**Marcus's HIT Dungeon**

[marcus300]

Heading to the dungeon for chest and arms. Yeah!

Your going wrestling with the gimp you dirty old man

[Hazard]

How's the training going haz and the diet

Man..... I typed a response yesterday while out at dinner for a bday and the wifi was fvcked up and nothing posted lol.

The training is going great. Better than expected honestly. I'm slowly building up strength and trying not to go too hard too fast. I'm responding extremely well though. I'm trying to utilize a lot of mind muscle connection while I'm training. Concentrating on the contraction and squeezing.

My diet stays the same pretty much. Oats and eggs for breakfast - chicken and rice all day. Dinner time is usually something different. I have a passion for cooking also so I always try to make the gf and my daughter something good for dinner. I'll always meet my own nutritional needs tho

[Capebuffalo]

Yes do a light week because its impossible to carry on with that assault of this type of training for weeks on end, all what will happen is burn out. Drop all the advanced training protocols and just go to failure only

I haven't done this in months. I'm going to next week for sure. Maybe get some rest and growth.

Well that means a lot Marcus I would have thought you would bust my ass about changing something. Kinda hoped you would to make me push a little harder. But I'm not satisfied so that's motivation enough.

Thanks

[DCI]

Honestly you need a de load week you will destroy next week after you have a rest week you will feel energised again like you first started lifting.

[Capebuffalo]

Honestly you need a de load week you will destroy next week after you have a rest week you will feel energised again like you first started lifting.

I hope so. I'm still getting stronger but my energy levels are low each day.

[DCI]

It does take a lot out of you this training but you will honestly feel a lot better after a light week and rearing to go when you hit next monday

[kelkel]

Your going wrestling with the gimp you dirty old man

Gimp don't stand a chance....

But the dirty old man thing is on point....

[kelkel]

Starting a little pre-pre contest prep today. Utilizing Marcus prime for about 10 weeks. Aiming for 1 to 1.5 lbs fat loss a week. Hoping to get to sub 10%. Think I'm sitting at 12-13% right now. After that 10 weeks ill do a short burst cycle then go into full contest prep mode.

Leg day today:
Squats
135 x 15
225 x 10
225 x 10
315 x 10
405 x 8
425 x 4.5

Try to ease up a bit on your reps on the way up. Only do what you have to do to be warm and avoid injury. Don't get stuck on the number 10. If your warm after 6 reps put it down and save the energy for what's important. Use your feel and intuition here. You did 8 with 405 which is great then went up 20lbs when already fatigued. I'd bet money if you got to 405 and only did a feel set of maybe 2 reps and racked it, then cranked your weight up to 445-455 you'd still get your reps, maybe 6-8. This is the set that's important for you, IMHO.

Close leg hack squats
260 x 15
350 x 8
440 x 6.5

Seated leg curl
110 x 15
150 x 11.5
150 x 8.5
150 x 5.5

Leg extensions
170 x 10
210 x 10
230 x 10

45 degree donkey calf raises superset with seated calf raises
270 x 10, 110 x 8
290 x 8, 100 x 6
320 x 6, 90 x 6

10% incline; 3mph - 30 min

In bold above. That philosophy goes for most exercises as well. Hope you don't mind the thoughts....

[sawyer86]

In bold above. That philosophy goes for most exercises as well. Hope you don't mind the thoughts....

Excellent advice!

[marcus300]

Man..... I typed a response yesterday while out at dinner for a bday and the wifi was fvcked up and nothing posted lol.

The training is going great. Better than expected honestly. I'm slowly building up strength and trying not to go too hard too fast. I'm responding extremely well though. I'm trying to utilize a lot of mind muscle connection while I'm training. Concentrating on the contraction and squeezing.

My diet stays the same pretty much. Oats and eggs for breakfast - chicken and rice all day. Dinner time is usually something different. I have a passion for cooking also so I always try to make the gf and my daughter something good for dinner. I'll always meet my own nutritional needs tho

That's the key to this style of training if you have been out of the game for a bit, slowly build up the correct form and the mind muscle connection is one of the first thing what gets triggered when going full blown HIT style. Many don't realize the importance of the mind when training. Before any motor units get triggered in the muscle the mind as to tell your inner self that its going to finish this set and the weight isn't going to be an issue.

