6 week/42 day progress (pics) & training log [novice]

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Apr 22, 2019
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1 Timothy 4:8
[8] For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

This is a 6 week (42 day) exercise log.

Nothing fancy... just tried to stay on top of calories, sleep, and personal records each training session.
No cardio. No sprints. Minimal mobility work.

Starting weight was around 138 I believe. Current/end weight is 146.

Notable lifts:
Squats 20 reps w/ 165
Stiff legged deadlift 11 reps w/ 155
Standing behind-the-neck press 8 reps w/75
[Circa yesterday, day 42] - Squats 5x5 w/ 195, Deadlift 1x5 w/ 235

______________
I started with a modified, 2 day split of the 'Super Squats' program-- but adding 5 pounds to a 20 rep squat every other day caps out pretty quickly. I plateaued around day 32 and switched to the conventional 5x5 strength training template, gleaning much advice from the infamous Mark Rippetoe, though I still prefer to high-bar squat.

5x5 training has been the most reliable way to increase strength out of everything I've dabbled with so far. 5 sets of 5 reps on compound lifts and add 5 or 10 pounds the next time you do it in 2-4 days' time.

Deadlifts are the only exception for this. 1x5, 2x5, or 3x5 training for them will keep the training schedule moving forward.
________________
Training log printed below:

Day 3
Squats 20 reps @ 125
OHP 10, 10, 8 @ 65
SLD 12, 12, 12 @ 125
DBPullover 15 @ 30...12, 12 @ 35
Incline DBPress 12, 12, 12 @ 37.5
Bicep 21s w/ close grip EZ bar @ 30... wide grip EZ bar @ 30... dumbbells @ 15

Day 4
REST

Day 5
Squats 20 reps @ 135
Pendlay row 2x15 @ 95
SLD 2x15 @ 115
Bench press 1x15 @ 95, 1x15 @ 100
Pullover w/ plate 1x20 @ 25
Seated dumbbell OHP 2x15 @ 20

Day 6
Abs, bodyweight misc, 2 sets
Close grip EZ bar curl @ 60
Wide grip EZ bar curl @ 60
Dumbbell curls @ 30

Day 7
Squats 20 reps @ 140
SLD 2x15 @ 120
Pendlay row 2x15 @ 100
Bench press 2x15 @ 105
Pullover w/ dumbbells 1x20 @ 15
Forward crunch w/ rope 3x12 @ 71.5
*started 3g creatine/day

Day 8
Weight: 145
BTN press 2x12, 1x11 @ 65
Standing alternating DB curl 1x10, 2x8 @ 25

Day 9
Squats 20 reps @ 145
SLD 2x15 @ 125
Pendlay row (wide grip) 1x11, 1x8 @ 105
Bench press 1x15, 1x13 @ 110
DB pullover 1x20 @ 15
Weight: 147
*very underfed, workout suffered. Also underslept and worked with mild labor for 2 hours, active on feet for 6 hours before workout... which makes it remarkable that I'm 2 pounds heavier than yesterday.

Day 10
BTN press 2x12, 1x8 @ 70
Standing alternating DB curl 2x12, 1x9 @ 25
Weight: 141

Day 11
REST

Day 12
Squats 20 reps @ 150
Pendlay row (wide grip) 1x11, 1x10 @ 105
Bench press 1x12, 1x10 @ 115
DB pullover 1x20 @ 25

Day 13
REST

Day 14
Squats 20 reps @ 155
Bent over row 2x12, 1x11 @ 105
SLD 2x15 @ 130
Bench press 2x11, 1x10 @ 115
DB pullover 1x22 @ 25
Weight: 143

Day 15
Standing alternating DB curl 1x11, 1x9, 1x8 @ 27.5
BTN press 1x10, 1x8, 1x5 @ 75
Standing calf raise machine 3x11 @ 130

Day 16
Squats 1x12, 1x8, 1x9 @ 160
Pendlay row 1x11 @ 110, Bent over row 2x10 @ 110
SLD 2x15 @ 135
Bench press (wide grip) 1x13, 2x11 @ 120
*Rest periods for this workout were very long. Definitely not recovered for one reason or another.
Weight: 144

Day 17
Squats 20 reps (wide stance, dropping to parallel) @160
BTN press 1x11, 1x10, 1x8 @ 70
Standing alternating DB curl 1x11, 1x9, 1x7 @ 27.5
Standing calf raise machine 3x12 @ 90
Weight: 143
*spent 20 minutes last night doing spinal and shoulder fascia decompression from 'The Permanent Pain Cure' by Ming Chew. Definitely helped recovery.
*Realized my hips were shifting in the squat so that my right leg was taking most of the exercise. Consciously using the left hip & leg helped to balance out the force distribution, even providing a soft-core and left-lat contraction.
*practicing keeping the chin tucked for cervical spine alignment makes a big difference in exercise sensation. Was particularly helpful in preventing lower back fatigue that previously came from the standing calf machine.

