Ive been squatting- conjugate programme based on WS.

[Varven]

Hi all,

Ive finally decided to open up a journal to keep track of my progress online.

I welcome all of your reviews/critique/analysis.

Im doing this to encourage myself to keep up with my goals, Im very sure if I dont keep up, you guys will administer an appropriate dosage of @$$ kicking to get me back in that friggin rack or force feeding myself .

A little back ground, I spent the first half of last year dropping off from a 100 kg fat to 80 kg. I mostly used heavy weight workouts to achieve this. I then realized I was hooked on lifting and wanted further hypertrophic developments. My workouts intensified, my diet stayed the same and I dropped down to 75 kgs. More weight loss obviously but alarm bells started going off. I was getting to 'small' for my own liking.

Thus I finally decided on a new diet and a routine and have enlisted to move on to a 'Bulk' Phase till about 2/3 months out to the end of this year, when I shall initiate a cut cycle.

ps: Goals for the end of this year: 85kg @ 10 % body fat. Determined as hell to nail that. Ive declared war on my gym. God have mercy on that rack and bench as sure as hell I wont when I get in there.

Ive been on 'serious' bulk for 2 weeks and have gained some weight.

starting body weight was 75kg.

starting lifts:

deadlift 100 kg

squat : 60 lh

Flat DB bench : 21 kg

Dips: 5 @ bodyweight

Wide grip Chins: 3 @ Bodyweight.

I shall use these lifts as a measure of progress, as well as body weight and fat%. No fat % done yet but will get one done about next week.

Routine :

Legs/Shoulders/Abs

Squats 5x 8

Seated BB military press: 4x 6 - 8

lat side raise: 2x 6 - 8

Lying leg curl: 4x 8

Crunches: 4x 15

Hanging leg raises: 4x failure

Chest/Triceps/calves

Dips 4x 6 - 8

Flat Db bench: 4x 6-8

Incline Db bench: 4x 6 - 8

Close grip bench: 3x 8

O/h Db tricep extension: 3 x 10

Standing calf raises: 3x 15

Back/Biceps

Deadlifts: 3 x 4 - 5

Wide grip chins ( what ever I can manage)/ lat pull downs ( 4x 6 - 8)

the 2 above mentioned exs. wil be alternated for variety.

Bent over BB rows: 3x 6 - 8

BB curls: 3x 8 - 10

hammer curls: 3 x 6 -8

DB shrugs: 3x 8 - 10

Rack deads: 3x3

these are done at the end of the workout about once every 2/3 weeks to prevent overtraining.

[Varven]

Nutritional aspects:

Being at uni I have certain restrictions.

Thus I can only force in 4 solid meals a day. Rest has to be supplemented.

Meal 1:

Eggs: 3 whole, 2 whites only. 4 toasts, Milk, Banana.

Meal 2:

Chicken breast/rice or bread /greens

Meal 3:

Tuna /rice or pasta.

Meal 4:

mass gainer shake 50 g carbs, 30 g proteins

Workout

Meal 5

Mass gainer shake 50 g carbs, 30 g proteins.

Meal 6

Pasta/Rice/veg/ Poultry/seafood/some read meat. Basically focus on protein, some carbs and a fair bit of vegs.

Supplements: Creatine, Glutamine, Glucosamine joint nutrition.

This diet has proved succesfull, I gained about 5 kgs, granted some of it would be water retention from the creatine.

But it focuses rather heavily on carbs. Im scared of going fat again. At the same time I find it impossible to gain size, so without carbs I dont think I can get far. Im still on a quest for the perfect carb point. Protein is roughly 200g a day. Im intend to change my diet in a couple of weeks to further increase protein to about 250g a day and manage my carbs a bit better.

[Growth]

Always good to see new journals mate, looks like youve got yourself a solid workout and diet regime there, good luck.

[Varven]

3 weeks into my bulk cycle I weigh in at 80kg.

Lifts are:

Deadlift: 120kg x 3

Rack Dead: 150 kgx 3

Squat: 75kg 4x 8

Dips: Bodyweight+ 5 kg plate: 4x8

wide grip chins: 4x bodyweight.

I trained very heavy last week ( creatine loading week ), to a point that I definitely had overtrained. Extreme soreness, unfightable fatigue and sleep patterns disrupted. Didnt feel good, so I decided to take this week off, got exams at uni anyway.

I dont consider this week a waste as I know Im still recovering from the bashing last time, will be back next monday battling the iron.

Worried about putting on fat this week, so decreased my carbs a little, especially the mass gainers.

At the moment I have nothing else but once they run out, Ill replace them with whey and use brewers sugar/glucose for carbs to construct my own pwo shakes. That way I can still get protein when need be without having to worry about the excess carbs.

Also taking time off creatine and glutamine, tummy had gone hay wired ( posibbly due to intro. of so many supplements all at once? ). feels much better, till then I was one giant recycling machine:

anything fed in was broken down and lost extrnally. Not fun.

[Varven]

Thanks growth.

Planning the diet was easy. sticking to it is proving to take immense dedication. I usually have a problem with meals 2 and 3.

Reason being My breakfast is quite heavy and fills me up.

Im really not hungry at all during meals 2/3. traditionally Ive only consumed one meal in place of both of those, thus I am literally force feeding myself.

Rest of the meals I never ever miss, im finally managing to force in these 2, I used to love tuna but now im developing a gag reflex for this one as well.

Like 99% of others out there, my diet is my sticking point.

oh and when it comes to lifts my chest is my sticking point. All my other lfits seem to progress ok, chest is the weakest. Thus I keep telling myself that I love chest workouts and psyching myself to battle for more brawn on my front upper body.

Will stick pics on here soon once I figure out how to load em and get some decent ones.

[Growth]

Do you do any fly work for your chest, ie DB flyes or Cable crossovers?

[Varven]

I used to do Incline db flyes, then went heavy and screwed my shoulders.

Thus dropped flyes for a bit. I intend to change this routine around in about 6/7 weeks. New routine will feature flyes. Ive always trained high volume , new routines going to focus on low volume , I shall reveal no futher insight into my insanity :wink: but intend to stick on this programme for a little while.

Oh btw flat BB Bench is out for me as well as it cuased a shoulder injury in the past.

[Growth]

Yeah flat bench is killer on the chest. Just with the flys, i find they are good after ive done all my other chest exercises, really stretches them right out, i always get DOMS if i do these,... i shall need to get them back into my routine soon.

[deegee]

Stick with the diet and keep posting on your log and you will get the encouragment you need on here and in seeing results.

If bulking I always have a shake just before going to bed and that last meal about 2 hours before that.

[Varven]

degee, I assume no carbs in that least meal or shake right.. wouldnt want anything turning to fat?

[deegee]

Shake is just a whey protien, and yeah no to very little carbs in that last meal, a nice tasty can of tuna.

in saying that I dont worry too much about putting a bit of fat on during a bulk, as long as your not just eating junk getting the protien in there is my primary target. I have heard of people who will get up in the middle of the night and make a meal. 8 hours is a long time without food if you are trying to bulk.

[Pseudonym]

Others may disagree, but I'd include carbs even in your pre-bedtime meal.

You are training in the afternoon, I take it, so post-workout you'll be in energy deficit. As it is, you're only getting one real meal with carbs post-workout - less than ideal, imo.

Personally I think the "no carbs before bed" theory is over-rated. Certainly there are times when it holds true, but there are plenty of exceptions, too.

8)

[jono]

Others may disagree, but I'd include carbs even in your pre-bedtime meal.

You are training in the afternoon, I take it, so post-workout you'll be in energy deficit. As it is, you're only getting one real meal with carbs post-workout - less than ideal, imo.

Personally I think the "no carbs before bed" theory is over-rated. Certainly there are times when it holds true, but there are plenty of exceptions, too.

8)

i agree. i have one of my biggest carb meals of the day b4 bed. otherwise i get way way too hungry.

jounral looks good man

[Varven]

Ok Will include some carbs and measure hows it going down.

I intend to ammend my diet in the following ways :

upon waking 20g whey in water + meal 1 shortly after that.

meal 2 (same as prev. listed.)

meal 3 (same as prev. listed.)

workout followed by PWO : 40g protein + 50g dextrose

Meal 4 (same as prev. listed.)

Before Bed 20g whey in milk for delayed release + 5 g glutamine.

[deegee]

I do train in the afternoon 90% of the time, I will have some carbs in the late eaving but I do limit them, I have always gone with the no carbs in the 4 hours before bed philosophy and it works ok, however I am not an expert and always willing to try something new.

What are you talking about in the way of carbs before bed? what kind of meal would you typicaly have and how long before bed.

[Varven]

my meal 4, is typically 3 hours before bed, has about 30g protein from either poultry/seafood/red meat and veges as well as carbs through either : pasta or rice or potatoes.

I try to keep these carbs on the lower side, after all 3 hours before bed isnt a whole lot of time is it ?

Not sure if it really matters.

[deegee]

I'm playing around a little with my diet at the moment anyway so I might try a change in the carbs and see how I go. (fine tuning might be a better word. )

[Varven]

Well Today was Exam Day. I bust my brains trying to valuate stocks in an exam from 9 am to 11:30, needless to say I was frusturated enough after it to storm right into that ol power rack.

Re -occuring Knee problem plagued me again so full deadlifts were dropped for Rack deads only, hopefully Ill be ok by next week.

Rack deads

60kg 1x8

100 kg 1x8

140 kg 1x5, 1x5

150 kg 1x5, 1x5

Lat Pull downs

60 kg 1x8, 1x8, 1x7, 1x5 couldnt complete motion to bar all the way to chest on last 2/3 reps of both the last sets. Need to get stronger and have complete range of motion before I move ahead.

Bent Over BB rows

45kg 1x8, 1x8, 1x8

50 kg 1x6

I hate Biceps

25kg BB curls 1x10, 1x8, 1x8

I hate Biceps even more

13KG DB 1 arm hammer curls 1x6,

12kg 1X6

11KG1X6

Work out was ok overall, dissapointed I couldnt do full deads. Looking to nail 200 kg before the end of the year for rack deads, Biceps were soooo exhausted n burnt by the time I got to them, I could barely do any thing for them. This always happens as I work out back first and pre exhaust biceps. Hope it wont result in neglected Bi's.

Looking forward to chest work out next, been focussing a lot on back and ignoring upper front body entirely.

[Ash]

Well Today was Exam Day.

Hope it went well!

Re -occuring Knee problem plagued me again so full deadlifts were dropped for Rack deads only, hopefully Ill be ok by next week.

Knee problems are a bitch. The only things that have made a difference to my knees is doing the DC extreme stretch for quads every leg workout and dropping my weights so I can do slow reps over the full range of motion instead of the shorter reps with heavier weights I was doing before. I thought the shorter reps would spare my knees because they only really hurt at the bottom of the movements but it didn't work.

Looking to nail 200 kg before the end of the year for rack deads.

If you can do 200kg rack deads for reps with good form, your back will most likely be transformed. Just don't injure yourself!

[jono]

heavy rack deads man. nice work. take care of that knee man.

[Growth]

Looking to nail 200 kg before the end of the year for rack deads

Nice goal mate, looks like your well on your way :nod:

[Ash]

Hey V

What height are you starting the rack deads from?

[Varven]

about an inch below knee level.

I was told rack deads start at knee level. Am I doing it right ?

It seems real easy, thus I was in doubt for a while. Compared to full deads on the other hand, those are killers !

[Varven]

The knee injury is from playing Rugby at high school. Put me out for the next 6 months. Once in a while it flares up, I give it a week and start light weight again and it dissapears. Im too scared to go to the physio, knee pain I can live with, being told I cant squat, I cant handle. any suggestions ?will try dc stretches.

[Growth]

What sort of injury was it?