Classic Kleen - The Road To Competition Fall 2024

[MrKleen73]

Trying to better understand the position that puts the bad strain on you: are you able to do like bench supported rows or seated machine rows?

On the RDLs I rehabbed at 95lbs and every day warm up with the empty bb.

I can't tell you anything you don't already know better than me, but there are some movements like my arm bars and RDLs that have saved my life at incredibly super duper low weights. I mean can you bend over to tie a shoe? That can be an RDL almost....

Honestly, at this point I am not 100% sure of what will trigger it at this moment but I know that actual work sets of Rack Pulls or RDL's are not a go right this minute. I am sure I could do them in some form of recovery capacity. However, I also need to continue to make progress or work the area enough not to lose any progress. So at this point my concern isn't so much what to do to recover. The area needs rest, and allowing the inflammation to go down is what is needed. This isn't a muscular injury, or imbalance but the result of an acute injury where inflammation creates the issue by pressing on the nerve and once that inflammation is gone so is the issue so long as I don't put a bar back on my spine. Right now my concern is what to do for hypertrophy in that area in the meantime.

Tuesday is my next leg day and the next day that should push the area a bit. I have RDLs, and lunges that day. So I will be testing things out then and then doing some extra work on supported rows or some seated cable rows if I find I can not do them. I did try to do the Arsenal Supported Row Bench Rows on back day, and it wasn't too bad but also wasn't a good or non problematic feeling either. So, I felt I was safer with a light cable row to stimulate and get a lot of blood into the area instead after trying them.

My father was incredibly healthy. He was a DMD, Merrimack College and Tufts Dental cum laude, and believed more in holistic medicine. lived on Salisbury beach, walked a mile a day in the sand, racquet ball, fish pill, garlic pill, total gym(Thank You Chuck Norris!), didn’t drink, didn’t smoke, only caffeine was from green tea for antioxidant purposes but my mother smoked a carton of Newports a week, and 2 handles of vodka or rum/wk and she has lost mental faculties due to Lewy Body Dementia but her physical health is fine. If I had an option I’d rather go out his way
Time will tell. For now just trying to be healthy.

Yeah, when it is genetic unfortunately the holistic stuff is just good nutriton practice. It is not medicine and can't offer what the medicines out now do. Not even close in most cases. If so the FDA and Big Pharma would ban them as supplements, and make them a medicine for profit. If you take the medicines you need to help out you should live longer.

It’s definitely a good way to meal prep. The only downside could be that a certain percentage of the carbohydrates turn into resistant starches when you cool them down for 24 hours. This means instead of 4 calories per gram of carbohydrate, it becomes 2 calories. Whether this is important or not depends on how much one cares about it, and the continuity of it.

Very interesting, I was looking and it looks like it might be closer to what was 4g is now 3g, but 25% is still a big discrepancy. Of course that is just from 2 different studies I just went and looked at after you mentioning this. You may be getting your information from newer or more reliable studies. There is also an added benefit to the resistant starches for gut and lower intestinal health from the resistant carbs. Which could allow more of the rice to be digested and free some of the carbs from rice up that might otherwise just be excreted.

I think most importantly as you mentioned though, the key here is consistency. If you have always refrigerated your rice, or at least do so now and continue to do so then keeping that level of consistency is going to mean when you bump carbs up or down you will always be adjusting rice cooked and cooled the same way. So, the results should remain somewhat predictable, because it's nutritional worth should be the same gram per gram.

Do you know of a rice cooker that can keep rice warm for days. I have heard of them but when I look even at the $300+ rice cookers I don't see any touting more than 30 hours. I guess the other option would be to make exactly what I needed nightly, leave it on extended then pack it up in some type of insulated device to keep it hot throughout the day. How do you cook your rice?

Wait, what is this? Carbs cooled down lose caloric value?

Yeah, if you google it you will find a ton of articles, studies and information on it. That being said, I may ask my coach if he has any preference on how I prepare my rice. One thing that was also mentioned is basically that the resistant starches act in the same way as fiber slowing down the absorption rate, and blunting both the glycemic and insulin response. So never cooled rice might be better after a workout if trying to get things in there as quickly as possible.

I was 197.4 lbs today, weight is still dropping back down. I kind of expect to see an increase in calories again this week with that being the case. I think my metabolism is revving up with the big increase in carbs, which caused a pretty good increase in overall volume of training this week for anything not affected by my injury.

I am about to take my pre-workout and head to the gym here in about 30 minutes. It is Arm day, so it should be a fun day at the gym.

 

[Dustin07]

Body builders have been storing their food for decades after cooking, it seems like if there was a substantial issue/discrepancy there life would be quite different in the fitness world.

 

[MrKleen73]

Body builders have been storing their food for decades after cooking, it seems like if there was a substantial issue/discrepancy there life would be quite different in the fitness world.

Well it goes back to that consistency thing. If most people prep it this way all the time then all of their adjustments are also based on the effects it has on their body of being cooked and stored in that manner. So most people might get one or two servings out of a large preparation of rice that hasn't been cooled for 24+ hours but the rest of the batch is going to pretty much be the same 24hr+ cooled rice which still results in consistency and predictability or outcome.

The studies definitely show this to be true, and cooling the rice for over 24 hours is apparently something recommended to people with diabetes to help with insulin control.

 

[Resolve10]

I think (as has already been said multiple times) consistency is really all that matters when it comes to this kind of thing.

I think it is important to keep in mind "resistant starches" is a classification system in and of itself and that there are multiple (five) forms of them. The RS3 or retrograde starch is typically what people bring up in this talk about rice, pasta, and I think potatoes (uncooked potatoes are like unripe bananas a different form of resistant starch [RS2])?

Regardless the amount of change to RS will depend on several factors and probably isn't even the same for all rices and other sorts of variables. I honestly am unsure if it is worth worrying about.

Considering most food labels can be off up to 20%, the amount of food you absorb can vary depending on you and the specific foods (and potentially changes over time), various thermic effects of food types and other factors we probably don't even fully understand yet you can definitely lose your mind trying to account for all the variables (and that is only the "in" side of the equation).

So I'll end my comment where I started, if you are monitoring progress and are relatively consistent those things tend to balance out and you should be able to gauge based on your progress if you need "more" or "less" and what exactly that means for each food matters less.

Side note though is that ya for health purposes things like this may have more importance for those trying to improve health markers and similar aspects, but I hope most of the people who would want to worry about this are already eating enough fiber and other health related diet inclusions anyways.

 

[Bon20]

Do you know of a rice cooker that can keep rice warm for days. I have heard of them but when I look even at the $300+ rice cookers I don't see any touting more than 30 hours. I guess the other option would be to make exactly what I needed nightly, leave it on extended then pack it up in some type of insulated device to keep it hot throughout the day. How do you cook your rice?

I have over 25 years of experience in food production. Although there is a wide range of specialized equipment available for professionals, I generally don't recommend it due to the high risk of bacterial growth. We typically use such equipment only for sous vide meat or recipes that require several days of heat treatment. Preparing rice in this manner, for instance, can be particularly risky.

Here are some links to hot boxes, some of which have electric heating elements and can be plugged into a car. They are useful for keeping food warm for a few hours.

