Tonino's Log

Training Logs
61

[quote]Tonino wrote:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Where’s this article that you’re talking about btw? I’ve heard good things about Shelby…
[/quote]

Here’s the Shelby article… and yes, you’re right, in the beginning, I opted to follow some of the advice to an exact science, but this just makes the process more difficult. The easier the process, the easier is seems to be successful and make progress. Just my 2cents.

Good read, very similar to what I would say.

The parts where I always feel the need to point out to people is that you have to bulk within your own bulk range (which is individual). For example, I can comfortably bulk within the range of 8-12%, and the closer to 15% I get, the more my hormones become screwed up (bodyweight gains become very fat and I gain very little muscle)…whereas my brother can’t comfortably bulk when that lean - typically around 15% is his “sweet spot”.

The general rule of thumb to follow is this (which I’ve found): if it’s easy to lose fat at a certain bf %, then you’ll gain muscle within that range too. So say you go on a very mild diet at 12% bf, and it only takes 8-12 weeks to get down to 8% all while maintaining strength relatively easily - this would be a good range to stay in while bulking. Whereas, if it takes extreme measures just to get down to 12%, and to stay there, you are probably better off bulking at a higher bf%. Or at the very least, the person who really struggled to get their bodyfat down to a reasonable level, should maintain that level for some time before bulking (e.g. endomorphic builds).

62

Not to get ahead of myself, but what kind of routine would you recommend for when I recommence my bulk? What do you think of some of the routines in KingBeef’s latest thread?

63

[quote]Tonino wrote:
Not to get ahead of myself, but what kind of routine would you recommend for when I recommence my bulk? What do you think of some of the routines in KingBeef’s latest thread?

[/quote]

I would recommend something like the push/pull/legs one…except maybe without the extra frequency for legs. This is something I came across a while ago and rediscovered myself - that legs/big exercises seem to respond to a lessor frequency than upper body.

It really doesn’t matter too much HOW you split it up as long as the frequency of training your bodyparts is suitable for your body, and the volume is suitable too.

Example 3-way splits:

push/pull/legs
chest+biceps/back+triceps/legs+delts
chest+triceps/back+biceps/legs+delts
chest+delts/back+traps/legs+arms
chest+back/delts+arms/legs

etc etc etc

I’d recommend you train bodyparts around 2x/week or slightly less (less for legs). The one I had in mind was the last one (chest+back/delts+arms/legs).

After looking at your logs, I think you’ll respond to a more medium intensity and medium-low volume approach. So roughly 2 exercises/bodypart (except legs which’ll get more and back which’ll be hit indirectly as well as directly), 2-3 sets/exercise, and no long ramping (except warmups).

64

^^^ Just remember that consistency and progression on your exercises is what matters most, and much of that is “enabled” by your diet.

Apart from retarded training that’s really not suited to you, the best way to slow gains is switching routines, and not eating enough :slight_smile:

65

Friday, 3/18/11 (Legs/Shoulders)

Back Squat
95/3
115/3
135/3
155/3
175/3
185/3
195/1 (PR)
175/4

Standing Calf Raises
145/3
195/3
235/3 (PR)
215/15

Seated BB Press
60/3
70/3
80/3
90/3
100/3
110/3
120/3 (PR)
105/8

Deadlifts
135/3
155/3
185/3
205/3
225/3
245/3
270/2 * I know I could’ve gotten the 3rd rep, but my grip gave out. I use gloves, but not straps.

Side (Power) Raises
25/3
30/3
35/0 * I felt a sharp pain in my left elbow as soon as I tried lifting the weight
I couldn’t get in another set of the Power Raises due to the elbow pain, so I did 1 arm leaning side raises… 25/12 (right side), 20/12 (left side)

Comments:
Today felt like an average session. I was sick yesterday, so I’m not sure if that impacted my performance today. But I don’t seem to be losing any strength, so that’s a good sign!

66

Saturday, 3/19/11 (Cardio session)

15 minutes of HIIT sprinting (outdoors) … 10 seconds on, 50 seconds off

67

Sunday, 3/20/11

Updated Stats (end of Week 6)

BW - 158.0 lbs (-2.0 from last week, -8.0 in total)
Waist - 33.0" (-0.25" from last week, -1.0" in total)
BF - 12.62% (+0.18% from last week, -3.62% in total)
Bicep (right/relaxed) - 12.50" (no change, +0.50" in total)
Bicep (right/flexed) - 13.75" (no change)

Comments:
I took progress pics today, and will try to post them later. I also had my wife help me take the measurements for the 7-site caliper test. That calculation puts me around 14% BF (its very possible that when I started 6 weeks ago, I was higher than the 16% BF I had calculated.)

