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Creation of an Explosive Mofo - My Training Journal :)
- Thread starter coolcolj
- Start date
coolcolj
New member
Most of the soreness is gone now, except in my spinal erectors, still some light to moderate soreness. Not feeling light, springy and fresh just yet.
Starting a new microcycle tommorrow
My posture does look better as a result of me pulling my shoulders back and locking it tight in the deadlifts on the later sets
Starting a new microcycle tommorrow
My posture does look better as a result of me pulling my shoulders back and locking it tight in the deadlifts on the later sets
coolcolj
New member
Tuesday 1st January - Cycle 2 Get Lean+Maintain Strength - Week 28 - Day 1 - Upper 1 - Microcycle 7 - workout 1
Crappy workout. Was kinda hard, as eccentric work usually is, but at the end I felt like I hardly did anything energy wise, but definitely a lot of muscle damage today!
Heaviest bodyweight ever in my life! Man it seems I can't seem to get stronger and increase power without gaining too much muscle mass! I hate it, the way I feel, too bulky and right now my ROM is pretty bad. I can't even scratch the middle of my back or soap it without using a wall for leverage. I am so tempted to starve myself and strip a lot of fat and muscle to get back down to 180lbs or so, but I know I will lose a lot of strength...sigh...
Bodyweight at gym - 225lbs
Workout time - 1.5 hours
Workout rating - 6/10
Rotating Sets between each exercise
Resting 30secs to 1min on warmup sets and then 2-3 mins between each exercise, alternating betwen one bench and back set
14 inch Grip bench - no arch or leg drive
Warmups - Bar x 10, Bunch of reps with slow eccentrics 95, 135, 185, 225x4, 255x1, 275x1
Eccentric only, lowered as slow as possible
Rotation 1) 325lbs x 4 secs
96% of (15%BW+Session max) dropoff (off 315lbs)
Rotation 2) 295lbs x 4 secs
Rotation 3) 295lbs x 2.66 secs
I did too much stuff during the warmups, definitely fatigued me a lot, I barely got 275 up during the warmups! 325lbs came of the rack easy enough, but once I got near 3/4 of the way down, I felt like I was just a passenger. Although I still lowered it under control fairly slowly in 4 secs, but was expecting to go for 8secs. So I based the dropoff of 315lbs, but even then I only got 4 secs with 295lbs. I should have stopped there as 295lb off the rack felt pretty heavy, and that meant I had done over 10% fatigue dropoff from 325lbs with the 3rd set!
Chins - 12inch grip
warmups - pulldown version - 30kg x12, 40kg x 6, 55kg x 4, Eccentric chins - BW x 2, +10lbs x 1, +50lbs x 1
Eccentric only, lowered as slow as possible
Rotation 1) BW (225lbs) + 75lbs x 12 secs
Rotation 2) BW + 75lbs x 9 secs
Rotation 3) BW + 75lbs x 5 secs
75lbs was too light, underestimated my strength, so I stayed at the same weight. Will go up to 90lbs next session
Seated Pulley Rows - close V Grip
warmups - one armed eccentrics each side - 30kg x2, 40x2, 55x1
Pulled up with 2 arms, Eccentric only with one arm, lowered as slow as possible. Left first
Rotation 1) 60kg x 10 secs
Rotation 2) 60kg x 6 secs
A touch too light
Cuff Stuff and ISO Stretches - EQI
rotating between both - 2mins
30 degree, face down bent over laterals
warmup - 3kg x8, 5kg x5
controlled
1) 15lbs x 15
2) 15lbs x 12
Dumbell Elbow supported Cuban Rotations
warmups 4kg x8, 15lbs x5, 25x3
no rest between each side
1) 35lbs x 4 sec eccentric
2) 20lbs x 5 -> paused at 90 degrees on the way and down
3) 15lbs x 15
-----
Narrow grip Chin pulldown Lat Stretched ISO hold
50kg x 45 secs
Pushup/Dip Stretched ISO hold - Knees on floor
BW x 45 secs
Shoulder Dislocates pec stretch with wooden staff
Crappy workout. Was kinda hard, as eccentric work usually is, but at the end I felt like I hardly did anything energy wise, but definitely a lot of muscle damage today!
