Post: #201

DC 2A: Friday 3/30

Hammer Strength Chest Press

150lbx25

Went up 10lb's and crushed it, idk how but it was pretty fucking easy.



Hammer Strength Shoulder Press

150lbx25

This was definitely a struggle especially the last rest pause, I got it done.

I'm going to only go up 5 lb's next time.



Skullcrushers

60lbx30

Got it handled today, beat the 26 rep pr, but it was ALOT of stress especially after chest and shoulders.



Hammer Strength Lat Pulldown

170lbx25

Beat the 17 rep pr, this absolutely kicked my ass, the wrist hook wraps helped a bit, but I need to start doing these ISO.


Seated Cable Row

125x25

Bumped up 5lb and still got to 25 reps, went through the motions no problem and squeezed my angel wings.

Post: #202

Landmine shoulder press would be a good alternative overhead press movement as long as it doesn't irritate shoulder. Can also try DB shoulder press with wrists turned more neutral

Post: #203

DC 2B: Monday 4/2

Seated Preacher Curl EZ Bar 25-30 rep range

65lbx22

Up 5lb's, I did these seated and it kicked my ass, I notice i get better form if I'm standing on the preacher curl pad.


Pinwheel Dumbbell Curls 25-30 rep range

27.5lbx25

Up from 25lb, I fucked up, in my head I thought I needed 25 not 30, will beat it next time.



Seated Calf Raise

65lb x 12

Beat 8 rep pr, there has to be a better stance where my feet don't sleep, I need to find some videos.



Romanian Dead Lift

185lbx8
185lb5x11

Up 10lb's, good form, wrist hook wraps helped, but my back got slightly tight towards the end.


Leg Press Widowmaker 20

270lbx10

190lbx20 Widowmaker

Upped 20 lb's on heavy, and 10 lb's on widows. Definetly was gassed, noticed my back got really tight, probably had a bad form on the seat.

Post: #204

(04-03-2018 10:05 PM)General Stalin Wrote:  Landmine shoulder press would be a good alternative overhead press movement as long as it doesn't irritate shoulder. Can also try DB shoulder press with wrists turned more neutral

I dind't have issues my shoulder at the angle.

My shoulder is pushing forward and up, definitely better with form also.

Not straight up 90 degress, I'll try it out when the time comes!

Post: #205

My rest days are consistent with early morning fasted cardio at 8.5 incline and 3.1 or 3.2 speed for 45 minutes.

Post: #206

I've been going strong just haven't logged, updates to follow shortly.

Post: #207

DC 3A: Wednesday 4/4

Pec Deck Flys

145lbx25

Up 5lb's, this workout was fine, felt a bit tingly sore afterward, did some wall stretching with it.



Tricep Rope

85lbx28

Up 5lb, I'm getting the form right, however I do notice that my issue with my pectoralis minor was making my should bend into my chest instead of keeping it straight and focusing on my arms.



Lateral Shoulder Dumbbell Raises

27.5lbx25

Stayed the same weight, hit the 25 rep goal, I have a feeling going to 30's I might be trying to "flail" the dumbbells up.



Lat Pulldown

125lbx25

Stayed the same weight, hit the 25 rep goal, I felt like I crushed this and I went a tad bit wider on grip.


Hammer Strength Seated Rows

210lb x 25

Up 10lb's, kept with iso rows and got the form dialed in.

Post: #208

DC 3B Friday 4/6

Hammer Strength Machine Curls (with movable grip)

25lbx35

I've restarted weight to focus more on the eccentric stretch of my form. So I upped the reps to 35 - I'll add weight little by little, I like this machined ALOT more than the other curling one.




Reverse Curl EZ Bar

40lbx30

Upped the weight 5lb's - there's going to be a time where I'll barely be able to these, I'll need to find another alternative. To be honest I don't think I'm getting the most out of this forearm exercise.



Calf Pres 45 Machine

100lbx12

Pushing to 12 was a bitch but beat my last reps by 1



Leg Curl Reverse

85lbx8
85lbx12


Kept the weight the same, hit the goals for each set.


Standing Hack Squat

260lbx10 Heavy Set
200lbx20 Widowmakers

There was some confusion from last work out on what weights i did when so I reviewed below. I went up 10lbs from my last record.

230 Mar 9
250 Mar 23

Post: #209

DC 1A: Monday 4/9

Bench Press Dumbbell

160lbx24

Got to 24 this time, BUT I did technically beat it the last time, will stay on this.



