That's ****ing awesome! Huge discount, great time with the family. And what a lovely story about your childhood and your mom

Go to Harry Potter world dude! There are stations where if you wave a magic wand (a specific wand you have to buy from the wand shop lol but still), you cause the environment to change. Kids feel like they're casting real spells!

Plus that butter beer

Never had the desire to go to Disneyland until that TR.

Ear report-Talked to help nurse, she suggested phone appointment with doctor. Talk to Doctor, he suggested office visit. That happens tomorrow. Nobody was alarmed, it seems to be pretty common. I'm still getting over the symptoms of the flu, congestion a bit and whatnot. The hearing in the left ear is fluctuating.

Gym performance is lol. This is the worst drop off I have had from a short break by far, tho I am choosing to blame the bug instead of accepting my over the hill status a la loco. (denial tho)

I went back to trap bar DLs and it looked great, tho with light weight. My grip strength ****ing nosedived (dove?) along with everything else. Just astounding how much weaker I am both n strength and capacity. Again, still sick. I hope it bounces back hard. I hit a ****ing wall on everything, only did half the compound part of the workout, and had to lie down for about 3 minutes before dinner when I got home. What a chump.

Weight-152
Booze- two beer on election night, none yesterday
Sardines-no,YESSSSS!

Trap Bar DL (2-3 m rest)
65x20
155x10
245x10
245x8 (grip issue lol)
245x10 (used straps)


Goblet squats (2m rest)
55x10
85x10
85x10

Wide Pull-ups (2m)
bwx10
bwx9
bwx7

seated dumbbell OHP (2m)
50x11
50x9
50x7

Had my doctor visit. $125 to tell me to keep it dry. Lol, but okay. Also got a flu and tetanus shot.

Still not back to 100% thanks to loco. I’m updating from my phone because my nephew is sleeping in my office so less blather today. On to the numbers.

Weight-153
Booze- a scotch and a beer yesterday (panic! IPA, s’good), none today
Sardines-yes,no

Flat DB BP ( 2 minutes)
30sx20
50x10
100x8
90x10
80x10,3

Seated Row, upstairs(2min)
220x5 drop 190x4
205x8
205x8

standing reverse cable fly free motion(2min plus)
6x10
6x8
5x10

Lateral cable raise/Evo lateral raises on freemotion

6x10
6x9
5x10

Straight arm pulldown on freemotion
10x16
12x9

Spider curl/incline dB skull crusher as
27.5x10/10
27.5x10/10
27.5x7/7

Cable Pull Through (2 min +)
100x12
120x10
130x10

leg extension (60s)
80x15,5
80x10

Seated donkey calf raise (went slower tempo) (60s)
110x15
110x13,8,8
a few extra on the left side

Hoist ab gizmo
nope[/QUOTE]

I took my BIL to the gym with me and Mrs.T. which was fun. It almost killed him, but in his defense, he has been on a long break and also been drinking plenty of beer. He is similar strength to me (at least when he is off-peak like now) so it went smooth, but we cut off some of the movements cuz he was spent and I am still ramping up. I think I'll be back to normal this week.

Mrs T. hit another PR on trap bar deadlift and goblet squats like it was nothing. It is fun to see her push a little harder. she knocked out 155lbs for 10 reps for her top two sets.

As for me, I am getting back in the swing of things and strength and capacity are both coming back. Feels good. I'm sticking with the hex bar for a while, it's just way easier for me and I am good with that. If I get to 405 then I'll consider trying conventional again.

The smoke from the fires here is Cali is unreal, and it is for sure sapping my energy.


Weight-153.5
Booze- 4oz scotch/1 IPA
Sardines-no,no

Trap bar DL (2-3 m rest)
95x10
145x10
235x12
285x8
285x8


Goblet squats (2m rest)
65x10
95x10
95x10

Wide pullups (2m)
BWx10
BWx10
BWx10

OHP (2m)
45x?
95x12
115x8
115x7,45x?

Low pulley cable crossover freemotion (60s)
did not do

incline Curl (2m)
27.5x10
27.5x10
27.5x10

Reverse grip BB Bench (rest?)
135x15
185x7

Standing calf raise(60s) 2-second pause at top and bottom
did not do

toes to bar
Did not do

I’m not even working out until the smoke dies down, not sure the gains are worth it

Had a great series of events unfold on the work front. Also getting continuing to recover from the break and illness. The smoke is still ridic here and everyone is feeling run down as a result of the ****ty air quality.

I took a two-day break because we had a sushi farewell dinner for my SIL, BIL, and nephew who flew back home today but today went well in the gym. Not back to top levels but stronger for sure.

