Hidngod's log

[*Bunny*]

HiDn You're funny I agree with Sarge & biggT ... If you want to focus on strength I would (1) EAT for it & (2) train for it (restructure your workout to work for that goal). If you want to keep fat gain to a minimum you already know that's generally all diet.

You can use the size you have now to help you get to where you want to with strength gains. But do NOT flip out if there is some scale bumpage as well. If you don't want to be bloated & feel full (then get depressed or something), gradually increase the cals every other day or weekly, not all at once.

Some things T touched on ... if I do Flatbench I'll also do Incline Flyes as well, instead of Incline BB ... and do eccentric holds with the DBs ... the variety makes it better in my opinion but I also have different goals. I don't do them to shape, nothing TO shape lol hahaha

Anyway, I would watch the form on dips if you add them in, I mean no cheating & going down too far etc... Use the assisted dip machine if you have to. I've seen 3 guys own themselves from doing unassisted bodyweight dips ... I don't care if the handles are 'in' , they eff'd up themselves that way too from improper technique.

What ya think about doing a little strength cycle?

 

[HiDnGoD]

This is a nice detailed log, you have a great base to build on too...I can add some input if it's alright with you.......I don't claim to be a diet guru, and I do know one of your goals is some weight loss, but you're a pretty big dude and you look like you're carrying quite a bit of muscle, you may want to consider upping the cals closer to the 3000 range as 2000-2500 isn't condusive to supporting muscle in most cases for a guy your size......if you're concerned with strength in the bench (or any other lift), you need much more volume (not more exercises), but more workload on that lift.

You went 115x10, 175x10, 235x3, 155x11.....the only set worth anything was the one at 235.....something more along these lines would be better for strength.....bar x a bunch to get in a groove, 135x5, 185x5, 205x5, 225 x 3 sets of 3 (add 5 lbs to what you do 3x3 with every week), then do 1 backoff set of 8-12 in the 165 range and bump it up after you hit 12 reps with it.

Skullcrushers won't do jack shit for the bench, more functional things are dips and rack lockouts.....also, the incline flyes don't do much either, they have the reputation as a 'shaper' but you can't shape muscle, you can only develop it and then manipulate it's appearance by gaining/losing bodyfat....If I were you, I'd bag them in favor of incline dumbell presses, and lose the skullcrushers in favor of dips if you want a bigger bench.

Anyway, I hope that was helpful, if not, feel free to ignore, lol.....but I caught this journal the other day and I did want to subscribe and follow along anyway.

Thanks a bunch for your input. I really do appreciate it.
My primary goal is to lose fat. I realize some extra fat is necessary for strength gains, but I think I still have too much. I'm fairly happy with all my weights, except for the Bench & Curls. So, with that in mind, could I focus on those two bodyparts, while keeping the rest in line, & maintain weight while losing fat? I know I'm pretty particular, but, being diabetic, I have to get my B.F.% down, preferably to low 20's, high teens.
I have a bit of a shoulder issue right now, I'm waiting for tests for. Can I still do dips?
I'm not so much interested in shape, as I am in functional strength to carry into my middle age, & looking halfway decent for wifey.
If I do as you suggest with the cals, do I keep the same macros?
Oh, & excuse my ignorance, but what is a rack lockout?

 

[HiDnGoD]

HiDn You're funny I agree with Sarge & biggT ... If you want to focus on strength I would (1) EAT for it & (2) train for it (restructure your workout to work for that goal). If you want to keep fat gain to a minimum you already know that's generally all diet.

You can use the size you have now to help you get to where you want to with strength gains. But do NOT flip out if there is some scale bumpage as well. If you don't want to be bloated & feel full (then get depressed or something), gradually increase the cals every other day or weekly, not all at once.

