My method of tracking it is just weighing it before I start and again when I’m done. I always eat more than I intend.
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##Lunch Break Training
Took most of the day but I finally made it to the gym.
Pull-Ups:
2 x 10, 14-2-2 (double rest/pause)
superset with:
Back Extension:
3 x 20
Putting the two together gave me more rest between sets of pull-ups. I attribute my 14 reps on the last set to the extended rest periods.
Seated Cable Row:
3 x 10 @ 150
superset with:
Face Pull:
3 x 10 @ 110
J Rope Pull:
3 x 8 @ 150
superset with:
Single-Arm Reverse Cable Fly (Delt Emphasis):
3 x 10 ea @ 30
Cable Curl 21’s:
8 full/8 top half/8 bottom half @ 120
Notes
This workout was odd. I found myself wondering what to do. After pull-ups I knew I needed to do some rows. I planned on putting together some big superset with 4 to 5 exercises but I felt like I’d pretty much covered everything. As you can see I still did plenty of exercises but I was kind of figuring it out as I went. I’m a bit confused with myself… Oh well, my back has a pump in various places so it’s all good. When in doubt, do more volume, right?
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##6.2.17
Woke at 219.8 lbs.
Yesterday’s Nutrition
3459 calories, 354g carbs, 117g fat, 248g protein.
I usually put myself in a deficit following a day like Monday but not this time. Here I am two days after a fat day and I’m below 220 again. I think 3500 calories is close to my maintenance level with my current activity level. I’m bumping up to 3600 calories as of today to see if I can get back to and stay around 223…or at the very least stop losing weight.
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Think I’ll be starting this workout next week. It’s 5/3/1 Beyond for front squat, deadlift, bench, and close grip incline bench. I’ll also be using the same loading scheme for deficit deadlifts on Thursdays. I’m actually focusing on deadlift, bench, and front squat. The deficits and close grip incline are there to help deadlift and bench.
Bad News
I went to the doctor this morning to have my blood drawn for my annual physical. My appointment isn’t for a couple weeks but I knew I’d be fasted this morning and wanted to get the blood work done. Doc sent me a message stating my kidney function is stable and my cholesterol is high for me. I’m not sure what she means about the kidney function. Perhaps she’s just pointing it out because she knows I take supplements and I had my testosterone measured a couple months back before starting a new supplement.
The cholesterol came as a bit of a shock. My total cholesterol was 220 and my HDL was garbage. I pulled up my food log and I blow past the recommended amount of 300mg of cholesterol in a couple meals. I’ve been eating 12 ounces of chicken and it’s 165mg by itself. Combine that with my love of eggs, cheeseburgers, and my pasta with meat sauce and it appears I have a problem What. The. F*ck.
My wife sent me some stuff about going plant-based and I’m considering it. I’m not ready to abandon meat just yet but I may be looking at some vegan supplements to help me get enough protein while decreasing my meat consumption. I guess as I reflect on my recent eating habits I’ve definitely increased my chicken consumption. I eat a cheeseburger or pasta with meat sauce most days of the week—Today the cheeseburger was meal #1 and the pasta was #2. that was followed by 12 ounces of chicken LOL. As of now I’m sitting at 343mg of cholesterol and MyFitnessPal says I should only have 300.
In addition to these issued I’m always low on potassium and high on sodium. I ignore it because I’m young and tough. High sodium can lead to a hardening of the arteries. Low potassium can lead to a hardening of the arteries… talk about doubling down. I guess I’m getting an early wake up call regarding my diet.
Stay tuned to see what I do to keep from killing myself with food. It sure would be a cruel twist of fate for me to die from nutrition-related health issues (many years down the road) considering all of the effort I put into my body.
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You’ll enjoy Training Maximally. It’s a great way to get in volume. You wouldn’t think so because it’s mostly singles, doubles and triples but you end up doing loads of them.
Someone else might poke in here with the facts, but it is my understanding that dietary cholesterol has little-to-no relationship with blood level cholesterol. At least, I hope this is true because I have been preaching this to my friends who are looking for health advice and try to argue that eggs are bad for you because of cholesterol…
I think now it is understood that it is more related to consumption of hydrogenated oils (trans fats). Maybe tag some of the dietary wizards on here who can help you out or at least confirm this.
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Gotta love an empty gym! 
I’ve been doing option 1 where I just do Jokers. It’s been enjoyable.
