RT's long way to the top

[RThoads]

Some "Before" pics!
Haha shit, now I am going to be held accountable
But it is ok because I think I will see some positive changes by the end of this!

 

[RThoads]

22-Feb-2016 (Week-1: Monday)

Weighed in at 201 lb

ZERO PIP from that first pin (I almost feel weird like is something missing? how could it feel like I never even had a shot at all).

Not a very spectacular first day on the program. I lost some strength taking time off for injuries to heal and some bad luck with winter illness on and off that I just never could shake off until I took time to rest. Missed some bench reps trying to do paused reps. I will attempt this weight again next week and see if maybe it was just a result of deconditioning for missed gym time because this should have been easy.

The 5x5 strait sets at 85% of 5RM are legit plenty of work!

lol it is funny that on paper I thought the program looked too easy and I was thinking of all the extras I should add in today, but by the end of it I actually had some cramps getting out of my car and trying to walk up the stairs...I mean real ones like the leg-day memes that made me sit down half way walking to my house from the parking lot and my GF said "let me help you because people are going to be looking and think there is some problem."

Workout (Monday - 5x5 volume squats and bench)
Warmed up with a couple minutes on a bike.
Cable internal and external rotations (rotator cuff).
Light-weight leg extensions
Light-weight standing leg curls
Leg Abductor and Adductor Machines

Squats:
ramp sets: 135x10, 185x6, 225x5.
(Note: I have access to 0.5 and 1 lb micro-plates)
267 lb x5
267 lb x5
267 lb x5
267 lb x5
267 lb x5

Bench: (paused)
95x15, 135x10, 185x5,
225 lb x5
225 lb x5
225 lb x4 to Failure (F)
225 lb x4 F
225 lb x3 F

Barbell Row:
(bent parallel to floor and grip just inside the rings)
135x10, 155x5, 175x5,
175 lb x8
175 lb x8 Near Failure (NF)
175 lb x8 F
(Note: I did a ramp set at the same weight as my work-sets because I want to get used to having that ramp set there for the future when the working sets are heavier and it would be to great a jump for 135 or 155 -- it is Volume day, so more work the better right?).

DB Hammer Curls:
30s x10
40s x8
50s x8 NF

I had all these big plans for RDLs or GHR, maybe some shrugs haha but man the core big compound with all the ramp sets and the 5x5 and 3x8 totally kicked my ass by the end. This workout is simple but SOLID!


Post Workout Meal:

Going to head it for some treadmill walking tonight. Or maybe I will be braze and do that stair master (looks like an escalator) that the bikini chicks always use.

 

[strongsafety41]

Question?

What do you guys think of my AI dosage?

During my cruise I was on 90mg EQ and 30 mg Test a week ZERO AI and I completely crashed my E2. I adjusted to 60mg EQ and 60 mg Test, did not get bloods, but do feel a little better.

So now you can see on this cycle I planned to pop 12.5 mg Aromasin 2x a week to start with. I know the EQ can convert to some degree, and maybe a very little bit of the Deca, and I have the 60 mg Test + HCG...In your opinion is 25mg a week Aromasin a reasonable starting point or should I up it?

It's been some time since I've touched aromasin, even then my time on it was brief. So, I can't offer much of an opinion on that. However, having low dose HCG on board on cycle gave my estrogen a boost and was troubling to control. Mind you, I was running much higher test back then but was popping Adex like candy with little affect.

It was back in the "Comprehensive Guide to PCT" thread where Doc Scally mentioned AI's ineffectiveness on HCG. The discussion was on the earlier pages (3/4). Just something to consider as you add HCG to the equation.

 

[Trapmonster]

Subbed!

 

[crossfitisgay]

Excellent

 

[RThoads]

24-Feb-2016 (Week-1: Wednesday)

Weighed in at 201 lb

Week 1: pin-2
300mg EQ
150mg Deca
30mg Test-E
25g 1-inch @ Right Glute

ZERO PIP from that first pin and this second one felt great as well – I think a big part of it is having someone else do the pins allows it to be done perfectly as opposed to me struggling.


