Mailman Muscle: Story of The Bodybuilding Powerlifter

[K.Diesel]

Today was another long day - my route plus 1/3 of the route I left last July for my current one. It was good to see a few of my old people. My current route is mostly offices, retail businesses, and apartments. It’s not conducive to the same level of interaction that being the mailman for a residential neighborhood of single family homes. But it is saving me a lot of wear and tear on my joints. Plus I can finish fast, and take advantage of some down time at places like the Planet Fitness I deliver to.

THURSDAY 1/25/24:

Bonus Workout - Rear Delts, Planet Fitness

Standing Straight Arm Cable Pull-Across
10 lbs/15 reps left, 15 reps right
15/15 left, 15 right

I’ve never seen these done before. The rear delt machine/pec deck combo machine was in use, so I improvised. I named them what the movement is and looks like.

Face Pulls - same cable station, switched to rope handle
42.5 lbs/15 reps
30/15
30/15 left, 15 right

This took maybe 10 minutes or so. I haven’t done one of these bonus workouts for rear delts before. I have been told by reputable sources that my shoulders are a weak point as far as physique goes. That may also explain my years of a relatively crappy bench press. I figured that this shouldn’t be something that I won’t recover from by tomorrow’s upper session.

Tomorrow, the diet app and I will configure my macros plan for next week. I have to work on Saturday, so the gym we go to will be determined by what time we can go. If earlier in the evening, then Gold’s. If later, then PF.

[K.Diesel]

FRIDAY 1/26/24: 13,384 steps, 5.8 miles, 10 floors climbed

Upper #1, Gold’s - the last several times I’ve done this one were at Planet Fitness, so a few different exercises/machines

Arnold Presses - luckily, dumbbells are universal; weights are per hand
20 lbs/15 reps
40/8
55/6
65/10
65/9

I think this is the heaviest I’ll be going for the remainder of the time that Arnolds stay in my rotation. For one, I can tell my elbows won’t like it if I do. Two, I don’t want to go into a lower rep range on these right now. My wife did 2 sets, so rather than do a rest-pause or drop, I did the same thing. (That will be a theme)

Hammer Strength Isolateral Front Pulldown - that’s what the label says; weights are per side
80 lbs/8 reps
125/5
105/11 left + 11 right - started using Versa Gripps here
115/12

That first work set was the only one I did unilaterally. I typically don’t like doing that, but sometimes I can tell I’m favoring one side over another. When I do, sometimes I’ll hit one side at a time depending on the exercise.

Cybex Chest Press - the arms on this “float”, meaning you can press in an arc, not just a straight line
70 lbs/10 reps
95/8
120/12 + 2 partials

My wife liked this machine. I didn’t like it so much. I actually like it’s counterpart at PF better.

Pullover - updated version of the Nautilus classic
80 lbs/12 reps
125/15
140/9

Pec Deck
70 lbs/4 reps + 90 lbs/5 reps
drop set: 145/4 + 130/4 + 110/4 + 90/8 the last rep on rounds 1-3, plus the last 4 reps on the final round were partials

Cable Preacher Curl
drop set: 70/3 + 60/4 + 50/5

That was that.

I made this 3 minute video that summarizes my first 5 weeks of this contest prep. Progress photos are in here, along with some training stuff and my first attempts at posing. ​😬

[Bill Anders]

Looking great, Kaisheem! The work is paying off.

And that smile tells the whole story.

Keep at it!

[K.Diesel]

Looking great, Kaisheem! The work is paying off.

And that smile tells the whole story.

Keep at it!

Thank you Bill! This has been a fun departure from my norm so far. It’s still early in the diet though. 🤞🏾 😬

Note: The Ravens’ season ended in an uninspired performance on Sunday night. It was a good example for me in how not to execute on game day after 20 weeks of preparation.

Monday 1/29/24: 5,242 steps, 2.1 miles, 6 floors climbed

That’s from grocery shopping, and going up and down the stairs at the gym, which doesn’t have an elevator. Speaking of the gym…

Lower #2, Gold’s - last time doing this was at Gold’s on 1/20

Standing Calf Raise
100 lbs/15 reps
100/7 + 8 - brief pause to shake out pain in my extra flat feet

If I didn’t mention it before, sometimes I do these first because this machine is right outside of the locker rooms at Gold’s, even on upper body days, and especially if I’m out of the locker room before my wife is.

