Meet Prep Week 2 Day 3 (12 January 2017)

I did day 4's workout on day 3, like I did in the beginning of the week. Meh, it doesn't matter. On this session I learned the importance of exercise arrangement. There's a reason Sheiko always puts bench press between the first and second lower body movement. I went and did my deadlift and deadlift assistance movement and it really compromised my bench press workout. So kids, don't be rearranging your program willy nilly.

Deadlift (touch & go) 115kg x 2 x 5, 1 x AMRAP=8
- Adductors were sore as fuck on this session, really no idea why. I don't think I swam that hard the day before. Nothing a good roll on the foam roller can't fix. The weight felt a bit heavier than it should but I managed to maintain good bar speed and form. RPE 7 on the regular sets, RPE 8.5 on the AMRAP set.

2.5" Deficit Deadlift (touch & go) 115kg x 3 x 5
- Here was where the mistake was made. I wanted to get over with deadlifts for the day since the weight is practically the same with the main movement. I used a 35# plate for my deficit board and to be honest it felt a bit too high. I might go a bit lower next week since on this session, I felt some shearing force on my spine and that't no good. The weight was heavy-ish like before but moved easily. RPE 8 on all sets. Grip was amazing though, held the weight for a bit on the last reps to get some grip training in.

Manpon Press (touch & go) 77.5kg x 5 x 5
- I love manpon press. On this session I really hammered my lockout hard. But, since I foolishly did deficit deadlift before this one, I kinda ran out of fuel and getting all around fatigued. My last set was horrible with the bar going out of position on the first rep and me failing on the last. My spotter was there to save me, phew. RPE 8.5 on these. Shitty last set but I felt I had a good workout. Also, my wrist wraps really hurts to wear. Is it because I wear it too tight or my wrists are just pussies? The stability is worth the pain though.

Accessories.
Kroc Rows 32kg x 2 x 15, highly recommend these as it will train your biceps, back and abs really really hard. Grab a weight you can do for 15 reps, then AMRAP it for 2 sets. Once you reach 20 reps, move up in weight. I attribute my deadlift gains to these a lot.

Ab Medley 42.5kg x 2 x 5. My version of ab medley is 5 reps barbell rollout followed immediately by 5 reps suitcase deadlift on both sides. this usually kills my abs good and I make good progress in my lifts when I progress in this. I highly recommend full contact twist to be added to the medley as well, but I just couldn't last night.

Meet Prep Week 2 Day 4 (13 January 2017)

I should ban training on Fridays I tell you, something always comes up. This session was cut super short, but I did manage to get some good work in. Went off after bench press.

Squats (lowbar) 115kg x 3 x 3
- The main focus of this session on squats was to nail depth. I filmed myself every set to figure out my depth and out of the 9 reps, only the last rep I went below parallel with the rest being ass to grass even though I actively tried to avoid that. It still feels like I'm quarter squatting though, but I'll keep practicing. RPE was 8 on this session. Wasn't anything too difficult. Gonna post some form checks among other powerlifters and see what I can improve on my technique.

Bench Press (competition paused) 72.5kg x 3 x 3
- This session was a bit weak because of the manpon press I did the day before. I'll need to keep in mind to not do manpon press before a heavy bench press session as it compromises my triceps. RPE 9 on these sets.

This post has been edited by Npad: Jan 14 2017, 09:40 AM

Meet Prep Week 3 Day 1 (16 January 2017)

Didn't feel well today and took a medical leave from work. Still went to train though after sleeping the whole day to recover.

Deadlift (deadstop) 137.5kg x 3 x 3
- This deadlift session took out a lot of energy out of me. Maybe because I was sick, maybe because I couldn't focus, but it didn't feel like the best session ever. My setup went to shits in one of the reps on the last set. Got it done though, RPE 8.5 on these. Bar speed was good. Form was good. Next week I will start filming deadlifts as well to check on form.

