Skinny weak guy gets big and strong - my journal

[widebody195]

Hi everyone, I'm inspired by all of the hard work that you all are doing to transform your bodies, so I thought I'd join the club to share my journey and get your feedback.

Background: I was small boned and really skinny, a classic ectomorph at 5'11, 135 lbs. Heck, my wrists measure only 6.5 inches around. Was a pretty successful distance swimmer and triathlete in college. Started lifting after college, got hooked, and currently weigh 175 lbs.

I've been lifting weights for the past 16 years, although I've been on a maintenance routine for the last 10 due to work, business travel, kids, etc. forcing an irregular eating and training schedule. Now however, things have changed! 2 months ago I rediscovered heavy squats and deadlifts (not having done them for over 12 years), and I've made some dramatic strength gains. Max bench went from 215 to 255 in just over a month. My hormone factory is in overdrive, acne breaking out on my face. I feel like 18 again!

My schedule outside the gym is as busy as ever, and where I live, supplements other than whey powder don't exist. Regardless, I'm trying now to see how hard I can push my body without getting injured, push the limits of my potential for strength and size. This will be exciting!

[justtryn]

Hi everyone, I'm inspired by all of the hard work that you all are doing to transform your bodies, so I thought I'd join the club to share my journey and get your feedback.

Background: I was small boned and really skinny, a classic ectomorph at 5'11, 135 lbs. Heck, my wrists measure only 6.5 inches around. Was a pretty successful distance swimmer and triathlete in college. Started lifting after college, got hooked, and currently weigh 175 lbs.

I've been lifting weights for the past 16 years, although I've been on a maintenance routine for the last 10 due to work, business travel, kids, etc. forcing an irregular eating and training schedule. Now however, things have changed! 2 months ago I rediscovered heavy squats and deadlifts (not having done them for over 12 years), and I've made some dramatic strength gains. Max bench went from 215 to 255 in just over a month. My hormone factory is in overdrive, acne breaking out on my face. I feel like 18 again!

My schedule outside the gym is as busy as ever, and where I live, supplements other than whey powder don't exist. Regardless, I'm trying now to see how hard I can push my body without getting injured, push the limits of my potential for strength and size. This will be exciting!
Welcome, Widebody. Don't worry about the supplements, and the whey poweder is fine... hard work is what gets it done.

[widebody195]

I'm kind of on an irregular workout schedule, but it usually ends up around 3X per week, a chest & legs day alternating with back, shoulders, arms. With multiple heavy compound movements, it makes for a brutally hard workout but so far my body's holding up OK.

Warmup - abs - 120 crunches in 3 sets

Flat bench press
empty bar X 15
135 X 10
230 lbs X 3 sets, 10 rest pause reps in this pattern:
4 reps, 30 sec rest, 3 reps, 30 sec rest, 2 reps, 30 sec rest, 1 rep

Flat bench partials, from bottom position (bar resting on chest, in a power rack of course)
185 X 4 reps, 135 X 8 reps, 135 X 6 reps

Incline db press
65 X 10
60 X 10
60 X 10

Cable crossovers, 4 sets

Squats
empty bar X 15
135 X 10
225 X 10
275 X 8
275 X 8
275 X 8

Seated calf raises
170 X 12
170 X 10
160 X 12
90 X 20

[joed]

Welcome wideguy. IMO as long as you eat plenty of good food you really don't need many supps.

[jtroster]

Welcome to the forum. That is an impressive workout to start your journal.

[ChocoChick]

Welcome, WB. That's a nice workout. :) Looks like you have done a good job transforming your ectomorphism!

[Hibiscus09]

Welcome! You're looking very nice to me! Nice job on the workout!

[widebody195]

Friday, 9/22
Only had 20 minutes in the gym, so I'm going to try a 2-part back routine, completing the workout the next day. Here goes:

3 sets of pullups to failure

deadlifts, romanian style (alternating under and overhand grip) -- I forgot my straps so I had to do it this way.

235 lbs X 4 reps, X 8 sets

[widebody195]

Saturday, 9/23

Warm up - abs

To finish the back routine from yesterday

3 sets of pullups to failure
2 sets of negatives for pullups

BB bent over rows, 135 lbs X 10 reps, 4 sets

shoulders:

Military press 135 lbs x 8, 3 sets
rear delt raises + side lateral raises compound set - Cybex machine, 10 reps each + 4 sets

biceps:

preacher curls 60 lbs X 3 sets
cable curls on cable crossover machine, 3 sets (this is my favorite, ego-boosting exercise because the cable X-over is in front of the mirror, and you get to do your front double bicep pose as you curl.)

[widebody195]

Sunday, Sept. 24

Day 3 of a tough 3 in a row workout, a byproduct of trying to get in 4 workouts a week but having to fit it into my schedule.

For some reason, deltoids are very sore today, so that might affect chest. Hopefully not.

chest:

Flat bench,
235 lbs X 10, rest pause in groups of 4-3-2-1, 30 seconds rest between
225 lbs X 9, rest pause in 4-3-2 (failed on last set)
205 lbs X 6 straight set
205 lbs X 5

Flat bench partials, from bottom position (bar resting on chest)
135 X 10, 3 sets

dip & pec-dec superset, 3 sets and 12 reps each

legs:

squats:

warmup empty bar
135 x 10
225 x 10
275 X 8
275 X 8
275 X 8

seated calf raises, 3 sets to failure

swam some laps to loosen up very stiff and very sore shoulder.

Eating: I've been eating like a horse, getting stronger on all my major lifts, but weight has remained steady in the past few weeks. I have noticed that all my pants are fitting more loosely around the waist, tighter around the quads. Best of both worlds??

[Gunn27]

Eating: I've been eating like a horse, getting stronger on all my major lifts, but weight has remained steady in the past few weeks. I have noticed that all my pants are fitting more loosely around the waist, tighter around the quads. Best of both worlds??Sure sounds like the best of both!! Nice workouts on a tough schedule, good work!

[joed]

Yep, sounds like you're doing pretty good for a skinny weak guy.

[ChocoChick]

Eating: I've been eating like a horse, getting stronger on all my major lifts, but weight has remained steady in the past few weeks. I have noticed that all my pants are fitting more loosely around the waist, tighter around the quads. Best of both worlds??

I'd take it. ;)

[widebody195]

Thanks for all of the encouragement. I'm really sore and wiped out today. 3 straight days of heavy compound sets really took it all out of me, even my hands are sore (and it hurts to type this, lol). Well, I'll take a few days off and then hit it again.

[widebody195]

Warmup - I bike to the gym, 5 minutes, + 10 minutes of assorted ab exercises

Pullups to failure, 3 sets
slow negative pullups, 2 sets

Deadlifts
2 warmup sets
245 lbs X 10 reps X 3 sets
attempted a 4th set at 245 lbs but failed to get it off the ground, backed off to 225 lbs and knocked out 8 reps.

Seated Military Press 135 lbs X 8-10 reps X 3 sets
Lateral raise/rear delt raise compound set, 4 sets

Seated alternating dumbell curls - 30 lbs X 10, 25 lbs X 10, 25 lbs X 10. These were a waste of time because I was really wiped out by then, no energy left.

Finished workout at 10 PM, went home and had a protein shake and some carbs, in bed at 11. Slept like a baby despite back cramping up. Today, nice and stiff and sore all over. Aren't deadlifts great?

[widebody195]

Today I had only about 35 min to cover chest and legs, in between kids' haircut appointments and church service. So I snuck into the gym for a brief but intense workout. Felt strong after taking 2 extra days off to recover from a cold.

Bench press (new PR)
240 lbs X 4, X3, X2, X1 rest pause 30 seconds rest
240 lbs, repeat the rest-pause set
225 lbs X 6, X3, X2 rest paust 30 sec rest

Dumbell pullovers
70 lbs X 12, 70 X 10, 70 X 10

Squats (new PR)
2 warmup sets
225 X 10
285 X 8
295 X 8

That's all I had time for, but felt great about setting new PR's on bench and squat.