68


Progress Pics … Front Relaxed View

69

Side Shot

70

Back Relaxed

71


Another Front Relaxed View… including legs … excluding my briefs… haha

72

Back width has come along nicely. Looks like we’ll probably have to focus on chest/arms a little more so it’s probably time to pump up the work (move onto more of a split).

I would like to get you onto a gaining phase now, but you did say that you wanted to lose a bit more fat? If you did start gaining now, I would have you going at a steady pace (it’s not like you’d get really fat all of a sudden lol). I just think that it’s better to “feed the muscle” and fill them out more and speed up the metabolism via food. More over-all muscle = faster metabolism and a better look (ratios etc).

The length of the gaining phase is up to you, it can be as short as 8 weeks if you want?

Don’t want to pressurise you, it’s completely your choice and I’d understand…let me know what you’d rather and I’ll start writing up the plan :slight_smile:

73

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Back width has come along nicely. Looks like we’ll probably have to focus on chest/arms a little more so it’s probably time to pump up the work (move onto more of a split).

I would like to get you onto a gaining phase now, but you did say that you wanted to lose a bit more fat? If you did start gaining now, I would have you going at a steady pace (it’s not like you’d get really fat all of a sudden lol). I just think that it’s better to “feed the muscle” and fill them out more and speed up the metabolism via food. More over-all muscle = faster metabolism and a better look (ratios etc).

The length of the gaining phase is up to you, it can be as short as 8 weeks if you want?

Don’t want to pressurise you, it’s completely your choice and I’d understand…let me know what you’d rather and I’ll start writing up the plan :)[/quote]

I’m ready for a gaining phase! Don’t get me wrong, I definitely wanted 10% or less bodyfat, but I also understand that more over-all muscle is what I need to start looking the part of one who lifts weights!

I’ll continue this week with my current plan (diet and training) until you recommend otherwise… but I’m definitely ready for a split.

To be honest, the pictures might not tell the story that well… but I know that when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel leaner now at 158 lbs than I was when I started back in July at 147 lbs. So I’m fairly confident that of the 8 lbs I lost over the last 6 weeks, it came mostly from fat (external and internal, as you pointed out last week).

As always, thanks for your scrutiny. I’m patient. and determined. I know I’ll get there!

74

[quote]Tonino wrote:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Back width has come along nicely. Looks like we’ll probably have to focus on chest/arms a little more so it’s probably time to pump up the work (move onto more of a split).

I would like to get you onto a gaining phase now, but you did say that you wanted to lose a bit more fat? If you did start gaining now, I would have you going at a steady pace (it’s not like you’d get really fat all of a sudden lol). I just think that it’s better to “feed the muscle” and fill them out more and speed up the metabolism via food. More over-all muscle = faster metabolism and a better look (ratios etc).

The length of the gaining phase is up to you, it can be as short as 8 weeks if you want?

Don’t want to pressurise you, it’s completely your choice and I’d understand…let me know what you’d rather and I’ll start writing up the plan :)[/quote]

I’m ready for a gaining phase! Don’t get me wrong, I definitely wanted 10% or less bodyfat, but I also understand that more over-all muscle is what I need to start looking the part of one who lifts weights!

I’ll continue this week with my current plan (diet and training) until you recommend otherwise… but I’m definitely ready for a split.

To be honest, the pictures might not tell the story that well… but I know that when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel leaner now at 158 lbs than I was when I started back in July at 147 lbs. So I’m fairly confident that of the 8 lbs I lost over the last 6 weeks, it came mostly from fat (external and internal, as you pointed out last week).

As always, thanks for your scrutiny. I’m patient. and determined. I know I’ll get there!
[/quote]

Glad to see you’re still highly motivated!

Yeah carry on till next week (at least that’ll give me plenty chance to write up your plan). Will probably mail you tomorrow the first part of the split (so as not to fill up this log and make it more difficult to reference it)

A little tip for the following weeks diet, try to base it around mainly raw veg, red meat, eggs, nuts and fish. This’ll at least give your last week of fat loss a good boost!

