[Sam King]

What’s your workout split? And how many do working sets per session??

Thanks for the question Sungmuk. Current split is Push (chest, delts, triceps,abs), Pull (back, traps, biceps, calves) Off, Legs,Off, Repeat.

Working sets are typically around 16-17 per session at the mo. Average of 2 sets per exercise, the odd one has 3 and the odd single set as well.

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[Sam King]

Alright then, absolutely action packed weekend – training, friends, family, haircuts, clothes shopping. Couldn’t be happier at the moment, just great to see everyone smiling again.
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So, over lockdown I had access to some equipment – 170kg of plates, a bar, 16kg dbs, 34kg dbs, pull-up bar and a bench. Very fortunate to have some stuff but had to get creative for legs and chest as no stands or rack. Lots of paused reps in the stretched position and really connecting with the movement. In a roundabout way it was almost a blessing as I had to focus on working the muscle to bring about a stimulus. This was a whole new stress and my body progressed fantastically. It seems I’ve managed to retain strength and execute movements far better.
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Yesterday was my second rotation of push with the key movements being incline DB press, incline hammer strength and dips. As I was warming up, everything flowed so smoothly and the connection I had developed was fantastic. Sets went as follows:
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Incline dB press: 50kg x 8, 45kg x 8
Incline hammer machine press: 140kg x 5, 125kg x 8
Dips: 50kg x 5, 30kg x 12
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Being as I haven’t handled heavy weights for push since Jan, I was over the moon. 55kg dbs for a solid 6-8 coming soon, promise you that. Now when I say press, it’s to the chest – none of this ‘working within the active range’ stuff. If a muscle has that range, work it from fully lengthened to fully shortened. Don’t get me wrong – there may be a small minority where limb lengths or injuries/risk of are applicable but feel a large majority think they fit this criteria. Just work on flexibility, give it time and leave ego out of the equation. Anywho, incline hammer should be up to 4 plates a side soon and dips back to 60kg for a solid 6-8.
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This morning’s pull session was stupendous. I’ve got paused RDLs in the mix and have had a nervous excitement building up in me. Not nervous of the exercise, but of the expectations I’m putting on myself. It didn’t take long until I finally got to my working set or what I thought it would be. 160kg on the bar flew so re-racked. Hmmm, maybe 170 it is but then ‘ahhhh screw it’ – 180kg was on the bar. Strapped myself in and it was the best damn set I could imagine. Absolutely everything was firing on point and watching the video back, it looked seemless. Kept 180kg for the back off which was the usual tempo, getting a lovely 9.
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Previous best on the RDL was 203kg for 5 so if I can work up to this again and include pauses, it’ll be something special. Should translate to a 215-220kg standard RDL. Before I get too ahead of myself, need to tick off 182.5kg, 185kg and so forth. Every 2.5kg jump or even 1kg nudges will get me closer. Very intrigued to see this progress.
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Rest day on the cards tomorrow and looking forward to it. To anyone reading, hope you had a splendid weekend and are ready for week 2 of the gyms in the UK. Sorry for anyone living where gyms remain shut. Hopefully making the best of it. Believe me, it is worth doing anything you can to preserve strength and just get the endorphins flowing.

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[Sam King]

Hi Sam! I’ll be following your log ?
You look great man!

Thanks for the support Reg, much appreciated. A lil softer at the mo but that photo’s one of my favourite shots and go to for motivation.

Hope your training is going well bud.

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[Sam King]

