# Adam Hayley - UKBFF Kent in August..



## ah24

Hi guys,

Some of you might have read my previous thread: http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/competitive-journals/263473-adam-hayley-lead-upto-september.html?highlight=adam+hayley

I competed last September in the Inters U80's. Happy with improvements from my first ever show (Birmingham, Juniors).. and was happy with my condition from the front - however from the back I still had fat to lose.

Currently in my off-season working on weak bodyparts (chest, back thickness and abdominals).

Got a text from Will (Bad Alan) yesterday saying he's going to compete at the Kent show on August 20th - I should do it too.... So, I thought f**k it why not.

I'll use this log to track last 3 months of off-season and then leading into show prep for the Birmingham show.

*
Pics from last show:*

** I'm in blue trunks **




















































*Diet:*

*
*

Have just done a mini 10 day diet to tidy things up and hopefully improve my insulin sensitivity before going back to increased calories.

Below is diet from yesterday going forward to add some size, will post any tweaks along the way:

*Meal 1*

*
*3 Scoops Pro-Peptide

40g Almonds

*
*

*
Meal 2*

*
*500ml Liquid Egg Whites

Options Hot Choc Sachet

1tbsp Coconut Oil

70g Oats

*
*

*
Meal 3*

*
*250g Chicken (blended)

1 Scoop Cream of Rice

*
*

*
INTRA:*

*
*2 Scoops Glycofuse

20g EAA

*
*

*
PWO:*

*
*75g Whey

2 Scoops Cream of Rice or 100g Cereal (Lucky Charms)

*
*

*
Meal 4:*

*
*250g Rump Steak

300g White Potato

1tbsp Butter

*
*

*
Meal 5:*

*
*500g Total Greek Yoghurt (Full Fat)

Handful Blueberries

Vanilla Syrup

V v simple and easy to get down as appetite is crap.

*Supplements:*

*
*

*
*Health:

- Curcumin x2 Daily

- Vit K2 x2 Daily

- Red Yeast Rice x2 Daily

- Vit D3 5000iu Daily

Performance:

Glycofuse + EAA's as mentioned above

*
*

*
Training:*

*
*

*
*Monday - Legs

Tuesday - Chest & Shoulders

Wednesday - REST

Thursday - Back

Friday - Chest & Shoulders

Saturday - REST

Sunday - ArmsI'll be adding an extra back day soon, taking me up to 6 days per week..

*
*

*
Yesterdays session as an example:*

*
*

*
Hamstring Curls, *4 x 8 (Final set, 2 drop sets + 25 partials)

*
*

*
Banded Leg Press, *4 x 8(Explosive)

*
*

*
Squats, *4 x 8(3sec descent)

*
*

*
Leg Press, *1 x 50

*
*

*
DB Romanian Deadlifts, *4 x 12


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## Frandeman

In mate

Loads to be learn here


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## DaveCW

Also In!!!

How are Bad Alan and Queenie ?

Notice how the other two lads have no calves to speak of :lol:


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## ah24

DaveCW said:


> Also In!!!
> 
> How are Bad Alan and Queenie ?
> 
> Notice how the other two lads have no calves to speak of :lol:


They're very good! I trained with Will last week actually, had a good catch up - and also bought Claire some strawberry vines back from when I was in NY!

Will is looking huge as always too... f**ker.

Lol I couldn't possibly comment on the lack of calves - woops :innocent:


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## Mince Pies

dude on the right needs to add another legs day specifically calfs. You look shredded in those pics, quads and calves are excellent.


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## ah24

Mince Pies said:


> dude on the right needs to add another legs day specifically calfs. You look shredded in those pics, quads and calves are excellent.


Thanks mate!

Was quite happy with condition from the front - it's just from the rear it wasn't where I'd have liked it to be..

Having said that, as always - my legs looked better the NEXT day!


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## scot-ish

looking awesome from the bottom half mate - legs look shredded.


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## ah24

Couple more pics, but not on stage - all from show day.

View attachment 164258


View attachment 164259


View attachment 164260


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## Michael81

In for this mate....

The best of luck....


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## ah24

If anyone is interested - a blog write up of the diet/cardio changes I made whilst prepping my colleague for his first two BB shows

» Akash Contest Prep Transformation


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## Dan94

In mate

Blended chicken? That's certainly a new one to me


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## saxondale

you must have won the comp above?


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## 31205

saxondale said:


> you must have won the comp above?


That's what I thought! Guy on left in pic looks like he got lost and ended up at a bb competition!


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## saxondale

sen said:


> That's what I thought! Guy on left in pic looks like he got lost and ended up at a bb competition!


I would stand next to the guy on the right.


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## ah24

saxondale said:


> you must have won the comp above?





sen said:


> That's what I thought! Guy on left in pic looks like he got lost and ended up at a bb competition!


Hmm I really don't want to sound like a sore loser here.. But, I didn't actually place - AT ALL.

On the day I wasn't bothered as I know I'd made improvements and was v happy with how I looked. However, now I've received photo's - I'm a little unsure as to why I didn't at least place.

(Please don't mistake this for me b1tching about judges bad call etc. I just genuinely struggle to see why I did so poorly when looking at pictures + others feedback)

The guy in pink trunks won it (only pic I've got of him, maybe he looked 10x better in other pics):

View attachment 164290


Guy in red came second:

View attachment 164291


I think I've got a couple more of him so will try upload later as it's obv a poor shot of him.


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## saxondale

ah24 said:


> Hmm I really don't want to sound like a sore loser here.. But, I didn't actually place - AT ALL.
> 
> On the day I wasn't bothered as I know I'd made improvements and was v happy with how I looked. However, now I've received photo's - I'm a little unsure as to why I didn't at least place.
> 
> (Please don't mistake this for me b1tching about judges bad call etc. I just genuinely struggle to see why I did so poorly when looking at pictures + others feedback)
> 
> The guy in pink trunks won it (only pic I've got of him, maybe he looked 10x better in other pics):
> 
> View attachment 164290
> 
> 
> Guy in red came second:
> 
> View attachment 164291
> 
> 
> I think I've got a couple more of him so will try upload later as it's obv a poor shot of him.


robbed - seriously thats just stupid, no wonder the feds get a bad name if it`s that obvious


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## 31205

You look better than those two anyway. 139 doesn't even look like he's putting any effort in. Isn't posing supposed to hurt cos you're straining so hard? He looks all floppy! Ha!


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## IGotTekkers

Some of the guys I see on stage competing genuinely shock me. Why would they get on stage when they completely don't have the genetics for it, lanky skinny no arm or chested lads doing monkey poses in pants. Each to their own but why bother, its like me trying out for man United.

That's not aimed at you btw op, you have good shoulders and lats. More aimed at the ppl next to you in the first pics


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## zak007

ah24 said:


> Hmm I really don't want to sound like a sore loser here.. But, I didn't actually place - AT ALL.
> 
> On the day I wasn't bothered as I know I'd made improvements and was v happy with how I looked. However, now I've received photo's - I'm a little unsure as to why I didn't at least place.
> 
> (Please don't mistake this for me b1tching about judges bad call etc. I just genuinely struggle to see why I did so poorly when looking at pictures + others feedback)
> 
> The guy in pink trunks won it (only pic I've got of him, maybe he looked 10x better in other pics):
> 
> View attachment 164290
> 
> 
> Guy in red came second:
> 
> View attachment 164291
> 
> 
> I think I've got a couple more of him so will try upload later as it's obv a poor shot of him.


Completely agree, you were on stage shredded. The person who won is still quite watery & has sh1t condition.

Condition you come first, lower body first, upper body hard to judge from above pics but your well built upstairs too but overall you take it 1st and take it very clearly!


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## gearchange

I am shocked at those pics mate. It is black and white.You didn't get caught shagging the chairman's daughter did you,because if not you were robbed blind,your conditioning was hugely superior to the guys around you.If you had placed top 3 it would have been suspect let alone no placing at all.

I hope you destroy them next time.


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## elliot1989

Defiantly the best out of those buddy. You had a lot more definition


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## Sambuca

ye wtf lol how the hell u not place???????????????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i am genuinely confused


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## biggestdog2007

Lol what is going on here. The guy in pink has no cuts what so ever.

Your legs are the best by an absolute mile, not sure the others even train legs. Your conditioning looks great, legs ate certainly very lean.

I would have been seriously ****ed after that, the guy in purple doing the front lat spread is hilarious.


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## ah24

gearchange said:


> I am shocked at those pics mate. It is black and white.You didn't get caught shagging the chairman's daughter did you,because if not you were robbed blind,your conditioning was hugely superior to the guys around you.If you had placed top 3 it would have been suspect let alone no placing at all.
> 
> I hope you destroy them next time.





elliot1989 said:


> Defiantly the best out of those buddy. You had a lot more definition





Sambuca said:


> ye wtf lol how the hell u not place???????????????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i am genuinely confused





biggestdog2007 said:


> Lol what is going on here. The guy in pink has no cuts what so ever.
> 
> Your legs are the best by an absolute mile, not sure the others even train legs. Your conditioning looks great, legs ate certainly very lean.
> 
> I would have been seriously ****ed after that, the guy in purple doing the front lat spread is hilarious.


Thanks a lot for the support guys..

I have a sneaky suspicion as to why I didn't place, but if I post it publicly it'll likely reflect at the next show I do too. If anyone is genuinely interested then I could explain over PM. It's very petty and no juicy gossip at all - but it's the only logical thing I can think of.

In the meantime, I'm using it as motivation to look even better so that there's no doubt next time!

That being said, if I bust my balls again to get in that condition and don't get a look in... I won't ever compete in the same fed again. It's a really sh1t feeling to essentially put your life on hold for 17 weeks, spend X amount on food/supplements to not get a fair look-in when it comes to being on stage.

Hey ho!


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## Sharpy76

That's a fvcking disgrace!!!!

Unbelievable tbh. You totally outshone the others in those pics @ah24, mind boggling....

In btw pal:thumb:


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## saxondale

PM me mate - genuinely shocked at that result


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## FelonE1

I'm no expert but I can't believe the bloke in pink won. You look a lot better.


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## nWo

Robbed mate, I call politicking and favours.


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## FelonE1

sen said:


> That's what I thought! Guy on left in pic looks like he got lost and ended up at a bb competition!


And skips leg day lol.


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## Dan94

saxondale said:


> PM me mate - genuinely shocked at that result


Me too


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## ah24

Having taken some update pictures yesterday, I've decided I'm a little too 'fluffy' right now (lol)

So, just making some small adjustments to the diet posted on page 1.

Foods will remain the same but quantities will change slightly.

Breakfast = Pro/Fat only

Meals 2/3/4/5 = 45pro 30cho 10fat

Last meal of day = Pro/Fat only

Will also add in CV twice per week. Likely wingate sprints again as they're brutal but work v v well.


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## TELBOR

In as always mate


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## ah24

Not a lot to report today..

This eve will do a small 15min ab session + 15mins of HIIT (15sec on / 45sec off)


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## Dan94

What're Wingate sprints mate?


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## bail

Imo dude with pink trunks legs are smooth

Yours alot more cut and developed

Delts arms are also better

Plus he has batty boy trunks

In for the journal mate


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## ah24

Dan94 said:


> What're Wingate sprints mate?


One of these mate, basically a bike with weights lol - usually found in sports science uni labs:

View attachment 164413


Here's a vid of BPak doing them:






Absolutely fkin brutal!


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## Dan94

ah24 said:


> One of these mate, basically a bike with weights lol - usually found in sports science uni labs:
> 
> View attachment 164413
> 
> 
> Here's a vid of BPak doing them:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Absolutely fkin brutal!


Never seen one of those before mate, certainly a weird looking contraption


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## ah24

Dan94 said:


> Never seen one of those before mate, certainly a weird looking contraption


When I get back into the swing of them I'll film a round or two on them and post it up!

OK, so this morning was fasted abs + 20mins SSCV at local gym to me.

Then into London for clients and just finished training back before my next one.

Session went like this:

*Cage Bent Over Rows,* 4 x 8 ... Final set drop weight, do 8 more reps, reduce weight, do 8 more reps, reduce weight and go until failure

Awkward to explain here, but if you've ever seen a 'cage press' you'll get this one. You basically pull the bar INTO the rack and slide it up it as you row. Really fires the lats.

*1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 10

*Heavy Partial Pulldowns,* 5 x 8

Pulling to around nose level only as opposed to sternum. Then a complete stretch.

*DB Shrugs,* 4 x 10

3sec ISO holds at the top of each rep here.

*Reverse Hypers,* 4 x 15


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## Dan94

Shrugs with the hold sound brutal mate


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## zyphy

ah24 said:


> Hmm I really don't want to sound like a sore loser here.. But, I didn't actually place - AT ALL.
> 
> On the day I wasn't bothered as I know I'd made improvements and was v happy with how I looked. However, now I've received photo's - I'm a little unsure as to why I didn't at least place.
> 
> (Please don't mistake this for me b1tching about judges bad call etc. I just genuinely struggle to see why I did so poorly when looking at pictures + others feedback)
> 
> The guy in pink trunks won it (only pic I've got of him, maybe he looked 10x better in other pics):
> 
> View attachment 164290
> 
> 
> Guy in red came second:
> 
> View attachment 164291
> 
> 
> I think I've got a couple more of him so will try upload later as it's obv a poor shot of him.


Pretty shocking decisions mate.

Re. back - include heavy rack pulls into your routine - your thickness will come up for sure!


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## ah24

zyphy said:


> Pretty shocking decisions mate.
> 
> Re. back - include heavy rack pulls into your routine - your thickness will come up for sure!


Totally agree - heavy rack pulls / deads are my go to exercise for clients wanting increased back thickness.

Problem is; I have pins & plates in my knees, which has thrown my hips out. Any form of barbell dead lift (even with just 60kg) aggravates the right hand side of my back for days.

Over the last couple weeks I've played around with rack trap bar deads.... Touch wood it seems good to go!


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## ah24

Food today:

*Meal 1:*

3 Scoops Pro Peptide

20g Almonds

*Meal 2:*

500ml Liquid Egg Whites

1 Pop Tart

1tbsp PB

*Meal 3:*

250g Chicken

1 Scoop Cream of Rice

1tbsp Almond Butter

*INTRA:*

2 Scoops Glycofuse + 20g EAA

*PWO:*

2.5 Scoops Peptide Fusion

1 Scoop Cream of Rice

*Meal 5:*

250g Steak

200g White Potato

*Meal 6:*

500g Total Greek Yoghurt

Training will be chest & Shoulders


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## Chelsea

Pics look very clear that you were superior to the others mate, shame that by the looks of things it wasnt fairly judged but like you say, its why the fed is getting a bad name and people are looking to compete in others now.

Will follow this, should be at the show watching too as a mate of mine is going to compete too so no doubt i will liaise with Will and Claire as well  good luck mate.


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## ah24

Chelsea said:


> Pics look very clear that you were superior to the others mate, shame that by the looks of things it wasnt fairly judged but like you say, its why the fed is getting a bad name and people are looking to compete in others now.
> 
> Will follow this, should be at the show watching too as a mate of mine is going to compete too so no doubt i will liaise with Will and Claire as well  good luck mate.


Thanks, @Chelsea - appreciate your support!


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## Kristina

Good stuff Adam. You won that show hands down. PM me, also curious to know your thoughts about it.

Wish we had a Wingate bike, always wanted to try those.


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## ah24

Kristina said:


> Good stuff Adam. You won that show hands down. PM me, also curious to know your thoughts about it.
> 
> Wish we had a Wingate bike, always wanted to try those.


Thanks @Kristina! Will PM you now..

P.S Yes I'd always wanted to 'try' the wingate bike... Until the [email protected]@kers at work introduced me to it and made me vom!


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## ah24

Small update - was down 3lbs last week. Will likely push for another 1-2lbs this week and then go back to an excess of calories for final growth spurt before show diet.

Weekend food was 'OK' but had to guesstimate things as was on a sports massage course all weekend.

Legs later will be:

*Prone Hamstring Curls,* 6 x 12 (45sec rest between sets)

*Banded Leg Press, *4 x 8

*Walking Lunges,* 3 x 20m

*Front Squats,* 4 x 8

*Romanian Deads, *2 x 20


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## ah24

OK,

Chest & Shoulders today:

*Incl. DB Press,* working up to top set of 10.. roughly 4-5 sets

*High Incl. Barbell Press,* 3 x 6 explosive

*Dips W/ Chains,* 4 x 10

*Partial DB Lateral Raises,* 3 x 10

Superset with

*Underhand Grip Band Pull-Aparts,* 3 x 15

Nutrition all the same..

Speaking to a couple of meal prep companies to see if they'll take over 3 of my meals per day to free up some time. Assuming I can get them for a good price, I'm quite looking forward to it 

Also, first official off-season pic in here. Once I've lost a bit of 'fluff' over the next 1-2 weeks I'll update with proper pics.

View attachment 164793


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## w0ts0n

Following along.

Not sure how I can help, but am around if you need it!


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## ah24

OK guys,

Another update, down another 1lb this morn. Starting to tighten up quite nicely, which puts me in perfect position before increasing calories again in last push before prep starts. V happy with this.

