Guest viewing limit reached
  • You have reached the maximum number of guest views allowed
  • Please register below to remove this limitation

Slicin' and Dicin'

Dustin07 said:
H/S incline press
20 x +25s
10 x +45s, +70s, +90s

Incline bench
5 x 135
2 x 155
1 x 175
185 x 3, 4, 5
10 x 155

Flat DB
10 x 80s, 90s
20 x 70

Low incline flies
14 x 32.5s
10 x 40s
20 x 30s

(Noticed a popping at very top of bicep on right arm on first set. Not pain, but popping. Adjusted form on second set sp elbows drop lower towards hips and zero popping + better pec engagement)

Pec deck
10 x 190
15 x 130

Flat barbell bench
(1 burnout set)
20 x 135



Notes
Hit two pumps of the xpg carnitine in the locker room. I need shift that to post shower so it has time to settle down, two pumps preWO is a little strong for me.

Incline is a notoriously poor lift for me, and I have no spotter this week so took it a little cautiously and told myself my goal was Maximus Pectorious Meridus so let myself make a massive incline focus and took a break from flat bar bench today.

This week has really worked out well to leave the rest of my training open for pulls, back and a dedicated arm day feasibly.
Click to expand...
Popping on the incline flys? Or bench?
 
akboom87 said:
Popping on the incline flys? Or bench?
Click to expand...
on the flies. I was prepared to believe that my ROM and form were just bad but after doing a little more research I feel like maybe its just a movement where I have to find my rom. Either way the only way I can verbalize it, if you imagine my elbows coming down closer to my hips, rather than higher towards my shoulders on their opening plane, it did not pop. the rom does not seem as long and intense. I am getting less outter pec work this way, but greater pec engagement in the middle.

but my whole life I have been a bit cautious with wide grip bench, incline bench, and db flies. so finding the right rom and adding volume always seems to help develop better rom and hypertrophy later.

I didn't incline bench really at all for 20 years for that reason, only started bringing it back in the past 2 years or so.
 
all that said my dress shirt felt and looked loose on me in the mirror today and then was very tight in the locker room after the session so the pump was real 😂

not there yet but feeling like I'm seeing good progress again for the first time in a couple months.
daily improvements:

1. drinking coffee black. zero creamer except on saturday morning with the wife.
2. no real snacking other than protein
3. less chips (see #2)
4. dates have been cleaner, like steak on salad rather than burger and tots
5. drinking less. zero beer since baseball season ended. less whiskey/bourbon also since I make my own, I've lost my taste for store bought, lol
6. two a days are not lifting + endless cardio, instead are lifting + hard well thought out HIIT.
7. back to drinking more water, a lot more. I was slacking here.
8. I am perpetually seeing silver linings 😂


1765403177902.webp
 
Dustin07 said:
on the flies. I was prepared to believe that my ROM and form were just bad but after doing a little more research I feel like maybe its just a movement where I have to find my rom. Either way the only way I can verbalize it, if you imagine my elbows coming down closer to my hips, rather than higher towards my shoulders on their opening plane, it did not pop. the rom does not seem as long and intense. I am getting less outter pec work this way, but greater pec engagement in the middle.

but my whole life I have been a bit cautious with wide grip bench, incline bench, and db flies. so finding the right rom and adding volume always seems to help develop better rom and hypertrophy later.

I didn't incline bench really at all for 20 years for that reason, only started bringing it back in the past 2 years or so.
Click to expand...
That’s what I figured, incline just doesn’t jive with me on flys I always have to go flat
 
Round 2

Incline LISS
10 min

WOD
250m row
10 pushups
5 RFT 6:30



should have made that ten rounds I think but still, a little extra effort for the day.
 