Right then, hello hello if anyone is reading. I’ll be documenting the continued offseason progress here – the highs, the lows, the general BS waffle that’s circulating in my cranium.
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A bit of background about me – I’ve been bodybuilding for yonks now (13 years) but I wouldn’t say I’ve been bodybuilding per se’ if that makes sense? Sure, I was lifting and still very dedicated but nutrition wise I was admittedly a moron. Safe to say, I got faaaatttt in the end but ‘it’s cool bro, I’m bulking’. Decided to start working with a coach in 2015 and that lead me to take a chance on a little unknown coach called @Corinne Ingman. I’d been vested in the philosophies that her and JP had created since 2013, though not yet fully implemented. The brand was still in it’s infancy but what information and content that was produced was lapped up.
In terms of training I have tried various styles – 5/3/1, DC, brroooo split, high volume, low volume, my own thang (whatever the fack that was), Beyond Brawn’s concepts, Men’s Health Total Muscle (actually a really solid programme) and many more. Whatever the case, I always gravitated towards lower volume. From day one I kept a log book, I trained to failure or what I deemed ‘failure’, always beltless (apart from one time which I hated. Similar to if you put a harness on cat or rabbit, I lost my sh*t) and so forth.
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As mentioned previously, I’ve been working with Corinne since 2015 and it was immediately apparent that this was the real deal. Was I naive in picking her as my first ever coach? Not at all. We immediately clicked and have developed an extremely professional relationship (mostly professional as we have weird jokes between us ?) based on trust, respect and accountability. If Corinne tells me to do something with my training or diet, it’s implemented without hesitation. We may discuss and re-assess dependent on feedback but we’re working together. Well, Corinne is in the wagon whipping me frantically pulling it so to speak. We both make our opinions known and talk things through which I believe is a healthy setup.
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Last little bit for now and I’ll end on my competitive history, well how little there was. I prepped in 2019 for my first show with the aim of the Southern in the Natural Physique Association. I settled on the Bovice division as there was no first timers so was aware I may be at a slight disadvantage. Long story short I won my class and came third in the overall, netting myself three trophies in the process. I was absolutely flummoxed! This little wannabe bodybuilding from Dorset just smashed his first show. Not that I had no self belief, but I had set myself no expectations. Just remember when they were announcing places I was thinking ‘nice, top 5.’ Then my name didn’t crop up. Got to top 3 ‘that’s great for a first show’. Then there were two ‘fab, I’ve come 2nd in my first show’… then the another guy was announced with me being declared the winner. Literally gave me goosebumps reliving that.
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With that result I decided to do the British finals in October. I’d been prepping for nearly a year by the time my show was due and I was tired, beat up and demotivated more. Still, I managed 2nd in my class so 2nd best novice in the country within that federation- not bad. Then it hit me – I’ll never be a novice again so that championship title will forever elude me. Also, I was 2nd – one place away from winning, basically the first loser. Completely different spin on it but I was still happy with my achievement. Still, those two previous points have stuck with me.
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Anywho, it’s time to train so will look to update some sessions today to give a feel for my current routine. This log is solely for me to put my thoughts and ramblings to paper, errr page. If anyone gets any value or entertainment, then that’s an additional bonus.

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[Sam King]

Rest and training day, these will no doubt need to come down as drugs leave even more as it’s only been 3 weeks, but I have literally just upped my steps each week to stay ahead atm

Still not enough info on the diet. What colour plate do you eat off and does it vary dependent on the day or lunar cycle? How much salt and condiments, down to the nanogram? The questions people are afraid to ask, but secretly wonder.
In all seriousness, enjoying the updates matey and great to see you having so much fun. Sure you were previously, but this is a different pursuit and the amount of excitement you’re exuding is infectious. Can’t help but crack a smile every time I have a read of this log.

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[Sam King]

Hey Sam,
I wasn’t meaning to sound negative, I’m very grateful to have the set up I have, apologies if it read that way and the markers were just to show you how much I am currently lifting next to the weight I have available.
Prior to last week I trained with RIR, so was starting out with the basics and learning to train with much higher intensity before implementing any other techniques. So I actually don’t know how to apply the techniques like drop sets and cluster sets ok to a back off and top set without adding too much volume but I will look into it. Thanks for the reply, Will

Hah, no worries Will. Just wanted to make sure of that positive mindset bud. Don’t worry, I’m guilty of the same and I’m sure many others are.

Ah right, talk about timing. You can still do one top set and one back off set but just adjust the tempo or add dead stop pauses once maxed out on weight.

Hope it all goes well mate.

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[Sam King]

If you have a willing volunteer, then weighted press ups are great. Can easily do drop sets as well. Probably wouldn’t advise on weighted incline or decline press ups because you know, gravity will slide those plates off.

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[Sam King]

Hey Will. Definitely a case of focusing on the positives rather than the negatives here. You have a good setup that a lot of people would love. I know people who had far less and made great progress.

Now, I know it’s hard but don’t focus on your gym lifts too much. Nice markers but irrelevant to an extent with the current circumstances. In a way, you’re starting fresh and need to feel things out. Aside from weight, there are loads of other options to be had – tempo, reduced rest periods and perfect execution for a start. Then you have your intensity techniques such as rest pause, drop sets, clusters, 21s, dead stop and so on. I also add bands to some exercises such as RDLs or SLDLs to make it harder as well. Just gotta be creative. If you can get additional equipment, that’s fab but if not plenty to keep you ticking over and plenty of info out there on how to maximise your time in the home sessions.