I haven't done this in months. I'm going to next week for sure. Maybe get some rest and growth.

Well that means a lot Marcus I would have thought you would bust my ass about changing something. Kinda hoped you would to make me push a little harder. But I'm not satisfied so that's motivation enough.

Thanks

When you train and stimulate the right muscle fibers which in this case are the fast twitch type 2b the body takes a lot of stress and it needs to rest and repair, its very hard to stimulate these fibers and even more so understanding when to stop and give your body a rest.

[marcus300]

Starting a little pre-pre contest prep today. Utilizing Marcus prime for about 10 weeks. Aiming for 1 to 1.5 lbs fat loss a week. Hoping to get to sub 10%. Think I'm sitting at 12-13% right now. After that 10 weeks ill do a short burst cycle then go into full contest prep mode.

Leg day today:
Squats
135 x 15
225 x 10
225 x 10
315 x 10
405 x 8
425 x 4.5

Close leg hack squats
260 x 15
350 x 8
440 x 6.5

Seated leg curl
110 x 15
150 x 11.5
150 x 8.5
150 x 5.5

Leg extensions
170 x 10
210 x 10
230 x 10

45 degree donkey calf raises superset with seated calf raises
270 x 10, 110 x 8
290 x 8, 100 x 6
320 x 6, 90 x 6

10% incline; 3mph - 30 min

I agree with Kel, you can cut this workout down a lot and concentrate on stimulating the harder muscle fibers which produce the biggest gains, doing to many sets and reps will zap the power and performance out of your body and it will be impossible to stimulate the right fibers..

Diet sounds great

[Capebuffalo]

When you train and stimulate the right muscle fibers which in this case are the fast twitch type 2b the body takes a lot of stress and it needs to rest and repair, its very hard to stimulate these fibers and even more so understanding when to stop and give your body a rest.

You know what ? I'm not waiting till next week. I'm starting tomorrow. My body is telling me to ease up a little. I'm just so fatigued by mid week and run down by the end. I've been pushing hard for 5 months at least. I did have a week of vacation during that but that was it.

[DCI]

No wonder you are drained 5 months is a serious amount of time to be training. One thing the two big men will say and thats listen to your body when its screaming at you to rest.

One thing I have learned from the lads is listen and I mean really listen to it and when you do you open a new growth spurt and let the new building window open. You will feel even more alive after a good rest break

[marcus300]

Cape - its very hard to stimulate these fibers because these are the ones what get activated when your at failure and this kind of stress on the body can not take for long periods of time, its weeks not months that's why shorter cycles suit this type of training ideally. To get bigger thicker muscles you must progressive overload and stimulate the type 2b fibers but what it takes to do these advance protocols to get these fibers stimulate does give your body a lot of stress and this is something you need to work along side with.

[kelkel]

When you train and stimulate the right muscle fibers which in this case are the fast twitch type 2b the body takes a lot of stress and it needs to rest and repair, its very hard to stimulate these fibers and even more so understanding when to stop and give your body a rest.

You know what ? I'm not waiting till next week. I'm starting tomorrow. My body is telling me to ease up a little. I'm just so fatigued by mid week and run down by the end. I've been pushing hard for 5 months at least. I did have a week of vacation during that but that was it.

Cape have you considered some BW? Extreme fatigue can be an indicator of anemia.

[marcus300]

I'll do a write up on the different fibers and how to stimulate these and the action what occur, just give me a few days on it its very interesting stuff and will open your mind to why this type of training works..

[Capebuffalo]

I'll do a write up on the different fibers and how to stimulate these and the action what occur, just give me a few days on it its very interesting stuff and will open your mind to why this type of training works..

Please. That would be great.

[Capebuffalo]

Cape have you considered some BW? Extreme fatigue can be an indicator of anemia.

Had BW about a month ago. All in the normal range. Maybe one end of normal but still normal.

Well there is more to it than that. My business has really taken off. Unfortunately rain and humidity effect what I do. It rained like 40 days and nights. So we are behind. I've been pulling 12-14 hr days the past 27 days. Plus a 2.5 yr old. And always the gym in the morning. This has led to extreme fatigue by weeks end. And the business just keeps coming. Good thing. But not pressing weight maxes for a week cannot hurt.