Rubbermaid CaterMax 100 Insulated Food Service Pan Carrier, 94Qt - Party Rentals NYC | New York Party Rentals LLC

For the Sale Price you must order $5000.00 in rental equipment Preserve food quality and your reputation with it. CaterMax is an attractive value Smooth plastic surfaces clean easily. resist dents and scratches. Easy to use handle, efficient to stack and store Serpentine seal helps retain...

nypartyrentalsllc.com

213.99US $ 40% OFF|Food Container Catering | Food Delivery Container | Insulated Food Carrier - 90l 120l - Aliexpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

I currently prepare my rice and carbohydrates daily, but I need to change this routine. During my bulking phase, preparing carbs for several days at a time was more efficient and easier. I would either portion them out immediately or calculate the calories per portion based on the cooked weight of the rice. This way, I knew exactly how many calories I was consuming with each portion.

Your suggestion to prepare and freeze food in bags is very practical and effective. These can be heated in a hotel microwave when traveling, or you could bring a portable oven or heater from Amazon. A cheap rice cooker or air fryer could also be useful if you're short on prep time.

I avoid buying pre-cooked rice or similar products because I don't trust their processing and nutritional labeling. Producing food like this can be challenging, as the labels often lack accurate information.

I mentioned resistant carbs because that info could offer that extra 0.1% advantage when you’re within 8-12 weeks of a competition. I could imagine that the last part is going to be tough mentally, so I believe that mental preparation could offer some security and a competitive edge.

 

[PolishHamm3r77]

Honestly, at this point I am not 100% sure of what will trigger it at this moment but I know that actual work sets of Rack Pulls or RDL's are not a go right this minute. I am sure I could do them in some form of recovery capacity. However, I also need to continue to make progress or work the area enough not to lose any progress. So at this point my concern isn't so much what to do to recover. The area needs rest, and allowing the inflammation to go down is what is needed. This isn't a muscular injury, or imbalance but the result of an acute injury where inflammation creates the issue by pressing on the nerve and once that inflammation is gone so is the issue so long as I don't put a bar back on my spine. Right now my concern is what to do for hypertrophy in that area in the meantime.

Tuesday is my next leg day and the next day that should push the area a bit. I have RDLs, and lunges that day. So I will be testing things out then and then doing some extra work on supported rows or some seated cable rows if I find I can not do them. I did try to do the Arsenal Supported Row Bench Rows on back day, and it wasn't too bad but also wasn't a good or non problematic feeling either. So, I felt I was safer with a light cable row to stimulate and get a lot of blood into the area instead after trying them.

Yeah, when it is genetic unfortunately the holistic stuff is just good nutriton practice. It is not medicine and can't offer what the medicines out now do. Not even close in most cases. If so the FDA and Big Pharma would ban them as supplements, and make them a medicine for profit. If you take the medicines you need to help out you should live longer.
Very interesting, I was looking and it looks like it might be closer to what was 4g is now 3g, but 25% is still a big discrepancy. Of course that is just from 2 different studies I just went and looked at after you mentioning this. You may be getting your information from newer or more reliable studies. There is also an added benefit to the resistant starches for gut and lower intestinal health from the resistant carbs. Which could allow more of the rice to be digested and free some of the carbs from rice up that might otherwise just be excreted.

I think most importantly as you mentioned though, the key here is consistency. If you have always refrigerated your rice, or at least do so now and continue to do so then keeping that level of consistency is going to mean when you bump carbs up or down you will always be adjusting rice cooked and cooled the same way. So, the results should remain somewhat predictable, because it's nutritional worth should be the same gram per gram.

Do you know of a rice cooker that can keep rice warm for days. I have heard of them but when I look even at the $300+ rice cookers I don't see any touting more than 30 hours. I guess the other option would be to make exactly what I needed nightly, leave it on extended then pack it up in some type of insulated device to keep it hot throughout the day. How do you cook your rice?

Yeah, if you google it you will find a ton of articles, studies and information on it. That being said, I may ask my coach if he has any preference on how I prepare my rice. One thing that was also mentioned is basically that the resistant starches act in the same way as fiber slowing down the absorption rate, and blunting both the glycemic and insulin response. So never cooled rice might be better after a workout if trying to get things in there as quickly as possible.

I was 197.4 lbs today, weight is still dropping back down. I kind of expect to see an increase in calories again this week with that being the case. I think my metabolism is revving up with the big increase in carbs, which caused a pretty good increase in overall volume of training this week for anything not affected by my injury.

I am about to take my pre-workout and head to the gym here in about 30 minutes. It is Arm day, so it should be a fun day at the gym.

I am basic w rice prep. I make 2 servings at a time in a bowl in the mic, then add olive oil AFTER I cook or reheat. Thanks @Hyde for that chestnut!!!

 

[MrKleen73]

I think (as has already been said multiple times) consistency is really all that matters when it comes to this kind of thing.

I think it is important to keep in mind "resistant starches" is a classification system in and of itself and that there are multiple (five) forms of them. The RS3 or retrograde starch is typically what people bring up in this talk about rice, pasta, and I think potatoes (uncooked potatoes are like unripe bananas a different form of resistant starch [RS2])?

Regardless the amount of change to RS will depend on several factors and probably isn't even the same for all rices and other sorts of variables. I honestly am unsure if it is worth worrying about.

Considering most food labels can be off up to 20%, the amount of food you absorb can vary depending on you and the specific foods (and potentially changes over time), various thermic effects of food types and other factors we probably don't even fully understand yet you can definitely lose your mind trying to account for all the variables (and that is only the "in" side of the equation).

So I'll end my comment where I started, if you are monitoring progress and are relatively consistent those things tend to balance out and you should be able to gauge based on your progress if you need "more" or "less" and what exactly that means for each food matters less.

Side note though is that ya for health purposes things like this may have more importance for those trying to improve health markers and similar aspects, but I hope most of the people who would want to worry about this are already eating enough fiber and other health related diet inclusions anyways.

Well said Sir.

I have over 25 years of experience in food production. Although there is a wide range of specialized equipment available for professionals, I generally don't recommend it due to the high risk of bacterial growth. We typically use such equipment only for sous vide meat or recipes that require several days of heat treatment. Preparing rice in this manner, for instance, can be particularly risky.

Here are some links to hot boxes, some of which have electric heating elements and can be plugged into a car. They are useful for keeping food warm for a few hours.

Rubbermaid CaterMax 100 Insulated Food Service Pan Carrier, 94Qt - Party Rentals NYC | New York Party Rentals LLC

For the Sale Price you must order $5000.00 in rental equipment Preserve food quality and your reputation with it. CaterMax is an attractive value Smooth plastic surfaces clean easily. resist dents and scratches. Easy to use handle, efficient to stack and store Serpentine seal helps retain...

nypartyrentalsllc.com

213.99US $ 40% OFF|Food Container Catering | Food Delivery Container | Insulated Food Carrier - 90l 120l - Aliexpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

I currently prepare my rice and carbohydrates daily, but I need to change this routine. During my bulking phase, preparing carbs for several days at a time was more efficient and easier. I would either portion them out immediately or calculate the calories per portion based on the cooked weight of the rice. This way, I knew exactly how many calories I was consuming with each portion.

Your suggestion to prepare and freeze food in bags is very practical and effective. These can be heated in a hotel microwave when traveling, or you could bring a portable oven or heater from Amazon. A cheap rice cooker or air fryer could also be useful if you're short on prep time.

I avoid buying pre-cooked rice or similar products because I don't trust their processing and nutritional labeling. Producing food like this can be challenging, as the labels often lack accurate information.

