Nice! Again, I think I may need to shop for SSB. I have not been able to squat in 4 years. Maybe that would allow it?.... Nice work.VERY good form. My advice, is I would ditch mixed grip. Deads are a tremendous back/lat builder. That is how I built my back. Your underhand side has significantly less lat activation. (as shown in emg study). I only use(d) mixed grip when getting ready for a meet, and only on singles or doubles. When you get up very high in weight you start tearing off callouses at higher reps. Your back development will thank you. If you want to train grip, throw in a few sets. But I never failed a DL because I could not hold the weight, and 95% of my lifts were done in training with straps.Really nice shape man. Fantastic!
Nice. Always live a PR! Advice is keep elbows tucked if you still want your shoulder to work at my age. You can see as your form is breaking you are rotating out your shoulder. This is pretty dangerous and something you cant afford as you progress in weight. Over time, I would not compromise form to grind out the rep. That is how you get hurt.

Dave Tate on youtube had a great 5 part bench series. So you think you can bench. Look it up and I bet you have more strength on tap. Nice work though! Just dont want to see you hurt your shoulders. (been there done that!)That is cool that you say you can see a big difference. I appreciate that. But dont forget there is also 7 years more of training. I see maturity, but I dont see large mass changes. More 'quality/density'. I wish I saw more difference, as it is kind of disheartening personally. But I was never willing to do what many consider upping doses for results that would at best be temporary. If I cant maintain my physique on natural levels of hormones, I have no interest in being dependent on supraphysiological levels to get me there.

These are probably two images that bummed me out when initially comparing.

The first was still lifetime natty and about 10 years ago.
2nd pic was 2 years ago so 8 years had passed and about 7 after turning in natty card.

Maybe my eye is not trained enough, but I dont "see" a huge difference. There is a difference of about 7-8lbs LBM though. I am leaner in the recent pic and both pics were within a few lbs scale weight of each other, but in the latter I have a touch more lbm. The increase in LBM was not measurable with a tape. My arms were technically smaller in 2nd pic. When you get down to differences like this over 8 years, it is tough to really judge them.

BUT never did I say it did not have a impact. I indeed confirmed that I dont believe I could have carried 200lean totally natural.







Great overall. Goals?I have ALWAYS been IIFYM and never used cardio to lose weight. I have not tracked or planned macros for the past 5-6 years as I gave up eating surplus/deficit. For my first 5 years back, I was always eating a surplus and gaining 30+lbs and then cutting back down. Over and over and over. I never stayed the same weight 2 weeks in a row. That is what is necessary to grow as you approach your limits.

I just stay in shape now totally through intake control. Last 4 years I have been using IF. This last 1.5 I do several harder fasts on non-workout days. (20-22hr with OMAD).

I DONT recommend this if you have progress to make. FOOD is the best tool you have at your disposal and 2-3 years into training, you have to force your body to grow by structured surplus. I am a fan of small ones which require dedication EVERY DAY. I would run 250 cals as it is about as small as you can accurately track . And that is prepping ALL your food and weighing everything.

When you get to where I am there is really no progress to be made. So I can adopt eating strategies that I would not otherwise consider in the past. My goals were always to maximize strength and mass. FOOD is number 1 on that, workouts are secondary. Some of my best progress was on 3/week workouts when training lifetime natty. I still believe that training for increases in strength in 3-12 range and eating is the best way to put on quality muscle. I NEVER did iso work. No a days I will do a dumbbell curl, sure, but it is still the sprinkle on the top of the sundae. ALL my workouts are based on compound movements.

I dont remember exactly but I think in the pics I'm thinking of you were wearing stripped shorts and doing either a side chest and tris or side chest and biceps and there was an obvious difference in your arms, delts and traps. Either way you looked insane as a natty and still do.

I know the pics you are talking about.

I think you are not understanding the time frame on them.

-First pic was me at 21. 3 years into training.

-SECOND pic wasfirst 3 months back training after a DECADE off,losing 30+ lbs and gaining back a ton of mass in crazy time. I think I was about 179-182 in that pic. (i put on the same shorts I had in a moving box from when I was 21). By the end of 8 more months of training, I was back holding 195 or 12 lbs more than that initial results pic.

