Chris Colucci: How Do You Train?

Bigger Stronger Leaner
41

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

[quote]Claudan wrote:
What a boss video, Chris. Is it OK to share it ? [/quote]
Ha, um, I guess?!? It’s on Youtube, so of course. But curiosity has me wondering, to whom am I being displayed?[/quote]

I post some pics on my FB and people are all blown away, so they start asking me to assess their bodybuilding splits…which is obviously is a futile exercise. Showing your video would be a good example of what pace, intensity and form should look like on higher intensity workout.

42

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

To Lonnie,

Wishing you empty racks when you want them, cheat days when you need them, and ab veins whenever you check for them.

Bro-hugs and fist-bumps,

  • Chris.[/quote]

This far exceeded my expectations of you simply typing your name out, good shit Chris.

43

[quote]Lonnie123 wrote:

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

To Lonnie,

Wishing you empty racks when you want them, cheat days when you need them, and ab veins whenever you check for them.

Bro-hugs and fist-bumps,

  • Chris.[/quote]

This far exceeded my expectations of you simply typing your name out, good shit Chris. [/quote]

Yeah. most meat heads just dip their paw in ink and mash it on their 8x10’s.

S

44

Chris, you’re one of the elite contributors on this site and i wanted to thank you for all the hard work you do in providing great training/nutrition information. The work you put into this beginners forum is second to none in quality info.

I also wondered, with Anaconda now extinct what exactly is your peri-workout nutrition looking like nowadays?

45

[quote]Eazy wrote:
Chris, you’re one of the elite contributors on this site and i wanted to thank you for all the hard work you do in providing great training/nutrition information. The work you put into this beginners forum is second to none in quality info.[/quote]
Thanks, man. I’m just glad to help when/where/who I can.

I’ve experimented with a bunch of stuff over the years (pretty much everything that’s been mentioned on the site) and I’ve come back around to remembering the concept of “good, better, best”. It’s an old idea from the ISSA-learnin’ days that’s still relevant in many training/nutrition situations. Basically, something is better than nothing, then there’s a level that’s more effective than that, and then there’s, well, the best.

Currently, as in the last few weeks, I’m using one scoop of Surge Recovery 10-15 minutes pre-workout, and two more scoops during the session. Actually, this quickly turned into one scoop pre, one during, and the rest shortly after training because training with the complexes I’m ready to yak if there’s too much sloshing around in my stomach. I’ll often have a scoop of Grow! with a scoop of leucine 20 or 30 minutes after training, and then eat an hour or so after that.

I feel good and am seeing progress (down 6 pounds in 3 weeks, waist is down almost 2 inches, arms/thighs/calves are the same), so I’m happy with the current plan. I decided on this combo for sort of the same reason that I’ve been doing only training programs from the archives. Because the overlooked basics still work just fine. (Or, “better” is still better than “good”.)

Plazma is phenomenal stuff (I’ve used it before and will again), but I’m getting a little tired of people complaining about the price. “Hey, yeah, I wanna drive that Ferrari but it’s not cool that you charge as much as all the houses on my block combined.” That’s fine. Don’t drive the Ferrari. But then don’t go bitching to your friends about how Ferraris are all overpriced because “they’re basically the same as a Honda.” (Wait, was that a tangent? Whoops.)

Anyhow, that’s why I’m kind of going the budget route. Call it an experiment in frugal muscle building or something. Hope that all made some sense.

46

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:
Plazma is phenomenal stuff (I’ve used it before and will again), but I’m getting a little tired of people complaining about the price. “Hey, yeah, I wanna drive that Ferrari but it’s not cool that you charge as much as all the houses on my block combined.” That’s fine. Don’t drive the Ferrari. But then don’t go bitching to your friends about how Ferraris are all overpriced because “they’re basically the same as a Honda.” (Wait, was that a tangent? Whoops.)[/quote]

I don’t really know my way around any supplements at this point, since I left them out to focus on diet and training.

So if Plazma is “Best”, what are “Good” and “Better” within the Biotest lineup?

I’m assuming the differences are noticeable, but without any experience, I don’t really know what to notice.

What would be a step up from my current milk + meat focused diet? And what kinds of things would be different?

(And Ferrari ARE overpriced, and Honda has actually made a few decent engines and suspensions…)

47

[quote]LoRez wrote:
So if Plazma is “Best”, what are “Good” and “Better” within the Biotest lineup?[/quote]
With what Biotest offers as far as protein mixes, I’d probably say basic Grow! whey in juice is “good” (as in, it’s the most barebones attempt you could make to get high quality protein and carbs around the training session), Surge Recovery or straight MAG-10 would be “better”.

Part of my (selfish) reasoning for pushing Surge Recovery is that I’m hoping if sales pick up, they’ll bring back the root beer flavor. That was the most amazing thing my tongue has ever tasted. Okay, maybe in the top five.

For you, breakfast, a shake, lunch, a workout shake, and dinner would be pretty close to perfect. :wink:

Peri-workout nutrition decreases DOMS and recovery time between sessions, can improve recovery time between sets, can improve performance (strength and/or endurance) during sets, and makes women flock to you like cats to a laser pointer. Seriously, getting peri-wo nutrition in order is a night and day difference.