I mentioned resistant carbs because that info could offer that extra 0.1% advantage when you’re within 8-12 weeks of a competition. I could imagine that the last part is going to be tough mentally, so I believe that mental preparation could offer some security and a competitive edge.

Cool, thanks for the links, and the advice.

I am basic w rice prep. I make 2 servings at a time in a bowl in the mic, then add olive oil AFTER I cook or reheat. Thanks @Hyde for that chestnut!!!

There ya go! It all works.

I am just gonna stick with what I have been doing and not muddy the waters on anything. Coach likes the progress he is seeing and so do I. So, that is enough for me right now as we are ramping up calories and prep doesn't need to become more difficult. Although, I may use the opposite approach as things become harder to eat while we push calories. Making the rice daily sounds like it will aid in speeding up how fast it is processed which would make getting the calories in a little easier.

 

[MrKleen73]

12/2/23 - Fasted Weight 197.4

Arms - Saturday, Dec 02, 2023 at 5:38pm

SA Triceps Rope Extension
Set 1: 40 lbs x 20 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 2: 40 lbs x 15 @ 9 rpe
Set 3: 50 lbs x 10 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 4: 30 lbs x 20 @ 10 rpe - Just barely got that last one in.

Triceps Kickback (Dumbbell)
Set 1: 20 lbs x 12 @ 9 rpe
Set 2: 20 lbs x 12 @ 9 rpe
Set 3: 20 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Barely got these in, also this is bothering my shouilder right now. Will ask coach for a temporary replacement suggestion if not I will fill volume with something close to the same stimulus if possible.

EZ Bar Skullcrusher
Set 1: 60 lbs x 15 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 2: 60 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 60 lbs x 8 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - Will stay here, these bars were a lot thicker grip and it the extra volume before wiped me out for these.

Diamond Push Up
Set 1: 12 reps
Set 2: 9 reps
Set 3: 7 reps - I lost 2 reps on the 2nd set but got them back on the 3rd, so no progress on this move but did not fall back either.

Single Arm Preacher Curl - Hammer Strength Preacher Curl today
Set 1: 45 lbs x 7 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 2: 35 lbs x 7 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 3: 25 lbs x 7 @ 10 rpe - I don't have a comparison on this exercise but I pushed hard!!!!

EZ Bar Biceps Curl
Set 1: 40 lbs x 15 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 40 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 3: 40 lbs x 8 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - I really felt the difference here on the thicker grip, made the movement harder than expected plus slightly different angle / hand placement on this bar so arms were in a different position. Plus I could not do the dead hang very well here so had to retract and depress scaps so basically a different move altogether.

=================================================================================

12/3/23 - Fasted Weight - 200.2 lbs, looking tight and full today.

I still seem to be improving and am going to use aleve all day today to get some more of the swelling down. I have not been using it on training days unless I really need it. No reason to blunt the effects of training so long as it is getting better.

 

[gphagan1]

Yeah, I do which means you definitely should never stop taking your BP meds, and start doing true cardiovascular work a few times a week if not already. You know, so we can keep ya around,. I mean you just got here!
I do have one, and if things aren't better next week I will spring for a session. Just have to pay cash right now and of course after 3 cars having to be repaired recently the funds aren't there. Going to end up dropping another grand on a repair this weekend.

I’m fortunate that I have a good chiropractor, that’s also a physical therapist for a lot of our local college athletes. I get that impingement in my neck periodically causing numbness or pain in the shoulder blades, but my chiro. always does a great job “cracking” my neck and shoulder blades. I’ve gone to him for years, but I still get that tingling in the head and just feel good when I walk out of his office after each treatment. Hopefully you will be able to find some relief…. I hate nagging injuries.

 

[MrKleen73]

I’m fortunate that I have a good chiropractor, that’s also a physical therapist for a lot of our local college athletes. I get that impingement in my neck periodically causing numbness or pain in the shoulder blades, but my chiro. always does a great job “cracking” my neck and shoulder blades. I’ve gone to him for years, but I still get that tingling in the head and just feel good when I walk out of his office after each treatment. Hopefully you will be able to find some relief…. I hate nagging injuries.

Yeah, going to mine normally helps a bit. I may try to sneak out to him this week and have him give me an adjustment. See if it helps anything. I can toss an extra $50 out there but my ART guy sells his stuff in 4 packs so it is a bit more expensive to go see him.

12/4/23 - Fasted Weight 202.1- I had to crunch my meals closer to each other, and ate my last meal later than usual which tends to result in a higher waking weight for me.

This morning has been a slight source of frustration. My wife and I either both slept through my alarm for the gym, or it didn't go off this morning. So I ended up behind the 8 ball on morning preparations and will have to go to the gym tonight which is not an exciting idea since i get all amped up and it is hard to go to sleep. I may just choose to work out in the evening on Tuesday as well since I may be up too late tonight. Then I can reset Wednesday when i don't have to be up that early since no lifting Wednesday. Also, getting in all of my food when I am not awake and eating from 3:45Am on is hard to do anyway with the volume of rice and meat.

Anyway, I made the best of the situation and took some more aleve when I got up to get any lingering inflammation down before my session. I brought my highest fat containing meal which is normally my evening meal to work and am leaving my largest lowfat carb meal for post workout. So today instead of carbs declining throughout the day they will be moved to the evening around my workout. Not a huge adjustment, but I felt it needed to be made.

I don't know if my diet is changing this week yet, coach had his show on Saturday and wasn't accepting check ins until yesterday so I haven't seen the new recommendations for exercises or if my meal plan is changing just yet. This was something we were warned in advance about. So no big deal.

 

[Dustin07]

You've been on my mind a lot lately as I've been contemplating and moving towards my Dec cardio goal of 930 minutes. Doing little walks with the dogs etc and finding opportunities in the day to get more in here and there has reminded me a lot of your lunch walks at work. Sorta funny how we start logging for our own historical data and then grab so many tidbits of gold from other peoples logs.

Well it goes back to that consistency thing.

I think (as has already been said multiple times) consistency is really all that matters when it comes to this kind of thing.

I was thinking about that but couldn't find a way to articulate it concisely. But yeah consistency. If you think you're eating 3,500 calories a day very consistently and it turns out it's only 3,000 calories a day because of these drop offs (or the other way around) doesn't really matter because if you're consistent with what you're eating then the data is still going to be helpful in a roundabout way.

 

[MrKleen73]

Oh yeah, I learn something from most logs I am following. That is why I never stop any off topic conversations in my log. Open dialogue allows the opportunities to learn even more from a log. Sometimes even about how to live life, which can sometimes prove to be more valuable than what you learn about fitness in them as well. That's why I love that our tight knit group here in each others logs tend to talk about their lives as well as their workouts.

 

[Resolve10]

You've been on my mind a lot lately as I've been contemplating and moving towards my Dec cardio goal of 930 minutes. Doing little walks with the dogs etc and finding opportunities in the day to get more in here and there has reminded me a lot of your lunch walks at work. Sorta funny how we start logging for our own historical data and then grab so many tidbits of gold from other peoples logs.






I was thinking about that but couldn't find a way to articulate it concisely. But yeah consistency. If you think you're eating 3,500 calories a day very consistently and it turns out it's only 3,000 calories a day because of these drop offs (or the other way around) doesn't really matter because if you're consistent with what you're eating then the data is still going to be helpful in a roundabout way.

Ya I think people get too obsessed trying to refigure it out all the time. If you’re consistent who cares as long as you make progress.

