Synergy93 - Fill Us In

[John_Schlecht]

Thanks for checking in on me. I’ve been “off the grid” lately, due to a very busy schedule.

Training has been going great since my last post (around Christmas), other than the low back injury that knocked me out for a couple of weeks. I haven’t had any problems since, and have been going full steam ahead for the last couple of months.

I’ve been focusing on gaining weight and doing everything I can to add a few more pounds of lean muscle. It’s damn tough, when you’ve basically been at your ceiling for the last couple of years! However, I’ve been successful. I’ve brought my weight up to 265 lbs. staying under 10%, which is up from 242 @ about 6% a couple months back.

It’s been an eye opening experience. Even I forget how important proper nutrition really is. I’ve basically been adding weight slowly since last May (dieted down to about 230 @5%) previous to that, and have been on a quest to gain quality weight ever since. While I was able to reach 245 by the fall, while staying pretty damn lean, I hit a wall as far as the scale goes. I hovered around this weight, until I finally dove in and started eating A LOT more a couple months ago.

Like many on this site, who THINK they’re eating enough, I simply wasn’t. I basically increased all macro nutrients by about 25% and viola, the scale started to move north. However, I’m actually glad I “got stuck” around 245 lbs for a couple of months. It gave my body time to acclimate to my current training and nutrition demands, thus setting me up for a nice growth spurt once I started to eating more.

As many of you have probably heard, growth (and strength, fat loss) happens in spurts. I sincerely believe that one must aim for small increases (or decreases if fat loss is the goal) in body weight, in order to reset your “set point” and keep body fat levels in check. 10 lbs in either direction seems to be about right, whether your focusing on size or fat loss. At least, that’s been my experience.

Training

I’ve been implementing some of the HP Mass principles into my own training for the last few weeks. However, being a former athlete and pretty much training in this manner since high school, it wasn’t anything “new” from a principles stand point (ramping, explosive lifting, plyometrics, etc). What is new for me, is the increased frequency,concentrated loading and eccentric-less volume.

It has been working great. My recovery has been outstanding, and motivation to train is at an all-time high. Results = increased motivation.

While I think this “type of training” is a good approach for just about anyone, I think it works especially well for those who have been at this for a long time, have learned to listen to their bodies and have pretty much maxed out their natural abilities (specifically strength). You no longer have to “chase numbers” and can focus on QUALITY and VOLUME.

I do think it’s a great system to teach newcomers and intermediates to become more in tune with their bodies and learn to auto-regulate. However, those who fall into this category would be better served to focus on the basics, get stronger, eliminate useless exercises and volume and spend A LOT more time on their nutrition.

What’s next??

OK, I wasn’t going to “announce” this, but I MAY do a bodybuilding show this June, in case anyone gives a rat’s ass.

Now, it’s not a matter of if I’ll be able to stick it out, because I’ve dieted down to sub 4% in the past and didn’t compete…just for kicks BUT, if my life is in a place where I’ll be able to put forth the time and effort necessary to compete, I will do it. I’m not crazy about competing, but I feel like I’ll do pretty well and am looking for a new challenge. Plus, it will be nice having fellow “Nationers” in my corner, when shit gets crazy.

I started the prep work yesterday. I plan on leaning out slowly the first month (basically get rid of the bloat and tighten up a bit all over), while continuing to keep (or possibly increase) my strength on all the main lifts. We’ll see how things are progressing after that, both in and out of the gym.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for now. Thanks again for asking how I’m doing. You guys keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep that fire burning inside. Once that flame goes out, you’ll start going backwards…don’t do it! Keep fighting and BELIEVE you’ll be successful in whatever endeavors you choose to pursue.

I’ll try to post a pic of my starting point tonight.

PS—I second the idea to go out to Colorado and train It’d be great timing leading up to the show. I could only be so lucky and would be honored to be able to do so.

[quote]GluteusGigantis wrote:
Any updates on the training and back injury? [/quote]

[GluteusGigantis]

[quote]synergy93 wrote:

OK, I wasn’t going to “announce” this, but I MAY do a bodybuilding show this June, in case anyone gives a rat’s ass.

I’ll try to post a pic of my starting point tonight.

[/quote]

Can’t speak for everyone here, but hell yes I give a rat’s ass to see how this goes!

