Well I think that main issue is he trains like a powerlifter. And even in this routine, if you take out the warm up sets, there is not much volume. So lowish tdee compared to a volume monkey like EV who eats 3000 a day.

But that's what he enjoys and likes and guy has definitely gotten stronger. I myself prefer the high volume exercise approach, get my 2500-3000 cals for all of life. And I could get my cardio by just adding bodybuilding work with short rest. EV and I can both crank out a 7:00 minute mile just off our bodybuilding volume.

Thanks!


Time's a factor. I'm already training less than I want due to time constraints. I get maybe 60-75 minutes in the 4 days a week, work 40, and commute 1.5 hours a day. Could I budget more time? Yes. Would it be easy? No. But yes, I agree I should have a higher TDEE.


I'm performing 20 or so reasonably hard sets per session, and resting 1-3 minutes between sets depending on the exercise. My volume is comparable to yours and EV's. If I was actually on point and completed the supplemental work that my program recommends, I would exceed yours and EV's volume, but I often have to wrap things up early. I'm definitely not doing rippetoe or cha volume by any means.

Monday Dec 7
A2S W8D2

Pause Squat no belt: 45x6, 135x6, 195x6 x5 sets, LS @6

T = 0:30, RPE 7

***

Didn't get up early enough so made this a PM session. Definitely regret it. The two benches were swarmed with bros the entire time I was there, with more bros waiting in the wings. At 6PM I'm getting the **** out of there. I will do a short bench session tomorrow morning to get caught up.

trying to bench on a Monday in a globo gym is always a challenge

It didn't even occur to me that it was Monday until I got there.


Tuesday Dec 8
A2S W8D2

Comp Bench: 95x4, 135x4, 155x4 x4 sets, 155x9 @8.5 [rep PR]

Incline Bench: 50x6, 70x6, 90x6x5 sets, LS @8

T = 0:40, RPE 7

***

Finally a decent bench day. Getting the hang of unracking with wider grip. I'm still gonna have trouble unracking 3RM and heavier weight but it's getting better.

Incline felt crappy. I just haven't been consistent with training this movement so every time I do it I have to regroove it all over again. Not to mention there's only one in this gym. Thinking about switching to a floor press or something.

Wednesday Dec 9
A2S W8D3

Deadlift: 135x4, 185x4, 235x4 x5 sets, LS @<6

3ct Pause Bench: 45x6, 95x6, 125x6 x5 sets, LS @<6

T = 0:50, RPE 5

***

Got 15 miles down the road and realized I forgot my work computer, so I barely had time for this. Back felt perfect. I think it's time to start ramping DLs up a bit more aggressively.

Thursday Dec 10
A2S W8D4

Press: 45x4, 65x4, 85x4, 95, 105 @9 (lol), 95x4 x4 sets, LS @7.5, 105 @8, 115 @10

Seated Leg Curl: x12 x4 sets

Single Leg Press: x10 x4 sets

T = 0:50, RPE 5

***

Another PM session. All three racks were being used when I got there, one of whom was a curler. I thought about making day 4 a PM day as a standard just to reduce the amount of getting up at 4:45 in my week, but meh.

Press day was pretty lackluster this time around. The 115 *I think* ties a PR from years ago when I weighed like 135lb. Probably was barely strong enough to increase the training max by one pound. #nattyrealities

excuse the dumb question but when you use @ what does that mean in this context?

How manly he felt on that particular set on a scale from 1 to 10. 1 being the most alpha and 10 being 76o.

It's RPE rating from 1-10. 10 means you couldn't have done another rep. 9.5 means you maybe could have done one more rep. 7 means you could have done 3 more reps. 7.5 means you could have done 2 more, and maybe 3. Etc.

My program increases the weights every week based on the number of reps in the tank on my working sets.