SkRaw85 said:
They are trained, peripherally lol. I need to add in some direct abs again. Thank you for reminder.
Click to expand...

dude I've been surprised how engaged and sore my abs have been lately since hitting a little more breadth in the training protocol. I've not done one ab centric movement in months and they're getting toasted lol
 
Dustin07 said:
that one is kinda funny to me cause I've never had small calves either and for some reason this year I just started training them like crazy almost every lower day lol. I think just to see what happens.
Click to expand...
Haha, after I posted that, I started to think similarly, “what would happen if I embraced my stronger attributes instead of fighting it?” Meaning lower body. I think I’d look even goofier though 😂
 
DB curls
2 x 15 x 30s
10 x 40s

DB bent over rows
15 x 60s, 70s
10 x 80s

Cybex T bar
12 x +90, 115
15 x +90

Pullups
5 x BW, +10lbs, +20lbs, +30lbs
20 x BW (10 strict + 10 kipping unbroken)

Powercleans
5 x 95, 115, 135
1 x 155, 175, 185

WOD
Sled push down and back (2plates)
3 hang power cleans (155lb)
10 RFT = 9:30
(Started at about 1min/round and sped up to finish)

Incline LISS
10 min




Notes
All grit today, dragging my ass.
Weight 196.00

I did include kipping today. Felt very very good, no shoulder discomfort and this particular pull up bar is well built for pullups, butterflies, muscle ups etc so we will see if I progress back into MUs or not. But for now, a 20 rep set is probably a safe max without tearing my hands into a bloody mess.
 
GreenMachineX said:
Haha, after I posted that, I started to think similarly, “what would happen if I embraced my stronger attributes instead of fighting it?” Meaning lower body. I think I’d look even goofier though
Click to expand...
My genetic gift is probably delts and chest despite not having a monster bench, built a bit like Gimli. The red hair works since I have a lot of Irish in me.

My arms are def my weak point. I'm one of the few guys who can't get his biceps to catch his calves instead of the reverse lol.


Gimli_With_Axe.webp
 
Last edited:
Dustin07 said:
were you a jumper? I know my buddy told me the airborne guys lose a LOT of height. he was like 6'4" when he went in though so knocking 2 inches off his spine wouldn't cost nothing lol
Click to expand...
I was, yeah, 7 C130 jumps and 5 Blackhawk…wouldn’t do any of it anymore 😂 Funny how I was able to do that, but now terrified of flying.
 
GreenMachineX said:
I was, yeah, 7 C130 jumps and 5 Blackhawk…wouldn’t do any of it anymore 😂 Funny how I was able to do that, but now terrified of flying.
Click to expand...
lol that is sorta funny lol. but you develop a respect for it too. I used to fly 2-3 times per month for work and honestly I get more nervous now days than I did when I was flying more often.

we routinely see 2 chinooks and 1 blackhawk flying past our place doing drills, they will buzz under the narrows bridge in Tacoma too, it's freaking awesome.

Regardless of how people feel about politics I love having Trump in office because I live next to 4 bases and every time he's in office we see so much more of the drills from the helicopters, as well as massive convoys on i5 all the time. during the biden admin, I didn't see them for 4 years basically and really missed it.

1765559643425.webp
 
Dustin07 said:
lol that is sorta funny lol. but you develop a respect for it too. I used to fly 2-3 times per month for work and honestly I get more nervous now days than I did when I was flying more often.

we routinely see 2 chinooks and 1 blackhawk flying past our place doing drills, they will buzz under the narrows bridge in Tacoma too, it's freaking awesome.

Regardless of how people feel about politics I love having Trump in office because I live next to 4 bases and every time he's in office we see so much more of the drills from the helicopters, as well as massive convoys on i5 all the time. during the biden admin, I didn't see them for 4 years basically and really missed it.

View attachment 257260
Click to expand...
That’s such a cool picture.😍
 
Dustin07 said:
lol that is sorta funny lol. but you develop a respect for it too. I used to fly 2-3 times per month for work and honestly I get more nervous now days than I did when I was flying more often.

we routinely see 2 chinooks and 1 blackhawk flying past our place doing drills, they will buzz under the narrows bridge in Tacoma too, it's freaking awesome.

Regardless of how people feel about politics I love having Trump in office because I live next to 4 bases and every time he's in office we see so much more of the drills from the helicopters, as well as massive convoys on i5 all the time. during the biden admin, I didn't see them for 4 years basically and really missed it.

View attachment 257260
Click to expand...
That is a super cool picture. I still think it’s awesome when I see them zoom overhead.
 
