rev210

Wow. Decided to check in on old Sau. Thoughts of owning a gtr again .Holy crap the prices .. 😄 Remember the mass defection from SDU too, as one of the original members back then.

with a couple of months of workouts under the belt this week the highlight for me was getting a good set of seated dumbell shoulder press out. 45kg dumbbells for 9 rep sets . In two weeks I hope to be getting the 50's going. The shoulder health is great so far too. I have been adding partials (lower range) of hammer strength shoulder press and incline bench along with Cuban press ,YTWL band work and face pulls in weeks prior to starting on full range work with the dumbells. Will integrate some bench press later on. I have worked up to now drop setting from 5 reps on 200kg for both the hammer strength shoulder press and incline bench. I think it's the maximum plates either will take. Really helps with getting the shoulder press up and out of the blocks.

Back to Beast mode It's been a good year since I posted in the old thread and it's a reflection of my lack of dedication to training. So new thread for a new beginning. The aim is to achieve a couple of key things this year. 1) maintain a regular commitment to exercise. At least 3 times a week. So I have a healthy habit in place for life and reverses the priority from work to my own health. Been a dead loss the last year. 2) drop body fat a tad, so i can at least see all my abbs and get back to at least 34 inch waist again again..good for my health and wardrobe. 3) get back to some strength benchmarks for a variety of lifts. Functional strength has always been important to me and I enjoy reaching goals related. I am prioritising getting to the gym and strength initially , while having a little more fat helps. Then about March I will start pegging the diet back more . Not that its out of control at the moment.

Great to see you attacking the iron Trex ! In terms of putting on mass , it's not hard once you have the basics . Just remember genetics will govern how this all works for you but, you can be a totally different looking 'you' in as little as a few months . Compound movements are key as the very savy L33SH has pointed out ,along with eating well and getting rest This will see you tipping the scales the right way with strength as a bonus. To make life easy you can try out "strong lifts" . It's got an app thats easy to follow and takes some guess work out of begining. Strong lifts is just a rehash of the good old 5/5/5 workout, it does the job. I'd also couple this with getting to work on fixing your shoulder girdle and scapular mobility and strength . Some movements with bands like YWTL's you can fit between sets doing things like bench that focus on internal rotation . Also stretch out your chest, daly. Nothing that takes alot of time, we are talking 10-20 seconds of streching a few times a day for the chest. Youtube has stacks of good channels with examples of stretches to improve shoulder mobility too. It's possible the ulnar nerve thing can be related to shoulder issues, get a tennis ball and lean against it on a wall (roll around the rear of your shoulder and upper middle back for tender spots.If you find one hold on it on the most painful spot for a good 20 seconds with pressure , repeat each day till it improves. The current workout could be impacting that also, as it's got an over emphasis on interna shoulderl rotation movements . Lose the upright rows completely, they aren't great for development and put the shoulder in a less than ideal position. Ther are better movements not least of which is the overhead press (learn to do it right). Again strong lifts isn't bad. hope those thoughts help a little . Bottom line is do the work and you will see the results .

sorry , too much info I guess. So 4kg & what is the starting and target %BF ?

