Building Back Up

GreenMachineX said:
Otherwise, and I think I’ve said this before…db lateral raises do not work my lateral delts at all, regardless of weight. After wasting 3 sets, did 3 sets of 45 lb EZ upright rows and that lit my lateral delts on fire. Strange. I’ve tried all the different variety of forms for lateral raise (shoulders pulled back and down, shoulders protracted, bending over, straight up, etc.) and it just doesn’t matter.
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my knee jerk thought on something like that is that another muscle group is taking superior reign here and over compensating or something. My buddy has his bench up to like 295 now and still struggles to figure out how to 'feel' his pecks through movements. He can sit on the pec deck for 5 sets and struggle to get involvement but he keeps going after it over and over again and usually by the end I hear him say "oh thats the spot" lol.

I know for some of these light weight movements, such as laterals, rear delt swings, etc it's a 15 rep movement for me, regardless of weight. reps 6-8 or so, nothing. rep 10 I'm feeling it. rep 12 its' pumpy, rep 15 the muscle is crying.
 
Dustin07 said:
my knee jerk thought on something like that is that another muscle group is taking superior reign here and over compensating or something. My buddy has his bench up to like 295 now and still struggles to figure out how to 'feel' his pecks through movements. He can sit on the pec deck for 5 sets and struggle to get involvement but he keeps going after it over and over again and usually by the end I hear him say "oh thats the spot" lol.

I know for some of these light weight movements, such as laterals, rear delt swings, etc it's a 15 rep movement for me, regardless of weight. reps 6-8 or so, nothing. rep 10 I'm feeling it. rep 12 its' pumpy, rep 15 the muscle is crying.
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Interesting. I should’ve mentioned I’m also having trouble with engaging my pecs, particularly the left (nerve injury side), so I know I’m not 100% yet. I’m also quite sure I’ve been dealing with this for years, just on a lower level.

I’ll lower the weight (even more) next time I do lateral raises, but going to keep the upright row and build on that.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Interesting. I should’ve mentioned I’m also having trouble with engaging my pecs, particularly the left (nerve injury side), so I know I’m not 100% yet. I’m also quite sure I’ve been dealing with this for years, just on a lower level.

I’ll lower the weight (even more) next time I do lateral raises, but going to keep the upright row and build on that.
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what weight/reps are you doing now?
I'm sure there are plenty of small injuries we don't even know we have, or had, that effect us on the daily without knowing it until something glaring comes up. I broke my left ankle when I was 16 racing BMX and didn't truly realize that my left side was not really engaging on squats and pulls until my 30s because I always "seemed" fine. but all my injuries over the years really have been on that side and I believe that leg is shorter (or longer I can't remember) than my right side and I honestly didn't even know it until the last decade or less... lol. I nurse my shoulders like crazy because I've had at least 2 torn rotator cuff injuries that I know of so first sign of pain I always go straight to prehab these days.
 
Dustin07 said:
what weight/reps are you doing now?
I'm sure there are plenty of small injuries we don't even know we have, or had, that affect us on the daily without knowing it until something glaring comes up. I broke my left ankle when I was 16 racing BMX and didn't truly realize that my left side was not really engaging on squats and pulls until my 30s because I always "seemed" fine. but all my injuries over the years really have been on that side and I believe that leg is shorter (or longer I can't remember) than my right side and I honestly didn't even know it until the last decade or less... lol. I nurse my shoulders like crazy because I've had at least 2 torn rotator cuff injuries that I know of so first sign of pain I always go straight to prehab these days.
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Today’s Workout:

9 minute jog at 5.4/5.2.

Low Incline DB Press 3 x 6 x 60’s
Hammer Press 3 x 8 x 90
Machine OHP 3 x 8 x 180
Cable Flies 3 x 8 x 15 maybe?
DB Lateral Raise 3 x 12 x 12.5’s
EZ Upright Row 3 x 10 x 45
EZ Skullcrushers 3 x 6 x 45
Overhead Cable Extension 2 x 8 x ???