Land Mine Shoulder Press

25lb plate + bar x 19

I threw on a 25 thinking it'd be easy, boy was I wrong, I think I'm going to drop to 20lb and start there. Overall this was way better a workout then the smith machine shoulder press.


Tricep Bar Pad Pulldown

35lbx30

I dropped my tricep smith machine workout for this. This is a SINGLE PULLEY cable machine where you put your back against the weights on a pad, standing up and pull down bar. It's a solid workout.



Wide Grip Rack Chins (NOTE: 170lb is my body-weight + plates)

170lb body-weight + 45lb plate x 25

Even though I hit 25 last time, I wanted to make sure I absolutely did it right, which I did this time.



Standing Seat T-Bar Rows:

100lbx19

Beat my 18 rep max by 1, will keep on this.

Post: #210

DC 1B: Wednesday 4/11

Seated Bicep Curl Dumbbell

30lbx 30

I don't know why but I stayed on 30's this, I think just to make sure it wasn't a fluke.


Hammer Pinwheel Curl:


30lbx21

Upped this 2.5lb's to 30lb dumbbell's, focused on the pull up a bit more than the release down.


Standing Calf Raises (Machine)

95lbx15

I hit 15 on this finally, my legs were blown out for sure.

Lying Leg Curl

95lb x 8
95lb x 11

Got 1 more rep than last time on the 2nd set-these were definitely a struggle.



Squat

Did a 10 rep warm up set of 135lb.

Did a heavy set of 255lbx8

Widowmaker Set:
165lbx20

I matched the same rep of 8 on my heavy, another reason was I wore some softer shoes accidentally last time, and didn't have my regular gym shoes.

The calf workout previously definitely made my legs a bit shaky on the way up.

Post: #211

DC 2A: Friday 4/13

Hammer Strength Chest Press

155lbx17

Went up 5lb's from last record.



Hammer Strength Shoulder Press

155lbx18

Went up 5lb but i need to double check this next time I do this workout.



Skullcrushers

65lbx24

Up 5lb's this time.



Hammer Strength Lat Pulldown

175lbx17

Went up 5lb's and switch this to iso workouts.


Seated Cable Row

130x18

Used wrist bar wraps, went up 5lb's

Post: #212

DC 2B: Monday 4/16

Seated Preacher Curl EZ Bar 25-30 rep range

65lbx25

Same weight, same reps, I have to beat this next time.

Pinwheel Dumbbell Curls 25-30 rep range

27.5lbx30

Same weight, hit the rep max, onto 30's next time.



Seated Calf Raise

65lb x 12

Same weight same reps, have to hit 13 at least, I didn't realized how hard calf workouts are when you pause for 10 seconds at the bottom of the stretch.



Romanian Dead Lift

185lbx8
185lb5x12

Same weight beat the last rep set, and now can up weight to 190.


Leg Press Widowmaker 20

270lbx10

195lbx20 Widowmaker

Same weight hit 10, but upped the widows 5lb's.

Post: #213

DC 3A: Wednesday 4/18

Pec Deck Flys

150lbx17

Up 5lb's but my right pec bugged the fuck out of me, I won't be doing these anymore and switch to cable machine flys.



Tricep Rope

85lbx30

Hit 30 reps, will up to 90lb's next time.



Lateral Shoulder Dumbbell Raises

30lbx22

Upped 2.5lbs, I didn't "flail" as I thought I would but I think after the next weight increase or 2 I might have to switch to another workout.



Lat Pulldown

130lbx23

Upped the weight 5lb's, iso's from now on.



Hammer Strength Seated Rows

210lb x 25

Up 5lb's, kept with iso rows and got the form dialed in.

Post: #214

DC 3B Friday 4/20

Hammer Strength Machine Curls (with movable grip)

25lbx30

I stayed with 25lb plate on the machine, will up it 5lb next time.




Reverse Curl EZ Bar

45lbx26

Kept the same weight, eventually I had to stand up and do these instead of on the curling bench. I got better form from standing also.


Calf Pres 45 Machine

100lbx13

Beat my last pr by 1, but man were my calves dead.



Leg Curl Reverse

85lbx8
85lbx12


Kept the weight the same, will go up next time.


Standing Hack Squat

265lbx10 Heavy Set
205lbx19 Widowmakers

Went up on 5lb's on both BUT REALLY FUCKED MYSELF UP ON WIDOWS MORE BELOW.

Post: #215

Injury Issue:

Let me be honest, the last 2 weeks I've been confined to a chair at work for the majority of the time, I also was working overtime sometimes staying a few hours after work.

