all posts post new thread

The Story of The Bodybuilding Powerlifter

Wednesday 2/7/24: 11,223 steps, 4.9 miles, 6 floors climbed

Early Workout, Planet Fitness

Hammer Abs Crunch Machine
50 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 100/6 + 80/8 + 60/10 + 40/12 + 20/15

This is like the one I call “Super Abs Machine” at Gold’s, but it’s all straight up/down, no angles. I still like that you raise your knees up while crunching down.

Oblique Abs Machine
100 lbs/25 reps right, 25 reps left

I called this an early workout rather than a bonus, because I would have done one abs exercise during the lower workout that evening. But since I had extra time during the day, I went to the PF on my route and did 2 exercises, plus saved a few minutes on the planned workout. It was abs, so it wouldn’t have a negative effect on the heavier stuff.

Lower #2, Planet Fitness - FYI this is a different location than the one on my route

Smith Machine Good Morning - did these in wrestling shoes
bar/10 reps
90+ lbs/8 reps
140+/11 (1:06)
140+/11 (1:02)

Smith Machine Squat - relatively high bar, narrow stance, sitting on my ankles deep
bar/5 reps
90+ lbs/8 reps
180+/6
230+/7 (0:47)
230+/7 (0:55)

For the work sets, I wore a back brace that my chiropractor suggested I use to help manage lower back pain. I would have used my belt, but it’s a lever belt and now my waist is smaller than the setting I have it on. I didn’t have a screwdriver or anything else to adjust it with, so I used the brace which is okay for walking and sitting, but doesn’t help much with for squats. I suppose it’s better than nothing.

Seated Leg Curl
100 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 160/7 (0:25) + 130/9 (0:25) + 100/11 (0:25)

Leg Extension
100 lbs/10 reps
70/15 - left leg only
rest-pause set: 160/13 (0:30) + 8 (0:16) + 6 (0:11)

Calf Press - done on the upright leg press machine
Somehow, I didn’t write these reps down. I must have recorded it, but can’t access my phone at the moment. I know it was a nonstop set of 145 lbs/some # + 175/some # + static stretches with 205/some number

Thursday 2/8/24: 12,109 steps, 5.4 miles, 7 floors climbed

Bonus Workout, Planet Fitness - I was going there anyway. I’m literally their mailman.

Hanging Leg Raise - propped on the elbow pads at one of those leg raise/dip things
middle, angled right, angled left - 20 reps each

Adductor Machine
75 lbs/7-8 reps
100/20 x 2 sets

Abductor Machine
100 lbs/25 reps x 2

My weight increased a lot from Sunday/Monday (190.2 & 190.6 respectively), to 193.8 Wednesday. My diet app gives me a weekly review tomorrow, and plots out my next week’s macros. I’ll see what it suggests. My guess is a drop in macros.
 
Last edited:
Mailman Muscle said:
My weight increased a lot from Sunday/Monday (190.2 & 190.6 respectively), to 193.8 Wednesday. My diet app gives me a weekly review tomorrow, and plots out my next week’s macros. I’ll see what it suggests. My guess is a drop in macros.
Click to expand...

Well, well… it seems that in spite of my spike in weight, it went back down enough over the last 2 days (I was 191.8 this morning) such that my average for the week was 191.6 lbs. That’s a decrease of 0.9 lbs for the week, so the app recommended that I keep my nutrients the same for the third straight week.

For a reference point, here is how my weight has progressed since this contest prep started. The weekly review weights are averages from all my weigh-ins that week. I weigh myself just about every day when I wake up.

Diet setup (last week of December): 200.2 lbs
1/2 (first weigh in): 198.8
1/6 review: 196.3 average
1/13 review: ? (didn’t record)
1/19 review: 194.6 average
1/26 review: 193.8 average
2/2 review: 192.5 average
2/9 review: 191.6 average

However, I realized something today about my timeline for this show: I have been off by a week. I want to be ready a week before the show, and then stay in a holding pattern for that final week. I know myself well enough to know that I’ll be in a much better frame of mind, and less stressed if I’m blessed to accomplish that. So even though tomorrow makes 13 weeks until the show, it’s 12 weeks until I want to hit my target.

With that in mind, I told the app to program a decrease in nutrients for the next week. It lets you ask for a small, medium, or large decrease (or increase if you want). I’m not panicking, so I picked small. By small, here’s what it means…

Protein: stays at 190g per day across the board
Fat: FROM 55-65g per day (depending on activity) TO 50g per day across the board
Carbohydrate*: FROM 195-245g per day (depending on activity) TO 160-230g per day (depending on activity)
* NOTE: this app counts net carbs, meaning the total carbohydrates in a food minus the fiber in it

I’ve been taught that adversity is the mother of creativity. This contest diet is reinforcing the truth of that concept to me, because so far, I have figured out ways to manipulate my food intake in order to fit these macros. I made a list of diet tweaks to use as the weeks go on, and this week’s is probably going to hit something I absolutely love - my coffee. I think I’ll replace some (not all) of the amount of half & half I use in it with unsweetened vanilla almond milk. That should cover most of the reduction in daily fat intake.

I want to hold off on tweaking some of my staple protein sources as much as possible, those being 90% lean ground beef and the various parts of a whole rotisserie chicken (minus the skin). Those animal proteins are where the bulk of my dietary fat comes from. At some point, I expect to switch to 93% lean beef and/or chicken breast, and then possibly go from 93% to 96% lean beef for the final weeks. I switched from 2% milk to 1% milk a couple of weeks ago to accommodate my last drop in daily fat intake. Another tweak I’m holding onto is cutting from 1% to fat free milk if necessary.

I have some others in my back pocket for reducing carbs and fats. Meanwhile, I’m hoping that I can continue to move some decent weight in the gym, not feel hungry all day, and not be sluggish at work.

Speaking of work, today’s steps for Friday 2/9/24: 9,805 steps, 4.4 miles, 5 floors climbed

My youngest (5th grade, age 11) daughter’s dance ensemble performed at their high school’s varsity and JV basketball games today, so my wife and I were there for that and didn’t train. Upper body gets hit after work tomorrow.
 
It has been an interesting few days. I had work and training on Saturday, grocery shopping and the Super Bowl on Sunday, and diarrhea from about 3am on Monday through possibly right now. I say possibly because I haven’t been to the bathroom yet today (EDIT: now I have), and my stomach still hurts.

Anyway, here’s the recap. Commentary at the end. Might be a bit gross.

Bodyweight over the past 3 days has been under 190 lbs: 189.4, 187.2, 188.6.

Saturday 2/10/24: 8,994 steps, 4.0 miles, 9 floors climbed

Upper #2, Gold’s Gym

Hammer Strength Isolateral Incline Press - I don’t know how much the arms of this weigh, but it’s probably 10 lbs at the most.
empty/10 reps
45+ lbs/10 reps - weights are per side
90+/6
115/8 (0:44)
drop set: 115/5 (0:30) + 90/5 (0:34)

Pullover - This is an updated version of the famous, old school Nautilus machine.
95 lbs/12 reps
140/13 (1:48) - That’s not a typo. This set was really almost 2 minutes long. Crazy slow negatives. I’ll have to up the weight next time.

