Busa's log

[Busa]

Cycle 3, W2D4 Accessories

BW = 237.7 lbs -- bought a 1 year subscription to MacroFactor today, to help me get my weight moving in the right direction. Thanks @JohnHelton for the recommendation.

SSB Squats: Rx = 3s x 3r @ 82%, then 3s x 2r @ 82% <-- these were left over from yesterday's abbreviated session
260 x 3s x 3r
260 x 2s x 2r
In my post-New Year's Eve celebration condition, I misread the Rx and missed the last set. These were horrible enough as it was, so I can live with that oversight.

OHP: Didn't have much of a plan going into these today, because #hungover
135 x 1r
155 x 3r @ 9.0 -- did 165 x 1r @ 9.0 last week, so I reckon my e1RM is around 170 or so
115 x 4s x 5r
115 x 10r @ 7.0
Probably went a little light on the volume sets, but just wanted to get a bit of work in

Results & conclusions after three rounds of Hanley's MM w/HVLF bench programming:

SSB Squat: +35 pounds 1RM over the six-week period, from 300 to 335 for a new PR. Pretty happy with the progress.

Bench: +30 pounds e1RM, from 230 to 260... also quite pleased with the progress.

DL: +15 pounds 1RM, from 400 to 415. Here I have to take accountability for not doing all of the prescribed work. Still, hit a small PR and figured out a mechanical issue, so I'm feeling okay about this lift for now.

OHP: +10 pounds e1RM, from 155 x1 @ 9.0 to 165 x 1 @ 9.0. Again, here I was not as diligent in completing all of the programmed work, so I have some opportunity to improve further with increased compliance.

I believe one of the golden rules of lifting is: "Don't change programming that is delivering results", so my plan for now is to run another cycle and see where it takes me. Looking ahead, I might re-run Andy Baker's GGW program with some added upper body volume, for now I'm sticking with what's working.

[JohnHelton]

Good luck with the cut. I'm going to be doing the same...again. Got up to 220 at the beginning of 2020. I'm hoping to get really lean this time. The goal is to match my 19 year old physique by the time I turn 50 in June.

[Busa]

Good luck with the cut. I'm going to be doing the same...again. Got up to 220 at the beginning of 2020. I'm hoping to get really lean this time. The goal is to match my 19 year old physique by the time I turn 50 in June.

Thanks, and good luck to you, too.

MM w/HVLF bench protocol: Cycle 4, W1D1 Hypertrophy

BW: 235.9 lbs -- Day 3 MacroFactor cut, down 1.8 lbs overall (goal weight = 205 lbs)

Training max weights for this cycle: SSB 335, Bench 260, DL 420, Press 165 @ 9.0

SSB Squat: Rx = 6s x 5r @ 70%
235 x 6s x 5r -- really focused on getting below parallel on all reps
Last set @ 7.0

Bench: Rx = 7s x 7r @ 65%
170 x 7s x 7r
Last set @ 6.5

Pendlay Rows: Rx = match what I did for bench
170 x 7s x 7r
Straps, beltless

Triceps Pushdowns (v-bar)
75 x 20r
75 x 10r
75 x 7r
Ran out of time (and steam)

Good session today.

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W1D2 Power

BW = 234.8 lbs, Day 5 MacroFactor cut, down 2.9 lbs overall (goal weight = 205 lbs)

SSB Squats: Rx = working up to intensity singles
200 x 3
235 x 2
260 x 2s x 1r
270 x 1
285 x 3s x 1r
Last set @ 8.0

Bench: Rx = 7s x 5r @ 70%
180 x 7s x 5r
Last set @ 6.0

Deadlifts: Rx = 1 single @ 90%, then 5s x 4r @ 75%
380 x 1r <-- couldn't judge RPE, felt heavy... but then I realized I still had my squat shoes on, so was at a 1" deficit.
315 x 5s x 4r
Volume sets were tedious but not hard

Skipped direct biceps work. Going to tinker with programming for next round to mitigate a few issues, which includes my current tendency to neglect accessory lifts.

Edit: a few hours later… went back out to the garage for the curls

EZ Barbell Curls
70 x 10r
110 x 2s x 10r
80 x 3s x 10r

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W1D3 Strength

BW = 233.0 lbs, Day 7 MF cut, down 4.7 lbs overall / 32.0 lbs remaining to goal weight of 205

SSB Squats: Rx = 5s x 3r @ 80%
270 x 5s x 3r
Last set @ 8.0

Bench: Rx = 7s x 7r @ 65%
170 x 7s x 7r
Last set @ 6.0

Need to head back out later for SGDL & triceps work.

