Cohiba's Journey from Skinny Fat

[CohibaRobusto]

198 lbs this morning. 1.5 hrs at the gym. 4,780 calories yesterday.

30 decline situps
3 mins shoulder stretching
Hammer str shoulder press 25x15, 170x8, 6, 5, 4
Side lateral raises 25'sx13, 11, 9, 8
Front lateral raises 25'sx11, 8, 8, 6
30 decline situps
Db shrugs 75'sx12, 11, 80'sx8, 7
reverse cable crossovers ab high pulleys 12.5x14, 10, 8, 5
cable external rotation 14x14, 13, 15.5x8
cable internal rotation 25.5x16, 27.5x10, 9
25 decline situps

Strength gains are still going well, diet seems good, not sure why I haven't gained weight the past few weeks.

 

[Skullcrusher]

Not sure how many days a week you are training...maybe you could use some recovery time?

I trust in variety, volume, and plenty of recovery.

 

[CohibaRobusto]

Not sure how many days a week you are training...maybe you could use some recovery time?

I trust in variety, volume, and plenty of recovery.

5 days a week right now. I think I have my recovery timed pretty well these days, but who knows. I could go down to 4 days and a bro split (which I did last year during hunting season, but it didn't help me natural). But I like having a dedicated arm day because I have extremely skinny ****ing arms and I feel like they need that, and that kind of requires me to do a 5 day routine.

So it usually looks like this:

Back day
Chest day
Leg day
*rest day*
Shoulder day
Arm day
*rest day*

-repeat-

I'm open to other suggestions. I'm working with a trainer again now as of last week, so I'm hoping she can help me out.

Also the hormonal/androgenic dietary supplements seem to have me recovering crazy fast right now. I never seem to get sore for very long.

I'm kind of holding out hope that the size gains are gonna catch up to the strength gains here soon. I mean, I wouldn't think I could keep gaining strength for so long without some size coming along with it.

 

[Thatgoodfellow]

198 lbs this morning. 1.5 hrs at the gym. 4,780 calories yesterday.

30 decline situps
3 mins shoulder stretching
Hammer str shoulder press 25x15, 170x8, 6, 5, 4
Side lateral raises 25'sx13, 11, 9, 8
Front lateral raises 25'sx11, 8, 8, 6
30 decline situps
Db shrugs 75'sx12, 11, 80'sx8, 7
reverse cable crossovers ab high pulleys 12.5x14, 10, 8, 5
cable external rotation 14x14, 13, 15.5x8
cable internal rotation 25.5x16, 27.5x10, 9
25 decline situps

Strength gains are still going well, diet seems good, not sure why I haven't gained weight the past few weeks.

damn man I just re-read the beginning of your thread and you have put on almost 35 lbs in about 7 months. That’s awesome.

Maybe you will have to tweak some things to get your body to adapt again to continue making muscle and putting on weight. I’m not super educated on diets but you could try looking into a reverse diet for a bit then ramp calories back up. Throw a different stimulus at it.

 

[CJ]

I wouldnt worry about your weight gain stalling out. You're still getting stronger, so that's a good sign that you're doing something right.

Plus, winter is coming. We tend to lower our activity levels during that time, so there's a good chance that the weight gain will start back up again.

Even if you spend the next couple of months "growing" into your new weight, solidifying it, that's a good thing.

 

[CJ]

I'm kind of holding out hope that the size gains are gonna catch up to the strength gains here soon. I mean, I wouldn't think I could keep gaining strength for so long without some size coming along with it.

Maybe it's time to make some small changes. If it's been awhile, you could adjust the rep ranges you're doing or the exercises/order of exercises that you're doing.

It doesn't have to be drastic changes, subtle adjustments can be enough to move the needle.

 

[CohibaRobusto]

damn man I just re-read the beginning of your thread and you have put on almost 35 lbs in about 7 months. That’s awesome.

Maybe you will have to tweak some things to get your body to adapt again to continue making muscle and putting on weight. I’m not super educated on diets but you could try looking into a reverse diet for a bit then ramp calories back up. Throw a different stimulus at it.

Well, 25#, but yeah I know right, that is still a lot for that amount of time.. I need to look at the big picture here. And I have a feeling that next time I take some measurements I will see progress.

 

[CohibaRobusto]

Maybe it's time to make some small changes. If it's been awhile, you could adjust the rep ranges you're doing or the exercises/order of exercises that you're doing.

It doesn't have to be drastic changes, subtle adjustments can be enough to move the needle.

You're absolutely right CJ because I have been doing some stuff like this when I feel stuck and it has helped me progress a lot.

I was really having trouble progressing on bb overhead presses, so I got on the hammer strength shoulder press and started doing lower rep range, heavier weight. Next thing you know I was progressing again.

Same with changing up my bench press routine, and chest has been an issue for me since I first came on here. Now I'm finally making progress there. I can't tell you how long I was stuck at the same weights on bench press for. Made me wanna quit lol.

