The Maximus Pact

[Shadowblaze]

You don’t need to do all the lunge variations AND BSS. Pick the form of single leg work that most directly addresses your current greatest need. You aren’t getting big on single leg work; you’re preventing imbalances and increasing tolerances to what you need most to prevent injuries.

I’d also choose only one DB row and Hammercurl variations for a session. I can get doing some DBs after bb rows for a bit more unilateral work to prevent imbalance and get a better stretch, but doing them standing and the chest supported after is getting overkill. Also, bands aren’t doing anything dbs aren’t better for the hammers. Bands are mainly for garage/box lifters making do, because Hammercurls aren’t that important anyway. More important you just get a few in than worry about details with them.

since im tracking it with a weightlifting app that only has a set amount of exercises and doesnt let me create my own sometimes ill put an exercise in their and then attach a note to that exercise saying its a different one. Ill explain that more.
I include 2 squat variations because of my spinal disease, I cant squat deep and heavy so I do my heavy squats less deep and my lighter squats deep and paused with a close stance and with an elevated heel so I still do full range squats and the strength benefit from heavy squats. They are both with a barbell on my back but if I listed them as the same exercise in the app it would mess up my progress tracking. Since I dont go as heavy on the deep squats and heavier on the other ones if I put them as the same exercise in the app it would count them as the same exercise and then the progress chart I like to look at to see how my lifts are going up would fluctuate a ton since Ill be doing 325 and then go all the way down to 155. If I list them as seperate exercises in the app I can see my progress on them seperately which is why I put my deep barbell squats as machine squats in the app and then put a note under them that they are actually just regular squats but deep.

The same goes for my split squats, im not actually doing split squats. The split squats are just my plyometrics for rugby but they dont have plyometrics as an exercise in the app so I list them as split squats since I dont do split squats anyway.
If you read under the split squat exercise it says the exercise I actually do, same with the machine squat.

I also do that on upper days with some exercises, its more confusing but easier for me to track my progress like that. Thats why you will see me list exercises as some banded exercises when im actually using dumbbells or barbells, I know its pretty confusing so sorry about that.

Ill write down my workouts by hand today and show you how much volume I actually do so its easier for you to see and judge.

I hope that all makes sense, lmk if I need to explain it more.

 

[Shadowblaze]

I’ve been drinking 2L of chocolate milk a day to help me gain weight again, hope it works well. I saw a article on why chocolate milk is a powerhouse for athletes speeding recovery, enhancing hydration and more.

My bench is kinda stuck, it’s been like that for a while.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 52:

Today was a great lift. My lifts have been going up steadily so I’ll be back to where I was in a month or so.

I’ve always experienced this. Whenever I sleep great, eat great and feel great going into a workout I have the most mediocre workout ever. But when I’m slightly sleep deprived or just feel decent and average, slept average or slightly worse and feel decent I have the best lifts ever.
Do any of you ever get this?

@Hyde
So this is my workout for upper with an incline and lat focus. Seated cable rows are 2 each side so technically 4 sets, I did one extra set of push downs I didn’t log, and my bicep curl superset was 4 total sets each arm. Other than that the workout is spot on.

Is this too much volume? If so what would you cut?

 

[Hyde]

Day 52:

Today was a great lift. My lifts have been going up steadily so I’ll be back to where I was in a month or so.

I’ve always experienced this. Whenever I sleep great, eat great and feel great going into a workout I have the most mediocre workout ever. But when I’m slightly sleep deprived or just feel decent and average, slept average or slightly worse and feel decent I have the best lifts ever.
Do any of you ever get this?

@Hyde
So this is my workout for upper with an incline and lat focus. Seated cable rows are 2 each side so technically 4 sets, I did one extra set of push downs I didn’t log, and my bicep curl superset was 4 total sets each arm. Other than that the workout is spot on.

Is this too much volume? If so what would you cut?

Yeah sleep good hydration all matter over the long haul as far as recoverability, but they definitely don’t ensure the weights move well. I never try to base what I’ll do on how I feel going in because that can often be a lie. Sometimes you get warming up when everything felt off and it just starts clicking - and you kill it! Other times, it’s just not there and you don’t exactly understand why things feel weak because every box was checked off on paper.

