Chest day. Was there solo today so shorter rest periods in general. Didn't sleep well last night and I think it continued the trend of weaker gym performance, but I expected it, still enjoyed the workout and rate it a 7 or so.

Incline dumbbell bench
30x20
30x15
100x4
85x7
85x6
65x8x4

Flat DB BP
100x3
75x10
75x10
75x7
65x10x4

pec deck
130x7
130x6
115x7
115x8

hoist dip machine
150x10
150x8
130x8
130x8x4

hammer strength decline
125sx6
125x6 drop 90x4
90x6 drop 45 amrap

As a follow-up, I did get some minor joint pain in my knuckles only on my left hand. Can't really make anything important of it at this point, but the severity of the depression/anxiety so far seems to correlate with the severity of the joint pain. Only three data points to draw from so far and it is just something I am keeping track of.

I have been rabbit-holing fitness bro youtube vids since there is not much on TV. Steve Cook and Matt Ogus, mostly. I watched a couple of cutting videos from both of them and am simultaneously really not interested in the effort of counting macros the way they do it, and kind of interested in trying it for fun. I think laziness will win at this point. If loco didn't jog off 22.2 miles into the sunset I would probably be motivated to take it more serious just to 'splode his head and goad him into a piss-test for rolls bet.

My basic plan to cut will simply be to reduce some of the extra carbs I have been eating, stop buying beer except for poker night once a month ( I have one with dinner about 5 times a week right now), and keep liquor to max one night per week on non-workout days. I tend to get more strict as I see results. It is going to be almost 90 degrees here this weekend so it is time to get in stunting-by-the-pool shape for my community-center. My wife is also seeing good results on my bull**** workout plan, but she wants to lean up a little bit also, so it will be easy to do with her. If she cuts out some of the boba tea drinks she likes and turns down the snacks at the meetings she goes to she will be ripped.

Good lord my gym is getting packed. I can't wait for some kind of sport-ball season to start so it thins out the evening crowd a bit. I did have a nice little petty victory over the previously mentioned gym nemesis (GN) today. All three squat racks were in use when my wife, buddy and I finished warming up and arrived in the area. There is one in particular that works the best for my wife because the hooks are adjustable and she is very short. The others require me to help her rack at the end of sets even on the lowest hooks which is not ideal. We stayed close to that one and started doing some leg presses as the dude who was using it did several sets of rack pulls. While we were waiting, a younger kid came up and asked him how many sets he had left setting up a potential miss-out-on-next for us. Rack-pull bro said two and the kid left the area which reverted it to first come first serve. Then a few minutes later I saw GN come sauntering over and start to hover around the adjacent seated calf-raise machine but eye-balling the rack. I know he also likes that particular rack because he can set up his mat inside the cage like it is a little private space and do all kinds of ab crunches and ****. If he got it we were basically going to have to give up on BB squats most likely. But I also knew he didn't know how many sets Rack-pull Bro had left and is too anti-social to ask leaving me an opening. As soon as Rack-pull bro finished his second set and started to strip his bar I walked over and asked him how many more sets he had so he could tell me he was done and replied that I would take care of the bar and plates for him. Boom, Checkmate. GN was not happy, but suck it GN.

My hip is feeling pretty okay but not perfect. I warmed up with bodyweight and goblet squats along with some dynamic drills and it was a little tight so I decided to ease into it today. I still hit my heaviest weight since I started back on squats, but I did not feel strong.

Plate loaded Leg Press while waiting for the squat rack
90x20
180x20

Dart to snag squat rack
5 seconds

HBBS
45x15
45x18
95x10
115x10
135x10
155x10
185x5
185x5

Walking lunges with 20kg kettlebells. Double drop sets from one in each hand, then single goblet style, then bw
18,6,8
10,6,6
8,4,4

Donkey calf raise at a 2-2-2-2 tempo
100x16
100x14
100x10
100x8x3
120x6, 90x6 (the last of these were faster reps)

3 sets of alternating leg extension and 2 sets atlernating lying ham curl for higher reps, low weight.

