September 12th
Paused Beltless Squat - Narrow Stance
5 x 135 x 5
225 x 3
315 x 2
Beltless RDL
315 x 5
405 x 5
Stopped here, body is a bit beat up. I might go in for another session way later tonight to try to salvage it.
7 Likes
Lots of amazing work, @KonsuTheTraveller! I finally got caught up, and I see it’s been raining PRs in here. Then there’s this:
which is the biggest PR of all. Congrats!
Oh, and that transformation is incredible, my dude! Just incredible.
Keep it up!
3 Likes
September 14th
Paused Bench Press - Close Grip Larsen Press
3 x 135 x 4
225 x 3
265 x 1
285 x 1
320 x 5 RIR 0
Seated OHP - Close Grip
135 x 5
165 x 2
185 x 15 RIR 1
Standing Cable Crunch - 3-3 Tempo
170 x 6
2 x 210 x 6 RIR 4
2 days off did me some good.
I hit a PR on the OHP. Even though I didn’t hit 205x11, I’m still counting this as a 5lb gain because the reps with 185 would put me here.
320x5 was the perfect number to end off on. Not super grindy but also not easy enough to get another rep.
6 Likes
Week 8 Training:
Recovery & Nutrition
- Not much has changed here. Recovery is still good. Body is getting a bit beat up in the home stretch here but I think I’ll be able to make it all in one piece by the end of 12 weeks haha.
Bench
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Great run. Nothing to complain about, made some good gains and stayed injury free, that’s a plus for me.
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Going to start having some fun with the Larsen Spoto’s. Goals here are a bit harder to gauge since I haven’t dipped down into 5s yet.
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Kinda focused on my shoulders right now. I’d like to leave with 215x11 as a PR. Or 225x10. This would match my Elbow Wrap PR, Not super confident in that second goal.
Squat
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Squat is still on track. 500x5 is still possible. My next set number is 485x5 and however that feels is really going to dictate my end goal. So we’ll see.
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I’ve got an idea for my next Squat Block finally. I think going back to my roots with a Close Stance Toes Out Variation is the way to go with a Deadlift Stance Box Squat sprinkled in as an assistance.
Deadlift
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Not much to note here. 590x2 is still the end goal. 565x2 is going to give me a good gauge on whether or not that’s still possible or possibly undershooting.
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Barbell Rows are also on the up. I’d like to finish off with 435x10 if I can in the next 4 weeks.
Other Training Notes
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I’m really enjoying the raw training still. I’ve got so used to not using a belt with anything and it’s honestly helped so much, especially with confidence and positioning. Honestly, i’m at the point that I don’t even pay attention to the fact I’m not wearing one.
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This just makes me more excited once I get back to using one. I know I get a good 20 pounds or so. I’m looking at it as “If I can build tremendous tension with just my core, imagine what it’d be like with extra support” and that thought is what is giving me confidence, which trickles down into my setup and headspace.
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One big change I’ve noticed also (which wasn’t really apparent until now, but as I look back, realize it’s been going on for a couple months now), is my energy expenditure during my warmups and topsets. It kinda clicked with me today when one of my buddies mentioned how “chill” I was for my warmups & then how focused and serious I looked on my top end. I think I’m finally learning how to tap into that adrenaline when I need it. Compared to the past, when I’d be off the walls with 135 and kept it unchecked. It burnt me out so much faster.
11 Likes
Time to start sleeping in extra late for the gains!
1 Like
September 15th
Paused Beltless Squat - Narrow Stance
135 x 2
225 x 2
315 x 1
405 x 1
485 x 5 RIR 1
Kneeling Cable Crunch
170 x 5
200 x 5
3 x 260 (Full Stack) x 8 RIR 5-6
Great PR today.
485x5 showed me that 500x5 is possible but also has a high chance of going south. I need to sit on this one for a bit. 495x5 might be a more sensible attempt
Also I’ve been really liking the weighted crunches, I got the idea from watching a lot of Konstantin Konstantinovs Deadlift Videos.
