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Hyde’s Strength Odyssey

Seems like everybody has a bitchy knee right about now. hope it clears up quickly.
 
Thanks gang. Felt better the very next day honestly, both the throat and my whole body in general. Which probably only happened because I backed off, honestly.
 
5/8/26

3 min Assault Bike
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Tspine Mobility

Band Pullaparts
Mini 3x34

Push-ups
3x20

ss w/ Cable Y Raises
20 3x15

CG Shouldersaver Bench
135x10
240 3x8

Pulldown Warmups

HS CSR
230x3
320 2x10

Incline DB Press
60,65x25

DB Hammercurls
40 2x15

Cable Pressdowns
40 2x50

Last week had a great squat session then this day was trash, then this week couldn’t squat hard but felt very good today 😝 So everything was bumped up from last Friday.

I haven’t seen much scale change, but the diet is very tight & I am seeing physique changes. People at the gym have said they see it too. I think raising the Trest from 10mg to 15mg this week increased water weight & fullness. I’m going to keep the dose the same this week ahead so I know the scale won’t be affected by the gear.

Calories this week (Mon-Fri) and last have been much lower average than the 3,300-3,400 two weeks ago where you saw the starter maintenance diet (which ended up pretty accurate). Last week and this, calories range from 1,700-2,950 at highest Mon-Fri. Generally more Mon-Wed and as little as possible Thurs & Fri before the high/carb days. I am enjoying the process overall for sure!
 
Hyde said:
5/8/26

3 min Assault Bike
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Tspine Mobility

Band Pullaparts
Mini 3x34

Push-ups
3x20

ss w/ Cable Y Raises
20 3x15

CG Shouldersaver Bench
135x10
240 3x8

Pulldown Warmups

HS CSR
230x3
320 2x10

Incline DB Press
60,65x25

DB Hammercurls
40 2x15

Cable Pressdowns
40 2x50

Last week had a great squat session then this day was trash, then this week couldn’t squat hard but felt very good today 😝 So everything was bumped up from last Friday.

I haven’t seen much scale change, but the diet is very tight & I am seeing physique changes. People at the gym have said they see it too. I think raising the Trest from 10mg to 15mg this week increased water weight & fullness. I’m going to keep the dose the same this week ahead so I know the scale won’t be affected by the gear.

Calories this week (Mon-Fri) and last have been much lower average than the 3,300-3,400 two weeks ago where you saw the starter maintenance diet (which ended up pretty accurate). Last week and this, calories range from 1,700-2,950 at highest Mon-Fri. Generally more Mon-Wed and as little as possible Thurs & Fri before the high/carb days. I am enjoying the process overall for sure!
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The scale might not be coming down much yet, but I bet your waist is tightening up with that much of a calorie drop.
 
5/10/26
BW 237.0 yesterday

Deadlift, weightlifting bar
135x8 RDL
225,315
+belt
405,455,495x3
510x5

Snatchgrip 4” Rackpulls
+deadlift belt & straps
315x3
395,400x8

Hoist Lying Leg Curl
118x3
158x2
175x14+5+5 rest pause

Lat Pulldowns
121x6
165x3
214 2x12

CS Tbar Row
105,140x3
175 2x6
140x11

Standing Calf Machine
60x3
130x12,11,8
1 min stretch

Went & saw my mom yesterday with my son for Mother’s Day, so carb load was a bit more cheat meal but I feel like I made it work. Got in the gym early today to get it done before our Mother’s Day with wife & MIL. Skipped the warmup and just loaded the bar to get right to it, but still had a great session.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the special women in your life! Enjoy the day 😁
 
Hyde said:
5/10/26
BW 237.0 yesterday

Deadlift, weightlifting bar
135x8 RDL
225,315
+belt
405,455,495x3
510x5

Snatchgrip 4” Rackpulls
+deadlift belt & straps
315x3
395,400x8

Hoist Lying Leg Curl
118x3
158x2
175x14+5+5 rest pause

Lat Pulldowns
121x6
165x3
214 2x12

CS Tbar Row
105,140x3
175 2x6
140x11

Standing Calf Machine
60x3
130x12,11,8
1 min stretch

Went & saw my mom yesterday with my son for Mother’s Day, so carb load was a bit more cheat meal but I feel like I made it work. Got in the gym early today to get it done before our Mother’s Day with wife & MIL. Skipped the warmup and just loaded the bar to get right to it, but still had a great session.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the special women in your life! Enjoy the day 😁
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Great session, glad you’re feeling better…..Happy Mother’s Day to all the special women in your life as well.
 
