TCam's Log - Get Strong(er)

Training Training Logs
641

Bench - Cycle 1, Week 2

Bench:
Bar
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
3 @ 275
3 @ 295 (Add wraps)
6 @ 320 (PR)

Pull-Up:
2x10 (Neutral)
8 (Neutral)
5 (Supinated)

Band One-Arm Rows (Wrap bands around cable D-Handle and foot, row it):
10 @ Light Short
4x10 @ Light+Mini Shorts

Floor JM Press:
3x10 @ 135 (Wraps)

I decided to change Friday to my bench day despite there being more people in the gym. It’s also my refeed day now too. That makes more sense to do low-refeed-low anyway. I did refeed today but didn’t go crazy. I had oatmeal, potatoes, rice, pizza, and cheez-its.

Bench felt very good today obviously. The last rep was a bit of a grind, but it wasn’t too bad. I’m very happy with the 6 reps. Pull-ups felt pretty shitty today though. Just got fatigued really quickly.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: Refeed (F: 92g, C: 356g, P: 182g, kcal: 3,061)
Explosiveness: 4/4

642

Yesterday. Squat. Cycle 1, Week 2

Squat:
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275
3 @ 315
3 @ 365
3 @ 400 (Eh.)

Natural GHR (w/ Mini Band Assistance):
4x8

Goblet Squat:
3x10 @ 120

Squats were rough today. Everything until 365 was lightning, but 365 and 400 were just hard. From this, I think it’s going to take some time to adapt to the absence of speed work I think. I’m still good with lighter weights like never before, but the heavier feels terrible. We’ll see what happens.

Later today is military press. 170x3+ is the prescribed reps. I’m going for 5.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 2/4 (Calories were fine, but macros were way off. F: 110g, C: 134.5, P: 218g, kcal: 2,488)
Explosiveness: 4/4 light weight, 2/4 heavy weight (Hard to decipher this)

643

Military Press - Cycle 1, Week 2

Military Press:
Bar
10 @ 95
5 @ 135
3 @ 145
3 @ 155
5 @ 170 (PR)

Pull-Up (Neutral):
3x10
8 (Not full lock-out. Elbow pain)
5 (Controlled, full lock-out)

4" Deficit Plyo Push-Ups:
4x10

Airdyne Bike Tabata:
4 minutes @ 10 sec. sprint, 20 sec. slow (1.1 miles. 0.1 over last week)

Everything went pretty well today. My elbows were hurting a bit during pull-ups, but I think my biceps/brachioradialis are just getting a pump from the added pull-up volume.

Military was obviously successful. The fifth rep hit a sticking point hard right above my head, but I broke through it and basically threw the bar into the rack from there.

Tabata was terrible again today. My distance only went up from last week’s 1 mile to 1.1 mile(s), but it’s progress. I can’t decide when I want to do this though. Lower or upper days…

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 71g, C: 107g, P: 254g, kcal: 2,083)
Explosiveness: 4/4

644

Deadlift - Cycle 1, Week 2

Deadlift:
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 315 (Add belt)
3 @ 365
3 @ 405
3 @ 425

BBB Deadlift (Double Overhand):
5x10 @ 225

One-Arm DB Row:
5x10 @ 120 L/R (Straps)

Cable Abs, Wood Chopper:
3x10 @ “100” L/R

Well…I felt pretty good today. My grip wasn’t working very well again. I think it may be the bars that I’m using though. There are two brown bars that are regulation length that I usually use if I can get my hands on one. But I think they’re wearing down too much, because the bar is just slipping out of my hands. It wasn’t even a grip issue today, I don’t think. Next week I’ll switch to the other, newer bars and see if that helps.

Either way, I still got the prescribed reps. It wasn’t all that difficult. Just the slippage issue.

Rows felt excellent today. I think I’m going to keep this accessory setup for deadlift days (switching up ab work though), except not use straps for the rows. I’ll see what 5x10 @ 100 feels like next week. Need that monster grip now. I’m going to go up to 245-255 for my BBB deadlift next week and see if I can start progressing with my double overhand strength.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 2/4 (F: 129g, C: 130, P: 232, kcal: 2,601. So…Went to get wings last night. Hence the fat explosion. Okay, super serious mode, GO)
Explosiveness: 4/4

645

Yesterday - Bench - Cycle 1, Week 3

Bench:
Bar
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275
3 @ 315 (Add wraps)
3 @ 340

Pull-Ups (Neutral):
10, 10, 10, 8

DB Bench:
5x10 @ 85s

2 Mini Band Pull-Apart:
2x20 Standing
2x20 On Bench

This was a pretty good day. My previous PR bench for a triple is 355. But my left hip was cramping up a lot during both the setup and the lift. Either way, I beat the shit out of the prescribed single rep with ease.