Day 18
REST

Day 19
Squats 20 reps @ 165
Pendlay row 2x10, 1x9.5 @ 115
SLD 2x15 (re-grip @ reps 11 and 10, respectively) @ 140
Bench press 2x11, 1x8 @ 125
Weight: 145
*gotta eat more food
*this workout was really difficult. My ankles were shaking after the last set of bench press.

Day 20
BTN press 1x8, 1x7, 1x5 @ 75
Standing straight barbell curl 1x8, 1x7, 1x5 @ 60
Standing calf machine 3x12 @ 100
Weight: 145
*left shoulder is very uneven, need to work on mobilizing that fascia

Day 21
Squats 1x12, 1x8, 1x5 @ 170
Bent over row 1x11, 1x10, 1x9 @ 115
SLD 1x12, 2x12 (re-grip @ rep 10) @ 145
Bench press 2x8, 1x6 @ 125

Day 22
Squats 1x12, 1x7, 1x4, 1x5, 1x5 @ 170
Standing barbell front press 1x7, 1x6, 1x7 @ 75
Standing alternating DB curl 1x12, 1x8, 1x7 @ 30
Standing calf machine 3x12 @ 110
*started controlling squats, focusing more on leg drive and spending more time under the bar

Day 23
REST

Day 24
Bench press 1x11, 2x10.5 @ 125
DB pullover 1x20 @ 25
Squats 1x10, 2x9 @ 175
Bent over row 1x7, 2x9 @ 115
SLD 1x14 (re-grip @ rep 10), 1x10 (re-grip @ rep 8) @ 150
Standing alternating DB curl 1x9, 1x7, 1x5 @ 30
Seated calf raise 3x12 @ 105
BTN press 1x20 @ 45, 1x12 @ 65, 1x6 @ 75
*excluding conversation, this workout took about 1 hour and 45 minutes
*Mark Rippetoe's hips-back low bar squat made my shoulders feel like they were about to twist off while supporting the barbell along the line of the rear delts. I will revisit the low bar technique at a later date with less weight relative to my strength.

Day 25
Walking (70 minutes outside)
Squats (high bar) 1x10 @ 135, 1x10 @ 155, 1x5 @ 175
Squats (low bar) 1x10 @ 135, 1x8 @ 155, 1x5 @ 175
Bench press (wide grip) 1x8 @ 95, 1x7, 1x10 (rest pause at rep 4 because left hand felt like the barbell was sitting on the bone of my thumb) @ 115
*was working on balancing the force activation of the bench press by mentally prioritizing the left chest/tricep etc so that it feels more like a total upper body movement than tricep dominant.
*grip strength is 8.5/10 fatigued
*knees are noticeably shaky too, probably pushing into overtraining territory
*the lowbar squat feels the most demanding on the midback so far. Knees tend to drift forward... upon pushing the hips back, there seems to be more lower back stress. Either way, the high bar squat has a much more noticeable leg drive aspect compared to the low bar where the driving motion feels like standing up from a chair... which is more stressful to the hips and back than to the legs.

Day 26
REST

Day 27
Bench press 2x10, 1x9 @ 130
Squats 1x10, 1x8, 1x7 @ 175
Bent over row 3x9 @ 120
BTN press 1x8, 1x7, 1x5 @ 75
Standing calf machine 1x15, 1x11, 1x12 @ 100
Standing alternating DB curls 1x10, 1x7, 1x6 @ 30
SLD 1x11 (rest pause @ rep 9), 1x8, 1x9 @ 155

Day 28
REST

Day 29
Squats 1x6, 1x5, 1x7, 1x5 @ 175
Bent over rows 1x5, 1x6, 1x7, 1x7 @ 115
SLD 1x8, 1x9, 1x7 @ 115
Bench press (wide grip) 1x8, 1x5 [touched chest each rep, elbow pain], 1x7, 1x6 @ 135
Weight: 143.5
*made a point to keep wrists straight on the bent over row, felt better for both the back and elbows
*did the same with SLDs, worked on driving the hips forward for better form. Form breakdown leads to excessive lower back use in the movement.
*still feeling really weak, skin breakouts in the last couple days reflect poor digestion. Adding fruit to the diet might be an answer
*made a conscious effort to bend the bar and keep the lower back stable during the bench. Lat activation gives a nice sensation of total upper body work on the flat barbell bench press.
*the bottom of my heels hurt. I speculate that it's because I'm too lean to be pushing for strength

Day 30
Seated BTN 2x8, 1x6 @ 80
Bench press (wide grip) 1x11, 1x9, 1x6.5 @ 125
Bent over row 2x15 @ 95
Standing barbell curl 1x9, 1x8 @ 55
Squats 2x10 @ 135 [didn't have much to give for squats, no sense in pressing my luck]
DB pullover 1x20 @ 20
SLD 1x15 (re-grip @ rep 12) @ 155
DB pullover 1x20 @ 20
Weight: 145
*kept my head up during the squat to feel a better bottom position
*this is the first day that I've mostly followed the basic program <hmm>

