Pikey's progress

Tall

Is that a gain of 5kg in 10 days mate? Or have I read it wrong? Or is it just water retention?

Pikey

Hi THS,
Only just realized yes it’s a gain of 5K in about 14 days , no wonder I feel lousy , there's bound to be some water retention but I've still got a reasonable amount of vascularity so not just fluid – well not just under the skin . My coach recommended eating pre contest clean all week and then gorging on reasonably clean food at the weekend. It’s worked up to now though I am really aware of the weight, I'm feeling it doing cardio and just generally moving around.
I’m totally focused as to improve my placings I need to put a serious amount of good quality muscle on before next May
Just back from my Quad workout that was fun in a perverse kind of way
All reps full movement
Leg press 150Kg 50 reps, 200Kg 40 reps, 250kg 35 reps, 300Kg 30 reps, 350kg 20 reps
4 triple drop sets on leg extensions to failure with last set finished off with 200K for 40 reps on leg press again.
Still got that walking like a baby with a full nappy gait and my quads are singing away to me.

Tall

Sorry for being dense mate, but whats a triple drop set...?

Pikey

A triple drop set is one set but with 3 weights, for instance select a weight rep out till positive failure, reduce the weight by 15-20% and continue repping till positive failure, reduce the weight by another 15-20% of the original weight and rep till failure again, you can include some forced reps and negatives on this phase. A great way of upping the intensity.

H is out running and I've just got back from hams and calves - felt dog rough to start with but pushed through.

H and a couple of my mates from the gym talked me into going out around town last night, as H says I've been subdued recently, which I am but only because of the bulking cycle. I didn't want to as it would mean I'd miss a workout, at least one meal and no doubt get a goodly amount of Jack Daniels down my neck which aint going to help build muscle. I don't drink at all once I'm pre contest. Anyway they convinced me I was being a sado and then about half ten the ache starts building in my quads from Thursday's session- by the end of the night it was very intense they're sore to touch and painful to walk – today I’m going to try and get as much good stuff in me as I can so I don't leach protein to recover from muscles elsewhere - not easiest as I've spent half the night staring at the ceiling not able to sleep and I've a bloody hangover from last night.

I know its obsessive and don't go getting the idea I'm a recluse, I firmly believe if your going to be the best you can be you have to be focused no point being half arsed about anything. So I really would have sooner had a good workout and a couple of feeds, I'm not going to improve going out on the piss.

Bodyweight is still at 91K but I should think myself lucky I've not lost any after last night.

Pikey

3 weeks in and I’m fed up of eating, bodyweight is still reading 91K and BF 8%, on the scales. If my body fat is 8% I’ll show my arse on the town hall steps, my abs are blurred which is probably mainly fluid but I don’t believe the scales BF reading.

Work got in the way of training last night, I’d caught the train down to London and on the way back the service terminated at Derby due to signal failure which was a pain as my car was 30 miles north at Chesterfield. So I’ll pick shoulders up tomorrow night instead of having a rest day

Back and biceps tonight and for a change I dropped some dead lifts in to the routine, as the gym I mostly train at is on the first floor I lowered the weights slowly to about an inch off the floor and then started the next rep, I only really did one working set with 180K which is woeful for an ex power lifter ( I used to rep out with that at 10 stone and 17 years old) but my back can feel it big time, must be lowering the weights and pausing just off the floor or it could be I haven’t dead lifted for over a year. I think I’m going to drop some heavy dead lift sets in once a month but to do that I’ll have to train at another gym for that session, as I don’t think I could lower much more weight that slowly.

Off to have 250gram of Turkey and 50gram basmati rice with some Broccoli.

Pikey

Not a good week, been way to busy at work, every day I’ve left with more to do than when I went in. I’ve strained my calf and seem to have glands up in my groin the size of melons, well perhaps big marbles so I’m pretty dischuffed.
My calf is my own stupid fault as it usually is, I thought I’d work a bad day out of me and just went way heavy on leg press after front squats and decided I’d keep doing sets of 20 until I couldn’t move the weight, several sets in and my quads where screaming I was enjoying the challenge but my calf gave up the ghost. Nothing much just annoying.
I think I’m probably a little over trained and my immune system is a bit run down, I seem constantly tired and still no real appetite. Sorry for moaning on this ain’t exactly upbeat tonight.
Bodyweight is 90K on the scales and BF still the same. Hopefully a good night sleep and a rest day will put me back on track.

Tall

Allo mate.

You have been pushing it very hard by the sounds of it - remember you can't go flat out all the time. Get some R&R, some vits, plenty of water and sleep and you'll be fiting fit in no time.

Sounds like your from the same neck of the woods as me - north notts/derbyshire/chesterfield area?

Pikey

Hiya mate,

You've got me smack on there, I've never known when to take a step back. For the last four weeks I have stepped up the intensity every week and I wasn't slacking to start with.

I’ve just dropped H off at Alestree, she’s running to Bakewell which is about 21 miles which is why I’m sat updating this. It’s my rest day today I got 10 hours sleep last night, the calf has eased a lot and the glands in my groin have too, I’ll have a lazy day today, read my book a while and chill out I'll take the dogs out later so I don’t feel a total lard arse.

I take Cantamega 2K 2gram of vit C some digestive enzymes and milk thistle every day, rushing round I had let lapse for a few days so that won’t have helped. I’ve also been a bit of a bloke and slacking on my veg H has been giving me serious grief about it as I’m not getting all the nutrients I need so I will put that right too. I’ve been hammering it and not feeding myself 100% so something’s bound to give. The signals have been there with the lack of appetite and feeling subdued but I’ve ignored them and pushed harder I tend to think of myself as a machine which is good to push the training but is a dodgy mind set for listening to your body’s signals. One day perhaps I’ll learn.

I’ve also been to the butchers and in addition to the usual eggs, chicken and turkey, I got some water buffalo steak which has twice the protein per pound of beef, eight times the creatine and as much iron while being nearly as lean as chicken, so I’m hoping that will give me some good nutrients. Mind you its expensive and I tend to think lean beef steak would be just as good off season but I fancied treating myself.

Sounds like we live pretty close to each other I’m about 10 miles from Chesterfield in NE Derbyshire.

Tall

Water Buffalo Steak? Sounds nice. Let me know how you get on with it.

I'm in North Notts on the good (right) side of the M1

I always worry that taking time out from the gym will result in poor lifting, but 90% of the time I find that a well timed break actually improves my performance.

You've got me hungry for steak now! I might get some for part of my post work out meal

Pikey

LMAO that’s me the dark side, where the sheep are nervous...

Buffalo steak; probably great if you’re dieting and want some red meat without the fat but I found its got a bit of an after taste on the George Foreman a bit like kidneys that haven’t been washed properly. At £19 per kilo I don’t think I’ll be bothering with it again. I won’t be adding it to my normal diet.