T3hPwnisher's Log

Training Training Logs
441

[quote]nighthawkz wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
I see a good future of high volume pull ups in my future[/quote]

Futureception?

All kidding aside, does your workplace have a pull up rack? That’d be cool.
[/quote]

That’ll teach me to write post workout, haha.

No pull-up rack, but I bought one of those Irongym things for $5 from a thrift shop and put it in a door way at work. One of my female co-workers knocked out 5 perfect form chins in a pencil skirt and blouse, it was pretty badass.

(16) Chain Suspended Safety Squat Bar Squats
1x455+chains
6x365+chains

Notes: Definitely seeing effects of fat loss: I’m down a notch on my belt. This meant I wasn’t able to get the belt to sit quite as low as I like, so form was a little off on the first set, but still happy with the outcome post contest. If next week proves to be too heavy, I may either change the movement or the weight. The dead stop back off set still proved effective.

Standing ab wheel
1x8
2x7

Car deadlift simulator
8x8 plates
10x6 plates

Notes: Love that I’m still seeing progress on this. From my performance in my last contest, I can tell it’s working. Left lat had no issues. Could feel my right calf shifting a bit, but nothing extreme.

Reverse hyper 1 plate
1 minute, 5 seconds

Notes: Holy crap this was way harder than I thought. I’ll blame a little of it on being post contest, but this is really just a tortuous movement. Next time, I’ll just put on a quarter per side. I think this can have some real benefits for the lower back, but I’m somewhat unconvinced on carryover to heavier lifts, so I think I’m going to alternate between this and a traditional loading scheme each week.

General notes: Work up at 193.0. This is a bit more reasonable, but I may put a bit more weight on as my body stabilizes. Still, being down a notch definitely shows me that I’m losing fat, and I can see my abs at night before bed, which is another positive sign. Going to continue with my chins throughout the day (have already knocked out 1 set of 15 as of this writing). May bring dips back next week.

442

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
This would mean a slow and gradual approach, aiming for at most 1lb of weight lost per week. It’s not a “cut”, it’s simply shedding some excess fat while focusing on getting stronger.
[/quote]
Apologies for highjacking the convo, but just to clarify, this is exactly what I meant by my comment on your log. When I said I’ve never had issues getting stronger on a “cut”, I should point out that my “cuts” involve this kind of slow fat loss achieved by increasing food quality and keeping a minimal and consistent calorie deficit. If I try a more drastic approach, or an IIFYM approach, my performance drops through the floor.

443

[quote]dagill2 wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
This would mean a slow and gradual approach, aiming for at most 1lb of weight lost per week. It’s not a “cut”, it’s simply shedding some excess fat while focusing on getting stronger.
[/quote]
Apologies for highjacking the convo, but just to clarify, this is exactly what I meant by my comment on your log. When I said I’ve never had issues getting stronger on a “cut”, I should point out that my “cuts” involve this kind of slow fat loss achieved by increasing food quality and keeping a minimal and consistent calorie deficit. If I try a more drastic approach, or an IIFYM approach, my performance drops through the floor.[/quote]

No need to apologize at all: this thread gets boring if it’s just me writing a bunch of numbers down, haha. I think it’s a good point and worth understanding.

Language in training is so muddied, and it’s why I constantly strive to cut through the bullcrap, make language simple, and call people out for misusing terms.

A “cut” was something understood in bodybuilding circles to mean “losing enough fat to get into contest level conditioning”. I have never in my life gotten that lean, but from the word of those that have, this WILL sap your strength. I believe it too. It seems very taxing and precise, and one of those situations where you really can’t burn the candle on both ends in terms of losing fat and getting stronger.

However, the internet got a hold of the term “cut” and understood it to mean “any process of losing fat”. When combining this flawed understanding of what a cut is with the correct understanding of what an actual cut does (reduces strength), the incorrect conclusion was drawn that “you cannot lose weight and get stronger at the same time”. This in turn is why we so see many chubby beginners who are absolutely convinced that they MUST eat a massive and ridiculous caloric surplus to progress on a routine with incredibly low volume. It’s been so damaging.

This is why I refrain from ever saying I am “cutting”. It’s disrespectful to those that actually get to a really low bodyfat percentage and the terms has become so abused that it’s just gotten stupid. The same is of course true of “bulking”, but that’s another rant.