Weight-152 (!)
Booze- beer, wine, wine
Sardines-yno,no,no (gotta fix this tomorrow)

30 degree incline DB BP ( 2 minutes)
35sx18
45x12
100x4 (WIM applied)
85x7
70x7 (full/half reps), 2 (full reps)

Seated Row, upstairs(2min)
205x8
205x8
190x9

standing reverse cable fly free motion(2min plus)
7x10
6x10
5x10

Lateral cable raise
35x10
35x8
30x8

Straight arm pulldown on freemotion
11x12
12x9
12x8

close reverse grip lat plldown/reverse grip tricep pull down super set
130x12/50x10
160x7/50x10
145x8/50x9

Cable Pull Through (2 min +)
did not do

leg extension (60s)
100x18,2
100x10,3,3,4

stupid ****ed up limited range of motion calf raise
3 sets of 12 @?

Hoist ab gizmo

What does yno mean? You ate the sardines and then threw them up?

How dare you?

ETA: that is not even the worst error I made int hat post, Rexx. Think I am building up toxins from not getting enough omega 3s.

I got you fam

^^I really want to try those. I take curcumin as a supplement but I could probably be even more insufferable if I could tell people I was getting curcumin right in the sardines I eat and they should also do that.

Super smokey here in the valley. It was so bad you could see it in the air inside the gym, which was effin' packed. We cut it short today as a result, because we are for sure feeling it too, but got some compound work in. Trap bar was in use at the start so we flipped the order.

Weight-153
Booze- 4oz scotch one glass of wine
Sardines-no,no (!)

OHP (2m)
45x?
45x?
115x10
115x8
115x6,1 drop 45 behind the headx10

Wide pullups (2m)
BWx11
BWx11
BWx11

Trap bar DL (2-3 m rest)
95x10
135x10
225x10
275x7
275x6


Goblet squats (2m rest)
Did not do

Low pulley cable crossover freemotion (60s)
did not do

incline Curl (2m)
did not do

Reverse grip BB Bench (rest?)
did not do

Standing calf raise(60s) 2-second pause at top and bottom
did not do

toes to bar
did not do

Air quality is still terribad. I ordered a bunch of hepa filter units for the house but they won't be here until Wednesday. There are none available locally.

Anyway, I took another extended break due to the air, boozed a minor amount and stayed indoors with the kids, and I will be traveling mon-wed then thanksgiving so basically this whole month is at best treading water. Oh well. We went semi hard today.

I have been looking at belts and was all the way thru checking out with the inzer lever buckle belt on their site after talking myself up the line on it when my browser warned me that it was not a secure site, so I bailed. Yesterday we stopped by a sporting goods store to pick up some gloves for Mrs.T and get the kids out of the house and I tried on a $23 harbinger leather one that had none of the features I wanted but felt comfortable and seemed like it was good enough for who it's for, so I copped it. I am looking forward to trying it out next dl and squat day.

I tried a tricep cable kickback variation that I saw on this Jeff Nipard vid (11:45 mark)


It felt ridic effective. I like it.

Weight-153.5
Booze- beer, wine, wine, wine, scotch
Sardines-yes,no

30 degree incline DB BP ( 2 minutes)
45sx15
60x10
100x3 (booo!)
85x7
70x7 (full/half reps), 3 (full reps)

Seated Row, upstairs(2min)
220x8
205x8
190x9

standing reverse cable fly free motion(60s)
6x10
6x10
5x10

Lateral cable raise free motion (60s)
6x10
6x8
5x8

Straight arm pulldown on freemotion
11x15
12x9
11x10

cable tricep kickback free-motion (60s)
5x10
5x12
5x11

Cable Pull Through (2 min +)
120x7 (tried using the belt for this for practice but it was a dumb idea for breathing so I bailed)
120x10
120x10

leg extension (60s)
100x18,2
100x12,8

Straight bar curl (90s)
60x12
60x10
60x4 drop 30x8

Seated donkey calf raise (60s)
140x15
140x12
140x10 drop 60x10

toes to bar(60s)
10
10
7

Bah!

5 days off for work travel and Thanksgiving. Booze levels up (the new office that I was visiting has 4 beers on tap in the break area ffs), food levels up (but not *too* bad), but also we got some rain that cleared the air here so less toxic particles.

I got to try out my belt today. Yes, the advice I received was all sound. I didn't exactly ignore it as much as just think I may not be deserving of the best yet and seduced by the $22 price tag, but I am not a fan of the wider back, not a fan of the dual prong and so far not convince bracing as hard as I am with it is a good thing for me.

It really did feel good as far as the support of the ol' spine, and I really liked the secure feeling that provides, but man it increases my blood pressure to a scary level and interferes with my breathing. I am thinking it may just not be appropriate for extended sets, like more than 5-6 reps? Is this common knowledge? Does anyone know if it is not recommended for (pre) hypertension sufferers? Do I maybe have it too tight? Is feeling like you are going to stroke out normal? Does everyone get veins popping out all over them? Am I just a punk?