I definitely need to continue doing one-arm rows, because my biceps were sore as hell yesterday and affected my pull-up abilities.

Tomorrow is squat for 425x1. It should be easy for a triple. But my squat definitely seems to be more negatively affected than any of my other lifts on this diet.

Diet Update:

This is going very well. I’m down from 220 to 210 in about 20 days. I’m going to take this through March (and my second cycle of 5/3/1) and see what I can do. I don’t think I want to get below 205 though. We’ll see how my strength is affected. Because, if it’s not, I’ll just keep going toward 200. Strength is the top priority though.

After this diet, I’m going to eat a lot more food. It’ll just be very clean. Being light isn’t the goal of the diet, I just want to lose fat and then gain only muscle back to 220-ish.

Yesterday was my refeed day, for carbs I had potatoes, milk, berries, a Chick-Fil-A sandwhich and fries, Gatorade during workout, and homemade lasagna. The lasagna was ridiculous. I had 1,273 calories worth (2 servings). But I didn’t go nuts on carbs again, because I had a bunch on Valentine’s day during dinner. Nutrient info below.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 137g, C: 326g, P: 269g, kcal: 3,613)
Explosiveness: 3/4

646

Squat - Cycle 1, Week 3

Note: These were some of the worst feeling squats I’ve ever done. My hips felt terrible.

Squat:
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275 (Add belt)
5 @ 335
1 @ 385 (Didn’t attempt top set)

Natural GHR w/ Mini Band Assistance:
5x5

Hanging Leg Raise:
3x10

Plank:
1:00 middle, :30 each side

This was just a very shitty day, plain and simple. I’m unsure what to think about it.
Could be any of these:
-Mobility work yesterday. May have overdone it.
-Too few calories/carbs.
-Switched from sumo deadlift to conventional and have taken box squats out of the equation. So my adductors, glutes, and hip flexors may not be firing the way I used to be able to get them to.
-I’ve lowered the squatting volume by starting 5/3/1. I made my best gains in the fall when I was squatting twice a week for several months straight.

Because my form didn’t really break down and I was just very weak, I’m leaning toward believing the lack of calories/carbs theory or the lowered volume theory.

I’m increasing my calories and carbs first and just trust 5/3/1. I just may do front squats on my deadlift days too.

Motivation: 1/4
Nutrition: 4/4
Explosiveness: 1/4

647

Military Press - Cycle 1, Week 3

Military Press:
Bar
10 @ 95
5 @ 135
3 @ 155 (Add wraps)
4 @ 180 (Add belt) (PR. Previous = 185x3)

Pull-Ups (Neutral):
10, 10, 8, 7, 5 (Biceps are fatiguing quickly on these)

Dips:
4x10

2 Mini Band Pull-Apart:
3x20

2 Mini Band Curls:
2x10 L/R

Today went well. I’ve changed my diet to something more similar to Shelby’s original carb cycling. Workout days are now >300g carbs, >250g protein, and ~50g fat. Off days are <100g carbs, >250g protein, and ~70-100g fat. I’m front-loading my carbs and I’ll start (when it arrives from Amazon) taking a waxy maize starch product during and after my workouts. Almost all of my carb sources will be oatmeal, rice, and potatoes. Anything past my post-workout meal will be no carbs other than fibrous vegetables. As far as I can tell, it worked today. I haven’t had problems with military or bench, so Wednesday should be a better tell with deadlift. I haven’t eaten nearly 300g carbs, but I’ve eaten more freely than before, I didn’t have my waxy maize for the workout, and I went to the grocery store after the workout.

I’m very happy with the 180x4 though. Hopefully I’ll make some good gains on military since I’ve never really trained it. I’m surprised my shoulders have been fine with it honestly.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 47g, C: 167g, P: 228g, kcal: 2003. Not enough, but I’m working on it)
Explosiveness: 4/4

648

Deadlift - Cycle 1, Week 3

Deadlift (Switched back to sumo today):
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 315 (Add belt)
5 @ 365
3 @ 405
5 @ 455 (+2 rep PR!)

Front Squat:
10 @ 135
5x5 @ 225

One-Arm DB Row:
5x10 @ 100 (No straps)

Average Band Ab Pulldown:
4x15

Fuck yes. The top set of deadlift was actually pretty easy. I probably had another 1 or 2 in me if I wanted to grind. Front squats and DB rows felt good today too. I’ll move up on both after the deload.