Bench Press (touch & go) 67.5kg x 5 x 5
- I experimented a wider grip on this session and felt quite comfortable with it. My wrist might have some issue with the grip but with wraps solving that problem, the triceps no longer becomes the limiting factor. Setup was a bit weird though, have to get used to the bigger arch. RPE 6 on these, #macambarkosong. Will continue with this grip width.

Pull to knees (deadstop) 102.5kg x 3 x 8
- Conditioning is a lot better this week despite me not being 100% on this particular session. I can feel this movement working the hammies real good and I'm getting more powerful and explosive at the bottom portion of the deadlift. Hopefully, my lockout won't give me troubles but so far it's good. RPE 8 on these.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I did:

Lat pulldown 60kg x 2 x 10, 1 x 12
Dumbbell bench press 28kg x 2 x 8, 1 x 10

Meet Prep Week 3 Day 2 (18 January 2017)

This week just isn't going the way I planned it and I'm forced to hustle and "program" on the fly due to time. I'm not a fan of deciding what weights, what exercise, etc when I'm already at the gym but what can you do right? Shit happens. Had to skip Tuesday and went on Wednesday, which I had to cut short an hour of training time. Ended up going home after bench and that was half an hour later than when I usually leave the gym. Hopefully today's session will be better.

Squats 97.5kg x 6 x 4
- My number one goal for this squat session is to fix my form and depth. I filmed myself every set and found that I was still going down into the hole way too fast and not being in control. Depth was still a bit too low but nothing too extreme like before. Feet stayed planted though so that was good. I slowed down everything to maintain proprioception of my hips and quads and on the 2 last sets I think I kinda nailed it. Felt more power out of the hole and engaged the quads more. All from slowing shit down. RPE 8 on these, nothing too serious. Loving squats at the moment.

Bench Press (competition paused) 72.5kg x 5 x 3
- Wide grip is my grip, really loving my current setup. It feels really secure and strong off the chest and my triceps don't need to work as hard. Downside? I need a liftoff for the heavier weights. Wrists feel a bit off too but straps can deal with that easily. RPE 7 on this session. I really want to film myself benching but currently that's rather difficult due the gym's layout. One of these days for sure.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I did barbell rows 70kg x 3 x 10. I just had to end the training session with at least one rowing accessory. I think next time I'm doing Pendlay rows instead. This exercise kinda aggravates my back.

Meet Prep Week 3 Day 3 (20 January 2017)

Like seriously, this week kinda sucks. I missed 2 sessions and on the previous log which was basically a replacement, I had to cut that one shirt too. So on this session I was playing catch up and ended up being in the gym for 3 hours, a first time for me.

Squats 90kg x 3 x 8
- I've been following and emulating Richard "The Ant" Hawthorne very closely with his squats because he's so short just like me. Thanks to that I'm getting better at judging depth and engaging the quads for a more explosive concentric. My form is getting more stable with less bounciness which was pointed out to me in my previous form check. Overall, I'm happy with the progress I'm making with squats. RPE 7 on these. Sets of 8's used to be death 3 weeks ago, now it feels just nice. My conditioning is better and I've become more efficient in the movement.

Bench Press (competition paused) 75kg x 5 x 3
- Also a good session on bench. This weight was my 1RM a year ago. Now I can rep it out no problem. Form also getting better on bench, making full use of the rules set by GPA. As big as an arch I can get, heels up, and wide grip. I believe 100kg on meet day is not a far fetched idea. RPE 7.5 on these. Seriously, my pecs and all the muscles related to bench seem to be able to handle a rather large weekly INOL number. Suggested weekly INOL is between 2-3, my current program on bench has weekly INOL between 4-6. Current limitations are elbow health. With the frequency and intensity I'm benching, my elbows get pretty beat up so whenever that happens, I rehab it with lots and lots of curls.

