Caesium32's Log - Cycling With a Side of Lifting

14/02/17 5/3/1 W4D1

Squat (TM-85) superset with neutral grip chins:
20x10, 30x10, 40x5, 55x5, 65x5, 72.5x12 (PR), 55x20
Total of 18 chins

Beat my PR from two weeks ago by two reps and again could have probably gotten at least two more. I’ve noticed in my 20 rep sets that the hardest reps are 10-15 so I might be able to hit 72.5kg for 20 pretty soon. Did a lot of slow and pause squats to warm up and I think as a consequence I felt the work sets in my quads a lot more than usual. The PR set didn’t feel too hard but I noticed I was pitching forward a bit much so I might have to review my technique next week.

One thing I’ve noticed for the last few weeks that could be related to technique is only the left side of my lower and mid back is getting really pumped from the hard squat sets. I’m thinking I favour one side so I might replace the ab work with single leg work at some time to see how things go.

I started adding in some sets of three chins and they felt easy. I think I might try being a bit more aggressive with them the next few weeks and aim for 30 something reps in my press workout providing my arms don’t hate me.

Crunch machine (50 reps):
15x20, 20, 10

Lat pull-down (50 reps with chins):
45x11,12, 9

Single arm kettlebell press:
12x15, 11, 9 (35 total reps)

I want to work on this to be able to do 50 in three sets. My forearm was hurting a good amount where the kettlebell was resting on it.

Done in about 45 minutes.

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Hey @caesium32 man im back il be following along because as a fellow newby (ur way more experienced then me obviously ) ur doing well by the way

Also head over to my log if u like man

Thank you, I’ve been following your log. I believe the last post on it was me asking where you are.

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Lol yes i took a break from tnation i was pissing off quite a few people so i thought id go learn and stidy some things then come baxk to tnation with less dickhead attitude.

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Just logged in toda

15/02/16 5/3/1 W4D2

Bench press (TM-67.5):
20x10, 30x8, 40x5, 45x5, 50x5, 57.5x5x5

Moved okay, especially the last two sets as usual, just a standard training session.

Incline bench press (50 reps):
35x14, 13, 12, 11

Cable row (50 reps):
20x25, 25x25

Only had 15 minutes until the gym closed after flat benching so I had to get a move on. 20kg was too easy for rows so I bumped the weight up but probably shouldn’t have. The last five reps destroyed my upper back but there was no way I was doing a set of five.
I need to start being a lot more consistent with pull aparts and dislocations. My shoulders and chest are starting to feel a bit stiff when I bench, probably from all the pressing I’m doing.

Some good news though, @brady888 was kind enough to send me some squat shoes completely free and they came today. They fit well and I’m really excited to use them. Not only did he send those but he threw in some eliteFTS wrist wraps too which will definitely come in handy as I start benching heavier weights. I’ve already thanked him personally but I just wanted to publicly say how grateful I am. T Nation is really a great place.

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Nice man uv made good progress

17/02/17 5/3/1 W4D3

Deadlift (TM-105):
20x10, 60x10x2, 70x5, 80x5, 90x6, 70x5x4, 70x7

Didn’t feel very strong today. I was moving very slow and 90kg just felt a grind so I didn’t go for a PR. I noticed I’ve started pumping my legs a bit before each rep which seems to make me more explosive but I also noticed on at least a couple reps it kicked the bar forward as it left the floor.
I slowed the last few sets down and experimented a bit with my shin angle. I got a huge lower back pump again from the first three sets which I’d like to avoid. I think a bit of technique work will really help me start the lift which is where I’m slowest.

Push ups superset with kettlebell swings (50 reps) and band pull aparts (100 reps):
x10, 15, 12, 12, 20 (69 reps PR)/ 10x10x5/ x33, 25, 22, 20

I had an exam today so I had to go to the gym later when it is really busy. There was no room in the space used to do floor stuff or the dumbbell area to do rows so I went into the dance studio where they store a few kettlebells and stuff. Despite being surrounded by lots of girls either on their phones or doing weird exercises in unison I got a pretty good workout.
I’m going to work on doing more reps of push ups in five sets to hopefully reach 100 soon, I think I mentioned this a while ago. The kettlebell swings weren’t as taxing on my lower body as I thought. The band pull aparts were difficult, my upper back got really pumped.