SBS uses an “assume, estimate or observe” approach. Once you are consistent you don’t need to assume anymore or use formulas to estimate. You just observe what your progress is doing an adjust based on what that tells you.

Kleen is so far into observing status already.

 

[MrKleen73]

Ya I think people get too obsessed trying to refigure it out all the time. If you’re consistent who cares as long as you make progress.

SBS uses an “assume, estimate or observe” approach. Once you are consistent you don’t need to assume anymore or use formulas to estimate. You just observe what your progress is doing an adjust based on what that tells you.

Kleen is so far into observing status already.

Yeah, no need to reinvent the wheel with the current progress being as good as it is.

 

[Dustin07]

If you’re consistent who cares as long as you make progress.

totally agree. I just wish I was surrounded more around strength athletes when I was sub 10%, or even legit competitive bodybuilders so I could have intelligently increased calories at a time in my life when 2hrs a day of output was the norm, comfortable and my lifestyle.

 

[MrKleen73]

Yeah, but would you have listened back then? When I was into HIT training, you couldn't tell me that volume training was better. I would be like well it works for you but you would be even better if you were doing what I am... LMAO. A couple surgeries, and some maturing later and I am all about listening and learning anything I can to do things better. However, then I was convinced what I was doing was superior. We all have our seasons, and you may have missed some of the other experiences you have had in life if you had done things differently. I am guessing you are pretty happy with your life now, so no worries. You are making great progress now which is something you might not be doing as well if you were a lot more advanced, and lets be honest the proof of getting better is a huge part of the excitement of what we do. So you get to enjoy that over 40 which is awesome for you now.

 

[Dustin07]

Yeah, but would you have listened back then?

hard to say tbh. I went from being the small fish to the big fish so I had to find ways to make everything more challenging. It's not good to be the guy that people emulate because it's much harder to challenge yourself. When my old coach sold the box and some new college aged athletes showed up, I thought I was going backwards and getting old because the competition was so incredible. But then I looked over my numbers and realized that I was improving drastically being around fresh blood. I had to fight so much harder to improve but it really drove me to a new level, it was awesome.

So you get to enjoy that over 40 which is awesome for you now.

Man I'll tell you the finger nails on the whiteboard for me lately in the 40+ groups is the people who still believe they "can't" do this or that because they're "old" now. I'm sitting here like I'm 16 still trying to lean and grow and then there's this dude who's 65 pulling 455lbs for reps with an extra 60-100lbs of chain and just destroying the gym lol.

 

[Hyde]

Yeah, but would you have listened back then? When I was into HIT training, you couldn't tell me that volume training was better. I would be like well it works for you but you would be even better if you were doing what I am... LMAO. A couple surgeries, and some maturing later and I am all about listening and learning anything I can to do things better. However, then I was convinced what I was doing was superior. We all have our seasons, and you may have missed some of the other experiences you have had in life if you had done things differently. I am guessing you are pretty happy with your life now, so no worries. You are making great progress now which is something you might not be doing as well if you were a lot more advanced, and lets be honest the proof of getting better is a huge part of the excitement of what we do. So you get to enjoy that over 40 which is awesome for you now.

This is the truth; you need to be ready to accept & try new ideas for them to be any good.

Something Dave Tate mentioned is that you see these swings back and forth between intensity & volume being the latest trend in bodybuilding, but it’s more likely that guys who have beat a horse for a long time are seeing the great increases when they finally switch camps BECAUSE of the foundation they built with the other, and the novel stimulus.

You doing HIT made you strong enough to lift decent weights for the volumes you do now. You wouldn’t get much out of it if you were lifting #2 pencils for any amount of reps.

 

[MrKleen73]

hard to say tbh. I went from being the small fish to the big fish so I had to find ways to make everything more challenging. It's not good to be the guy that people emulate because it's much harder to challenge yourself. When my old coach sold the box and some new college aged athletes showed up, I thought I was going backwards and getting old because the competition was so incredible. But then I looked over my numbers and realized that I was improving drastically being around fresh blood. I had to fight so much harder to improve but it really drove me to a new level, it was awesome.


Man I'll tell you the finger nails on the whiteboard for me lately in the 40+ groups is the people who still believe they "can't" do this or that because they're "old" now. I'm sitting here like I'm 16 still trying to lean and grow and then there's this dude who's 65 pulling 455lbs for reps with an extra 60-100lbs of chain and just destroying the gym lol.

Yeah, I agree, the limitations I put on my body are from testing and retesting, and once I find out I can;t then it is an I can't, or more to the point shouldn't do those things. Sure some of that is due to slower recovery overall and especially in the connective tissues. However, there are those exceptions that have bullet proof joints, great collagen production even into later years that can still do feats of strength that would make you average younger man jealous without ever having an issue..

This is the truth; you need to be ready to accept & try new ideas for them to be any good.

Something Dave Tate mentioned is that you see these swings back and forth between intensity & volume being the latest trend in bodybuilding, but it’s more likely that guys who have beat a horse for a long time are seeing the great increases when they finally switch camps BECAUSE of the foundation they built with the other, and the novel stimulus.

You doing HIT made you strong enough to lift decent weights for the volumes you do now. You wouldn’t get much out of it if you were lifting #2 pencils for any amount of reps.

Yeah for sure. I learned a lot through all of my trials and errors, and am definitely better for it now. I mean there aren't many 50 year olds that look like me out there. There aren't that many 20 year olds for that matter.

 

[Dustin07]

I mean there aren't many 50 year olds that look like me out there. There aren't that many 20 year olds for that matter.

Layne keeps comparing our work in the gym to investing for retirement and I'm starting to see it in my 40s, and obviously you in your 50s. You're absolutely right. I see so many dudes in their 40s and 50s just now for the first time ever getting at it with more questions than I had when I was 16. First off, good for them! Secondly though, it took 25 f'ing years to get this far. what you are carrying right now is a legacy to a lifetime of hard work. someone starting today at our ages is going to struggle to ever get caught up. Which honestly I'm 50/50 on whether or not I believe a completely untrained athlete in their 50s could even come close. At age 40, a healthy guy could probably still make some solid progress but he's gotta have the work ethic and nutrition. At 20 all you gotta do is lift and eat to start building a crazy foundation for life.

most guys in our age backet are already throwing the white flag of old age, which dumbfounds me.

 

[PolishHamm3r77]

Layne keeps comparing our work in the gym to investing for retirement and I'm starting to see it in my 40s, and obviously you in your 50s. You're absolutely right. I see so many dudes in their 40s and 50s just now for the first time ever getting at it with more questions than I had when I was 16. First off, good for them! Secondly though, it took 25 f'ing years to get this far. what you are carrying right now is a legacy to a lifetime of hard work. someone starting today at our ages is going to struggle to ever get caught up. Which honestly I'm 50/50 on whether or not I believe a completely untrained athlete in their 50s could even come close. At age 40, a healthy guy could probably still make some solid progress but he's gotta have the work ethic and nutrition. At 20 all you gotta do is lift and eat to start building a crazy foundation for life.

most guys in our age backet are already throwing the white flag of old age, which dumbfounds me.