I ate more calories than I wanted to overall yesterday, but did get to enjoy some great food & family time. Plus my wife and MIL had a great Mother’s Day, so it was all a win. I did still make progress last week (belt let me know), so I know things are going in the right direction. Feeling satisfied and invigorated for the week ahead’s diet.
 
It's been a while but I'm glad to see you still getting after it. I hope that knee is holding up and from reading sounds like it may be feeling better.
 
Anthony21 said:
It's been a while but I'm glad to see you still getting after it. I hope that knee is holding up and from reading sounds like it may be feeling better.
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Yeah it’s doing fine honestly; it hasn’t been hurt since ‘24. Just feels bad sometimes, which can make me shift into bad compensatory patterns if I’m not careful that could get me actually injured elsewhere.

Overall, things are pretty good! Happy to be pulling and benching without any pains.
 
5/12/26
BW 240.0 yesterday

2 min Assault Bike
Mace Swings
Band Warmup
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Pressdowns

Bench, Texas powerbar
45,135x5
225x3,1
275x3
315 4x2
335x1
315x5

1-Boardpress
245,250x12

DB Lateral Raises
35 2x13

DB Rear Delt Flyes
40 2x16

Bar Cable Tri Pressdown
80x3
130 2x8

Really good bench day. Made a 10lb jump this week like the last wave (for convenience to not keep taking that plate off/on for my training partner in the band). Felt easy and everything was moving well, so took a paused single with 335 & smoked it. Definitely good for 355, possibly 365. I believe I’m now getting stronger, primarily because the 1-board was also feeling so strong even jumping 10-15lbs over last week. And deadlift has basically been progressing weight without lowering volume (basically). I have held the Trest Ace at 2mg/day, same as last week, to not drive the scale up any hopefully

Buddy hit 455 in the Raven band for a new best. That’s been going really well.
 
Hyde said:
Really good bench day. Made a 10lb jump this week like the last wave (for convenience to not keep taking that plate off/on for my training partner in the band). Felt easy and everything was moving well, so took a paused single with 335 & smoked it. Definitely good for 355, possibly 365. I believe I’m now getting stronger, primarily because the 1-board was also feeling so strong even jumping 10-15lbs over last week. And deadlift has basically been progressing weight without lowering volume (basically). I have held the Trest Ace at 2mg/day, same as last week, to not drive the scale up any hopefully
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It certainly seems like you're in the sweet spot right now with solid balance. You said about 4 months till the meet? I know it will sneak up but sure seems like a great place to be, to be able to enjoy the training progression and not yet be "rushed" for performance.
 
MrKleen73 said:
Some great work in here, really looking forward to seeing how this one works out for you. I would love to see you at 220, just to have an idea of your actual muscle gains. It is much easier to see the big picture when leaner. From what I can tell you have added a lot of quality mass in your trips up to 265 and back over the last few years.
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just saw this and it cracked me up:

1778689461605.webp
 
Dustin07 said:
It certainly seems like you're in the sweet spot right now with solid balance. You said about 4 months till the meet? I know it will sneak up but sure seems like a great place to be, to be able to enjoy the training progression and not yet be "rushed" for performance.
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Yep, 16 weeks from last Sunday. It’s close enough I can probably start a blast whenever, but since I need to lose weight I’ll have to be easier on the anabolics. Primarily just trying to leverage performance enhancement & muscle retention without adding appreciable weight.