Star Trac leg press
15 x +90, +180
10 x +270, +360

Deads
5 x 135
1 x 225, 315, 315, 365, 405, 425

RDL
6 x 315
10 x 225 - DOH

Ez bar curls
15 x 50
8 x 100
15 x 70



Notes
Burning the candles at both ends. Wife and her friend booked us a live performance of Elf last night. Mistakingly in downtown Seattle vs Tacoma where they thought it was, so home around midnight. I hate to be a total scrooge but this time of year exhausts me, just too many obligations lol.

Anyways... Got in for essentials today and otherwise took it easy.


PXL_20251213_030848830.MP.webp
 
Last edited:
Dustin07 said:
Star Trac leg press
15 x +90, +180
10 x +270, +360

Deads
5 x 135
1 x 225, 315, 315, 365, 405, 425

RDL
6 x 315
10 x 225 - DOH

Ez bar curls
15 x 50
8 x 100
15 x 70



Notes
Burning the candles at both ends. Wife and her friend booked us a live performance of Elf last night. Mistakingly in downtown Seattle vs Tacoma where they thought it was, so home around midnight. I hate to be a total scrooge but this time of year exhausts me, just too many obligations lol.

Anyways... Got in for essentials today and otherwise took it easy.


View attachment 257296
Click to expand...
Guess I need to max out my DL also to see if we match lol
 
Bench
2 x 10 x 95
10 x 135
1 x 175, 205, 225, 235, 245, 255, 265, 275, 285

H/S incline
15 x +90
10 x +160, +180
15 x +110

Oh cable ext
3 x 10-20

Pec deck
15 x 115
10 x 205
6 x 250
+ 10 x 175 dropset


Notes
Long lost gym bro showed up today back from vacation so we went bro sesh on the bench.

Hit my carnitine early this morning with a single shot of DHEA (xpg) just cause seems to help me a bit with mood during winter. Otherwise just M Test and Alpha One lately. Little pump addict preWO.
 
PM sesh


Old time to beat

WOD

Tabata
20:10 / 4min ea /2 min rests
Double unders - 180
Pushups - 70 (worse)
60lb Kettlebell swings - 59
95lb push press - 54

Told reps 363
Old total 333 reps
Click to expand...

Incline LISS
10 minutes

Tabata
20:10 / 4min ea /2 min rests
Double unders - 212 (easy big improvement)
Pushups - 80 ()
60lb Kettlebell swings - 64
115lb push press - 58
Total 414 reps

Finisher
Incline LISS
10 min

I went full Jon Hamm. I upped push press from 95 to 115 to see if the weight made any difference in capacity at this light of work. It was far harder. I stripped back down to 95lbs on round 4 or 5.

jon-hamm-dancing-meme.webp
 

Attachments

  • Screenshot_20251215-164709.webp
    Screenshot_20251215-164709.webp
    51.1 KB · Views: 32
Dustin07 said:
PM sesh


Old time to beat



Incline LISS
10 minutes

Tabata
20:10 / 4min ea /2 min rests
Double unders - 212 (easy big improvement)
Pushups - 80 ()
60lb Kettlebell swings - 64
115lb push press - 58
Total 414 reps

Finisher
Incline LISS
10 min

I went full Jon Hamm. I upped push press from 95 to 115 to see if the weight made any difference in capacity at this light of work. It was far harder. I stripped back down to 95lbs on round 4 or 5.

View attachment 257322
Click to expand...
That’s a lot of reps….impressive.
 
gphagan1 said:
That’s a lot of reps….impressive.
Click to expand...
felt good! as I was working through it I was thinking about how a little bit of specializing in a couple weeks had already added to my conditionining like crazy. huge difference in yesterdays effort vs a couple weeks ago when I first started doing this again.
 
Lots of hard work in here, sounds like you are teaching the boy right. There are so many lessons I feel like i missed out on not having a father for a lot of my childhood, and the one I did had never had any level of success at anything. So many lessons you, and Hyde's children are getting that are so beneficial to developing and learning how to be successful and approach life. I wish I had someone in my life when I was young who put that much into me, and taught me those life lessons early. I am sure many of you other guys as well but I haven't heard as many stories from the rest of you.

