The Ugly Side of Training Biologic Labs Style

Tonight I had a bitterly disappointing workout. And the thing that made it disappointing was my own Biologic Labs training methods which told me exactly how NOT good the workout was!

The workout wouldn't have been at all disappointing if I just trained like everybody else. You see, I was doing Deadlifts and I worked to my limit and went to failure - I absolutely failed to complete the last rep despite my greatest effort. I did a relevant number of reps. Afterward, my muscles felt pumped and very fatigued. Tomorrow and the next day I will be sore. And the weight was so heavy that if I'd done the set in any gym in Australia everybody would have stopped to watch.

So I lifted heavy weights to failure, did a number of reps, got sore and got a pump and drank a protein shake afterward. How can I possibly be bitterly disappointed? By all contemporary thinking, that is a perfect workout.

The reason for the disappointment was (is), unlike all the other trainers out there, at Biologic Labs we MEASURE our performances! And all the feelings in the world don't change the FACT that, tonight, I missed what I needed. Let me explain.

Tonight I Deadlifted 275kg for 8 reps in touch-&-go style. That equates to a 327kg 1-rep-maximum deadlift according to our calculator for that movement (we have 5 different calculators for different types of exercises).

Before I began the set I calculated that 8 reps on 275 would only EQUAL my previous workouts 265kg x11 reps (also a 327 max). So at a minimum I HAD to do 9 reps (331 max) to beat my previous workout.

But I really wanted more than 9 because 265 x11 was still way off my best. My records show I deadlifted 340kg on 20 September 2008 (and again on 6 December 2008). I needed 11 reps on 275kg (in touch-&-go style) to equal that 340kg max.

My VERY best Deadlift performance has been 300kg x7 (and almost 8) on 31/10/08 which equated to a 353kg max. 16 reps on 275 beats that with a 355kg max; 15 is a 352 max.

So going into the set tonight with 275kg, I knew I wasnt going to get 16; I'm just not back up at that level of strength or muscle currently. But I was confident for a comfortable 9 (331 max), focussed on 11 (340 max) and wishing for anything extra to bring me closer to 16 (355 max).

I went into my set 100% focussed on the job. I knew EXACTLY how many reps I needed, what every rep represented in terms of the exact kilos of progress over (or toward) my previous performance. I even knew the dates of the workouts I was measuring against so I knew how far my training had regressed.

To succeed with the 11 reps would have made me elated; so I wanted that BAD! That would have put me back on track to meeting or exceeding my 340kg max for the first time in 2 years. And it would be exactly 13kg gain on my previous deadlift workout. That was my goal.

Failing that, 10 reps would still be 7kg up on last time and only 6kg off my 340; even if it was 19kg off my calculated best. I could live with that. 9 reps was the minimum acceptable representing a paltry 4kg step back toward weights I've lifted before. I'd resign myself to the slowness of progress but progress none-the-less.

But I failed. I got 8.

The thing that made that set (and therefore the whole workout) so bitterly disappointing was the very thing that made it possible: I measured it! If I never measured my workouts I never would have had the drive to take my genetically skinny, weak little 56kg body up to World Record Deadlifts and a winning Heavyweight Bodybuilders physique.

The downside of measuring your training is that you know when you've failed and you know exactly how much you failed by!

They say "failing to plan is planning to fail". They also say: "The great thing about not planning is failure comes as a complete surprise". Both are true. Neither make failing on your plan any easier.

But for all my disappointment, I'm still glad I'm not one of those guys who doesnt know how disappointed they should be!


Visit www.BiologicLabs.com.au for Body Recompositioning diets, training programs, strength coaching, supplements and hormone balancing. Extreme fat loss and muscle development that Personal Trainers and Fitness gyms cannot achieve.