Tonino's Log

[quote]Tonino wrote:
Good points. It’s amazing, though, how a loss of only 6 pounds is noticeable via the “mirror” test. As I’ve said before, I can’t see abs or striations yet, but I can definitely tell that I’m carrying less fat than last month. I never consistently measured body fat until recently, but I bet that when I first started bulking back last July, that I was already close to 15% bodyfat or so… and after reading Shelby Starnes article on body fat, that could’ve been a contributor to my bulk not being as successful as possible. Don’t get me wrong, I was very excited about gaining close to 20lbs, but since I never measured bodyfat, I’m not sure how efficient I was in terms of muscle:fat ratio. I look at this phase as not only “damage control”. but also, as Shelby pointed out, allowing my body to set a new “base” weight.

It’s funny, in your example you threw out 190 lbs at 15% bodyfat. When my peers (read: those NOT serious with bodybuilding) ask me what weight I’d like to be at by end of year, I always respond 190… to which their response is always… impossible! you don’t have the frame nor bone structure to hold that weight… you’ll just end up getting fat!

Anyways, I’m very excited about starting up the BULK phase again, but I’m very patient and willing to work my ass off to at least try and get below 10% BF. But I don’t want to sacrifice muscle in the process, especially not at my current weight of only 160 lbs! So I’ll stick with this phase until you feel that its starting to become counterproductive (which I’m sure will be evident in my numbers as well).
[/quote]

Where’s this article that you’re talking about btw? I’ve heard good things about Shelby…

Don’t get me wrong, I respect many authors, and they definitely know their stuff, but sometimes some of them can be a bit too precise if you get what I mean. Sometimes it just seems like they are more interested in showing people how clever they are, than simply “getting it done”. I feel that they don’t always put themselves in the shoes of the newer lifter who often latches onto every word they say.

For the “average Joe”, living a pretty standard lifestyle, they need something simple and more ‘vague’ to follow. As an example, it’s no use saying that it’s better to gain 1.5lbs of bodyweight per month rather than 3 or 4lbs…“normal” people just can’t be that precise (besides the fact that this is terrible advice for those who struggle to gain weight). Better to simply over-shoot a little and trim whenever necessary. Is it optimal? Maybe not as much as “perfect” precision, BUT it doesn’t take the fun out of it and it prevents stagnation (ensuring longer term gains) - which happens 9/10 when people try to follow things to the letter.

LOL at your peers. 190lbs (30lbs in a year) is hardly over reaching…certainly not if you are gaining a little fat too (10lbs of fat out of 30lbs is hardly ALL fat). That goal maybe out of reach for the majority of trainees who don’t have a clue what they’re doing lol. But you still have plenty natural potential left to go.

[quote]Tonino wrote:
Wednesday, 3/16/11 (Chest/Back/Arms)

BB Incline Bench
85/3
95/3
105/3
115/3
125/3
135/3
145/1 (the 1 happened to be the 2nd rep, I had to be spotted on the 1st and 3rd)
125/7

BB Decline Bench
75/3
125/3
155/3 (PR)
140/8

BB Rows
70/3
90/3
100/3
110/3
120/3
130/3
140/3 (PR)
125/11

Lat Pulldown (Nautilus machine)
110/3
150/3
190/3 (PR)
200/3 (PR) (190 felt fairly easy, so I knew I had a go at 200)
180/11

BB Curls
37.5/3
57.5/3
77.5/3
67.5/13

Skull crushers
30/3
50/3
72.5/3 (PR)
62.5/15

Comments-
The session started off poorly when I only got 1 rep at 145 lbs on BB Incline Bench, but it picked up after that, seeing as I hit PRs on Decline Bench, Rows, Pulldowns and Skull Crushers. Next Chest day, I’ll focus on 140 lbs for Incline… I was probably being too aggressive with the 145.

One other note, today’s Lat Pulldowns felt great. I read an article on this site (not sure which one, but it was recent) where it talked about proper form with Pulldowns, and how you should puff out your chest and focus on bringing in your elbows as opposed to bringing down your arms. Well, I applied that today, and they felt incredibly easier than last Back workout.[/quote]

One thing I’ve noticed with your workouts is that you must have quite a high concentration of slower twitch muscles - typically for this type of muscle you can really feel the difference in even slow jumps in load between one set to the next with low reps, but as soon as you decrease the load just a little, you manage quite a few more reps.

Looks like in the future you’ll be better suited to the 8-15 rep range (lower reps for compound, higher for single joint movements). Although this is just speculation…will just wait and see how most of your workouts go…

You also “seem” to have quite a low capacity for very high intensity training, maybe something to look into in the near future (but stick to it for now). Good training’s all about figuring out what works, and dropping what doesn’t…so don’t fret if things do change.

