| Archive for The Magic Bus Trip Never get off the Bus! |
| Dan |
Time to put up or shut up I guessI guess I want some opinions on my progress with the HIT program. Below are photos taken about 6 weeks apart give or take. I think I'm making pretty good progress (more in my shoulders than anything else.)I should mention I was lifting weights a solid year before I started this and infrequently over the past couple. Opinions? Other than "FOR CHRIST'S SAKE, SHAVE!" ;) May 26th 2007 
July 2nd 2007 
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| Dave |
Holy crap!
What a massive improvement! So much gain in such a small space of time!! |
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| Dean |
Awesome job, Dan! 
Are you still doing mega calories? What are your macro ratios? How often do you eat? Keep up the good work! 
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| Dan |
4000 cals/day. No more than 40 gs carbs. About 200 g protein. The rest is fat. Mostly heavy cream.
I'm eating 3-4x/day. Trying not to go over 1000 cals/meal. <sarcasm>Remember, kids. You need lots of carbs to grow muscle.</sarcasm> |
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| Dean |
I was just gonna ask if those 40g were all included in your PWO drink! 
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| Dave |
You are my new hero Dan!! 
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| Dave |
what were the stat changes? measurements etc. | ||||||||
| Dean |
Yah! How much muscle have you lost so far?
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| Dan |
From 5/26 to 7/2:
Weight 198 to 214 Bodyfat 11% to 9.3% Chest 45 to 47 1/2 L Arm 12 1/4 to 13 R Arm 12 1/4 to 13 Neck 16 to 16 3/4 Waist 36 1/2 to 38 1/2 Note that the bodyfat is taken with a highly questionable handheld unit. My waist was perplexing until I realized my lower back had gotten thicker. |
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| Dave |
Damn! You have the body I want!
Are you blown away by the quick gain yourself? |
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| jeff |
Awesome results in a short time. My only advice would be to get some sun! 
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| Dean |
So, Dan,
Are you doing such high fat because it's easier to get the calories in? Or is that something you think will help grow muscle, or what? Just curious as to what your reasoning is on that. I'm sure you probably feel a lot better eating all that fat. BTW... isn't it natural to get a bit bigger in the waist during bulking? From your latest pic, it doesn't appear to be any problem. So what are your plans for the immediate future? How long are you gonna stick to bulking? And, are you getting sick of eating that much? Or is it getting easier? Keep up the good work, and keep posting your progress pics. Like jeff's, they are very inspiring!
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| Dan |
I think I'm doing it partly just because they say it wont work. I don't handle huge amounts of carbs well anyhow. Frankly, cramming calories is a lot tougher without carbs. I pretty much add heavy cream to my coffee, eat the fattiest meat I can find, and down 10 oz. bricks of cheese.
Consider: If I work my hips/lower back/abs, the muscles get thicker. So my "waist" will, too.
Its more than I'm naturally inclined to eat, but I'll keep going and see where it leads. As long as I don't degenerate into the Stay Puft Marhsmallow Man, I'll keep going. 16" arms or bust. ;)
Thanks. I can't wait to see how I look in another 6 weeks or so. |
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| jeff |
Dan, by "arm", do you mean around the bicep? And would that be flexed or relaxed? |
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| Dave |
On 40 grams of carbs, that would be impossible! |
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| Dan |
Cold. Relaxed. Flexed its 14-ish. |
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| jeff |
Ok, gotcha. Damn, I was hoping our arms were the same size, but I guess you're a bit bigger than me.
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| Dan |
Yeah. 13" arms are hardly worthy of freak status. I'd live to get to 16 at least.
I'll just keep hammering away and see where it goes. |
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| jeff |
Good luck!
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| Alisa |
Your progress is awesome! | ||||||||
| Dan |
Yesterday was pretty good for me. I finally beat 7 reps on dips. Got off 9 at a weight of 219.
Today I managed 6 chin ups (was stuck at 5 for a few weeks) and went from 9 to 12 reps on the deadlift @ 220 lbs. So at least I can deadlift...me. Gotta catch up with She Hulk up there. ;) Oh...and here's my new favorite toy: a sissy squat bench. This burns your thighs like nothing known to man...except a lighter maybe... 