Edit: post-dinner workout completion:

SGDL: Rx = 4s x 5r @ 55%
230 x 4s x 5r
These always feel easy, which is somewhat to be expected given the relatively light loads, but even still... I wonder if my SSB work transfers over to SGDL moreso than (for example) low bar squats? I dunno... but I'll keep doing them, since Hanley says to.

Overhead Cable Triceps Extension: Rx = do some
60 x 10r -- with rope, which was aggravating my left elbow, so switched to a v-bar for remaining sets
60 x 10r -- felt better
65 x 10r
70 x 10r

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W1D4 Accessories

BW = 233.5 lbs. Day 8 MF cut -- weight lost / remaining to goal (205) = 4.2 lbs / 32.5 lbs

OHP: Rx = heavy triple, then 5s x 5r @ 75% of TM
155 x 3r @ 9.5
125 x 5s x 5r
Couldn't judge RPE on volume sets, but I need to start pressing more frequently than 1x per week. Next round of programming will address this.

Single Arm Cable Lat Pulldowns
60 x 10r
65 x 10r
70 x 10r

Incline DB Curls
35 x 3s x 10r

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W2D1 Hypertrophy

BW = 233.9 lbs. Day 10 MF cut -- weight lost / remaining to goal (205) = 3.8 lbs / 32.9 lbs

MacroFactor is currently calculating my total daily energy expenditure at just north of 3,000 calories. Since I am targeting 0.5% BW reduction per week, the app allows me a generous ~2,400 calories of food intake per day. I'm used to crash dieting with very rapid (but unsustained) weight loss, so this approach is novel for me, and frankly easy to comply with.

Today's session:

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = 3s x 4r @ 75%, then 4s x 3r @ 75%
250 x 3s x 4r
250 x 4s x 3r
Last set @ 8.0

Bench Press: Rx = 7s x 5r @ 70%
180 x 7s x 5r
Last set @ 6.0 -- note: for me, anything below RPE 8.0 is a pretty vague approximation of RIR, so @ 7.0 means that I'm pretty sure I could do more than two additional reps, and @ 6.0 means I could do more than three additional reps... maybe a lot more.

Pendlay Rows: Rx = same as I did for bench
180 x 7s x 5r
Varying grip widths, all pretty easy

Triceps Pushdowns (v-bar): target 50 reps
90 x 2s x 10r
75 x 2s x 15r

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W2D2 Power

BW = 233.5 lbs -- weight lost / remaining to goal (205) = 4.2 lbs / 32.5 lbs

SSB Squats: Rx = working up to intensity singles
200 x 3r
235 x 2r
260 x 2s x 1r
275 x 1r
300 x 1r
Last set @ 8.0 -- felt heavy, @ 8.0 might have been optimistic given the speed it moved, but at least I hit parallel...

Bench: Rx = 7s x 7r @ 65%
170 x 7s x 7r
Last set @ 6.0 -- played around with different grip widths... I remain a pinky on the rings guy

Deadlifts: Rx = 1 single @ 92%, then 4s x 3r @ 80%
385 x 5r @ 8.0 <-- somehow, I couldn't resist when I saw that my prior rep PR for this weight was 2r... but that killed me for any volume sets afterwards. Anyway... new rep PR, and e1RM up to 433 from 415 (pulled @ 10.0 a few weeks ago -- fixed rising hips issue to engage quads more).

Will do some biceps work later today.

Edit: Round 2

Deadlifts: Rx = finish the volume sets
335 x 4s x 3r

Cable Curls (v-bar)
40 x 10r
50 x 10r
60 x 10r

Concentration Curls
25 x 3s x 10r

Face Pulls
40 x 10r
50 x 10r
55 x 10r

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W2D3 Strength

BW = 235.2 lbs. Day 13 MF cut -- weight lost / remaining to goal (205) = 2.5 lbs / 30.2 lbs
MacroFactor is doing its job--we celebrated my wife's birthday yesterday so I was not compliant. Might do a light fast on Sunday to kickstart things again.

Bench: Rx = establish new 1RM, then doubles @ 85%
225 x 1r
265 x 1r @ grinder -- bar path got a bit wonky, but overall happy with the result. Might have had 270 in me today. 275... not so much.
220 x 6s x 2r
Last set @ 9.0 -- the 265 really took it out of me

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = 3s x 3r @ 82%, then 3s x 2r @ 82%
275 x 3s x 3r
275 x 3s x 2r
Last set @ 8.0

Overhead Cable Triceps Extensions: target 50 reps
55 x 10r
55 x 10r
55 x 15r
55 x 20r for the pump

Skipped SGDL today, will program them in for tomorrow.