Edit: that jog was tough 😂
I’m thinking doing that before isn’t helping.
 
Good to hear about your improvements. I am sure you are happy to know what is wrong and have an idea of what to do next.
 
Fairly decent pull workout. Could only feel the dead arm slightly on NG pull-ups. Did a few single DL at 405. Machine rows. Cable shrugs.

Edit: I should say I noticed this many months ago…it’s hard to engage my left lat on rows, so pretty sure I’ve had nerve issues for a long time.
 
Upper push today. Dead arm feeling present mildly again. Pain in neck and down left tricep returned yesterday and today. Disappointing workout overall, but, strength is actually better in certain areas.

Oddly enough, the dead arm feeling hits the chest strength the most, then delt press, then tricep. Attempted Pec Deck to make up for the lack of chest pressing ability, good grief…do I even have pectoral muscles anymore? 😫
 
I hear your pain Sir! hard to deal with this stuff and keep your head up. We will make it through this... Your neck things helped me, do you do them before or after sessions? Have you tried them as direct relief? I got some from them in the middle of my pulling session when it peaked its ugly head out.
 
MrKleen73 said:
I hear your pain Sir! hard to deal with this stuff and keep your head up. We will make it through this... Your neck things helped me, do you do them before or after sessions? Have you tried them as direct relief? I got some from them in the middle of my pulling session when it peaked its ugly head out.
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Sorry I missed this. I couldn’t find in your thread; maybe I’m just too far behind. What happened to your neck?

I’ve been doing the exercises 1-3 times per day, and most often it provides immediate relief. I still feel like I’m missing something though, or I’m not sure exactly what causes the dead arm feeling, and it might be unrelated to the neck stuff. I have a theory that pull parts, external rotations and reverse pec deck are aggravating it, so I skipped those in today’s session.

Continuing the trend…2 steps forward, 3 steps back…😞

Pull-ups were 1 rep better today. Squats and bent over rows were lame. I feel like I might need to cut the weight down on everything another 25% and start over to ensure good form on everything.
 
Update: Next theory…bentover rows may be the cause of the dead arm feeling. Too much to explain right now, but I’m going to eliminate those and reverse pec deck until I’m fully recovered (while keeping the neck rehab in), and add one exercise back in at a time. For now, I’ll stick to machine rows since I did those for a while without issue.

Otherwise, strength today on presses was mildly improved…very mildly though. I attribute some success there to the addition of flies, basically just turning on the pecs.

The running isn’t going well. I’m so far out of shape 😂
 
Neck pain is just about gone! Dead arm is doing a lot better too, but still present intermittently.

On deadlifts yesterday, my lifting strap slipped and I caught it still but as a result, tore 2 calluses. Kind of killed the workout, but still ran some intervals after.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Seated DB Press 4 x 10/10/8/8 x 70's
Traditional DL 3x225, 3x275, 3x325, 3x355
Dips 3 x 10 x BW
Mid-Row Machine 12x145, 2 x 8 x 205
DB Lateral Raise 3 x 10/8/8 x 5's
Machine Shrugs 10x140, 10x160, 8x180
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So, 1 pound heavier than this over 1 year ago, and significantly weaker. Strength still garbage, and fatigue back again. Excellent regress.

Doesn’t make any sense.
 
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GreenMachineX said:
So, 1 pound heavier than this over 1 year ago, and significantly weaker. Strength still garbage, and fatigue back again. Excellent regress.

Doesn’t make any sense.
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What doesn’t make sense? You are having a nerve issue, which can cause pain/dysfunction/weakness.

That’s plenty to be upset about, but it isn’t complicated.
 
Hyde said:
What doesn’t make sense? You are having a nerve issue, which can cause pain/dysfunction/weakness.