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| Dan |
Today the tape measure gives me 15" on my arms when flexed.
WOO-F*ING-HOO! |
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| jeff |
Awesome, Dan. Your forearm looks even bigger!! 
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| Dan |
Must be all the spinach. Maybe I'll tattoo an anchor on it. ;) |
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| jeff |
Yeah, definitley Popeye forearms!
On the seriouis side, how much bigger would you like to get? |
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| Alisa |
Ha, you're getting there at least. I did 3 sets of 5 deadlifts @ 220 lbs. on Tuesday.  What kind of bar do you use?
How does the bench work for squats? And very nice forearm, btw. |
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| Dan |
7' straight bar. I'm thinking of buying a trap bar for doing them though.
The foam pads lock your shins in and the big pad locks behind your knees. You basically sit over nothing and drive up with your legs. It sounds easy, but its tough. Much harder than any leg extension machine I ever tried.
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| Dan |
I'd like to be visible from space. ;) |
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| Alisa |
You count the weight of the bar, right? Mine weighs 45 by itself. I'll have to look up trap bars. I have my 7' O bar, a small, practically weightless e-z curl bar, and assorted dumbells. I hope to be getting more equipment in the near future.
That sounds a lot better (and tougher) than leg extensions. |
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| Dan |
Yeah. Bar is 20 lbs. Its a 1" diameter bar. |
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| Dan |
Today's workout (only working sets shown):
Dips-Bodyweight 223-10 reps Sissy Squat-Bodyweight 223 + (2) 25 lb dbs-20 reps 45 degree incline press-(2) 50 lb dbs-9 reps Donkey Calf Raise-Bodyweight 223 + 239 lbs. on hips-9 reps Pushups-Bodyweight 223-8 reps  
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| jeff |
Lookin' great, Dan! | ||||||||
| Dean |
Keep up the good work, Dan!
It's paying off!
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| Dan |
Today's workout:
Chin ups-218-6 1/2 reps (so close to locking out the 7th but my arms died) Deadlift-218-8 reps (down 4 from last time :( ) Hanging Knee Ups-15 Bent over row-118-9 reps (up 2 reps) Dumbell pullover-40-12 reps(up 2 reps) Hyperextensions-7 reps (deads knocked me out---normally I can do 2x this) Alternating DB Curls-40s-7 reps (haven't done curls in awhile) Vomiting-too many reps to count Not sure what went wrong this time. Lack of sleep, or maybe letting my cals fall under 4000 a couple of days. I need to keep ramming the food down. Ah well. Time to EAT!!!! |
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| Dan |
Today the chain on my dip belt snapped while I was doing calf raises. A 90 lb. dumbbell boinged right off my ankle bone.
Luckily I have a spare dip belt. ;) My ankle should be broken or something, but it feels perfectly fine. I must be bulletproof. Anywho... Dips-BW 223-10.5 reps + 2 rest pause reps Sissy Squat-BW 223 + 60 in dumbbells-13 reps Incline DB Bench-50 lb. dumbbells-stuck at 9 reps---pissing me off Donkey Calf Raises-BW 223+157 lb. rider + 90 db + 2 dip belts ;)-10 reps Tricep extensions-50 db- 4 reps (just a burnout set) I'm starting to suspect that I have a weird proportion of slow twitch fibers and maybe I can't get to 12 reps with a decent load on some exercises. So...next week I will try going +10 lbs on dips and Incline. See where that gets me.  
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| jeff |
Dan, I love your new avatar! Benny Hill, my hero!! 
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| kateryna |
Great avatar Dan. Glad I checked this thread. Here I thought you were a female, guess I shouldn't believe everything I read under a person's avatar. | ||||||||
| Dan |
Holy cr@p!
(takes off the dress and heels) (fixes his profile) |
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| jeff |
Dan, how long have you been a female? I never noticed that.
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| Dan |
If the furry back doesn't settle the matter...nothing will. 
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| Dean |
Dan,
You need to post some of those cross-dressing pics for us!