The key is to realize it’s about punching the clock, all the work you accomplish over time. No individual workout matters that much in isolation; progress is driven by the averages moving forward.

Regarding your total volume, the thing to consider is how long you are spending and is the stuff at the end still being executed with intensity you’re proud of and believe in. Like if you spend 3 hours in the gym, but the last hour is just driving yourself through some flimsy light stuff, it’s probably not adding anything meaningful. Recognize what you accomplish in the first 90-120 minutes is probably where the bulk of your energy is going, so make that count. And consider the first 2 top sets will get you 80% of the results on something, so every subsequent set should be weighed against how badly you want to improve that thing or quality. 3 sets WILL yield more than 2, and 4 done hard WILL give more than 3, but every set is an order of magnitude less. So 4 sets is 100% more work than 2, for only probably 20% more gains.

That is a bad investment if time & energy is limited and you are skipping out on other things you value. BUT if you love doing the thing or really prioritize it, then it you do still get more from doing more (if the work is quality).

So if you really want to build your bench, you probably should do 3 or even 4 serious sets. But you have finite resources, so something like tricep Pushdowns probably should not have 4 brutal sets if you have to pick between the 2 and your bench strength is the priority over the side tricep aesthetic development.

Also, isolations take less energy. So sometimes it’s worth doing one less brutal set of squats if it means you can now manage 2 other accessories done well and overall get more lower body volume. It’s all give and take based on what you can handle and care about at the time. Those things won’t make you as strong at squatting as just squatting more, but say you really lack hypertrophy to the point it’s holding back further progress - then to get bigger overall to help feed a bigger squat, doing more bodybuilding total volume would actually indirectly set you up for a bigger squat later.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 53:

Happy thanksgiving!

I made a big mistake today lol, I did lunges before I did my deep squats and wow, I was shaking so much. I’m not gonna make that mistake again lmao.

It’s nice to be back.

It’s really becoming winter here, like wow. The air feels like it’s attacking your skin now, I kinda like the cool feeling.

It was a pretty good lift, I made a more compact lifting day which I’m gonna trim down even more. I’m not gonna train sprints hard during rugby season anymore though.

I got my pr lotion (topical baking soda) and am excited to try it out.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Legs are looking solid too, though not close to what they were remotely in high school but still big.

They are only smaller now because I’m limited with the movements I can do because of my spine and because of my gallbladder affecting my digestion and therefore fat absorption (you’d be suprised of how vital fat is for muscle growth)

The movement limitations have gotten a lot better with immune suppressive therapy but I still can’t do everything I could before.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 53:

Happy thanksgiving!

I made a big mistake today lol, I did lunges before I did my deep squats and wow, I was shaking so much. I’m not gonna make that mistake again lmao.

It’s nice to be back.

It’s really becoming winter here, like wow. The air feels like it’s attacking your skin now, I kinda like the cool feeling.

It was a pretty good lift, I made a more compact lifting day which I’m gonna trim down even more. I’m not gonna train sprints hard during rugby season anymore though.

I got my pr lotion (topical baking soda) and am excited to try it out.

I forgot American thanksgiving is on another day lmao

 

[Shadowblaze]

Take a look at muscle memory doing its thing, these are less than a year apart, about 11 months.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 54:

It was a good lift today. I tried my pr lotion and didn’t notice too much but I will apply a lot next time to see if it helps.

My bench isn’t progressing nearly as much as I would like.

My weighted dips and barbell rows are doing great, for me with overhand barbell rows I get too much rear delt activation and strain my back easier. So I swapped them completely for underhand barbell rows which feel great.

I’m doing this new alternating type training jumping back and forth between:
Bench and pull ups
Dips and underhand bb rows

It definitely cuts some time off your workout, I’ve cut a good amount of volume and time off my workout and think I can cut it another 20 mins.

 

[Dustin07]

I'm a huge fan of supersetting for the combination of a little increased hr during the work out (wod style) and speed of workout when hypertrophy training, but I'll be honest when I'm purely strength focused I tend to take more time to make sure I'm fully rested for that next set and slightly lower volume. Like (making up a number here) I could spend 30 minutes just working on my bench for the day, then 20 minutes knocking out 4 or 6 different accessory movements that are all supersetted. But that's just my typical approach. I hit the big one systematically, then go ham on the rest.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 55:

It was a bad day today, I slept very poorly and was super unproductive and it was just a bad day.

