I did this a couple of weeks ago, when it appeared on Paul’s thread. I was slightly shocked by the results too.
1 Like
I asked Paul about it and he asked why Dr Butts would use average people. I guess I view it differently.
If you only study the champs and then produce a formula to share with the world then you should either adjust it for your consumers (average people) or call it what it is - natural genetic potential for elite lifters.
I guess the problem lies in the definitions. How do you know who has average genetics and when they’ve peaked?
Paul has said repeatedly that elite people make great progress in their first six months of training. If you have to grind for years then you’re not working with elite genes. That’s fine, but I think we are all predisposed to be good at certain things. Human nature helps us find those things. We try something and have instant success. We go back and master it and become elite.
My point is that if you evaluate the winners then you’re automatically looking at the genetic outliers. I’m not an outlier in the weight room. It’s frustrating to see a formula that is supposed to predict my physique ceiling based on my bone structure that was created by studying the elite. Perhaps there should be an adjustment for the average guy; not the average commitment, but the average genetics.
The best way I know how you compare genetics is through energy systems. We all get a mix of Type I and II muscle fibers but we’re not the same. Perhaps one type grows more than the other?
350 W4 D1 (Pull 1)
I screwed up and clicked on the wrong day in my app and didn’t realize it til I was halfway through. I was supposed to be doing Pull 2.
SL GLUTE BRIDGE (alternating + 10 sec hold)
1 x 10 ea
LYING LEG CURL
60 x 10
80 x 20, 13, 9 (+5, +3, 0)
SA PULL DOWN
60 x 10
80 x 16, 11, 8 (+1, +1, 0)
LOW PULLEY ROW
100 x 18, 15, 13 (+2, +1, +1)
SA CABLE CURL
30 x 21, 12, 9 (+4, +2, -1)
DB PREACHER CURL
15 x 25, 16, 13 (Did 10, 10, 7 with 20 last time. Guess it’s back to 20 next time.)
I really hate the high reps on pull day. Im happy when I hit failure around 15 reps. There’s nothing that says i have to do 50 reps over three sets. I could always shoot for 30 or 40 reps. I mean, isn’t failure failure? On the other hand, I’m tempted to keep going with these weights BECAUSE I don’t like it.
1 Like
Is this real?
Yes. Dr Casey Butts. Google it.
Checked him out. Just thought that must’ve sucked in middle school for the dude.
Well, at least it gives us an excuse to keep lifting instead of just maintaining and doing cardio… right?
1 Like
I feel like I’ve been maintaining for 10 years despite my efforts to grow! 
1 Like
Same! I just fluctuate between more and less fat.
2 Likes
7.9.19
Woke at 211.6 lbs. I ate normal yesterday so it’s good to see the scale drop again. I’m done (for now) with any attempt to do carb cycling. My body likes carbs and my hunger let’s me know. I get a very distinct and very hard to satisfy hunger when I have a low carb day. It’s not the same hunger as when cutting. It makes me feel kind of weak and just off in general. I don’t like it, so I eat. What’s the point of going low carb all day if I’m just going to load up at night?
I might just alternate between two and three meals at work instead of worrying about carbs. Three meals on lifting days and two meals on cardio days. I brought three meals yesterday but failed to eat all of them. I made up for it by having a bagel and two cookies after dinner, because I was craving carbs.
Also, I’m eyeballing the High Intensity Interval Bodybuilding Training (HIIB) that @kleinhound has been running. Maintain or build muscle, lose fat or at least maintain my current level of body fat, and improve performance. I think those are the things most of us are pursuing. I’d like to get bigger and add muscle but it may not be in the cards. If I look like my avatar when I’m 40, 45, and 50 then I’ll be killing it. That’s maintenance. Maintenance in the face of aging is progress.
Obviously, I won’t be doing anything different until I’m healed up.
2 Likes
Looks like cross fit style workouts or maybe something Brian Alsruhe would do.
I think you’ll like it.
It’s way different from the SGSS program
1 Like
I loved SGSS (especially the results), but I’m not sure if I should train in that manner with all of my surgically repaired joints. There’s nothing saying that I can’t train that way. I just don’t know if I should. And SGSS is severely lacking in conditioning and performance. CT specifically said to just follow the program as-is for 12 weeks. No extra stuff like conditioning.
I want to look good and be awesome. I don’t think I’ll lose any muscle following a CrossFit bodybuilding program and it’ll only increase the other aspects of my training. The trick will be to identify and avoid exercises that might give me problems, like front squats.
1 Like
I think you’re absolutely right about that BB crossfit style workouts would be awesome, at least for phases of the year.
At the workshop I just attended, one of the first things he said was: If your body can do it, do it. If some structures don’t allow you to do it, then don’t. But the body is incredibly strong and can do a whole lot more than we think.
You just have to heal up J, and work yourself back into it slowly.
2 Likes
The best part is that it’s really really fun, without being too ‘crossfit’
1 Like
Ever tried the Alsruhe stuff?
1 Like
No, for some reason it just doesn’t appeal to me. I’ve watched the videos and followed the layout. It might be the pure strength aspect. Everything looks pretty heavy and it hurts me to think about doing it.
1 Like
Totally fair; I just felt like it looked like the same thing on a quick glance.
1 Like
Not quite. Check out Kleinhound’s log. He started running it again.
1 Like
The workout he showed in the class looked like Crossfit to me.
What is the difference in your opinion?
1 Like
Bicep curls lol
1 Like