Seated High Row - neutral grip, shoulder width
60 lbs/10-12 reps - lost count
100/6
150/4
200/10 (0:52)

This is a new machine in the gym, or at least my first time seeing it. You can grab it with a neutral or overhand grip. You’re pulling along a fixed (hydraulic?) track, sort of like what a leg press moves on. Anyway, this was quite a surprise: I maxed out the stack on the machine on my first time using it. I don’t think I’ve ever done that on a machine before. If I have, I don’t remember. I can’t believe that I maxed a machine at Gold’s before doing so at Planet Fitness. Life is interesting.

Shrugs
60 lbs/15 - dumbbells
48 kg (106 lbs)/15 left, 15 right - kettlebell; They only had one at this size. It looked fun.

Seated Calf Raise
50 lbs/15 reps
100/21 (1:02) - I might have had 2-3 more, but my right foot slipped off of the pad and that was that.

Cable Crossover - I’ve been lifting for just about 20 years, and this was my first time ever doing these.
30 lbs/10 reps - weight was per side
80/0 - nope, way too heavy
50/12 (1:00) - handles high, pressing down
50/9.5 (0:43) - handles low, pressing up, 10th rep wouldn’t go

Cable Pressdown - standing, back against pad, ^ shaped handle
50 lbs/8 reps
drop-rest pause set: 80/5 (0:22) + 60/7 (0:26) + 7 (0:22) + 5 (0:25)

I probably should have gone with 70 and stuck with that for a few rounds.

Cable Curl - short, straight handle; cable on floor
50 lbs/10 reps
rest-pause set: 80/15 (0:59) + 10 (0:38)

I wasn’t in an especially good mood going into this, and did a few exercises that I didn’t have planned just for kicks. I’m glad I did.

Sunday 2/11/24: 5,800 steps, 2.3 miles, 6 floors climbed

Chiefs win. Again. Yay. Now I can focus my recreational sports entertainment attention on the road to WrestleMania 40, which is the weekend after the Baltimore Orioles open the 2024 season at home. Pitchers and catchers report to spring training tomorrow. I’m a bigger baseball fan than football, so I’m excited.

Monday 2/12/14: 564 steps, 0.23 miles, 6 floors climbed

*LIKELY TMI WARNING*

Around 3 am, I had a lot of pain (maybe cramping too) in my lower abdomen. I ended up going to the bathroom about every two hours after that until about 9am. I’m off on Mondays, so I took it easy yesterday and ate as close to a BRAT diet as possible - cream of wheat, bananas, rice cakes, and some lean chicken and beef in the mid to late part of the day. I also took some Pepto Bismol. Things seemed to be calming down, but at 11:30 last night I went to the bathroom and saw what appears to be blood in my stool. I’ve taken Pepto before - it has been a long time - and remember it changing stool to black, but never red. So I don’t think that was it. The same thing happened 2 more times last night.

Fortunately, I slept through the night without waking up for the bathroom or anything else. I didn’t have to go again until a half hour ago. Good news: more solid than yesterday. Bad news: as much or more “blood” as yesterday. Even if Pepto is causing it, I hadn’t taken any for at least 12 hours. It’s making me concerned, along with the fact that this subtle cramping/pain in my lower abdomen isn’t going away. I didn’t feel it when I woke up, but it was there maybe 15 minutes or so after I first sat up in bed. I don’t want to go to urgent care or the ER, but if this blood (or whatever it is) persists, I think I’d rather be safe than sorry.
 
UPDATE

I went to urgent care this evening, which is partnered with and less than a half block from the hospital where our primary doctors are based, and almost all of our medical records are. I figured if it was something worse than they could handle, then they could send me to the ER and hopefully I wouldn’t have to reset the wait clock.

Fortunately, it didn’t go that far, but I’m not out of the woods yet. They were able to rule out hemorrhoids. They said that diarrhea - not the blood part - is a symptom of flu and Covid, so they tested me for both and I’m negative for both. I had my first colonoscopy at the end of 2022, and that was as clear as could be. So unless something has changed rapidly, anything major should (would?) have been seen.

They gave me a testing kit to take home. Yes… I have to put stool samples into 3 separate vials and drop them off at a lab tomorrow. For better or for worse, ever since I’ve been home from urgent care, I’ve gone to the bathroom twice, and *TMI WARNING* it hasn’t actually been feces. It has just been bloody mucus, and it hasn’t been enough to get the solution in the vials past the fill line. So now I’m finding myself needing to go again, and at the moment, I can’t. Go figure.

They also told me to contact my primary provider tomorrow morning and see if there’s any way they can get me in to be seen. I don’t know how likely that is, but I’ll find out. Maybe this is an infection that will pass before any interventions get going. But I was also told that if I get any additional symptoms - specifically nausea, dizziness, fever, chills - to go to the ER immediately. Other than that, I can’t do much more at the moment besides wait.

This may be crazy, but I went to the gym tonight after all of this. I basically feel fine besides the bathroom trips and lower abdominal pain which comes and goes. I don’t know what the outcome will be of whatever is going on, but I’m staying on course until I have a more compelling reason not to.

Tuesday 2/13/24

Lower, Planet Fitness

Seated Leg Curl
55 lbs/10 reps
85/10
115/12 - more like 11 1/2
40/6 left + 6 right
40/6 left + 6 right
40/10 left + 10 right
115/10

Leg Extension
70 lbs/12 reps
115/10
160/1 + 145/15 - I could tell after 1 rep that I overshot the weight
60/10 left + 10 right
60/10 left + 10 right
70/11 left + 11 right
150/11

Calf Press - did this on the seated upright leg press
100 lbs/10 reps
175/15
225/10
225/10

Glute Kickback Machine
100 lbs/12 left + 12 right x 2

Adductor Machine
85 lbs/20 reps
100/10
100/10

Abductor Machine
100 lbs/15 reps
145/25

This was a different kind of workout for me. I didn’t do any compound movements, because I didn’t want to strain or put pressure on my abdomen. Without any variation of squat, deadlift or leg press, it was all isolation machines. I think I accomplished what I wanted to do: make up for Monday’s missed lower body session without aggravating what caused my to miss it in the first place. Let’s see what tomorrow brings.
 
Philippe Geoffrion said:
Take care of yourself. Hope all is well. Glad you got to train!
Click to expand...
Thank you my friend! In spite of whatever is going on, I basically feel fine. So I’m going to keep pushing until I have a reason not to.

In an interesting twist, it seems that since I left urgent care, the diarrhea and stomach pain has been replaced by constipation and loss/decline of appetite. I haven’t had a real movement since before I went to urgent care on Tuesday. There were a handful of times when I felt an urge to go yesterday, and every time nothing came out except for the last time, just before I went to bed. And there was no at all - just blood and mucus. Full disclosure… that spiked my anxiety, and made it a bit difficult to fall asleep. But it went into one of the three sample collection vials they gave me anyway. Then this afternoon, I finally passed just enough of everything to complete the stool sample - and I mean barely enough. But over the minimum is all I needed, so I dropped that off at the lab a few hours ago.

I have a Telehealth follow up with my PCP tomorrow afternoon (they couldn’t squeeze me into an office visit). I hope that the lab has tested my samples and uploaded the results before that appointment. If so, I would imagine my not being there in person won’t matter. Besides, I already had a rectal exam at urgent care. I can’t imagine that I need another one 3 days later.