Pin Squats 100kg x 3 x 5
- Now this, this is a movement I should have started doing a long time ago. With pin setting at hole 5, I was able to identify so many issues with my squats namely, descent speed too fast, unbalanced bar, unbalanced force distribution between legs, lower back rounding when reps get sloppy, depth too low. After this session I gotta say I bettered my form simply because it gave me practice in the range of motion that I needed. Was able to engage the quads more too, so I'm sure it will translate to a bigger squat later. RPE 8 on these.

Deadlift (touch & go) 120kg x 2 x 5, 1 x AMRAP=8
- Deadlift feels solid today. Even though lower back was really fatigued from all the squats I was able to perform these with general ease. I asked a gym bro to slap my upper back before set 2 and I have to admit the bar feels lighter after that. I'm sure there's a connection between the pain and activation of the CNS in a fight or flight response that allows people to handle bigger weights. I'm definitely doing that next time I handle heavier weights. RPE 8 on these, nothing too difficult. Form was awesome too, no breakdowns whatsoever.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I absolutely hammered my back and biceps on this session:

Landmine row with V-Bar handle 60kg x 2 x 10, 1 x AMRAP=15
Seated cable rows with V-Bar handle 195lbs x 3 x 15
A bajillion reps of all kinds of curls at light weight. Didn't even count the sets or reps. Eased the pain I was having in my left elbow. It was also mind-numbingly boring. Got a really good pump though. Look ma, I got biceps.

Meet Prep Week 3 Day 4 (21 January 2017)

Elbows were giving issues on this session. It just hurts. I couldn't bench, row, nor do anything that involves my arm. Ended up doing squats and deadlifts only. I did afterwards went to some cheapskate shop (supersave) and bought some cheap ass elbow sleeves to keep some compression and warmth in my elbows, which in theory, will reduce the pain and keep the joints more fluid. Can't afford none of that SBD elbow sleeves man.

Squats 117.5kg x 3 x 2
- First 2 sets went ok but the last set went to shits. I shifted forward and almost fell, scary. Anyhow, I think I finally ironed out all the small details of my squat like depth, belt positioning, foot positioning, etc. I think I finally got it. I will keep practicing the current form. RPE 9 on these, was quite difficult. Felt like I was pushing the weight up really slowly when in fact it was quite fast as the video review shows.

Paused deficit deadlift 115kg x 3 x 3
- This was a first time for this movement. I picked it to spend more time in the off the ground zone of the deadlift and hopefully will translate to a more explosive max deadlift later on. Deficit was 2" tall but enough to make it really challenging. Quite pleased with it to be honest. Basically combined the benefits of a paused deadlift and a deficit deadlift altogether. RPE 9 on these as well.

Accessories.
- No accessories were done on this session due to elbows giving issues.

Meet Prep Week 4 Day 1 (23 January 2017)

The cheap ass elbow sleeves I bought works well enough. Elbows were kept warm and adequately compressed so the pain was mitigated during squats and bench. And in other news, I really hate my belt right now. Hole 4 is too loose and hole 5 is too tight. Hopefully in 3 weeks I can fit into hole 5. Or if I get CNY bonus I'll buy a new damn belt. Having my eyes on Beast Genetics lever belt on SIG.

Squats 102.5kg x 6 x 4
- Squats moved rather well today. Currently I'm working on removing another bad habit of mine where I drive my hip way too hard which causes me to be unbalanced. There's a difference between being explosive and being wasteful of energy. Driving the hips forward and the back up too hard until the bar can bounce of your delts, that's a waste of energy and a form issue. Pleased with this session, RPE 7.5 on these.

Bench Press (touch & go) 67.5kg x 4 x 5, 1 x AMRAP=9
- A little bit out of touch with bench on this session. I kinda "forgot" how to bench? First 2 sets I wasn't in the groove, didn't engage the leg drive, didn't retract my scapula fully. Something about touch & go style that causes me to forget my cues. I'm just more used to competition paused style of benching I guess. By set 3 though I got my groove back. RPE 7 on these. AMRAP was RPE 9. Probably could have gotten another rep in but I didn't have a spotter. Also, I'm learning how to lift off myself by having my butt off the bench when I lift off and setting it back down once I have the bar set up on top of me. Cool trick to know.

