To be a beast- My attempt to restart strength

[Voe]

Greetings all

It has been a few years since I had a log here. My last SS stint was back in 2012 and much has changed in life since then. My fathers battle with cancer and eventual death was the cause for much upheaval in my life. The family support network I once had is now gone, so im on my own for now. Nevertheless strength training has always been a passion of mine( even if im not naturally predisposed to it) and I want to get back on the road to getting stronger.

Now things are a little different. I am 50 lb lighter then last time I started. After a long period of overworking, some ill-advised dieting stints and depression, I am much weaker. On the plus side however I am starting this leaner, so a bit more room to bulk.

Some quick stats
Age-28
Height-6'4
Weight- 195~lb
Bf %= 15%~

The plan of attack
Training
My plan is to use a simple linear progression over the next few months to try and rapidly regain some strength. Once that stalls I will switch to a more intermediate style programming like texas method style template.

Lifting mon/wed/fri
Workout A
Squat 3x5
Bench 3x5
Dead 1x5

Workout B
Squat 3x5
Overhead press 3x5
Chin-ups 3x max reps

I will start my lifting at sub-maximal weights and aim to reach current lifts by around week 3. My body is a bit detrained and a smooth steady ramp up will give it time to get stronger.

Cardio/conditioning
I plan on implementing some intervals on my non lifting days. These will comprise of 5-8 20 sec intervals with 100 secs rest on a c2 rower. This is to help build work capacity, help with nutrient partitioning and keep some cardio health. If it becomes too much for recovery I will back it off to once a week later on.

Diet
The last few months my eating has been somewhat sporadic and inconsistent. For a time I did a stint of PSMF(basically low cals from protein, not much else) so my metabolism is likely depressed. For the first few weeks as I ramp up to current maxes, I will hold at maintenance/slight deficit. I am hoping the first few weeks maybe I can ekk out a slight recomp as I am detrained somewhat and can maybe drop a bf % or two just re-adding lifting/regular intervals

That being said however once I start pushing PR's again the eating will be ramped up accordingly. I know that I need to eat if I am going to push my squat to 300+ on LP. I will let my progress dictate eating. If I am not increasing my lifts, I need to eat a bit more. 1-1.5lb per week is probably a good sweet spot, maybe 2lb if I am pushing all out at end of LP. Want to try to be about 220 or so when I am done with novice strength phase.

Time to get it done

[carson]

Welcome back. When you start give us your baseline lifting weights.

[Voe]

9/6/14

Bodyweight- 196.6lb

Workout-A
Squat
135x5
155x5
185x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Bench
135x5
155x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Deadlift
225x5
275x5 work set +10lb next time

Very easy session to start off the program again. Really focused on making sure my technique was sound and moved through it pretty fast. I have probably 20-40lb in the tank depending on the lift. I know that SS kind of builds up fast so I am not in a hurry to start too heavy.

[Voe]

10/6/14

Bodyweight- 195.4lb

5X20 sec HIIT intervals on C2 rower, with 100secs low pace between all out bouts. Will aim to get this up to 7-8 intervals over coming weeks.

[Voe]

11/6/14

Bodyweight- 196.8lb

Workout B

Squat
135x5
155x5
190x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Overhead press
barx5
95x5
100x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Chin ups
Bodyweight 8/7/6 , 3 work sets. Will stay at bodyweight until 8+ reps all 3 sets

Another fairly easy workout to get back into the swing of it. Felt good the last few days, more energy. Eating big as my bodyweight increase would attest to. Only hard part about today was some residual soreness from squatting prior session. Worked through it though and maintained good form/fast bar speed.

[Voe]

13/6/14

Bodyweight- 198.4lb

Workout A

Squat
135x5
155x5
195x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Bench
135x5
160x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Deadlift
225x5
285x5 work set, +10 lb next time

Overall a decent workout, despite my lack of sleep. All the sets moved pretty fast and none of it was in doubt. I need to stick to a sensible bulking outline going forward. Yesterday had far too much junk, I need to avoid this. Hoping to rest and eat well this weekend so I can build up some more momentum going forward.

Points to improve
-Need to get 7-8 hours sleep consistently
-Reign in diet by cutting out all sweets/chocolates(massive sweet tooth ). Aim to get 250g protein and 3-3.5k cals each day from lean meats/vegetables

[Voe]

16/6/14

Bodyweight 200.4lb

Squat
135x5
185x5
200x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Overhead press
95x5
105x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Chin up
Bodyweight x8/8/7

Overall a fairly good workout. Need to get more sleep the next few days

[peez]

Moving along nicely! You're wise to take your time with the increases. It'll pay off in the long run.

[Voe]

20/6/14

Bodyweight 201.4lb

Squat
135x5
185x5
205x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Bench press
135x5
165x5/5/5, 3 work sets +5lb next time

Deadlift
225x5
275x3
295x5 work set, +10lb next time

Overall not a bad workout despite the last few days. Had skipped this session on Wednesday due to some RL issues that arose. Nevertheless it happens and am back on the road. Squats still feel quite easy, probably 20-30 lb before I slow down on those. I am happy with how my technique is staying together as the weight increases. I however need to make a much better effort on the diet front. I have been eating plenty, but far too much junk food. Weight increasing a bit too fast for my liking and want to reign it in a bit.

Peez- Thank you for the kind words. The way I see it is at this stage even lifting submaximal weights will have an effect. In my past experiences getting ahead of the recovery curve just leads to stalling progression. I need to treat this more as a long term plan rather then a frantic sprint.