The Journey Of A Lifetime: MikeWines' Relentless Pursuit

[muruku]

@mike

yes, I supplement with magnesium.. I lose about ~2kg after every workout.

[VanillaBearB]

This popped up in my youtube suggested videos and clicked out of interest. Not a bad video imo, apart from the classic sales pitch. What do you think?

tl;dr
- Focus on the angle of the back of your neck, should be perpendicular to the ceiling
- Rather than focussing on keeping your shoulders down and back, focus on keeping your sternum up
- Contract the abs and have some tone in them at all times
- Squeeze the glutes out of anterior pelvic tilt
- Keep the knees soft

Fairly common knowledge in all honesty, only cue I wasn't sure about was the sternum one. I've found that I can set a good shoulder position just using my lower traps now that i've developed a half decent MMC.

[Bh44]

Mike, got a couple of other comments to make (will edit this post later)... but just thought that I would say I know that today (Mother's Day) will be very hard, just hope you can make the most of it and enjoy what you can

[MikeWines]

I've had this before, I assumed it was just a tendon snapping over another tendon after being malaligned. But best to play it safe!

Sorry to hear about your mum, Mike. I hope you're managing with it ok, if you do ever want a british influence to talk to you have my email.

[img]http://images.memes.com/meme/206802[img]

I'm not sure this was a tendon issue but if it was, it seems weird that it would have just "released" when I hit a specific position. I have heard from those who have disected a number of cadavers that the semitendinosus and semimembranosus can get "stuck" against one another and it takes fascial shear to seperate them. However, I don't believe this would result in an audible pop. Either way, it seems to be recovering none the less so I'm just going to squat today rather than pull with it.

@mike

yes, I supplement with magnesium.. I lose about ~2kg after every workout.

Geez, that's pretty significant...How much do you take daily and what kind of magnesium? Hopefully nothing with -ide on the end of it...

This popped up in my youtube suggested videos and clicked out of interest. Not a bad video imo, apart from the classic sales pitch. What do you think?

tl;dr
- Focus on the angle of the back of your neck, should be perpendicular to the ceiling
- Rather than focussing on keeping your shoulders down and back, focus on keeping your sternum up
- Contract the abs and have some tone in them at all times
- Squeeze the glutes out of anterior pelvic tilt
- Keep the knees soft

Fairly common knowledge in all honesty, only cue I wasn't sure about was the sternum one. I've found that I can set a good shoulder position just using my lower traps now that i've developed a half decent MMC.

For starters, why would he even make this video? Other than trying to get clicks and sell his product.

These is no such thing as perfect posture. Posture is HIGHLY context dependent - for example, the world's fastest men typically walk around in APT all day with no pain and movement competency for sprinting. See here: Current Position Statement on Anterior Pelvic Tilt

Correcting their posture towards more of the "perfect symmetrical" example listed by most functional gurus (Naudi Agular for example) would be the biggest mistake of any S&C coach's career as their biomechanical compensations are their body's way of adapting to produce the highest power output possible.

Also, APT isn't caused by excess sitting, he needs to check his facts on that one and stop assuming that anytime you maintain a specific position you will get structural adaptation (outside of perhaps extended time in a cast or splint in which case it IS possible for contractures to occur): Does Excessive Sitting Shorten the Hip Flexors?

Posture is a phenomenon which can be maintain with proper balanced training and an educated approach to movement within your warmup (i.e. target the asymmetries which are specific to YOU). Not everyone will need thoracic spine extension work. Not everyone has inactive glutes. Not everyone has shortened hip flexors.

I don't like the exercise he has included - it's just basically a way to target the low traps but for most, it'll just drive them into extension and jack up their scapular congruency with their ribcage (curved scapular sitting on a flat ribcage = pounding a square peg into a round hole). You could very easily combine something like a no money drill with a prone trap raise and get the same effect but now you wouldn't have to worry as much about the extension factor.





He's starting to take the Starett route of "your posture is dysfunctional so that's why you're in pain" route which just simply isn't correct or supported by the current research on pain science.

