Hey boys,

I've been on Starting Strength for the past 7 months or so, and I'm pretty much at the end of my linear progression with the following stats:
5'11, 210lb, 30yo
5RMs:
OHP 165
Bench 200
Squat 315
Deadlift 375 raw
Power Clean 175x3
Chinups are weak at BWx6

Of course I gained some fat, so I'd like to cut that off before continuing my strength progression. I'm planning on moving to Madcow 5x5 (would like your opinions on this routine), as my schedule is too tight to lift more than 3 days/week for the next few months.

My question is, when cutting (I'll just be doing intermittent fasting 4/20), would it be better to stay with a Starting Strength template of heavy compounds 3 sets across, or go ahead and transition to Madcow, since the first few weeks are pretty easy intensity-wise? Obviously my goal when cutting is to retain as much strength is possible. I just don't know enough about early intermediate programming or periodization to know which of these options is best.

As I said, I'd love to hear your opinions on various intermediate routines as well, since there's a million of them. I'd like to do Texas Method, but I don't think my body will handle it well, as I'm finishing my degree & working full time as a single dad. Life is busy.

Thanks!

Continue lifting heavy and just throw in 15 minutes of HIIT or short sprints at the end of the workout. You shred up in no time while maintaining strength and athleticism.

No need to over think or intermittent fast.

I'll do HIIT on the off days, I don't like trying to do it after 15-20 heavy sets of compounds.

I'll definitely be doing IF though, I've had great success with it in the past. Great way of keeping calories down without having to actively count anything other than protein. I've had great results with keto too for weight loss, but I don't have the patience to do it again in my last semester.

You won’t reap the benefits of HIIT when doing itself.

You said you’re trying to burn fat. The optimal time to do this is after a heavy weight training workout when your glycogen stores are spent. That’s when you’ll burn fat most efficiently. But, what do I know....

quote:

Originally posted by RAMIUS:
You won’t reap the benefits of HIIT when doing itself.

You said you’re trying to burn fat. The optimal time to do this is after a heavy weight training workout when your glycogen stores are spent. That’s when you’ll burn fat most efficiently. But, what do I know....

Well, he could also do HIIT at the end of an IF day on completely depleted glycogen stores...and enter his eating window right after for recovery.

quote:

Originally posted by Strambo:

quote:

Originally posted by RAMIUS:
You won’t reap the benefits of HIIT when doing itself.

You said you’re trying to burn fat. The optimal time to do this is after a heavy weight training workout when your glycogen stores are spent. That’s when you’ll burn fat most efficiently. But, what do I know....

Well, he could also do HIIT at the end of an IF day on completely depleted glycogen stores...and enter his eating window right after for recovery.

Very true. More than one way to skin a cat. 16 hr fast has worked very well for me.

The way I see it HIIT is cardio and it's done to build & maintain cardiovascular & respiratory health. It's not a weight loss tool to me. Doesn't matter how much HIIT you do if you consume more than you expend.

I lost 30lb on keto and never did a single cardio session, just did heavy full-body workouts 3x/week.

Anyway, I think I'll just do 3 sets across as heavy as I can 3x/week, and maybe throw in one day of HIIT per week.

What is this KETO you speak of? I need to lose about 25lbs.

(Holy crap did that get butchered.)

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bob ramberg,

quote:

Originally posted by bob ramberg:
What is this kept you sleek of? I need to loose about 25lbs

Autocorrect? I can usually figure what is meant but not this time.

I think he means "keto"

Means eating very low carb forcing your body to have to burn fat for energy. Once your body re-learns how to do that efficiently, it will burn more of your fat too and not try and make it till the next carb injection.

Use an app or something to monitor what you eat for 2 weeks (no changes to diet or exercise patterns). Look at the daily average of calories and macro-nutrients; fat, carbs and protein. Did you lose fat, gain, stay about the same?

Then, reduce carbs to say 50g per day or less. You'll feel a bit off for a week or two, then your energy will just level off and be rock steady all day. No carb highs and crashes.

I went with the Paleo diet which isn't specifically low carb or ketogenic, but in practical terms is due to all the crap that ain't on it. Anyway, my normal crap "American" diet had me at over 300g carbs per day. On Paleo I was at 90g. When I'm trying to be low carb/ketogenic I shoot for at/under 30g.

Eat lots of veggies, meats, eggs, some cheese. No grains, fruits, starchy veggies (like sweet potatoes) and of course no sugar.

I guess I’m old school and use old techniques. I use the Dorian Yates methodology (been many many years since I read one of his books). I warm up the muscle group with 2 sets. Then I pop it, all sets to failure. Upper body I raise or lower weight to try and fail around 10 reps. Lower body 15 reps. 9-12 sets for large muscle group (chest/back), 6-9 sets for small muscle groups (bis/tris). I try to mix dumbbells, bar, hammer strength machines every week. Also try to get in 45 mi utes or cardio a day. Dieting, eat raw or natural foods, 6 meals a day, and a couple of those are meal replacements like a protein shake or bar w/fruit. Haven’t seen anything new under the sun in 25 years. Fasting is the only thing I may do differently. May try restricting eating to 12 hours a day.

quote:

Originally posted by Prefontaine:
I guess I’m old school and use old techniques. I use the Dorian Yates methodology (been many many years since I read one of his books). I warm up the muscle group with 2 sets. Then I pop it, all sets to failure. Upper body I raise or lower weight to try and fail around 10 reps. Lower body 15 reps. 9-12 sets for large muscle group (chest/back), 6-9 sets for small muscle groups (bis/tris). I try to mix dumbbells, bar, hammer strength machines every week. Also try to get in 45 mi utes or cardio a day. Dieting, eat raw or natural foods, 6 meals a day, and a couple of those are meal replacements like a protein shake or bar w/fruit. Haven’t seen anything new under the sun in 25 years...

All goes back to exactly what one's goals are. The above is great for bodybuilding...but is exhausts me just reading it (not your writing, all the time involved to do all that).

For general health, fitness, and all-around strength, that can be had for as little as ~30 mins 3x per week.

quote:

Fasting is the only thing I may do differently. May try restricting eating to 12 hours a day.

The magic happens beyond about the 12hr mark. At approx. 12 hrs is when you deplete your liver glycogen so it is mostly bodyfat burning beyond that. An IF is generally considered 16-24 hrs. In practical terms, it is just disciplined breakfast skipping. Black coffee or plain tea and plenty of water until 16 hrs from when you last ate (or drank a calorie containing beverage the night prior). For me, I'm usually eating lunch at 1pm is all. Sometimes on a busy day I'll skip lunch and go until dinner. I do any planned workouts as usual, energy is not a problem (even when I've done longer multi-day fasts).

I don't fast to eat less calories. I fast for the health benefits and to maximize fat loss and make my body more efficient at burning fat for energy. I still eat my calorie goal for the day, just in a smaller window.

At your height and weight your should be able to bench 300 and squat 380. Keep trying to lift a little heavier and get some more strength.