So up until the beginning of this semester, I had been on a bulk. In about a year or year and a half (I don’t track this stuff, though I should) I went from 180 to about 217. During the whole process I stayed as lean as usual, i’d say about 12%. Not full abs showing, but still pretty lean. So this semester began (Jan. 18, about 2 months ago) and I decided I wanted to get a little leaner.
I switched from Defranco’s Westside training to an altered Sprinting Towards Single Digit Body Fat. I mean altered because I followed the running part somewhat closely and stuck with lifting 3 times a week. There is a horizontal push/pull, vertical push pull, and leg day. Also, I tried using the “Prefect Rep” principles.
So horizontal push pull day went like…
Bench, either sets of 3 or 1 working up to a max
DB Rows, usually 4 sets of 5
Incline BB press from pins, 5 sets of 3 or 2
Seated rows, 6 or 7 sets of 5
Vertical push/pull day
Seated BB vertical press from pins, 7 sets of 3 or 2
Pull ups, 5 sets of 3
Push Press, 6 or 7 sets of 3
High pulls, 6 or 7 sets of 3
Leg Day
Squats, sets of 3 or 1 reps working up to a max
Lunges, 5 or 6 sets of 5 each leg
Conventional deadlift (focusing on speed), 6 sets of 3
Leg press, 6 sets of 5
As far as diet, I didn’t change much at all. Stuck with lots of meats, chicken, fruits, veggies, oatmeal, etc. I also follow the protocol posted by CT using Surge and SWF. The only thing i’ve recently added is a serving of MAG-10 post workout.
So to the unexpected gains…
During these 2 months i’ve stayed at ~217 while getting noticeably leaner, but my squat has made a huge jump. Besides bench, all of my lifts went up as well.
Bench has gone from 225 x 15 to 245 x 12. I’m not sure if that’s really a jump at all, but my 1rm hasn’t moved at all for some reason.
Push press has gone up from 185 x 3 to 225 x 3.
I used to struggle getting DB Rows with 130’s, but now do about 6 sets with 140 no problem.
I was able to squat 405 for 3 tough singles, I had failed with 415 on several occasions. On March 11 I tested my 1rm and was able to lift 475. I also go ass-to-grass.
Squatting is my favorite lift, and a 70lb increase in under two months has been a HUGE accomplishment for me. The unexpected gain is a pretty big motivation. Two months ago I was trying to put a five pound plate on 405, now I feel five plates is within reach REAL soon.
I had to take a week from lifting off this past week, which was a real help since I hadn’t taken a week off in a long time. Hopefully I can get the momentum going again.