New training program and supp stack - a review/log!!!

[AlphaBrass01]

Okay...home from work...little break before dinner.

I really liked the way everything mixed. I'll tell you what...I feel like I worked harder at the gym than I usually do, and got the most out of each exercise (just about failing at the end of most final sets), and I still didn't feel ridiculously sore afterwards or later on. The recovery benefits of PW and BG must work!

Here's what I did in my workout:

Elliptical
Warmup set of pushups
Barbell incline bench
Dumbbell flat bench
Dumbbell flat flys
Immediate set of pushups to failure
Seated calf raises
Standing calf raises
Leg lifts
Decline crunches
Bike

It felt good!

The eating thing is interesting - I haven't felt this full continuously in a long time...

As far as REDuction PM goes, I didn't get to sleep any more quickly, but that might be due to some nervousness about work today. Once I was asleep, though, it was deep, and I think I did dream a bit.

That's all for now, folks!

Tomorrow is quad day, which has, in the past, left me feeling halfway dead...we'll see how that changes, if at all.

[poopies]

Nice!

REDuction never really helped me to fall asleep right away - I don't get sleepy after I take it (like Nyquil or something like that), but like you said once you're out, you're sleeping like a baby. If it has the same effect on you, after a while you'll notice you wake up in the AM and you're not groggy or sleepwalking. I jump right out of bed haha!

[AlphaBrass01]

Nice to hear that.

Oh, and thoughts about HP C&C Whey with less water...better, but still not great...

[AlphaBrass01]

I have a bit of extra time between workout and work this morning, so I'll update.

Workout felt great. Today was quads:

Elliptical
Barbell squats
Leg presses
Leg extensions
Bike

Squats felt the best they ever have - upped weight to 205. I know that's not huge, but I just recently moved from using a squat machine (not the smith machine, either) to free weights, so I had to back it down to get the balance aspect.

Presses were good - pushed the limit with those at the end.

I also upped weight on the extensions 5 pounds per side.

I love the PW during the workout. I can tell a difference in my endurance and ability to push through tough sets. Too soon to give feedback on muscle build from GM/BG/BU. I can't get over how much I LOVE Gains. The flavor is awesome - only possible negative to it is that I feel halfway retarded shaking the bottle between every gulp to make sure I get some of the oat flour "crust" in there. I also want to say that the grittiness, which I commented on earlier in the thread, is becoming my absolute favorite part of it. The texture is so unique. With whey powders that don't mix well, the grit feels like...well...grit. With this, it feels like it's supposed to be there, IMHO. Great job on a new product, guys.

I'll be looking forward to trying another new one later today - Dymatize Elite Whey Cafe Mocha. My thoughts will be forthcoming!

[AlphaBrass01]

Coming up to the end of the day, I realize that I forgot to mention the fact that I slept like a freakin' rock last night, and as a bonus, was alert when I got up - good stuff, man!!!

Usually, I feel like a wreck from the waist down after leg workouts. Today, that was not the case. It made me wonder if I didn't work hard enough, but that was definitely not the case. I maxed out all my exercises. I couldn't have done much more. I figure that means that PW is doing its job. If this effect is as drastic with arm day and back day, I will be EXTREMELY happy!!! Also, I'm starting to feel more strength in general in the gym. With GM and BU working (and with BG kicking into gear after it's first week of dosing, as I've heard it does), I'm ready to really kick it up!

Also, I didn't feel full all day like I did yesterday, though I am full right now. I was actually really hungry in the afternoon before my snack.

I filled out my cals and protein well today.

Also, I tried the Dymatize Cafe Mocha, like I said I would. It wasn't bad, but it was very watery. I enjoy thicker shakes, as you can tell by my love for Golden Gains. I don't want to take it with milk, simply because of the added calories taking away from somewhere else in the diet.

Anyway, I hope everyone had a great day!!!

[poopies]

Coming up to the end of the day, I realize that I forgot to mention the fact that I slept like a freakin' rock last night, and as a bonus, was alert when I got up - good stuff, man!!!

Do you think it's the REDuction PM working for you? I love that stuff!