Some things T touched on ... if I do Flatbench I'll also do Incline Flyes as well, instead of Incline BB ... and do eccentric holds with the DBs ... the variety makes it better in my opinion but I also have different goals. I don't do them to shape, nothing TO shape lol hahaha

Anyway, I would watch the form on dips if you add them in, I mean no cheating & going down too far etc... Use the assisted dip machine if you have to. I've seen 3 guys own themselves from doing unassisted bodyweight dips ... I don't care if the handles are 'in' , they eff'd up themselves that way too from improper technique.

What ya think about doing a little strength cycle?

I like the variety. I lift at home, so I am somewhat limited as far as machinery goes.
I don't mind using the size I have now, but for health reasons I need to lower my b.f. level.
Oh, I did hear from someone that smaller bodyparts, bi's etc., need higher reps to gain strength. Is that untrue?

 

[*Bunny*]

I like the variety. I lift at home, so I am somewhat limited as far as machinery goes.
I don't mind using the size I have now, but for health reasons I need to lower my b.f. level.
Oh, I did hear from someone that smaller bodyparts, bi's etc., need higher reps to gain strength. Is that untrue?

What's the deal with the shoulder?

higher reps for 'strength' ? I usually keep my reps 6-10, any more than 10 the weight goes up ... I am sure there is some premise behind it, I'd like to hear why. For ME, that is untrue yes. The only thing high reps MAY help with is my calf/ab definition ... or depleting the glycogen in the muscles in the workouts before a comp.

**edit***

Your BF is directly related to your DIET. You CAN eat clean, bump the cals & train for more strength, and drop the BF as long as you are not cheating, drinking, eating too much junk... or keep the cals where they are, clean up the diet still (I think QS'sis mentioned it a few times before) and continue cutting.

 

[BiggT]

Hidngod,

With the dips, it is just up to your shoulder. Bumps and dings are all very individual, I'd say do dips if it doesn't irritate your shoulder, and drop them if they aggrivate....not very scientific, lol, but thats the only way to really go about it.

Rack lockouts are a partial bench off the pins in the power rack (typically a 6" or so range of motion)....I also like close-grip benching for triceps, you can do close grips on inclines or overhead presses too.....16" is in my opinion ideal for tricep recruitment, and still wide enough that it doesn't irritate the wrists, and also wide enough that you aren't limited to weenie weights.

I agree with Bunny on the cals....you can up them with things like Salmon or red meat for example and as you get stronger on the big lifts that count and increase muscle mass, your body composition (bf %) would improve.......the reason I mentioned upping cals is because you look like a pretty big guy (both frame and natural muscle mass) and 2300-ish sounded low to even support the muscle you have, much less help you build more......again, I'm by no means the go to guy on nutrition around here, and I would never want to give out inaccurate info or dangerous info with regard to diet and a condition like diabetes, but generally upping clean calories to support heavy training and limiting/eliminating garbage calories will improve body comp....and in your case, you'd probably want to pay extra close attention to the glycemic index with your carb choices.

Functional strength is the name of the game if you ask me, and I am so glad you said that......think of the body as one unit that functions as such, rather than a mish mash of "bodyparts" like Frankenstein....the body was designed to pick weight up off the ground (pull), push weight away from it (press), and to squat. Also, it was designed to move (which would be cardio and GPP etc etc)......in the weightroom, your focus should be to get good at a squat, a pull, and a press.....compound, multi-joint lifts train many things.....the bench press isn't a "chest" exercise, but rather an upper body exercise for example.

There is no magic to sets and reps and there is no right or wrong way. All sets/reps are is a way to make training quantifiable. There is no magic to a 'routine'...all a routine is, is a way to organize training to foster progression. Never train for soreness or a 'pump', but train for progress, and use sets and reps as a way to measure if you actually progressed. If you benched 235x 3 sets of 3 this week, then you bench 240x3 sets of 3 next week, thats your way to measure whether or not you got better or not....what grows muscle all over the body evenly is to improve your capacity in a squat, a pull, and a press.....getting good at squats, bench presses, and barbell rows in a non-neural rep range (anything above MAX triples, doubles, and singles) over time is what will get you 95% of your muscular bodyweight. Generally anything over 10 reps, as Bunny said, will be more like cardio and not foster the best progress.....I love 5's and 3's ( I am talking multiple/high volume sets of 3, not an all out triple) and on some things 8's for hypertrophy purposes.....at times, all out neural work and max singles etc etc can be used to boost strength in the hypertrophy range.

