I have been thinking about recording some of my lifts for a while. I think I’ll start doing that soon and I’ll put them here so you guys can check it out!
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Do it for your widowmaker sets !
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That’s a tremendous idea! Those are the true ball-buster, man making efforts haha!
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I saw your name on the list, and recalled that you posted more frequently in Darden’s area some time ago. So I looked up your log, and scrolled through it. Fascinating journey you have been on. Darden Program > Fortitude > Deepwater > 531 (and maybe some stuff I missed). That is a lot of experimentation in a fairly short time span, and it looks like you have been rewarded, with significant muscle gains.
So… looking back at your own progress, what are your thoughts now on the importance of volume, intensity, frequency, nutrition, etc.
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Thanks for checking in with me Al! I think my biggest takeaways have been, Focus on eating a lot of food to build muscle and cycling between periods of higher volume and really high intensity, all with an extreme focus on doing more over time(whether that be more work or more weight, progression is super important for continuing to see muscle gain). I had to set aside my fear of losing my abs to continue adding muscle. Simply you need the calories to fuel the growth and additionally, I’ve found benefit in training every body part at least twice a week. A 3-4 times per week frequency for weight training seems to be my sweet spot. Also having a combination of high rep pump work goes great with heavy weight and lower rep work. Those are just some of my thoughts and observations over the past year and a half of experimentation and growth.
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Very thankful for this deload week. I’ve been hammering away at my body and the “rest” feels quite nice. My head wasn’t really in the game today, just knew I needed to get the work done. Still managed to hit a Chin up PR. Happy to have done it and ready for grappling tonight.
Deadlift 185x5, 225x5, 275x5
Deadlift FSL “Widowmaker” 185x20
Chin Up 34,9,6
Push Ups 4x25
Band Pull Aparts 3x20
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34 chins. God that’s just nuts man. Nice work
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Thank you! Although I do have to admit that the lighter deadlifts beforehand might’ve been what helped make that possible haha
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THIS would also be fun to watch haha
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I’ll try to make that one I get recorded soon!
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Happy to squeeze in my bench session before grappling today. The deload feels so nice after the rigors of beating the hell out of my body for the last 7 weeks. I feel like I can really pour a lot more energy into assistance, which I’ve been crushing this week.
Bench 135x5, 155x5, 185x5
Bench Widowmaker 195x20
Barbell Rows 235x16,7,6
French Press 155x14,5,3
Poundstone Curls x85
Band Pull Aparts 3x20
Sit Ups 4x25
I’m extraordinarily excited about the Surge Challenge. Excited beyond reasonable expectation. Excited about the training program, excited about the new equipment, and definitely excited to use the Surge Workout Fuel! I’ve always been a big Dr. Ellington Darden fan, and it’s exciting to actually take part in one of his experiments. It’s really like a dream come true. So please pardon me if my childlike excitement is too much for you haha!
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Worked up to two squat PRs today. Just felt like I had it in the tank, so went for some Jokers. Even though this is the deload. Widowmaker felt comparatively easy after my CNS was so primed and “awake” from the really heavy sets. 315 was super extremely solid, ass to grass. 335 wasn’t quite as deep, which is still driving me nuts. 4 plate squat coming soon.
Squat 135x5, 180x5, 225x5, 275x1, 315x1(PR), 335x1(broke the PR I had just set)
Squat Widowmaker 225x20
Single leg Dumbbell Romanian deadlifts 52.5x15,12,8
Single Leg Db Calf Raises 52.5 3x15
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3 wheels, 3 wheels plus, and then 2 for 20!?!
Hell yeah, dude—nice work!
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Thank you so much my brother! I totally broke deload rules, but I was feeling it yesterday haha!
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Hit my last 5/3/1 session before the Surge Challenge begins! Worked hard and got the lifting done today and went right into an hour and a half of grappling. Always a fun combo, although while doing the Surge Challenge, I plan on lifting M,W,F for the most part with grappling on Tuesday and Thursday and sometimes Sunday. I was feeling kind of weak today but I was still up to the challenge.
Press 110x5, 125x5, 145x5
Press Widowmaker 110x20
Pull ups 33,13,7
Lateral Raises 35x16,10,7
Db Curls 35x17,7,6
Kroc Rows 52.5x85
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Now we all wait to see your DL Widowmaker incomming ! 
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Day 1 of the Surge Challenge today!!!
This Workout absolutely obliterated me. I feel like I squeezed so much work into a half hour. Weight selection was not as hard to figure out as I thought. The workout itself was extremely fun. I always feel like training for a pump is a blast.
My only real mistake was going too heavy on the initial leg Extension set, I’ll back that off from 90 to 70 next time. I was just somewhat unfamiliar with the leg Extension/leg Curl attachment on my brother in law’s bench.
My favorite section was probably triceps. They were so absolutely fried by the end of their block.
I really focused on “feeling” the weight and the Fat Gripz really helped give me an even crazier arm pump.
Thighs, Lats, Triceps, Forearms
Pulse
Leg Extension 90x10
Leg Curl 90x8
Leg Extension 90x10
Stimulate
Squat 225x10(10 second hold at bottom on first and last rep, 5 second negatives)
Leg Extension 70x10
Leg Curl 70x8
Flutter
Leg Extension 70-roughly 30 seconds
Pump
Barbell Row(with Fat Gripz) 185x8
Darden Pullover 52.5x8
Chin Up x8
Stimulate
Darden Pullover 52.5x8
Flutter
Darden Pullover 52.5-roughly 30 seconds
Pump
Banded Tricep Press Downs x10
Dips x10
Banded Tricep Press Downs x10
Stimulate
Db Tricep Overhead Extension 52.5x8, 45x8
Flutter
Db Tricep Overhead Extension 45-roughly 20 seconds
Pump
Barbell Seated Wrist Curls(with Fat Gripz) 65x10
Barbell Seated Reverse Wrist Curls 45x10
Barbell Reverse Curls (with Fat Gripz) 65x10
Stimulate
Barbell Seated Wrist Curls (with Fat Gripz) 65x10
Flutter
Barbell Seated Wrist Curls 65-roughly 20 seconds
Also, here are my “before” pictures.
Beginning weight:205
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You’re already jacked, my man—gonna be crazy big by the end of this challenge!
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Thank you sir! I’m certainly going to be pouring everything into this challenge. I want to maximize my results and make T-Nation proud.
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Wow, comparing your photos from 1 year ago you have made huge gains.
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