Have agreed to start with this meal prep company, replacing 3 of my meals at work. Will post pics of meals once I have them if anyone is interested. Pretty impressed so far, can tell them exactly what I want in each meal and then gets delivered to my work.

Training today:

*Bent Over Rows Pulled into Rack,* 4 x 8

Superset with

*Prone 1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 6

*Pulldowns,* 4 x 12

*Trap Bar Deadlift W/ Shrug,* 4 x 6

(1 x deadlift, 3 shrugs, 1 deadlift, 3 shrugs etc)

Great way at using a relatively low load and still allowing me to do some hip extension work AND working back thickness. Went v light today but felt good.

*Back Extensions,* 1 x 30


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## Kristina

Good stuff.

Who's the meal prep company? What sort of prices are you looking at?


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## ah24

Kristina said:


> Good stuff.
> 
> Who's the meal prep company? What sort of prices are you looking at?


Originally I was looking at Fresh Fitness Foods.... But, it's too expensive. For me to get it at a rate I'd be willing to pay - I'd have to commit to 100 days up front (£2k)

Instead I got talking to the owner from JustGymFood (Eat Fit, Live Well) and have specified exactly what meals I want etc, and due to having clients wanting to use the service she's done me it at a discounted rate (I'll PM you).

Meals look pretty good and will save me a shed load of time.. I'm up at 5.45am, into London and don't typically get home until 10-11pm.


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## TELBOR

£50 for 6 meals..... I'm out lol


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## ah24

Training after my 3.30pm client today.. Nothing crazy, just going to do some hamstrings and abs.

Session will likely be something like:

*Prone Hamstring Curls,* 6 x 10

*DB RDL's,* 3 x 12

*Ball Triple Threats,* 2 x 24

*Decline Reverse Crunches,* 3 x 15

*Cable Crunches,* 3 x 10

*Side Planks,* 5 x 3sec ISO-Holds, repeat 3 times each side

Simples


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## ah24

Did hamstrings, but then ended up having a check-in with my client Melissa as she was in London.

Skipped abs to catch up with her. Looking great at 11 weeks out


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## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Did hamstrings, but then ended up having a check-in with my client Melissa as she was in London.
> 
> Skipped abs to catch up with her. Looking great at 11 weeks out


Don't deny us pics of Melissa ......


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## ah24

R0BLET said:


> Don't deny us pics of Melissa ......


Haha I'm glad to see everyone is clearly far more interested in my clients than my training! :lol:

OK,

Weights = 2lbs down this week.

Went to London to train a few clients, came back and trained a bikini competitor doing the same show as Melissa (different height class though).

Put her through a pretty tough leg session with a glute/ham focus:

*Single Leg Hip Ext',* 3 x 10

*Squats (tweaks made to try get into the glutes a little more),* 4 x 8

Superset with

*Prone Leg Curl (Hip extended to purposely recruit glutes),* 4 x 8

TRI-SET 1:

*DB RDL,* 3 x 12

*Barbell Hip Ext,* 3 x 12 (5sec pause at contraction on final rep)

*Walking Lunges,* 3 x 20m

TRI-SET 2:

*Banded Leg Press (feet high/wide/external rotated),* 3 x 8 deadstopped

*Ball Triple Threats,* 3 x 8/8/8

*Banded External Rotations,* 3 x 10/10/10

*Leg Press,* 1 x 50

She was pretty screwed at the end of this..

Then trained myself:

*Incl. DB Chest Press,* 8 x 8

*Rear Delt Flyes,* 3 x 25

Superset with

*Banded Spider Crawls,* 3 x 3 lengths up/down

Pic of her second tri-set:

View attachment 164921


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## ah24

Nice arm & ab workout today.. Really felt it, was great as usually my left elbow tendon really takes a beating - but today everything just felt 'right'

ARMS:

*V-Bar Pushdowns,* 5 x 10

Superset with

*Supinating DB Curls,* 5 x 8

*Bench Dips,* 4 x failure (3 sec eccentrics)

Superset with

*EZ Bar Curls,* 4 x 8

*DB Hammer Curls,* 3 x 10

*Decline DB Triceps Ext,* 3 x 12

ABS:

*Leg Raises,* 4 x 15

*Cable Crunches,* 3 x 12

*Side Plank W/ 3sec ISO's,* 5 x 3sec hold each side.. Repeat for 6 sets total

Excited as tomorrow I'm meeting one of my online clients who is travelling over from the Cayman Islands and training with me for 4 days  V much looking to seeing her in person before she starts prepping for her first show.


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## ah24

Just had my meals dropped off by JustGymFood..

Impressed so far! Tastes great and v moist! Saves me prepping it 

View attachment 165011


View attachment 165012


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## bail

ah24 said:


> Just had my meals dropped off by JustGymFood..
> 
> Impressed so far! Tastes great and v moist! Saves me prepping it
> 
> View attachment 165011
> 
> 
> View attachment 165012


How much does that work out at bud??


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## ah24

bail said:


> How much does that work out at bud??


About £20/day roughly?


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## bail

ah24 said:


> About £20/day roughly?


How many cooked meals is that is it daily delivery or weekly??.sounds interesting


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## C.Hill

No way your really gonna spunk £500 odd a month on prepped meals? Crazy!

Love the diet and training styles though, some refreshing ideas in here!


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## ah24

bail said:


> How many cooked meals is that is it daily delivery or weekly??.sounds interesting


I get 3 meals per day..

So I have breakfast at home then 10am & 2pm meals are theirs.. PWO shake.. 7pm meal is theirs and then I finish with 500g yogurt pre bed.

They deliver twice per week though some of the companies deliver daily 



C.Hill said:


> No way your really gonna spunk £500 odd a month on prepped meals? Crazy!
> 
> Love the diet and training styles though, some refreshing ideas in here!


Lol yep it's a lot of money..

I'd been debating it for a while and have decided - for me - it's worth it.

1) I'm out the house at 6am and back at 11pm most nights

2) I hate cooking

I work in London 6 days a week, only day 'off' is Sundays and even then I spend 2-4 hours doing my online client work.

I was having to put aside 2.5 hours to shop, cook 7 days of food, weigh it, portion it, bag it etc..

If I worked a 9-5, no problem - but I don't enjoy cooking and find my time limited.

This week, instead I used that 2 hours to go the cinema and 'switch off' mentally with the girlfriend. So, for me it's worth it! I can dedicate some extra time to client work, or to personal stuff 

Plus - it tastes 10x better than my useless cooking!

Thanks btw re; saying the thread has interesting ideas


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## ah24

*Yesterday - Legs:*

Short, sharp legs session yesterday. Low back was a little tight so I decided not to squat..

*Seated Leg Curl,* 5 x 15/12/9/6/25

*Leg Press,* Sets of 10 until I hit a 'tough' 10... Once there, strip a plate off each side, 8 reps, strip another plate each side, 8 reps, strip 2 plates and 25 reps... these were rest-paused.

*Pendulum Squat,* 4 x 8

*Barbell RDL,* 2 x 20 continuous tension

*Today:*

25min powerwalk this morning

Chest & Shoulders this afternoon.. Will post up what I do later


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## ah24

Sooo,

To give an idea of current updated diet:

*Nutrition:*

*Meal 1*

3 Scoops Pro-Peptide (CNP)

20g Almonds

*Meal 2*

200g Chicken Breast

40g Rice

1tbsp Almond Butter

150g Greens

OR

500ml LEW

50g Oats

1tbsp Almond Butter

*Meal 3*

200g Chicken Breast

40g Rice

150g Greens

1tbsp Coconut Oil

*INTRA*

2 Scoops Glycofuse

20g EAA

*PWO*

50g Rice Crispies

2 Scoops Peptide Fusion (Reflex)

*Meal 4*

200g Beef Meatballs

150g Sweet Potato

1tbsp Almond Butter

150g Greens

*Meal 5*

500g Total Greek Yoghurt

1tbsp Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup (Stuff Costa / Starbucks etc use)

*PERI-Workout nutrition will change next week to:*

1 serving of Prime Nutrition Max-HP (Caffeine / Citrulline / Agmatine / Beta Alanine etc)

1.5 servings of Intra-MD (HBCD / EAA / Citrulline)

*Training - Chest & Shoulders*

*Ring Press-Ups,* 4 x 8 (wearing weighted vest.. MOTHER FU*KER THESE ARE TOUGH!)

*Decline BB Press,* 5 x 100kg x 8 / 110kg x 8 / 120kg x 8 / 130kg x 8 / 140kg x 7 (should have gone heavier here and ramped more aggressively)

*Incl. BB Press,* 4 x 8

*Flat DB Press,* 3 x 8 (1sec pause at stretch + 1sec pause at contraction)

*Seated DB Lateral Raises,* 3 x 15

Superset with

*Bent Over Rear Laterals,* 3 x 25


----------



## ah24

Rest day from weights today, so will head to the gym later and do some bike sprints..

Will likely just do 15 x 1min intervals:

45sec - moderate

15sec - ALL OUT

Nice & simple


----------



## Dieseldave

Hello mate somehow I've missed this so far but I'm in.

I agree you were stitched up judging by the pics on the first page, you have a well balanced physique and conditioning was definitely up there, you also looked very thick particularly in the lower body which together with your conditioning looked impressive.

I feel like I've got to say to those who were bashing the other guys (I know you weren't) that anyone who has the balls to get up on stage has my respect, yes some guys aren't genetically put together to be competitive but more power to them for getting up there and doing something that many wouldn't have the stones to do.


----------



## ah24

Dieseldave said:


> Hello mate somehow I've missed this so far but I'm in.
> 
> I agree you were stitched up judging by the pics on the first page, you have a well balanced physique and conditioning was definitely up there, you also looked very thick particularly in the lower body which together with your conditioning looked impressive.
> 
> I feel like I've got to say to those who were bashing the other guys (I know you weren't) that anyone who has the balls to get up on stage has my respect, yes some guys aren't genetically put together to be competitive but more power to them for getting up there and doing something that many wouldn't have the stones to do.


Thanks Dave 

100% agree about your last statement. Anyone that puts themselves through a tough diet and has the balls to stand on stage gets my respect. I got on with them all backstage, and *at the time* had no problem with my placing. Just assumed the best man won on the day, and was happy that I looked better than my last show.

It was only after the show when people were texting me saying 'wtf how did you not even place at all?' and then receiving photo's that I started to question it.

If a UKBFF official can point out to me:

'OK competitor 'X' is leaner through these body parts'

'Competitor 'Y' has a better quad sweep than you

etc etc

Then I could easily get my head around it. But - and I *really* don't want to come across arrogant - I can't help but think I should have at least come away with a trophy for the hard work I put in for 17 weeks.

Rant over lol..

P.S it would be interesting actually (if you don't mind of course) to get @Pscarb view as he is a judge. Maybe us competitors are missing something that is actually obvious but overlooked?


----------



## Dieseldave

Well from the pics it seems that something was afoot, the fact you didn't place is beyond me.


----------



## Alanricksnape

A lot of respect for how hard you work mate! I am in the same boat but can only get to the gym 3 times per week so do some lighter volume workouts and cardio at home  It's not ideal but it's better than sitting around playing playstation  (Although it's very hard not to just sit around playing playstation..) I totally know what you mean about cooking too. It's really frustrating getting in late and instead of being able to relax, having to slave over the hob. :no:


----------



## 3752

ah24 said:


> Thanks Dave
> 
> 100% agree about your last statement. Anyone that puts themselves through a tough diet and has the balls to stand on stage gets my respect. I got on with them all backstage, and *at the time* had no problem with my placing. Just assumed the best man won on the day, and was happy that I looked better than my last show.
> 
> It was only after the show when people were texting me saying 'wtf how did you not even place at all?' and then receiving photo's that I started to question it.
> 
> If a UKBFF official can point out to me:
> 
> 'OK competitor 'X' is leaner through these body parts'
> 
> 'Competitor 'Y' has a better quad sweep than you
> 
> etc etc
> 
> Then I could easily get my head around it. But - and I *really* don't want to come across arrogant - I can't help but think I should have at least come away with a trophy for the hard work I put in for 17 weeks.
> 
> Rant over lol..
> 
> P.S it would be interesting actually (if you don't mind of course) to get @Pscarb view as he is a judge. Maybe us competitors are missing something that is actually obvious but overlooked?


is there pictures buddy?


----------



## ah24

Pscarb said:


> is there pictures buddy?


I've put about 5-6 on pages 1&2 mate that show the other competitors. To be fair to the guy that won, the pic isn't great. Think that might be page 2!


----------



## 3752

OK after looking at those pictures (although a full comparison cannot be made as there are no posing pictures with the winner and i am unsure where anyone else in those pics placed) you was robbed!!!! your condition is far better and dryer than anyone else in those pics, your muscle base is better and so is your top to toe balance....

there is a chance you was marked down for gyro as they are really mean on this, this would be the only reason i could see going on these pictures to why you did not place though mate


----------



## ah24

Pscarb said:


> OK after looking at those pictures (although a full comparison cannot be made as there are no posing pictures with the winner and i am unsure where anyone else in those pics placed) you was robbed!!!! your condition is far better and dryer than anyone else in those pics, your muscle base is better and so is your top to toe balance....
> 
> there is a chance you was marked down for gyro as they are really mean on this, this would be the only reason i could see going on these pictures to why you did not place though mate


Thanks for giving your take on it, Paul 

Trouble is, UKBFF is pretty much the only fed that I can compete in and be 'competitive'... For my height 5'6, I think I'm too small for NABBA etc. Frustrating.


----------



## ah24

Not a great weekend training / diet wise..

Got some personal stuff going on, so appetite etc not great.

Yesterday was a rest day anyway so no prob on that front, this morning was a 30min arm session so managed to crack that out. Just haven't got all meals in.

Treated myself to a new 49" 4K Smart TV to take my mind off it though haha... That and a Domino's + brownies to make up for the missed calories


----------



## ah24

OK ramping things up from this week.

Have added 10g carbs to each meal as well as added an extra pre-workout meal in.

Training will also be bumped up to 6 days per week for the next few weeks and will look something like this:

Mon - Back

Tues - Chest & Shoulders (intensity)

Wed - Legs

Thurs - Back (Giant & Tri-sets)

Fri - Chest & Shoulders (pump)

Sat - OFF

Sun - Arms


----------



## IGotTekkers

ah24 said:


> OK ramping things up from this week.
> 
> Have added 10g carbs to each meal as well as added an extra pre-workout meal in.
> 
> Training will also be bumped up to 6 days per week for the next few weeks and will look something like this:
> 
> Mon - Back
> 
> Tues - Chest & Shoulders (intensity)
> 
> Wed - Legs
> 
> Thurs - Back (Giant & Tri-sets)
> 
> Fri - Chest & Shoulders (pump)
> 
> Sat - OFF
> 
> Sun - Arms


Training arms before back day?


----------



## ah24

IGotTekkers said:


> Training arms before back day?


Yeah, due to my tendonitis my biceps work is 20-30min pump type stuff using fat gripz.. So very light and doesn't give me any DOMS. I go heavy on triceps, but with biceps it's more a case of going through the motions to at least have them doing something.

In the whole of last years prep I think I trained them 3 times using occlusion training. So, it's actually nice to be doing something with them again.


----------



## Quinn92

ah24 said:


> Thanks @Kristina! Will PM you now..
> 
> P.S Yes I'd always wanted to 'try' the wingate bike... Until the [email protected]@kers at work introduced me to it and made me vom!


Was reading this the other week and funnily enough we did a wingate anaerobic test in our sports lab today. Absolutely brutal, 30 seconds flat out, doesn't sound as bad as it feels, eyesight went blank about half way through


----------



## ah24

Quinn92 said:


> Was reading this the other week and funnily enough we did a wingate anaerobic test in our sports lab today. Absolutely brutal, 30 seconds flat out, doesn't sound as bad as it feels, eyesight went blank about half way through


Haha ohhhh yes. It's nasty!

First time I used it 'properly' was with the whole of my team at UP City pushing me / recording it. Ended up pretty much passing out on our track and not moving for the rest of the team meeting. Couldn't breathe properly for a good 1-2 hours after. Head was a mess!


----------



## Quinn92

ah24 said:


> Haha ohhhh yes. It's nasty!
> 
> First time I used it 'properly' was with the whole of my team at UP City pushing me / recording it. Ended up pretty much passing out on our track and not moving for the rest of the team meeting. Couldn't breathe properly for a good 1-2 hours after. Head was a mess!


I know what you mean about the head being a mess. I was planning on doing some Uni work after it but just sat in the library trying not to die. Crazy how 30 seconds can affect you so much :lol:

I was surprised with a peak power output of 2017 watt though, I thought I was fat and unfit, not sure where that came from


----------



## ah24

Bodyweight is holding the same currently, going to stick out current macros for next few days, re-weigh on Fri and then bump cals up if needed 

Did back yesterday and will be doing chest/shoulders today.

Also, one of my meals this morning from JustGymFood - no excuse not to eat well when it gets delivered and looks like this!

View attachment 165505


----------



## naturalun

IN.

Big fan of cream of rice haha.


