3 Week Cycle Log

Pharma / TRT
61

20 March 2014
Thursday
Weight - 224

1A. Band Pull Apart - 20, 20; Motorcycle Row - 170 x 10, 180 x 10, 190 x 10, 200 x 10;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 170 x 5, 205 x 3 / 255 x 5, 290 x 3, 325 x 2 / 340 x 1 / 255 x 9-3-1;
2A. 1-Arm Cable Row - 130 x 10, 10, 10, 10;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 65 x 12, 12, 12, 12;

Felt good and strong, but was just wiped out by the end. Also didn’t want to irritate my lumbars the day before deadlifting, so I skipped the complex at the end. Benching was good, was pretty stoked when I doubled 325. Singled 340 for the first joker, but it was a slow grinder and I just wasn’t feeling 355, so I skipped it. Dropped down and knocked out the rest-pause cluster instead of trying 355 and possibly hurting myself.

Moved on to my accessory stuff, getting four sets of 12 with the 65s on incline. Since I got that, planning on going up to 70s next week.

62

21 March 2014
Friday
Weight - 224

Snatch Grip High Pull from Hang - 195 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
Deadlift - 185 x 5, 230 x 5, 275 x 3 / 345 x 5, 390 x 3, 435 x 3 / 460 x 1 / 345 x 8;
Reverse Crunch - 16# med ball x 12, 12, 12;

Cranked through the high pulls pretty quick, before moving on to deadlifts. Moved through those fairly quickly as well, at least the first few sets. Slowed down as the weights got heavier. Tripled 435, then took a few minutes before moving on to the Jokers. Got 460, but it was a slow grinder and felt like I was bordering on poor form, so I skipped the 485 joker set and stripped weight for the drop set. Stopped at 8 reps since I was just feeling worn out. Used the work gym, so I was limited on something to do for direct quad work. Since I was feeling worn down and beat up, I took it as an excuse to stop there. Did a few sets of reverse crunches, and called it a day.

Have been feeling kind of beat up overall the last few weeks, so I am rolling back my TMs on some moves, and keeping the rest where they are. I want to take a full week completely off from lifting, but now isn’t a good time - don’t want to lose what progress I’ve made through the last few cycles.

63

Week 4 - First PCT Week
3 x 5 Week

24 March 2014
Monday
Weight - 222 Stayed at 224 for basically the entire last week, then dropped a couple pounds over the weekend, from not eating as much as I had been. Didn’t think I was too active, but apparently was enough to drop the lbs.

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 50 x 5, 60 x 5, 70 x 3 / 80 x 5, 90 x 5, 100 x 5 / 110 x 1, 115 x 1 / 80 x 6-2-1;
1B. Military Press - X, 65 x 10, 80 x 5, 95 x 3 / 100 x 5, 115 x 5, 130 x 7 / 140 x 5, 150 x 1 / 100 x 12-6-4;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - 10, 10, 10; 1 Arm Pulldown - 130 x 10, 10;
2B. Lateral Raise - 35 x 10, 10, 10, 10;
100 Rep Complex - 53# - 3:10

Left my pullup TM where it was again, but dropped the military press max down 10 pounds. With the lighter weight I was able to push harder, and get more reps. Pullup performance stayed almost exactly the same, so I’m now thinking I should have dropped that one back as well. I’ve never done very well on 3x5 week for these though, due to the weight.

Cranked through the accessory stuff, then took a few minutes to refresh before doing the complex. Changed up how I did that a little bit, trying to find a system where it didn’t impact my lower back as much. I’ve been going through the line up twice on each hand before switching (swing-snatch-clean-squat-press, then repeat before switching hands). Today, I did 2 of each move before going to the next one in the lineup, so swing-swing-snatch-snatch-etc. Seemed to be a little more efficient and move a bit faster, but hard to say. Lower back still started to tighten up toward the end.

Stayed at 221-222 for several days, followed by several at 224, then dropped 2 over the weekend. Did my dexascan again today, it shows me as gaining 3.5 lbs lean mass while dropping 1.5 lbs fat. This was over the course of 20 days, since I did the scan a few days before starting. I also may have skewed it by doing the first one after working out instead of before - if the muscles are even slightly dehydrated, then it appears on the scan as less lean mass. Doing the first one after working out also meant more fluid and calorie intake - 4 eggs scrambled for breakfast, followed by a scoop each of whey and Glycofuse, and 750ml of water with 4 scoops of BCAA (20g). First one showed me at 224.6, when I weighed 215.5 that morning straight out of bed. Today I weighed 222 straight out of bed, and the scan showed total mass at 226.4.