Heaviest bodyweight ever in my life! Man it seems I can't seem to get stronger and increase power without gaining too much muscle mass! I hate it, the way I feel, too bulky and right now my ROM is pretty bad. I can't even scratch the middle of my back or soap it without using a wall for leverage. I am so tempted to starve myself and strip a lot of fat and muscle to get back down to 180lbs or so, but I know I will lose a lot of strength...sigh...
Bodyweight at gym - 225lbs
Workout time - 1.5 hours
Workout rating - 6/10
Rotating Sets between each exercise
Resting 30secs to 1min on warmup sets and then 2-3 mins between each exercise, alternating betwen one bench and back set
14 inch Grip bench - no arch or leg drive
Warmups - Bar x 10, Bunch of reps with slow eccentrics 95, 135, 185, 225x4, 255x1, 275x1
Eccentric only, lowered as slow as possible
Rotation 1) 325lbs x 4 secs
96% of (15%BW+Session max) dropoff (off 315lbs)
Rotation 2) 295lbs x 4 secs
Rotation 3) 295lbs x 2.66 secs
I did too much stuff during the warmups, definitely fatigued me a lot, I barely got 275 up during the warmups! 325lbs came of the rack easy enough, but once I got near 3/4 of the way down, I felt like I was just a passenger. Although I still lowered it under control fairly slowly in 4 secs, but was expecting to go for 8secs. So I based the dropoff of 315lbs, but even then I only got 4 secs with 295lbs. I should have stopped there as 295lb off the rack felt pretty heavy, and that meant I had done over 10% fatigue dropoff from 325lbs with the 3rd set!
Chins - 12inch grip
warmups - pulldown version - 30kg x12, 40kg x 6, 55kg x 4, Eccentric chins - BW x 2, +10lbs x 1, +50lbs x 1
Eccentric only, lowered as slow as possible
Rotation 1) BW (225lbs) + 75lbs x 12 secs
Rotation 2) BW + 75lbs x 9 secs
Rotation 3) BW + 75lbs x 5 secs
75lbs was too light, underestimated my strength, so I stayed at the same weight. Will go up to 90lbs next session
Seated Pulley Rows - close V Grip
warmups - one armed eccentrics each side - 30kg x2, 40x2, 55x1
Pulled up with 2 arms, Eccentric only with one arm, lowered as slow as possible. Left first
Rotation 1) 60kg x 10 secs
Rotation 2) 60kg x 6 secs
A touch too light
Cuff Stuff and ISO Stretches - EQI
rotating between both - 2mins
30 degree, face down bent over laterals
warmup - 3kg x8, 5kg x5
controlled
1) 15lbs x 15
2) 15lbs x 12
Dumbell Elbow supported Cuban Rotations
warmups 4kg x8, 15lbs x5, 25x3
no rest between each side
1) 35lbs x 4 sec eccentric
2) 20lbs x 5 -> paused at 90 degrees on the way and down
3) 15lbs x 15
-----
Narrow grip Chin pulldown Lat Stretched ISO hold
50kg x 45 secs
Pushup/Dip Stretched ISO hold - Knees on floor
BW x 45 secs
Shoulder Dislocates pec stretch with wooden staff
coolcolj
New member
Right click on clip and save to avoid errors
eccentric benches from today
http://www.members.optushome.com.au...J_14inchGripBench_Eccentric_325+295_Feb05.mpg
eccentric benches from today
http://www.members.optushome.com.au...J_14inchGripBench_Eccentric_325+295_Feb05.mpg
coolcolj
New member
Light upper body soreness, will probbaly get worse as the day goes on.
Did some isometric work for the front part of the neck at home after my workout - just for muscle balance and posture reasons.
20min walk late at night yesterday, last quarter up a moderate incline - will start to up the frequency of walks for fat, fitness and health reasons
Raining quite a bit now - hope it dries up for tommorrow's sprint session or else I'm, gonna be shafted!
Did some isometric work for the front part of the neck at home after my workout - just for muscle balance and posture reasons.
