Atlas13 Burning the Boats

[alex_uk]

Really like the YouTube weekly summary, good stuff Atlas.

[atlas13]

Thanks man! It’s fun to make, nice little project

[atlas13]

20Jan25: Cycle 1 week 4 day 1

SSB:

245x10 2 RIR

245x10 2 RIR

245x10 1.5 RIR

245x10 1.5 RIR

245x10 1 RIR

RDL:

160x10

160x10

160x10

160x10

Db BSS:

20x10 2.5 RIR

20x10 2.5 RIR

20x10 2 RIR

20x10 2 RIR

Hand Assist 30 Nordic curl:

10

10

10

10

Superset:

Face pull: 50x12, 50x12, 50x12, 50x12

GHD Sit-up: 10, 10, 10, 10

Totals:

Quads: 9

Hams: 8

Glutes: 13

Shoulders: 4

Core: 4

Notes:

• squats felt good, weight jump definitely noticeable. I’m not going as heavy as I could, but as heavy as I can do while keeping this more upright form. If I let my quads take the back seat, I could definitely hinge squat more weight, but it defeats the desired training effect. Something to keep in mind as I go for a PR set next week.
• RDLs felt great. Noticed my stance has been drifting wider, no reason just not paying attention. Brought it back closer; feels better:
• Accessories all moved well.

Truck having some issues. Thing hasn’t been right since I got back from deployment. Had it in a long term vehicle storage place that didn’t do a damn thing they were supposed to. Gonna go try to trade it in today, wish me luck.

[T3hPwnisher]

@atlas13

But when it comes to food? Well you don’t just stop eating. You still gotta eat. You just need to eat in a specific way. And that “gateway” to the action of eating makes it easier to overdue it. If i HAD to have some nicotine everyday, i think it would make limiting how much I use drastically harder than just going cold turkey, because once you have some, your head starts to justify more.

I also think this is why so many people do well with elimination diets. It’s easy to say “no bread” “no carb” “no fat” “no meat” or whatever example you want. By having a hard “never” your psychologically can follow that easier rather than a “have some, but not too much.”

So yeah. That’s my unqualified opinion lol

This speaks to unique psychology as well. Some folks are natural abstainers: they are much better at just eliminating stuff than employing moderation. Other folks are natural moderators: they’re much better at doing all things occasionally vs some things always and some things never. It’s true of eating and other things. Some folks CAN just smoke a cigarette when they’re out with friends, or just enjoy a drink once a month or so, and other folks, as soon as they get a taste, they’re on a bender. And just as you noted, “food addiction” is a real thing, and so much more difficult to overcome BECAUSE it’s not something we can 100% abstain from. But some folks can do the elimination diets, and some folks GOTTA have the variety. Same way some folks can eat the same thing everyday and some folks will go crazy if you make them do that.

But food? Holy shit. Turn down a brownie at work and watch as half the office prepares their pitchforks lol. And that’s in the freaking military where (theoretically anyway) everyone’s supposed to care about fitness lol

This is such a unique silly thing we humans do. It’s like you denying the brownie is you denying that it’s delicious. I’ve found success in, when asked, “Would you like a brownie” saying “I sure would but I’m doing to decline” or “That looks really delicious but I’m going to say no this time”. I also enjoy Dr. Ken Berry’s approach of saying “When I eat stuff like that, I experience swelling”. No one needs to know that it’s swelling of the butt and gut, haha.

[atlas13]

21Jan25 cycle 1 week 4 day 2

AM: Conditioning
5k row: 22:23

PM: Strength

Incline Bench:
160x10 2 RIR
160x10 2 RIR
160x10 2 RIR
160x10 1.5 RIR
160x11 1 RIR

Db chest support row:
55x11 2 RIR
55x11 2 RIR
55x11 2 RIR
55x11 2 RIR
55x11 1 RIR

DB Bench:
55x12 2 RIR
55x12 2 RIR
55x12 2 RIR
55x12 1.5 RIR

Single arm cable hi row:
60x11 1.5 RIR
60x11 1.5 RIR
60x11 1 RIR
60x12 0.5 RIR

Rope Pushdown;