Want to lean out before next cycle, but working out what diet to use. I’ve used a rather extreme one in the past that worked well and actually wasn’t hard to do - every 2 hours I would drink either 50g protein or 10g (I think?) BCAA, alternating all day. Then I would eat basically whatever for dinner. Did this on a South American ‘business trip’, and didn’t have access to a scale during that time, so I don’t know how much I lost. But I was noticeably leaner. I was also dropping down from 20% BF, which horrified me when I saw the numbers. After getting back (and being off the ‘diet’ for at least a couple weeks) I measured at 13% using the same Bod Pod I did before the trip. So I know it works, just deciding if I want to do that while at home. I am currently at 16% BF, so I want to drop that down a little, while also leaving room to grow again with the next cycle.

I am thinking I will increase my dosages next cycle since I can play with individual levels now, and dropping some weight will allow me to jump back up without having to buy new clothes (I am close to that limit now on certain things). Current doses have been 50mg/day of prop, mast, and tren. I did 75mg/day the first two days of this last one, but then went back to 50mg/day for the rest. Next one, I am thinking the following:

100mg/day tren ace
75mg/day test prop
75mg/day mast prop

Feel free to comment on those prospective numbers, as I still have several weeks before hitting it again. My current total for the cycles has been 1950mg for the first one, and 2100 for the second. This one would put me at 3250mg for the whole cycle. Decent jump and quite a bit, but for such a short cycle it shouldn’t be a problem. Unless I am missing something?

64

Bigger is definitely better on short runs. Dosages are fine.

65

juice - kind of what I was thinking, though like anything there is a point of diminishing returns. Wasn’t sure if doing this would put me over, but due to individuality, guess there’s only one way to find out.

66

25 March 2014
Weight - 222

1A. Squat - 185 x 5, 230 x 5, 275 x 3 / 300 x 5, 345 x 5, 390 x 7 / 415 x 5, 435 x 1 / 300 x 10;
1B. Box Jump - 41.5" x 3, 3, 3;
Snatch Grip High Pull from Pins - 205 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
Front Squat - 140 x 10, 175 x 5, 210 x 3 / 225 x 5, 265 x 5, 295 x 6 / 315 x 1, 335 x 1 / 225 x 10;
Ab Wheel - 12, 12, 12;

Rolled my squat training max back 30 pounds, to 460. The jokers over 500 were just kicking my ass, and I was having trouble getting to parallel even in the high 400s. So my plan is to drop back a few steps and work technique and depth. An old trick I learned in high school when I first started lifting at the local Y - one of the older guys would string a bungee cord across the squat rack when he was squatting. He would set the cord so his depth was below parallel, hitting his thighs at the bottom of each rep. I’ve used this off and on for years, and decided to pull it back out of the toolbox. I tried using this a few weeks back - this was how I figured I wasn’t going deep enough (that and video). So today’s weights are a little lighter than last weeks, by design.

Shoulder has been giving me some minor problems, to the point that it takes a few sets of forcing myself under the bar before it loosens up enough that it isn’t painful. Odd thing is I can bench, pullup, row, and overhead press (and do lateral raises) pain free, but getting into that position aggravates it. Planning on getting evaluated soon.

Squats felt good though, since I lowered the weight. Supersetted with box jumps, but only for the warm up sets. I do the explosive high pulls after squatting, and am not sure how the two of them are mixing volume-wise. Shouldn’t be an issue, but who knows. And I was just being a little lazy by cutting out the last set of jumps. Since I lowered the weight, I increased reps where possible. Wendler says the jokers should be for either that weeks rep count (5 in this case) or singles. I have always just done singles, but having dropped the weight my first joker is now the same weight as my top weight set from three weeks ago (which I did 5 reps at). So I did 5 reps for the first, then just singled the second.

Moved on to the aforementioned high pulls, cranking through them pretty quick. Did 205, so the weight is getting closer to my bodyweight. Still seems to be moving fairly quickly though. Finished those and reset for front squats. Kept the same training max as last 531 cycle, so weights are the same as the last 3 weeks. Tried to increase reps where possible though. Front squats still feel pretty good, though after squatting and everything else before doing these fatigue plays in quite a bit.

