Zach's Anabolic Diet Training Log

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For previous logs you can check it out here:

http://tnation.T-Nation.com/free_online_forum/blog_sports_body_training_performance_bodybuilding_log/zachs_shelby_starnes_log_2

For the past 5 months I have worked with Shelby Starnes and lost 62lbs. Now I am going to use the Anabolic Diet to hopefully recomp. Things will change week to week but I will try to keep things reader friendly.

Week of 7/31/11 - 8/6/11

Diet: I am going to be following the Anabolic diet.

However, instead of eating everything in sight that is low carb, I will be following specific macronutrient ratios. Starting this week I will be getting 300g Protein, 200g Fat, and 30 grams of carbs or less from vegetables.

This is my sample menu:

6 meals of 50g Protein, 33g Fat

Meal 1- 7 medium whole eggs, 1oz chicken breast, 3 fish oil, 2 primrose, optional veggies

Meal 2- 5oz ribeye, 3oz chicken breast, optional veggies

Meal 3- 8oz pork tenderloin, 25g olive oil, optional veggies

Meal 4- 58g Protein powder, 33g macadamia nut oil, optional veggies

Meal 5- repeat a previous meal

Meal 6- repeat a previous meal

Also, I will only use a one day carb-up, keeping it low-fat and moderately low protein all day, with a cheat meal at the end of the day. Very similar to a Shelby Starnes super-high carb day. Not that he ever gave me one of those, haha.

My current plan is to alternate the Mass and Cutting phases of the Anabolic Diet in order to recomp in the 220 powerlifting weight class. I think I will alternate 8 weeks of the Mass phase with 12 weeks of the cutting phase. However, I will make adjustments weekly based on progress pics taken Saturday mornings before my carb-up, when I will look the worst. I will be adding 500kcal to the above menu each week, hopefully increasing to 5500kcal per day. After staying at 5500kcal per week I will begin reducing by 5000kcal per week, maybe taking it down to 2500kcal and staying there for 6 more weeks. It will all depend on weekly progress and muscle/fat gain.

Training:
This is my current plan and I may make some changes.

Monday- Pull
Deadlifts
BB Row
DB Row
Chest Supported Row

Tuesday- Push
Bench Press
Close-grip Bench
Smith Machine Incline
Smith Machine Floor Press
*The gym I work at does not have a power rack…

Wednesday- Legs
Front Squats
Leg Press
Leg Curl
Calf Raises

Thursday- Pull
Neutral Grip Pull-ups
Chin-ups
Wide Grip Pull-downs
Close Grip Pull-downs

Friday- Push
DB Incline
DB Flat
DB Standing Press
Dips

Saturday- Legs
Split Squats
Reverse Lunges
Double Kettlebell Front Squats
Step-ups

Sunday- REST!

I will also be cutting my cardio down to 5 one hour sessions per week. Walking on the treadmill at 3mph, no incline.

[system]

8/4/11

BW- 208

AM Cardio- 60min walk

Neutral Grip Pullups- 3x8
Chinups- 3x6
Wide Grip Pulldowns- 3x12@135, 150, 165
Close Grip Pulldowns- 3x15@120, 105, 105

8/5/11

BW- 207

AM Cardio- 60min walk

DB Incline- 3x10x100’s
DB Flat- 3x10x100’s
Fat Gripz Standing Press- 3x12x80
Chest Press + Mini Band- 3x20@90, 105, 120

8/6/11

BW- 208

Will post today’s training and carb-up later.

[system]

8/6/11 Training

Step Ups- BWx5, 35x5, 70x5, 3x10x70

Walking Lunges- BWx10, 3x10x70

*This was more taxing to my cardiovascular system than my muscles. However, I am feeling all sorts of little muscles firing that normally don’t.

So far this is what I have eaten today:

100g carbs- 4 banana cake squares (to make low-fat cake just take a box of cake mix, 3 bananas, blend and bake. No oil or eggs)

100g carbs- half gallon of organic skim milk

80g carbs- 24oz Monster Energy Drink

40g Carbs- 20oz powerade

50g Carbs- 2 packs flavored oats

150g carbs- 6 servings of fruity pebbles

80g carbs- 1 bag of chocolate rice cakes

*This alone is 600g of carbs. I am either going to go low carb the rest of the day, or just keep it going, I have not decided yet.

[system]

8/7/11

BW- 220 (Yikes!)

REST!

I kept the carb-up going yesterday but slowed things down a bit. I didn’t realize that I could get THAT many carbs in THAT fast. We’ll see if I drop to my lowest weight of last week or not by Saturday morning.