Anyway, I told her about that on the way to the gym last night. This is what happened when we got there…

Wednesday 2/14/24: 2,664 steps, 1.0 miles, 5 floors climbed

Upper #1, Planet Fitness

Smith Machine High Incline Press - the Žydrūnas Savickas hypertrophy hack (seriously, it is)
bar/15 reps
50+ lbs/7 reps
90+/6
120+/2 - this ended up being a tester or feeler set. After 2 reps, I realized it was the right weight, but my mind wasn’t ready yet.
drop set: 120+/8 (0:40) + 100+/5 + negative (0:30)
100+/8 + negative (0:40)

After the final positive rep on each of the work sets, I lowered the bar as close to my shoulders as possible before racking to get an extra negative in. Also, if you’re comparing this to previous Upper #1’s, yes I should have done Arnold Press here. But the smith machine was closer to the leg press that my wife was using. After all, it was still Valentine’s Day.

Smith Machine Barbell Row
bar/12 reps
90+ lbs/9 reps
140+/6
180+/10 (0:25) - started using Versa Gripps here
inadvertent rest-pause set: 180+/7 + 5

That last set was supposed to be a straight set. But I decided to try it with my thumbs wrapped around the bar, which is something I never do for any pulls except competition deadlifts, and maybe snatch grip deadlift variations. It felt terrible in a couple of ways, and I didn’t want my experience with this exercise to end like that. So I racked it, took a few moments, and did 5 more reps without the thumb. They felt good.

Cable Pulldown - close grip V-handle, neutral grip
85 lbs/10 reps
140/8
drop/rest-pause set: 200/6 (0:28) + 165/7 (0:27) + 165/8 (0:32)

Dips
+70 lbs assistance/8 reps
bodyweight/20
BW/15

Rear Delt Machine
65 lbs/6 reps
125/20 (0:43) - the ROM on those last 3 or 4 got short in a hurry

Pec Deck - same machine, facing the other way
125/15 - I tried for a 16th. It barely moved.

That was my first time doing 2 full sessions on consecutive days in a long time. But since I didn’t do any highly fatiguing movements on Tuesday, I think I had plenty in the tank to have a good session last night. Unless I get some news I don’t want to hear from my doctor tomorrow, then I’m sticking to the plan - lower body tomorrow, and my second posing clinic on Saturday.
 
Mailman Muscle said:
Thank you my friend! In spite of whatever is going on, I basically feel fine. So I’m going to keep pushing until I have a reason not to.

In an interesting twist, it seems that since I left urgent care, the diarrhea and stomach pain has been replaced by constipation and loss/decline of appetite. I haven’t had a real movement since before I went to urgent care on Tuesday. There were a handful of times when I felt an urge to go yesterday, and every time nothing came out except for the last time, just before I went to bed. And there was no at all - just blood and mucus. Full disclosure… that spiked my anxiety, and made it a bit difficult to fall asleep. But it went into one of the three sample collection vials they gave me anyway. Then this afternoon, I finally passed just enough of everything to complete the stool sample - and I mean barely enough. But over the minimum is all I needed, so I dropped that off at the lab a few hours ago.

I have a Telehealth follow up with my PCP tomorrow afternoon (they couldn’t squeeze me into an office visit). I hope that the lab has tested my samples and uploaded the results before that appointment. If so, I would imagine my not being there in person won’t matter. Besides, I already had a rectal exam at urgent care. I can’t imagine that I need another one 3 days later.

Anyway, I told her about that on the way to the gym last night. This is what happened when we got there…

Wednesday 2/14/24: 2,664 steps, 1.0 miles, 5 floors climbed

Upper #1, Planet Fitness

Smith Machine High Incline Press - the Žydrūnas Savickas hypertrophy hack (seriously, it is)
bar/15 reps
50+ lbs/7 reps
90+/6
120+/2 - this ended up being a tester or feeler set. After 2 reps, I realized it was the right weight, but my mind wasn’t ready yet.
drop set: 120+/8 (0:40) + 100+/5 + negative (0:30)
100+/8 + negative (0:40)

After the final positive rep on each of the work sets, I lowered the bar as close to my shoulders as possible before racking to get an extra negative in. Also, if you’re comparing this to previous Upper #1’s, yes I should have done Arnold Press here. But the smith machine was closer to the leg press that my wife was using. After all, it was still Valentine’s Day.

Smith Machine Barbell Row
bar/12 reps
90+ lbs/9 reps
140+/6
180+/10 (0:25) - started using Versa Gripps here
inadvertent rest-pause set: 180+/7 + 5

That last set was supposed to be a straight set. But I decided to try it with my thumbs wrapped around the bar, which is something I never do for any pulls except competition deadlifts, and maybe snatch grip deadlift variations. It felt terrible in a couple of ways, and I didn’t want my experience with this exercise to end like that. So I racked it, took a few moments, and did 5 more reps without the thumb. They felt good.

Cable Pulldown - close grip V-handle, neutral grip
85 lbs/10 reps
140/8
drop/rest-pause set: 200/6 (0:28) + 165/7 (0:27) + 165/8 (0:32)

Dips
+70 lbs assistance/8 reps
bodyweight/20
BW/15

Rear Delt Machine
65 lbs/6 reps
125/20 (0:43) - the ROM on those last 3 or 4 got short in a hurry

Pec Deck - same machine, facing the other way
125/15 - I tried for a 16th. It barely moved.

That was my first time doing 2 full sessions on consecutive days in a long time. But since I didn’t do any highly fatiguing movements on Tuesday, I think I had plenty in the tank to have a good session last night. Unless I get some news I don’t want to hear from my doctor tomorrow, then I’m sticking to the plan - lower body tomorrow, and my second posing clinic on Saturday.
Click to expand...
Happy to hear that the situation has mostly simmered down and you were able to train. If you don’t hear anything, typically no news is good news (or so I’ve been told by previous HCP). (y)
 
Philippe Geoffrion said:
Happy to hear that the situation has mostly simmered down and you were able to train. If you don’t hear anything, typically no news is good news (or so I’ve been told by previous HCP). (y)
Click to expand...
Thank you! And that is typically the case. Things might be taking a turn for the better…

I saw my primary care provider today. She told me to take a laxative, start taking a probiotic, and stop taking NSAIDs until we figure out what caused the bleeding. Also, even if I don’t go to the bathroom, if I’m passing gas (I hadn’t been) then that’s good. If my belly becomes distended and I can’t pass gas, then I need to go to the hospital because that’s a sign I have a bowel obstruction.

Coincidentally, after the appointment I went to the bathroom (win #1) and didn’t see any blood (win #2). I’m not declaring victory just yet, because my lab results haven’t come back yet. But I feel a bit of relief - no pun intended - for the first time all week.

