40 is the New 20

Training Training Logs
21

Back from Vegas. We had so much fun and the wedding was nice. I poisoned my body for a week straight and apparently it’s been 20 days since my last workout. I think maybe I didn’t post my last one.

Anyhoo, I started Doggcrapp training last night. Some may say, particular the fan bois over on IM, that I’m not strong enough to do DC. I understand that sentiment, but i say it’s all relative. As long as I’m using weights that are heavy FOR ME, then there’s no reason that DC wouldn’t work for me. Also I’m using the modified version for 40+ lifters (higher rep ranges) Depending on how things go I might add in a drop set after the initial RP set if I’m not getting enough work in. I’ll let the DOMS decide. Either way, I will beat the logbook.

Workout A #1 Chest, Shoulders, Tris, Back Width, Back Thickness

Low Incline DB Press Ramped to top rest pause set of 80s x 9,4,fail. I probably could have done another two reps but failed on the set up. Extreme stretch with 35lb DBs. didn’t time it but went ALAP

I hadn’t done this in a few months so wasn’t sure where to start. I am probably going to switch this out for something else. I feel this in front delts more than anything and they were already torched when it was time for shoulders.

Standing Behind Neck Press ramped to max rest pause set of 95x 10,4,1. Extreme stretch DC style.

Tris- seated 1 arm OH extensions 20x AMRAP (any elbow stress causes pain. I am working on it) Extreme stretch with 27.5 DB ALAP. I was immediately worried this stretch was a bad idea. Initially it hurt but then it seemed to make the whole area feel better. Perhaps this is what I need.

Wide Grip Pulldowns ramped to max rest pause set 135x 14, 4,4

Seated V Grip Rows ramped to max rest pause set 135x 10,4,4

Extreme stretch lats using 1 arm hanging twist and 2 arm squatted pull

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Also, this is my favorite pic from the trip. #luckyguy

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23

Doggcrapp training continues. I’m still getting used to some new exercises and figuring out my ranges.

Workout B #1 Biceps, Forearms, Calves, Hamstrings, Quads. Each exercise is followed by the DC style extreme stretches.

Standing EZ Curl ramp to 85 x 12,2,2 rest paused. I’m going to add in a couple or few lighter straight sets next time after. I’m not feeling any soreness or pump

Seated Calf Raises 40 x 12. If anyone is not familiar, the DC method for calves is a pause at the top followed by a slow eccentric and a 15 full second pause in the fully stretched position with each rep. Having never done these before, or any calf training really I think I started too light. That stretch did get pretty tough though towards the end.

Reverse grip BB curls. 40x9. I didn’t care for this movement at all. My wrists gave out towards the end and were extremely stressed. Going to find another forearm exercise.

Unilateral kneeling leg curl machine 32.5 x 12,4,3 rest paused. My legs are weak. I’m trying to change that.

High Bar BB Squats ramp to 185 x 8 ----> 20 rep Widowmaker 135 x 20

This was my first time using knee wraps and I absolutely love them. My knees felt great for once. The widowmaker was not easy for me. My legs and back were ok, but my conditioning is not great and by rep 18 my head started hurting. After rep 20 I had a pretty bad headache that lasted a while.

24

Currently out of commission and really pissed off about it. The bad headache I got after squats last week has persisted. I’ve had 4 pretty bad ones since then, all from physical activity. I tried to ease in to another workout focusing on my breathing but once it was time for heavy OHPs the headache came on strong and fast and I was done.

I had a CT scan yesterday which the doc said looked normal. I’m supposed to keep a headache journal and try to ease back in to workouts. I really just hope this goes away and I can go balls out again.

I had planned on bulking for 10 weeks or so but perhaps I’ll use this as a reason to just cut down another 20 lbs or so.

25

How is your blood pressure? That screams high blood pressure to me.