Edit :Added. Plus the sleep apnea I have and can no longer use the cpap. So having to jump through hoops to be eligible for surgery that's not elective so the insurance will cover. That is a big part I'm sure. My original study I was waking up 74 times an hour. So not a lot of rest when I rest. Ahhh to be young again.

[crazy mike]

No wonder you are drained 5 months is a serious amount of time to be training. One thing the two big men will say and thats listen to your body when its screaming at you to rest.

One thing I have learned from the lads is listen and I mean really listen to it and when you do you open a new growth spurt and let the new building window open. You will feel even more alive after a good rest break

Agree ^^ , Cape I thought it was my age but I have been at it so hard for months that I just had to take some time to recoup. It's nuts that my back went now. But I have concluded the muscle fibers I have built in this time will not leave me but just atrophy during my recoup time, thus muscle memory if we can call it that. ...crazy mike

[Sgt. Hartman]

I'll do a write up on the different fibers and how to stimulate these and the action what occur, just give me a few days on it its very interesting stuff and will open your mind to why this type of training works..

Looking forward to it.

[clarky.]

I'll do a write up on the different fibers and how to stimulate these and the action what occur, just give me a few days on it its very interesting stuff and will open your mind to why this type of training works..

That would be great

[DCI]

So this week is de load week, I'll adjust my diet also to correspond to this.

So I started with shoulders:

Hammerstrength shoulder pressing only used a 20kg plate on each for 3 sets just repped slowly and felt the contract no real sore pressure etc on the myscle just let it contract and sqeeuze felt very good.

Arnold db pressing just used 20kg db for that and just did the same as the above so precise reps keeping form strict, felt very good and got the blood flowing into the muscles.

Lateral raises with 12.5kg db again same as above felt great nothing like the same as proper balls to the wall but you could get a nice light pump and blood flow around the muscles really helps when you are so fatigued after a long few weeks of this training.

Then bb shrugs again same as above very strict slow form only 100kg on the bar but was perfect to feel yourself not struggle or push too hard.

Finished with cardio on the crosstrainer 20 mins interval training very good again.

Feel great tonight compared to the weekend I felt like shit saturday, not too bad last night but now I feel great much more energised and fuller which completely sounds wrong I know but it your body as the big men say adapts very fast so this week is a good shock and a good break from the toture for a week.

Hopefully this log will encourage more people to work this into their training. I have it set on the phone so I make myself break the routine of hit trainif

[kelkel]

Had BW about a month ago. All in the normal range. Maybe one end of normal but still normal.

Well there is more to it than that. My business has really taken off. Unfortunately rain and humidity effect what I do. It rained like 40 days and nights. So we are behind. I've been pulling 12-14 hr days the past 27 days. Plus a 2.5 yr old. And always the gym in the morning. This has led to extreme fatigue by weeks end. And the business just keeps coming. Good thing. But not pressing weight maxes for a week cannot hurt.

Edit :Added. Plus the sleep apnea I have and can no longer use the cpap. So having to jump through hoops to be eligible for surgery that's not elective so the insurance will cover. That is a big part I'm sure. My original study I was waking up 74 times an hour. So not a lot of rest when I rest. Ahhh to be young again.

Try EOD training for a period of time. Give your CNS a break and go into each workout recharged as well.

[Capebuffalo]

Cape - its very hard to stimulate these fibers because these are the ones what get activated when your at failure and this kind of stress on the body can not take for long periods of time, its weeks not months that's why shorter cycles suit this type of training ideally. To get bigger thicker muscles you must progressive overload and stimulate the type 2b fibers but what it takes to do these advance protocols to get these fibers stimulate does give your body a lot of stress and this is something you need to work along side with.

Is there a rep range associated with these ?

[Capebuffalo]

Try EOD training for a period of time. Give your CNS a break and go into each workout recharged as well.

Damn that would be tough.

[gearbox]

If your training daily and not getting the right amount of sleep you limiting your growth potential and asking for injury.

[Hazard]

I take days off in between. My usual split is this:

Mon
Tues
Thurs
Sat

So I have off wed/fri/sun - this gives me time off to rest and be able to go balls out each day. Also.... If I have a schedule conflict I can change days around and still have rest days

[Sfla80]

I noticed a lot of members have trouble sleeping. But its only body builders that I hear this from. I have always had this problem. Just thoight it was me. Is it something we do? The life style?

