This is it. I think just getting to a point of not being hungry all the time is the absolute key here, and the “mostly” carnivore experience delivered. I think it also kind of gave me a heads up of what to look out for as I loosen up, if that makes sense.
1 Like
Been a big weekend, team!
On Friday, I did a brotastic arm workout and then my daughter and I went to the Smackdown event (it was in our town). Had an absolute blast.
Then the last two days I did the Thibaudeau superhero complexes. They are 100% delivering on what I want right now, which is basically to just hit big movements with a conditioning twist. @barley1, I don’t know if you’re in a gym where you can lock down a power rack for an hour, but you might really like these when you’re done with eternal warrior. I like the pace better.
Friday I don’t remember what I did, so I’m not writing it down. I’ll do my best to write down the last two days, but don’t perfectly remember.
Saturday
Started with 30 total pull-ups and some planks as a warmup.
OHP Complex (4 rounds)
- Seated Top 1/2 Press
185/5 for a couple then 205/5 for a couple I think - OHP
115/5 - Push Press
135/5 - Speed DB OHP
15s as fast as possible for 20 seconds - Plyo Pushup
Off bench for 8 - Sled “OHP”
25m, one plate on the sled - way too heavy
Squat Complex (4 rounds)
- Top 1/2 SSB Squat
275/5 for a couple, then 315 for the next two - SSB Squat
185/5 x 2 (way too light), 225/5 x 2 (still a little light) - Hang Snatch
75/3 - way too light but want to learn the move (go with the jokes) - DB Jump Squat
20/8 - Vertical Jump Series
8 jumps - Backwards Sled Drag
1 plate x 25m
Today
30 pull-ups and some planks again
DL Complex (4 rounds)
- Rack Pull
315/5 for a couple, then 335/5 - TBDL
This is a heavy bar! Similar to the SSB. Still 45#
225/5 for one, then 275/5 - Hang Clean
135/5, then 155/5 - I need to go up here - DB RDL Jump
Weird move
30s/8 - Broad Jump Series
8 Jumps - Sled Push
2p x 25m
Bench Complex (4 rounds)
- Top 1/2 Bench
The pins were way too low, and this was actually harder than full bench. I’ll need to use a different rack next time.
185/5 for 2, then 205/5 - Bench
185/5 for a couple
205/5
205/3 - wore out! - Speed Bench
135/5 x 2
155/5 x 2 - Med Ball Chest Pass
Into wall
16/8 - Plyo Pushup
Off bench for 8 - Sled “Chest Press”
1p/20m
.25p/25m x 3
Now I’m smoked!
I did drink Surge during these last two workouts, and lost 1.5 pounds. Clearly simple carbs are the key and not the dietary work I’ve put in the last month or so.
On that note, I’d gotten a bit chubby. I’m back to where the lower belly fat is all that’s left. A combination of good news that I’m ~8-10lbs from where I want to be (from experience), and bad news that this ends up being the worst I’ll look for a couple weeks (everything else is a bit flat).
My daughter played her best volleyball ever yesterday, and came off crying about the one play she missed. She’s had games where I thought she looked asleep the whole time and she came off happy. I don’t get it! She plays again tonight, and I’m loving the hustle in her.
9 Likes
It’s finally entertaining again, yeah? We finally have a group of dudes at the top that can cut decent promos. I think leaving Roman at the top for so long was the right call, but I’m very interested to see where it goes from here.
Yes, I’m 45 and still follow professional wrestling. Shrug emoji…
2 Likes
I have a few years on you and still love it, getting to love it all over again with my son
3 Likes
It was a blast. I hadn’t watched from the time I was in high school until now that my daughter is into it, so it’s just kind of a totally new roster for me right now. I do think the women’s side is stronger than the men’s right now. When we were kids, you had more fan favorites than there was airtime (Stone Cold, Triple H, the Hardy Boys, the Undertaker, the Rock, and on and on). I don’t feel that way now. Cody Rhodes did come out and blow the roof off twice, so that was cool.