Squats 92.5kg x 3 x 8
- I squatted fast this time and really burned my quads. I still have some balancing issue but nothing I can't deal with by simply slowing down. Very good session for quad building. RPE 8 on these.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I did the following for a finisher:

Landmine row with V-Bar handle 65kg x 2 x 10, 1 x AMRAP=15

Preacher curls of unknown weight, set, or reps. I just mindlessly curled the EZ bar for a pump. Wanted to do skullcrusher but this being Monday, it's international dumbbell bench press day. Not one free bench was available I tell you.

Meet Prep Week 4 Day 2 (24 January 2017)

Why are noobs and other gym goers at my gym in general, just adamant about using the suicide grip on the bench press and loads up way more weight than they can handle? Don't they know why suicide grip is called suicide grip? SMH. I hate my gym sometimes. One of these days one of these fuckers will off themselves on the bench I tell you, I just hope I won't be there to witness it. Had to work in with someone like this on this session.

Deadlifts (deadstop) 142.5kg x 3 x 3
- Felt a little lethargic and messed up on some of the cues during this session, so I decided to film myself. My lower back feels neutral, but the video makes it hard to assess due to all the fat, shirt and belt around that general area. Next week I'll wear my soft suit only during deadlift for a proper form check. RPE 8.5 on these. Wasn't particularly difficult but like I said I was lethargic a bit. Speed of the barbell was good though.

Bench Press (competition paused) 75kg x 5 x 3
- Elbows still giving me issues on this session. Last week it was more of my left, on this day it was more of my right. Sleeves helped a bit but the pain was still there. Had to take long breaks between sets, seeing as it is my max effort day.Weight moved fast. As expected rep 3 of each set slows down a bit as I begin to lose tightness but I only need to do 1 rep at the competition, no biggy. RPE 8 on these no problem. My feet setup is getting better too. I manage to use my adductor to basically clamp onto the bench and keep my butt set down. Allows me to push off with my legs for a stronger leg drive as well.

Pull to knees 107.5kg x 3 x 8
- Conditioning is still shit I suppose since I almost passed out on set 2 of these. Haha. Wasn't difficult, was just really exhausted. Got a good pump on me hammies, erector and glutes.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I did the following:

Dumbbell bench press 30kg x 3 x 8

Seated cable rows with straight handle 195lbs x 3 x 15

Guess what came in the mail today? I finally pulled the trigger and bought myself the Beast Genetics Lever Belt that I've been eyeing the past few months. I'm so stoked to try this shit out! Can't wait to get off work and get home.

Meet Prep Week 4 Day 3 (26 January 2017)

Rushing for time today so can't do much commentary on the log.

Main lifts:

Deadlifts (touch & go) 125kg x 2 x 5, 1 x AMRAP=10

Bench Press (competition paused) 75kg x 3 x 3, 77.5kg x 2 x 3

Deficit deadlifts 115kg x 3 x 5

Accessories:

Kroc Rows 34kg x 2 x 15

Lat Pulldown 60kg x 3 x 10

Meet Prep Week 4 Day 4 (29 January 2017)

I went to Kuching this Chinese New Year holidays and tried to get some training in. That did prove to be quite difficult as most gyms were closed. I ended up getting a training session on this day at some ghetto gym where I tried out my new SBD knee sleeves. Did I tell you I bought knee sleeves? I bought a pair on Friday and they're expensive and they're awesome. Very short session on this day as I was overheating as per usual at a ghetto gym. Didn't feel my best as well as I may have pulled something on my hammies after squats so went home shortly after that.

