Remember that most aesthetic are built in the kitchen
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Or in the galley, in his case, where quantity and choice are extremely limited!
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It also requires an ungodly amount of patience because the human body is a piece of trash.
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I am not sure I agree with that. I think the human body is incredible and in most cases a product of what we make it. I havenāt had much in the way of abs for a very long time but I am acutely aware of why that is and what it would take to change that. The main issue is whether or not we want to do it.
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13aug24
Bench: 165x10, 165x10, 175x10, 175x10, 175x9.5
Db Inc bench: 65x10, 65x7, 60x8
Fly: 25x15, 25x15
Machine press: 100x15, 100x13
Rope extension: 50x15, 60x15, 60x15, 60x15
Db overhead ext: 65x11, 65x12, 65x13
Skullcrusher: 45x15, 45x15, 45x18
Notes:
- bench is starting to get heavy on the volume day. Feeling pretty shot by that 5th set, definitely worn by the volume. Db bench afterwards is a lot weaker than usual, but shows that Iām hitting the chest hard with the bench.
- Lot more tricep work this day. Went light with the rope to get a lot of blood into the muscle first, then focusing on some more weight with the other two exercises. Well, that was the plan anyway. Need to up the weight next time, could use more than I thought.
- Phones were secured so no music in the gym, which was actually really nice, because instead of 30 people in the tiny ass space, there were 4 of us lol.
@jdm135 funny you say that, because today began the great chicken shortage of 2024. There were near riots at lunch lol.
@simo74 @tlgains i think I fall into a bit of both camps here. I think the body can adapt to a lot. I look at my past few years, and I canāt think of a time when Iāve consistently gotten even 6 hours of sleep, nutrition is all over the place, workouts at odd times under not the best condition. On the one hand, I feel like Iām still in pretty decent shape. On the other, Iām still extremely aware how much BETTER I would be doing if I was in a more conducive environment. The body can adapt, but I donāt think it thrives the same, if that makes any sense.
I will agree, the majority of aesthetics begins in the kitchen. Iāve got more than enough mass right now that Iāll look like I lift if I get leaner. Heck, I look like I lift now. BUT, I have definitely ignored some aesthetic muscles. I have big arms, because Iāve got big triceps, and (I think) some big brachialis from all the pull-ups over the years. But Iāve never had those big āhangingā biceps, if that makes any sense. My arms large, but I donāt have that bicep bulge. Why? Because for years my entire bicep routine is 2-3 sets once a week thrown on as an after thought once Iām done with main work. Today, my biceps were sore. I canāt remember the last time they were sore. And I actually trained them yesterday, imagine that.
So I think itās a combination for me. Leaning out a bit will help with the aesthetics, and changing my split a bit to just hit a few target areas (biceps, shoulders, traps) should add the āicingā to complement the physique, if that makes any sense
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No good asking me about this one. @TrainForPain is your man for big guns.
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Maybe you do and itās hiding under fat.
You have muscle dude.
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The same genetics that help you lift amazing loads, may be the same reason for this.
I have TINY joints. My wrists are just a hair past 6". My knees and elbows are also very small in diameter. Iāve seen some dudes, whether they lift or not, who have MASSIVE knees and elbows. I donāt know how big yours are but if theyāre big, which helps you be a big strong dude and move a lot of load, they also tend to not give your biceps that āpopped outā look because the proportion is different.
Just a possibility.
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I would also recommend picking different parentsā¦
@atlas13 what do you currently do for biceps? Are you less lean than youād like/ intend to be?
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@tlgains Iām sure leaning out will definitely help with that. Iām not carrying too much weight right now, but definitely could shed some marbling!
@jdm135 honestly, you may be on to something there. Iām pretty dense, broad knees, wide shoulder joint. My wrists seem about average, idk how my elbow compares haha. Still, not like thatās something I can control, so not worried about that part.
@TrainForPain for the past few years? Biceps has been 2-3 sets of some curl at the end of a workout once a week. Mainly really relying on chins to keep my guns happy lol. And yep, fully aware thatās probably my root cause here haha. In terms of leanness, im not terribly heavy, but could still shed a good 15lbs. Both actually training biceps and cutting some fluff are part of my plan moving forward.
As for the parents, my dad a 5ā6ā scrawny guy who ran cross country. Idk what the mailman looks like though
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I think weāve solved it! We all make fun of it, but big arms are actually overdeveloped comparatively. Youāre not going to overdevelop them with rows/ chins that spread the stress across a ton of musculature (or bench presses, for that matter). If itās something you care about, an actual arm day goes a long way for minimal systemic cost.