Workout(Wednesday)
Warmed up with a couple minutes on a bike.
Cable internal and external rotations (rotator cuff).
Light-weight leg extensions
Light-weight standing leg curls
Leg Abductor and Adductor Machines

Squats:
ramp sets: 135x10, 185x6, 225x5,
240x5
240x5

Standing Overhead Press:
45x20, 65x15, 95x6, 115x5,
135x5
135x5
135x5
135x5

*I did 4 sets at 135 to allow for a smooth ramp to heavier sets moving forward; by this I mean when I get 6 reps for some of the sets I will load the top 3 sets and that will leave the first set here at 135 as a ramp to those higher sets in the future.

Brutal Pullups (extreme wide-grip variation where I hold outside the pullups bar around the framework of the pullup attachment on the cable-crossover. This gives me an extremely wide neutral grip and is just brutal on the lats with very little arm involvement.):
BW x10 Near Failure (NF)
BW x6 to Failure (F)
BW x6 F

Chest Supported DB Reverse flys (rear delts):
15s x10
20s x10 NF
20s x10 F

DB Side Laterals:
15s x12
20s x10 NF
20s x10 F

I know it’s not very big weight on the delt isolation work but I do them slow and strict and did get a lot out of those worksets.

Back Exnetions:
BW x10
+45 x10 NF
+45 x10 NF

Wow, I have not done back hypers in a long time and the back pump I got was nasty – I had to sit down at the station for a couple mins after that last set and just rest before I walked to the locker-room to clean up and go home.


Overall a good session and I enjoyed having the room in the program to put in some delt work. Slowly I will add volume and weight but I started easy.

I tried some Niacin for the first time haha
All I will say is that plus my beta-alanine had me on FIRE! I will post a pic in the next post. I did like it though but felt like I was in a 1000 degree sauna.

Cardio:
at night I went in and walked 30 mins on the treadmill at 5 incline and 3.0 speed.

 

[RThoads]

Niacin + Beta-Alanine FLUSH to the max!!!
You can see on my chest and arms how red I was -- my face and neck were 10x worse!
I was absolutely on Fire!!!
Funny thing is that at first I felt nothing and thought "well I guess people are just dramatic because I don;t feel shit...." then, at about the 20-30 minutes into my workout I exploded with hot flashes and turned red -- it felt like I was in a 1000 degree sauna.
People were freaked out and looking at me; a few people even approached and asked if I was ok lol.
Fuck it, if it helps my workout and LDL levels then I will do it.
I actually kinda liked the feeling.

(color in the pic does not do it justice -- way more red in real life).

 

[Melly Mel from hell]

Niacin + Beta-Alanine FLUSH to the max!!!
You can see on my chest and arms how red I was -- my face and neck were 10x worse!
I was absolutely on Fire!!!
Funny thing is that at first I felt nothing and thought "well I guess people are just dramatic because I don;t feel shit...." then, at about the 20-30 minutes into my workout I exploded with hot flashes and turned red -- it felt like I was in a 1000 degree sauna.
People were freaked out and looking at me; a few people even approached and asked if I was ok lol.
Fuck it, if it helps my workout and LDL levels then I will do it.
I actually kinda liked the feeling.

(color in the pic does not do it justice -- way more red in real life).

lol...OMG RT, you look like you fell asleep in the tanning bed.
p.s. I like your head band.

 

[RThoads]

lol...OMG RT, you look like you fell asleep in the tanning bed.
p.s. I like your head band.

haha yeah it did look like I went tanning for about 5 hours!
I am usually pretty white -- Scotch-Irish American hillbilly

This more accurately portrays my new look:

 

[lightspan]

24-Feb-2016 (Week-1: Wednesday)

Weighed in at 201 lb

Week 1: pin-2
300mg EQ
150mg Deca
30mg Test-E
25g 1-inch @ Right Glute

ZERO PIP from that first pin and this second one felt great as well – I think a big part of it is having someone else do the pins allows it to be done perfectly as opposed to me struggling.