He was also doing some sort of KB Swing , I forgot if it was with weight plates. I’ve never tried those before, don’t really know what it works. I’m gonna look into them.
10 Likes
Life Update
Another stressful period right now, haven’t eaten or slept much, going to be reeling back training to focus on other things.
6 Likes
Been there brother. Hell, kind of am there right now. Best of luck with whatever your dealing with, let me know if you need to talk or anything
1 Like
10/02
Paused Bench Press - Close Grip Spoto Larsen
3 x 135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5
260 x 7 RIR 4
Seated OHP - Close Grip
135 x 7
175 x 4
190 x 10 RIR 2
Going to write up some notes later. Lots of BS happened but I’m back in the gym again. Taking this week to do some foundation building and also just to get into the groove
Felt so fckn slow and weak. Dropped 6lbs first time I’ve dipped below the 220s in a long time
9 Likes
Good to see you back posting, you’ll get back in the groove quickly no doubt
1 Like
10/07
Paused Beltless Squat - Close Stance
135 x 5
225 x 3
315 x 2
405 x 2
315 x 7
Paused Close Grip Bench - Larsen Spoto
135 x 7
185 x 4
225 x 2
2 x 275 x 5
A big observation I’ve made is that my Bench has been the one to “stick” for some reason. I’m having a much easier time holding onto the strength and keeping it as I get back into the groove.
Can’t even imagine what my pulls will look like, lol.
6 Likes
10/09
Paused Beltless Squat
135 x 4
225 x 2
315 x 2
405 x 2
425 x 2
335 x 7
Paused Bench Press - Larsen Spoto
135 x 5
185 x 4
225 x 3
260 x 7
2" Deficit Beltless Deadlift
225 x 2
315 x 2
2 x 405 x 2
Starting my second job today, won’t be able to have a lot of free time to myself as of today and moving forward since I’ve gotta juggle working those two shifts. I’m thinking I’ll have to do some sort of Full Body Style training to make the time.
Today was the first day everything felt decent though, starting to get some weight back on me.
6 Likes
10/11
Paused Bench Press - Larsen Spoto
135 x 7
185 x 4
225 x 2
250 x 2
270 x 7 RIR 2
240 x 4
Seated OHP - Close Grip
2 x 135 x 5
160 x 4
190 x 12
Kneeling Cable Crunch
170 x 5
3 x 280 x 8
Beltless Tempo Pause Squat - 3-1-1
3 x 205 x 5
Strength coming back quickly, not quite where I was at but getting there
Edit: I forgot to add Tempo squats lol. I threw this in at the end because I had a unyielding urge to want to squat , but I’m saving my strength for tomorrow
3 Likes
October 12th
2" Deficit Beltless Conventional Deadlift
135 x 5
235 x 4
315 x 2
405 x 1
500 x 2 RIR 3
455 x 4
Barbell Row
2 x 315 x 10 RIR 6ish
Tempo Paused Squat Beltless 3-1-1
3 x 225 x 4
Was feeling more deadlift-centric today, so I ran with it. Still threw in tempo pauses for squats to focus on technique more than anything.
Today’s my birthday and I turn 22, going to do a write-up on my thoughts for the training year later.
9 Likes
Happy Birthday!
1 Like
Happy birthday!
1 Like
Happy Birthday!!!
1 Like
Training Year Writeup
Estimates
Damn I don’t even know where to start with this one, lol. This’ll be hefty. I guess i’ll address my main goal (which was literally apart of my first post for this log). I unfortunately didn’t reach a 1900lb Total, not even in estimates, to be fair, it was an extremely lofty goal and one I wasn’t too confident with hitting when I set it, it didn’t stop me from trying. I tend to set some astronomical goals because that’s just how I am.
At my absolute best and based off the most realistic estimates, I would say that 640/395/685 was achievable, at a bodyweight of 235. 1720. No more than that and even lower in a competition setting. So I fell short by about 180lbs.