Bench Press (touch & go) 70kg x 5 x 5
- I really don't know about this gym's equipment. Everything felt light. Like seriously, 70kg felt more like 60kg. RPE 7 on these. Wasn't very productive because I didn't have chalk and couldn't push myself. The bench was wobbly, the barbell was super rusted. I hate going to ghetto gyms sometimes.

Squats 130kg x 1 x 3, 120kg x 2 x 3
- I didn't really follow any programming on this day for squats because everything just felt off. I accumulated some volume with my warmup sets and reached a top set of 130kg, after which I dropped back down to 120kg. Still getting used to the sleeves which caused some form changes but either way got it done. RPE 9 on top set and RPE 8 on back off sets.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I did pullups x 2 x 8. I can do 8 now!! Haha.

Meet Prep Week 5 Day 1 (1 February 2017)

First day back in Cyberjaya and back in my good old gym. Guess I'm cutting my training sessions from 4 to 3 this week, again. Oh well, can't be helped. I went all out beast mode on this session from all the pent up energy from the holidays. I tried to get some training in Kuching but it just couldn't happen from all the festivities. Besides, my hammies felt 100% now. Back to the grind.

Squats 105kg x 6 x 4
- I finally got used to the new sleeves on this session and the weight moved pretty flawlessly. The sleeves really give a pop in the hole and keeps my knees warm and fuzzy. No more knee pain or fatigue. My quads are more engaged and I feel more power as I drive the weight up. RPE 8 on these. I also changed another small thing in my form this session, which is my grip. I wrap my thumb around the barbell instead of the usual over, shamelessly copying Jesse Norris' grip. It allows for a much tighter back at the sacrifice of my wrist comfort but after putting on my wrist wraps, it works out just fine. Great squatting session. My hips weren't tight like before and my hammies are back to 100% capacity.

Bench Press (touch & go) 70kg x 5 x 5
- I've decided to up my touch & go weight to 70kg. Though I usually AMRAP the last set on these 5x5 benches, I dialed it down and went for the minimum reps only as to save energy and get used to the load better. RPE 7.5 on these. Most difficult part was the hand-off, which if I was without a spotter, I found it was really difficult as the bench hooks are a tad bit too high. Good session nonetheless. I also experimented wearing my belt on 1 of the set and found that it might help my stay a bit tighter when handling bigger weights. Gonna test it out more in the coming weeks.

Squats 95kg x 3 x 8
- Even more squats. The weight was a bit scary at first but it wasn't that difficult. It felt like cardio though. I was left gasping for air for a couple of minutes after every set. Pleased with the 3x8 squats, really reinforces my technique and form. I'm getting better at minimizing my walkout as much as possible, keeping upper back tight AF, hitting depth without going to low, maintaining good control on the descent and driving my feet through the ground to use my legs more. RPE 8.5 on these.

Deadlift (touch & go) 130kg x 3 x 5
- Like I said, only 3 sessions this week so I'm trying to get in as much of the volume work as I can. Deadlifts felt easy this session. Sucks that I forgot my long socks because the bar kept scraping my shins and thighs. Again, I was supposed to AMRAP the last set but dialed it down to minimum to not kill myself. Nothing much to say about deadlift this time around. Weight moved fast and easy. Grip was good. Belt was awesome. RPE 8.5 on these.

Accessories.
- I wanted to do 2 rowing movements on this session but cut it short. Went and did V-Bar Landmine Row 70kg 1 x 10. Just had no energy to go on after that so decided to pack up and head home. Overall great session. Felt like I had a deload over the holidays.

Meet Prep Week 5 Day 2 (2 February 2017)

Brutal session on my back on this day. My erectors have never been this sore in a while. Part of the reason was probably because the belt was a bit too loose. Last night I went ahead and made it a bit tighter, which made me doubt my decision to get an L size instead of an M size belt. Owh well, I'll bulk up again after the meet so no worries.

