Not surprised to hear you say that about being lean. I remember when Mark got lean he ended up hating it and was much happier being fatter and getting much stronger. I think next year will be very interesting for you. You have deff added some quality muscle this year, with a bit more fat next year the sky is the limit.
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Same here
As I lean out, I feel unhappy and my home life becomes a wreck
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Emphasis on the past tense. Getting lean is a good experience and the results are awesomeā¦for a while. For me, doing what was necessary to stay lean wasnāt good for my mental health.
I hit my PRs at 240 lbs. My āleanā weight was around 210. It would be nice to get close to my PRs at my current weight of 230-232 lbs. I can live here in the middle enjoy all the food.
@simo74 Appreciate the support as always dude. Itās definitely one of those where, when it was up to me, it wasnāt so bad. It was another challenge to conquer and I was excited to go after it. Once it became something I HAD to do, it became a source of resentment. Running was similar. I ran a bunch growing up and found it very theraputic. Once it was required for my job, I grew to hate it, haha.
@ChongLordUno I am so blessed with how understanding my family has been through this process, because Iāve felt like dirt for what I put them through to accommodate my weird diet. My wife and kid actually made some āhalfling oatmeal sweet nibblesā out of my āHeroesā Featā book last night and they turned out amazing. Approaching it like a challenge has made it a bit more sustainable, but the luster can wear off quick.
@Frank_C juice SO isnāt worth the squeeze. I donāt get these instagram stars that wanna look like an anatomy chart year round. Even Arnold let his abs get soft.
AM WORKOUT (0645)
Buffalo Bar Squat
5xBar
5x140
3x230
1x320
REST PAUSE (12 Deep breaths between sets)
13x370
4x4x370
2x370
1x370
8x320
1x320
7x320
2x320
6x320
4x320
5x320
3x8x280
14x230
SUPERSETS (squat-hyper)
Belt squat 150 no lockout
1x20
1x16
1x14
STRIPSET (no rest between sets no lockout)
17x150
125
100
75
50
25
Reverse hyper 360
2x15
2x14
Wide grip pull ups
1x20
Notes: Another awesome squat workout, but also feeling close to the limit. 14 reps tends to be the magic number to move up for me, and I may just make the jump early next week so I can approach it without expectations. Absolutely annihilated myself and happy to have done it.
Running with the Mrs is apparently not happening today due to it being single digits outside, so will most likely hit up some sorta evil conditioning workout later.
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How do you run after those squat sessions?
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I say a lot of profanities in my head, since the Mrs doesnāt care for that language, haha. Meanwhile, I ended pretty much every set this workout by saying the f word.
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SECOND AM WORKOUT
KALSU WOD (scaled w/95lbs)
Done in 20 rounds
Notes: Went looking for something evil and found it. Scaled it to 95lbs, because after this morningās workout, I doubted my ability to do 100 front squats with 135lbs. Can try it sometime when Iām fresh. I really dug this. Very brutal, on the longer side, and can do it in one spot with one barbell.
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Had to nuke a topic I was pretty excited about because it got moved to a section of the site where I didnāt care to hear from that demographic, so Iām reposting the content here in my log for those that are interested in replying.
Howdy Folks,
In light of it being winter, a season for overeating and holiday cheer, I wanted to create a topic where we share stories from our bulking days, whether past or present. I feel this ties in well with a recently released t-nation article that I am a fan of
And along with that, one of my favorite unreleased scenes from āPumping Ironā
Letās celebrate eating big and getting big. We have the summer to be skinny.
My stories come from when I was 21, newly married, and having recently āretiredā from combat sports and shifted my focus to lifting. I was reading a LOT of Elitefts/Dave Tate back then, and it was shaping my eating habits quite a bit. Without further adoā¦
- I have shared this one a few times already, but my wife would bake mini loaves of banana bread like this
Since they were wrapped in foil, I would take to eating an entire loaf like a big candy bar. Could there be anything more anabolic than a loaf of bread?
-I once kill all sexual attraction my wife had for me by eating 6 Wendyās Double Stacks for lunch.
