Silver and Steel

Training Training Logs
4688

Sorry @Frank_C! In OH, they apparently can start at 15.5. He’s not really clamoring, although he has some interest.

Took a few legit days off with the family in Savannah, where I ate everything, then went to work so it’s been a couple days of hotel/ Planet Fitness workouts.

Back in the home (town, not house) gym tomorrow!

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4689

Holy poops been a long time since I updated here. Quick world updates: I’m just about full strength on my team, and the talent is high - that’s going to really improve my quality of life. We spent the last couple weeks figuring out 2026, which did slow me down in the gym, but I feel like we’re in a better place to get on a realistic pace for the next couple years now. A college classmate and one of my best friends (which is a small pool) for the last quarter century is doing a little work with us now, which is also a ton of fun.

The kids are back in school, and actually seem happy about it. My son’s first day of school “picture” was a video of his back running down the street to try to catch the bus when he was late (my wife took it), which was really on-brand; we all (except him) thought that was pretty funny.

I’m about 2 weeks from complete on the program I’m doing. I’ll try to write up a review tomorrow, if it’s helpful to folks, because I think Cris is selling the sequel next week.

Today was another squatless leg day. I’m a little torn on this. My joints feel fantastic, but I don’t know that I’m ready to just stop squatting. I’m probably answering my own question with “my joints feel fantastic” though.

I’m struggling with the new auto-formatting right now, and I’m trying to get outside to grill, so I’ll come back to write down the workout.

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4690

For me, the trouble is simply misery. Doing a tough set of squats (as long as the reps are less than 10) feels almost primal. It’s hard, but dang it’s fun when you succeed at hitting something. On the other hand, I’ve never felt that way after a brutal set of rear foot elevated split squats or reverse lunges. I think you and I would both do better with “squatless leg days” if we had a legit belt squat. I’ve found it impossible to truly replicate the feeling of squats with anything at the gym.

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4691

@Frank_C I think you’re onto it - squats are cool! I didn’t start going to the gym into the first place to do soft stuff. I do have a belt squat at the “home” gym (not a gym in my house, but the gym I use when not traveling), and it’s fantastic… but still not the same as putting a bar on your back I think maybe both the medicine and the poison is in the spinal loading

That said, yesterday was still leg presses, Smith squats, and hacks, so I could be 90s BB cool.

@T3hPwnisher another great blog post last weekend! You nailed exactly what we’ve pitched around in here: I’m so glad I grew up before the Internet.

Random: how do you guys log your workouts with the new automatic formatting? I like it for cleaning up narratives, but the paragraph breaks are killing me for trying to write exercises/ sets/ reps. Maybe it’s more navigable on desktop and I just need to do that?

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4692

Here’s how to change the formatting back to the old style.

IMG_5245
IMG_52451179×2556 201 KB

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4693

Ah! I should have figured that out. Thanks a million!

4694

another great blog post last weekend! You nailed exactly what we’ve pitched around in here: I’m so glad I grew up before the Internet.

Glad you dug it dude! It’s a lot of “grumpy old man” stuff, but it’s the truth. Things SHOULD have gotten so much better with global reach, but the closer we all got the more alienated we all got.

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4695

I used to wonder how you go from the Roman Empire to the Dark Ages, but totally understand it now.

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4696

Today I did this arm workout: https://youtu.be/GHvRp7Ep1oQ?si=tijP_IocCk3dBYk9

Yesterday was a really awesome back workout. I don’t feel like going back to try to remember and write it out, but I was knocking out pretty crisp DB rows with the 110s for sets of 10 in the middle of it. That’s pretty good for me, so I do think I’m getting stronger here.

Program Scorpion Review
Full disclosure, I’m about a week short of finishing. Cris is about to release the follow-up, though, so I wanted to go ahead and put this out in case it’s helpful to anyone. I suppose I could put it on the main page, but I might be the only one that’s this in love with Mountain Dog programming.

What it is
This is an 8-week pure bodybuilding program. This isn’t for general fitnessing, or athletic improvement, or anything else - this is 90s bodybuilding. I found this program to “feel” like a blend between John’s old stuff and Doggcrapp - days varied greatly.

*What it isn’t"
Basically the stuff that isn’t what it is (clever, huh?). It’s not going to show you any research or try to convince you anything is new or work its way into your schedule; it’s a set, day by day, bodybuilding program.

Features
I think I’ll just list out my impressions, rather than a pro/ con list, because whether it’s a benefit or not will depend on perspective.

