I am very interested in your high rep training change. Just checking to see how it has effected (or is that affected) your training and results. Thanks for all of the high quality information.
Hi gulfcoast, nice to hear from you!
Before I talk about the high-rep training, I’m happy to report the shoulder seems to be on the mend. At my last bonecrusher visit, I got a third injection, at a different site. Within a few days, the pain was essentially gone, and unlike after previous injections, it hasn’t returned! knocks on wood furiously The shoulder still twinges now and then, but otherwise seems back to baseline. As a result, I have been reintroducing (very cautiously) compound pressing movements, and heavier weights, into my workouts. I feel so lucky, so blessed–like I’ve been given a second chance to do what I love. Here’s hoping I will be smarter about it this time.
As for the high-rep training…The pumps were great, and I don’t think I lost much muscle mass, but now that I’m attempting heavier compound movements again, it’s readily apparent I lost a fair amount of strength. (Shocking discovery: Strength loss occurs after man trains exclusively with very light weights.) It will be interesting to see what (if any) gains result from the radical shift in training loads/method as I segue back into a more traditional rep/set scheme.
How goes your training and dieting?
Training is improving. Much thanks to you and this thread. I have incorporated (stolen) some of your training methods. I now start chest with small range of motion pec deck for 3-4 sets of 20 or so on chest day. Other pressing movements have increased since starting these. Same with back, loving the underhand small range of motion pullover machine move (one of my favorite back exercises now). Also, got a lot great info from your diet strategies. Use to train fasted, but no longer and time in the gym is much better and more focused. It seems that training smarter is a good way to go, particularly once you get into your fifties. Who woulda thought!
So glad to hear things are going well for you in the gym, gulfcoast. Please drop by more often.
[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
… I got a third injection, at a different site. Within a few days, the pain was essentially gone, and unlike after previous injections, it hasn’t returned! knocks on wood furiously The shoulder still twinges now and then, but otherwise seems back to baseline. As a result, I have been reintroducing (very cautiously) compound pressing movements, and heavier weights, into my workouts. I feel so lucky, so blessed–like I’ve been given a second chance to do what I love. Here’s hoping I will be smarter about it this time.
[/quote]
Sounds like it’s all best case scenario over there. Wonderful news!
Hey EyeDentist, sorry to bump this thread if you’re sick of posting in it. It was really cool to read some of the against-the-grain things you do with training and diet, so thanks for posting.
I have a question about your intra-workout shake if you don’t mind. I know that you said you wouldn’t share the recipe out of respect for Biotest and I agree that that’s a good call. But I ASSUME that the base ingredients are highly branched cyclic dextrin and hydrolyzed casein protein and hope there isn’t anything wrong with saying that. If this is the case, what kind of benefits have you noticed from using this kind of shake in terms of recovery and workout intensity? Do you find a measurable improvement in those areas when you use your concoction over, say, a mixture of simple sugar/ dextrose and BCAAs?
[quote]TrevorLPT wrote:
Hey EyeDentist, sorry to bump this thread if you’re sick of posting in it. It was really cool to read some of the against-the-grain things you do with training and diet, so thanks for posting.
I have a question about your intra-workout shake if you don’t mind. I know that you said you wouldn’t share the recipe out of respect for Biotest and I agree that that’s a good call. But I ASSUME that the base ingredients are highly branched cyclic dextrin and hydrolyzed casein protein and hope there isn’t anything wrong with saying that. If this is the case, what kind of benefits have you noticed from using this kind of shake in terms of recovery and workout intensity? Do you find a measurable improvement in those areas when you use your concoction over, say, a mixture of simple sugar/ dextrose and BCAAs? [/quote]
Hi Trevor, thanks for reading! I am in no way sick of talking about this stuff, so feel free to ask anything.
You’re right about the composition of my intra-workout drink (which I now consume immediately pre-workout, actually). As it is the only workout drink I’ve ever used, I have no basis for comparing it to anything (other than nothing, ie, not consuming a pre/intra drink at all). So while I can definitely confirm my workouts have benefited from the drink I’m using, I’m unable to say how they are in comparison to training with a sugar/BCAA mix. Sorry I can’t be more helpful in this regard.
Update: So I finally took the plunge, and entered a Physique contest. Took 2nd (out of four) in the 45+ division. Here’s a shot of the divison:
[photo]41009[/photo]
Damn man nice! Look great, got more stage pics?
[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
Update: So I finally took the plunge, and entered a Physique contest. Took 2nd (out of four) in the 45+ division. Here’s a shot of the divison:
[photo]41009[/photo]
[/quote]
Congratulations and mighty impressive ED !
Am I right in assuming the guy standing to your immediate left took 1st ?
At any rate , outstanding !
You would have gotten my vote for 1st place
awesome! Kept that one quiet you sly devil
Dr. Eyedentist,
Nice job in the physique show, it seems like you should have won (the short dude looks like he’s wearing culottes, I’m not a judge but I assume he came in fourth). I made the mistake of reading your log, deciphering that you are training with essentially one arm and a shake weight saw the picture and promptly wanted to kill myself. When you post something along the lines of “my arms no longer work I can only pick up helium balloons and ice cubes for my scotch” the next picture you post should have you looking like you just had a litter of puppies, instead you look like the cover of my Anatomy and Physiology textbook. This sucks. Congrats though, finding a way to overcome an obstacle seems like a skill you have mastered. I am now even more depressed.