[Busa]

Cycle 4, W2D4 Accessories

BW = 235.2 lbs -- unchanged from yesterday

Press: Rx = 1r @ 9.0, then 5s x 5r @ 80%
135 x 1r
155 x 1r @ 9.0-ish
165 x 1r @ 10.0
130 x 5s x 5r
Press is not improving, which is to be expected given my low training frequency of 1x / per week. Building a new program to start on Monday which will include more pressing volume.

SGDL: Rx = 4s x 5r @ 60% of DL 1RM
250 x 4s x 5r

Hammer Curls: target 50 reps
50 x 10r
45 x 10r
40 x 10r
35 x 10r
30 x 20r for the pump

Results after four cycles of MM w/HVFL bench:

SSB Squat: +40 pounds e1RM over the eight-week period, from 300 to 340.

Bench: +35 pounds e1RM, from 230 to 265, with the PR from yesterday. 275, here I come!

DL: +35 pounds e1RM, from 400 to 435. I think the DL e1RM might be a little high, but it's probably close, since I figured out how to engage my quads properly to start the lift. 455 is the next milestone here.

Press: As noted above, I am maintaining but not improving here. I am sure it's due to lack of frequency / volume.

[Busa]

Let's start with the "cut".

BW = 235.2 lbs -- holding steady. This is Day 16 of the MF cut. On the positive side: the app is great and it has my TDEE dialed in quite accurately. I know this because I am *eating* my TDEE and my weight is holding very steady. Which is not the idea of a diet, but I'm "easing into things". I do log every morsel of food that passes my lips. And, my food intake, while too much in volume, is significantly improved in quality. Now I need to slowly decrease food intake to a reasonable deficit, to start dropping pounds.

Now onto programming. The 2-week MM/HVLF programming has been working very well for the last eight weeks, but I want to tweak a few things. In no particular order:

1. More intersession recovery; hence stretching each week into a 9-day "block". So instead of a 14 day cycle, it'll be 18 days per cycle.
2. Session rotation will go A) Main lifts, B) Accessories, and C) Rest. Rinse and repeat three times per block, six times per cycle.
3. No more than 2 main lifts per "A" session, BUT... squat and bench every "A" session. Gotta fit deadlifts in somewhere, which leads me to...
4. Accessory ("B") sessions will go Press, Deadlift, and Press each block. This meets my desire to press more frequently, and gives deadlifts a dedicated day which I also think will be beneficial. Direct arm / shoulder work also on "B" sessions, after the compound lift for that day.
5. Other than that, I will largely continue to follow the S/B/D programming % which Hanley specifies in his templates

With all that said... kicked off the new program today. Training max weights: SSB 340, Bench 265, DL 425, Press 165

Cycle 1, Block 1, Session 1 (B1S1)

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = 6s x 5r @ 70%
240 x 6s x 5r
Last set @ 8.0

Bench: Rx = 7s x 7r @ 65%
170 x 7s x 7r
Last set @ 6.0

Pendlay Rows: Rx = same as bench
170 x 7s x 7r
Compound accessories are the exception to the "A Session = Main Lifts" rule. I row on sessions 1 and 4, and SGDL on sessions 3 and 6.

[JohnHelton]

On the positive side: the app is great and it has my TDEE dialed in quite accurately. I know this because I am *eating* my TDEE and my weight is holding very steady.

I enjoyed that one.

[Busa]

On the positive side: the app is great and it has my TDEE dialed in quite accurately. I know this because I am *eating* my TDEE and my weight is holding very steady.

I enjoyed that one.

I'm here all week, folks!

Cycle 1, B1S2 -- Accessories (Press)

BW = 235.2 lbs. My weight is nothing if not consistent!

Press: Rx = 5s x 5r @ 82%. Why 82%? Because that = 135 lbs, and I was too lazy to load the plates for 130 lbs (i.e. 80%, which was the actual Rx for today...)
135 x 5s x 5r

EZ Barbell Curls: Rx = 50 reps
110 x 10r
110 x 5r -- too heavy, getting a bit cheaty on the reps. I had to remind myself that this is meant as accessory hypertrophy stuff, not strength building
90 x 4s x 12r

Overhead Cable Triceps Extensions: Rx = 50 reps
60 x 12r
65 x 12r
70 x 12r
75 x 12r
Was going to do a set with 80 lbs, but elbows were getting a bit creaky so decided 48 reps was close enough

Dumbbell Side Laterals: Rx = do some
20 x 10r
25 x 8r
20 x 10r
Need to practice with these more, and/or try a cable variant

[Busa]

Cycle 1, B1S3

BW = 234.1 lbs. -- released some water weight. Only 29.1 more pounds to go!