----------



## ah24

OK, chest & Shoulders today:

*Decline Press-Ups W/ Hands raised on boards for extra stretch + weighted vest,* 4 x 8 (1 sec pause at stretch then 1 sec pause at contraction)

*High Incl. BB Press,* 4 x 6

*Low Incl. DB Press,* 4 x 6

*Dips,* 2 x FAILURE (Chin tucked to chest, feet curled in front like a 'C' shape)

*Bent Over Rear Laterals,* 4 x 15

Superset with:

*Banded Spider Crawls,* 4 x up/down 3x

*Seated DB Laterals,* 2 x 15

Superset with:

*Banded Spider Crawls,* 2 x up/down 3x

Was tough!

Rear delts on fire at the end of it and felt twice the size 

Rice Crispies + Whey PWO

1 hour later (now) eating 220g Chicken + Rice


----------



## ah24

Chest is sore after yesterdays session!

Well, the mini diet I did has definitely worked in terms of giving metabolism a kick up the ass & improve insulin sensitivity.. I've increased calories and dropped a further lb.. Time for a cheat meal and another bump in calories 

V tired at the mo too actually, up at 5.45am and then back home 10-11pm each night at the mo.. This weekend I'm on the second weekend of sports massage course too, which means travelling upto London for something like 13 days in a row. Gets pretty tiring.

That said,

Training my second back session of the week at 2pm after some clients today.

Will do 4 rounds of a 4 exercise giant set, and then 4 rounds of a tri-set.

Don't often train like this, so hoping the change in stimulus will work favourably.


----------



## ah24

Session was good! Killed me from a CV/lactate perspective..

*A1: Bent Over Rows (pulling bar into rack to fire lats),* x 8

*A2: Cable Pullovers (hips driven back, duck head between arms and then full hip extension),* x 10

*A3: Prone DB Rows,* x 8

*A4: Banded Facepulls,* x 10

4 rounds of the above

*B1: Single Arm Pulldown,* x 8

*B2: Traditional Lat Pulldown,* x 8

*B3: Cable Rear Delts,* x 12

4 rounds of the above

aaaaand, my delivery from US finally came! I'm such a sucker for shiney labels.

Looking forward to using these tomorrow:

View attachment 165569


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> Session was good! Killed me from a CV/lactate perspective..
> 
> *A1: Bent Over Rows (pulling bar into rack to fire lats),* x 8
> 
> *A2: Cable Pullovers (hips driven back, duck head between arms and then full hip extension),* x 10
> 
> *A3: Prone DB Rows,* x 8
> 
> *A4: Banded Facepulls,* x 10
> 
> 4 rounds of the above
> 
> *B1: Single Arm Pulldown,* x 8
> 
> *B2: Traditional Lat Pulldown,* x 8
> 
> *B3: Cable Rear Delts,* x 12
> 
> 4 rounds of the above
> 
> aaaaand, my delivery from US finally came! I'm such a sucker for shiney labels.
> 
> Looking forward to using these tomorrow:
> 
> View attachment 165569


haha must of cost a bundle not looked into the genetic brand workout food yet??


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> haha must of cost a bundle not looked into the genetic brand workout food yet??


I've heard good things about that but haven't tried it yet??

If I'm honest, I tasted a colleagues Intra-MD (I usually mix Glycofuse & EAA's) and liked it..

Was put off because of cost.. But, I've got some some personal stuff going on... and let's be honest - spending money instantly makes you feel better :lol:

So far I've bough a new 4k TV, these supps, 3 nights away in Dubai and 2 nights in Marbella.

Does it fix the problem? F**k no... Did it put a smile on my face watching p*rnhub on my new 50" TV - yes!


----------



## Michael81

Those mountain dog products are used by a few at my gym mate.... They don't shut up about them.!.!.

Can you let me know how you get on mate?


----------



## ah24

Michael81 said:


> Those mountain dog products are used by a few at my gym mate.... They don't shut up about them.!.!.
> 
> Can you let me know how you get on mate?


Sure, I mean realistically I doubt I'll notice much of a difference as currently already use HBCD + EAA's... However, I find the Glycofuse quite sickly, whereas when I tried the INTRA-MD - no issues 

Excited about the MAX-HP as don't know anyone that's tried it.. 400mg caffeine should perk me up for the session


----------



## ah24

OK,

Chest / Shoulders / Obliques today..

*Incl. DB Press,* 8 x 10

*DB 6-Ways,* 4 x 10

Superset with

*Machine Shoulder Press,* 4 x 6

*Band Pull-Aparts,* 3 x 15

Then 15mins of oblique work to finish..

Was a good workout 

Used MAX-HP for first time and pretty impressed. Had 3-4 hours sleep last night, drunk this during my last client and ended up having a pretty good session.

View attachment 165608


Also used the INTRA-MD which is v easy to digest. Alll in all, happy with them! @Michael81

Also, pretty cool result so far with one of my clients at UP. This is *fourteen* days so far! I've got 12 weeks with him so quite excited to see how he does 

View attachment 165610


----------



## Michael81

Cheers for that Adam.... :thumbup1:


----------



## ah24

OK,

Dropped weight again going into weekend (stress related I think).. So, gave myself a pizza Friday night.. Weight dropped *further* in the morning.. This never happens with me, even when dieting and a few weeks out from a show I'm v prone at retaining water.

So, bumped calories further over weekend and dropped a weights session.. woke up today 1.5lbs heavier finally. Of course this is water/glycogen etc but happy to see the weight change in the right direction. Hopefully things will head in the right direction from now.

Training was back:

*1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8

*Seated Cable Rows,* 4 x 10

*Stretchers,* 3 x 10

*Rack Deadlifts W/ Bands to > tension at top,* 5 x 5

*FatGrip Biceps Curls,* 6 x 10 W/ 60-75sec rest between sets


----------



## ah24

Chest today:

*Ring Press-Ups (with weighted vest),* 4 x 12/10/8/6

*Flat DB Press,* 3 x 8

*Incl. BB Press,* 4 x 10

*Rear Delt Flyes,* 4 x 15

Superset With:

*Band Pull-Aparts,* 4 x 10

*DB Lateral Raises,* 3 x 15

Also, flicking through phone, found this photo when I was maybe 7-8 weeks out. Preferred my look here, really lost fullness toward the end 

View attachment 165841


----------



## Colhoun1993

Also, flicking through phone, found this photo when I was maybe 7-8 weeks out. Preferred my look here, really lost fullness toward the end 

View attachment 165841


----------



## ah24

Colhoun1993 said:
 

> Also, flicking through phone, found this photo when I was maybe 7-8 weeks out. Preferred my look here, really lost fullness toward the end
> 
> View attachment 165841


Looking great mate !!


----------



## ah24

Bodyweight holding stable this morn which is perfect.

On top of this, my appetite right now is great too. I didn't mention this at the beginning, but my appetite was shot to sh1t before I did the mini diet. To the point I was blending my chicken etc and just drinking it.

Now I'm actually looking forward to my meals and getting them down no problem.

Just a reminder that the answer isn't always to keep pounding food down. Listen to your digestive system, back off, improve insulin sensitivity and rebuild back up.

I worked out yesterday I'm on approx. 4000-4200 cals currently, hungry, relatively lean, getting good pumps in the gym. Overall happy with how things are going.

Will be training legs later, with a hamstring focus. Was meant to do at 10am, but had a client cancel at 9am, so decided to grab a powernap as only had 4 hours sleep last night.


----------



## ah24

Had a pretty good legs session actually..

Nothing crazy, but had to fit it in within 40-45mins. Low rest periods, ended up coughing a mouthful of puke up at the end, so intensity was definitely there lol

*Prone Leg Curl,* 12/10/8/6 + partials

*Banded Leg Press,* 4 x 12 (ended up around 9 sets, as just kept ascending weight up until on the last set I failed at about rep 10/11)

*Walking Lunges,* 2 x 40m (horrible)

*Barbell RDL,* 3 x 12

Short n' sweet but did the job


----------



## ah24

Weekend was pretty [email protected] Ended up with some puke & sh1ts bug.. So, spent from 1am right through til the following evening either being sick or sh1tting every 45-90mins. Not ideal tbh!

Have been back training the last 2 days but appetite still isn't great, so relying on liquid meals a lot.

Left quad has been giving me some niggles the last couple weeks, was playing up again today so having some work done on it later to try and release it. Hopefully should do the trick!

Other than that, not a lot else to report really. In the middle of booking another trip to Dubai for a few weeks time, looking forward to that - just debating on a hotel!

Considering one of these:

JA Ocean View: JA Ocean View Hotel, Dubai, UAE - Booking.com

or

Sofitel Jumeriah: Hotel Sofitel Dubai Jumeirah Beach, UAE - Booking.com

If anyone has any input, feel free! Last stayed in a hotel overlooking the Dubai Fountains, Burj Khalifa etc... This time I'm fancying something in JBR overlooking the sea.

(Budget is £200-300 per night, room only.. I like the look of the Atlantis, but it's approx. £400-500 per night which is too much for room only IMO)


----------



## ah24

OK, so bodyweight up 1lb since last Friday.

Happy with this considering I was sick and couldn't eat over the weekend. Made some adjustments from Tuesday onwards (increase in calories). I was also really struggling to get my chicken meals down since being ill for some reason. So, switched to tilapia - never had it before and was a little unsure.. However, bloody lovely! My meal prep company is dropping it off, seasoned, with rice and roasted veg + a lemon wedge. Amazing.

Training today was good, had a nice pump and no stress in shoulders at all:

*Ring Press-Ups (W/ Weighted Vest),* 4 x 8

*Incl. Barbell Press,* 4 x 6

*Flat Bench (Reverse Banded),* 3 x 5

*Closed Grip Bench,* 3 x 5

*Lat Raises,* 4 x 15/12/10/10 (was planning on 15/12/10/8, but elbow was playing up, so decided to stick with 10 for final set rather than increase weight further.)

*Banded Spider Crawls,* 3 x 4 lengths up/down wall

*Cable Crunches,* 2 x 8 & 2 x 12


----------



## Shreddedbeef

ah24 said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> Some of you might have read my previous thread: http://www.uk-muscle.co.uk/competitive-journals/263473-adam-hayley-lead-upto-september.html?highlight=adam+hayley
> 
> I competed last September in the Inters U80's. Happy with improvements from my first ever show (Birmingham, Juniors).. and was happy with my condition from the front - however from the back I still had fat to lose.
> 
> Currently in my off-season working on weak bodyparts (chest, back thickness and abdominals).
> 
> Got a text from Will (Bad Alan) yesterday saying he's going to compete at the Kent show on August 20th - I should do it too.... So, I thought f**k it why not.
> 
> I'll use this log to track last 3 months of off-season and then leading into show prep for the Birmingham show.
> 
> *
> Pics from last show:*
> 
> ** I'm in blue trunks **
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> *Diet:*
> 
> *
> *
> 
> Have just done a mini 10 day diet to tidy things up and hopefully improve my insulin sensitivity before going back to increased calories.
> 
> Below is diet from yesterday going forward to add some size, will post any tweaks along the way:
> 
> *Meal 1*
> 
> *
> *3 Scoops Pro-Peptide
> 
> 40g Almonds
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Meal 2*
> 
> *
> *500ml Liquid Egg Whites
> 
> Options Hot Choc Sachet
> 
> 1tbsp Coconut Oil
> 
> 70g Oats
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Meal 3*
> 
> *
> *250g Chicken (blended)
> 
> 1 Scoop Cream of Rice
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> INTRA:*
> 
> *
> *2 Scoops Glycofuse
> 
> 20g EAA
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> PWO:*
> 
> *
> *75g Whey
> 
> 2 Scoops Cream of Rice or 100g Cereal (Lucky Charms)
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Meal 4:*
> 
> *
> *250g Rump Steak
> 
> 300g White Potato
> 
> 1tbsp Butter
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Meal 5:*
> 
> *
> *500g Total Greek Yoghurt (Full Fat)
> 
> Handful Blueberries
> 
> Vanilla Syrup
> 
> V v simple and easy to get down as appetite is crap.
> 
> *Supplements:*
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> *Health:
> 
> - Curcumin x2 Daily
> 
> - Vit K2 x2 Daily
> 
> - Red Yeast Rice x2 Daily
> 
> - Vit D3 5000iu Daily
> 
> Performance:
> 
> Glycofuse + EAA's as mentioned above
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Training:*
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> *Monday - Legs
> 
> Tuesday - Chest & Shoulders
> 
> Wednesday - REST
> 
> Thursday - Back
> 
> Friday - Chest & Shoulders
> 
> Saturday - REST
> 
> Sunday - ArmsI'll be adding an extra back day soon, taking me up to 6 days per week..
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Yesterdays session as an example:*
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Hamstring Curls, *4 x 8 (Final set, 2 drop sets + 25 partials)
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Banded Leg Press, *4 x 8(Explosive)
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Squats, *4 x 8(3sec descent)
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> Leg Press, *1 x 50
> 
> *
> *
> 
> *
> DB Romanian Deadlifts, *4 x 12


legs are awesome mate fair play


----------



## ah24

Weight up another 2lbs over weekend, some of it water, but hoping some of it muscle too.. Things are feeling good and back to normal atm after being ill. Training 6x per week and think that's helping me stay leaner this year too.

My back & chest are weakest body parts, so training them both twice per week. With my back training I'm doing 1x heavy AND high volume session and 1x giant & tri-set workout. Seems to be doing the trick as colleague last week said it was looking thicker through my shirt. Took a pic today which I'll upload below - got another 8-10 weeks left of adding size before I start dieting down for comp so would be great if I can add another 2-3lbs LEAN.

Anyways, workout was:

*Pulldowns,* 4 x 8

Superset with:

*Neutral Grip Rows* 4 x 8

*Cable Pullovers,* 3 x 12

*Prone DB Rows,* 3 x 10

*DB Shrugs,* 3 x 12

*Prone DB Shrugs,* 1 x FAILURE

*Rope Low Cable Rows,* 3 x 12

*Banded Hypers,* 3 x 15

View attachment 166568


----------



## ah24

Bodyweight creeping up nicely now.. Had a cold last few days which has been annoying as can't sleep properly.

Got most of my sessions in, though dropped yesterdays session as was feeling v run down (working 15 days in a row commuting into London, out the house 16 hours)..

During prep I just suck it up and grind them out, but in the off-season I prefer playing things by ear. If I don't feel 100% then I back off.. Currently training 6-7 days a week, so missing the odd session every 4 weeks ago is never too detrimental.

Food wise, since being ill the other week I was struggling to get my chicken meals down. So, I took the plunge and tried tilapia... F**k me it's easy to eat! I have it with rice and roasted veg - lovely! I supplement with 10g EAA with the meal though as think it has a poor leucine content from what I can remember..

Diet wise currently is:

*6am:*

3 Scoops Whey

20g Mixed Nuts

*8am:*

3 Scoops Whey

75g Oats

1tbsp PB

*10am:*

TRAIN + take INTRA-MD

*11.30am:*

3 Scoops Whey

1 Scoop Quad Carb

25g Oats

*12pm:*

220g Tilapia

50g Rice

1tbsp Almond Butter

*4pm:*

200g Chicken

50g Rice

1tbsp Almond Butter

*8pm:*

200g Steak

200g Sweet Potato

1tbsp Almond Butter

*10pm:*

500g Total Greek Yoghurt (full fat)

75g Oats or 50g Lucky Charms cereal


----------



## ah24

Must say, for those interested.. I'm very impressed with the Prime Nutrition's MAX-HP & the intra product.

No jittery effects or come downs from the pre workout.. But with 400mg caffeine, definitely picks me up for session. Also the agmatine & citrulline are giving a great pump.

Having used glycofuse etc in the past, I'm preferring the intra-md as it's not so sickly. Very lightly flavoured and doesn't need as much water added 

Did back giant set + tri-set today.. Felt v good. No elbow issues, lats and rear delts were on fire at the end so was productive!


----------



## DarthMaulscle

How the hell have i never seen your thread on here before haha!?


----------



## ah24

DarthMaulscle said:


> How the hell have i never seen your thread on here before haha!?


Probably because I'm bloody useless at updating it! :lol:

I'll update again either this eve or tomorrow..

As a message to anyone who lurks / reads and doesn't comment... Feel free to ask me questions on things or hows / whys etc - it makes it more interesting from me, and the whole point of this log really is hopefully for people to pick some new info up from


----------



## ah24

UPDATE:

So, Friday was official weigh in day and was a lb up.. Happy with that.. Over the weekend I put another lb on, but I'm pretty sure this is water (hoping so actually..) so, back on typical foods etc and expect that to drop off by tomorrow or Weds. V happy with how things are looking for off-season. Leanest and biggest I've been. Couple of photos I took the other day:

View attachment 167026
View attachment 167027


Slight separation in quads as well as visible abs/obliques. V happy I've kept so 'on it' with my nutrition this time round.. Will make dieting A LOT easier!

Was on my Sports Massage course over the weekend.. Food was pretty damn good, just had a Nandos with the guys on course for lunch on the Sat and then a roast dinner last night that were 'off plan'

Today was back:

*1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8 heavy... then 1 x FAILURE (think I got 13-14 reps.. this was v tough)

*Single Arm Pulldowns,* 4 x 10

*Rack Deads,* 5 x 5

*Seated Cable Rows W/ Rope Attachment,* 3 x 12

*Seated DB Shrugs,* 4 x 12 (W/ 3sec ISO's)

*HyperExtensions,* 3 x 20/18/16

DONE!