45-degree hyperextension
bwx14
25lb plate x12
25x10
25x10

15 minutes-steam room.

Gymnasium political dynamics lol.

Rack puller and GN obviously in cahoots to make you clean up after them.

That would be high level. Rack puller was only pulling 185, tho.

I'm flirting with changing my program again, as I have been for years. I am changing rep ranges and moves fairly regularly, but I have not changed my split at all. I keep reading that higher frequency is better for natural lifters. Either go full body or do a push/pull/legs split. I believe that it is probably true but I am not unhappy with the results I continue to get and even more importantly, I really enjoy my time in the gym. I am not going to compete, I am not a model who has a photo shoot coming up...there is not really any reason for me to chase progression of any kind at this stage. I may just be fortunate that this works for me, and I know I will hit that wall where age catches up with me eventually but oh well.

For the people who are looking for the exact optimal way to work out, who are training for something rather than exercising like I am, are not seeing the results they like or are getting injured by other programs that are too intense for their recovery ability I suppose it makes sense to chase the perfect program. If someone is a goal oriented person or needs structure to stay motivated, which I am not and do not, I guess that is valuable too. If being in the gym is a nuisance or working out is a chore, likewise. I do think it can be counterproductive thinking when the conclusions you draw from researching the very best make you lose sight of the fact that even programs that are not the pinnacle of cutting-edge research still work, even if they are not the best. Results speak. Get yourself to the gym consistently, focus while you are there, be safe and enjoy yourself and the rest will take care of itself IMO.

I enjoy being in the gym more than the results and I usually wish workouts lasted longer. Nearly every rep of every set is able to pull me into the moment. I get in tune with myself and love the required concentration on a physical matter, something that it is very simple but at the same time demands intense focus. There is nothing else like that for me. I walk out to my car thinking about the next time I get to come back.

Shoulder and tricep day. Changed it up a little today due to crowds.

Dumbbell OHP
The rack was plundered so I had to compromise with weight and rep selection. Slowed down the tempo on the lighter sets and focused on the mind-muscle connection as much as possible.
Standing:
35x20
35x15
65x6
50x10
Seated:
50x10x2
50x8x2

Dumbbell close grip incline press
70x6
65x7
switch to flat
65x10
65x10x4

Dumbbell supine skull crusher
30x6
25x6
Switch to incline
20x8
20x8

Standing single dumbbell tricep press
60x8
50x9
50x9

Kneeling cable reverse fly
40x6
35x8
35x8
30x8

Standing cable side raises
4 sets, various weights reps, and drops

Tricep focused dips on hoist stack dip machine superset with weighted ab crunch
14x10 dip--full stack absx10
15x10--fsx10
15x8--fsx5 drop x5
13x12

Tricep pushdown mechanical drop supersets
First reverse wide grip, standing back from the stack, then close palm down grip stepping forward
AMRAP
110
100
100,80
90,70

Prison push-ups front raise. Could not find a heavy medicine ball so I used a 14 lb
Ladder from 1-10

I'm traveling for work tomorrow and Saturday, but I am may get a workout in tomorrow depending on how my partner is doing after flying in from China. He is a crazy beast, so it is not as unlikely as it seems.

Did not get a workout in on my trip and also did not make up for it on Sunday making last week the first in a long time that I missed a workout. I also have been missing my yoga breaks. I am starting to get busier with work so it is going to take a little more effort to be consistent.

Chest Day. Incline benches were all taken so I started on flat today. Not my preference but it is fun to push more weight on flat when I'm fresh. The dumbbells only go to 100 in any of the gyms I have access to, and I am actually at the point where not only can I do more for a few reps, I need more to stay in good rep ranges for the heavy sets. I may have to go back to the barbell on days where I start with flat.