Workout(Wednesday)
Warmed up with a couple minutes on a bike.
Cable internal and external rotations (rotator cuff).
Light-weight leg extensions
Light-weight standing leg curls
Leg Abductor and Adductor Machines

Squats:
ramp sets: 135x10, 185x6, 225x5,
240x5
240x5

Standing Overhead Press:
45x20, 65x15, 95x6, 115x5,
135x5
135x5
135x5
135x5

*I did 4 sets at 135 to allow for a smooth ramp to heavier sets moving forward; by this I mean when I get 6 reps for some of the sets I will load the top 3 sets and that will leave the first set here at 135 as a ramp to those higher sets in the future.

Brutal Pullups (extreme wide-grip variation where I hold outside the pullups bar around the framework of the pullup attachment on the cable-crossover. This gives me an extremely wide neutral grip and is just brutal on the lats with very little arm involvement.):
BW x10 Near Failure (NF)
BW x6 to Failure (F)
BW x6 F

Chest Supported DB Reverse flys (rear delts):
15s x10
20s x10 NF
20s x10 F

DB Side Laterals:
15s x12
20s x10 NF
20s x10 F

I know it’s not very big weight on the delt isolation work but I do them slow and strict and did get a lot out of those worksets.

Back Exnetions:
BW x10
+45 x10 NF
+45 x10 NF

Wow, I have not done back hypers in a long time and the back pump I got was nasty – I had to sit down at the station for a couple mins after that last set and just rest before I walked to the locker-room to clean up and go home.


Overall a good session and I enjoyed having the room in the program to put in some delt work. Slowly I will add volume and weight but I started easy.

I tried some Niacin for the first time haha
All I will say is that plus my beta-alanine had me on FIRE! I will post a pic in the next post. I did like it though but felt like I was in a 1000 degree sauna.

Cardio:
at night I went in and walked 30 mins on the treadmill at 5 incline and 3.0 speed.

I also do strict Delt isolation, lat raises, no leaning over or momentum. You don't need a lot of weight, they are brutal.

 

[RThoads]

26-Feb-2016 (Week-1: Friday)

Weighed in at 201 lb

missed my first rep on deadlifts because I went for double overhand grip and was very close to locking out but then my grip started to fail so I had to put down the weight; went mixed on the rest of the deadlifts and got 4 good reps.

I am going to have to add a set on squats and deadlifts to function as a ramp set because my top weight will get too far above the current ramp sets.

Next week I will hold the weight the same on those two lifts but add a single, double, or triple at the same 5RM workset weight before the 5-rep workout set. Then, moving forward I will have that in place so I do not jump strait from something like 315 to 425+ etc.


Workout(Friday – Intensity Squat, Bench, Deads)
Warmed up with a couple minutes on a bike.
Cable internal and external rotations (rotator cuff).
Light-weight leg extensions
Light-weight standing leg curls
Leg Abductor and Adductor Machines

Squats:
ramp sets: 135x10, 185x6, 225x5.
275 lb x5
315 lb x5

Bench:(touch and go)
95x15, 135x10, 185x5,
225 lb x5
245 lb x5
265 lb x5

Deadlifts (deficit--standing on a plate):
(bent parallel to floor and grip just inside the rings)
135x5, 225x5,
315 lb x5
405 lb x4 F

Dips:
BW x15
BW x15
BW x14 F

DB Seated Incline Curls:
25s x10
35s x8
35s x8
40s x5 F
35s x8 F

Rope Overhead Cable Tri Ext (1-arm at a time):
40 x10
50 x6 F
50 x4 F

Barbell Shrugs (went light because racks were all taken and I had to lift from the floor but deads had my posterior chain done):
225x10
225x10
225x10

 

[crossfitisgay]

26-Feb-2016 (Week-1: Friday)

Weighed in at 201 lb

missed my first rep on deadlifts because I went for double overhand grip and was very close to locking out but then my grip started to fail so I had to put down the weight; went mixed on the rest of the deadlifts and got 4 good reps.

I am going to have to add a set on squats and deadlifts to function as a ramp set because my top weight will get too far above the current ramp sets.