[AlphaBrass01]

As far as I can tell, it is. I haven't slept that well in awhile. More importantly, I don't usually have that much focus and energy when I get up. It used to be that the ONLY way I got to the gym right after waking up in the morning was with my pre-workout supp. This morning, WF was there to actually help the workout and not wake my lazy butt up!

[poopies]

Exactly! I am wide awake when I wake up. It's the craziest thing to me, because I've never slept this well for as long as I can remember. I am such a believer now that I jumped on the B2G1 deal at bb.com so I have a good size supply for the future.

Anyways, glad it's working for you too! And thanks for keeping this log - I'm enjoying it and it's got me excited to try BG!

[AlphaBrass01]

Exactly! I am wide awake when I wake up. It's the craziest thing to me, because I've never slept this well for as long as I can remember. I am such a believer now that I jumped on the B2G1 deal at bb.com so I have a good size supply for the future.

Anyways, glad it's working for you too! And thanks for keeping this log - I'm enjoying it and it's got me excited to try BG!

Yeah, that deal is one of the reason that I tried PM. I have been using stimulant-based fat burners and wanted to get off of that for a bit, and the added sleep benefits seemed nice, and then that price put it over the top.

As far as BG goes, some people say it takes a week or two to really kick in, so right now I'm attributing most of the differences in my recovery to PW and my strength increases to GM and BU. In about a week, we'll see what's happening with muscle hardness and such. I'll tell you what, though...something is keeping my arms more vascular throughout the entire day.

[AlphaBrass01]

I'm doing a lot of training in my new job and they're revamping the training programs, so I'm sort-of the guinea pig for it. So...this morning, I don't have to be in until later to allow them to get things ready. That means I have some extra time after my workout and breakfast (and another great night of sleep!).

Today's workout:

Elliptical
Dumbbell curls
Dumbbell hammer curls
Barbell reverse curls
Skullcrushers
Close grip bench press
Tricep rope pull-downs
Parallel bar knee raises (mixed - front and both sides...this is also what I meant for Monday's workout when I said leg raises...whoops)
Legs-on-balance-ball crunches
Bike

Again, I really pushed - couldn't have done much more of anything after completing my sets. And now feeling great! Everything still feels tight, but not sore. My forearms, which usually feel dead after this type of workout, aren't bad. I can definitely tell I used them a lot, but they're not screaming at me.

I'm ready for the day, and it will be a long one. I have to head straight from work to a rehearsal for a gig I'm playing this Sunday, so I had to make and pack dinner (cold green bean and Italian sausage stir fry salad along with macadamia nuts and dates) with all the food I normally tote around, meaning my mid-morning snack (today's is an orange and a hard boiled egg), lunch (today = peanut butter sandwich, protein shake, and turkey sandwich with cheese, hummus, lettuce, and banana peppers), and an afternoon snack (no-carb energy drink, hard boiled egg, and some yogurt bites today). That's a lot of food to lug around, but it'll be okay...

[Arch]

hey man, good to see this log...I just jumped on it today but I feel your pain as far as losing weight and then finally wanting to put it back on...and just kind of fighting it. I lost about 45-50 pounds from my largest and have a hard time telling myself "ok, you are going to start gaining weight" my hats off to you man I am looking to start a weight gain cycle in a couple weeks as well so I am gonna watch you progress, keep it up

also if you like thicker shakes, I love Muscle Milk's chocolate flavor, just delicious with about 12 oz of water, really thick it's like dessert in a bottle. I haven't tried any of their other flavors but that sure is good.

[AlphaBrass01]

hey man, good to see this log...I just jumped on it today but I feel your pain as far as losing weight and then finally wanting to put it back on...and just kind of fighting it. I lost about 45-50 pounds from my largest and have a hard time telling myself "ok, you are going to start gaining weight" my hats off to you man I am looking to start a weight gain cycle in a couple weeks as well so I am gonna watch you progress, keep it up

also if you like thicker shakes, I love Muscle Milk's chocolate flavor, just delicious with about 12 oz of water, really thick it's like dessert in a bottle. I haven't tried any of their other flavors but that sure is good.