Flat dumbbell BP
35x25
35x15
65x10
100x10
100x8
100x7
65x13x4

Incline Dumbbell BP
80x8
80x8
65x12x4

Cable crossover, low, medium high
3 sets each various weights and reps ranges

Decline hammer strength
115sx5
90x7
90x5 drop 45xamrap

I am getting excited about cutting. One more week and then I tighten up the diet. I will try to test my one rep max on bench next week before atrophy myself and go catabolic.

20-minute yoga today which felt great. I am making slow progress, but progress none the less with my flexibility.

Leg day solo. It was busy but nearly everything came up Milhouse for me. Open squat rack when I arrived after my warm-up and the leg press became available at the moment I was done with squats. It was a pretty good one all in all.

HBBS
45x20
45x10
95x10
135x5
185x5
195x5
195x5
135x16

Plate loaded leg press
180x10
270x10
360x6
360x6
180x11x4

Walking lunge with two 50lb dumbbells, drop to single dumbbell, drop to bw
two sets to failure

Seated calf raise 2,1,2,2 tempo
90x12
90x10
90x10
90x10

Alternating leg extension
50x30
50x20

Seated donkey calf raise
100x10
100x8
100x8
100x8x4

Prone alternating ham curl
40x20
40x20

45 degree extension
bwx10
25lbx10
25lbx10

20-minute yoga.

I am getting spammed with more and more articles ****ting on my body part bro split and claiming I need to be doing full body 3 times a week if I'm smart, or push-pull if I just can't stop being a meathead.

I am still making progress, but I suppose I could make more. There are just a lot of assertions being made based on claims of what "most" people will benefit from and what the "best" natural lifters do, but I am not seeing much in the way of cites that pertain to me. I'm not a novice at this point...I hover between high intermediate and low advanced for my weight and age range on most lifts other than squat which I got leveled down back to beginner. I feel like I have to try it, but it is hard to let go of what I have become so comfortable with, especially when I see that the people who chime in and agree it is the best in the article comments are not the people I want to look like for the most part. Most of the guys I aspire to look like at the gym, who are not the obvious juicers (though they may be enhanced, idk), do not do full body workouts 3 times a week as far as I can tell.

Really, I'm just being intellectually lazy. I don't want to go through the effort of learning a new program and breaking in the flow of it in the gym, figuring out what to do when the plan gets disrupted by crowds, navigating learning a bunch of new weight ranges to hit new rep ranges on every move all at once. It's just so comfortable to stick with what I know and make incremental changes. I mean what is the worst that can happen if I make a 6-week commitment?

Nothing wrong with trying something new and seeing how it goes. You can always revert back if you don't like it.

Every time I get closer to getting off the fence and going for that new program I read another article that confirms my current method is just fine.

One thing for sure, I am about to be a lot busier and travel a lot more and a full body program lends itself to that. It will likely be the deciding factor.

Back and biceps with the homie yesterday. Short rest periods on all exercises between sets (45 seconds average) with some lag between movements to navigate equipment.

Seated row
130x10
170x8
220x6
220x5
205x6 drop 190x4
190x6 drop 170x6

Wide pull ups
bwx10
bwx8
bwx5 red band assists x5
bwx5 bax5
bax12

Hammer strength chest supported high row. I did some mechanical drop sets (MD) by holding the outside of the arms instead of the handles to start to get a wide grip then switching to the inside handles. I also dropped actual weight for an additional drop on the last set.
100sx7
100x7 MD x4
90x6 MDx4
80x7 MDx4 drop to 55xamrap

Straight arm pull down
4 sets in the 9-12 rep range

Straight bar curls with black band and fat grips. Double drop--added band resistance to no band resistance to just band.
60x9x4xamrap
60x6x3xamrap
40x8x4xamrap
40x6x3xamrap

Incline/spider dumbbell supersets
20x6/x4
15x9/x5
15x6/5

Standing hammer curls
20x11
20x10
20x8
20x10

What are your goals?