Next week I will hold the weight the same on those two lifts but add a single, double, or triple at the same 5RM workset weight before the 5-rep workout set. Then, moving forward I will have that in place so I do not jump strait from something like 315 to 425+ etc.


Workout(Friday – Intensity Squat, Bench, Deads)
Warmed up with a couple minutes on a bike.
Cable internal and external rotations (rotator cuff).
Light-weight leg extensions
Light-weight standing leg curls
Leg Abductor and Adductor Machines

Squats:
ramp sets: 135x10, 185x6, 225x5.
275 lb x5
315 lb x5

Bench:(touch and go)
95x15, 135x10, 185x5,
225 lb x5
245 lb x5
265 lb x5

Deadlifts (deficit--standing on a plate):
(bent parallel to floor and grip just inside the rings)
135x5, 225x5,
315 lb x5
405 lb x4 F

Dips:
BW x15
BW x15
BW x14 F

DB Seated Incline Curls:
25s x10
35s x8
35s x8
40s x5 F
35s x8 F

Rope Overhead Cable Tri Ext (1-arm at a time):
40 x10
50 x6 F
50 x4 F

Barbell Shrugs (went light because racks were all taken and I had to lift from the floor but deads had my posterior chain done):
225x10
225x10
225x10

So this is a full body workout routine?

 

[RThoads]

So this is a full body workout routine?

yes, the program is very much based in The Texas Method style of training.
Here are a couple links that describe TM:

Why The Texas Method May Be The Best Intermediate Program

The Texas Method | T Nation


also, check out this part from my first post/intro for my specific ideas and approach to the progression, programming, and accessory work:

Lifting Program:
I plan to start with my own variation based upon “The Texas Method” style of training as follows with mandatory work and work-sets in bold and completely optional work listed that most may not even happen—just there for ideas and as needs and energy/recovery levels dictate (warm-up work and ramping sets NOT listed but will be happening; for example, it may take 3-5 ramp sets for me to get up to the top working weight on some heavy lifts).
(another Texas Method write-up)

Monday (Volume day):
Squats 5x5 @80-90% of Friday’s planned 5RM
Bench 5x5 @80-90% of Friday’s planned 5RM
Barbell Row 3x8-10
(optional: assistance/accessory work such as Tricep Extensions, Weighted Dips, CGBP with bands, rear delt work, bicep/arm work, grip work, shrugs, abs/core, GHR, RDL, and back extensions).

Wednesday (OHP and active recovery):
Squats 2x5 @80-90% of Monday’s worksets
Strict Standing Overhead Press 3x5 @auto-regulation (if I can get 6 on the last set then +5lb)
Extreme Wide-Grip Pullups 3x8-10 @auto-regulation (if I get 3x10+ then +5lb)
(optional: assistance/accessory work such as medium grip pullups, close grip chins, shoulder side/rear delt work, grip work, abs/core, GHR, and back extensions).

Friday (Intensity day):
Squats 1x5 @5RM (if I get 5 reps then add +5lb)
Bench 1x5 @5RM (if I get 5 reps then add +5lb)
Deadlift 1x5 @5RM (I will be doing slight deficit by standing on a 45 plate – if I get all 5 reps then add)
(optional: assistance/accessory work such as Pendlay Rows, Tricep Extensions, Weighted Dips, CGBP with bands, rear delt work, bicep/arm work, grip work, shrugs, abs/core, GHR, RDL, and back extensions).

*There is possibility of adjusting rep ranges; for example, working heavy triples, doubles, or even testing max on Fridays.

**At some point I may consider changing to a 6-day Legs/Push/Pull bodybuilding split and will write-up those details if that ever actually become relevant.

***Cardio work to be done on non-lifting days or if possible many hours before or after lifting (if I am able to lift very early then cardio in the evening).

 

[Perrin Aybara]

Here's a good diagnostic chart of stalling on TM.

Of course Practical Programming is the best source for TM info. Have you read it?