Good news on the lats. Always better to improve mind-muscle connection (this also comes with experience).

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Where’s this article that you’re talking about btw? I’ve heard good things about Shelby…
[/quote]

Here’s the Shelby article… and yes, you’re right, in the beginning, I opted to follow some of the advice to an exact science, but this just makes the process more difficult. The easier the process, the easier is seems to be successful and make progress. Just my 2cents.

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
You also “seem” to have quite a low capacity for very high intensity training, maybe something to look into in the near future (but stick to it for now). Good training’s all about figuring out what works, and dropping what doesn’t…so don’t fret if things do change.
[/quote]

Another thing that I’ve noticed is that, in terms of development, my upper chest seems to lag behind middle and lower chest (and I know, I shouldn’t be talking about different areas of chest development at a measly 160lbs!) … but just something that I noted, especially in my progress pictures…

[quote]Tonino wrote:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Where’s this article that you’re talking about btw? I’ve heard good things about Shelby…
[/quote]

Here’s the Shelby article… and yes, you’re right, in the beginning, I opted to follow some of the advice to an exact science, but this just makes the process more difficult. The easier the process, the easier is seems to be successful and make progress. Just my 2cents.

Good read, very similar to what I would say.

The parts where I always feel the need to point out to people is that you have to bulk within your own bulk range (which is individual). For example, I can comfortably bulk within the range of 8-12%, and the closer to 15% I get, the more my hormones become screwed up (bodyweight gains become very fat and I gain very little muscle)…whereas my brother can’t comfortably bulk when that lean - typically around 15% is his “sweet spot”.

The general rule of thumb to follow is this (which I’ve found): if it’s easy to lose fat at a certain bf %, then you’ll gain muscle within that range too. So say you go on a very mild diet at 12% bf, and it only takes 8-12 weeks to get down to 8% all while maintaining strength relatively easily - this would be a good range to stay in while bulking. Whereas, if it takes extreme measures just to get down to 12%, and to stay there, you are probably better off bulking at a higher bf%. Or at the very least, the person who really struggled to get their bodyfat down to a reasonable level, should maintain that level for some time before bulking (e.g. endomorphic builds).

Not to get ahead of myself, but what kind of routine would you recommend for when I recommence my bulk? What do you think of some of the routines in KingBeef’s latest thread?

[quote]Tonino wrote:
Not to get ahead of myself, but what kind of routine would you recommend for when I recommence my bulk? What do you think of some of the routines in KingBeef’s latest thread?

[/quote]

I would recommend something like the push/pull/legs one…except maybe without the extra frequency for legs. This is something I came across a while ago and rediscovered myself - that legs/big exercises seem to respond to a lessor frequency than upper body.

It really doesn’t matter too much HOW you split it up as long as the frequency of training your bodyparts is suitable for your body, and the volume is suitable too.

Example 3-way splits:

push/pull/legs
chest+biceps/back+triceps/legs+delts
chest+triceps/back+biceps/legs+delts
chest+delts/back+traps/legs+arms
chest+back/delts+arms/legs

etc etc etc

I’d recommend you train bodyparts around 2x/week or slightly less (less for legs). The one I had in mind was the last one (chest+back/delts+arms/legs).

After looking at your logs, I think you’ll respond to a more medium intensity and medium-low volume approach. So roughly 2 exercises/bodypart (except legs which’ll get more and back which’ll be hit indirectly as well as directly), 2-3 sets/exercise, and no long ramping (except warmups).

^^^ Just remember that consistency and progression on your exercises is what matters most, and much of that is “enabled” by your diet.

Apart from retarded training that’s really not suited to you, the best way to slow gains is switching routines, and not eating enough :slight_smile:

Friday, 3/18/11 (Legs/Shoulders)

Back Squat
95/3
115/3
135/3
155/3
175/3
185/3
195/1 (PR)
175/4

Standing Calf Raises
145/3
195/3
235/3 (PR)
215/15

Seated BB Press
60/3
70/3
80/3
90/3
100/3
110/3
120/3 (PR)
105/8

Deadlifts
135/3
155/3
185/3
205/3
225/3
245/3
270/2 * I know I could’ve gotten the 3rd rep, but my grip gave out. I use gloves, but not straps.

Side (Power) Raises
25/3
30/3
35/0 * I felt a sharp pain in my left elbow as soon as I tried lifting the weight
I couldn’t get in another set of the Power Raises due to the elbow pain, so I did 1 arm leaning side raises… 25/12 (right side), 20/12 (left side)

Comments:
Today felt like an average session. I was sick yesterday, so I’m not sure if that impacted my performance today. But I don’t seem to be losing any strength, so that’s a good sign!