That tracks! My workouts are disorganized and an unproductive sh!T show as is my 401k

 

[MrKleen73]

Layne keeps comparing our work in the gym to investing for retirement and I'm starting to see it in my 40s, and obviously you in your 50s. You're absolutely right. I see so many dudes in their 40s and 50s just now for the first time ever getting at it with more questions than I had when I was 16. First off, good for them! Secondly though, it took 25 f'ing years to get this far. what you are carrying right now is a legacy to a lifetime of hard work. someone starting today at our ages is going to struggle to ever get caught up. Which honestly I'm 50/50 on whether or not I believe a completely untrained athlete in their 50s could even come close. At age 40, a healthy guy could probably still make some solid progress but he's gotta have the work ethic and nutrition. At 20 all you gotta do is lift and eat to start building a crazy foundation for life.

most guys in our age backet are already throwing the white flag of old age, which dumbfounds me.

Agreed, they won't ever hit their true potential but most people don't ever do what it takes to hit that anyway. However someone with less training previously can still make some pretty crazy gains after 40. Especially with TRT, and or Gear use.

That tracks! My workouts are disorganized and an unproductive sh!T show as is my 401k

LMAO!

 

[MrKleen73]

12/4/23 - Fasted Weight 202.1

Chest & Biceps = Monday, Dec 04, 2023 at 7:30pm

Iso-lateral Incline Chest Press (Machine)
Set 1: 85 lbs x 6 @ 9 rpe
Set 2: 85 lbs x 2 @ 10 rpe [RP]
Set 3: 85 lbs x 2 @ 10 rpe [RP]
Set 4: 75 lbs x 8 @ 10 rpe [Down Set]
Set 5: 75 lbs x 2 @ 10 rpe [RP]
Set 6: 75 lbs x 1 @ 10 rpe [RP] 5lb increase on all sets including down sets.

Iso-Lateral Chest Press (Machine)
Set 1: 60 lbs x 10 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 60 lbs x 9 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 3: 60 lbs x 6 @ 10 rpe
Set 4: 45 lbs x 6 @ 10 rpe [Drop]
Set 5: 35 lbs x 5 @ 10 rpe [Drop] up 5lbs on all sets including drop sets.

Bench Press (Cable)
Set 1: 50 lbs x 15 @ 7.5 rpe
Set 2: 50 lbs x 15 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 3: 50 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Up 10lbs for all sets, will stay until hitting 15 on 3rd set before moving up again.

Chest Fly (Machine)
Set 1: 100 lbs x 21 @ 9 rpe
Set 2: 100 lbs x 17 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 3: 90 lbs x 21 @ 9.5 rpe [Down] First 2 sets up 10lbs - no way to jump 5lbs on this machine.

Spider Curl (Dumbbell)
Set 1: 25 lbs x 15 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 25 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 25 lbs x 10 @ 10 rpe - Up 5 lbs. lost 5 reps will work up to 15 reps before moving up in weight.

Bicep Curl (Dumbbell)
Set 1: 20 lbs x 15 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 2: 20 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 20 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Same weight lost 3 reps from the extreme effort on previous biceps work.

All in all, I kicked some ass in the gym yesterday evening, I pushed everything to my limits to get the most out of the session. The additional calories are definitely improving my performance in the gym along with the gear I am sure.

Training update - I will more than likely be doing Pendulum squats for my squatting movement. Going to test them today to see how they go. As long as no pain in my back which I don't expect then I will push with them for a bit. I feel they are a highly effective exercise that doesn't provide too much systemic fatigue compared to most squats. So I can push them really hard without running myself down too much. So unless I have an issue with the Pendulums I will likely just do them until we decide to change exercises up.

For my triceps kickbacks he is asked a few questions and i am waiting for his suggestion there.

New macros are beastly for me. This will be the highest calories I have ever been on consistently. He also added some harder to digest things like oats, thank goodness not tons of it. Other than that he added some almond butter, and increased carbs from some other sources.

New macros:
300g protein, 475g c and 90g fats - 3910 calories up from 3235 calories.

12/5/23 - Fasted Weight 200.1lbs - Weight dropped back down after spreading nutrition back out from being up all day.

I am going to try to figure out a way to match these macros with what I have hear today. My new plan was waiting for me this morning but I already had my prepped food up here and don't have some of the other things just added like oats and almond butter.

 

[gphagan1]

12/4/23 - Fasted Weight 202.1

Chest & Biceps = Monday, Dec 04, 2023 at 7:30pm

Iso-lateral Incline Chest Press (Machine)
Set 1: 85 lbs x 6 @ 9 rpe
Set 2: 85 lbs x 2 @ 10 rpe [RP]
Set 3: 85 lbs x 2 @ 10 rpe [RP]
Set 4: 75 lbs x 8 @ 10 rpe [Down Set]
Set 5: 75 lbs x 2 @ 10 rpe [RP]
Set 6: 75 lbs x 1 @ 10 rpe [RP] 5lb increase on all sets including down sets.

Iso-Lateral Chest Press (Machine)
Set 1: 60 lbs x 10 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 60 lbs x 9 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 3: 60 lbs x 6 @ 10 rpe
Set 4: 45 lbs x 6 @ 10 rpe [Drop]
Set 5: 35 lbs x 5 @ 10 rpe [Drop] up 5lbs on all sets including drop sets.

Bench Press (Cable)
Set 1: 50 lbs x 15 @ 7.5 rpe
Set 2: 50 lbs x 15 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 3: 50 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Up 10lbs for all sets, will stay until hitting 15 on 3rd set before moving up again.

Chest Fly (Machine)
Set 1: 100 lbs x 21 @ 9 rpe
Set 2: 100 lbs x 17 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 3: 90 lbs x 21 @ 9.5 rpe [Down] First 2 sets up 10lbs - no way to jump 5lbs on this machine.

Spider Curl (Dumbbell)
Set 1: 25 lbs x 15 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 25 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 25 lbs x 10 @ 10 rpe - Up 5 lbs. lost 5 reps will work up to 15 reps before moving up in weight.

Bicep Curl (Dumbbell)
Set 1: 20 lbs x 15 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 2: 20 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 20 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Same weight lost 3 reps from the extreme effort on previous biceps work.

All in all, I kicked some ass in the gym yesterday evening, I pushed everything to my limits to get the most out of the session. The additional calories are definitely improving my performance in the gym along with the gear I am sure.

Training update - I will more than likely be doing Pendulum squats for my squatting movement. Going to test them today to see how they go. As long as no pain in my back which I don't expect then I will push with them for a bit. I feel they are a highly effective exercise that doesn't provide too much systemic fatigue compared to most squats. So I can push them really hard without running myself down too much. So unless I have an issue with the Pendulums I will likely just do them until we decide to change exercises up.

For my triceps kickbacks he is asked a few questions and i am waiting for his suggestion there.

New macros are beastly for me. This will be the highest calories I have ever been on consistently. He also added some harder to digest things like oats, thank goodness not tons of it. Other than that he added some almond butter, and increased carbs from some other sources.

New macros:
300g protein, 475g c and 90g fats - 3910 calories up from 3235 calories.

12/5/23 - Fasted Weight 200.1lbs - Weight dropped back down after spreading nutrition back out from being up all day.

I am going to try to figure out a way to match these macros with what I have hear today. My new plan was waiting for me this morning but I already had my prepped food up here and don't have some of the other things just added like oats and almond butter.

Up almost 700 calories, with the gear, and as primed as you are for a bulk, you should have a really good growth phase.
Man I feel you on having to adjust for injuries, new or old, whether with different exercises or position adjustments. But likes already been said, consistency is what gets results.

 

[Dustin07]

Holy **** it's getting real

 

[GreenMachineX]

totally agree. I just wish I was surrounded more around strength athletes when I was sub 10%, or even legit competitive bodybuilders so I could have intelligently increased calories at a time in my life when 2hrs a day of output was the norm, comfortable and my lifestyle.