Anyway, my point is, that you all are doing it right, and better than I feel I did. I am sure your kids will grow up to appreciate the time, effort, and knowledge you have given them. You all have set good examples of how to approach life. Seeing it makes me a little jealous, but I am happy with my wife, and my family. So whatever my journey was, it was obviously the one that was intended, and I wouldn't give up the life I have now with my wife and kids for anything.
 
MrKleen73 said:
Anyway, my point is, that you all are doing it right, and better than I feel I did. I am sure your kids will grow up to appreciate the time, effort, and knowledge you have given them. You all have set good examples of how to approach life. Seeing it makes me a little jealous, but I am happy with my wife, and my family. So whatever my journey was, it was obviously the one that was intended, and I wouldn't give up the life I have now with my wife and kids for anything.
Click to expand...
you know, I think we all just do the best we can with what we got at the time (be it knowledge or resources). I got a buddy recently diagnosed with cancer in his eye. docs wanted to take the eye, he said no, lets try treatment first. so he's in the middle of chemo and still about the most optimistic person you ever met. he's crushing it. he doesn't deny the pain he's in from the procedures just talks about how much stronger its making him.

Then I see a post from his baby momma, this weekend he was hit by a truck (he was on his ducati) in an apparent road rage situation where the truck decided to take him out. he ended up with a feeding tube in the ER all weekend, unable to talk, bleeding from the ear, swelling in the head etc. I mean bleak ****. is supposed to start with a speach therapist on friday but he's still not really 100% coherent yet. He stands up in his room and says get this stuff off me I gotta pee 😂

I 100% think he's going to make a full and strong recovery and that this experience is just a part of his path I guess. I know people hate the word journey now days but it is what it is. I see this guy get kicked in the balls over and over again and he keeps bouncing back. He loves his daughter to the end of the world, loves his job, and is always fighting the good fight. (its still heart breaking to watch him suffer)

we just do... whatever we can do at the time with what we got. I was taking mental images in my head of my wife the other night cause I was thinking man if I lost my vision what would i miss seeing the most? Thats kinda how I see things with my boy too. I always think if my time is cut a little short at this point, what memories will he take from me? My guess is he'll remember that dad "loved" to lift, loved his Mariners, wore cowboy boots, talked a lot of ****, and loved boys weekends. There is probably some other things that he thinks too like bbq etc. but those are the things I think about... like if I die tomorrow, what does my boy get to keep from me I guess.
 
BB rows
20 x 95
10 x 135, 155, 175
15 x 135

Ez bar curls
10 x 70, 80

Kroc rows
10 x 60, 70

H/S low rows
15 x +90, +140
10 x +190

Seated cable rows
2 x 10 x 150
20 x 80

Preacher curl (machine)
2 x 20

Lat pull downs
2 x 10 x 130




Not really a deload, but still sorta an easy day. Next week days start getting longer again and looking forward to that. Been getting to work about 2hrs before sunrise (as I'm sure many do) but the commute has been miserable since half of our region is closed roads due to the flooding. You basically have all of puget sound trying to commute on one highway right now.
 
Dustin07 said:
you know, I think we all just do the best we can with what we got at the time (be it knowledge or resources). I got a buddy recently diagnosed with cancer in his eye. docs wanted to take the eye, he said no, lets try treatment first. so he's in the middle of chemo and still about the most optimistic person you ever met. he's crushing it. he doesn't deny the pain he's in from the procedures just talks about how much stronger its making him.

Then I see a post from his baby momma, this weekend he was hit by a truck (he was on his ducati) in an apparent road rage situation where the truck decided to take him out. he ended up with a feeding tube in the ER all weekend, unable to talk, bleeding from the ear, swelling in the head etc. I mean bleak ****. is supposed to start with a speach therapist on friday but he's still not really 100% coherent yet. He stands up in his room and says get this stuff off me I gotta pee 😂