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It was normal and I’ve always been within normal ranges. I’ve read similar stories and others have also mentioned blood pressure, hydration, and breathing. I was definitely breathing in between reps but perhaps I held it a bit too much on the way up. I will definitely keep that in mind going forward.

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I might try some aspirin though before I try to go heavy again to thin my blood out some and see if that helps.

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28

Well, it’s been a month since my headaches started. I stayed out of the gym until yesterday and I’m happy to report that I didn’t get a headache at about 70% intensity workout. I continued to get them during intercourse and once when the children got my blood boiling but they started to subside after maybe 3 weeks (consistent with other stories I read about). Every so often I do still get a dull ache in the head that isn’t quite an exertion headache but is different than a regular headache.

I’m still going to take it easy in the gym for a while. Heck, I’ll need to anyway after taking a month off, but I’m happy to be back. I was excited to get in to Doggcrapp training, but that is clearly a no go. I might go with a good 5x5 push/pull/legs split. If I find that the headaches come back I’ll try some basic 3x12 stuff which is what I did last night.

29

Two workouts in the books after my exertion headaches began with no subsequent headaches although I was getting a bit light headed on rep’s 6-10 on squats last night. Still taking it a bit easy (70-90% intensity) while I get back in to it and recover from my month off of training.

Rather than abandon Doggcrapp entirely, I’m going to follow that program design but change the single rest pause set to straight sets. (Dante himself advocates this for older lifters like myself anyhow) This will allow me greater exercise and equipment selection since I don’t have a training partner with main goal being not getting exertion headaches anymore.

I’ll start posting numbers once I get back in to the groove but workouts A1 and B1 went as follows. The DC program follows an ABA BAB approach so each muscle group is worked 3 times every two weeks. There are 3 different A and B workouts and then a combo of weight and reps are added and the cycle starts over. Progressive overload is key. I’m keeping the extreme stretches after each exercise also.

Workout A1 (chest, shoulders, triceps, back width, back thickness)

DB bench press 3x10
Seated DB shoulder press 3x10
1 Arm OH Tri extension 3x AMRAP
Lat Pulldown 3x10
Seated V-Grip Row 3x10

Workout B1 (Biceps, forearms, calves, hamstrings, quads)

Standing EZ Curl 3x10 (5 second negatives)
Roller extensions 2x5 full rolls (I think this will be good for my elbow tendinosis)
Seated Calf raises 3x10 (15 second pause in stretch position each rep)
kneeling 1 leg ham curls 3x10
high bar back squats ramped to 8,8,10 (loving my knee wraps. best investment ever)

30

The DOMS after taking a month off is worse than I have ever felt in my life. My B1 workout left me limping for days. My A2 workout listed below has the elbow area where both my forearms and biceps meet excruciatingly tender. My lats hurt with every step down stairs or while jogging. Thankfully I’ve been busy getting ready to move so I’ve taken a few extra days recovery.

Workout A2 (chest, shoulders, triceps, back width, back thickness)

Low Incline Hex Press 3x12 (quickly becoming my favorite chest exercise)
1 Arm Cable Lateral Raises 3 rest pause sets of 15
Tricep kickbacks (say what you want. they are easy on my elbows and isolate my triceps) 3x20
Wide grip pullups 3x 3 full reps followed by 5 negative only reps. (these are what are making my forearms, biceps, and lats hurt. i’m a bit too heavy and a bit too weak to do a lot of full reps but the negatives are amazing in my opinion)
Kroc Rows 3x12

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31

t-ransformation 2020

It’s sad to say, but life got the better of me through the middle part of 2019. The process of buying a house and moving in April and kids and new marriage and everything else kept me out of the gym from about March to October or so. I eased back in and I’ve been back regularly since November.