Dude, so this. Earlier in life if I actually ate for gains and didn't perpetually cut, I can only imagine where I'd be now. But, here I am, still cutting

 

[MrKleen73]

Up almost 700 calories, with the gear, and as primed as you are for a bulk, you should have a really good growth phase.
Man I feel you on having to adjust for injuries, new or old, whether with different exercises or position adjustments. But likes already been said, consistency is what gets results.

Oh yeah, no lack of consistent pushing on my end, even when this popped up I pushed through as much as I could with the rest of my session. Curious to see how my body responds. I think I might wait for until I get up a few more lbs before posting any more pics. See if we can't see some truly obvious changes after that. With this new calorie increase that probably wont take but a couple of weeks.

Holy **** it's getting real

Yeah no doubt! To be fair, I looked pretty good at my check in so I am sure he is like "NICE, it is time to Shake and Bake!" Speaking of, seems some legal pot brand or dispensary would sell a "Shake and Bake" product where they sell shake left over from their pre-rolls.

Dude, so this. Earlier in life if I actually ate for gains and didn't perpetually cut, I can only imagine where I'd be now. But, here I am, still cutting

Amen! I can't imagine where I would be if I had done everything right in my life. However, like I said, I am very content with my life now. I am happily married, with kids that adore me, and I have more time for my family than if I had gone for some big wig job that would have brought me the things I thought would make me happy.

Also on the still cutting. Not sure how far you have to go, but from what I understand from your previous bodyfat estimates at a heavier weight it is probably only 12-16 weeks of solid dieting and cardio progress to get there.

 

[GreenMachineX]

Amen! I can't imagine where I would be if I had done everything right in my life. However, like I said, I am very content with my life now. I am happily married, with kids that adore me, and I have more time for my family than if I had gone for some big wig job that would have brought me the things I thought would make me happy.

Also on the still cutting. Not sure how far you have to go, but from what I understand from your previous bodyfat estimates at a heavier weight it is probably only 12-16 weeks of solid dieting and cardio progress to get there.

You're right. I don't have far to go. Just need to buckle down.

 

[akboom87]

Just curious @MrKleen73 have you tried out an inversion table? I use to use one all the time back in the day. Thinking about getting another one to get back into it.

 

[MrKleen73]

You're right. I don't have far to go. Just need to buckle down.

Yeah, no doubt man, you can do it.

=================================================================================

12/5/23 - Fasted Weight 200.1
Cardio - Elliptical 30 minutes 431 calories level 15

Legs - Tuesday, Dec 05, 2023 at 7:42pm

Pendulum Squat (Machine)
"Warm up 10,6,3 top set 6 rep failure target, 10 rep failure target."
Set 1: 115 lbs x 7 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - 3/4 depth for 8th "failure" rep
Set 2: 90 lbs x 11 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - 3/4 depth for 11th "failure" rep

Leg Press (Machine)
Set 1: 450 lbs x 12 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 450 lbs x 12 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 3: 450 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Had to stop pauses in the stretched position at rep 9 on third set and almost didn't get last rep at all.

Walking Lunge (Dumbbell)
Set 1 30x8 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 30x8 @ 9.5RPE - Go to 35's - These did not hurt my shoulder or neck today which is a good thing!

Romanian Deadlift (Dumbbell)
"15,12,8"
Set 1: 35 lbs x 15 @ 7.5 rpe
Set 2: 50 lbs x 12 @ 8 rpe
Set 3: 65 lbs x 8 @ 9 rpe - No shoulder or back pain with the DB's. Start from 50 amd move up next time. I was able to do these a lot deeper and get a decent stretch on hamstrings and glutes using the DB's. Coach recommended they might feel better with my current injury recovery.

Lying Leg Curl (Machine) - Done with flexed glutes and adductors squeezing thighs together. Unreal contraction!
Set 1: 45 lbs x 20 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 60 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 60 lbs x 9 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 4: 45 lbs x 16 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - I will stick with these weights until I get all reps.

Leg Press Calf Raise - Done with extreme stretch and a pause.
Set 1: 200 lbs x 30 reps
Set 2: 200 lbs x 20 reps
Set 3: 200 lbs x 13 reps - I wasn't quite truly failing on these but my pumps were so painful I couldn't manage any more. The carb increases have made these quite painful!

Wow the increase in carbs had me getting some pumps in my calves and a little in my lower back. Massively full, and I was doing the Frankenstein walk from the end of the Pendulums throughout the rest of the workout.

Oh yeah, I increased weight or reps on all lifts but the calves.

I can feel my legs are going to likely get a little DOMS later today. I would stretch last night and the flex on my quads was already showing some signs of incoming DOMS.

===============================================================================

12/6/23 - Fasted Weight 198.6 - Down 1.5lbs from yesterday. A little surprised here by this drop in weight after my first day of this large calorie increase.

Will do elliptical for 25 minutes, level 15 @135-150BPM and cool down during lunch.

Just curious @MrKleen73 have you tried out an inversion table? I use to use one all the time back in the day. Thinking about getting another one to get back into it.

I used to have one, it was somewhat useful, but not really worth all the time when I can get a better strtech, and spinal decompression just from doing dead hangs on a pull up bar. As an added benefit that will also result an some growth, and loosening up my tight lats as well. Although great mention, I have done a few of these since it got triggered and they do help. Probably need to try to do a bit of a hang every time I go into the gym. Just strap up to a bar and hang for a couple 1 minute hangs.

 

[gphagan1]

Yeah, no doubt man, you can do it.

=================================================================================

12/5/23 - Fasted Weight 200.1
Cardio - Elliptical 30 minutes 431 calories level 15

Legs - Tuesday, Dec 05, 2023 at 7:42pm

Pendulum Squat (Machine)
"Warm up 10,6,3 top set 6 rep failure target, 10 rep failure target."
Set 1: 115 lbs x 7 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - 3/4 depth for 8th "failure" rep
Set 2: 90 lbs x 11 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - 3/4 depth for 11th "failure" rep

Leg Press (Machine)
Set 1: 450 lbs x 12 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 450 lbs x 12 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 3: 450 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Had to stop pauses in the stretched position at rep 9 on third set and almost didn't get last rep at all.

Walking Lunge (Dumbbell)
Set 1 30x8 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 30x8 @ 9.5RPE - Go to 35's - These did not hurt my shoulder or neck today which is a good thing!

Romanian Deadlift (Dumbbell)
"15,12,8"
Set 1: 35 lbs x 15 @ 7.5 rpe
Set 2: 50 lbs x 12 @ 8 rpe
Set 3: 65 lbs x 8 @ 9 rpe - No shoulder or back pain with the DB's. Start from 50 amd move up next time. I was able to do these a lot deeper and get a decent stretch on hamstrings and glutes using the DB's. Coach recommended they might feel better with my current injury recovery.

Lying Leg Curl (Machine) - Done with flexed glutes and adductors squeezing thighs together. Unreal contraction!
Set 1: 45 lbs x 20 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 60 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 60 lbs x 9 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 4: 45 lbs x 16 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - I will stick with these weights until I get all reps.

Leg Press Calf Raise - Done with extreme stretch and a pause.
Set 1: 200 lbs x 30 reps
Set 2: 200 lbs x 20 reps
Set 3: 200 lbs x 13 reps - I wasn't quite truly failing on these but my pumps were so painful I couldn't manage any more. The carb increases have made these quite painful!