BW yesterday: 86.0kg
Probably because I’ve got a bit crazy with my diet the last few days but it’s not too big of an increase so I’m happy. I’m going to rework my diet based on the ‘stay strong while dieting’ article but in a surplus. I’ll post about it separately later.

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Decided I may as well sort my diet out now. I’ve reread the article and worked out the numbers, it’s linked for reference.

Using a body weight of 86kg/189lbs I’ve set my calories at 16x that to get a total of 3024. This is basically what I was aiming for anyway and should put me in a small surplus. Macro breakdown is 67g fat, 189g protein and 415g carbs which seems a hell of a lot.

The biggest problem I think is going to be limiting my fat- often I have over 100g and the carbs are between 200-300g. I’m going to cut out fast food and fizzy drinks except one night a week, most likely Friday, when I usually go out. I’ll also be drinking a fair amount of alcohol on this night which is far from ideal but I figure it’s just one of those things and I’m not yet prepared to miss out. I’m only at university once so I’m going to make the most of it even if it means it effects my performance. Perhaps next year things will be different but I’m still doing much better than I did last year when I rarely went out.

I’ve a fair few Tupperware boxes so I’m going to try and prepare some meals of chicken, rice, veggies and sauce for a few days ahead. I’m inspired by the big on a budget with Pete Rubish, if you’ve seen it he makes a nice chicken bowl which I want to try. I’m also going to eat more eggs which I’ve basically never eaten since I got to university.

Finally I’m not sure if it makes a difference but I’ve started taking 15-20g of BCAAs intra workout so I’ll see how that goes.

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What are your goals in terms of physique and bodyweight? Just out of interest. I don’t know if I’ve missed them but do you have any progress pics?

I don’t really have any physique goals other than don’t become too fat, they’re all performance based.

I am thinking of doing a mini cut in a few weeks for a few months though. Would aim to go from high 80s to low 80s/high 70s depending how I feel and look.

I don’t have any pictures unfortunately.

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Diet is difficult to figure out for most people.

Because of the cycing/running/swimming I do I’m never really concerned with calories I just eat as much as I’m hungry.

My advice is to cut the crap. Don’t eat snickers bars, eat a fruit instead. “Dieting” is not really a good thing as you don’t pick up habits: once you’re off of it you’ll just go back to eating icecream !

Eat vegetables every meal
One meal = one fruit (at least)
Carbs are essential and don’t ditch them, you need them to exercice.

My diet relies basically on rice, sweet/normal potatoes, eggs, oats, milk, frozen fruit, yogurt, carrots, kale, peanut butter. (and coffee!) I eat chicken once a week.

I take one scoop of protein powder on the days I workout and that’s it !

To make your rice taste better put pesto in it. I prepare my lunches too and it’s basically rice, veggies, cheese and pesto.

Avoid processed foods, buy whole foods and prepare them yourself.

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Thank you posts like that are always helpful for me, I’ll refer back to it in future.

I started tracking my calories after Christmas because I felt I was getting lazy and not eating enough. I’ve noticed that by always tracking calories and macros of things I’ve become a lot more aware what is and isn’t good to eat but ultimately I need to get into good habits.

I’m currently cooking a chicken, some veg and potatoes in my slow cooker so that’ll give me a few meals. The pesto thing seems like a good idea I’ll definitely try that.

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Here’s three meals I’ve made in my slow cooker to have tomorrow and Monday. Chicken, potatoes, swede and carrots:

Hopefully this is the start of a great diet. I just had the fourth portion for dinner and it was surprisingly filling, I think it’s the potato.

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19/02/17 5/3/1 W4D4

Press (TM-42.5) superset with neutral grip chins:
20x5x2, 27.5x5, 32.5x5, 35x5, 27.5x5, 25x5x9 (paused)
15 total chins

My friend wanted to squat so rather than making him wait 10 sets for the rack I used the fixed barbells again. I figure the pause makes up for it being 2.5kg less and power cleaning it up/reverse curling gives me a bit of extra back and bicep work. Everything felt pretty fast and easy as it should do.

Lat pull down (50 reps with chins):
45x15, 13, 7

This weight feels pretty easy now, I’ll use it as my go to weight instead of 40kg. I did these very slow and strict with different grips.