I still dragged myself to the gym for a few movements even though I wanted to be anywhere but there.

I need a break from everything sometimes.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 56:

Today was a pretty good lift, I’m still not feeling as productive or motivated as I’d like but it’s getting better. I’m also going to rugby today, I’m 3lbs lighter than I was before I got sick so I’m getting it back.

Every once in a while I’ll strain my front delt or biceps tendon (not sure how to pinpoint which one) from overuse with pressing and it’s always very minor and goes away after using some curcuprime gel and stretching it. So that happened today and I cut back a bit on the intensity.

 

[Hyde]

I'm a huge fan of supersetting for the combination of a little increased hr during the work out (wod style) and speed of workout when hypertrophy training, but I'll be honest when I'm purely strength focused I tend to take more time to make sure I'm fully rested for that next set and slightly lower volume. Like (making up a number here) I could spend 30 minutes just working on my bench for the day, then 20 minutes knocking out 4 or 6 different accessory movements that are all supersetted. But that's just my typical approach. I hit the big one systematically, then go ham on the rest.

Yeah supersetting antagonistic muscle groups is a good strategy for isolations if time is tight and your cardio is good for it. Like I don’t believe rowing and pressing are ideal because they’re compounds that will suffer some if you cut rest, but curls and extensions or front and rear delt raises aren’t bad.

Of course if it’s that or nothing time-wise then even supersetting compounds becomes ideal.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Yeah supersetting antagonistic muscle groups is a good strategy for isolations if time is tight and your cardio is good for it. Like I don’t believe rowing and pressing are ideal because they’re compounds that will suffer some if you cut rest, but curls and extensions or front and rear delt raises aren’t bad.

Of course if it’s that or nothing time-wise then even supersetting compounds becomes ideal.

Yeah it’s not entirely a superset, I give myself 2 minutes between each set still. The way I see it you can get fatigued in 2 ways that will hurt performance:

Physical fatigue like being out of breath and the performance dip of the muscle itself shortly after a hard set

Mental fatigue when your cns can’t fire super hard sets shortly after the one before.

If you do antagonistic supersets you avoid the physical fatigue a bit but still get the mental fatigue, but if you up the rest time it’s the perfect blend of CNS recovery, muscle recovery between sets and cutting down time.

 

[Hyde]

Yeah it’s not entirely a superset, I give myself 2 minutes between each set still. The way I see it you can get fatigued in 2 ways that will hurt performance:

Physical fatigue like being out of breath and the performance dip of the muscle itself shortly after a hard set

Mental fatigue when your cns can’t fire super hard sets shortly after the one before.

If you do antagonistic supersets you avoid the physical fatigue a bit but still get the mental fatigue, but if you up the rest time it’s the perfect blend of CNS recovery, muscle recovery between sets and cutting down time.

That’s how I like to do it, alternating 2 different accessories. Lets me get away with less total rest time but still well-recovered for everything.

 

[Shadowblaze]

I ordered my 8 week winter cycle. So far im for sure gonna take:
prime xt
anabolic xt
phosphatidic acid xt
mtest
im thinking of throwing an anti cortisol supplement into there, any suggestions?

I also ordered the following but not sure if im gonna take them:
arimahex
3ad from iconic
11kt

 

[Dustin07]

prime xt
anabolic xt
phosphatidic acid xt
mtest
im thinking of throwing an anti cortisol supplement into there, any suggestions?

since you have a full line up of @sns8778 products there, you could throw in Supress C

XPG Xtreme Performance Gels Suppress-C - 3.4 oz Advanced Cortisol Control

Suppress-C Gel supports fat loss and muscle preservation by controlling cortisol levels. Ideal for those combating abdominal fat and stress. Order now!

www.dpsnutrition.net

I also ordered the following but not sure if im gonna take them:
arimahex
3ad from iconic
11kt

I haven't used those in particular but from Iconic have used sustain alpha, dermacrine, ultrahard, and ultra epi. of them, the ultra hard was my favorite if you're going to be dabbling in PED's. otherwise sustain alpha is more natty and similar to xpg alpha gel. I have used multiple bottles of each, I usually keep alpha gel in stock at home. aside from the carrier I don't remember the specific differences. Alpha Gel has the Tongkat Ali, I'm not sure if Sustain does. they both use resveratrol and benzo flavone I believe.