If you're going to follow anyone in the PT world, stick to guys like Bill Hartman, Quinn Henoch, Seth Oberst, Aaron Swanson, etc.



Jeff is good most of the time and I enjoy his content as I'm subscribed to the athlean-x YT page but this video misses the mark imo...

Mike, got a couple of other comments to make (will edit this post later)... but just thought that I would say I know that today (Mother's Day) will be very hard, just hope you can make the most of it and enjoy what you can

Thanks Brodie. My mom is doing very well, just tired and sore but she's hanging tough.

Yesterday was just a reminder of how much our moms do for us day in and day out. You don't know how long they'll be on this earth with you so take every opportunity you have to appreciate, thank, and love them while they are.

[DJaRiHardstyle]

In for this... again. Hope all's well. As far as considerations of gut permeability w/nutrition, can you give a brief overview of what you mean? This really caught my eye.

[muruku]

200mg Magnesium (elemental) (from 2,000 mg magnesium glycinate/lysinate chelate**) 200 mg 50%

[MyEgoProblem]

Hey Mikey! ^

great news on the leg/squat issue! your gonna be toast after 8 weeks "off" :P

quick question, mostly just for curiosity.. i see you log for example

cable row: 3 x get a pump

i assume (incorrectly?) that you use like an rpe to determine the load for the day and work from that to like a @9-10...and aim for progression over time..

or do you just go bro and stick the pin in the stack and rep till your swole up?

[MikeWines]

In for this... again. Hope all's well. As far as considerations of gut permeability w/nutrition, can you give a brief overview of what you mean? This really caught my eye.

Food sensitivities and intolerances are pretty common as most people don't pay attention to the way food makes them feel and these can affect the tight junctions within the gastrointestinal tract thus altering permeability. I think too many people don't consider the long term impact which their food choices have (which is what I was noting in my last post with picture from ********). Just because you look good on the outside doesn't mean you have a healthy gut on the inside and a lab panel won't tell you either, you have to go specifically hunting for it and look at fecal samples.

The first are dietary factors. It is now generally appreciated that the permeability of the paracellular pathway can be modulated by transcellular absorptive processes. During activation of the sodium dependent glucose transporter (SGLT1), there is a physiological opening of tight junctions that allows for the movement of small molecules and peptides.20,21,22,23 This pathway will accommodate particulate sizes of the order of 2000 molecular weight (MW) but still exclude large particles such as horseradish peroxidase (MW ∼40 000).24 Although this is a normal physiological event, the purpose it subserves remains unclear. However, as discussed in the next section, this observation is important in our understanding of how to understand permeability measurements...

Conclusions

The paracellular pathway between intestinal epithelial cells has become important in our understanding of gastrointestinal and systemic disease. Long thought to be a static non‐regulated barrier to the passage of luminal material, it is now recognised to be a dynamic constantly changing structure with a functional state that is carefully regulated. Luminal organisms can modulate the state of the tight junction through multiple mechanisms and while opening tight junctions may be of benefit for the microflora, it may be deleterious to the host. Abnormal function of this pathway can also be observed in conditions where the structure of the proteins comprising the junction is abnormal.

For decades a variety of pathological states have been associated with abnormal permeability. Many of these are a consequence of intestinal epithelial damage that is associated with disease but not involved in a causal manner in the genesis of disease. However, in several autoimmune conditions it appears that increased permeability is a constant and early feature of the disease process. Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly apparent that in some conditions increased permeability is critical to the development of disease as if it is abrogated the disease does not develop. This is particularly true in type 1 diabetes. In other diseases such as Crohn's disease or coeliac disease, a similar pattern of findings are apparent but the experiment to try and prevent disease by preventing the increase in permeability has not been performed.

From: Alterations in intestinal permeability

200mg Magnesium (elemental) (from 2,000 mg magnesium glycinate/lysinate chelate**) 200 mg 50%

That's not much at all...especially considering your sweat rate.

Hey Mikey! ^

great news on the leg/squat issue! your gonna be toast after 8 weeks "off" :P

quick question, mostly just for curiosity.. i see you log for example

cable row: 3 x get a pump

i assume (incorrectly?) that you use like an rpe to determine the load for the day and work from that to like a @9-10...and aim for progression over time..

or do you just go bro and stick the pin in the stack and rep till your swole up?