My exertion headaches seem to be a thing of the past so that is good. Current weight as of this morning was 187.3 with my goal being 170 by 2/26 when I go on my honeymoon cruise. I had always thought keto was a bit silly, as any diet with caloric restriction will work for fat loss, but having researched it thoroughly, I learned about it’s many health benefits. I’ve been easing in but started keto in earnest yesterday as well has intermittent fasting. Nothing crazy though, just a 16:8 window with breakfast being replaced by keto coffee.

Lunch and dinner are both a salad with either chicken or steak, full fat dressings, 2 cups of romaine and a variety of veggies but not too many. total carbs are 20-30g per day. Total calories are a bit low; around 1600-1900/day, but this is just my fat loss phase. I’ll be upping that significantly once goal weight is achieved.

Training methodology at the moment is a modified doggcrapp routine using straight sets instead of rest pause. Progressive overload (beat the logbook) is still the key and I’m in the 12-20 rep range. I really like the ABA BAB periodization as well as the body part split that DC uses.

My numbers are going up, but I’m still nowhere close to where I was a few years ago, then again I’m also 41, took 6 months off, and eating like a bird so that’s to be expected.

I’m just happy to be back under the iron, permanently this time.

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32

A week in to keto diet and I absolutely love it. Particularly the anti-inflammatory effects and incredible mental clarity and energy. Weighed in at 183.2 this morning; down from 194 the day after Christmas.

My tendinitis that i’ve been battling for 15 years is basically gone after 1 week on keto. It’s insane what cutting carbs and adding healthy fats can do.

I’m on my second round through my modified DC training protocol. It’s 3x/week following ABA BAB schedule. Then add weight/reps and repeat through again. Training is as follows. I use weights that are heavy for me and go to just below failure. If my elbows stay happy i’ll try to work in different tricep stuff.

A: Chest, Shoulders, Tris, Back Width, Back Thickness

A1
DB Bench Press 3x15
DB OH Press 3x10
OH Tri Extension 3x15
Lat Pulldown 3x15
Seated Cable Row 3x12

A2
Squeeze Press 3x15
Face Pulls 3x15
OH Tri Extension 3x15
Neutral Grip Pullups 3x AMRAP + 5 negative only reps
Pendlay Rows 3x10

A3
Decline BP 3x15
Leaning Cable Lateral Raise 3x12
Tri Kickbacks 3x15
Pronated Pullups 3x AMRAP + 5 negative only reps
Back Extensions 3x AMRAP

B1 Biceps, Calves, Forearms, Hamstrings, Quads, (been doing either or ham/quad for now)
Standing EZ Curl 3x15
Seated Calf Machine 3x10 DC style
Forearm weighted rollers both extension and flexion 5 each
High Bar Back Squats 5x5

B2
Seated incline curls 3x12
Donkey Calf raise 3x10 DC style
Forearm rollers
Trap bar deadlifts with shrugs 3x10

B3
Alternating DB Curls 3x15
seated calf machine 3x10 DC style
Forearm rollers
Leg Press 3x12

all workouts end with 5-10 minutes on treadmill carrying 33 lb medicine ball in various positions

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Fat loss has stalled a bit but I guess that’s to be expected. Current weight 182. Down from 202 after Thanksgiving. I may be at a bit too big of a caloric deficit but I’m not really hungry on Keto. Average around 2000 cals a day. TDEE calc say maintenance should be 2700.

Performance is good though and weights are going up no problem. I’ve been adding 5 lbs on iso movements and 10lbs on compound on my third cycle through the 3 versions of A and B workouts. I won’t bother with #'s until I’m done with my cut and start a proper lean bulk.

34

Good work. Your log title similar to mine! Progress gets tougher as we age. Man. For me it’s been all about just not missing sessions unless something really bad or stress too much to handle. Just get something done every day! Even if just bw squats or lunges and pushups.

35

It’s time to switch up my routine. I’ve still been making progress every workout, but I want to add more volume in each workout and I’m really going to pack on some muscle before my clock runs out. I turn 42 next month. Moving to a modified push/pull/legs. I’ve never trained abs directly so i’m adding that in on non-leg days and my chest and side delts are lagging so I’m going to add in some pushups and lateral raises at home.