  • Intensity: It’s flat out intense. As mentioned above, it’s like Mountain Dog and Doggcrapp had a demonic baby (Mountain Dog Crap?). Some days are a little more volume based, and some more intensity technique based, but you’ll always leave the gym sweating hard. This is what drew me in to begin with: I just wanted to not think and to work hard - this program delivers.
  • Barbell work: there’s almost none. This kind of irked me a little bit, because I feel cool under a barbell… but wouldn’t you know it? My joints feel fantastic and I am actually progressing on all the lifts. This isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea, and I’m still iffy, but I really am training to nausea every session (seriously, even on arm days), and absolutely nothing hurts.
  • Detail: high! The way Cris sets this up is he basically journals his days and tells you every set, rep, and minute of cardio he does for every single day. Now, I personally felt two ways about this: it’s awesome to have a benchmark; it really did help some days to see the weights he was using for a specific set and, because he kept this rolling, have an idea how that should translate for me. On the other hand, I don’t know that I love the idea of paying for someone else’s diary. It was a great program that I really enjoyed; I just understand how that can sit wrong. He also begins the book with some recommendations on how to set up and adjust your diet that I thought were actually pretty solid starting points for most folks.
  • Gym-friendly: depends. This was pretty baller for me, because it’s not barbell-dependent. I can jump into any decent gym on the road (Planet Fitness bodybuilding!) and not have to think through substitutions. If you’re training in your garage, it might be annoying to have to think through how to structure your day vs. just copying what’s on paper.
  • Set-up: bodybuilding split! So the week typically has a leg day, two back days (that’s the focus for this program), a chest and shoulders day, and an arm day. Legs are supposedly de-emphasized, but I felt like some of those days were brutal! The back days, especially, alternated between more volume and higher intensity days. He does do a fair bit of supersetting, which again splits two ways for me. I really like supersets, because you get in a bunch of volume quickly (and the pump is fun). On the other hand, some of them aren’t real feasible in a gym that has other people (leg press + hack squat, for instance - anyone else doing leg day means that isn’t happening). That said, it wasn’t a big deal because those specific ones were rare; I just ran them both as straight sets. He also runs most of his exercises pyramiding up to a top set and a back off (or like a rest pause/ drop set); this has always been my favorite way to lift, so I was a big fan. You get the benefit of that heavy set, and it’s fun, and then you still know that you did one “good” set with crisp form and nailing the muscle. As you’re used to with Mountain Dog, no two workouts look the same.
  • Leg days: Cris focuses on adductor work more than anyone I’ve ever seen, and all his squatting is in a machine (belt, smith, hack, etc.). The result was some disgusting soreness and, I can’t say this enough, the least joint pain I’ve had in years. I’m only a couple months into this style, so I can’t tell you my legs are growing, but they aren’t shrinking and I’m not hurting all the time - I’ll take it.
  • Back: this was the emphasis of this program. I would have potentially preferred you let me pick the emphasis with a menu of secondary days if you asked me up front, but honestly this was better - I buy programs so I don’t have to do any thinking. What I can say for the back days is: I didn’t hate them. This is usually the “ugh” day for me, but these were really well-structured, I got into them, and I really pushed them. Some of his secret sauce is starting with a ton of straight-arm and lat pulldowns - you get into it quick!
  • Chest/ shoulders: this, again, wasn’t the main emphasis of this program, but I really enjoyed these days. Typically you had a couple heavier presses and then some supersets including flyes - I got a little stronger every week here. Shoulders were always incredibly high reps, volume (and, again, supersets) - the burn was intense on here.
  • Arms: I prefer an arm day, so I’m already a fan. These were all very similar to the Meadows setups - high volume, fast pace, and elbow-friendly. Maybe it’s just because it was new and I “cared,” but I was definitely able to get a bigger pump and more soreness in my biceps than I have in a long time.
  • Cardio/ abs/ mobility: nothing crazy, but he does actually call out what to do here each week. I really, really liked this - I like the paper just doing all the thinking for me and not treating this stuff as if it doesn’t matter.

Overall
Scorpion came at a perfect time for me. I had a lot going on personally and professionally, and this program let me just put my head down and freaking work. No part of my body hurts, I am enjoying going to the gym, and I feel confident I’m progressing. If you are looking to steadily progress on a handful of key barbell lifts week over week, this is not the program for you. If you want to just open up a PDF and start destroying hard, 90s style, bodybuilding workouts - this is it. Subzero is next (and they typically do Labor Day sales) - I’ll be sticking with him for that one.

@davemccright

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4697

This really sounds like a fun program, right up my alley! I’ve certainly enjoyed every Mountain Dog program I’ve run! It seems almost like it’s written out kind of like John’s competition prep programs but with a specific emphasis on Back training! I’m such a volume and Pump fan, I’ll probably pick this up when the sale hits. Glad Cris is keeping these going!

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4698

It’s written exactly in that style! I will say that it’s definitely different than John’s programs. A lot of similarities, like hamstrings before quads, the training split, and the high-rep/ high-volume for shoulders.

The way Cris works up and then does a back off is different, he likes a higher training density, and his overall volume is a bit lower. He also likes a little more traditional cardio and ab work. You can tell he put his own flair on it.

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4699

Destructive back workout today!

  1. Superset (3-4 rounds):
  • SAPD
  • 1-arm Low Cable Row
  1. Superset (3 rounds):
  • Single-arm Pulldown
  • MAG PD

  1. One-arm BB Row
    Worked up 25 at a time
    100/8
    50/10 focused on stretch

  2. Superset (3 rounds):

  • Seated Cable Row
  • T-bar Row w/ 2.05pps

  1. Back Extension Machine
    I actually liked this
    Worked up then a 4x drop set

  2. Hanging Leg Raise
    5 sets

  3. Incline Treadmill x 25 minutes (Rick and Morty for this one)

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4700

Staying jacked and handsome with chest and shoulders today.