Eh, a little weaker but not too bad honestly.

I do aim for progression but I also realize that accessory work is going to be determined by my main compound. If I go HAM on some high rep deadlifts then there isn't going to be much gas left in the tank for anything else. So, I'll simply work up to a weight that feels challenging for that day and go from there. Similarly (as noted in my past upper body session) I'll work to push accessory work harder if the compounds seem to be lacking as the accessory work isn't as CNS intensive and you can still accumulate volume without beating yourself up too much.

I do occasionally choose option 2 though. haha

[MyEgoProblem]

good to hear fella! ^^

cheers for the confirmation! basically just some daily auto regulation.. i can dig that xD

[muruku]

how much should i be taking and anything else I shld look into?

appreciate you taking the time to go thru rthis with me!

[davisj3537]

This popped up in my youtube suggested videos and clicked out of interest. Not a bad video imo, apart from the classic sales pitch. What do you think?

tl;dr
- Focus on the angle of the back of your neck, should be perpendicular to the ceiling
- Rather than focussing on keeping your shoulders down and back, focus on keeping your sternum up
- Contract the abs and have some tone in them at all times
- Squeeze the glutes out of anterior pelvic tilt
- Keep the knees soft

Fairly common knowledge in all honesty, only cue I wasn't sure about was the sternum one. I've found that I can set a good shoulder position just using my lower traps now that i've developed a half decent MMC.

I may have misinterpreted, but I don't think Mike liked this video. lol

[MikeWines]

Daily Watch:



^17 Years old. Squatting 484lbs.

Daily Read/Listen:

Motor Patterning and PRI — Finding Solutions to Hip Shift and Dysfunctional Movement - @DAVIS: You'll REALLY like this elitefts piece. PRI is catching up to all of the bigger names in the industry and hopefully more will understand it's application and usefulness in regards to training.

Cue/Tip of the Day

If you want to train for size, go for it, that's a great goal to have and one which many strive for. However, don't be surprised if you're not that athletic in the end.

Bigger may mean stronger, but it doesn't always mean faster or more agile. The concept of specificity rules all.

Lower
Highlight = PR

Front Squat
135x10
185x5
225x3
225x3
185x5
185x5

Front Rack Holds
315x12sec
315x12sec
315x12sec

Snatch Grip High Pull
135x5
135x5
135x5
135x5
135x5
135x5

A1. Inverted Row (Feet Elevated)
BW+25lb Platex10 (4 Sets)

A2. KB Swing
50lbsx15 (4 Sets)

Thoughts
- Just getting back into the swing of things still with the squatting. Front squats still need some work as I can tell my knee feels funny once my hips start to shift (issue discussed in the article ^above) and over time this could have led to my pain from before. Need to get stronger and push on the gas a bit now that I'm starting to feel a bit better outside of the weight room, just being careful not to overdo and put myself right back in the hole I just climbed out of.

good to hear fella! ^^

cheers for the confirmation! basically just some daily auto regulation.. i can dig that xD

Indeed, it pays to be flexible in the long run. Something that took me a while to figure out and accept but it allows for more consistent progress when you approach training with more of an "ebb and flow" mindset.

how much should i be taking and anything else I shld look into?

appreciate you taking the time to go thru rthis with me!

I'm not an RD so technically I can only make "suggestions", not recommendations legally so take all of this with a grain of salt (I always tell this to folks to cover myself from a legal standpoint even though I doubt anyone would try to pursue anything, never hurts to be safe rather than sorry) - these are all things which I've learned from reading the work of folks much smarter than myself and trying to disseminate their knowledge.

I would stick to magnesium glycinate or magnesium citrate (Magnesium Citrate-Malate is the best absorbed form of it) and I would personally double the dose at least to start. Then you could titrate up a bit more if needed. If you start to get loose stools, just back it back down a bit.

