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[DUFFMCWALIN]

Meets done. I'm in the mountains so i have spotty reception. I ended up totally 1400 lb in the three lifts. I got greedy and attempted 550 on my last squat when I should have gone for 525-535. I failed my last bench attempt at 345 which I have hit in the past. My lower back and shoulders were acting up on that lift though. I did end up pulling 575lbs however. Deads felt amazing all day long.

The meet was great everyone was super friendly and helpful. I've learned alot from this first one and can't wait for the next one.

I have recordings of every lift so maybe tomorrow or next week I'll combine them all and put them up on YouTube. I ended in first in the 275lb open division (only contestant heh).

Thanks for all of the support everyone, just like the meet I love how everyone is super positive here.

 

[ExplodingKetchup]

Yo guys, I've been doing some grip training - holding 45lbs in each hand for 40 seconds, 4 sets. That's been going well, so I think I should advance - should I increase the weight in each hand, the time holding the weight for each set, or increase the number of sets?

 

[KillerBEA]

Yo guys, I've been doing some grip training - holding 45lbs in each hand for 40 seconds, 4 sets. That's been going well, so I think I should advance - should I increase the weight in each hand, the time holding the weight for each set, or increase the number of sets?

Up the weight imo

 

[Psychotext]

Meets done. I'm in the mountains so i have spotty reception. I ended up totally 1400 lb in the three lifts.

Awesome, nicely done.

 

[mdsfx]

Welp here goes nothing. Not sure about a PR today though. My brother is in the hospital with a clot in his leg and lung. My stress level and blood pressure have been up. I hate to say it, but i might just take it easy on this one depending on how I feel.

Edit: New PR of 7:46/mi

 

[The Lamp]

I'm a skinny guy and I've been bulking and weight lifting for 4 months. I'm about 18 lbs heavier now, 14 lbs of that being muscle (using ultrasound to measure).

Anyway, I've got the bulking routine down. I started out with 3500 calories per day, but then my weight gain stopped as my metabolism sped up and I had to increase to 4000.

When I reach my target weight and muscle mass, how do I then transition my diet to trimming fat without losing too much muscle? Should my exercises change? How can I figure out how many calories to decrease?

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

I'm a skinny guy and I've been bulking and weight lifting for 4 months. I'm about 18 lbs heavier now, 14 lbs of that being muscle (using ultrasound to measure).

Anyway, I've got the bulking routine down. I started out with 3500 calories per day, but then my weight gain stopped as my metabolism sped up and I had to increase to 4000.

When I reach my target weight and muscle mass, how do I then transition my diet to trimming fat without losing too much muscle? Should my exercises change? How can I figure out how many calories to decrease?

Slowly reduce them until you level off.

 

[The Lamp]

Slowly reduce them until you level off.

Do I need to change the percentage of macros suddenly? More fat, less carbs? Right now I'm at 55% carbs, 25% protein, 20% fat and it's been great for me for bulking.

How can I ensure I lose more fat than muscle?

 

[Faith]

I got banned for a long time, so I wasn't able to post anything. Yesterday I had my 2nd meet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mm25mKoaLPk

I'm a bit disappointed. I expected to hit all my 3rd attempts and achieve 5% more in every lift, but it wasn't my best day. Nevertheless it was a lot of fun

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

I got banned for a long time, so I wasn't able to post anything. Yesterday I had my 2nd meet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mm25mKoaLPk

I'm a bit disappointed. I expected to hit all my 3rd attempts and achieve 5% more in every lift, but it wasn't my best day. Nevertheless it was a lot of fun

Nice. Next time slow your deadlift down, you rushed it and weren't in position before you pulled. 280kg/617lbs is a damn good attempt.

 

[Jacksinthe]

Welp here goes nothing. Not sure about a PR today though. My brother is in the hospital with a clot in his leg and lung. My stress level and blood pressure have been up. I hate to say it, but i might just take it easy on this one depending on how I feel.

Edit: New PR of 7:46/mi

Excellent work and holy shit about your bro.

I hope he will be good. Clots are no joke

 

[Psychotext]

Welp here goes nothing. Not sure about a PR today though. My brother is in the hospital with a clot in his leg and lung. My stress level and blood pressure have been up. I hate to say it, but i might just take it easy on this one depending on how I feel.

Edit: New PR of 7:46/mi

Good job buddy. Thoughts are with you and yours, I know personally how scary clots can be.

