MarkKO's Training Log

Training Training Logs
3426

More of a note than anything: since Monday weight has pretty much remained the same. Physique does not appear to have changed from last week, or the weeks before since starting carb timing.

TL;DR I’m up around two pounds overnight Monday to Tuesday and it hasn’t budged, but I can’t see any extra chub.

Why this is, I don’t know. One possibility is water retention, but then where’s the bloating? The other is that my glycogen reserves were below full in the run-up to Monday (which would account for being hungry AF that week) and it took a double carb refeed (Monday and a day or two prior) to get them back up to capacity. Leading on from that I’d be asking why this sudden low glycogen, since I hadn’t done anything to delete it. The only answer I can come up with is a bit if extra muscle.

@BOTSLAYER @robstein any thoughts? I’m not worried, I trust the mirror and pictures I take regularly but I am curious.

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3427

Could be glycogen levels or just havent passed everything yet but hopefully MO MUSCLES!!!

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3428

@MarkKO thanks for the post man. I wouldn’t sweat it, at all. I’m on a cut right now, sometimes after a low 1600 cal HIIT day my weight will go up 2-3 pounds, stay for a while, drop back down, etc., it’s a crazy thing that doesn’t seem to have any pattern to it. Most important is to watch the overall pattern of weight from week to week. I’ll run my glycogen out during the week, weight might go up, have a massive refeed, next day weight is the same, which seemingly doesn’t make sense as it “should” be up after all the carbs. No idea. Remember aside from glycogen, water weight, poop, fluctuates a lot too. Here’s a pic of my weight log since I started cutting almost 8 weeks ago, as you can see it’s all over the place but the pattern moves down. Overall, water weight is the biggest fluctuation, and when you consider how much of our weight is water, a couple pounds shouldn’t be anything to worry about.

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3429

Cool, thanks. I wasn’t worrying, just curious. I’m still feeling a lot of things out.

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3430

At that stage where I don’t want a fucking bar of meet prep (compared to viewing at a necessary evil), so decided to give myself a break and do something enjoyable today.

Today’s training

Lazy lifter

BTN press

Worked up from the bar supersetted with 1-5, 5-1 pull-up ladder starting wide and moving in then back out - close grip neutral is easy, but bicep pump from that with elbow cuffs is something else

I can get the bar to around ear height or just below without discomfort, but grip has to be wide - middle finger on power rings, which incidentally is a horrible width for me to military press with.

5xbar
5x66 lbs
5x80 lbs
3x100 lbs
3x110 lbs
3x121 lbs, under 6 RPE
3x132 lbs, 7-8 RPE
1x143 lbs, 7-8 RPE
3x154 lbs, 8 RPE

https://www.instagram.com/p/BZ2pQ-qhkYg/

Really enjoyed this. I’m going to do BTN press instead of military press during my mass phase, as I think it’ll give my rear delts some much needed stimulation plus it feels very tricep-intensive compared to military which can only help my bench. Plus, if my elbows not only tolerated this but tolerated it while supersetted with pull-ups I think I’m good to go.

DB bench supersetted with T-bar rows
Bench 2x10x80 lbs, 7 and 9 RPE, 1x8x80 lbs, 10 RPE - BTN press definitely does something to my triceps, arguably more then CGBP. Worth knowing
Rows 3x10x132 lbs

Lats and pecs pumped AF by now

3x9 RPEx27 lbs dead stop hammer curls off thigh, short rests

3x9 RPEx66 lbs PJR pullovers, short rests

Add tricep pump

All done in an hour or so. This was just what I needed.

6 Likes
3431

Thats awesome to hear mate. Sometimes a session change is all you need to feel strong and focused again to keep chasing those goals.

I can’t wait for your mass phase. I really think the mental break from the ‘daily grind’ of your powerlifting + the different challenge of TuT and MMC and lactic acid build up and drop sets and pushing beyond failure will only benefit you. It may even be the death of Mark the Powerlifter :wink:

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3432

2K18 Mr olympia winner lolll

Mark the Bodybuilder!!!

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3433

Those presses looked painful on your wrists. Obviously unsolicited advice, but try stretching your pecs and lats before pressing. It looks like your wrists are compensating for your shoulder mobility.

Obviously I could be wrong, but it doesn’t look good for your joint health. Maybe even cut down the weight (no offense) and work on more reps and proper positioning. It’s meant to add mass and help your shoulder health for benching anyway, isn’t it?

1 Like
3434

BTN press has f**ked my shoulder up badly some years ago.

Pay attention to your shoulder joints.
Don’t know if this link will be removed, but here goes:

Many people have had good results with the BTN Press. So go on but pay attention

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3435

Is that the same guy who says to breath out before squatting? (Squat more weight video or something?)

3436

My personal opinion is that it is an unnecessary risk even if you can do it (like Olys for average gym goers) but I have heard respected sources claim BTN Pressing is fine…not nearly as many who say not to though.

One thing he mentioned was cheating other mobilities to trick your body into thinking it is in position. In this instance that would be Markko’s wrists.

Markko if it works do it and trust yourself…but to be completely honest it looked high risk.

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3437

Woke at 192.7 lbs, looking tight. Elbows feel fine too. Win.

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3438

@BOTSLAYER @mortdk @Destrength

All noted, and thank you. The most I’d be using for BTN during my mass phase would be 121 lbs, and I’ll start around the 110 lbs mark. I agree it is a risk, but my rationale is that as I did it yesterday it felt pretty good, and I’m feeling fine this morning. So, I want to do it for a bit regularly to see if that continues. If it turns out to be messing me up, it gets canned but there’s no way I can find out without trying. From how it felt, at the moment the risk/reward ratio is heavily skewed in favour of reward.

3 Likes
3439

proberly :slight_smile: It’s not all he says I agree with. If he said breath out before a squat, thats kind of funny though.
But this one I do.
Did it and I felt great for a couple of months or so, and then suddenly out of nowhere my joints was ruined.
So no more BTN press for me.
But as I said, many do it with no problem at all.

3440

Today’s training

Lazy lifter plus shoulders

Squat, wrapped, mono

TM is 429 lbs

Work up from bar in 44 lbs x3 to 60% bare knees

3x297 lbs, under 6 RPE, loose belt, 5 revolutions (3, X)
2x341 lbs, under 6 RPE, 5 revolutions (3, X)
1x385 lbs, under 6 RPE, 6 revolutions (3, X, 1)
1x429 lbs, under 6 RPE, 6 revolutions (3, X, 1)
1x473 lbs, 6 RPE, 7 revolutions (3, X, 2)
1x506 lbs, 8-9 RPE, 8 revolutions (3, X, 3)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BZ4zNsohf0Y/

Wasn’t super pretty but it’ll do fine. I’ll go for 511 lbs as a safe third. Next week I’ll hit my second for three.

BB RDL 3x10x264 lbs, straps

Decline sit-ups 3x12x33 lbs

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3441

This week’s highlights

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3442

Woke at 195.6 lbs. That’s due to salt and much vegetables (thank you salad bar). Looking OK, maybe a bit soft. Obliques maybe not as sharp as I’d like.

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3443

Took some photos, lighting is pretty flattering so need to bear that in mind

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6 Likes
3444

Still, stretch. BTNs are wonderful, just make sure you aren’t too gummed up for it. Do door way stretches on a powerrack or something. Pec/bicep stretch you grab a rack so that your arm goes back and stretch it, mid back you get it so that your arm kind of wraps around and you do the same thing, and for lats put your arm above your head, grab a rack, and try to go forward without extending your back.

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3445

I will do. I do some of those things anyway when I warm my shoulders up, but I’ll be more consistent.

1 Like