Finished up, and hit the ab wheel mixed in with stretching. Decent day, and not too worn out after that.

67

26 March 2014
Wednesday
Weight - 222

HRI - Bike - 10:00 on - 3:00 rest - 10:00 on

Mandatory PT again, but this time the versa climber was part of the workout. Since I couldn’t use it the way I normally do, I did my high resistance stuff on the bike. Haven’t done it that way in quite a while, and the quads were screaming. VMO was tightening up something fierce. When I hopped off after the first ten, I spent a good portion of my rest period stretching the quads. Did another work period, and called it. Didn’t want to completely fry my legs, since part of the point of doing these is to refresh them after doing a heavy leg workout, so I stopped after two instead of doing the third. Plus my knees were starting to ache from the bike (and guessing at least partially from the pump in the VMOs).

68

27 March 2014
Thursday
Weight - 222

1A. Band Pull Apart - 20, 20; Motorcycle Row - 175 x 10, 185 x 10, 195 x 10, 205 x 10;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 165 x 5, 200 x 3 / 215 x 5, 250 x 5, 280 x 6 / 295 x 4*, 315 x 1 / 215 x 10-6-3;
2A. 1 Arm Cable Row - 135 x 10, 10, 10, 10;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 70 x 8, 8, 8, 10;

Hit the gym a little later than I wanted, but not too bad. Felt like I was going slow, and kept trying to speed up - didn’t seem to speed up at all. Felt good and strong though, no issues there. Of course, I rolled my bench training max back as well, so that probably contributed.

Cranked through the main bench stuff pretty good, hitting all my numbers. Got 6 at 280 - if someone had told me a few years ago I’d be repping 280, I wouldn’t have believed it. It’s been a gradual climb to get there, it’s not like I started eating pills and walked in one day able to do this. That’s what I love about 531 - it’s a good solid program, enabling you to make steady progress over a long period of time. Do I think I am gaining some strength assistance even on the short cycles I am doing? Absolutely. But I am not watching my bench or squat jump up 30+ pounds over the course of a cycle, only to lose it when I come off. And I only rolled my TM back 10 pounds, since I was getting to a point where the joker sets were untenable. I felt this was a good way to back off a little, solidify my strength and then progress back up to where I was and beyond.

When I went for the first joker set at 295, I decided to go for 5 (this weeks rep standard). I did 290 for 5 at the beginning of the last lifting cycle 3 weeks ago, so I figured I was good for 295 x 5. And I would have been, if I hadn’t tagged the hooks on the rack as I descended into rep number five. The bar hit and rebounded toward my waist. I managed to control it and get it to my chest instead of landing on my junk, but rep 5 would have been a grinder anyway, if I had come down in my groove. Since I was way outside it and fatigued, I settled onto my chest and paused. Started to push, and could tell it was going to be one of those super ugly, elbows-flaring, butt-arching sloppy sets just begging for an excuse to strain or tear something. So I called for help, and a couple guys nearby grabbed the bar and helped me back up. Had a minor twinge in my right lumber after that, but it went away shortly after I finished my accessory stuff.

Speaking of accessory, I moved up to the 70s for incline, dropping my reps to 8 in accordance with the prophecy. The last set, I was feeling good, so I went ahead and cranked out 10. Wasn’t too hard either, should be able to get most of my sets at 10 next week.

69

28 March 2014
Friday
Weight - 221

Snatch Grip High Pull from Hang - 195 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
Deadlift - 185 x 5, 230 x 5, 275 x 3, 315 x 3 / 345 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5;
A. Dip - BW x 10, 75 x 8, 8, 100 x 4, 4, 125 x 3, 3;
B. Screw Curl - 45 x 8, 8, 55 x 4, 4, 65 x 3, 3;

Bit of a change-up today. Started with my normal high pulls and then moved into deadlifts, but changed the rep scheme. I’ve been feeling kind of beat up lately, and thinking it may be due to heavy squatting and heavy deadlifting in the same week. So, starting today, I am changing my deadlift numbers. Instead of following the 531 percentages, I took the first set from last week (345 x 5), and did a 5x5 with it. My plan is to do this every week, using a slightly lighter weight than I would following 531. Each week I will add 5 pounds, and stay with the 5x5 scheme for as long as I can. If I get to where I feel that is too much volume, I may drop it to 4x5 or even 3x5. Periodically in the future I may switch back and do a 531 cycle with deads, but for the foreseeable future this is my plan. 345 x 5 x 5 felt like a good starting point: decent weight but not real heavy. Did all five sets double overhand grip, which should help continue to strengthen my grip.