After I posted my food for the morning I had this:

1 and a half Chicken Gyros
Pita bread and Hummus
Fat Free Frozen yogurt
Fat Free Pringles
2 packets of bananas and cream oatmeal
Cheese plate with bread, honey, and fruit
Burger and fries
Low-fat Frozen yogurt mixed with Fruity Pebbles and Cap’n Crunch
More low-fat frozen yogurt

FOOD PLAN FOR 8/7/11-8/13/11

3050kcal, 285 Protein, 195 Fat, 30 Net Carbs

*Since I am getting so many extra calories on my carb day now I will not increase my weekday calories yet. I need to see how the 24 hour carb-up will affect me.

Most of my food will be my ANABOLIC DIET SUPER SHAKE! Composed of the following:

1.5 cups of Organic Whole Milk
12 Medium Eggs
4 scoops of Whey Protein Isolate
3 Tbsp of Macadamia Nut Oil
2 Tbsp of Olive Oil
Salt and 10g Creatine Monohydrate
*I will also take 10g of Fish Oil and 2600mg of Evening Primrose Oil

The rest of my food will be a low carb “taco salad” composed of the following:

10oz cooked 73/27 Ground Beef
2 cups of Spinach
4 Tbsp of sugar free Salsa
1/4 cups of peppers, mushrooms, and onions

[system]

8/8/11

BW- 215

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

AM Session- Back:
*2-5 minutes rest on all exercises
Deadlifts- 6x2x405
BB Underhand Row- 3x6x225
DB Row- 3x10x100’s
Row Machine- 3x15x135

PM Session- Biceps:
*60 seconds rest on all exercises
DB Drag Curls- 3x15x25’s
DB Hammer Curls- 3x12x25’s
Band Reverse Curls- 3x20x Blue band

*Even though I am at 3000kcal I am starving! Maybe my metabolism is elevated from the carb-up, maybe it is all the liquid food. Although turning my shake into ice cream is AWESOME! I can’t tell yet if my unilateral leg session on Saturday negatively affected my deadlifts. Maybe it did, or maybe 6x2 with 405 is just what my current strength level actually is. Weak…

[system]

8/9/11

BW- 212

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

AM Session- Chest:
*2-4 minutes rest on all exercises
Bench- 6x2x300
Wide Grip Bench- 3x6x225, 225, 250
Smith Machine Incline- 3x8x185, 205, 225
Smith Machine Decline- 3x10x225, 245, 265

PM Session- Triceps and Delts:
*60 seconds rest on all exercises
Pushdowns- 3x20x Blue band
DB Triceps Extensions- 3x15x25’s
Band Reverse Pushdowns- 3x20x Blue band
Delt Combo- 3x10/10/10x 5’s

*Tomorrow I will keep the same calories and macros but will change up my menu. New menu looks like this:

Meal 1- 9 medium eggs
Meal 2- 1 scoop whey isolate, 5g fish oil, 1300mg Evening Primrose Oil, 5g Macadamia nut oil, 3/4 cup organic whole milk, 5g creatine, pinch of salt
Meal 3- 8oz 75/25 beef, 1 cup spinach, 2 Tbsp salsa
Meal 4- 9 medium eggs
Meal 5- 1 scoop whey isolate, 5g fish oil, 1300mg Evening Primrose Oil, 5g Macadamia nut oil, 3/4 cup organic whole milk, 5g creatine, pinch of salt
Meal 6- 8oz 75/25 beef, 1 cup spinach, 2 Tbsp salsa

*I will also be using 2 scoops of Xtend BCAA blend during my AM lifting session. I’m hoping some good things will happen doing 12 lifting sessions per week alongside 5 hours of cardio per week. I’m considering working in some intervals after the meet. I’d love to be able to eat 3-4000kcal or more per day and lose a little fat while building some muscle. It may look like I’m doing too much work but I have better than average recuperative abilities.

[system]

8/10/11

BW- 209

AM Cardio- 60min walk

AM Session- Legs:

Front Squats- 3x8x135
*Yes, that is pathetic. However, my lower body is still fairly jacked up from when I ruptured two lumbar discs 3 years ago. I have a terrible time trying to reach depth on back squats so I am using more “Olympic style” front squats to work on depth.

Modified GHR- one mini band x 12, two mini bands x 12, two mini bands and holding a 25lb plate x 8

Unilateral Leg Press- 3x15x105, 90, 90

Leg Curls- 3x15x195

PM Session- Prowler:

10 x 15sec @90lbs, 105 sec rest

*Will most likely increase the weight on this one next time.