That’s what makes it fun! Triple H (an executive now) came out the other night; that was a pretty cool nostalgic moment.
1 Like
I understand and hate that part, too. I always turn the minute into “see how much I can get done in 60 seconds.” Then I dread the hell out of future sessions because there’s nowhere to hide, my only option is to do more.
I lift at home. I have one half squat rack. I’ve debated sneaking a second into my basement, under cover of darkness, while the wife sleeps, just to do this program.
I’d also like to jump back on Thibs’ Layer system, one of the most effective programs I’ve run. There’s probably a brilliant way to tie both together… maybe with a couple weeks maintenance volume in between?
1 Like
It’s definitely doable in this situation, especially if you have safety pins and j hooks.
This is one I’ve never done, but it really appeals to me. That might be next up for me. I am finding a whole new level of soreness with more volume on fewer moves right now.
1 Like
More superheroing, like I do.
Started with 30 pullups
Squat Complex (4 rounds)
- Top 1/2 SSB Squat
315/3, I think I did a few sets of 5; I just kind of did this one - SSB Squat
225/5 - Hang Snatch
95/3 - DB Jump Squat
25/8 - Vertical Jump Series
BW/8 - Backward Sled Drag
1p/25m
OHP Complex (4 rounds)
- Top 1/2 Seated Press
165/5 - OHP
115/5 - Push Press
135/3 - Speed DB OHP
15/:20 - Plyo Pushup
BW/8 - Sled “OHP”
-/25m
This is a lot of fun and takes me right at an hour. I’m going to end up getting just under 4 full weeks (vs. 6) of it in before more travels take me away, but that’s probably fine. Then I’ll do whatever on the road, and figure out a new plan when I return.
Diet update! So I’ve used Surged for these last few workouts, and that’s gone great. I feel awesome, I like not thinking about food in the morning, and I lost a couple pounds when I first started. So then I tried adding some grits back into my morning meal, and even lowered my fats to account for it. That didn’t go well: I gained 3 lbs. immediately, which is water/ glycogen, so whatever, but I also got bloated and really hungry all day for both days I did this. Unfortunately, I think grits aren’t making a comeback. I’m a Southern boy, so this is devastating (but @QuadQueen had already kinda called this). After I clear this out of my system, I might try potatoes - fingers crossed!
8 Likes
Perhaps…chaos?
I think you’ll see more success with potatoes vs grits. Grits being corn based leads me to believe that they’re simply not going to get digested well, and I can definitely see that having the impact you’re experiencing. But still: how cool that you have such a baseline set that you can run these small experiments.
2 Likes
Well, color me SHOCKED! Lol. I’m with @T3hPwnisher - the potatoes will likely go much better and if they don’t then give sweet potatoes a try. They’re usually on of the more inoffensive starches.
I love that you’re sticking with the slow reintroductions! This is the BEST and only real way to figure out what you’re sensitive to - expensive lab tests be damned!!
4 Likes
Thank you both! I’m actually enjoying the “clean slate” to experiment. It’s super easy right now, I’m actually learning something (even at 42), and it’s easy to scrub back to baseline and zero out.
3 Likes
Didn’t mean to ignore this. It’s always the plan!
1 Like
Dude, no joke. The most frustrating thing about getting older is finally being mature enough to obtain this wisdom and being too old to REALLY capitalize on it. I think about 18 year old me that was making SURE that I ate some sweet tarts with my protein shake after I worked out, because dextrose and maltodextrin where key to replenishing muscle glycogen post workout and creating an insulinogenic response to shuttle protein to the muscles…and I wish I could travel back in time, slap myself and say “quit eating processed junk candy and go eat some steak and eggs!” Haha.
2 Likes
Ha! Youth is wasted on the young and all that. I simply had to have pop tarts after every workout, otherwise I knew that session was wasted.
I also loved every 8-hour arm day workout that came out, but that part hasn’t really changed!
3 Likes
Okie doke, time for a little catching up.