75

Monday, 3/21/11 (Chest/Back/Arms)

BB Incline Bench
80/3
90/3
100/3
110/3
120/3
130/3
140/1
125/7

BB Decline Bench
80/3
135/3
160/3 (PR)
145/5

BB Rows
75/3
95/3
105/3
115/3
125/3
135/3
145/3 (PR)
130/9

Lat Pulldown (Nautilus machine)
110/3
160/3
210/3 (PR)
190/12

BB Curls
42.5/3
62.5/3
82.5/3 (PR)
72.5/7

Skull crushers
32.5/3
52.5/3
77.5/3 (PR)
67.5/7

Comments-
Once again, this session started out dissappointing with BB Incline. Last week, I went for 145 on my top set, and only got 1 rep. This week, I dropped by 5 lbs, and still only got 1 rep at 140. At first, I was thinking of a couple factors which might have affected my performance today. One being that I woke up a couple times during the night due to a lingering head cold, and second, I changed my diet slightly to boost fat loss this week (I reduced carbs from breakfast)… BUT … then I hit PRs on all other exercises, including Decline Bench.

So I’m not sure… maybe I’m that bad with Incline Bench?! Regardless, I felt good when everything was said and done. It felt like a productive day.

76

Here’s the plan (will just put it here so I can edit it - will add the splits as I write them so check this post for the complete split)

Split

4 days per week. Chest+Back/Delts+Arms/Legs. Legs trained 1x/week. Alternate 2 upper body days.

Example:

Week A
M: Chest+Back
T: —
W: Delts+Arms
T: —
F: Chest+Back
S: Legs

Week B
M: Delts+Arms
T: —
W: Chest+Back
T: —
F: Delts+Arms
S: Legs

Chest+Back Day

Loads are just examples of what you probably could do (feel free to do more reps on last set if you can, or to increase/decrease load). Last set is to failure or close.

Chest:

BB incline bench

Set 1: 12 reps - 80lbs
Set 2: 10 reps - 105lbs
Set 3: 8 reps - 125lbs
Set 4: 6-8 reps 125lbs

BB flat bench

Set 1: 10 reps - 80lbs
Set 2: 10 reps - 125lbs
Set 3: 8 reps - 140lbs
Set 4: 4-8 reps - 140lbs (optional)

3-5min rest

Back:

Pull-up

Warmup with sets of 3 reps with bodyweight (until lose)
Set 1: 8 reps - Bodyweight
Set 2: 8 reps - Bodyweight
Set 3: 8-10 reps - Bodyweight

Barbel Row

Set 1: 12 reps - 100lbs
Set 2: 10 reps - 125lbs

Cable Row

Set 1: 15 reps - 90lbs (or whatever gives a good feel but not to failure)
Set 2: 15 reps - 90lbs (or whatever is difficult/near failure)

Notes:
AS you can see, there are more reps especially ones before max sets (gets plenty blood in there). With incline bench, make sure the bench isn’t too steep otherwise it hits delts more than chest (about 30 degrees, that is, about 2 notches up on most benches). This could be the reason why you’ve stagnated on incline (because delts are taking over and they’re the weak link). Grip bar only just outside shoulder width (not too wide otherwise shoulders take too much load…another reason why you could be stagnating). Get a good stretch, don’t limit ROM. Same applies for flat bench too.

The optional sets are just incase the pecs aren’t done enough, go by the feel (ie good pump, bruised feeling…when this is reached, usually that’s enough).

Reason for putting flat bench in there instead of decline is because it has a slight carry over to upper chest (compared to decline which gives virtually no upper chest stimulation)…and this will bring upper chest up more.

The addition of cable rows is for upper/middle back/rear delts. This ensures healthy posture and gives a good base/balance for pressing exercises. It hits rear delts quite well too (important for shoulder health). Use overhand grip and a medium hand position. Row to just below chest. Go more for the feel rather than just trying to move the load from A-B (feel the shoulder blades pull together, not the biceps).

With pull-ups, you should be able to get some good reps in there (probably around 12 as a complete guess). But you pace yourself - in other words, hold back a couple reps on each set so you can do more sets (instead of something like 12/9/5, you’ll do something like 8/8/8). So fatigue builds up until the last set which is maximal.