After deads I switched to dips and curls, going through the double drop pyramid scheme I usually use. Today felt good all the way around, though I seemed to feel a lack of urgency or drive, and so most of it was almost on auto-pilot. Still got done in under an hour, so I wasn’t cruising too much.

70

3 x 3 Week
Week 2 of PCT
31 March 2014
Monday
Weight - 223 (clothed, at the gym, after pre-workout shake)

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 50 x 5, 60 x 5, 70 x 3 / 85 x 3, 95 x 3, 110 x 4 / 115 x 1, 120 x 1 / 85 x 5-3-2;
1B. Military Press - X, 65 x 10, 80 x 5, 95 x 3 / 110 x 3, 125 x 3, 140 x 6 / 150 x 1, 155 x 1 / 110 x 10-5-3;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - 10, 10, 10; 1 Arm Pulldown - 135 x 10, 10;
2B. Lateral Raise - 35 x 10, 10, 10, 10;
Complex - 100 Rep KB / 1K Row / 100 Rep KB - 4:04(100), 4:13 Row, 5:00(100); Total - 16:20

So a short trip got dumped on me last minute, so I spent all day yesterday traveling. Slept in a little, then hit the gym. Felt like I was moving along fairly well, but main lifts took over 40 minutes when I usually complete them in about 30 or less. Was pretty happy with the numbers still, especially considering the elevation. Took a short break, then hit the accessory stuff. Followed that with another short break, and then jumped into my complex.

Wanted to get more done conditioning wise than just the typical 100-rep and done, but wasn’t sure how the lower back would respond. It’s been tightening up on me pretty good by the end of the 100 reps in the last few weeks. However, apparently deadlifting 5x5 at a lower weight was the right answer, because I did the 100 rep complex with nary a complaint by the lumbars. Took a short breather (under a minute) and then hopped on the C2 rower. Cranked out 1K, then did the 100 rep again. I was playing with the breakdown, which in combination with fatigue led to the 5:00 complex time. Rest was taken basically as needed, so I rested about 3 minutes total throughout the three events - most of that was after the row.

This was day one of my second week of PCT - 20mg/day of Nolva. Also taking 12.5mg EOD of aromasin. Might drop that here shortly though, not sure if I really need it at this point.

71

01 April 2014
Tuesday
Weight - 220 (clothed at the gym after pre-workout shake)

Squat - 185 x 5, 230 x 5, 275 x 3 / 320 x 3, 370 x 3, 415 x 6 / 435 x 1, 460 x 1 / 320 x 10;
Snatch Grip High Pull from Pins - 210 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
Front Squat - 140 x 10, 175 x 5, 210 x 3 / 245 x 3, 280 x 3, 315 x 5 / 335 x 1, 350 x 1 / 245 x 10;

Still on travel, today is the day I fly back but I wanted to get my squats in. Hit it kind of early since we had to get to the airport. Felt good, but I am so used to just doing singles on the Jokers (all I could do on the way up to where I was) that I forgot to go for 3 at 435 (which was my plan after dropping my TM). Oh well. Finished those, feeling solid. Haven’t used the bungee in so long, I am digging the feedback from it. If I don’t feel it hit my hammies, I know I didn’t hit depth.

Cranked through the high pulls, like always. That’s one exercise that I have to force myself to rest more than 30 seconds. I hit a set, rack it, grab a sip of water (if necessary), log it, and I want to grab the bar right away and do another. As I was logging the actual workout numbers right before writing this, it occurred to me that in a few weeks I’ll be doing these with my bodyweight. Kinda cool to think about.

Finished pulls and hit my front squats, definitely a tie for favorite exercise with squats. Thought I was moving fairly quickly, but all the squat sets took about 40 minutes, where I am usually done with my main lift in 20-30. Whatever, still got all my work done. Front squats felt solid, no issues. Finished those, and got the hell out. Got back to my room and realized I screwed up my timeline. Showered and packed real quick, then hit the road for the airport. We got there right as boarding was starting, but still had to put gas in the rental and turn it in before checking in. No way that would happen, so we rescheduled our flight and ended up taking the red eye home. Easier transition back to local time, but still shitty.