Anyway, cut it after dls and squats because I was feeling not exactly light headed, but not normal.

Came home and got the tree up and trimmed with the fam and an eggnog. Festive af.

Weight-154
Booze- In the last 5 days--beer, scotch, bourbon--plenty (for a lightwieght)
Sardines-none. Bull****.

Trap bar DL (2-3 m rest)
95x10
185x10
275x7
275x7

Goblet squats (2m rest)
70x10
100x10
100x10

Wide pullups (2m)
punk

OHP (2m)
ass

Low pulley cable crossover freemotion (60s)
punk

incline Curl (2m)
ass

Reverse grip BB Bench (rest?)
punk
Standing calf raise(60s) 2-second pause at top and bottom
ass

toes to bar
punk ass

Four beers on tap in the break room lol? Thank goodness it's American beer which is like sex in a canoe! I can't even imagine the same situation in Australia. People would be consistently hammered and zero work would be done. In b4 isn't that standard?

Imo get a real belt or go beltless. As for your concerns yeah maybe if you've had a recent angioplasty. I'm not a doctor but hypertension I think is more of a problem for what it indicates and its long term effects. A healthy active non elderly person should be capable of raising his BP an enormous amount for short times to the benefit of his cardiovascular health.

Ordered a lever belt with no widening on the back because Renton. Did NOT get the Inzer because their site is still giving all kinds of security warnings, but whatever. I think this one will be good.

Got right back in there today because punk ass yesterday. I did the compounds I missed yesterday too. Felt good. My buddy was with us so we did flat bench because spot and also didn't time rest. Lost a buncha strength on bench--a few weeks back I got 225 for 9 reps as a pr and today only 5--but not too much on pull-ups or seated row, so I think I am going to turn the tide here and get back to gaining rather than losing. The diet has not caught up with me yet.

I like the ohp supersetededed with the pull-ups. It does not seem to hurt either one for performance.

Weight-153
Booze- bourbon in tha eggnog. If I'm gonna drink pancake batter I better get a buzz, na'mean?
Sardines-NOPE!!11!

Flat bb bench
bar for loads
135x12
225x5
205x8
215x5 drop 165x5 drop 115x8

Seated Row, upstairs
205x8
205x8
205x8

OHP superset with wide pull-ups
95x10 (wu)
115x10/bwx10
115x10/bwx10
115x6 drop to 95x4/bwx10

cable tricep kickback free-motion/cable curls with rope
6x12/70x12
6x12/70x10
6x11/50x10

Straight arm pulldown on freemotion
11x12
12x9
12x8

Cable Pull Through (2 min +)
did not do

leg extension (60s)
100x15,5
100x11,3,3,3

seated donkey calf raise
100x15
140x12
140x8 70x8

no abs

I Blame Amazon for the days off. I was waiting for my new belt delivery and they skipped me, so I waited one more day. No biggie really. I got the belt and really, really like it. It's 4inch, 10mm lever.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I think I may have had the other one a bit too tight, but this one happened to come at a good sizing out of the box and I also like the lever action. It is probably lower quality leather than the Inzer, but it is not bad at all IMO, and the buckle is solid af. For $25 I am really glad I pulled the trigger on it. Also, my first session with it went well. I felt strong warming up and the vids of my form looked good, so I decided to put three wheels on for the first time in a while. Got two triples pretty easy and didn't feel like my head was going to 'splode. I still am not sure it is helpful on the goblet squats where the limiting factor for me seems to be breathing anyway...I am only doing 100lbs...and the belt makes it a little harder. I'll probably skip it until I get back to the bar.



Weight-155
Booze- Couple a beers at the poker game last night but tapering off otherwise.
Sardines-none. Bull****.

Trap bar DL (2-3 m rest)
135x10
225x10
315x3
315x3


OHP (2m)
45x20
115x10
115x10
115x8,3 drop to 45 behind the headx10

Goblet squats (2m rest)
70x11
100x11
100x8

Wide pullups (2m)
bwx11
bwx11
bwx10

Nothing else, had to go.

Lost the update. It was tlldr for one simple report of hitting 5 reps better than expected on incline db press then failing in a literal way on the 6th which would have been a pr and dropping the 100lb bell close to some dude, but not hitting him or tearing my pec.