Benny Hill would be proud.
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| Dan |
Today's workout (only working sets shown):
Dips-Bodyweight 222 + 10 lb. db - 8 reps Sissy Squat-Bodyweight 222 + (2) 35 lb dbs-20 reps 45 degree incline press-(2) 50 lb dbs + 5 lbs. in wrist weights-8 reps Donkey Calf Raise-Bodyweight 222 + 255 lbs. on hips-12 reps Pushups-Bodyweight 222-8 reps 
I still wish my arms were growing half as well as my shoulders...*sigh* |
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| Dean |
Go eat a bunch of sugary junk food, and watch 'em inflate before your very eyes!
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| Dan |
Yes. Unfortunately they'd be dwarfed by the bloated gut that would result. | ||||||||
| Dan |
Today's workout:
Chin ups-221 + 10 lb. db-4 1/2 reps (damnit!) + 4 rest pause reps Deadlift-228-9 reps (up 10 lbs. last rep almost killed me) Hanging Knee Ups-15 db between knees-11 Bent over row-128-10 reps (up 10 lbs. --- hope this helps my chins improve) Dumbell pullover-50-10 reps(up 10 lbs.) Hyperextensions-10 reps (FEEL DA BURNNNNNNN) Incline DB Curls-40s-4 reps (biceps were shot at this point---surprised I got 4) Maybe I need to take more days off before doing this session again...maybe it was 93 degrees today. Ah well. For the most part, I improved on every lift. |
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| Dean |
Dan,
I love your workouts. I really wanna get into this type of resistance. Thanks for posting this. Wish you had a journal and posted what you are eating. Keep up the good work! You are an inspiration to us.
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| Dan |
I don't eat anything surprising. Mostly beef, tuna, heavy cream and coconut oil. I'm eating about 20 cals/lb. 75-80% fat. 200 grams protein. 40-50 grams carbs.
I'm trying to get away from the dairy again, if only because the prices are getting crazy lately. Last time I gave up dairy, I shed about 10 lbs. in a week, so I think it must bloat me. I wonder if I'd do any better with organic dairy. |
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| Dan |
OK, Dean. You win.
This was breakfast: 
P.S. 11 of the 27 g carbs were fiber. |
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| kateryna |
Just reading Dan's post and noticed the ad that made me wince and I'm not even male. Ouch.
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| Dean |
Thanks for posting that, Dan. So, do you make smoothies with that coconut milk, or just eat it plain? | ||||||||
| Dan |
I blend it up with my coffee...sometimes with blueberries and/or whey protein. | ||||||||
| Dan |
Took a week off since my last workout as I managed to hose my back on those record(and back)breaking deadlifts last Friday. No permanent harm done though. I may need to swallow my pride and lighten the load a bit. A weight I can only bang 9 for is perhaps too much for me. I'll shave 20 lbs. and try to work up to 20 on that, then maybe keep my increases to 5-10 lbs. at a time.
Anywho... Dips-Bodyweight 219+15 lbs on dip belt-8 reps (same reps, a bit heavier than last time) Sissy Squat-Bodyweight 219 + 60 in dbs-19 reps(a little lighter than last time---more than 2x the reps) Seated DB Shoulder Press-30s-13 reps(dropped incline press--trying to work on my lateral delts more---my front delts are ridiculous now) Donkey calf raise-Bodyweight+156 lb. rider+100 lbs. on dip belt-16 reps (up 4 reps) Pushups-Bodyweight-10 reps(up 2) 
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| jeff |
Injuries suck. I hate when I have to miss workouts because of it. Thankfully, that is a rareity for me. Lookin' good, Dan. Keep it up! | ||||||||
| jeff |
Dan., just out of curiosity, how did you eat during your week off? | ||||||||
| Dan |
According to Fitday I averaged 3194 calories, 76% fat(43% of which was saturated), 6% carbs, 17% protein. Also, I dropped 4.8 lbs. Its probably water for the most part. |
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| jeff |
Ok, so you cut your calories by about 1000 or so? Interesting that you lost almost 5 pounds. Do you think you had a calorie deficit at that level? Also, what makes you think it was mostly water? Something to do with not exercising? | ||||||||
| Dan |
3300 calories is maintenance for a guy about 220. Most people who aren't bed-ridden take abt 15 cals/lb. to maintain their weight. Granted I carry more muscle than most folks, but as that article I linked to mentions, muscle only contributes 5ish cals/lb. to metabolism (although he suggests trained muscle adds 7 cals/lb.)