Saturday, 3/19/11 (Cardio session)

15 minutes of HIIT sprinting (outdoors) … 10 seconds on, 50 seconds off

Sunday, 3/20/11

Updated Stats (end of Week 6)

BW - 158.0 lbs (-2.0 from last week, -8.0 in total)
Waist - 33.0" (-0.25" from last week, -1.0" in total)
BF - 12.62% (+0.18% from last week, -3.62% in total)
Bicep (right/relaxed) - 12.50" (no change, +0.50" in total)
Bicep (right/flexed) - 13.75" (no change)

Comments:
I took progress pics today, and will try to post them later. I also had my wife help me take the measurements for the 7-site caliper test. That calculation puts me around 14% BF (its very possible that when I started 6 weeks ago, I was higher than the 16% BF I had calculated.)


Progress Pics … Front Relaxed View

Side Shot

Back Relaxed


Another Front Relaxed View… including legs … excluding my briefs… haha

Back width has come along nicely. Looks like we’ll probably have to focus on chest/arms a little more so it’s probably time to pump up the work (move onto more of a split).

I would like to get you onto a gaining phase now, but you did say that you wanted to lose a bit more fat? If you did start gaining now, I would have you going at a steady pace (it’s not like you’d get really fat all of a sudden lol). I just think that it’s better to “feed the muscle” and fill them out more and speed up the metabolism via food. More over-all muscle = faster metabolism and a better look (ratios etc).

The length of the gaining phase is up to you, it can be as short as 8 weeks if you want?

Don’t want to pressurise you, it’s completely your choice and I’d understand…let me know what you’d rather and I’ll start writing up the plan :slight_smile:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Back width has come along nicely. Looks like we’ll probably have to focus on chest/arms a little more so it’s probably time to pump up the work (move onto more of a split).

I would like to get you onto a gaining phase now, but you did say that you wanted to lose a bit more fat? If you did start gaining now, I would have you going at a steady pace (it’s not like you’d get really fat all of a sudden lol). I just think that it’s better to “feed the muscle” and fill them out more and speed up the metabolism via food. More over-all muscle = faster metabolism and a better look (ratios etc).

The length of the gaining phase is up to you, it can be as short as 8 weeks if you want?

Don’t want to pressurise you, it’s completely your choice and I’d understand…let me know what you’d rather and I’ll start writing up the plan :)[/quote]

I’m ready for a gaining phase! Don’t get me wrong, I definitely wanted 10% or less bodyfat, but I also understand that more over-all muscle is what I need to start looking the part of one who lifts weights!

I’ll continue this week with my current plan (diet and training) until you recommend otherwise… but I’m definitely ready for a split.

To be honest, the pictures might not tell the story that well… but I know that when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel leaner now at 158 lbs than I was when I started back in July at 147 lbs. So I’m fairly confident that of the 8 lbs I lost over the last 6 weeks, it came mostly from fat (external and internal, as you pointed out last week).

As always, thanks for your scrutiny. I’m patient. and determined. I know I’ll get there!

[quote]Tonino wrote:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Back width has come along nicely. Looks like we’ll probably have to focus on chest/arms a little more so it’s probably time to pump up the work (move onto more of a split).

I would like to get you onto a gaining phase now, but you did say that you wanted to lose a bit more fat? If you did start gaining now, I would have you going at a steady pace (it’s not like you’d get really fat all of a sudden lol). I just think that it’s better to “feed the muscle” and fill them out more and speed up the metabolism via food. More over-all muscle = faster metabolism and a better look (ratios etc).

The length of the gaining phase is up to you, it can be as short as 8 weeks if you want?

Don’t want to pressurise you, it’s completely your choice and I’d understand…let me know what you’d rather and I’ll start writing up the plan :)[/quote]

I’m ready for a gaining phase! Don’t get me wrong, I definitely wanted 10% or less bodyfat, but I also understand that more over-all muscle is what I need to start looking the part of one who lifts weights!

I’ll continue this week with my current plan (diet and training) until you recommend otherwise… but I’m definitely ready for a split.

To be honest, the pictures might not tell the story that well… but I know that when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel leaner now at 158 lbs than I was when I started back in July at 147 lbs. So I’m fairly confident that of the 8 lbs I lost over the last 6 weeks, it came mostly from fat (external and internal, as you pointed out last week).

As always, thanks for your scrutiny. I’m patient. and determined. I know I’ll get there!
[/quote]

Glad to see you’re still highly motivated!