Friday 2/16/24: 3,400 steps, 1.2 miles, 7 floors climbed

Lower #1, Gold’s Gym

Standing Calf Raise
100 lbs/12 reps (1:00)
drop set: 140/10 (1:00) + 100/10 (0:42)

Hyperextension - this one is way sturdier and more stable than the one at Planet Fitness
bodyweight/10 reps
+25/12 (1:09)
drop set: +25/10 (0:54) + BW/10 (0:43)

Vertical Leg Press - I had not done these in a month (since 1/15).
sled/11 reps
90+ lbs/10 reps
180+/10 (0:47)
180+/10 (0:52)

Wide Platform Leg Press - I used this one for the first time 2 weeks ago.
270+ lbs/6 reps
450+/6 - this was my top weight last time; felt like I could do more tonight
rest-pause set: 540+/10 (0:49) + 3 (0:20)

Prone Leg Curl
90 lbs/10 reps
rest-pause set: 140/14 (0:37) + 8 (0:22) - those final 2 reps were really partials

Seated Lateral Raise Machine - Clearly this isn’t lower body. My wife was on pec deck, and I didn’t hit side delts on Wednesday.
John Meadows warmup: 6 reps each at 30, 50, 70, and 90 lbs, no rest
drop set: 130/5 + 110/5 + 90/5 + 70/10 + 50/10

The 130 and 110 rounds were partials, by design. Heavy side lateral partials on the lateral raise is another nugget I picked up from the dearly departed Mr. Meadows. Fortunately, his family is still running his YouTube channel, Mountaindog1.

“Super Abs” Machine
145 lbs/20 left + 10 right + 10 right + 5 middle + 10 middle + 5 middle

I should have taken a full rest after left side reps, then right side reps. I didn’t gain anything by trying to do them nonstop.

Posing clinic tomorrow! I hope to get some professional feedback from the instructor I worked with last time. Last time, my wife and I were in the same session. This time, mine is at 1pm and hers is at 2pm. Hopefully this means we’ll both be able to record one another and get better video footage from this one. We couldn’t set the tripods up too well last time, so the angles weren’t the best.
 
I noticed something a few weeks ago that was confirmed at the clinic: I don’t have a left leg, at least from the side. From the front, they look like the same size, and the left may even have a bit more detail. But from the side, it’s like these legs aren’t attached to the same body. For what it’s worth, the entire left side of my body feels “off” anyway, and has for some time. In addition to being right side dominant, tearing a labrum in my left shoulder 13 years ago certainly didn’t help, even with my lower body. I’ve been able to tell that there’s a difference from one leg to the other when squatting for a long time. I don’t expect to make up years worth of imbalance in 12 weeks, but I have to try to do something. Last night, I added some left leg work to an upper body day. Depending on how I can recover and be ready to hit the streets plus train lower body, I might keep this up for a while.

Monday 2/19/24: 3,604 steps, 1.3 miles, 3 floors climbed

Upper #2 (+ Left Leg & Calves), Planet Fitness

Note: I didn’t record any of this session, so I don’t know how long these sets were.

Leg Press - left leg only
Sled/10
90+ lbs/12 reps
140+/10
140+/11
140+/9

All of these sets except the last one wear done with my foot low on the platform, and just about shoulder width. For the last one, I tried it with my foot high and wide.

Calf Press - on the leg press
140+/12

I was already there. Plus if I had been at Gold’s, I probably would have hit the standing calf raise that’s right outside of the locker room anyway.

Arnold Press - weights are per hand
25 lbs/12 reps
40/7
55/6
drop set: 65/10 + 55/5 + 40/6

Seated Lateral Raise - weights are per hand
20 lbs/12 reps
15/14

No warm up needed. The last 3-4 reps of each set were partials. FWIW I never let my arms hang straight down at the bottom of these once I start a set. I was going to do this as a drop set, but by this time, my wife had come from another part of the gym to do join me and do laterals herself. I ended up doing my sets around one of hers.

Cable Pulldown - wide, neutral grip handle
100 lbs/12 reps
160/8
200/9 - started using Versa Gripps here
170/11

I think I have discovered that on any vertical pull, including chin-ups, I can crank out more reps that feel clean and focused if I use a neutral or underhand grip.

Pec Deck
85 lbs/12 reps
130/9
115/12 + 4 partials - the ROM on those partials was so short, I couldn’t put them in the rep count.

Seated Cable Row - neutral grip, just inside shoulder width.
120 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 180/11 + 140/10 - probably 9 1/2 on that second round

Cable Pressdown - short, straight bar
40 lbs/11 reps
drop set: 85/8 + 70/7 + 55/6

Preacher Curl Machine
75 lbs/21 reps

At some point during that set, I decided that instead of being a warm up, I would do enough reps to make it a work set so I could leave. It’s not like I was there for a long time. This whole thing only took an hour and five minutes, and that included hopping off of the leg press to claim a smith machine and hold it until my wife could finish something in another part of the gym and then come over to start squats on it. I was just hungry.

Tuesday 2/20/24: 15,942 steps, 7.2 miles, 4 floors climbed

This was my first day back at work after an unexpected week off. It was also the day after a federal holiday in the US (Presidents’ Day). Those are always long days in the post office. Along with some needed overtime, I’m glad to get back to my normal activity levels. It should help my fat loss get back on track. I’m not mentally prepared to start doing cardio off the clock. I haven’t done that in 18 years.

Finally, Saturday made 12 weeks to the show. Here’s an update I shared on Instagram after the posing clinic:

 
Wednesday 2/21/24: 10,545 steps, 4.6 miles, 6 floors climbed

Lower #2, Planet Fitness

Smith Machine Good Morning
55 lbs + bar/15 reps

There was only one smith machine available. My wife needed to do lunges, then sumo deadlifts. I was supposed to do good mornings and squats. By the time I got to the smith machine, she was doing her last set of lunges. So I decided to do a warmup set of good mornings, then do sumo deadlifts myself. It would have taken to much time stripping the bar and moving it from the bottom of the rack to shoulder height, and vice versa, after every set.

Smith Machine Sumo Deadlift - I may have done sumos on the smith 3 or 4 times in my life before this
55 lbs + bar/8 reps
180+/10
270+/8 - started using Versa Gripps here
360+/6 (0:19) - started wearing belt here
410+/6 (0:31)

Smith Machine Squat - sort of high bar
90 lbs + bar/6 reps
180+/6
230+/6 (0:31) - started using belt here
230+/10 (0:47)

I’m not sure if I should count that first set with 230+ as a work set or not. It felt challenging, but not backbreaking in the moment. But if I had 10 reps in me 2-3 minutes later, then how hard could the first set have been? I guess it all adds up in the end.

Seated Leg Curl
85 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 145/13 (0:36) + 115/11 (0:29)

Leg Extension
100 lbs/12 reps
rest-pause/drop set: 160/17 (0:36) + 70/9 left leg (0:19) + 55/5 left (0:07)

Hammer Abs Machine - similar to the “Super Abs” at Gold’s, but it only goes straight - no twist to the left or right
rest-pause set: 50 lbs/15 + 10 + 5 + 5 reps

Even with a trip to the locker room to change shirts and shoes between deadlift and squat, this took less than an hour. Under normal circumstances, I would not squat after deadlifts. It just seems so anti-powerlifting that it doesn’t feel right. Either way, I walked out of the gym feeling that what Dr. Mike Israetel often refers to - “SFR: stimulus to fatigue ratio” - was much higher than normal tonight. I feel much better now that I’ve eaten dinner. But yeah… that felt like work.

Here are clips of the top deadlift and squat sets, posted to IG.