That’s plenty to be upset about, but it isn’t complicated.
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As the nerve issue heals, it’s becoming more evident that I have total body weakness, aside from the dead arm, including a persistent fatigue/lethargy I didn’t used to have. I was cutting harder last year with those much stronger numbers then I am now.
 
GreenMachineX said:
As the nerve issue heals, it’s becoming more evident that I have total body weakness, aside from the dead arm, including a persistent fatigue/lethargy I didn’t used to have. I was cutting harder last year with those much stronger numbers then I am now.
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Well I can’t comment on the fatigue, but I mean you have not been performing as well more recently. I mean if you couldn’t lift the weights at the same level…you get weaker. Even when you have been busting your balls; the absolute numbers matter too.

I hope that makes sense. But the important thing is as you get healthy, things should be able to progress again instead of regressing.
 
Hyde said:
Well I can’t comment on the fatigue, but I mean you have not been performing as well more recently. I mean if you couldn’t lift the weights at the same level…you get weaker. Even when you have been busting your balls; the absolute numbers matter too.

I hope that makes sense. But the important thing is as you get healthy, things should be able to progress again instead of regressing.
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Yeah, I get that. Thanks.
 
Weight: 216.2

Part of the fatigue may be the addition of cluster dextrin…I think it just makes me lethargic.

Squats up to 3x295 today. Pull workout followed. Improvement. Hard to do pull ups with the torn calluses though. They are healing though.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Weight: 216.2

Part of the fatigue may be the addition of cluster dextrin…I think it just makes me lethargic.

Squats up to 3x295 today. Pull workout followed. Improvement. Hard to do pull ups with the torn calluses though. They are healing though.
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If that is the case I recommend getting a blood glucose monitor to check your BG once the lethargy sets in. It would be responsive to the period after you take it, not carry on throughout the entire day but 1 reactive swing around that time. If it is general lethargy throughout the day I think it just correlates but is not the cause.

Honestly, it sounds like it could be some sort of auto-immune issue, which I know you said you have seen many people about it but that is what it sounds like to me. They tend to flair up and hit in cycles and are often not easy to diagnose unless they are testing for a specific one.

All that being said, I really want to give you some flowers brother. Right now even with all of this you are pushing through and showing amazing resilience during a time of suffering and just not knowing why or how to fix it. That is in itself extremely commendable. Your physical strength may not be growing right now, but you are definitely becoming stronger as a human being by not giving up and giving in. Keep your head up and keep fighting. It is easy to get overwhelmed and just kind of give up, but my current situation is the direct result of not being resilient in the moment, and there is a touch of shame regarding that for me. I know I did not make the right chopice in a time of weakness. I just have to forgive myself and move on. However I don't want you to get there... So keep your head right, keep pushing and being an example of resilience to the rest of us. We are all watching, supporting and cheering you on in your efforts.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Sorry I missed this. I couldn’t find in your thread; maybe I’m just too far behind. What happened to your neck?

I’ve been doing the exercises 1-3 times per day, and most often it provides immediate relief. I still feel like I’m missing something though, or I’m not sure exactly what causes the dead arm feeling, and it might be unrelated to the neck stuff. I have a theory that pull parts, external rotations and reverse pec deck are aggravating it, so I skipped those in today’s session.

Continuing the trend…2 steps forward, 3 steps back…😞

Pull-ups were 1 rep better today. Squats and bent over rows were lame. I feel like I might need to cut the weight down on everything another 25% and start over to ensure good form on everything.
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This was about a 27 year old injury coming back to haunt me. I was in an accident around 24 that turned my C7 about 30 degrees off to the side. It was bad enough my arm would twitch and shake and I didn't have the dexterity to type with my left hand so I had to use the boomer style 1 finger pecking method. My doctor back then told me once recovered that this was more than likely going to be a problem for me later in life. How I realized it was the neck is when I sat a 95lb barbell on the area and my trap / RC area started sending referral pain, and the arm went numb. That was before I started working with my old coach to give you an idea of how long it has been. During prep it reared it's ugly head again and has been something I am trying to work around since then.