And somewhat related, I’m contemplating hitting up a bod pod so that I can get my bodyfat % measured for the first time in my life. Morbid curiosity is getting the best of me.

444

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
Reverse hyper 1 plate
1 minute, 5 seconds

Notes: Holy crap this was way harder than I thought. I’ll blame a little of it on being post contest, but this is really just a tortuous movement. Next time, I’ll just put on a quarter per side. I think this can have some real benefits for the lower back, but I’m somewhat unconvinced on carryover to heavier lifts, so I think I’m going to alternate between this and a traditional loading scheme each week.
[/quote]

I haven’t done these in a while, but back when I was in HS and lifted with my dad, we always did some reverse hypers after our squat workouts - felt like a good way to get a pump for the lower back (our assessment, also, was that it would not really make us “stronger” but could make us less likely to get injured). I remember once we read an article from Louie Simmons (I think) on doing timed sets for his assistance work (3-5 minutes) in lieu of counting reps. Unaware of how long 3 minutes is when you’re doing reverse hypers, we tried this one time…and we quickly retreated back to doing normal sets of 10-12 reps, haha.

445

[quote]ActivitiesGuy wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
Reverse hyper 1 plate
1 minute, 5 seconds

Notes: Holy crap this was way harder than I thought. I’ll blame a little of it on being post contest, but this is really just a tortuous movement. Next time, I’ll just put on a quarter per side. I think this can have some real benefits for the lower back, but I’m somewhat unconvinced on carryover to heavier lifts, so I think I’m going to alternate between this and a traditional loading scheme each week.
[/quote]

I haven’t done these in a while, but back when I was in HS and lifted with my dad, we always did some reverse hypers after our squat workouts - felt like a good way to get a pump for the lower back (our assessment, also, was that it would not really make us “stronger” but could make us less likely to get injured). I remember once we read an article from Louie Simmons (I think) on doing timed sets for his assistance work (3-5 minutes) in lieu of counting reps. Unaware of how long 3 minutes is when you’re doing reverse hypers, we tried this one time…and we quickly retreated back to doing normal sets of 10-12 reps, haha.[/quote]

Haha, yeah, that was my experience today. Set out for 3 minutes and didn’t even come close. I know Dave Tate said that you’re not going to pump out reps the entire time, but I didn’t even come close. Definitely something to strive for.

446

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:

[quote]dagill2 wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
This would mean a slow and gradual approach, aiming for at most 1lb of weight lost per week. It’s not a “cut”, it’s simply shedding some excess fat while focusing on getting stronger.
[/quote]
Apologies for highjacking the convo, but just to clarify, this is exactly what I meant by my comment on your log. When I said I’ve never had issues getting stronger on a “cut”, I should point out that my “cuts” involve this kind of slow fat loss achieved by increasing food quality and keeping a minimal and consistent calorie deficit. If I try a more drastic approach, or an IIFYM approach, my performance drops through the floor.[/quote]

No need to apologize at all: this thread gets boring if it’s just me writing a bunch of numbers down, haha. I think it’s a good point and worth understanding.

Language in training is so muddied, and it’s why I constantly strive to cut through the bullcrap, make language simple, and call people out for misusing terms.[/quote]

I’m still learning that not everyone hears the same thing as me when I use certain terms.

[quote]
And somewhat related, I’m contemplating hitting up a bod pod so that I can get my bodyfat % measured for the first time in my life. Morbid curiosity is getting the best of me.[/quote]
I’ve been thinking the same thing. I had mine measured once, several years ago, and it was so wildly different from my prediction I’ve never tried to guess bf% since.

Since I don’t have £550 floating around for a reverse hyper, what’s your opinion on hyper extension bench/roman chair/whatever you want to call it? Worth the money?

447

So many times I find that the most vicious arguments stem from 2 people using the same terms to mean different things. Always good to be on the same page.

I’ve never owned a roman chair/hyper extension just because I have a GHR which can function in a similar capacity, but I think, for the right price, it’s a worthwhile purchase. I use it mainly for sit-ups, which is still a great movement to use it for, but the lower back building aspect of it might also be worthwhile. I re-read Matt Kroc’s training log on elitefts back when he was still powerlifting, and it was one of his go to assistance movements, so there’s that.

