***The 2020 Gym Rats Thread*** ᕦ( ͠°◞ °)ᕥ

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Skidder said:
I'm on madcow now after SL. I think it is a good transition between them. Why do you want to mix them? Have you hit a long plateau on squats but not on the other lifts?

How long have you been on SL?
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I'm honestly just struggling with energy after 5 heavy sets and madcow is more forgiving with building up to 1 heavy set and having a lighter session. I've dropped and built back up once, today I'll be attempting a new 5x5 personal best in squats.
 
Went too heavy on deadlifts and pulled something in my lower back. The back's quickly improving but I haven't been since Monday. Bizarrely it's going hand in hand with a very tight and sore left hamstring; not sure if the two are related? Perhaps I just hurt both as I know DLs are hard on the hammies.
 
Participant said:
Went too heavy on deadlifts and pulled something in my lower back. The back's quickly improving but I haven't been since Monday. Bizarrely it's going hand in hand with a very tight and sore left hamstring; not sure if the two are related? Perhaps I just hurt both as I know DLs are hard on the hammies.
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Could be nerve damage.

Time for some "nerve flossing".
 
Continuing my two week cycle of a rep week and a heavy week, yesterday was my heavy deadlift day having not pushed too much recently and also having seen my weight drop down to 88kg (how this is even possible I just don't know). Managed 235Kg singles for two and 222.5kg doubles for three (all of which I felt like there were more reps in the tank) followed by 9 sets of lighter reps and all felt very manageable. I am taking longer rests between heavier sets which is helping and I am also finding that after my deadlift and squat sessions I don't have energy left for much else, so I am happy that I am pushing myself. AC joint slightly tender, but should be fine for benching tomorrow and other than that I am not aching as much as I expected today, just a tiny bit of muscular tightness on the left side of my lower back. Aiming for a 290kg deadlift by the end of the year.
 
Couple months into really working at the gym, had a few hypertrophy cycles to start with and now in a couple strength cycles.

Can anyone suggest a few websites to browse through? Just looking for light reading relating to body building, diets, science behind it all, stuff like that just to give me a bit more knowledge :)
 
NooBish AbbZ said:
Couple months into really working at the gym, had a few hypertrophy cycles to start with and now in a couple strength cycles.

Can anyone suggest a few websites to browse through? Just looking for light reading relating to body building, diets, science behind it all, stuff like that just to give me a bit more knowledge :)
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https://bodyrecomposition.com/ (dry but #facts)
https://rippedbody.com/ (easiest to digest)
https://www.strongerbyscience.com/ (more geared towards strength training)
https://muscleandstrengthpyramids.com/ (eBooks but if you're serious about training and nutrition, these are comprehensive without being too dry and you should buy them).
 
CaptainRAVE said:
Continuing my two week cycle of a rep week and a heavy week, yesterday was my heavy deadlift day having not pushed too much recently and also having seen my weight drop down to 88kg (how this is even possible I just don't know). Managed 235Kg singles for two and 222.5kg doubles for three (all of which I felt like there were more reps in the tank) followed by 9 sets of lighter reps and all felt very manageable. I am taking longer rests between heavier sets which is helping and I am also finding that after my deadlift and squat sessions I don't have energy left for much else, so I am happy that I am pushing myself. AC joint slightly tender, but should be fine for benching tomorrow and other than that I am not aching as much as I expected today, just a tiny bit of muscular tightness on the left side of my lower back. Aiming for a 290kg deadlift by the end of the year.
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Nice!

I would be happy with a 180/190 by the end of the year if im honest! Although not sure how i will manage as my work free gym only have plates up for 145kg which i can already do for sets of 5.

Might have to pay for day passes or a local gym towards the end of the year to just push towards it, or get some more plates to take into the work gym when i need them?
 
Musty Pie said:
Nice!

I would be happy with a 180/190 by the end of the year if im honest! Although not sure how i will manage as my work free gym only have plates up for 145kg which i can already do for sets of 5.

Might have to pay for day passes or a local gym towards the end of the year to just push towards it, or get some more plates to take into the work gym when i need them?
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There's 130kg under the desk at work to supplement the work gym haha, not allowed to leave any personal equipment in there, thank god I'm just across the hall!!!
 
GiraffePencils said:
There's 130kg under the desk at work to supplement the work gym haha, not allowed to leave any personal equipment in there, thank god I'm just across the hall!!!
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Yeah luckily im not too far from mine either! im not quite at the needing it phase yet, but for squats and deadlifts i can see myself needing it by the end of this year for certain. Well, unless i ruin my groin again ...
 