Next up is a vacation at an idyllic beach resort in Malaysia, to work on my tan and give my muscles a well-deserved week off from training. During this time I'll probably rethink my workouts and change up the sequence of exercises. My workout days are Wed, Fri, Sat (optional), and Sunday. I'd like to hit major bodyparts twice a week. Appreciate any suggestions you all might have.

[Gunn27]

Congrats on the new PR's! Now enjoy that vacation and rest time, it sounds terrific.

[ChocoChick]

Sounds like a great vacation. Enjoy! :)

[Hibiscus09]

That does sound like a great time! Enjoy! :)

[widebody195]

Wow, Langkawi Malaysia was awesome! Beautiful beaches, tropical rainforests, rugged mountains and waterfalls. Did some sightseeing and jungle trekking in addition to laying around the beach and the pool. Nothing too strenuous. Heaviest thing I lifted was the suitcase.

As mentioned before, I'm going to tweak my workout program slightly, nothing drastic as I have been making good progress.

Sunday: Back, Shoulders, Biceps - Pullups, Deadlifts, Military Presses, Lateral and Rear Delt Raises, Preacher curls, Cable curls

Wednesday: Chest, Legs - Bench, Incline Bench, Flyes, Squats, Seated Calf raise

Friday: Shoulders/Back - DB Military Press, Lateral raise/rear delt raise superset, Back triple set (assisted pullups, low pulley rows, V-grip pulldowns)

Saturday: Chest/Legs - Bench, Incline DB bench/flye superset, Leg press/calf raise superset

Sundays and Wednesdays are the heavy days, and Friday and Saturdays are the fast in and out in 40 minute workouts. Thus, I've got the supersets on Fri & Sat which allows more exercises in less time and provides some good cardio/fat burning work.

I'll try this out for a few weeks and keep you posted on how it goes.

[widebody195]

Back in the gym after over a week layoff, was very much looking forward to it. I was tempted to do chest and legs as my pecs and quads were itching and aching like crazy to be trained, but instead decided to stick with the schedule.

Back: Pullups 4 sets to failure
Deadlifts, 245 lbs X 10, 4 sets (last set, 8 reps)
Shoulders: Military Press 135 lbs X 10, X8, X5
DB Lateral raise X 10, 3 sets
DB rear delt raise X 10, 3 sets
Biceps: Standing EZ bar curls, 3 sets
Cable curls, 3 sets

The deadlifts were a killer, as usual. Also scraped my shin on the 3rd set #$$%^!! There was a guy using the "chrome" dumbells gawking at me during deadlifts, finally came over and asked awkwardly, "how much weight is that?"

Took it as a compliment.

[jtroster]

Deadlifts always brings out the gawkers in my gym. I even had one of the (good) trainers complement me. And those shin scrapes are a your badge of honour. Wear them with pride;)

[widebody195]

Today for a change of pace I tried a 5 X 5 full-body workout since I've been reading a lot about it and it seems to work for many.

warmup - biking to the gym and 5 minutes of abs
Bench 230 X 5, 3 sets, 230 X 4, 225 X 5
Pullups 5 X 5
Military press 135 X 5 X 5
Squats 295 X 5, 275 X 5, 275 X 5, 275 X 5, 275 X 4
Seated calf raises, 160 X 15, 160 X 12, 160 X 10, 135 X 20 (that last set of 20 reps hurt!)

A couple observations:

I kept rest time to 60-90 seconds between sets, so probably that affected the last few sets where fatigue started to set in.

The pullups felt great! I've never done pullups following bench press, and the pump was phenomenal. My lats felt a mile wide. This sequence is definitely a keeper.

Still trying to adjust my working weight for a 5 X 5. No doubt I've got more learning to do.

[widebody195]

I'm liking the 5 X 5 routine. Today was no exception.

warmup = bike to gym and 5 minutes of abs

Incline Bench 155 X 5 X 5 Grossly miscalculated my working weight for incline bench, so this was way too easy, despite my chest still being sore and stiff from Thursday. Oh well, heavier weight next time

Pullups 5 X 5

Deadlifts 245 X 5 X 5 Getting the weight off the floor on the 1st rep is always the hardest. Quads and glutes quite sore from 5 X 5 squats Thursday. Still managed to grunt out 5 sets though, so next time - heavier weight!

Preacher curls + Cable curls superset, 3 sets of 8-10 each exercise. Couldn't resist working the "vanity muscles" after all of the heavy work. :-)

[widebody195]

OK, couple of days off and I should be rarin' to go, right? Didn't feel like it last night, after putting the kids to bed, I was so tired I just wanted to sit on the couch and doze off in front of the TV. Somehow, I got myself to the gym and once I set foot in the weight room, it was like a new me.

after the usual warmup

Bench press 135 X 8, 185 X 4, 235 X 5 X 5
bonus: there was a gym regular, who is pretty big (bigger than I am) but I've never seen him lift much weight, and last night he watched me intently during my 235 bench press. The look on his face after completing my first set was one of utter disbelief. I guess he couldn't believe that someone so scrawny could move so much weight. :-)

BB bent over rows 155 X 5 X 5, way too easy for me so next time - more weight

Squats 135 X 10, 225 X 6, 295 X 5 X 5 , still felt strong on last set so next time I can add weight

Seated calf raises, 4 plates X 12, X10, X8, 2 plates X 20 I just love pain.

Overall, it was a great workout, and I'm glad I didn't skip it last night although the temptation was strong.

[widebody195]

1st time working out on a late Friday evening, so I expected an empty deserted gym. Imagine my surprise to find the weight room *packed*, and with some serious weightlifters to boot.

warmup
Pullups, bodyweight 5 reps X 5 sets. These are now getting way too easy, almost like a warmup set. Next time I'm going to have to add some weight.

Military press 155 X 5 X 5. whew almost didn't make the last rep.

Deadlifts 255 X 5 X 5 after 2 warmup sets. On a typical deadlift day, I'm the only one in the gym, so I feel free to grunt and wail like a banshee when doing these. Tonight, however, I felt compelled to muffle it, even feeling a bit sheepish when an occasional "aarrrgh" escapes out and the big guys turn and look.

Preacher curls, 60 x 8 X 4 sets. Finished with a set of concentration curls.

[widebody195]

Had a great, ball-busting, take-no-prisoners workout today. Felt strong, and increased weights on all major lifts.

Bench press 240 X 5, 240 X 5, 240 X 5, 240 X 4, 240 X 5 (extra rest after set 4)

Incline bb press 135 X 10, 135 X 8, 135 X 8

BB bent over rows 175 X 5 X 5 still felt easy!

Squats warmup 3 sets, then 305 X 5 X 5 form was getting sloppy so I'll stay at this weight for a while until it cleans up.

Seated calf raises 115 lbs X 20, X15, X12

That evening, rewarded myself with a 90 minute full body deep tissue massage. What a mistake. My regular masseuse was busy with another client and instead I got a Helga with the vise grip fingers. The pain was absolutely excruciating. Today, I don't know whether my soreness was from the workout or the massage!

[Hibiscus09]

Looks like you're having some great workouts, wb! :) LOL @ Helga! :eek: You should have smacked her and told her to back off. :p

Happy Monday!

[jtroster]

Great workout there.

[widebody195]

Thank Hib and JT. I did tell her to lighten up but she apparently has terrible short-term memory. My calves are still quite sore today (very unusual) so I might have to skip them tomorrow.

[widebody195]

warmup

Bench press, 240 X 5 X 5 completed all 5 sets, so next time I can increase!

Incline db press, 60 X 10, 60 X 9, 60 X 8

Weighted pullups, bodyweight+10 lbs X 5, BW+10 X 5, BW+10 X 4, BW X 5, BW X 5 barely finished the last rep

Deadlifts, 260 X 5 X 5 extremely difficult to get through these sets. Wanted to quit after set 4 but somehow found it in myself to crank a final set. Ended with a headache.

Cybex arm curl machine: wanted to do some bicep work but wussed out and decided to use the machine instead of usual preacher bench. I did 3 sets but beyond that don't remember rep/weight scheme.

Went home and went to straight to bed (after eating). Slept like a baby. So much for what they say about working out late at night.