20min walk late at night yesterday, last quarter up a moderate incline - will start to up the frequency of walks for fat, fitness and health reasons
Raining quite a bit now - hope it dries up for tommorrow's sprint session or else I'm, gonna be shafted!
super_rice
New member
hey, CCJ, those safeties look like they are a little too low for you (though any higher would not allow you your full ROM). a lot like my rack, the safeties are about 1" too low, and 1" too high.
anyway, that looked like it hurt (the bottom of the eccentric bench)
anyway, that looked like it hurt (the bottom of the eccentric bench)
coolcolj
New member
I'm just too fat
No, it didn't hurt, I lust let the air out at the bottom and the bar hits the pins, but it depends on which bench I use. Some benches seem a bit lower
-----------------------------------------------
Someone asked what my fat % is - so I replied
well compared to a normal person I'm not fat I guess, well not obese. But compared to myself years back and speed/power athletes in general I am pretty fat.
I have a 39inch waist at around 220lbs, I had a waist as small as 29 inches many years ago at 155lbs, and 32inches at 192lbs 2 years ago!
Ok some of it is due to spinal erector and ab growth. But ideally my waist should be at no more than 32 inches. That means I have some 20lbs of excess blubber to shed.
I don't tend to look as fat as I actually am, due to my small bone structure, frame and even fat distribution. I hide my bodyfat well
But I'm around 20% bodyfat at a guess. So the potential for huge gains in jumping and sprinting is there for the taking
20lbs is a lot of weight, hell just holding 5lbs drops my jump 2 inches as is! I'd like to think I'd gain another 8 inches on my jump if I lost 20lbs
If i could get down to 180lbs and maintain my current power levels, holy crap 40+ inch VJ is there for the taking and maybe even a mid 10sec 100m sprint time!!!! Would be nice....
right now I eat mostly meat and veges, except at breakfast, after training. But my metabolism is really slow, I need to up my metabolic rate without killing myself, so walking will help.
No, it didn't hurt, I lust let the air out at the bottom and the bar hits the pins, but it depends on which bench I use. Some benches seem a bit lower
-----------------------------------------------
Someone asked what my fat % is - so I replied
well compared to a normal person I'm not fat I guess, well not obese. But compared to myself years back and speed/power athletes in general I am pretty fat.
I have a 39inch waist at around 220lbs, I had a waist as small as 29 inches many years ago at 155lbs, and 32inches at 192lbs 2 years ago!
Ok some of it is due to spinal erector and ab growth. But ideally my waist should be at no more than 32 inches. That means I have some 20lbs of excess blubber to shed.
I don't tend to look as fat as I actually am, due to my small bone structure, frame and even fat distribution. I hide my bodyfat well
But I'm around 20% bodyfat at a guess. So the potential for huge gains in jumping and sprinting is there for the taking
20lbs is a lot of weight, hell just holding 5lbs drops my jump 2 inches as is! I'd like to think I'd gain another 8 inches on my jump if I lost 20lbs
If i could get down to 180lbs and maintain my current power levels, holy crap 40+ inch VJ is there for the taking and maybe even a mid 10sec 100m sprint time!!!! Would be nice....
right now I eat mostly meat and veges, except at breakfast, after training. But my metabolism is really slow, I need to up my metabolic rate without killing myself, so walking will help.
super_rice
New member
we can no doubt expect to see that 40" VJ and the corresponding dunk video complexed with whatchamacallits soon!
Theres probably a few people out there who would like your problem of packing on muscle 
Im on the other end of the metabolism spectrum, so dont really have anything to offer. What works for me will be very different for you. Whats your total kcal count for an average day? just curious...