I 100% think he's going to make a full and strong recovery and that this experience is just a part of his path I guess. I know people hate the word journey now days but it is what it is. I see this guy get kicked in the balls over and over again and he keeps bouncing back. He loves his daughter to the end of the world, loves his job, and is always fighting the good fight. (its still heart breaking to watch him suffer)

we just do... whatever we can do at the time with what we got. I was taking mental images in my head of my wife the other night cause I was thinking man if I lost my vision what would i miss seeing the most? Thats kinda how I see things with my boy too. I always think if my time is cut a little short at this point, what memories will he take from me? My guess is he'll remember that dad "loved" to lift, loved his Mariners, wore cowboy boots, talked a lot of ****, and loved boys weekends. There is probably some other things that he thinks too like bbq etc. but those are the things I think about... like if I die tomorrow, what does my boy get to keep from me I guess.
Click to expand...
Such an inspiring story about your friend, and so sad what he is going through. But the way you describe him, makes you believe he will come through this and be a strong inspiration to his friends and family.
And I would add a couple more things to what I’m sure your son thinks…..he knows his Dad loves him, would give him the world, and is an example of what a man should be, and that he aspires to be just like Dad.😎👍
 
Last edited:
Dustin07 said:
you know, I think we all just do the best we can with what we got at the time (be it knowledge or resources).
Click to expand...

This is all we can do. Everyone gets dealt a different hand in life and we try to make the best/most of it. Be grateful for the things you have, drown out the noise/what ifs, and leave this world just a little bit better than when you found it.
 
Dustin07 said:
you know, I think we all just do the best we can with what we got at the time (be it knowledge or resources). I got a buddy recently diagnosed with cancer in his eye. docs wanted to take the eye, he said no, lets try treatment first. so he's in the middle of chemo and still about the most optimistic person you ever met. he's crushing it. he doesn't deny the pain he's in from the procedures just talks about how much stronger its making him.

Then I see a post from his baby momma, this weekend he was hit by a truck (he was on his ducati) in an apparent road rage situation where the truck decided to take him out. he ended up with a feeding tube in the ER all weekend, unable to talk, bleeding from the ear, swelling in the head etc. I mean bleak ****. is supposed to start with a speach therapist on friday but he's still not really 100% coherent yet. He stands up in his room and says get this stuff off me I gotta pee 😂

I 100% think he's going to make a full and strong recovery and that this experience is just a part of his path I guess. I know people hate the word journey now days but it is what it is. I see this guy get kicked in the balls over and over again and he keeps bouncing back. He loves his daughter to the end of the world, loves his job, and is always fighting the good fight. (its still heart breaking to watch him suffer)

we just do... whatever we can do at the time with what we got. I was taking mental images in my head of my wife the other night cause I was thinking man if I lost my vision what would i miss seeing the most? Thats kinda how I see things with my boy too. I always think if my time is cut a little short at this point, what memories will he take from me? My guess is he'll remember that dad "loved" to lift, loved his Mariners, wore cowboy boots, talked a lot of ****, and loved boys weekends. There is probably some other things that he thinks too like bbq etc. but those are the things I think about... like if I die tomorrow, what does my boy get to keep from me I guess.
Click to expand...
Inspiring about your friends fortitude, I hope he recovers.

Also, I agree, the journey is the thing. I mean the Journey is really just life going by. So if you don't enjoy it, or take pleasure in it are you even living life? I was just stating the benefits of having a father around that had been taught success building habits, and how to move forward with challenges and the like. Like i said part of me thinks how would I have done if I had better parenting. I grew up being grounded literally for 2 year stretches, and told I was going to end up in prison. Failure, and giving up became the expected outcome of everything, and spent a lot of my childhood suicidal or wishing for some big romantic death because it would make the world a better place without me. So seeing the stories of love, and good mentoring sometimes make me feel some kind of way. It makes me envious of that childhood, but again, I would not trade it if it meant I didn't end up with my family. Of course the journey made me the man I am today, and he ain't too bad of a guy. Just know how lucky you are to have your father, and how lucky your boy is to have his.
 
MrKleen73 said:
Inspiring about your friends fortitude, I hope he recovers.