 

[chandy]

Well, 25#, but yeah I know right, that is still a lot for that amount of time.. I need to look at the big picture here. And I have a feeling that next time I take some measurements I will see progress.

Im sure once u compare 7months ago to ur latest one u will notice a big difference. People tend to not really see the differences in themselves until they really compare it

 

[CJ]

You're absolutely right CJ because I have been doing some stuff like this when I feel stuck and it has helped me progress a lot.

I was really having trouble progressing on bb overhead presses, so I got on the hammer strength shoulder press and started doing lower rep range, heavier weight. Next thing you know I was progressing again.

Same with changing up my bench press routine, and chest has been an issue for me since I first came on here. Now I'm finally making progress there. I can't tell you how long I was stuck at the same weights on bench press for. Made me wanna quit lol.

Yeah, it doesn't have to be crazy changes either. It can be as simple as adjusting your grip, or putting a plate under one side of your bench to alter the angle slightly, or even just changing the order.

You'll figure out which exercises work best for you, that just feel right. Don't stray too far away from them, makes no sense doing an exercise that doesn't fit you, just for the sake of changing things up.

 

[Skullcrusher]

5 days a week right now. I think I have my recovery timed pretty well these days, but who knows. I could go down to 4 days and a bro split (which I did last year during hunting season, but it didn't help me natural). But I like having a dedicated arm day because I have extremely skinny ****ing arms and I feel like they need that, and that kind of requires me to do a 5 day routine.

So it usually looks like this:

Back day
Chest day
Leg day
*rest day*
Shoulder day
Arm day
*rest day*

-repeat-

I'm open to other suggestions. I'm working with a trainer again now as of last week, so I'm hoping she can help me out.

Also the hormonal/androgenic dietary supplements seem to have me recovering crazy fast right now. I never seem to get sore for very long.

I'm kind of holding out hope that the size gains are gonna catch up to the strength gains here soon. I mean, I wouldn't think I could keep gaining strength for so long without some size coming along with it.

I set up my workout based off of the big 3, bench press, squat, and deadlift. I stubbornly tried to keep back and biceps separate for a long time. But if you read through some of my back exercise muscles I listed out you can see that the biceps get worked as synergists even though they are not the target muscles. When you do bench presses you will be working your triceps and anterior deltoids. So that's why I arranged it the way I did. Deadlifts are tricky because they are almost a perfect balance between back and legs.

Mon = chest, triceps, lats, anterior delts
Wed = abs, legs
Fri = back, lateral/posterior delts, biceps, forearms (my arm day)

I wanted my biceps last to give them the most recovery time to grow since biceps are stubborn.

The reason I go through the trouble of listing out all the muscles I am hitting is so that I will know how much recovery time I am getting for each muscle.

Recovery time is usually 48 to 72 hours depending on age, stress, sleep, etc.

Our muscles grow while we rest, especially during sleep...we want them to grow!

Only you can figure out how much recovery time you need though.

 

[CohibaRobusto]

199 lbs this morning.

Dip Assist 20x12, 0x7, 5
cable tricep pushdown 75x12, 10, 8
db overhead tricep ext 60x9, 8, 5
Ez bar curl 75x12, 10, 6
Alternating db curls 30'sx10, 6, 25'sx12, 20'sx12, 15'sx20
db wrist curls 30'sx12, 10, 8
reverse bb wrist curls 25x14, 11, 9

4k calories yesterday

 

[CohibaRobusto]

198 lbs this morning. 1:45 hrs at the gym today

21 back extensions
pullup assist 50x12, 40x8, 30x6, 20x3, 0x2
db lat pullovers 65x11, 8, 6
20 back extensions
hammer str iso row 115/s x 12, 10, 8, 6
cable seated low row 140x14, 145x10, 150x7, 6
17 back extensions
seated face pulls 65x12, 10, 9
reverse cable crossovers shoulder height 14x10, 12.5x9, 6, high pulleys 10.5x15, 11, 10, 9
Treadmill 3.6mph x 15 mins

3600 calories yesterday

 

[CohibaRobusto]

Food logs from the last 2 weeks:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1PVfa7GExbqCEUjXANmEGnSAUMZKBQgo1?usp=sharing

 

[CohibaRobusto]

I set up my workout based off of the big 3, bench press, squat, and deadlift. I stubbornly tried to keep back and biceps separate for a long time. But if you read through some of my back exercise muscles I listed out you can see that the biceps get worked as synergists even though they are not the target muscles. When you do bench presses you will be working your triceps and anterior deltoids. So that's why I arranged it the way I did. Deadlifts are tricky because they are almost a perfect balance between back and legs.

Mon = chest, triceps, lats, anterior delts
Wed = abs, legs
Fri = back, lateral/posterior delts, biceps, forearms (my arm day)

I wanted my biceps last to give them the most recovery time to grow since biceps are stubborn.

The reason I go through the trouble of listing out all the muscles I am hitting is so that I will know how much recovery time I am getting for each muscle.

Recovery time is usually 48 to 72 hours depending on age, stress, sleep, etc.

Our muscles grow while we rest, especially during sleep...we want them to grow!

