tdawg_33's Training Log

Have your ever tried catching a nap right after working out?

Unfortunately time doesn't alot a nap, although it sounds like a good idea. I did some looking over my past journals and searched the web and think I'm gonna try a different approach. If I'm honest with myself, I seem to overtrain relatively easy with any kind of volume. I have done well with just one working set on all other exercises so that strategy should apply to DL as well. I found an article about Deadlifting for Bodytype which was interesting. It wasn't real scientific, but still made sense. I fell into the Low Volume/High Intensity lifter. It suggested just a single set of Deads once a week and an additional set of rack pulls/deficit deads earlier in the week. I'm pretty sure I can handle that with out an issue. So I'm gonna give that a go.
 
Wed workout

Deadlift 375 x 4
Bench 165 x 5,5,5
Incline Rows 55's x 5,5,5
InclinePress 55's x 5,5,5

I did Deads instead of squats to try and assess my recovery ability a little better. I think I could've done 6 reps but stopped at 4. Felt fine after no problem sleeping at all, so I think it's just a matter of volume for me. In hindsight the workouts I was doing were a bit much. I am gonna do 3 sets of 5's the fist 3 workouts then probably drop to 2 as I get closer to my 5 RM. I subbed rows for chins cause I injured my right forearm just grabbing ahold of a couch on tuesday (stupid way to get hurt). Something popped and i had a shooting pain. I used wraps for DL and when I benched I couldnt really grip the bar well so I chose to 86 the chins. Feels much better today so hopefully I will be fine Friday.
 
Friday Workout 9-30

Squats 255 x 5,5,5
Bench 180 x 5,5,5
Chins BW x 5,5,5 (last rep was tough)
DB Press 55's x 5,5,5
Standing Calf Raise (1 Leg) BW + 25 x 5,5,5,

3" Platform (Speed Deadlift) 225 x 3,3,3

After more thought and reading my training journals I have ultimately decided to do Squat/Deadlift 2 x wk on the same day. Monday will be heavy DL w/ HST progression and Speed Squats and Friday will be heavy Squat w/ HST progression and Speed Deadlift. Progression on speed work will be 50%,55%,60% of 1RM. I have been noticing that my lower back just doesn't recover with one day off so I think this will help my performance alot. Having said that I took it easy to see how my body handles the additional stress. I was concerned about my lack of progress on chins, but I keep forgetting that I am gaining weight so if I can do the same amount or even slightly more then it's fine....
 
Monday Oct 3 Workout

Deadlift 385 x 6 PR

Box Squat off Bench
No Tension Bands 50% 1RM 185 x 8 sets of 3

Bench Press 195 x 5,5,5
Incline Row 75's x 5,5,5
DB Press 65's x 5,5,5

Seated Calf Raise (1 leg) 155 x 10,10

I don't know what is making the difference, but I felt awesome today. I think dropping back to 2 lower body days a week is going to make a big difference. I have noticed since starting GOMAD that I feel strong all the time.... Guess milk does do a body good :) I gotta tell you I wish I had come across this site along time ago because I have learned alot looking at other members journals and seeing their progress just makes we want to push that much harder. Thanks to all out there and good luck training!
 
Wed. workout

Bench- 205 x 5,5,5
Chins BW @230+10 x 5,5,5
DB Press- 70's x 5,5,5

Thurs Workout

Squats- 290 x 5,5,5

Speed Deadlift- 225 x 3,3,3,3,3
3" defecit

1 leg Standing Calf Raise- BW+35 x 6,6,6,5

Mondays session piledrived my CNS so I decided to split it upper/lower. I like it better because it allows me the time to really concentrate on each lift. Felt fresh this morning so hopefully i will tomorrow as well. BW up to 230 now so that is encouraging. JUst as I was starting to feel fat, I am really noticing my strength levels improving so it feels like it's worth cramming all those kcals in.
 