Has your relative macro breakdown (pro:carb:fat) changed much to get you up to 265lb or is it just a case of eating more (the 25% increase you noted in the post)?

[John_Schlecht]

Yeah, I definitely increased the percentage of carbs and fat, and even protein slightly. I also had a cheat meal every other day versus only 1-2 per week.

I also consumed a higher amount of carbs on a DAILY basis, not just on specific training days, which is what I was doing previously to maintain leanness and slowly add weight. Carb intake usually fluctuated between 250-500 (up from 150-200 per day) on most days, with 100 coming at breakfast and 100 more during the workout. I’d then consume smaller amounts (25-50) at a couple other meals during the day (usually the meal after breakfast and the meal after working out. My carb sources previous to this were mostly from fruit and sprouted grain bread. During the weight gaining phase, I added in other forms of starches and grains…potatoes, beans, pastas, high bran cereals, hash browns and milk (I look at milk as more of carb source than a protein source)

I was also more liberal with oils for cooking (extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, and macadamia nut oil) , more red meat, extra nuts, full fat cheese, etc.

I did increase protein intake slightly. Instead of the usual 8-10 ounces of meat per meal, I jacked that up to 12-16 ounces per meal, every time I ate animal protein.

If I had to put a number on it, I’d say…

Maintain leanness and body weight: 45% pro–25% carbs–30% fat…roughly 3500-4000 cals

Gaining: 40% pro-35% carbs–25% fat…roughly 4500-5500 cals…hitting that higher number on cheat meal days

[quote]GluteusGigantis wrote:

[quote]synergy93 wrote:

OK, I wasn’t going to “announce” this, but I MAY do a bodybuilding show this June, in case anyone gives a rat’s ass.

I’ll try to post a pic of my starting point tonight.

[/quote]

Can’t speak for everyone here, but hell yes I give a rat’s ass to see how this goes!

Has your relative macro breakdown (pro:carb:fat) changed much to get you up to 265lb or is it just a case of eating more (the 25% increase you noted in the post)?[/quote]

[anon76597544]

What are you talking in terms of cheat meals? Regular old coldstone/dominos, or are we talking healthy cheating? lol

[mspguy]

Synergy

Awesome to hear you might do a bodybuilding show…what show might you do? Is it an all natural show? Thanks too for giving suggestions on protein carb fat ratios. I am sure there is alot of intense training to get ready for a show.

[John_Schlecht]

Anything goes really…

Burritos, home made pasta and garlic cheese bread, pizza, eating out, etc, etc.

[quote]hlss09 wrote:
What are you talking in terms of cheat meals? Regular old coldstone/dominos, or are we talking healthy cheating? lol [/quote]

[godsrealson]

[quote]synergy93 wrote:
In case anyone’s interested, here’s my leg workout from today, along with my overall nutrition
**I’m currently starting a 4 week max fat loss phase…leaving for Europe at the end of the month
**My goal is to maintain or even increase my overall strength a bit while losing 1-2% body fat…remember, I didn’t let my body fat creep up more than a couple of percent since my last cut ended two months ago, so this time I’ll get back down to where I was, possibly lower in a short amount of time

Nutrition:
Overall Cals: About 3200 (I need about 3500 to maintain my current weight)
Protein: 375 grams (bodyweight X 1.5)
Carbs: 200 (50 at breakfast–2 pieces of Ezekiel toast (28 grams))–100 scale grams strawberries (8 grams)…140 scale grams plum (16 grams)
Peri-workout (2 FINiBARs, 2 Surge Workout Fuel, 2 ANACONDA, 1 MAG-10)
Fat: 100 grams (includes 9 FA3 capsules and 6 Flameout Capsules)

Workout:
Activation:
37" box jumps…3 sets of 3 reps
paired with
Band Squat jumps (two bands criss crossed over shoulders and anchored on safety pins near floor)…3 sets of 3 reps

Main Movement:
BB Front Squat: 4, 3, 2 Wave Load
135 x 5 reps…practice set
185 x 2 reps…practice set

