Weights, cardio and stuff log

Yesteday;

Deads; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 190kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups); 1 - 210kg, 1 - 220kg, 1 - 230kg, 2 - 240kg, 1 - 250kg, 1 - 255kg, 1 - 260kg, 265kg FAIL, 1,1,1,2 PR, 1 - 250kg.

Block pulls; 1 - 270kg, 1,1,1,1 - 280kg.

Leg curls; 10,10 - 50kg.


Feeling really good, I think I'll beat 260kg next Monday.
 
Deficit, 1-inch; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 190kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups); 1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1 - 210kg.

Block pulls; 1,1 - 250kg, 1,1,1,1,1,1 - 260kg.

Shrugs; 5,5 - 220kg.


Doing RFL right now, re-feeding between sessions today. No more Thursday sessions. Singles for Wednesday, will do volume as best as possible on Friday and then re-feed on Sunday.


Second session;

Bench; 5 - 60kg, 5 - 80kg, 5 - 100kg, 1 - 120kg (warm ups); pause; 1 - 130kg, 1,1,1,1,1 - 140kg.

BTN, wide; 5 - 60kg, 5 - 65kg, 5,5 - 70kg.

Lying hack squat machine; 5,5,5 - 90kg. These seem to be good on the quads and not painful for the knee.

Shoulder stuff.
 
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Deads; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 190kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups); 1 - 210kg, 1 - 220kg, 1 - 230kg, 3,3,2,3, - 240kg. Volume PR for triples.

Block pulls; 1 - 260kg, 1 - 270kg, 1 - 280kg, 1 - 290kg, 3 - 270kg.
 
What RFL protocol are you using? Just what was in Lyle's book? How many days are you doing it for?
 
Totentanz said:
What RFL protocol are you using? Just what was in Lyle's book? How many days are you doing it for?
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Yeh, what's in Lyle's book. I'm going w/category there because he says to err if you're on the border. I'll be doing it for 3/4 weeks on, 1 week off (ala at adjusted maintenance etc.) until I hit acceptable bf% for my wedding in July. Obviously the groom is not behind this, nor is he the judge. But have to keep the lady happy of course ;).

Two refeed meals per week, approximately 2.5 gms/kg of LBM. I always incorporate slightly more fat (egg yolk and peanut butter) than the strict protocol for hormone reasons.

10-20gms of glucose 10-15mins prior to working out, as recommended. Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday are slightly lower overall than M-W-F-Sa, are more like 200, where as those days are more like 280-300gms.

Taking caffeine on workout days. I have a few gut issues w/excessive amounts of it so working it back slowly.


One thing I don't quite understand is how to factor in the recommended dairy when you account for lactose. It's a carb, but he recommends dairy even with that.

I'm down about 1.5kgs this week, although the first kg of that is obviously water.

Monday's second workout is cut, as is Thursday's session.
 
Bench; 5 - 60kg, 5 - 80kg, 5 - 100kg, 1 - 120kg (warm ups); 1,1,1,1,1,1 - 140kg, 3s pause; 3,3 - 120kg.

Chins; 3,3,3,3 - BW.

Military; 5,5 - 70kg.

Shoulder stuff.
 
Congrats on the wedding. July is quite a ways off, I would assume you can hit your goal bodyfat % easily by then.

What all are you consuming for dairy? I ate a lot of FF cottage cheese on my RFLs, it has acceptably low carbs that you can have a couple cups a day. Obv milk is good for the calcium, but yeah, milk has a lot of carbs even if you do fat free milk. I agree with keeping the fat a little higher. Assume you are taking fish oil as well? I always just tried to keep carbs as far under 25 grams a day as I could. Pretty sure you could reasonably go as high as 50 grams of carbs in a day without ruining the diet. It's pretty difficult but possible to keep carbs under 10 grams with a protein intake of 200 grams if you choose the right meats. Fat can creep up a bit though.

You seem to be tolerating a pretty good workout intensity despite being on an RFL. Have you tried pairing tyrosine with the caffeine? Seems to help give a better stimulant effect without requiring as much caffeine. Yohimbine is a decent addition too since you can't get ephedrine easily. I don't know how easy Y is to get down there though. But Y + C + Tyrosine seems a pretty potent combo. I don't know if you are aware, but if you do some good cardio the day prior to your refeed, seems to mobilize fat better. I've had some success with pairing Lyle's Stubborn Fat Protocol with RFL when I was struggling to get under 10%. Not sure how low you are wanting to go, I'd not recommend being under 10% for long if you decide to go that low though since it sucks.
 
Totentanz said:
Congrats on the wedding. July is quite a ways off, I would assume you can hit your goal bodyfat % easily by then.

