I can relate to this and have both thought this and said this to my misses many times. Often when we walk by the ocean I just look at her and say ‘we live here’.
1/5/2024 Friday
Bodybuilding, upper body:
Everything was 2x15, sometimes with a lighter warmup set beforehand to get a sense of the appropriate weight.
-Reverse Hypers (“daily dose” for glutes, intend to do one glute-oriented exercise on upper days, and one delt-oriented exercise on lower days)
-BTN press 65lb. Right shoulder injury made itself felt in the last half of each set.
-Cable Delt Raises Humbling, and much more feel-ey than DB side raises, because of the tension at the bottom. Need more of these.
-Lying triceps extension Tried bringing the bar to my throat, elbows couldn’t take it, so instead I brought the bar down to the top of my head.
-Seated triceps extension Is this a french press? Pretty close, anyway. Coming down behind he head. Triceps really feeling the pump here, particularly in this stretched overhead position
-Cable pec flyes again, I need more of these.
-Dips Were not fun at this point
-Lat Pulldowns
-High row machine Surprised by how this felt
-Preacher EZbar curls
-DB Hammer curls Biceps absolutely fried now
-Farmer carry, 105lb DBs, had to drop, rest, and re-grip to make it back.
This was interesting, fun, and eye-opening.
Yeah the cable delt and shoulder stuff is very different in a good way. Can get a great stretch out of it, and then have a constant load from the stretched portion.
An interesting one to try for the upper chest is to use a low cable, face away from the machine, and with the cable running between your elbow and body, do an uppercut motion. You can use your other hand to feel that the right part of the chest is worked.
Taking a moment to update my training plan as of 2024:
I’m committed to spending the first 8-12 weeks of the year NOT focusing on the powerlifts. That’s not to say I won’t do them, but mentally I’ll remove it as a priority, and completely let go of the idea of numbers.
Instead, I’ll try bodybuilding - lots of exercises, focusing on recruiting and feeling muscles, whether isolation or compound movements.
I had a look at some pay-for programs that were recommended, and didn’t feel ready to pay for either of them yet - no offense intended, I’m sure they’re solid programs and 100% sure the authors know more than I do about how best to BB.
But I think the direction I’m on at the moment is pretty aligned with my nebulous goals of taking in the flavor of BB, getting - hopefully - some of the benefits, but also avoiding burnout by not chasing a logbook or anything. Go in, feel some muscles, get out, feel better than before.
Bromley has a program called Kong. It’s a 5-day program, which was originally released with an E-book, but he’s taken the ebook down for some reason. Too bad, because if it didn’t lay out a 3-day version it would have certainly given guidance on how to do so.
Regardless, Kong was laid out like this:
Roughly, Push, Pull, Legs on separate days, 5/wk; 3 or 4 blocks of 3 or 4 weeks each.
The first block is just focused on a variety of lifts, with lots of volume. Each session pretty much contains a big compound that is disadvantaged, so you stay light and use muscles you wouldn’t normally, while still staying familiar with the compound lift.
The subsequent blocks vector the big compound of each session toward heavier and heavier versions. For example the last block has a rack pull, intended to be heavier than a deadlift for the same number of reps.
Also the subsequent blocks reduce volume a little and I believe reduce variety, focusing more on increasing the weight - while still staying very much within the BB range.
I’m not looking too far ahead right now, but I’m capable enough of following 2x15, 3x12, or 4x10 (the first 3 weeks of the program, roughly) on a wide variety of movements, and enjoying the fact that on many of these, I can’t even estimate how much I can lift, and haven’t felt these muscles stimulated this way before.
What I haven’t figured out is how to condense Kong-ish into a 3-day. Could do P-P-L, could do U-L-U, could even do U-L-U;L-U-L; today was definitely Upper with both Push and Pull, for instance, but that’s just me feeling it out.
I’m also pretty determined that if I’m going to spend time BB, I will try to grow some glutes. So even on upper days, I’ll do a set of glute-focused lifts. And hell, everyone knows you need delts to look like you lift, so OK - lower days will get a couple sets of delts too.
My recreational life has also added plenty of activity - paddling a kayak or paddleboard, swimming, carrying kids, playing on a jungle-gym doing monkey bars, pullups, and inverted rows.
And if I grow decent glutes, maybe I can come back to squats with a whole new tank of gas. Who knows.
I know it’s on Boostcamp rn. Honestly by the looks of it, you probably could super set a lot of the upper and lower work to shrink it to 3 days. Not optimal but it’s a thought. It looks like a fun program and I want to run it at some point
I just finished off with this: A Tried and True Bodybuilding Program Template - fairly no frills BBing, it does look like a minimum of 4 days per week, but honestly I didn’t always get that done, if you take it and do 3 sessions a week you’ll cover the same ground within 10.5 weeks that you would in 8 doing 4 per week, not a major difference, anyway that’s a freebie, so there’s an option for you.