I've read of folks who top out at 5x their BW in mg once they have titrated up to that amount. I've personally used upwards of 800mg for a time in the past and I'm actually about to start experimenting with high doses again as I just ordered some magensium CitraMate (citrate-malate).

I may have misinterpreted, but I don't think Mike liked this video. lol

You read me well my friend. haha

Too much fear mongering in this industry - "Don't ever do this: ______" (round your back, sit for too long, arch your back, let your shoulders rise, let your knees buckle, etc. etc.)

[DJaRiHardstyle]

Just because you look good on the outside doesn't mean you have a healthy gut on the inside and a lab panel won't tell you either, you have to go specifically hunting for it and look at fecal samples.

Oh well that's good news, I love looking at fecal samples!

[MikeWines]

@DAVIS: No idea what happened up there^, but can you delete that?



Daily Read/Listen:

Since we've been on the topic so much lately: Magnesium – You Aren’t Getting Enough

Cue/Tip of the Day

From an upcoming project I'm working on for M&S:

Coaching Cues for the Conventional Deadlift:

• You MUST keep the crease of the armpit over the bar and the midfoot in order to allow the bar to travel linearly.
• The deadlift is a hinge, not a squat. If you set the hips too low you will put yourself in a disadvantageous position biomechanically and limit your potential for pulling maximal weights.
• The hips should be lower than the shoulders and you should be able to see the logo on the lifters shirt before they pull (i.e. “chest up”). The chest up cue is usually accomplished when the lats become locked in though so this cue is typically not needed if the lifter understands how to initiate the lats.
• Neck position is highly individual - Some prefer a neutral neck position (i.e. keeping the chin tucked throughout the lift) while others do well with looking slightly up. Here’s some factors to consider:
• If you’re someone who is more globally extended (i.e. athletic background), then you will likely be able to keep a neutral position more effectively by packing the chin.
• On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you tend to be more flexion dominant (especially in your thoracic spine - upper back) then it would behoove you to look up slightly as this will drive more extension.[/indent]
• Experiment with each and see which one works best for your individual anatomy and biomechanics.
• Ideally you should cue and emphasize a vertical shin but this will depend entirely on a lifter’s spine and limb length.
• Toe angle is highly individual - this will be dependent upon your hip anatomy. Experiment (toes slightly in, out, or neutral) to see what feels best for you.
• Do NOT retract your shoulder blades. This is mechanically inefficient and a self limiting cue as it shortens the length of the arms thus requiring a larger range of motion.
• Make sure you wrap your thumbs around the bar and don’t utilize a false grip. Squeeze the bar as tight as possible like you’re trying to leave an imprint of your fingerprints on the bar.
• Scraping the shins isn’t always necessary in the deadlift. It may occur more frequently with sumo rather than conventional work but if you have the arm pits in the correct position (as noted above) then the bar should travel vertically and the shins will become vertical and move out of the way as the knees extend.
• To follow up on my previous point, if you focus on keeping the weight entirely on the heels, you won’t be able to effectively recruit your quads at the beginning of the lift and thus you’ll be slow off the flow. So, to combat this, you should focus on driving through the whole foot - you want 3 points of contact: big toe, little toe, and heel.
• Ensure the elbows stay locked out. Don’t actively flex the triceps but make sure that your elbow doesn’t break neutral as this can potentially put you at risk for a bicep tear under maximal weights.
• More experienced lifters may not need to emphasize the “pull the slack out the bar” cue as much and that’s perfectly fine it works for you and still allows you to pull maximal weight but initially it’s an important concept to learn.
• For single repetitions, it will be much easier to drop the bar from lockout (provided that it’s allowed and you’re lifting on a platform or with bumper plates) due to less eccentric loading upon your spinal erectors. However, for multiple repetitions you should try to lower the weight under control while not overly fatiguing the erectors.
• The knees should be stacked over the feet. If you position the feet too wide (outside of hip width) then you will likely have to resort to one of two strategies:
• The knees will be pushed inward (valgus) due to your grip width.
• You will have to widen your grip which will require a larger range of motion and make the lift less efficient.