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = intensity work
205 x 1s x 3r (60%)
240 x 1s x 2r (70%)
265 x 2s x 1r (77.5%)
270 x 1s x 1r (80%)
290 x 3s x 1r (85%)
Last set @ 8.0

Bench: Rx = 7s x 5r @ 70%
185 x 7s x 5r
Last set @ 6.0

Easy money.

[Busa]

Cycle 1, B1S4 -- Deadlift & Accessories

BW = 235.2 lbs

Deadlifts: Rx = one single @ 90%, then 5s x 4r @ 75%
385 x 1r
320 x 5s x 4r
Couldn't judge RPE on anything today

Triceps Pushdowns (v-bar): Rx = 5s x 8-12r
75 x 12r
80 x 12r
85 x 12r
90 x 12r
95 x 12r

Dumbbell Hammer Curls: Rx = 5s x 8-12r
45 x 12r
45 x 12r
45 x 12r
45 x 8r <-- left wrist complaining
35 x 15r

Face Pulls: Rx = do some
45 x 12r
45 x 12r
30 x 12r
Trying to program in some non-pressing shoulder movements, with which I have little experience. Laterals, reverse flyes, face pulls, etc. all feel quite foreign. I'm sure with some more practice, I will figure out what works vs. what doesn't.

[Busa]

Cycle 5, B1S5 -- changed Cycle # from 1 to 5, since it remains based on MM & HVLF bench. This will matter to nobody but me (and it barely even matters to me).

BW = 233.9 lbs. Nothing interesting happening here.

Bench: Rx = 90% until @ 9.0, then 7s x 3r @ 80%
245 x 3r @ 9.5 -- was expecting 4 reps, then realized I mis-loaded the bar by +5 pounds. Doh!
210 x 7s x 3r
Last set @ 8.0-ish

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = 5s x 3r @ 80%
275 x 5s x 3r -- I must be losing my mind, because I mis-loaded by +5 pounds here, too. Didn't make much a difference on an 80% load, but still... guess my focus was elsewhere.
Last set @ ?? -- these felt heavy after DL yesterday

Was meant to do SGDL today, but since I pulled conventional yesterday I elected to try chins instead. I wasn't even sure I could *do* a chin-up, but I managed 5 reps before my left elbow felt like it wanted to detach, so that's where I called it quits.

[Busa]

Cycle 5, B1S6 -- Press & Accessories

BW = 235.2 lbs. All this trivial day-to-day fluctuation is just water weight noise.

Press: Rx = 7s x 7r @ 75% <-- my first try with Press programming, and this was too much with an already aggressive TM
125 x 7r -- realized here that I over-reached; auto-regulated down for subsequent sets
115 x 6s x 7r -- 70% load worked much better

Incline DB Curls: Rx = 5s x 8-12r (this will be my standard accessory set & rep range, using a double progression approach for now)
30 x 5s x 12r
Hit 12 reps on all sets -- will increase weight by 5 lbs. next time

Overhead Cable Triceps Extensions: Rx = as above
60 x 12r
65 x 12r
70 x 12r
75 x 12r
80 x 10r
10 reps on last set--will repeat next time

Off to get vax booster. May hit SGDL later if I don't feel too crummy.

[Busa]

Cycle 5, B2S1

BW = 236.6 lbs. Binge eating. I'm not very good at this diet thing.

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = 3s x 4r @ 75%, then 4s x 3r @ 75%
255 x 3r x 4r
255 x 4s x 3r
Last set @ 7.0

Bench: Rx = 7s x 5r @ 70%
185 x 7s x 5r
Last set paused @ 6.0

Pendlay Rows: Rx = same as bench
185 x 7s x 5r

[Busa]

Cycle 5, B2S2 Press & Accessories

BW = 235.2 lbs

Press: Need to change my programming up a bit here to drive some progress. Going to adapt the 12-week http://benchprogram.com peaking program for press and see what happens. Rx = 1r @ 90%, then 3s x 5r @ 80%. TM = 165 lbs.
150 x 1r @ 8.0
130 x 3s x 5r

EZ Barbell Curls: Rx = 5s x 8-12r
90 x 5s x 12r
Rep limit achieved--will increase by 5 lbs. next time.

Abbreviated session today due to life, so it was 20 minutes and done.

[Busa]

Cycle 5, B2S3 Intensity SSB & Light Bench

BW = 236.6 lbs.

Safety Bar Squats: Rx = work up to intensity singles
205 x 3r
240 x 2r
265 x 2s x 1r
280 x 1r
305 x 1r @ 7.0 -- this didn't necessarily move like an @ 7.0, but my squats seem to move quite slowly, whatever the load

Bench: Rx = 7s x 7r @ 65%
170 x 7s x 7r
Last set @ 6.0