I’ve never worried. I know eggs and red meat have cholesterol but they have a lot other good things too. I think if your cholesterol is high then it might not be a great idea to continue consuming large amounts of it. I’m just going to increase veggie intake and possibly look into some vegan protein powder. It won’t kill me to not eat 2 pounds of meat a day.
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I reviewed my lab work again and my HDL levels are actually fine. My triglycerides are OK too. The only problem is high total cholesterol which means I need to lower my LDL levels.
I might cut back on the chicken. I’ve been eating 10 or more pounds every 7-10 days. I could also remove the beef from my pasta. The only problem is replacing the lost protein. I try to avoid relying on supplements. They’re supposed to be supplements not staples.
Do you eat fish? High in protein and omega 3s which help with cholesterol levels. I love Salmon!
Is there medical literature that specifies that high LDL alone is conducive to heart issues (primarily heart attacks), or that it’s bad because it’s overall associated with metabolic syndrome?
I’m calling it a bad thing because my HDL levels are within the normal range but my overall cholesterol is high. HDL is good cholesterol so it makes sense to me to keep that where it is and decrease LDL cholesterol.
I guess it won’t matter as long as HDL stays within the normal and the overall number comes down.
This definitely caught me off guard because I get blood work done every year and I’ve never had any issues. [quote=“Irishman92, post:377, topic:228202”]
Do you eat fish? High in protein and omega 3s which help with cholesterol levels.
[/quote]
I don’t eat fish but it’s mostly due to cost and availability. Frozen tilapia isn’t that great. I love salmon but it’s pricey here. I’m in the Midwest so any seafood is shipped here. I did bust out the bottle of fish oil I’d been ignoring this morning!
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##6.3.17
Woke at 218.8 lbs. Still dropping weight.
Yesterday’s Nutrition
3532 calories, 377g carbs, 76g fat, 233g protein.
So I was close on my daily calories but about 500 of those came from Corona Light. Oddly enough that will make you fat but apparently it’s not helping me maintain weight… Oh, well. Not the worst problem in the world.
I reviewed my weekly nutrients and my saturated fats are averaging the recommended dosage and my poly and monounsaturated fats are exceeding the recommended dose (because it’s 0 on MyFitnessPal). My cholesterol, on the other hand, is not within range. The lowest weekly average over the past two months is still 500+. I had several months where it was over 1200, and it seems to average 600-800. The recommendation is 300. Now I don’t blame red meat for my blood results (or any particular food) but it seems that I’ve created a trend of accumulating cholesterol through food. Trans fat consumption is 0 most weeks or 1g at the most.
I’m going to reduce my meat consumption, start taking my fish oil, and obviously have to replace all that meat with some healthier foods or else I’ll starve. I bet I get this cholesterol thing worked out pretty soon. I’m actually hoping it’s a fluke, but I know I’ll be better off in the long run by adding more fruits, veggies, and fish to my diet in lieu of chicken and beef.
##5AM Workout
Close Grip Incline Bench:
bar x 5
95 x 5
105 x 5
115 x 5
125 x 3
135 x 3
145 x 3
155 x 1
165 x 1
175 x 1
185 x 1
195 x 1
205 x 0
Front Squat:
135 x 5
135 x 5
155 x 5
175 x 3
195 x 1
215 x 1 ™
235 x 1
255 x 1—this definitely feels like a max. I’m not sure if I could squeeze out another 5-10 lbs but I’m definitely not at 275 like I once was.
Reverse Lunge:
95 x 5 ea
105 x 5 ea
115 x 5 ea
I even threw in 5 deep squats with 135 and had no hip pain. I can tell there’s still something going on there but no stabbing pain but I believe my pain got worse as the weight increased so I’m still holding off on squats. I might be scrapping some of the leg work for awhile to let everything heal up. I’ve done a good job of adding exercises to bring up weaknesses and I’ll continue to do those but it’s looking like I need to shut some things down because I’m not healing up. I might be able to keep my pulls in and drop the squats. 255 on front squats aggravates my hip a bit while I grind out the rep. I’ve also been able to pinpoint a certain angle of hip flexion where I go from pain free to stabbing/sharp pain. I don’t think I get into this angle during deadlifts so they might be safe to keep in the program.
On the plus side, my pushing days might get even shorter if I drop the squatting movements. I’m not sure if split squats or reverse lunges are helping or hurting me. I felt weaker on my left leg today. My left hip is the one bothering me and I’ve always been stronger on my left leg so clearly it’s having an effect.
