I haven’t posted anything on protein, water, mobility, or nutrition in a while and I feel that doing so makes you consider your habits. Have the guys been eating one gram of protein per pound of body weight plus fifty (e.g. a 200 pound male would hit a minimum of 250g of protein)? Have the gals been aiming for almost 1g per pound of body weight? Are you drinking half your body weight in ounces of water (e.g. a 200 pound male would drink 100 oz of water)? Are you doing daily mobility to improve your movement limitations or painful areas? Are you returning to a clean diet after last week’s eating extravaganza?
These are the little things that make or break your training. Any child can go into the weight room and attack the barbell, but it takes a professional to pay attention to details outside of the gym. If you’re encountering recovery problems — and aren’t using stupid amounts of volume, intensity, or frequency — then look to how well you’re adhering to the above “outside of the gym” aspects of training. If you’ve read this site for a while, you should be thinking “duh”, but at the same time you may realize you haven’t been hitting your daily protein requirements.
Remember that recovery is not a glass of water that you can quickly fill or empty; it’s a continuum. Eating 300+ grams of protein, doing an entire hour of mobility, or over hydrating in one day might be impressive, but it amounts to precisely dick if you don’t do it regularly. You should be consistent enough so that you don’t require a cram session. It’s the same thing as lifting: if you haven’t lifted in a week, you can’t make up for lost time by squatting 20 sets of 5 in your next workout. The concept makes sense in the gym, so act the same outside of it.
If you’re sitting there wondering why you haven’t squatted 405 or pressed your body weight, it might be because you don’t take your training seriously…which is fine if you don’t want to hit your goals. Spending 5 to 10 hours of your week toiling with the iron is more than a fucking hobby; quit dicking around and get serious. Do you want to be an imposing physical specimen who lets children do chin-ups off of your biceps after pressing a car? Then realize that these “little things” are training and get to work.
Can’t believe I actually found an example.
Eating is training
Then my latest piece of training gear is a food scale, so I can make sure I’m hitting my protein numbers. Yeah, I do feel a little bit like a bodybuilder/serial killer adding shreds of pulled pork at a time until it hits 1 pound
Dude, I also felt like a douche getting a food scale. But it’s nice to really KNOW how much protein you’re getting from each burger patty or chicken breast.
I use a food scale. I also use a mint exfoliating mask every day
yep. been eating so much, i’m starting to get a bit thick in the middle D:
Hey Justin,
This seems like a good time to ask this question.
I have been following 5/3/1 for about 7 months. I am happy with the work, and I have definately gotten stronger. Still, I feel like I could get a good deal out of a Linear Progression. I have never been “accountable” while attempting one, and I feel like I finally understand the process, and why a LP is a great way to get serious about training. I love wendler’s program, and it is something I will definately come back to. but I feel like I can make a great deal of gains on a LP.
My question is this. How strictly should I abide to the Prescriptions in Rip”s starting strength manual. I squat in a high bar manner, and I like it. Do I need to switch to Low bar to get the most out of a LP?
That is my main question. But I also am wondering where to start numbers wise.
Current Numbers- These are what I hit pretty easily in my lasting training cycle,
Squat 290×1 Really Easy.
Press 150×2-
Deadlift-345
Bench- 205×1
I wouldn’t qualify any of these as difficult, I weigh about 190, and my mobility continues to improve.
Any help advice from you or anyone else is appreciated. Thanks for doing all you do for the community.
I’m sure Justin will chime in with a more professional answer but your story sounds a lot like mine. I also ran 5/3/1 for more then 6 months and finally convinced myself to switch a linear progression because I thought I could make gains faster. I personally went with and would suggest the Greyskull LP because they main reason I moved off SS to 5/3/1 was the squatting 3x a week caught up to me (Greyskull is 2x a week). I know Rip has progressions designed for when this happens but 5/3/1 seemed appealing at the time (I still really like it). I discovered the Greyskull LP through this site and really like it for two reasons: the 1 rep short of failure final set and the importance of reps as well as weight mindset it puts you in for when you do hit a wall. Because you never really delve into the 1 rep max territory and theoretically your final set is 5+ it’s less about getting that final rep no matter what, and instead allowed me to hone my form.
Concerning low bar vs. high bar I don’t see any reason for you to switch if you like high bar then high bar. The one suggestion I would make that worked for me is that when you are choosing your starting weights for your LP go with a weight like your 2nd set in your “3 week” which I think is like 80% of your 5/3/1 training max. You’ll be pushing more weight x5 then you have within a few weeks and I felt by starting there I didn’t get ahead of myself.
Good Luck!