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Friday 10-7 workout

Bench- 215 x 5,5,5,5
Incline Row- 85's x 5,5,5,5
DB Press- 75's x 5,5,5

Even with only 5-6 hours sleep last night my body felt fresh so splitting to upper/lower routine was a good idea. I decided to do an additional set on bench and rows because I will have 3 days to recover before I train them again and I wanted to go a little closer to failure. The last set of presses was pretty much to failure so I chose not to do another. Can't wait till Monday
 
Monday 10-10 workout

Deadlift (warmup with 135,225,295)
345 x 1
400 x 1
420- failed on 2 attempts
400 x 1, then failed on 3rd attempt

Speed Squat off Bench (Wide Stance)
225 x 3,3,3,3
245 x 3
255 x 3
265 x 3
295 x 3

Seated Calf Raises (1 leg)
175 x 6,6,6

Crashing Back to Earth! When I woke up I was sleepy as hell and really didn't feel like lifting so why I chose to try max on deadlift is beyond me. Just couldn't get into it today and just rushed into it. I was sooooo close on the 1st 420 attempt that if it was a lb lighter I think I would have got it. Not gonna freak out just yet, but rather stick to my routine and see what happens. I'm sure it was just a bad day
 
Tuesday 10-11 workout

Bench Press- 220 x 5,5,5,4

Chins (close grip) M-Time x 20
BW @232 +20 lb

Seated DB Press 80's x 5,5,3,2

Today went much better! I think my 5 RM on bench is 230 now which is 25 lbs. higher than start of last cycle, so yeah HST works :) I tried M time on chins and I gotta say its amazing how it works. if I did regular work sets I wouldn't have made it to 20 total, but I still felt I could've done another 5 reps this way. My lats are already feeling it too :) Also I have never used 80's for shoulder presses before so I am really happy with my progress. I needed a day like today after yesterdays session. I guess you can't be at your peak every single workout :) Goes to show how important rest/nutrition really are
 
Thursday 10-13 workout

Squats- 325 x 4,3

Romanian Deadlift
135 x 3
155 x 3
175 x 3
215 x 3
275 x 3

Standing Calf Raise (1 leg)
BW+45 x 5,5,5

Decided to take it kinda easy today. I had no desire to workout this morning but I made myself do it. I felt pretty hammered yesterday and everyone around me it seems is sick so I didn't want to push much. Just tried to get at least 1-2 good solid heavier sets in so it didn't feel like a wasted workout. I know I was close to my 5RM on squats but got nowhere near it on RDL's. My next upper body session will be the last of the 5's block and I plan on moving to triples next week. I wasn't planning on deloading and progressing back up, but I might if I feel my body needs a slight break. I got a little overzealous Mon and Tues and did a few too many sets because I was feeling strong and wanted test myself. I always pay for it later though so moderation is going to be key so I don't burnout too quickly.
 
Sat. 10-15 workout

Bench Press
230 x 5
235 x 4

Incline DB Row
105's x 5
110's x 5

DB Press
85's x 4
80's x 5

Decided to find my 5RM today. I think I could've done 235 x 5 if I would have done it first. All in all a good day.
 
Monday 10-17 workout

Deadlifts
350 x 7 M-time

Box Squats
275 x 3
295 x 3,3

Narrow Stance ATG Squats
Metabloic Set 135 x 15 nice and slow

Gonna go with M-time on DL to finish out my cycle. Kept rest constant at 30 sec between each rep and the last rep was much slower than the rest so I stopped it there. I switched from repetition deads to M-time in an effort to improve my "lift off from the floor" which is my sticking point.

I went to chiropracter just for some minor discomfort and found out after an x-ray that I have twisted vertabrae in between my shoulder blades and my right hip is hiked up a bit which explains why I feel so akward doing squatting movements. He gave me corrective stretches, but not much I can do really to fix it. I was a carpet installer/furniture delivery man for several years and I am sure that has taken a toll on me. Switching to unilateral exercises like lunges and step ups will help as it feels like I am left leg dominant when i squat. Oddly enough i feel fine doing deadlifts so I will continue with them as they are my favorite exercise. Still kinda bummed about dropping squats but I will make due.
 
