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New Member Log - Power Lifting Focus

SwolyGinger

Member
Member
Hey guys,

Thought I would start a log on the site, even if't is just for my own reference later on down the road. I have created the cycle based on feedback from the forum and as some of you may know from my first post, I had a couple half ass cycles before where I had run small doses and for short (ineffective) amounts of time. This time it is on point and I'm really looking forward to see what I can produce on my first real cycle.

I had started lifting/running 15 years ago to lose a lot of weight and have been seriously lifting for over 10 years. Waited a very long time to take steroids and have a fairly sturdy base to work from. First cycle is still very mild but look to add a compound every cycle afterward and see what works best for me in the future.

My lifts are by no means impressive but I have been working on them for quite some time and would really like to get to a 1500 pound total and compete someday. I've always been nervous competing and prefer to only compete with myself in the gym, but this would be something for the bucket list and to prove to myself I can compete (albeit at a non competitive level).

I won't get too specific with my training, just the good stuff. I'm going to start at 3500 calories, 40/40/20, and make adjustments as necessary. It has done well for me in the past.

Stats:
Age: 29
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 205lbs
BF: ~11-12%
Lifting Experience: 10+ years

Cycle:
Weeks 1-12: Test E (400mg)
Weeks 1-6: TBol (50mg split twice daily)
Weeks 1-8: Organ support (also split twice daily, offset from when taking tbol)
Weeks 1-12: Ostarine (MK2866) - 20mg ED
Weeks 1-12: Cardarine (GW501516) - 20mg ED
Weeks 1-12: Aromasin 12.5mg - Every 2-3 days

Current Lifts:
Bench - 350
Squat - 405 (lagging because of knee issues)
Deadlift - 500

Goals:
Bench - 385+
Squat - 455 (depending how the knee holds up)
Deadlift - 545+

These goals would get me within striking distance of that 1500 I'm after.

I did a few max effort lifts (for reps) at the beginning of the cycle to gauge my base. Keep in mind I haven't trained for power lifting in a few months up to this point. I had been over doing it for a while and needed to take several months off to do some bodybuilding and build my base. Here they are:

Week 1:
Flat bench max reps 275lb - 8 reps
Deadlift max reps 365 - 9 reps
Squat - Did not test any high weight on squat yet. Only doing light weight with the hip circle to get my knees moving and used to the load again. It felt great and have had no issues yet.

Week 2:
Unfortunately got very sick for majority of this week and wasn't able to make much progress and when I was able to go back I did light weight, lots of reps.

Week 3:
Energy was phenomenal at the end of this week, being sick might have been a blessing in disguise, feeling laser focused.

Deadlift (conventional): 385 x 12 - started getting an insane back pump from the start of the workout and knew it was only going to get worse so I worked up quickly to a max set of 12. Not what I had planned (4x8) but it moved so well and fast considering I've done no speed work or legitimate pulls in months (had mainly been doing stiff leg prior). This has definitely paid off.
-I finished this day with some pulls to stretch my back and lats out, but even those were uncomfortable, never had a back pump that serious.

Bench 275 4x8 - Another crazy increase for me. Just a few weeks back I struggled to get 1x8 at this weight. Now hitting it clean for 4 sets.
-Incline 205 3x12
-Dips 5x20
-Flyes 3x20

I plan to start cutting some of the accessory work after the big lifts depending on the intensity for the day and move it to it's own accessory day. My focus will definitely be on deadlift/bench and the goal for squats is to keep things light and controlled. The strength will come, but only if I stay smart and don't overdo it right away.

Long first post - they will be much shorter from here on out!
 
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Good luck with your cycle bro. For your strength goals, S4 would be a great addition as well
 
Good luck with your cycle bro. For your strength goals, S4 would be a great addition as well

I was thinking LGD/Rad/S4 as a potential bridge after this cycle to maximize my strength and carry over followed by a mini PCT. Or MK/GW/S4 as more of a recomp bridge instead, before the next cycle. I will probably play it by year and see how the PCT after this cycle goes. If I can maintain a lot of what I've gained then I will do the recomp cycle. If I find I've started to lose a fair bit of power I may go with the LGD/Rad/S4 stack because ideally I would like to do this cycle and one more then hopefully compete and go for my 1500 pound total. Is that LGD stack ideal for someone with strength as their number one goal? thanks, Rick!
 
Looking forward to this log buddy.

Thanks brotha! My biggest problem in the past has been over training because I have always had very good endurance and didn't know when to quit. Main reason I've done some damage to my joints. So I constantly have to remind myself to not over train and cut myself off. Diet has also been very solid. So far I've been on point and that won't be changing. Hopefully some big PR's in the future.

I didn't mention this earlier but I would also like to get up to a lean 210-215 BW after PCT. BW is by no means my main goal or my measuring stick, but I would like to put on some size. Do you guys think that is an unrealistic goal? I realize this is going to be one of those "I'm not a psychic questions" and everyone is different. However being newer to the game and not knowing where to set my expectations is a reality and i thought maybe some of you guys could share your experiences of the most you've made of a cycle (most you've kept). I was 205 and quite lean beforehand and I am now sitting at 214. I started ramping up my calories a few weeks before the cycle in preparation to dial things in and have been at a ~500 calorie surplus for 6 weeks. I figured that the math adds up with a little bit of water weight and the additional calories over 6 weeks.
 
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Looks good. I have not not tried s4 yet ( still on lgd bandwagon, but really need to stack them) but buddies who have all really like it.
 
Looks good. I have not not tried s4 yet ( still on lgd bandwagon, but really need to stack them) but buddies who have all really like it.

Yeah, s4 visual sides worry me, mainly because my night vision is already shit. But you don't know until you try which is why it will be in either sarm stack as it's the number one sarm I haven't tried that I would like to. How has LGD done for you? How did you run it, beside a cycle or sarm stack?
 
I was thinking LGD/Rad/S4 as a potential bridge after this cycle to maximize my strength and carry over followed by a mini PCT. Or MK/GW/S4 as more of a recomp bridge instead, before the next cycle. I will probably play it by year and see how the PCT after this cycle goes. If I can maintain a lot of what I've gained then I will do the recomp cycle. If I find I've started to lose a fair bit of power I may go with the LGD/Rad/S4 stack because ideally I would like to do this cycle and one more then hopefully compete and go for my 1500 pound total. Is that LGD stack ideal for someone with strength as their number one goal? thanks, Rick!
Honestly S4 is the best sarm for strength, but Lgd and rad are also very good as well
 
I been keeping active on forums seeing different cycles everyone is running and what feed back some of the veterans have been giving. Is there any reason to run sarms with AAS? Especially I feel like PCT is so important that would you want to reap the benefits of SARMs for recovery than on cycle performance?

I'm just curious what everyone's opinion on this idea would be.
 
I been keeping active on forums seeing different cycles everyone is running and what feed back some of the veterans have been giving. Is there any reason to run sarms with AAS? Especially I feel like PCT is so important that would you want to reap the benefits of SARMs for recovery than on cycle performance?

I'm just curious what everyone's opinion on this idea would be.

I wanted to run MK and GW because of the general health benefits they provide, mainly the potential help with joints and endurance. I started this cycle with my elbow giving me some problems and consistent knee issues my entire life. However, the elbow is actually slowly going away with rolling it out, some ibu at night, ice and voltarin which is my typical protocol for inflammation and joint issues. This was only helping keep it at bay before, however now with my weights increasing, it is actually getting better. Call it placebo, but something is working because this elbows been nagging at me for a few months prior to starting the cycle. I'm only 3 weeks in and no where near their peak of course. I don't know how common it is to throw sarms in aas cycles, but I liked the idea of GW and MK during and I think it is going to work out nicely.

Rick - Could I keep running the GW and MK all the way through to and during PCT or would 18 weeks be too long for the MK? Thanks man.
 
Honestly S4 is the best sarm for strength, but Lgd and rad are also very good as well

Yeah, the S4 is in both cycles no matter which I choose because it is the number one sarm I would like to try next for that reason. See how the vision sides go. Would you say s4/lgd/rad would be the best triple stack for strength out there? Or would this maybe be overkill and it would be more beneficial to add in GW and go with something like s4/lgd/gw. Thank you for all your help!
 
Yeah, s4 visual sides worry me, mainly because my night vision is already shit. But you don't know until you try which is why it will be in either sarm stack as it's the number one sarm I haven't tried that I would like to. How has LGD done for you? How did you run it, beside a cycle or sarm stack?

I am going to try s4. I had seen splitting the dosage at 25mg twice a day helps many. Dylan gives pretty solid advice and it seems the sides are overblown, but you can always quit taking it. LGD helped with strength. I did not really gain much weight with it or lose fat, but my diet was not as a good as it should have been. Think its definitely helped. i have ran it twice. once for 8 weeks which is a mistake and once for 12 weeks. I will probably be running agian in the next couple months as i am going to add more compounds this time.
 
S4 sides haven’t been bad for me. I’m on my third week 60-65mg a day right now. Worst part of it is in complete darkness, my weaker eye can’t adjust to the pitch black. If there is even a slight bit of light in the room it’s totally fine.
 
thanks for the info fellas. I wasn't too concerned with the sides and can always lower or drop the dose if for some reason it was effecting me too much. I really don't drive at night too often so it's not a major concern. Appreciate all your input!
 
Update:

Back: Stiff Leg Deadlift - 405x5. Big PR.
Didn't know I had this in me and had 2-3 more reps in the gas tank if I maxed out. Back pump is still an issue but including 6-8 grams taurine pre-workout, changing my diet to include much more potassium and it seems to be helping. Just something I have to deal with while using tbol. For a couple months all I had been doing is stiff leg deads to let my knee heal up, I believe the carry over will be tremendous to my conventional deadlift. Lower back has always been my issue in the deadlift.

Shoulders: Seated Overhead Barbell Press: 5x8 @ 185
I didn't know what to expect here because for a long time I didn't train shoulders separately (still trained them but more as accessory and very minimal pressing movements) due to shoulder pain. This weight felt light but I didn't want to overdo it and hurt my shoulder. Want to keep OHP in as long as possible because I know how much this will help my bench.

Legs: Nothing crazy to report here. Keeping things light as I transition back to conventional deadlifts and don't want to tax my knee. It's been feeling better and if I set myself back going heavy on squats I know I'll kick myself because I've done it too many times. Started with squats using the hip circle. Felt ok but my right knee still feels fragile.

Accessory Day Close Grip Bench: 3 x 15-20 @ 225 - This flew up like nothing. My shoulder was feeling a little worn down from the Over Head Press so I didn't push the weight higher. I have to use the squat rack at my gym for the OHP which means a very awkward unrack, which can be dangerous (the squat rack is right against the wall, so even trying to get someone to help unrack is awkward).
Zottman Curls / Tricep Extensions / Lat Pulldown / Dumbell Rows.
I use this day to work on a little bit of everything and will set up one exercise as a high intensity set. This week was close grip bench since my main focus is bench and deadlift right now.

Feeling phenomenal and excited for every workout. I have been messing around with workouts before work (I start at 8:30 a.m.) mainly because I keep waking up early anyway and they have been way better than expected. Also gets it out of my system earlier so I'm not thinking about my workout all day. I have had to fight off multiple urges to go to the gym on days off, stopping myself from going twice a day etc. I haven't fucked up yet and that in itself is an achievement for me. Overtraining has always been my downfall. The other day was real close. I had been good, made it most of the day, no urges. Then I find myself in the kitchen with my pre workout lid off, was about to pour it...but caught myself and said wtf am I doing? I have to take these rest days gdi! Put that lid back on, hands shaking and shit...well not really...but I swear I'm like an addict...which is only amplified when on cycle, so this is a true test!

My days are set to 2-3 on and 1 off at the moment. If I find when intensity ramps up I'm running into issues I will have to go to 2 on - 1 off - 2 on - 2 off. I will be moving on to sets of 5x5 next week for bench and maybe one more week of 4x8 on conventional deads before 5x5's. Squats will stay light for now. Just focusing on form and building everything up.
 
I've had to modify my workouts a bit. Doesn't look like my knee is going to hold up to heavy deadlifts and squats. Ill be focusing on bench and deadlift for now and legs ill work around the squat as best I can to try and keep building up my quads and hams/glutes.

Bench: I've put in two bench workouts since the last log:
Bench 1: 4x8 @275. PR. Shoulder wasn't feeling 100% after the OHP a few days prior but it seemed to come around once I got warmed up.
Bench 2: 325 x4. Big PR. So this was not planned...funny story. I lift with a buddy of mine who has a stronger bench than myself. I planned on doing 5x5 @ 295. Just wanted to keep the reps clean and protect my shoulder. He was using 325 for sets of 5. On my third set I was zoned out and didn't realize we didn't change out the 325 for 295. He apparently was trying to call me off but I didn't see him... Ended up hitting it for 4 with a long pause on the last rep. Got up and was in shock when I realized what I did. Hey, PR is a PR I guess? I've never done that in all my 15 years of lifting, forgetting to change weights!