 
I'm not American and I'm not familiar with gyms in the US, but after reading most of your comments I'm amazed that a gym that doesn't have barbells can exist. Also taking into account the fact that it is clearly not a small gym and is a large chain of gyms. Not that this is a problem for people who love machines. I also use a lot of them, but in the last year I've injured my shoulder twice on shoulder push machines, especially the incline push machines for pectoral. Therefore, for pectoral and shoulder muscles, I prefer barbells or dumbbells. Some of the horizontal push machines give me no problems.
I see that things work for you regardless of using machines. They are useful in many cases because with them you can do more volume, sets to failure without worry, etc. I am 50 years old and recently my forearms started to hurt. Not joints or tendons, but the muscle itself. I'm sore for days after the workout. And this happens when I train with a heavier weight of pulling exercises. For a while I went up to 12-15 reps and the pain started to go away. I do one set of the exercise almost to failure for each muscle and feel great. But still, I'm just a regular guy, I'm not as strong as you, I don't have your previous powerlifting experience, and I don't recover well.
I wish you the best of luck with your goals and I think your wife will believe you look like that singer you were talking about at the beginning :)
 
Dydo said:
I'm not American and I'm not familiar with gyms in the US, but after reading most of your comments I'm amazed that a gym that doesn't have barbells can exist. Also taking into account the fact that it is clearly not a small gym and is a large chain of gyms. Not that this is a problem for people who love machines. I also use a lot of them, but in the last year I've injured my shoulder twice on shoulder push machines, especially the incline push machines for pectoral. Therefore, for pectoral and shoulder muscles, I prefer barbells or dumbbells. Some of the horizontal push machines give me no problems.
I see that things work for you regardless of using machines. They are useful in many cases because with them you can do more volume, sets to failure without worry, etc. I am 50 years old and recently my forearms started to hurt. Not joints or tendons, but the muscle itself. I'm sore for days after the workout. And this happens when I train with a heavier weight of pulling exercises. For a while I went up to 12-15 reps and the pain started to go away. I do one set of the exercise almost to failure for each muscle and feel great. But still, I'm just a regular guy, I'm not as strong as you, I don't have your previous powerlifting experience, and I don't recover well.
I wish you the best of luck with your goals and I think your wife will believe you look like that singer you were talking about at the beginning :)
Click to expand...
Thank you very much! Believe it or not, that chain of gyms is the #1 in terms of membership in the United States. Their business model can’t be denied, but it’s a disappointment that so many gym goers don’t have access to one of the most basic and effective tools for strength training. They used to have barbells in their early years. But they also had a rule back then that you couldn’t deadlift (I’m serious - they had signs forbidding it). Maybe it’s for the best. And I’ve figured out how to make the best of it.

Catching up. I’ve worked some overtime every day this week, plus trying to get things in order for next week when my wife and I make our 13th or 14th trip to the Arnold Classic/Arnold Sports Festival. It’s a fun getaway for us, and an immersion into everything related to lifting and fitness culture: bodybuilding, powerlifting, strongman, and a bunch of other stuff. I need to be nailing my diet over the next week, because I’m going to have 2 (maybe 3) restaurant meals on this trip that are not going to fit my macros, no matter what I do. I already factored this into prep, and I think I’ll be okay.

Thursday 2/22/24: 12,332 steps, 5.5 miles, 4 floors climbed

Friday 2/23/24: 11,128 steps, 4.9 miles, 9 floors climbed

Upper #1, Gold’s Gym

Standing Calf Raise - not upper body, just conveniently outside the locker room
100 lbs/12 reps
160/10 (0:58)
160/18 (0:45)

I tried different rep speeds with the same load on the work sets.

T-Bar Row - hadn’t done these since Feb. 5, topped out at 2 drop sets starting with 160+ lbs
bar/8 wide overhand + 8 close neutral
45+ lbs/9 wide + 9 neutral - the bar feels like next to nothing, but it can’t be zero
100/5 wide + 5 neutral
145/5 wide + 3 neutral
170/12 wide (0:30) - started wearing belt and Versa Gripps here; last 2 reps had slightly less ROM
170/12 neutral (0:26) - definitely a partial on the last rep

Decline Bench Press - with Rogue neutral grip bar, hadn’t done these since Feb. 5, topped w/drop set starting with 205
bar/12 reps
135 lbs/10 reps
185/6
225/5 (0:22)
195/8 (0:31)

I have to keep reminding myself that I’m the lightest I have been in over 10 years, probably 12-13 years. I have to give myself some grace on these lifts. I’m still keeping up with where I was a few weeks ago, so that’s a good sign.

Pullover - last did these on Feb. 10; a long set with 140 that took almost 2 minutes; I wasn’t doing that again
80 lbs/12 reps
155/12.5 (1:15) - tried and failed a 13th rep

Rear Delt Machine - never used this one before, but they’re all very similar
70 lbs/15 reps - only did this to get used to the feel of this machine, not warm muscles
120/15.5 - tried and failed a 16th rep

Standing Lateral Raise Machine - on Feb. 5, did a crazy drop set starting with 100 lbs
50 lbs/5 reps - just to feel the movement
80/14 (0:41) - partials on last 2 reps

Cable Crossover - cables at shoulder height
50 lbs/6 reps
50/14 (0:55)

I wasn’t sure what weight I would go with, since this is only my second time ever doing them. I did a few reps with the weight I used last time, and decided to run it again for a full set.

Standing Cable Pressdown - back against pad
60 lbs/16 reps (0:50)

I didn’t go into this workout planning to do straight sets, with no set extenders or extra intensity techniques. I’m not sure why I did, but I feel very good about how it went. I might try this again on my next lower day. We’ll see.

Saturday 2/24/24: 16,815 steps, 7.8 miles, 6 floors climbed
 
This week has been hectic, as I’ve worked 10+ hours every work day since Friday. Sunday/Monday were largely tied up with a religious holiday and corresponding family time. On top of this, we were planning and packing for our trip to Columbus, Ohio for the Arnold Sports Festival (which is where I’m updating this log from). We did manage to train on Monday and Tuesday. This was the first time I have done real workouts on consecutive days in a long time. I also squeezed in a bonus workout while at work on Wednesday.

Since I’m recapping 3 workouts in one post, to keep it brief I’ll exclude the warmups and go straight to the work sets.

Monday 2/26/24: 5,767 steps, 2.2 miles, 8 floors climbed

Lower #1, Planet Fitness - modified this (as in reduced) because I didn’t start until almost 10:30 pm

Smith Machine Squat - relatively high bar
270+ lbs/10 reps

Leg Extension
ridiculous set: 75 lbs/12 left + 12 right + 10 left + 10 right + 9 left + 9 right + 135 lbs/11 bilateral

The reps on the left were done to failure, and then matched on my right side, which probably had 1-2 more reps left each round. The pauses between sides were about 10-20 seconds.

Seated Leg Curl
ridiculous set: 60 lbs/8 left + 8 right + 70 lbs/6 left + 6 right + 8 left + 8 right - slightly longer rest after the 6 on the right side
115/15 bilateral

Same format as the leg extensions, except I rested too long before the bilateral set to include it with the extended unilateral set.