For the goals you stated, I'd focus on a big 3-5 rep bench press and back squat, and a big 5 rep barbell row.....accessory stuff to help those lifts can be things like dips, close-grip bench, standing overhead presses, decline situps, pullups, etc....at the end of the week, you can toss in 4 sets of 8 on barbell curls, and as long as you can add weight to the bar weekly, your biceps will respond.

I know I just tossed out a lot of stuff at you, and it is the condensed version, so do not hesitate to ask me to rephrase or repeat anything and ask any questions you may have.....a priceless read is Madcow2's website that is in the training sticky, I can recommend some good books (and no, Arnold never wrote a good book on training, lol).......but I'd be happy to answer any questions on here or post a sample routine, or feel free to PM me if you want to bullshit about training.

 

[HiDnGoD]

Hidngod,

With the dips, it is just up to your shoulder. Bumps and dings are all very individual, I'd say do dips if it doesn't irritate your shoulder, and drop them if they aggrivate....not very scientific, lol, but thats the only way to really go about it.

Rack lockouts are a partial bench off the pins in the power rack (typically a 6" or so range of motion)....I also like close-grip benching for triceps, you can do close grips on inclines or overhead presses too.....16" is in my opinion ideal for tricep recruitment, and still wide enough that it doesn't irritate the wrists, and also wide enough that you aren't limited to weenie weights.

I agree with Bunny on the cals....you can up them with things like Salmon or red meat for example and as you get stronger on the big lifts that count and increase muscle mass, your body composition (bf %) would improve.......the reason I mentioned upping cals is because you look like a pretty big guy (both frame and natural muscle mass) and 2300-ish sounded low to even support the muscle you have, much less help you build more......again, I'm by no means the go to guy on nutrition around here, and I would never want to give out inaccurate info or dangerous info with regard to diet and a condition like diabetes, but generally upping clean calories to support heavy training and limiting/eliminating garbage calories will improve body comp....and in your case, you'd probably want to pay extra close attention to the glycemic index with your carb choices.

Functional strength is the name of the game if you ask me, and I am so glad you said that......think of the body as one unit that functions as such, rather than a mish mash of "bodyparts" like Frankenstein....the body was designed to pick weight up off the ground (pull), push weight away from it (press), and to squat. Also, it was designed to move (which would be cardio and GPP etc etc)......in the weightroom, your focus should be to get good at a squat, a pull, and a press.....compound, multi-joint lifts train many things.....the bench press isn't a "chest" exercise, but rather an upper body exercise for example.

There is no magic to sets and reps and there is no right or wrong way. All sets/reps are is a way to make training quantifiable. There is no magic to a 'routine'...all a routine is, is a way to organize training to foster progression. Never train for soreness or a 'pump', but train for progress, and use sets and reps as a way to measure if you actually progressed. If you benched 235x 3 sets of 3 this week, then you bench 240x3 sets of 3 next week, thats your way to measure whether or not you got better or not....what grows muscle all over the body evenly is to improve your capacity in a squat, a pull, and a press.....getting good at squats, bench presses, and barbell rows in a non-neural rep range (anything above MAX triples, doubles, and singles) over time is what will get you 95% of your muscular bodyweight. Generally anything over 10 reps, as Bunny said, will be more like cardio and not foster the best progress.....I love 5's and 3's ( I am talking multiple/high volume sets of 3, not an all out triple) and on some things 8's for hypertrophy purposes.....at times, all out neural work and max singles etc etc can be used to boost strength in the hypertrophy range.

For the goals you stated, I'd focus on a big 3-5 rep bench press and back squat, and a big 5 rep barbell row.....accessory stuff to help those lifts can be things like dips, close-grip bench, standing overhead presses, decline situps, pullups, etc....at the end of the week, you can toss in 4 sets of 8 on barbell curls, and as long as you can add weight to the bar weekly, your biceps will respond.