 

[Hyde]

I ordered my 8 week winter cycle. So far im for sure gonna take:
prime xt
anabolic xt
phosphatidic acid xt
mtest
im thinking of throwing an anti cortisol supplement into there, any suggestions?

I also ordered the following but not sure if im gonna take them:
arimahex
3ad from iconic
11kt

1g vitamin C twice per day; eat carbs often

You’ve already got KSM66 modulating cortisol in Mtest; not sure what you think you’ll need beyond that horse stack.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 57:

I took Friday off but trained yesterday however I forgot to post yesterday so here is the one for Saturday.

I trained legs and had a church event later in the day so I went pretty quick, I also did a set of hamstrings and quads but didn’t track it.

My energy has been low lately, probably because of the weather. My anxiety is also up and my sleep is worse. Does anyone else get that?

 

[Shadowblaze]

Wow I’m getting noticeably chunkier on drinking 2L of chocolate milk a day

 

[Shadowblaze]

Wow I’m getting noticeably chunkier on drinking 2L of chocolate milk a day

It looks like I’ve packed on pounds but my weight is the same. Weird, maybe I’m just tripping.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 58:

Today was a pretty good lift, I hit some recent prs on the bench since being sick. It was moving great, I felt super strong today.

I’m still trying to deal with my anxiety but one thing I’ve gotten better at doing recently is delegating my time better and not putting as much pressure on myself.

My arms were a bit weak today.

Does anyone else have that one muscle that gets sore very easily and stays sore longer? For me it’s been my triceps recently. I still felt sore from my last workout.

My arms have developed a lot recently.

 

[Shadowblaze]

I’m firmly against the use of antidepressants, like hugely. Is there anything else you guys have ever used that helps with depression and especially anxiety?

 

[Shadowblaze]

My physique is looking pretty good, but I swear I have gotten a bit smaller.

 

[Hyde]

I’m firmly against the use of antidepressants, like hugely. Is there anything else you guys have ever used that helps with depression and especially anxiety?

A lot of people get some real relief from SNS Stress & Anxiety - my stepdaughter was blown away an otc natural product could have such a positive effect on her anxiety from her job. She would sweat through her shirt from the rapid heartbeat (and she’s a little slim thing), but now when she goes in office she’s much more relaxed. Said she wished more people knew this stuff existed before they just went the script route.

Try drinking less chocolate milk and add a bit more real food if you’re getting too bloated. If you’re actually just getting fatter too quickly, back the cals back some (especially from fats).

 

[Shadowblaze]

A lot of people get some real relief from SNS Stress & Anxiety - my stepdaughter was blown away an otc natural product could have such a positive effect on her anxiety from her job. She would sweat through her shirt from the rapid heartbeat (and she’s a little slim thing), but now when she goes in office she’s much more relaxed. Said she wished more people knew this stuff existed before they just went the script route.

Try drinking less chocolate milk and add a bit more real food if you’re getting too bloated. If you’re actually just getting fatter too quickly, back the cals back some (especially from fats).

Thanks for the advice, I want to get a mental supplement stack from sns aswell. So stress and anxiety will be part of it for sure.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 59:

I am at the gym hitting legs rn. I was on my 2nd set of squats hitting 340lbs (not even the heaviest I have gone) I also did my full warm up stretching routine when I felt a pop or a snap in my upper left glute area. I felt it on my 5th rep but finished my set and did 7 reps.

I don’t know what it is but it’s not good. It doesn’t hurt bad, more like an ache but it’s getting warm and I have felt pain like this before. Last time it was my autoimmune condition which left me disabled for practically an entire year so I was pretty scared.

There’s 3 things I think it could be:
1. Autoimmune pain
From my autoimmune disease (it was originally affecting my left spine si joint but switched to the right and now I think it’s switched back to my left) and was exacerbated by my poor diet recently. Which I hope it is since it shouldn’t last long with treatment and fixing my diet.