----------



## ah24

V short workout today but got a pretty pump..

*Flat DB Hex Press,* 4 x 12

*Cable Flyes,* 4 x 12/12/12/15

*Pec Minor Dips,* 3 x 20

Superset With:

*Banded Over & Backs,* 3 x 10

Simple but did the job 

Contemplating doing legs this evening as I only have a 90min gap tomorrow.. Where I'd usually train legs, instead I'm thinking of treating myself to this for my 25th:

View attachment 167091


Biggest waste of money ever - but will keep me happy... temporarily :lol:


----------



## ah24

Things are going pretty well this week, weight hasn't climbed but that's fine.. If it climbs weekly I know some of it's not the 'right' kind of weight.. Plus I've had 4 people (3 colleagues and 1 client) say that I'm looking wider everyday and asked what I'm doing... Sooo, I guess something is working 

Trained chest & shoulders yesterday:

*Low Incl. DB Press,* 4 x 12

*High Incl. BB Press,* 4 x 6

*Flat Paused Bench,* 5 x 5

*Decline Stretch Press-Ups,* 3 x F

Superset with:

*Prone DB Flyes,* 3 x 20

*Standing DB Lat Raises,* 3 x 10

Superset with:

*Standing DB 6-Ways,* 3 x 10

Today will be back..

On another note, I turn the ripe ole' age of 25 in 3 weeks time. So, took the plunge and bought the Rolex!

View attachment 167310


----------



## Snorbitz1uk

ah24 said:


> Things are going pretty well this week, weight hasn't climbed but that's fine.. If it climbs weekly I know some of it's not the 'right' kind of weight.. Plus I've had 4 people (3 colleagues and 1 client) say that I'm looking wider everyday and asked what I'm doing... Sooo, I guess something is working
> 
> Trained chest & shoulders yesterday:
> 
> *Low Incl. DB Press,* 4 x 12
> 
> *High Incl. BB Press,* 4 x 6
> 
> *Flat Paused Bench,* 5 x 5
> 
> *Decline Stretch Press-Ups,* 3 x F
> 
> Superset with:
> 
> *Prone DB Flyes,* 3 x 20
> 
> *Standing DB Lat Raises,* 3 x 10
> 
> Superset with:
> 
> *Standing DB 6-Ways,* 3 x 10
> 
> Today will be back..
> 
> On another note, I turn the ripe ole' age of 25 in 3 weeks time. So, took the plunge and bought the Rolex!
> 
> View attachment 167310


Stunning watch mate.


----------



## ah24

Snorbitz1uk said:


> Stunning watch mate.


Thanks mate! V happy with it!


----------



## Super -ingh

ah24 said:


> Bodyweight creeping up nicely now.. Had a cold last few days which has been annoying as can't sleep properly.
> 
> Got most of my sessions in, though dropped yesterdays session as was feeling v run down (working 15 days in a row commuting into London, out the house 16 hours)..
> 
> During prep I just suck it up and grind them out, but in the off-season I prefer playing things by ear. If I don't feel 100% then I back off.. Currently training 6-7 days a week, so missing the odd session every 4 weeks ago is never too detrimental.
> 
> Food wise, since being ill the other week I was struggling to get my chicken meals down. So, I took the plunge and tried tilapia... F**k me it's easy to eat! I have it with rice and roasted veg - lovely! I supplement with 10g EAA with the meal though as think it has a poor leucine content from what I can remember..
> 
> Diet wise currently is:
> 
> *6am:*
> 
> 3 Scoops Whey
> 
> 20g Mixed Nuts
> 
> *8am:*
> 
> 3 Scoops Whey
> 
> 75g Oats
> 
> 1tbsp PB
> 
> *10am:*
> 
> TRAIN + take INTRA-MD
> 
> *11.30am:*
> 
> 3 Scoops Whey
> 
> 1 Scoop Quad Carb
> 
> 25g Oats
> 
> *12pm:*
> 
> 220g Tilapia
> 
> 50g Rice
> 
> 1tbsp Almond Butter
> 
> *4pm:*
> 
> 200g Chicken
> 
> 50g Rice
> 
> 1tbsp Almond Butter
> 
> *8pm:*
> 
> 200g Steak
> 
> 200g Sweet Potato
> 
> 1tbsp Almond Butter
> 
> *10pm:*
> 
> 500g Total Greek Yoghurt (full fat)
> 
> 75g Oats or 50g Lucky Charms cereal


What are your macros for the day mate?


----------



## ah24

Super $ingh said:


> What are your macros for the day mate?


Hmm you know what? For once I actually don't have a clue! Typically in the past I've kept track of everything v closely. This time round I've been more relaxed and add a bit of something here, or deduct something there depending on how I'm looking.

Looking at it now I'd guestimate it to roughly be:

Pro - 350g

Carbs - 320g

Fats - 100-120g

So around 4000cals.. Once per week - size of it depending on bodyweight - I have a cheat meal, which would then obviously put weekly cals a little higher!


----------



## Super -ingh

ah24 said:


> Hmm you know what? For once I actually don't have a clue! Typically in the past I've kept track of everything v closely. This time round I've been more relaxed and add a bit of something here, or deduct something there depending on how I'm looking.
> 
> Looking at it now I'd guestimate it to roughly be:
> 
> Pro - 350g
> 
> Carbs - 320g
> 
> Fats - 100-120g
> 
> So around 4000cals.. Once per week - size of it depending on bodyweight - I have a cheat meal, which would then obviously put weekly cals a little higher!


cool, how did you get to your current plan? is this something you ave done before? do u feel hungry on this or just adjust portions on looks wise etc..?

i cut a lil while back but think i cut my carbs, fats way too low and did 2 much cardio (for how many cals i was consuming) so i didnt do it well. interested in upping my carbs but keeping the cardio in. but i can bulk on not a lot of calories, i tend to put fat on easily so interested in this. might try the IIFYM


----------



## ah24

UPDATE:

So, bodyweight actually ended up dropping .5lb by the end of the week.. So, had both pizza AND curry on Sat night alongside one of my physique competitor clients for his cheat meal. Was v good!

I've increased calories slightly this week to see what happens;

Doubled my fats in meal 1 and increased INTRA carbs to 80g during training. Should bring about some nice changes 



Super $ingh said:


> cool, how did you get to your current plan? is this something you ave done before? do u feel hungry on this or just adjust portions on looks wise etc..?
> 
> i cut a lil while back but think i cut my carbs, fats way too low and did 2 much cardio (for how many cals i was consuming) so i didnt do it well. interested in upping my carbs but keeping the cardio in. but i can bulk on not a lot of calories, i tend to put fat on easily so interested in this. might try the IIFYM


I adjust things up/down with how I feel.. Last year I set a rigid caloric target of 5000... and got fat. My boss (Nick Mitchell) came over from Marbella and told me to start dieting earlier.

This time round, I've played a lot more by instinct as well as consulting with Shelby Starnes.

Essentially after my last show I gradually titrated calories up, sticking to a similar set up. Over Xmas I put on some excess bodyfat and lost my appetite (ended up blending chicken just to get it down lol).

Then in January I decided to do a mini diet to reset hunger and decrease bodyfat.

For this I went back to a protein/fat breakfast, and protein/fat last meal of day... Then put largest amount of carbs around workout window.

From there every time bodyweight stalled I made small changes;

1) Added carbs into last meal of day

2) Increased carbs by 10g in all meals

3) NOW... Doubled fats at breakfast meal, and increased my intra workout carbs

Ultimately it's down to increasing calories just enough to keep putting on muscle - BUT - without getting carried away chasing scale weight.

This is where I really think nutrient timing helps. I know some people don't believe in it, but I can only go by what works for me and my clients.. and so far I'd definitely say there's something to it.

As for IIFYM. We all do that essentially, but I don't see it as an excuse to eat junk. I did it last year where I followed the 80/20 rule (80% 'clean' food and 20% whatever I liked)... For me, the biggest issue is digestion. When I eat foods I don't agree with, it really messes with my stomach.

Right now, apart from a Saturday night, ALL my meals are 'clean' or however you want to label them - and genuinely perform/feel a lot better.


----------



## ah24

Feel free to comment / ask questions people - this thread gets pretty boring if I'm just rambling to myself :lol:

(Thanks Super $ingh for commenting)

Makes it more fun if there's some interaction going on.. If I'm missing out stuff anyone wants me to post on; let me know.


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> Feel free to comment / ask questions people - this thread gets pretty boring if I'm just rambling to myself :lol:
> 
> (Thanks Super $ingh for commenting)
> 
> Makes it more fun if there's some interaction going on.. If I'm missing out stuff anyone wants me to post on; let me know.


we discussing drugs in this journal bud??

also still using the intra md?


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> we discussing drugs in this journal bud??
> 
> also still using the intra md?


Yep still using the Intra-MD!

Re; other bit - through PM


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> Yep still using the Intra-MD!
> 
> Re; other bit - through PM


awesome mate also where about it UP isit in mayfair??

im working in W1S atm.


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> awesome mate also where about it UP isit in mayfair??
> 
> im working in W1S atm.


We've got 2 in London mate..

One in the City (near Liverpool Street & Old Street) - which is where I'm based.

One in Mayfair, on Park Lane near the Dorchester!


----------



## Super -ingh

What's the gym called? I work up on bishopsgate?


----------



## ah24

Super $ingh said:


> What's the gym called? I work up on bishopsgate?


Ultimate Performance 

Best Personal Trainer London | City of London | Mayfair


----------



## TELBOR

I'd ask more, but it'd be gear related lol

'Doh!


----------



## ah24

R0BLET said:


> I'd ask more, but it'd be gear related lol
> 
> 'Doh!


I actually think you'd be very bored with it haha


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> I actually think you'd be very bored with it haha


I bet it's 13g isn't it.....


----------



## ah24

R0BLET said:


> I bet it's 13g isn't it.....


 :whistling:

Haha, no.. Genuinely far from it!

I take more in the way of OTC supps now!

Intra-MD

Max-HP

Curcumin

Vit K2

Omega 3's

Red Yeast Rice


----------



## Galaxy

ah24 said:


> :whistling:
> 
> Haha, no.. Genuinely far from it!
> 
> I take more in the way of OTC supps now!
> 
> Intra-MD
> 
> Max-HP
> 
> Curcumin
> 
> Vit K2
> 
> Omega 3's
> 
> Red Yeast Rice


Do you rate curcumin? See it alot over on the US boards.


----------



## ah24

Galaxy said:


> Do you rate curcumin? See it alot over on the US boards.


Well, I can only go by my experience;

Since using the above combo's my systolic has dropped around 10-12..

On top of that, there seems to be some strong science backing it (I don't claim to be able to read research papers, but those that can seem impressed with it).

Randomly, this article popped up on FB earlier too:

1 Spice vs 14 Drugs! (Who Wins?)


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> :whistling:
> 
> Haha, no.. Genuinely far from it!
> 
> I take more in the way of OTC supps now!
> 
> Intra-MD
> 
> Max-HP
> 
> Curcumin
> 
> Vit K2
> 
> Omega 3's
> 
> Red Yeast Rice


I meant 13g over a 16 week period :whistling:

What are the intra and max?


----------



## ah24

R0BLET said:


> I meant 13g over a 16 week period :whistling:
> 
> What are the intra and max?


Haha, exactly!

The Max-HP is basically caffeine, beta alanine, citrulline, agmatine, glycerol etc..

So, is aimed at giving a pump.. I gotta say, I've used N.O Xplode, Super Pump etc in the past like we all have. Whilst they picked me up mentally - I never noticed an improvement in vascularity. Now, I have veins going through my triceps etc when I train!

The Intra-MD is HBCD (Highly Branched Cyclic Dextrin.... carbohydrate) + EAA's + Citrulline.

When combined with a certain protocol, works v well 

On another note, for anyone that doesn't have me on Facebook (I'm being too lazy to re-type it here) I posted this earlier:

'I must finally look like I train.

Today is a very proud moment for me.. I FINALLY had a complete stranger come and ask me the question I've always longed for:

'How much do you bench?!'

It really doesn't get better than that..

Life goal achieved.'

It has literally made my day :lol:


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Haha, exactly!
> 
> The Max-HP is basically caffeine, beta alanine, citrulline, agmatine, glycerol etc..
> 
> So, is aimed at giving a pump.. I gotta say, I've used N.O Xplode, Super Pump etc in the past like we all have. Whilst they picked me up mentally - I never noticed an improvement in vascularity. Now, I have veins going through my triceps etc when I train!
> 
> The Intra-MD is HBCD (Highly Branched Cyclic Dextrin.... carbohydrate) + EAA's + Citrulline.
> 
> When combined with a certain protocol, works v well
> 
> On another note, for anyone that doesn't have me on Facebook (I'm being too lazy to re-type it here) I posted this earlier:
> 
> 'I must finally look like I train.
> 
> Today is a very proud moment for me.. I FINALLY had a complete stranger come and ask me the question I've always longed for:
> 
> 'How much do you bench?!'
> 
> It really doesn't get better than that..
> 
> Life goal achieved.'
> 
> It has literally made my day :lol:


Got a link for the Max HP mate?

Sounds good.

Haha, I know which protocol you're referring too..... I think 

Pmsl some nob at work asked me that, who doesn't train.... Then proceeded to tell me it wasn't possible at 13st to bench over 100kg because he couldn't - 15st fatty who doesn't train


----------



## ah24

R0BLET said:


> Got a link for the Max HP mate?
> 
> Sounds good.
> 
> Haha, I know which protocol you're referring too..... I think
> 
> Pmsl some nob at work asked me that, who doesn't train.... Then proceeded to tell me it wasn't possible at 13st to bench over 100kg because he couldn't - 15st fatty who doesn't train


Idiots ehh?!

This is it mate: Max-HP by Prime Nutrition at Bodybuilding.com - Lowest Prices on Max-HP!


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Idiots ehh?!
> 
> This is it mate: Max-HP by Prime Nutrition at Bodybuilding.com - Lowest Prices on Max-HP!


Says can't buy in the uk mate?


----------



## ah24

R0BLET said:


> Says can't buy in the uk mate?


Ahhh, I had one of my clients bring me 3 tubs back from the US when she was on business lol.. Along with 3 tubs of Intra-MD. She wasn't happy / didn't realise it would weigh about 5kg in total - maybe I should have warned her :lol:

Let me know if you're interested in trying it and I'll get her to bring a tub back next time she's out there and will post to you :thumbup1:


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Ahhh, I had one of my clients bring me 3 tubs back from the US when she was on business lol.. Along with 3 tubs of Intra-MD. She wasn't happy / didn't realise it would weigh about 5kg in total - maybe I should have warned her :lol:
> 
> Let me know if you're interested in trying it and I'll get her to bring a tub back next time she's out there and will post to you :thumbup1:


I'll do some digging see if I can get some lol


----------



## ah24

Had a good session today, chest/shoulders 'pump' plus some abdominal work.

*Chest Tri-Set:*

*Ring Push-Ups,* 4 x 8

*DB Hex Press,* 4 x 10

*Stretch Press-Ups,* 4 x 12

*Shoulders:*

*Partial DB Lat Raises,* 4 x 12

Superset with:

*Machine Shoulder Press,* 4 x 8

*Abdominals:*

*Decline Garhammers,* 3 x 15

*Cable Crunches,* 3 x 12

*Ball Roll-Outs,* 1 x 25

Pretty good session, and had couple of the guys say I was looking bigger again. Took a couple photo's and quite happy with progress. Back tomorrow, as long as elbow stops being a [email protected], it should be a good session!


----------



## TELBOR

This is the closest i can get to all the ingredients of that MAX HP.....

Pre workout

Glycerol Monostearate Powder UK | BULK POWDERS™

Citrulline Malate | Citrulline | Citrulline Powder UK | BulkPowders

Beta Alanine Powder UK | 100% Pure | BULK POWDERS™

Agmatine Powder UK | 100% Pure | BULK POWDERS™

Buy Pure Caffeine Powder UK | BULK POWDERS™

Worth a crack you think? Lol


----------



## ah24

R0BLET said:


> This is the closest i can get to all the ingredients of that MAX HP.....
> 
> Pre workout
> 
> Glycerol Monostearate Powder UK | BULK POWDERS™
> 
> Citrulline Malate | Citrulline | Citrulline Powder UK | BulkPowders
> 
> Beta Alanine Powder UK | 100% Pure | BULK POWDERS™
> 
> Agmatine Powder UK | 100% Pure | BULK POWDERS™
> 
> Buy Pure Caffeine Powder UK | BULK POWDERS™
> 
> Worth a crack you think? Lol


Looks good to me!


----------



## ah24

Small update..

Weight Friday-Friday was 1lb up... Then overnight managed to drop 3lbs going into Saturday :confused1:

Despite increased cals etc..

So, spent Sunday as a high calorie day; pancakes, full English, roast etc.. Weight is now 2lbs up on last week (mostly water) - but should try and get it to stabilise now.

Still getting comments that I'm looking bigger AND leaner - which is awesome! Really happy with condition. Now just debating whether to compete or not;

On one hand I'm motivated as hell

On the other, I've never had an off season as productive as this one, so makes sense to keep rolling with it until I plateau. But, then I'm wondering if I'll still have the fire in my belly if I delay the show.. Decisions..

On another note, my physique competitor Ryan is looking v good. 6 weeks out, so now pulling CV out as don't want him burning himself out too early.

View attachment 168010


(20 weeks out - 12 weeks out - 6 weeks out)


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Small update..
> 
> Weight Friday-Friday was 1lb up... Then overnight managed to drop 3lbs going into Saturday :confused1:
> 
> Despite increased cals etc..
> 
> So, spent Sunday as a high calorie day; pancakes, full English, roast etc.. Weight is now 2lbs up on last week (mostly water) - but should try and get it to stabilise now.
> 
> Still getting comments that I'm looking bigger AND leaner - which is awesome! Really happy with condition. Now just debating whether to compete or not;
> 
> On one hand I'm motivated as hell
> 
> On the other, I've never had an off season as productive as this one, so makes sense to keep rolling with it until I plateau. But, then I'm wondering if I'll still have the fire in my belly if I delay the show.. Decisions..
> 
> On another note, my physique competitor Ryan is looking v good. 6 weeks out, so now pulling CV out as don't want him burning himself out too early.
> 
> View attachment 168010
> 
> 
> (20 weeks out - 12 weeks out - 6 weeks out)


I hope you didn't stop at the roast mate....?!

Bigger and leaner is great to hear 

Client is looking great!! Awesome shape to him


----------



## ah24

V pushed for time recently with clients, hence haven't been able to update this fully.

I have just managed to sit down for 5mins and write up a quick blog post of todays leg workout.. Rather than write a full update here, I'll paste the leg workout in!

--

Just a v short blog post. Currently in my off-season, and when training legs trying to bring up my hamstrings to match my quads.

Thought I'd post a real quick leg workout I just finished - in case anyone else is also bringing up their hamstrings and wants to focus on them.

*Prone Hamstring Curls,* 5 x 12/10/8/6/12

I did a few warm ups here of 8-10 reps. Then my first 'working' set was 12 reps.. Increased weight, 10 reps, increased weight, 8 reps and so on. Once I worked up to 6 reps.. I reduced weight by around 20% and pushed out a set of 12.

*Squats,* 4 x 6

Nothing special here, just 4 sets with a 2-3sec decent.

*Banded Leg Press,* 4 x 10

*Barbell RDL,* 3 x 12

I'm very weak at these, and usually most hip extension exercises as my low back get's v tight from my leg op when I was younger. Since focusing on keeping my lats 'tight' and pulled into my body - I feel 10x more stable. It's very obvious now, but something most over-look when doing any form of deadlifting.

*Ball Hamstring Curls,* 2 x FAILURE + partials

Bit of a 'gimmick' exercise, but if done correctly and the hips are kept raised throughout these keep the hamstrings under tension the whole time. Once I'd hit failure (approx. 20 reps or so) I then just did 1/4 reps until failure again.

That's it.. Nothing fancy but hamstrings are pretty pumped!

I also attached this photo to the post, where I was about 4-6 weeks out:

View attachment 168504


----------



## ah24

Small update..

So if you've been following you'll know I've been training on average 6x per week for the last 4-5 weeks.

Time to back off a little now, so dropping training to 4x per week; Chest & Shoulders, Legs, Back, Arms.

What I'll do is 2 weeks on 2 weeks off of training chest twice per day.

So, throughout week the total volume is still increased for chest, but it doesn't eat into my rest days.

I start prepping in approx. 6 weeks. At which point I'll bump training back up to 5x per week, and use that as a new stimulus for fat loss..


----------



## Super -ingh

do you normally do less days in an off season and bump up the days during prep/cut?


----------



## ah24

Super $ingh said:


> do you normally do less days in an off season and bump up the days during prep/cut?


Hmm in general, yes.

Although I do change it up frequently. So even in the off-season I'll go through periods where I bump training days up.

But, yep during prep I like to ramp it up. Typically start with 4 days per week, then 5, then upto 6 until I feel burnt out.. Final 4 weeks I increase CV and back off of training days back down to 4. At the end stages my intensity does drop somewhat, so I don't do the weights much justice.


----------



## Super -ingh

ok so does your training differ from off season to prep?

i.e heavier, more intensity, lower reps off season , more use of compounds etc......or isist relatively the same and u just keep changing it up as you would regardless of time of year.


----------



## ah24

Super $ingh said:


> ok so does your training differ from off season to prep?
> 
> i.e heavier, more intensity, lower reps off season , more use of compounds etc......or isist relatively the same and u just keep changing it up as you would regardless of time of year.


No not really..

I *prefer* lower reps.. But, throughout the year I periodise everything so utilise all rep brackets (triples, sets of 8, 12, 50 rep sets occasionally etc).

The last 4 weeks before a show I do lower loads used somewhat though as my joints can be a little funny when lean!


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> Hmm in general, yes.
> 
> Although I do change it up frequently. So even in the off-season I'll go through periods where I bump training days up.
> 
> But, yep during prep I like to ramp it up. Typically start with 4 days per week, then 5, then upto 6 until I feel burnt out.. Final 4 weeks I increase CV and back off of training days back down to 4. At the end stages my intensity does drop somewhat, so I don't do the weights much justice.


Hi mate where did you pick your Rolex up in the end from??


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> Hi mate where did you pick your Rolex up in the end from??


Carr Jewelers next door to Liverpool Street station


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Carr Jewelers next door to Liverpool Street station


More like Delboy and the East End 

Hope all is well mate


----------



## ah24

General update..

Still adding size slowly whilst remaining relatively lean for me. Couple of pics from last week:





A few clients coming along nicely, too.

Melissa 2 weeks out from UKBFF Nationals:



Ryan 4 weeks out from UKBFF Portsmouth (Physique):



Marco after a 4 week diet for his photoshoot:



My colleague Simon, this was 8 weeks (waiting for proper photo's):





Quite happy with them!


----------



## C.Hill

Fantastic work mate, with yourself and your clients. Very impressed. I'm coming to you later this year for a 4 week diet plan to get shredded haha.


----------



## ah24

C.Hill said:


> Fantastic work mate, with yourself and your clients. Very impressed. I'm coming to you later this year for a 4 week diet plan to get shredded haha.


Thanks mate!

And, I look forward to it


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> General update..
> 
> Still adding size slowly whilst remaining relatively lean for me. Couple of pics from last week:
> 
> View attachment 168993
> 
> 
> View attachment 168994
> 
> 
> A few clients coming along nicely, too.
> 
> Melissa 2 weeks out from UKBFF Nationals:
> 
> View attachment 168995
> 
> 
> Ryan 4 weeks out from UKBFF Portsmouth (Physique):
> 
> View attachment 168996
> 
> 
> Marco after a 4 week diet for his photoshoot:
> 
> View attachment 168998
> 
> 
> My colleague Simon, this was 8 weeks (waiting for proper photo's):
> 
> View attachment 168999
> 
> 
> View attachment 169000
> 
> 
> Quite happy with them!


V impressive especially impressed with Simon he also seemed to have not only got in shape but de-nerded, calfes are awesome mate


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> V impressive especially impressed with Simon he also seemed to have not only got in shape but de-nerded, calfes are awesome mate


Thanks dude, and yes I know what you mean about Simon! :lol:


----------



## ah24

Hi guys,

Quick update.

Been, super busy with in-person clients, online clients and finishing my sports massage therapy course. Hence lack of updates.

Training wise, pretty happy. Digestion slowed down again, so backed off of food for the past 2 weeks. Looking v lean still, separation through quads etc. Will ramp things back up over the weekend food wise as I feel more 'on track' again.

Training is still at 4x per week. Today was chest & shoulders:

*DB Hex Press,* 3 x 8

*Incl. Barbell Press,* worked upto top weight, hit 8 reps.. dropped weight by 10% and got another 6 out, reduced weight down to 60kg and repped til failure, hit around 13/14 reps

(chest was on fire after this double drop-set)

*Flat Bench,* 3 x 6 (each time just shy of failure)

*Cable Flyes,* 3 x 15/12/10

*Rear Delt Flyes,* 3 x 25

*Seated DB Presses,* 4 x 8

Feeling pretty good after it!

This weekend I had 3 clients competing too.

Ryan and Melissa (pictured).. It was Ryan's first show and a 'warm up' for the Portsmouth show in 2 weeks time. We tried a skipload for this as he was super flat, I wasn't happy with how he looked so will change things for Portsmouth. He placed 4th.

Melissa came in looking exactly how I wanted.. I won't go into my thoughts on the show.

I then also had a client in the US competing in a WBFF show, who ended up winning his class and earning his WBFF Pro Card which was pretty cool. Due to the time difference, I don't have any proper pics of him from the stage yet.


----------



## Michael81

Looking very impressive in here dude....

The hard work is certainly paying off....... :thumbup1:


----------



## ah24

Michael81 said:


> Looking very impressive in here dude....
> 
> The hard work is certainly paying off....... :thumbup1:


Thanks mate! All heading in the right direction in terms of work, my own progress and competitive clients. V happy, just struggle with enough hours in the day lol


----------



## ah24

Hmm debate is on..

Compete end of August

Or

November

Or

Southcoast next April

I'm leaning toward November, as it'll be the first show of next season. But worried it'll be v quiet?

Also considering other federations other than the UKBFF, if anyone has any input feel free. I wouldn't suit NABBA as I'm 5'6 and would end up in a class with JP etc (I just don't have that size right now).


----------



## ah24

Small arms and abs session I'll do in between clients today:

*Cable Pushdowns,* 4 x20

Superset with:

*Fat Grip Externally Rotated DB Curls,* 4 x 10

*Triceps Dips,* 4 x 12

Superset with:

*Fat Grip EZ Bar Curls,* 4 x 8

*Lying Incl. DB Triceps Ext',* 3 x 15

Superset with:

*Hammer Curls,* 3 x 15


----------



## ah24

After the arm work I did some additional abs too:

*Decline Garhammer Raise,* 4 x 20/18/16/15

*Cable Crunches,* 3 x 10

*Side Plank,* 2 x 30sec each side


----------



## ah24

Just finished training back:

*1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8

*Cable Pullovers,* 3 x 10

*Rack Pulls,* 6 x 3

*Cage BOR,* 4 x 8

*Banded Hypers,* 2 x failure, drop band and carry on til failure

Pretty fried now!


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> Just finished training back:
> 
> *1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8
> 
> *Cable Pullovers,* 3 x 10
> 
> *Rack Pulls,* 6 x 3
> 
> *Cage BOR,* 4 x 8
> 
> *Banded Hypers,* 2 x failure, drop band and carry on til failure
> 
> Pretty fried now!


Thinking if trying out the intra md price isnt to bad from csn and much prefer a tub to ordering seperate bags from bb warehouse etc, how do you rate it over mixing products yourself?


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> Thinking if trying out the intra md price isnt to bad from csn and much prefer a tub to ordering seperate bags from bb warehouse etc, how do you rate it over mixing products yourself?


Really impressed with it mate.. Just sipping it as we speak prior to legs!

So much easier having it all blended in one


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> Really impressed with it mate.. Just sipping it as we speak prior to legs!
> 
> So much easier having it all blended in one


Ill be giving it a go soon as my scivation runs out! Doesn't seem to dear Tbh either,

Have you decieded what show you'll be doing yet??


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> Ill be giving it a go soon as my scivation runs out! Doesn't seem to dear Tbh either,
> 
> Have you decieded what show you'll be doing yet??


I'm leaning toward Birmingham in Sept. From a 'progress' perspective, April '16 would be best.

But, I'm starting to push my prep services this year - so I think competing will probably help push that as people can follow me going through it all?


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> I'm leaning toward Birmingham in Sept. From a 'progress' perspective, April '16 would be best.
> 
> But, I'm starting to push my prep services this year - so I think competing will probably help push that as people can follow me going through it all?


Fair play pratice what you preach and all that!


----------



## ah24

Another tri-set based leg workout this week..

*Prone Leg Curl,* work upto top 10.. Then hit 10, reduce weight, further 10, 3-4 deep breaths and 1/2 rep partials til failure, deep breaths and then 1/4 rep partials to failure.

*Safety Bar Squats,* 3 x 8

*Leg Ext.,* 4 x 10

Superset with

*Pendulum Squat,* 4 x 10

Superset with

*Duck Press,* 4 x 10

Finished on 6 sets of biceps:

*TRX Biceps Curls,* 3 x 8

*FatGripz Drag Curls,* 3 x 10


----------



## ah24

Quite a busy weekend this one..

Had morning clients yesterday, then out on a stag-do. Feeling a bit sorry for myself today haha.

But, up and had breakfast, off to the gym to train arms & abs.

I have three clients competing next weekend, so checking in with two of them via email/Skype and Ryan I'll be seeing in person as he doesn't live too far from me.

Once that's done I've got a few new clients that have just started (non-competitors) so need to write their plans and then off to Nandos and cinema this eve.

Rock star lifestyle, obviously :lol:


----------



## ah24

Bodyweight slowly climbing again, have pushed calories up to around 4400-4600 now..

Just had a good chest & shoulders session:

*Ring Press-Ups W/ Weighted Vest,* 4 x 8

*Incl. Barbell Press,* 3 x 6

*Flat DB Press,* 3 x 8

*Single Arm Cable Cross-Overs,* 3 x 10 each side

*Seated DB Laterals,* 4 x 12

*Cable Facepulls,* 4 x 12

Client wise quite excited, Ryan is now 1 week out from Portsmouth. Has been tough getting a balance with him, as he's doing physique he can get marked down for being 'too vascular'.. So, have been playing around with things to try and get him lean enough whilst keeping vascularity at bay. Sounds odd, but the guy has hosepipes for veins.. and doesn't carry enough lean tissue to compete as BB yet (will do next year). Pic of him after 4 days of PSMF:



I'm also helping @Wallace86 for the run in to his show next week.. Have only been working with him for 4 days or so currently, but is heading in right direction. He's then competing again 4 weeks later where he'll be spot on, right now we've agreed his condition is 2-3 weeks away from where we'd like it - but can change that quickly:



Melissa is also doing Portsmouth and is looking great.

Finally, a non-competitive online client of mine has been working with me for 12 weeks and sent me his final pics today:



V nice to have some hard working clients right now!


----------



## Wallace86

Look forward to working with you and having proper guidance and I appreciate you taking me on at short notice  I will not let you down I can assure you that @ah24


----------



## bail

Best Supplements for Men | Muscle Rage

They sell intra Md 38 quid and max hp 25 quid not too sad


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> Best Supplements for Men | Muscle Rage
> 
> They sell intra Md 38 quid and max hp 25 quid not too sad


Perfect!

I originally kept sending one of my female clients to go pick it up when she was in NY on business. But now it's easier to get hold of here - she can relax.... Until the next supplement comes out :lol:

Trained back today:

*Cage Bent Over Row,* 3 x 8

*Stretchers,* 4 x 8

*Pullovers,* 4 x 12

*Deadstop 1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8

*'Lawnmowers',* 3 x 10


----------



## ah24

Quick update:

Did legs yesterday:

*Prone Hamstring Curl,* 4 x 20/15/10/10

*Leg Press,* 4 x 10

*Leg Ext,* 3 x 8

*Squats,* 3 x 15

*RDL's,* 3 x 10

Took a changing room 'selfie' when shopping yesterday as lighting was good (posted in the 'recent pic' thread too):



After this, was out at a friend bday meal in Mayfair last night.. Food was v v good

Fried Calamari

14oz Rib-eye

Mac N' Cheese

1/2 Cheesecake... and of course, an Old Fashioned



Also, have Ryan, Melissa and Steve competing this weekend.. Here's a pic Ryan just sent through - happy with his condition for Physique..


----------



## ah24

Competition day for my clients!


----------



## ah24

OK..

Update..

Food now at:

Pro - 400g

Carbs - 480g

Fats - 140g

V v v simple and unsustainable diet right now purely as a 'needs must' in terms of food choices, as I'm really struggling with the quantity of 'clean' foods.

Using Soreen Malt Loaf as one of my main carb sources right now as easy to eat, thanks to @Kristina's recommendation! (Who looked sh1t hot onstage on Sunday btw).

Bodyweight is being stubborn as hell.. On Friday night I had the meal I posted above (steak, fried calamari, mac n cheese, 1/2 cheesecake etc) on top of my normal food.. Saturday ate normal foods, then a few drinks in Brighton with steak and chips.. Sunday was at Portsmouth show, had Wagamama steak teryaki as well as pub steak & chips, onion rings etc.. Ended up a lb down come Monday morn!

Pushed carbs up by 20-30g daily from Monday and yesterday had a Five Guys double cheese & bacon burger W/ fries and finally up a lb today :thumb:



Was gooooooood! First time I've had a Five Guys, and damn I'm looking forward to the next one.

On Sunday I had clients competing.. all did well 

Melissa won her show

Ryan was in final call outs in mens physique (around 30 on stage.. they didn't even judge 15 of them.. Poorly run IMO)

Steve came 2nd in his show with an invite

Happy with all of them, and was motivating for me to be at a show again.


----------



## Kristina

ah24 said:


> OK..
> 
> Update..
> 
> Food now at:
> 
> Pro - 400g
> 
> Carbs - 480g
> 
> Fats - 140g
> 
> V v v simple and unsustainable diet right now purely as a 'needs must' in terms of food choices, as I'm really struggling with the quantity of 'clean' foods.
> 
> Using Soreen Malt Loaf as one of my main carb sources right now as easy to eat, thanks to @Kristina's recommendation! (Who looked sh1t hot onstage on Sunday btw).
> 
> Bodyweight is being stubborn as hell.. On Friday night I had the meal I posted above (steak, fried calamari, mac n cheese, 1/2 cheesecake etc) on top of my normal food.. Saturday ate normal foods, then a few drinks in Brighton with steak and chips.. Sunday was at Portsmouth show, had Wagamama steak teryaki as well as pub steak & chips, onion rings etc.. Ended up a lb down come Monday morn!
> 
> Pushed carbs up by 20-30g daily from Monday and yesterday had a Five Guys double cheese & bacon burger W/ fries and finally up a lb today :thumb:
> 
> View attachment 170841
> 
> 
> Was gooooooood! First time I've had a Five Guys, and damn I'm looking forward to the next one.
> 
> On Sunday I had clients competing.. all did well
> 
> Melissa won her show
> 
> Ryan was in final call outs in mens physique (around 30 on stage.. they didn't even judge 15 of them.. Poorly run IMO)
> 
> Steve came 2nd in his show with an invite
> 
> Happy with all of them, and was motivating for me to be at a show again.
> 
> View attachment 170842


Awwwesome, hehe and thank you.

That looks so good! ^

Your clients have been doing so well; keep seeing all the great posts/updates recently - top work. Got a winning team there! :thumbup1:


----------



## TELBOR

Soreen..... Where have you been mate lol

Easiest way to smash carbs in, loaf goes in 5 mins 

Clients looked great


----------



## ah24

TELBOR said:


> Soreen..... Where have you been mate lol
> 
> Easiest way to smash carbs in, loaf goes in 5 mins
> 
> Clients looked great


Haha I actually used it when I was Skiploading for my previous comp! Totally forgot about it! Needless to say, the last 3 days have been *a lot* easier!

Good & bad news:

Well, not bad.. annoying.. coming down with something I think. Last 2 days waking up with sore throat, coughing up crap etc. Annoying.

In the good news, I start prep on Monday. I'm going to be using Matt Porter as my coach so v excited about this as he's v v switched on.

However, I thought I had a few more weeks of off-season left. So, you can imagine my face this morning when I send him my current pics feeling smug.. and I get a reply of:

'We need to start dieting NOW'

:lol: :lol:

So... I had my last bowl of Lucky Charms this morning for breakfast, it was an emotional moment. Just awaiting Matt to put plans together and will get started!


----------



## solidcecil

Just scanned through quickly, will you be in u80s again?


----------



## ah24

solidcecil said:


> Just scanned through quickly, will you be in u80s again?


Yes mate, U80's again


----------



## ah24

So, prep started yesterday..

20mins fasted CV to kick off with

Couldn't have started at a worse time! I have a chest/throat infection at mo, so rattling when I breathe and coughing up [email protected] Buuuut, I'd rather have it *now* than at the end of prep!

Training is back up to 6 days per week.

Monday - Chest & Shoulders (Heavy)

Tuesday - Back & Biceps (Light... upper back focus)

Wednesday - Legs

Thursday - Chest & Abdominals (Light)

Friday - Back (Heavy)

Saturday - REST

Sunday - Arms & Abdominals

Starting on around 420g carbs on training days, but have dropped fats in half so already hungry lol


----------



## ah24

3lbs down so far in first few days.. Carbs are at 420g as mentioned, so think this is probably water coming off from alcohol on Saturday night :lol:

Still coughing up [email protected] from chest so held back a little on legs and did:

*Prone Leg Curls,* 4 x 8

*Pendulum Squat,* 4 x 8

*Leg Press,* 1 x 40

*RDL's,* 3 x 10

Fasted CV was 'enjoyable' in the rain at 5.30am...


----------



## ah24

Chest & abs done!

150g Lucky Charms PWO... lovely stuff


----------



## ah24

Pretty much 6-7lbs down so far. Quads have visible separation - happy with this for 16 weeks out. I may potentially look at other shows too if I'm ready early. Just have to be careful not to flatten out like I did last time.. But, that's where working with Matt will hopefully prevent that!

Today marks 16 weeks out from the Kent show, which is the main one as I'll also be doing it with; Will, Claire and possibly even my ex, Jade (I'm prepping her for it). So, should be a fun day with the 4 of us doing it!


----------



## reza85

Lol, secretly sabotage the X


----------



## Dan94

Coaching the ex? I wouldn't trust myself


----------



## ah24

Dan94 said:


> Coaching the ex? I wouldn't trust myself


There's a deal we've got going..

She preps my food for the week

I plan all her cardio / training / diet

Fingers crossed it works :lol:


----------



## bail

ah24 said:



> There's a deal we've got going..
> 
> She preps my food for the week
> 
> I plan all her cardio / training / diet
> 
> Fingers crossed it works :lol:


I had a similiar deal with my misses

Turns out Shes sh!t at cooking lol


----------



## ah24

Pretty quiet weekend..

Up at 5.15am each morning for cardio.. Yesterday was nice being able to have a lie-in until 8am before doing it 

Saturday had a chilled eve in watching Liam Neeson's 'Run All Night'.... and last night I went cinema to watch Big Game. That and a large Coke Zero and I was well away haha

Training this morn was chest and shoulders:

*Incl. DB Press,* 3 x 8

*Incl. BB Press,* 3 x 8

*Stretch Push-Ups,* 3 x 20

*Paused Flat Bench,* 3 x 15

*Seated Laterals,* 4 x 8 full range straight into 15 partials

*Band Pull-Aparts for rear delts,* 3 x 12


----------



## MRENIGMA

Are you doing U80kg or inter U80kg?


----------



## ah24

MRENIGMA said:


> Are you doing U80kg or inter U80kg?


Inter U80's mate.. Are you competing this year?

9 days into diet.. Just under 16 weeks out, photo today prior to training:


----------



## ah24

Legs today..

Aaaand managed to drop one of our metal 20kg plates on my foot in between leg press sets. Managed to finish workout hobbling around but gave lunges a miss lol.

Pretty sore tbh! I think Kristina did this a few days back too?! Must say hers looks more painful than mine as mine hit the joint where tarsals meet phalanges.. I think hers actually crushed the toe nail.


----------



## ah24

Legs today..

Aaaand managed to drop one of our metal 20kg plates on my foot in between leg press sets. Managed to finish workout hobbling around but gave lunges a miss lol.

Pretty sore tbh! I think Kristina did this a few days back too?! Must say hers looks more painful than mine as mine hit the joint where meta-tarsals meet phalanges.. I think hers actually crushed the toe nail.


----------



## ah24

Weight down another lb this morn.. So all good so far 

Still at 4200 cals

20mins fasted SSCV 7 days per week

From this week Matt has suggested I train abs every other day as they're a lagging bodypart..

So, I do

Day 1: 5 x 20 abs

Day 2: 5 x 20 back ext

Day 3: 5 x 20 abs

Day 4: 5 x 20 back ext

and just keep alternating for now..


----------



## ah24

Workout was:

*DB Hex Press,* 4 x 10

*Cable Cross-Overs, * 4 x 15

*Partial Lat Raises,* 3 x 30

*Rear Delt Swings,* 100 rep total... 60 reps, half weight and do 30 more, 1/2 weight again and perform 10 full reps

(John Meadows 'challenge' set)

*Ball Crunches,* 5 x 20


----------



## ah24

Exciting stuff..

Just had delivery for my topical fat burner, Vasoburn..

WOW this stuff is pretty intense!


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Exciting stuff..
> 
> Just had delivery for my topical fat burner, Vasoburn..
> 
> WOW this stuff is pretty intense!
> 
> View attachment 171685


So you rub this where your stubborn fat is and it melts away.....


----------



## ah24

TELBOR said:


> So you rub this where your stubborn fat is and it melts away.....


Exactly that.. Like magic..


----------



## TELBOR

ah24 said:


> Exactly that.. Like magic..


So if I rub this on my stomach all day I'll be shredded by when.....? Lol


----------



## Sharpy76

ah24 said:


> Exciting stuff..
> 
> Just had delivery for my topical fat burner, Vasoburn..
> 
> WOW this stuff is pretty intense!
> 
> View attachment 171685


Wtf is that?!?!

Surely that's complete and utter bs, or you just pulling our leg? :lol:


----------



## zyphy

Sharpy76 said:


> Wtf is that?!?!
> 
> Surely that's complete and utter bs, or you just pulling our leg? :lol:


the latter lol, no such thing as spot burning fat


----------



## ah24

Sharpy76 said:


> Wtf is that?!?!
> 
> Surely that's complete and utter bs, or you just pulling our leg? :lol:


Actually no.. I genuinely think there's something to it..

The idea is that stubborn bodyfat areas have a poor blood supply (low back / love handles especially for me)..

This product has ingredients in it to improve blood flow as well as Yohimbine HCL (which may target certain fat receptors).

I'm super minimal with supplements with clients etc; whey / probiotics / maybe an intra workout drink for SOME clients. That's about it really..

I've been trialling this on my colleague and his gf for their next photoshoot. So, this time round his supra skinfold is leaner than last years shoot. Yet he still has 5 weeks left until this years shoot, and is on more calories and less cardio. Do I think this is the sole reason? Of course not, I've structured his diet slightly differently - but I definitely think it may have played a part.

(BTW I'm not saying 'THIS WORKS' .. I'm saying, I'm sceptical of this sort of stuff - but this time round there may be something to it. I'd rather try it myself and see what happens than write it off having not tried it)

If you want to read Matt's write up of it; try MPASupps.com, he has a brief article on there. He's a pretty switched on guy, and his track record speaks for itself.

I'm not suggesting anyone goes out and buys it - but maybe keep checking in here for my feedback / progress throughout diet with it? I'm hoping I can get my low back 'ready' without resorting to over dieting like I did last time..


----------



## ah24

zyphy said:


> the latter lol, no such thing as spot burning fat


I actually don't agree with you here..

Can you spot reduce via training? I doubt it..

Can you spot reduce via Yohimbine HCL + Caffeine? I believe so..


----------



## zyphy

ah24 said:


> I actually don't agree with you here..
> 
> Can you spot reduce via training? I doubt it..
> 
> Can you spot reduce via Yohimbine HCL + Caffeine? I believe so..


fat is lost from the entire body, you cant pick and choose (aka spot reduce) where you want to burn fat...


----------



## TELBOR

Sharpy76 said:


> Wtf is that?!?!
> 
> Surely that's complete and utter bs, or you just pulling our leg? :lol:


Bit of googling and pubmed studies show it did/does work over a 12 week period after 4 weeks results were showing


----------



## ah24

zyphy said:


> fat is lost from the entire body, you cant pick and choose (aka spot reduce) where you want to burn fat...


OK,

I hate doing this, but what are you qualifications / experience?

I've got countless transformations, including 4 class winners in bikini/bodybuilding/physique shows as well as 2nd and 3rd places etc.

Alongside that, I've been doing this 9 years and am a total geek. I read everything, and have trialled lots on myself..

Sometimes, you need to be a little open minded and experiment. I used to spout it was a myth until I tried certain protocols with clients - and now definitely think you can make a difference.

Lastly - this thread isn't for debates.. I'm not asking anyone to 'believe' me, or buy this product. It's a log of my prep where people can follow.. Some bits they'll read and find interesting, some they'll agree with, some they won't.

I'm not here to convince you of anything - if you think it's BS that's not a problem


----------



## Sharpy76

ah24 said:


> Actually no.. I genuinely think there's something to it..
> 
> The idea is that stubborn bodyfat areas have a poor blood supply (low back / love handles especially for me)..
> 
> This product has ingredients in it to improve blood flow as well as Yohimbine HCL (which may target certain fat receptors).
> 
> I'm super minimal with supplements with clients etc; whey / probiotics / maybe an intra workout drink for SOME clients. That's about it really..
> 
> I've been trialling this on my colleague and his gf for their next photoshoot. So, this time round his supra skinfold is leaner than last years shoot. Yet he still has 5 weeks left until this years shoot, and is on more calories and less cardio. Do I think this is the sole reason? Of course not, I've structured his diet slightly differently - but I definitely think it may have played a part.
> 
> (BTW I'm not saying 'THIS WORKS' .. I'm saying, I'm sceptical of this sort of stuff - but this time round there may be something to it. I'd rather try it myself and see what happens than write it off having not tried it)
> 
> If you want to read Matt's write up of it; try MPASupps.com, he has a brief article on there. He's a pretty switched on guy, and his track record speaks for itself.
> 
> I'm not suggesting anyone goes out and buys it - but maybe keep checking in here for my feedback / progress throughout diet with it? I'm hoping I can get my low back 'ready' without resorting to over dieting like I did last time..


I'm definitely intrigued to see how you get on, will be watching closely!

I'll have a read of that article in the mean time


----------



## ah24

Sharpy76 said:


> I'm definitely intrigued to see how you get on, will be watching closely!
> 
> I'll have a read of that article in the mean time


*THIS* is the point of this thread.. Don't take what I say as gospel.. But look into new ways of doing things, do some reading about it and make your *own* conclusions. If after researching it you're still not convinced.. That's absolutely fine - but at least you're not closed minded enough to at least not do some digging to understand it first


----------



## zyphy

ah24 said:


> OK,
> 
> I hate doing this, but what are you qualifications / experience?
> 
> I've got countless transformations, including 4 class winners in bikini/bodybuilding/physique shows as well as 2nd and 3rd places etc.
> 
> Alongside that, I've been doing this 9 years and am a total geek. I read everything, and have trialled lots on myself..
> 
> Sometimes, you need to be a little open minded and experiment. I used to spout it was a myth until I tried certain protocols with clients - and now definitely think you can make a difference.
> 
> Lastly - this thread isn't for debates.. I'm not asking anyone to 'believe' me, or buy this product. It's a log of my prep where people can follow.. Some bits they'll read and find interesting, some they'll agree with, some they won't.
> 
> I'm not here to convince you of anything - if you think it's BS that's not a problem


personally i think its BS lol, so i'll leave it at that.


----------



## ah24

zyphy said:


> personally i think its BS lol, so i'll leave it at that.


Not a problem at all..


----------



## zyphy

ah24 said:


> Not a problem at all..


will be interested to see what results you get out of this experiment, good luck


----------



## ah24

zyphy said:


> will be interested to see what results you get out of this experiment, good luck


Thanks - will keep the thread update with it - along with skinfolds etc.


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> I actually don't agree with you here..
> 
> Can you spot reduce via training? I doubt it..
> 
> Can you spot reduce via Yohimbine HCL + Caffeine? I believe so..


Have you noticed people tend to store fat on least built up areas .

When I was 19 I competed in juniors my legs Held a lot of fat they never really came through

Now their my strongest body part they stay a lot leaner

Maybe due to increased circulation arc

No idea just rambling really lol

But basically I think you can spot reduce fat

I notice this with gh


----------



## Sharpy76

ah24 said:


> I actually don't agree with you here..
> 
> Can you spot reduce via training? I doubt it..
> 
> Can you spot reduce via Yohimbine HCL + Caffeine? I believe so..


I've heard this a few times now about Yohimbine.

Isn't it supposed to target stubborn fatty areas? How does that work exactly, any ideas?


----------



## 1manarmy

H



ah24 said:


> Exciting stuff..
> 
> Just had delivery for my topical fat burner, Vasoburn..
> 
> WOW this stuff is pretty intense!
> 
> View attachment 171685


Really interested in how this comes through dude! Is meant to help increase blood flow to stubborn areas? Ive used yohimbine and can safely say it worked for me and ive also tried pile cream on stubborn areas to tighten them up and that also worked to an extent! Keep me updated mate


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> Have you noticed people tend to store fat on least built up areas .
> 
> When I was 19 I competed in juniors my legs Held a lot of fat they never really came through
> 
> Now their my strongest body part they stay a lot leaner
> 
> Maybe due to increased circulation arc
> 
> No idea just rambling really lol
> 
> But basically I think you can spot reduce fat
> 
> I notice this with gh


You know what? Maybe actually!

Seriously I'd never thought of this.. BUT..

My quads are my strongest area visually.. and they're ALWAYS vascular etc. Always ready prior to a show 4-5 weeks out no problem. My back however is a weak body part from a development point of view AND is last for me to get lean. My subscap skinfold right now is like 14mm.

Yet my colleague Akash that I trained for a show last year has relatively small quads and a lot of muscle on his back (for a natty)... His back was shredded 4 weeks out but quads took forever to come in!

Pic of my quads day after show having eaten loads of crap:



Pic of his back *6 weeks* out of his first show and only on 4 cardio sessions per week:



You could definitely be onto something there..



Sharpy76 said:


> I've heard this a few times now about Yohimbine.
> 
> Isn't it supposed to target stubborn fatty areas? How does that work exactly, any ideas?


Exactly..

So, I'd heard about Yohimbine lots of times, but always wrote it off as BS.

Until I got talking to Dr Scott Stevenson. If you've ever read / listened to his stuff, you'll know that guy is next level intelligent. Probably the most clued up person re; human body that I've come across. Reading his articles can be hard work as he really understands the fine intracicies of pretty much anything he does.

This then made me think 'OK there must be something to it'

It wasn't until I started working with Melissa over a year ago, that she said she'd never managed to get her quads lean enough come competition time. Everything was always ready, but her quads.

So - I mentioned Yohimbine. I told her I hadn't used it so can't be sure.. But at this stage, maybe it's wort a shot with nothing to lose?

We used it.. and bingo.. Her quads were leaner than previous shows. Could be that I dieted / gave her a different CV to set up to what she was used to.. But who knows?

Then, I used it with 2-3 of my non-competitive female clients.. Same thing.

With myself with my first show my back was NO WHERE near ready. This time round I used Yohimbine and it was pretty much there come contest time. Though I did have to drive diet hard.

Have also used with colleagues gf with good results.

As for it's MoA. I'm no biochemist.. But from memory, you have two main type of fat cells. The stubborn are typically Alpha-2. These are what Yohimbine tends to 'inhibit' - which then helps mobilises the fatty acids in that area.. as well as stimulating certain catecholamines.

** OK I just confirmed it, here's an excerpt from my UP colleague Phil Learney's nutrition ebook - I'd definitely recommend purchasing if nutrition / fat loss interests you - this is just a *small* snippet of one paragraph **

'Two major types of adrenoreceptors that influence fat metabolism are of interest to us. Alpha-2 adrenoreceptors have lower sympathetic innervation and inhibit lipolysis (fat breakdown), decrease blood flow through adipose tissue, and stimulate overall fat cell numbers. Beta-2 adrenoreceptors have greater sympathetic innervation will increase both blood flow and the level of lipolysis. The differing distribution of subcutaneous fat would lead us to think that, in areas that show higher levels of stored fat, there will also be a higher level of alpha-2 adrenoreceptors. Hence, despite fat loss being widely accepted as an evenly distributed occurrence, it is not.68 These receptors would also partly explain an individual's predisposition to fuel storage in either lean or fat compartments.

This differential in body fat distribution comes with other issues when it includes lipolysis. Alpha-2 adrenoreceptors are more abundant in gluteofemoral, or lower, body fat. Beta-receptors therefore are more abundant in intra-abdominal fat. Thus, when we consider "stubborn" areas-lower back, abs, etc.-there is an association with an increase in those areas to the number of alpha-2 receptors. Compound this with the fact that males typically have more adrenal receptors intra-abdominally, whereas women display more around the hip and thigh (gluteofemoral) region and this would explain the phenomenon with female athletes who get very lean in the upper body but the hips and thighs remain far behind in progress. This would also suggest that indirect "spot reduction" is actually theoretically possible; much like "spot accumulation" appears indirectly to be possible. The fat patterning we discussed earlier and the gynoid and android shapes will show a higher amount of the anti-lipolytic alpha-receptors in the regions predisposed to higher fat levels.'

One thing to bear in mind if using Yohimbine HCL, is that insulin completely blunts the efficacy of it. So needs to be taken *away* from carbs.



1manarmy said:


> H
> 
> Really interested in how this comes through dude! Is meant to help increase blood flow to stubborn areas? Ive used yohimbine and can safely say it worked for me and ive also tried pile cream on stubborn areas to tighten them up and that also worked to an extent! Keep me updated mate


Yep, this combines Yohimbine AS WELL as ingredients to stimulate blood flow.

So, the yohimbine is inhibiting the alpha fat cells, whilst the other ingredients are increasing blood to adipose tissue that typically has a poor blood supply.

How I intend on using it - and this is just my thoughts, I haven't spoken to Matt yet - is I'll use Vasoburn throughout the whole of my prep... I'll apply before bed, ready for CV the next morning.

Then at 6-8 weeks out I'll add in oral Yohimbine HCL and combine it with caffeine pre-workout.


----------



## ah24

P.S I *LOVE* the discussion tonight!

Please, if anyone has any ideas for further topics/discussions or ways to get people involved - please throw them at me.

I'm pretty boring and have no imagination with my log, but I do enjoy this side of things..


----------



## ah24

Arms & Abs today..

*V Bar Pushdowns,* 4 x 20 (first 10 reps controlled, with flex.. last 10 reps just pumped out)

superset with:

*Standing DB Curls,* 4 x 8

*Bench Dips,* 4 x 15

superset with:

*FatGrip Externally Rotated Incl. Curls,* 4 x 10

*Rope Overhead Ext,* 3 x 15

superset with:

*Supine Cable Biceps Curls,* 3 x 10

For abs it was decline garhammer raise. Couldn't do the 5 x 20 as planned, so did:

20

18

16

14

12

Abs were cramping like a mofo after that :lol:


----------



## musclemate

Hey Adam. I find that yohimbine, Clen, caffeine and GH taken before fasted cardio is the bees-knees.

Nice quads by the way mate :thumbup1:


----------



## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> Inter U80's mate.. Are you competing this year?
> 
> 9 days into diet.. Just under 16 weeks out, photo today prior to training:
> 
> View attachment 171526


Yeah that's the plan, same show but will be doing classic, to tall for U80kg look like a dead spider, not big enough for U90kg, classic I can weigh 85kg so that's the plan


----------



## ah24

MRENIGMA said:


> Yeah that's the plan, same show but will be doing classic, to tall for U80kg look like a dead spider, not big enough for U90kg, classic I can weigh 85kg so that's the plan


What height / weight are you now?


----------



## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> What height / weight are you now?


5ft 11

94 kg

Started cycle 1 week ago, been off for the last 12weeks, so plan to lose 10kg, should be doable, 94kg natty fat skinny, to 85kg geared up shredded....well that's the plan lol


----------



## Dan94

ah24 said:


> P.S I *LOVE* the discussion tonight!
> 
> Please, if anyone has any ideas for further topics/discussions or ways to get people involved - please throw them at me.
> 
> I'm pretty boring and have no imagination with my log, but I do enjoy this side of things..


Where'd you find the best place for Yohimbine?


----------



## ah24

Dan94 said:


> Where'd you find the best place for Yohimbine?


Either Primaforce or Prime Nutrition.. Easiest to order via evitamins.com (I think that's the link) - as you have to order from US.

Make sure you buy a yohimbine HCL.... NOT Yohimbine bark etc


----------



## Dan94

ah24 said:


> Either Primaforce or Prime Nutrition.. Easiest to order via evitamins.com (I think that's the link) - as you have to order from US.
> 
> Make sure you buy a yohimbine HCL.... NOT Yohimbine bark etc


Will do, cheers

I've only used ECA as a 'fat burner' before


----------



## ah24

Dan94 said:


> Will do, cheers
> 
> I've only used ECA as a 'fat burner' before


My fav OTC combo = Caffeine & Yohimbine, pre fasted cardio.

Caffeine @ 200-400mg

Yohimbine @ 0.2mg/kg


----------



## Dan94

ah24 said:


> My fav OTC combo = Caffeine & Yohimbine, pre fasted cardio.
> 
> Caffeine @ 200-400mg
> 
> Yohimbine @ 0.2mg/kg


So take it all during the morning? I only have a protein shake and eggs for breakfast, don't do fasted cardio though but guess it'll still work taken first thing


----------



## ah24

Dan94 said:


> So take it all during the morning? I only have a protein shake and eggs for breakfast, don't do fasted cardio though but guess it'll still work taken first thing


Start off at just AM.. Then as you plateau / get nearer end of the diet, add in a second PM dose.

Yep, absolutely fine with pro/fat breakfast.


----------



## Dan94

ah24 said:


> Start off at just AM.. Then as you plateau / get nearer end of the diet, add in a second PM dose.
> 
> Yep, absolutely fine with pro/fat breakfast.


Bit like ECA then, cheers


----------



## Dan94

ah24 said:


> Either Primaforce or Prime Nutrition.. Easiest to order via evitamins.com (I think that's the link) - as you have to order from US.
> 
> Make sure you buy a yohimbine HCL.... NOT Yohimbine bark etc


Weird how at evitamins it's 90 caps for £6 but £18 for 90 on century supps


----------



## geordie_paul

the primeforce and prime nutrition are only 2.5 mg tablets on there i prefer the swanson ones and can get them from a uk supplier at healthmonthly.co.uk


----------



## ah24

geordie_paul said:


> the primeforce and prime nutrition are only 2.5 mg tablets on there i prefer the swanson ones and can get them from a uk supplier at healthmonthly.co.uk


Interesting.. Will take a look at them, I like Swanson and use them for my Vit D3.

I usually recommend the 2.5's as a lot of my female clients use them - so easier to adjust dosage. But, for male clients, higher dosed tabs would be perfect.


----------



## geordie_paul

ah24 said:


> Interesting.. Will take a look at them, I like Swanson and use them for my Vit D3.
> 
> I usually recommend the 2.5's as a lot of my female clients use them - so easier to adjust dosage. But, for male clients, higher dosed tabs would be perfect.


Take a look at the mega strength ones, there sold as yohimbe extract but standardised 2% yohimbine alkoids so the 750mg tablets are 15mg yohimbine not bad when 120 tablets cost 11.99! i took one of these with 200mg caffeine and it was enough


----------



## ah24

Had a decent weekend 

Got some exciting news yesterday from my boss, Nick.. Can post up on that once everything launches.

Went cinema to watch Mad Max and chill out. OK film, but nothing amazing!

Breakfast this morning (this was 1 of 2 pancakes):

2 whole eggs

13 egg whites

65g oats

2 slices bread


----------



## ah24

Training was chest / shoulders / low back

*Ring Press-Ups,* 4 x 8

*Incl. BB Press,* 3 x 6

*Flat DB Press,* 3 x 10

*standing Lat Raises,* 5 x 10

*45 Degree Back Ext,* 5 x 20

The 5 x 20 back ext 3 x per week are a killer! Hopefully as calories are still high (4200) I may even gain a little thickness in the erectors as it's a change of stimulus..


----------



## ah24

Weight down a lb from last week..

Back / biceps / ab pump session today

*Trap Bar Shrugs,* 4 x 10 (2 sec ISO)

*EZ Up-right Row,* 4 x 15

*Elbows Flared Prone Row,* 4 x 15

*Prone Spider Curls,* 4 x 10

*Stretched Cable Curls,* 2 x 25

*Ball Crunches,* 5 x 20


----------



## ah24

To those interested in my feedback on the Vasoburn.. I have one strong bit of advice so far:

Don't rub your eyes in bed after you've applied it. Not the greatest sensation in the world :lol:


----------



## ah24

So, yesterday was a pretty crap day on prep. Woke up soooo tired, felt drained, struggled through clients... Went to train myself and all my joints etc just didn't feel 'stable', everything felt an effort.

Was talking to my colleague saying I felt mentally as though I was 3 weeks out, not 3 weeks in! So, something isn't quite 100%.

My thoughts are that I didn't listen to my body. I was force feeding 5000cals toward the end of bulk, blending chicken etc to get it down. Training pretty tough and ended up with a mouth full of ulcers (happens whenever I over reach and ramp volume up for too long). Couple this with having to travel into London 14 days in a row for a sports massage course, a cold etc...

Basically, I should have taken a week off prior to prep, back off of food to give GI system a break, joints a rest and mentally recoup before going into prep.

Instead I've gone straight in at 6 days per week training + 7 days cardio and only 5 hours sleep per night.

Not a great start to prep.

That said!

I got back early last night, so decided to go to bed earlier and got 6 hours sleep... Made all the difference, today I feel 100% better - so hoping yesterday was a one off.

Training today was back heavy, not crazy on volume which was nice:

*1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8

*Seated Cable Rows,* 4 x 10

Superset With:

*Stretchers,* 4 x 8

*Shrugs,* 4 x 25

*Back Ext,* 5 x 20

Felt pretty good!

Got out of work early again today.. Only to be stuck on a broken down train.. Got dumped at Norwood Junction, got a train to East Croydon, then another to Three Bridges, then a taxi home!


----------



## musclemate

We all have those kind of days matey... After some rest, tomorrows session will be awesome :thumbup1:


----------



## bail

ah24 said:


> So, yesterday was a pretty crap day on prep. Woke up soooo tired, felt drained, struggled through clients... Went to train myself and all my joints etc just didn't feel 'stable', everything felt an effort.
> 
> Was talking to my colleague saying I felt mentally as though I was 3 weeks out, not 3 weeks in! So, something isn't quite 100%.
> 
> My thoughts are that I didn't listen to my body. I was force feeding 5000cals toward the end of bulk, blending chicken etc to get it down. Training pretty tough and ended up with a mouth full of ulcers (happens whenever I over reach and ramp volume up for too long). Couple this with having to travel into London 14 days in a row for a sports massage course, a cold etc...
> 
> Basically, I should have taken a week off prior to prep, back off of food to give GI system a break, joints a rest and mentally recoup before going into prep.
> 
> Instead I've gone straight in at 6 days per week training + 7 days cardio and only 5 hours sleep per night.
> 
> Not a great start to prep.
> 
> That said!
> 
> I got back early last night, so decided to go to bed earlier and got 6 hours sleep... Made all the difference, today I feel 100% better - so hoping yesterday was a one off.
> 
> Training today was back heavy, not crazy on volume which was nice:
> 
> *1 Arm DB Rows,* 4 x 8
> 
> *Seated Cable Rows,* 4 x 10
> 
> Superset With:
> 
> *Stretchers,* 4 x 8
> 
> *Shrugs,* 4 x 25
> 
> *Back Ext,* 5 x 20
> 
> Felt pretty good!
> 
> Got out of work early again today.. Only to be stuck on a broken down train.. Got dumped at Norwood Junction, got a train to East Croydon, then another to Three Bridges, then a taxi home!


Maybe you should have a week off training mate or atleast a few days?

I'm the same prefer to train through it but you'll feel hundred times better if you take one extra day off

Trains from London bridge to Croydon are a cvnt atm


----------



## ah24

bail said:


> Maybe you should have a week off training mate or atleast a few days?
> 
> I'm the same prefer to train through it but you'll feel hundred times better if you take one extra day off
> 
> Trains from London bridge to Croydon are a cvnt atm


Theoretically I should and it probably wouldn't do any harm..

But, when I'm in prep mode I'm like a robot.. It would mess with me mentally if I did... So, plan is to get ready earlyyyyy so that I can reduce all CV etc in plenty of time before the show.


----------



## simonthepieman

zyphy said:


> the latter lol, no such thing as spot burning fat


Actually, you can use ultrasound to break down fat cells in specific areas.

The caveat is you still to use the energy from the cells or they can reforms.


----------



## ah24

musclemate said:


> We all have those kind of days matey... After some rest, tomorrows session will be awesome :thumbup1:


Just seen this reply, thanks mate - and you were 100% right.. Yesterdays back session and todays arms session were great!


----------



## ah24

@TELBOR @Sharpy76 @zyphy @bail @1manarmy @musclemate @Dan94

So, just a real quick post on an update with the Vasoburn (I've tagged a few of you that were in the initial discussion)..

It's too early for *me* to tell, my love handles are getting smaller but that's likely diet related..

BUT, this is interesting I think.

So my colleague Lloyd that I've been helping for his photoshoot, he's been using it for 5/6 weeks now.

Whenever he diets his abs come through right away, but his whole back (upper / lower / love handles) still store fat.

We've been doing his abdominal, supra (hip) and subscap (shoulder blade) skinfolds.

Each week consistently all three have been coming down.. Except for the past 4 weeks his shoulder blade has remained the same.. Yet umbilicus and supra are still dropping nicely.

So I asked him if he's managing to put the Vasoburn on his shoulder blades.... Obviously he can't reach!

First off - kinda interesting that the two sites he *is* putting it on are still getting leaner, yet his shoulder blades / upper back have stalled.

Secondly - I've told him to ask his girlfriend to apply it to his upper back for the final 4 weeks before his photoshoot.. IF that starts dropping, then there could definitely be something in it 

** I just want to add this in that I'm experimenting with all this.. Not once have I said 'it works' I just think there must be something in it so keeping people updated **


----------



## Dan94

Interesting update mate do you have a link to this stuff?


----------



## ah24

Dan94 said:


> Interesting update mate do you have a link to this stuff?


MPA VasoBurn

(I have no affiliation to them btw in case anyone is thinking that.. It's just not often I get excited about a supplement, as 99.999% it's marketing BS.. Hence all I use is whey / EAA's myself)


----------



## TELBOR

Interesting mate, good observation so far.

See what happens now!


----------



## ah24

OK,

Weight down 1.5lbs this week. Can't remember if I posted that we made changes last week?

We dropped about 30g carbs (now around 390g) and increased all CV sessions by 5mins (now 7 x 25mins SSCV)

Will try and get some pics this afternoon after my chest / shoulders workout


----------



## simonthepieman

have a read of some of these, I remember reading a japanese study (translated of course  ) that was very compelling.

I've never done it, i found this out researching this to convince my missus it was BS (whe had a groupon voucher) and was left with a stack of evidence supporting her case.

Never seen it mentioned on a BB forum


----------



## FlunkyTurtle

ah24 said:


> OK,
> 
> Weight down 1.5lbs this week. Can't remember if I posted that we made changes last week?
> 
> We dropped about 30g carbs (now around 390g) and increased all CV sessions by 5mins (now 7 x 25mins SSCV)
> 
> Will try and get some pics this afternoon after my chest / shoulders workout


Mate do you train at pulse8?

Could have sworn I recognised you today


----------



## ah24

FlunkyTurtle said:


> Mate do you train at pulse8?
> 
> Could have sworn I recognised you today


Sorry, just seen this! Nope, wasn't me!

UPDATE:

Down in bodyweight again, but could be quicker.

This week, have dropped carbs to about 320g and also added 15mins of HIIT CV each evening (alongside the morning SSCV).

Trained back today, relatively low volume:

*Prone DB Rows,* 3 x 8 + 1 x 6 + 2 drop sets

*Neutral Grip Pulldown,* 4 x 8

Superset With:

*Nautilus Pullover,* 4 x 10

*DB Shrugs,* 3 x 10

*Back Ext,* 3 x 10 (weighted) + 1 x 20 BW


----------



## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> Sorry, just seen this! Nope, wasn't me!
> 
> UPDATE:
> 
> Down in bodyweight again, but could be quicker.
> 
> This week, have dropped carbs to about 320g and also added 15mins of HIIT CV each evening (alongside the morning SSCV).
> 
> Trained back today, relatively low volume:
> 
> *Prone DB Rows,* 3 x 8 + 1 x 6 + 2 drop sets
> 
> *Neutral Grip Pulldown,* 4 x 8
> 
> Superset With:
> 
> *Nautilus Pullover,* 4 x 10
> 
> *DB Shrugs,* 3 x 10
> 
> *Back Ext,* 3 x 10 (weighted) + 1 x 20 BW


Yo!

What's your weight down to?

12 weeks today till show?!


----------



## ah24

MRENIGMA said:


> Yo!
> 
> What's your weight down to?
> 
> 12 weeks today till show?!


Weight this morning was around 188lbs first thing in the AM (5'6)

Yep, 12 weeks out today!

Woke up, did 20mins SSCV. Bought a bike for the house finally - makes things sooo much easier at 5.20am!

Ate some meals, caught up on client emails then went to the gym to do abs & HIIT.

Abs was nice and simple = 5 x 20 straight leg raises

HIIT was on the X-Trainer and was 45sec mod : 15sec ALL OUT

Was killer, dripping in sweat at the end...

Now doing some more emails and then heading to cinema this eve to chill out a little!


----------



## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> Weight this morning was around 188lbs first thing in the AM (5'6)
> 
> Yep, 12 weeks out today!
> 
> Woke up, did 20mins SSCV. Bought a bike for the house finally - makes things sooo much easier at 5.20am!
> 
> Ate some meals, caught up on client emails then went to the gym to do abs & HIIT.
> 
> Abs was nice and simple = 5 x 20 straight leg raises
> 
> HIIT was on the X-Trainer and was 45sec mod : 15sec ALL OUT
> 
> Was killer, dripping in sweat at the end...
> 
> Now doing some more emails and then heading to cinema this eve to chill out a little!


nice, what bike did you get? Spin bike, recumbent or upright bike?


----------



## ah24

MRENIGMA said:


> nice, what bike did you get? Spin bike, recumbent or upright bike?


JTX Cyclo 6: Gym Spec Aerobic Training Bike, 22kg Flywheel, 2 Year On-Site Warranty: Amazon.co.uk: Sports & Outdoors

Spine bike - the one above 

My client that competed back in April (Ryan) bought it for his prep and paid the above. I noticed he wasn't using it anymore, so he's sold it to me for £150 - bargain.

Makes it so much easier, literally rolling out of bed and straight onto it. Listening to podcasts whilst peddling in the dark with my eyes closed lol


----------



## MRENIGMA

How's prep?


----------



## ah24

> How's prep?


Since site being updated, completely forgot to log in and update this.

Some big changes actually. First off I stopped working with Matt Porter. The guy gets people in AMAZING shape, one of the best in the business without doubt and I was sooo excited to work with him. But, his approach just didn't work for me and the hours/job that I do. It's perfect if BB is your life, if you have a sedentary job or work 9-5. But, I average 4 hours sleep per night, commute into London and out the house 16 hours daily, and am on my feet stripping weights/bars etc with clients all day.

I was super burnt out as from 2/3 weeks in (15 weeks out) it was fasted CV 7x per week... weights 6x per week... evening HIIT 7x per week.

I went into prep with no deload etc as started earlier than planned too, so wasn't a great combo! Bought it up with him and suggested we go harder on diet and reduce cals, to enable me to reduce my evening HIIT and allow me to recover / sleep. Then re-introduce toward final stages. But, that's not his approach.

So, I got chatting to Shelby who I worked with in off-season, we have a similar approach so put plans together and BOOM changes happened overnight and I suddenly felt like I had more energy. We dropped about 600 cals off the original diet.. Cut carbs in half, increased fats a little and dropped protein by 100g. Increased duration of morning CV but dropped the evening HIIT.

Mentally I feel things are 'on track' now and as of this things we're ramping the diet even harder with sporadic low carb days. Today was the first one, hungry but manageable.

Some photo's taken yesterday morning, approaching 6 weeks out:


----------



## LeviathanBodyBuilding

Looking good mate  What class are you going to be doing?

I'm preppin for Kent atm myself, will either be first timers or depending on my weight on the day may give classics a go

excited and nervous as I'm not sure what to expect


----------



## ah24

LeviathanBodyBuilding said:


> Looking good mate  What class are you going to be doing?
> 
> I'm preppin for Kent atm myself, will either be first timers or depending on my weight on the day may give classics a go
> 
> excited and nervous as I'm not sure what to expect


Thanks mate!

I'll be doing the Inters U80's mate.

Are you staying over night before? Drop me a PM if you want and can try catch up on the day, I don't mind giving a hand back stage etc to help calm nerves / look after your stuff if it's your first show and won't have anyone back stage with you?

My first show was an absolute blur as I really didn't know what to expect and didn't have stuff prepared prior. Last year I loved every minute and was sooo much more relaxed.

If there's any 'on the day' advice I can give, let me know - it's a small community / sport!


----------



## LeviathanBodyBuilding

ah24 said:


> Thanks mate!
> 
> I'll be doing the Inters U80's mate.
> 
> Are you staying over night before? Drop me a PM if you want and can try catch up on the day, I don't mind giving a hand back stage etc to help calm nerves / look after your stuff if it's your first show and won't have anyone back stage with you?
> 
> My first show was an absolute blur as I really didn't know what to expect and didn't have stuff prepared prior. Last year I loved every minute and was sooo much more relaxed.
> 
> If there's any 'on the day' advice I can give, let me know - it's a small community / sport!


wow....I totally never expected that response. Mate that would be awesome..really appreciate that, will def make the day go a lot smoother 

im not sure what is the arrangements for getting there, Im sure my prep coach will fill me in on this but I should ask sooner rather than later.

I cant wait!


----------



## ah24

LeviathanBodyBuilding said:


> wow....I totally never expected that response. Mate that would be awesome..really appreciate that, will def make the day go a lot smoother
> 
> im not sure what is the arrangements for getting there, Im sure my prep coach will fill me in on this but I should ask sooner rather than later.
> 
> I cant wait!


No problem at all mate 

Yep deff start making arrangements now; trunks, book in tan, hotel if needs be etc.. Don't wanna have to worry about all this in last couple weeks!


----------



## LeviathanBodyBuilding

ah24 said:


> No problem at all mate
> 
> Yep deff start making arrangements now; trunks, book in tan, hotel if needs be etc.. Don't wanna have to worry about all this in last couple weeks!


booked my tan yesterday, will find out about arrangentd for getting there as soon as I can...still need to get trunks, although Im not sure where from, my local supp shop used to do them along with tan products but now only do tan, which is a bit annoying

things are going so far so good, don't wamt it all going to pot the last week or so coz I have left stuff to the last minute haha


----------



## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> No problem at all mate
> 
> Yep deff start making arrangements now; trunks, book in tan, hotel if needs be etc.. Don't wanna have to worry about all this in last couple weeks!


is their someone at the show to book up tanning?!


----------



## ah24

> is their someone at the show to book up tanning?!


Karen Marillier from Show Tan mate..

Saves the guess work.. First show I did I was too pale, second show I did I was the darkest there lol. They get it bang on each time!


----------



## MRENIGMA

> Karen Marillier from Show Tan mate..
> 
> Saves the guess work.. First show I did I was too pale, second show I did I was the darkest there lol. They get it bang on each time!


So are they there on the day or do you go somewhere local day before etc?
Have you got some contact info I can have?


----------



## ah24

Had a great refeed with Jade yesterday..

She's also doing the same show but will be her first competition (Bikini Tall).

I'd never had Sushi before, but with what prep does to your head - was craving it?!

Sooo, we went out for sushi!

Course 1 - Beef Carppacio (spell?)

Course 2 - Tasting Pallete with Whitebait, Shrimp and Japanese sausage

Course 3 - Duck Rolls (these were amazing)

Course 4 - Salmon/Tuna Nigiri

Course 5 - Crabmeat California Rolls

Course 6 - Eel Dragon Rolls

Got home and also had 250ml fat free frozen yoghurt with 50g berry granola on top 

Lovely stuff..

Back on diet and CV etc today and weight hopefully should be back on track as of Weds if body does it's usual thing.


----------



## ah24

All going well so far, tightening up daily atm which is nice. Feel in a good position with 5.5 weeks to go.

Current diet if anyone is interested (original one is back toward the beginning of this thread - this is quite different since switching approaches)... It's less calories but I feel 10000x better on it:

*DIET:*

*5.20am *- 40mins SSCV

*6am* - 1 Scoop AD Grazed + 1 tsp Psyllium Husk

*7.30am* - 4 Whole Eggs + 50g Oats

*10am - *TRAIN

*11.30am* - 60g Whey Isolate + 50g Oats + 20g Nut Butter (Almond)

*2pm - *200g Chicken + 85g Cooked Rice + Tenderstem Broccoli + 30g Walnuts

*4pm - *60g Whey Isolate + 50g Oats + 20g Nut Butter (Almond)

*7pm - *200g Rump Steak + Tenderstem Broccoli

*9.45pm - *60g Whey Isolate + 30g Nut Butter (Peanut)

*SUPPLEMENTS:*

- Grazed (Greens)

- Psyllium Husk (Fiber)

- Whey Isolate

- Ravenous (Digestive Enzymes)

- Bulldoze (Sleep Aid)

*NOTES:*

- On a Saturday I alternate my fatty beef meal for either salmon/swordfish/lamb etc for variation

- I sprinkle in the odd pro/fat day

- Sunday evenings I replace my last meal of the day with a higher carb refeed


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## LeviathanBodyBuilding

ah24 said:


> All going well so far, tightening up daily atm which is nice. Feel in a good position with 5.5 weeks to go.
> 
> Current diet if anyone is interested (original one is back toward the beginning of this thread - this is quite different since switching approaches)... It's less calories but I feel 10000x better on it:
> 
> *DIET:*
> 
> *5.20am *- 40mins SSCV
> 
> *6am* - 1 Scoop AD Grazed + 1 tsp Psyllium Husk
> 
> *7.30am* - 4 Whole Eggs + 50g Oats
> 
> *10am - *TRAIN
> 
> *11.30am* - 60g Whey Isolate + 50g Oats + 20g Nut Butter (Almond)
> 
> *2pm - *200g Chicken + 85g Cooked Rice + Tenderstem Broccoli + 30g Walnuts
> 
> *4pm - *60g Whey Isolate + 50g Oats + 20g Nut Butter (Almond)
> 
> *7pm - *200g Rump Steak + Tenderstem Broccoli
> 
> *9.45pm - *60g Whey Isolate + 30g Nut Butter (Peanut)
> 
> *SUPPLEMENTS:*
> 
> - Grazed (Greens)
> 
> - Psyllium Husk (Fiber)
> 
> - Whey Isolate
> 
> - Ravenous (Digestive Enzymes)
> 
> - Bulldoze (Sleep Aid)
> 
> *NOTES:*
> 
> - On a Saturday I alternate my fatty beef meal for either salmon/swordfish/lamb etc for variation
> 
> - I sprinkle in the odd pro/fat day
> 
> - Sunday evenings I replace my last meal of the day with a higher carb refeed


good to hear things are going well mate! I do something similar with my beef meals, when I'm at work i only have a microwave so need something quick and easy so I just stick with my steak mince iv already prepped. But when I'm off work I like to alternate with a proper steak or salmon fillets etc quite nice to have something different.

Are you still using that meal prep company you mentioned earlier in the journal?


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## ah24

> good to hear things are going well mate! I do something similar with my beef meals, when I'm at work i only have a microwave so need something quick and easy so I just stick with my steak mince iv already prepped. But when I'm off work I like to alternate with a proper steak or salmon fillets etc quite nice to have something different.
> 
> Are you still using that meal prep company you mentioned earlier in the journal?


Yeah, definitely makes a diff mentally to break up the monotony of same foods - and just macro match it 

Nah, for off-season I'll start using one again, but I'm kinda anal (I weigh my whey protein when prepping lol) so don't trust anyone! Off-season I'm a little more relaxed so will deff use as 1) Saved me loads of time 2) The food *always* tastes better when someone else cooks it, right?!


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## LeviathanBodyBuilding

ah24 said:


> Yeah, definitely makes a diff mentally to break up the monotony of same foods - and just macro match it
> 
> Nah, for off-season I'll start using one again, but I'm kinda anal (I weigh my whey protein when prepping lol) so don't trust anyone! Off-season I'm a little more relaxed so will deff use as 1) Saved me loads of time 2) The food *always* tastes better when someone else cooks it, right?!


always the way! Plus it's good to be able to save yourself a bit of time when you are quite pushed for it most days, it's def something I'm considering.

but for contest prep, like you say it's better to be able to weigh out everything, I'm the same....everything has to be measured to the last ounce lol


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## ah24

Not a huge amount to update with this week so far..

Lethargy really starting to kick in. It's every Thursday without fail I feel like I've been hit by a bus. Sundays refeed see's me through Mon/Tues/Wed. Not long left though, 31 days I believe 

Have hotel booked for the Saturday + Sunday and then have a photoshoot booked with Fivos too, which I'm excited about. Never really done one before and kinda hate my photo being taken - but I'm not planning on competing for 2-3 years after this show, so kinda makes sense to have some proper photos done for a change as you can never guarantee you'll get good ones from the show day.

Current condition taken yesterday, still quite a few variables to play with so quite pleased as could quite happily ramp it a lot harder if needs be.


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## LeviathanBodyBuilding

Looking great mate!! Looks like conditioning is really starting to come through!

Not long now


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## Dan TT

Looking awesome mate. Definitely know what you mean about once it comes to Thursday after a Sunday refeed. I was laid in bed till early hours of morning thinking of what combinations of takeaways I could put together, fcuking tren :lol: Legs looking well..!


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## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> Not a huge amount to update with this week so far..
> 
> Lethargy really starting to kick in. It's every Thursday without fail I feel like I've been hit by a bus. Sundays refeed see's me through Mon/Tues/Wed. Not long left though, 31 days I believe
> 
> Have hotel booked for the Saturday + Sunday and then have a photoshoot booked with Fivos too, which I'm excited about. Never really done one before and kinda hate my photo being taken - but I'm not planning on competing for 2-3 years after this show, so kinda makes sense to have some proper photos done for a change as you can never guarantee you'll get good ones from the show day.
> 
> Current condition taken yesterday, still quite a few variables to play with so quite pleased as could quite happily ramp it a lot harder if needs be.
> 
> View attachment 113153


looking spot on.

what hotel you booked, I need to book mine...


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## ah24

LeviathanBodyBuilding said:


> good to hear things are going well mate! I do something similar with my beef meals, when I'm at work i only have a microwave so need something quick and easy so I just stick with my steak mince iv already prepped. But when I'm off work I like to alternate with a proper steak or salmon fillets etc quite nice to have something different.
> 
> Are you still using that meal prep company you mentioned earlier in the journal?


This one mate.. Looks a sh1thole on outside but think it's prob nicest one from what we've seen. And apparently breakfast is good 

http://www.booking.com/hotel/gb/the-clarendon-royal.en-gb.html?sid=28c1c3f1fde903719f101f99f1e9892d;dcid=4;checkin=2015-08-29;checkout=2015-08-30;matching_block_id=106480101_83816428_2_1;m_occ=2


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## LeviathanBodyBuilding

Hiya Adam, think you quoted the wrong person...think it was @MRENIGMA that was asking a bout the hotel.

Not not sure if I'm traveling down on the day, but if not I might check it out


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## ah24

MRENIGMA said:


> looking spot on.
> 
> what hotel you booked, I need to book mine...


Woops quoted wrong person.. Read two replies up mate


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## MRENIGMA

ah24 said:


> Woops quoted wrong person.. Read two replies up mate


I've booked Karen for my tan Saturday and I'm staying at the holiday inn


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