I am now an advocate of eating a fuckload of carbs prior to the gym. Probably went overboard on carbs actually. But I followed my diet (plus Chick-Fil-A) and I felt wonderful in the gym. Here’s what I ate today and will most workout days (other than CFA usually):

Breakfast:
-3 egg whites, 1 whole egg
-1 cup Fiber One Cereal
-1.5 cups Skim Milk

Snack (Go ahead, judge me):
-CFA Sandwhich
-CFA 3 Chicken Tenders

Lunch (Pre-Workout):
-4 oz. Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken (Which, by my count, has lost most of its water and now it almost literally all protein. About 38g per 4 oz.)
-2 cups 90 Second Rice
-BBQ Sauce

Peri-Workout:
-Gatorade + Creatine (Still waiting on Waxy Maize Starch)

Post-Workout:
-Protein Shake w/ Berries and Honey
-2 Red Potatoes
-7 oz. Lean Ground Beef
-1 cup Pineapple
-BBQ Sauce

Snack:
-Plain Greek Yogurt + 1/2 scoop protein + 1 square dark chocolate

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 3/4 (F: 85g, C: 420g, P: 280g, kcal: 3,565. Too much fat, but that is easily fixable without the Chick-Fil-A)
Explosiveness: 4/4

649

Bench - Cycle 1, Deload

Pull-Ups (Neutral):
3x8

Decline Bench (No flat available):
Bar
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275
5 @ 295

2 Mini Band Triceps Extension:
20, 15, 10 L/R

DB Pull-Over:
10 @ 45
8 @ 75
5 @ 50+Straight Bar (Uncomfortable)
2x8 @ 75

Reverse Curl:
3x8 @ 50+Straight Bar

The prescribed deload for me is a 3x5 @ 140, 180, 215. I can’t pretend that I need to use such low weight to deload my nervous system. The 225, 275, 295 moved well and got easier each set. My shoulders didn’t like doing pull-ups first though. I figured I’d try that out, but it didn’t feel good to me or my bench.

I’m not sure if I’ll keep pull-overs in my routine, as my shoulders have a bad history, but they felt fine today.

Made homemade shrimp and grits for the first time today. Sweet fuck they were good. I’ll get a picture up tomorrow.

Motivation: 2/4 (Deload. Meh)
Nutrition: 3/4 (F: 107g, C: 283g, P: 221g, kcal: 2,320. Still too much fat, but that was mainly from the shrimp and grits. And eggs this morning)
Explosiveness: 3/4

650

Squat - Cycle 1, Deload

Squat:
Bar
2x5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275 (Add belt)
5 @ 315

Natural GHR:
3x8 w/ Mini band
3x3 w/o Mini band (PR)

Barbell Hyperextension:
3x8 @ 135 (First time doing these. PR for hyper weight though)

Cable Pulldown Abs:
4x10 @ “120”

Forgot my knee sleeves today and squatted without them for the first time in months. I didn’t feel terrible without them, but my hip flexors were tight. The bar felt heavy and it was actually difficult to get into the hole. But once I started adding weight, it forced me past parallel.

The GHRs felt good today. Decided to try them without a band, and they were obviously much more difficult at the bottom. But, as I said months ago, I want to work the band out of the equation. Hopefully they with help my squat and deadlift.

Barbell hypers were tough. The ROM was slightly shorter because of the plates, but it wasn’t any easier. I was probably bent at the hip around 90 degrees though. So it was kind of like a SLDL.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 3/4 (F: 187g, C: 188g, P: 209g, kcal: 3,267. Read my next post for fat explanation)
Explosiveness: 3/4

651

Military Press - Cycle 1, Deload

Military Press:
Bar
10 @ 95
5x5 @ 135

T-Bar Row (Wide Pronated):
8 @ 2p
5 @ 3p
3x5 @ 4p

Pull-Ups:
2x10 Neutral
2x5 Pronated
6 Neutral

Average Band High Row (Attached to Smith Machine at chest height, bend over, row in a pull-up motion):
4x12 (1 band per hand)

I had a bunch of energy in the tank today. I went to Dreamland BBQ last night and ate wings and a full rack of ribs. I was reading Jamie Lewis’s blog last night and decided it was necessary. lol I’ll probably be slipping into something similar to his Predator Diet, which is essentially stop eating like a bitch and eat in-bone meat and less carbs. At least my off days should look like that. My workout days are feeling too good to change those.