2. A muscle strain, maybe one of my abductor muscles. This would also be easy to fix.

3. Some sort of tear of a muscle or a labrum. Hopefully it’s not this, that would be hard to fix.

But for today I’m just gonna take it easy. Whatever it is it isn’t good. I’m not gonna post my lift as I only did squats and some isolations.

Does anyone have any experience with these things and can give me insight on what to do or what it could be?

 

[akboom87]

A lot of people get some real relief from SNS Stress & Anxiety - my stepdaughter was blown away an otc natural product could have such a positive effect on her anxiety from her job. She would sweat through her shirt from the rapid heartbeat (and she’s a little slim thing), but now when she goes in office she’s much more relaxed. Said she wished more people knew this stuff existed before they just went the script route.

Try drinking less chocolate milk and add a bit more real food if you’re getting too bloated. If you’re actually just getting fatter too quickly, back the cals back some (especially from fats).

I’ll second this the wife used it a lot to help her with anxiety. Still have some in the cabinet that I use on occasion as well.

 

[Hyde]

Day 59:

I am at the gym hitting legs rn. I was on my 2nd set of squats hitting 340lbs (not even the heaviest I have gone) I also did my full warm up stretching routine when I felt a pop or a snap in my upper left glute area. I felt it on my 5th rep but finished my set and did 7 reps.

I don’t know what it is but it’s not good. It doesn’t hurt bad, more like an ache but it’s getting warm and I have felt pain like this before. Last time it was my autoimmune condition which left me disabled for practically an entire year so I was pretty scared.

There’s 3 things I think it could be:
1. Autoimmune pain
From my autoimmune disease (it was originally affecting my left spine si joint but switched to the right and now I think it’s switched back to my left) and was exacerbated by my poor diet recently. Which I hope it is since it shouldn’t last long with treatment and fixing my diet.

2. A muscle strain, maybe one of my abductor muscles. This would also be easy to fix.

3. Some sort of tear of a muscle or a labrum. Hopefully it’s not this, that would be hard to fix.

But for today I’m just gonna take it easy. Whatever it is it isn’t good. I’m not gonna post my lift as I only did squats and some isolations.

Does anyone have any experience with these things and can give me insight on what to do or what it could be?

A strain is a minor muscle tear. Sprain is a similarly disarming medical term for minor connective tissue tear.

If you felt a pop on one side followed by pain & warmth (inflammation), you know something traumatic happened, whether muscular, connective or a back joint. Not to be dramatic, but just realize you didn’t manufacture these sensations in your head, so treat it with respect so you can come back safely instead of making it worse ignoring or testing it too soon. These kinds of things happen in lifting, but they can also happen to gen pop just in daily life. Being weak is also risky, so don’t feel guilty or beat yourself up for this happening while training. I knew a 30-year-old non-lifter who tore his meniscus picking up a 5 gallon bucket of water.

You will want to ice the area some, 20 min on max, 20 min off minimum, over the next couple days. This cycling of hot/cold will help drive bloodflow that will help flush inflammation. You’ll also want to take some frequent short 5-10 min walks if it doesn’t aggravate it, also for bloodflow (this is especially helpful if it’s a muscle or joint issue of the lower back).

I’d probably take some ibruprofen soon as well to get ahead of the inflammation, and consider avoiding loading the lower body for a week or two. Not just barbell, but also avoid machines like Legpress or Hacks. Letting it heal with priority now can help prevent recurring issues later. I once tore a QL deadlifting, retore it a few weeks later because I stressed it too soon, then tore the other side within a couple months because it was getting overworked since the first had been out of commission. Cost me a good year of progress in all.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 59:

I was super tired today but still dragged myself to the gym.

It was a pretty good lift, I knew I was really tired so I didn’t try to overload my bench and pull ups heavily. But I overloaded on every other lift hard.

 

[Shadowblaze]

A strain is a minor muscle tear. Sprain is a similarly disarming medical term for minor connective tissue tear.

