A quick (re)introduction. My name is Tony. I’ve been a member of this site for about 15 years; haven’t posted in over 10 years. How to summarize my fitness journey over that time period? Consistently inconsistent. But let’s not dwell in the past. Fast forward to today. Here are my current stats:
Age: 43
Height: 5’10"
Weight: 138.0 lbs
Waist: 30.5"
Bodyfat: Calipers say 9%, scale says 12%, probably closer to the scale assessment?
My goal this year is to hit 155 lbs, minimizing increases in bodyfat and waist size.
Current 1RM (calculated based off most recent lifts)
Squat 1RM: 250 lbs (from 210)
Bench 1RM: 200 lbs (from 170)
Deadlift 1RM: 280 lbs (from 220)
Press 1RM: 125 lbs (from 110)
Training
I’ve been following 5/3/1 Beginner Prep School from Wendler’s 5/3/1 Forever book since early October. Finishing up a 7th Week TM Test this week, then moving onto my 7th cycle. I’d like to continue my momentum with this program for as long as I can; seems to be working (the “from” 1RM above are from start of this program). Military Press is the only lift where I recently stalled, otherwise I’ve been consistently increasing my TM each cycle and using the 7th week protocol to reassess.
Nutrition
My nutrition strategy is pretty basic. I focus on whole foods (plus protein powders), eat fruits & veggies with every meal, drink about 100 oz of water every day. I started counting calories at the beginning of my bulk; more so to understand my baseline. At around 2,800 calories, I started to gain about 0.5 - 1.0 lb on average each week. Macros broke down to 50% carbs (350g), 25% protein (175g) and 25% fat (78g). Since then, I’ve set my eating on auto-pilot and eat similar meals every day. I can provide more detail if anyone is interested. If the scale doesn’t change after 2 weeks, then I simply add some food (usually to my post-workout meal).
Finished up my deload week (made it a real deload, no accessory work). Going to stay the course for the Squat, Bench and Deadlift. Instead for the Press, will reset (backup 3 cycles) and start pushing top set for a PR.
4A. KB Swing 50/15 x 5
4B. Dips +5/10 x 5
4C. Pull Ups +5/5 x 5
4D. Hanging Leg Raise 10 x 5
Thought I’d start taking some videos, more so of top sets or PR attempts. Glad I did. Didn’t realize how much I was arching my back on the press. I stalled last cycle, so reset my TM to 3 cycles back, and now pushing top set for a rep PR.
4A. Goblet Squat 40/15 x 5
4B. Push Ups +5*/10 x 5
4C. Chin Ups +5*/5 x 5
4D. Ab Wheel +5*/10 x 5
w/ weighted vest
Weighed in this morning at 136.8 lbs (not the right direction for my goal!) Maybe it’s the transition effect of going from holiday eating to routine eating? Regardless, will watch that and add some calories.
4A. Goblet Squat 40/15 x 5
4B. Push Ups +5*/10 x 5
4C. Chin Ups +5*/5 x 5
4D. Ab Wheel +5*/10 x 5
w/ weighted vest
Both top sets of Bench and Squats felt good. Not sure if my form is off on squats (are knees over extending?) I try to focus on initiating the movement with my hips.
4A. KB Swing 50/15 x 5
4B. Dips +5/10 x 5
4C. Pull Ups +5/5 x 5
4D. Hanging Leg Raise 10 x 5
Bodyweight is up to 138.8 lbs, so back in the right direction. All lifts felt good this cycle. Next week starts Cycle 8. Planning on increasing TM 10 lbs for Squat and DL, 5 lbs for Bench and Military Press.
4A. KB Swing 50/15 x 5
4B. Dips +5/12 x 5
4C. Pull Ups +5/6 x 5
4D. Hanging Leg Raise 10 x 5
My AMRAP set on the Military Press hasn’t been too impressive, but I’ve been focusing more on form. Recording myself, I think I still have a slight arch in my back. I’ve been working on bracing, squeezing the glutes and maintaining a rigid core.
4A. Goblet Squat 40/20 x 5
4B. Push Ups +7.5*/10 x 5
4C. Chin Ups +7.5*/5 x 5
4D. Ab Wheel +7.5*/10 x 5
w/ weighted vest
Today felt great. Hit a PR on Squats (220x5). Last rep was a grind though. Considering keeping the TM the same for next cycle. Will definitely increase TM for Bench. All 5 reps of my top set felt smooth.
Interested to see how the bulk goes (I’m a bit older, shorter & heavier - but similar numbers on lifts). I would have thought there is definitely room to add significant muscle to your frame for sure.
As far as strength goes, I’ve been happy with the steady progress I’ve been making. The weight gain, on the other hand, has been slower than I would have expected, given how much I’m eating. Since the start of the challenge, I’m only up 1lb (but then again, I dropped 1lb right after the holidays, so I guess we can say I’m up 2lbs since early January). I’m probably being too conservative with my eating.
Just today I plugged in my meals to MyFitnessPal to get an idea of where I stand calorie-wise. I’m eating ~ 3,200 calories, which then breaks down into:
225g Protein (1.6g/lb of BW)
425g Carbs (3.0g/lb of BW)
70g Fat (0.5g/lb of BW)
In 2023, I was able to gain 14lbs, going from 124lbs to 138lbs (I know, I was that low!), all while averaging 2,800 calories per day. On top of that, I only have half a thyroid, which I assumed would make gaining weight easier, but I guess not the case.
Anyways, that was a long-winded way for me to say I need to step it up with the eating. I’ll have to check out your log and the logs of other members that are also bulking to try and pick up some helpful habits.
4A. KB Swing 50/15 x 5
4B. Dips +5/12 x 5
4C. Pull Ups +5/6 x 5
4D. Hanging Leg Raise 10 x 5
Onto Cycle 9 next week. Deadlifts felt real good today. I deadlifted the same weight today that I used about a month ago when testing my TM, and today felt so much easier. Bodyweight is also up to 140. Feels nice breaking into the next bracket
@Andrewgen_Receptors When you have a few minutes, would you mind taking a look at my Military Press videos? (I didn’t want to clutter the forum with another form check post). I watched a few technique videos online. I don’t think my form is terrible, but something seems off. I try and focus on squeezing the glutes and keeping my core real tight. I’m sure my bracing could be better. When I watch myself on video, it seems like there’s always a slight arch in my back; not sure if this is normal, or if I’m compensating with my back because of weaknesses in all the other supporting muscles.
My previous post has my heaviest set; this post has my lightest set. Tried taking at different angles in case it helps.
For me the solution has seemed to be twofold: 1) ab work … which it looks like you’re already doing, but also 2) thoracic extension and shoulder mobility. I’m getting a lot better at 2, and that’s helped with the arch.
Basically my entire upper spine was locked into position, limiting the bar to be more in front than it should be, so something had to give. Since the upper back couldn’t straighten to compensate, the low back overextends.
It may be what’s going on for you too.
I haven’t fixed this entirely, and I’ve been doing a lot of things to improve that extension, so I can’t point to a single thing that helped, but I can share what I’ve tried.
Thanks for the link, this is very helpful! For some reason, I can’t seem to get the videos to load, but I get the gist - and there are lots of suggestions in that thread which I’d like to try. I definitely think thoracic extension comes into play for me as well. Even when I’m pressing just the bar, the arch seems to be there.