[ChocoChick]

That's a tough workout, WB. No wonder you slept like a baby!

[widebody195]

Quick but intense morning, that was today's workout

warmup abs, + 30 sec planks X 3

Bench press, 3 warmup sets, 245 X 5, 245 X 5, 245 X 5, 245 X 5, 245 X 3
the last set of bench was more like a CNS breakdown/loss of concentration more than muscle fatigue. I think I could have completed at least 4 reps on that last set.

Squats, 3 warmup sets, 305 X 5 X 5. OK, no failure this time, and felt really strong. Quads are ready for heavier weight!

Seated calf, 115 x 10, 160 X 12, 160 x 10, 160 X 10, 90 X 20

Back again tomorrow for back and shoulders.

[vja2000]

I’ve read your journal and you kind of remind me how I was when I was your age just a few short years ago. It’s amazing how much has changed for me from 40-years-old to 48-years-old. I’m dialing in on my workouts now, but it has taken me over a year to do so after a 6-year layoff and this is with many years of experience behind me. Honestly, I was just blown away at how much my body has changed in just that 8-year period. My advice to you, my friend, is don’t stop. I’m not saying you should bust your butt the way you are now, but I am telling you in no uncertain terms – do not layoff from the training. Even if at some point all you have time for is once-a-week training - do it!

I had a 325 pound 1RM bench at your age. I’m 5’8” with a 7-inch wrist. All of my life I wanted a 300 pound bench and I think you do, too. Further more I believe you are close to having one. According to my math, your 1RM right now on the bench should be around 285-290. I would suggest at this point you load the bar up with 300 pounds, un-rack it, hold it for a second, and then put it back on the rack. You have been lifting heavy for a little while now, so when your body feels this much heavier weight, it’s immediately going to begin an adjustment to that weight. You should feel a surge in strength in just a few days. Doing this will work you toward a 300 pound bench in increments. First, you feel the weight and put it back on the rack as described above. Next, the weight feels more comfortable and you slightly lower the weight like maybe an inch or so and then put it back on the rack. After this, you will feel comfortable enough to lower the weight to a safety bar in a controlled fashion, and so it goes. This is *not* a first time, second time, third time thing – it might take a few weeks for all this to happen. Since you should experience a pronounced surge in strength, it would be wise to really chow down during this period of time. This is also a time to be seriously well focused – no fooling around. There is very little risk of injury with this process – I have used it on more than one occasion to drive my poundage’s up, but you need to have a safety strategy and escape plan in mind at all times.

At any rate, I just thought I’d throw that information and opinion out there – take it or leave it - your choice, of course. I like what you’re doing, but you and I both know you are going to have to back off on the heavy stuff at some point in time, or at least quit pressing for heavier and heavier stuff for a while until you allow for a full body recovery via lighter weights and higher reps or a straight up layoff for a time. I used to layoff 2 weeks every 6 months at age 40. Now I have to layoff a week about every 90-day’s (or less). I would like to see you hit that 300 pound bench before you do change things up, though – maybe even nail 3 reps with those 300 pounds? Maybe that should be the goal? Hit that 300 pound bench and then take some time off or change up the routine at that time? However, the body rules in this game – if it’s telling you to back off, you back off – simple as that.

As an aside, my math is also indicating you are now in possession of something like a 385 pound 1RM Squat. And, I’m sure you know this; working the 5 by 5’s puts you at around 86 percent of your potential. This is a great range to work in, but it’s not a permanent thing – the body can’t handle working in this range for a long time – not in my experience.

Vince

[widebody195]

Vince,

Thanks for the helpful tips and encouragement. The longest layoff I've ever really had was about 2 months, mainly due to travel reasons. I can't stand not working out, so when I'm 90 years old, I'll still be <trying> to do dips on my walker :D

As for loading up the bench to 300, that's a good idea. I'm going to try it sometime. I've found that as I've been progressing on bench, squat, and deadlifts, lightening up to a prior working weight seems really easy. So it seems logical that making a big jump in weight fires your CNS and gets your muscles accustomed to heavier weight.

[Bob45]

That's a heavy workout. Benches and deads the same day. Great job!

[widebody195]

warmup, lots of stretching to relieve residual stiffness

weighted pullups, Bodyweight+10lbs X5, BW+10X5, BW+10X5, BW+10X5, BW+10X3...I just had a flashback to PE class in high school. I was once so weak that I could barely complete 2 pullups, and I weighed barely 120 lbs then! Times have changed.

barbell rows: 185 X 5 X 5, lower back still sore from squats yesterday, so this is easier than deadlifts

Military press: 155 X 5, 155 X 5, 155 x 3, 135 X 8, 135 X 5 Was not the best of sets. Chalk it up to soreness from benching yesterday, and rotator cuff fatigue from pullups.

rear delt raises, 4 sets
EZ barbell curls, 4 sets

This will be the last workout for about a week, as I have another unplanned layoff due to friends coming in from out of town and staying with us. So I'll be entertaining and hosting and playing tour guide for a week, which will probably keep me from getting to gym. I think I need the rest anyway.

[widebody195]

Well this is officially my off week, but I had 45 minutes at the sports center while waiting for my son's tennis class to finish. So, I couldn't resist sneaking into the weight room for a "light" workout."

warmup - abs
bench press, 2 warmup sets, 205 X 8, 205 X 8, 205 X 8
pullups, bodyweight, 8, 8, 8
squats, 2 warmup sets, 275 x 8, 275 X 8, 275 x 8
seated calf raises, 3 plates X 20, 3 plates X 20

that's it, not terribly tough but good for a nice full pump (I miss that :-)

it wasn't too long ago that this "light" workout would have been considered an all-out max effort :-)

[widebody195]

It's that time of year again, flu season, and before I could get to the doctor to get my shot, I came down with it, big time. I think I also have a cold simultaneously, 'cause I'm fighting both cold and flu symptoms. Fever, chills, headache, hacking cough, congestion, runny nose, sneezing, and aches and pains all over my body (and not due to training either). I've got it all. :(

My wife jokingly asked last night if I was going to the gym. I didn't find it very funny. Anyway, I'll be taking a break from training and bb.com for a few days. See you all soon.

[widebody195]

Back in the gym, on the tail end of a nasty 1-2 combination cold and flu, despite still having the sniffles and minor congestion, I was looking forward to getting back under the barbells.

Did an exact duplicate (sets, reps) of the last light workout, which was 8 days ago. In addition I threw in 3 sets of seated military presses, 135 lbs X 8, 135 X 7, 115 X 8.

It felt great to be lifting again. Can't wait to be going heavy again.

[widebody195]

I've been reading a bit and came to the realization that maybe my '5X5' workouts were too taxing a and I wouldn't be able to sustain this level of intensity over the long term (or worse, risk injury). 5 sets of 5 at the max working weight is pretty exhausting, especially for squats and deadlifts.

The Bill Starr 5 X 5 progression uses the 1st 3 sets of the 5 as a ramp-up, and a logical, systematic progression of weight increases. The tough thing is that you're doing squats every workout, but on the other hand the middle workout is only 4 X 5 with lighter weights, a kind of "two-steps forward, one step back" way to rest between heavy days. A great article describing this system is found here:

http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow1/5x5_Program/Linear_5x5.htm

So, I'm going to try this setup for a while. I think I can make some good progress with this.

Wednesday was Squat, Bench, Row, and the weights were well below my typical working weight (after 4 weeks you hit your max working weight and keep going from there). Needless to say, it felt really easy but I resisted the temptation to do more. I'll stick with this pretty strictly for now.

Friday was Squat, Incline Bench, Deadlifts. Again, felt strong, weights easy. Went out with friends for dinner immediately after workout and shower; didn't have time to down my PWO protein shake, but got stuck in traffic for 1.5 hours and didn't eat until almost 2 hours after workout ended. Was starving, and then lost self-control and stuffed myself silly at dinner. Probably will pay for this at the next workout. Oh well.