 

[mdsfx]

Excellent work and holy shit about your bro.

I hope he will be good. Clots are no joke

Good job buddy. Thoughts are with you and yours, I know personally how scary clots can be.

Thanks guys.

Yeah he's not in a good place right now. Large clots in his leg and lung. We're also seeing serious withdrawal symptoms from using who knows what. He's been on a downward trend for years. It would be a shitty way to lose a brother. Pretty upsetting, but it also pisses me off.

 

[BumRush]

Thanks guys.

Yeah he's not in a good place right now. Large clots in his leg and lung. We're also seeing serious withdrawal symptoms from using who knows what. He's been on a downward trend for years. It would be a shitty way to lose a brother. Pretty upsetting, but it also pisses me off.

Sorry to hear that Mikey. My prayers are with you guys...

 

[Jacksinthe]

Thanks guys.

Yeah he's not in a good place right now. Large clots in his leg and lung. We're also seeing serious withdrawal symptoms from using who knows what. He's been on a downward trend for years. It would be a shitty way to lose a brother. Pretty upsetting, but it also pisses me off.

I have no words that will help but I'll be keeping you and your family in my thoughts.

 

[mdsfx]

Thanks guys. Sorry to derail. Back to fitness!

 

[Anton Sugar]

Any rowers in FitGAF? Looking for something to get my conditioning up but I hate running and most other aerobic activities. Rowing appeals to me because it seems like something that's easy to HIIT if I wanted, plus I get a decent back workout in. Any powerlifters/bodybuilders here who have a routine recommendation or just general tips?

 

[BumRush]

Brolic, what's the next piece of fitness equipment you buy?

 

[KillerBEA]

Thanks guys.

Yeah he's not in a good place right now. Large clots in his leg and lung. We're also seeing serious withdrawal symptoms from using who knows what. He's been on a downward trend for years. It would be a shitty way to lose a brother. Pretty upsetting, but it also pisses me off.

Shit dude, hope everything turns out.

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

Brolic, what's the next piece of fitness equipment you buy?

Was thinking of a stone of steel. Not sure though. At this point I'm pretty set until I get a building.

 

[BumRush]

Was thinking of a stone of steel. Not sure though. At this point I'm pretty set until I get a building.

Those look awesome though. You use your existing plates?

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

Those look awesome though. You use your existing plates?

Yep, issue is I don't really need it. Sandbags work the same thing.

 

[Randolph Freelander]

Getting enough protein continues to be the bane of my existence. But I found this in the store the other day. I think I'm in love.

They have Greek varieties that have more protein overall, 64g, but it's 32 ounces. More servings, also more sugar. It's more economical, though. But these pictured above are excellent.

 

[Syphon Filter]

anyone try the quest protein shake? if so how is it?

 

[Ixian]

anyone try the quest protein shake? if so how is it?

Which flavor? Some of their flavors I like, others I like other brands for. Overall I always keep some around though, along with a few different flavors of Optimum Nutrition. Right now Quest is testing a Cinnamon Crunch protein powder which is basically crack; I use it for pumpkin protein pancakes and in my shakes all of the time since it's come out.

One thing I like about the Quest powders is they're a mix of proteins (whey, casein, and milk). They also have some xanthan gum in them already, so shakes come out at a nice thickness level.

 

[Syphon Filter]

Which flavor? Some of their flavors I like, others I like other brands for. Overall I always keep some around though, along with a few different flavors of Optimum Nutrition. Right now Quest is testing a Cinnamon Crunch protein powder which is basically crack; I use it for pumpkin protein pancakes and in my shakes all of the time since it's come out.

One thing I like about the Quest powders is they're a mix of proteins (whey, casein, and milk). They also have some xanthan gum in them already, so shakes come out at a nice thickness level.

Vanilla and Chocolate.

 

[Ixian]

Vanilla and Chocolate.

Those are both okay, but I like the Optimum Nutrition vanilla and chocolate flavors better (plus ON is generally cheaper). My go to Quest flavors are Salted Caramel, Cookies and Creme, Banana Creme, Peanut Butter, and the new Cinnamon Crunch flavor.

 

[ILoveBish]

Last big event till thanksgiving is done, had a amazing Halloween party and today we finished the last of the leftovers. Back to lazy keto this week, then stricter keto till I eventually transition back into PSMF.