Deadlifts: Hit 2 deadlift days and a heavy row day. I swap between deads and heavy rows to give my knee extra time to recoup.
Deadlift 1: 4x8 @ 405. PR. This was brutal. I had to take long rests to let my back ease up but I stuck it out and got all of the reps fairly easy and clean. Was taking nearly 5 minutes between sets 2/3/4.
Rows: 5x12 @275. Rows felt awesome and definitely gave my knee much needed rest. Back was surprisingly good on these. No issues with it cramping and tightening on me.
Deadlift 2: 455 x 5. PR. This is by far the heaviest I've gone on deads for a set of 5. Knee felt it a little bit later on because I proceeded to hit 455 for a set of 4 and 3, beltless, afterward. Back pump wasn't as bad this day and I think I am slowly getting it under control.

I'm hitting legs and shoulders more as accessory at the moment. I know this isn't ideal but I don't want to go to crazy just yet because everything is going very very well on deads and bench. I would rather get some really nice PR's on two of the three lifts then be out of commission before I'm even half way through the cycle.

Weight is up 10-12lbs, sitting around 218 right now. Going to lower my calories a bit because I tend to gain weight fairly easily and don't want to go too much past 220 by the end of the cycle. Diets on point. Added lots of foods with high potassium and am very motivated! This has been a dream start to the cycle and I hope it will continue. Mood is great, lifts are great. Life is good :)
 
Really nice log & good strength gains, how far into the cycle are?
In terms of joint health do you feel the Ostarine is helping much?
 
Really nice log & good strength gains, how far into the cycle are?
In terms of joint health do you feel the Ostarine is helping much?

I am 5 weeks in as of today, 4 weeks of tbol. I 100% think the Ostarine is helping me out. My elbow pain is way down and the only issue I still have is my knee, which I don't even think deca would alleviate on cycle, but I'll have to test it in the future and see.

I took a lot of precautions to let my elbow heal as much as possible. No bicep work, minimal tricep work and always used straps on any pulls (pulls hurt it the most from gripping heavy weight, along with anything for biceps, especially supinated grips). Along with icing after every workout, stretching the wrists and forearms consistently. Voltarin on them each elbow joint before bed and when it was really bugging me, 400mg ibuprofen before bed as well. I did this for a solid 2 months before cycle with minimal improvement, basically kept it at bay. Went on cycle and its now almost gone just over a month later. The only thing that changed is the ostarine.
 
That’s good to hear, my shoulder flairs up from time to time & my next cycle will contain ostarine. I too have suffered with elbow pain, mine was tennis elbow caused by low bar squats & poor shoulder mobility, it’s pretty much gone these days. After a back injury I decided to just do front squats so I don’t compromise my lower back & I wear SBD elbow sleeves when doing any pressing & this helped massively. I was wearing compression cuffs but they would sometimes make it flair up with how tight they were
 
That’s good to hear, my shoulder flairs up from time to time & my next cycle will contain ostarine. I too have suffered with elbow pain, mine was tennis elbow caused by low bar squats & poor shoulder mobility, it’s pretty much gone these days. After a back injury I decided to just do front squats so I don’t compromise my lower back & I wear SBD elbow sleeves when doing any pressing & this helped massively. I was wearing compression cuffs but they would sometimes make it flair up with how tight they were

I'm an accessory whore. I have pretty well anything you can name and mainly from Mark Bell's line. I did change one thing when my elbow wasn't getting better. I was wearing compression cuffs BELOW the elbow and noticed they weren't helping and possibly even making it worse. I switched to using my wrist wraps for compression (put the wrap through itself so it acts as a noose). Put that just above the elbow joint on the bicep and bingo. Major difference and reduction in elbow pain. My shoulders also tend to get beat down. I thought i took myself out about a week and a half ago from some overhead pressing and it was healed within 4-5 days. Normally that would affect me much longer. I'm sure you will love the Ostarine, just don't expect miracles is all. Make sure you follow the proper protocol for inflammation etc. and it will be a great aid.
 
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