I also think it has a lot to do with craning the neck, or arching it too far back when struggling with the weight on pull movements. I tend to tense it hard and jut my head forward on pulling movements if I am not focusing on trying to relax it and keep the neck neutral I notice it being bothered. Sometimes I overcorrect and pull it back farther than neutral while straining it and that doesn't treat me too well either. I think that head forward posture is bad for everyone but someone with a prior C7 injury it is just too much. I would say that anything do devient from neutral while straining the neck is probably problematic. Doing the band exercises are helping strengthen the back of my neck and helps bring my chin in more which is what I believe is causing the relief. However all of the exercises you mentioned previously are the same ones that light me up when I am not careful enough. I do notice if I keep things in a 2-3RIR range on the pulling movements I can get away with them. So I just do 1-2 more sets on those instead of pushing intensity I use the volume there.
 
MrKleen73 said:
If that is the case I recommend getting a blood glucose monitor to check your BG once the lethargy sets in. It would be responsive to the period after you take it, not carry on throughout the entire day but 1 reactive swing around that time. If it is general lethargy throughout the day I think it just correlates but is not the cause.

Honestly, it sounds like it could be some sort of auto-immune issue, which I know you said you have seen many people about it but that is what it sounds like to me. They tend to flair up and hit in cycles and are often not easy to diagnose unless they are testing for a specific one.

All that being said, I really want to give you some flowers brother. Right now even with all of this you are pushing through and showing amazing resilience during a time of suffering and just not knowing why or how to fix it. That is in itself extremely commendable. Your physical strength may not be growing right now, but you are definitely becoming stronger as a human being by not giving up and giving in. Keep your head up and keep fighting. It is easy to get overwhelmed and just kind of give up, but my current situation is the direct result of not being resilient in the moment, and there is a touch of shame regarding that for me. I know I did not make the right chopice in a time of weakness. I just have to forgive myself and move on. However I don't want you to get there... So keep your head right, keep pushing and being an example of resilience to the rest of us. We are all watching, supporting and cheering you on in your efforts.
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Thanks for the feedback. I will get a blood glucose monitor and start that again. @Hyde recommended it a while ago, and now that you’ve said it, yeah, it’s time.

When you say autoimmune reaction, do you mean a reaction to the cluster cyclodextrin acutely or do you mean time cycles, as in weeks of good and weeks of bad?

Regarding the neck, we’re in the same boat as far as exercises aggravating it. Jutting head forward, or pulling too far back to overcompensate is definitely an issue for me. Today’s revelation is I need to ditch shrugs for now. I simply can’t do them without straining my neck resulting in radiating nerve pain later.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Thanks for the feedback. I will get a blood glucose monitor and start that again. @Hyde recommended it a while ago, and now that you’ve said it, yeah, it’s time.

When you say autoimmune reaction, do you mean a reaction to the cluster cyclodextrin acutely or do you mean time cycles, as in weeks of good and weeks of bad?

Regarding the neck, we’re in the same boat as far as exercises aggravating it. Jutting head forward, or pulling too far back to overcompensate is definitely an issue for me. Today’s revelation is I need to ditch shrugs for now. I simply can’t do them without straining my neck resulting in radiating nerve pain later.
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If something hurts, don’t do it! Too many other fish in the sea.

I’ve even heard it said that regular shrugs are next to useless - better to do them leaning forward with a lighter load to get the muscle more fully engaged. And that still doesn’t mean that YOU should be doing them that way. Any gains in size would be undone by aggravation of your nerve that would inhibit later training & derail more potential gains.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Thanks for the feedback. I will get a blood glucose monitor and start that again. @Hyde recommended it a while ago, and now that you’ve said it, yeah, it’s time.

When you say autoimmune reaction, do you mean a reaction to the cluster cyclodextrin acutely or do you mean time cycles, as in weeks of good and weeks of bad?