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Dietary cholesterol does not affect your blood cholesterol if you don’t have a condition.
What you could do to better your cholesterol profile is to eat more organic, grass fed stuff if you have the money. (That’s aimed at @Frank_C, or anyone who worries about this)
Edit: didn’t notice the second question
Yes, there is some evidence that trans fats do raise the LDL levels. As we know, trans fats are not exactly the best source of energy anyways so you’ll just be better off avoiding them anyways.
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I don’t any family history of high cholesterol (that I know of). My dad is good. My maternal grandparents aren’t in the best of health but I blame it on being overweight and not eating the best.
I’m planning to improve my eating anyway. My wife sent me an article about a power lifter who found out he had had cholesterol at the age of 32 (same as me). He went 95% plant based, lost like 60 pounds from it, and fixed his problem. Now I have no desire to lose weight and that guy was fat to begin with. But I guess your arteries and blood cholesterol probably don’t know or care if you’re 225 lbs at 12% body fat or 225 at 30%. It just knows what is being introduced into the system through diet.
If I’m not eating trans fats, and dietary cholesterol don’t affect blood cholesterol, then what the hell is going on? What’s the point in listing cholesterol on a food label if it doesn’t have any bearing on your health? I’m not saying that anyone is wrong but I find it hard to believe that there’s no relationship between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol. I don’t have proof either way yet.
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Here you go
In short: dietary cholesterol doesn’t affect your blood cholesterol at least to a significant degree if you don’t have a condition
I’m gonna say that being fat was the cause of his problem
Being 12% at 225 is a lot healthier than being 30% at the same weight
Regarding the question of where the high cholesterol comes from we need to ask some questions
You are eating quite a good amount of calories, but where do they come from? (You are listing the macros but not the sources)
How much vegetables are you eating?
How much fiber are you getting on average?
Are you using fish oil?
Are you eating anything that is “ready to eat” or doesn’t need cooking? (Think cereals, bread, that kind of stuff)
Do you eat organic stuff?
Training-wise, are yoh doing your conditioning work?
How much cardio are you doing?
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You can see the details in my log on MyFitnessPal. My username is JMaier31 and the profile is public.
Not enough. On an average day I’ll eat 300g of Yukon gold or russet Idaho potatoes and 7 ounces of the California blend of veggies.
I averaged 32g per day last week, 26g per day the week before, 24g/day, 20g/day, and 25g/day going back to the week of Apr 30-May 6.
I haven’t been but I started today. I’ve had a bottle in the cabinet for months.[quote=“danteism, post:383, topic:228202”]
Are you eating anything that is “ready to eat” or doesn’t need cooking? (Think cereals, bread, that kind of stuff)
[/quote]
Bread and sandwich thins. Some days I’ll only have two slices of bread or one sandwich thin and other days I find myself eating six slices of bread but that’s not a regular occurrence. Other than that I don’t think I do. My typical day includes eggs, oatmeal, rice, potatoes, chicken, beef, peanut butter & jelly, pasta, and the mixed veggies. I don’t eat all of those each day but those are the main foods I choose from.[quote=“danteism, post:383, topic:228202”]
Do you eat organic stuff?
[/quote]
Not really. We have a few things that are “organic” but none of meat which is my main food source. [quote=“danteism, post:383, topic:228202”]
Training-wise, are yoh doing your conditioning work?
[/quote]
I can answer both with the same response. I’m great at getting in conditioning/running Mon-Wed when I’m off work but I rarely get anything done the rest of the week. Last week I ran sprints at the track on Monday (3 x 100m, 4 x 60m, 4 x 40m), played pickup basketball for 90 minutes on Tuesday, and ran 40m sprints on Wednesday combined with 20m farmer’s carries with 120lb DB’s.
in the past couple months I’ve played with CrossFit style training and was getting some barbell conditioning work in but I’ve started playing basketball again so I kind of dropped that.
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I’ll check that out when I remember to do so (so probably in a couple of years or so…)
I’d start by adding in more vegetables, it’ll get your fiber intake up as well. Throw in some broccoli, green beans, spinach and anything else you can imagine
That’s an improvement
This is probably not the reason for your cholesterol then
If you can afford it, I would suggest you try to eat more organic meats (you can get organic peanut butter too and it’s not even that expensive)
I would try to get some conditioning work in during the rest of the week as well if it is possible, but I’d say that if you are doing a lot of conditioning stuff early in the week, not doing so much later won’t kill you.
Hopefully this was even a bit helpful