6 Likes
15aug24
Squats: 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x3, 300x10
RDL: 135x8, 185x8, 225x8, 225x8
Single leg curl: 35x12, 35x12, 35x10
Leg extension: 160x10, 160x10, 160x11
Notes:
- no phones again today, so another quiet lift. I donāt like listening to myself breathing heavy after a lift lol. Demoralizing
- Went into this kind of dragging ass. Very sleep deprived, fasted workout. Had to kind of flip the mental switch for the last set of squats, normally try to train without much āhypeā, and I still wasnāt jumping around and screaming or anything, but certainly went into it a bit more aggressive than usual. Happy with 10 though.
- Not sure how long I can run my squat like this, but I really enjoy it so Iām planning to do this until I stall hard and have to change.
10 Likes
16aug24
Bench: 205x5, 205x5, 205x5, 205x5, 205x6
Kroc row: 105x28
Seated db press: 60x10, 60x10, 60x11
Lat pulldown: 145x12, 145x12, 145x8
Assisted dip: 105x15, 105x15, 105x12
Notes:
- bench movedā¦ honestly, hard to gauge how well. Roughest sea state we have had yet, rocking a lot. Damn near lost the 6th rep when a swell caused the bar path to drift up, nearly did a damn guillotine press on the last rep.
- Kroc row PRā¦. But again, ship rocking like crazy, may have been to my benefit there.
- Seated db press I actually felt was the most unaffected, and was happy with how those moved. Again, crazy to compare my seated db press to my db bench, and just shows how dominant my shoulders are give my chest.
- Havenāt done cardio in a few days, because honestly, doing cardio in a small sweaty room staring at a faded tan wall, no windows, minimum ventilation, 97% humidity is bad enough, but now your telling me I canāt have music either? Nope. Not doing it. Physical benefits be damned, I will yeet myself off the flight deck before spend 45 minutes staring at a wall while I bike to no where
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18aug24
Conditioning: 50 minute spin class
Strength:
Squat stance good morning: 135x5, 185x5, 225x5, 255x5, 275x5 (PR by default), 305x2
Barbell shrug: 135x15, 225x15, 225x15, 275x15
Close stance Hack squat: 140x11, 140x11,
Notes:
- gym was closed this morning for cleaning before the spin class, and I promised Iād go to it, so ended up lifting after my conditioning today.
- Spin felt great. I get competitive, so itās a pretty brutal workout. Iām also just pretty dang good at it. We always compare watts generated at the end of class, and Iām generally a good 5-10% higher than anyone else. I can match anyone there on the long stretches of moderate RPM, normally with a little bit more resistance, but put me on a sprint with a lot of resistance? No one touches me. Kinda nice being the guy who is good at cardio lol.
- Lifting after was tough. Doing this all fasted, but soaked in sweat by the time I walked into the weight room, legs were already pretty fried. Definitely took some of the pop out of me, so I was happy with I still it some good numbers.
- Back to good mornings. Last time, I did heavy sets of 3 and 1. This time, for variety, doing heavy sets of 5 and 3. Or thatās the plan anyway. Wanted 305x3, which would have matched a PR, but after two 2, I knew I wouldnāt stand a 3rd. A little pissed, but 275x5 was a hard fought PR, and hitting 305x3, after a Patch fasted, after an hour of cardio, may have just been me being overly optimistic.
11 Likes
19aug24
Bench: 165x10, 165x10, 175x10, 175x10, 175x10
Db Inc bench: 65x10, 65x8, 60x8
Db fly: 30x12, 30x12
Rope pushdown: 60x15, 60x15, 60x15, 60x20
Db overhead ext: 65x13, 65x13, 65x14
Skullcrusher: 55x15, 55x15, 55x15
Conditioning: 45 min
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23aug24
Squat: 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x3, 305x8
RDL: 225x8, 245x8, 265x8, 295x5
Leg extension: 160x10, 160x10, 160x10+3
Leg curl: 160x20, 180x15
Conditioning: 30 min elliptical
Notes:
- semi fasted workout. Had lunch right before this, but found bugs crawling through the rice, and didnāt have much of an appetite after that. Ship food, gotta love it.
- Squats felt fantastic. All this submax work is really getting my form dialed in.
- Went heavier on RDLs, felt pretty good.
- Works been pretty rough the last two weeks. Lots of flared tempers, lots of screaming, just not the best place to be right now.