Regarding the neck, we’re in the same boat as far as exercises aggravating it. Jutting head forward, or pulling too far back to overcompensate is definitely an issue for me. Today’s revelation is I need to ditch shrugs for now. I simply can’t do them without straining my neck resulting in radiating nerve pain later.
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I meant more likely an autoimmune disorder of some sort. They tend to be cyclical may be a few weeks but often a few months before they phase back out. I have a lot of that in my family and it took years for some of them to get it figured out.

For the injuries focus on keeping the neck neutral, and relaxed. Yeah shrugs tend to be one most people crane the neck on. Honestly, with no weight on at all if I just extend my neck out all the way forward I can feel the nerves start to get aggravated. Same with pulling it back to far. Also for those neck exercises with the bands I found them more effective when I let my neck travel forward a little bit while pulling the band then retracting it back to what I assume is neutral before turning my head up to the ceiling. If you haven't tried that way give it a shot and tell me if you notice a difference. I did.
 
Hyde said:
If something hurts, don’t do it! Too many other fish in the sea.

I’ve even heard it said that regular shrugs are next to useless - better to do them leaning forward with a lighter load to get the muscle more fully engaged. And that still doesn’t mean that YOU should be doing them that way. Any gains in size would be undone by aggravation of your nerve that would inhibit later training & derail more potential gains.
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Facts! Also if I remember correctly Green has some good traps already.
 
MrKleen73 said:
Facts! Also if I remember correctly Green has some good traps already.
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Nooooo…used to have great traps. Now, those and lateral delts are my weakest attributes. Both I had to give up 6-8 years ago when the shoulders issues started. Only recently have I been able to add them back in, but the past year or 2 I’ve been perpetually cutting, preventing myself from bringing that up.

I’ll reply to the rest later gents.
 
Sunday cheat meal took me up just to 217. Should easily hit a new low by the end of the week.

Upper push workout still stunk, but dead arm feeling 95% gone! At this point, it’s just mildly weaker than the right, which for most people is probably normal. I’m actually dominant left, so it’s just backwards.

Easing back on the running for a few days since something hurts in the bad knee. Incline walking instead.

I’m going to cut out the fish oil again that I started a few weeks ago. I think I started it shortly before the fatigue and weakness began. We’ll see.

Also going to cut my lunesta to 1.5mg every so often. Somewhere back in the log I said I thought the full 3mg was killing strength performance.

in the mean time, still going to cut. Continuing the neck exercises.
 
MrKleen73 said:
I meant more likely an autoimmune disorder of some sort. They tend to be cyclical may be a few weeks but often a few months before they phase back out. I have a lot of that in my family and it took years for some of them to get it figured out.

For the injuries focus on keeping the neck neutral, and relaxed. Yeah shrugs tend to be one most people crane the neck on. Honestly, with no weight on at all if I just extend my neck out all the way forward I can feel the nerves start to get aggravated. Same with pulling it back to far. Also for those neck exercises with the bands I found them more effective when I let my neck travel forward a little bit while pulling the band then retracting it back to what I assume is neutral before turning my head up to the ceiling. If you haven't tried that way give it a shot and tell me if you notice a difference. I did.
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The autoimmune thing is interesting. Your suggestion there reminded me that I do have stage 4 sarcoidosis, which isn’t quite autoimmune but similar. Fatigue is a common symptom of a flare up. I’m not willing to go down the path of treating that though because it’s basically prednisone. I have permanent stretch marks and loose skin from the last high dose course.
 
Finally, a halfway decent workout. NG Pull-ups, rack Romanian deadlifts, machine rows, cable shrugs, machine preacher, hammer curls.

Excited for presses Thursday…
 
Weight back to current low: 216.2

Should hit a new low by Saturday right on schedule which is my planned meal out.