[system]

8/11/11

BW- 214

*I have been constantly trying to figure out why my weight jumped 5lbs with the exact same macros. First, I changed to much more whole food than shakes. I eat more pounds of food so there is more content in my digestive system, so I weigh more. Second, I also started a BCAA/Glutamine blend yesterday and it could have a volumizing effect in the muscles like creatine.

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

AM Session- Back:

Straight Arm Pulldowns (straight bar)- 3x15x #6, #8, #10
*These were done primarily as a warm-up. After 6 lifting sessions this week I feel pretty sore all over and took longer to warm-up than usual.

Close Grip Pulldowns- 3x10x135, 150, 165
Medium Grip Underhand Pulldowns- 3x12x120, 135, 150
Wide Grip Pulldowns- 3x15x150, 120, 105
*I was smoked by the time I got to the wide grip and could barely finish my sets

Straight Arm Pulldowns (V-bar)- 3x20x#6, #8, #10
*These were done to pump blood into the lats and get some extra volume in.

PM Session- Biceps:

*Once again, due to feeling beat up, I took an easier approach to this session. Just working on filling the muscles with blood and depleting glycogen. The more I deplete, the more I can eat!

Band Reverse Curls- 3x20x Blue Band
Band Hammer Curls- 3x20x Blue Band
Band Curls- 3x20x Blue Band

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8/12

BW- 213

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

AM Sessions- Chest:

DB Incline- 3x8x100’s
DB Flat- 3x8x100’s
*Something is either strained or not firing in my front delt. I made sure not to go to failure because of this.

KB Standing Press- 3x15x35’s
Chest Press Machine- 3x20x135, 135, 150
Band Fly- 1x50x Blue Band
*I did this to pump blood into the muscle then I walked forward still holding the band, letting it pull my arms back into a stretch for the pecs, shoulders, and biceps. I held this stretch for 60 seconds

PM Sessions- Triceps and Delts:

Band Pushdowns (Supinated)/Rear Delt Raises- 3x20xBlue Band/3x20x5’s
Band Pushdowns (Neutral Grip)/Side Delt Raises- 3x20xBlue Band/3x20x5’s
Band Pushdowns (Pronated)/Front Delt Raises- 3x20xBlue Band/3x20x5’s

*I like this split and type of training but it may be too much at once. I feel good and strong but at the same time like I got hit by a truck. Everyday.

8/13/11

BW- 210

AM Session- Legs:

Leg Press- Did sets of 10 working up one plate per side (pps) until I reached 7pps. Then I worked back down 1pps doing sets of 10. Basically it looked like this:

1pps X 10
2pps X 10
3pps X 10
4pps X 10
5pps X 10
6pps X 10
7pps X 10
6pps X 10
5pps X 10
4pps X 10
3pps X 10
2pps X 10
1pps X 10

*I followed this up with foam rolling, stretching, and carb domination all day long. The PM Session did not happen! I spent the day eating, laying on the couch, and rewatching all of the Resident Evil movies.

[system]

8/15/11

BW- 219

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

Deadlifts- 5x2x425
*Something has to change. EVERY set of these felt like (and looked like, according to Ryuubane) a max double.
BB Underhand Row- 2x8x225
Chest Supported Row- 3x15x150

*I know that I have been jumping around a lot lately in regards to my training. I finally have my diet setup the way it should be. Now I just need to nail down my training. Another problem is my current goal. I know I need to continue working on fat loss but I am not mentally ready for starvation nation, strength loss, and generally feeling like death. I’ve decided to try to lose fat without dropping below 3000kcal per day and keep either a cheat meal or carb day once per week. So, I’m taking Jim Wendler’s advice. Push the prowler everyday (well, 6 days per week) to fight the adiposity. I will also be lifting only 3 days per week using his 5/3/1 full body split. Hopefully this will be something I consistently do week in and week out.

Easy Day Prowler- 8 x 40 yds sprints, no weight on the prowler, 60 seconds rest.

*I will do “easy” prowler on lifting days and “hard” prowler on off days. Hard days, for now, will be 16 x 40 yds sprints, no weight on the prowler, 90 seconds rest. I will work up to both days having 90lbs on the prowler. Hopefully this will help me be able to recomp around my current bodyweight.