72

03 April 2014
Thursday
Weight - 218

1A. Band Pull Apart - 20, 20; Motorcycle Row - 180 x 10, 190 x 10, 200 x 10, 210 x 10;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 165 x 5, 200 x 3 / 230 x 3, 265 x 3, 295 x 4 / 315 x 1, 330 x 1 / 230 x 10-5-2;
2A. 1 Arm Cable Row - 140 x 10, 10, 10;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 70 x 10, 10, 10;

Don’t know if it was the bar or what, but my wrists felt odd on several of the bench sets today. Like I couldn’t find the balance point without just letting my wrists lay all the way back. Wasn’t too bad, still got the numbers I wanted (mostly). I wanted 5 at 295, but 4 was a real grinder so I called it. Didn’t try 315 x 3, again because I wasn’t feeling it, instead just did the singles. Rest-pause cluster felt good, it’s always satisfying (at least for me) when I can rep out 225+ like that.

Moved to accessories, going into a bit of a time crunch. I had a PT appointment at 11 for my shoulder (bicep tendonitis/impingement), and ended up getting there a couple minutes late even with dropping a superset. Got 3 sets of 10 with the 70s, and then went and was given a bunch of rehab exercises to do for my shoulders. Also had iontophoresis done, to see if it helps. I can lift pain free (mostly) and he didn’t tell me not to, so I shall continue to lift through this little rehab period. When it first started bothering me a few months ago, I took a week off and it got worse, then got better when I went back to lifting. So apparently lifting isn’t causing (too much of) an issue.

73

04 April 2014
Friday
Weight - 219

Snatch Grip Hang High Pull - 200 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
Deadlift - 185 x 5, 225 x 5, 275 x 5, 315 x 3, 350 x 5, 5, 5, 5, 5;
A. Dip - BW x 10, 75 x 8; Close Grip Bench - 185 x 8, 205 x 4, 4, 215 x 3, 3;
B. Screw Curl - 45 x 8, 8, 55 x 4, 4, 60 x 3, 3;

Didn’t realize how far behind I had gotten on my log. Since this was over a week ago, not much to say about it. I did the bodyweight dips as a warm up and to test how my shoulder was feeling. Felt fine, so I loaded up and did 75 for 8. Shoulder was not fine after that, so I switched to close grip bench on the next set. Like I said, not much else to say about the rest.

74

531 Week
07 April 2014
Monday
Weight - 218

1A. Pullup - BW x 10, 50 x 5, 60 x 5, 70 x 3 / 90 x 5, 100 x 3, 115 x 2 / 115 x 1, 115 x 1 / 90 x 6-2-0;
1B. Military Press - X, 65 x 10, 80 x 5, 95 x 3 / 115 x 5, 130 x 3, 145 x 4 / 155 x 1, 165 x 1 / 115 x 10-5-2;
2A. Neutral Grip Pullup - 10, 10, 10; 1 Arm Pulldown - 140 x 10, 10;
2B. Lateral Raise - 35 x 10, 10, 10, 10;

Was pretty happy with today overall. Barely got the two at 115 on my top work set (second rep might have been a little low), so instead of trying for heavier, I did my two ‘Jokers’ at the same weight. I did two more singles, concentrating on proper form and making sure my chin was over the bar. Military press felt great, cranking our 4 reps at 145 and hitting a single at 165.

75

08 April 2014
Tuesday
Weight - 218

1A. Squat - 185 x 5, 230 x 5, 275 x 3 / 345 x 5, 390 x 3, 435 x 4 / 460 x 2, 485 x 1 / 345 x 10;
1B. Box Jump - 41.5" x 3, 3, 3;
Snatch Grip High Pull from Pins - 215 x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3;
Front Squat - 140 x 10, 175 x 5, 210 x 3 / 265 x 5, 300 x 3, 335 x 2 / 350 x 1, 370 x 1 / 265 x 10;
A. Ab Wheel - 10, 10;
B. Reverse Crunch - 20#MB x 10, 10;

As part of my recovering depth project, I have been setting up the bungee for all of my squatting. Definitely seems to be helping, since I can easily tell whether I am getting my depth or not - the bungee either hits my ass/hamstrings or it doesn’t. Have found I have to really stretch it out and make it super tight so I can feel it, otherwise it gives too easily.