They are soft, that's the issue. Just staying active, healthy and aesthetic in that order probably. I enjoy having a body comp that makes younger lifters hate me and people accuse me of enhancing. Now am really going for incremental improvements until my hormone levels catch up with me just because I can. When I get closer to PRs I feel compelled to hit them, but I am not chasing them or training for them. I am really just exercising, enjoying the act itself, the bro aspects of it, the social benefit of wearing a visible commitment. As a short dude especially, it is a welcome increase in the superficial respect that is not usually afforded manlets. Silly as it is, the difference it has made in my professional life is palpable.

So I guess goals are:

1. Stay as injury free as possible-including from wear and tear.
2. Enjoy myself in the gym.
3. Get leaner again and stay that way for the most part year-round. Somewhere in the 155-160 lb range. preferably under 14% bf on the loco scale, 11ish on the inaccurate bro eyeball scale. This is happening slowly currently without any severe diet changes and I feel pretty confident I can get there without a real cutting plan as I have before.
4. Continue to make incremental improvements. Especially where I have the most room to get better such as mobility for one, squats and deadlifts for another which I am remedial at after a long break and was never proficient at. But none of this at the expense of what I gained in other lifts if possible.
5. Keep the hobby interesting and intellectually engaging.

I did not sleep well last night. I had what seemed like a brilliant idea as I was drifting off and charged myself with trying to remember it so I could revisit it in the morning. I forget now, obv, but it was exciting enough to keep me restless.

Felt a little weak today at the beginning of the workout but still felt like it was a decent session, even though my weights and rep ranges were all over the place.

In general, I have been trying to vary rep ranges and weights inside workouts instead of sticking with a rep range for several weeks. I like the way it feels because I still get heavy work in but don't leave a lot in the tank.

I changed my warm up a bit and added band pull-aparts, band face pulls, and band over the tops or whatever they are called where you put slight tension and go in front then over your head behind. I like it and feel like it is giving my posterior delts a little extra work as well as helping with external shoulder rotation to counter all the pushing and verticle pulling I do. I do it every upper body day along with slow small circles and slow large circles where I try to get a full scapular range of motion, and rotator cuff external rotations with the band.

Shoulder/tri day

OHP
45x20
45x12
95x5
115x5
135x4 (felt crazy weak here)
115x8 (felt stronger again)
115x8 (still strong so I decided to try a double drop set)
145--failed drop to 95x11 drop to 45x11
45 behind the head amrap

Close grip incline dumbbell bench
70x8
65x7
Flat
85x4
75x7

Dumbbell skull crusher flat
27.5x8
27.5x7
Switch to high incline (all the small weights were mia so I had to drop down to 15 but it turned out well)
15x10 then pressx4
15x10 pressx6

Kneeling reverse cable fly 4 sets

Cable lateral raise 4 sets

Tried a superset today that I liked. Reverse grip tricep pulldown, then mechanical drop to close grip tricep pushdown, then bw dips, then toes to bar leg raises for abs since I was at the station.
60x12x8, dipsx10, TTBx10
60x8x4, dipsx10, TTBx10
40x8x4, dipsx10, TTBx8
40x8x4, dipsx10, TTBx6

After the superset, I did not feel like doing prison push-ups so I finished with plate front raises.
45x8
35x8
35x8

Deadlifts with wifey. She is watching my form based on the tips we got from it friend, but I think I’ll get her to record it next time too. I worked my way up to more weight but I am not sure how well I kept form on the heavier set even though it went up very easy in terms of effort.

65x10
95x10
135x10
185x5
185x5
185x5
235x3

Seated calf raise 4 sets
Standing weighted calf raise 4 sets

Steam room 20 minutes

Post the videos here, too.

to lifting with the wife!

What's your progression plan for the steam room?

Ha, no real progression plan with the steam room. I mostly post it here to remind myself of and loosely track the increased investment in stress reduction and mental wellness I am trying to make. The yoga practice is helping my breathing, and the steam room is relaxing.