Training/DOMS/Activity update:
-During Friday morning’s workout I knew I was going to have DOMS. I just didn’t realize how bad it would be! Do I just never use triceps in training? Because I had crippling triceps doms - and very little soreness anywhere else, though I felt I hit triceps evenly compared to biceps, delts, lats, pecs.
-Saturday I spent HOURS at the beach, having serious fun and being extremely active. Wife was too cold to get in most of the time, so while she sat on the beach with Baby I went ham on boogieboarding, snorkeling, swimming, just jumping in and out of waves and getting crushed by them - the surf was high. It was a workout and I think I feel it today. Good for me!
Today I’m catching up on needed things around the house, but the whole family went to the park as usual where wife and I practiced pullups and I did a few variations.
She’s trying to learn monkey bars, and I think it’s a psychological thing - believing that with only one hand she can’t support her weight, and therefore dropping instead of catching the next bar. But she’s getting there!
-I’m going to do legs tomorrow. I was disappointed last time that I couldn’t get my glutes sore. I want to stick with “week 1” of my kong-variant, since last week was a partial, before ratcheting up the volume for “week 2” next week. So that means 2 sets of 15 per exercise. But will play somewhat by ear, determined to get some kind of feeling in my glutes. And the rest of my legs would be a bonus LOL.
1/8/2024 Monday
Legs, glute-focused
2x15 Cable delt - dose. Focused on going slowly, really felt it this time.
2x15 Hip thrust machine Much lighter, just 90lbs on the plate-loaded machine, but felt it much better. Moved more slowly.Tried a 2-count pause at the top of the contraction (probably about one second) and it makes a difference.
5,8 (or 10?) BSS on Smith Machine, 95lbs Oh yeah. I hate BSS, the smith gives stability, I need to be doing these.
2x15 Sldl/rdl 145lb Metric plates, hence the odd weight estimate. Used the hook grip.
2x15 Leg ext at 100.
2x15 Back/glute ext machine This is new to me. It’s an “easy” movement, the way the machine is set up it’s not for grindy reps, but definitely seemed right.
Crunch machine Unbelievably painful upper ab contraction. I never train abs so…
Hack squats - 1 set of 10? Feet all the way out, in fact just heels on the platform, going down so deep the sled bottoms out. 135lb. Never really tried these. Interesting.
2x15 seated calf raise.
I have jelly legs. Going to feel this session!
1/10/2024 Wednesday.
Upper body, back-focused.
Mostly 2x15 with some undocumented exceptions.
Hip Thrust machine. Pause at top.
Delt lateral raise machine.
Overhead press machine. *A parallel grip and more in-front-of-body bar path on this machine compared to a barbell. Shoulder felt fine. *
Reverse grip pulldown.
High row.
Chest-supported row.
Chest-supported row, scap retraction only.
1 set of 10 pullups - proud to be able to do so after all that lat work!
Decline press machine.
Decline situps.
Machine preacher curls.
Cable single-arm curls.
IDK if I missed anything… didn’t have headphones so rest periods stayed as short as possible, I was able to get a lot done. I feel good. And my arms were so pumped they’re filling the sleeves of a polo today that they normally don’t fill.
Next session will be upper body, with more of a push focus.
1/12/2024 Friday
Upper body, push focus
Mostly 2x15 everything. Often a warmup set. Sometimes less than 15 reps due to weak.
BSS, 2x15x95 in the smith machine These completely devastate me. I’m panting, my whole body revolts at them. And they’re one of the rare things - maybe the only thing- that ever makes my glutes sore. Glute development is a priority in this phase so I am going to have to double down on these like it or not.
Slight-incline DB bench press. 50lb DBs. This trashed me. Seriously, the first exercise and I feel like my chest is done?
Close-grip bench press. 95lb. *Fell short of 2x15 here. Humbling. *
Dips, 2x10
Pullups: 2x10 neutral grip, 1x8 BTN just for good measure
Pec flye machine
Delt cable raise
Upright rows
A wide variety of triceps and biceps cable work, more focused on triceps today.
Ab crunch machine - jeez that thing hurts. It’s such a weird feeling at the top of my abs.
Maybe some other things? Not 100% sure. I was moving fast, resting little, but made sure to focus on chest and triceps, with a few sets for back and biceps, and obligatory hitting the delts.