Reverse Hack Good Morning - I don’t know the weight of the sled, but I doubt it’s very much
Sled/10 reps
180+ lbs/10 reps
270+/7
360+/10
410+/14

Last time, I topped out at 320+ for 14, which was my first time using it for good mornings. I thought the 360+ set here would be a work set, but I stopped at 10 because I could tell I had way more in the tank. The 410+ was on the suggestion of my wife. I was toying with the idea of a jump to 450+. She told me to do the lighter weight with an even slower than normal eccentric, pause at the bottom, and explode my hips all the way through at the top. I took her advice. She was right.

Reverse Hack Squat - same apparatus
180+ lbs/10 reps
360+/8
450+/11

This matched my top weight/reps from last time. However, last time I wore a belt, and cut my range of motion to a little past 90 degrees because my left knee - the one with the MCL sprain last fall - didn’t feel so good. This time, I didn’t wear a belt, and I sat on my ankles with a slight pause at the bottom. I’ll count that as an improvement.

Prone Leg Curl - different leg curl machine than last time, but a good one
90 lbs/10 reps
drop-pause set: 140/11 + 110/12 + 110/6

I guess it’s a “drop-pause” set if you do more than one round, and keep the same weight for at least 2 rounds before/after a drop. The last 2 reps of round 2, and the last 3 reps of round 3 were partials.

Leg Extension - OLD SCHOOL! A chain driven Nautilus machine with bright red upholstery.
90 lbs/10 reps
150/4 + 200/10 + 170/9

“Add/drop set”? After the first 4 reps, I could tell it was too light, so I bumped the weight, then dropped once I ran out of gas at 200. Partials on the last 3 reps of round 3.

Donkey Calf Raise
60 lbs/4 + 5
100/20

Since my wife didn’t do calves upstairs by the locker rooms, she did them on the main floor, and I hit them again with her. This was my first time on a donkey calf machine. I see why Arnold, Franco and those old school guys did them. The loaded stretch hits my calves harder on this than any other apparatus I remember using.

”Super Abs” Machine
145 lbs/20 reps left, right, middle - my wife and I alternated sets on this, so there was a break after each of those sets

When we did this workout on 1/20, it was after I got off work. On Monday, I didn’t work, and my performance on everything was markedly better than last time. Does a day of urban hiking affect my gym performance that much? Typing this out is the first time in ages that I’ve compared data from a workout on a work day duplicated on an off day. That’s something to keep an eye on.

Upper #2 at Planet FItness tomorrow

[K.Diesel]

Wednesday 1/31/24: 15,875 steps, 7.3 miles, 9 floors climbed

Today felt like a longer work day than normal, even though in hours worked, it has been the same as each of my last 3 work days (10 hours). The step count tells me that I’m not imagining things.

Upper #2, Planet Fitness

Cable Pulldown - underhand grip, short straight bar
55 lbs/10 reps
120/10
165/5 - started using Versa Gripps here
200/11

That may be one of the best sets I have done on any exercise in months. A set extender like a drop or rest-pause would have been overkill.

Smith Machine High Incline Press
bar/10
50+ lbs/10 reps
100+/8
150+/6
120+/7 plus 1 negative

After a near perfect call and execution on the first exercise, I overshot this one by a lot. The only exercise I’ve done with work sets of 6 reps or less since I started this prep is the deadlift when I’m at Gold’s. I thought I would get at least 8 going into both sets. On the second set, since I knew I was done after locking out the 7th rep, I did a slow negative down to the lowest hook and racked it. That’s one of the advantages of using a smith machine.

Smith Machine Decline Press - propped up the end of a flat bench on 2 stacked 10 lbs plates
50+ lbs/12 reps
100+/7
150+/10 plus 1 negative

I did the same thing at the end of the set since I knew I was done with that exercise.

Smith Machine Shrug - used Versa Gripps for both sets
150+ lbs/8
180+/17

My wife didn’t do these, so I went solo here. The bar felt like it was barely moving when I shut it down.