I may post the vids here but I am a little concerned with trainwrecking myself. I am sure anyone who tries hard could identify me already because I am not super careful, but I am not sure I want to provide video evidence. That may become less important if I can escape the corporate world. It's likely an overblown concern anyway.

I decided to go ahead and try curcumin and also glucosamine while I was at it. I figure the worst case scenario would be I literally piss a few bucks down the drain, but it is not that expensive and the upside seems worth the risk.

My daily is now D3, glucosamine/MSM 1500/1500, turmeric curcumin 1500, creatine @3-5 grams, and my low dose water pill. I'm old.

Weighed in at 159lbs and matched my PR for bench today--275lbs. I probably weighed about 5-8 lbs less when I did it last but was also about 20 years younger. The last time I tried it a couple of years ago I failed. It went up easy enough today, with a slow negative and smooth lift, that I tried for 285 but failed. I don't know if I would have made 285 with a longer rest period or as the first attempt.

I always feel like I am cheating a workout when I go for 1 rep max because of the low volume so I often add volume to subsequent movements. I doubt this is sound thinking, really.

BB Bench
45x25
45x20
95x12
135x6
185x5
225x3
275x1 (!)
285x0 drop 225x6
225x4

Incline BB bench
135x16
205x6
205x6
205x4 drop 135x10

Cable crossover-
low 4 sets
high 4 sets
medium 4 sets

decline hammer strength
135sx6
135x6
135x7
135x6 drop 100xamrap

Steam room 10 minutes.

JFC at that bench - very nice work; 1.75x BW is pretty close!

Thanks, man. Now I have even less direction. There is a part of me that wants to go for 3 plates just because I think I can get there if I focus on it. Another part of me is like: but why?

Why not?

Johnny we're all waiting on that video

I mean, yes. But that is the only reason to do it really. My actual, mild concerns are the following:

Increasing my barbell bench frequency is probably not good for my fragile old man shoulders. I seem to do well with the dumbbells at twice a week frequency (once chest day and once tricep for close grip) without having any issues. If I were to get serious about adding 40lbs to my bb bench I would need to do BB a lot more than I have been. Just like N1, I don't want to get hurt chasing that dangerous mistress. She has not been good to me in the past, even though she was sweet to me yesterday.

Also, I am afraid to lose my hypertrophy gainz by focusing on a strength program. Because I am vain. Plus, same as always, I am too lazy to change too much. I am making progress still doing what I am doing but I just don't have an end goal. I am already leaner than I was in the last n00d, my squat and deadlift have a ton of room for improvement and will probably carry over to bench a little, so I can convince myself to stay with my comfy bro-split fairly easy.

Really I would do well to get my squat and deadlift back up to my bench max before I chase 315 anyway. Maybe if I do, and stay injury free all summer/fall, I will see visions of a 1000lb total when winter comes around again and I don't care about abs no mo.

I think for now what I am leaning toward is adding some 10-15 minute bodyweight/trx/resistance band/ab circuits in the morning to supplement the frequency I hit each muscle group and also get a bit of metcon work in. Combos of BW squats/trx split squats, pull-ups, chin-ups, band face pulls, band RDLS, toes to bar, around the worlds, TRX knee ins, TRX atomic push-ups, TRX inverted rows, TRX tricep extensions, TRX inverted bicep curls. I do some of that now in the AM some days (mostly the ab stuff) but getting more religious about it and more focused with the volume on specific muscles to dove-tail into my current split and see what happens with the extra output. I also am expecting Dodger to get his **** together here any minute, get a chin-up bar, straps and bands and do that part with me.

Anyway, legs today with the wife again. I have been doing heavier goblet squats in my warm-up and man are they ever getting more comfortable.