Wed 10-19 workout

Bench Press
240 x 3,3,3,2 (failed at 1/2 way point on 3rd rep)

Weighted Close Grip Chins
BW@ 232 + 30 X 11 reps M-Time

Push Press
165 x 3
175 x 3
185 x 3
200 x 2

Decided to today to make this my last session before SD. My body needs a layoff! I reached PR on all the lifts so I am really excited about my next cycle. Had to switch to push press because I had reached my max on DB press and I wanted to see if my PP had improved. My next cycle will be a straight up vanilla HST cycle listed below in A/B alternating fashion. Going totaly unilateral on lower body in light of my chiropractic issues to work on imbalance issues.

Deadlift (unilateral)
Lunge
Bench Press
Chin Up
Military Press
Calf Raise

Unilateral Squat
Standing Leg Curl
Incline Bench
T-Bar Rows
Upright Rows
Seated Calf Raise
 
Mon. Oct 31 Workout (1st 0f 15's)

Unilateral DL 100 x 5,5,5

Bench Press 140 x 15

Close Grip Chins BW @ 230 x 15 M-time

Incline DB Row 60's x 11,4

Seated DB Press 50's x 13,2

Reverse Lunge 90 x 8,7

Weighted Crunches +5 x 25

After a 9 day SD my body feels rested and ready to go. Having said that, I felt like vomiting after the 1st exercise so needless to say I am outta shape! I used my power blocks on the UDL and placed my nonworking leg on the bench for stability. I found after a few reps that going all the way to the floor was a bit too much of a stretch and it was pulling me too far forward so I stopped each rep at normal oly bar height and it felt more natural. On the lunges I stacked two 25 pound oly plates on top of each other with my workout towel between them (so they wouldn't slide) and stepped back into lunge position and exploded upward bringing my nonworking foot back up onto the plates. I found this gave me a much better ROM and my quads and glutes felt hammered after the working set. My goal this cycle is to just repeat this same workout 3 days a week and shoot for 15 reps throughout the entire cycle. To avoid pushing too hard, I stopped any set in which the rep speed slowed and then took a 10-20 sec. rest then continued until I hit 15 total reps. Since I can't do 15 BW chins (currently 10 now) I will just use M-time for the duration of the cycle. I hope to hit a BW of 240 by the end of the year then I will cut my 1st cycle of the year. It's good to be back, time to end the year on a positive note!
 
The first few days of SD feel pretty good since I’m usually beat to hell, however by the 7th day I practically have put a lock on my weight room to keep myself out. I also get hammered by the first workout but now that I’m getting in better shape even the second one feels better.

If you haven’t already here’s something to consider on your rep counts:

http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=4677737

I’m not suggesting that these numbers are gospel but they do take into account that doing more reps at lower weights is likely to be more effective. Also one thing I keep coming across in my readings is the general idea that one should do 40-60 reps per body part (not necessarily exercise). Since you are doing 2 pushing and 2 pulling exercises I would consider upping the reps on each to at least 20.

One of the best ways I’ve found to hit the target range of 40-60 is using Myo-reps which would look something like this:

15 +5 +5 +5 = 30 x 2 exercises = 60
12 +4 +4 +4 = 24 x 2 exercises = 48
8 +3 +3 +3 +3 = 20 x 2 exercises = 40
Lower than this I don’t usually worry about hitting 40 reps but usually at least 15 or even 10 for some exercises when it gets really heavy.

Just something to consider.
 
I had read that same article awhile back. I have a propensity to "overtrain" a little easier than most people it seems, so I am trying to ease into things, but I do believe that an increase in volume is probably warranted considering my strength levels increased last cycle but my measurements did not with the lower total rep counts. If I increase the volume I will probably have to do a more traditional split type routine in order handle the increase. Looking at my strength levels I fall in the upper portion of the "intermediate" lifter so maybe only hitting each bodypart twice a week with increased volume would be more effective for hypertrophy than 3 times a week with lower volume. HaHa isn't that the Million Dollar Question.
 