My lower back was definitely aggravated where the lumbar meets the sacrum, Id foam roll it, use a lacrosse ball, and stretch bands.

NOTE: I only had issues SITTING, as in sitting in a car, chair, or bench.

Two Saturday's ago I worked all day at the office from 9am to 8pm all of it in a chair.

This definitely didn't help on my last workout on 4/20.

I was finishing widows on the standing hack squat machine I hit rep 19 and my back went out, the machine has a safety drop bar which stopped everything. I walked away.

My dumbass pushed it from the crash bar position back up WITH MY BODY instead of deloading then putting it back in position, then did another rep.


I meatheaded it out like an idiot - i was in a lot of pain.


Here were my symptoms as of last friday:

-I couldn't sleep on my sides because of local but flaring pain.
-I couldn't bend over to touch my toes or put on socks.
-It felt like my back was giving out or a sharp but quick pain would follow.
-Sitting was slightly painful, even leaning forward on the shitter sucked.

I also got sick and got fucking pink eye.


What I've done:

-Took this entire week off from the gym.

I've used tiger balm, icy hot patches, stretched every single day with a foam roller, lacross ball, and bands.

I got a massage also, which honestly was weak as fuck, I need to find a specialty or sports therapist.

My back has gotten progressively better throughout the week, so has my ROM.

I should be better by the end of this weekend, HOWEVER, I'm going to go easy on leg workouts in my routine.

Comrade Stalin send me a stretch vid which I'll be hoping to get better ROM with my back.

I always stretch in my office and on my chair as well throughout the day.


The masseus told me my glutes were definitely "wound up' and that I was tight.

I need to focus on core excercises and look into yoga (I have no excuse since I only workout 3 days a week.

Any advice would be helpful!

Post: #216

Post Test Cycle:

My libido is back to normal, still a horn dog.

Strength is still there, I do feel a slight bit leaner, could be the fasted cardio, and intermittent fasting I'm doing (on my off days).


What sucks is this entire week is gone because I didn't work out.

I'm about 2 weeks out before jumping back on again.

Post: #217

Hey Kaotic have you considered Pilates? Lots of core and glute work during the main class and you can get a private session that targets your trouble spots. The downside is that it's more expensive than you're regular yoga class, but it's a plus if you like yuppie white girls and Cougars.

Also for muscle pains and aches, I use CBD oil or a CBD/THC balm (doesn't get you high). I rub the CBD oil on the problem spot, then rub some BenGay in it afterwards before I go to sleep. It works like a charm for me. Of course it won't heal the underlying issue, but it will help with the pain and discomfort.

Post: #218

I can't speak on any other therapy besides daily stretching and mobility exercises as I've never tried sports medicine/PT or other stuff like hot/cold therapy or yoga. I pulled the muscles in my lumbar spine area twice and both times I recovered simply by consistent regular stretching and mobility, staying on my feet as often as possible, and NOT taking too much time off. Obviously you don't want to aggravate it but the point is to keep blood flowing though the traumatized area as that will help heal it and loosen it up.

Post: #219

Copying this from the Gym Lounge Thread:


Well brahs 2 things I knew were coming when I got my blood panel back.

I got it pulled last week, results came back.


My test levels were at 768 last year around June and after my first Test/Var cycle are now 343 as of last week.

I don't feel to different, don't feel sluggish, strength is still there at the gym, sex drive is relatively the same.


Now the even badder news, Cholesterol. (Thank my IRT genetics )

Total Cholesterol= 283
HDL= 50
LDL= 210
VLDL= 23

Basically the doc was saying I was bordering on needing statins and possibly may be pre diabetic.

I wasn't taking fish oil consistently, 2 meals a day included bacon fried Brussels sprouts, Mon Wed Friday, I had 4 whole eggs and half a tray of ground beef cooked in 2 strips of bacon/grease.

I'm sure that apart of the culprit.

The more I read about side effect of the Anavar I took - it seems it was a high factor in my cholesterol.

VAR ups bad cholesterol and drops good cholesterol so it's probably a factor in tanking my lipids.


As of now I'm gonna cut out bacon, take fish oil and my multivitamin consistently, take Niacin, and Red Yeast Rice as well.

I do cardio 2-3 days a week, now I'll do 3-4 days a week, I moved from incline treadmill to stairmaster.

The last thing I want to be is another victim to big pharmas drug pushers, so I'm hoping to do lower my cholesterol naturally.



As for my body, I took before and after photos from my last cycle.

Long story short, trimmed fat, put some size on, other gents confirm I look better.

