Samul's Training and Nutrition Log

Training Training Logs
1148

I used to do deadstop deadlifts and I only got serious back DOMS from them once or twice. They would always annihilate my hamstrings and glutes though.

Now that I’ve recently switched to touch and go, I have observed less ham and glute pain and much, much more back pain. They completely smoke my traps and rhomboids.

It makes sense because TnG requires you to keep tension in your back throughout the whole set, so your back is working harder to keep everything stable. I can’t quite explain the decrease in perceived hamstring activation though, but that’s probably my fault.

I might have unconsciously slightly altered my form, since switching to TnG, in such a way that my back is doing the brunt of the work and my hamstrings aren’t doing as much work. No big deal, as long as I’m properly executing the movement. I don’t mind a bigger back lol

1 Like
1149

Vertical_Pushing

Can you do any version pain-free? Can you do a landmine press pain-free? Kneeling KB press? Savickas press? Suicide grip? Handstands?

1 Like
1150

No one does bro! Although plenty of people neglect back work and end up with crappy unbalanced physiques. The bench and curl guys

1 Like
1151

Squat
92 kg x 5
104 kg x 5
117 kg x 5

92 kg x 10
92 kg x 10
92 kg x 10
92 kg x 10
92 kg x 10

One of the worst sessions I had in a while. Squatting was painful as my traps and low back were still sore from Monday’s deadlifts. It took me forever to grind through the five sets, but I managed to gut it out. I can barely walk from my quad DOMS right now.

1152

Press
45 kg x 5
52 kg x 5
57 kg x 5

42 kg x 10
42 kg x 10
42 kg x 10
42 kg x 10
42 kg x 10
Alternating with lat pull downs 5 x 10-15

Cable Y raises 3 sets

@T3hPwnisher I widened out my grip on the press and the movement feels a whole lot better. So thank you for the advice!

I still feel like my back is gonna break when I really grind out a rep (had to do that on my last main work set and on the last two supplemental sets–a reassessment of my TM might be due at this point), but my wrists and shoulders aren’t bothering me nearly as much now.

2 Likes
1153

On an unrelated note, I’ll be moving into my room in the university dorm next week. I’ll stay there Tuesday through Friday every week, so on the days on which we have class.

That means that I’ll also be training in a new gym, which I haven’t seen yet. I hope it’ll be decently equipped.

This also means that my everyday life is going to change a bit. The first thing that came to my mind is nutrition. My whole goal with this is to keep everything as simple as possible and still make it work well for me.

I have free lunch and dinner at the University canteen, which is good to load on carbs and fats, but fish and meat portions are very small. So I’ll have my meals there and then go back to my room and cook some ground meat with rice afterwards. I’ll also buy lots of “easy” foods like cottage cheese and milk. Overall, my eating will be a little less elaborate, but I’m positive I can make it work.

As far as training, after this fifth cycle of BBB, I think I could use some change as I feel myself burning out week after week. My goal is to work hard and spend only the necessary amount of time in the gym needed to achieve muscle growth.

I took a look at all the 5/3/1 templates and there’s one that caught my interest: pr set + windowmaker. This has lower volume on the barbell work but you got two all out sets which seems like an efficient way to train to me.

I know this volume debate is hot lately with all the discussions in Paul Carter’s forum. I have read @T3hPwnisher’s take on the recovery aspect of BBB, and I don’t buy into it not being effective as some claim, but I feel like after this period of high volume and, straight up, hard training, I might be pleasantly surprised with the gains I could make switching up to a template where the volume is lower and sets are taken closer to failure.

1154

Dude, you’re really getting on top of things!
How’s the foot?

1 Like
1155

It’s back to normal. Will probably never figure out the cause though haha

1 Like
1156

You might like SVR II. Grab bag of all sorts of things.

1157

Yeah that was actually the one I was looking into before I decided to go with pr set + windowmakers.

I like the look of it and I’ll give it a try in the future, right now what I instinctively feel like trying is something that will get me done with my barbell exercise within just a couple of sets, and then move onto assistance work. Not that windowmakers of any kind are enjoyable, but nothing compares to that feeling of being annihilated yet knowing that you still have a fuck ton of sets of the same exercise to go through…

But I’m sure you know this feeling way better than I do lol

1 Like
1158

So after wrapping up the last week of my 5 cycles / 20 weeks of BBB (at 50%, 60%, 60%, 60%, 70%), I’m ready to move onto my next program. I swear if I read one more 5x10 I am gonna throw up.