Ha, I’m not a car guy at all so I was kinda winging that part.

48

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

[quote]Eazy wrote:
[/quote]

3 weeks, waist is down almost 2 inches, arms/thighs/calves are the same [/quote]

Thats pretty impressive. I think that Cosgrove program seems to be one of the best routines this site has produced for overall recomp.

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One more question: Chris, why did you quit writing on blogspot?

50

[quote]RampantBadger wrote:

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:
3 weeks, waist is down almost 2 inches, arms/thighs/calves are the same [/quote]
Thats pretty impressive. I think that Cosgrove program seems to be one of the best routines this site has produced for overall recomp.[/quote]
Thanks, man. I am pretty happy with how things are going so far. I can’t say I’ve been 100% balls out dieting the whole time though. A little into the second week I got some nasty poison ivy (I got it last year around the same time, turns out it came back up in the yard again), so I was out a few days, but all in all, it definitely gets a thumbs up.

The complex program is wrapping up this week and then I’m moving on to a different training plan (not settled on which yet), still fat loss focused for another month or two.

51

[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
One more question: Chris, why did you quit writing on blogspot?[/quote]
Ha, dude, blogs are so 2009.

But yeah, I kinda flaked out on it, especially funny since the last post is like “Hey, sorry for the absence but I’m back to bloggin’ again for real.” It’s really just a combination of not having the mental energy to put stuff together regularly/consistently, never really having much of an audience (the reads/clicks were crazy low and I wasn’t interested in building it up), and also realizing that I could either try to figure out interesting topics then sit down and write a few hundred words for a blog post or do pretty much the same thing plus a few extra hundred words and do a full article.

So, simply a shift in interest and my use of time/energy.

52

So I totally understand that 11 minute-long videos are ridiculous to sit though, but this just happened and figured I’d share.

Thought it might be neat to shoot the whole complex from start to finish, no edits or cuts. 5 exercises (6 if you count the front squat and push press as just one thruster), 75 pounds 6x6, 45 seconds between sets. It’s the same complex series as the previous video I posted (the 70 pound/4x5/90 sec rest).

Last set starts around 10:00, if you felt like shaving off some time.

53

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

SUGAAAAH!

On topic: attaboy.

54

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

[quote]LoRez wrote:
So if Plazma is “Best”, what are “Good” and “Better” within the Biotest lineup?[/quote]
With what Biotest offers as far as protein mixes, I’d probably say basic Grow! whey in juice is “good” (as in, it’s the most barebones attempt you could make to get high quality protein and carbs around the training session), Surge Recovery or straight MAG-10 would be “better”.
[/quote]

What kind of juice? I know that sounds like a dumb question, but I can’t imagine mixing something chocolate or vanilla flavored in any juice. Also, really the only juice I drink is orange juice. So something like grape or apple juice?

For you, breakfast, a shake, lunch, a workout shake, and dinner would be pretty close to perfect. ;)[/quote]

Hm. Well, right now the milk is getting drunk throughout the day. A couple glasses comprise breakfast and then it just stays steady through the whole day. Then there’s basically a burst of food with lunch, and another with dinner. But I upped the overall quantities which seems to be what I needed.

Peri-workout nutrition decreases DOMS and recovery time between sessions, can improve recovery time between sets, can improve performance (strength and/or endurance) during sets, and makes women flock to you like cats to a laser pointer. Seriously, getting peri-wo nutrition in order is a night and day difference.[/quote]

Late last week, I started using a cheap store-bought preworkout with caffeine, creatine, beta-alanine, taurine, l-arginine, and l-glutamine. I’m just taking it in the mornings instead of coffee/energy drink, not pre-workout (for some reason it raises my perceived body temperature and made me overheated during the workout itself), but adding that in has definitely improved performance and intraset recovery. I’m going to venture a guess that it’s the creatine and beta-alanine responsible for that.

Mostly I just wanted to have an idea of what a preworkout could do, without spending more than $15 to find out. When this tub is gone, I’ll upgrade to something better.

I am glad I established a baseline first though.

55

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:

[quote]RampantBadger wrote:

[quote]Chris Colucci wrote:
3 weeks, waist is down almost 2 inches, arms/thighs/calves are the same [/quote]
Thats pretty impressive. I think that Cosgrove program seems to be one of the best routines this site has produced for overall recomp.[/quote]
Thanks, man. I am pretty happy with how things are going so far. I can’t say I’ve been 100% balls out dieting the whole time though. A little into the second week I got some nasty poison ivy (I got it last year around the same time, turns out it came back up in the yard again), so I was out a few days, but all in all, it definitely gets a thumbs up.

The complex program is wrapping up this week and then I’m moving on to a different training plan (not settled on which yet), still fat loss focused for another month or two.[/quote]

Glad to hear that worked that well. If (rather, when) that becomes something I’m concerned about, I’ll take a look.