[widebody195]

Day 3 rotation of week 1 Bill Starr 5X5 routine

Squat
5 146
5 182
5 219
5 255
3 299
8 219
Bench
5 111
5 139
5 167
5 195
3 228
8 167
Row
5 86
5 107
5 129
5 150
3 176
8 129
Weights are copied from the spreadsheet. Rounded up or down to the nearest 5, of course. In addition, there were 2 supplemental exercises I added, per the advice of the web site. 3 sets of dips + 3 sets of bicep curls. Ran out of time for calf exercises; in all this workout took almost 90 minutes to complete. Whew, tiring.

[Hibiscus09]

Morning! :) Nice job on the workouts! Sorry you've had the flu since I last visited here. :p I've been stuffy for a few mornings lately -- hope that goes away. I need to be able to smell my Thanksgiving dinner. :)

Your last workout was great, but long. I don't think I could last for 90 minute workouts. Will they all be that way? I have done that before when I was younger when doing legs and going really heavy.

Thanks for the link! I'll spend some time going through it. I especially like (so far) the video links to the exercises.

Take care and Happy Sunday!

[widebody195]

Thanks Hib, yes, 90 minutes is pretty long but that's what happens when you put 6 sets of 3 compound exercises together + 3 sets of 2 "assistance" exercises together in a workout. As the weights get heavier I'll need more rest time, so the Sunday workout probably won't get any shorter. :-(

One annoying thing about this 5 X 5 program is there is a lot of changing of weights, especially the little 2.5 & 5 lb plates. Anyway, I still like the program so I'll keep it up for a while.

[widebody195]

Squat 5X150, 5X185, 5X225, 5X260, 5X300
Bench 5X115, 5X145, 5X170, 5X200, 5X230
Row 5X90, 5X110, 5X130, 5X155, 5X175

then the "vanity exercises"

4 sets of seated calf raises
3 sets bb curls
3 sets cable curls (for biceps)

Since the season is over for t-shirts and shorts, I miss training the bi's and calves. Nothing beats a good bicep pump for satisfaction!

Next, the annual turkey eating fest; I'm sure I'll pay for it on Friday...

[widebody195]

Since they don't officially celebrate Thanksgiving in the country where I live, it was still a work day for me. After work, went to the gym for my light day.

Squats: 5x150,5X185,5X225,5X225
Incline bench: 5X105,5X125,5X145,5X165
Deadlifts: 5X155,5X185,5X215,5X245

Total time: 30 minutes

Since I'm only in week 2 of the 5X5 all of the weights felt pretty easy, especially incline bench. Good for working off some of the Thanksgiving turkey last night, and for hiking up the metabolism in advance of another eating fest tonight.

[widebody195]

Got in real late this evening, about 9:30 (Gym closes at 10:30)

Bench 5X115,5X145,5X170,5X200,3X235,8X170
BB Row 5X90,5X110,5X130,5X155,3X180,8X130
Squats 5X150,5X185,5X225,5X260,3X305,8X225

Cybex machine bicep curls, 4 sets
Cybex standing calf raises, 4 sets

I'm getting a bit impatient with this 5X5 routine. I feel ready to go heavier but this schedule has a very deliberate pace and progression. Well, the real test will be in week 4, when I hit my previous PR's and then see if I can go beyond.

[Hibiscus09]

Great job on the workouts, widebody! :)

If you want to start celebrating the American holidays with us, just take the day off from work whenever we do. Tell them I said it was okay. :D

[widebody195]

Great job on the workouts, widebody! :)

If you want to start celebrating the American holidays with us, just take the day off from work whenever we do. Tell them I said it was okay. :D

Thx, hbs. Yeah, Dec. 25 is also a work day here (!) but I WILL be taking that day off.

[widebody195]

Today's workout:

warmup with abs
Bench: 5X115,5X145,5X175,5X205,5X235
BB Row: 5X90,5X115,5X135,5X160,5X180
bicep concentration curls, 3 sets (while waiting for the squat rack to open up)
Squats: 5X155,5X190,5X230,5X270,5X305

usual PWO: 10 minute walk home, followed by 1 scoop whey in glass of milk and some whole wheat biscuits.

Notes:
Since the last heavy day was Monday instead of Sunday, I still felt some residual stiffness and soreness. This workout was tough to get through, even though the weights are lower than my peak a few weeks ago. An extra day of rest makes a big difference.

[widebody195]

Squat 155X5,190X5,230X5,230X5
Incline Bench 105X5,130X5,150X5,170X5
Deadlift 160X5,190X5,220X5,255X5

Great 30 minute semi-aerobic workout. The amount of rest between sets was only the time it took to change weights.

After that I was a bad boy. Went to the end-of-the year office party. As is usual for large companies in this country, it is a huge banquet in a nice restaurant, with insane amounts of really good food. I was pretty good until they started bringing out case after case of beer. It got really crazy, and I had a lot of fun but I hadn't drank that much in a long, long time. Today I feel like @#$$%^&.

[Bob45]

Sounds like a great party! Good workout too. The short rest periods are killer.

[widebody195]

Well, Friday night's festivities didn't do too much damage, since I had a great workout last night.

abs, warmup
Bench: 115X5,145X5,175X5,205X5,240X3,175X8
BB Row: 90X5,115X5,135X5,160X5,185X3,135X8
Squat: 155X5,190X5,230X5,270X5,315X3,230X8
EZ bicep curls, 3 sets
standing calf raises, 3 sets

During the 315 squat set, I was totally "in the zone." It is a rare moment for me, when you are so focused on lifting the weight that a nuclear bomb could be going off around the corner and I would have been totally oblivious to it, and man it felt great!

My legs have always been disproportionately strong in relation to the rest of my body, so I never really trained them too hard. In the past I'd just go 185 for 3 sets of 8-10 about once per week. Certainly not heavy squats I've been doing for the past 2 months! And my quads have been growing at shocking rate. It may be an illusion but it seems every time I look in the mirror they seem bigger and thicker. If only I can get some of that up to my chest...

[widebody195]

Because of a prior commitment on my regular Wednesday workout day, I went in a day early for heavy chest/back/legs day, which means I got one day less rest than normal. Also, this is a pivotal week as per the rotation I have reached my previous PR's and it will remain to be seen whether I can set new ones next week.

Flat Bench
120X5,150X5,180X5,210X5,240X5
BB Row
95X5,115X5,140X5,160X5,185X5
Squat
160X5,195X5,235X5,275X5,315X5

assistance/vanity exercises
weighted dips, 3 sets X12 reps with 3 kg weight
bicep cable curls, 4 sets

The bench and row exercises felt great. The pump was phenomenal after the dips, haven't felt this pumped in a long time. However, I couldn't get ATG on the last set of squats, quads were still slightly sore from Sunday.

[Chubby Mom]

Hi! Widebody reading through you journal and you are really going at it great Job.

[widebody195]

Thanks Chubby Mom for checking out the journal.

Very hectic and stressful day at work today, glad it was an "easy" day for me in the gym.

Squats: 160X5,195X5,235X5,235X5
Incline Bench: 110X5,130X5,155x5,175X5
Deadlifts: 165X5,195X5,230X5,260X5
3 sets of seated calf raises
3 sets of EZ bar standing bicep curls

Incline bench is getting moderately difficult, but there's still room to go up.

[widebody195]

Just got back from the gym, muscles still pumped and glowing, sipping on a whey protein shake as I sit down to write this. Here's what I did tonight.

Bench: 120X5,150X5,180X5,210X5,245X3,180X8
Row: 95x5,115x5,140x5,160x5,190x3,140x8
Squat: 160X5,195X5,235X5,275X5,325X3,235X8

Workout notes:
This intermediate 5X5 where you ramp up weights is suiting me pretty fine. It's tough enough to be challenging but I still feel good after a workout, a good endorphin rush from exercise. The previous 5X5 routine I was doing a month ago (5 sets of 5 at max working weight) was absolute agony and exhausting - something I don't think I could sustain over the long term.

Really enjoyed the last set of 8 reps in this rotations. I think my body misses doing higher reps. Great pumps, and the weight feels really light after max weight set of 3.

Gym was busy tonight, got some admiring (or incredulous) stares. Used to it, though.

