To me it looks like the bar is too far out in front you. Try keeping the bar closer to your legs.
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I was going to say the same thing if @ChickenLittle had not mentioned it.
Your toes also come off the floor on the RDL. This is not great. I think this too is because the bar is too far forward.
However minor points. Keep working hard. Little bits like this will come.
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This is a very helpful tip. Iâve been consciously moving the bar out to feel more work, which I guess makes it like a good morning position. If I stick my butt back more and let the bar basically move only up/down not away/back, I think I can keep it more balanced, less shaky.
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All feedback is appreciate, but I did have two particular questions:
On pull ups when I get tired, my shoulder blades seem to round forward. I didnât really notice this until watching the video. Not sure what to think of that other than facing the fact that 5 or 6 reps is currently my form failure point, and those are the numbers Iâve been using for normal sets.
On OHP I obviously fail badly in my left arm. Iâm right-handed. Also, my shoulder mobility is very asymmetrical. I sometimes do some extra dumbbell presses with my left arm only to try bringing up that left side strength, and this seems to be working. Nevertheless, I failed noticeable on the left side. Not sure if thatâs anything special to be concerned about.
My upper body is a total shit show so I canât offer any advice there.
No issues with the pull ups.
Not obvious at all. It was to you as you were in the lift. But minor movements in a lift feel HUGE.
My advice would be to remember any strength differential will be reduced by barbell work. If you want to bring a side up do dumbbell work. On both sides. Doing one side is silly. Why does it matter one arm is a touch stronger? So long as itâs not causing an issue. My left leg is stronger (itâs the one I accelerate off of). Itâs not an issue.
I figure I should post something about diet. It gets mentioned so much as one of the critical components. I actually wrote down everything for one day a few months back. This is a good representation of how Iâve been eating. My grams of protein come from either to package label or estimated serving sizes - like 3 oz. of chicken is about the size of the palm of your hand or a deck of cards. I donât have a gram scale, and hate calorie/nutrient counting.
January 27, 2022
Breakfast #1
3 eggs (15g protein), 2 slices ham (10g) = 25g protein
"Latte" 15 oz skim milk w/instant coffee = 15g
Breakfast #2
Bran cereal 1 cup (10g) w/8oz. skim milk (8g) = 18g
Another "latte" = 15g
Lunch
Canned sardines (20g) on bean salad (20g) = 40g
Dinner
Homemade fish burrito, fish (10g), toppings (5g) = 15g
Homemade chicken burrito = 15g
Total grams protein = 143g protein
For convenience and consistency I developed a few meals in a bowl. I include pasta/beans base with some meat so that I get carbs with the protein. Soon I will try a rice and lentil base with a Mediterranean/Middle Eastern seasoning style. I can get a lot of flavor variety with small tweaks to this basic grain/bean/meat mix. Those bowls in combination with a lot of milk are my protein base. A typical day would beâŠ
My go-to breakfast frittata
3 eggs -------------------- 15
diced meat 1.5 oz chicken - 10
1/2 cup orzo pasta -------- 5
1/2 cup mixed beans ------- 5
TOTAL --------------------- 35g protein
My go-to lunch frittata
diced meat 3 oz chicken --- 23
1/2 cup orzo pasta -------- 5
1/2 cup mixed beans ------- 5
TOTAL --------------------- 33g protein
Basic dinner pasta bowl
1 cup orzo pasta ------- 10
1 cup heavy meat sauce - 20
TOTAL ------------------ 30g protein
15 oz skim milk servings - 15 g protein
3 bowls x 30-35g = 90-105g protein
3-4 milk servings x 15 = 45-60g protein
135-165g protein daily
My body weight currently is 150 lbs. Most recommendations I have seen are 0.8-1g protein per pound of body weight. So, for my weight 120-150g daily.
On my workout days I have a protein supplement shake sometime within about one hour after finishing, that should be about 40g of protein extra.
Some days I feel like Iâm force feeding myself! My waist line increased about 2 inches, but has been staying the same for several months after that initial increase. A short time back I tried eating a bit less, basically not stuffing myself literally, and I could see some decrease in waistline/weight. I did that just enough to convince myself I wasnât too far over the line with overeating. Then I resumed the diet above.