If you felt a pop on one side followed by pain & warmth (inflammation), you know something traumatic happened, whether muscular, connective or a back joint. Not to be dramatic, but just realize you didn’t manufacture these sensations in your head, so treat it with respect so you can come back safely instead of making it worse ignoring or testing it too soon. These kinds of things happen in lifting, but they can also happen to gen pop just in daily life. Being weak is also risky, so don’t feel guilty or beat yourself up for this happening while training. I knew a 30-year-old non-lifter who tore his meniscus picking up a 5 gallon bucket of water.

You will want to ice the area some, 20 min on max, 20 min off minimum, over the next couple days. This cycling of hot/cold will help drive bloodflow that will help flush inflammation. You’ll also want to take some frequent short 5-10 min walks if it doesn’t aggravate it, also for bloodflow (this is especially helpful if it’s a muscle or joint issue of the lower back).

I’d probably take some ibruprofen soon as well to get ahead of the inflammation, and consider avoiding loading the lower body for a week or two. Not just barbell, but also avoid machines like Legpress or Hacks. Letting it heal with priority now can help prevent recurring issues later. I once tore a QL deadlifting, retore it a few weeks later because I stressed it too soon, then tore the other side within a couple months because it was getting overworked since the first had been out of commission. Cost me a good year of progress in all.

Thanks bro, I’m gonna chill on the legs for sure and just do stationary biking for the next few weeks.

You truly always give me the greatest advice man, thank you. you should write a book with all the stuff you know. I just read this book called “excellent advice for living” and it’s just 1 sentence life advice. You should make the weightlifting version, I feel like a lot of people would buy it truly.

I am almost done reading the book you suggested, it’s pretty good thanks for the suggestion.

I also just went to rugby and could run easily. Nevertheless I will chill with squats for a few weeks and won’t go heavy during season. What I believe it was was the popping of my si joint from my AS and the inflammation was related to the muscles that insert in the area which was common. It is definitely more muscular in terms of inflammation.

I can’t take any NSAIDs since my treatment makes me prone to getting holes in my intestine that bleed and NSAIDs exacerbate that side effect. But thanks for the advice.

 

[Dustin07]

I’m firmly against the use of antidepressants, like hugely. Is there anything else you guys have ever used that helps with depression and especially anxiety?

My physique is looking pretty good, but I swear I have gotten a bit smaller.

na I think its just photo perspective, but you're so lean your physique probably responds greatly to your carbload/hydration too.

Thanks for the advice, I want to get a mental supplement stack from sns aswell. So stress and anxiety will be part of it for sure.

I do think that its important when you take a product like this to make sure your mind and body know you're doing it to improve mental health. Anxiety and depression can be triggered by things both external and internal. Can be triggered by external trauma, blunt impact trauma, chemical imbalances, etc. As far as depression goes, I have found that my own depression has waned to the point of being almost completely non-existant as I have put more years between my last head injuries and now. Because I grew up with all the nastiest sports like Football and racing BMX then snowboarding, I had a lot of head injuries and I do think more and more that it had an effect.

Age plays a role too, as we work through a constant onslaught of new challenges each decade (school, jobs, bills, etc). My worst anxiety and later, panic attacks, came when I got divorced, moved 4 times one year, then for some reason 2 years later bought another business to run as a side hustle lol. so while I think my brain has healed a lot over the years, I also think that my threshold for stress has increased as I survived many new challenges and learned that they wouldn't kill me.

remember what I said before about taking off your shoes, walking in the grass? spending time in scripture, positive music, etc? when depression and anxiety really hit hard it's OK to give yourself some grace at times, hit the chill button, and cull out unnecessary stressors. I see how social media has a negative effect on a lot of people too so that's also worth watching your intake on.

Diet, exercise, sleep, mental well being.. all very important parts of our overall health.

Day 59:

I was super tired today but still dragged myself to the gym.

It was a pretty good lift, I knew I was really tired so I didn’t try to overload my bench and pull ups heavily. But I overloaded on every other lift hard.

That M Test has been phenomenal for me, I have been thinking about restocking it next month as I start to finish off everything I'm on now. It seems to hit me as hard as some of the mild PED's I've used. I notice my voice is deeper on it and like clock work 3am pitching a tent every day to the point that it's painful. TMI, but it is what it is.

 

[Hyde]

If any ideas I share are helpful, I’m glad to hear it.