Lifting will start getting much more consistent from here on out. At least I really hope so. I have 2 more days to finish this 3/5/1 cycle and going to up the weights again.

Really excited to get back into the swing of things. Right now I'm thinking 4 days of 5/3/1 and a body building/cardio day for the 5th day with the rower and the GHD machine. Weekends are usually reserved for working on the house, so need to be consistent during the week.

 

[Anticol]

Hey guys I need advice, I used to go to the gym regularly three years ago, I went for four years straight three times a week I had my routine and all my goals pretty clear but then I moved countries and stopped completely I havent been in a gym for three years I pretty much lost all my progress and now I'm back to skinny fat.

Some data, 5'9" used to be 79 kilos and around 11% body fat. Now I am 67 kilos and I am not sure how much body fat stbhs. According to you should I start all the way back eith a beginners routine or what would be the best?

 

[ironmang]

Anybody have suggestions for getting more depth on my squats? Started a generic PPL routine about a month ago and although I know I've got some pretty bad muscle imbalances, squats are really the only exercise I just can't do properly even with minimal weight. I'm pretty much struggling to get parallel right now. I can go below parallel if I hold onto something for balance and force my butt down but if I were to do that with the bar I'd fall backwards for sure. Should I just stop doing back squats until I can get better depth? Should I expect months at least until I'd be ready?

For reference, my waist and below looks like the "low bar" side of this picture except I'm attempting high bar.

 

[KillerBEA]

Anybody have suggestions for getting more depth on my squats? Started a generic PPL routine about a month ago and although I know I've got some pretty bad muscle imbalances, squats are really the only exercise I just can't do properly even with minimal weight. I'm pretty much struggling to get parallel right now. I can go below parallel if I hold onto something for balance and force my butt down but if I were to do that with the bar I'd fall backwards for sure. Should I just stop doing back squats until I can get better depth? Should I expect months at least until I'd be ready?

For reference, my waist and below looks like the "low bar" side of this picture except I'm attempting high bar.

Work on ankle mobility would be my first suggestion Omar Isuf has video on this. You can likely be able to Squat to depth pretty quickly, but you will need to maintain the mobility routine for a while.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxwCAwlT3ug

Hey guys I need advice, I used to go to the gym regularly three years ago, I went for four years straight three times a week I had my routine and all my goals pretty clear but then I moved countries and stopped completely I havent been in a gym for three years I pretty much lost all my progress and now I'm back to skinny fat.

Some data, 5'9" used to be 79 kilos and around 11% body fat. Now I am 67 kilos and I am not sure how much body fat stbhs. According to you should I start all the way back eith a beginners routine or what would be the best?

Yeah do a beginner routine to re grease the groove. Something like Starting Strength or stronglifts with some added dumbbell work for Bench and OHP in the 8-12 rep range for 3-5 sets.

 

[Jacksinthe]

Anybody have suggestions for getting more depth on my squats? Started a generic PPL routine about a month ago and although I know I've got some pretty bad muscle imbalances, squats are really the only exercise I just can't do properly even with minimal weight. I'm pretty much struggling to get parallel right now. I can go below parallel if I hold onto something for balance and force my butt down but if I were to do that with the bar I'd fall backwards for sure. Should I just stop doing back squats until I can get better depth? Should I expect months at least until I'd be ready?

For reference, my waist and below looks like the "low bar" side of this picture except I'm attempting high bar.

The only advice I ever give for depth: STRETCH

Watching TV? Forget the couch, squat and sit there. Keep your heels down and try to touch your ass to your ankles. Pretend your hams and calves are a panini press. Commercial break? Walk across the living room back and forth like that, hands on top of your head.

Lunch break? Kick a leg up and stretch. Hell, do it anytime. Drop down into a squat position and get used to the feel of going low.

Need to tie your shoes? No better way than to get down with a squat!

I'm always doing this at work. I do a lot of stuff like this from greasing the groove on deads with rebar to kicking a leg up to one-handed hangs on ladders for grip strength.

You'll always find a couple minutes throughout the day to toss a leg up and stretch. I take that from Bruce Lee who was known to just drop into stretching randomly at any given time to stay limber. Just my .02

 

[Dusk Soldier]

Anybody have suggestions for getting more depth on my squats? Started a generic PPL routine about a month ago and although I know I've got some pretty bad muscle imbalances, squats are really the only exercise I just can't do properly even with minimal weight. I'm pretty much struggling to get parallel right now. I can go below parallel if I hold onto something for balance and force my butt down but if I were to do that with the bar I'd fall backwards for sure. Should I just stop doing back squats until I can get better depth? Should I expect months at least until I'd be ready?