For the time being Iâve accept that some fat gain comes with trying to maximize muscle growth. That and adjusting to a long view that muscle growth takes time, more so being older. Something like 2 pounds of lean muscle quarterly (3 months) is realistic. I hate to admit that, but it seems to be the reality. Iâm going to up the intensity this month to try pushing growth.
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@ChickenLittle and @carlbm I recorded RDL, barefoot and trying to correct the bar movement for straight up/down, no forward/backward.
I recorded squats tonight barefoot. Second set I put on the yoga shoes, just to compare. Also, yoga shoe set was final one so I tried some rest/pause extra reps.
April 1st, 2022.
Workout A, but I tried to add a little extra to everything.
Calfs basically as before.
Squats I had at 135 lbs 10 x 3 set.
Tonight 150 lbs (body weight) 8 reps, 10 reps, 8 reps plus 4 rest/pause reps.
RDL 150, 10 x 3 sets
Incline press 37.5 lbs, 10 x 3 sets, plus 27.5 10 reps bonus set
Superset incline press w/barbell row up from 90 to 100 lbs, 10 for 2 sets, 12 for 1 set
Dumbbell OHP 32.5 lbs, 10x1 set, 8x1, 5x1 drop to 27.5 for 10x1 set (this is tough after incline press)
Superset OHP with pull ups 6 reps, 6 reps, 5 reps rest 15 sec 3 more reps
Iâm rethinking my idea for three alternating workouts A, B, C. After trying it, it breaks up my concentration on the primary lifts. I think I want to work it out to just and A and B alternating plan, where the alternating is mostly to get barbell/dumbbell or two leg/single leg split options, like barbell OHP/dumbbell OHP or back squat/Bulgarian split.
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How did the movement feel? You looked more stable.
The RDLs still need work. It looks like when you start feeling your hamstrings you bend your knees.
I think what is going on is Iâm trying to get the bar a lot lower than my knees, I keep thinking mid-shin. When I do that it seems I need to either start cantilever forward or bend my knees. Iâve heard tips saying to not try to force the bar lower if that doesnât work with your frame, so I should know better. When my knees flex in this way, it doesnât feel right, feels weak. Funny thing is, my lower back did feel the work on these sets, yet if I do that cantilever it doesnât feel hard on my lower back. One thing that I think canât be seen is when I try to get a good hip thrust, really engage gluts, I think hips forward and slightly downward. I donât think that actually changes my movement, but itâs the thought that gets my gluts engaged more. I think if compare the video you posted with a series of my own I can get this worked out.
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Hey Mike, I just got caught up with your log, and Iâm always interested in seeing other less-young folk get into this stuff and see what they do. First off, congratulations on getting yourself started, and maintaining consistency as long as you have. Those are the two most important things, and youâve got that part down. I do have a few thoughts, from my own experience, that may give you some perspective.
First off, from looking at your videos, I get the impression that youâre selling yourself short on your max strength. Iâm not saying to just start piling more weight on the bar tomorrow, but donât be afraid to add weight when the time is right. The videos are only showing your form on your top sets, but you need to be doing all the same form cues, and treating all your warm-up sets like theyâre max effort sets as far as set-up and focus goes. This will go a long way toward improving your form and helping the instability I see, especially with your deadlift. Youâre not using a belt, and thatâs fine, I donât usually either, but you can tighten your core with every lift and let your core muscles do the job of a belt. You might want to get a belt to give yourself something to push against, to get used to the idea of tightening your core, even if you donât use it all the time.
I think your goals are good, but I also think youâre selling yourself short on the amount of muscle you can gain at your age. Youâre definitely not going to gain like a hormonal teenager, but since youâre relatively early in your training life I think you can put on close to a lb per month for at least a few months if you ramp up your eating some more and youâre not afraid to gain a little body fat in the process. If youâre interested in supplements at all, Iâd recommend working creatine into your program, that definitely will help with muscle gain.
Your program looks good, and youâre prioritizing big compound movements, so youâre on the right track there. I do question a few of your choices. For example, I definitely would not prioritize calf raises at this point in your training. I also didnât see anywhere why youâre choosing RDL over a conventional deadlift, but itâs still a perfectly fine exercise if thatâs what works for you.
