Beyond The Physique

24 y.o. NYC *Powerlifting *Bodybuilding *OCR's *Ballet Mental illness (depression/anxiety) recovery

[beyondthephysique]

Damn. Hit a pr today by accident. Deadlifted 345x7 (previous was 345x3). I didn't go all out and I was not even tired or out of breath. My workout was 2-4 heavy sets of rack pulls, deadlifts and squats. I have no friends into lifting that I can text- so now you know. #allthingssteve #powerlifting #deadlifts #pr #natural #strengthtraining #fitness #eatcleantraindirty

[beyondthephysique]

Stretching after a mini barre workout. Might not be the prettiest pic but you gotta make do with what you have. #ballet #dance #fitness #allthingssteve #stretching

[beyondthephysique]

Bliss. Spinach wrap, tuna, avocado, onions, jalopenos #healthy #nutrition #diet

[beyondthephysique]

I don't know why but I really like this pose #frontdoublebi #powerlifting #bodybuilding

[beyondthephysique]

Just getting a little posing in #sidechest #fitness #powerlifting #bodybuilding

[beyondthephysique]

Hand is bleeding again from deadlifts. 385lb rack pulls 335lb deadlifts. 20lbs up from last week! #powerlifting #deadlifts #progress

[beyondthephysique]

Loading up on carbs before today's workout. Lower body/pull day! #powerlifting #nutrition #deadlifts #carbs

[beyondthephysique]

Just did an EASY 3miles. And one day after a heavy lower body day. Progress! 5 miles... I'm coming for you #trainhard #istillneedhelptakingselfies #running #fitness #worksmart

[beyondthephysique]

Easy run today! #becominganathlete #lookatmeeveryone #makingfunofmyself #justfuckingdoit #noonesgonnacare #fitness #shutupandrun

[beyondthephysique]

THIS is too much. I got so obsessed and so crazy with training that it failed to be effective. I always thought I wasn’t doing enough. I have to do more am I doing this, am I doing that. My body became very conditioned but at what cost ? I burnt myself out. That workout became the norm. But that’s obviously way too much and ineffective. Train hard. Train smart. Program efficiently and correctly. I feel embarassed, but we all learn some way. #powerlifting #strengthtraining #workout #besmart

[beyondthephysique]

Legssss today. #dontskiplegday #legs #upperbodyshot #mostmuscular

[beyondthephysique]

Shameless bathroom selfie #flexsunday #biceps #paleasfukk

[fitness-bodybuilding]

Fitness-bodybuilding.tumblr.com

[beyondthephysique]

great message!!

[beyondthephysique]

search for the right program

OH yes and one more thing I am learning. Constant max effort days DO NOT WORK FOR ME. A lot of people might think that is obvious, but it's easy to get caught up in all these programs- even something like 5/3/1. Sure they may be simple, but that all out balls-to-the-wall every fucking week or every training session really does not do much for me.

This is why I am approaching the cube method's principles. As Brandon Lilly was explaining in some videos I watched, its about pushing yourself near the edge of a cliff, then taking a few steps back- then pushing a little further, then coming a few steps back. 

I have tried various programs and they all have had that max effort component to them. SO now, that is the variable that I am changing. Never miss a lift, build confidence, strong 365 days a year.

[beyondthephysique]

Struggles

So I have been struggling with mental disorder a LOT recently. It's the biggest thing holding me back. I am excited to start making the right mental changes to progress in life. Instead of hyperfocusing and detailing every bit of my workout and talk about how passionate I am and how much I want to compete, I'm going to scale down on those things. Obsessive thoughts are hurting me. I am also learning the concept of "less is more."

For instance, I have switched to using the cube method. Now, because I have obsessive thoughts, when I get into the gym I feel like I need to beat my body down or its not a work out. Like the other day I did a chest and Leg session, because I could. I did mostly 4 sets of high reps for the accessory movements. So that's a full bench workout, plus 3 other exercises. Then a full squat workout, plus 3 other exercises. Intense, average 6-7 exercises per muscle group. Which is about 25 sets. A total of 50 hard-work sets, PLUS a little extra shoulders and misc exercises.

This is fucking obviously too much. 

I did cube today for my deadlifts- and I just focused on that. It was a deadlift training session. I did 3 variations of deads, plus 3 assistance exercises and that was it. I scaled the assistance down to 3 sets each. It's funny because I was not even breathing heavy at all after the workout. Does that mean I didn't work hard? No. I did work hard. The weight was challenging. I was able to focus a LOT more on my technique and did a form change on the deadlift. I'm home resting now and I feel fine. Not like bogged down and like a trainwreck like I sometimes do. I feel the workout was efficient. I didn't over do anything. Now my body can actually recover from this...I am sure of it. Also, I think part of the reason I wasn't out of breath was because I have been doing a lot of cardio. The individual sets did take a lot of effort, just to clear that up.

[beyondthephysique]

Early morning flexing. Yaaawwwnnn. Yea I'm hitting back today. #backday #cube #power #flexie swolfie #selfie

[baki-the-trapper]

today i decided to work on my squat depth (5x5). i normally squat parallel but i wanted to get lower. since theres no box in this gym i used plates instead. stacking them about 6 plates high. loaded 315 on the bar and went under. as soon as i lifted the bar off the racks something hit me… this...