Aj's Log - The Goal Of WNBF Pro Status.

4th December

Good day today! - Rested up, got plenty of work done in a local Pret near Danni's & also recorded a podcast. Got roughly 10,000 steps in, felt like my energy was picking up gradually throughout the day BUT my head is still banging a little bit, very confident that this is a tightness in my neck and traps, so I'll be getting some work on this Thursday, got to be pro-active about these things, I have experienced this before and it usually fades within a week or so.

Nutrition today - 300c 80f 200p - as I said, a little higher fat, and a fairly large drop in carbs as I simply won't have the demand for them over the next few days.

Another good 8 hours sleep tonight, journey back to Brum, resting up again and packing some bits for New York also :)

Good plan aj. Refreshed for an actual holiday where you can enjoy everytning about NY

F*CKED UP!

Yup, that's how I feel right now.

A week of really great training progressions and I've started to get a bit sick, rundown and starting to see some regressions and old injuries start to kick in.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't frustrated, because I really am. But I'm going to take from tomorrow off, leading into next week as me and Danni leave for NYC on Friday and I want to feel better by then!!

I will be pulling diet down to around 2800-300 and actually only having one carb meal per day in the evening , focusing on higher quality fats to help aid the process of reducing inflammation over the coming days - then when I go to NYC, diet will obviously be somewhat relaxed. I will keep you guys updated with the 'removal' of the fatigue - because I find following these processes fun.

1st December

Some cracking sessions the last two days with Lewis, we didn't end up filming for Upper, just wanted to get in, get after it without having to worry about the Camera, but I will be hooking up with Lucas again at Ultimate soon to get some of my sessions fully recorded with 'INTRA' session conversation. Meal out at Miller & Carter with Danni this eve, was very nice, fillet steak & chips. Tomorrow we're going to Manchester for xmas markets, should be a nice relaxed day - then NYC next week for 4 nights from Friday onwards! Cannot WAIT my favourite city on the planet!! Hope you guys are all good :)

lookong forward this content lads

29/11/18

Rest Day Thoughts

I used to hate rest days, inching to train, just generally dreading them.

Now I have a totally different thought process, I get a LOT of work done in these days, I think of them simply as recovery days, of course I still inch to train, but I know I crave a productive session than just 'another session'. Tomorrow I head to Muscle Performance Gym to train with Lewis Rossi, we will film as always and it will be a fantastic session - the day after we are hitting Upper at UltraFlex Normanton - excited for both sessions and to bring them on the site for you guys!

28/11/18

BW - 172.8 lbs - Yesterdays food - 550c 55f 190p

Great leg session yesterday, feeling pretty beaten up today and certainly a bit anxious for my Pull session, it's ok, I have numbers to progress and I know I can effectively chase them with this level of fatigue, it's a fine balance between doing TOO much and simply not training due to nerves/being a lil bitch. Food is at a really nice place but last night was the first time I've struggled with oats in the evening in a while, so I'll be thinking of a food rotation at that meal to simply make it easier. Cream of rice around training is fantastic for me right now, I'm experiencing zero bloating or digestive issues throughout the day too and energy is nice and constant, I'm having carbs with every meal, so to aid uptake and improve BG, I'm using 1x Matador with each meal, or the same dose from CORE LOAD.

26/11/18 - Update

BW - 173lbs (back on the creatine, gained a good 2lbs of fullness from this, woohoo!) Now, Monday is usually legs for me, but my quads are always toast when it comes to this session, 2 days recovery is just not enough, so a rotation in split. I will now hit Push, Legs, Pull (non low back loading) Off, Upper, Legs, Off. This should give me the capacity to recover from both leg days and maximise them.

Fantastic day at the seminar yesterday, can't wait to run more and go to plenty other seminars in 2019 to learn more than ever about nutrition training and supplementation. Something that a lot of people said was that i should of charged more!! Shocked, but people didn't realise that i was actually going in hard on how to COACH for contest prep, because the room was full of coaches, so i really hammered some points home. Sleeping better now the jet lag is worn off, but digestion seems a little disrupted still, this should settle over the coming days. Upper body session will go on the site later today! Me and Danni hit this on Saturday.