As for the workout, I felt great. My pull-ups are kinda just staying in the same spot. I should probably add weight to it to get a different stimulus going.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 83g, C: 273g, P: 221g, kcal: 2,723)
Explosiveness: 4/4

652

3072×2048 1.31 MB

Forgot I promised some food porn. Here’s the shrimp and grits I mentioned the other day!

Deadlift - Cycle 1, Deload

Deadlift (Mostly convo):
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275 (Add belt)
2x3 @ 315
2x3 @ 315 (Sumo. Much better)

Front Squat:
4x8 @ 135

One-Arm DB Snatch:
3x5 @ 80 L/R

I want to continue to use conventional deadlift for each week other than the “1+” week, so that I can see if conventional helps my sumo pull. I’m trying to work on my form, but my back was really tight today. When I switched to sumo, it was completely different. I could stay upright and my back felt fine.

Everything else felt fine. My hips were iffy on the first set of front squats, but loosened up quickly.

Also, spring break is coming up the week after next. I’m going to the beach with the girlfriend and friends. I won’t be training, but I’ll probably just jump back into the program as if I had been, for simplicity’s sake. This may end up making me do a bench workout on Friday before spring break, and not being able to lift until the following Friday, which would be bench again. Shouldn’t be a problem though.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 68g, C: 324g, P: 295g, kcal: 3,088. Macronutrient-wise, this was basically a perfect day)
Explosiveness: 4/4

653

Bench - Cycle 2, Week 1

Bench:
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 245
5 @ 275
7 @ 305 (Wraps. Previous PR = 315x7)

T-Bar Row:
8 @ 2p (FatGripz, Pronated)
3x5 @ 3p (FatGripz, Pronated)
3x5 @ 4p (Neutral)

JM Press:
3x8 @ 135

2 Mini-Bands Pull-Apart:
3x20

Good day. I hit a hard sticking point on the 7th rep, but I went through it smoothly and held my form pretty well. I think my strength endurance is going up. Kind of disappointed I didn’t get 8 like last cycle, but it’s fine.

Everything else went well too.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 3/4 (F: 90g, C: 348g, P: 262g, kcal: 3,250. Too much fat as the result of steak. I’m okay with this)
Explosiveness: 4/4

654

Squat - Cycle 2, Week 1

Squat:
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275 (Add belt)
5 @ 315
5 @ 345
5 @ 385
4 @ 225 (I was going to do some lighter work. Wasn’t feeling it. I actually lost the bar, for the first time ever, before I went down for a fifth. As in it slid off my back, I had to let it go and land on the rack after about a 3 foot drop. lol)

Anderson Squat:
3x5 @ 225 (These felt better)

Natural GHR:
3x5 w/ Mini Band
3x5 No band (PR!)

Average Band Abs:
2x20 (Pulldown)
2x8 L/R (Rotation. Like a slow baseball bat swing)

My force production ability has definitely gone down since I began 5/3/1 because of the lack of speed work. Hopefully I’ll adjust soon. The 5 @ 385 was definitely tough. I took my time with it, because I couldn’t stay tight otherwise. The last rep was the only one that I leaned forward on, so I’m happy. I probably could have squeezed another 1 or 2, but it would have been stupid.

Very happy about the GHR progression. I had to push off slightly on a couple of the reps, but not much.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 3/4 (F: 107, C: 263g, P: 252g, kcal: 3,023)
Explosiveness: 2/4

655

Military Press - Cycle 2, Week 1

Military Press:
Bar
5 @ 95
5 @ 115
5 @ 135
5 @ 150
7 @ 165 (Belt and wraps)

T-Bar Row (Wide Pronated, Narrow Neutral, and Wide Supinated/Neutral):
8 @ 2p (WP)
8 @ 3p (WP)
5 @ 4p (NN)
5 @ 4.5p (NN) (PR)
5 @ 5p (NN) (PR)
8 @ 3p (NN)
8 @ 3p (WP)
8 @ 3p (WSN)
8 @ 3p (NN)

DB Floor Press:
8, 10, 12 @ 85s

Good day. Last week I got 160 for 8. So this is pretty much the same thing. I didn’t realize I did so much volume on the t-bar row. 63 reps is a lot for me. They just felt good today, I guess.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 71g, C: 266g, P: 257g, kcal: 2,531) Don’t need as many carbs on MP day.
Explosiveness: 4/4

656

Deadlift - Cycle 2, Week 1

Deadlift (Sumo on work sets):
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 315 (Add belt)
5 @ 365
10 @ 410 (+5 lb. PR!)