Today’s Upper Push workout:

Seated DB OHP 4 sets of 70’s for 5-7 reps each
Machine Chest Press 3 sets of 8 x 200
Pec Deck 3 sets
ROC it Shoulder Press 3 sets, top set 7x198
Dips 2x5
Overhead Cable Extensions 3 sets
Lateral Raise 2 sets

Strength is definitely improved from the last workout. Still have a bit to go to get back to where I was, but better nonetheless. Dead arm only kicked in on DB OHP. The overall fatigue and lethargy is improving. One of my theories appears to be correct.

Need to rearrange a bit…pec deck before chest press on this workout from here forward to get it activated.
 
Ahhh, the good ol predisone bloat. You could very likely combat that with a natural diuretic of some sort. It will make you hungry AF but if you stay to your plan you can still make progress. My stretch marks on my belly were just from lots of tasty treats!
 
Finally a great workout!

NG Pullups 5, 5, 5, 3+3 negatives
Squat 5 x 135/185/225
3x275
2x295/315
1x325
1x335

Cable Rows 4 sets
Rope Shrug/Row 3 sets
Machine Shrugs 2 sets
BB Curls

Had to make sure I could still tie @Dustin07
😜
 
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Forgot to mention today’s intraworkout supplementation…
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GreenMachineX said:
Finally a great workout!

NG Pullups 5, 5, 5, 3+3 negatives
Squat 5 x 135/185/225
3x275
2x295/315
1x325
1x335

Cable Rows 4 sets
Rope Shrug/Row 3 sets
Machine Shrugs 2 sets
BB Curls

Had to make sure I could still tie @Dustin07
😜
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my 15 yr old is squatting 335 now, my mind is blown. He'll pass my PR this year I'm sure and could be in the hunt for the high school record before he graduates I think.
 
Dustin07 said:
my 15 yr old is squatting 335 now, my mind is blown. He'll pass my PR this year I'm sure and could be in the hunt for the high school record before he graduates I think.
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Wish my boy could squat. He still complains about the knee thing (Oshgood Shlaughter’s or something), but at the same time’s, but at least he can push the sled.
 
Really good upper push workout today. Still improving and getting back to where I was, but at least did:

Low Incline DB Press 3 x 8 x 70’s
Dips 3 x 6, 5, 5
Machine OHP 3 sets, top set 6x200
Pec Deck 2 sets
Upright Row 3 sets
Pressdowns 4 sets
Lateral Raise 2 sets

30 minutes cardio.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Wish my boy could squat. He still complains about the knee thing (Oshgood Shlaughter’s or something), but at the same time’s, but at least he can push the sled.
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Ironically I had bad knees until I learned how to squat. I always thought I had damaged them all those years playing catcher in baseball, but it turns out I just needed to drop a few lbs and squat lol. I used to struggle with stairs for 3 days after a hike. but my peak weight was 242 and once I got under 200 my joints all improve massively.
 
Dustin07 said:
Ironically I had bad knees until I learned how to squat. I always thought I had damaged them all those years playing catcher in baseball, but it turns out I just needed to drop a few lbs and squat lol. I used to struggle with stairs for 3 days after a hike. but my peak weight was 242 and once I got under 200 my joints all improve massively.
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Part of it for him is absolutely learning how to squat. He “sissy squats” and that aggravates the knee issues.
 
Weight: 216.0

Should hit a new low tomorrow or Friday.

Pretty good pull workout.

Deadlift 5 x 3 x 365
Machine Rows
Assisted NG pull-up
Rope Shrug/Upright Row
Smith Shrugs (so weak lol)
Preacher Curls
 
Weight: 215.2

New current low.

DB OHP 3 x 8 x 70’s

Nothing else with noting. Finally back to 70’s on that. But the deficit is rough, keeping me from where I was last time at this weight. Sleep is terrible again. Neck pain and nerve issues all gone though!
 
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GreenMachineX said:
Weight: 215.2

New current low.