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[Sam King]

I know @ryanpetford had a bug quite recently so would likely be able to give some further great pointers.

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[Sam King]

IMO I would just let your body recover. Your digestion likely isn’t optimum so why stress it further after being so ill? Give it a chance to recover and follow the above advice- hydration is key. Better to miss a day or two of your standard eating than risk over stressing your body.
Easier said than done I know , but think more long term. Eat easily digestible food if you can manage it – red meats may be a bit much though so if in the diet, may need to omit.

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[Sam King]

Very good session yesterday, pleased as punch. Quads are responding tremendously to continuous reps (we implemented two months ago) and I’m almost at the same weight I was previously. However, feels far better and can actually feel squats in my quads – say wha? Now considering one of those months was lockdown and training at home with minimal equipment, then having to re-adjust back to my usual environment. Session went as follows:

Seated ham curl: 66.25kg x 8, 57.5kg x 15
Adductor: stack + 50kg x 12, stack + 50kg x 10
Safety bar squat: 125kg x 14, 135kg x 9
Paused horizontal leg press: 160kg x 15, 175kg x 7.5
Leg extension: 75kg x 19.5
Nautilus glute drive: 140kg x 13, 140kg x 12
Back extension: 2 x 22kg DBs x 16
Standing ham curl: 8plates x 15
Hanging leg raise: BW x 25, BW x 22
Standing calve raise: 3 sets
Standing DB curl: 2 sets

Safety bar squat is feeling sublime, although the warm ups weren’t an indicator that this was going to be the case. Definitely prefer the positioning of this movement compared to the standard barbell variation. Feels far more natural.

Horizontal leg press is humbling enough, but with a pause in the hole – madness. Due to the harsh strength curve of this machine, you really don’t need a lot of weight. Push the seat forward, continuous reps, no bounce – these will likely see a large drop in load, but you’ll work the quads more and grow as a result.

Upper session on the cards today shortly.

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[Sam King]

Right then, splendid upper session on Saturday but my lord, warming up took ages as it was freezing. Once some blood was flowing, we were on a roll. Session went as follows:

Single arm underhand pulldown: 8plates + 1.25kg x 9.5, 7plates + 1.25kg x 14.5
Deficit SLDL: 174kg x 9, 184kg x 5
Chest supported DB row: 38kg x 12, 34kg x 16
Prone lat pulldown, D handles: 14plates x 24
Dead stop flat hammer press: 140.5kg x 9, 120.5kg x 10
Dip: 60kg x 6, 41.25kg x 12
Incline DB flye: 26kg x 19 into DC stretch
Single arm cable side raise: 5plates x 18, 5plates x 16
Single arm rope press down: 4plates + 0.25kg x 20
Rear delt row on hammer strength: 105kg x 20
Standing cable crunch: 3 sets

0.25kg plates have officially entered the stage. Movements definitely becoming harder and at that point with SLDL where if I add a bigger jump, then form would suffer. Now, on my first set of SLDL I noticed the bar was going back to the floor lopsided. Need to keep an eye on this as obviously making the movement less effective and dangerous than necessary. Bit more focus on the mobility coupled with ensuring I am totally present during the set.

2nd time doing the flat press from a dead stop and found my groove already. Definitely humbling, but not by much compared to a standard set. Thinking of possibly including a dead stop variant of dips for a change of stimulus. Will discuss with Corinne in next check in.

Anywho, time for lower this morning.

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[Sam King]

That’s Christmas Day 2020 completed and what a lovely day it was. It’s the first I’ve spent the actual Xmas day with the OH in 8 years. Not because we dislike one another (questionable sometimes) but I essentially work the festive period with only the big day itself off and New Year’s Day. As my client base is US based, I work to their calendar and requirements. Means I get Martin Luther Day off next month, whoop whoop! As the OH works to the school calendar, it makes sense for her to go back to London and catch up with friends and family, instead of obviously pining for me while I work. Then usually comes back just before New Years and we have our Xmas then.

Anywho, background narrative established. So started the day with smoked salmon, eggs, beans and crumpets- splendid. Then got my steps in while the OH got herself ready. Need a little bit of time to myself, especially when you’re around people all day. Love people of course but value Sam time just as much. Back from the walk and steak meal down the hatch, then we are a go to the mother’s who is handily down the road.