PR sets and windowmakers! It’s all gonna be about pushing those sets and driving muscle gains. Hopefully before next year I can rep my current training maxes for a set of 10.

The TM’s I’ll be using for this programs are the ones I used for my second to last cycle, with the exception of the deadlift, for which I’ll use the TM from last cycle. The reason being that for the past cycles I always got in 5 reps on my 95% set for all exercises, but the sets were somewhat grindy and the reps weren’t perfect. The deadlift was good for the most part so I can keep a heavier training max.

Since this block will be all about rep pr’s, lowering the weight shouldn’t affect me negatively and, in fact, the plan is to come back stronger to the heavier weights once I can rep out the current ones, while having gained muscle.

This is the plan I’m going to run. I am open to suggestions if anyone feels I can improve upon it.

Deadlift -
5/3/1 pr set
Windowmaker @ FSL

Lat pulldown 3x8-12 (sets on assistance are to be done with two sets of increasing difficulty leading up to an all-out set for as many reps as possible. So the second and third sets are hard)
Seated cable row 3x8-12
Rope pullover 2x15-20
Rear delt raises 3x12-15

Press -
5/3/1 pr set
Windowmaker @ FSL

Plate front raise 2x12-20
Lateral raises 3x12-20
Rope pushdown 3x12-20
PJR pullover 2x8-10

Squat -
5/3/1 pr set
Windowmaker @ FSL

Leg extension 2x10-12
Leg curl 2x10-12

Bench -
5/3/1 pr set
Windowmaker @ FSL

Dips 3x10-15
Low to high cable fly 2x12-15
Db curl 3x10-15
Incline curl 2x12-15

1159

Training maxes

Press 55 kg - 120 lb
Deadlift 157 kg - 345 lb
Bench 89 kg - 196 lb
Squat 125 kg - 275 lb

1160

Deadlift
102 kg x 5
117 kg x 5
133 kg x 12
102 kg x 20

UH lat pulldown 60 kg x 10 (listing only the heaviest set)
Cable row 65 kg x 11
Rope pullover 40 kg x 13
Rear delt raises 2 sets (6 kg)

1161

Press
36 kg x 5
42 kg x 5
47 kg x 12
36 kg x 17

Plate front raise 2 sets
Lateral raise 2 sets
Rope pushdown 3 sets
PJR pullover 2 sets

1162

Squat
82 kg x 5
94 kg x 5
106 kg x 15
82 kg x 20

Leg curl 3 sets (30 kg)

This was one of the toughest workouts I had in a while. Not because it was the most difficult but for the way it left me feeling. By the time I was done with my squats and leg curls I had the most insane leg pump I recall experiencing.

I couldn’t stand up for 10 minutes and even sitting was extremely uncomfortable. I was unable to straighten my legs completely, and I wasn’t able to bend them either. My hamstrings just wouldn’t shorten all the way. I swore my legs were either gonna explode or tear up any moment.

It’s been almost two hours now and I still feel them swole, almost inflated.

It’s a bit disheartening to think that every squat workout will be like this for the next few months. But on the other side, if I manage not to break myself, I can see this being a one way ticket to becoming something better.

1 Like
1163

This looks unpleasant

1164

When sessions go like this, I typically find they get much less sucky as you get used to them.

1165

Yeah I forgot to mention that. I had never done a windowmaker set of deadlift, much less TnG style. One of the most unpleasant things I did in a while. I had to do that thing that @T3hPwnisher mentioned a while back where you lie on the ground and put your feet up on a bench because the low back pump was extreme.

1166

I chose to stop doing that kind of thing a while back because it kept fucking up my neck (oddly). Not much replicates the full body suck of high rep deadlifts.

1167

Bench
58 kg x 5
67 kg x 5
75 kg x 13
58 kg x 20

Chest Press Machine 2 sets (60 kg)
Low to high cable fly 2 sets (10 kg)
Db curl 3 sets (12 kg)
Incline curl 2 sets (6 kg)