on the hammerstrength felt great. will build up the volume on these again. i know how 165lb on the overhead press feels like now. it's not impossible to make more progress. just need to put effort on the volume work to get thicker and thicker.
Full Squats - Paused - Maintenance 455 #186 | 465 #4 | 470 #1| 475 #7 ~ = super set or drop set with less than 1 min rest logging in reps x sets
BW 198-200lb
Sun Nov 27
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 150lb 5x4 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets cable high rows ez curl bar 180lb 5x2 sets dips 70lb 5x4 sets
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 150lb 5x2 sets | 155lb 5x2 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets cable high rows ez curl bar 180lb 5x2 sets
Mon Nov 28
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x4 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets db bent over rows 90lb 5x1 sets
* need to take it easy now with the overhead press. might limit it to 5x2 sets to maintain the 155lb.
afternoon
paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets db bent over rows 90lb 5x1 sets | 100lb 5x1 sets | 110lb 5x1 sets | 100lb 5x2 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets
* will stay with 100lb db rows. the 105lb+ db are thicker and kill my grip so fast. didn't even notice that til now.
Tue Nov 29
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets db bent over rows 100lb 5x2 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets standing calf raises smith 2x45lb 5x1 sets | 3x45lb 5x1 sets | 4x45lb 5x1 sets | 5x45lb 5x2 sets
* getting very comfortable with 6 plates on the seated calf raises. added the smith machine standing calf to balance the gastrocs. top set of 495lb (5x45 each side) for 5s. was not heavy. got up to 8+ plates before. too much fatigue from supporting that much weight if i recall correctly.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets db bent over rows 100lb 5x2 sets standing calf raises smith 4x45lb 5x1 sets | 5x45lb 5x2 sets | 6x45lb 5x2 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x1 sets
* the overhead press is definitely due for a deload now. my left hand was almost half a rep late on the concentric on the last rep to 5. nothing's broken. the 100lb db rows still feel good.
Wed Nov 30
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets standing one arm cable press - high volume. light to moderate weigh. sets of 10s. 10lb-35lb max standing one arm cable rows - high volume. light weigh. sets of 10s. 25lb-40lb max seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets
* did volumes of cable work as backoffs for the overhead press. saw co-workers who's into physique comp. and did some cable work with them. didn't know physique lifters are taking serious roids already. i got thick too with the volume cable reps but not as pumped as these guys.
afternooon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | no-pause 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets standing one arm cable press - high volume. sets of 10s. 20lb-25lb standing one arm cable rows - high volume. sets of 10s. 40lb-70lb seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x1 sets | 7x45lb 5x1 sets chins bw 10x1 sets
Thur Dec 1
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | no-pause 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets standing one arm cable press - 20lb 10x4 sets | 22.5lb 10x4 sets | 25lb 10x2 sets standing one arm cable rows - 50lb 10x4 sets | 60lb 10x4 sets | 70lb 10x2 sets
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | no-pause 315lb 5x1 sets | 315lb 10x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x2 sets standing one arm cable press - waveloaded non-stop 20lb-25lb-20lb-22.5lb-20lb x10 reps each x2 cycle. 100 total reps. 6 min per 50 reps. 2-3min rest after 50 reps standing one arm cable rows - 50lb 5x2 sets | 60lb 5x2 sets
* i like the bodybuilding style light-moderate weight with high volumes for backoffs after the 155lb overhead press.
Fri Dec 2
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | no-pause 315lb 5x2 sets overhead press 155lb 5x1 sets standing one arm cable press - waveloaded non-stop 20lb-25lb-20lb-22.5lb-20lb x10. 1 cycle. standing one arm cable rows - 70lb 5x2 sets | 100lb 5x1 sets
* ohp tired due to century volume yesterday. did 50 only today.
Sat Dec 3
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | no-pause 315lb 5x1 sets overhead press 155lb 5x1 sets standing one arm cable press - waveloaded non-stop 20lb-25lb-20lb-22.5lb-20lb x10. 1 cycle. standing one arm cable rows - 50lb 10x1 sets | 60lb 10x1 sets | 70lb 10x2 sets
Full Squats - Paused - Maintenance 455 #186 | 465 #4 | 470 #1| 475 #7 ~ = super set or drop set with less than 1 min rest
BW 198-200lb
Sun Nov 20
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets one arm db rows 100lb 7x3 sets dips 70lb 5x4 sets chins bw 10x1 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 7x3 sets
* will continue going heavy on dips and go on maintain. 90lb 5x2 sets if i can before burning out. then will switch to weighted chins. rows will go maintain too. * will use the loading: 5x2 sets maintain, 5x4 sets to progress to 7x3 sets, 7x3 sets to progress to 7x6 sets or 8x5 sets. 8 rep set will be max when using heavish weight.