Switch to an LP, eat a lot more, and don’t consider 5/3/1 or switching a program until you can squat 315 for sets across. Yeah, you might have to reset once or twice. Yeah, it’s going to be hard. But if you want to get serious about training, eating, and getting better, this is the way to do it. You need a couple of weeks where you finish your set, and think that there’s no possible way you can finish the next day’s work. So you eat your ass off, get good sleep, then attack it and succeed. Being able to do this week in and week out (without REALLY BURNING OUT) is much better than switching to an intermediate programming and avoiding the issue. You’re already doing mobility stuff and that’s good- keep it up.
Just my 2 cents. Low bar, high bar, can’t really comment without seeing your leverage or form, but honestly, just perform.
I’d start at around 60-65% for everything. Nothing should feel terrible, but nothing as a joke either.
First post, been lurking awhile, I’m on week six of SS LP, after a lot of CF and screwing around. I am living what High Voltage said about the next day’s work. I started at 65% for everything and feel close to hitting a wall on squats (310x5x3) and presses (155x5x3), I plan to reset those lifts soon even if I’m not failing reps because the squats are beating me up.
6 eggs +2-4 pieces of bacon every morning and sweet potato on training days
Then for my two meals at work I split 2 lbs of some sort of meat with lots of veggies. I feel even veggies are important in recovery because thy keep your body functioning properly. Then another half a pound or so of meat when I get off. On training days I drink 25-36 grams of protein immediately after. I make sure I cook with plenty of coconut oil and kerigold butter and add olive oil to salads or roast vegetables. I drink a gallon of water a day and take fish and cod liver oils along with b vitamins. I try to mob at least 10 min a night. If I have time to do more I will. I also poop 3 times a day and masturbate when I’m lonely, which is always.
I agree with the veggies idea. It may be all in my head, but I find I digest better and can eat more/sooner when I include fruits and vegetables with my meat. Even a clementine with my eggs and bacon does the trick.
with all that you only poop 3 times a day?!
sometimes more. but you see, i make each one count
I see what you did there.
I eat about half what you do an poop about twice as often. …maybe I eat more veggies. Maybe my body is just f’cked up. I just have this image of 10+ pounds of food chilling in your large intestine.
Lies!! Women do NOT poop.
(Curled up fetal in the corner right now chanting .. it’s not true … it’s not true)
I shit fabulous, bitches
Dude, Alphantis, you are on fire in these comments.
we have ourselves a winner!
I’ve also let my ex girlfriend and her twin sister swing from my arms and do pull ups on them. I’m going over to mopewod now
Mobility question – I consistently develop knots and pain along my brachialis, especially where it inserts near my elbows. What should I do to work on this? Is there any way to avoid stressing this area? Perhaps I am doing something wrong in my training : (
I also get a lot of tightness and pain in my lower tricep, just above my elbow. Using The Stick on this area always puts me on the cusp of the pain cave.
Compression band plus moving it all around in external rotation and finding stuff that feels rough has had the best results for me, but I’ve been suffering a little of the same stuff.
wow, after clicking on the protein link and reading Dr. P’s input on protein intake for those attempting to lose weight while maintaining or increasing muscle mass, im realizing i have a lot more cooking to do. im around 205/210, trying to get to 198/200, and thought i was doing OK with 150 grams a day. huge thanks for the reminder.
It’s eating season. I ratchet down my “da Vinci Code” leg spikes as penance when I miss 300 grams a day. 400g is the goal.
Of course it was Marius…
On topic: Man, eating 250 grams of protein a day is HARD.
Seriously. I tend to gravitate toward intermittent fasting – when I eat more than twice a day I feel very lethargic and I sometimes get a little reflux. But trying to do 250 grams in 8-10 hours is really really difficult.
Hard and expensive.
Ummmm … I kind of hate this excuse …
A dude at my gym who is 190-200 kept complaining how hard it was to hit 1g per lb of bw — what I told him:
— two scoops of protein powder in water = 50g
— drink one at beginning of eating window/one at end = 100g
— pound of ground beef (or equivalent meat) = roughly 100g
that’s 250g right there?
I weigh sub-150 and a pound of ground beef just makes me hungry …
Just put down 12oz of steak for dinner. Not exactly the norm (I like birds, what can I say), but damn was it delicious. I think I’ll do that again for breakfast tomorrow, but with some fried eggs, as well.
Slightly off topic, but Justin will understand why it’s a bonus: I’m also eating complex carbs with (almost) every meal (easier said than done for me), and perhaps it’s making a difference.
As someone who is relatively new to the site, I really appreciate these ‘recap’ posts with lots of links to previous posts.
“If you want to get under 10%, do some meth, buy yourself some skinny jeans, and get your emo self off of this site.” …some pure gold from the “Making the cut” post linked to in this one.