Work Sets:
1 estimated my one rep max to be about 350 heading into the workout (hit 325 for my last set of 3 last week)
Set 1: 210 (60%)…4 reps
Set 2: 230…3 reps
Set 3: 250…2 reps
Set 4: 270…4 reps
Set 5: 290…3 reps
Set 6: 310…2 reps
Set 7: 325…4 reps (one rep improvement over last week, and was much smoother)
Set 8: 335…3 reps
Set 9: 350…2 reps (could’ve got 10 more pounds…will keep that in mind next week)
So I ended up doing 1 less rep with 25 more pounds this week than last…looks like my new 1 RM is around 375…highest it’s ever been

Second Squat Movement
Wide Box Squat (feet about 6 inches wider than shoulders, toes flared at about a 40 degree angle)
Rep Range: Start at 5 reps per set and ramp until I can only get 3 reps
Set 1: 350 (where front squat ended)…5 reps
Set 2: 375…5 reps
Set 3: 405…5 reps
Set 4: 425…4 reps
Set 5: 440…3 reps
Set 6: 455…3 reps
Set 7: 475…3 reps

Third Squat movement:
Top half BB squat lockouts from pins…knees just above 90 degrees
Rep Range: 3 reps per set
Set 1: 475…3 reps (where wide box squats ended)
Set 2: 495…3 reps
Set 3: 515…3 reps
Set 4: 535…3 reps
Set 5: 550…3 reps

I kept rest period to about 60 seconds on most of the earlier sets of each movement, but took up to 90 as I approached my top weights

Cashed out after this sequence. I was happy with it, since I hit a new PR in front squats

One-Set-to-Failure (not true failure…about 1 rep short) Circuit
**Took just enough rest time to get to the next station, set up, and lose my mind in one all out set

Exercise 1: BB Front Squat…245 x 12 reps
Exercise 2: Reverse Hypers…90 x 12 reps
Exercise 3: Quad Extensions…200 x 15 reps
Exercise 4: Lying Hamstring Curls…190 x 13 reps
**will add about 10 lbs to all exercises next week

That was it for the weights…then on to some intense interval work…first cardio workout in about 2 months…sucked!

I performed a 3 exercise Mini-circuit…very minimal rest between movements, and rested 45 seconds after the third movement, before starting back over…performed a total of 10 minutes…not very long, but it was Hell for the first workout
**I’ll perform this circuit again later this week, but will add one minute to the total and keep adding a minute every time I repeat the workout for the next 4 weeks…so I’ll work up to 17 minutes total by the end of this phase

Mini-Circuit
Exercise 1: Prowler sled push…30 yds down the turf, 30 yards back to where I started…60 yards total…ALL OUT SPRINT
Exercise 2: Side-to-Side Tornado medicine ball swings against wall…30 seconds all out
Exercise 3: Heavy Bag work (I practice Krav Maga)…all out punch, kick, knee, etc. combinations for 60 seconds
Rest 45 seconds, repeat

As you can see, I hit a variety of energy systems in this workout between all the exercises and circuits…got stronger, did some higher rep work, kept a nice pace during the workout, and topped it off with some intense intervals…Mission Accomplished

[/quote]

This is a great thread and some excellent information synergy so thank you for your time. I was wondering if you would reccomend a somewhat beginner train like this, talking more about the low weight ramping stuff for 2-4 exercises and going by how you feel that day. I think i fit the description you said about guys following programs for not long enough to find out what works and what doesn’t so I want your opinion on how I should start training. Thank You

[coolusername]

hey synergy, what does a week in training currently look like for you? Anything that you’re specializing right now?

[John_Schlecht]

Thanks for the message.

Since I just started to focus on fat loss once again, I’m not really specializing on any specific body part currently. My main two goals for the next few weeks are mostly…

1. Increase my work capacity (increase in work capacity, means more fat lost, BECAUSE my nutrition has changed too…very modest caloric deficit and less overall carbs, but more importantly, carbs are strategically consumed)
2. Maintain current strength levels (If I keep most of my strength, lean mass loss will be minimized while in a caloric deficit)

In order to do this, I’ve structured my workouts a bit differently. The main change coming in the form of an increase in per workout density (same amount of work in less time or more work in the same amount of time). This means that I’ll be adding in more circuits/complexes and some additional sled (eccentric-less) work.