24/11/18 171.8 lbs Yesterdays Leg Day (Quad Focused) - I can handle serious work on my legs now that calories are nice and high. Squat - 180k x 8 170k x8/8

Hack - 2 sets 8-12

Pendulum - 2 sets 1x8-10 1x20 Leg Press - 2 sets 2x15

Leg Curl Seated - 4 sets, 2 sets being 12-15, 2 sets being 20+ reps. Leg ext super set with sissy - 2 all out sets, 12-15 reppers.

Calves x 4 sets

Add super set with abductor - 2 sets 15 - 20 each

Abs (hanging leg raise) Great session, long, but effective.

Be good to See a workout from Ben with his short intense sessions

UPDATE - 22/11/2018

Bodyweight - Around 176-177 lbs, after LA Trip.

Diet -

M1 - Oats, Blueberries, Egg Whites + Dynamic Health & Fruits Chocolate Flavour. M2 - PRE - Cream Of Rice, 5% Lean Mince, Green Veg.

INTRA - 25g HBCD, 20g EAA, 2g Taurine, Electrolytes.

M3 - POST - Cream Of Rice, Whey Isolate.

M4 - Either Salmon or Cod, White Rice, Salad.

M5 - Oats, Banana, Egg Whites, Whey Isolate, Nuts & More or Nut Butter/Dark Choc. As you can see, very low fat throughout the day until last few meals, I feel very very good with this approach, no sluggishness or fatigue / grogginess throughout the day and good energy + a little hypo towards the end of training so a sign I'm sensitive to nutrients still. I wait until I'm hungry to eat my first meal, then meals are spaced 2.5hrs - 3 hrs apart , with pwo meals being a little closer. Split -

Still Pull, Push, Legs, Off, Upper, Lower, Off, but very close to switching to P/P/L OFF P/P/L OFF.

Cardio -

25 mins rest day medium intensity.

10k steps a day NO MORE no LESS.

General Thoughts -

I'm happy with where I'm at, I have a year to make a LOT of improvements. The WNBF worlds made me yet again realise how far I've got to go to get where I want to be. I'm very confident that in 2020, Ben Howard will be my main set of eyes on the process, making sure I turn up no less than inside out for all my shows. I had a GREAT trip to LA, two consistent weeks now, before I go to New York with Danni on the 7th December for 4 nights, which I can't wait for. Finally, Ben Howard is going to be doing SOME content for the site, what would you guys like to see?? List anything below.

Could you list your training diet meal by meal? And current supplements, thanks

For some reason my update didn't post up earlier!

Bodyweight is hovering around 170-172 lbs.

TD - 500c 55f 200p

NTD - 300c 80f 200p

Great session today - filmed for the site and will be up tomorrow!

Back Squat - 170 x 11 / 170 x 10.

Pendulum x2

Leg Extension x2

Standing Ham x2

Seated Ham x2

Abductor x2

Adductor x2

Donkey Calves x2

Seated Calves x2

Gassed. Upper tomorrow with LOTS of volume, will be a long slog. Excited.

your last post really highlights your maturity and focus on the goal!

a great game plan and I wish I was as focused at your age

WEEKLY UPDATE

So from peak off season weight I am down to 169.8 lbs, I've attached some shots. I aim to get down to the mid 160's before starting bringing up calories again, this will take another 2-3 weeks at the current rate of loss.

I made the decision pretty much this weekend to confirm I won't compete next year - I just CANNOT risk not being improved enough to win a LW title, so another year off, another year of just being as productive as possible and also settling into life (moving out, Danni, etc). I think this is important, and I really don't want to be selfish, even though I know Danni will support anything I do. Current Macros - 250c 50f 200p for those that care about numbers ( I don't) haha!

Current Split - Back/Hams, Push, Quads, Off, Upper, Quads/Light Hams, Off.

Food will be slowly trickled up, I aim to stay in this 'SWEET' spot of 165-175 for a good period of time, just make a tonne of progress there without pushing BW excessively, I've learnt it's just not needed, I feel worse and actually performance doesn't improve much at all.

One thing I do want to take into the next 8-12 months is bringing back some element of squatting, I really would like to be a good squatter and I know it means little from a hypertrophy perspective but I'd just LIKE to be good at barbell squatting, to depth, with control. I will master this.

Next year I will NOT let my food off the gas, everything will be measured, tracked and on point with everything I do. And I'll pour again, a lot of my energy into the clients I work with to get them on stage and win some pro cards!