What all are you consuming for dairy? I ate a lot of FF cottage cheese on my RFLs, it has acceptably low carbs that you can have a couple cups a day. Obv milk is good for the calcium, but yeah, milk has a lot of carbs even if you do fat free milk. I agree with keeping the fat a little higher. Assume you are taking fish oil as well? I always just tried to keep carbs as far under 25 grams a day as I could. Pretty sure you could reasonably go as high as 50 grams of carbs in a day without ruining the diet. It's pretty difficult but possible to keep carbs under 10 grams with a protein intake of 200 grams if you choose the right meats. Fat can creep up a bit though.

You seem to be tolerating a pretty good workout intensity despite being on an RFL. Have you tried pairing tyrosine with the caffeine? Seems to help give a better stimulant effect without requiring as much caffeine. Yohimbine is a decent addition too since you can't get ephedrine easily. I don't know how easy Y is to get down there though. But Y + C + Tyrosine seems a pretty potent combo. I don't know if you are aware, but if you do some good cardio the day prior to your refeed, seems to mobilize fat better. I've had some success with pairing Lyle's Stubborn Fat Protocol with RFL when I was struggling to get under 10%. Not sure how low you are wanting to go, I'd not recommend being under 10% for long if you decide to go that low though since it sucks.
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Cheers, mate. I don't think I'll have issues getting down to an easily maintained 12-16% by then. Probably looking at a 12 - 15kg loss over an 8 month period.

I like cottage cheese as well. Pairs comfortably with broccoli, cauliflower, cucumber, celery etc. Sexy? Nope. But it does the work. I'm also trying to keep any incidental carbs below 25gms per day. Many days it's functionally zero, not counting sugars pre-WO/or even no WO. Eggs, chicken breast, lean steak.

I'll be incorporating cardio again the closer I get to 15%. I've done some cartilage damage to my left knee, it turns out (MRI says chondral defect) so with that in play, cardio would likely be rowing exclusively, maybe some swimming now that it's warming up down here.


The first 8-10kg should be quite easy, probably have it done by the end of this year/end of January, it'll be how far I can/want to go with it ... obviously dictated by the Mrs ;)
 
Deads; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups) 1 - 210kg, 1 - 220kg, 1 - 230kg, 1 - 240kg, 1 - 250kg, 1 - 260kg, 1 - 265kg PR, 1,1,1,2,1,1,1,1 - 250kg.

Snatch rows; 3,3 - 130kg. Explosive.

Finally, 265kg. Less than 3 seconds.

I gave 270kg a half hearted attempt and broke it maybe 1cm? I should've pulled against an immovable weight a bit, I've been meaning to incorporate that recently but keep forgetting.

I'd like to try for 275kg before my trip begins on Dec 13th. I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility considering me progress to date in volume PRs. Next Monday I will either try for 270 or 250 doubles volume-PRs.

RFL is definitely affecting my work capacity for workout total volume, but strength seems 'ok' for now. Not sure I have a 2nd session in me today, so I'll just train my fiancée this evening. Maybe do a few chins at most.


Chins - 4,4,4 - BW.
 
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Deficit, 1-inch; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 190kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups); 1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1 - 210kg.

Block pulls; 1 - 250kg, 1 - 260kg, 1,3,3 - 270kg.

Deads; 5 - 210kg.

GHR; BW - 6,6,6. BRAND NEW ... $hit yeh.

Chins; BW - 6,6

Second session;

OHP; 3,3,3 - 80kg.

BTN, wide; 5,5 - 70kg.

Sled press; 5,5,5 - 190kg.

Shrugs; 3,3,3 - 250kg PR.
 
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How do you like the GHRs? I've been meaning to give them a go but still haven't gotten around to it after years of thinking about it.
 
Totentanz said:
How do you like the GHRs? I've been meaning to give them a go but still haven't gotten around to it after years of thinking about it.
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I think they're fantastic. Deads and squats are not optimal hamstrings builders (though still effective for say, 60% of what you want to achieve). SLDL and GHR or even leg curls are definitely needed to cover them thoroughly IMO. The thing I particularly like is that they don't impact the lower back at all, even when weighted/with bands/chains and that they teach you how to contract your hamstrings under load. SLDL does this latter bit too, but is obviously extremely impactful on glutes and lower back (relative to GHR).

Good for lockout work specifically I think.
 
Deads; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 190kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups); 1 - 210kg, 1 - 220kg, 1 - 230kg, 3,3 - 240kg, 2,1 - 250kg, 3,2 - 240kg. 3,4 - 220kg. Couldn't help myself with the 250s. wanted a pair of doubles. Maybe should have left it at 240kg for triples. Will go for 6 clusters of 3 at 240kg next Friday.

Chins; BW - 6,6.

Second session;

SLDL; 3 - 180kg, 3,3,3 - 200kg.

Bench; 5 - 80kg, 5 - 100kg, 1 - 120kg (warm ups); 1,1 - 140kg, 3s pause; 3,3,3 - 120kg.

The cut is killing my bench. I think I will have to leave it on Saturdays.