I’m basically strong enough right now for primary goal, just need to drop 15lbs and maintain it.
 
Hyde said:
Yep, 16 weeks from last Sunday. It’s close enough I can probably start a blast whenever, but since I need to lose weight I’ll have to be easier on the anabolics. Primarily just trying to leverage performance enhancement & muscle retention without adding appreciable weight.

I’m basically strong enough right now for primary goal, just need to drop 15lbs and maintain it.
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would you skip dbol entirely for this run since you are leaning up? dbol would cause more bloat and water retention right?
 
5/13/26
BW 238.0

2 min Assault Bike
Tspine Mobility
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Splitsquat
BW Squats

Squats, Texas powerbar
45,155,265,331x5
+doubleply sleeves & belt
386,420,442,465x5

SSB Frontsquats
155,245x3
+deadlift belt
300 3x8

DB RFE Splitsquats
35 2x12

Plate-loaded Leg Extension
90x3
125x15,13

Felt way better than last week so squats were back in business. Just tried to rack up some quality volume. I’m pleased with how squats went, but most proud of the frontsquats: they kick my ass! Fronts directly challenge my relative weaknesses, so gutting out 3x8 took some brass. Upper back wants to collapse & dump the bar after ~5 reps, and my quads are aren’t as strong as hips & low back. So I pushed hard on them.
 
Hyde said:
5/13/26
BW 238.0

2 min Assault Bike
Tspine Mobility
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Splitsquat
BW Squats

Squats, Texas powerbar
45,155,265,331x5
+doubleply sleeves & belt
386,420,442,465x5

SSB Frontsquats
155,245x3
+deadlift belt
300 3x8

DB RFE Splitsquats
35 2x12

Plate-loaded Leg Extension
90x3
125x15,13

Felt way better than last week so squats were back in business. Just tried to rack up some quality volume. I’m pleased with how squats went, but most proud of the frontsquats: they kick my ass! Fronts directly challenge my relative weaknesses, so gutting out 3x8 took some brass. Upper back wants to collapse & dump the bar after ~5 reps, and my quads are aren’t as strong as hips & low back. So I pushed hard on them.
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That's a serious session. Really seems like things are trending up all around. The performance 4 months from now at a lighter bodyweight is gonna be fucking incredible to see.
 
Hyde said:
5/13/26
BW 238.0

2 min Assault Bike
Tspine Mobility
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Splitsquat
BW Squats

Squats, Texas powerbar
45,155,265,331x5
+doubleply sleeves & belt
386,420,442,465x5

SSB Frontsquats
155,245x3
+deadlift belt
300 3x8

DB RFE Splitsquats
35 2x12

Plate-loaded Leg Extension
90x3
125x15,13

Felt way better than last week so squats were back in business. Just tried to rack up some quality volume. I’m pleased with how squats went, but most proud of the frontsquats: they kick my ass! Fronts directly challenge my relative weaknesses, so gutting out 3x8 took some brass. Upper back wants to collapse & dump the bar after ~5 reps, and my quads are aren’t as strong as hips & low back. So I pushed hard on them.
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Great workout.💪😎👍
 
heavy 3x8 front squats are puke inducing heart attacks. its good to see that the front squats are treating you well! I think they are my favorite variety tbh, but I do take them in a clean position rather than cross armed and that makes them a little less miserable if you have the rom, IMO. I know a lot of larger guys struggle to get that position. I think dapack said he always does the cross arm hold.
 
Dustin07 said:
heavy 3x8 front squats are puke inducing heart attacks. its good to see that the front squats are treating you well! I think they are my favorite variety tbh, but I do take them in a clean position rather than cross armed and that makes them a little less miserable if you have the rom, IMO. I know a lot of larger guys struggle to get that position. I think dapack said he always does the cross arm hold.
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I’ve never been able to get in that position even when my left elbow could bend properly truthfully. I don’t think I even tried frontsquats until I was already built up to 190+lbs. Now I just cross my right arm and the left side is basically a zombie squat.