My work called me in early that day, so I skipped breakfast and had to make up some calories. I also regularly put away 5 Cheesy Gordita Crunches from Taco Bell
or 3 In n Out Double Doubles during that time.
Living in CA was pretty awesome, and hey: I was a growing boy.
- I have broken 2 quesadilla makers by putting too much meat in them.
This was one of the best wedding presents I ever got. And quesadillas have the super rare amiƱo acids.
I am sure I have more, but letās hear about some amazing feats of gluttony in pursuit of gains.
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You have to have an iron gutā¦all that taco bellā¦thatās not safe. Hopefully you ate that only at work and punished the co-workers and not the wife.
As a San Diego native, all mexican food/mexican style food doesnāt phase me. But Panda Express sends me right over the edge for some reason. Which reminds me: triple orange chicken with fried rice. Oh my goodness: so nice.
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That quesadilla maker is going on next years Cbristmas list, that looks amazing.
The first stupid pigging out story that came to my mind was the time my colleagues challenged me to an eating contest at the Christmas party. They didnāt believe I could actually eat because in the 9 months they knew me, I never ate solid food in front of them.
It was called the Moo-pocalypse burger I believe, 12 quarter pound patties, each topped with cheese and either bacon or pulled pork with some chips (fries) on the side. I ended up eating 14 patties because I had to borrow two buns from another colleague and she wouldnāt let me have them unless I took the burgers in the middle too.
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Ah, to be called out for something. The five minutes of fame when you prove them wrong easily outweighs the 2-3 days of discomfort that come with doing something like that.
Bro on, dudes.
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That sounds AMAZING. I did an eating challenge in a similar style, but was crushed by a time limit, which sucked. There are a few around me right now that I want to undertake if I can get away from the doc.
Which reminds me: during the summer of my first job, I worked across the street from a Carlās Jr. They had JUST released the ādouble 6 dollar burgerā
I love that THIS is the first image I found of it. And as you can see, they offered a low carb solution, which, of course, I took. Because it was good for me.
Itās a POUND of meat. I had one EVERY day for lunch. I did that over the summer. The very first day, it was a monumental undertaking and I spent the rest of my shift walking around leading with my belly feeling bloated. By the end of the summer, Iād eat it in about 3 minutes and still feel hungry.
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Progressive overload 
Itās the truth. Itās something I try to express to dudes with small appetites: it can be built up.
It actually got to the point where Iād beg my bosses to only give me 6 hour shifts. If you worked a 6 hour shift, you didnāt get lunch. If you worked 7 or longer, you were given a lunch break. HOWEVER, I was getting paid so little that the cost of my lunch was MORE than an hourās wage, so I was LOSING money by working that extra hour.
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Complete opposite for me @T3hPwnisher matey
My missus broke down in tears at the weekend, telling me that my weight loss is affecting her mental health 
.
Sheās just had our son 6 months ago so Iām treading carefully.
The weight loss was consuming me as well causing a mini crisis
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I liked that post as a form of acknowledgment, but itās not likable. That sucks dude. I get it: those are delicate times.
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Lol love the tildeā¦and quesadillas.
When I was 21, playing ultimate frisbee and about 210lbs I put down the medium party platter of chicken nuggets from Chick Fil A in 30 minutes, along with about a pint of honey mustard and 6 diet cokes. Never felt worse.
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Cheers man
Im taking stock and having to create long term goals in the process. It will work itself out
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In HS, weād have class trips and thereād usually be some sort of buffet at some point. On the Junior year trip, we had a bbq buffet. Ended up eating at least 20, chicken wings, 3 sausages, a plate of shortribs, a good sized piece of steak and a shit ton of veggie skewers.
Last thanksgiving, we were invited to a friendās house for a party. I ended up eating both turkey drumsticks, a thigh, a wing, a large hunk of the breast and a significant amount of char siu along with 1/2 a fruit platter
When my family went to Germany two years ago, we went for dinner at Haxnbauer with my dadās classmate and her family, My dad and I ordered two different knuckles (1kg each), with the idea of sampling. He didnāt like mine, so I ate it all. He also couldnāt finish his, so I ate most of his leftovers (around 1/3 of his). My mom ordered some sausage, that she couldnāt finish, so I had one of those too
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