HBBS
45x20
45x20
95x12
135x8
155x5
185x5
205x5
205x5
205x5

Walking lunges with 20kg bells.
double drop 2, then 1 goblet, then bwx50 per leg

Leg press
Stackx8
stackx8
stackx6

Seated donkey calf raise
100lbs, cluster sets to 50 reps

Prone ham curl
60x20

Then I had to go so I skipped leg extensions and 45-degree hypers

I didn't do deadlifts again yet. If I do them Saturday I will see if I can get wifey to record it, but I am still sketchy on posting it here without starting a new youtube account etc.

I almost didn't go to the gym today. Joint pain and depression/anxiety flared up, both mild, a little bit of soreness in the back from sleeping in the guest room, and a late scheduled meeting during my usual gym time made me consider pushing it off, but I figured it may not be good for my mood to miss it so I went in the middle of the day instead. The guest room sleeping arrangement was because my 3y/o son came into our room last night and started snoring like a freaking cartoon. I have been sleeping light for the last few weeks so I decided to just bounce instead of lay there listening to it.

I did a truncated version of my usual back and bicep workout today with wifey. We did fewer sets, went heavier with drops for added intensity, and strict on low rest rate between sets and exercises allowing no more than 60 seconds between sets and usually more like 30-45.

Tell you what, it fixed me right up. I feel way better post workout mentally, my back was not only not an issue in the gym it has cleared up, and I used topical arnica on the wrist and knuckles which feel better too. If you have never tried arnica it is pretty astounding how well/immediately it works. I bought a salve at a local farmer's market and it is really good. I forget to use it sometimes but it works.

Back/biceps

Pull-ups. double drops from bw-red band-black band (last set I added black and red combo as well, which was ridic light but I went to absolute failure)
14-8-6
9-6-5
6-5-5-loads

Seated cable row
205x7
205x6 drop 170x6
190x7 drop 170x6 drop 145xamrap

Straight arm pulldowns
110x12
130x6
120x7 drop 90x7

Hammer strength chest supported high row--mechanical drop from outside of arms to handles
90sx6x4
80x8x4
70x8x6

Hammer strength chest supported low row
80x7
80x7
80x7

fat grip Incline dumbbell curls ss with spider curl
i20x8/20x4
s20x6/17.5x6
i17.5x6/15x6

Dumbbell Hammer curls with fat grip
3 sets didn't count reps 20 drop to 15

Straight bar banded curl double drop
30lbswith black band three sets

Kept up the urgent pace today. I like it. I feel good and am continuing to see cuts emerge. I have been drinking a lot more water again since I just got a soda stream machine. I used to drink Pellegrino by the case but I can't support Nestle and never felt great about drinking water shipped from across the sea and land in heavy-ass bottles cuz I'm a phone-it-in environmentalist. Also no beer for more than a week now. Aside from the calories, I have read some bro science articles that suggest that alcohol consumption throttles your anabolic state and reduces gains. IDGAF enough to examine the claims, but anecdotally drinking less, even when I am being pretty strict with food and even though I'm a light/moderate drinker at my heaviest, correlates to looking better pretty consistently for me.

I really feel like having a scotch now that I wrote all this tho.

Shoulder/triceps
OHP
45x20
45x12
95x10
135x4
115x7
115x6 drop 65x6
65 behind the head amrap

Close grip dumbbell incline BP
70x7
70x7
60x8
60x8

Incline dumbbell skull crushers
30sx6
22.5x8
Flat
22.5x8
22.5x6

kneeling reverse cable fly
4 sets various

cable lateral raise
4 sets various

Superset--tricep pulldown (rope)/bw dips/hanging leg raises toes to bar
50x8/bwx13/12 ttb
50x8/bwx11/10 ttb
40x9/bwx10/8 ttb
40x8/bwx10/6 ttb

14 lb med ball front-raise prison push-ups.
ladder 1-10

10 minutes steam room.

Arnica is the bomb. You play something like cricket or hockey and you'd be mad not to have it on hand.