Calf Raise - done on the upright leg press
I didn’t write these down, but I did 20-25 total reps. My hamstrings were so pumped that I couldn’t feel my calves. I quit and made a mental note to hit them before leaving town (same with abs).

Tuesday 2/27/24: 14,547 steps, 6.5 miles, 3 floors climbed

Upper #2, Planet Fitness

Smith Machine Seated Overhead Press
120+ lbs/5 reps
90+/9

Smith Machine Pendlay Row - This was my first time ever doing these. I think I found a winner. I’ll do a separate post about it.
180+ lbs/8 reps
180+/10

Chest Press Machine - press angle was somewhere between flat and decline bench
130 lbs/8.25 reps - I tried a 9th rep, and it didn’t move much.

Cable Pulldown - underhand grip on short, straight bar
drop set: 200 lbs/8 reps + 160/6

Cable Pressdown - short, straight bar
drop set: 85 lbs/7 reps + 70/6 + 60/7

Wednesday 2/28/24: 14,547 steps, 6.3 miles, 8 floors climbed

Bonus Workout, Planet Fitness

Hammer Strength Ab Crunch - like “Super Abs” at Gold’s, you crunch down and flex your lower body up, but middle only
30 lbs/10 reps
50/10
70/10

I try to make all abs sets into work sets.

Calf Press - on upright leg press; slow eccentric with pause and stretch at the bottom
145 lbs, 15 reps
205/10
245/1 + 30 second hold in the stretch at the bottom

On to the Arnold Expo!
 
Friday 3/1/24: 9,413 steps, 3.4 miles, 1 floor climbed

These are just a few notes and observations from day 1 at the Arnold:

I found a new, low calorie hack for coffee at my hotel (where it’s free 24/7). It’s 4 teaspoons of flavored creamer, 4 tablespoons of unsweetened almond milk, and 2-3 packets of Splenda. This makes 16-20 ounces of coffee remarkably good.

I met the defending Arnold Classic champion, Samson Dauda. That didn’t help my struggle with body dysmorphia.

A new Arnold Classic Physique champion was crowned, Wesley Vissers. He’s taller than Chris Bumstead. That division will be very interesting at the 2024 Olympia.

I was happy to see that USA Powerlifting got an upgrade in terms of production value, location, and seating. They used to be in the main concourse of the convention center where the expo is held. Now, they’re inside the expo with stadium style seating. After this bodybuilding thing, I might have to set my sights on getting back to that platform. I haven’t been to The Arnold as a competitor since 2010.

I ran into Ed Coan today. He’s still the GOAT.

I saw Dr. Mike Israetel for the 2nd year in a row, and this time, we got to meet his wife too. I showed him our picture from last year and he said he remembered us, and they both gave me some very encouraging words about my upcoming show. That was cool.

7X Figure Olympia champion Cydney Gillon gave me some good advice about fat burners. I think I’m going to use one for the remainder of prep. I don’t know that it will help with “burning fat” directly, but if it helps with appetite control, then it will be worth it to me.

We got A LOT of free stuff - mostly energy drinks and ready to drink bottles of protein.

I’m looking forward to Saturday! I’m having one of my two planned cheat meals tomorrow. There’s a local market here that sells what may be the best fried chicken I’ve ever had. We brought some bagged salad at a grocery store today with some low calorie dressing to eat with it, so I can minimize the damage.
 
I didn’t get a chance to update my log over the rest of the weekend. Here’s a recap of how Sunday went at the expo, plus footage from the training session I did immediately after leaving the Arnold Sports Festival expo.



As of today, I’m 9 1/2 weeks out (shout out to Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke, for those old enough to catch that). I’m just past the halfway point of the prep for this show. For a reference point, I’m at least 5’7” plus maybe another 1/4-1/2 inch tall. On the last 2 mornings, I weighed 185.8 and 186.0 lbs. My waist is down to between 31.5” and 31.75” (started at 34”). My neck is down to 15.5” from 16”. The bodyfat calculator I’ve been using says that means I’m down to about 12.5% bodyfat from the 16.6% I started at. I think this scale is still fairly accurate. I’m seeing lines I’ve never seen on myself before, and veins are showing up all over the place, including my shoulders, lower abs and thighs. It’s actually freaking me out a little, but in a good way.

According to one of the tutorials I’ve been getting guidance from, I should be 10-12% bodyfat at this point, but definitely not at/over 15%. So I think I’m on track, but I’d rather pick up the pace a little for my own peace of mind. I’m not making drastic changes, but there are a few things that I’ve been holding off on that I’m going to start.

1. Diet/Supplements
* Switch to more lower fat protein sources going forward, meaning chicken breast, and switching to 93% lean ground beef instead of the 90% I’ve been eating. 93% lean ground turkey and 92% ground chicken are still in play. Also less egg yolks (1 max per day). Still drinking 1% milk, but only about 12 ounces per day, 16 ounces max.

* 2 tablespoons of half and half in coffee. I usually drink two cups per day, so that reduction in cream makes a big difference in fat intake. Once we run out of the half and half in the fridge, I’ll start using the flavored creamer hack I discovered in Columbus.

* I started using one of the fat burners I got at the Arnold.

2. Training
* No more rest-pause until after the show. I may not even do drop sets. One or two max effort work sets per exercise. This is more about injury prevention than anything else. I can hear Dorian Yates in my head, reminding me that the injuries he sustained were from continuing to push the intensity and load too high close to the Mr. Olympia competitions.

* No more trying to increase the weights on exercises, barring some exceptional wave of strength on a given day. If I can increase reps with the same weight I used on something from a previous session, then I will. That will indicate that I’m not getting weaker. But I’m not going to attempt a load that I haven’t done in the past few weeks. This is also another injury prevention protocol.

With all of that said, I got back to work yesterday, and back to the gym tonight. Here’s how that went.

Tuesday 3/5/24: 14,690 steps, 6.8 miles, 5 floors climbed

Wednesday 3/6/24: 11,814 steps, 5.2 miles, 6 floors climbed

Upper #2, Planet Fitness

Smith Machine Pendlay Row - discovered these in the last week or so - they’re a keeper
bar/15 reps
90 lbs + bar/10 reps
140+/10
180+/8 (0:26) - started using Versa Gripps here; last 2 reps didn’t touch my stomach
160+/10 (0:32) - next to last rep didn’t touch

What makes these so effective is the gym’s rule against slamming or dropping weights. Since I don’t want to make noise, I have to be able to control the weight on the way down, which is very different from the way I remember doing Pendlay rows with a free barbell. “Catching” the weight at the bottom puts a lot of heavy tension on you in a stretched position, and setting your lats to start each rep from a dead stop still requires you to generate a lot of force on the concentric part.

Low Incline Bench Press - On these benches, the 1 position is flat, and the 7 position is vertical. I had it on 2 for inclines.
bar/10+ reps
90 lbs + bar/10 reps
140+/6
160+/7 (0:30)
145+/7 + negative (0:31) - I knew this was my last set, and that I couldn’t get an 8th rep, so I did a slow negative as low as I could before racking it.