Here’s an example of what I’ve been doing since last week:
I’ve adopted some of the HP Mass concepts, but have adjusted some of the loading methods, rep ranges, etc to fit my needs

Monday
Day 1: Upper Body Press emphasis + lower body secondary emphasis + isolation work for chest
3 upper body press movements
(Push Press, Flat bb bench, top 1/2 bb bench from pins)
1 lower body press movement
(Trap Bar deadlift)

Chest isolation circuits:
Reps: 10’ish reps on first movement, max reps on the rest

1. Decline DB Flies
2. Cable flies
3. flat bench 90 degree power flies
4. push ups on bench with a wide grip
   Sets: As many rounds as my body will give me on that day

Sled:
Lower body pushes and drags
**I’ve found that I lose more lower body size when dieting, than upper. This is mostly due to that “heavy leg” feeling when dieting hard, which prevents me from doing enough quality lower body strength work to maintain lower body size. The sled is an excellent way of minimizing this…it helps the lower body recover and adds additional “non-traumatizing” work for the legs…not to mention increase overall caloric burn…which always helps in the quest for maximum leanness.

Tuesday
Day 2
Upper Body Complex
The focus here is on power, more than anything. I don’t care about using maximal poundages…don’t really get above 75% of 1 RM on strength movements
Reps: 3-5 on strength movements, but will vary from set to set…I don’t even really count reps, but focus more on the performance and quality of each rep
Balistic/Plyo movements: don’t count these reps at all…go purely on performance and feel…could be 3 reps, could be 12 reps. I terminate the set when my explosiveness is gone or my mind loses focus

A1. Top 1/2 press from pins…either a horizontal chest press or vertical shoulder press…whichever feels best that day
A2. Regular bench or decline bench…again, whichever feels best
A3. Push Press
A4. Partner med ball drop and chest pass from elevation…partner stands on a box and drops med ball to partner lying on the floor…explosive chest pass back up to partner on box
A5. Plyo-metric push ups from elevation…place hands on boxes or bumper plates and do an explosive push up, while changing positions from the boxes to the floor

I’ll go through that as many times as I can while maintaining quality performance. I do time my rest periods during these workouts…keep it under a minute between exercises

Maximum rep isolation work for shoulders and triceps

Shoulders:
Circuit, minimal rest between movements
Use the SAME weight for each movement
B1 Seated lateral raise
B2 Front raise
B3 DB shoulder press
B4 Standing db upright rows
b5 TRX external rotations
Blast through as many good rounds of that as possible…usually between 2-4

Triceps:
A1. DB floor skull crushers…6-8 reps
A2. Rope Push downs…6-8 reps
A3. Vertical Dips–body weight only…AMAP
A4. Band triceps pushdowns…AMAP

Sled work for lower body…I can’t do any lower body strength work after the above workout. If I have the time, I’ll go back later in the day and do one lower body press…which is usually BB squat w/chains

Wednesday
Day 3
Neural charge workout, emphasizing the upper body press pattern, but will have at least one Olympic movement in there, which is usually Power Snatch from the floor

I’ll then do some form of bicep training immediately after.
**I have also found that my biceps lose their size a bit when dieting, so I try to get some work for biceps in after every workout, but I also have a day dedicated to a lot of bicep work

Thursday
Day 4

Lower Body emphasis + some upper body press work

A. BB Front Squat
B. Sumo Deads
C. Flat Bench plus chains

Sled: Lower body sled work

Friday
Day 5
Lower Body complex

A1. Top 1/2 bb squat
A2. Regular squat
A3. Power Clean from floor
A4. band resisted squat jumps (huge eccentric component)
A5. Box Jumps (minimal eccentric component)

B. Reverse Bench Press with bands
Higher rep sets. I like these on this day, because it places minimal stress on the CNS and upper body (which isn’t my focus on this day)

Lower Body Sled work

Saturday
Day 6
Lats and biceps
This is the one area I’ve really adopted some of CT’s methods. I’ve always had trouble recruiting my lats during back workouts and his advice on peak contractions, fatigue loading and eccentric-less sled work for the back have made a HUGE difference in my back development.

The great part about this approach, is that you don’t have to get “fancy” with exercise selection, body angles during the pulls, etc.

I basically just pair up back exercises and perform them back to back. I focus on a strong peak contraction and figuring out ways to make my back do more work per set. The peak contraction regulates how much weight you can use, which is nice, because then you don’t even need to “worry” about getting stronger…just doing more work and creating as much fatigue as possible.