They definitely get the heartrate up!
 
BP looking good. Pulse is up some as expected on Trest, but since mine is always lower it’s no issue.
 

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makes sense, I think I had the fortunate circumstance to learn front squats when I was a bit smaller and learning oly from scratch, ironically I've tried the cross arm a number of times over the years and it seems far more difficult and painful for me 😂 there used to be a guy on here I think in Europe who's coach made them strap to the barbell for front squats to force the stretch and grip on the clean position. I have actually hook gripped it for a mental surge of tightness throughout on a big effort, but often times if I'm doing multiple reps the last few reps really end up with the barbell barely on the tips of my fingers
 
5/15/26
BW 236.8 yesterday

3 min Assault Bike
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs

go fix my daughter’s car

Band Pullaparts
Mini 3x34

CG Shouldersaver Bench
135x10
245 3x8

Cable Y Raises
20 3x20

Push-ups
4x20

DB Hammercurls
45 2x12

Bit abbreviated this morning; got a call during warmups that stepdaughter’s scratchguard/airflow plate had begun dragging under the car on her way to work. Car was too low to wiggle under to remove screws in the back (and I’m not trusting an emergency tire jack not to kick), but I could reach the front & side holes, so a couple zip ties from the toolbag to get it lifted back up had her back on her way.

Still got some good accessories for rear delts & pressing muscles in with the remaining time after driving back.
 
Also, tried to barbell row 225 against double minibands run across the platform, but when the bands kicked in I couldn’t pull it to my stomach. But at least we gave it the ol’ college try 😝
 
Hyde said:
(and I’m not trusting an emergency tire jack not to kick)
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dude I barely trust any jacks tbh. getting under hydraulic lifts gives me the absolute creeps.

Hyde said:
Also, tried to barbell row 225 against double minibands run across the platform, but when the bands kicked in I couldn’t pull it to my stomach. But at least we gave it the ol’ college try 😝
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never thought about adding a band on rows 😂
 
Yeah, I definitely don’t trust those jacks. I’ve never tried a barbell row with bands either, but it definitely makes sense, and would take momentum out of the equation making rows tougher for sure.💪
 
Hyde said:
5/15/26
BW 236.8 yesterday

3 min Assault Bike
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs

go fix my daughter’s car

Band Pullaparts
Mini 3x34

CG Shouldersaver Bench
135x10
245 3x8

Cable Y Raises
20 3x20

Push-ups
4x20

DB Hammercurls
45 2x12

Bit abbreviated this morning; got a call during warmups that stepdaughter’s scratchguard/airflow plate had begun dragging under the car on her way to work. Car was too low to wiggle under to remove screws in the back (and I’m not trusting an emergency tire jack not to kick), but I could reach the front & side holes, so a couple zip ties from the toolbag to get it lifted back up had her back on her way.

Still got some good accessories for rear delts & pressing muscles in with the remaining time after driving back.
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Man my step daughter called me one time while I was working out. She had a flat tire so I had to change it. Good work considering the interruption. I need to try the banded rows. I do a lot of banded deadlifts and I think it’s a huge help on building speed off the floor and lock out.
 
sammpedd88 said:
Man my step daughter called me one time while I was working out. She had a flat tire so I had to change it. Good work considering the interruption. I need to try the banded rows. I do a lot of banded deadlifts and I think it’s a huge help on building speed off the floor and lock out.
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Thanks for reminding me of banded speed DL’s, I think that could help me break a plateau.
 
BBiceps said:
Thanks for reminding me of banded speed DL’s, I think that could help me break a plateau.
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Bands are mainly good if you are lifting too slowly - they will punish you if you cruise & reward high rate of force production.

If you find yourself grinding slower on the big 3, running a wave of bands against 50-60% of your max for 3-4 weeks usually gets you firing a little bit faster. I often bring them in right before a meet, when power production is imperative.

Muscles don’t need to fire quickly to create tension for hypertrophy, but if you need to get stronger you need to push as hard as you can against weights that won’t injure you but will transfer to maximal strength.
 