-Third pic was (really good lighting) and 3 years ago. so 8 years or so after my initial pic.




Below that is one of my last nattie pics so that would be 2 or 3 years after the 2nd pic. Getting this lean was costly for me mass wise, but I wanted to do it. I was also hypo gonadal and did not know it at time so maybe I would have held more mass w/ normal test levels. Never know. Anyway, I know what cutting hard would cost me mass wise before, and for me, that is the biggest difference I see. But my non=nattie is a little different than many. I dont ever want to rely on drugs for any progress and at my age, I am not willing to 'up the dose' to get results so I just 'stay in shape' these days the best I can.

Gonna start training again soon. Been getting my tan on in the bahamers

Working on my L-sits

10 rounds:

L-sit 10 seconds on

20 seconds rest

I agree that progressing on compound movements is the best way to gain size/strength, however, most people are going to need to do at least a small amount of iso work to acheive decent results. This is not to discount your hard work, that part is obvious, but let's be real here, you are a genetic specimen. Many people could train their entire lives and never look as good as you did at 21, much less peak natty status. (Most people wouldn't get to that level even with gear TBH)

We are all different. I am blessed with a good training response. I just dont have an 'aesthetic' physique. Wide waisted and narrow shoulders. But I am built to be strong.

But no one has any idea of the training potential till they put the work in. Below is a pic of me at 18 and 140lbs. No one would look at this pic and think I had good genetics to train. I could not even bench my body weight first day in the gym.

But I disagree on the importance of ISO. Sure do it. Maybe a few sets, but I think what puts on mass naturally is quite different than what you gain mass on with gear. I would say no more than 5 or 10% of your workouts devoted to it. I cant say for sure, but from my years in the gym, and real life outside the gym, getting stronger over time while eating is the best way to gain 'real' mass. Not 'pump', glycogen storage mass which is basically temporary.

I take inspiration from the guys from the 40's and 50's. Even after turning in my natty card, I still trained (until I could no longer train heavy) like I had in the past. Just come to believe that strength based training (while eating for your goals) is the best way to maximize natural gains. I dont believe in supersets, drop sets, squat till you puke etc. Not saying there is not a place for those things, I just would not build my workouts around them. They can be the sprinkles on the sundae.

the deal is there is lifting weights and there is training muscles

a compound movement can do one, the other, neither, or both, depending on what you are doing

the vast majority of people will not train the specific muscle they want beyond a point doing compound free weight movements. Eventually most need isolation work to advance their PHYSIQUE.

Most people also wont though and thats why their physiques stop advancing and they stick to S/B/D until they die.

but some people just have completely perfect muscle engagement in their compounds throung internal cues, external cues, joint alingment, movement patterns, etc... that they get a lot of hypertrophy stimulus out of them. I could manipulate my SBD to grow a lot but it would only be because I have advanced knoweldge and practice HOW to manipulate like that, and very very few intermediate or advanced lifters do.

Interesting thoughts. And I can see some validity in it. Definitely have seen some odd frames over the years that make someone very good at one movement over another...etc.

In that way I would say I was lucky and that I was not great at any one movement, but good in all. Meaning on a scale my (relative) bench, squat and dead numbers were good overall, but no one exercise stood out as being REALLY good if that makes sense.

But I am not so sure iso allows for the quality of contraction and tension on muscles (without injury) that compound movements do. That is one reason that I believe they have the advantage. Even to this day, I will strain a bicep tendon trying to curl too much weight, but that wont happen in even the heaviest row.

I can appreciate different approaches. Most 'bodybuilders' drop nattie status pretty quickly. Since I was never a bodybuilder, I did not care. Over the length of my life, I have met more (actual) natural lifters/power lifters who stay natural for 20+ years vs guys who identify as bodybuilders. So the experience I have seen, is most guys who trained for strength their whole lives (and stay natural) have more quality mass than the natural bodybuilders who have followed bodybuilding principal workouts their lives.

Frankly I was surprised at how much musculature I had after dieting down and had no idea I would actually look like I do. And the comment I get from many people with a lot of experience is that I look different than many in the 'quality' and 'density' of what muscle I do have. I attribute that the heavy lifting.