Lots of food was consumed naturally, but never to excess. I’m relatively easy to satisfy so a few chocolates are as good as half of a tin. Was nearly a Xmas disaster though when my mum didn’t buy a special loaf for my Xmas sandwich, as she thought I had. No worries, we adapt – mini Hovis loaf it is. So the festive sandwich is exactly what you think – a mini Christmas dinner slapped between bread. Oh, and a mandatory bowl of dipping ju… well, gravy.

Absolute highlights was to see everyone just smiling, especially my mum. I’ve been worried over the course of the year as she has suffered profusely with mental health for most of my life. I think becoming a grandma has definitely helped and having that bubble with my sister. Although I’m still the favourite of course.

Spent some time with the nephew and absolutely adore him. Never been a baby person, but this little dude – can’t help myself. He’s only 4 months but is babbling, shouting, always trying to walk and laughing. He was the first baby I ever held as never been a fan of holding other people’s. Just personally find it weird and uncomfortable. An exception for this guy…. and my own one day I guess.

Anywho, enough waffling. Time for upper and deficit SLDL are in the menu.

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[Sam King]

Absolute cracker of a lower session yesterday, although I nearly let RDLs sour the mood. It’s so easy to get wrapped up with one lift that you let that be the barometer of a good or bad session. They didn’t progress how I was hoping, but everything else on point. Session as follows

Adductor (RP): stack + 40kg x 23,12, 8
Standing ham curl: 11plates x 13, 10plates x 18
Hack squat, reverse band: 152.5kg x 8, 135kg x 20
Paused leg press: 350kg x 12, 360kg x 9
RDL: 201kg x 4, 170kg x 11
Seated ham curl: 50kg x 19
Horizontal single leg leg press: 62.5kg x 18
Vertical knee raise: 4kg x 25, 4kg x 22
Seated calve raise: 3 sets
Single arm machine curl: 2 sets

Time to enjoy the festivities and feed up for tomorrow’s upper session. To anyone who may be reading, truly hope you have a Merry Christmas and make the best of what we have. I know I certainly will be

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[Sam King]

So here we are – Christmas Eve, yet it doesn’t feel 100% like it. Sure got work today so can’t relax just yet, but kind of get a Christmas break this year. Usually just finish Xmas Eve and then back in Boxing Day as I work with predominantly US clientele. Fully aware some people work Xmas day as well so could be worse, but none of this ‘no work until the New Year for me’. Still, get to use my annual leave more during the nicer months. Positives and all that eh?

Checked in yesterday and Corinne’s words ‘your physique is looking SO good’ are maybe an indication of we’re doing something right. Last week’s ‘really happy with the look and process and training’. Teacher’s pet at the moment or what? Not that I thrive off of approval or crave positive feedback as I’d be doing this shizz regardless. However, when Corinne compliments you it isn’t BS or blowing smoked – it’s legit. I’ll keep those comments close for those cold nights when I’m told I look like a fat sack of poop. Haha, she wouldn’t say that. Surprisingly or not, no changes made this week as weight held at 81.8kg. Other markers are on point as well. As usual, Xmas Day off plan with the family.

Due to my meticulous and year round approach, I barely eat off plan unless agreed. Not that I feel I need permission, but I enjoy my foods and would rather be 100% transparent. I know a lot of people may have a Christmas dinner and then back to Tupperware as their goals are important. IMO unless you’re in comp prep, just have a day off. The irony is a lot of these hardcore people preach one day off won’t make a difference, but they won’t do that. Don’t get me wrong – Xmas isn’t about a free for all gorgefest, but just an opportunity to have foods you fancy. Obviously if you’re prone to binge, then limit yourself to an extent. I’ll easily meet my daily protein requirements and my body will always appreciate the extra cals. The reason I take Xmas off personally is for my friends and family. I owe them so much for accepting my ‘interesting’ way of life. The least I can do is enjoy some food and drinks with them. However, if I wanted to eat my normal food they’d also be fine with that as well. I know in years to come I’ll remember that time spent and enjoying the same food with loved ones, but I wouldn’t remember those Tupperware meals. Even the most dedicated and elite athletes will spend time off plan over Xmas with their loved ones. Again, all personal choice and no disrespect to those who choose to stick to their guns.

Anywho, time for a Lower session

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