Yeah carry on till next week (at least that’ll give me plenty chance to write up your plan). Will probably mail you tomorrow the first part of the split (so as not to fill up this log and make it more difficult to reference it)

A little tip for the following weeks diet, try to base it around mainly raw veg, red meat, eggs, nuts and fish. This’ll at least give your last week of fat loss a good boost!

Monday, 3/21/11 (Chest/Back/Arms)

BB Incline Bench
80/3
90/3
100/3
110/3
120/3
130/3
140/1
125/7

BB Decline Bench
80/3
135/3
160/3 (PR)
145/5

BB Rows
75/3
95/3
105/3
115/3
125/3
135/3
145/3 (PR)
130/9

Lat Pulldown (Nautilus machine)
110/3
160/3
210/3 (PR)
190/12

BB Curls
42.5/3
62.5/3
82.5/3 (PR)
72.5/7

Skull crushers
32.5/3
52.5/3
77.5/3 (PR)
67.5/7

Comments-
Once again, this session started out dissappointing with BB Incline. Last week, I went for 145 on my top set, and only got 1 rep. This week, I dropped by 5 lbs, and still only got 1 rep at 140. At first, I was thinking of a couple factors which might have affected my performance today. One being that I woke up a couple times during the night due to a lingering head cold, and second, I changed my diet slightly to boost fat loss this week (I reduced carbs from breakfast)… BUT … then I hit PRs on all other exercises, including Decline Bench.

So I’m not sure… maybe I’m that bad with Incline Bench?! Regardless, I felt good when everything was said and done. It felt like a productive day.

Here’s the plan (will just put it here so I can edit it - will add the splits as I write them so check this post for the complete split)

Split

4 days per week. Chest+Back/Delts+Arms/Legs. Legs trained 1x/week. Alternate 2 upper body days.

Example:

Week A
M: Chest+Back
T: —
W: Delts+Arms
T: —
F: Chest+Back
S: Legs

Week B
M: Delts+Arms
T: —
W: Chest+Back
T: —
F: Delts+Arms
S: Legs

Chest+Back Day

Loads are just examples of what you probably could do (feel free to do more reps on last set if you can, or to increase/decrease load). Last set is to failure or close.

Chest:

BB incline bench

Set 1: 12 reps - 80lbs
Set 2: 10 reps - 105lbs
Set 3: 8 reps - 125lbs
Set 4: 6-8 reps 125lbs

BB flat bench

Set 1: 10 reps - 80lbs
Set 2: 10 reps - 125lbs
Set 3: 8 reps - 140lbs
Set 4: 4-8 reps - 140lbs (optional)

3-5min rest

Back:

Pull-up

Warmup with sets of 3 reps with bodyweight (until lose)
Set 1: 8 reps - Bodyweight
Set 2: 8 reps - Bodyweight
Set 3: 8-10 reps - Bodyweight

Barbel Row

Set 1: 12 reps - 100lbs
Set 2: 10 reps - 125lbs

Cable Row

Set 1: 15 reps - 90lbs (or whatever gives a good feel but not to failure)
Set 2: 15 reps - 90lbs (or whatever is difficult/near failure)

Notes:
AS you can see, there are more reps especially ones before max sets (gets plenty blood in there). With incline bench, make sure the bench isn’t too steep otherwise it hits delts more than chest (about 30 degrees, that is, about 2 notches up on most benches). This could be the reason why you’ve stagnated on incline (because delts are taking over and they’re the weak link). Grip bar only just outside shoulder width (not too wide otherwise shoulders take too much load…another reason why you could be stagnating). Get a good stretch, don’t limit ROM. Same applies for flat bench too.

The optional sets are just incase the pecs aren’t done enough, go by the feel (ie good pump, bruised feeling…when this is reached, usually that’s enough).

Reason for putting flat bench in there instead of decline is because it has a slight carry over to upper chest (compared to decline which gives virtually no upper chest stimulation)…and this will bring upper chest up more.

The addition of cable rows is for upper/middle back/rear delts. This ensures healthy posture and gives a good base/balance for pressing exercises. It hits rear delts quite well too (important for shoulder health). Use overhand grip and a medium hand position. Row to just below chest. Go more for the feel rather than just trying to move the load from A-B (feel the shoulder blades pull together, not the biceps).

With pull-ups, you should be able to get some good reps in there (probably around 12 as a complete guess). But you pace yourself - in other words, hold back a couple reps on each set so you can do more sets (instead of something like 12/9/5, you’ll do something like 8/8/8). So fatigue builds up until the last set which is maximal.