Saturday Dec 12
A2S W9D1

Squat w/belt: 45x10, 135x3, 185x3, 225x3, 255x3, 275x3 x5 sets, LS @7.5

Press: 45x5, 65x5, 85x5 x5 sets, LS @8

SLDL: 135x5, 185x5, 215x5 x5 sets, LS @<5

T = 1:15, RPE 7

***

Crossfit plates, get your crossfit plates.

Main gym racks were in use, so I squatted with unfamiliar equipment today. Squats felt pretty good, but I'm not sure a PR was possible today. Got a better camera angle for depth. This is a decent depth standard for a tough set at this point in my life.

Presses were weak, DLs were absurdly easy. I think I'll take a 5-7 pb training max jump on those and hold squat and press TMs steady for now.

Sunday Dec 14
A2S W9D2

Comp Bench: 45x10, 95x3, 135x3, 155x3, 170x3 x5 sets, LS @9

Pause Squat no belt: 45x5, 135x5, 185x5, 205x5 x5 sets, LS @<6

CGTNGB: 135x5, 145x5 x4 sets, LS @7.5

Some curls

T = 1:15, RPE 7

***

Pretty crap day. Shoulders and elbows feeling not great. I think a big reason why my bench doesn't go up anymore is because my main bench day is on the worst recovery/sleep day of the week. Probably should do it on Saturday.

Wednesday Dec 16
A2S W9D3

Deadlift: 45x10, 135x3, 185x3, 225x3, 245, 265, 285 @8, 255x3 x5 sets, LS @7

Long Pause Bench: 45x5, 95x5, 135x5 x5 sets, LS @7

Low Row: x10 x5 sets

T = 1:10, RPE 7

***

DLs are decent. 285 is a post snap PR, but there's a long way to go, and I feel like I'm building strength from scratch at this point. My world record was a very slow 335 last year.

I need to get more thoracic strength for press and dl. I did the rows very strict with my upper back arched for the whole set, and slowed eccentrics. I need to be doing more stuff like this, and probably FS/OHS. Where's the time for this ****, though?

DL looked pretty solid; lifting in an N1-style douchebeanie = gainz

That's just a baby deadlift warmup for a guy that can squat 330 or whatever.


What's going on with this deadlift strategy? You get injured deadlifting and you scared? So you slowly reconstructing your deadlift so 365 looks just like your 285?

Just trying to make sense of what's going on just in case you do lift 365 with good form.

If you were a natural, with your squat you would deadlift 385 in 4 months. One cycle away. But we seen this story before many times. Major breakdown by 325. Maybe you hit 350 and then call it a life.

Which is fine, no reason to be stronger when your optimal weight is still in the 130s.

When I hit the 335, I had a 305 squat with maybe 315 in the tank. 20 lb difference. I just have a relatively strong squat and always have. Or a relatively weak deadlift, depending how you look at it.

Yeah I should be pulling 355-365 if I had to guess. If 285 was at 8 RPE (honestly not sure) then 315 is probably a grinder for me right now. So yeah, I gotta pick up 40lb of DL strength before I'm back to normal proportions. To answer your question, I've been ramping up cautiously for the last few months, since I had sharp lower back pain with 185. Maybe too cautiously, but 5lb or whatever a week is unsustainable progress so I will be at max weights soon enough. It would be nice if my new ATWR deadlift of 345 is as clean and easy as the 285 I just pulled, but I'm not gonna be that cautious. Just trying to get my back used to the intensity it was once capable of (two years ago I paused 1" off the floor with like 290, and it wasn't a max).

I'm not scared to pull heavy, but definitely some of those 40lbs are psychological. Not being able to rip the bar as hard as I can because of being inhibited on some subconscious level of pain aversion.

That definitely isn't RPE 8. You have to pull more aggressively, but you know that. Once you get setup, just pull as hard as you can.

I feel like there wasn't enough tension built up. Seemed like you started pulling before your hips were completely set.

Yeah maybe. I didn't get that feeling but it's possible.