Dustin07 said:
dude I barely trust any jacks tbh. getting under hydraulic lifts gives me the absolute creeps.



never thought about adding a band on rows
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Only problem with banded rows is that the weight jacks up at the part where you're already weakest, so it doesn't really match the strength curve of the muscle super well.
 
Jimbabwe said:
Only problem with banded rows is that the weight jacks up at the part where you're already weakest, so it doesn't really match the strength curve of the muscle super well.
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Spot on. The challenge was certainly not pulling 225 off the floor - it was trying to finish 300+ at the top with my tight elbow lol.

To be clear, this was just a random attempt, not a set. And then I pulled a triple to help fire up my CNS before close-grip boardpress.
 
5/17/26
BW 237.2 yesterday

Deadlift, weightlifting bar
135x8 RDL
225,315,405x3
+belt
455,495,515x3
455x2

GHR
BWx10,10+4

Hoist Lying Leg Curl
118,158x2
175x12,8

NG Med Grip Lat Pulldowns
99,141,187,209,231,253x12

Good news is everything was feeling strong and I had to bring my belt in a notch finally. First rep of 515, something on my left/back side felt like it was straining. Pulled the first 3 reps pretty fast & strong, expecting 5 or even 6, but by 3 something didn’t feel right & was telling me to cut it. After a rest dropped to 455 to try to pick up some backoff work, but I could tell for sure something was off/hurting on that side so I quit while I was ahead. Feels like maybe the QL or psoas got overworked on that left side on the first rep of 515.

I was going to have one more deadlift before a deload, but will definitely move into that after bench Tuesday to let things heal up.
 
Ran out of my 200mg DIM that I take year round, so I took 12.5mg Aromasin yesterday. Still, by end of Sat I was feeling some nipple sensitivity, and I hadn’t even taken my daily test/trest. So instead I pinned 40mg Mast Prop right before bed last night, and did 30mg test C this morning instead of 20 test/2 Trest. I think I’ve been building size and strength the last couple weeks, but it’s not really helping my bodyweight get down.

It’s 15 weeks out, so probably just going to switch to low dose test/mast based on feel.
 
Man that was some good deadlifts, but I hate it you strained something. Hopefully you caught it early enough and it isn’t too bad.
 
Hyde said:
Ran out of my 200mg DIM that I take year round, so I took 12.5mg Aromasin yesterday. Still, by end of Sat I was feeling some nipple sensitivity, and I hadn’t even taken my daily test/trest. So instead I pinned 40mg Mast Prop right before bed last night, and did 30mg test C this morning instead of 20 test/2 Trest. I think I’ve been building size and strength the last couple weeks, but it’s not really helping my bodyweight get down.

It’s 15 weeks out, so probably just going to switch to low dose test/mast based on feel.
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You like DIM for estrogen control over something like Inhibit-E (abieta, I3C, etc.)? I'm going to need to start something up for daily use I think and I have that on hand, but have never really bothered with DIM.
 
solid weekend session!
how is your boy doing?

Jimbabwe said:
Only problem with banded rows is that the weight jacks up at the part where you're already weakest, so it doesn't really match the strength curve of the muscle super well.
Click to expand...

Hyde said:
Spot on. The challenge was certainly not pulling 225 off the floor - it was trying to finish 300+ at the top with my tight elbow lol.
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you know with pulls, I have generally been "if I can break the ground" then its going to go. That might be from a lot of years of rack pulls and some fun banded work. This might be strong justification for deficit pulls for me to get stronger on the first 1/3 of the lift?
 
gphagan1 said:
Man that was some good deadlifts, but I hate it you strained something. Hopefully you caught it early enough and it isn’t too bad.
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Thank you; I know the weight wasn’t too heavy for the day and my volume/progression in recent weeks is good for me based on how easy 495 was prior. I just didn’t stay tight enough initially somewhere on the first rep of 515. Once you’re in that 85% range for weights, you can’t get away with mistakes the same as lighter intensities. Especially when loading the low back up.