This is a good article as well by a Starting Strength couch who I believe has a PhD.

http://www.barbellmedicine.com/weightlifting/12-ways-to-skin-the-texas-method/

Some of the advanced templates by Justin Lascek are pretty interesting as well.

 

[RThoads]

Here's a good diagnostic chart of stalling on TM.

Of course Practical Programming is the best source for TM info. Have you read it?

This is a good article as well by a Starting Strength couch who I believe has a PhD.

http://www.barbellmedicine.com/weightlifting/12-ways-to-skin-the-texas-method/

Some of the advanced templates by Justin Lascek are pretty interesting as well.

Great info! thank you very much for sharing and I will be sure to read up on that link.
As for the book, I have a eBook of the first edition but have only skimmed through. Hopefully I can pick up the latest edition soon.

I just started this style of training and so I am still learning. Might take a few sessions to dial in exactly what volume and weights I should be using.
I am always open to learning more so thank again for taking the time to post here.

 

[Perrin Aybara]

Great info! thank you very much for sharing and I will be sure to read up on that link.
As for the book, I have a eBook of the first edition but have only skimmed through. Hopefully I can pick up the latest edition soon.

I just started this style of training and so I am still learning. Might take a few sessions to dial in exactly what volume and weights I should be using.
I am always open to learning more so thank again for taking the time to post here.

No problem, I like seeing people get into training for strength and I have a little experience with TM myself, so don't hesitate to hit me up any time.

Just my $0.02 on the volume day, but I wouldn't do paused reps. It's better suited for intensity day, although I'd still do mostly touch and go except leading up to a powerlifting meet. Touch and go allows more weight and I think of paused as more of a skill if that makes sense. Get stronger using what allows more weight and then practice the skill of pausing to use that strength. Haha, I'm not the best with explanations.

But yeah, get that weight figured out. Failure on volume day is a no no. Once you've been running it awhile you'll start to be able to anticipate stalling a little. Ideally you'll want to figure out a little rep range rotation that works for you, like 8 on ID one week, 5 the next and 3 the next, then add five pounds and repeat. Just a made up example, but you get the idea. This would be down the road after riding out the 5's for awhile.

Also, I might have access to a certain Google drive with a few books on it, including Practical Programming. It's only the second edition though. I could PM you the link if you'd like to check it out. Plenty of good reading.

 

[RThoads]

28-Feb-2016

Week 2.
I am not going list each pin moving forward since nothing is changing and it is pretty easy to understand my schedule. However, I will note if anything changes.

NOTE: I am upping the Aromasin to 12.5mg MWF for a total of 37.5mg/week.
I felt the slightest increase in excising right nip gyno and a little puffy (most likely from the HCG) so I will add this increase in AI while going by feel until I get some bloods around week 5 or 6. I understand that an AI may not help with HCG E2 but it will lower the conversion from any AAS and as such still help overall levels.
Again, this is minor, no big deal and I am just going off of feel to be proactive rather than sorry later.

 

[Melly Mel from hell]

Hi RT.
Curious why you didn't do a front load on the EQ and Deca. I usually do a x3 front load on EQ and a x2 front load on Deca.
I'm guessing it's something from past experience?

 

[Melly Mel from hell]

Correction...Checked my prior protocol records. EQ x2.5, Deca x1.5 front load.

 

[RThoads]

Hi RT.
Curious why you didn't do a front load on the EQ and Deca. I usually do a x3 front load on EQ and a x2 front load on Deca.
I'm guessing it's something from past experience?

I did consider front loading so I could jump right into feeling it but I gave things a lot of thoughts and decided to let it build slowly.

I have been cruising on EQ so I have some present from that as opposed to starting from nothing.

But the main thing was to just see how I feel on it and let it titrate up on its own so I keep a steady increase from week-to-week. I am of the mind-set that it is beneficial to start modest and keep upping everything (training parameters, diet in the direction of goals, and supplements/gear) to keep making more progress.
With these long esters I basically get that effect without increasing any dosages.

Then around week-8 I plan to add in Masteron (pharmacom M300 mix) which I hope will take things up another notch.