45x13 2 RIR
45x13 2 RIR
45x13 2 RIR
45x13 1 RIR

Cable curl:

45x13 2 RIR
45x13 1.5 RIR
45x13 1 RIR
45x13 0.5 RIR

Hammer curl:

25x13 1 RIR
25x13 1 RIR
25x13 1 RIR

Some Volume Incline work #strongman #powerlifting #bodybuilding #weightlifting #fitness

Notes:

• Single digit temperature in the garage. Hands were going numb grabbing the barbell, ended up basically hugging my space heater in between sets until I finally got my body temp up lol.
• work has gotten into a routine schedule, so shifting to my planned 2x a day split. Really liked hitting my conditioning in the morning, great start to the day. Doing it fasted because of time constraints, easier to just wake up and go. I don’t think it’s really an issue for the duration I am doing. Longer work sure, but anything under 45 minutes and I feel like I can just gut it out.
• Bench moved well. Was worried if I could hit 160 for all the sets after how 155 felt last week, but it moved easier this week than last. Good sign.
• Rows of all variety felt good. Think next mesocycle I will reintroduce straps on my rowing’s movements, can feel myself starting to rely on my biceps as I push closer to failure.
• Sleep update: better, not great. I’d say about once a week or so I will get hit hard by a bout of insomnia, and end up staying up until 3-4 just laying in bed. Most nights, I am able to fall asleep in a more reasonable time. I will note that when I sleep, I sleep like a rock. But, I am sleeping for 5.5-6 hours. Which isn’t bad, hell that’s more regular sleep than I have gotten in years. But even if I’m in bed for 8, I will naturally wake up after about 6, and just came seem to fall back asleep, even if I’m still a little tired. I think it’s been so long since I’ve slept longer than 6 that my body is struggling to do it? I’m taking melatonin, magnesium, and ashwaganda about 30 minutes before bed, and I think that’s helping (side note: absolutely wild dreams), but still a work in progress.

@T3hPwnisher

Some folks are natural abstainers: they are much better at just eliminating stuff than employing moderation. Other folks are natural moderators:

ya know, that makes a ton of sense to split it up between “abstainer” and “moderator.” Oddly enough, I feel like I am an “abstainer” in every aspect but diet. Most things, It’s gotta be all or nothing for me. A little bit never ends up being enough. But with diet, I always get a nagging voice in the back of my head telling me “well rounded diet you idiot.” But then again, now that I think of it, I’ve never done well with an IIFYM approach. I gotta make a meal plan, and I stick to THAT AND ONLY THAT, so maybe my “abstaining” is just from anything not in the diet.

Honestly, and this sounds terrible, but where I feel this most acutely is with alcohol. I have NEVER been the guy to have “A” drink. I go out for “drinks”. Now to preface this a bit, I have never had any sort of behavioral issue with alcohol. I’ve got a strong tolerance, and I am an extremely mannered drunk lol. I jokingly say I come from a long proud line of alcoholics, but it’s honestly a pretty accurate statement. Though, for the most part, the men in my family would all qualify as “functional alcoholics.”

(Rambling here, but its my log so I get to lol)

Now, I am not saying I have a drinking problem lol. I am very aware of my own tendencies and family history, so I am purposely very careful about it. Heck, I haven’t had a drink since new years, and don’t plan to have another until at least March, because I like to periodically go cold turkey to make sure I can do so without effort, just in case my drinking snuck up on me without me noticing. When I do let myself drink, I’ve got strict rules for myself. Never on weeknights, no more than 3 a night, not multiple days in a row, etc. I guess in this aspect I am forcing myself to be a “moderator” because I don’t want to completely cut myself off from a social aspect I enjoy… but I can also confidently say, that if I didn’t force myself into moderation, excess would be the norm. I remember reading some history books that talked about Churchills drinking and thinking to myself “ I could absolutely function like that,” and really the only thing preventing me from that is the health consequences of it. As much as I may enjoy it (which I do wonder if that is somewhat genetic, as I come from severe alcoholism on both sides), and I honestly think i could nail the “functional drunk” (not a goal, just an observation about myself with alcohol), the health affects of excess drinking just aren’t worth it. Weight gain, heart risk, dementia risk, I mean it’s just terrible for you, which is why I end up hardly drinking. But it’s a concerted effort for me to do so, there’s no “oh I just have a drink when I want one”, because I’d end up going to meetings within a year lol.