But I could be wrong. I do know that with 'help' there are all different types of training that will allow you to grow and even FAR beyond the biggest I have ever achieved. I just dont know anything about that so it is hard for me to say.

That's why you're not supposed to go super heavy on curls or lateral raises. Every time I see someone at the gym "curling" 50 lb dumbbells or more I cringe.

Like everyone, I'd like to get leaner, but overall stay in shape for my kids.

Well I'd say you got that for sure! Most 'dads' are not looking like you do. Nice job! Only constructive criticism I might have is back is not quite up to the rest of your upper. But you look great!

THURS is leg day for me. Kinda flat today but small flexing shot. Lost some size in legs over last 3-4 years. Have not really been able to squat (despite trying many times).
Not super happy, but is what it is....

Pressed for time tonight but I got in some front squats, kettlebell swings and overhead ext.

Good stuff everyone!

So wish I could do front squats. Unfortunately, it is not in the cards for me. Since the 4 years since my spinal injury I have made 3 or 4 attempts at bringing back squatting. All end in failure, but I am motivated to try again. I started tonight with some light no-handed. I know the no-handed thing is weird to people, but it forces 100% attention on form and balance.

I am going to stay very light for a while and see what happens. I just dont want to deal with it if I hurt my back again. It sets me back so hard, and really sucks. So I did a few sets of this tonight. Nothing impressive, but first time under a bar in a year +.

[QUOTE=induced_drag post_id=1666762203]So wish I could do front squats. Unfortunately, it is not in the cards for me. Since the 4 years since my spinal injury I have made 3 or 4 attempts at bringing back squatting. All end in failure, but I am motivated to try again. I started tonight with some light no-handed. I know the no-handed thing is weird to people, but it forces 100% attention on form and balance.

I am going to stay very light for a while and see what happens. I just dont want to deal with it if I hurt my back again. It sets me back so hard, and really sucks. So I did a few sets of this tonight. Nothing impressive, but first time under a bar in a year +.


[youtube][/QUOTE]I mentioned a quality SSB but it still puts pressure on the spine. Maybe invest in a belted squat? That is my second exercise and it takes the spine out a nd places the pressure on the hips. Totally safe and major focus on quads. Then I switch the belt for a grip for SLDLs.

Appreciate it.

A Degenerative disc issue keeps me from deadlifting frequently or heavy. Only lift I've ever found to grow my back back. I definitely should do more pull-ups.

Rack Pulls? TBar rows, Landmine rows, Chest supported DB rows? Cable rows? I stopped deadlifting since my rupture in 2012

https://imgur.com/a/Ug5JfEI

Ok chest pump I had

Did upper today on my lunch break. Band bicep curls, DB rows, lateral raises and kickbacks.

Here I am contemplating life and why I hate myself on the final rep of 20...



Feel pretty ok about this back pic though even if I have no fkn clue how to pose.

[QUOTE=78novacaine post_id=1666810403]Here I am contemplating life and why I hate myself on the final rep of 20...

[eg[/img][/QUOTE]What exercise? Reps of 20 on anything really sucks.

I don't care what you look like. How well do you perform in a situation where you can GAS OUT? Your looks are useless if you actually have to USE YOUR BODY.

[QUOTE=induced_drag post_id=1666762203]Nothing impressive, but first time under a bar in a year

[youtube]WrJd85nFT6M[youtube][/QUOTE]Get a rogue or pit shark belt squat. Removes the weight off the spine

Deadlifts, lol.

That look when you just had a quick heart to heart with Jesus to get through a 20 rep SSB set and he let ya make it...

Yup, that's me. You're probably wondering how I got in this situation. To tell you the truth I'm not sure myself. I just kinda woke up one day and decided I was going to do 20 rep sets on all my main lifts for this training block. 325×20 deads tonight fukk my life that sucked...

blowing some dust off thread. Late workout tonight. Getting a little lax with food intake. May let my BF start coming up a bit more, but torn.... Want to turn 50 in best shape of my life, but that is only 5 months away.

Sick forearms. My avi is from todays session.

FOREARMS?! Everything IN that pic looks sick. I'm currently 46 and could only hope to look anything like that when I turn 50.

I'm already questioning whether I can put on more size at my age let one get to that level.
Great work man.