More expensive and less effective than NSAIDs (but actually good for your health), you could try Theracurmin XT and Cissus XT at times you need more anti-inflammatory support. Between those and icing, I can really make a positive change in my back when inflammation gets higher (I have a history of back issues).

 

[Shadowblaze]

If any ideas I share are helpful, I’m glad to hear it.

More expensive and less effective than NSAIDs (but actually good for your health), you could try Theracurmin XT and Cissus XT at times you need more anti-inflammatory support. Between those and icing, I can really make a positive change in my back when inflammation gets higher (I have a history of back issues).

Yeah, when it comes to muscle inflammation XPG Curcuprime gel is VERY effective. Its gotten to the point where whenever I pull my front delt or experience a minor strain I simply just train slightly lighter and apply curcuprime at night on the area and forget about the injury.

For my hip strain I applied a lot of curcuprime on my glute area and used those electric shock pads and its quite a lot better.

When it comes to joint issues in my experience nothing will beat pharmaceuticals.

Todays training will just be 45 mins of the stationary bike probably.

 

[Shadowblaze]

How necessary are vegetables in a diet? I never really eat any since I feel the same when I do and don’t eat them.

 

[Hyde]

How necessary are vegetables in a diet? I never really eat any since I feel the same when I do and don’t eat them.

If you’re taking a good multivitamin, getting enough fiber to stay regular on bowel movements and maintain lipids in range, and don’t struggle with appetite/weight management, then you don’t really need them.

No professional nutritionist is going to say vegetables are “unhealthy”, but ultimately those are the primary reasons they’re incorporated in balanced diets where people are trying to control bodyweight and maintain health as they age.

When I am trying to gain weight, I cut them out entirely because they are filler and only get in the way. But otherwise, I eat what I like as it’s convenient & desired, and if I am dealing with hunger I go out of my way to incorporate them (like in a cut).

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 60:

Yesterday was just 45 mins of biking so I didn’t post it.

Today I didn’t have time to my isolations but hammered all my compounds hard.

I have my full drivers license test tmrw, hopefully I do good.

 

[Shadowblaze]

If you’re taking a good multivitamin, getting enough fiber to stay regular on bowel movements and maintain lipids in range, and don’t struggle with appetite/weight management, then you don’t really need them.

No professional nutritionist is going to say vegetables are “unhealthy”, but ultimately those are the primary reasons they’re incorporated in balanced diets where people are trying to control bodyweight and maintain health as they age.

When I am trying to gain weight, I cut them out entirely because they are filler and only get in the way. But otherwise, I eat what I like as it’s convenient & desired, and if I am dealing with hunger I go out of my way to incorporate them (like in a cut).

Wow that makes a ton of sense, I just find them annoying to eat when I could eat meat and dairy which will actually help me with my fitness goals. I don’t take a multivitamin though, I’m getting some nutritional bloodwork on Monday and we will see if I need one.

 

[Hyde]

Wow that makes a ton of sense, I just find them annoying to eat when I could eat meat and dairy which will actually help me with my fitness goals. I don’t take a multivitamin though, I’m getting some nutritional bloodwork on Monday and we will see if I need one.

I’m a bigger proponent of fruit personally for lifters; getting 3 pieces of fruit in daily is pretty easy comparatively. You can get about 10g fiber from an apple, orange & serving of berries plus some good stuff like quercetin, C, potassium, polyphenols. Just tack a serving onto the end of a meal or whatnot for desert, & it’s not as filling.

Bloodwork is never a bad idea!

 

[Shadowblaze]

I’m a bigger proponent of fruit personally for lifters; getting 3 pieces of fruit in daily is pretty easy comparatively. You can get about 10g fiber from an apple, orange & serving of berries plus some good stuff like quercetin, C, potassium, polyphenols. Just tack a serving onto the end of a meal or whatnot for desert, & it’s not as filling.

Bloodwork is never a bad idea!

Yep I’m also gonna get some pre natty stack cycle labs in a few weeks so I can get a good idea of test and free test. I was told by someone that you should take the test as close as possible to waking up and not eat before or work out 2 days before since it can lower test temporarily, is that true?

 

[Hyde]

Yep I’m also gonna get some pre natty stack cycle labs in a few weeks so I can get a good idea of test and free test. I was told by someone that you should take the test as close as possible to waking up and not eat before or work out 2 days before since it can lower test temporarily, is that true?

Yes, you want it morning, fasted, hydrated (drink at least a liter of plain water), and 2 days off is ideal so you don’t falsely skew creatinine levels or liver enzymes (the normal tissue damage hard training can produce can show up as harmless elevations, but then you wouldn’t be sure if an elevated reading was from your training or if there was actually an underlying issue worth testing deeper on).

 

[Shadowblaze]

Day 61 (yesterday)

Forgot to post this yesterday since I was at our rugby Halloween party.

My energy and motivation has been down recently and idk why, probably the weather and my anxiety worsening my sleep.

Im not gonna post leg days for the next bit since I’m not really training them at all since I snapped my glute last Monday. I’ll probably start training them again next Sunday or Monday.

 

[Dustin07]

see dude, you're looking thick in those pictures. you don't look like you've lost size at all.
FWIW, we bs a lot in each others logs but for me personally I still tend to track my crappy days because it gives me insight when I go back. I can find a portion from 2016/2017 when I had a torn adductor that would make me vomit from pain with a 135lb deadlift, but I am able to look at the work arounds, the timeframe, how long the injury lasted, and what I did to rehab it back then as well. just food for thought.

 

[Shadowblaze]

A lot has happened and I probably won’t post for a bit

 

[Hyde]

A lot has happened and I probably won’t post for a bit

Be well; try to keep your chin up

 

[akboom87]

A lot has happened and I probably won’t post for a bit

Hope all is well, like Hyde said keep your chin up

 

[sns8778]

A lot has happened and I probably won’t post for a bit

Will be keeping you in thoughts and prayers.

 

[Shadowblaze]

Be well; try to keep your chin up

Will be keeping you in thoughts and prayers.

Hope all is well, like Hyde said keep your chin up

Thanks guys. I truly appreciate the prayers and kind words!

A lot has been happening so I’ll fill you in.

Firstly I haven’t been posting because of my glute injury that stops me from training legs.

Secondly, my mental health hasn’t been the greatest and I had a bit of an episode where I saw my psychiatrist and they were so concerned for my wellbeing that the police got involved. It’s just been stressful and I haven’t been eating more than 1 or 2 meals a day and haven’t been leaving the house much, haven’t been at rugby either. Tomorrow I’m volunteering at my church for Halloween handing out candy to kids so that should be fun, I’m gonna take some anxiety stuff before so I’ll be mellow.

On the upside I’m in contact with my doctors and they are helping me with my diet and prescribing me these protein shakes to help me gain weight with my gallbladder disease. The fats inside the shake are bound to emulsifiers so you can digest them easier and it just got released earlier this year for medical reasons to help people gain weight. The protein inside the shakes are also apparently broken apart so they are super easy to digest (I may be butchering that description lol but basically they will just help me gain weight again)

That’s a big weight off my shoulders, I will finally be able to go out with friends and not worry about what I will eat since I can just pack a few shakes with me.

And they are helping me get my life back on track, so it will get better.

I’m still training but it’s a little inconsistent and I just won’t post for a little bit, but I’m keeping the workouts up.

 

[Hyde]

Try to take a short walk outside every day, even if it’s freezing & grey.

The bloodflow will be good for your glute of course, but much more importantly the fresh air is good for your soul - especially when you’re feeling down, getting outside centers you in the universe to some small degree. People say “Go touch grass” as insult or satire, but it’s founded in truth. The world can feel so isolating inside behind a screen, but going outside briefly really helps this.

Hope things keep improving for you!

 

[Shadowblaze]

I can’t squat to full depth anymore which is why I do my ass to grass lunges for some full ROM movements. I was squatting to a box at ~90 degrees so I wouldn’t go too far and hurt my spine.
But now that I injured my glute doing that I’m gonna go back to putting the safety bars at the spot I wanna squat to and going until I hit them. That way I don’t have to extend my ass as far back which is when I hurt my glute last time.

I’m also taking the light high bar squats out of my program and putting in front squats with my ass to ankles since every great rugby player with huge legs does front squats.

Today is my first day training legs again. But I’m only doing front squats, hamstring curls and leg extensions since I’m just back from my glute strain.