448

You sold me…I’m going to try the timed reverse hyper next time I’m back at my gym. After what you had posted previously, I actually thought about doing it last week, but I chickened out and just did reps. I’ll do it this week so we can bounce ideas back and fourth. I have concerns abut recovery after it, but I’ll give it a shot and let you know. Please keep us informed about how you felt after giving it a try. Thanks brother!

449

[quote]Alpha wrote:
You sold me…I’m going to try the timed reverse hyper next time I’m back at my gym. After what you had posted previously, I actually thought about doing it last week, but I chickened out and just did reps. I’ll do it this week so we can bounce ideas back and fourth. I have concerns abut recovery after it, but I’ll give it a shot and let you know. Please keep us informed about how you felt after giving it a try. Thanks brother![/quote]

You got it Alpha. I trutfully didn’t tough it out enough today to really cause any sort of recovery issues, but I’ll give it a go next week with a lighter weight and fight as much as I need to to hit 3 minutes and will keep you updated. Look forward to hearing your experience as well.

450

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:
So many times I find that the most vicious arguments stem from 2 people using the same terms to mean different things. Always good to be on the same page.

I’ve never owned a roman chair/hyper extension just because I have a GHR which can function in a similar capacity, but I think, for the right price, it’s a worthwhile purchase. I use it mainly for sit-ups, which is still a great movement to use it for, but the lower back building aspect of it might also be worthwhile. I re-read Matt Kroc’s training log on elitefts back when he was still powerlifting, and it was one of his go to assistance movements, so there’s that.

[/quote]

I’m thinking, while core still needs to be a focus for me, this might be a good investment. Thanks for the input.

451

No problem man.

Finished up the day with 7 sets of 15 on NG chins.

452

Axle clean and press (clean once) 223
1x7
1x4

Notes: Back was feeling pretty fried from all the chins, so the clean was ugly and got caught low on the chest. Still a PR today though, and a positive sign. Leg drive wasn’t quite where I wanted it to be: had to do a lot more press outs than usual. If I can get that figured out, I should really start moving some weight on this.

DB Incline press 105
(4) 1x10
(3) 1x8
(2) 1x8
(1) 1x7
(0) 1x6 w/reactive slingshot

supserset w/

DB lat pulldown/kelso shrug combo 90
5x10/5

Superset w/

Band pull aparts
5x20

Notes: Lotta stuff going on here. Really pleased with that 4 incline top set. Also, figuring out the slingshot: wearing it lower so that the center point is on the elbows instead of the upper arm. Alleviates the elbow pain I’ve been experiencing. On the lat pulldowns, I’d go straight from the pulldown into a cable kelso shrug while seated. I may replace band pull aparts entirely with this on this day and up the reps on it, as I’m very pleased to have found a way to train this movement in an easy to accomplish manner, and it feels pretty awesome.

Axle curl dropset
25
25
20
20
10

Average Band pressdown
3x15

Superset w/

Standing GB kelso shrugs 90
3x5

Notes: Also hitting the kelso’s standing, putting my foot on the support beam of the pulldown. Works very well.

General notes: Up to 193.8 this morning. Still seem to be normalizing bodyweight. Going for sets of 16 on the NG pull ups today. Think my back is finally starting to grow after neglecting it for so long with my training.

453

Belated, but way to kick ass at the show man. I felt the thrill vicariously, and it’s bringing back some memories.

454

[quote]strongmanvinny wrote:
Belated, but way to kick ass at the show man. I felt the thrill vicariously, and it’s bringing back some memories.[/quote]

Thanks man! Means a lot. You looking at a show in the future?

455

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:

[quote]strongmanvinny wrote:
Belated, but way to kick ass at the show man. I felt the thrill vicariously, and it’s bringing back some memories.[/quote]

Thanks man! Means a lot. You looking at a show in the future?[/quote]

Yeah, sometime in 2016 probably. I’m still taking this year as an off season. Reason is that I was very young at my first show (17, 21 now) and I competed in the 231s, so needless to say I was beleaguered by much more experienced and older athletes. Did exceedingly well at my second contest but was bummed I missed an invite to nationals by only a few placings. Felt it was me rushing things or whatever lol. You and Alpha are breaking my balls hahahaha. I’ll join you guys soon enough.