PULL (5/11/2016)
Highlight = PR

Conventional DL
BarxGet Warm
135x10
185x5
225x5
275x3
315x1
365x1
405x1
- Mixed Grip -
455x1
455x1
Paused - 1" Off Floor
315x3
315x3
315x3

Eccentric Only Chinup (12 Second Eccentric)
BWx5
BWx5
BWx5

DB Row
95sx10
95sx10
95sx10

GHR
BW+25lb Platex12
BW+25lb Platex12
BW+25lb Platex12
BW+25lb Platex15

Thoughts
- Eh, beltless 455 moved fairly easily but I could feel that I kept getting slightly out of position so decided to do some pause work instead of heavy 5s or 8s. I need to get back into pulling heavier stuff over 90% again but atm it absolutely crushes my CNS anytime I try to get back up there so I have to play it somewhat cautiously unfortunately.

- Slowly but surely narrowing down some of the health issues I believe. Starting my 4th or 5th N=1 experiment today - sleep is improving and I think I'm getting a better handle what has been influencing my gut health. Gotta keep learning and digging deeper.

Oh well that's good news, I love looking at fecal samples!

Not sure if serious or trolling level expert...

[Gxp23]

Dem GHR's though...

[davisj3537]

@DAVIS: No idea what happened up there^, but can you delete that?

[VanillaBearB]

Going along the lines of mobility/stability and PRI that we've been discussing in my log. What do you think to this warmup?

http://breakingmuscle.com/strength-c...etter-work-out

Also found this article which I quite liked:

We are going to use the Left AIC techniques after a lower body training session instead of before. Preliminary results have produced more discomfort when preforming the PRI techniques prior to training; I do not want the techniques to interfere with the quality of lifting sessions. I will use the same approach when training the upper body. I will post these results as well, when we get there.

We will be using the following techniques during the next two weeks:

Left AIC

90-90 hip lift with balloon
Left sidelining flex lt add with concomitant Rt lower extended abduction
Right side lying left IR with LT extended abduction
Supine rt glute max with R FA ER
Supine scissor slides
Right BC

Wall short seated left reach with balloon
Supine weighted punch with right arm apical expansion
Seated resisted reciprocal pull downs
Sidelying weighted right HG horizontal abduction with FA ER
Supine resisted right HG IR
Standing resisted wall reach

Although they decided to train alternate patterns, so on lower body days do some R BC and on upper days to L AIC.

[MikeWines]

Dem GHR's though...

I practically lived on a GHR my first year as a strength coach. Built up to BWx100 in a single set eventually and have always enjoyed them. Probably why my DL is creeping up to 2.75xBW but I can't squat 2xBW yet.

Preciate ya.

Going along the lines of mobility/stability and PRI that we've been discussing in my log. What do you think to this warmup?

http://breakingmuscle.com/strength-c...etter-work-out

Holy warmup batman. Have you read my article on warmups?

Warming Up For Dummies: A Lifter’s Guide to Injury Prevention

I touched on the basic premise of his article in my own:

During my first internship with EXOS (formerly Athlete's Performance Institute), I can specifically remember taking athletes thorough a complex dynamic warm-up sequence before each training session that lasted probably 25 to 30 minutes.

It consisted of foam rolling, mobility work, activation drills, and sprint mechanics among other things. Needless to say, this could likely qualify as an entire workout for some folks.

I’m certainly not knocking their system as I still incorporate much of what I learned from them and they’re one of the best performance facilities worldwide so it’s fairly obvious they know what they’re doing. However, for the average person who only has 45-60 minutes to train, this isn't ideal or realistic.

Here’s a general rule of thumb: a quality warm up should last 8-12 minutes and allow you to work up a light sweat. In the winter I like to wear multiple layers and then remove them as my core temperature increases during my warmup.

His warmup is excessively long in my opinion - get people in, address their asymmetries, and then get to training. Most people hate to warmup and aren't going to do even 10% of what he asks given it seems complex and time consuming. You have to make small recommendations and not overwhelm folks with the coaching process. People need some basics to get them moving better and then you need to get strong to keep those new positions < That's the basis for my piece and the examples listed below.