A little update on the cut and weight class. MPA already replied to me saying that I've been moved to the 67.5kg class, so by hook or by crook, I cannot back down from my cut now. The cut has been going up and down. I've been successful at keeping my weight between the 74kg-75kg range but finding it difficult to break the 74kg barrier. I'm 5 weeks out from reaching my goal weight of 71kg, so I gotta buckle up and lose at least 500 grams a week on average. If I can get to 71kg I can easily water cut 3kg-4kg on competition week. Cutting makes me so anxious.

Alright, on with log.

Bench Press (competition paused) 77.5kg x 3 x 3, 80kg x 2 x 3
- Started the session with max effort bench in the hopes of saving energy for the deadlift. Usually if I deadlift first, my bench suffers but not the other way around. RPE 8.5 on 77.5kg and RPE 9 on 80kg. I'm playing closer and closer to my max and I can feel that it's helping me handle bigger weights. I also had to self lift off on the 80kg sets and I'm proud to say it was quite manageable. It does take away some energy from the actual work so I'll definitely want to have a lift off on meet day. Great bench session. I can feel my form getting more dialed in and more efficient.

Deadlift (deadstop) 145kg x 3 x 3
- I was having grip issue on this session, not because the grip was failing but my hands felt shredded from the knurling. I take care of my hands and remove the callous once they get too big, but it just hurts this session. Powered through it though and didn't get any skin tear. RPE 8.5 on these. Speed was still good. Didn't feel as tight as I wished because the belt was a bit too loose. Can't easily adjust a lever belt, that's the downside.

Paused Deficit Deadlift 120kg x 3 x 3
- This movement felt really brutal on this particular day. I felt the tension in my hammies, my lower back, even my calves. Tried to maintain a 1-2s pause mid shin at a 2" deficit, but I probably paused for much shorter than that. Felt a bit lightheaded at the end of each set, almost blacking out. Supposed to do 115kg but decided to up the weight and I think it's a good decision. 115kg was a bit too light the previous time I did this movement. RPE 9 on these.

Accessories.
- For accessories, I did 2 back movements which I feel are definitely improving and that makes me happy:

- Pull up BW x 2 x 5, 1 x AMRAP=7
- Lat Pulldown 60kg x 2 x 10, 1 x AMRAP=12

Yo check out the OP man, I revamped the entire damn thing to look a bit more pleasing to the eye. It will also serve me better in recording my current stats and programs.

Meet Prep Week 5 Day 3 (3 February 2017)

Decided to try something a little different on this session, might be something I'd like to do every squat days. I basically worked up to a heavy single of RPE9 in the beginning of my workout as a warmup, after that I did my normal squat programming. This is basically a bastardized Bulgarian method of squatting. I feel this will give me more practice in the heavier range as I am currently always is the submaximal range of weights for squats.

Squats 130kg x 1 x 1, 122.5kg x 3 x 3
- Managed to reach a top single of 130kg on this session. Was quite conflicted on calling it RPE9 since the speed out the hole was really fast but it felt heavy as hell on the descent. Either way, I was happy that I could hit 130kg with relative ease. After that I dropped it to my working weight of 122.5kg and those were RPE 8.5 on their own. Sets of triples at heavier weight is no joke. Also, I tightened my belt the night before and now it fits really snug and tight. Quite difficult to latch at times but the support is well worth the effort.

Bench Press (competition paused) 75kg x 5 x 3
- I was supposed to do manpon press but I forgot my yoga foam block in the car. Owh well, no harm in practicing the competition movement more. The weight moved fast and easily, RPE7.5 at the most. I did however encountered some issue in losing a little bit of tightness in the hole as I pause, but I think that's just because I wasn't paying attention. I believe wearing a belt might alleviate that issue but that also means I would need a spotter, which I don't always have. I'll just have to keep in mind and focus on maintaining tightness the entire duration of the movement. Also, I've decided that I'm sticking with pinky on ring width for this meet, ain't no time to practice new form. I will experiment with index on ring width come the next off season after this meet.