I know I just tossed out a lot of stuff at you, and it is the condensed version, so do not hesitate to ask me to rephrase or repeat anything and ask any questions you may have.....a priceless read is Madcow2's website that is in the training sticky, I can recommend some good books (and no, Arnold never wrote a good book on training, lol).......but I'd be happy to answer any questions on here or post a sample routine, or feel free to PM me if you want to bullshit about training.

Huh?

 

[HiDnGoD]

OK, I'm going to print that & read it a coupla times to absorb what you & Bunnsmaster said.
I'll go & read up on Madcow too.
I really appreciate the help.
Re; The diabetes. Right now, the only concern is getting fitter, whether it be stronger, or leaner. I think either will do the trick to get me off meds. I'm on minimal medication now (5 mg Metformin p.d.) & I don't think it'll take much to get me off. With that being the case there isn't much I can do to my diet & have critical consequences. I can just try things & see how I respond & adjust my meds accordingly. That's the way it is with a lot of diabetics anyways. See what works & what doesn't. Sounds a lot like here, LOL.
Bunny. I have tendonitis in my traps. I work with it. But in my shoulders I have recurring pain, usually more prominent if I try front raises. I'm going for X-rays this week, & I have an appointment for Ultrasound on Oct 24.

 

[ck2006]

Holy information overload! LOL I came to your log to see how your doing and I am going to have to print it off to find out LMAO!

I LOVE IT!!!!!

 

[*Bunny*]

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval." Mark Twain LOVE IT .. where DID you get it from ... hehehe

Tendonitis bites, sorry HiDn. Have you done anything to try & help it out? Meaning like massage or acupunture etc? Taken time off from training to rest it, then it keeps coming back?

Great info up there as well, T is so informative eh? AND HELPFUL!

I am curious .. when you go hypo you have munched on sweets & candy bars I think. Can you explain why not eat like a clif bar or some other better carb out there to get it back up? I'd rather see you eating a sugar laden protein bar than candy. I'm asking b/c I don't know & trying to work with you on diet to get you OUT of the habit of reaching for candy to help, if there are other possibilities... ideas?

 

[HiDnGoD]

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval." Mark Twain LOVE IT .. where DID you get it from ... hehehe

Tendonitis bites, sorry HiDn. Have you done anything to try & help it out? Meaning like massage or acupunture etc? Taken time off from training to rest it, then it keeps coming back?

Great info up there as well, T is so informative eh? AND HELPFUL!

I am curious .. when you go hypo you have munched on sweets & candy bars I think. Can you explain why not eat like a clif bar or some other better carb out there to get it back up? I'd rather see you eating a sugar laden protein bar than candy. I'm asking b/c I don't know & trying to work with you on diet to get you OUT of the habit of reaching for candy to help, if there are other possibilities... ideas?

I get my quotes from a qotes website, LOL.
I'v e had physio for the tendonitis. I had it quite a bit in my elbows, but it's usually under control. The thing is, the more I work an area, the less the symptoms are. Until & either lay of, at which point it will start to ache again, or I do something that over stresses it.
Yes, T is a lot of help. I am currently rethinking my workouts.
Going hypo is a twofold problem. First is treating the acute symptoms and the best thing is dextrose tabs. The next best is a fruit drink with sugar mixed in, or chewing a hard candy, or lozenge, like Halls. The thing is, you have to stop the downward slide, & quickly bring your glucode back up. The second thing is ensureing it doesn't go down again, because those sugars that raise your glucose quickly, also burn out quickly. So, if there isn't a meal approaching, with sufficient carbs, you have to eat something to keep the sugars up. I now have approximately 16 different packages of dextrose spread around my house, vehicles & work areas. I usually keep a couple of oatmeal bars around for that, but I ran out. The food machine also usually stocks teh oatmeal. If there is no oatmeal in sight, I'll take a snickers bar if possible.