@T3hPwnisher

It’s like you denying the brownie is you denying that it’s delicious.

I think people here “I don’t want your brownie” as “I think I am better than you because I’m above junk food, and you are a fat worthless heap.” I’ve never thought about saying anything about bloat before, but I have had success saying “oh god that looks good, but I can’t with my blood sugar.” I’m not exactly saying I’m diabetic, but I’m large enough that people don’t tend to ask questions after I say that lol.

[atlas13]

23Jan25: Cycle 1 Week 4 Day 3

PM:

Hi handle trap bar deadlift:

75x10, 165x5, 255x5, 345x3, 395x2

425x8 3 RIR
425x8 3 RIR
425x8 2.5 RIR
425x8 2 RIR
425x8 1.5 RIR

Belt squat:

107.5x10 3+ RIR
107.5x10 3+ RIR
107.5x10 3+ RIR
107.5x10 3+ RIR
107.5x12 3+ RIR

45 back raise:

20sx12
20s x12
20sx12
20sx12

Close stance heel elevated goblet squat:

60x10 3 RIR
60x10 3 RIR
60x10 3 RIR

Superset:

Face pull: 50x13, 50x13, 50x13, 50x13
Ab wheel: 10, 10, 10, 10

Conditioning: Rowing Intervals
500m, 400m, 300m, 200m, 100m
60 seconds rest in between intervals

Yoke Mobility:
4 rounds
30 seconds dead hang
15 neck extensions: 25lbs

5x425x8 #bodybuilding #strongman #powerlifting #fitness #fitnessmotivation

Notes:

• 10lb jumps in deadlift add up pretty quick, but the weights still moving pretty well. The cold isn’t my friend here, the bar is freezing.
• Hit another hard wall between sets 4 and 5 on deadlifts. Abs started to cramp, just really did not want to hit this. Got it done though.
• Weight progressing more and more on belt squats, largely due to me figuring out the strength curve on this thing.
• Back raises gave me a crazy lower back pump. Been getting those more, which I actually think is good. Been a very long time since I did direct low back work, think I’m gonna get something good out of it.
• Using a belt on goblet squats. Seems dumb, feels dumb, but it’s semi mental for me. By throwing on the belt, I don’t even think about my core, so the entire movement I’m just focused on knee flexion, which is my goal for these anyway.
• These higher volume workouts are taking a while. Around 90 minutes from start to finish. A lot of it is the main lift. Between warm up sets, and then 3 minutes between each main set, I’m eating some time there. But overall it’s just a ton of sets and volume, more than my usual 531 or linear program. Which I think will be a good change of pace for me stimulus wise, but god, I’m glad my schedules open right now lol.
• Conditioning smoked me. Rowing after deadlifts is tough, because the lower back and hips are just so fried going into it. I am digging this rower though. Not as big of a fan of using it for LISS work, but this thing kicks some serious ass on anything intervals.
• Starting something new. I’m working a desk job again, and like everytime I spend all day at a desk, I’m getting some intense stiffness in my traps/upper back/neck. So, going to start a ~5 min routine at the end of my lifts. Some dead hangs, and then either neck flexion or extension. See if doing the two regularly helps ease up this tension. On that note, first time using a neck harness for extensions, holy hell this was more difficult than expected

Edit: it’s been like 10 minutes since I finished lifting. My neck is INSANELY sore. Not like joint sore, but muscle cramp sore. I may cut the weight a bit next time lol

[atlas13]

Nutrition update: ( @QuadQueen please let me know if I’m being dumb)

I have dropped 6lbs in the last week. Which is odd. Week one of the vertical diet my weight was up and down, but hovering just about the same. This week, freefall.