Weight-153.5
Booze- beer, beer
Sardines-no,no

30 degree incline DB BP ( 2 minutes)
35x15
35x12
100x5 plus f
85x7
70x5(full/half reps), 3 (full reps)

Seated Row, upstairs(2min)
220x8
205x8
205x8

kneeling reverse cable fly(60s)
35x8
35x6,30x3
30x5,25x4

Lateral cable raise free motion (60s)
6x8
5x8
5x8

Straight arm pulldown on freemotion
12x12
12x12
12x12

cable tricep kickback free-motion (60s)
5x12
5x12
5x11

Seated donkey calf raise (60s)
140x13
140x12
140x10 drop 60x10

leg extension (60s)
120x15,5
110x12,8

Cable Pull Through different stack(2 min)
100x10
120x10
130x10

rope cable curl (90s)
70x12
80x10
80x10,3

toes to bar(60s)
did not do

Nm next time you'll get him.

A full body routine where the lower body work is three cables?

Love it. That's going to be me when I get T'd up. The EV good life when in comes to training.

It switches between a and b for each body part. One day compound, the next one is iso or accessories. I’m not on T but I also don’t run. Tbh, it’s not that enjoyable of a routine and I still miss my bro split, but it seems to be “working” fine. I’m probably going to a ppl in January.

I went to the gym with Mrs. T on Tuesday but we were both spent and the place was a zoo so we bailed after warming up and a couple of ramp-up sets of DL. I just didn't feel like I was going to give it a good effort.

Also, Renton's recent pondering of bar weights made me wonder if the hex/trap bar I am using is actually 45lbs or maybe less, and I decided to take it into the bathroom and put it on the scale. It is 50lbs on the nose. That means every Trap bar DL total in itt is 5lbs shy.

Went and made myself kill it yesterday since I took the L the day before and it was a rough one. I went hard and it took me a good few hours to recover at home. Also tore my callous but it was not super bad. I do not get how such a small thing can be so painful tho. Seem's like an evolution leak.

I'm liking the new belt a lot, but I am not using it for goblet squats anymore.

I looked up the Gillingham 12 week bench program on Holliday's rec and it looks simple and like it will fit right in with my current program and give me some fun. It shows I should get to 282.5 in 12 weeks. The main issue is I don't have a good spotter for a workout partner. Mrs.T is strong for her size but also tiny.

Weight-154.5
Booze- no, no
Sardines-no....YES! back on tha 'dines!

Trap bar DL (2-3 m rest)
140x10
230x8
320x4
320x4
230x7

Goblet squats (2m rest)
70x12
100x12
100x9

close chins/cable curl supa set (1m)
12/12
8/8
5/8

Dumbbell OHP
50x12
50x10
50x5,25x12

Standing calf raise
140x10
140x10
140x10

Dip machine
12x12
12x10
12x9

I got the PR on 30-degree incline yesterday easy. I thought I miscounted at first. This BS full body workout--and I only hit it three times this past week, has got me at my strongest at 44 yo. Basically once I added the intensity multipliers to go past failure on my last set it just jumped. Or maybe the more rest days. Or maybe the booze? Or the sardines? IDK.

Weight-155.5
Booze- some
Sardines-yes,yes

30 degree incline DB BP ( 2 minutes)
35x15
35x12
100x6 (pr)
85x9
70x5(full/half reps), 3 (full reps)

Seated Row, upstairs(2min)
220x8
220x8
220x3, 190x4, 175x5

kneeling reverse cable fly(60s)
35x9
35x6,30x3
30x8

Lateral cable raise free motion (60s)
6x12
5x10
5x10

Straight arm pulldown on freemotion
13x11
13x10
11x12

cable tricep kickback free-motion (60s)
6x12
6x12
6x12

Seated donkey calf raise (60s)
140x15
140x10
140x10 drop 60x10

leg extension (60s)
Did not do

Cable Pull Through different stack(2 min)
130x12
140x10
140x10

close grip chin-up/rope hammer cable curl supa set(90s) downstairs
bwx11,90x8
bwx8/90x8
bwx6/70x8

toes to bar(60s)
did not do

Good one yesterday except the dumbbell area was crowded so I skipped goblet squats to come around to it later and then forgot I had to do them still until way later. I did them but it was a lot harder after the other volume.

I gained a few pounds of water or muscle or fat tho booze seems like a likely culprit. I prefer to pretend it is muscle mass.

Hit a pr on TB DL triples. Felt easy but it taxed the form a bit. supersetted some other stuff to save time which I liked but it is harder to track exactly since I have to use odd things to complete moves. Whatever.

Weight-156.5
Booze- yes, yes
Sardines-yes, no

Trap bar DL (2-3 m rest)
100x12
160x10
250x8
340x3

250x9

Hoist shoulder press machine/Wide Grip Pull-ups (90s rest between ss)
?X12/bwx12
?X10/bwx12
?x8/bwx9,3

pec deck
130x10
130x10
130x8

Seated calf raise
90x12
90x12
90x12

Goblet squats (2m rest)
75x12
100x13
100x9

tricep pushdown (rope)/dumbell curl ss)
70x14/25x10
70x12/25x10
50x14/25x8

Congratulations on the pr Johnny