Seated Cable Row - I don’t know how to describe this handle. It’s neutral grip, and looks sort of like handlebars for a bicycle.
100 lbs/12 reps
drop set: 180/9 + 140/9 - that very last rep was more like a 1/2 rep

Cable Pressdown - same short, straight bar used on the pulldowns
40 lbs/13 reps
drop set: 70/10 + 55/7

Rear Delt Machine - the kind that doubles as a pec deck
80 lbs/8 reps
115/15

The post office is going to make sure that I work an 8 hour day either tomorrow or Friday, to avoid a scenario in which they have to pay me double time. Whichever day that is, I’ll go to the chiropractor.

[K.Diesel]

The post office is going to make sure that I work an 8 hour day either tomorrow or Friday, to avoid a scenario in which they have to pay me double time. Whichever day that is, I’ll go to the chiropractor.

Thursday 2/1/24: 12,501 steps, 5.5 miles, 13(!?!) floors climbed

As expected, I had an 8 hour day today, meaning just my route (office time and delivery time together). I wasn’t rushed (that’s hard to be on my route), and did indeed make it to the chiropractor after work. I even got some time at my son & youngest daughter’s wrestling practice, plus a trip to Starbucks. This felt very much like an active rest day. Tomorrow might be similar, but possibly with a longer work day.

The dilemma is about the category that I’m going to enter at the show: bodybuilding, or classic physique. If you don’t know the difference, the short version is that bodybuilding is the biggest, leanest, grainiest, most shredded level. Classic physique is supposed to be more about symmetry than overall size, separation without being shredded like the “classic” look from Arnold’s heyday.

When I went to the posing clinic last month, the coach/judge there said I was undoubtedly best suited for bodybuilding (which is what my gut tells me). But today, my wife and I were on a zoom webinar with a coach/judge/promoter and afterwards, she sent our photos to him for his opinion (more for her, but she sent mine too). He said he thought I’m more suited for classic (whose trunks I would much rather wear), but as I lean out, that may change.

I guess my best course of action is to enter bodybuilding as planned, and as I get closer to the show, switch to classic if I’m not going to be shredded enough for that category. I’ll probably have to order a pair of trunks for both so I’m not stuck with the wrong ones on show day. I’m going to another posing clinic on the 17th. I’ll get some more feedback from the same coach I worked with the first time. I’m not panicked or anything. It’s too far out for that. This is just something on my mind now that the 2nd opinion I got is different from the first.

If you want to do a deep dive, here are the organization’s guidelines for each category.

OCB Bodybuilding Guidelines

OCB Classic Physique Guidelines

[Bill Anders]

It sounds like a good position to be in, picking and choosing the category depending on your situation and goals.

Keep at it!

[K.Diesel]

It sounds like a good position to be in, picking and choosing the category depending on your situation and goals.

Keep at it!

Yes sir - the good thing is that I essentially have to pass through the classic physique conditioning in order to reach the conditioning required for bodybuilding. So if I can’t get lean enough for bodybuilding, I won’t worry about it and enter classic.

Speaking of which, as of today I am now 14 weeks out from the show. My weight over the last 3 days has dropped a lot, relative to the previous week. From Jan. 24-31, I ranged from 192.0 to 193.8, and it went up and down pretty much every day. For the first 3 days of February, I have been 192.4, 191.6, and down to 190.2 today.

Some of these changes are tripping me out. My waist measured 32.75” this morning. I can’t remember the last time it was that small. Vascularity is increasing all over. I didn’t really notice until my wife pointed it out in my shoulders/chest on Wednesday night in the gym. I came into this expecting that my lower body would lean out a lot slower than the upper, and so far that’s exactly how it’s playing out. But most importantly, I don’t think I have lost much - if any - lean body mass. The calculators I have been using to estimate my body composition say that I have gone from 16.6% bodyfat with 161.6 lbs of lean mass a few weeks ago, to 13.9% bodyfat with 163.8 lbs of lean mass today. I’ll probably do some pics/vids over the next 2 days.

If I have indeed pulled off a recomp during this process so far, that is mind boggling. It defies everything that is typically said about recomp being possible, and who it’s possible for. But maybe I stumbled onto the holy grail by accident. 🤷🏾‍♂️

Two sessions to catch up here…

Friday 2/2/24: 14,460 steps, 6.4 miles, 8 floors climbed

Lower #1, Gold’s - This was an odd workout. Almost every piece of equipment I’ve been using for this workout at Gold’s was in use, or out of service. As a result, everything between my first and last exercise was on a machine I have never used, or haven’t used in years.