Here is an example (rough) of a plan using my dimensions , altough assuming a 20% BF ( I am not doing anything at the moment but, I'd probably do something like this). It's slightly aggressive at 20% deficit rather than 10-15% for 12 weeks . It assumes a diminishing factor on the relative % of fat Vs musle lost in the weight loss over time. relatively low number of workout hrs @ 3hrs/week. Notice the slight increase in calories for the second month. Due to the relative % of LBM effecting the TDEE. Starting weight 98kg (20%BF = 19.6kg fat/78.4kg LBM) Target = 93kg @ 15%BF TDEE = 2785 Cal cut @ -20% deficit (lose 0.5 - 1kg /week Average ) 40/40/20 protien / carb / fat Target Calories = 2228 *** Target 4kg in 4 weeks *** week 1 & 2 (80/20% of loss fat/LBM) - 2kg weight 1.6kg fat loss 0.4kg muscle week 3 & 4 (75/25%) - 2kg 1.5kg fat loss 0.5kg muscle Total = 3.1kg fat loss 95kg = ( 17.3%BF = 16.5kg fat) Revise TDEE = 2798 cal Target calories = 2238 *** Target 3kg in 4 weeks *** Week 5 & 6 (70/30%) - 1.5kg 1.05kg fat loss 0.45kg muscle Week 7 & 8 (65/35%) -1.5kg 0.975kg fat loss 0.525kg muscle Total = 2.025kg fat loss 92kg = ( 15.7%BF = 14.94kg fat) Revise TDEE = 2752 cal Target calories = 2201 **** Target 2kg in 4 weeks *** Week 9 & 10 (60/40 %) -1kg -0.6kg fat -0.4kg muscle Week 11 & 12 (55/45 %) -1kg -0.55kg fat -0.45kg muscle FINISH Total = 1.15kg fat loss 93kg = ( 14.8%BF = 13.79kg fat)

Lets start by saying you are already looking great! What is the goal and the plan Vs time ? The difference between exercise and training is the absence of a measured goal & plan. Exercise is just doing things , sometimes with the view that you will get somewhere if you do it differently. This is not really training (not saying that you aren't training by the way). If you are cutting then there will be a definate loss of weight. Hard to be exact but, I you ideally need to have a plan and a quantified goal of some sort. You can't reach 'be leaner' type goals easily or at all, without a plan. Better to have a definative goal. The goal can be adjusted as you learn more about yourself The reality is that as you get leaner you will lose strength and muscle mass. The loss of muscle mass means the loss of glycogen storage , so you will definately feel weaker as well (you tank much quicker in the workout). Seems to be some agreement that you want to stay on the 'lift heavy' approach to minimise the loss of muscle. However, it's mentally a challenge at the same time. No one likes being weaker if you enjoy training this way. Maybe all you need to do is drop a few oats out of breakfast? It won't be much change to eating but, you will know you are there when you start hating the gym performance.

Well lets not add any more overreations to the fire...Boz is just passionate and is a sort of IPF fan in the same way as the ford/holden lovers . They can rant strange tribal abuse at each other and anyone one else who refers to the wrong brand. Not everyone races a holden to win at track days. Some people aren't there to win at all. But. people with turbo jap crap are cheaters and scum....

laaaaag!

I don't agree. 'every' powerlifter includes lots of people who arent the record holders? If i decided to have a go competitively would that make me a roid taker? Nope. Probably wouldn't win anything either but, I would be technically a 'powerlifter' . To be fair , Markos seems to be an encouraging type regardless of abillity or dedication to powerlifting affliation, style, drugs or training , as are most I have casually come across who attend different powerlifting gyms. Including Muscle Pit and the PTC here in Perth. Also, if you run/own a powerlifting Gym you don't make decent money from it, from what I understand. I worked full time at a company where Herny Day (who owns Muscle Pit) was a colleague. He loves the sport but, needed a full time and fairly well paying job to help keep the doors open. IPF is as regulated as you can get . People cheat and get caught. If you aspire to compete at world games for medals, it's for you. The other regulatory bodies which don't test , do have in thier favour, the permited use of techniques and supporting equipment (like monolifts) which can make the lifting events for the punter, marginally safer or less risky. Consider that you don't have to take roids as part of the requirements for any of these associations and competitions . Leaving any of them a potentially fun hobby to get involved in , if thats what you like to do.

160kg is a good bench. You mentioned you have dropped the range of motion to look after the shoulders. So is that down to the sternum and back up or just what you are handling for 1RM for the normal movement you are now doing? either way a good weight . Well done.