Same for biceps, but I’ll outline one of the biceps routines I’ve used:

A. Mechanical (angle training) Drop sets
Incline DB Curls…6-10 reps
Rest 10 seconds
Seated DB Curls (same weight)…max quality reps
rest 10 seconds
Standing one arm at a time (unilateral) DB curls (same weight)…max quality reps
That’s it…use the same weight for all three movements, just changing to a stronger position when you fatigue
**The same method can be used with the Preacher bench…steep side curls, regular preacher curls, standing curls
3-4 sets of this

B1. Preacher curls…6-12 reps
Minimal rest
B2. Cable Preacher curls to fatigue + top partials + bottom partials
3-4 sets of this

C1. BB Isometric curls in squat rack…hold the bar up against the safety pins with as much force as possible, for as long as possible. Once the bar drops from the pins, terminate the set
Minimal rest between
C2. Blast Strap/TRX curls…as many reps as possible
*Go through as many sets as I can tolerate
*I like ending with this, because it’s a great way to do more work, but not totally destroy yourself in the process

I don’t “program” lats and biceps workouts. Since fatigue plays such a large role in the quality of this workout, it’s pretty much impossible to focus on progression (especially load).

I go into the workouts with an idea of the exercises and strategies I want to employ that day, but will deviate if I don’t feel they’re working as they should or I’m not getting the training effect I’m seeking.

If there’s one workout I ever “chase the pump” it’s this one. If you’re creating that pump feeling in your lats and biceps, then you’re doing a lot of work and creating a lot of muscular fatigue (not CNS fatigue…big difference), which is the goal of this workout.

Plus, it’s fun to feel the pump in your biceps

I’m tired now…that’s enough

Hope you get something useful out of this long ass post!

[quote]coolusername wrote:
hey synergy, what does a week in training currently look like for you? Anything that you’re specializing right now?[/quote]

[coolusername]

Wow, thanks for the very in depth view of your training. looks like fun!

[NIguy]

[quote]synergy93 wrote:
I’ve brought my weight up to 265 lbs. staying under 10%, which is up from 242 @ about 6% a couple months back.
[/quote]

Jaw just hit the floor, 265lbs at 10% and natural… very good work.

[undecimber]

Recently Synergy helped me out regarding a HPM split incorporating the strength complexes in CT’s LiveSpill. He said feel free to post this up as other members may find the information useful as well.

This is the HPM split that he had mentioned in ‘Ask CT #5’:

Monday–Upper body performance workout + staggered traps, rhomboids and rear delts, rotator cuff + Secondary lower body press
Tuesday…Upper Body Strength Complex + isolation work for chest, shoulder and triceps (triceps if enough gas in the tank)
Wednesday…NC workout
Thursday…Lower Body emphasis + Secondary Upper Body press + sled work for legs
Friday…Lower Body Strength Complex + sled work for legs
Saturday…lats and biceps

My question was:

I was wondering if you have any tips or recommendations/concerns for this type of split. i.e.

• is it better suited for someone with your experience and strength? etc.

His very detailed response:

As long as you have a firm grasp of how your body performs and what you’re top numbers (estimated 1 RM–3 RM would work too) are for the exercises of choice, you’ll do great.

You’ve been doing the HPM program long enough to know where your’e at, and the complex workouts on the the second day are more about explosiveness and power, not hitting top weights.

I’m guessing that at this point, you consider yourself to possess more “strength” than power. If this is indeed the case, you could approach this split a couple of ways…

1. You could do the Power complex on Day 1 and the regular HPM workout on Day 2. Doing it this way, will allow you to focus on building explosive power when you’re body is more fresh on the first day. If you don’t overdo it on this day, it could serve as a hell of a CNS boost for the following day…much like a neural charge workout, but more intense.

2. Do the regular HPM workout on Day 1 and the Power Complex on Day 2, but you’d go through the Power Complex in the “reverse order.” Start the complex by doing the ballistic movements first. Again, this is a good approach if you feel more strong, than powerful. Otherwise, you could start with the strength movements and finish with the plyo movements.

