What Dave101 said is on point. You are just getting a plan together and it will more than likely have to be adjusted - so don’t assume you will loose strength until you do - many don’t. Powerlifting is interesting in this respect because when leverages change do to either an increase or a decrease in body mass, the effects are highly individual. When I get lighter my dead lift usually spikes - my squat holds the course - and I loose a little on my bench. I have seen others react differently. Also, a demanding job is all the more reason to pack a lot in the limited time you do have. Kettlebell tabatas will kill you (in a good way) - done in 4 minutes. Front squats with light weight too…
…and of course “Boring But Big” is always a good course of action here
Solution is easy - ride AirDyne 7 days. Week 10 miles/ day. Train hard and eat a bit less - nothing drastic to indicate weird eating problem.
Problem solved. Lifestyle change trumps eating disorder!
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Don’t fuck with the TM and continue doing 5/3 and use the FSL for 5’s.
Just don’t make this any more complicated than it has to be. Losing weight is simple as hell - just takes discipline.
I would HIGHLY advise never using the scale as reference and doing the things physically you need to do - thus focusing on action rather than a theoretical number.
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Granted I didn’t have as much weight to lose as yourself, but as a percentage of bodyweight, it was a decent amount. On january 30, 2012, I weighted 164.4 for my morning weigh in, and had maxed 305 on bench a couple months before. This morning I weighed 150.0, and yesterday hit 300x4 on my 3+ week. Its only 15 lbs lighter, but I had less to work with to begin with. If you have a lot of fat to lose, it is easier to maintain strength or even gain while in a deficit. But focus on eating the right food, and timing it right for recovery.
[quote]Leechum wrote:
Jim - I know in your books you say that you need to eat for 5/3/1 to succeed. (At least that’s what I think you say.) Unfortunately, I need to lose some fat, not because I’m a “cutting queen,” but because my sleep doc says that if I lose some fat, then my sleep apnea will be reduced.
I’m a bit skeptical, but I do want to give the doc’s rec a try. I cannot wear the CPAP machine. I’d rather drop 15-20 pounds than have surgery.
Of course, following my doc’s rec means cutting calories and upping my conditioning, because that’s what works for me.
I’d like to get your thoughts on what a better approach would be for staying with 5/3/1, assuming with all the people you’ve worked with you’ve come across this type of situation.
Approach #1 - I test my maxes and perhaps take 85% or 80% rather than 90%, to account for a loss of strength? That was my thinking, and so long as I’m hitting PRs on the top sets, I’ll still be progressing.
Approach #2 - Don’t reset maxes, but just get the required reps on each exercise. My thinking is that I can still bang out sets of 5, 3 and 1 even with less energy, but going crazy on the last sets might, well, suck.
Currently I’m doing the Beyond program here on TNation, but I have all the 5/3/1 books if there is something that immediately comes to mind that you think would be better.
EDIT - I also have a very demanding job, so it’s not as simple as “going to the gym more and work harder.” I already go as much as I can.
Appreciate the time, Jim.
[/quote]
If you lose 20 pounds of fat, (which takes about 6 weeks) and eliminate most of your sleep apnea (which is primarily due to FAT around the throat) and start getting better sleep every night and you think that you will end up weaker then you might as well give up.
If you guys superset BBB work, how do you do it?
Do you the second assistance directly after main or do you wait 1 min and then do the second exercise, wait again 1 min and do the first?
I did not remember that i have readed this in the books.
[quote]wamo wrote:
If you guys superset BBB work, how do you do it?
Do you the second assistance directly after main or do you wait 1 min and then do the second exercise, wait again 1 min and do the first?
I did not remember that i have readed this in the books.[/quote]
Wait 1-2 minutes between movements.
If you reduce calories and do more conditioning etc. you should be able to drop the weight in about three months. So worrying about your maxes going down is not a big deal. You’ve got 10-20 years of lifting ahead of you, plenty of time to get strong. If you think about it long term like that.
If you don’t try to lose 50lbs of fat in 2 weeks, this shouldn’t be a big deal. I’ve been losing fat (I still have quite a bit to lose) and gaining strength simply by cultivating better eating habits and BEING PATIENT. We’re such an instant gratification society, it sabotages our efforts.
- Keep using 5/3/1 and pushing for rep PRs when you can. Don’t be a pussy.
- Push your conditioning when you can. Don’t be a pussy.
- Cultivate clean eating habits 90% of the time.
- Eat fewer (not zero) carbs on days you don’t train.
- Have some patience. It won’t happen overnight.
This is what I’ve been doing, and it’s working. I’m getting stronger and leaner. I still have “normal” meals sometimes (1-2 times per week). I still have a few beers (or scotches) sometimes. It took me 34 years to get fat, I don’t expect to become lean, strong and awesome in 3 weeks. It’s a process, enjoy it. My 2 cents.
For the sleep apnea just get a nasty yoke. Then your yoke apnea will fight the fat apnea…
How’s this philosophy working for you?