(Un)Official 2023 T-ransformation Challenge

Here’s a snapshot of my weight gain since November. I’m slowly creeping up to my heaviest ever. I don’t look super lean, but I’m not unhappy with how I look, and I’m getting a lot of positive comments from coworkers about my size/leanness. Another week or two of this and then I’ll start trimming the fat (green line is the rolling 7-day average):

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That’s a great blog post.

Key message for me, is that there are loads of stupid social media people claiming they know how to get massive when in fact they know nothing!

Secondly, increasing strength in the 6+ reps area over time will work to get you bigger.

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@ChongLordUno @rugby_lifting I love Dante’s stuff and the OG DC was an incredible program. The principles, to me, are basically the North Star of hypertrophy training and you can apply them to whatever waters (template) you’re sailing.

I’m awfully poetic when I get up early.

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Hello, I’m not in the challenge but I need some help.

I’m trying to drop down to 103lbs by end of April . I am currently 104. The problem is that I’m having a hard time adhering to my maintainence (1800 average), much less a small deficit

I was adherentin January, but the last two weeks have been an absolute shiteshow. I meal prep and eat clean, but I struggle with justifying small extra portions, which tends to spiral.

I guess the solution is to just “don’t give in”, but I keep giving in :sob:

It’s particularly bad the day after heavy lower body workouts

I really hope this doesn’t come off the wrong way, and I honestly have no business minding your business so you have every right to ignore me, but are you sure what you need is what you’re asking for?

I know you to be very disciplined. If you’re not intent on appearing on-stage, for you to be at a point you can’t stick to your diet indicates to my untrained eye that your diet may be too strict.

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Interesting.

To continue the metaphor: how would you use DC to navigate, say, the stormy seas of 5/3/1?

Somewhere, some place I think I remember Thibs mentioned running 5/3/1 then using his BDWPFNL as the supplemental/accessory work–either that or the idea came to me in a fever dream. Is that along the lines of what you mean?

Thibs suggestion was one of many interesting ideas that’s going on the list of things I’d like to try before the clock runs out on my training career.

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Well, in my tiny brain, it’s more about the principles than it is specific tactics. So some concepts I think they both have in common:

  • Focus on progressive overload above all else
  • Conditioning stays in year-round
  • A recoverable amount of volume
  • Focus on the big lifts
  • Major emphasis on recovery
  • Eat to support your training

They actually both talk stretching, as well, but differently enough that I wouldn’t say it’s a shared principle.

When you look at things that way, I think you get “permission” to tackle whatever program because you know you’ll always be getting the big things right.

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Scale says 9lbs down in 11-12 days. Crazy what water weight can do but I am in an extreme deficit aiming to lose 2.5-3lb a week. I’m still fat enough that I can profit from losing that quickly, hopefully that’ll be the last time I say that though. Strength not dropping off at all, only on the presses which is part of the parcel of a cut. I expect it to come back as soon as I’m eating again.

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5/3/1 Rest Pause challenge.

Which, unfortunately, it seems the link to it no longer works.

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Rest pause challenge

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Score!

Ahh… I see what you mean. Kinda like there’s no secret sauce, just smart programming and hard work?

Thibs and Stuart McRobert echo those same points in your list above.

I thought you were creating unholy lovechildren between programs–something Wendler already did, apparently.

Interesting. Another bucket list program.

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Honest, DC and 5/3/1 are more alike than they are different.

Blast and Cruise is Anchor and Leader (and deload).

Widowmakers are PR sets

Focus on big lifts driving progression, not sweating the small stuff

While 5/3/1 rotates rep ranges, DC rotates movements, but in both cases, workout to workout you’re doing something different

Both have a required cardiovascular component (easy conditioning for 5/3/1, cardio for DC)

I’d say you’d have a harder time trying to marry up DC with Deep Water. Instead, those would be great to rotate between each other ala Marty Gallagher’s dualistic approach to training and eating.

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I just want to get the winner of a copy of Super Squats excited for their future

Although @boilerman is also killing it on the Mass Made Simple front

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That was awesome

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Thanks man! I appreciate how I’ve documented the exact moment my soul left my body as I’m racking the bar, haha.

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Haha, holy shit dude. You are crazy.

And thanks, shooting for my first 135lb x 50 rep set tonight. After that, the fun begins.

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I love seeing the high rep sets. It’s always fun to see someone squatting 1000 lbs, but I just can’t relate. I can’t do what you just did, but I know the sadness of squatting something heavy for 20, and it’s just cool to see

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Just completed my first Crossfit Open competition (workout 23.1). It’s the first of 3 workouts. Judges count reps and ensure each rep meets the standard, or you get the dreaded “no rep”. I got a few of those.

Workout 23.1. Complete as many reps as possible in 14 minutes of:

  • 60-calorie row
  • 50 toes-to-bar
  • 40 wall-ball shots; 20lb ball to 10ft target,
  • 30 cleans; 135lb
  • 20 ring muscle-ups

My score was 167 (meaning I got up through 17 cleans). I really would have loved to get to a single muscle up, as that would really shoot me up the leaderboard, but damn those cleans get heavy. I’m now in the 50-54 age group, and the World leader in my age bracket was 200 reps. Although competitors still have until Monday at 5 pm to submit their scores.

Pleased for my first time. It’s a very different WOD with a packed gym and a judge assigned to each person. I don’t get nervous at all like some, perhaps because of my age and not taking working out too seriously, but it does get me a bit pumped to have a cheering section and spectators. Also, on normal workouts I am not overly strict on the reps, so I often don’t throw the ball to the full target or scale down the weights if needed.

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That’s freaking incredible @antiquity. Good on you for getting out there.

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