Summer's around the corner and it's cutting season, I'll be jumping on another cycle of Test and Tren shortly. (Shoutout to LINUX for guiding me this entire time) (Honrable mentions General Stalin, Captain Chardonnay, and MiscBrah)



As for my lower back issues - I've been stretching religiously with a foam roller, lacrosse ball, I looked up lower back leg stretches that I've added into my routine after working out or running.

It's helped immensely.

I nailed down a physical therapist - even with insurance it's like $50 a session, at this point I'm thinking of it as an investment for healing my problems.

Also found a Chiro through insurance, it's only $15 a session which isn't bad.

I also got my first Thai massage 2 weekends ago and holy fuck was it awesome and brutal.

The way I was committed to the gym when I was on test, is the way, I'm committed to fixing my lower back problems and cholesterol now.



Any advice, supps, or suggestions would he helpful, thanks brahs!

Post: #220

(04-27-2018 03:45 PM)kaotic Wrote:  Here were my symptoms as of last friday:

-I couldn't sleep on my sides because of local but flaring pain.
-I couldn't bend over to touch my toes or put on socks.
-It felt like my back was giving out or a sharp but quick pain would follow.
-Sitting was slightly painful, even leaning forward on the shitter sucked.

I had the exact same issues you had a year into when I first seriously started working out. What fixed me was that I went to a osteopath and she pointed out the imbalances in my body and gave me exercises and stretches to fix those imbalances.

Most people's bodies are not perfectly symmetrical, for example right handed people tend to use the right side of their bodies more to do stuff. When you are doing compound lifts with a unsymmetrical body, your putting weight onto both the weak and strong parts of your bodies but the weak parts aren't developed as well as the strong parts so your body ends up compensating for those weak parts with other parts of your body. This puts stress onto parts of your body which aren't meant to bear that kind of load for example joints or bones instead of muscle.

For me, what lead to those same issues was weak transverses muscles which put more load onto my lower back and a knot in my upper right leg near by groin area which hindered my mobility. I used a lacrosse ball to get rid of it and ab exercises for my TV muscles.

I strongly suggest you visit an osteopath and do enough sessions until they fix you. Someone who has an athletes body in mind. For me it took around 5 sessions before I was good and I noticed a difference really quick.

Post: #221

So I haven't updated this for over 2 months.

I've still been lifting every week, (except for for the first week of June)

I'm still consuming a large amount of protein.

I've cut back on frying brussel sprouts in bacon fat and eating alot of red meat at once.

This stems from high cholesterol issues I have (the anavar and test probably didn't help).

I'm back on Test with the addition of NPP (Deca's cousin) - I'm also pinning myself on my quads (rotating).


As for workouts I did a hard reset on DC Training

Usually for Arms it was 30 reps - now it's 35.

For chest and back - it was 25 reps - now it's 30.

Ive dropped squats and deadlifts.

Calves I modified to a shorter hold at the depth of the stretch.

Widowmakers for quads went from 10 heavy to 15 mid heavy and burnout reps from 20 to 25 with modified weight.

ALL WEIGHT HAS DROPPED SUBSTANTIALLY AND I'M FOCUSED ON FORM.



I've added ALOT of stretching throughout the date.

These stretches have come from my physical therapy, once a week, they give me new workouts to try or help rub my lower back out.

Major stretching includes a resistance band for opening up my hip flexors. Frogman stretches bent over.

Thomas stretch (half the glute off a bed or bend) on your back, which opens up your hips.

Stand leg crossovers to open up gluts and release tension.

A modified supine stretched which always pops my lower back and releases tension.



Instead of squats and deads, I'm doing leg presses, extensions, curls, reverse curls, and working around it.

I've stopped doing the stairmaster for 45mins for cardio because its aggravating my back.

I've switched back to speed walking on a treadmill at a high elevation.


I'll be logging my pins and and weights hopefully more often.

Post: #222

More Updates:

It's been a bit of time since I updated, but things are actually hitting all positives.

Digestive Issues Resolved:

Some of you know I took antibiotics in January and wrecked my gut and digestive system.

I couldn't shit right for months and it just sucked.

About 2 months ago I picked up VSL#3 probiotics on the recommendation from an RVF member.

They helped a bit, but still ran into issues.

Then about 2.5 weeks ago my stomach went back to normal and then I realized something, I had stopped taking isolated whey protein.

I went on an overseas beach trip and drank a shitton, did drugs, and ate like shit.

Needless to say my stomach went back to digestive issues I had previously.