I used to be into the half hour warmup with foam rolling plus a billion joint mobs, active stretching, and activation but I've since moved on. I feel like most strength coaches go through a progression though and you should experiment (read: tinker) with different things to become experienced with them in order to understand how and when to recommend them. I won't ever recommend anything I haven't tried myself and as such, I like to experiment quite a bit in order to improve myself as a coach through anecdotal experience.

If you haven't tried 1 of the 3 options I listed in the article, I'd recommend you give 'em a shot. Doesn't even have to be a training day, just roll through all 3 for active recovery on an off day and see what sort of positions feel limited and what stretches feel best.

[VanillaBearB]

I practically lived on a GHR my first year as a strength coach. Built up to BWx100 in a single set eventually and have always enjoyed them. Probably why my DL is creeping up to 2.75xBW but I can't squat 2xBW yet.



Preciate ya.



Holy warmup batman. Have you read my article on warmups?

Warming Up For Dummies: A Lifter’s Guide to Injury Prevention

I touched on the basic phenomenon which he talks through in his article:



His warmup is excessively long in my opinion - get people in, address their asymmetries, and then get to training. I used to be into the half hour warmup with foam rolling plus a billion joint mobs and active stretching but I've since moved on. I feel like most strength coaches go through a progression though and you should experiment (read: tinker) with different things to become experienced with them in order to understand how and when to recommend them. I won't ever recommend anything I haven't tried myself and as such, I like to experiment quite a bit in order to improve myself as a coach through anecdotal experience.

If you haven't tried 1 of the 3 options I listed in the article, I'd recommend you give 'em a shot. Doesn't even have to be a training day, just roll through all 3 for active recovery on an off day and see what sort of positions feel limited and what stretches feel best.

I'll give your warm ups a go this weekend as I have a squat and bench day. I also edited my above post with some PRI correctives from an article I just read, lemme know what you think.

I don't quite understand some of the acronyms hah!

[MikeWines]

I'll give your warm ups a go this weekend as I have a squat and bench day. I also edited my above post with some PRI correctives from an article I just read, lemme know what you think.

I don't quite understand some of the acronyms hah!

Found the guys website (Collins S&C), here's what the acronyms mean:

Left AIC (Anterior Inferior Chain)

90-90 hip lift with balloon
Left sidelining flexion with left adduction with concomitant right lower extended abduction
Right side lying left IR with LT extended abduction (Left Internal Rotation with lateral tilt? (Just a guess on LT, haven't seen that abbreviated before but would make sense regarding the pattern)
Supine right glute max with R FA ER (Right Femoral Acetabular External Rotation)
Supine scissor slides

Right BC (Right Brachial Chain)

Wall short seated left reach with balloon
Supine weighted punch with right arm apical expansion
Seated resisted reciprocal pull downs
Sidelying weighted right HG horizontal abduction with FA ER (Femoral Acetabular External Rotation)
Supine resisted right HG IR (Humeral Glenoid Internal Rotation)
Standing resisted wall reach

Not sure I'm tracking with him on all those exercises but I'm familiar with most. I need to take the PRI myo kin course honestly but I have some other events upcoming within the next few months which prevent from dishing out too much money atm. Can't give away too many details but got some big stuff in the works

See here for more info on the chains themselves: The Science of PRI

[VanillaBearB]

Thanks!

I think as your warmups are a lot shorter than mine have been ill give yours a go and then do the PRI stuff as a warm down / in the evening.

[MikeWines]

In case you are unaware, I blew up the supp section today. Get in on the fun:

Cellucor/ON/Allmax/BSN - You've Got Some Explaining to Do...

[ugasar]

In case you are unaware, I blew up the supp section today. Get in on the fun:

Cellucor/ON/Allmax/BSN - You've Got Some Explaining to Do...

Wow!!! This is unreal.. I was a huge Cellucor fan until now haha! But let me get this straight.. The disclaims are against BCAA content rather than actual protein content?

[MikeWines]

Wow!!! This is unreal.. I was a huge Cellucor fan until now haha! But let me get this straight.. The disclaims are against BCAA content rather than actual protein content?