For reference, my waist and below looks like the "low bar" side of this picture except I'm attempting high bar.

I think you should keep in mind that balance of the bar with no weight added vs around 135lbs is different.

So even if you're struggling to get the right depth with just the empty bar, it doesn't necessarily mean you won't be able to when you up the weight.

If your strong enough to squat 135lbs comfortably, I would suggest practicing form with that weight rather than an empty bar. Even maybe 95 lbs if 135 lbs is too much.

2nd thing I suggest playing around with is your foot placement. Your feet are probably close together (like around shoulder width) when squatting. Try squatting with a wider stance, something like 1.5x shoulder width should feel significantly more comfortable.

Final thing you can try is squatting with small weight plates ( like 5 or 10 lb plates) underneath your heels. You should get a much better range of motion with your heels elevated.

 

[ironmang]

Thanks for responses. Checking out that youtube video now and will try to fit more stretches in. Right now even if I just squat down I get sore pretty quick so good depth probably won't come easily.

I think you should keep in mind that balance of the bar with no weight added vs around 135lbs is different.

So even if you're struggling to get the right depth with just the empty bar, it doesn't necessarily mean you won't be able to when you up the weight.

If your strong enough to squat 135lbs comfortably, I would suggest practicing form with that weight rather than an empty bar. Even maybe 95 lbs if 135 lbs is too much.

2nd thing I suggest playing around with is your foot placement. Your feet are probably close together (like around shoulder width) when squatting. Try squatting with a wider stance, something like 1.5x shoulder width should feel significantly more comfortable.

Final thing you can try is squatting with small weight plates ( like 5 or 10 lb plates) underneath your heels. You should get a much better range of motion with your heels elevated.

I've been doing up to 235lb to the (shitty) depth that I posted 5x+ with ease. I kind of thought the depth would come naturally as I added weight and became more comfortable doing squats multiple times a week. I do warm up with bar then ~135 then 2+ plates and don't see any difference. Even without bar just trying to squat I can't go parallel or further unless I'm holding onto something since I have to lean back a little.

Tried different wider stances with toes pointing from neutral to outwards and I actually couldn't even go as far for some reason.

Heel thing I remember trying a few years ago to pretty decent success. Worry about tripping on them or having some kind of injury as I add weight though. Also just pretty determined to take off the training wheels and be able to do proper squats eventually. Really had no idea where to start though since stretching the lower body is pretty tricky! From that video above it looks like ankle mobility is a major weakness and something I don't think I ever worked on.

Again, thanks everybody for the responses and if anybody else has anything to add it's much appreciated. I'll dig into this and probably have more questions to ask.

 

[bchamba]

video yourself from the side next time you squat and post it so we can give more specific advice

 

[Navi]

Back day today for me guys! How's everyone doing?

 

[Psychotext]

Back day today for me guys! How's everyone doing?

I'm extremely tired... but I'm going to try and force myself into the garage in a short while to keep up my basic work back to doing weights again.

 

[TheFlow]

Back day today for me guys! How's everyone doing?

mini cut this week.

 

[Randolph Freelander]

.

Alan Thrall has a number of videos on squatting, I'm sure you've probably gone through a few, given the picture you posted. If you haven't seen it, here's one he did about squatting with poor mobility

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvGr7wXQfwE

Another one I can't find, but I want to say he also talked about getting depth by doing pause squats with significantly lighter loads. Take a lot of weight off the bar, squat down as deep as you can go, and just sit there for a few seconds. Then come back up.

Another thing he'll say that I found to be true is that sometimes you just have to take a step back. I haven't been squatting long and you're doing more weight than me, but I have found that as my squat weight increases, sometimes my depth gets worse. What to do? Take weight off, get lower. Build myself back up.

 

[KillerBEA]

Back day today for me guys! How's everyone doing?

Irritated and tired. Finally got what was supposed to be my Friday Deadlift/Back workout in today. Everything was pushed back because of helping family move and it kept getting worse because I slept like shit all last week except for like one day. It was worth pushing back though since it turned out pretty well. Good thing the rest of this week is a deload.

Now working on take home sociology mid term and hating it.