56

[quote]LoRez wrote:
What kind of juice? I know that sounds like a dumb question, but I can’t imagine mixing something chocolate or vanilla flavored in any juice. Also, really the only juice I drink is orange juice. So something like grape or apple juice?[/quote]
Vanilla protein in orange juice turns into a creamsicle, and if you don’t love creamsicles, I don’t think we can remain friendly. Chocolate protein in fruit punch is (sometimes) tolerable as a vaguely chocolate covered berry-ish concoction. I’ve tried vanilla in apple and grape juice. Not my best ideas, but then again, I’ve tried tuna and Diet Coke shakes (courtesy of Flex Magazine). Vanilla grape juice is like honey whiskey compared to that.

For you, breakfast, a shake, lunch, a workout shake, and dinner would be pretty close to perfect. ;)[/quote]
Hm. Well, right now the milk is getting drunk throughout the day. A couple glasses comprise breakfast and then it just stays steady through the whole day. Then there’s basically a burst of food with lunch, and another with dinner. But I upped the overall quantities which seems to be what I needed.[/quote]
Gotcha. If you’ve bumped up the overall calories, that’s definitely a good step. Good call.

Weird that it noticeably raised your body temp. I’d chalk it up to either your body reacting to the new stimulus (either the caffeine or one of the particular ingredients. Some people get an “arginine flush.”) or it possibly having some shady ingredients in it (not uncommon with cheaper stuff).

But yeah, if you saw improved recovery, I’d probably attribute it to the creatine and/or beta-alanine. Any protein/carbs in it wouldn’t have as dramatic a result if you’re taking the “pre-workout” drink in the morning and training later in the day.

57

[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
SUGAAAAH!

On topic: attaboy.[/quote]
Ha, thanks, man. And yeah, SOAD is a must-have on any cardio playlist.

[quote]LoRez wrote:
Glad to hear that worked that well. If (rather, when) that becomes something I’m concerned about, I’ll take a look.[/quote]
Something I’ve definitely noticed about going hard on complexes is the mental aspect of pushing yourself those last few sets, resisting the urge to stretch out the rest or take more breaks between exercises.

It’s kinda comparable to a high rep set of breathing squats. Dipping down for “just one more rep” on squats… stepping up to the bar for “just one more round” of the complex. It’s definitely not the same as just pushing yourself running sprints or doing treadmill work.

58


I just posted this in the August Photo/Video Check-in, so why not here too.

8-Week Measurement Summary

Bodyweight: - 5.2 pounds
Neck: No change
Inhaled Nip Line: - 1/2 inch
Exhaled Navel: - 2 3/4 inches
2" Below Navel: - 3 1/4 inches
Right Arm: No change
Left Arm: No change
Right Thigh: +1 inch
Left Thigh: + 3/4 inch
Right Calf: No change
Left Calf: - 1/4 inch

Jaw-dropping progress? Clearly not by any means. But I’m happy enough seeing the overwhelming majority of fat dropping from the waist and everything else ending up pretty much in place size-wise, especially since experimenting with basic supps only (Grow! whey and Surge Recovery, not HOT-ROX, no Indigo, etc.).

Also, inb4 “Take off your sweater before posting pics, you filthy furball.” The secret’s out. I’ve got Italian and Polish genes, so sue me.

I’m currently three weeks into the OVT program and it’s kinda kicking my ass.

Heavy work supersetted with slow negatives every session, workouts are closer to two hours (longer than I’ve done in a while), the DOMS the first week was just ridiculous - like sore to the touch for days post-workout. But I’m adapting and progressing, so it’s all good.

The plan is to continue this the full eight weeks (so, five more) and then jump ship. I’ve got my eye on another Waterbury program, but that may change.

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What is your diet like when doing the OVT?

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[quote]Diddy Ryder wrote:
What is your diet like when doing the OVT?[/quote]
Basically the same as it’s been from day one. Classic “protein and fats in the morning/afternoon, carbs peri-workout and after.” I haven’t counted macros, but have kept an eye on portion sizes and adjusted overall based on weekly or biweekly weigh-ins.

Average day looks something like:

  1. 4 or 5 eggs with raw or cooked vegetables.

  2. 2 scoops Grow! in water with 1 scoop leucine.

  3. An hour to and hour and a half pre-training - Chicken (breast or thigh) with cheese or meat/veg dinner leftovers.

  4. 10 minutes pre-training - 1 scoop Surge Recovery in water.

  5. During training - 2 scoops Surge Recovery in water.

  6. Family dinner, usually an hour and a half to two hours after training - Always a different recipe, but it’s always a combo of meat (often chicken skinless breast or thigh, ground beef, or pork), vegetable (fresh, locally grown, and organic), and carb (potato, sweet potato, quinoa, rice, rice and beans, etc.)

  7. 2 scoops Grow! in water with 1 scoop leucine.

Interestingly, my sweat has unfortunately gotten noticeably ammoniated the last week or so. Daily carbs are likely too low to support the longer workouts, or the cat’s been peeing on the laundry. I’m almost definitely going to add some to the pre-training meal, possibly increase them a bit on non-training days, and tweak it from there.