I do think it’s mild & will recover without too much time. Right now it’s sore and my body won’t stand fully straight - I’m listing away from the injury (this keeps the strained muscle lengthened & tighter to protect itself). So probably no squats or spinal compression until I can get it to relax & align myself straight though.

Segansational said:
You like DIM for estrogen control over something like Inhibit-E (abieta, I3C, etc.)? I'm going to need to start something up for daily use I think and I have that on hand, but have never really bothered with DIM.
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Yes, and it’s also especially useful for metabolizing out methylestrogen from Dbol and Trest, as an aside. Even with an AI, it’s worthwhile with those drugs.

DIM is technically an anti-androgen, so it’s not ideal for someone natural. But in even a TRT setting, you can ensure androgen dominance and sufficient test dosage easily. It’s like worrying about using Metformin for blood sugar if you’re taking GH; the anabolism outweighs any downside of the health support drug.

So that’s not a concern, it comes from cruciferous veggies, is dirt cheap (10 cents or something daily for 200mg capsule), and it makes a difference for sure for me. I have never used Inhibit E because the cost profile doesn’t make sense for me - I’d just take Aromasin if I needed more estrogen control. Same reason I don’t use Calcium D-Glucarate. Drugs work, and I’m not natural, so if there’s not a safety concern with using a given product then it’s coming down to cost/efficiency for me.
 
Dustin07 said:
solid weekend session!
how is your boy doing?




you know with pulls, I have generally been "if I can break the ground" then its going to go. That might be from a lot of years of rack pulls and some fun banded work. This might be strong justification for deficit pulls for me to get stronger on the first 1/3 of the lift?
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Thanks man. He’s been doing good. Last week’s xray at 2.5 weeks post reset showed good callusing around the breaks and alignment still great. He’s scheduled to get his cast off June 4th right before we go to Nationals, so he will be able to start wearing a brace & swim that weekend. One more xray this afternoon before then!

Well locking out a deadlift is not like the strength curve of a row at all. My deadlift is also now stronger at the top than floor after lots of glute & upper back work, but that has no bearing on a barbell row that is strongest when the lats are lengthened.
 
Hyde said:
He’s scheduled to get his cast off June 4th right before we go to Nationals, so he will be able to start wearing a brace & swim that weekend. One more xray this afternoon before then!
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thats awesome! I bet swimming would be a great low impact way for him to start getting use out of it again too.
 
5/19/26
BW 235.8 yesterday

Stretching at home
5 min Assault Bike
Mace Swings
Band Warmup
Scap Pushups
Cat Camel
Bird Dogs
Tspine Mobility
Push-ups

Bench, Texas powerbar
45,135,225x5
275x3
315x2
340,360,365x1
320 2x3

1-Boardpress
255 2x12

Bar Cable Tri Pressdown
50,100x3
120 2x12

Super pleased with today. Took 365 with a long pause, no ammonia, and after 360 prior - I owned it. Should be the heaviest bench I’ve ever done at sub-240lbs too. Hit 350 5 weeks ago weighing around 246. Also hit a new low on the scale yesterday, broke under 236. So I’ve dropped 10lbs in 5 weeks with my diet, yet still managed to put 10-15lbs on my bench with hard, focused training. And I did it with attention to detail and 10-15mg Trestolone PER WEEK added to my 140 test cyp.
 

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Yesterday my wife & I celebrated 7 years of marriage. Had an absolutely perfect bone-in ribeye at dinner, and we spent some quality time together in the local health club’s warm pool & hot tub. Just a really nice calm evening with the love of my life. Good times.

Little man also got his last checkup xray, 3.5 weeks post reset. Arm looking super straight and filling in well, way more bone callusing than just a week ago even. So he is healing perfectly!
 
Awesome updates all around! Increasing bench weight while dropping bodyweight is the type of progress we all dream about.

Happy anniversary to you and the missus!
 
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