That's it for now. Gotta get up and walk around (feeling the quads starting to tighten up, not good) and get some more food. Good night all.

[widebody195]

Felt tired tonight, after attending my kid's X-mas pageant at school, put them to bed and then dragged myself to the gym at 9:15 PM. Plus, my immune system is working overtime as almost my entire family is sick again. So far I'm holding out, popping lots of zinc and vitamin C but felt a tickle in my throat starting up. UH-OH.

Bench: 125X5,155X5,185X5,215X5,245X5.
Row: 95X5,120X5,140X5,165X5,190X5
Squat: 160X5,200X5,240X5,285X5,325X5

OK, I cheated a bit on the last set of heavies on bench and squat -- didn't go all the way down. Just couldn't muster enough energy for an all-out effort. Per the 5X5 schedule, these would have been new PR's for me tonight had I done them with proper form.

If I can keep the rhinoviruses at bay, I should be in much better shape for the next workout.

[widebody195]

A crazy weekend this is. Busted out of work on Friday afternoon as I had to rush my wife to the hospital with severe abdominal pain. Turned out to be acute appendicitis. She's still in the hospital recovering from surgery. On the home front, my younger son has chicken pox and my other son has a viral infection and bronchitis coupled with asthma. So for now I am full-time nurse and caretaker. Workouts are on hold for a while for more important things. Don't have the energy for them anyway.

[Hibiscus09]

I'm so sorry about your wife! :( I'm glad they caught it in time and she's on the mend now. I remember when my brother had to be taken to the hospital for that. He couldn't stand up straight and was doubled over in pain as my parents took him to the car to head to the hospital. No fun.

I hope everyone gets well and you don't catch anything while caretaking.

By the way, nice looking workouts in your journal! You're doing great!

[joed]

I'll just echo what hib said. Best wishes for your wife's speedy recovery.

[widebody195]

Thanks Hibs, thanks Joed, for your kind words. Wife is home now and recovering from surgery. Kids are also on the mend, so I got a chance to sneak into the gym last night after everyone was in bed. Did a repeat of previous Sunday's workout.

Bench: 120X5,150X5,180X5,210X5,245X3,180X8
Row: 95x5,115x5,140x5,160x5,190x3,140x8
Squat: 160X5,195X5,235X5,275X5,325X3,235X8

Glad to know I didn't seem to lose any strength, despite not eating and sleeping well for a week. Looking forward to picking up where I left off.

[widebody195]

Bench: 125x5,155x5,185x5,215x5,245x5
BB Row: 95x5,120x5,140x5,165x5,190x5
Squats: 160x5,200x5,240x5,285x5,325x5 (new PR)
seated calf, 3 sets
standing bb curls, 4 sets

I was doing great, feeling really strong, right up until I pulled a neck muscle on the last set of rows. Ouch! Ignored the pain and worked through squats, managed to struggle through the last set well enough to consider it a new PR. Yay!

I've also got a rotator cuff that's starting to bother me, but after the 1st 3 sets of bench it warmed up nicely and I didn't feel it. Bench was strong enough that I think I'm headed toward a new PR next week; that is, if the Christmas overeating and festivities don't slow me down.

Today, the neck hurts when I turn my head to the right, so now I'm walking around like a robot. Hopefully it will heal up in a few days.

[widebody195]

Neck a bit stiff, but getting better.

Squat: 160x5,200x5,240x5,240x5
Incline Bench: 110x5,135x5,155x5,180x5 getting a bit more difficult
Deadlift: 165x5,200x5,235x5,265x5 forgot my straps, so I did them Romanian style.

Wow, haven't done deadlifts in a while. Back was really pumped. Felt great.

[ChocoChick]

Hi WB, Merry Christmas!

[Original Poster]

MERRY CHISTMAS

[widebody195]

Merry belated Christmas to everyone, and thanks for stopping by and giving me support. I've been scarce at bb.com and the gym lately, owing to the holidays you know.

Today was a sort of transitional workout for me, trying out some new things before settling on a new workout routine for the new year.

weights:
bench press: 2 warmup sets, then 205x8, 205x8,205x6
deadlifts: 2 warmup sets, then 225x6, 205x8, 205x8

swimming: took advantage of an empty pool to do some sprint intervals - 50 meters all out, 25 meters slow and easy, these were a staple of my competitive swimming days, and I haven't done them for about 18 years. I read somewhere that intervals, or "wind sprints" in track terminology, were good for boosting T-levels. In any case, it's been a long time since I've had my heart rate over 200 and lungs feeling like they're about to explode.

[widebody195]

Alas, the earthquake in Taiwan that supposedly damaged the fiber optic lines that ran between Asia and North America had pretty much shut down all internet traffic between the two continents; as a result, I've been unable to access BB.com for almost a week. Even now, the response is s-l-o-w.

Regardless, I've been keeping up with the workouts.

12/27/06
Squats 8x275, 8x275, 8x275
Incline Bench 5x110, 5x135, 5x165, 5x180, 8x165
BB row 8x175, 8x175, 8x175

12/29/06
Bench press 8x205,8x205,x205
BB row 8x175, 8x175, 8x175
Squats 8x275, 8x275, 8x275

12/31/06
Pullups (warmup) 6xbodyweight, 6xbw, 6xbw
Incline Bench 8x170,8x170,8x170
Deadlift 8x215, 8x215 8x215

As you can tell, I'm getting away from 5x5's and moving to a 3x8 set/rep scheme. This is for a change of pace, and I think it will be easier on my joints. Currently, knees are achy and right rotator cuff is bothering me. For now, I'm enjoying the 8 rep sets (although the deadlifts and squats are hard). The pumps are pretty awesome.

Happy New Year to you all.

[ChocoChick]

Happy New Year, WB. :)

[45BIG]

Nice workouts. Nice to see people working out over the Holidays.

[widebody195]

My Internet access woes continue. Nearly all US-hosted sites are either inaccessible or painfully slow and incomplete downloads. There's no timeframe given for the repairs, something about it taking a few weeks just to get the ships in position to access the deep-water fiber-optic lines that had been damaged. In the meantime, all Internet traffic out of Asia is being re-routed through Europe, very slow. I can't imagine the economic consequences of such a major breach in the World Wide Web.

Anyway, it is a major accomplishment to just be able to post this log, but I sorely miss reading all of the great threads on the forums and visiting friends' logs and spaces. Sigh. Thanks everyone for stopping by and supporting, though. I've been keeping up with the workouts.

1/3/07
Bench press: 210x7, 210x8,205x7
BB row: 180x8,180x8,180x8
Squats: 275x8,275x8,275x8

felt lethargic today, a result of an early-afternoon workout, only 1 hour after lunch out with my wife (had the day off). The food was just too good to resist. Ahh, no self-control, got to do better. Food coma and weightlifting do not make for a good combo.

1/5/07
Pullups: bwx8,bwx8,bwx8
Incline Bench: 175x8,175x8,175x6
Deadlift: 220x8,220x8,220x8

1/7/07
Bench press: 210x8,210x8,210x7
BB row: 185x8,185x8,185x8
Squats: 280x8,280x8,280x7

Weight is up to 181 now, quads and chest feel fuller and thicker :), but right rotator cuff still bothering me a bit.

[widebody195]

Pullups: bwx8, bwx8, bwx8 - these are getting too easy, so I'll start next time adding some weight.

Incline bench: 175x8,175x8,175x8 - the last rep of 3rd set was a real struggle
Deadlift: 225x8,225x8,225x8
Cybex rear delt machine: 80x12,80x10,80x8

Good workout, felt really strong especially on deadlifts. Overall, I think my back is still getting stronger but chest and legs are nearing their peaks for now.

[jspirate]

Wow, I just looked through your journal widebody. Impressive work indeed!

[widebody195]

Friday, January 12

Squats 8x280, 8x280, 8x280
Bench press 8x210, 7x210, 7x210
BB row 7x190, 8x185, 8x185

Sunday, January 14

Pullups 8xbw+2kg, 8xbw+2kg, 8xbw+2kg
Incline bench 8x180, 7x180, 7x175
Deadlift 8x230, 8x230, 8x230

Right rotator cuff is continuing to bother me, getting worse now and affecting bench. Starting to take glucosamine to hopefully address that and my knees. Next workout, I will change my chest routine, probably lighten up significantly and increase reps or go try out the super slow that has been talked about on the forums.