Was real happy with front squats today, especially after hitting a single at 370. I don’t think I’ve ever video’d my front squats before, I may have to do that soon as a form check. I was pretty stoked at hitting 370, what with setting a goal of front squatting 405 by the end of the summer. We may have a very busy summer though, so I may or may not hit it by then. September 30 is a landmark date for me, I’ll use that as a back-up goal line if I don’t hit it by the end of summer due to traveling with the family.

Meant to try something different with ab training this week, but then I never made it to the gym Friday or Saturday - skipped Friday because I was finishing up the wife’s truck, and skipped Saturday because I got out of the house a little late and when I got to the shipyard gym the weight room was closed so they could clean the mold off the walls. I could have headed to the hospital gym, but due to the late start I just headed home to get some other stuff done before our busy afternoon/evening began. Anyway, plan was to superset the ab wheel and reverse crunches on one lower body day (which I did) and then do cable twists on the other (this obviously didn’t happen - maybe next week).

76

09 April 2014
Wednesday
Weight - 218

Command PT Day! Yay us!

Versa climber - 2 x 15:00 high resistance climbing/3:00ish minute rest in between

Showed up for command pt, did the warm-up/mobility part with the group, then went upstairs to hit the versa. The pt sessions typically interfere with my program, so I skip them. Chain of command hasn’t said anything yet, but not sure if they will at some point. Talked to the HP guys about it, and they are cool with me doing what I have been. So I shall continue.

77

10 April 2014
Thursday
Weight - 219

1A. Band Pull Apart - 20, 20; MX Row - 180 x 10, 190 x 10, 200 x 10, 210 x 10;
1B. Bench - 135 x 10, 165 x 5, 200 x 3 / 250 x 5, 280 x 3, 315 x 3 / 330 x 1, 345 x 1 / 250 x 8-4-1;
KB Stability Bench - 2 x 24kg KB = 150 x 10, 8;
2A. 1 Arm Cable Row - 140 x 10, 10, 10, 10;
2B. Incline DB Bench - 70 x 10, 10, 10, 9;

I’ve been lifting for quite a few years now, and I’ve obviously worked up to the weights I am using now. Contrary to popular belief and what the media would have you believe, you don’t just stick a needle in your butt and then go squat 800 for reps (I know, preaching to the choir). My point is, I’ve been writing down these numbers and then going and lifting them, but every now and then I actually LOOK at what I have written down and it occurs to me where I am. If you had told me just a few years ago that I’d be lifting some of these weight/rep combos, I wouldn’t have believed you.

Pretty solid day today. Was pretty stoked to get 315 x 3, but I jumped the gun a little and dove right into the bench set without doing the rows before. Not a real issue, just did them after the set was done, and then set up for the jokers. A big bench has been my nemesis for years. Every time I would start to make some good progress in the bench (ie, singling above 315), something would happen and I would lose that progress. Pretty happy to be where I am, and continuing to make progress.

Moved on to the KB stability bench. Got this one from Craig Weller, another boatguy who’s on here. Take two equal size KBs, double up a pair of bands and pass them through the handle. Gather all the loops you made together, and then hang it on one end of the bar. Do the same for the other side, and you are set. The big thick heavy bands work the best for this, although the next couple sizes down will work as well - just a little bouncier. Set up like a normal bench, unrack and rep it out. The hanging weight and the action of the bands makes for some interesting movement on the bar. Don’t go too heavy with these at first, definitely start light until you are used to the movement - it’s pretty crazy. I tried this as part of my warmup a couple times, but when I transitioned to stable weights on the bar I was still trying to compensate for the bar movement and was jerking all over the place. Doing this after your work sets seems to work better.

Moved on, hitting 1 arm rows and inclines. These were going good, but on the final set of inclines, I was just pooped out. Managed to grind out 9, but think I might have irritated my shoulder if I had tried to grind out number 10.

As I stated in an earlier post, I skipped the gym on Friday so I could finish the wife’s truck, and then I screwed myself on Saturday so no deadlifting this week. Next week is a deload, and I may try to get some good conditioning work in as well. Kicking around the idea of either two weeks deload and conditioning, or one of that and then another of just conditioning before starting my next lifting cycle.

I’m a couple weeks out from the last short cycle with the stuff I have on hand, and i might extend it out a little, like another 1-2 weeks. Haven’t decided yet, still playing with the numbers of the stuff I have. After that cycle though, I will probably draw this log to a close.