- Weāve had phones secured fairly often, and I do find that I really do miss having headphones in the gym. Itās not so much listening to music or podcasts that I like so much, itās the fact that I DONT have to listen to others talk about work while Iām lifting. The gyms may escape on the ship, and it really throws off the escapism to hear people discussing work in between sets. Absolute first world problems I know, but I still want my headphones lol.
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Sorry brother.
24aug24
Bench: 205x5, 205x5, 205x5, 205x5, 205x7
Kroc row: 105x30 (PR, add weight)
Db press: 60x11, 60x11, 60x11
Assisted dip: 90x10, 90x9, 90x9
Lat pulldown: 145x12, 145x12, 145x10
Conditioning: 15 min easy elliptical, followed by 1 mile run
Notes:
- bench felt just stupidly heavy today. Not sure whatās up with that, but thatās first set of 205, I legitimately was worried I wouldnāt get 3 reps.
- actually, scratch all of that, thatās dumb with even a second of thinking. I havenāt slept like at all, thatās it.
- Hit 30 reps on Kroc row, time to add weight.
@jdm135 it is what it is. Very divided back office right now, coupled with some pretty egregious sailor mistakes, and people are just tense. I donāt necessarily agree with the leadership style being demonstrated, canāt really find any way to describe it other than toxic. Personally, Iām pretty unscathed. Iāve got a pretty good reputation in regards to my job, and an equal reputation of being a bit hot headed (with a good enough knowledge on regulations that I can get most of my bosses dead to rights), so I tend to be left alone, but itās rough just when the collective is being screamed at, or just seeing my peers go through treatment like that. 4 months until i transfer.
11 Likes
27aug24
Trap bar deads: 155x5, 245x5, 335x5, 385x5, 425x5, 475x3 (got lightheaded and cut the set, weight actually moved fast), 515x3 (again fast, again nearly passed out). 425x12 (PR by default?)
Leg press: 5ppsx16, 5ppsx16, 5ppsx16, 5ppsx16
GHR: 15, 15
Ab wheel: 20, 20
Conditioning: 1 mile run; untimed
Notes:
- home sweet home. Have a few weeks on land, and I am very, very relieved. After that Iāll be at sea until I detach the command, Navy is squeezing the better part of one more deployment out of my before letting me transfer. Little disappointing to stay past projected transfer, but im under 6 months to transfer either way, so morale is high.
- Not really sure what was going on with my deads today. The weight was moving pretty fast. Actually think thatās faster than Iāve ever moved 515x3 before, but I nearly feinted in the process. Just getting super dizzy when pushing a brace today. Not sure whatās up with that, but i decided not to push it any further after that second triple. Stripped down to 425 and just took it for a ride, moved well.
- Leg press felt freaking light, and I completely credit that to all the hack squats underway. 5pps for 15 normally has me struggling, I was hitting 16 with reps in the tank. Time to add some weight.
- Man GHR felt great too. Reps loved pretty well, but more than anything I felt my hamstrings just contracting like crazy, very strict control the whole movement.
Stepped on the scale today, 226.2. Honestly, pretty dissapointed in that number. Goal was 220 by the end of the month, and Iām not hitting that. Iām only down 4 lbs in the last 5 weeks, which is fine, but not the progress I was hoping for. More demoralizing, I know how careful I controlled my diet underway. This level of weightless is pretty eye opening to me in just how unhealthy even our āhealthierā options onboard are. Even sticking to mainly meat and veggies, just the way it is prepared must be throwing in TONS of calories given the volume I ate. Which makes sense, fats are the cheapest shelf stable calorie source the navy can give sailors.
Not entirely upset though. Very much passing the mirror test. Still got work to do, but the bulk worked. My midsection has never looked this lean at this bodyweight, and going back in my logs, last time I was 226 my belt loop was 13-14, where as now Iām 15-16, so my waist is trimmer at the same bodyweight. Still need to finish the cut, my plans havenāt changed, but Iām not entirely upset with where Iām at. Wish I was under 226, but glad 226 is holding this well.
Also, come deployment, Iām going to vertical diet. Too hell with ship food. Not sure how long I will run it, but by hell at least 100% compliance for the first month. After that, maybe some adjustments, but by hell im gonna cut underway, and the vertical diet will let me bypass the whole āI donāt control my menuā issue
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Sounded like a good session despite the dizziness, also sounds like some good weight loss progress. Just stay the course mate and keep chipping away.
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