Yeah. It's just something that I can't really do yet. Definitely a psychosomatic thing. I still have the occasional tweak during daily tasks and its hard not to think about that when you bend over the bar.

Thanks sir. That's what I look for, a 1:2 ratio of affirming posts to critique posts.


Thursday Dec 17
A2S W9D4

Press: 45x8, 65x3, 85x3, 100x3 x4 sets, 100x6 @9.5 [PR+5]

Leg Press: 2 plates x10, 3 plates x10, 3.5 plates x10 x3 strict af sets @7

Lat Pulldown: x12 x4 sets

T = 0:50, RPE 6

***

Another PM sesh for day 4. I chased down an errant press gain for once. Leg press was free surprisingly.

Saturday Dec 19
A2S W10D1

Squat w/belt: 45x10, 135x5, 185x3, 225x2, 275x2, 295x2, 315x2 [PR] @8.5, 295x2 x3 sets, LS @8

Comp Bench: 45x10, 135x2, 155x2, 175x2 x5 sets, LS @8.5

SLDL:135x4, 185x4, 235x4 x5 sets, LS @8

T = ?:??, RPE 8

***

Another good squat day. Program called for 295 for five doubles but I was planning to do 315 if I felt good. I think the depth is an improvement on the 315 single I did last month but still likely not loco-approved. Getting some mirin from bros after the first 295 then loading 20 more lbs was neat.

Bench is still not where I want it, but I still like shuffling the schedule around so I do two main lifts on this day then two secondary lifts on dumpster Monday. Sets got easier as I went along. DLs were kind of annoying.

That looks pretty close man, can't really tell on my phone. I think you filmed from too far.

I hope you are not offended by my no lifts. I am just doing what Aidan refuses to do. And Cha and Kidcolin don't do either, anymore. We must hold standards in this forum. I was no lifted without mercy, literally broke my back pleasing the judges.

And I have said plenty of times, I personally would not go deeper than that. My McGill squat tests says it's a no. So don't cry to me when you bust your shiet up and say it's my fault.

I want to say No Lift, but I am going to pass. I can't tell. What I can say, is that that's a two repper with my lifetime max. It is what it is, no denying reality.

[img]highpraise.gif[\lmg]

Monday Dec 21
A2S W10D2

Press: 45x10, 65x4, 85x4, 95x4 x5 sets, LS @7.5

0/2/0/2/0 HBBSPSOHS: 45x4 x8 sets

CGTNGB 45x10, 95x4, 135x4, 155x4 x5 sets, LS @7

T = 0:55, RPE 6

***

Almost didn't make it in today. Got like 4 hours sleep, then forgot my gym bag and almost decided to just punt on the workout. Then I watched some lifting motivation videos decided to man up.

Press was weak until like the third workset then was about average. Since I didn't have my sleeves and shoes I didn't do pause squats, opting instead for the most asperg named exercise of all time, my patented 0/2/0/2/0 Tempo High Bar Back Squat to Press in Snatch to Overhead Squat. I might actually start doing this exercise for real. It's an amusing and humbling display of my lack of thoracic and hip mobility. In the video I'm locking out as hard as I can and you can see my elbows are still soft.

What do you call this one?

Oh that's the old SGDLURMSBTNPPSOHS.

Thursday Dec 24
A2S W10D3-4

Deadlift: 155x5, 205x2, 245x2, 295 grip fail, 295 @7, 315 @8.5, 295x2 x4 sets, LS @8.5

Press: 45x8, 65x2, 85x2, 95x2, 105x2 x5 sets, LS @10

Some overhead squats.

T = 1:05, RPE 8

***

I took a huge jump on DL, for better or worse. Grip became a small issue and I used chalk for the first time in like a year. I did exercise a decent amount of restraint after the 315 moved quite well. I think my 1RM on the day would have been about 335, which is my all time max. I traditionally pull a PR on Christmas but alas, it wasn't to be.