Ryan Mac's SS mass gain log
 

Sadly I've been at this strength and conditioning thing for far too long. Ultimately I had not reached the levels to which I aspired. Jan 1, 2008 I did my first ever CF workout. Over the following 7 months I improved in strength, lean muscle, flexibility, durability, mental fortitude and determination. I learned a great deal more information during that 7 month period in large part to CF principles, but I also picked up Starting Strength very early on. I had seen SS utilized by many to achieve new levels of strength. I felt like it was an intelligent move so that I could develop my technique in the important lifts. I believe I have enough knowledge at this point to do a true strength/mass building phase.

Please, if you have any suggestions or recommendations feel free to point them out at any time.

I will first start by putting in logs from the beginning of my program which started on August 4th, 2008.

Vitals:
Male 36 years old
Cyclist, mountain and road
Hockey player
A lovely supporting wife
Father of two 5yr daughter, 1yr son
182lbs
6'2"


Aug. 4th
Sport comments: Starting Strength:

Squat
45x10
95x10
135x5
155x5x3

Press
45x5x2
65x5
75x5
85x5
90x5x3

Dead
135x5x2
185x5
225x3
265x5


Aug. 7th
Squat
45x5x2
65x5
95x5
115x5
135x5
160x5x3

Bench Press
45x5x2
65x5
95x5
115x5
135x5
150x5x3

Power Clean
45x5x2 (hang)
95x3x2
105x5
115x3
120x5x3

Aug. 9th
Planks
90sec front
90sec L side
90sec R side
120sec stability ball

Squat:
65x5x3
85x5x2
105x5
135x5
150x5
165x5x3 work set

Press:
45x5x2
65x5
75x5
85x5
90x3
95x5x3 work set

Dead:
135x5x2
185x5
205x5
225x3
255x3
275x5 work set (hard)

Aug. 11th
Squat
45x5x3
75x5x2
115x5
140x5
160x5x3

Bench Press
45x5x3
65x5x2
95x5
135x5
150x3
160x5x3

BW back extension
x5
x5
x5
x5
x5

Strict Pull ups
x5
x5
x5
x5
x5

Aug. 13th
Plank FR 1:45
L side 1:45
R side 1:45
Stability ball front plank 2:00

Snatch practice:
PVC 5x2
15lb bar 5x2

Squat:
45x5x3
75x5x2
115x5
135x5
155x3
175x5x3 (missed the last rep, of the last set)

Press
45x5x3
65x5x2
75x5
85x5
95x3
100x5x3

Clean
45x5x2 (hang)
65x5x2
95x5
115x5
135x5x3

Out of town from Aug. 14th - 17th

Aug. 18th
Squat : *reset the weight on this*
45x5x3
75x5x2
95x5
115x5
135x5x3

Bench Press
45x5x2
65x5x2
95x5
115x5
150x3
165x5x3

Pull Ups
bw x 6
bw x 6
bw x 6

Back Extension
bw x 10
bw x 10
bw x 10

Welcome to the board.

What does your nutrition look like at this point?

Thanks for the welcome.

Currently i'm eating mostly paleo. I have a relatively good grasp of nutrition, but I want to optimize this cycle. So any recommendations, criticisms or comments are welcome.

My goal is to eat between 4,500 to 5,000 calories per day. Shooting for 200+ grams of protien daily. I only started logging my nutrition yesterday, but you can check here for details.

I plan to make up the majority of my daily calories with the following food units:
Steak/pork/chicken (with a focus on steak)
eggs
olive oil
flax oil
broccoli (this gets a category all to itself. I eat it 3 times a day usually)
fresh fruit
fresh veggies
64oz of milk per day
almonds/cashews
ice cream

Ryan

Today I was up at 6am. Unfortunately I didn't sleep well last night. Getting my sleep cycles sorted is one of my biggest challenges on this program.

Squats: (I recently reset the weight on this)
145x5x3 (work set)

Press:
105x5x3
this is getting heavy, I hope to go up for a few more weeks

Dead Lift:
280x5x1
this is also very heavy for me. Maybe with my increased volume of calories, I can continue to go up. I'll try to add 5lbs next week

Over all pretty good workout. Particularly with the lack of sleep. Focus on rest and recovery until my next work day.

Sounds like a good nutritional plan to me. Keep an eye on it as you progress.

Any supplements? Fish oil, ZMA...etc?

Fish oil. Yes.

ZMA. Never heard of it. Does it actually work? I'll check into it tonight.

There is a substantial thread on this board. As a sleep/recovery aid I've found it to be great. I'm currently taking the NOW brand ZMA which you can look on google/froogle for $10 a bottle which is a month's worth.

It'll be interesting to see how things go with your progress. What is your ultimate goal?

Seems like a good price. Any side effects that you are aware of? I typically don't like to supplement, take over the counter meds, or substitute for whole foods. With that being said, I have considered creatine for improved recovery, so ZMA might be an option. The main issue is that with a greater commitment and discipline I can concur one of the main barriers to success. Sleep! I have no pattern. I am working hard to sort that out.

Thanks for the heads up on ZMA. I will post in my log if/when I start to utilize it.

Frank,

Here are some specific goals that I have outlined for my program.

Program Goals:

Increase strength
Back Squat 250lb single
Press 160lb single
Dead Lift 400lb single
Bench Press 225lb single
Clean 200lb single
Kipping Pull up 40 reps
Increase core strength

Increase Body Weight
20 to 30lbs of body weight
Notable increase in size of leg (quad/hamstring/calf), back size, shoulder size, glutes, trapezius, chest.
Minimize increase in waist/gut
Minimize increase in BF%

Baseline details (at start of program on Aug. 4th)
Weight 182lbs
13-18% BF
I have before pics.
Back Squat 185lb single (depth below parallel, but not like new depth)
Press 120lb single
Dead Lift 325lb single
Bench Press 190lb single
Clean (never done a single)
Kipping Pull Ups 26 reps
Fran as rx’d - 9:34
Filthy 50 – 41:16 with scales
The Dead/HPC/FS/Jerk 135lb WOD – Scaled to 95lbs 26:20
Cindy - 12 rounds + 5 pull ups + 10 push ups
Gwen 105lbs


Feel free to comment. I came up with many of these numbers without much thought. Didn't look at percentages or anything of the sort. I might be out of my mind on some, while others might be low.

Thanks,

Ryan