 

[mdsfx]

Back day today for me guys! How's everyone doing?

Tired as hell. Should've taken a day off after the race yesterday. Swimming this morning was tough. Need more...
C
O
F
F
E
E

 

[Tater Tot]

I PR'd on the DB incline and bench press. feelgoodman. Didnt think I would hit my reps with full ROM but I did easily

 

[Ixian]

Back day today for me guys! How's everyone doing?

One week / two lifting sessions until my trip to Hawaii and 30th birthday. Been slowly increasing my calories over the past few weeks so my energy levels aren't in the dumps while I'm on vacation so I've been feeling better overall. Going to be weird to take such a long break from lifting but looking forward to an honest-to-goodness vacation, then coming back, deloading, and finally making some progress on my lifts when I start bulking.

 

[Dany]

Taking Mr. Hyde after 4 months off it.

 

[Psychotext]

Just hit 50lb on the bench. I got this!

(Good god it's going to take a long while to get back to where I was)

 

[Dead Prince]

got some OHP to do today.

 

[ILoveBish]

Today was bench press, had to do 205x1 to complete the set, ended up getting 205x3. Feel really good. Bench is my worst lift by far, so this is really good for me.

Squats left and then all new cycle. I need to get my accessories in order, right now I'm just doing a lot of vanity lifts and hitting bi's and tri's after my main lifts. It's hard to get focused on proper accessories again, the vanity lifts are paying off so well, my arms are insane these days.

 

[Striek]

Thanks for responses. Checking out that youtube video now and will try to fit more stretches in. Right now even if I just squat down I get sore pretty quick so good depth probably won't come easily.



I've been doing up to 235lb to the (shitty) depth that I posted 5x+ with ease. I kind of thought the depth would come naturally as I added weight and became more comfortable doing squats multiple times a week. I do warm up with bar then ~135 then 2+ plates and don't see any difference. Even without bar just trying to squat I can't go parallel or further unless I'm holding onto something since I have to lean back a little.

Tried different wider stances with toes pointing from neutral to outwards and I actually couldn't even go as far for some reason.

Heel thing I remember trying a few years ago to pretty decent success. Worry about tripping on them or having some kind of injury as I add weight though. Also just pretty determined to take off the training wheels and be able to do proper squats eventually. Really had no idea where to start though since stretching the lower body is pretty tricky! From that video above it looks like ankle mobility is a major weakness and something I don't think I ever worked on.

Again, thanks everybody for the responses and if anybody else has anything to add it's much appreciated. I'll dig into this and probably have more questions to ask.

Practice squatting bodyweight. I couldn't do more than 60kg /130lb for an (ugly) single earlier this year since my quads were too sore. Earlier today I did a fairly comfortable 125kg/275lb for 10 reps. I don't see the point in trying to add weight when you aren't hitting depth. Take it back a few steps until you stop half-repping.

Also why are you leaning back when bw squatting? Probably not tracking your knees inline with your feet. Make sure they don't collapse inwards. Knees can go past the toes, keep your balance centred.

 

[ironmang]

Practice squatting bodyweight. I couldn't do more than 60kg /130lb for an (ugly) single earlier this year since my quads were too sore. Earlier today I did a fairly comfortable 125kg/275lb for 10 reps. I don't see the point in trying to add weight when you aren't hitting depth. Take it back a few steps until you stop half-repping.

Also why are you leaning back when bw squatting?

The weight I'm using just doesn't seem to matter. Like I said before, I do bodyweight, bar, 1 plate, 2+ plates and my limit is at the same place and has been for as long as I can remember. Should I just not do squats at all until I can drop that extra few inches to parallel? Thought it'd be best to just keep doing them while working on lower body flexibility.

I'm not really leaning back much but I have to hold onto a support if I want my ass to get anywhere close to my calves while my feet are flat on the floor. When I'm at the bottom if I let go of the support I'd tip over. Like my leaning back isn't significant or anything but it's enough that I'm slightly off balance.

Assuming you had the same problem, what'd you do to fix it? Just bodyweight exercises or some kind of stretch routine? How long did it take you to notice any results?

As far as where I'm going to start I guess I'll try the stretches in this article and the videos posted above and hope that works.

 

[Psychotext]

I'm almost 100% certain that Thrall has a video specifically on improving squat mobility. Will have to have a look...

Edit - Here you go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvGr7wXQfwE