I would say that youâre changing up your program pretty frequently, which isnât THAT bad while youâre still in early stages of training as long as youâre still prioritizing the right exercises, but I would recommend picking an established program and sticking with it for a long run to give yourself the maximum benefit. My preference is 5/3/1 variations, but there are a ton of great programs out there, including quite a few by the coaches here at Tnation, that will do the trick. Youâll learn your body, and what adjustments you need to make based on available equipment, over time, but these coaches know more about training for strength and muscle gain than you or I do.
Finally, and this is from painful experience⊠Do plenty of warm-up sets, and donât let your ego convince you to do things your brain is telling you are a bad idea. Iâm really good about the warm-up part, doing a full-body warmup before I start, and normally 4-5 progressive warm-up sets before I get to my working sets, but the ego thing is what gets me every time I get hurt. It looks like youâre failing on the conservative side right now, which is the right thing to do starting out, but once you start pushing your limits and progressing, itâs easy to get overconfident. Be smarter than I have been!
Well, thereâs my long-winded 2c on your log so far. I know thatâs a bunch of unsolicited advice, so take it or leave it as you like, but as a fellow 50-something I figure I have a little bit of insight as to where you are right now. Keep killing it.
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Hi, @OTHSteve, thanks for the thoughtful reply. I too think Iâve been selling myself short on max effort. I experimented with that last Friday. My conclusion was the extra effort was do-able but I should do just a touch less upper body, and a bit more with legs, because my upper body was pretty beat up the next day while legs didnât feel much different that a normal post workout day.
I really do like pushing myself harder, but mostly with extra reps/sets, or finishing with cheats or stripping weight. The downside is I pay a hard recovery cost. I keep working to find that sweet spot to balance work/recovery. One thing I havenât yet tried but want to begin is one very hard day per week. Iâm thinking Fridays before my two day rest. I see that kind of periodized heavy day recommended a lot.
You really hit the nail on the head about warm up. For me itâs absolutely not an ego thing. I know it, I need that warm up time. I just hate spending so much time on it. I feel the need mostly for squats, next for OHP. First sets always feel like garbage.
What is your full body warm up? With you warm up to working regular sets are those part of a split routine or full body workout?
Well, where I put âWarmup.â in my log, what is actually happening is 3 rounds of a barbell complex with the bar only, which I modeled after the Burgener warmup from weightlifting, but with 45# instead of a practice bar, each round consisting of: 3x deadlift, 3x jump shrug, 3x high pull, 3x power clean, 3x snatch, 3x overhead press, and 3x of either front or back squat, depending on which one is in my dayâs lifting, and 3x chinups. This gets my heart going and everything warm, but only takes about 5 minutes.
After that, with whatever lift Iâm doing, I always start with just the bar, and progressively add weight, with the tops 3 sets being my 5/3/1 âworkingâ sets, but I do my best to treat every set like it was heavy, focusing on all my cues and tightening my core like I was going for a max lift.
As far as my workout, right now Iâm just over a month back from a long layoff, so my workout is 5/3/1 whole body, with 2 days per training âweekâ, one day with squat/bench as the main lifts, the other with deadlift/OHP as the main lifts, plus whatever accessory work Iâm doing. Once the weights start to get heavy to where my recovery is challenged, Iâll switch to 1 main workout per day rather than whole body. Feel free to check out my log if youâre interested. Old Guy Doing 5/3/1 - #1571 by OTHSteve At the very least, you can learn a little bit about what not to do from a consistency standpoint⊠
First a little bit of before/after photos. I posted my Mar 27th current photos, relaxed, no pump, full frame, neutral light. Unfortunately, I donât have those views from last year when I started. To be sure the difference is small, but to try making that point emphatically I can compare the following two photos. One is from 2014. It can serve as a good representation of where I was last year. I donât remember what I was doing back then, in 2014, but it was probably just jog 2 miles twice a week, and a daily set of push ups/pull ups. For some reason I clearly remember taking the picture. I had a pump, such as it was, and was trying to do one of those semi-flexed poses where youâre flexing to widen your shoulders/chest, but trying play off like your relaxed. Anyway, to compare I took a picture after yesterdayâs workout in the same poseâŠ
Iâm not posting to say âisnât this great.â Rather the opposite. I see barely any difference. 7 months is not a long time, but I was hoping a bit more noticeable change. I have nearly 5 months to go before the year is up, so Iâm using this as a reality check to tell myself: up the ante! Actually, I saw that 2014 photo before yesterdayâs workout, and I knew what it meant in terms or little change, so yesterdayâs workout I pushed things higher again.