Week in review
This is interesting. I’m calling this week 1 of 8, and possibly 12, of “bodybuilding”. It’s such a weird thing. I saw a guy front squatting, which is SO rare for my gym, and… I wanted to be the guy front squatting! Screw this cable shit! But I am willing to believe that a few weeks in this area will be good for me long-term.
Next week I’ll trend around 3x12 for most exercises. Week after that, 4x10.
In 12 weeks, that dude will be watching you and wanting to do triceps!
lolol for real though, it’s just been a couple weeks of doing this pumpy shit, and I feel like I’m filling out sleeves like a boss. So maybe… yeah.
I mean, let me add that I saw a dude on the leg extension machine just chillin, bouncing his body back and forth with a very moderate weight, not straining, freaking ON HIS PHONE doing what I can only assume he counts as a “set” of leg extensions. I’d rather be front squatting than doing that.
Yet on the other hand, a powerlifting mindset applied to BB might be just the ticket because we’re used to giving every ounce of strength, our whole body, to whatever lift. Kinda hard with a delt cable raise LOL but still.
1/13 weekend update:
Chest DOMS is insane. Which i knew was gonna happen after the first set of Incline press yesterday. Good.
Whole family went to the playground today where we competed for longest bar hang. It was fun, a little competition motivates kids to push much harder.
I did 3x10 pullups there with various grips, and a weighted pullup with a child (55lb?) Holding on to me.
As well as some other minor calisthenics.
Then we took a hike up the wall of an extinct volcano crater, called Diamind Head. Very steep, was fun!
1/15/2024 Monday
Leg day
Generally 3x12 on everything today. Where possible and appropriate, incrementing weight each set. Bromley says something like RPE 5, 7, 9 for the 3 sets; I’m not going to assign RPE numbers because I don’t have a good feel for that, but the principle applied.
Delt machine
Hip Thrust Machine
Smith Machine BSS Brutal and exactly what I need. 95, 105, 115.
Leg Extensions
SLDL
Hack Squat Possibly the most brutal work of the day. 95, 115, 135, bottoming out the machine every single rep.
Calf raises
Attempted the reverse hyper machine. Something is off in my hip flexor and it felt about to explode, not from the tension but from having my bodyweight pressed against the pad. Aborted.
Back/glute extension machine. It’s kind of a good morning machine I guess. But feels more like physical therapy. Not a brutal lift at any weight. Not really sure what it’s design intent is. But probably healthy.
Abs, 1 set (see hip flexor comment above)
Feels good. Let’s be honest, the BSS, SLDL, and hack squat are the important points here, and I didn’t skimp on any of them.
Quick DOMS update.
As appropriate, legs are sore, including glutes - which is the key thing, actually stimulating my glutes.
And, I have an excellent soreness across my upper back, from the SLDLs - any time I deadlift after a long layoff that area gets sore, and some how “back day” isn’t hitting it. So glad I did the SLDLs!
VERY hungry and not shying away from extra food.
1/17/2024 Wednesday
Upper body pull-focused.
Majority of lifts are 3x12, typically trying to ramp weight set-to-set.
Hip Thrust machine - 95lb, 2x30 - just mixing it up to try to feel this in my glutes. I still don’t, really.
Cable overhead press
Cable delt lateral raise
Cable pec flye
Machine “horizontal press” lol
Triceps machine
The chest and triceps stuff is mostly supersetted in with the rest, and not at extreme effort levels. That’ll wait for friday.
Chest-supported row and chest-supported scap row superset
What I mean is that every set, I did 12 reps of “scap row” on this machine before doing the actual row. I need that upper back action of pulling shoulder blades together and it doesn’t normally happen on a set of rows.
High row
Plate-loaded underhand grip pulldown
Biceps, biceps, biceps
Had a crazy biceps pump, and my lats were wiped out too. I hit these pulls and rows really hard today, as last week the chest work made me very sore but the back work didn’t. Let’s see if this does it.
sounds like you aere enjoying the bodybuiling mate.
When ever I read your log title it makes me think of the saying
‘Apres Moi le deluge’
“After me the flood”? What is the connotation of that saying?
Yes i am enjoying it. And it will give me new insight to draw on when i return to real training (lol) un a few weeks.
Quick google search , tells me it is a french expression from Lious 15th, there are multiple explanations for what he meant by it.
Some people say it is in reference to not caring what happens when you are gone. Some even say it is a reference to Halley’s comet and the floods cause by its passing the earth.
It was a phrase used by a British comedy character ‘Del Boy’ in a show called ‘Only Fools and Horses’ @alex_uk and @rugby_lifting will know it well I am sure.
I like the literal translation as you have outlined above, and take it to mean, After I do something, others follow.