Standing Calf Raise - right outside of the locker room, typical start
10 reps each at 80, 100, 120 and 140 lbs.

Hammer Isolateral Leg Press
The vertical leg press was being used, so I tried this for the first time. After a lot of reps trying to feel this thing out, I determined that it sucks. I switched to the leg press that my wife had started warming up on.

Wide Platform Leg Press - quadriceps emphasis, weightlifting shoes, feet low and shoulder width on platform
360+ lbs/6 reps
450+/11 (1:18)
450+/11 (1:28)

My wife suggested that I start keeping tabs on the time under tension for work sets. It may have some value, so I’ll give it a shot. This was my first time using this particular leg press, and I liked it a lot. The platform is huge, the top half of it is angled, and the back pad has several possible placement angles. I liked it so much that I decided to try it from a different angle to get more hamstring involvement.

Wide Platform Leg Press - hamstrings emphasis, deadlift slippers, feet high and wide (almost sumo) on platform
180 lbs + sled/8 reps
270+/12 (1:12)
270+/9 (1:00)

Glute-Ham Raise
I would count this as 2 sets of 10. This is a different GHR than the last one I used there about a year ago, and I didn’t do as well on this as I did on the last one, or any other one I’ve ever used. I couldn’t do a single rep through a full ROM, and could only raise myself up to parallel to the floor or just above it. Perhaps I’m just weak now. But I could feel some activation in the bottom of my glutes and the top of my hamstrings that I don’t typically feel. Maybe “glute ham raise” isn’t just a clever name for this apparatus. 😬

Belt Squat
90 lbs/12
180/8 - kept switching foot placement to figure out how I need to do these
180/11 (:55)

“Super Abs” Machine
145 lbs, 20 reps middle, 15 reps left, 15 reps right

That took longer than hoped due to free styling on everything. But overall, it was productive. We found some things to add into the playbook. Finished with posing practice.

Saturday 2/3/24: 14,021 steps, 6.3 miles, 7 floors climbed

Bonus, Planet Fitness - I hit the one on my route after I finished delivering.

Dips
-90 lbs/6 reps
-45 lbs/6 reps
bodyweight/10 reps x 3 sets

Chin-ups - underhand, slightly angled inward
-90 lbs/6 reps
-45 lbs/6 reps
bodyweight/6 reps, 6 reps, 8 reps

Those -90 and -45 indicate assistance from the weight stack on the chin/dip station. I alternated sets between the 2 exercises to keep the pace up. It took about 10 minutes, definitely not more than 12. Monday is a full upper body workout.

My son has a wrestling tournament tomorrow, likely against some very stiff competition. That should be followed by grocery shopping and meal prep.

[K.Diesel]

My son (age 13) ended up going 2-1 at his tournament. Between his school team and club team (Sunday’s meet), he is a combined 12-9 on the season after starting 5-8. I’m proud of him for not giving up on himself and making some adjustments midway through. Who knows - he might end up being an example for me as I get deeper into this prep.

Sunday 2/4/24: 3,652 step, 1.4 miles, 1 floor climbed

Monday 2/5/24: 4,920 steps, 1.8 miles, 10 floors climbed

Upper #1, Gold’s - that place is sprawled across 2 floors, the locker rooms are on the 2nd floor, and they don’t have an elevator. So if you do anything downstairs, you’re guaranteed a minimum of 4 flights of stairs climbed, and 4 flights descended (2 flights each way)

Standing Calf Raise - it’s right outside the locker room; can’t hurt
100 lbs/16 reps
160/11

Arnold Presses - weights are per hand
20 lbs/11 reps
45/7
drop set: 65/8 (:40) + 45/5.5 (:25) + 20/13 (:55)

T-bar Row
45 lbs/10 reps wide + 7 reps neutral
90/7 wide + 7 neutral
135/5 wide + 5 neutral - started using Versa Gripps here
drop set: 160/9 (:22) + 135/5 (:11) wide
drop set: 160/8 (:19) + 135/6 (:13) - the last 2-3 reps of each round were probably partials

Decline Bench Press - with Rogue multi-grip bar; I used a neutral grip, a few inches outside shoulder width; weighs 45 lbs
bar/15 reps
135 lbs/10 reps
185/8
drop set: 205/8 (:27) + 185/4 (:17) + 155/4 (:13)

My wife was spotting me, and she stripped the bar for the drops, so I never let go of the bar.