I can look at it two ways. Either week 1 was my body being weird, discount it, and I’m at a deficit of 3000 calories a day for the last week…… meaning I need to eat 5,500 calories to maintain. Which seems ludicrous. Doesn’t pass the smell test. So, let’s average it over two weeks, 1500 cal deficit a day, puts me at 4000 calories a day for maintenance…. Which seems high. Not impossibly high I guess, I do see some people claiming those kind of numbers, but definitely a hell of a lot higher than I’ve ever maintained before.

I DID put on some holiday/deployment fluff, so I do want to drop weight. But, slowly. Like, 1lb a week, not 3. In my head, this means I should add 1000 calories to my daily diet…. But that seems very high to me. So I’m ignoring the math for a bit and just experimenting.

Starting today, adding in every day

• sweet potato
• Banana
• Protein shake
  Which will add an extra 355 calories, 2.5g fats, 54g carbs, and 33g protein, bringing my total for the day to 2899 calories, 78.5g fats, 285g carbs, 267g protein.

Purposely adding in carbs and protein, trying to get protein to a bit above 1g/lb while cutting, and then filling in the rest with carbs. Also adding in my carbs via fruit and sweet potatoes just for the micronutrient benefit. I could easily just add more rice, but I feel like rice is a “cheap” carb. It gives me the carbs, but not a lot more, and idk if just mainlining rice is the best idea for insulin sensitivity.

Plan is to go another week with this new macro breakdown. If I still am dropping a lot of weight, I will add more calories next week. Also worth noting that I have been keeping my cardio a little shorter just because of how cold it is, but my treadmill arrives Monday, so cardio is going to get ramped up a bit, which may also facilitate more calories.

This is also the first time I’ve ever worried about increasing calories while cutting weight. It’s an oddly nice feeling.

Overall, I’m loving the vertical diet. Honestly, adding food solely due to the scale feedback, because I feel FULL on this diet. Not stuffed or anything, but I haven’t really felt any hunger throughout the last two weeks, which I think is due to the increased nutrient quality of my foods, and my better sleep.

Todays dinner:

8oz 93/7 ground beef
1.5 cups basmati rice
1 medium potato
2 eggs sunny side up

Hand size for reference

[QuadQueen]

I think that the add more food slowly approach is perfect! My guess is that you didn’t drop weight that first week has more to do with the fact that you were sick/just getting over being sick, so there was likely a good bit of inflammation in your body, and also just your body adjusting to something new. The big drop this week is most likely a water drop, decreased inflammation, and your body registering the deficit you’ve been at for the last couple weeks.

My bet is that next week you’ll see a much smaller drop or even just maintain your current weight. Stick with the 300-400 extra kcals/day this week and let’s see what happens. Enjoy that bonus food and really pay attention to how you feel during your workouts and in terms of hunger/fullness. Based on next week’s weight and how you felt overall, we’ll plan the attack moving forward. Sound good?

[atlas13]

Can’t you just let me pretend I just shed 6lbs of fat in two weeks? I’d much prefer that haha.

But really, I agree with you on everything. Definite possibility of some water weight/inflammation, or maybe just finally dropping some bloat from the atrocious holiday eating.

Either way, i’m hopeful that the weight will continue to drop with the smaller food increase. Ideally dropping a little slower, but maintaining in the direction I want to go. If it stops altogether, then I just drop back to what I am currently doing, no harm no foul.

Thanks for the input! Your the best

(P.S. Not listed but there was about a cup of sauteed spinach in the dinner as well, just for you lol)

Edit: Sidenote, but I am back to daily weigh ins. I know some people dont like that, and I can easily see how for some peoples mentality, it would be terrible, but it works for me. That being said, for the first time ever, I am looking forward to the weigh ins lol. Not because im making progress, but because I am very much enjoying following a strict diet plan, and I feel like a scientist playing around with my macros and seeing the results lol.