Pin Squats 105kg x 3 x 5
- Pin squat is the devil I tell you. It forces you to really slow down your descent as to not slam the barbell into the pin and stay balanced, at the same time it removes any stretch reflex whatsoever so you have to rely entirely on your actual strength. This was a great session, but brutal nonetheless. I've never felt so much soreness on my VMO. RPE death on these. I really recommend this movement as it teaches you depth, balance and just overall strength.

Accessories.
- For accessories I did some more chest workout for the weekend pump and a back workout to complement it:

- Dumbbell Bench Press 30kg x 3 x 10 I used to be able to only do 8 reps on these, now I can do 10. Definitely seeing improvement there.

- Seated Cable Rows (straight handle) 195lbs x 3 x 15 Also improvement in this accessory movement. 15 was my max AMRAP a few months ago, now it's an easy working weight for me. I can't increase weight on the damn cable machine so I can only increase reps. I aim to be able to rep this weight up to 30 reps soon.

This post has been edited by Npad: Feb 7 2017, 02:35 PM

Weight Cut Log (6 February 2017)

So here I am, contemplating if losing weight is worth it. I've been confirmed to be in the U67.5kg class and as of today, I'm still stuck in the 74kg-75kg range, for the past 3 damn weeks. Obviously, something drastic needs to be done. I know exactly where the pitfalls are in my diet currently, it's the dinner at home which I usually have no control over, and the damn late night McD runs (those nuggets and ice creams are too good man).

From the weight loss trend, it seems that the current diet is ideal for a recomp/maintenance as my recovery has been quite fantastic despite the amount of volume I'm doing in the current. This week marks the beginning of the week 6, which is the last week of hypertrophy block, so the plan is to maintain the same exact diet for just 1-2 more weeks depending on how well my recovery goes.

Week 7 is the beginning of my strength block and week 9 is when I begin the peaking block. The plan is right now to maintain the same diet up week 8 or 9 where my training volume will decrease quite significantly. After that I will begin PSMF in the hope of losing about 4-6kg of fat by competition week (Competition date still TBA as of now). Projected duration of this PSMF diet is 2-3 weeks, depending on when the meet is and how bad I'm doing in losing weight. On meet week I will up the calories a bit to go for maintenance to improve recovery, while doing some water/sodium manipulation a.k.a. water cut, and hopefully, make weight on weigh in day. I will make weight damn it!

So the plan for my PSMF is as below:

Plan of attack

Duration: 2-3 weeks
Calories: 800-1000 calories/day
Protein: 160g/day
Carbs: 20g/day (from veggies)
Fat: 20g-30g/day (from protein sources, lean meat is not easy to eat)
Goal: Reach 70kg by competition week. Water cut on competition week and increase calories to just below maintenance level up to 2 days out from weigh in day.

Meal Plan

Breakfast: 2 scoops of ON 100% whey (240cal, 50g protein)
Lunch: Fried chicken & tofu / Grilled lean steak & a bit of veggies (300cal, 35g protein)
Dinner: 2 scoops of ON 100% whey & scrambled egg with 5 egg whites & 1 whole egg (400cal, 75g protein)
Electrolytes: 1500mg-2000mg of sodium & 750mg-1000mg of potassium supplement
Coffee: A shit ton
Water: 2 liters to 3 liters a day, excluding coffee and shakes

As you can see, this is quite a terrible/pathetic looking plan but this is what's been suggested to me in order to maintain/increase my performance. If I start too soon, I risk compromising my strength gains from my current hypertrophy block. I also want to decrease the amount of time I spend doing this, because I know, this is gonna suck balls. Is it worth it though? I don't know man, there are a few monsters in this weight class as well. I might have a shot for 3rd place maybe. Most people would suggest to not bother with weight manipulation unless I have a shot at winning and/or setting world records, but I am of the opinion that there is value in practicing these things. I learned a lot during my last water cut and I'm sure I'll learn a lot about how to be shredded after running this plan, and that is valuable practice for future meets. So, even if I don't win this meet, if I manage to break or even maintain my own PR at a much lower bodyweight that is still a victory in my books. And I'll learn a new skill along the way.