Wed. Oct 2 workout

Incline Bench 160 x 20 M time

Flat Bench 160 x 8,4,4,4

Seated DB Press 50’s x 8,4,4

Lateral Raises 15’s x 10,5,5

EZ Bar Skullcrusher 60 x 12,5,5

Thurs. Oct 3 Workout

Close Grip Chins BW @ 231 x 20 M time

Incline DB Rows 65’s x 11,4,4

Upright Rows 60 x 20 M time

DB Shrugs 65’s x 15,5,5

Incline DB Curls x 25’s x 12 x 5,5

w/supination

Going to finish out the year on a 3 day cycle and will workout 4-5 days a week depending upon how I feel. I like the way these workouts feel so far. I miss doing certain exercises so it’s nice to go back to this split again. Still going to use HST principles but the frequency will be slightly reduced but I’m not too worried about that. The unilateral leg training is no joke by the way (major DOMS) but still kind of a pain in the arse since it takes twice as long. Time to go eat….. AGAIN lol
 
Sat Oct 5 workout

Unilateral Squat
100 x 8,6,6

Leg Extensions
50 x 15+5+5+5

Standing Leg Curl
25 x 10 +5+5

Unilateral Standing Calf Raise
BW x 30 M time

My plan was to do Unilateral DL but I just couldn't balance myself after the squats so I plan on alternating UDL/Squat and doing reverse lunges on DL day. I decided to try M time on calf raises and as sorry as it sounds, I can only do like 10-12 full reps one legged at my BW so getting 30 full squeeze at the top slow negative reps with 2-3 seconds M time blew my mind. Got my feet wet know so time to up the weights and push hard the rest of the year.
 
Mon. Nov 7 workout

Incline Bench 175 x 20 M time

Flat Bench 175 x 6,6,5,4

Seated DB Press 60’s x 8,4,4

Lateral Raises 20’s x 10,8,5

EZ Bar Skullcrusher 70x 10,5,5

Incline was definitely harder than last session, but I only used a 10 sec rest on last 3 reps and kept it pretty short until that point. Flat bench just feels wierd after incline so i took the time to do 3-4 wrm up sets to get the feel for it and went much smoother than last session. In an effort to help with recovery I am doing fascial stretching for 30-60 seconds after completing each bodypart as they do in DC training. I am also doing weighted crunches/leg lifts each workout but not bothering to log them
 
Tues. Nov. 8 workout

Close Grip Chins BW @ 238 x 20 M time (BW clothed w/ shoes)

Kroc DB Rows 75’s x 22

Upright Rows 70 x 20 M time

DB Shrugs 75’s x 20+10+5

Incline DB Curls x 30’s x 12 +4+4
w/supination

My clothed BW was 7 lbs heavier than last chin session and I was able to keep the rest between reps a little shorter so that was a plus. I watched a youtube vid on Kroc Rows and ther was no way in heck I wasnt gonna try them out today :D I think the fascial stretching is well worth the extra time because its really reduced the amount of DOMS post session.
 
Thur. Nov. 10 workout

Unilateral DL
100 x 5
120 x 5
140 x 5

Reverse Lunge (off two 25lb oly plates)
90 x 5
100 x 5
110 x 5

Standing 1 legged Calf raise
BW @ 238 x 30 M-time

Through pyramiding the DL I found that my right side is weaker and I struggled with the last set. Calf raises seemed a little easier than last time so time to add weight. I flirted hard with the idea of doing a few sets of leg extension, but time wouldn't allow it. As a side note I am putting my wife through a bootcamp style workout 3 days a week for an hour from 5 to 6 am. Man I need to seriously work on my cardiovascular endurance! I get winded just doing a few burpees and mountainclimbers. I think a cut is indeed in the cards first of the year
 
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