Thanks jspirate for stopping by. Once the Internet issues are fixed in my part of the world, I'll rejoin the bb.com community forums, etc. Internet access has improved somewhat, but still slow.

[jtroster]

Read this article on Rotator Training (http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle.do?article=280rotator2). I use the exercises there to keep my shoulders healthy.

[widebody195]

Read this article on Rotator Training (http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle.do?article=280rotator2). I use the exercises there to keep my shoulders healthy.

Joel, thanks for the link. I bookmarked it and will be trying out some of those exercises.

[widebody195]

Took a week off to fight a cold (a new record this year for colds for me!) and let my joints recover. Still not up to 100% so took it easy.

DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS 35 lbs X 8, 35x8, 35x8. No this was not a warmup. I tried out the super-slow routine that was talked about on the forums quite a bit. 4 seconds (one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two, one-thousand-three, one-thousand-four) up, hold at the top, 4 seconds down. I didn't know 35 lbs could feel so heavy. The last few reps, my arms were shaking.

These were done at normal speed:
BB rows: 135x8, 135x8, 135x8
Squats: 225x8, 225x8, 225x8

[widebody195]

Well, I apparently never got the message, because on Sunday, as I was running to get the door, I slipped on a wet floor, did a few wild pirouettes with both arms, and then all 185 lbs of me came crashing down onto ceramic tile, landing on my left gluteous maximus and left elbow. OUCH! Luckily, I'm well padded there owing to all of tonnage I've moved in the squat rack.

The soreness in my left buttock is unlike anything I've felt before. The elbow is a bit tender too.

[jtroster]

At least you weren't running with scissors!

[widebody195]

Took an extra couple days off as I'm still fighting significant chest congestion and a sore butt. Anyway, it looks like my strength is back so tonight it was a good workout.

ABS
Pullups 8xbw+4kg, 8xbw+4kg, 8xbw+4kg
Incline bench: 8x180, 8x180, 8x180
Deadlift: 8x235, 8x235, 8x235
Cybex rear delt machine: 12x70, 10x80, 8x80

Not too shabby for someone who's still coughing and hacking like an old chain-smoking geezer ...no wait, I'm an old geezer, but not a chain smoker! :=)

[widebody195]

Chest congestion s-l-o-w-l-y improving (this cold is really stubborn)

dumbbell bench 45x8, 45x8, 45x8 super slow (4s up, squeeze, 4s down) barbequed the pecs. This will be good for both the chest and the rotator cuff.

BB row (normal speed) 190x8, 190x8, 190x8
Squats 135x5, 225x5, 280x8,280x8,280x8

yep, strength is back, and it feels good. :)

[widebody195]

Took another week off, very busy at work and home, and still struggling with chest congestion but felt I needed a break. Got back in today, get all the muscle groups in for a "light" workout.

warmup - abs
pullups: bodyweightx8, bwx8,bwx8
flat bench: 2 warmups, 185x8, 185x8, 185x8
bb row: 135x8, 135x8, 135x8
incline bench: 135x8, 135x8, 135x8
squats: 2 warmups, 225x8, 225x8, 225x8
deadlifts: 2 warmups, 185x8, 185x8, 185x8

weights were pretty easy, main goal was to get the blood flowing again.

[widebody195]

Definitely in maintenance mode here. Felt tired today.

warmup - abs
pullups - bwx8, bwx8, bwx8
bench press - 195x8, 195x8, 195x7
bb row - 145x8, 145x8, 145x8
incline press - 145x8, 145x8, 145x8
leg press & deadlift superset - 360x8 + 100x10, 3 sets of these

[Stenn]

Howdy Widebody,

That's some nice work on the squats and deadlifts, especially for a formerly skinny guy. :)

[widebody195]

sytennison, thanks for checking in. I've been too busy lately to check out other journals, but I'm sure you're making fantastic progress.

Felt pretty good today, but I'm "between" routines so kind of decided what to do on the fly today.

warmup - abs
3 sets of pullups, 8 reps each
incline bench 185x6, 185x6, 185x6
bb rows 165x8, 165x8, 165x8
flat bench 185x8, 185x8, 185x8 great pump
squats 135x5, 225x5, 275x6, 295x5, 315x5 whew that was hard.

saved the deadlifts for next workout.

[widebody195]

Out for another week, been way too busy to get to the gym. In my part of the world, it is the Chinese New Year Holiday, which means lots of parties, celebrations, and bottoms-up toasts (i.e., binge drinking) eating. Luckily I kept everything in moderation and didn't do much damage. Finally made it to the gym today. Boy it felt good to be under the barbell again.

warmup - abs
pullups - 3 sets bwx8
flat bench - 125x5, 155x5, 185x5, 215x5, 245x4
cable crossovers - 3 sets 40x10 mainly for the pump, which felt great
squats - 160x5, 200x5, 240x5, 285x5, 325x5
deadlifts - 165x5, 200x5, 235x5, 265x5

leaving on vacation day after tomorrow. 5 days in Hong Kong so it'll be at least another week before I get back into the gym. So this workout was pretty tough, but I'll be nice and sore for a few days which should carry me through until the next workout. :)

[widebody195]

Recovering from a tiring vacation to Hong Kong. Wow, what a city. Looked in the mirror this morning and noticed an inflating spare tire :o (too much Dim Sum last week) Maybe it's time to start leaning out.

Experimented with a high rep, free-weight full-body circuit training triset routine I made up in the locker room while changing, to see how it goes.

after full body warmup and abs work:

Triset #1 (no rest between sets)
Pullups, bodyweightx10
Bench press, 185x10
Squats, 225x10

Triset #2
Pullups, bwx10
Bench press, 185x8
Squats, 225x10

Triset #2
Pullups, bwx6
Bench press, 185x8
Squats, 225x8

Superset #1
Incline bench 135x10
BB row 135x10

Superset #2
Incline bench 135x10
BB row 135x10

Superset #3
Incline bench 135x8
BB row 135x10

Toughest workout I've had in a long time. Weights were fairly heavy (for me, that is), yet no rest between sets sent the heart rate soaring and I ended up gasping for air and drenched in sweat. Felt like throwing up after the last superset but was able to hold it down. Anyway, not sure if I'll keep this up or not.

[widebody195]

Wow, have not been this sore in a long time. Went to the gym not knowing what to do, as it hurts to move my arms and my strength is down significantly.

Incline db press superset w/cable crossovers
50x10 + 40x10
50x10 + 40x10
50x10 + 40x10

pain was excruciating due to DOMS

Deadlift attempt
205x4, gave up after 4 reps.

Pullups
bwx4, bwx4, bwx4

Swimming
Hit the pool for a 1000m lap swim. Felt great. Swimming is really good to relieve soreness and help with joint stiffness.

[jtroster]

Your Monday workout looks like the ones my trainer flings at me sometimes. Id need a week for the DOMs to go away.

[widebody195]

Joel, normally I like a little bit of DOMs but last week was too much. Every move I made was sheer agony.

On a business trip to the US, just got off the plane, after 17 hours of flying and layovers from Asia. Got inspired by watching Rocky Balboa on the flight, so after I checked into the hotel I headed to a local gym. Not expecting any heroic record-breaking lifts though, as I'm heavily jet-lagged and also experiencing gastrointestinal discomfort (must be the airline food)

warmup - abs
squats: 135x10, 225x8, 275x8, 275x8
bench press: 135x8, 185x9, 185x8, 185x7
bb row: 135x8, 135x8, 135x8

That's all I had tonight.

[widebody195]

still out of town and suffering from jet lag. 13 hour time difference is a killer. Taking melatonin tonight to help with the sleepless nights.

warmup - abs
pullups - bwx10, bwx8, bwx7
superset: incline db press + dips - 65x10+bwx10, 65x8+bwx9, 65x6+bwx8
deadlifts: 135x6, 185x8, 185x8, 185x8

[widebody195]

Tiring business trip. Managed to get in another maintenance workout on Friday last week, don't remember sets/reps, etc.