[atlas13]

25Jan25 cycle 1 week 4 day 4

Seated BTN press:
115x10 2 RIR
115x10 2 RIR
115x10 2 RIR
115x10 1.5 RIR
115x11 0.5 RIR

Lat pulldown:
145x10 2 RIR
145x10 2 RIR
145x10 2 RIR
145x10 1.5 RIR
145x11 1 RIR

Db Inc bench:
55x12 2.5 RIR
55x12 2.5 RIR
55x12 2.5 RIR
55x12 2.5 RIR
55x14 1 RIR

Seated cable row:
130x10 2 RIR
130x10 2 RIR
130x10 2 RIR

Lat raise:
20x14 2 RIR
20x14 2 RIR
20x14 1 RIR
20x13 0 RIR

Tricep extension:
65x11 2 RIR
65x11 2 RIR
65x11 1.5 RIR
65x12 1 RIR

Barbell curl:
60x12 2 RIR
60x12 2 RIR
60x12 1.5 RIR
60x12 1 RIR

Yoke mobility: 4 rounds

30 second dead hang

15 neck flexion: 20lb

Notes:

• close to my limit with BTN press. First set definitely had reps in the tank, but I was struggling by set 5.
• Lat pulldowns felt great. Incline felt great. Honestly, everything felt great. Just feeling on fire today.
• Dead hangs are killing my hands. It’s just freaking cold, which makes the bar hurt like hell during the hang lol. Cold front should be home by next week. If you can’t tell, don’t do well with cold
• Forgot to mention I did a ruck yesterday. 30 minutes, nothing special.

May have had an epic fail today.

With how much I’m eating, I’m spending a lot of time cooking. Which, I’d rather not do. Thought to myself “hey, what if I throw all this in a crockpot and just let it cook?”

4 hours later, I have this

8lbs ground beef, 6 cups of rice, 12 cups bone broth, a package of spinach. It is not going well. The rice expanding is making the water overflow, so I keep on having to ladle it out. Looks entirely nasty lol. I made monster mush instead of mash lol. Gonna see if I can finish it, because the macros are still right, but this may have been a terrible mistake. Either way, not doing it again. Maybe it is more convenient, but it’s also gross

[SvenG]

@atlas13

May have had an epic fail today.

Fail or not, there’s not doubt epic is the right term!

[QuadQueen]

@atlas13

Can’t you just let me pretend I just shed 6lbs of fat in two weeks?

I mean you can, but… Lol.

@atlas13

i’m hopeful that the weight will continue to drop with the smaller food increase. Ideally dropping a little slower, but maintaining in the direction I want to go.

I am fairly confident this is what’s going to happen. Everything will level out and start behaving more predictably - it just might take a little time to get it dialed in.

@atlas13

(P.S. Not listed but there was about a cup of sauteed spinach in the dinner as well, just for you lol)

High five, Popeye!!! Veggies for the win! Lol.

@atlas13

I made monster mush instead of mash lol. Gonna see if I can finish it,

Maybe take it out of the crockpot and put it in a large roaster, mix it up and bake it to finish it. It might be a little less soup-like that way

[tlgains]

I hate spending a lot of time cooking too.

Please consider making meatballs.

[Friedrich]

A little rice goes a very long way.

[atlas13]

VLOG 20JAN25

Also, abandoned by meal prep attempt. IDK what i did, but the rice disintegrated, the meat fell apart, and it was almost like one solid goo. Ive messed up meal preps before, but never to the point of being actually unedible. damn.

Redid it the normal way this morning

[SvenG]

Now that’s epic!

[atlas13]

@SvenG lol, it took me like 90 minutes to make 6 days worth of mash, so it’s not that bad, I was just hoping for a bit easier. The crock pot is still soaking, I baked a solid inch thick layer to the sides that won’t come off

@tlgains that’s actually a great idea! I should get some of the molds and just try baking it

@Friedrich in this case, I was past the point of salvation lol

@QuadQueen good idea, but the damage was done by that point lol. It was an experiment, sometimes they fail lol

[QuadQueen]

@atlas13

Redid it the normal way this morning

Now, just add some veggies and your set! I mean, I think I see a little spinach in there, but we both know you can do better…

[atlas13]

That’s like 16 cups before I sautéed it! I’m at like 3 cups a day lol. But I’m also snacking on carrots, along with my daily potato and sweet potato. That better? Haha

[QuadQueen]

@atlas13

That better?

I’ll give you a pass this time… Lol