Wow the increase in carbs had me getting some pumps in my calves and a little in my lower back. Massively full, and I was doing the Frankenstein walk from the end of the Pendulums throughout the rest of the workout.

Oh yeah, I increased weight or reps on all lifts but the calves.

I can feel my legs are going to likely get a little DOMS later today. I would stretch last night and the flex on my quads was already showing some signs of incoming DOMS.

===============================================================================

12/6/23 - Fasted Weight 198.6 - Down 1.5lbs from yesterday. A little surprised here by this drop in weight after my first day of this large calorie increase.

Will do elliptical for 25 minutes, level 15 @135-150BPM and cool down during lunch.


I used to have one, it was somewhat useful, but not really worth all the time when I can get a better strtech, and spinal decompression just from doing dead hangs on a pull up bar. As an added benefit that will also result an some growth, and loosening up my tight lats as well. Although great mention, I have done a few of these since it got triggered and they do help. Probably need to try to do a bit of a hang every time I go into the gym. Just strap up to a bar and hang for a couple 1 minute hangs.

That’s a good well rounded work out, and I bet it hit the legs significantly. It’s good to see your alternative exercises working out around your injury. Looks like you made the right choices pretty quickly to be able to keep this gain train rolling.

 

[MrKleen73]

That’s a good well rounded work out, and I bet it hit the legs significantly. It’s good to see your alternative exercises working out around your injury. Looks like you made the right choices pretty quickly to be able to keep this gain train rolling.

Yeah, I was very happy with how well it hit my legs. I was pushing things very hard too. i definitely feel the increased gym aggression from the increase in Test. Hoping he bumps the masteron next or I will have to order some more testosterone before this cycle is over.

 

[PolishHamm3r77]

Yeah, no doubt man, you can do it.

=================================================================================

12/5/23 - Fasted Weight 200.1
Cardio - Elliptical 30 minutes 431 calories level 15

Legs - Tuesday, Dec 05, 2023 at 7:42pm

Pendulum Squat (Machine)
"Warm up 10,6,3 top set 6 rep failure target, 10 rep failure target."
Set 1: 115 lbs x 7 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - 3/4 depth for 8th "failure" rep
Set 2: 90 lbs x 11 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - 3/4 depth for 11th "failure" rep

Leg Press (Machine)
Set 1: 450 lbs x 12 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 450 lbs x 12 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 3: 450 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe - Had to stop pauses in the stretched position at rep 9 on third set and almost didn't get last rep at all.

Walking Lunge (Dumbbell)
Set 1 30x8 @ 8.5 rpe
Set 2: 30x8 @ 9.5RPE - Go to 35's - These did not hurt my shoulder or neck today which is a good thing!

Romanian Deadlift (Dumbbell)
"15,12,8"
Set 1: 35 lbs x 15 @ 7.5 rpe
Set 2: 50 lbs x 12 @ 8 rpe
Set 3: 65 lbs x 8 @ 9 rpe - No shoulder or back pain with the DB's. Start from 50 amd move up next time. I was able to do these a lot deeper and get a decent stretch on hamstrings and glutes using the DB's. Coach recommended they might feel better with my current injury recovery.

Lying Leg Curl (Machine) - Done with flexed glutes and adductors squeezing thighs together. Unreal contraction!
Set 1: 45 lbs x 20 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 60 lbs x 15 @ 10 rpe
Set 3: 60 lbs x 9 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 4: 45 lbs x 16 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - I will stick with these weights until I get all reps.

Leg Press Calf Raise - Done with extreme stretch and a pause.
Set 1: 200 lbs x 30 reps
Set 2: 200 lbs x 20 reps
Set 3: 200 lbs x 13 reps - I wasn't quite truly failing on these but my pumps were so painful I couldn't manage any more. The carb increases have made these quite painful!

Wow the increase in carbs had me getting some pumps in my calves and a little in my lower back. Massively full, and I was doing the Frankenstein walk from the end of the Pendulums throughout the rest of the workout.

Oh yeah, I increased weight or reps on all lifts but the calves.

I can feel my legs are going to likely get a little DOMS later today. I would stretch last night and the flex on my quads was already showing some signs of incoming DOMS.

===============================================================================

12/6/23 - Fasted Weight 198.6 - Down 1.5lbs from yesterday. A little surprised here by this drop in weight after my first day of this large calorie increase.

Will do elliptical for 25 minutes, level 15 @135-150BPM and cool down during lunch.


I used to have one, it was somewhat useful, but not really worth all the time when I can get a better strtech, and spinal decompression just from doing dead hangs on a pull up bar. As an added benefit that will also result an some growth, and loosening up my tight lats as well. Although great mention, I have done a few of these since it got triggered and they do help. Probably need to try to do a bit of a hang every time I go into the gym. Just strap up to a bar and hang for a couple 1 minute hangs.

More food and a weight drop. You must have a Kool-Aid smile right now! Sugar free of course!

 

[MrKleen73]

More food and a weight drop. You must have a Kool-Aid smile right now! Sugar free of course!

Abs-solutely!

 

[MrKleen73]

Let's just hope all of this doesn't turn me into this version!

 

[PolishHamm3r77]

Legit laughing out loud at both of those.
first one is “Oh YEAH!!!”
Second is “Oh NO!!!…”

 

[iparatroop]

Hi Chris.

 

[Hyde]

Hi Chris.

Holy **** he’s alive!

 

[iparatroop]

Holy **** he’s alive!

Yeah buddy. I have this weird thing where I disappear for a while, get fat, hate myself, and come back here to try and figure it all out again. So, here we are.

 

[PolishHamm3r77]

Yeah buddy. I have this weird thing where I disappear for a while, get fat, hate myself, and come back here to try and figure it all out again. So, here we are.

I did the same thing. Hiatus from summer of 2015 until May of this year.
WELCOME BACK!!!

 

[rascal14]

Trying to catch back up just glanced over weights hoping to see some nudes but didn’t find any.

weight looks like it went down then back up to 200lbs. You are transitioning to a gaining phase correct?

 

[Hyde]

Yeah buddy. I have this weird thing where I disappear for a while, get fat, hate myself, and come back here to try and figure it all out again. So, here we are.

Eat less, do more - all the little decisions will add up! Lifestyle changes are how you improve health and keep the positive changes you make over time.

 

[MrKleen73]

Hi Chris.

Whoah long time no see! Welcome back!!!

Holy **** he’s alive!

I know right!

Yeah buddy. I have this weird thing where I disappear for a while, get fat, hate myself, and come back here to try and figure it all out again. So, here we are.

Yeah, that's a rough cycle. I have done the same before. The get fewer, and farther between as I get older. The comeback gets harder...

Trying to catch back up just glanced over weights hoping to see some nudes but didn’t find any.

weight looks like it went down then back up to 200lbs. You are transitioning to a gaining phase correct?

Yeah, I don't think I have posted any nudes in a couple of weeks. I figured I would wait until some more obvious changes. Dropping weekly pics with out tons of change just seemed like a waste of everyone's time. I am happy to post them up more regularly if people really want to see the weekly differences. I asked a little while back and noone responded so I decided to wait a bit.

These were the last pictures I took about 2 weeks ago 11/26/23. I think recent changes are relatively minor, still about the same bodyfat. Maybe a little lower, and muscles sare fuller, and vascuular due to the massive increase in carbs and calories. I have already transitioned to massing. Calories are up by a little over 1200 calories in the last 2 weeks. Putting me at what is, or was my maintenance right around 2735 calories to 3900 a day. Fasted weight has gone from 196.2 to 199.2 this morning.