Pulldown - medium width “anchor” handle, so neutral grip just outside the shoulders; I love these handles
100 lbs/10 reps
150/6
drop set: 200/15 (:29) + 180/4 (:20) + 150/5 (:22) + 110/8 (:28)

Standing Lateral Raise Machine
50 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 100/9 (:23) + 80/6 (:15) + 60/6 (:13) + 40/7 (:15)

Some of the last few reps on rounds 2-4 were partials.

Pec Deck
90 lbs/8 reps
drop set: 130/8 (:31) + 110/6 (:16) + 90/8 (:21)

If you guessed that some of these reps were partials, you would be right.

FYI - when I say partials, I mean from the most stretched position to somewhere near the middle of the ROM.

Posing for 10 minutes, cut a bit short. A fire alarm went off, but we think it was a false alarm. We played it safe and left. Gyms on Monday evenings are horrible. This was ridiculously crowded, so I was in a hurry to get through this workout. Fortunately, we were able to get through without waiting for anything.

Tuesday 2/6/24: 9,613 steps, 4.3 miles, 4 floors climbed

[K.Diesel]

Wednesday 2/7/24: 11,223 steps, 4.9 miles, 6 floors climbed

Early Workout, Planet Fitness

Hammer Abs Crunch Machine
50 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 100/6 + 80/8 + 60/10 + 40/12 + 20/15

This is like the one I call “Super Abs Machine” at Gold’s, but it’s all straight up/down, no angles. I still like that you raise your knees up while crunching down.

Oblique Abs Machine
100 lbs/25 reps right, 25 reps left

I called this an early workout rather than a bonus, because I would have done one abs exercise during the lower workout that evening. But since I had extra time during the day, I went to the PF on my route and did 2 exercises, plus saved a few minutes on the planned workout. It was abs, so it wouldn’t have a negative effect on the heavier stuff.

Lower #2, Planet Fitness - FYI this is a different location than the one on my route

Smith Machine Good Morning - did these in wrestling shoes
bar/10 reps
90+ lbs/8 reps
140+/11 (1:06)
140+/11 (1:02)

Smith Machine Squat - relatively high bar, narrow stance, sitting on my ankles deep
bar/5 reps
90+ lbs/8 reps
180+/6
230+/7 (:47)
230+/7 (0:55)

For the work sets, I wore a back brace that my chiropractor suggested I use to help manage lower back pain. I would have used my belt, but it’s a lever belt and now my waist is smaller than the setting I have it on. I didn’t have a screwdriver or anything else to adjust it with, so I used the brace which is okay for walking and sitting, but doesn’t help much with for squats. I suppose it’s better than nothing.

Seated Leg Curl
100 lbs/10 reps
drop set: 160/7 (0:25) + 130/9 (0:25) + 100/11 (0:25)

Leg Extension
100 lbs/10 reps
70/15 - left leg only
rest-pause set: 160/13 (0:30) + 8 (0:16) + 6 (0:11)

Calf Press - done on the upright leg press machine
Somehow, I didn’t write these reps down. I must have recorded it, but can’t access my phone at the moment. I know it was a nonstop set of 145 lbs/some # + 175/some # + static stretches with 205/some number

Thursday 2/8/24: 12,109 steps, 5.4 miles, 7 floors climbed

Bonus Workout, Planet Fitness - I was going there anyway. I’m literally their mailman.

Hanging Leg Raise - propped on the elbow pads at one of those leg raise/dip things
middle, angled right, angled left - 20 reps each

Adductor Machine
75 lbs/7-8 reps
100/20 x 2 sets

Abductor Machine
100 lbs/25 reps x 2

My weight increased a lot from Sunday/Monday (190.2 & 190.6 respectively), to 193.8 Wednesday. My diet app gives me a weekly review tomorrow, and plots out my next week’s macros. I’ll see what it suggests. My guess is a drop in macros.