To be completely honest, I have no clue. I have no idea how my body reacts to very little carbs and calories because rarely have I done that before. From what I've read online and what others have suggested, this seems to be a good practice to do around the end of a strength block and the beginning of a peaking block, which is when I'm aiming to do this. The volume is very low compared to now. For example, currently in hypertrophy block I'm doing about 7000 kg worth of squat volume a week. On peaking block I'll be doing about 3000 kg of volume, and it goes down by 1000kg of volume a week, which is a very significant decrease in energy and recovery demands. I'll keep the log updated about the diet and we'll see how it goes. Keeping my fingers crossed through.

Yup, that is my concern as well. I just have a lot of fat to lose so I might have some buffer there, the slow and steady method of fat loss is just stalling really badly for me currently. We'll see, if I succeed then this can be a guide for others. If I fail, then we can all learn what not to do. Worst thing that can happen is I don't make weight, no big deal.

Meet Prep Week 6 Day 1 (6 February 2017)

I'm bolding the title from now on, it just looks cooler.

I continued doing what I did last week on squats by doing heavy singles up to RPE 9 before going into my working set. Oh ya, and I bought new shoes specifically for squats. Well, its not Romaleos or Adipower or even Sabo, just a pair of Admiral futsal shoes but the stability it provides compared to chucks is way better. And it's red. Now all my gear is color coordinated. Woohoo!

Squats 135kg x 1 x 1, 107.5kg x 7 x 3
- 135kg was my gym 1RM since August last year. I hit it twice in the gym on 2 separate occasions (both felt like death) and missed it on my previous meet, so it was with great pleasure that I was able to hit this as a top single of the day. It was surprisingly very easy. Walkout was perfect (3 steps walkout), depth was very low (I think I went 2" below parallel), speed was really fast. Adding the heavy singles was a great idea, it really gets me accustomed to handling bigger weights. The working set went really fast as well, 107.5kg moved at RPE 7.5. Overall very pleased with this squat session. Turns out, good shoes, good belt, and good knee sleeves really do make a difference. Too bad I didn't bring my tripod to record the set. I'll be sure to bring it the next squats session this week as I'll attempt to break this PR.

Bench Press (touch & go) 70kg x 4 x 5, 1 x AMRAP=9
- Bench felt a bit off on this session. It was probably the shoes as I wasn't that used to the way it grips the floor, or something, I don't know. But it just felt really heavy in my hands the entire workout. My leg drive wasn't up to par and my upper back wasn't as tight as I want it to be, also felt really fatigued from squats. Oh well, it happens. RPE 8.5 on these. I was able to salvage the terrible session by going AMRAP=9 on the last set which is a rep PR for me at this weight.

Squats 97.5kg x 3 x 8
- This was the worst sets of 8's I've ever felt. While my conditioning has improved, the added heavy singles in the beginning of the session and the general lack of energy from going at a caloric deficit really zapped my energy to abysmal levels. By the last set, it was REP10 for me and it took all the testicular fortitude I could muster in order to finish the set. I was a heaving by the end of it, gasping for breath. The weight did move well though. The speed slowed down by the last set and the last reps, but the form didn't break down significantly. Overall, I hated this but it was good. Thank God this is the last time I'm doing this torturous shit, finally done with hypertrophy block this week.

Accessories.
- For accessories I did Lat Pulldown 65kg x 3 x 10. I was supposed to do some landmine rows as well but my body wasn't having none of, so I packed up and went home shortly after.

This post has been edited by Npad: Feb 7 2017, 09:09 AM

Thanks man. I'll definitely write up a meet report once it's done. And also weigh in report. I'm so damn excited for this meet.