Either way, short of fasting you can't lose 5 lbs. of anything meaningful in a week. Today's Workout: Negative Chin Ups-Bodyweight 216.8 + 90 lbs on dip belt-4 10 second reps to failure *immediately followed by* Negative Chin Ups-Bodyweight 216.8-4 10 second reps to failure Decline Crunch-30 lb. db on chest-11 reps Bent Over Row-128 lbs.-9 reps (down 1---chins probably wore me out) DB Pullover-55 lb. db-11 reps Hyperextensions-8 reps Altenating Incline DB Curls-40 lb. dbs-4 reps No deadlift this week. I don't want to push my luck. 
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| Jake |
Do you find that you gain fat if you eat more calories than you use per day? | ||||||||
| Dan |
If you aren't weight training, more of those calories are likely to become fat. Its generally agreed that its near impossible to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time.
I certainly got a bit thicker in the waist when I upped my calories, but the muscle gains were more than worth it. |
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| Dan |
Dips-Bodyweight 218+15 lbs on dip belt-8 reps (same reps, a bit heavier than last time)
Sissy Squat-Bodyweight 218 + 80 in dbs-11 reps(will stick with this weight til I crack 15 reps) (Supersetted w/) Hack Squat-130 lbs.-6 reps (Boy-this burned) Seated DB Shoulder Press-33s-11 reps(a bit heavier) Donkey calf raise-Bodyweight+156 lb. rider+100 lbs. on dip belt-14 reps (down 2 reps) I'l retry deadlifts tomorrow. I think maybe I just need to space these workouts out a bit more. 
Arms are 15 5/8" flexed now. Woo hoo! |
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| Jake |
How much time do you spend on each rep?
I have been getting into bodybuilding recently and have been told 5 seconds on the positive and 5 on the negative is ideal. |
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| Dan |
I try to do 2 secs up, 4 down, but it depends on the movement. I did do 10/10 Superslow for awhile, but it seems to me that just making a point of not "launching" or "catching" the weight is sufficient. | ||||||||
| Dan |
Methinks I need to bring my calories back up. My gains are stagnating. I guess I'll bump back up to 4000.
Today's workout was a bit different. I shuffled the exercises around into 2 supersets. BB Pullover-60 lbs.-7 reps (no rest) Chin ups-Bodyweight 217-4 reps (really stuck with these lately) (no rest) BB curl-60 lbs.-6 reps rest Straight Leg Deadlift-128-11 reps (no rest) Hyperextensions-7 reps (no rest) Crunches-9 reps rest Bent Over Row-128-11 reps (I should have stuck these in between the curl and the chins---oh well) die 
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| Dan |
Took my calories back...to 4500 actually. I seemed to be my strongest during this experiment at 20 cals/lb. which is really a disgusting amount of food for me, especially when you consider that none of it is sugar or yummy bread.
Anywho, can't argue with results: Dips-Bodyweight 220 + 15 db (236.6)-9 reps (up a rep and 2 lbs. from last time) Sissy Squat-Bodyweight 220 + 80 in dbs-14 reps (up 3 reps) (no rest) Hack Squat-130 lbs-9 reps (up 3 reps) (rest) DB Shoulder press-36s-11 reps(same reps, but total 8 lbs. heavier) Donkey Calf Raise-Bodyweight 220 + 90 lbs. on dip belt + 154 lb. rider + 20 lbs in ankle weights-15 reps (up 1 rep and abt. 20 lbs.) There has to be some sweet spot calorically for this(15 cals/lb. obviously murders my gains---20 seems like an unreasonable amount of food---even considering how broad/tall I am.) One where I eat just enough to feed new muscle or even a little under so the muscle gains cannibalize the body fat a bit. Either way, I think I prefer being a heavy 220 to a skeletal 190 something. My calves are starting to look like roadmaps of Illinois. 