[system]

8/16/11

BW- 215

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

PM Cardio- Prowler Sprints 10x40yds, 90 seconds rest

8/17/11

BW- 214

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

Front Squat- 3x5x135
Bench (3’s- 135, 165, 205, 245, 280) 315X6
DB Row- 3x15x100’s

PM Cardio- Prowler Sprints 8x40yds, 60 seconds rest

8/18/11

BW- 213

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

PM Cardio- 5min warmup, 15 Incline Treadmill Sprints (15sec on/45sec off), 10min cooldown

8/19/11

BW- 214

AM Cardio- 5min warmup, 15 Incline Treadmill Sprints (15sec on/45sec off), 40min cooldown

Front Squat- 3x5x145
Clean and Press (one clean per set): 3’s- 70, 90, 110, 135, 145, 160
Chins- 5x6xBW

8/20/11

BW- 214

Rest and Carb Up!

8/21/11

BW- 227

AM Cardio- Walk 30min

*I’ve let myself get as heavy as I’m comfortable with for now and will begin scaling back calories slowly. I think I’ll stick with my 3 Incline Treadmill Sprint sessions worked into my 5 hours total weekly cardio plus the 5/3/1 full body 3x per week. Diet plan for next week is this:

2750kcal, 350 Protein, 115 Fat, 60 Net Carbs

*The carbs will be from sweet potatoes consumed post-sprints and post-workout (if I’m not lifting that day they will be the first two meals of the day).

*No progress pics this week. My wife had left her camera at her sister’s house Friday night. Will have some next week.

PM Cardio- Prowler Sprints 10x40yds, 90 seconds rest

[system]

8/24/11

BW- 224

AM Cardio- 5min warmup, 20 incline treadmill sprints (15sec on/45sec off), 35min cooldown

Front Squats- 3x5x155
Deadlifts: 5’s- 185, 225, 275, 315, 365, 410
DB Bench Press- 3x15x50’s
*Held back too much on the DB Press in preparation for 5/3/1 bench Wednesday. I think I will just increase them 10lbs (per DB) each week until I can do the 100’s for 3x15. That’s the plan anyway.

8/25/11

BW- 218

AM Cardio- Walk 60min

[system]

8/25/11- 9/3/11

I haven’t been logging because I haven’t been doing real training this whole time. Something is going on with my left front delt. It’s either not firing or it’s strained, possilby a pinched nerve. 8/25-8/30 I basically did nothing but bodyweight lower body stuff like step-ups, lunges, back extensions, and sit-ups. I kept doing steady state cardio, treadmill incline sprints, and low carb. Bodyweight has been 215-220. I started back with some real (albeit light) training on 8/31. All of this is off the top of my head.

8/31/11- Back and Biceps

Cardio- 60min

Row Machine- 5x10
Dumbell Row- 5x10
Unilateral Cable Row- 5x10
Some other type of row- 5x10
BB Drag Curl- 5x10
DB Hammer Curl- 5x10
Reverse Cable Curl- 5x15

9/1/11- Shoulders and Traps

Cardio- 60min

Face Pulls- 5x10
Upright Rows- 5x10
Side Rows- 5x10
Delt Combo- 5x10/10/10
Smith Machine Shrugs- 5x10
Cuban Press- 5x10
DB Shrugs- 1x50x50’s

9/2/11

Cardio- 60min

9/3/11
Hack Squats- 5x10
Romanians- 5x10
Unilateral Leg Press- 5x10 supersetted with Unilateral Standing Leg Curl- 5x10
Strap Pushdowns/Cbl Hammer Curl/Kneeups- 5x10
Dumbell Triceps Ext/DB Curl/Overhead Cbl Side Bend- 5x10
V-Bar Pushdowns/Cbl Straight Bar Curl/Kneeling Cbl Crunch- 3x20

[system]

*Bodyweight is still staying 220-225. I’d prefer to be under 220 so I’ve locked down on the diet a bit more. Shoulder is still not great so my weights on most exercises are lighter than usual.

9/5/11
BB Bench- 5x10
BB Incline- 5x10
DB Incline (plus a mini band around my back)- 5x10
Unilateral KB Bench Press- 5x10
Band Pushdowns (Supinated)- 3x20
Band Pushdowns (Neutral)- 3x20
Band Pushdowns (Pronated)- 3x20

9/6/11
Front Squats- 5x10
Speed Deadlifts- 6x1
Leg Press- 5x10
Leg Curl- 5x10
Situps- 5x10
Plank- 5x20 seconds
Hanging Knee-ups- 5x10

9/7/11
Row Machine- 5x10
DB Row- 5x10
Unilateral Cable Row- 5x10
Inverted Rows- 5x10
BB Drag Curl- 5x10
DB Hammer Curl- 5x10
Cable Reverse Curl- 5x10

[system]

9/8
Face Pulls- 5x10
Up Rows- 5x10
Side Rows- 5x10
Delt Combo- 5x10/10/10
Smith Shrugs- 5x10
Cuban Press- 5x10
DB Shrugs- 1x50

9/10
BB Tri Ext/BB Curl- 5x10
DB Tri Ext/DB Hammer Curl- 5x10
Pushdowns/Cable Curls- 5x10

*I am going to start working with Michael Keck of Elitefts.com this week. He should have my diet to me so I can start it Thursday. For training I plan on doing 3 prowler sessions per week, 3 steady state sessions per week, and doing the Old School Westside percentages four days per week.