Day 31
REST

Day 32
REST

Day 33
REST-ish. Worked on mobility. Did many air squats in an attempt to get a steady movement pattern. Used a hip circle during some air squats

Day 34 [starting 5x5 template]
Squats 2x5 @ 185, 3x5 @ 175
Deadlifts 5x5 @ 175
Bench press 1x4 @ 145, 4x5 @ 135
*still starting the day with lower back pain, really annoying.
*lower back pain 95% gone after workout and until bed.

Day 35
Standing alternating DB curl 5x5 @ 35
Lying triceps extension w/ EZ bar 5x5 @ 60
Weight: 144
*doing a few minutes of mobility & stretching drills after working out and/or before bed is becoming more beneficial as days go on.
*back felt great all day.

Day 36
Squats 5x5 @ 180
Push-press/OHP with hip drive 1x4 @ 90, 4x5 @ 85 w/ static hold on last rep
Hang clean practice with bar, about a dozen reps... then another 10-ish reps @ 65 [enter shoulder pain]... tried one rep @ 75 but decided against it because seemed risky
Rack pulls 5x5 @ 205 [shoulder pain mostly gone afterwards]
4 or 5 sets of 4-6 rep chinups as preventive golfer's elbow

Day 37
Pendlay row 5x5 @ 115
Chinups 2x4, 3x5 w/ 10lb dumbbell
Dips 1x8, 4x5 w/ 10lb dumbbell

Day 38
Deadlifts 5x5 @ 185
Squats 5x5 @ 185
Bench press 5x5 @ 140
*starting at the end of the first working set, this workout took 80 minutes

Day 39
REST

Day 40
Squats 5x5 @ 190
Push-press/OHP with hip drive @ 90
Clean practice w/ 75, sets of 3-4
Rack pulls 5x5 @ 215
Lying triceps extension w/ EZ bar 5x5 @ 70

Day 41
Pendlay row 5x5 @ 120
Weighted chinup 5x5 @ 12.5
Weighted dip 5x5 @ 25

Day 42
Deadlift 1x5 (rest pause between reps, straps) @ 235
Squats 5x5 @ 195
Bench press 1x4.5 @ 145, 2x5, 1x4.5 @ 140
Weight: 146
*arms were pretty fatigued from weighted dips and chins which hurt the bench PR
 
OP
Twohandsondeck
Joined
Apr 22, 2019
Messages
799
Champions record their training. I should follow your good example.
I resisted making a record of it for a long time, but finally accepting that it's okay to put on the slow (but steady) 5 pounds here and 5 pounds there of progress has become very satisfying and given me a newfound patience. Highly recommend.
 

OccamzRazer

Member
Joined
Feb 13, 2021
Messages
2,060
Brother good idea and good baseline you've got here...but tbh some of your pics are a little over the top! I could cite some scripture in this regard but will abstain lol.

146 lbs...how tall are you?
 
OP
Twohandsondeck
Joined
Apr 22, 2019
Messages
799
Brother good idea and good baseline you've got here...but tbh some of your pics are a little over the top! I could cite some scripture in this regard but will abstain lol.

146 lbs...how tall are you?
Haha I hear ya, point taken. A bit of flesh and vanity is the result of my fear of blandness or lack of creativity. The other half of it is that I'm trying to be as transparent as possible because every muscle group is changing. I think about how if someone wears basketball shorts, it can completely throw off the perception of their proportions with relation to the whole body. It's like an optical illusion. I'd prefer to reveal the opposite of that if possible.

However... alas there is no justification because it indeed "...profiteth little..." no matter what.

And right! That would have been useful information. I'm 5'7.
 
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Old Irenaeus

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Joined
Dec 24, 2020
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1,127
How did you do 4.5 reps of bench press and then get back from the gym so that you could type all this?
 

Old Irenaeus

Member
Joined
Dec 24, 2020
Messages
1,127
Are you trying the work up to doing all those exercises from the Basic Program that you shared all in one session or will you keep doing splits?
 
OP
Twohandsondeck
Joined
Apr 22, 2019
Messages
799
Are you trying the work up to doing all those exercises from the Basic Program that you shared all in one session or will you keep doing splits?
Maybe I'll return to that mammoth of a program later on, but for the moment I'm continuing to run a 5x5 for several compound lifts and adding weight each time. It's hard enough to add 5 pounds to any given lift for 5 reps, much less 10, 12, or 20. I think rep schemes are like tools that should be cycled.

In 'Super Squats,' there's also this abbreviated program that is for the ultra-hard gainer (didn't link before because of max attachments)
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