DB OHP 3 x 8 x 70’s

Nothing else with noting. Finally back to 70’s on that. But the deficit is rough, keeping me from where I was last time at this weight. Sleep is terrible again. Neck pain and nerve issues all gone though!
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Hey, new low bodyweight & a properly functioning neck/nerves is freakin’ awesome!!! Nice work man 👏
 
Weight: 217.0 (IIRC)

Low Incline DB Press 7/7/6/5 x 75’s
Dips 3 x 6
Machine OHP Top Set 6 x 200 again
Upright Rows 3 sets
Machine Fly 2 sets
Pressdowns 4 sets

Should easily be able to hit a new low this week. Next Friday, we leave for another vacation and will not have any access to any gym, but will be eating great.

When you guys do flies, do you keep your shoulders pinned back throughout? Doing so significantly hurts the squeeze in my pecs and reduces my performance. I know it’s necessary and right on presses, but doesn’t feel the same on flies.
 
GreenMachineX said:
When you guys do flies, do you keep your shoulders pinned back throughout? Doing so significantly hurts the squeeze in my pecs and reduces my performance. I know it’s necessary and right on presses, but doesn’t feel the same on flies.
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If I do, I'm not necessarily aware of it. are you talking db or machine? in both forms, it tends to take me a full set to really "find" it with a light weight then I work my way up. I also don't like the machine with the upright forearms, maybe I'm too short for it but I find it puts the delts in a bad spot for me, so if I'm stuck with this type of machine, I'll often grab the pads with my hands and more of a parallel to the ground forearm position

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like this:

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GreenMachineX said:
Weight: 217.0 (IIRC)

Low Incline DB Press 7/7/6/5 x 75’s
Dips 3 x 6
Machine OHP Top Set 6 x 200 again
Upright Rows 3 sets
Machine Fly 2 sets
Pressdowns 4 sets

Should easily be able to hit a new low this week. Next Friday, we leave for another vacation and will not have any access to any gym, but will be eating great.

When you guys do flies, do you keep your shoulders pinned back throughout? Doing so significantly hurts the squeeze in my pecs and reduces my performance. I know it’s necessary and right on presses, but doesn’t feel the same on flies.
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I have to, or I’ll get shoulder pain in both sides. I have deadlifter’s arms, so hanging the weights out those extra inches greatly increases the moment arm on my shoulder joints. I can get a great pec contraction either way. Don’t rush the reps; take the time to try to feel the pec fibers and pull the weights with them. Flex! It’s not a press, and the loading is more arbitrary/has wiggle room (as long as it progresses in intensity somehow over time). But that’s definitely a quality > quantity hypertrophy movement.
 
Dustin07 said:
If I do, I'm not necessarily aware of it. are you talking db or machine? in both forms, it tends to take me a full set to really "find" it with a light weight then I work my way up. I also don't like the machine with the upright forearms, maybe I'm too short for it but I find it puts the delts in a bad spot for me, so if I'm stuck with this type of machine, I'll often grab the pads with my hands and more of a parallel to the ground forearm position

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like this:

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I meant machine. The older I get, the more machines I use lol. But yeah, for pec deck and this other machine fly, keeping them pinned back doesn’t let me get full ROM. It looks like even in that picture of the dude doing pec deck, his shoulders are not retracted at the end of the movement.
 
Weight yesterday: 215.2

Great workout.

DL Top Set 1x425
Machine Row Top Set 5x345 (maxed the machine out)
NG Pull ups 5/4/4/4
Cable Shrugs
Preacher Curls

Recently, by the time I get to NG pull ups, I’d be cooked and have to go assisted. No more! Also should mention that form on those pull-ups was super tight…slow and controlled, chest high every rep, all the way down and up, and only “kicked up” the very last rep of the last set.

Did not get to do my incline walking cardio yesterday, but have been consistent doing 20-25 minutes at 3.0mph on 8-12 incline, 4 times per week, or some of that after sprints.

I’ll be putting the sprints aside for a couple weeks though because both knees are starting to ache. Probably going to lighten the load on DL and squat also.
 
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