78

Deload and Conditioning Week
14 April 2014
Monday
Weight - 220

Fran - 5:40
A. Pullup - 50 x 5, 5, 5;
B. Military Press - 95 x 5, 5, 110 x 5;
MetCon -
KB Swing 10 x LH - 90# sled push 30 yd - KB swing 10 x RH - sled push - KB snatch 10 x LH - sled drag - KB snatch 10 x RH - sled drag - KB swing 10 x LH - sled drag - KB swing 10 x RH - sled drag - KB snatch 10 x LH - sled drag - KB snatch 10 x RH
Time = 11:45

Today was a ball buster, but that was what I was looking for. I’ve been concerned about my conditioning lately, though it is probably not as bad as I am thinking it is. Was going to do the full prescribed deload for pullups and military press, but decided to do Fran instead. Even with a 5+ minute break after that, those 50# pullups felt more like 100. Just wanted to get some weighted work in, even with the volume of Fran.

After finishing those, I rested a few minutes again and then went outside to the turf field. I put a 53# KB at each end, and then loaded a sled with 90#. I started off pushing, but my thighs were burning partway through the second push - so I set up a belt and strap and did the drag instead of pushing. This was fairly short (under 12:00), but really sucked. In a good way.

In addition to the deload/conditioning, I am also doing my BCAA/protein diet this week. Basically, I drink 10g BCAA, wait about 30 minutes and drink 50g of protein. Wait about 3 hours, and repeat. Prior to hitting the gym I drink my normal pre-workout shake, which is 24g whey protein, 25g ‘advanced’ carbs, and 5g creatine. Other than that, it is just the trace carbs in the protein I use. I do that routine four times during the day, and then eat dinner. Sounds sucky, but it’s really not too bad. Most of the time.

79

15 April 2014
Tuesday
Weight - 218.5

Squat - 185 x 5, 5, 230 x 5, 275 x 5, 320 x 5;
Snatch Grip High Pull from Pins - 215 x 3, 3, 3, 3;
Front Squat - 140 x 10, 5, 175 x 5, 210 x 5, 245 x 5;
A. Ab Wheel - 10, 10, 10;
B. Reverse Crunch - 20#MB x 10, 10, 10;
Conditioning - The Bear - 135 #
power clean from floor - front squat - push press to back - back squat - push press to front - drop bar = 1 rep
20:00 on the clock, AMRAP rest as needed
Total reps - 35

The actual lifting part today went good. Can’t exactly get stoked about repping weights well below my max. The Bear, though. The Bear sucks. I’ve done it before, but it’s been literally years since I did. This was a good wake up call, as well as some good conditioning. Our gym is pretty much always kind of warm, so they sometimes leave the doors open to the outside. Since it was raining most of the day, that made for one hell of a humid gym. I was sweating worse than I should have been, considering it is a deload. And by the time I finished The Bear, my shirt was soaked and I was dripping. Haven’t gotten like that in quite some time, felt pretty good.

80

So I think I’ve lined out my next cycle, using what I have left on hand. It’s kind of convoluted, but I’ll see if I can make it make sense:

Day 1-6 Test Prop 100mg ED/aromasin 25mg Day 1, then 12.5mg E3D days 4-24
Day 7&8 Test Prop 50mg/ED
Days 9-14 Test Prop 50mg/Mast Prop 50 mg ED
Days 15-24 1ml Cut Stack (test prop 50mg/mast prop 50mg/tren ace 50mg) ED
Days 25-37 test prop 25mg ED/mast prop 75mg ED/tren ace 100mg ED

I know it looks odd, but I am just trying to use up what I have left. Little longer than 2-3 weeks obviously. Might shorten aromasin to EOD, haven’t decided yet. Nolvadex for PCT starting a few days after last injection. I’ve been waiting two days after last injection on my shorties, but I may wait a little longer since these doses will keep my levels higher. Plenty of time to do some research on what works best.

I’m expecting some flaming, but if you have something constructive to add, please feel free. My main concern is the third week when I add the tren. Test levels will be high as tren levels climb, with tren not passing test until day 3 or 4 of week 4 - test will be higher than tren for a good week and a half before they cross. Tren then stays higher than both test and mast for a full two weeks after that, at which point I will have finished my injections and all levels will be falling, which will take about two weeks for all of them to fall back to zero (I ran them individually through a roid calculator, and then graphed it all together through Word - yes, I was bored).