I plan to travel also - Few trips to the states and Vienna will definitely be on the cards!

I too always feel much healthier and fitter at a moderatly lean bodyfat in the offseason, after the newbie gains have been made gaining more than a couple of pound of contest weight size per year is unlikely I never see why people push the bodyweight so high

great work mate leaning up quickly on your pics! Still super strong too!

WEEKLY UPDATE - 25th Aug Bodyweight Average - 173 - 174 lbs Calories currently - 275c 60f 200p - still primarily focusing on carbs around the workout window.

This week has been fantastic to be honest! I had Pull, Push & Legs all in Brighton and despite the bags of travel over the weekend, they were all great sessions, focus and attention was high, connections & pumps were awesome! - This is primarily down to a few factors... - I'm in a very good place mentally at the moment. - I'm lighter & feel fitter & more sensitive to nutrients. - General mood & energy is awesome. I'm in Sheffield this weekend with Danni - so we hit Legs Yesterday at Iron Athlete Gym (awesome place) the session went like this...

Ham curl - 2 sets (1x8-10/1x12-15)

Wide / High banded leg press - 2 sets (1x8-10/1x12-15)

DBSLDL - 2 sets (1x8-10/1x12-15)

Barbell Hip Thrust - 2 sets (1x8-10/1x12-15)

Banded Pendulum Squat - 2 sets (1x8-10/1x12-15)

Ham Focus Split Squat - 2 x 12 - 15

Adductor / Abductor - 2 x 12 - 15

Standing Calves - 3 x 12 - 15

Today we're off to Ultra-flex in Leeds for Upper Body, I'm hitting a session with Lewis Rossi, which we will film for the site!! Very excited for what next year has for us in store. In terms of myself, pulling down to probably the high 160's will be VERY easy, and set up a brilliant final small push up phase prior to prep. Any questions , just ask!

Exciting times for you mate! Looking forward to the content from the weekend!

UPDATE - 19th August

Current weight - 175 lbs / 80kgs

Dropped around 2.5 lbs over the weekend of the BNBF Midlands, then with re-introducing training, more salt etc and the whole move, my weight has stayed pretty static, but still down on average. Week 2 of this small diet in the books & I just generally feel flat and soft, haha!! This happens at the start of any more aggressive diet, so I'll just keep my head down and focus on the phase.

I will aim to drop to around 170lbs / 77kgs, then food goes up and I'll stay in a small surplus for the entirety of the year until prep rolls around. This is the CURRENT plan and could change if I feel it needs too, I don't like to ever set anything in stone.

LOTS of content coming over the next few weeks, especially as I get settled in at Birmingham. I'm at the UKDFBA today (Sunday) and I was at the 2 bros show yesterday with Danni competing - she did a great job & finished 3rd in a awesome class - it's so good to have her in my life right now.

So, expect a lot of good content coming soon - I'll be getting my office space set up at the flat & this will only massively improve my work.

A good solid week mate and a good recharge before this next phase! Enjoy the weekend with clients and go get em!

UPDATE - 11th Aug. Callum Q - Yes, i think I'd love to combine deload weeks with diet breaks, this really will help preserve earnt tissue & whilst psychologically I'll find this TOUGH, I'll try and adhere! So I started this week at 181 lbs.

Hit 300c 50f 250p all week and 15k steps.

Was 177.4 lbs this morning.

So a pretty large drop, expected and most will be glycogen - the following weeks will be legit fat loss with the goal of getting to the low 170's/early 160's, taking note of how i look at that BW (AND comparing to the last 169/170, then holding and pushing up calories into a very comfortable range.. Aiming to stay below 180 before I begin prep, on high calories and minimal activity, just want to be in a WICKED place to start a contest prep.

Training not so much to talk about, boring deload!

I move to Birmingham on Wednesday - moving out! Big week ahead, I have the BNBF Midlands tomorrow, moving out, then Danni's show on Saturday & the UKDFBA southern on the Sunday. It will be a mental week but there is NO CHANCE I'll be missing a session, or a meal.

Do you think your competition cares if you have a busy week?! No! Crack on :)

Enjoying the logs man. Quick question, will you incorporate deloads into your prep? If so how would your nutrition look during these weeks, higher calories to preserve tissue or would keeping the intensity high during be enough to ensure no muscle loss?