Rear Delt Machine
70 lbs/13 reps
130/18 (0:46) - the last 3 reps were partials

Pec Dec - done on the same machine as rear delts, facing the opposite way
85 lbs/12 reps
145/13 (0:46) - last 2 were partials

Smith Machine Shrugs - I don’t know why I didn’t do these after the bench press
90 lbs + bar/10 reps
180+/10
270+/12 (0:32)
230+/13 (0:35) - used Versa Gripps for both work sets

Arnold Press - weights are per hand
45 lbs/8 reps
60/9 (0:45)
50/10 (0:45)

I was really happy with this exercise. I haven’t done Arnolds since February 19, and that day I used 65’s for 10 reps on the first round of a drop set. That was the first upper body exercise I did that day, and second overall. I’ll take 9 reps with 60’s doing them last as a good sign that strength - and also muscle - is still largely intact.

If time allows, I’ll do triceps and calves in the gym on my route tomorrow.
 
Here are clips of the top sets reported in yesterday’s post, in sequential order from left to right.



I did manage to get to the PF on my route today for a bonus workout. Triceps, calves, abs. Done in 15 minutes.

Thursday 3/8/24: 10,908 steps, 4.8 miles, 3 floors climbed

Cable Pressdown - with V handle
30 lbs/10 reps
50/10
80/1 - nope, my elbows asked if I was crazy
70/10
70/11

Triceps Press Machine - basically a seated dip machine
130 lbs/10 reps
205/13
205/10

Calf Press - on seated upright leg press
145 lbs/13 reps
205/16

Hammer Ab Crunch Machine
50 lbs/15 reps
70/15
 
Mailman Muscle said:
I didn’t get a chance to update my log over the rest of the weekend. Here’s a recap of how Sunday went at the expo, plus footage from the training session I did immediately after leaving the Arnold Sports Festival expo.



As of today, I’m 9 1/2 weeks out (shout out to Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke, for those old enough to catch that). I’m just past the halfway point of the prep for this show. For a reference point, I’m at least 5’7” plus maybe another 1/4-1/2 inch tall. On the last 2 mornings, I weighed 185.8 and 186.0 lbs. My waist is down to between 31.5” and 31.75” (started at 34”). My neck is down to 15.5” from 16”. The bodyfat calculator I’ve been using says that means I’m down to about 12.5% bodyfat from the 16.6% I started at. I think this scale is still fairly accurate. I’m seeing lines I’ve never seen on myself before, and veins are showing up all over the place, including my shoulders, lower abs and thighs. It’s actually freaking me out a little, but in a good way.

According to one of the tutorials I’ve been getting guidance from, I should be 10-12% bodyfat at this point, but definitely not at/over 15%. So I think I’m on track, but I’d rather pick up the pace a little for my own peace of mind. I’m not making drastic changes, but there are a few things that I’ve been holding off on that I’m going to start.

1. Diet/Supplements
* Switch to more lower fat protein sources going forward, meaning chicken breast, and switching to 93% lean ground beef instead of the 90% I’ve been eating. 93% lean ground turkey and 92% ground chicken are still in play. Also less egg yolks (1 max per day). Still drinking 1% milk, but only about 12 ounces per day, 16 ounces max.

* 2 tablespoons of half and half in coffee. I usually drink two cups per day, so that reduction in cream makes a big difference in fat intake. Once we run out of the half and half in the fridge, I’ll start using the flavored creamer hack I discovered in Columbus.

* I started using one of the fat burners I got at the Arnold.

2. Training
* No more rest-pause until after the show. I may not even do drop sets. One or two max effort work sets per exercise. This is more about injury prevention than anything else. I can hear Dorian Yates in my head, reminding me that the injuries he sustained were from continuing to push the intensity and load too high close to the Mr. Olympia competitions.

* No more trying to increase the weights on exercises, barring some exceptional wave of strength on a given day. If I can increase reps with the same weight I used on something from a previous session, then I will. That will indicate that I’m not getting weaker. But I’m not going to attempt a load that I haven’t done in the past few weeks. This is also another injury prevention protocol.

With all of that said, I got back to work yesterday, and back to the gym tonight. Here’s how that went.

Tuesday 3/5/24: 14,690 steps, 6.8 miles, 5 floors climbed

Wednesday 3/6/24: 11,814 steps, 5.2 miles, 6 floors climbed

Upper #2, Planet Fitness

Smith Machine Pendlay Row - discovered these in the last week or so - they’re a keeper
bar/15 reps
90 lbs + bar/10 reps
140+/10
180+/8 (0:26) - started using Versa Gripps here; last 2 reps didn’t touch my stomach
160+/10 (0:32) - next to last rep didn’t touch

What makes these so effective is the gym’s rule against slamming or dropping weights. Since I don’t want to make noise, I have to be able to control the weight on the way down, which is very different from the way I remember doing Pendlay rows with a free barbell. “Catching” the weight at the bottom puts a lot of heavy tension on you in a stretched position, and setting your lats to start each rep from a dead stop still requires you to generate a lot of force on the concentric part.

Low Incline Bench Press - On these benches, the 1 position is flat, and the 7 position is vertical. I had it on 2 for inclines.
bar/10+ reps
90 lbs + bar/10 reps
140+/6
160+/7 (0:30)
145+/7 + negative (0:31) - I knew this was my last set, and that I couldn’t get an 8th rep, so I did a slow negative as low as I could before racking it.

Rear Delt Machine
70 lbs/13 reps
130/18 (0:46) - the last 3 reps were partials

Pec Dec - done on the same machine as rear delts, facing the opposite way
85 lbs/12 reps
145/13 (0:46) - last 2 were partials

Smith Machine Shrugs - I don’t know why I didn’t do these after the bench press
90 lbs + bar/10 reps
180+/10
270+/12 (0:32)
230+/13 (0:35) - used Versa Gripps for both work sets

Arnold Press - weights are per hand
45 lbs/8 reps
60/9 (0:45)
50/10 (0:45)

I was really happy with this exercise. I haven’t done Arnolds since February 19, and that day I used 65’s for 10 reps on the first round of a drop set. That was the first upper body exercise I did that day, and second overall. I’ll take 9 reps with 60’s doing them last as a good sign that strength - and also muscle - is still largely intact.

If time allows, I’ll do triceps and calves in the gym on my route tomorrow.
Click to expand...

Glad you and your wife enjoyed the Arnold and met some modern legends! Looking good! Excited to hear about your contest.

I got the 9 1/2 weeks reference although I read the book, didn’t see the film. (And I’m not that old yet). ;)
 
Unintended Refeed —> Unexpectedly Result

Friday 3/8/24: 15,313 steps, 6.9 miles, 8 floors climbed

Yesterday, I was dragging from the moment I got out of bed, and not the normal drowsiness because I didn’t sleep enough. It was straight up lethargy. My daily wake up weigh in was 184.8 lbs, up 0.2 lbs from the day before - essentially no change. I had a hunch that the culprit for the lack of energy was a lack of carbs on Thursday. By dinner time, which for me is always late (after 8-9 pm), I had only consumed 115 of the 205 grams so was allotted for the day. But because of a recurring problem with the gas supply to our house (it’s inconvenient, not dangerous), we were unable to cook what we planned for dinner or for my workday food on Friday. So my wife and I ran out to get salads from MOD Pizza (they’re an amazing value by fast food standards) before they closed.

