MonStar's Journal: Strong & Lean [Forum Archive]

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MonStar's Journal: Strong & Lean

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Posted by: M.J.H.

Sorry for the confusion everyone, I apologize for all of the confusing journals lately. I was honestly going back and forth about whether or not I should actually go with NHE (Natural Horomonal Enhancement) or not.

My goals are strength, and fat-loss.

I have decided that I am going to start NHE. "Natural Hormonal Enhancement" is a book by Rob Faigin. The diet in a nutshell is basically Atkin's style all of the time, and then roughy every 3rd or 4th day I will have a refeed. On a refeed day basically the day is normal for the most part and then at night I will refeed on low-fat, high-carb foods for 3-4 hours. It's basically a chance to pig out on carbs without eating a lot of fat at all. Usually its a lot of fun, to be completely honest. To those of you who want more info about NHE, info about the book and diet can be found here:

www.extique.com

The program that I am following is a modified version of Westside, basically. And here is a rough layout of what it looks like:

Quote:

Lower Body 1 (deadlift)
Deads/GoodAMs (sometimes we'll do speed work): to a 1RM (always mix it up)
Compound Assist: high/low (pick any leg lift you like. leg press, SLDL, etc)
Legs: 4 sets of 6 (prefer hamstrings here, hypers maybe?)
Back: 5 sets of 5 (rowing or chinning, etc)
Biceps: whatever you want

Upper Body 1
Flat Bench (or variation): sets of 3 to a 3RM
Variety Pressing (JM's, CG Decline, Dips, etc): high/low like you do now
Triceps: 2-3 sets of 4-8 (skulls, etc)
Shoulders: 4 sets of 6 (heavy like a db press or uprights) (waves, this will change often)
Shoulders: 2 sets of 12 (side laterals or front raise)

Lower Body 2 (squat)
Squats/Good AMs (sometimes we'll do speed work): to a 1RM (always mixing it up)
Compound Assist: high/low (SLDL, Good AMs, etc)
Heavy Legs (something suspended, or even negatives): 6 sets of 4 (hypers, suspended AMs, etc)
Hamstrings: 4 sets of 6 reps
Heavy Back: 3-6 sets of 4-6 reps (rowing)
Heavy Back: 3 sets of 8 (chins, whatever)
Biceps: anything you want

Upper Body 2
Close-grip Bench (or variation, treated as a warmup): sets of 5 to a 5RM
Rack Lockouts: to a 1RM (vary the lockout, 4", 6", etc)
Triceps: 8 sets of 4-6 (skulls, oh db press, etc and go HEAVY)
Triceps: 4 sets of 6 (pushdowns, dips, etc)
Shoulders: 4 sets of 6 (side laterals or front raises)

To those of you who have any questions, comments, suggestions, feel free to post away.

Posted by: M.J.H.

---Here is a quick progress picture so I can use this to gauge the progress of the diet. This was taken today, and I weigh 232 lbs.

Also measured my waist today, with abs flexed, and it measured 39.5 inches, right at my navel which is absolutely sickening. I am going to start taking waist measurements with each progress picture, so this will help me keep track of my fat gain.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 1
6-15-2004

Lower Body 1

Sumo Deadlifts:
135x3, 225x3, 275x2, 315x1, 365x1, 405x1, 455x1, 495x1

Conventional Deadlifts:
545x1, 585x1, 640x0

Platform Deadlifts: (4" extended ROM)
545x1, 545x1, 545x1, 545x1

Hyperextensions:
145x6, 145x6, 145x6, 145x6

Close-Grip Cable Pulldowns:
215x8, 215x8, 215x8

Parallel-Grip Support Rows:
165x12, 165x12

Decent workout today, honestly. Not the greatest, or the absolute worst. I am not sure what I think about all of these sets before my 1RM at this point. I feel like after 4-5 sets even if they are singles I am somewhat worn out. And by the time I get up into the heavier weights I am exhausted. Started off thinking that I was going to for a sumo 1RM. By the time I got up to 495 it felt extremely heavy. So I decided to switch over to conventional. Pulled 545 and 585, came up slow. 640 I got about halfway up and then just couldn't budge it anymore. I am not sure what the problem is there. Whatever.

Did 4 singles off the platform with 545, basically working on kicking my hips forward as I come up and pulling my shoulders back. Seemed to help some, whatever. With a 4" extended ROM I was pretty happy pulling 545. Moved onto some heavy hyperextensions today. I really like them, I think I am going to make a video of them soon, so you guys can see my technique. I do them Zercher style with an EZ-curl bar. Hit 4 sets of 6 with 145. Finished up with some lat accessory work. 3 sets of 8 and then 2 sets of 12. Not too bad at all. Lats were toasted, so were my biceps.

Diet:
- 3 scrambled eggs, 3 strips of bacon
- tuna + mayo
- whey protein postworkout
- pork rinds + french onion dip
- chicken, broccili + cheese + butter
- low-carb banana nut bread, low-carb milk, low-carb ice-cream

Diet was pretty good today I think. Ended up today with roughly 20-25g of carbs of today. So not too bad for my 1st day of NHE. Really happy to be back on this diet. My fat-loss last time on this diet was very substantial, so I am hoping for the same kind of results.

Sleep: 8 hours.

Weight: 232 lbs.

That's absolutely f*cking ridiculous IMO. Over 230 lbs., and an almost 40 inch waist. WTF? I am so f*cking pissed right now. I really think that NHE will work well for fat-loss, I just HAVE to stick with it. If I slack off and binge etc. it's going to blow up in my face for sure.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

We already talked about it, but don't sweat the workout. Missing a 15lb PR just comes with the business sometimes. If we always hit 15lb PRs we'd all be elite level lifters by now.

Let's just keep things going. We'll lower the accessory volume a bit to compensate for the lack of carbs, but there's nothing sticking out as bad in recent workouts, so drastic changes won't be necessary.

Posted by: PreMier

Good luck. Again... lol

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Yeah I guess it wasn't that bad of a session overall. I am not sure what the hell I was so frustrated about. Whatever. Definitely let me know what you think I should lower. Tomorrow is Upper1 what do you have in mind? Probably going to be beating up my shoulders pretty good.

PreMier: LOL, thanks man.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Honestly, the only thing that needs removing is the " Hamstrings: 4 sets of 6 reps" on Lower2. Just progress like we've talked about, and you'll have days where you hit 60 and don't finish and you'll have days where you get it all done.

For your 3RM work, do a close-grip bench or decline to a 3RM. After that pick stuff you like and just stick to the routine.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Yeah okay man, it's not a problem at all for me to continue doing the regular volume. As long as I continue to get enough sleep, and food in me before my workout, I should be okay. We'll see what happens. I can always schedule big lifting days the morning after my refeed. We'll see what happens. 3RM work on CG bench sounds good.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 2
6-16-2004

Upper Body 1

Close-Grip BB Presses:
135x3, 185x3, 225x3, 255x3, 285x3, 305x3!

Flat DB Presses:
120x6, 120x6, 120x6, 120x6

Skullcrushers:
125x6, 125x6, 125x6

Upright Rows:
175x6, 175x6, 155x8, 155x8

DB Lateral Raises:
40x8, 40x8

Good workout today I think, my left elbow/forearm is still giving me some pain though, for whatever reason. Only when my brachioradialis touches my biceps/brachialis though. When my arm is straight it feels fine. During CG bench it was aching somewhat. Not too bad, but still, pain that isn't necessary. Hit 305 for a triple, a new PR! Moved onto flat DB presses for 4 sets of 6 with the 120's. Very very pleased with my strength here. Skullcrushers really ached my left elbow/forearm. Not sure what to do I am currently taking glucosamine and MSM. Whatever.

Upright rows were friggin' awesome today. Really intense sets. Beat the hell outta' my delts and traps. Shoulders really took a beating here today. Finished up with 2 sets of DB laterals. My shoulders were pretty wiped out from the laterals. Overall workout was pretty damn good.

Diet:
- tuna + mayo
- pork rinds + french onion dip, 1/2 Atkin's bar, cheese
- cheeseburger
- whey protein postworkout
- BBQ wings, cheese
- low-carb choclate
- 2 bacon cheeseburgers + mayo
- low-carb ice-cream, low-carb choclate milk

Diet was okay today, really need to take it easy on the low-carb foods like choclate, ice-cream, etc. Low-carb choclate milk is absolutely AWESOME. It's 2g of carbs per 8 oz. glass and 12g of protein. Talk about good stuff.

Sleep: 3.5 + 3.5 hours.

Had to get up and drive home. Damnit.

Weight: 229 lbs. Getting better.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

I will breakdown why this was such a badass workout:

When doing 3RM work, the working range is 80-89%. Here's what you did.

135x3 (44%)
185x3 (61%)
225x3 (74%)
255x3 (84%)
285x3 (93%)
305x3! (100%)

3 sets of 80% or better, and the set before that was almost 75%! Excellent progression as well. Next time you hit Upper1 do this same scheme on CG Incline. This was really good, solid lifting. Accessory work was spot on.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Wow, thanks for putting my workout into that perspective. I guess it was a good workout afterall. 285 for a triple felt very very strong. 305 for 3 wasn't bad either. The 3rd rep just slowly made it up though. Oh well. I am really getting good in CG bench at tucking my elbows underneath the bar. I really think that's helping. Next session is Lower2, my squat day, any ideas?

Posted by: Saturday Fever

High box squats for the ME lift, and SLDL for high/low. Something like this....

High box squats (and I mean high, shouldn't be anywhere near parallel)
SLDL high/low
Hypers or Leg Press 4x6
Back 3-4x6-8
Back 4x6
Biceps (whatever)

Posted by: PreMier

Damn, you have quite the coach Mike. Nice workouts man.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay man, looks good. I am not sure what kind of weights I am going to throw around on the high box squats. For whatever reason I never feel too strong on them. I'll definitely give them a shot though with my new squatting form. We'll see what happens. Thanks for the recommendation though, always appreciate it.

PreMier: Haha, I definitely have the greatest coach.

Thanks for the support.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonStar

SF: Okay man, looks good. I am not sure what kind of weights I am going to throw around on the high box squats. For whatever reason I never feel too strong on them. I'll definitely give them a shot though with my new squatting form. We'll see what happens. Thanks for the recommendation though, always appreciate it.

That's good. Work the weaknesses to improve the strengths. Just remember to sit back, etc.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay man, will do. I am going to concentrate on sitting back, sticking my chest out, arching my back, almost completely good AM style. Shooting my hips back and I come down, etc.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 3
6-17-2004

Rest

Did some cardio today. Did 15 minutes on the treadmill, 3.5 MPH for 1 minute followed by 7.5 MPH for 1 minute. Definitely need to get in better shape, talk about driving me friggin' insane. I was completely exhausted today, it was pathetic. I am also going to try doing sprints outside on my next rest day. I hate the friggin' treadmill.

Diet:
- 3 scrambled eggs + cheese, 3 pieces of bacon
- 3 hot dogs
- 2 hot dogs, cheese
- garden salad + ranch dressing
- mixed nuts
- low-carb choclate milk
- 2 cheeseburgers + mayo
- low-carb banana nut bread + butter
- low-carb choclate milk, cheese

Diet wasn't bad today at all, had no problem sticking to what I was supposed to the low-carbs. Didn't end up too high in calories today at all. I am most likely going to refeed tomorrow night, so that should be a lot of fun. I am going to try and take it easy on my calories before the refeed, we'll see what happens.

Sleep: 7.5 hours.

Weight: 226 lbs. Getting better.

Posted by: stencil

Cardio is annoying. That's part of the reason I do martial arts - I'm doing cario when I'm not even thinking about it.

Posted by: X Ring

Cardio is part of the reason why I fly fish.

By the time I get to the gym in the evening there isnt time for me to do cardio

Posted by: M.J.H.

stencil: Yeah that's why I am switching to cardio outdoors now. I really think that should be a bit more fun than running on the damn treadmill.

X Ring: LOL, at first I was thinking, fishing? How many calories could that possibly burn?

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 4
6-18-2004

Lower Body 2

Box Squats: (above parallel)
135x3, 225x3, 275x2, 315x1, 365x1, 405x1, 455x1, 495x1, 545x0

SLDL:
505x1, 505x1, 505x1, 505x1, 505x1, 505x1, 455x3, 455x3

Nautilus Leg Extensions:
260x12, 260x12
Dropset: 260x8, 220x7, 180x7, 140x6

Parallel-Grip Cable Pulldowns:
200x8, 200x8, 200x8

Nautilus Pullovers:
240x12, 240x12

Pretty good workout today I think. I am realizing now that I definitely need to cut back on my accessory work due to the low carbs. Today after SLDL I felt so damn drained I was ready to friggin' go home I was so tired. High box squats didn't go all that well. Came down with 545 and just got stuck in the hole. Bothered me too because 495 felt like cake. Whatever. Moved onto leg extensions, really beat up my quads completely there. Not too bad at all. Dropset beat the friggin' hell out of my quads.

Finished up with some pulldowns and pullovers. My body was just screaming at this point. Maybe because I had no carbs in my system, whatever. Really exhausted today in my lat accessory work. I definitely need to cut something back, I am not sure what though at this point.

Diet:
- 2 scrambled eggs + cheese, 2 pieces of bacon
- whey protein postworkout
- italian sausage
- cheese

5-Hour Refeed:
- frosted flakes cereal + skim milk
- 4 slices white bread, grape koolaid
- captain crunch cereal + skim milk
- low-fat frozen pizza
- low-fat choclate eclair
- low-fat vanilla cookies
- fat-free pringles
- low-fat devil's food cake cookies
- low-fat ice-cream
- gatorade, skim milk
- runts candy
- swedish fish candy

Wow, refeed today! Really pigged out for the first one just because I was starving, lol. Definitely kept my fat intake low though for this refeed. Probably under 20-25g. Not too bad at all. I can't even start to imagine how many friggin' carbs I took in during this refeed. TONS.

Sleep: 6 hours.

Weight: 223 lbs. Woah, definitely lighter. Should go up some tomorrow though since I am refeeding tonight.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Your best to parallel is 465, so 495 above parallel is not bad. 495->545 may have simply been too big a jump. 50lb is a lot to ask of your body, especially when you're in the range you were in. But 495 is a solid number. The whole point was to work on your lockout strength. You're locking out 30lb more then you full squat, and that's a good sign. We'll probably stick to lockout-style work for a while.

If you're feeling drained after your first 2 exercises, then you can simply move on after your ME and high/low work is done. You can always make up the volume around your refeeds and you're not going to hinder yourself.

Besides, you locked out a 495 squat with next to no carbs in your system. That's something a lot of people can't say.

Posted by: stencil

505 SLDL. Good lord. Nice job. I'm still knockin' on 300's door.

Posted by: sftwrngnr

Awesome workout (as always) Mike!

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Hey man, thanks for chiming in, I really really appreciate it. Always making me feel better about my workouts.

About my 495 strength, it came up like nothing at all. 545 just got stuck, whatever. I want to mention that I am only turning my box at a new angle for high box squats. They're honestly only a few inches higher than parallel. I'll have to make a video. And yes this is on the past 3 days very low carb. So not too shabby.

What do you have in mind tomorrow for my Upper2 session? More lockouts I am assuming, correct? Keep in mind this will be the morning after a refeed.

stencil: Thanks man. A few of the singles with 505 I felt like I was doing more of a Romanian DL, but I am not sure. I could just tell that my legs were not completely locked out. Whatever. Thanks for the support.

sftwrngnr: Thanks man!

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Close-grip Pin Press (6-8" up) (treated as a warmup): sets of 5 to a 5RM
Rack Lockouts: to a 1RM (last 6-8")
Triceps: 8 sets of 4-6 (skulls, oh db press, etc and go HEAVY)
Triceps: 4 sets of 6 (pushdowns, dips, etc)
Shoulders: 4 sets of 6 (side laterals or front raises)

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Wow, that should be interesting. Close-grip pin presses huh? I am really looking forward to these, for whatever reason. Definitely running on somewhat low sleep though, my work schedule lately has been f*cking pathetic. Anyway, I am definitely going to be weighing a bit more today. I can't even start to imagine how many calories I took in during last night's refeed. Calories and carbs must have been out of control.

Posted by: Rocco32

Looking good Mike. I wanted to wait a few days before I posted to make sure you were going to stay in this journal for a bit, LOL!! You have some awesome lifts happening there. Liking the diet? I look forward to seeing your results on it!

Posted by: gwcaton

Quote:

Originally Posted by rock4832

Looking good Mike. I wanted to wait a few days before I posted to make sure you were going to stay in this journal for a bit, LOL!! You have some awesome lifts happening there. Liking the diet? I look forward to seeing your results on it!

in re: journal. Rocks right. wo's looking good and hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream and cake !!! Even I could stick to a diet like that !!! j/k Good job !

Posted by: Rocco32

So you really don't care about fat aside from refeeds? And I imagine the hamburgers are bun free right?

Posted by: M.J.H.

rock: Hey man, basically like I said in the first post. The diet is primarily Atkin's style. So yes I can eat all of the hot dogs, hamburgers, cheeseburgers, etc. that I want, without the bun. So no carbs, at all. Shooting for less than 20g per day. But then the refeed comes along and I usually shoot for 3-6 hours where I pretty much feast on very low-fat high-carb foods (the complete opposite of the low-carb part of the diet). So basically any kind of food can somehow be worked into the diet. During last night's refeed I had Smart Ones pizza, had 3g of fat, tasted absolutely fabulous.

gwcaton: Yeah anyone can stick to this diet!

Posted by: Rocco32

Mike- sorry to keep hounding you about your diet, I never read too much about Atkins all I've ever done is Carb cycling and I'm interested in what your doing. But I don't have the money to buy that book right now LOL!

So you could eat like Fried chicken, wings, ketchup, Chicken nuggets. Things like that too?

Posted by: M.J.H.

rock: Hey man, definitely search for the Atkin's diet or go to Atkins.com I think it is. Honestly, my journal is not for me to explain low-carb dieting, no offense to you at all. Check out www.extique.com for more information. Like I said the diet is Atkin's style with refeeds, not the most complicated diet in the world bro.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 5
6-19-2004

Upper Body 2

Close-Grip Pin Presses: (pins set 6" off chest)
135x5, 185x5, 215x5, 245x5, 275x5!, 285x4

8" Lockouts:
135x3, 225x3, 275x1, 315x1, 365x1, 385x1, 405x1, 415x1!

Seated DB Presses:
75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x5

Incline Tate Presses:
60x6, 60x6, 60x6, 60x6

Nautilus Lateral Raises:
220x6, 220x6, 220x6, 220x6

Cable Pressdowns:
Dropset: 200x10, 170x10, 140x10, 110x10, 80x12, 60x20

Really GREAT workout today.

One of the best workouts that I have had in a long time. Running on practically no sleep at all too. This really shows me how effective refeeds really are. I felt pumped as f*cking hell today, with tons of energy, etc. Really felt great. Started off with CG pin presses, worked up to 275 for 5, nice PR there. Then 8" lockouts where I worked up to 415 for a 10 lbs. PR. Definitely happy there as well. Moved onto some seated DB presses for my shoulders. Beat them down hard there. Shoulders and triceps were absolutely toast.

After the seated DB presses I hit up some incline Tate presses, OUCH. Doing them on an incline changes the exercise completely. Felt a whole new stress in my triceps. Beat them up good. Moved onto some lateral raises that beat up my triceps as well. Really hit my delts hard there. After that I still had energy, and was still under an hour, so I did some pressdowns. Nice workout. Triceps and shoulders were swolen.

Diet:
- ham & cheese omlette
- mixed nuts
- garden salad + cheese + ranch dressing
- whey protein postworkout
- low-carb milk, cheese, italian sausage
- pork rinds + french onion dip, cheese
- bacon cheeseburger + mayo
- low-carb ice-cream
- low-carb cheesecake

Need to eat some more food tonight. Definitely going too easy on the calories so far. Ended up pretty good in terms of my overall calorie intake. Definitely ate a lot after my workout, lol, I was absolutely starving! Not too bad overall. I think I am going to be refeeding on Monday night, we'll see what happens.

Sleep: 5.5 hours.

Weight: 226 lbs. Up 3 lbs. after the refeed, which is expected.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 6
6-20-2004

Rest

Took a rest day today, not all that sore but I definitely think that it was a good idea. Went out tonight and ran some sprints to hopefully shoot my metabolism up some. Didn't run too many, because honestly I am not in the greatest cardiovascular shape right now.

Diet:
- 2 cheeseburgers
- Atkin's bar, low-carb choclate
- 2 cheeseburgers
- 2 hot dogs + cheese
- cheese
- tuna + mayo + cheese
- low-carb cheesecake, low-carb choclate milk

Diet was not that bad today I guess, but it could have been better, that's for sure. Felt like I ate a lot today but I am really not sure to be completely honest. It's somewhat hard to say on a low-carb diet. Didn't take in that many carbs today, I am positive about that.

Sleep: 3 + 3 hours.

Posted by: ncgirl21

Morning Mike!

Everything looks great. Diet looks fun

. I had one of those Atkins bars the other day, they're really pretty good

. Have a good day!!

Posted by: stencil

Quote:

stencil: Thanks man. A few of the singles with 505 I felt like I was doing more of a Romanian DL, but I am not sure. I could just tell that my legs were not completely locked out. Whatever. Thanks for the support.

Yeah, that happens, even with my pathetic weights. I think the main difference is how hard it hits your glutes and lower back. I try to kepe my lower back as out of the lift as possible since it's my main hammy / glute exercise.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Nice lifting!

Speed work is in order for your next Lower day. Speed, speed, speed!

Posted by: GRIFF

Great job on the presses and lockouts my man, lookin hella strong there, especially while slimmin' down some. I see your weight is gettin back down where you want it, you were headin in my direction for awhile there haha. Keep up the good work.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Andrea: Hey there, thanks for the support! I really appreciate it. Yeah the Atkin's bars are pretty good I think. They definitely help take care of my sugar cravings on this low-carb part of the diet.

stencil: Yeah man I have to agree. I don't think that SLDL and Romanians are so damn similar they really don't matter the exact style, ya' know? In other words they both stress your hamstrings, lower back, and glutes regardless.

SF: Speed work is done. And the other thing you wanted me to experiment with I really liked as well. Next is Upper1, any ideas? Once again, this is the day following a big refeed.

BTW, didn't you say something about some kind of isometric work?

GRIFF: Hey man, thanks for stopping by. Yeah I have really been trying to improve my lockouts lately especially. And this NHE diet is friggin' awesome. I get to pig out like crazy, and at the same time, I am having tons of fun. Slowly slimming down, keeping my workouts solid, etc. Yeah I was heading in your direction. Now shooting for a lean 212-215 lbs.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 7
6-21-2004

Lower Body 1

Speed Deadlifts:
365x2, 365x2, 365x2, 365x2, 365x2, 365x2, 365x2, 365x2

Suspended Good Mornings:
255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x2, 255x1

Cable Pull-Throughs:
200x12, 200x12

Parallel-Grip Cable Rows:
290x6, 290x6, 290x6, 290x6

Parallel-Grip Cable Pulldowns:
200x12, 200x12

Crossbody Hammer Curls:
60x8, 80x11!

Really good workout tonight I think, definitely good for running on low carbs for 3 days, that's for sure. Started off today with speed deadlifts, for 8 sets of 2 with 365. Changed my mixed grip up so now my left hand is overhand and right hand is underhand. Don't have any elbow pain this way. After talking to the powerlifters in my gym I am thinking doing a double overhand grip until I get too heavy, etc. That way I don't have to worry about elbow pain. We'll see what happens.

Moved onto suspended good AM's for 11 sets of 2 with 255, and then on the 12th set I couldn't get the 2nd rep up. This was an experiment SF wanted me to try that I absolutely loved. Just doing sets of 2 until you no longer can hit 2 reps. I think I maybe should have gone with 275 lbs. instead of 255. Whatever. Moved onto some cable pull-throughs for 2 sets of 12 with the stack, and then 4 sets of 6 with the stack on cable rows. Beat my lats up pretty good. Hammer curls were awesome. Set with the 80's was nothing less than balls to the wall.

Diet:
- 3 scrambled eggs + cheese, 3 pieces of bacon
- italian sausage, hard boiled eggs
- Atkin's bar, Atkin's shake

3-Hour Refeed:
- low-fat macaroni & cheese
- low-fat BBQ pizza
- 2 fat-free waffles + maple syrup
- low-fat ice-cream
- low-fat brownies
- low-fat cheesecake
- 2 low-fat choclate eclairs
- fat-free pringles
- low-fat devil's food cake cookies
- gatorade, skim milk, mountain dew
- nerds candy, candy corn, fruit candy

Ouch, lots and lots and lots and lots of calories and carbs during this refeed. I definitely need to invest in some digestive enzymes to take prior to this meal because my amount of calories was absolutely out of control today. Took in way so many damn calories, almost a sickening amount to be completely honest. Whatever. For whatever reason even for me it's tough to pig out tonight what I just did on Friday. Oh well.

Sleep: 5.5 hours.

Weight: 223 lbs. Not too bad at all, especially right before a refeed. Don't feel flabby at all which is definitely a good thing.

Posted by: AnnaDTX

hey!!! So far so good!

Posted by: Riverdragon

This atkins stuff just amazes me. It's kind of like losing weight while you are raising your cholesterol. Makes no sense to me

Posted by: M.J.H.

Anna: Thanks for the support! Appreciate it.

Riverdragon: Actually bro if you research the Atkin's diet it actually lowers people's cholesterol levels, along with their blood pressure.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 8
6-22-2004

Upper Body 1

Flat BB Presses:
135x3, 185x3, 215x3, 245x3, 275x3, 305x3, 325x2

Suspended BB Presses: (pins 5" off chest)
295x2, 295x2, 295x2, 295x2, 295x2, 295x2, 295x2, 295x2, 295x1

Tate Presses:
60x12, 60x12

Arnold Presses:
60x8, 60x8, 60x8

BB Front Raises:
85x8, 85x8, 85x8

DB Lateral Raises:
CAT: 30x20, 30x12, 30x10, 30x8
Dropset: 25x10, 20x8, 15x8

Eh, workout today could have been a lot better. Felt completely drowsy and lethargic during this workout. For whatever reason I could not get focused to save my f*cking life. Whatever. Overall my workout honestly was not THAT bad. Could have been worse I guess. But honestly considering that I had a refeed last night it could/should have been better IMO. Started off with bench worked up to 305 for a triple, and then 325 for a double.

Moved onto suspended BB presses for 8 sets of 295 for 2 and then on the 9th set I got halfway up in the 2nd rep and couldn't lockout. Whatever. Used SF's principle again about hitting doubles until you can't accomplish the desired reps anymore. Then hit 2 sets of 12 with Tate presses. Finished up with some TOUGH shoulder work, ouch. Arnold presses that beat my shoulders and rotator cuffs hard. Then BB front raises, ouch. And finally some crazy DB laterals. Started off with CAT with the 30's up to 50 reps total. Then immediately, with no rest moved onto a triple dropset. Delts were on FIRE, lol.

Diet:
- 3 scrambled eggs + cheese
- whey protein postworkout
- tuna + mayo, cheese, low-carb choclate milk
- pork rinds + french onion dip, low-carb cheesecake
- cheese, low-carb ice-cream

Eh, diet was okay today I guess. Not too bad or good to be honest, lots and lots of cheese it seemed like. But that's okay on this diet so its not that big of a deal. Looking forward to my refeed this Thursday or Friday night.

Sleep: 8.5 hours.

Weight: 224 lbs. Wow, lower than I would have guessed.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Until I can hit ONE rep with 295, you may not be unhappy with hitting 17 reps with 295.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Yeah I guess I really should not be unhappy unless I truly have a bad workuot. I just base my workout being good or bad more on my intensity and focus in the gym, rather than anything else. Don't ask me why.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 9
6-23-2004

Rest

Ran 11 sprints this morning. Last time I ran sprints I only did 10 so I am just going to add another sprint each session. Running as hard as I can for 50 yards, walking back, and then sprinting again. This may sound short and easy but when you havn't ran sprints in years, it's definitely exhausting.

Diet:
- 3 scrambled eggs + cheese, 3 pieces of bacon
- tuna salad, cheese
- steak + green peppers
- Atkin's bar
- 2 grilled chicken breasts + cheese + peppers
- grilled chicken ceasar salad

Diet wasn't bad today I don't think. Ate a lot of food, lol. Went to Friday's last night and got the sizzling chicken & cheese and a grilled chicken salad, and took off the croutons. I don't think I took in too many carbs but it was kinda' hard to say. Oh well.

Sleep: 6 hours.

Posted by: GRIFF

Way to go stickin to the diet there Mike, looks to me like you'll be super lean in no time, you're already strong, great workouts even though you dont feel it was as good as it couldve been, if only my off days looked like that

But enough kissin your ass for now, lets see some PRs DAMNIT! haha catch ya later bro

Posted by: M.J.H.

GRIFF: Hey man, thanks for chiming in, I appreciate it a great deal. And the diet is tons of fun, I absolutely love it so far. Really seems to be getting the job done. I am curious how much I weigh tomorrow. My weight tomorrow is going to determine whether I will refeed tomorrow night or Friday night. We'll see what happens. I would like to get into the habit of doing a 3-hour refeed every 3rd night. But I guess we'll have to wait and see. If I am 222 lbs. or less tomorrow I am most likely going to refeed tomorrow evening. I don't want to be dropping weight too fast!

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Let's experiment again. For your main lift do squat doubles until you can't do anymore. Then do 5 sets of 5 sumo stance SLDL. Then proceed to back and biceps.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Hey man, ouch, that sounds like a plan. Thanks for the recommendation as usual. I am thinking somewhere in the 425-445 range for squat doubles. What do you think? Also, I was thinking about throwing in some isometric work in my next bench session---what do you think? It is my more triceps oriented bench workout, by the way.

Posted by: stencil

Good to see you're still experimenting and keeping at it, dude. It can be tough to get one's ass into the gym this time of year.

Posted by: M.J.H.

stencil: Thanks for the support bro, really means a lot. I am still playing around with my diet and frequency of my refeeds to really see exactly where I should put them to optimize my strength gains. Its all about experimentation at this point I think, since I am not even 2 weeks into the diet.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 10
6-24-2004

Lower Body 2

Box Squats:
425x2, 425x2, 425x2, 425x2, 425x1

Sumo SLDL:
365x5, 365x5, 365x5, 365x5, 365x5

Underhand Support Rows:
210x8, 210x8, 210x8

Cable Pullovers:
120x12, 120x12

Cable Curls:
200x8, 200x8

Good workout today. Definitely an exhausting workout to be completely honest. Running on no carbs is friggin' killing me, that's for damn sure! I am definitely tightening up though I think, feeling a bit leaner on each of my low-carb days. Anyway, started off with SF's failure principle of doubles until you can not longer get 2 reps with full ROM box squats. These beat my f*cking a*s. Used 425, heavier than I should have gone, but really good sets. Really a good idea IMO to go this heavy, really got my used to the heavy weight on my back. Squat form was pretty damn good too, I might add.

Moved onto a new exercise for me, SLDL, but with a sumo stance. These are AWESOME. Really an unfamiliar feel completely, but I definitely liked them. Did most of my sets of 5 with a double overhand grip, to improve my grip strength. But a few I did with a regular mixed grip. Had my knees almost completely locked out for every rep. These sets I might add wiped me out. Moved onto some support rows, not too bad. Then some pullovers and some cable curls with the entire stack. Not bad.

Diet:
- cheese + mayo, low-carb toast + butter
- whey protein postworkout
- cheese

5-Hour Refeed:
- frosted flakes + skim milk, grape koolaid
- low-fat vegetable pizza
- low-fat cheese pizza
- low-fat vanilla cookies
- pretzels, fat-free pringles
- nerds candy
- low-fat coffee ice-cream
- soda, fruit punch, lemonade, skim milk

Really didn't feel like I went THAT crazy tonight during my refeed. Spread it out a bit more over 5 hours vs. 3 last time. But oh well. Kept my fat intake less than 30g I think. Maybe 40g at the very most. I know I should shoot for less. Also took 5g of ginger root before the refeed started to help digest all this food. Seemed to help some with the bloatedness, etc.

Sleep: 8.5 hours.

Weight: 224 lbs. A little high. Not going to refeed until tomorrow night.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

That's a good workout.

With regards to wnting to change things up a bit, keep in mind that you need to focus on triceps on your lockout day, and shoulders on your bottom day. Those days should be structured like so...

ME Lift
Compound Accessory
Triceps
Triceps
Shoulders

and...

ME Lift
Compound Accessory
Shoulders
Shoulders
Triceps

I hope that clears it up.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay I see exactly what you're saying now. The order of exercises is basically what I am stressing in that workout. About the squat/deadlift workout I am just going to do something like this:

ME Lift
Lat
Compound Accessory (high/low)
Lat
Lower Back/Hamstring
Biceps

Does that look okay SF? Thanks man.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Thanks man. Here a rough layout of the program. Not much has changed except for the order of the exercises:

Quote:

Lower Body 1 (deadlift)
ME Lift
Lats
Compound Accessory (high/low)
Lats
Lower Back/Hamstrings
Biceps

Upper 1
ME Lift
Compound Accessory (high/low)
Shoulders
Shoulders
Triceps

Lower Body 2 (squat)
ME Lift
Lats
Compound Accessory (high/low)
Lats
Lower Back/Hamstrings
Biceps

Upper 2
ME Lift
Compound Accessory (high/low)
Triceps
Triceps
Shoulders

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 11
6-25-2004

Upper Body 2

Close-Grip Incline BB Presses:
135x5, 165x5, 195x5, 225x5, 245x2

7" Lockouts:
385x1, 385x1, 385x1, 405x1, 405x1, 405x1, 425x1, 425x1, 425x1, 445x0

Flat DB Presses:
120x6, 120x6, 120x5, 120x4

Seated French Presses:
105x12, 105x12

Nautilus Lateral Raises:
220x8, 220x8, 220x8

Really really good workout today. Pump in my triceps was absolutely AWESOME. Obviously this time I definitely refilled a lot of muscle glycogen. Because my triceps were about to explode, lol. Started off with CG incline presses, to a 5RM. I can't even take the bar down to touch my chest on CG incline because of the extreme pain that I get in my left elbow. I can get about 2" off my chest. Had some a*shole spot me for 245 who really pissed me off. He helped me the 3rd rep when I wasn't even sure that I needed it. Whatever.

Pulled a new bench inside the power rack for lockouts, measured roughly 7" although it's somewhat hard to say. Weird sets of lockouts. 385 felt VERY heavy at first, but after a few singles it felt lighter. Then 405 I just barely got for the first single, but the next 2 were much easier. And the same with 425. Seemed odd to me. Anyway, tried 445, budged it, but couldn't lock it out. Moved onto flat DB presses, tried for 4 sets of 6, but that didn't happen. Then some seated french presses, and finally some laterals. Not bad.

Diet:
- 2 scrambled eggs + cheese, low-carb toast + butter
- whey protein postworkout
- 2 hot dogs + cheese
- BBQ pork rinds, cheese
- garden salad + ranch dressing, mixed nuts
- pepperoni + cheese
- 2 Atkin's shakes

Diet was okay today, a little higher in carbs. Not over 40g though I would say, at the most. I try to stay under 30g, but sometimes it gets friggin' impossible since everything has a couple of grams. Oh well.

Sleep: 7 hours.

Weight: 226 lbs. I have decided that I am going to swing by Dick's Sporting Goods today and pick up a scale for my house. The gym scale anymore is just so unreliable I never have any idea how much I actually weigh. I am going to start weighing myself on a daily basis, first thing in the morning right out of bed, after a I use the restroom.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Good session. Don't worry about the ROM on the 5RM work. It should be treated as a warmup. The idea being that you warmup so when you get to the big lift (the lockouts) you don't have to start low all over again. You can start closer to your 1RM and get some good sets in. Your lockout strength looks awesome. We might want to throw in some speed work soon to help you get the bar into a lockout position. Should show you some great PRs.

Posted by: Mudge

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonStar

Riverdragon: Actually bro if you research the Atkin's diet it actually lowers people's cholesterol levels, along with their blood pressure.

Most of the human bodies cholesterol (about 95%) is made in your liver, and primarily comes from high GI carbs (sugars etc), not dietary cholesterol like eggs.

Infants were fed the equivalent of 40 whole eggs per week and cholesterol levels were not impacted measurably. These blurbs about dietary cholesterol being a killer are old news since disproven, just like 15 years ago they were telling us to eat margarine and not butter, now we know better don't we.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Yeah I know what you're saying now as the first exercise just serving as a warmup, makes sense to me more now than it did previously. Yeah I really think that gradually my lockout strength has been going up and up and up. So I think that Monday is going to be a good way of determining what kind of progress I have made in my triceps. I think that 355 is definitely in me, and I guess we'll have to wait and see about 360-365. I think that 365 is more of a mental barrier than anything. We'll see what happens. Tomorrow like we talked about I am going to do some rack pulls, and high/low hypers, which are going to friggin' kill my lower back. Hyperextensions probably hit my lower back harder than any other exercise.

Mudge: Thanks for the info man, appreciate it. I don't think that NHE is having any negative effects on my cholesterol at all.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 12
6-26-2004

Lower Body 1

Conventional Rack Deadlifts: (plates 6" off the floor)
135x3, 225x3, 315x2, 405x1, 455x1, 495x1, 545x1, 585x1, 615x1, 645x0

T-Bar Rows:
295x8, 295x8, 295x8

Hyperextensions:
155x3, 155x3, 155x3, 155x3, 155x3, 155x3

Close-Grip Cable Pulldowns:
200x12, 200x12

Nautilus Lying Leg Curls:
160x12, 160x12

Cable Curls:
200x8, 200x8

Good workout today I think, really seemed to be exhausted though for whatever. Reason. Lack of sleep last night and running on low carbs is definitely a deadly combo. Started off with rack pulls, 6" off the floor, to a 1RM. Budged 645 but unfortunately I couldn't lockout with it. Moved onto some ghetto style t-bar rows on one side of a barbell with a v-bar attachment. Really beat up my midback. Nice sets, that's for sure.

Moved onto some high/low with hyperextensions. Used a cambered-bar and did these Zercher style, with the bar in the crease of my elbows. Hit 6 sets of 3, not too bad at all. Then I did some pulldowns, hit my lats pretty hard. At this point I was so friggin' drained. Finished up with some leg curls with 160 and cable curls with the stack. Not a bad workout.

Diet:
- 3 hot dogs
- low-carb soft ice-cream, Atkin's bar
- mixed nuts
- whey protein postworkout
- bacon & cheese omlette
- cheeseburger
- low-carb choclate milk, 2 cans of tuna + mayo

Diet wasn't too bad today at all. Definitely kept my carbs fairly low. Had some soft serve low-carb ice-cream that was friggin' awesome, that's for sure. Really liked it a lot. Other than that I don't think I did too bad today.

Sleep: 5.5 hours. Damnit, had to work extra early today, I need a new job.

Weight: 222.5 lbs. Bought a new Health-o-meter scale yesterday that I am going to be using now on a daily basis. Instead of weighing myself at the gym, with their unreliable scale. I am going to be weighing myself on a daily basis, first thing in the morning, after using the restroom. Basically just to see how my water retention flucuates, etc.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 13
6-27-2004

Rest

Took a rest day today. I am going to be refeeding tonight and then tomorrow shooting for a 1RM in bench. I am either going to hit 355-360 and see how that feels and then maybe consider shooting for 365 again. All I know is that I am going to need to get a lot of sleep tonight, along with a hell of a lot of carbs in this refeed. Going to try and take my refeed a bit slower and really take in a ton of carbs and calories. We'll see what happens. Going to keep my meals somewhat limited before the refeed.

Wanted to add that today I am SORE. Holy sh*t, maybe running on low carbs has finally caught up with me. My lower back is killing me today. Along with my upper back, traps, hamstrings, etc. I just aching all over the damn place. I am hoping I feel a bit better by tomorrow because I am shooting for a big bench PR if I refeed right, that is.

Diet:
- scrambled eggs + cheese, sausage
- Atkin's bar
- pork rinds

5-Hour Refeed:
- raisin bran + skim milk
- low-fat vanilla cookies
- fat-free pringles
- low-fat pretzels
- fat-free chips
- fat-free cookies
- nerds, sour patch kids, swedish fish, lemonheads
- low-fat ice-cream
- 1% choclate milk
- low-fat pizza
- moutain dew, lemonade, v-8 splash

Tons and tons and tons of food tonight during my refeed. I was going to try and keep some idea of how many grams of carbs I took it, but it's honestly impossible. The entire 5 hours is pretty much a non-stop feast. So I really tend to go all out. I am curious what I weigh tomorrow morning. Looking forward to a bench PR tomorrow, so we'll see how that goes. I definitely have the carbs in my system to hit one, that's for sure.

Sleep: 8 hours. Slept through my alarm clock, lol.

Weight: 219.5 lbs. Wow, dropping weight faster than I thought. I definitely trust this scale though foir whatever reason. Once again I got out of bed, use the bathroom, and weighed myself.

Posted by: P-funk

Quote:

Weight: 219.5 lbs. Wow, dropping weight faster than I thought. I definitely trust this scale though foir whatever reason. Once again I got out of bed, use the bathroom, and weighed myself.

careful there. How much weight have you lost and how fast? How much are you losing per week? Going to fast is going to make you drop a good bit of muscle.

Posted by: M.J.H.

P-funk: Hey man, I am down 3 lbs. since yesterday. I am guessing that it's water weight, since I drank a ton of water yesterday, and I was sweating like crazy at work. But I know exactly what you're saying. Also, yesterday and today I have been weighing myself on a brand new scale that I picked up. So you can't really compare it to the weights from before that because they're a few pounds different. I am curious to see what I weigh tomorrow morning after my carb-up feast tonight, lol.

Posted by: P-funk

Oh yeah, 3lbs in one day is defenitly water.......the more you drink the less you hold. As long as you get a consisten reading on the same scale that is what is important. After my re-feeds sometimes i way as much as 10-12lbs heavier the next day. LOL

Posted by: M.J.H.

P-funk: Holy sh*t, 10-12 lbs. of water gain after a refeed? Now that's what I call refilling muscle and liver glycogen! That's honestly insane though man, you must take in a few thousand grams of carbs. Because I know in 5-hour refeed I can take in easily far over 1,000g of carbs, without even trying. In the first hour alone I am sure I take in 1000g. I might try and keep a rough estimate tonight just because now I am curious.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 14

6-28-2004

Upper Body 1

Flat BB Presses:
135x3, 185x3, 215x2, 245x2, 275x1, 305x1, 335x1, 355x0, 355x0

Suspended Decline BB Presses: (pins set 4" off of chest)
295x3, 295x3, 295x3, 295x3, 325x2, 325x2, 345x1, 365x1, 375x1!, 385x0

Seated DB Presses:
75x6, 75x6, 75x6, 75x6

Cable Pressdowns:
200x12, 200x12
Dropset: 200x8, 170x8, 140x8, 110x8

WHAT THE F*CK!?

I can't figure out why the f*ck I can't hit a new PR on bench. I have tried and tried and tried to break 350 and I can't f*cking do it. Every single set prior to 355 felt strong as f*ck. Then I get to 355 and I get 5-6" off my chest and get stuck. Happened twice today. Great arch, tucked my elbows under the bar completely, not sure how I f*cked up. Whatever, I don't even want to talk about it, I am so f*cking pissed. I am not maxing out for a long time. I am sick of being let down.

Moved onto a more positive exercise. Did decline BB presses, but set the pins 4" off my chest and benched from the bottom position. For whatever reason I was very strong in this exercise. Worked all the way up to 375 for a single, not bad at all! Tried 385, and budged it, barely. Oh well. Did some seated DB presses, and then some pressdowns. Dropset with the pressdowns was pretty damn intense.

Diet:
- 2 scrambled eggs + cheese, 2 pieces of bacon
- whey protein postworkout
- 2 hot dogs
- mixed nuts
- cheese
- cheeseburger
- low-carb choclate milk, cheese
- low-carb ice-cream

1-Hour Refeed:
- low-fat ice-cream
- lemonade, skim milk
- low-fat pretzels
- low-fat chips
- nerds, lemonheads, sour patch kids
- fat-free cookies

I have no idea why I had a refeed tonight. Honestly it was extremely stupid. I felt like friggin' sh*t afterwards. I was hot, felt fat, just felt disgusting to be completely. Honest. I am not going to have another refeed until Friday or Saturday night. That's for sure.

Sleep: 8.5 hours.

Weight: 222 lbs. I am up 2.5 lbs. from yesterday morning. Not bad, considering that I completely pigged out last night on low-fat foods. I can't even imagine how many grams of carbs I took in last night, wow.

Posted by: sftwrngnr

Hey Mike,
I suspect your BP issue is more mental than anything else (just my opinion). Com' on dude... you're strong as hell... your numbers speak for themselves. I am experiencing a similar issue (at a much lower weight). Look at your decline 1 RM, and look at where your bar placement is. You are getting stuck on flat bench at approximately the same location where you can press 375. I don't have any suggestions (I will leave that to SF), but I strongly suspect the barrier you are experiencing is mental.

I know that this morning when I did deads, my first attempt at 495 was nothing... did not physically get the weight off the ground. I talked to this old dude (he is 73), and he basically said "look, I just saw you pull 475 like it was nothin... 495 is only 20 lbs more... the barrier you are facing is mental, not physical... you'll get it 'some day'." I suspect the "some day" comment was to just piss me off, because it did. I went back to the bar, and pulled it up. It came up a little slow, but I did get full lockout.

Best of luck,

Dan

Posted by: Saturday Fever

5-6" up means you need to start 4" up and do rep work. Maybe high/low, maybe 4 sets of 6. We'll discuss this further when I get to the office.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Dan: Thanks for chiming in bro, really appreciate it a lot. I think that a lot of my bench strength could be mental. I mean it's really tough to say, to be honest. I am honestly not sure what it is. I mean I have worked on my lockout strength, time and time and time again. I get the bar a few inches off my chest and then I just this sticking point. It's driving me crazy. I am not sure what else to try, honestly, at this point. Nice story though man, and I agree that a LOT of 1RM strength is mental.

SF: Yeah maybe that has something to do with it. I am not sure what to try to be honest. I need to do something though because this is just pissing me off. I mean could I possibly be testing my bench 1RM too often?

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonStar

Flat BB Presses:
135x3, 185x3, 215x2, 245x2, 275x1, 305x1, 335x1, 355x0, 355x0

Suspended Decline BB Presses: (pins set 4" off of chest)
295x3, 295x3, 295x3, 295x3, 325x2, 325x2, 345x1, 365x1, 375x1!, 385x0

With just a quick glance, I can say that this is too much physically, CNS aside. You can't go for 1RM on 2 lifts in a session.

I think what we've done is strayed a bit from focusing on your weaknesses. If you're weak 5-6" off your chest, then we need to spend a couple of weeks working from 4" up. One week perhaps we'll do a high low 4" pin press, next week we'll do 4 sets of 6 4" pin presses. We know the lockout strength isn't lacking (obviously, so we'll proceed as normal.

We're going to have you do a bench day the way I do bench days soon, when we pass this 5-6" sticking point phase. For now, let's just look forward to the next session and plan to get over this weak point. Good session overall.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Yeah I know what you're saying man, I definitely got a little carried away with the suspended decline presses today. So my next bench session my ME lift should be pin presses 4" off my chest? Or are you saying to do that as my high/low? I am thinking that at this point my lockout strength isn't the problem, like you said. It seems more about 4-5" off my chest I really just hit a wall for whatever reason. Whatever. I am a bit frustrated with my strength at this point, honestly.

Tomorrow is squat day, so I believe you said speed squats to start, correct?

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Don't be frustrated with your strength, it's fine. Everyone has sticking points. Everyone works around them. It's not a problem at all.

Yeah, speed squats, and use 3 different stances.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: What kind of accessory work do you have in mind? And what's that, 3 different stances? Do you mind clarifying?

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Your foot placement. Use three different stances. Wide, narrow, extra wide, extra narrow, shoulder width, whatever.

Accessory work should include leg presses and good mornings.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay man, no problem. So I am going to be doing varied stance speed squats, then some rows, and then some high/low with leg presses most likely, some more lats, and finish up with some light good AM's. How does that sound?

What about my Upper2 session, more lockout work? Did you want me to do suspended bench 4" off my chest as my ME lift, and then high/low pin presses 4" off my chest? Thanks.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 15
6-29-2004

Lower Body 2

Speed Squats: (3 different stances)
275x2, 275x2, 275x2, 275x2, 275x2, 275x2, 275x2, 275x2, 275x2

Bentover Rows:
345x5, 345x5, 345x5, 345x5, 345x5

Leg Presses:
1040x4, 1040x4, 1040x4, 1040x4, 1040x4, 1040x4

Nautilus Pullovers:
220x12, 220x12

Good Mornings:
205x8, 205x8, 205x8

Hammer Curls:
50x12, 50x12

Really really really good workout today!!

One of the best workouts that I have had in a long time. I had a refeed out of nowhere last night so maybe htat had something to do with it. Really awesome strength today IMO. Started off with speed squats in 3 different stances. Very narrow, maybe feet shoulder width or a little closer, then a little wider, and finally a very wide stance. Strange thing is that honestly the very narrow stance is the most comfortable for me.

Moved onto some heavy bentover rows, which were GREAT. I havn't done them in the past few months and damn, what a great exercise. Did them Yates style with a double overhand grip. Kicked the sh*t outta' my lats, big time. Really good sets there, did 5 sets of 5 with 345. My last 2 sets were a little too much momentum, oh well. Moved onto heavy leg presses, for 6 sets of 4. And then some pullovers. Finished up with some hammer curls, nice sets there. Overall workout was awesome.

Diet:
- cheese, low-carb choclate milk
- whey protein postworkout
- fried steak + mayo + cheese
- low-carb ice-cream
- 2 cans of tuna + mayo, cheese
- low-carb banana nut bread + butter

Diet wasn't too bad today at all. Definitely easy to stick to this low-carb part of the diet. I don't even feel like I am dieting most of the time. What I miss the most is just regular old snack foods. Other than pork rinds, there isn't much you don't have to cook.

Sleep: 7 hours.

Weight: 221 lbs. Down a pound from yesterday, interesting, because I had a refeed last night. Whatever, I am not complaining.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Always experiment with the squats. If the closer stance felt better, and you were able to sit back instead of down, try them on your next ME day or as a high/low exercise after deads. Like I've said before, some guys squat narrow, some guys practically do the splits they stand so wide. Just have to find what's best for you.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: I will be experimenting with my squatting stance actually. Especially after today and feeling what I thought was the most comfortable, etc. We'll see what happens. I am going to try narrow stance squats for my next ME lift and see what kinda' weight I can throw around.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Just be sure to sit back, not down.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Yeah I'll have to remember that, definitely. I am going to try narrow stance I do just have to focus on squatting more good morning style squatting rather than just regular old bodybuilding style sitting down with the weight.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 16
6-30-2004

Upper Body 2

12" Lockouts:
135x3, 225x3, 275x2, 315x1, 345x1, 365x1!, 375x0

8" Lockouts:
375x1, 385x1, 395x1, 405x1

4" Lockouts:
415x1, 425x1, 445x1, 465x1, 485x1, 505x0, 500x0

Seated French Presses:
125x6, 125x6, 125x6, 125x6

DB Front Raises:
Dropset: 50x8, 40x6, 30x6, 20x8

Really really really good workout today I think. Tried a new principle with the lockouts. Started off with 12" lockouts, which were EXACTLY where my sticking point was, about 5" off my chest or so. Worked up to 365 for a single. Not bad at all, 365 came up strong. Got 375 halfway up but couldn't finish it off. Then up to 405 for 8" lockouts, not bad at all. And finally up to 485 on 4" lockouts. I couldn't go any higher 4" lockouts I was barely moving the bar at all it seemed. I wanted a 500 4" lockout SO BAD. I have been trying to hit 500 for months and months and months. Oh well.

Spent about 40 minutes on the lockouts so afterwards all I had time for is some seated French presses, not too bad, and then some DB front raises. Not a bad workout overall.

Diet:
- 2 scrambled eggs + cheese, 2 pieces of bacon
- whey protein postworkout
- Atkin's bar, pork rinds
- Isopure shake, cheese
- mixed nuts
- 2 cans of tuna + mayo
- low-carb banana nut bread + butter

Diet wasn't too bad today at all I don't think. I am most likely going to be refeeding tomorrow night. It all really depends on my weight tomorrow morning. If I am less than today I will most likely refeed. If I am the same, I will probably hold off until Friday night. We'll see.

Sleep: 7.5 hours.

Weight: 220.5 lbs. Not too bad. Down a half pound from yesterday. Need to take in more water and less diet soda.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

We need to get some rep work in from just below your sticking point. Next Upper day do speed bench followed by high/low (8x3 preferrably) presses from just below sticking. That should help with that.

Good session overall, great numbers on the 4".

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay man, sounds good. Speed bench I have not done in forever, it's going to be great getting back into that. Below my sticking point huh? So what do you think maybe 2-3" off my chest? Or something along those lines? Thanks for the support, like always. What my deadlift session coming up? Any ideas? More lockout work? Thanks SF.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Start 4-6" up and do rack pulls. 8 sets of 3. Then move the pins up 2-4" and go for a 1RM and keep moving up like you did with bench.

If you have anything left for accessory work, go for it. Otherwise keep the accessory work to a minimum.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay man, conventional rack pulls it is. I absolutely loved the technique today for lockouts so I am sure that I am going to love it for rack pulls tomorrow. We'll see what happens. So start off around 6" up and do 8 sets of 3, and then move onto singles creeping my way up until I am practically just standing up with the bar? I can tell this is going to be painful, lol. I didn't do the 8 sets of 3 with the lockouts today... I am going to be hurting!

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 17
7-1-2004

Rest

Took a rest day today, definitely needed it I think. I am going to be doing some pretty intense rack pulling tomorrow in my deadlift session so I need this refeed beforehand.

Anyway, tonight I ran 13 sprints with my ex-girlfriend's brother. Talk about exhausting. They were around 50-60 yard sprints, and I was drained!

Diet:
- cheese, low-carb cookie
- 2 hot dogs
- Isopure shake
- 2 hot dogs

4-Hour Refeed:
- frosted mini-wheats + skim milk
- swedish fish, nerds, candy corn
- low-fat BBQ chicken pizza
- root beer, orange juice, v-8 splash
- fat-free chips, low-fat pretzels
- low-fat coffee cakes
- fat-free ice-cream

I honestly didn't feel like I ate all that much during this refeed. I kept feeling sick, I am not sure why. Like I had overeaten. Maybe my body is starting to get used to the refeeds and is rejecting them, who knows.

Sleep: 7.5 hours.

Weight: 217 lbs.

Wow, lower than I guessed. I think I was somewhat dehydrated as well when I woke up. Refeeding tonight, without a doubt.

Posted by: PreMier

Where do you run your sprints? IE: Grass, Asphalt, Track..

I am going to start doing ladders on the highschool football field here soon.

Posted by: M.J.H.

PreMier: I actually do my sprints at a local park in the grass. I walk off roughly 50-60 yards, and then I'll sprint down as hard as I possibly can. Walk back, maybe stretch and then sprint another. Honestly 13 sprints doesn't sound that hard but when you have not done them in years, they're tough!

Posted by: P-funk

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonStar

PreMier: I actually do my sprints at a local park in the grass. I walk off roughly 50-60 yards, and then I'll sprint down as hard as I possibly can. Walk back, maybe stretch and then sprint another. Honestly 13 sprints doesn't sound that hard but when you have not done them in years, they're tough!

Thirteen sprints doesn't sound that hard?? Thirteen sprins is brutal! If you are going all out 10 sprints is hard.....lol, at least it is for me!

Posted by: M.J.H.

P-funk: LOL, thanks man, I appreciate the comments. Because I always feel like such a b*tch saying 13 sprints because it's such a small number, lol. And because I used to have to do 30-40 sprints for football back in highschool.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 18
7-2-2004

Lower Body 1

Conventional Rack Deadlifts: (plates 6" off the floor)
455x3, 455x3, 455x3, 455x3, 455x3, 455x3, 455x3, 455x3, 495x1, 545x1, 585x1, 615x0

Conventional Rack Deadlifts: (plates 9" off the floor)
615x0, 605x1, 615x0, 615x0

Conventional Rack Deadlifts: (plates 12" off the floor)
615x1, 625x0, 625x0

Parallel-Grip Cable Pulldowns:
245x4, 245x4, 245x4, 245x4, 245x4, 245x4

Concentration Curls:
40x12, 40x12

Good workout today. Honestly, my friggin' lockout strength is awful. I am realizing it now more than ever how weak my lockout strength really is. I felt somewhat strong 6" off the floor, but at 9" off the floor I could tell that was where I REALLY struggled. Couldn't budge anything practically. My 2nd attempt at 615 I got about halfway up with it, and couldn't fully lock the b*tch out. Whatever. Lockouts are exhausting!

Moved onto 6 sets of 4 with pulldowns and then 2 sets of concentration curls, Arnold style! Did them leaning over with my resting hand on a bench for support. Really beat up my biceps doing them this style, I absolutely love doing them this way.

Diet:
- 2 scrambled eggs + cheese
- whey protein postworkout
- cheese
- garden salad + ranch dressing, mixed nuts
- 2 cans of tuna + mayo, cheese
- 2 hot dogs

Diet wasn't too bad today. Didn't take in too many carbs at all today. Honestly with my fat intake so high my appetite is so friggin' low.

Sleep: 8.5 hours.

Weight: 221.5 lbs. Up 4.5 lbs. from last nights refeed. Obviously it was a pretty successful refeed if I gained all that water weight.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

No big. We'll just go ahead and start doing some high/low lockout work after speed work for a bit. All will be well.

Posted by: M.J.H.

SF: Okay man, thanks. That won't be a problem. But those 9" lockouts are friggin' killing me. Did you get my PM about tomorrow's session? Thanks.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 19
7-3-2004

Upper Body 1

Flat DB Presses:
60x30, 60x30, 60x30

Dips:
+150x2, +150x2, +150x2, +150x2

Paused Dips: (3-count at the bottom)
+70x5, +70x5, +70x5

Paused Dips: (3-count just before lockout)
+70x5, +70x5, +70x5

Tate Presses:
40x20, 40x20
Dropset: 40x12, 30x12, 20x12

Paused DB Lateral Raises: (3-count at the top)
30x6, 30x6, 30x6, 30x6

Good workout tonight I think! Worked out late in my basement because my f*cking gym has sh*tty hours during the summer, whatever. Started off with 3 sets of 30 with flat DB presses, OUCH. These exhausted my pecs completely. Some really intense sets though. Moved onto dips. A variety of dips, lol. Started off with 4 sets of 2 with +150. Good sets, but I was tired from the DB presses. So I then did some paused work. Did 3 sets of 5 with +70, counting to 3 at the bottom of each rep. Then I moved onto another variation of dips. I did 3 sets of 5 with +70 but this time I counted to 3 just before lockout. This variation tore my triceps up big time.

Finish up with some high-rep Tate presses, these beat my f*cking a*s, hard. Did 2 sets of 20 with the 40's, and then a triple dropset. My triceps were screaming. Finished up with some more isometric work, lol. I enjoy paused exercises as you can see. Did 3 sets of 6 with the 30's, counting to the 3 at the top of each rep. Not bad.

Diet:
- Atkin's bar, low-carb choclate
- mixed nuts, pepperoni
- Isopure shake, low-carb brownie
- 2 cans of tuna + mayo, cheese
- hot dog + cheese, low-carb ice-cream
- whey protein postworkout
- 2 hot dogs

Diet was not bad today at all. Maybe a little higher in carbs, but nothing that high at all. I am used to eating low-carb, honestly.

Sleep: 6 hours. Also took a 30-minute nap. Not too bad.

Weight: 219 lbs. Down around 2 lbs. or so from yesterday. Not too bad at all.

I am glad that I gradually dropping weight as I stay on the diet. That was my original goal so it's good that it is happening more gradually and nothing extreme. Once I get down aronud the weight that I want I am going to start increasing my refeed duration I think to make sure I maintain my weight, and don't keep dropping.

Posted by: M.J.H.

Day 20
7-4-2004

Rest

Diet:
- cheese, 2 pieces of bacon, low-carb milk
- 2 hot dogs
- tuna + mayo, cheese

Refeed:
- frosted mini-wheat cereal + skim milk
- smarties, sour patch kids, swedish fish, caramel creams
- low-fat pretzels
- low-fat coffee cakes
- fat-free chips
- pepsi, hawaiian punch
- fat-free cookies
- fat-free ice-cream
- slim-fast popsicle

Eh, refeed tonight was pretty lame. Had a 3-hour refeed and then I stopped, because I felt way too full. And then I waited another few hours and had some more refeed food. I am not sure what I am going to do about these refeeds. They're barely even fun anymore. I am thinking about cleaning them up some, honestly. Maybe shortening them in duration, etc. We'll see.

Sleep: 7.5 hours.

Weight: 219 lbs. Same weight as yesterday. Not too bad at all I don't think. Lately I have just been gradually dropping my weight which is totally fine with me. I don't need any kind of huge drop in weight or anything like that. Just concerned about tightening up some.

Posted by: P-funk

Man, you love hotdogs....lol

Quote:

Eh, refeed tonight was pretty lame. Had a 3-hour refeed and then I stopped, because I felt way too full. And then I waited another few hours and had some more refeed food. I am not sure what I am going to do about these refeeds. They're barely even fun anymore. I am thinking about cleaning them up some, honestly. Maybe shortening them in duration, etc. We'll see.

Yeah, that is the biggest problem I have. I feel like crap (really sick) when I re-feed on all that junk food. Now a days I usually rely on pasta as my main source of carbs and I throw a little bit of junk food in there. Pasta mainly is my favorite thing on a re-feed.

Posted by: M.J.H.

P-funk: Hey man, thanks for stopping by, I really appreciate it. Yeah I am thinking about starting off my refeeds from now on instead of cereal with a huge bowl of pasta. More than I can even eat, and just eating it until I cannot eat anymore. That way I'll kill most of my appetite with a clean source. How long are your refeeds, and how often? I really like doing them every 3rd night, but I feel like I am starting to take 2 steps forward and then 2 steps back in terms of my bodyfat. It's somewhat hard to say though, I think I am still tightening up, just very gradually.

BTW, I love hotdogs! LOL. Plus there isn't honestly all that much to eat in a low-carb diet. Meat, cheese, eggs, whatever.

Posted by: P-funk

Quote:

How long are your refeeds, and how often? I really like doing them every 3rd night, but I feel like I am starting to take 2 steps forward and then 2 steps back in terms of my bodyfat. It's somewhat hard to say though, I think I am still tightening up, just very gradually.

My refeeds are usually a couple of hours long. Like I will say from 4pm until I go to bed (around 9 or 10) I can eat as much as I want. I usually start with a huge bowl of pasta and eat as much as possible until I have to pitch the rest. That fils me up and then I don't have to much room for a whole bunch of shit later in the evening. If ytou feel that you are taking two steps back then don't re-feed so frequently. I usually re-feed on Sunday night and then have to big workouts on mon and tues. then on wed. night I re-feed once again and then not again until Sunday night. Try doing every 4th day if you feel that you are taking in to much and not progressing enough.

Posted by: Saturday Fever

Hard to judge your weight the day after a refeed anyways. You're all full of water and such.

Posted by: P-funk

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saturday Fever

Hard to judge your weight the day after a refeed anyways. You're all full of water and such.

yeah, you can't weigh yourself after a re-feed. i am always about 10lbs heavier the next day.

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