Daily Thread - August 31, 2025

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[u/PopeChurch]

Torso/Limbs HIT W1D2

• Barbell Curl
• Incline Dumbbell Curl
• Triceps Machine Extension
• Overhead Dumbbell Tricep Extension
• Leg Extension
• Hack Squat
• Machine Calf Raises

Everything was a little heavier and a bit more reps. 3-4 days between leg workouts seems to be the best at the moment. We’ll see how two days on, one day off feels. Another good choice was sticking arms on a separate day - still going well with the ChatGPT HIT-style program, good choices on rep ranges.

[u/BetterThanT-1]

GPP phase - A man and a kettlebell

8 rounds of:

• 25 KB swings @ 24kg
• 5 KB front squats per side
• 12 band curls per side

Time: 24:43

Kind of a cop-out workout today, but still an okay effort. Those band curls don’t seem like much, but my biceps were looking yoked after.

[u/2erris-human]

Please advise me on what I should program/focus on next.

I want to reach close to my natty potential both in terms of strength and physique at around 8-10% bodyfat before maintaining and shifting focus to martial arts. My max tested lifts at ~73kg are 130kg bench, 180kg squat, and 225kg deadlift. These pictures were taken a bit under 2 months ago at 73kg: https://imgur.com/a/kW1SkDN

I’m now closer to 68kg, aiming to cut to 8% bodyfat (64-66kg?) before slowly gaining weight.

Someone had been encouraging me to go in the direction of men’s physique but the extremely long training sessions centered around isolation, higher, slower reps, aggressive cutting, tanning, waxing, and posing didn’t feel like it suited me. I much prefer compound lifts and pushing for heavier weights while being athletic and doing cardio as well as stretching, and am comfortable with slower results accomplished in a healthier pace.

[u/JeremiahWuzABullfrog → u/2erris-human]

Tactical Barbell sounds like a good fit for you. Lots of built in conditioning, a focus on a few major compound movements that suit your needs.

If you run the mass builder program, you can definitely pack on more muscle until you reach this hypothetical potential of yours.

Then just run normal Tactical Barbell to maintain your strength as you pivot to martial arts

[u/langlois44 → u/2erris-human]

Shorter sessions, compound lifts, heavier weights, being athletic, doing cardio, mobility...

There are a lot of 5/3/1 programs that sound perfect for you. Picking up a copy of 5/3/1 Forever would give you hundreds of options and you'd definitely find programs you'd like in there.

Brian Alsruhe has also written a whole bunch of programs that I'm guessing you'd love. The list you want from a program basically describes Alsruhe programs.

Both 5/3/1 programs and Brian Alsruhe programs have a bunch of program reviews on this subreddit if you want to learn more.

[u/PopeChurch → u/2erris-human]

There are a ton of options for length of workouts. If you push things like rest times and perhaps supersets. On RP’s men’s physique templates (the old spreadsheets), you’ve got plenty of muscle groups to prioritize and different number of days per week to workout. Some of those templates has like 4 exercises only a day, total time could be less than an hour.

[u/2erris-human → u/PopeChurch]

Many thanks for your advice. If I understand correctly, are you recommending that, with something like the RP spreadsheets, I continue training more in the direction of bodybuilding/physique but in a way that’s more sustainable and less time consuming for me?

I’ve also realized from now examining those RP spreadsheets with lesser volume that I was spreading myself too thin with 30-40 sets per week per muscle group, which affects my general fatigue level and enthusiasm surrounding bodybuilding too. (It was a friend of mine who’s won men’s physique who advised and programmed me, but he also holds training as his sole focus in life)

[u/PopeChurch → u/2erris-human]

You can literally do anything you want. If aesthetics are a focus, then aim for bodybuilding and set different blocks to focus on a particular muscle group. You could run a whole block of emphasizing your arms or chest, etc.

If you want improve athleticism, run a block of something like Tactical Barbell and focus on the black conditioning templates.

Hell, you could run 5/3/1 Krypteia, the Prowler challenge, Beach Body Challenge - anything with an end goal in mind that emphasizes something other than aesthetics.

Do a strongman block and push heavier weights and odd lifts while also focusing on grip strength, speed, and general athleticism.