Critique My Cut

Currently I’m doing a basic upper/lower split powerbuilding routine, 5/3/1 with assistance work for weakness and conditioning 2-4 days per week. I’m going to keep doing this, with appropriately high protein/kcal’s within a loose carb cycling plan, driving poundages up as much as possible for the next 11-12 weeks until April.

then

4 weeks:

Squat 5/3/1
tabata

OHP 5/3/1
assistance
metabolic work with kettlebells

Deadlift 5/3/1
tabata

Floor Press 5/3/1
assistance work
metabolic work with kettlebells

For nutrition I’ll stay with the carb cycling approach, tighten it up, drop calories while keeping protein high.

next 4 weeks:
same setup, except ESW will consist of 30-60 minutes of steady state (probably elliptical, maybe treadmill [this means I’m dropping tabatas in favor of regular assistance work]). Diet will be strict low-cal, low-carb, high protein. My rationale for the change in ESW is since I’ll be dropping almost all carbs I won’t have any glycogen => no fuel for glycolytic energy system => no sense in losing my hard earned muscle to gluconeogenesis.

I’m pretty confident in this setup, I just want to run it past you guys to see if I’m maybe overlooking something. Thanks for any help you can give a fat guy trying to see his abs for once.

I’d like much more a set uo like this:

Dl 5/3/1

BP 5/3/1

Squat 5/3/1

OHP 5/3/1

and why the fuck would you want to do Tabata training the same day you train your legs??? And i’d start with steady cardio and THEN add tabatas when you stall, not begining with tabatas and then dropping them.

How much do you have to lose??

A succesful cut is more like 89% diet and 11% training (maybe not exactly).

Good luck

[quote]tuchavito wrote:
I’d like much more a set uo like this:

Dl 5/3/1

BP 5/3/1

Squat 5/3/1

OHP 5/3/1

So you’re saying don’t do any assistance work? Just 4 work sets a week?

and why the fuck would you want to do Tabata training the same day you train your legs??? And i’d start with steady cardio and THEN add tabatas when you stall, not begining with tabatas and then dropping them.

How much do you have to lose??

A succesful cut is more like 89% diet and 11% training (maybe not exactly).

Good luck[/quote]

Tabata front squats (sorry I forgot to add the specific exercise in there) would be done on leg days because they are a leg exercise. It’s not like I need to juice to be able to recover from 1 work set then some tabatas.

I’m 270 at 6’3", I have about 20 pounds to lose, maybe more depending on how I look and feel. But my goal is 20 pounds of fat over the 8 weeks.

well then those are not real tabatas ;).

Plan looks great, and if there are only 20 to lose i think you’ll succed easily.

I’ve had great succes by spliting exercise in 2 sessions through a day, in stead of doing weights + cardio, i lift in the morning and do whatever cardio i do in the night (it allows me to train with more intensity and i nump my metabolism twice a day.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Great training selection. 5/3/1 is a great template for fat loss while maintaining strength in my opinion. As for fat loss, that is in very large part contingent upon your diet being totally down which it seems that you have with carb cycling. There are a few options with cardio. I would regardless do at least 45-60 minutes of steady state cardio 2-3 times a week and more if needed. You could following your 5/3/1 exercise do a circuit of exercises to boost fat loss as well. This is something that I would definitely do if I were trying to lose fat with 5/3/1.

[quote]tuchavito wrote:
well then those are not real tabatas ;).
[/quote]

What is a real tabata?

[quote]theuofh wrote:

[quote]tuchavito wrote:
well then those are not real tabatas ;).
[/quote]

What is a real tabata?[/quote]

i should have typed some " " on there, also notice the smiley.

i was just thinking that it would not be a good idea doing more work than just the tabatas in the same session (at least i couldn’t).

I agree that tabatas are pretty tough, but is only about 4 minutes of work depending on how long you go.

Personally, I would add some more assistance work to make up for the low volume of 5-3-1. I think a couple sets of good mornings or bulgarian split squats or something w/ body building rep ranges and shorter, strict rests or some kind of circuit as ebomb suggested would be manageable before finishing w/ the tabatas and not overdoing it at all.

[quote]ebomb5522 wrote:
You could following your 5/3/1 exercise do a circuit of exercises to boost fat loss as well. This is something that I would definitely do if I were trying to lose fat with 5/3/1. [/quote]

Could you give me some examples please? I’ve got some in mind but would love to hear some other ideas.

[quote]voodoo chile wrote:

[quote]ebomb5522 wrote:
You could following your 5/3/1 exercise do a circuit of exercises to boost fat loss as well. This is something that I would definitely do if I were trying to lose fat with 5/3/1. [/quote]

Could you give me some examples please? I’ve got some in mind but would love to hear some other ideas.[/quote]

vertical push/hamstring/vertical pull/quad/ab
horizontal push/hamstring/horizontal pull/quad/ab
some examples

Have you yet done a Tabata after a leg day?

If have done one ‘adequately’ after a good leg day, how the hell can you even contemplate doing another unless you are a complete masochist.

[quote]silverhydra wrote:
Have you yet done a Tabata after a leg day?

If have done one ‘adequately’ after a good leg day, how the hell can you even contemplate doing another unless you are a complete masochist.[/quote]

Over the summer I would do front squats heavy then finish with tabata front squats. I realize how hard they are, but it’s not like they are preceded by anything crazy. A couple heavy sets of back squats, followed by intense conditioning. It’ll only be done for six workouts really, because I’m deloading on week 4.