Only you can figure out how much recovery time you need though.

That's cool, I couldn't do 3 days a week mainly because I need to be in the habit of going and pushing myself. I've been really skinny my whole life, so I have this nagging mentality that I'm going to have to work harder than everybody else, and it may be dumb, but it helps keep me driven for some reason. I do better mentally as the underdog. Things that I'm naturally good at (and there aren't many LOL) I can succeed at without as much time investment.

I will probably go down to 4 days a week during hunting season again this year because hunting sucks up a lot of my time. It will probably look like this:

Chest and Tri's
Back and Bi's
Legs
Shoulders

I really appreciate your feedback and following along man. I like the stuff you post.

 

[Skullcrusher]

Politics aside, I took an interest in you because we both became new members around the same time. We both are coming from a skinny fat body type with similar weight. When you make progress I can find it inspiring for myself. If we did not care about our bodies we would not be trying to grow muscles. I genuinely care about your progress. So I will just recommend that you ask to read the insert that accompanies the actual vaccine and then form your own decision. I will leave that alone now!

Back to muscles. I am not recommending you to change number of days just because I am only doing 3. But...you may want to arrange your exercises in a way that allows each muscle the most recovery. I think you mentioned that you have a trainer(?) so I am assuming that the trainer knows what they are doing...hopefully.

I'm doing some serious volume. Still feeling what I did on my leg day. My recovery time is not as quick as yours. I can lift heavier and do less volume but I am more focused on doing quality controlled reps with more time under tension. I raise weight on exercises with no failed sets every other week. Only muscles lagging for me are biceps...which is making me consider adding a 4th day.

Something I learned that may be of use to you, mTOR is a kinase enzyme that regulates the growth of muscle. Basically, mTOR is the "master regulator" of muscle cell protein synthesis, and for arms you can boost it by doing deadlifts before biceps. Too much volume will impair mTor.

A tool I found for measuring body fat percentage:
http://fitness.bizcalcs.com/Calculator.asp?Calc=Body-Fat-Navy#LinkToThis

I have not taken my measurements yet, but this has been said to be the most accurate at home method in determining body fat %.

 

[CohibaRobusto]

Awww Freakin hell

 

[CohibaRobusto]

Politics aside, I took an interest in you because we both became new members around the same time. We both are coming from a skinny fat body type with similar weight. When you make progress I can find it inspiring for myself. If we did not care about our bodies we would not be trying to grow muscles. I genuinely care about your progress. So I will just recommend that you ask to read the insert that accompanies the actual vaccine and then form your own decision. I will leave that alone now!

Hah! Thanks for lookin out for me bro.

Back to muscles. I am not recommending you to change number of days just because I am only doing 3.

Yeah I didn't take it that way.

But...you may want to arrange your exercises in a way that allows each muscle the most recovery. I think you mentioned that you have a trainer(?) so I am assuming that the trainer knows what they are doing...hopefully.

Yeah I have 2 I work with periodically, one is a guy who is just an experienced trainer, the other one I'm working with (right now) is an experienced female bodybuilder/trainer nutritionist. I think they are good, but I'd like to find one that is a male bodybuilder also.

I'm doing some serious volume. Still feeling what I did on my leg day. My recovery time is not as quick as yours. I can lift heavier and do less volume but I am more focused on doing quality controlled reps with more time under tension. I raise weight on exercises with no failed sets every other week. Only muscles lagging for me are biceps...which is making me consider adding a 4th day.

I try to focus on quality controlled reps too. I see a lot of people swinging db's around at the gym, and I was kinda taught to use a weight you can do a controlled rep with.

Something I learned that may be of use to you, mTOR is a kinase enzyme that regulates the growth of muscle. Basically, mTOR is the "master regulator" of muscle cell protein synthesis, and for arms you can boost it by doing deadlifts before biceps. Too much volume will impair mTor.

A tool I found for measuring body fat percentage:
http://fitness.bizcalcs.com/Calculator.asp?Calc=Body-Fat-Navy#LinkToThis

I have not taken my measurements yet, but this has been said to be the most accurate at home method in determining body fat %.

Sounds good, I'll read up on all that. Thanks again man.

 

[Gibsonator]

Good job man, with the work ur putting in and keeping your log going so you stay accountable.

 

[CohibaRobusto]

196 lbs this morning, 4,150 calories yesterday, 2 hrs at the gym today.

1 min jump rope
flat bb bench press 135x10, 155x6, 165x4, 4, 185x0, 135x8
incline db press 45'sx12, 50'sx9, 8, 6
pec deck fly 210x10, 9, 7, 6
cable crossovers high pulleys 25x 12, 10, 8, 7
reverse shrugs 12, 11, 10, 8
nautilus vertical chest 65x15, 80x12, 95x8, 8
treadmill 15 mins x 3.7 mph 2.5%inc

Didn't do as good on flat bench as I did last week for some reason, I think I might have a bit of a sinus infection going on.

Hurricane coming through Nola tomorrow, fun times lol. Hunker down!