Squat:
5 @ 135 (Front squat. Felt bad, switched to back squat)
3 @ 135
3x3 @ 225 (Fast)

One-Arm DB Row:
4x10 @ 110 L/R

BB Hyperextension:
10 @ 135
2x5 @ 185 (PR)
10 @ 135

This was a rough workout. The T-Bar rows from the other day made my thoracic extensors sore as hell and immobile. I don’t think I had the best form during deadlift for that reason. I’m very happy about the 5 lb. PR though. I hadn’t done that in a long time. Sometime last year I got 405 for 10, but I hadn’t tried to beat it since. Squats felt good and fast, but the top of my right scapula is hurting. I think the bar bounced on it or something the other day. Eh, I have a week off after Friday anyway.

My diet was quite excellent today with regards to macros. All the way up until dinner I had only 19g of fat for the day. Then I had steak and that went away, but the point still stands. Also carbs and protein were ridiculous for me.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 85g, C: 377g, P: 305g, kcal: 3,493)
Explosiveness: 4/4

657

Yesterday, Bench - Cycle 2, Week 2

Bench:
Bar
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275
5 @ 295
5 @ 325 (PR)

BB Pendlay Row:
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5x5 @ 275 (PR)

Cable Flies:
12 @ “60” per hand
10 @ “60” unilateral L/R

Average Band Flies:
2x10 L/R

2 Average Band Rows:
3x10

Spring break time.

658

Bench - Cycle 2, Week 3

(Skipped week 2 to stay on schedule)

Bench:
Bar
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275 (Add wraps)
3 @ 315
3 @ 340

Pendlay Row (Belt):
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5x5 @ 275

JM Press:
8 @ 135 (Didn’t feel great)

Close Grip Floor Press (Speed):
10 @ 135
5x5 @ 135

Avg. Band Facepulls:
10 w/ 1 Band
3x10 w/ 2 Bands

I’m back from the beach. I didn’t stay on my diet at all and I mainly did nothing. But, I felt great today and was very happy to get back to the gym and back on the diet. At the end of the workout, I felt like I could do another one without a problem. Bench was fast and stable.

The Pendlay rows got a lot easier since last week. I don’t know if it had to do with the belt or not, but it was easy and my grip feels very strong.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 4/4 (F: 61g, C: 352g, P: 208g, kcal: 2,789)
Explosiveness: 4/4

659

Squat - Cycle 2, Week 3

Squat:
Bar
5 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 275 (Add belt)
3 @ 355
3 @ 385
2 @ 435

Natural GHR:
3x5 (Almost zero push off. PR)
1x5 (Slow eccentric only)

HS Unilateral Leg Press:
8 @ 2pps
8 @ 2pps+Bands (Add 1 average band per side)
8 @ 4pps+Bands
5x5 @ 6pps+Bands
8 @ 3pps+Bands
8 @ 2pps+Bands

Car Pushes (Increased incline, temperature, and distance. Oh god):
1 x ~180ft.
2 x ~220ft.

And then I puked. First exercise-induced vomiting after almost 5 years of lifting. I had only had cereal and a protein shake for breakfast, then protein+waxy maize pre-workout. So I didn’t really have any sustenance. Also, caffeine. I got home and my lower back, lats, serratus anteriors, and middle traps all started cramping. This was easily the worst I’ve ever felt after a workout. Went to a chinese take-out place and destroyed a lot of food to get a shitload of salt in me. Feeling better now, albeit sleepy.

But before the car pushes, I felt fine. Squats were stronger than they’ve been for the past couple months. GHR progression is going well, and I learned how to setup the average bands on the unilateral leg press to work on some speed. It all felt pretty good.

Motivation: 4/4
Nutrition: 1/4 (Apparently. I don’t have the macros.)
Explosiveness: 4/4

660

Military Press - Cycle 2, Week 3

Military Press:
Bar
2x5 @ 95
5 @ 145
3 @ 165
3.5 @ 185 (So fucking close. I was holding it right above my head for about 5 seconds, trying to break through)

Neutral Grip Pull-Up:
2x8
2x5

4 Inch Deficit Plyo Push-Up:
4x10

Inverted Row:
3x10

I’m very sore from yesterday and was still exhausted. I’m happy that I nearly beat my PR on MP, considering how terrible I felt going in.

Both of the back exercises felt really weak. I attribute it to yesterday though.

Motivation: 3/4
Nutrition: 2/4 (Quantity is fine. Nearly an entire bag of chips and a tub of Helluva Good Dip, not so high quality. Don’t care.)
Explosiveness: 2/4