I like all the Muscle Milk flavors, but it's more calories for the protein it provides than I want for that point in the day.

[AlphaBrass01]

This morning I ran about 5.5 miles.

The only bad thing about drinking PW before or during cardio seems to be that I have to take a break to pee after less time. Oh well...

Continued success with the sleeping - thanks PM! I'm also starting to notice the vivid dreaming more. So far, there are no really good or strange ones that I've actually remembered after waking, but if there are, I'll report on them

Now, as far as the food goes, I'm getting used to my diet and eating a lot more than I was. The only bad thing about it is a lot more frequent...well...you know. And eating a bunch of veggies - man they can be epic!

I'm thinking ahead to Saturday because I have a long gig that will require my schedule to change, since the gym opens later on weekends. I have a gig Sunday, too, but since Sunday will be a cardio day, I can just run outside as early as I want, unless it's raining. So, anyway, Saturday will force me to work out in the late afternoon/early evening. It will be after all my meals except dinner and my pre-bed meal. I'm just wondering how well I'll be able to fit the correct timing for BG/BU/GM/WF in...I guess we will see...

[AlphaBrass01]

Another morning with time to update...good deal.

Today was a good day at the gym, I think, even though the weight I was able to pull didn't impress me. With this new training program, I'm doing some exercises that I really haven't done or done much before, so I'm really learning where I sit with them weight-wise and how to make them effective. Today's new one was the bent over row. I've done them before with the assist machine, but started today with free weights. Anyway, here was today's workout:

Elliptical
Dumbbell lunges
Standing leg curls
Lying leg curls
Parallel grip pullups
Bent over barbell rows
Seated cable rows
Seated calf raises
Standing calf raises
Bike

Everything seemed good. I've definitely been trying to make sure to push everything to the limit since I started this thing. I'm starting to see a little bit of increased definition in my chest, arms, and legs. I would love to see some more in my stomach, but I don't know if that's going to happen due to all the excess skin I have left over from before my weight loss. That's probably the most frustrating thing about my appearance. It also makes the small love handles I've retained (guessing that's where a lot of my body fat % is sitting) stand out more, I think.

I'm trying to find the best/most comfortable range of motion setup for the lying leg curls. Right now, the pads slide up my calves a bit when I curl, which pulls hairs - ouch. If I lengthen it a little, though, it feels too stretched at the bottom when I start. I'll continue to experiment with how I lay on the pad to try to find a middle ground.

I hope everyone is having a nice day. I'm looking forward to trying to work everything out tomorrow, as far as scheduling my pre-workout stuff goes. It will be an interesting day, but $275 is worth it - good enough to get me through some more supps and food, lol.

[AlphaBrass01]

Awesome day, despite the weird schedule. Dinner was good - trying to clean out the freezer, so it wasn't the healthiest, but it wasn't horrible, either.

The workout today bought in a few exercises I am less familiar with, namely the barbell shoulder press and arnold presses. I've got low weight on those for now, but I could really feel them working! Here's what I did:

Elliptical
Barbell shoulder presses
Arnold dumbbell presses
Front dumbbell raises
Side dumbbell raises
Dumbbell shrugs
Upright barbell rows
Parallel bar knee raises
Balance ball crunches (sitting on ball)
Bike

My traps and shoulders are a little tight right now, but not sore. I used to hate working out in the evening, because it feltharder to push through sets, but with the energy I have now and the addition of the supps I'm using, it was good.

A couple buddies I saw today who haven't seen me in a bit commented on my build and the noticeable increase in my arm and chest muscles - an awesome thing to hear. Now if I could magically make my extra belly skin disappear...

After one week of my new program, I'm really liking everything about it. I feel like I am showing more visible results of the work I'm putting in, which is a huge plus. I am sleeping well and keeping a good amount of energy through the day. I can't say much that's bad about it.

Feel free to bring on any questions you have for me - it's tough to think about what I should write in this log, so if there's anything you want to know, ASK!!!!! I'll do my best to give you a good answer.