Overall I am not very strong, particularly in my lower body, but give me a year. I’m more focused now than I have ever been and I’ve made gains every workout for the past two months.

Last night I started with my Back/Bi/Tri/Abs workout A

Lat Pulldowns 120 x 10,10,12
DB Incline Curls 4 sec negative 5x5 drop sets 37.5,35,32,5,30,30
DB Row 60 3x10
Cable Curls 3 drop sets (40x10,35x5,30x5) x3
Rope Press Downs 30x 20,15,15
Cybex ab machine 90x 10,10,12

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Friday/Saturday Leg Day

My legs are grossly underdeveloped but I’m trying to change that. My knees feel better than they have in a long time so hopefully I’ll be able to stick with it. Going to alternate which is heavier/first between squats and DL

Trap bar RDL 225 5x5
Squats 115 3x10
Leg extensions 50 3x10,10,12
Leg curls 50 3x10,10,12
Abduction 70 3x12
Seated calf raise 90 3x10

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37

Monday chest/shoulders/abs

I’m still figuring out my levels but thought my chosen starting weights were good for me

Decline BP 135 x 12,12,15
Egyptian cable lateral raises. I felt like this cable was heavier than usual but whatevs. 3 drop sets 16 reps each 15,10,5
Seated incline cable crossovers 17.5 x 12,9,9
Incline DB squeeze press 30’s x 15,10,17RP
Hanging leg raises (skipped due to back pain)

Progress pic from 1/1. I had a fat weekend and gained 4 lbs from drinking and eating but still enjoying my progress

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I’m back from my cruise and it’s time to get serious. In total I took about 3 weeks off from lifting leading up to and including vacation. I will be trying out the TKD or targeted keto diet where I take in carbs around my workouts. Protein and calories will be high except during my 3 weekly 20-24 hour fasts leading up to my workouts.

last night’s Chest/Shoulder/Ab workout

Decline Bench Press 135 x 12,12,15
Narrow Grip Upright Row 80 x 8,8,10RP (rest paused)
Incline Cable Flyes 15 3x15
Lateral Raise 10 x 15,15,17
Incline Squeeze Press 35 x 12,10,12RP
Hanging Leg Raise 3x12

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Loving the TKD and my new pre-workout plan. Lost 6 of the 10 lbs I gained on the cruise without trying and while upping my calories and protein.

In addition to the protein and carbs pre-workout I eat steak or chicken with sweet potato and veg after and then 5-6 oz of whatever meat I have before bed.

A typical day after workout keto eating plan is as follows:

Breakfast: 2 eggs with 5oz steak, 1/4c cheese, 1/2 avocado, tsp avocado oil (700 cals)
Keto Coffee: 2 tablespoons MCT oil, 1 tablespoon Kerrygold, cinnamon, stevia (360 cals)
Snack 9:30am: 5-6 oz ground turkey, 1oz nuts (350 cals)
Lunch 11:30: large salad w/ 2 chicken thighs, veggies, olive oil, vinegar, 1/2 avocado, 1/4 cup cheese (800 cals)
Dinner: same as lunch but the protein and dressing may change (700 cals)

Wednesday back/bi/tri workout

Pulldowns 120 x 12,12,15RP (up from 10,10,12)
DB Incline Curls 37.5 5x5 (up from 37.5,35,32.5,30,30) This was a huge increase. I think it might have been because i didn’t have my head all the way back on the bench, thus making it a little bit easier. Will test this theory.
DB Row 65 3x10 (up from 60 3x10)
Cable Curls Drop set 10reps then 5 then 5 45,35,30 (+5 lbs) remaining 2 sets were 40,35,30
Rope pressdowns 30x 20,15,15RP (no increase)
Bench v-sits 3x20

The T-ransformation 2020 Results