* overhead pressing still progressing. it would be nice to top out at 185x5s but adding 5-10lb on this exercise makes it so much heavier. todays 8th set of 150lb did not feel very heavy. some slowing down on the left arm as usual. i might get 155lb 5x 2-4 sets next time. BW still at 198-200lb and with still visible 6 pack of abs. * squats and upperbody pulling on maintain for now until i get my overhead press to stall. rows at 100-120lb is at a good spot anyway. weighted pullups at 90lb is also decent already. 185lb OHP is going to be awesome.
* this long holiday weekend is starting to make me tire a bit. very rarely do i do 2x/day workout throughout the week. i'm getting more sleep but waking up a little because my deltoids spasm a little.
Full Squats - Paused - Maintenance 455 #186 | 465 #4 | 470 #1| 475 #7 ~ = super set or drop set with less than 1 min rest
BW 198-200lb
Sun Nov 13
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x2 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x1 sets | 125lb 5x8 sets hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 4x45lb+25lb 5x2 sets | 5x45lb 5x2 sets seated cable rows supinated ez grip bar 40lb 50x4 set (~1:30 min per 50 reps) seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets | 5x45lb 10x2 sets calf raises leg press gastrocs 3x45lb 10x1 sets | 4x45lb 10x1 sets | 5x45lb 10x2 sets bw dips 10x1 sets
* i don't like the isolation of my triceps using the cable rope pulldown. i don't want to grow out of proportion. back to compound for tricep - dips. will do them after doing the overhead press so i limit the intensity on the dips. * high rep seated cable rows for conditioning work. i feel very bloated after the high reppers. i'm on 5-10g creatine per day and 10-20g bcaa per workout. micronized creapure taken with a tablespoon straight to the mouth and gargled with a sip of apple juice.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x2 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x1 sets | 125lb 8x5 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 10x1 sets | 5x45lb 10x1 sets seated cable rows supinated ez grip bar 90lb 10x1 set
* did very high volumes of standing press today. shoulders feeling good.
* don't like the 8 rep sets. takes too much time to recover. i'm back to 5x8 sets this morning for shoulder work. 2-3 min rest. just enough time alternating the overhead press and the cable rows. * dips starting to feel natural again. a little wider than shoulder width because i have very long arms.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x4 sets | 125lb 5x4 sets hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 4x45lb+25lb 5x1 sets | 5x45lb 5x1 sets seated cable rows supinated ez grip bar 120lb 10x4 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets bw dips 10x2 sets | 20x1 sets
Tue Nov 15
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x4 sets standing one arm cable rows 100lb 5x1 sets | 75lb 10x1 sets seated cable rows supinated ez grip bar 120lb 10x2 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets bw dips 10x2 sets
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x8 sets standing one arm cable rows 100lb 5x1 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 10x1 sets | 6x45lb 5x2 sets bw dips 10x2 sets
* my left hand imbalance was showing on the 6th set up on the overhead pressing. the bar was going up right side first after the midway sticking point.
Wed Nov 16
morning paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x2 sets standing one arm cable rows 100lb 5x2 sets | 90lb 5x8 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets bw dips 10x2 sets
* feeling good with the one arm cable rows bracing with the non-pulling arm. the movement feels more comfortable for upperbody horizontal pull than the hammerstrength machine, but it takes a long time to do them because i cannot just camp there in the cable station and take both pulleys for myself (left and right side). i take both sides when nobody is waiting but whenever somebody asks, i just go do 1 side at a time.
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets standing barbell over head press 145lb 5x2 sets one arm db bent over row 90lb 5x2 sets seated hammerstrength iso row narrow grip pronated 4x45lb+25lb 5x2 sets | 5x45lb 5x2 sets bw dips 10x2 sets
Thur Nov 17
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets one arm db rows 90lb 5x4 sets | 100lb 5x4 sets | 110lb 5x1 sets seated calf raises soleus 6x45lb 5x2 sets bw dips 20x2 sets
Fri Nov 18
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets one arm db rows 90lb 5x2 sets | 90lb 10x4 sets dips 50lb 5x4 sets
* resting the overhead press and doing more dips. the 50lb felt very good. will get to 70-90lb
Sat Nov 19
afternoon paused full squats 315x3(~1s)-365-405 | 345lb 5x1 sets one arm db rows 90lb 10x4 sets dips 50lb 7x3 sets | bw 20x1 sets chins bw 10x1 sets seated calf raise soleus 6x45lb 5x4 sets
* will use a 3 or 6 set of 7reps in the small compounds to progress. the 10 reppers are too mentally draining. will go 95-100lb x7 reps on the rows next time. same as the calf raises. bw movement can stay at 10-20 reps because the resistance is very light and the reps are quick.
thanks. my favorite combo for really thickening the back is heavy sets of single arm machine or db rows, and high volumes of moderate-light cable rows. and chins. weighted chins.
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