Okay just to have some fun I am going to post up comparison pictures of me Fasted TG morning, pumped TG afternoon, Fasted this morning, and about an hour after my arm workout still slightly pumped at a weight of 205.7. One of the pictures says 196.4 for TG morning but it is wrong it is 196.2 for a total gain of 6 fasted lbs, and 11.3 from the pumped pics from today. I will post up some pics of me from this weekends check in. Since next week will likely have some free meals if coach allows since I am going on an Anniversary road trip with my wife to San Antonio, and will be eating out a decent bit while there.

View attachment 238076
View attachment 238077
View attachment 238078

===============================================================================

I ended up opting to move yesterday's cardio to Saturday this week. My legs were beat up yesterday, and my work schedule made me choose between cardio and missing a meal. So I put cardio off and then had to prep some more food last night for the rest of the week. I will workout with my weights in the morning when I wake up, and then go back later in the day to get my cardio in.

===============================================================================

12/7/23 - Fasted Weight 199.1 - I am still surprised to be under 200 at this point but I am not complaining. Have been waking up more vascular and less flat since the recent calorie increase. Starting to get a bit more used to the volume of food but still presents a challenge with it being pretty clean, and high volume foods.

Shoulders & Triceps - Thursday, Dec 07, 2023 at 4:35am

Shoulder Press (Machine Plates)
Set 1: 165 lbs x 13 @ 10 rpe [Failure]
Set 2: 150 lbs x 12 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - Go up, target was 10 to failure on first set.

Standing Lateral Raise
Set 1: 40 lbs x 20 @ 8 rpe - +10lbs
Set 2: 40 lbs x 15 @ 9 rpe
Set 3: 60 lbs x 10 @ 10 rpe - +10lbs
Set 4: 30 lbs x 16 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - Target reps = 20 I will stay with this configuration until I get all reps.

Incline DB Rear Delt Flyes
Set 1: 20 lbs x 20 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 20 lbs x 20 @ 9 rpe
Set 3: 20 lbs x 20 @ 9.5 rpe - These went better today, had form locked in. I will go to 25lbs next week.

Upright Row (Dumbbell) - Replaced Barbell Upright Row to keep my elbow from getting inflamed. It definitely helped!
"10, 15,15,15"
Set 1: 45 lbs x 10 @ 8 rpe Upright Row - Go up
Set 2: 35 lbs x 15 @ 8 rpe
Set 3: 35 lbs x 15 @ 9 rpe
Set 4: 35 lbs x 14 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - I failed here but will go up 5lbs on the first set on the next session and

Cross Cable Tricep Extension
Set 1: 50 lbs x 15 @ 9.5 rpe - +10bs
Set 2: 40 lbs x 15 @ 9.5 rpe
Set 3: 40 lbs x 11 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - Will stay here until I get all reps.

Drove Home for Dip Attachment.

PowerTec Dip Attachment
Set 1: 180 lbs x 20 @ 8 rpe
Set 2: 180 lbs x 17 @ 10 rpe [Failure] - I am stuck here at 17 reps but increased on Triceps extensions the last 2 weeks so I am not upset with it.

This was a great session! I will say that I think I may opt to have my oats after my workout after this week if it doesn't get better. I can feel the oats swelling in my stomach while training and it was taking a little out of me in my opinion. If not daily, at least for legs. It is just to close to the session for something that heavy that swells in your gut making you uncomfortable burping, and feeling like my stomach is working harder digesting than anything. Of course, I will mention this to coach next check in to see what he suggests.

 

[Hyde]

**** oats. People in bodybuilding are so obsessed with them, as if 5-10g fiber/day is going to be the difference in keeping your lipids managed while you’re loading up on Tren & DHT derivative orals at the end of a prep. So many people digest them so poorly, or struggle to eat the food volume, yet then continue to choke it down and suffer with the bloat because, you know, they’re magic or something. It’s just fucking glucose.

If you like them, digest them well & the volume is good for you, they’re a great food choice. If not, make a bowl of grits, or rice, or bran flakes, or pasta, or quinoa, or….

 

[MrKleen73]

**** oats. People in bodybuilding are so obsessed with them, as if 5-10g fiber/day is going to be the difference in keeping your lipids managed while you’re loading up on Tren & DHT derivative orals at the end of a prep. So many people digest them so poorly, or struggle to eat the food volume, yet then continue to choke it down and suffer with the bloat because, you know, they’re magic or something. It’s just fucking glucose.

If you like them, digest them well & the volume is good for you, they’re a great food choice. If not, make a bowl of grits, or rice, or bran flakes, or pasta, or quinoa, or….

Agreed, I felt pretty rough and actually started having some sort of reaction, same thing yesterday. My nose got stuffed up, I was gassy and uncomfortable and just felt like crap until mid afternoon. Happened again today, so I will replace with something else. If he wants more fiber i can do sweet potatoes or something. I don't have issues with eating a lot of fiber, but oats mess me up. I looked it up and there is an amino acid in there that some people have a bad reaction too, and the body goes into fight the problem response which is never a good feeling. I am guessing I may also be one of those people. Today got bad enough I took an hour to go lay down in my car since I was tired too from not getting to bed until 11:00 for some strange reason and was exhausted on top of not feeling well from it. So they are going byebye. I can handle about as much as is in an oatmeal cookie...

I would much rather have a bowl of grape nuts for fiber in the AM.

 

[Hyde]

I’m sure that’s what happened, because we have very similar gut/food responses historically and that’s how I get trying to eat them routinely. I can have a small portion, like a half cup/5g fiber portion, once or twice a week if I like without much issue. But I can’t consume them in the quantities necessary to get big or daily as needed to be part of a routine, and I definitely don’t want to train on them.

Ground oats like in a Cliffbar go fine.

You can always add a little serving of sugar-free Metamucil daily if regularity needs help.

 

[MrKleen73]

Oh yeah, since pictures were mentioned. I took a quick snap of my forearm last night when I got home and the vascularity was on point.

 

[MrKleen73]

I’m sure that’s what happened, because we have very similar gut/food responses historically and that’s how I get trying to eat them routinely. I can have a small portion, like a half cup/5g fiber portion, once or twice a week if I like without much issue. But I can’t consume them in the quantities necessary to get big or daily as needed to be part of a routine, and I definitely don’t want to train on them.

Ground oats like in a Cliffbar go fine.

You can always add a little serving of sugar-free Metamucil daily if regularity needs help.

Yeah, that was my thought too. Then I could even just have that part right after my workout too so it doesn't slow down digestion of that first meal since it is immediately before my session. Not like the fiber would be treated as a meal or anything. Plus he added in some almond butter, and I am getting some from fruit, as well as apparently the rice becoming partially resistant starch from being refrigerated which behaves a lot like fiber in that way. I definitely haven't had any issues going to the restroom other than the times i was double dosing aleve which is just a result of the aleve.

 

[SkRaw85]

Oats pre workout put me in the mood for a fat nap lol

 

[MrKleen73]

Knocked out my cardio...

Elliptical 25 minutes @ Level 15 100-110 Strides per minute 140 average BPM. + 5 minute cooldown - Thank goodness the bloating and discomfort were just about gone. Wasn't too bad, I was dreading even trying earlier.