So I just realised for the last 4 weeks or so I’ve been taking the regular preworkout rather than boosted version before squats, deadlifts and bench. Not bad sessions considering.
 
CaptainRAVE said:
So I just realised for the last 4 weeks or so I’ve been taking the regular preworkout rather than boosted version before squats, deadlifts and bench. Not bad sessions considering.
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I used to take prework out when i started doing SL's but i think i didnt really need it, Once it ran out i never went back to it.

for now i just have 1 protein shake on training days (after) and a BCAA before/During my workouts.

Do you find pre workout helps a lot? Given you didnt notice a difference between your boosted one and normal would you say a lot of it is a placebo? - Genuine interest.
 
Other than caffeine there isn't anything else in pre-workouts (bar the ones with the amphetamine derivatives that got banned) that has any acute effect on strength/power, or does anything that would augment training adaptations. Much better use of money to just buy some caffeine tabs, dose at 3-6mg/kg 1hr prior to training with enough fluid to make sure you're hydrated sufficiently - since dehydration can really negatively effect performance - and spend the money on food instead. They often include other things that create noticeable sensations like the tingling you get from beta-alanine, which doesn't provide a performance-enhancing effect for weight training (it may be useful for endurance training though) but makes you think it's doing something other than being very expensive juice.
 
Musty Pie said:
I used to take prework out when i started doing SL's but i think i didnt really need it, Once it ran out i never went back to it.

for now i just have 1 protein shake on training days (after) and a BCAA before/During my workouts.

Do you find pre workout helps a lot? Given you didnt notice a difference between your boosted one and normal would you say a lot of it is a placebo? - Genuine interest.
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Enormously helpful when training after work or for very heavy/long sessions. The one time I forgot to take it and didn’t realise I massively felt the difference. Not hugely different to caffeine tablets as above, but some are slower release and have other useful substances in for recovery.
 
I took pre-workout for a bit but as Somnambulist said, I didn't really notice it doing very much. I don't really feel caffeine that strongly, I guess I adjusted to it quite a lot when I worked as a barista at uni. I'd have to have several double espressos before I really feel 'wired' and the side effects (very shaky hands, anxiety, etc) aren't worth it.

I just make sure I'm well hydrated and have had sufficient and suitable food before working out.

On a different note has anyone got any cues for bench press technique? I know you're supposed to retract and pack your shoulder blades and bench with your arms slightly tucked in to protect your shoulders and rotator cuffs, but I struggle to actually maintain that feeling throughout the lift. I feel like as I press the weight my shoulders try to round and it's making it hard for me to make good progress on the lift.
 
It's hard to say without seeing a video. The biggest thing is to maintain the full body tightness/tension in your body over a set - e.g. your bench arch involves both the upper back being tight at one end, as well as the legs trying to drive the body back up the bench at the other, so if you lose the latter mid-way through a set everything else up the chain starts to go to pot. Another thing would be the cue of 'breaking the bar in half' to make sure your pecs are being recruited properly, as if not then it's all anterior delt and tricep and your body will automatically look for the easiest way to get the weight up which often means the shoulders doing something funky. The final thing would be patience - you don't need to pause every rep but equally if you're too rushed in your touch'n'go it can make your bath path inconsistent or cause you to lose tightness, so it's better to drop some weight and really focus on controlling the weight down to the contact point and driving it back up consistently than what you see most do in the gym which is let the weight free-fall than desperately try and heave it up (usually with 'it's all you mate' assistance).
 
Had a good 2 weeks back at the gym since my injury and quite enjoying the prowler again! I've started to use a few different variations, to target more muscle groups and love how my quads are on fire when pulling it back! I did attempt a pyramid set by adding 20/25kg plates every lap (back and forth) up to 155kg (no idea on prowler weight itself) and then did the same in reverse and was absolutely destroyed after! Didnt help that when I got down to 2-3 plates, i just started sprinting with it.

Been throwing in complexes and more core stuff like body saws, goblet squats.. As well as split squats for punishment. Hopefully this all pays off and one day I can go back to squatting/Deadlifting again :D
 
My left AC joint is sore today and due a rest. I’ve been keeping my rotation exercises and stretches up, but I haven’t deloaded or rested since last October and I think it’s nearly time.

Deadlifting strained it slightly, bench flared it up for a couple of hours and low bar squat has made it particularly sore. I need to increase my shoulder mobility and make sure my elbows are back more when setting up.
 
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