Relatively . The comparisons from memory were with a sedentary group and there were some other markers around suppression of IGF . Mostly the statisical links around living longer. Is it the best diet or even a 'top diet' ? No evidence to suggest that. Probably more of a 'depends'.. ( not that you are saying it in this case). On the other side of the coin . Paleo diets are pretty miserable for people who like living in a normal society and eating great food. Just try being around someone on the diet in the office. I have seen this degenerate on people perhaps on par with Cross fit zealots. So it should come with a warning. In the office I have heard : "I'm suffering for my cause but , I feel great ....." "you should do this too....." "the science proves it ......." "it's like the cave men ate and they were really ripped ......" " it's not a diet , it's a life style.." people telling me this are fat. (personal topical rant).

100 Cal warmup on bike. Did this round faster with less rest (no fatgripz) * Barbell Pendlay rows 80kg - 5 80kg - 5 80kg - 5 100kg - 5 110kg - 3 * Pull up knee raise combo . Basically a pullup (strict) with a knee to elbow movement at the top. Lower knees , then lower body in slow controlled manner . then repeat. - 10 /10 / 10 * Cable row machine - narrow grip. (all the weight stack). Done fast /explosively - 15 /12 /12 Dumbel finger tip grip lift. 15kg - 8 ,8, 8.

No probs. If you used to bench press with no pain then having any pain shoulder be a concern. Fix the shoulders properly and you will have none. No need to push through things in this case. There are lots of youtube vids now to help you check the mobility of the shoulders , rehab movements and strength builders. have watch of a few and try things out.

by the way , rotator cuff is a potentially degenerative injury. The pain is also refered (you will feel it in all sorts of places other than the back of the shoulder) , so movements can feel fine when you do them but, increase the injury further. Doing dumbell presses etc. when you can't wave hello is not a good idea for example . It could micro tear the injury further.

Bro press done without supporting movements for the shoulder girdle is a path to pain and girly lifts . People wind up with imbalanced muscle strength.Then cop a rotator issue. The internal rotaion favorites like bro-press and even bro-cep curls pull the shoulder forward and shorten the muscle range of motion (without counter balancing movements). My tip for you if it helps ( having had that issue before). 1)You need to quit doing anything lift wise that is focused on internal rotation (bench / shoulder press etc) Save for simple activation and range of motion of internal rotation movements. 2)Rehab properly (as you probably are) 3)Build a cast iron upper back and scapular / shoulder girdle with good mobility. It's the platform to your strength. 4)Then slowly get back into the shoulder press and after some time, you can go bro press. tribulus does nothing. If it did , it would be a banned substance. Save your money dude. Hope your shoulder gets well soon mate.

Shoulders today. Highlight was getting the 45kg dumbells up on the shoulder press. Onwards to the 50's . Warm up stretches. 1) Seated Dumbell shoulder press. 35kgs a side (warm up) 15 45kgs 9 reps / 0 - failed (was a tad enthusiastic on the first set and went a few too many. The shoulders were spent. So I moved on) 2) Reverse grip bench press, straight into regular 3) close grip bench (superseted no rest continuously with) seated rear delt machine. Reverse grip bench 60kg x 20 80kg x 12 110kg x 3 Close Grip bench & Rear delt machine superset. 110kg x 12 * 89kg plates rear delt. 15 reps 90kg x 10 * 96kg plates 12 reps 80kg x 10 * 106kg plates 6 reps 60kg x 10 * 108kg plates 4 reps 4) Face down Lying rear dumbell flys 30kg a side 12 reps 32.5kg 8 reps 32.5kg 5 reps 5) Side dumbell raises 12.5kg a side 5 reps 15kg 5 reps 17.5kg 5 reps 6) Cuban press (rotation only movement) Olympic bar. 20kg 12 reps 35kg 5 reps 130 cal on the bike to finish.

cheers Birds. Today was a repeat of the other day. except for a few extras at the end after the grip is really fatigued . Olympic barbell one arm rows with gripz instead of dumbell. ( just trying out the extra difficulty for balance and conditioning) 60kg 8/6/6 Dumbell grip lift. -basically pick up a sufficiently heavy dumbell with a very wide grip , so just the finger tips around the edge of the plates at one end. grip / pick up / lift / lower / start again from the floor. 10/10/ 8

Progress wise , this is a pic from March on a break in queenstown NZ - so I have gotten bigger in the shoulders/ back since.