Interesting Ben - Will potentially try adding in some HIIT in this phase.

So today was deload pull, very easy, nice to box off one of the sessions, every exercise was either one or two sets only, all 8-12 rep ranges.

Looking forward to running a new few moves in the next block, as usual, keeping things pretty damn simple and looking to progress linearly.

I've figured out i CANNOT digest one food well - Cream Of Rice.. for some reason, I do NOT feel good after eating it, that's the only food I cannot stomach well right now which is odd, but i will make sure that is not featured in my diet haha.

Excited to follow this next phase of your assult on the pro card mate.

Those assult bikes are hardcore mate, i do offseason cardio the exact same as pre contest for health & fitness & just manipulate food for weight loss/gain

UPDATE - 6th Aug

Deload week is in, been needing this one for a while! - I will simply reduce volume by one set per exercise & aim to stay a little away from failure, but volume/intensity is my main tool in terms of reducing training fatigue.

So, I'm at 184 lbs at my peak, I weighed in at 181 lbs this morning & that was simply from a few days of higher steps with Danni this weekend. (she's two weeks out from 2bros in Bikini)

I have decided to pull back after what has been pretty much a 9 month push up in BW (lowest in prep - 146.4 lbs to highest of 184 lbs)

The goal over the REST of this year is purely to set up my prep for 2019. I have, and will continue to overload & progress & due to higher body fat levels i can STILL accrue new tissue in this phase if I really nail everything.

Aim is to get around 170 ish lbs. For a predicted stage weight of 150lbs, that will have me roughly 20 lb above, I will then BUILD calories and aim to start prep in a VERY good position both from a body comp perspective AND caloric too.

Any questions just ask, my initial macros for this phase (MORE aggressive) are - 300c 40f 270p (trialling higher protein fat loss) Rest days the same currently.

I will update daily with progression.

Thanks Ben - I have played around with a few things but liking this current set up!

I have, I did it on the Assault Bike/Air Bike during prep, DEFINITELY brought in my legs more, Do you keep some in during the off season??

I do mate, I average around 10,000 steps because i do like to get out and walk for some headspace to split up my days!

Looks a very full and result producing nutrition plan! Well thought out.

Do you or have you ever performed HIIT? What are your opinions?

Do you still track expenditure in the offseason?

Weekly wrap up -

This week was a great one - ONE rough pull session but the rest were just money, despite being pretty overreached and warm ups feeling awful, I stayed locked in and got some good progressions! I had a friend down this weekend so ended up training today also (usual rest) so will rest tomorrow.

So I've been asked to lay out my meals currently -

M1 - 200g Beef Mince w/ Veg and 20g worth of fat.

M2 - Pre training - Either Oats/Whey Iso or Rice Cakes Whey Iso

M3 - Intra - 50-100g highly branched dextrin & 50g pepto pro.

M4 - PWO - 200g low fat cereal w/whey iso

M5 - 150g Oats/Egg whites or whey iso.

M6 - 200g Beef Mince w/Veg & 20g Fats.

Pretty simple, foods are fairly often rotated especially with the current heat & I structure the majority of my carbs around my sessions, more so for nutrient uptake maximisation at the moment.

Any questions as usual guys just ask :)

Another day wrapped up.

Pull session today was a 7/10, pretty meh, good connections and LOVE the new mag grips but rack pulls went to shit as I'm over-reached and my lower back loading is VERY high.

Session

Banded Pullover 2x12-15

Narrow Mag Pulldown 3x8-10

Rack Pull 1x6-8 1x12-15

Med Mag Row - 3x8-10

Wide Pull Up - 2xAMRAP

Dual DB Row - 2x12-15

Seated Cable Curl - 3x8-10

Alternating DB Curl - 3x8-10

Shrugs - 3x12-15

PUSH tomorrow, LEGS saturday and then I am reloading the hell out of next week.

Good to see this log.

List your meals through the day, training and rest day?

Ben - you know it buddy, i'll be welling my eyes out into a bowl of lettuce and chicken. Haha

Great to see you logging mate, your hard work will pay off and enjoy the food , prep will roll round in a flash and you’ll be dreaming of oats and soreen ;)