Thanks for reminding me of how much of a Gordon I am.
Damn it.
more like a melvin
Great. I can’t even put myself down properly…
its fine, just end it, we’re all doing it
Ate 2 lbs of beef at work yesterday. Today I ate 1.5 lbs – in 14 minutes. This has become pretty standard for me.
I recently re-read the protein post and added an additional 50g of protein to my diet (shake) and suddenly started recovering better and having an elevation in mood. I can’t believe I didn’t try this sooner.
Just got a calorie counter app for my iphone which lists all nutrition facts about a food item, not just the calories. This way I can keep track of my shit…’specially protein.
Until yesterday, I just sorta “ball parked” it and crossed my fingers. But with hard numbers, it’s really easy to get into a habit and grove. Whoops, forgot your protein supplement or ate veggie chili at a friend’s house? 250g of protein changes to under 200g real quick like.
QUESTION:
Anyone here know much about (or have experimented with) carb back-loading? I have it on good authority that it works, especially for naturally lean peeps…
I’ve been eating 2500+ calorie dinners, and then a before bed “snack” of up to 1500. It’s kind of exhausting.
Would you mind posting the name of the app? It is something where you can look up a food and find its macronutrient content?
I’m definitely lacking in mobility though I have cleaned up my diet and have tightened up my consistency. As far as protein intake, doin the best I can with a doctor ordered protein restriction due to a kidney issue. I can’t thank 70’s Big enough as it’s helped me a lot!
After the Protein post a few weeks back i decided to knock it up a gear. I aim for 250g protein a day. I am currently tracking alongside the Madcow Prog and hitting all my numbers. Cant say better than that.
Squatting 3 times a week is brutal but the recovery session on weds is a nice treat.
Looking to compete next summer and keep on lifting.
Also, i rock the flannels on the reg. When the sun comes out i just cut the sleeves off. This is Europe bitch, what you want from me?
Yes. I really feel like I’ve been pulling it all together well for several consecutive months now, and the results are showing in the gym and the mirror. The biggest change for me has been actually doing mobility work regularly. I don’t even do that much, just 20 minutes or so every night while watching tv. I hate it for the first ten minutes, enjoy it for the second ten, and feel SO much better when it’s time to lift.
I also haven’t shaved in 13 days, so I’m expecting to hit my weights on TM intensity day today.
This was a good reminder that I need to be better about protein intake. I do get my mobility work in every day, learned the hard way on that one.
Super Mario is the man!
Thanks for getting me back on track. Mobility is one thing I don’t keep consistent along with a good daily dose of protein. I will modify and make note of the changes. Keep up the good work with the site!
actually been using .9 g of protein per lb of bw while I am dropping some chub. Been working really well. I wont say I am IF’ing because my eating window is from 11-8. I just have black coffee in the morning eat and early lunch and eat my last meal post workout or around 7:30. Carbs are around 150g-200g on training days, around 100g on non training days.
In May after my meet I was a gross 278 w/ about 6-8 lbs of that being bloat. Today I am 232 lbs. And thats after eating my ass off on grains, sugar, dairy, and whatever else I could shove in my face from Thursday to Sunday.
Strength isnt so hot. My squat is probably down ten lbs, bench maintained to slightly better, and my dead actually improved quite a bit (not as big of a gut in the way).
Cool story brother? Ladies if you want butthole picks just message me.
also all my protein is from meat currently. carbs are potatoes, not a lot of vegetables… I could drink less coffee… lots of room for improvements.
Good effort. I lost less weight than that over summer but a lot more strength, (such as it was) so it looks like you’re managing the whole business pretty well.
I could drink less coffee as well, in the same way that I could probably breath less oxygen if I really, really tried.
Drinking less coffee? Infidel defilers!
In my home gym I have a wall across from the squat rack that has two posters on it. One is a multi-pic series of Matthias Steiner’s big lift at Beijing 2008 where he won the gold. The other is of Shannon Hartnett making a world-record throw in the weight over the bar a few years back. I look at those every time I step in the rack and get under the bar. And I realize I’m weaker than both, and way less jacked than either. Then I finish training and go eat a shitload of protein. The posters constantly remind me that I can eat better, lift better, and in general that I have a long, long way to go. They are awesome.
i still need to come do farmahs some saturday…
This guy is the epitome of what I’ve always called the “Bis, Tris and Levis” attitude.
http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/national_world&id=8899667
gotta be synthol right?
Look at the angle of the triceps connection… it doesnt make sense, this guy is a mo-ron
“The rest of Ismail’s body is average”
Lol’d.
I’ve seen this guy, he cracks me up. Way to run a scam on the whole world. My 9-year-old gymnast daughter has better forearms and delts than this guy.
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