The positive side is you probably look even more fantastic than before , so any new wardrobe additions will be icing on the cake for you. Just a bummer that the process costs money. Living in a colder state , you probably need more winter gear too. Melbourne at least has no shortage of good places to buy clothes so at least you are in the right location

workout today. ( typical of what I do every week). 100 Cal warmup on bike. I do all of the movements below with the blue fatgripz inc. pullups (makes the bar 2.5 inches thick - harder to hold onto). * Cable row machine - narrow grip. (all the weight stack). Done fast /explosively - 20 /12 /12 * Pull up knee raise combo . Basically a pullup (strict) with a knee to elbow movement at the top. Lower knees , then lower body in slow controlled manner . then repeat. - 15 /10 / 10 * One Arm rows . 50kg dumbell - 12 /12/ 12 * Barbell Pendlay rows 100kg - 10 /10 /8 * Barbell Grip holds (till failure) . standard overhand grip - 180kg - 140kg - 100kg 100 Cal on Bike to finish.

haven't checked in for a bit. Bodyweight sitting on about 100kg now. Probably no real change in % fat. Just eating a little more to accomodate the gym 3-4 times a week. Been doing very basic movements mostly focused on upper back and shoulder health. Not really training intensely . Been taking it easy. My shoulders & back have grown a bit and caused wardrobe stress. my tailored business shirts are a tad tight now. Not training legs yet... but, scary times ahead for the scales as I am about to ha ha...

Take a powerlifting approach to the squat. If you would really love to hit 100kg for example. There is plenty of good info around to read over. Though remember you don't have to lift 100kg. Be clear about the 'values' something has to 'you' before you set out. The attempt could be a reward in itself? Or maybe it's not really worth the hassle? Do you squat for big quads or do you love being stronger ? Only you can answer that. Looking at some basic ideas to implement , I would suggest ; * Take some coaching from a power lifting trainer, even if just for the squat. Probably the best time and money spent to achieve the 100Kg in the best possible time. Squats are quite technical and it's a huge help having a coach through the lift to help improve . It's good for the pro's so it's good for anyone else. If 100kg is something that makes you feel excited then spending the cash on it could be a 'treat' to yourself. They can suggest some good changes to your program from actually observing you in the movement and also from what you have been doing. Beats the hell out of any suggestion I can make. That aside some ideas I would suggest straight away; * Don't do any more 1RM for 2-3months. 1RM are marginal for development vs risk as a constant training approach. * Take a look at the technical aspects of the lift . Things like holding air in your belly when you lift (correct ab activation) etc. * You can add some assistance movements. Abs are critical for lifts along with posterior chain, glutes and hips. The ab movements I was shown (a long time ago) are hanging leg raises (toes touch the bar/ or if too hard bend knees up to chest ( you should be showing the 'ass' so as to not make it a hip flexor movement) and/or standing cable pullovers (using lat pulldown & tricep rope) * Box squats. These help sort technique out. Start at about 50% of your 1RM (37.5kg) . box of the right depth. The idea is to progress the weight each workout.

If you want , definately you can get there. But, the 1rm attempt on every workout isn't helping along with the volume. Not to knock the way you are working out as such ,you likely enjoy the volume. But, if you would like to notch up to the 100kg or so squat perhaps you might like to adopt a more suitable pure strength approach even if just for the squat only? You could do this just for the period till you hit the 100kg and then move back into the volume thing again once you get it. 75kg is pretty darn great though.

Dumbel shoulder press 40kg dumbbells 8,6,5,5,5 Deadlift double overhand grip 80kg 5 100kg 5 170kg 5 180kg 5