Do others agree there is no really difference between these two photos?
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April 4, 2022.
Calf raise, 100 lbs, 15 reps x 2 set, each set followed by 1 minute of whatever you call this w/25 lbs plate for soleus, and 1 minute dorsiflexion for the front.
SQUAT, 2 minute rest w/neck extensions
120 x 12 warm up
135 x 10
150 x 8
160 x 5 (b.w. 150, want to start working past b.w. and gradually build up)
RDL, 1 minute rest w/neck flexion
135 lbs 10 reps x 4 sets
INCLINE DUMBBELL PRESS
37.5 lbs 10 reps x 2 set, 11 reps 1 set
Superset with BARBELL ROW
110 lbs, 10 reps x 3 sets
1 minute rest w/rev. wrist curls
After supersets 10-12 reps rev dumbbell flies 15 lbs.
OHP
DUMBELLS 32 lbs, 10 reps x 1 set
BARBELL 85 lbs, 5 reps plus 2 cheat push press
DUMBELLS 32 lbs, 7 reps plus 5 reps rest/pause
Superset with PULL UPS, 6 reps, 7 reps, 6 reps
After supersets, 1 set of chest dips 6 reps (new movement, and I was tired, probably a bad place to add these when Iâm played out.)
Now that I placed include press before OHP, my OHP is even worse. About 15 minutes after finishing I went back and did two sets of dumbbell OHP 10 and 8 reps I think.
Except for calf/neck/forearms everything was more in some way: weight, reps, sets or a combination of the three. OHP is to actual failure. I could lean back and wiggle all around to maybe get out only one more crappy rep. Incline press and row are probably 1 rep away from form failure. Squat leaves me in the same place Iâve been all along: afraid of collapsing for actual failure without a person spotting or a cage. Iâm bringing the weight back up to the higher amounts I used last fall, so thatâs at least a step in the right direction strength wise.
Maybe I need a rest/pause kind of tempo for squat at the higher weights?
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I did these body proportion measurements yesterday, so I might as well post them in my log.
Height 5â9" (69")
Tibia 14"
Femur 21-23" (hard to find the right point on the pelvis)
Wingspan 69"
Humerus 13"
Ulna 12"
Wingspan/height 69/69 = (short arms, or at least not long arms)
Ulna/humerus 12/13 = 92% (long ulna, in essence short arms)
Leg length/height 35-37/69 = 50-53% (long legs)
Tibia/femur 14/23-21 = 60-66% (short tibia, effectively long legs, or at least long femur)
So, Iâm short armed and long legged. The lifting recommendations:
Iâm probably better at pressing that pulling, work on more pulling.
Iâm probably better at posterior chain than anterior (quads), squat and deadlift muscle recruitment similar in posterior chain, short arms/long legs not an ideal combination for deadlift, add unilateral moves for quads, like split squat, front load squat for quads emphasis, include ab work.
These generalizations seem to match up to my experience in lower body, but not so much in upper body. My press, overhead, seems a weak point to me.
I disagree with your âI look exactly the sameâ assessment, but I understand how you can get there, being my own worst critic when it comes to aesthetics. Your chest and shoulders/traps areas are definitely fuller, and your arms look bigger and more defined. It doesnât look like your bodyfat % has changed much, but itâs not that high to begin with. I think if you had taken the âafterâ picture with your arm up like in the âbeforeâ the improvement in your arms would be more obvious.
Also, on your most recent work-out, where youâre talking about your press being worse, you are doing things backwards. You want to do your big, multijoint exercises (deadlift, squat, OHP, etc) first, then do the assistance/accessory work. Doing OHP after youâve done a bunch of incline DB presses is definitely going to negatively impact your performance. I keep my bench type exercises on opposing training days from my overhead work.
Finally, and this is just my opinion, but calf raises (and calf exercises in general), while not useless, are about the least bang youâre going to get for time invested, unless youâre a bodybuilder hitting a specific anesthetic weakness.