77

I have a little plan for you while you are still eating for fat loss. Obviously you’ll be doing this till the end of the week but I’d like to see how your body responds to carbs?

Some people have a strange reaction to low carbs and find it easier to lose fat with higher carbs…so I want to see if that could be you? Would only last 2 weeks or so, just to see what happens. If it’s not for you, you’ll be able to tell pretty quickly (e.g. bloat up a little…or you’ll lose more fat and feel better in general).

Up to you, but it’ll make things easier for the future?

It’s kind of controversial, because half the time, the verdict is ALWAYS low carbs, but like I said, I’m convinced that some people respond BETTER to higher carb diets (nothing extreme, it’s not HIGH carbs, just moderate)…

78

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Up to you, but it’ll make things easier for the future?
[/quote]

I’m willing to give it a try. Is it something I should continue into next week, even with the new routine? Looking over my diet, I wouldn’t say I go completely low carb (not sure what constitutes LOW). But the majority of my carbs come pre/post workout, with a minimal amount at breakfast. The rest of the day, I’ve been getting my carbs from veggies.

79

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
With incline bench, make sure the bench isn’t too steep otherwise it hits delts more than chest (about 30 degrees, that is, about 2 notches up on most benches). This could be the reason why you’ve stagnated on incline (because delts are taking over and they’re the weak link). Grip bar only just outside shoulder width (not too wide otherwise shoulders take too much load…another reason why you could be stagnating). Get a good stretch, don’t limit ROM. Same applies for flat bench too.[/quote]

I’ve been setting it at 20-25 degrees. I’ll really focus on form/grip/mind-muscle connection on Monday.

Good guess! I can do about 10-12 bodyweight pull ups on my first set. Then usually my 2nd set drops to about 8… but I follow your logic about saving some for the tank.

I’m already excited about starting the new split, and I’ve only seen Day 1!.. as we talked about before, it looks like I’ll be working with higher rep ranges than what my body has been seeing over the last 2 months. I’ll ramp the weights, and aim for failure on last set of each exercise. Understood.

My only overall question on the setup is … can I move Legs to either Tuesday or Thursday?

80

[quote]Tonino wrote:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
With incline bench, make sure the bench isn’t too steep otherwise it hits delts more than chest (about 30 degrees, that is, about 2 notches up on most benches). This could be the reason why you’ve stagnated on incline (because delts are taking over and they’re the weak link). Grip bar only just outside shoulder width (not too wide otherwise shoulders take too much load…another reason why you could be stagnating). Get a good stretch, don’t limit ROM. Same applies for flat bench too.[/quote]

I’ve been setting it at 20-25 degrees. I’ll really focus on form/grip/mind-muscle connection on Monday.

Good guess! I can do about 10-12 bodyweight pull ups on my first set. Then usually my 2nd set drops to about 8… but I follow your logic about saving some for the tank.

I’m already excited about starting the new split, and I’ve only seen Day 1!.. as we talked about before, it looks like I’ll be working with higher rep ranges than what my body has been seeing over the last 2 months. I’ll ramp the weights, and aim for failure on last set of each exercise. Understood.

My only overall question on the setup is … can I move Legs to either Tuesday or Thursday? [/quote]

The extra reps/pump should help the MM connection really well.

Yeah for the pullups, you’ll find that too many failure sets for them leads to stagnation (or actually stagnation for most exercises). So it’s always better to save a couple reps for the last set’s effort (plus you can get more total work done in the same amount of sets this way). Also, it really helps you to get good quality reps on each set (over-all quality is better) compared to busting your balls to reach failure on each set.

So as you can see, there is one major warmup set (usually around 10-15 reps) followed by progressively heavier “working” sets - about 2-3 in total. As the load goes up, the reps usually go down (except on some exercises like pullups where they stay constant). Don’t worry if you don’t get the range spot on, the more important part is 100% effort. There’s always a settling in period anyway, where you’ll have to tweak things for next time.

It’s fine to put legs on either of those days btw. The logic of putting them on Saturday was so that the workload is more spread out (you have a rest day before most days)…but if you can’t manage that then it’s not a major problem. If you can’t decide which day, it’d probably be better putting them on Tuesday because of the longer weekend rest where you’ll feel more refreshed (legs take quite a bit of “steam” to work them).