Thanks all!
Spidey, there are only two more pics of me (that I know of), and they both kinda suck, so vanity precludes my putting them in here.
You are correct, butcherman–the guy to my left won the division. He was/is a much more experienced competitor (won both the O35 and O45 divisions last year), and I’m certain his presentation was much more polished than mine.
Yogi, I kept it quiet so in case I bombed, or chickened out, I could take that shame to the grave with me.
PW: Yeah, the shorter guy brought, shall we say, an unusual package to the stage. And as you surmise, he came in fourth. Also, thank you for the kudos. It is indeed frustrating to be forced by injury to train with the little silver DBs that rattle when you shake them. (It’s especially annoying that they keep getting re-racked in the gym’s nursery, from which I have to retrieve them.) To put it in terms you can understand, it’s as if injury limited you to DLing a Buick LeSabre instead of your usual Chevy Tahoe. I’m looking forward to working my way back up to the pink DBs soon.
Just Awesome!! Congratulations.
I appreciate anybody who can be disciplined enough to eat and train for it, but to make yourself actually get on a stage is a whole different kind of dealing with anxiety/ getting out of your comfort zone. I get the sensation of jumping out of an airplane just thinking about it, so much respect!! You look great.
Thanks PP! I was indeed far removed from my comfort zone. The whole process was quite surreal at times.
I have to give a shout-out to a guy who made a HUGE difference in how I looked onstage. About four weeks out from the show, I found myself at an impasse. Despite exercising relentlessly and eating like a bird, it seemed to me my physique had ceased improving. I felt sure I needed to modify my diet and/or workout regimen in order to get things moving in the right direction again. Trouble was, it wasn’t at all clear to me what sort of changes needed to be made; ie, did I need to eat less, or more? Likewise, did I need to exercise less, or more? And with only 4 weeks until the contest, I felt I didn’t have time to be wrong.
In desperation, I contacted John Meadows for a consultation. JM responded quickly (as always), but as he was out of the country, he wouldn’t be able to talk with me. Instead, he suggested I link up with his associate Matt Burzacott. I didn’t know much about Matt, but I trust JM implicitly, and knew he wouldn’t refer me to someone who was not up to par. So I sent Matt my diet and training history along with a few pics, and we spoke several days later.
As expected, Matt recommended some very significant changes! He had me stop ALL cardio, suggesting instead that I lift weights every day. Re diet, he suggested various combinations of macros (including some VERY high carb days, which were awesome!). I would eat a certain combo for a few days, then send him pics; he would evaluate how I was responding to the macros, and suggest further changes. In essence, he prepped me the rest of the way–an extraordinarily generous undertaking on his part. There’s really explanation for why he would do this other than that he’s a genuinely good guy who enjoys helping people reach their physique-related goals. So if anyone is looking for an online coach, I can’t recommend Matt strongly enough.
(And for the record, I have no sort of financial or ‘quid pro quo’ relation with Matt. This comment was 100% my idea, not his. In fact, after the contest he didn’t even make a generic ‘If you liked my services, please mention me to your friends’ sort of request, an omission on his part that says volumes about his integrity IMO.)
Congrats ED on entering and placing. Heck you seem to be just a tan away from show ready at any moment. Anything else on the radar or keeping it on the down low too?
[quote]scoots2 wrote:
Congrats ED on entering and placing. Heck you seem to be just a tan away from show ready at any moment. Anything else on the radar or keeping it on the down low too?[/quote]
Thanks man. Nothing else on the radar, I promise. (Had to make the same promise to my wife, BTW.) I may take another run at the same show next year, and if that goes well, enter a couple more in my state. In the meantime, I’d like to see if I can put on a little more mass. Don’t know how realistic that is at my age, but I’m going to try.
Hey ED! I’ve really enjoyed reading your thread. Could you go into more detail on the diet changes? Are you back to eating the way you were before or have you made some changes since dealing with the coach?
[quote]FitFireFighter wrote:
Hey ED! I’ve really enjoyed reading your thread. Could you go into more detail on the diet changes? Are you back to eating the way you were before or have you made some changes since dealing with the coach? [/quote]
Hi FFF, glad to hear you’ve enjoyed the thread. So far as diet changes, Matt insisted I eat a substantial protein-dominant breakfast (1.5 cups egg whites + two whole eggs) every morning instead of PB. He also bumped protein up to 250 g/d most days, and decreased my fat intake most days. (Basically, he took away my beloved PB for a month.) He grudgingly allowed me to continue backloading my calories; ie, saving most of them for the post-w/o period. He definitely wasn’t a fan of it, though–he is more of a ‘6 small meals spread out through the day’ guy.
And yeah, I’m back to my old eating ways. (PB breakfast FTW!) That said, in keeping with Matt’s advice, I’m trying to get more protein: 200-240/d, as opposed to the 180-200 I was getting before. I’m eating at roughly maintenance cals three days out of four (corresponding to lifting vs nonlifting days).
so are you back to avoiding protein in the morning?