456

[quote]strongmanvinny wrote:

[quote]T3hPwnisher wrote:

[quote]strongmanvinny wrote:
Belated, but way to kick ass at the show man. I felt the thrill vicariously, and it’s bringing back some memories.[/quote]

Thanks man! Means a lot. You looking at a show in the future?[/quote]

Yeah, sometime in 2016 probably. I’m still taking this year as an off season. Reason is that I was very young at my first show (17, 21 now) and I competed in the 231s, so needless to say I was beleaguered by much more experienced and older athletes. Did exceedingly well at my second contest but was bummed I missed an invite to nationals by only a few placings. Felt it was me rushing things or whatever lol. You and Alpha are breaking my balls hahahaha. I’ll join you guys soon enough.
[/quote]

Oh f**k me you’re only 21, haha. I had no idea. You’ve got plenty of time to grow, definitely no rush. Be exciting to see what you can do when you get back into it though man. I think the off season bodes well with you based on what you’ve hit in training.

7 sets of 16 NG chins today at work. Going to keep trying for 100 in as few sets as possible. Once I hit 5x20, thinking of sticking at 5 sets and then increasing reps until something breaks.

457

Hello mate, I’m a fan of your blog, but it got me into trouble today. I went for a decent PR on my cleans, having read on your blog that sometimes the only way to know you’re pushing hard enough is to push too far and then dial it back. I literally thought that right before I went for the PR, which I made, but then I put the weight back down, and blacked straight out. I came too with all kinds of crap all over me (I have a home gym too). Not seriously hurt, so it’s pretty funny, but I wanted to let you know that your philosophy is lethal and I hold youo personally responsible for my brush with death.

458

[quote]LondonBoxer123 wrote:
Hello mate, I’m a fan of your blog, but it got me into trouble today. I went for a decent PR on my cleans, having read on your blog that sometimes the only way to know you’re pushing hard enough is to push too far and then dial it back. I literally thought that right before I went for the PR, which I made, but then I put the weight back down, and blacked straight out. I came too with all kinds of crap all over me (I have a home gym too). Not seriously hurt, so it’s pretty funny, but I wanted to let you know that your philosophy is lethal and I hold youo personally responsible for my brush with death. [/quote]

Haha, that’s awesome man. Remember what Nietzsche said: That which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

Except car deadlifts.

Car deadlifts just kill you.

Keep training hard!

459

[quote]LondonBoxer123 wrote:
Hello mate, I’m a fan of your blog, but it got me into trouble today. I went for a decent PR on my cleans, having read on your blog that sometimes the only way to know you’re pushing hard enough is to push too far and then dial it back. I literally thought that right before I went for the PR, which I made, but then I put the weight back down, and blacked straight out. I came too with all kinds of crap all over me (I have a home gym too). Not seriously hurt, so it’s pretty funny, but I wanted to let you know that your philosophy is lethal and I hold youo personally responsible for my brush with death. [/quote]

Wow, that takes some balls to try that with cleans, kudos.

460

Death Medley

205lb farmers, 205lb sandbag, 100lb keg
2x50’
1x75’

Notes: Forgot chalk on the first round, so it was super mega raw. Planned to do 4x50 instead of this, but HOA sprinklers went off and I didn’t want to set my sandbag down in the water. Maybe do 2 kegs instead next time. This totally killed me at the end, and I had to roll all my implements back to my garage, minus the sandbag, which took 2 attempts. Missed picking up the bag on the third round, cost me a little time, and caught myself jogging back a few times. Speed on the farmer’s isn’t where I want it to be, but I haven’t hit them in months.

I think this is the compromise I’m going to hit on the yoke, farmers, carry front. I’ll swap off the yoke and the farmers each week, and throw in carries as desired. Some weeks will be yoke+carry, others farmer+carry.

Woke up at 193.8 today, finally a little stability. Diet wasn’t ideal last night. Did a little “nutritional triage”. Went to an office function, expected to be fed, was not, so stopped at BK on the way home and grabbed 2 side salads and a double whopper no cheese. Threw away the bread and ate everything else. It’s amazing how I can eat a burger at home and feel fine while BK always destroys my intestines.