The salad had plenty of protein and just enough fat, but very few non-fibrous carbs. So I wasn’t hungry when I woke up. I just didn’t want to move. Once I finished loading my mail truck, I decided to go to the Subway near the post office and get a footlong rotisserie chicken sandwich. I figured the bread would be a good start to getting some desperately needed carbs.

I think I was right, because I started feeling better almost immediately after I started eating. But once I started, it seemed like I couldn’t stop. I didn’t eat any one thing that would wreck a diet, but I kept nibbling at stuff like beef jerky, “bootleg” peanut butter (made out of Great Value PB Fit), rice cakes, and some other pre packed stuff I had. By the end of the night, I was way over all of my macros for the day.

I would attach a screenshot from the app, but I’m being told that the file is too large. I wanted to show that while I was prescribed 190 protein, 50 fat, 250 carbs (all in grams), I landed on 245/80/235.

I was sure that I must have lost some ground on the fat loss. Somehow, I woke up at 183.0 lbs, which I can’t make any sense of. I don’t think I excreted enough water or anything else to account for more than a pound and a half in one day.

Whatever happened, my bodyfat calculates between 11.5 and 12% now. The plan is lower body training and posing at Gold’s tonight after work. I’m exactly 9 weeks out from showtime.
 
Fasting & Dieting

The month of Ramadan began at sunset tonight, which means tomorrow is the first day I’ll be striving to fast over the next 29-30 days. For those who aren’t familiar, the fast of Ramadan is a daily practice during the 9th month of the Islamic calendar, which includes among other things, abstaining from food and drink during the daytime hours (essentially sunrise to sunset). On the east coast of the United States, that’s going to be roughly a 12 hour fasting window at the start of the month, and approaching 13 hours by the end. Ideally, I would not stack this fast on top of a contest prep - especially since I’ve never done a contest prep - but the date of my best show option necessitated it. So here we go.

My plan is to consume 1/4-1/3 of my daily macros in the morning before the fast starts, then another 1/4-1/3 when the fast ends, then the remainder later in the evening. If it’s a training day, then we’ll hit the gym between the first and second post-fasting meals. I’ll probably consume shakes more than I have been in the past few weeks because I’ll have less time to chew food. My primary focus is protein - if I am hitting that target within my feeding window from the sources I’m down to now, then the is likely to take care of itself.
Besides, based on what I see in the diet app, I don’t have too many macros to worry about.

Saturday 3/9/24: 13,277 steps, 5.9 miles, 7 floors climbed

Lower #2, Gold’s

This was our first time at Gold’s in about 2 weeks or more. In that time, they got rid of the vertical leg press, which I LOVED. So I’m pissed about that. They also got rid of what I thought was the best of their two pendulum squats. My wife and I both planned to do smith machine good mornings, but for what may be the first time since we’ve wanted to use one, all of the smith machines at Gold’s were in use. So we did them on the reverse hack squat. At least they got a new one with a better platform angle than the one we’ve done these on before.

Standing Calf Raise - outside the locker rooms, get them out of the way
10 reps each with 100, 140, 180, 200, and 160 lbs

I didn’t plan on doing 5 sets of these, but my wife took a little extra time coming out of the locker room, so I kept going

Good Morning - on a reverse hack squat
47.5 lbs/10-12 reps - I realized after doing several reps to get a feel for the machine that a 45 and a 2.5 lbs plate were loaded on it
90/10
180/8
270/9
270/12 - I used the belt for these work sets.

Prone Leg Curl
90 lbs/12 reps
140/18 - really 14 plus 4 partials

Reverse Leg Press

This is a new addition to the gym. It functions like a hack squat, but it looks like a leg press in reverse, with the platform on the bottom and the back pad/seat on the top. I don’t know what it’s actually called, or what the empty sled weighs.

sled/15 reps
90+/10
180+/8
270+/9
300+/8 plus negative after the last rep

I used a belt on the last set. I also found with the empty sled that I’m not trapped if I bottom out the sled. So once I knew I couldn’t make another rep, I did a slow negative and climbed out of the machine at the bottom.

Leg Extension
65 lbs/8 reps + 110/8 - paused long enough to change the pin
155/18
left only: 80/13

“Super Abs” Machine
125 lbs/25 - left side
125/15 + 10 - right side
 
Philippe Geoffrion said:
Glad you and your wife enjoyed the Arnold and met some modern legends! Looking good! Excited to hear about your contest.

I got the 9 1/2 weeks reference although I read the book, didn’t see the film. (And I’m not that old yet). ;)
Click to expand...
Thank you! We have been to the Arnold 12 times, and it seems that every time we get to meet some people that we’ve never met before. It’s aways a fun road trip. “And I’m not that old yet.” - I keep telling myself this every day, especially since my children always tell me otherwise.

As of today, I have 8 weeks and 4 days until the stage. And after 2 days of fasting, I think 2 outcomes are possible. One is that the journey to diet fatigue is accelerated. The other is that once Ramadan ends, being able to spread my ever shrinking daily allotment of macros out over the day will give me a boost to close this thing out by managing hunger better. I’m clearly hoping for the latter.

I’m also trying to be more active on YouTube. Here’s a video I uploaded today with me going through my upper body session from last week (3/6/24). I’m talking through my work sets of Pendlay rows, incline bench and shrugs in the smith machine, plus Arnold press, pec deck and rear delts.



Catching up on everything else…

Sunday, 3/10/24: 5,389 steps, 2.1 miles, 4 floors climbed

Monday, 3/11/24: 5,654 steps, 2.2 miles, 15 floors climbed (!?!)

Upper, Planet Fitness - It was so crowded in there last night, that I don’t know how this fits into my rotation. I just did work.

Cable Pulldown - neutral grip, fairly wide

55 lbs/14 reps
120/9
160/7
200/10 - more like 9 1/2, started using Versa Gripps on this set
170/8

Straight Arm Pulldown - makeshift pullovers, shoulder width grip on the short/straight bar

55 lbs/5 reps
80/0 - nope, wouldn’t have gotten enough reps
65/9

Chest Press Machine - put the seat to mimic a very slight incline bench path

55 lbs/12 reps - not sure why I was stuck on this weight for first warmup sets
100/9
145/5 - started a 6th rep, and bailed after maybe 1/4 rep
120/8

I have always found this machine to be deceptively difficult, but I was a bit disappointed with this. I wanted to do this exercise first, but both machines were in use. Had I been able to start with this, would I have gotten 6-7 reps with that top set? I don’t know.

Rear Delt Machine
30 lbs/5 reps
145/17 - a lot of these were partials

Pec Deck - same machine, facing the other way
145 lbs/11 reps

Upright Row - did these with the fixed weight barbells
50 lbs/15 reps - probably could/should count this as a work set, but I know I had some reps in the tank
60/17 - slight cheat on the last 2 reps

Cable Curl - cable set at the floor, short/straight bar
50 lbs/12 reps

Cable Pressdown - moved the same cable to the top setting, same bar
50 lbs/4 reps
65/13

Believe it or not, I got all of that done in 36 minutes. I didn’t record any of this, and my wife and I did not do any of these exercises together, even though we did a few of the same exercises. Considering our shortened eating/drinking window, we weren’t mad about a shorter gym trip.

Tuesday, 3/12/24: 10,744 steps, 4.8 miles, 5 floors climbed
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom