Lurker > Sorozone

Goku is my inspiration for lifting. RIP Toriyama.

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I definitely prefer early afternoon workouts, especially when I don't have to work. I'm a lot more refreshed.

Deadlift is back to being my strongest lift after this cut. It's actually improved somehow. So hopefully I can get that back up to over 400 in the next month or so, especially since I'm aiming to hit deadlift twice a week.

So I mentioned that I'm going to try to dunk a basketball just for a fun goal, and I did some plyometric exercises before my leg workout yesterday, and that alone has given my calfs more soreness than any calf raise exercise I've ever done.

Also had a solid chest day today. It's nice to focus on strength because I'm in and out of the gym a lot quicker.

Also here is my new workout plan:

Leg Day 1:
Low Bar Squat:
Lat Pull Down:
Hip Thrusts:
Lunges:
Ab Crunches(Cables):
Hamstring Leans:
Leg Press(glutes):
5 x 5 x 5 Hammer, Turn, Regular Curls:
Deadlift:

Chest Day 1:
Bench Press:
Incline Bench Press:
Triceps Rope Pulldown:
Cable Flys:
Farmer Walks:
Inside Bar Press:
Dead Hangs:

Back day 1:
Deadlifts:
Pullups:
Seated Bicep Curls:
Calf Raises:
Hip Abductors:
Shoulder Shrugs:
Lat Pulldowns:

Arms/Shoulders Day 1:
Rotator Cuffs:
Dumbell Lateral Raises:
Preacher Curls:
Overhead EZ bar:
Wrist curls:
OHP:
Rear Delts:
Rope Pulldown:
Cable curls:
Cable Lateral Raises:

Leg Day 2:
High Bar Squat:
Lat Pulldowns:
Cable Squats:
Hip Abductors:
Dead Hangs:
Goblet Squats:
Leg Press(Quads)

Chest Day 2:
Incline Bench Press:
Farmer Walks:
Dips:
Lateral Cables:
Dumbell Incline Press:
Pushups(Finisher)
5 x 5 x 5 Hammer, Turn, Regular

Back day 2:
Pullups:
Hamstring Leans:
Shoulder Shrugs:
Underhand Pullups:
Hip Thrusts:
Dead Hangs:
Deadlifts:

Arm Day 2:
Rope Pull down:
Cable Curls:
Lateral Cables:
Plate Raises:
Preacher Curls:
OHP:
Seated Bicep Curl:
Rotator Cuffs:

The only adjustment I might make is to put in more work on my abs, but I'll see how the first few weeks goes. Goblet squats with dumbells, on a raised heels puts a lot of work on my abs too.

iiaattgg posted...

Good stuff homie!! How are you feeling about your results?

Pretty good. Been cutting since November, but November through December definitely had some rough spots. January and February is where I kicked it into high gear. So at the very least I figured out a plan to have a very consistent cut without losing tons of strength. I'd give it about a 7/10 cut.

Weighed in at 165, so lost about 12 pounds during that cut. Gonna starting bulking up, with a calorie range of around 2600-2800, and around 135g of proteins. Goals; 315 bench, 405 squat, and 500 deadlift, all hopefully obtainable before I reach 185lbs.

iiaattgg posted...

Also Sorozone your arms are jacked !! Whats the secret?

Honestly not sure. My arms haven't been sore in a super long time, but I have been trying to keep them in the stretched position(biceps specifically), and I have been upping my bicep exercise on days I haven't been normally doing them. Triceps and Delts I don't worry too much about, but I will be focusing on more sets and reps for my delts on this bulk. My forearms have always been huge, not sure if that's a genetic thing, but I've also have always been doing wrist curls since I have ever started lifting, and I know just from my own anecdotal experience that not many people focus on forearms, if at all. I also try to squeeze the shit out of the bars and dumbells every time I use them for any exercise.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/e/e2a807c0.jpg

Gonna stop at this point, weigh myself tomorrow, and start bulking up.

I never thought I'd see the day where I actually enjoy running/cardio.

I suppose it helps that I can run in nature tho, since I live in a mountainous/forest area.

Was feeling really good in the gym today.

Gonna up some cardio work this week and see I feel on and weigh on Saturday. Might start my bulk next week.

It has a lot to do with fatigue(I know I bring this up a lot). Just mechanically, it has a lot going on. Not only is activating almost every muscle in your back, it also activates your forearms(grip strength), hamstrings, glutes, quads, and depending on the rep range or weight it can also be cardiovascular draining.

Only other lifts I can think of as more body fatiguing is power clean, and continental clean because those also activate your arms and delts more, as well as basically everything else a deadlift does.

I've been slowly working on a new routine for my upcoming bulk to get more sets in for every muscle group as well as hitting legs and deadlifts twice a week. My thinking is if my first bulk day is leg day, I can mostly focus on my glutes and hamstrings, I can finish off the day with deadlifts just focusing on lower weight and form, and then later in the week I can start on a deadlift solely focusing on strength lifts, and theoretically it should give me enough rest time in between so it's not too overall fatiguing.

Deadlifts suck because most people say you should really only do them once a week. Which is honestly fine advice, but the improvement will be slower, and even with all that rest, you can still have a super shitty deadlift day.

I've been getting better at spotting fatigue, I can usually just tell from the first set. If I'm not feeling it it's probably due to overall fatigue from work, life, the gym. I usually will take it a bit easier on those days, and then I'll just take the next day off from the gym and regroup again the day after.

When I start my bulk here in a couple weeks I'm going to be cutting down on my cardio, however, I think I'm gonna try to start training to dunk a basketball. I'm 5'8 for the record.

So that'll be my goal, and I'm gonna keep trying till I do it. So no timeline, it'll just happen when it happens.

So Im trying to extend this cut for just a couple more weeks because itll put me around the 9 to 10 % body fat range, but holy shit I dont understand how people deal with the hunger pains.

Got some lifting straps to use for my bulk.

Used them today, what a difference when you are no longer relying on tired forearms and fingers lol.

Seanchan posted...

How did you manage to get bloody toes? Was it just a friction thing from feet/socks/sneakers moving or rubbing?

I wore ill-fitting shoes growing up which caused my last two toes to be pushed inward. My little toe isn't so bad, but my two 'ring' toes, especially when wearing snug running shoes causes it to push slightly under my middle toe on both feet. The friction of my nail rubbing against my middle toes caused it to gash open basically.

So I went on my most intense run, and I got fucked up toes. So that lead to some bloody socks when I got home.

Might be gross, but when I was running I was thinking to myself that my socks felt a lot swampier than usual lol.

I mentioned it earlier, but this has me elated. My deadlift is improving, while losing weight. Very bizarre circumstances but I'm 100% sure it's because of nerve flossing. Up to 335 now. I'm getting very confident I can get it back over 450 during my bulk.

This is the leanest I've been a in a while, and the hunger pains are starting to hit more often now. Kinda sucks lol. It's making me more irritable. Trying not to take it out on people and realize that I'll be ok. Doing lots of overtime for work next couple of weeks. So I think I'll weigh myself again after that's all taken care of, see how I'm looking and decide if I want to continue a bit longer or start the bulk.

Hit chest pretty good. Still staying in the 240-250 range for at least one rep. Incline is getting hard though, barely got 200 up.

The gym I go to is relatively small. It's essentially a garage gym, and the owners make most of their money from their MMA side of things(where the bulk of people go, and it's separate from the lifting area). So it's never super busy or crowded. I do try to avoid the late afternoon, early evening because that's when it's the busiest, any other time there it ranges from 0-4 people.

But yeah from my experience from other bigger gyms, late afternoon is usually the worst because everyone is getting off work and trying to get a workout in which means limited equipment, people standing around and talking instead of using the equipment, ect.

Maybe because I am also more built I can get away with it, but if people are circuit training and I need to use something in their circuit, I just take it lol. They can say something, and when they do I just point out they were using something else so I figured it was free to use. Which is true of course, but at the same time I'm also paying to be there and use the equipment. Their time isn't more important than anyone else's.

I feel pretty lucky that food doesn't...I don't know how to put this. Make me happy? Ha, I dunno.

Like I know people struggle with dieting because of certain food cravings. Or they don't enjoy dieting because they don't like "healthy" foods. I love pizza and burgers, ice creams, ect, but I'm able to just turn off a switch and just eat Greek yogurt, eggs, oatmeal, chicken and fruits and veggies. Which is basically all I've been eating for the past couple of months.

Weighed myself yesterday and the results are in! I lost one pound! So currently at an even 170.

Just goes to show that water weight is very, very sneaky, because I look a lot different. First time in a long time that the lining of my abs(so the line that differentiates the abs and obliques, w.e that's called) is clearly visible from the front and side. However, I'm so close to being at my goal of being absolutely shredded everywhere else that I'm just gonna keep pushing on my cut for an extra couple to three weeks.

The additional cardio has helped my cardio vascular health too. Currently have a resting BPM of 40. I've never had it that low.

And to top it off, that couple days to help with fatigue definitely helped. Since I missed a few days because of being snowed in I hit my legs and bench yesterday. Still hitting 300 on squat, and hit 240 on bench so my strength hasn't been sapped all that much either. The anxiousness of wanting to bulk up is getting much harder now though.

Well I planned on hitting the gym hard these last few days until my weigh in, but the snow just won't stop. So I'm gonna rest up, get rid of some fatigue, and play video games lol.

Well today was great.

Piece of advice for people who want to deadlift. Nerve floss first if you have tight nerves, like me. I am 100% contributing that for the fact I hit 320 on deadlift today, where previous sessions I was struggling at 300, and I weigh way less than the last time I deadlifted which was before I hurt my back a couple weeks ago too. Just makes me even more excited to bulk up. I'm weighing myself next Saturday, see where I'm at. I'll probably continue to cut a couple weeks after that, so hopefully I'll begin bulking up in about 3 weeks and start cranking out some PR's.

End up with 40,000 steps yesterday, bonkers amount. Also currently averaging 30,000 this week for the past 3 days, all three were 20,000+.

Did arms today in the gym, gonna weigh myself and finally look at myself with my shirt off/naked in the mirror sometime next week after holding off on both of those things for about 5 weeks. I am for sure getting ripped out of my mind now though. If only because I can see the definition coming in on my arms from the front where you can clearly see the bicep separated from the tricep, and my triceps popping today. Definitely a confident boost but I can push it further for the next week or so. I'm probably gonna continue to cut for another 2-3 weeks and then finally start a nice good clean bulk.

Realistically, I am probably in the best shape of my life, but a runner's high is amazing. I straight up jogged at a pretty decent pace to finish off my walk/run today for 20 straight minutes. Never been able to do that.

Didn't go too crazy, but was able to squat up to 275 without any back pain. Didn't want to push my luck so opted to stop there. Have a little bit of back tightness on the right side but other than that I think my back is mostly fine. Thank the lord.

Had a solid leg day. Legs really starting to pop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNeiLSEwTHk&t=557s

Mike comes up on my feed and I enjoy his videos a lot. I thought this one was just amusing to me personally, because this is how I always did these exercises(and you should do them too because they stretch they shit out of your muscles).

Damn dude that's fucking crazy. Glad you are ok.

Was able to hit the weights today. My back isn't 100% but I wanted to lift, so I'm just gonna deload for the next 10 days or so. Take it easy. Went nuts on cables with low weight and definitely was feeling it in my upper chest today. Gonna keep cutting for the next couple weeks, do a weigh-in sometime around the week of Feb 4th and see where I am at.

^Hell yeah! Gotta start somewhere dude!

Start small, always. Diet will always be the most important, and don't be afraid if you fail a couple days. If you know you can cut sugar and carbs down for 3 days, but fail on the 4th day, at the very least you know you are capable of doing such things. Exercise when you can, it just always aim to do a little bit more than the previous day. If you did five pushups, try for 6 or 7 the next.

Progress is always slow! Just stay consistent. :)

Fatigue, general or muscle related is the worst. Because I know it absolutely does you no favors in the long run to keep going/lifting yet I'm compelled to keep going at it. Though I've started to take my rest more seriously now especially since I am getting older.

And speaking of fatigue. Figured out why my bulk capped at around 177 earlier. Turns out I walk a shit ton at work. Depending on what I'm doing I can walk 20,000 to 30,000 steps in 8 hours. Then on top of that I was doing another 13,000 to 20,000 going on a walk or run after work. So there are days I was doing almost 40,000 steps. Good for my cutting right now of course, but I had no idea until I got this watch for Christmas. Explains why I was dead tired all the time too.

My back is healing nicely. Still got some stiffness, hope to get back into lifting in a couple days.

Yeah, good news is that I think it's the same thing I did to my back like over half a year ago when I strained it at work stretching too far to reach for something at an awkward angle, and it's not nearly as debilitating as it was last time. Last time I could barely walk after it happened because it hurt so much, and while it hurts right now it's not nearly the same level.

I think I may have mentioned it here, maybe not, but I injured my lower back/tailbone as a kid when I was 10-11 or so, by jumping and trying to buttsmack a ball and well, missed and landed straight on the field. Never told my parents and just kind of let it heal on it's own even though I couldn't even sit without being in pain. I'm also fairly certain it stunted my growth as a kid because I literally stopped growing after that injury and I was a giant of a 6th grader(5'8).

I should probably get that checked out, especially with these two back strains that I've had and they just so happen to be in the same lower back/tailbone area. Wouldn't entirely surprise me if there is at least some damage there.

That being said, fuck getting older, I never had this shit happen haha

Welp, was excited for today because Im off from work and was looking forward to a killer leg day.

Third set of squats strained the shit outta my back, lmao

Lats is gonna be one of my main focuses on my upcoming bulk, that along with delts, and legs overall. I'll have to give that a try.

My normal walk/run trail/routine is snowed in so I had to stick to the regular ole fitness trail in the neighborhood but I'm noticing improvement in how much longer I can maintain my run/jog. I never actually stop to rest so after a big run I'll just start power walking to catch my breath instead. Right now my peak heartrate seems to be around 170-ish, resting heartrate is 52. Feeling good!

Looking good!

I'm starting to tell that I am getting shredded. My biceps and triceps are getting very distinct lines, especially during a pump. Still not going to look in a mirror with my shirt off till the end of the month, but I think I'll be very satisfied with the results. Getting the squigly veins on my biceps too, that's fun. The actual best part is that my strength is still maintaining, majority of it anyway, I mean my bench has dropped from 285 to 245, squat from 335 to 300, deadlifts from 315 to 295(1reps).

iiaattgg posted...

im sure you are already aware, but it if you are working out with the intensity and consistency that you have shown in these topics, 100% of the population looks at you and sees someone in great shape with a desirable physique, regardless of if you are on a cut, a bulk or maintaining. I know youve got goals for yourself and those are important, but while you feel stressed at the mirror or the scale, just know that that self imposed disappointment should always be chased with the envy of basically everyone you walk by

Oh yeah I'm well aware lol.

I mean most of my lifts taking into account my body weight is considered elite for most strength standards. I'm 100% too hard on myself sometimes, but I think that's also somewhat 'normal' when you are a in the gym all the time, with other people who are also in the gym all the time, you can't help compare sometimes. Just a little body dysmorphia pops up from time to time.

It's not like mentally affecting me or anything, I just like instant results because who doesn't? haha. Since I don't see the progress from a day to day standpoint, I just want it to hit me like a brick wall at the end of the month and I'll being going holy shit, what a difference. I'm also aiming to get as lean as I ever been since I can really lean into my next bulk. I really want my next bulk to be amazing after all the new little things I've been learning over the years.

That being said, amazing leg day today. I wear sweats during the winter and I got a big confidence boost doing raised goblet squats in front of the mirror and seeing the contours of the muscles in my legs.

RikkuAlmighty posted...

https://collectpcs.com/coming-soon-1/

Don't tempt me!

Arms starting to lose strength. Still hitting 160 on the over head press, but it's definitely getting harder. Also since I'm cutting, and sometimes I hate how my body looks in the mirror, I avoid looking in the mirror lol. I know progress, especially in the lifting world, either for strength, or trying to lose weight is a long journey so I know progress isn't going to happen over night. Weighing myself at the end of the month, and then I'll also look in the mirror at that time too.

I think it helps, keeps me from comparing myself constantly and makes me focus on just staying consistent. Been a lot better about my diet too. Lots of eggs, yogurt, beans. And I'll get something a bit messier like a burger or a sandwich(Philly cheesesteaks are my weakness), once or twice a week. Super excited to start on my bulk though, so hopefully the work being put in this month will pay off!

One down side of just deciding to take up running is shin splints. Absolutely awful.

So I used to have a fitbit a few years ago, which is my one and only fitness tracker. I stopped using it years ago because I lost it after moving lol.

Anyway, got a smart watch over Christmas, and I'm a giant nerd who likes stats and tracking numbers. It's partly why I really like strength building because I love getting PR's. It's also why I'm into speedrunning because PR's rule no matter what it's in. Because I love this type of stuff I'm trying to incorporate it into all my goals. So I started tracking my times during my walks/runs and I'm aiming to improve my time each time I do that walk. I know when I first started doing these walks it took about an hour and 45 minutes or so to finish. Today it only took an hour and 15 minutes. I know my cardio is going through the roof with improvements, so it's going to be quite fun to track this. It helps I live in a high altitude/super clean air quality are too.

Excited for the first time I get under an hour. One of my goals is to run a marathon too at some point.

Also killed my bench day today! Starting to see some strength loss, but not too concerned because muscle memory is crazy, and I'll probably be back where I was within a couple weeks of bulking. Which I'm hoping to start to the bulk by February.

Sorozone posted...

Gonna weigh myself

Lost 5 pounds in 2.5 weeks. Definitely the leanest I've been since cutting. Been up and down in weight because, I've mentioned before I smoke, get the munchies and just keep eating. Lol. Gotten it under control because of the long walks I've been doing, and honestly that's why I've been doing them so I can still eat a ton and still see progress.

Killed my arms today, definitely getting a pump in my triceps and biceps which I haven't felt in a awhile. Back is dead sore from yesterday too, so I'm doing those things right. Also noticed I got killer active stretch marks/hives/irritation just from my back workouts yesterday.

Had a great back day today. Gonna go to the gym one more time tomorrow- in addition to a walk probably. Gonna weigh myself then go on my vacation for 2 weeks. Gonna try to get some walking in while I'm gone but won't be hitting the weights. Hoping to actually lose some weight or at the very least stay the same.

Destroyed my legs today. Decided on some high reps, lower weights on some elevated goblet squats, and did around 7 sets I think, along with 5 sets of lunges, then moved to some heavy weight hip thrusts and hip abductor exercises. Finished it off with my normal 5 set of squats, and cranked out as many reps as I could on leg press with 8 45 plates on each side.

Good day!

Walking is so much nicer in cold weather. I feel like I can just keep going and going and going.

Starting to hit the biceps hard by trying to keep it in the stretched position for longer periods of time. Throwing in some half reps for good measure, then full ROM to finish the set out.

Definitely getting more soreness and overall just a tighter feeling in my arms. Good day! Plan on weighing myself next Friday.

Seanchan posted...

...that's an 11 minute/mile pace...for walking?!?

Are you sure that's accurate? I can walk pretty fast for an hour long walk (15:30-16:00 minute/mile pace). And when I've tried, I was able to get close to a 14:00 minute/mile pace for 5-6 miles. 3 min/mile faster than that is so serious speed walking!

It wasn't just walking, lol.

I do intermittent sprinting, and jogging. Walking is just my cool down. So once I'm refreshed I start jogging, and when I'm feeling good I'll do full on sprints.

Going on a 'walk' is just easier to say.

Did my big walk today. 11 miles in 2 hours.

Got a solid back day in. Pullup game getting crazy. Deadlift is staying consistent and might actually be improving as a lose weight.

Looking forward to massive back gains when I bulk up.

Gonna just go a big walk tomorrow.

Been under the weather. Throat is on fire so Ive been doing a walk after work to get some steps in. Anything too hard and I cant deal.

Oh gotcha, Im the lower end of the mid thirties. But I totally feel you on lingering issues. I mentioned it about a month ago but my groin has been pretty tender. Still is. Shit sucks.

Seanchan posted...

Unfortunately, those hip/back issues have not gone away, which I'm chalking up to getting older...

What's your age if you don't mind me asking?

Weighing myself tomorrow. Just did a cardio today, 3 miles on the treadmill with varying the incline throughout. Did 3.5 miles and 1800 vertical feet in about an hour. Hoping to be at 168, or around there. I haven't looked in the mirror much the past couple weeks at home so I my only indication of weight loss is through the mirror at the gym. My biceps are definitely more noticeable. Same with my leg definition. If I'm at 168 or around there hoping to be at 165ish by December 18th because that's when I go on a 2 week vacation for Christmas and I'm hoping to start bulking up after that, but I might still do a lot of cardio and walking while on vacation to lose an extra pound or two.

Gonna do a whole new workout plan after that to really maximize my bulk up session, but speaking of age. Also gonna throw in a day or two strictly for mobility and stretching exercises. Lots of new studies coming out about set ranges(you should be doing a lot of them) and half reps being really effective in muscle building so looking to incorporate more of that and hopefully really blast through my strength walls.