Back home, now suffering from a bit of reverse jet lag. In the gym tonight:

warmup- abs

superset chest: bench press/flat db flye 185x8+25x8, 185x8+25x8, 185x8+25x8, no rest between bp and flye exercises. Felt a good burn

superset back: pullups/bb row bwx8+135x8, bwx8+135x, bwx6+135x8, no rest between pullup and row exercises. Lats felt a mile wide :)

squats: 135x10, 225x8, 275x6, 225x8, 135x10 for a strong finish.

[widebody195]

Warmup - abs

Superset back: Deadlift 135x10, Deadlift 205x10+low pulley row 190x10, DL 205x10+low pulley row 190x10, DL 205x10+low pulley row 190X10

low pulley row was at the cable crossover station

Superset chest: dips bwx10+swiss ball pushupsx10, 4 sets

Pecs still sore from Wed.workout so took it easy on chest.

[widebody195]

full body-giant set workout

warmup - abs 3 sets of 20 situps on incline board

warmup light weights, bench press, bb row, squat

4 giant set, 20 seconds rest between sets, about 2-3 minutes rest between giant sets

bench press: 185x10+flat db flye: 25x10+bb row: 145x10+squat: 225x10
bench press: 185x8+flat db flye: 25x10+bb row: 145x10+squat: 225x10
bench press: 185x6+flat db flye: 25x10+bb row: 145x10+squat: 225x10 bench press: 155x10+flat db flye: 25x10+bb row: 145x10+squat: 225x10

good for the heart rate...

[widebody195]

giant set workout #2

after warmup

pullups, bwx10 + deadlifts, 145x10 + incline bench, 135x10 + cable crossovers 40x10

pullups, bwx10 + deadlifts, 145x10 + incline bench, 135x10 + cable crossovers 40x10

pullups, bwx8 + deadlifts, 145x10 + incline bench, 135x10 + cable crossovers 40x10

swimming, about 40 min.

[widebody195]

About 3 weeks into my superset/giant set routine. Joints feeling better.

Squats: 135x10, 225x10, 275x8, 225x10
Giant set back: pulldowns 120x10+low rows 120x10+close-grip pulldowns 120x10, repeat 3 times
Giant set chest: dips, bwx10+cybex machine flyes 80x10+cybex incline press 120x10, repeat 3 times

during the giant sets, I don't have any rest between exercises. Between sets, about 30 seconds-1 minute rest. Total time, about 35 minutes.

[widebody195]

Sorry I've been away for a while. Took two weeks to hike through the mountains of southwest China. Grueling work but worth it for the incredible scenery. Plus I lost 6 pounds through all of this so it's nice to see abs again :) After a few days of recovery, got back to the gym. It feels good to be lifting again.

4/11 Wednesday: light giant set workout
Pullup bwx10 + Bench 135x8 + Squat 135x10
Pullup bwx10 + Bench 185x8 + Squat 225x10
Pullup bwx8 + Bench 185x8 + Squat 225x10
Pullup bwx6 + Bench 135x10 + Squat 135x10

4/14 Saturday: (very sore all over, as expected): light giant set workout
Deadlift 135x10 + Incline bench 95x10 + BB row 95x10
Deadlift 205x10 + Incline bench 145x10 + BB Row 145x10
Deadlift 205x10 + Incline bench 145x10 + BB Row 145x10
Deadlift 205x10 + Incline bench 145x8 + BB Row 145x10

4/15 Sunday: Back quite sore. Kids were in Kung Fu class, so I used an adjacent fitness room in the clubhouse while waiting for them. Just a few treadmills and a rack of dumbells - max db weight was 50 lbs, 25 lb dumbells were missing. Oh well, make do.
DB bench 50x10 + DB flye 20x10, repeat 3 times
DB military press 40x10 + DB lateral raises 20x10
Standing EZ bar curls 3 sets X 10 (not sure how much weight, plates were unlabeled)

During my hikes, came across many porters who regularly haul 100 lbs or more of goods up the mountain on their shoulders (they are paid by the lb. and distance). Needless to say, these guys, who do this day in and day out for a living, are in incredible shape. Not huge, but ripped and shredded like you wouldn't believe. Walking testaments to the aesthetic benefits of full body exercises, these guys probably have never seen a weight room in their lives, but they looked like they could compete (at least in the bantamweight class).

So I was very inspired by these hardworking peasants from the countryside, so I'll be staying lean for now, trying to emulate (at least a little bit) their definition. Besides, t-shirt and shorts season is just around the corner, and I want to see some lines!

[widebody195]

Gym was busy tonight so I couldn't do the giant sets without hogging all of the equipment. Chest slightly sore.

trying to keep the tempo up so only about 30-45 seconds rest between sets.

Pullups: bwx10, bwx8, bwx5
Bench press: 135x10, 185x8, 185x7, 185x6, 135x8
Squat: 135x10, 205x10, 255x10, 205x10, 135x10

[widebody195]

tonight was a modified superset routine

warmup-abs & calisthenics
work sets:
pullups - bwx8 + incline bench 165x8
pullups - bwx8 + incline bench 165x7
pullups - bwx8 + incline bench 155x8

dips - bwx12, bwx10, bwx8

deadlifts - 135x4, 225x8, 225x7,225x4,205x4

[widebody195]

I had an unplanned 1-month layoff due to an insane travel schedule. Had a lot of irregular eating patterns and didn't set foot into a gym. As a result, I lost another 5 lbs and strength is down significantly. Anyway, last night was the first time back in a long while, so took it easy.

Warmup, abs (now definitely showing some!)
Pullups bwx10, Bench press 135x6, squats 135x10
Pullups bwx8, Bench press 165x8, squats 225x10
Pullups bwx8, Bench press 165x8, squats 225x10
Pullups bwx8, Bench press 165x8, squats 225x10

My short-term goal is to build back some of the lost strength, but keep my current lean, mean, ripped frame through the summer. It's great to be back.

[widebody195]

Making up for lost time with back-to-back workouts. Soreness from long layoff and recent return to the gym is manageable.

Saturday:

Deadlift 135x10, Incline Bench 135x10, BB row 135x10
Deadlift 185x10, Incline Bench 155x8, BB row 135x10
Deadlift 185x10, Incline Bench 155x8, BB row 135x10
Deadlift 185x10, Incline Bench 135x8, BB row 135x10

Sunday:

Squat 135x10, Bench press 135x10, Pullup bwx10
Squat 225x10, Bench press 175x8, Pullup bwx9
Squat 225x10, Bench press 175x7, Pullup bwx8
Squat 225x10, Bench press 175x6, Pullup bwx7

Note: weight and reps are approximate. It was a busy weekend and I didn't have a chance to update the log, so I'm only going by memory.

[jtroster]

Welcome back.

[Stenn]

Hmmm... Out of the gym for a month and lost 5 pounds and some strength. Sounds familiar, buddy. The next time someone tries to distract me from my workout routine, I need to tell 'em to piss off. I'll let you know how it goes...

That was quite a bold move following 40 reps of deadlifts with 40 reps of squats the next day so soon after a 1-month layoff. Are you able to tie your own shoes today? :)

[widebody195]

Thanks JT and SY for checking in. I'm not feeling too bad, but the weights have been relatively light. Just a bit of stiffness to remind me that I did something good to the muscles. :-)

[widebody195]

Felt strong today, so went for it in the gym. Paying for it the day after, DOMS settling in all over my body.

warmup - abs

pullups, straight sets - bwx10, bwx8, bwx7

chest superset
incline bench 155x10 + cable crossover 40x10
incline bench 155x7 + db flye 25x10
incline bench 155x6 + cable crossover 40x10
incline bench 135x8 + db flye 25x10

deadlift-135x8, 205x10, 205x10, 205x8

bicep ez-bar curls, 40x10, 40x10, 40x8

still down a bit in strength but coming back...