Upper Complex Example (possess more strength than power):

A1. Plyo-metic pushups (either on bench (if you can bench press less than 1.5 times your body weight or on explosive push ups on floor (if you can bench press more than 1.5 times your body weight)
**aim for as many explosive quality reps as possible…somewhere between 5-10 reps

A2. Medicine Ball chest passes into wall (be sure to throw as hard as possible…throws (and jumps and sled pushes and pulls) are the only exercise you can truly put 100% effort into, because you don’t have to slow the weight down as you approach the end of the range of motion…let it rip each rep)
**aim for as many explosive reps as possible…terminate when explosiveness significantly decreases

A3. Push Press

A4. Bench Press variation (flat and decline would be my choices)

A5. Top 1/2 bench press from pins (this would be the only exercise in the circuit that could be done “slowly.” The goal here is to use as much weight as possible to really overload the movement pattern and muscles involved)
A4.

You’d basically do the same things for lower body.

You can try it a couple of different ways and see which order you perform best at.

You could also try it as a non-concentrated approach…something like:
**CT responded to my question, stating that this could be an option to try as well. He hadn’t tried the split I asked about, so it could be some good feedback for him as well

Day 1
Regular upper body HPM workout (upper emphasis and lower secondary)
Day 2
Lower Body Power Complex + Lower body sled work (Lower Body strength work later in the day if you have the time)
Day 3…
Neural charge (Full Body emphasis) I wouldn’t use any of the same exercises you are using in your complex workouts, use different ones. Olympic movements and slightly different med ball exercises and jumps would do the trick
Day 4
Upper Body Power Complex + chest, shoulder and triceps isolation work
Day 5
Regular Lower Body HPM workout (lower emphasis + upper secondary) + lower sled work
Day 6
lats and biceps

I may try the above approach as I get further into my dieting phase I’ve just started. The concentrated approach is very demanding and when cals/nutrients are low, I may find it better to allow more rest days between hitting the same muscle groups/movement patterns. My goal right now isn’t to add any newfound strength or size, just maintain what I’ve built thus far. Two exposures per week is enough to do that. Plus, the power complexes lend themselves well to dieting phases, as they drastically increase work capacity and nutrition partitioning (your body’s ability to efficiently metabolize nutrients…especially carbohydrates).

Hope that helps. Good luck.

(Thank you again Synergy for your detailed response)

[therajraj]

Synergy93, have you ever posted a pic of yourself at your heaviest?

It’s just cool to see the before after pics

[John_Schlecht]

Here’s the BEFORE pic I took almost a month ago, just before I started dieting

265 lbs

[quote]therajraj wrote:
Synergy93, have you ever posted a pic of yourself at your heaviest?

It’s just cool to see the before after pics[/quote]

[John_Schlecht]

Here’s one I took this past Saturday after 3 weeks of focused fat loss

255 lbs

*I know the lighting and location are a bit different, but I think the differences are quite noticeable

[quote]synergy93 wrote:
Here’s the BEFORE pic I took almost a month ago, just before I started dieting

265 lbs

[quote]therajraj wrote:
Synergy93, have you ever posted a pic of yourself at your heaviest?

It’s just cool to see the before after pics[/quote]
[/quote]

[coolusername]

Crazy ‘uppershelf’ synergy!

[therajraj]

Definitely see a huge difference

Good stuff

[wannabebig25]

wow, you are huge AND lean, very impressive man. are you still using the lowish carb diet you posted in the first pages to diet down? sorry if you mentioned this already, as i havent read all 9 pages.

[John_Schlecht]

I was going to post the nutrition template/plan I’ve been implementing the past 4 weeks, tonight, if anyone’s interested.

Are you???

I’m not gonna post if no one cares to check it out!

[quote]wannabebig25 wrote:
wow, you are huge AND lean, very impressive man. are you still using the lowish carb diet you posted in the first pages to diet down? sorry if you mentioned this already, as i havent read all 9 pages.[/quote]

[coolusername]

[quote]synergy93 wrote:
I was going to post the nutrition template/plan I’ve been implementing the past 4 weeks, tonight, if anyone’s interested.

Are you???

I’m not gonna post if no one cares to check it out!

[quote]wannabebig25 wrote:
wow, you are huge AND lean, very impressive man. are you still using the lowish carb diet you posted in the first pages to diet down? sorry if you mentioned this already, as i havent read all 9 pages.[/quote]
[/quote]

very!