  1. Incline HS Press
    Worked up over a bunch of sets
    2.25pps/11
    1.25pps/12 or so with a big flex

  2. HS Decline
    Worked up again
    2.25pps/14ish
    2.05pps/15 + 1.25pps/ however many with full 2s contraction + 1pps/18 or so

  3. Slight Incline DB Flye
    This was 10s negatives and 10s positives every rep. 2 sets. Was supposed to be sets of 10 but I could only get 6. Brutal.

  4. Chest Superset
    2 rounds of machine flyes and pushups

  5. Machine Rear Delt
    30, 25, 20 + 10 hard flex

  6. Shoulder Giant Set
    This was incline DB raises with a band around your wrists, then partial rear delts with that band, then side raises. 3 sets.

  7. Shoulder Superset
    Machine Side Raises plus BPA

  8. Incline Treadmill x Rick and Morty

  9. BOSU Crunches x 3 sets

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4701

Saw this and instantly thought “I’d probably move those to the machine fly”… and then saw the next superset moved there anyway… 10 seconds sounds awful.

By the way, I appreciated the write-up! These aren’t for me at the moment, but I’ll have more time to train when I’m not coaching. How long do the sessions typically last? I’ve been in pain for a long time so joint friendly might be something worth considering.

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4702

Horrible!

Thank you!

I’ll call the average an hour, but some of have been as short as 40ish minutes. I don’t think it’s ever taken me longer than 70, and that’s in the gym that has half the equipment upstairs so that was all running around time.

I can’t explain how shocked I am at how good my body feels. That’s been, by far, the thing I’ve noticed most. I’ve also gotten a little stronger on these movements, but, to be fair, some were relatively novel to me; I’ve been in a (moderate) calorie deficit whilst doing this, so I’ll say those variables offset. I would never have done this little barbell work on my own, but I am glad to hand the reigns to somebody to “make” me feel better!

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4703

I bet you are, you young stallion. LOL

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4704

I really have to ask (at least myself) what’s the goal? My goal is to look strong, be strong enough to back the look, and be physically capable of moving my body well enough for old man sports. I don’t really play anything these days, but I like to think I can.

My job is 67% awesome. I get to spend 4 of 6 class periods in the weight room teaching high school kids. That brings a bit of ego with it. I want to be able to lift decent weights on the big 3, but other than ego I really have no reason to do so.

My other motivating factor is time. Hitting some good weights on squats or deads is tough to replicate so I find myself doing multiple exercises to achieve a decent stimulus.

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4705

I’m happy!

Now I’m hurt.

@Frank_C I totally hear you on all of that. I guess 3 random thoughts I’ll throw out there:

  1. I also want to be able to “do,” although it comes up infrequently. If nothing else, it would hurt my feelings not to be able to at least feel like I could. (As an aside, we just watched the movie “Nobody,” and my wife didn’t realize every middle-aged dude feels that way). I guess what I run into a little is how well am I doing if everything feels terrible? As we’ve all see in the log, about once a year I’ll decide I’m going to do a full block of jumps and sprints and snatches and whatnot… and I feel like crap and end up actually performing worse. I’m not saying it would be impossible to do those things at this point, but I have not set up my whole day/ week/ month to do so. In this case, I probably show up better in my old man sports (a little basketball here and there) just from not feeling broken.
  2. Jumping on the back of the above, I also love competing against kids in the gym that don’t know they’re competing with me. This might come back to training vs testing a little. What I mean is, at this point, my forms isn’t really going to deviate on any of these lifts unless it’s intentional; in fact, I think I’m more likely to show variance from the little aches and pains than from being out of practice. So, if training other patterns keeps me strong enough to hit the big 3, then I can still perform when it comes up with infrequent practice. I think you’re a better athlete than I am, so I’d imagine you’re in the same boat. Also on this point, you’ve got home field advantage on this - they don’t know what else you’re doing. I remember being in the army and showing up midway through an exercise in front of the guys and doing something that looked hard… but then I’d be doing something else come morning and they’d still be grinding left with a memory of me showing up.
  3. This is one where maybe I push back a little, and that’s on the time-efficiency. A heavy squat/ deadlift, takes me far longer to perform (warm up, execute, rest, recover) than doing multiple other movements to cover those patterns/ muscles. Now, those lifts for sure are more movement efficient… but I don’t think necessarily more time efficient.

All that said, and for context, I’m not trying to convince anyone the barbell moves aren’t the way to go nor are they out of my programming forever. I’ve just been personally pleasantly surprised how good I feel and still seemingly able to progress without doing them for a block or two. It will be a tell when I rotate squatting, for instance, back in how I do. This also wouldn’t be something I’d recommend to someone who hasn’t already spent real time on the main lifts. I think my only point, if my ramblings ever have one, is: once you’ve put in time under the bar/ on the field, you earn the right to try other methods that align to your goals.

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4706

that was one of those nervous laughs that you make when you really like someone. :wink:

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4707

I’ll allow it

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