So what does that mean for me? I’m still setting my goal of 1900, and wanting to hit that by my NEXT birthday when I turn 23, lol. My dream total has always been 2000. But setting it at 1900 makes it seem a bit less daunting to me. By my estimates, I bet I’d get my fabled 2000 around 24-25 years old, if I don’t end up injuring myself before then.
Learning Experiences
This year would mark the first year that I was training without my mentors. They guided me through alot for those early years (Sometimes I do regret getting rid of my old original log, I forgot when I started posting… I think I was around 20?), and I had to begin learning alot for myself. Their basic tenants still apply to my training but it’s drastically changed. The transition to a much lower volume, higher frequency minimalist style of training felt like the natural progression of things from their original style of training (Very rooted in the 80s and 90s. Lots of Burnouts, Pyramids, Sets of 20…), which was brutal, but helped me build a lot of discipline and foundation. I miss them dearly.
Effects on not having a sense of community
Training seems like a chore now, most of the time it feels a bit low energy, and I don’t feel that same spark sometimes. It’s another aspect I miss of not having my old group of lifters in Colorado. Every Gym Session was so energetic, hyped up, and intoxicating whenever I was with them. It’s a bit of a sad realization i’ve come too, but I haven’t been able to find that sense of community just yet.
Communication Skills
Another big thing that’s changed this year is the amount of people who come up to ask for advice. It’s making me realize how terrible I am at communicating, in general. I can see the confusion creep up on there faces whenever I try to explain something that makes sense to me but not to them. I’ve been trying to work on this lol. People have suggested I start looking into coaching but that’s a no for me. I don’t really have a desire and I also don’t trust myself. I’d feel guilty as hell if I ended up causing an injury or something.
PEDs
This upcoming year, I’ll be diving much deeper into this. I did finally end up using my old bottle of DMZ & M-Sten that my friend gave me awhile ago. I’ve got a few good friends who know their shit here and i’ll be confiding with them more. This’ll probably be one of the few rare posts I’ll talk about this since I think it’s irrelevant to my log, I just care about tracking my numbers and structuring my routines.
Focusing on my strengths
I’ve found over time that I actually have always been a decent bencher and obviously a squatter. It’s taking me years to figure how to bench right, and for the longest time I thought I just sucked at benching but I just wasn’t training it right for my body and build. I’ve always known I was a natural squatter and that hasn’t really changed. Out of all of this, I actually feel like my Deadlift is what sucks naturally. It’s always felt awkward and still does, lol, nothing feels right here, even sumo.
Some final thoughts
Life’s been getting in the way lately, things can always change, but I’m glad I’ve still got some passion for lifting heavy. Me and my wife are planning on moving back to Colorado within the next 2 years, so I can envision that there’s going to be some hiccups down the road with training. If you read this far, congrats, lol.
7 Likes
10/13
Paused Bench Press - Larsen Spoto
135 x 4
225 x 3
260 x 1
280 x 7
Seated OHP - Close Grip
135 x 3
160 x 2
195 x 12
Kneeling Cable Crunch
3 x 270 x 8
Pretty much hit a 5lb PR today on my Spoto Press. I’d say I’m right on track to hit 200x12 next week which would surpass my old OHP PR. Strength is coming back quick.
I put a 10lb plate into the cable stack to get some form of progressive overload since 260 is the max, I’m already doing the reps pretty slow and deep. I’m kinda scared of trying to put anything more than 25lbs on it though…
I also tried out ephedrine for the first time today and I like it, it’s a solid stimulant, good for physical energy. It felt like my CNS was “on” right when I walked in
6 Likes
October 13th
Double Session
Paused Squat - Beltless
225 x 5
315 x 3
405 x 1
450 x 3 RIR 3-4
Beltless Frog Squat
2 x 335 x 7
Nothing super crazy here for a double Session. I’m taking the next 2 days off so I decided might as well get some practice in before my long rest… Huge uptick in strength, it’s coming back fast.
Frog Squat is pretty much Close Stance, Toes Out, im just getting tired of writing the variation lmao.
9 Likes