Horizontal leg press:
70x10, 100x10, 60x20x2

My friend was doing these so I did them instead of the exercise bike stuff. They really pumped up my quads and calves, it’s definitely another exercise to add to the toolbox. I would imagine it’s kind of similar to how pulling a sled would feel in your legs.

I’ve just realised as I’m writing this log I missed out the pressing assistance so I’ll do some push ups in my room and add them on.

Push ups (50 reps):
x10, 10, 10, 10, 10 in 3:00 minutes

Wanted it done as quick as possible so aimed for 50 reps in sets of 10 and timed it. I finished the fourth set around 2:30-2:40 and decided I’d try go under three minutes. Clock was exactly three as I finished the last one. Pleasantly surprised with this.

BW: 86.0kg

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Missed kickboxing again tonight, this is the sixth week of the term and I’ve only been once. Come every Monday evening I just feel drained and don’t feel like going. I think part of it is that I’m genuinely tired and part of it is that I’m just being lazy/don’t want to go. Last week I had exams and a big report to write for today so I’m definitely more stressed and tired than usual but that’s only one week out of five I’ve missed. Funnily I was looking forward to going last night and this morning.

I’m not sure where to go from here with it. One option is to go on a Wednesday night to the advanced class but I’m worried I’ll just enjoy that less if I can’t keep up or I’m just getting run into the ground. Suppose there’s only one way to find out and this will probably be what I do. My other options are to carry on as normal trying to make myself go or just stop completely.

On a more positive note yesterday was the first day following a new diet. Getting 400+g of carbs from good sources is definitely harder than I expected. I had to force a load of blended oats down but I felt a lot more energetic this morning than usual. I also ate either fruit or veg with every meal.

I’ve been thinking about my training after this cycle and I think I’ve got most of it figured out well into next summer which I’ll post later.

EDIT: Also I don’t know if it’s just in my head but I feel like I look leaner and my jeans are a little looser around my waist this past week which is strange considering I’ve gained weight and my calories have been high.

EDIT 2: I also just realised I haven’t post a week four summary. I’ll make some food then do post that too.

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WEEK 4 SUMMARY

Training:
Set another fairly easy PR for squat and got all my reps okay for the pressing but I had a bit of a bad day for deadlift. Overall I’d say it’s been an average training week. Missed kickboxing and didn’t go for a run either so cardio sorta stuff was down.

Diet:
Average calories were 3102 and protein was 180g. I went a bit wild earlier in the week which bumped the calories up a far bit but it wasn’t all particularly high in protein. Average body weight was 86.0kg which is a 0.6kg increase from previous three weeks so I’m happy I got the ball rolling even if the calorie sources weren’t the best. As mentioned before I’m now trying to be a bit more strict to see how it is and develop some habits so I’ll start logging my average fat and carbs too. Vitamins and fish oil went well and I had BCAAs during each workout. Went out on Friday night and had some alcohol and then two pints of beer on Saturday.

Other:
Did a bit of mobility work one day and a lot more band dislocations and pull aparts due to my chest feeling tight. Other than that not much else, I’ve got a lot of work this week and last week so I’ve been a bit tired.

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21/02/17 5/3/1 W5D1

Bench press (TM-67.5):
20x10, 30x5, 40x5, 50x5, 55x5, 60x5x5

The first few sets of 60kg felt the hardest they have in a while, I’m going to put it down to a lack of sleep. I’ve not really noticed myself getting much less sleep but I’ve been really tired these last two days- when I got home this afternoon I fell straight asleep for an hour and a half.
I was going to squat today but both racks were being used and I’m glad I did because bench day is usually easier. I had oly shoes on and I felt like they helped me with my leg drive a fair bit.
I didn’t feel any of the tightness in my chest I felt last week so the extra band stuff must of helped, I need to keep it up.

Cable row (50 reps):
30x15, 14, 10, 11

Chest press (50 reps):
30x20, 35x15, 15

Exercise bike: 30s on/ 30s off x3

I’m going home again this weekend so won’t have access to the gym Friday, Saturday or Sunday. I’ll do squat tomorrow and press the day after and then deadlift next Monday.

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Attempted to squat but the gym was just unbelievably packed and it was closing soon so I left. It’s just a gamble whether you’re gonna be able to do what you want or not.

Tomorrow I’m going to have to try and fit pressing and squatting in the same workout. I’ll do some extra back stuff with bands tonight then tomorrow do squats, presses and then back.

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