A few days ago my stomach kicked back to normal thank god, so I'm super happy about that.

I actually switched from iso whey, over to a Vega Sport Protein (Plant protein sourced).

Overall it's slightly chalky but decent, doesn't give me issues like the iso whey did.


Food Changes:

I stopped cooking and meal prepping.

I switch over to buying already cooked meal preps, my friends wife runs a meal prep company and she gave me a killer 10 meals for $80 deal.

I'm only spending $10-20 more than I would making it myself.

But I get piece of mind, no mess, multiple choices, and time saved.



Back On Cycle:

I started back on cycle on July 1st.

This is what I'm currently taking:

200mh Test + 100mg NPP (Deca's Cousin)= Twice a week.

So I'm doing:

400mg of Test + 200mg of NPP per week

NOTE: I'll be upping the dosage to the following once I get more vials:

600mg of test + 400mg of NPP per week

I'm rotating quads for injection sites.

I'll be logging weekly pins.


Workouts:

Obviously my strength has gone up and I'm probably going to be dropping the rep scheme from 30 to 20 and 35 to 30 for arms.

Still doing 3 days a week, no cardio at the moment.

However, I've added a Saturday workout:

Bench Press
Lat Pulldowns (inner or wide)
Seated Should Barbell Press
Bi's
Tri's

I feel fucking massive after this.

I'll start logging my workouts again when I have time.


BACK from the dead:

I've hit strides in rehabing my back doing the following.

-Constantly stretching at the gym post workout and at work.
-I purchased a memory foam back support for my chair, felt better, but slightly off the chair
-Then got another chair with adjustable lumbar support, NIGHT AND DAY DIFFERENCE.
-Back isn't as tight anymore nor in pain when sitting for long periods, and not irritated in the car commuting.
-Get deep tissue massages every other weekend.

All of this has contributed to my back feeling better, and the PT has told he's noticed a difference as well.

We've start doing leg press machines on light weight, also semi pistol presses as well.

I'm confident ill be back under the bar squatting and deads.


Overall I'm looking to expand my growth literally and figuratively at the gym.

Post: #223

What's your bodyweight at these days? Looks like you're getting pretty beastly strong. Good work man. This makes me wanna up my dose of testosterone.

Post: #224

Kaotic, I highly recommend getting a personal trainer or joining a functional fitness gym. You need to strengthen certain muscles in your middle back, develop loose and strong glutes, and build an extremely strong core if you want to have longevity with lifting. The exercises you listed aren't going to help with that -- you need ancillary glute workouts (monster walks, weighted glute bridges, etc) and core workouts (planks, leg lifts, etc) to support the massive volume of squats that you're doing. You also probably need a good amount of back flexibility work (PVC pipe stretches, yoga, certain light deadlift variations) to support your chest and shoulder workouts.

A good personal trainer -- or a well-coached lifting class -- will help you develop a holistic training regimen that will protect your body, ensuring that you continue to make gains. On top of that they'll help you perfect your form, which is drastically more important than just trying to up the weight level.

You seem to have built up good strength, but given the volume and heaviness of the weights you're lifting, I'm surprised you've even lasted this long without seriously injuring yourself. Definitely look into getting a coach. Feel free to PM me for more information -- I've completely stopped dictating my own workouts and have switched to coaching and seen significantly better results.

Post: #225

@Fortis, I was close to 170 at the end of my first cycle, drop back to 160's, I've lost some fat but still floating around the same weight but look bigger, so obviously fat burning off muscle being created is making it a wash, I think in month 3 I'll see the weight start to kick up.

The meals I'm getting are large now also, I'm keeping en eye on my weight.


@bastard I'm not sure if you saw, but I'm doing doing squats or dead lifts at all to help recover on my back. I've switched to machines for leg workouts.

When I was doing squats/deads it was once every two weeks on my 3 day split routine.

I'm not lifting as heavy anymore.

LINUX was actually coaching me and gave me a program to follow and guidance AKA DogCrap


I honestly don't want to throw away more money at a bro gym trainer where they're going to rip me off. Functional fitness gyms aka crossfits are the only ones really around and are expensive as fuck. I'm in a money saving mode right now since I'm trying to buy property.

Plus my time is extremely limited I'm in and out of the gym and I can't rely on someone else's schedule either.

There's one guy I do trust whose local and trains people in his garage, he does it for a decent price, and he's won body building contest.


If you've got some videos or workouts I should be doing, please send em my way brother, I'm always down for things that will help condition and rehabilitate my back.

Thanks brother!