My sleep has gotten pretty bad again this week. I really don’t know why, but I haven’t made it past 2am all week. The last two days it really impacted me; I was in a bit of a fog today.
Diet has been super fun to experiment with (sorry: with which to experiment). Taking the grits out brought my weight and hunger right back in line. I shredded some potatoes and air fried them for hash browns this morning; we’ll see what this brings.
Then yesterday some girls at my daughter’s school did the “you’re racist and a colonist because you’re white” thing that’s been so popular amongst privileged suburbanites the last couple years. My son went through a bit of that too, and we’ve all learned to ignore the one or two folks that think that’s appropriate. However, another girl called my daughter a “hippo” when she was eating lunch. That destroyed her. She came home crying and her feelings were really hurt. She’s a tough girl and impressively able to put this stuff into perspective, realizing it’s more about the other girl than anything, but she was very wounded. I hung out with her last night and went to her lunch with her today, and she appreciated it, but that had me pretty upset. Girls can be so incredibly mean to each other.
My son remains blissfully unaware of his surroundings in general. Unless a goose in his path, but they’re pretty aggressive so that might just be a strong survival instinct.
Today I was pretty tired and cranky and off-schedule (so all the equipment wasn’t as free as I’m used to) because it’s gotten too hot to walk the dog midday so we have to do that first thing, so I embraced chaos as the plan and destroyed a chest and shoulder workout.
-
5 minutes assault bike
-
Plyo Pushups from Bench
3 x 5
-
DB Bench
35/15
50/12
60/12
70/12
80/12
85/9 -
Incline
45/6
135/6
155/6
175/6
195/6
205/6 -
Bench
Pause on chest
135/3
185/5 x 5 -
Superset (3 rounds)
- Stretch Pushups
BW/F - DB Rear Delt
15/20
20/20 x 2
-
DB Side Raise
30/6
35/6 x 3 -
DB 6-Ways
5/10
7.5/10 x 2
6 Likes
I’m so sorry that happened to your daughter! I’m sure you want to kill someone - and I think you’d be justified. Stuff like that makes me feel absolutely murderous.
(Haha, maybe that’s just me, the mental health professional.)
2 Likes
Sorry to hear you daughter had to experience that. Sounds like you did an awesome job spending time with her. My daughter is in the accelerated learning scheme at school, which is great for challenging her as she is very bright, but the downside is, it is like having a giant ‘nerd’ sign that slashes above her head when she is at school. She and her friends cop a fair bit of flack from other kids who are not in the program. Luckily she has her dads don’t give 2 fks attitude to this stuff, and if it gets too much she can always just spin kick them in the head. 
2 Likes
You are 100% correct! I spent the whole lunch glaring at a bunch of 11 year olds!
I do feel a little better with you saying it, as you are the qualified mental health professional. We talked about those girls aren’t even happy because they have to walk on eggshells or their “friends” will turn on them too; my daughter and her friends are real friends to each other.
It sounds like we might have the same kids across the board. My daughter is also my academically gifted one. She plays sports and everything, too, but she’s herself and not as fixated on the clique as the rest of them. That’s great, but it means when someone wants to be a monster she’s a target.
Anywho… I’m still feeling murderous. I’m going to go kill a back workout, my wife is doing a CrossFit competition we’ll watch, and then my daughter has volleyball. The neighborhood is doing a little Cinco de Mayo thing this evening, and I’m sure some kids will brave our pool even though it’s a little too chilly out, so that will be fun.
4 Likes
Back
- 5 minutes bike
-
Meadows Row
-/8
25/8
50/8
75/8 x 3
75/14 (some slop allowed this set) -
MAG Supinated Pulldown
Couple warmups
60/10 x 4 -
Rack Pull
Lowest Pin
135/5
225/5
315/5
365/5
405/5 -
Smith Row + Shrugs
135/8 + 10 x 3 -
Reverse Hypers
.25pps/ 6-8 x 3
5 Likes