Myself im a morning person up at 6am...5am if im on cycle for some reason. I fall asleep early but never stay asleep longer then 45mins at a time. I know there is supps and stuff to help with this. But was curious if there is a reason so many suffer from this.

[Capebuffalo]

I noticed a lot of members have trouble sleeping. But its only body builders that I hear this from. I have always had this problem. Just thoight it was me. Is it something we do? The life style?

Myself im a morning person up at 6am...5am if im on cycle for some reason. I fall asleep early but never stay asleep longer then 45mins at a time. I know there is supps and stuff to help with this. But was curious if there is a reason so many suffer from this.

Extra weight we carry over our bodies natural limit. Believe me at my heaviest my neck is 18.5 inches. That's pressure everywhere in the throat.

[Tron3219]

In bold above. That philosophy goes for most exercises as well. Hope you don't mind the thoughts....

I agree with Kel, you can cut this workout down a lot and concentrate on stimulating the harder muscle fibers which produce the biggest gains, doing to many sets and reps will zap the power and performance out of your body and it will be impossible to stimulate the right fibers..

Diet sounds great

I see what you guys are saying. I guess I'm just err on the side of caution. My knees are jacked up and I've tried jumping from 315 to 425 and it just didn't feel right. That's why I add in 425. But I see what ur saying about just doing just a couple reps to get my joints and connective tissue used to it instead of a full set. Ill definitely try it next leg day!

[Tron3219]

Extra weight we carry over our bodies natural limit. Believe me at my heaviest my neck is 18.5 inches. That's pressure everywhere in the throat.

Quit suckin so much dick and buildin those neck muscles up :P lol jk bud

[Rusty11]

Curious as to how often you guys do a de-load week. It's been 6 weeks and weight and/or reps continue to progress. Had a great chest workout this afternoon. And, do you do the same exercises, but drop down 30/40%? Usually, I'll just take a week off, but cutting it down for a week instead of no lifting seems to be a better option. Thanks

[Capebuffalo]

Quit suckin so much dick and buildin those neck muscles up :P lol jk bud

Quit knocking on my door with your drunk ass.

[Tron3219]

Quit knocking on my door with your drunk ass.

Gotta get my rocks off somehow

[Hazard]

Curious as to how often you guys do a de-load week. It's been 6 weeks and weight and/or reps continue to progress. Had a great chest workout this afternoon. And, do you do the same exercises, but drop down 30/40%? Usually, I'll just take a week off, but cutting it down for a week instead of no lifting seems to be a better option. Thanks

I would say to deload when you feel you need it. If you're feeling wiped out or your still sore from the week before...... Deload. I don't think there's any set time frame - just when your body needs it.

[Tron3219]

Curious as to how often you guys do a de-load week. It's been 6 weeks and weight and/or reps continue to progress. Had a great chest workout this afternoon. And, do you do the same exercises, but drop down 30/40%? Usually, I'll just take a week off, but cutting it down for a week instead of no lifting seems to be a better option. Thanks

Sometimes ill reduce workload, sometimes ill just take a week off. Depending on how I feel. But the week off tends to come about every 4-5 months and ill deload a couple times depending on how my body feels.

[Rusty11]

Thanks Hazard. I never felt better, so onward and upward...

[Hazard]

Thanks Hazard. I never felt better, so onward and upward...

If you're still making progress and feel great I don't see why you need to slow it just yet

[Tron3219]

If you're still making progress and feel great I don't see why you need to slow it just yet

Agreed

[Java Man]

Critique please. Front upper body... what needs improvement and what excersises would be recommended for that improvement? Added 6 lbs in the last week. 210 lbs this morning. Any advise is as always appreciated.

Attachment 144314

Hell cape, you don't even look like the same guy at the beginning of this year before the improvement contest. You've made huge improvements so I'd have to say until that stops and you hit a wall keep doing whatever youre doing now. If I had to pick something to critique based on just this one shot id say work on your mid section. Serratus and oblique tie ins and abs in general. I like how triangle traps look so I'd bring those up a little too. Arms, chest, shoulders all look great imo. I'd like to see your back. Looks like maybe you could bring your lats out more but hard to tell in that pic.