Im on the other end of the metabolism spectrum, so dont really have anything to offer. What works for me will be very different for you. Whats your total kcal count for an average day? just curious...
coolcolj
New member
well if they started to do more explosive/power work then that might have the same problem
I don't know, never count it....
excerpt from an article by Brad Nutall
The Performance Loop
Hypertrophy-> Strength-> Power-> Hypertrophy
If you remember nothing else remember this: Strength roots Power roots Hypertrophy. It's a continuous loop so you can pick up wherever you need; Power roots Hypertrophy roots Strength, or Hypertrophy roots Strength roots Power. If your strength and hypertrophy work aren't getting you bigger then switch over to a power template until you can no longer push up your power numbers. Not only will this help increase your muscle mass, but it will allow you to catapult your muscle mass gains once you start using DUR methodics again. If you are having trouble getting faster or more powerful then get away from the RATE and MAG work for a while and focus on DUR work. The muscle hypertrophy you gain will help you achieve new speed and power development when returning back to a power template. Lastly, if your strength advancements have dried out and you've been spending considerable time using absolute-strength methodics then go back to your roots and build up your speed-strength and strength-speed abilities so you can receive the greatest training effect from your subsequent or concurrent strength-endurance work. This will result in tremendous potential to develop absolute-strength (DFM = MAG + DUR), which a few weeks of going back to a strength template will allow you to unleash!
Closing Remarks
Ever wonder why some athletes grow faster, gain strength quicker, or increase their speed and power better than other athletes on the same program? Now that you've read this article you should have a decent idea of why this happens, but let's take a few final examples to make sure. I've noticed that the majority of bodybuilders who think they've peaked their development have neglected MAG and RATE work for too long. A RATE and MAG training block will give them more performance potential. A sprinter or Olympic lifter, on the other hand, can virtually train two weeks like Ronnie Coleman and turn into one big stretch mark. Want another insider? Athletes hitting a ceiling with their speed and power development need to dump the MAG and RATE work and start re-building the foundation to their goals: muscle size and strength. Still not getting it? Maybe this one will help: Some powerlifters need to use more RATE and MAG work for a while, switch over to a hypertrophy template and then go back to a strength template if they want to slingshot their performance.
It doesn't matter what your training objective is, the same performance cycle is relevant. You still have to get more powerful to get bigger to get stronger to get more powerful so that you can get bigger- 'round and 'round you go. Have fun!
I don't know, never count it....
excerpt from an article by Brad Nutall
The Performance Loop
Hypertrophy-> Strength-> Power-> Hypertrophy
If you remember nothing else remember this: Strength roots Power roots Hypertrophy. It's a continuous loop so you can pick up wherever you need; Power roots Hypertrophy roots Strength, or Hypertrophy roots Strength roots Power. If your strength and hypertrophy work aren't getting you bigger then switch over to a power template until you can no longer push up your power numbers. Not only will this help increase your muscle mass, but it will allow you to catapult your muscle mass gains once you start using DUR methodics again. If you are having trouble getting faster or more powerful then get away from the RATE and MAG work for a while and focus on DUR work. The muscle hypertrophy you gain will help you achieve new speed and power development when returning back to a power template. Lastly, if your strength advancements have dried out and you've been spending considerable time using absolute-strength methodics then go back to your roots and build up your speed-strength and strength-speed abilities so you can receive the greatest training effect from your subsequent or concurrent strength-endurance work. This will result in tremendous potential to develop absolute-strength (DFM = MAG + DUR), which a few weeks of going back to a strength template will allow you to unleash!
Closing Remarks
Ever wonder why some athletes grow faster, gain strength quicker, or increase their speed and power better than other athletes on the same program? Now that you've read this article you should have a decent idea of why this happens, but let's take a few final examples to make sure. I've noticed that the majority of bodybuilders who think they've peaked their development have neglected MAG and RATE work for too long. A RATE and MAG training block will give them more performance potential. A sprinter or Olympic lifter, on the other hand, can virtually train two weeks like Ronnie Coleman and turn into one big stretch mark. Want another insider? Athletes hitting a ceiling with their speed and power development need to dump the MAG and RATE work and start re-building the foundation to their goals: muscle size and strength. Still not getting it? Maybe this one will help: Some powerlifters need to use more RATE and MAG work for a while, switch over to a hypertrophy template and then go back to a strength template if they want to slingshot their performance.
It doesn't matter what your training objective is, the same performance cycle is relevant. You still have to get more powerful to get bigger to get stronger to get more powerful so that you can get bigger- 'round and 'round you go. Have fun!
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