Protein is made up of BCAAs...

Alot of controversy surrounding this study on ******** and on here (see my thread for more). I'll continue digging and post up anything else I find.

[ugasar]

Protein is made up of BCAAs...

Alot of controversy surrounding this study on ******** and on here (see my thread for more). I'll continue digging and post up anything else I find.

Right.. I understand that, but it seems like previous studies were more concerned of the "claimed" protein content based on protein spiking.. Whereas this seems more along the lines of incorporating BCAA's into the powder and not meeting their labeled claims. Just curious is all brother! Will follow along though.. It is safe to say that I am not longer using Cellucor after this tub though!

[MikeWines]

Right.. I understand that, but it seems like previous studies were more concerned of the "claimed" protein content based on protein spiking.. Whereas this seems more along the lines of incorporating BCAA's into the powder and not meeting their labeled claims. Just curious is all brother! Will follow along though.. It is safe to say that I am not longer using Cellucor after this tub though!

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water just yet...

I'm still digging and I'm not completely convinced as I've read a few comments from guys with chemistry backgrounds who weren't totally convinced. Dante Trudel also had some interesting thoughts which I posted in the thread.

[ugasar]

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water just yet...

I'm still digging and I'm not completely convinced as I've read a few comments from guys with chemistry backgrounds who weren't totally convinced. Dante Trudel also had some interesting thoughts which I posted in the thread.

I will keep my eye out on the thread brother.. Thanks again!!

[MikeWines]

Daily Watch:

PSA: Drake's new album isn't that great. This track was decent though...



Daily Read/Listen:

You’re Too Boring to Build Muscle

Cue/Tip of the Day

Just go to the gym, mind your own business, and lift.

Quit worrying about whether or not everyone on your social media knows about what you did.

Lower
Highlight = PR

Warmup

• Roll Out Plantar Fascia + Cuboid Mobilization w/Lax Ball
• Quadruped Breathing w/ Knees Up
• R & L Side Lying Apical Expansion
• Andreo Spina Hip Flow Sequence
• Close Stance Counter Balanced Squat w/Adduction

High Bar Back Squat
135x10
185x5
225x3
235x8
235x6
235x4

Tempo Squats + Pause (5 Second Eccentric)
155x3
155x3
155x3
155x3
155x3

RDL
135x10
185x8
225x6
275x10
275x10
275x10

A1. E-Z Bar Reverse Curl
60xPump (3 Sets)

A2. Incline DB Curl
20sxPump (3 Sets)

A3. L-Sit Leg Raise
BWx25 (3 Sets)

Thoughts
- Pretty decent lift. RDLs are feeling better than every, going to use them to hopefully get my deadlift back up to speed. Also, going to use paused squats to find my groove on squats again as they don't really feel that great at the moment...Gonna get some more blood work done in the next week or two and follow up with a functional medicine doc.

• CBC (Complete Blood Count)
• CMP (Comprehensive Metabolic Panel)
• HBA1c (Hemoglobin)
• Fructosamine
• Full Lipid Panel
• Full Iron Panel
• Full Thyroid Panel
• CK (Creatine Kinase)
• Vitamin D
• hsCRP (C-Reactive Protein)
• Homocysteine
• DHEA-S
• Estradiol
• Total Testosterone
• SHBG (Sex Hormone Binding Globulin)

Not bad for only ~$250 bucks.

I will keep my eye out on the thread brother.. Thanks again!!

Cellucor rep dropped in a little while ago. Story still developing...

[ugasar]

PSA: Drake's new album isn't that great. This track was decent though...

Cellucor rep dropped in a little while ago. Story still developing...

Couldn't agree more about Drake.. Everyone is hyped, but I think it's a huge let down!

Ahh yeah, going to read up.. This will get interesting!!!

[Filmbuff81]

training looking pretty solid. Seems like you've been feeling ok? But obviously not optimal.

Can't believe that doc wouldn't be willing to test estradiol. It's no skin off his back, but unfortunately I have run into so many doctors unwilling to look for root causes and instead just gloss over everything.