Also, I agree, the journey is the thing. I mean the Journey is really just life going by. So if you don't enjoy it, or take pleasure in it are you even living life? I was just stating the benefits of having a father around that had been taught success building habits, and how to move forward with challenges and the like. Like i said part of me thinks how would I have done if I had better parenting. I grew up being grounded literally for 2 year stretches, and told I was going to end up in prison. Failure, and giving up became the expected outcome of everything, and spent a lot of my childhood suicidal or wishing for some big romantic death because it would make the world a better place without me. So seeing the stories of love, and good mentoring sometimes make me feel some kind of way. It makes me envious of that childhood, but again, I would not trade it if it meant I didn't end up with my family. Of course the journey made me the man I am today, and he ain't too bad of a guy. Just know how lucky you are to have your father, and how lucky your boy is to have his.
Click to expand...
Thank you for sharing that - gratitude is so important for true happiness. And FWIW, I think I also speak for the other guys on here when I say I’m really grateful to know the man you became! Despite the lack of nurture, you possess an awesome nature ✊

“There’s no such thing as a life that’s better than yours…so love yours.”

 
MrKleen73 said:
Inspiring about your friends fortitude, I hope he recovers.

Also, I agree, the journey is the thing. I mean the Journey is really just life going by. So if you don't enjoy it, or take pleasure in it are you even living life? I was just stating the benefits of having a father around that had been taught success building habits, and how to move forward with challenges and the like. Like i said part of me thinks how would I have done if I had better parenting. I grew up being grounded literally for 2 year stretches, and told I was going to end up in prison. Failure, and giving up became the expected outcome of everything, and spent a lot of my childhood suicidal or wishing for some big romantic death because it would make the world a better place without me. So seeing the stories of love, and good mentoring sometimes make me feel some kind of way. It makes me envious of that childhood, but again, I would not trade it if it meant I didn't end up with my family. Of course the journey made me the man I am today, and he ain't too bad of a guy. Just know how lucky you are to have your father, and how lucky your boy is to have his.
Click to expand...
Thank you for sharing, and you through all your challenges and trials have absolutely become the man that any father or mother should be proud of. The great character you have and the love you have for your family is evident and something you should hold your head high and be proud of. And truly because of what you have been through, that makes your accomplishments in life even more impressive.😎👏
 
Last edited:
Hyde said:
Thank you for sharing that - gratitude is so important for true happiness. And FWIW, I think I also speak for the other guys on here when I say I’m really grateful to know the man you became! Despite the lack of nurture, you possess an awesome nature ✊

“There’s no such thing as a life that’s better than yours…so love yours.”

Click to expand...
Thanks! That means a lot. The biggest thing I told myself about when I became a parent was that no matter what other issues I might have my kids will never question how much I love them. More than anything else that was the number one thing I wanted them to know. They are loved, and a close 2nd, I have their back! Love and affection are huge in my house.
gphagan1 said:
Thank you for sharing, and you through all your challenges and trials have absolutely become the man that any father or mother should be proud of. The great character you have and the love you have for your family is evident and something you should hold your head high and be proud of. And truly because of what you have been through, that makes your accomplishments in life even more impressive.😎👏
Click to expand...
Thanks GP! I appreciate that, I always wish I had done better, but I do hope my kids feel I did well by them. judging by our relationships, I feel that is the case.

It is funny you mention that because every once in a while I will look back and be like how did a total screw up 9th grade drop out end up where I am now, and when are they going to realize I don't belong here. I think they call that imposter syndrome, but occasionally I will have a random dream I am getting fired, or worse, I am back in high school trying to get my diploma, even though in the dream I know I have a GED already. Just little things where apparently something has me second guessing my worth or something. Who knows. Either way those dreams SUCK!!!! Learning how to navigate all of that has helped me in dealing with 3 ADHD kids in the house as well.
 
man I'm feeling better today and my wife is feeling like **** lol. Last night we were blessed wtih the excuse to have pho while we watched the Seahawks eek out a win against the Rams. she's under the weather, which makes me think that this week's exhaustion and burnout I've been fighting has maybe been a cold?? She admitted to me last night she's been doubling down on her zinc etc all week secretly trying not to get sick lol.