[system]

9/13/11

BW- 225

AM Cardio- 20min walk

Front Squats- worked up to 200x5
Deadlifts- worked up in singles until it slowed down (455)
Chest Supported Row- 5x10x225

*Tomorrow will be my first full day of working with Mike Keck. He has me doing a Modified Warrior Diet Recompostion Phase. For now, he only has me doing three 30min steady state sessions per week for cardio, on non-lifting days. I also have to cut way back on the stimulants in order to let my adrenal glands recover from the my previous diet. This should be interesting!

[system]

9/14/11

BW- 227

CG Bench- worked up to 315x5
DB Upright Rows supersetted with DB Extensions- 5x10x40’s
Pushdowns supersetted with Face Pulls- 3x20x#8

*I really enjoyed my first full day of the Modified Warrior Diet. I don’t get super hungry during the day and the feasting portion at night is awesome. I will never have to go to sleep hungry on this diet!

[system]

9/15/11

BW- 224

Walk- 20min

9/16/11

BW- 227*
*My weight is up due to the increased food volume before bed from the Modified Warrior Diet Feast.

*I decided to do more of hypertrophy day since I’d already done my heavy stuff earlier in the week.

Tib Raises supersetted with Leg Press Calf Raises- 5x15x225

• I got this idea from John Meadows.

Leg Curls- 5x15x200

Goblet Squats- 1x20x100
*Next time I will just do front squats. The difficult part was holding the dumbbell, not squatting.

Kroc Row- 1x20x100

BB Curl- 1x20x70

9/17/11

BW- 220

Speed Bench- 9x3x185
*Had to stay close-grip due to my current shoulder issues. I ordered Mark Bell’s Sling Shot and I’m looking forward to getting some work in with it.

High Pin Presses- 225x1, 315x1, 410xX
*When I do these I unrack the weight, pause on the pins, then press the weight. As I lowered the 410 I felt “something” in my OTHER shoulder so I wasn’t able to make the lift.

3-Way Delt Combo- 3x15 each way with 15’s
Reverse Pushdowns supersetted with Incline DB Extensions- 3 sets of 10-20 reps on each
Side Rows supersetted with Up Rows- 1 set to failure

*This was a morning session and I just didn’t have the energy I normally do.

9/18/11

BW- 221

Was supposed to do 30min cardio today but I simply did not do it.

[system]

9/19/11

BW- 220

Front Squats- worked up to 200x10
Chest Supported Rows/Cable Crunches- 5x10x210/#18
GHR/DB Curl/Plank- BW/35’s/20sec
Stretch Calves, Hams, Quads, Lats, Bis

9/20/11

BW- 219

CG Bench- 5x5x225
*Now BOTH shoulders are bothering me…ughhh…

DB Upright Rows/DB Tri Ext- 5x10x50’s/35’s
Face Pulls/Pushdowns- 3x20x#10/#12
Stretch Pecs and Shoulders

9/21/11

BW- 218

Walk- 30min

[system]

9/22/11

BW- 219

*I know I’ve been program hopping and it is time to put an end to it. I’m going back to 5/3/1! Since my shoulders are currently jacked up I’ll be using Mark Bell’s Sling Shot for all pressing (if it will also work for overhead pressing). Today I needed to get an estimated max for Sling Shot bench.

Sling Shot Bench- worked up to 315x11 (estimated max is 430)
supersetted with:
Pulldowns- 5x10x90 (even this didn’t feel just wonderful on my shoulders)

Sling Shot DB Bench- 5x10x100’s (this was easy but I didn’t want to push it TOO much)
supersetted with:
Chest Supported Rows- 5x12x195

Pushdowns supersetted with Face Pulls- 5x20x#8

The Modified Warrior Diet (I know I’m contradicting the title of my log) has been going great. However, hunger has greatly increased this week. But hey, it’s a diet! It’s ok to be hungry sometimes. I get to eat tons of food at night so it’s ok.

Here are my update pics from Monday (I’m still basically asleep):