I wish I could get that muscle in the upper thigh (whose name escapes me to grow more) 
NEED...BIGGER...GUNS! 
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| jeff |
Yes, I've driven through Illinois many times.....that's exactly what the road map looks like!
I'm sure you're right. There probably is a caloric sweet spot for putting on muscle. |
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| Dean |
Keep up the good work, Dan. You are my inspiration to get back on it! So, don't quit, please!
BTW... what sweet spot have you found with cals, Dan? |
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| Dan |
I keep fairly meticulous records and 20 calories/lb. is the general recommendation for bulking. I can't really imagine eating more than that...at least not without adding beer and pizza back into my diet... |
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| Dan |
BB Pullover-60 lbs.-9 reps (up 2 reps)
(no rest) Chin ups-Bodyweight 228-3 reps (down 1 rep, but I weigh 11 lbs. more than last time, so still stronger) (no rest) BB curl-60 lbs.-8 reps (up 2 reps) rest Straight Leg Deadlift-128-14 reps (up 3 reps) (no rest) Twisting floor crunches-37 rest Bent Over Row-128-11 reps (no change, but my arms were fried, so I don't feel so bad about it) Negative 10 second Chin Ups-Bodyweight 228-3 die <internal rambling>I think I'll go back to negative chins only---I'm not strong enough now to get a decent time under tension on the regular ones. When I can bang 10 or so negatives in a row, I'll go back to the full range ones...</internal rambling> |
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| Dean |
Dammit, Dan! I'm gonna join ya this weekend!!! If I don't, please go to my Exercise Log and start flipping me all kinds of shit! I am sick of reading about you using your power tower, and doing all these chin ups and dips and I am just not getting into it. 
I need some motivation!!! 
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| Dan |
Negatives are the key to getting strong enough to do full range dips and chins. Concentrate on reps where you lower yourself in 10 seconds. Use a metronome program on your computer if you have to. Take just enough time to hike back to the top position. The set is through when you can't control your descent. When you can manage 8 or so negatives, strap some weight to yourself (5% jumps) are probably good. A person is about 40% stronger on lowering weight than lifting it, so when you can dip/chin with +40% bodyweight, you can probably handle regular dips/chins. This method can make you sore as hell the first couple times, but the results are striking. |
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| Dean |
Thanks, Dan. I'll see how many full reps I can do, and report in my Exercise Log... then I'll see how many of the negatives I can do, and report those. Gotta start somewhere. | ||||||||
| Dan |
Dips-Bodyweight 222+20 lbs on dip belt-8 reps (same reps, a bit heavier than last time)
Sissy Squat-Bodyweight 222 + 80 in dbs-19 reps(up 5 reps) (Supersetted w/) Hack Squat-138 lbs.-9 reps (Boy-this burned) Seated DB Shoulder Press-40s-10 reps (10 lbs up one rep down) 1 leg calf raise-Bodyweight 222 + 95 on dip belt-11 left 10 right 
HEY, DEAN! I'M WAITING FOR YOUR REPORT! :p |
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| Dean |
I'm workin' on it. I'll have it to ya in a few days. 
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| Dan |
I broke another dip belt today. I wish I could say its because I'm manly...but the thing is very shoddily made.
BB Pullover-65 lbs.-11 reps (up 2 reps and 5 lbs.) (no rest) Negative Chin ups-Bodyweight 218-10 10 second reps (no rest) BB curl-65 lbs.-5 reps (up 5 lbs. down 2 reps---eh) rest Straight Leg Deadlift-138-12 reps (up 10 lbs. down 2 reps---my grip was shot from the chins---my hands kept giving up---good thing I have lifting hooks) (no rest) Hyperextensions-7 reps (no rest) Twisting floor crunches-47 rest Bent Over Row-138-9 reps (had to use the hooks 10 lbs. up, 2 reps down) die 
(waits for Dean's report) |
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