MrKleen73 said:
It is funny you mention that because every once in a while I will look back and be like how did a total screw up 9th grade drop out end up where I am now, and when are they going to realize I don't belong here. I think they call that imposter syndrome, but occasionally I will have a random dream I am getting fired, or worse, I am back in high school trying to get my diploma, even though in the dream I know I have a GED already. Just little things where apparently something has me second guessing my worth or something. Who knows. Either way those dreams SUCK!!!! Learning how to navigate all of that has helped me in dealing with 3 ADHD kids in the house as well.
Click to expand...

two of my best friends, co-workers, and employees are both high school dropouts (my lifting buddy who also was my officiate at my wedding is one of them with severe ADHD). They're two of the most intelligent people I know and are not replaceable at work, to me. We often review resumes and joke when we see things like "class of xxxx" (throw it away, we don't hire grads around here). The funny thing is my brother and I both ended up doing running start cause we hated high school as well, so senior year for me, and junior + senior year for my brother we wrapped up our credits at the community college while working instead of going to high school. so at one point the four of us were all working in an office together and it cracked me up that none of us went to high school senior year lol. I did end up getting my bachelors but honestly I only got it as an insurance policy incase things didn't work out with our biz. All our best employees didn't finish high school 😂 😂 😂
 
H/S incline
2 x 15 x +90
10 x +140, 160, 180

Incline
5 x 135
1 x 155, 175, 185
2 x 2 x 185
3 x 185
10 x 155

Tri cable push downs
3 x 20

SS with db laterals
3 x 15 x 30s

H/S dips
3 x 15 x +180

SS with DB forward raises
3 x 12 x 30s

Flat DB
19 x 70s


Notes
Calves are still pretty sore since double unders earlier this week so trying to push squats out till tomorrow morning before my boys wrestling tourney.

I'm still basically learning incline bench tbh, today it felt, oddly enough, that I was strongest in suicide grip with pinkies on the band. I never do suicide over 225/ten rep sets normally but I'm still finding my grip on incline.
 
@Hyde how accurate does this boilerplate perspective of incline look to you? By these numbers, I suppose my incline bench actually not bad, I'm likely always in that 70-85% area. more and more lately I have felt like I should get that number up though. I definitely like they added hypertrophy I feel like I have seen in 2025 from incline. many lost years of growth there on the pecs I think by not utilizing it more.

1766175903074.webp
 
Dustin07 said:
@Hyde how accurate does this boilerplate perspective of incline look to you? By these numbers, I suppose my incline bench actually not bad, I'm likely always in that 70-85% area. more and more lately I have felt like I should get that number up though. I definitely like they added hypertrophy I feel like I have seen in 2025 from incline. many lost years of growth there on the pecs I think by not utilizing it more.

View attachment 257358
Click to expand...
Pretty spot on, not unlike what you might see on Frontsquat or even SSB work compared to a traditional squat. They rely more on the frontside of the musculature with a bit bigger ROM.

But ratios aside, if you drive incline up while maintaining your flat proficiency you’re almost always going to see flat go up. Same as beefing up your fronts or hi bar, or closegrip bench. If your quads or pecs or tris are a weakness, strengthening them will help. But even if they’re a strong point, they are such prime movers that more virtually always helps. The only way the main lift doesn’t go up then is if there’s a new limiting factor (like the lats are too weak to guide/stabilize the press, or abs/brace too weak to hold position in the squat).

TLDR if it doesn’t hurt, a bigger incline usually promotes a bigger bench.
 
Hyde said:
Pretty spot on, not unlike what you might see on Frontsquat or even SSB work compared to a traditional squat. They rely more on the frontside of the musculature with a bit bigger ROM.

But ratios aside, if you drive incline up while maintaining your flat proficiency you’re almost always going to see flat go up. Same as beefing up your fronts or hi bar, or closegrip bench. If your quads or pecs or tris are a weakness, strengthening them will help. But even if they’re a strong point, they are such prime movers that more virtually always helps. The only way the main lift doesn’t go up then is if there’s a new limiting factor (like the lats are too weak to guide/stabilize the press, or abs/brace too weak to hold position in the squat).

TLDR if it doesn’t hurt, a bigger incline usually promotes a bigger bench.
Click to expand...
Appreciate that, I went from dodging them forever to actually really liking them but it feels like I'm starting all over with a new loft sorta lol. This at least gives me validation that there is substantial value in it. I'd like to be throwing inclines around with a couple plates. Good working sets at 2 plates of incline might be a good short term goal here for me to kick off 2026 then. I'm still surprised how it really feels like it's taken chest hypertrophy to a new level but also I feel stronger with that slightly narrower grip on incline. Maybe that's an indicator that the triceps are a leading component right now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top