Decided to do SLDL instead of Block Pulls because of insane volume earlier on deads, and because deads today had a lot of drive from quads but hamstrings weren't so involved. I think they're a great way to maintain your break strength, which is basically all thighs and traps - very little back and glutes until it's in motion, at least that's my take.

Didn't do shrugs but probably should have.

Going to go for 270 on Monday, with a two-day break leading into it.
 
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Lol said:
What? If I feel powerful "after" deadlifting then I know I didn't try hard enough! Darn it, Jester! Get back in that gym and rip 275 off the floor! :p
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Well if you insist ...


Deads; 5 - 70kg, 5 - 120kg, 1 - 170kg, 1 - 200kg (warm ups); 1 - 220kg, 1 - 230kg, 1 - 240kg, 1 - 250kg, 1 - 260kg, 1 - 270kg PR, 1 - 275kg PR. 1,1,1,1,1,1 - 250kg.

Chins; 7,6 - BW. Will start adding weight soon to counteract the weight loss on RFL.



600lbs just feels good.


New relevant loads are;

80% - 220kg.

85% - 233.75kg.

90% - 247.5kg.

Pragmatically this means;

M - 250kg and 255kg.

W - 220kg for deficits

F - 240-245kg triples
 
Aaaaaannnnnndddddd .... surgeon says microfracture is necessary to fix articular cartilage. Life lesson - don't carry heavy shit down the stares.

6-8 weeks recovery, followed by a 4-week holiday, could mean 2 months of no deadlifting or lower body work ... yep, might just go crazy.

I'll be able to do Captain Upper Body stuff, although the only things I expect to resemble 'free weights' will be one-arm cable rows (at least we have a good machine w/strong cable resistance for that) and endless chins and dips I suppose.

I expect my strength levels will drop significantly during that period relevant to the lift. Probably going to take 2 months to get back to where I was afterwards. I'm not sure what sort of effect this long a layoff has - @Totentanz ; you've had some long breaks, your thoughts perhaps?

I figure straight leg rack pulls will be earlier, an inch below the kneecap. Squatting will be out for a while.
 
As long as you are still able to do something, you'll be able to maintain your work capacity for the most part. That's the part that sucks the most - coming back after a long layoff and being winded from sets of 5 with nothing resembling your previous loads. Obviously it comes back fast if you stick with it, after a few weeks or so you should be back to the previous work capacity. WRT to squat/dead strength, your estimations are probably just about accurate. It takes 1-2 months for me usually to get back to previous 5 RM loads. If you can still do upper body, that is going to be a huge benefit though, so you won't have to worry about most of the negative effects of taking so much time off. Legs will be nicely deconditioned once you start back up on them though.

The biggest problem with layoffs is dealing with the psychological aspect. It sucks to not be able to do the things you enjoy.
 
Totentanz said:
As long as you are still able to do something, you'll be able to maintain your work capacity for the most part. That's the part that sucks the most - coming back after a long layoff and being winded from sets of 5 with nothing resembling your previous loads. Obviously it comes back fast if you stick with it, after a few weeks or so you should be back to the previous work capacity. WRT to squat/dead strength, your estimations are probably just about accurate. It takes 1-2 months for me usually to get back to previous 5 RM loads. If you can still do upper body, that is going to be a huge benefit though, so you won't have to worry about most of the negative effects of taking so much time off. Legs will be nicely deconditioned once you start back up on them though.

The biggest problem with layoffs is dealing with the psychological aspect. It sucks to not be able to do the things you enjoy.
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My legs are going to be destroyed the first time I come back.

My understanding is that I'll be able to do straight leg movements a lot earlier than anything involving a bent knee. So rack pulls w/high hips, straight leg DLs etc. will be my first lower body exposure.

Upper body stuff after the first 1-2 weeks will be chins, dips, fully supported rows, lateral raises and yes ... mofo'ing curls. I think shrugs potentially too. Erectors and traps are the things that will be most challenging to maintain. I'm tempted to buy a weights vest to maintain strength and progression - not going to risk plates on a chain smashing into the leg mid-rep. And obv. DB b/t the ankles or shins is out.
 
SLDL; 5 - 70kg,5 - 120kg (warm ups); 3 - 170kg, 3,2,3,3 - 200kg.

Block pulls; 1 - 250kg, 1 - 260kg, 1,1,1,3 - 270kg.

Chins; 5,5 - BW
 
Yeah for sure legs will suck the first couple weeks you do them. I'm assuming you're going to be keeping it pretty light even with the straight leg stuff until you know you'll be fine?

Shrugs, I would be careful when getting in position to lift. Depending on bar placement. I don't know how you normally do it, but I basically have to rack pull the load up before I can start shrugging. You'd probably be better off having the bar racked in a higher position then using straps/grips to lift it off, then shrug it, course then you might have to step back a few paces before you could shrug it, which means using your legs again. I guess the question is, how limited are you on using your legs?
 
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