[widebody195]

Late afternoon in the gym:

Bench press 135x6, 180x8, 180x7, 180x6
Cable crossover 40x10, 40x10, 40x10

Back/bicep superset:
BB row 155x8 + EZ bar standing curls 40x10
BB row 155x8 + EZ bar standing curls 40x10
BB row 155x8 + EZ bar standing curls 40x10

Quads/calves superset
Squat 135x10
Squat 205x8 + seated calf raise 12
Squat 255x10 + seated calf raise 10
Squat 255x10 + seated calf raise 10
Squat 255x8 + seated calf raise 10

[Stenn]

Quads/calves superset
Squat 135x10
Squat 205x8 + seated calf raise 12
Squat 255x10 + seated calf raise 10
Squat 255x10 + seated calf raise 10
Squat 255x8 + seated calf raise 10

Wow, interesting superset. How do the calf raises affect your squats?

[widebody195]

Wow, interesting superset. How do the calf raises affect your squats?

Not much. I'm a little bored with bicep and calf exercises, believe it or not, so they are a way to kill time between the "main" squat and bb row sets. So far they haven't affected things too much but I'm not pushing really hard on the curls and calf raises either.

[Stenn]

Cool. I'm gonna try the squat/calf superset next time I'm in the gym.

[widebody195]

getting over a mild cold, but had a great workout nonetheless

warmup-abs

incline bench 155x8 + pullups bwx10 (superset)
incline bench 155x8 + pullups bwx9
incline bench 155x6 + pullups bwx8

deadlifts 135x6, 225x8, 225x8, 225x8

dips bwx12 + low pulley row 110x10 (superset)
dips bwx10 + low pulley row 110x10
dips bwx10 + low pulley row 110x10

Deadlifts took a lot out of me, so form on the low pulley rows was hard to maintain (so I lightened the weight from usual). Finished with 10 minutes on the lifecycle and a 10 minute walk home. Came home starving, so post-workout snack was a huge bowl of Wheat Chex + milk and whey protein powder.

[widebody195]

another great workout today, tons of energy, I must definitely be a morning person

warmup abs

squats + seated calf raises superset
135x6, 225x8, 275x8, 275x8, 275x8 + set of 10 seated calf raises after each squat set

flat bench + bb row superset
115x10, 185x8 + 165x8, 185x8 + 165x8, 185x6 + 165x8

db pullover + standing bb curl superset
60x10 + 40x10 x 3 supersets

strength feels back to pre-layoff levels although my bench press is still down a bit.

[widebody195]

Continuing the twice-a-week full body routine:

Warmup - abs

Incline bench press 155x8, 155x8, 155x7 straight sets

Flat dumbell bench press 50x10, 50x10, 50x10 - ending position palms facing each other on each rep to get a little extra squeeze out, ended up with a great pump.

Pullups bwx10, bwx7, bwx6+2

Deadlifts: 135x6, 235x8, 235x8, 235x8 these were pretty tough but got through them. The first rep is hardest.

Overall, a great workout, although pullups were a bit weak today. The next morning, starting to feel it in the pecs. Quite sore.

[widebody195]

Another strong workout, although fading at the end. Next time will do squats first.

warmup - abs

Flat bench + bb row superset
135x6, 185x8 + 165x8, 185x8 + 165x8, 185x8 + 165x8
despite a bit of DOMS in the pecs and lats from my last workout, I was able to finish all of the sets/reps, so my strength is coming back

DB pullover + bb bicep curl superset
65x8 + 40X10 3 supersets. I'm not sure why but I dislike doing bicep work. humph

Squats + seated calf raise superset
135x8, 225x6, 275x8 + 12 seated calf raises, 275x8 + 12 seated calf raises, 275x8 + 12 seated calf raises Faded fast on the last set of squats. They were difficult as I was running out of energy.

[Stenn]

Deadlifts: 135x6, 235x8, 235x8, 235x8 these were pretty tough but got through them. The first rep is hardest.

Great job on the deadlifts. I've never tried to do more than 5 reps at working weight because they're so damn hard.

A while back, I started a thread about the hard 1st rep. Here's the link:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=1180511
In a nutshell, the 1st rep is harder because your central nervous system hasn't adapted to the new weight yet.

[widebody195]

Thanks SY, I remember reading through that thread. It's amazing what your CNS can do for your strength.

[widebody195]

Just a quick note to say that I'll be off of the discussion boards, blogs, and gym for a few weeks. After several years of living and working overseas, we are moving back to the USA. If you can imagine the stress and work of moving a family of 5 and all of our worldly possesions across the Pacific into a new house, settling in, buying cars, new job, new school, etc., etc., you know I won't have much time (or energy) left for working out.

But one of my priorities will be finding a new gym, so I'll be back.

[Stenn]

Thanks for the head's up. Good luck on your transition and I look forward to hearing from you when you're back in the states. I'm about to head over to Ireland for a few months so I'll be looking for a new gym too. I don't need much, just a rack, barbell, and some plates...

[widebody195]

Wow, what a month it has been. We've moved back to the US after living in China for the past 3 years. It has been crazy, crazy, crazy, moving a family of 5 and all of our possessions across the Pacific into a new house. I've started a new job, too, and it's been hectic.

So, I haven't set foot in a gym for over 6 weeks, but the good news is that my new workplace provides a free on-site fitness center (yea!). It is fairly well-equipped, with a generous selection of free weights, running track, aerobics/stretching area, and some older machines which I won't use much.

I've started a new 5-day a week speed routine, sneaking in a quick 20-30 minute workout before going home. It consists of:

Mon: Bench press, BB rows, squats (all 3 sets each)
Tues: DB military press/seated calf raise superset, standing bicep curls/tricep pushdown superset
Wed: Pullups, Incline DB press, deadlifts
Thurs: lateral raises, preacher curls, DB french press
Fri: DB bench press, t-bar rows, squats

I'm halfway through the 1st week of this new routine, with some light weights just to get into it. Quads are quite sore but everything else is holding up pretty well. For the record:

Mon: BP: 155x8, BB row: 135x8, squats 225x8 (3 sets ea)
Tues: DB military press 45x8, st bicep curls: 40x8
Wed; Pullups: bwx10,8,6, Inc db press: 50x8, deadlifts 185x8

It feels great to be lifting again. It really missed it over the past 2 months.

[Stenn]

So, I haven't set foot in a gym for over 6 weeks, but the good news is that my new workplace provides a free on-site fitness center (yea!). It is fairly well-equipped, with a generous selection of free weights, running track, aerobics/stretching area, and some older machines which I won't use much.
Hey, welcome back to the States! Man, you are so lucky to have a gym at your workplace. I never worked for a company like that. In fact, I got chastised at one job for asking for a box of kleenex. :)

[widebody195]

Steve, it's good to be back in the States. Workplace gym is great. Lots of big guys and gals working hard makes it very inspiring.

I won't be able to update as frequently as before, just weekly if I'm lucky. This week was good for a return to the weights. 5 days per week, 30 minutes per day.

Thursday:

db lateral raises 25x10/seated alternating db curls 25x10/tricep french press 45x10 triple set, x3 (wow, lots of sweat), seated calf raises 3 sets.

Friday's workout:

BP 160x8, 160x8, 155x8
BB row, 135x10, 135x10, 135x10
Smith machine squats: 135x10, 135x10, 135x10 Quads were still quite sore from Monday. The different angle forced by the smith machine made it a bit more difficult.

[widebody195]

Back in the gym for another 5 day training week.

Pullups, bwx8, bwx8, bwx7
Incline db press, 55x10, 55x10, 55x9 man these burned good!
deadlifts, 195x10, 195x10, 195x10 still working my way up to the previous peak. These felt pretty good.

[widebody195]

Not much time to post updates nowadays, but I'm still making it into the gym 5X per week, 30 min per day. Bench is up to 175x8, DL 205x10, squats 275x6 so I'm making decent progress (almost back to pre-layoff levels). This new company gym that I'm going to is an inspiration. The equipment is old (but serviceable), but there are lots of serious lifters here, no-nonsense, hard-training men and women in fantastic shape. Since I and others come here on our lunch hour to work out, there's not much socializing going on, just lots of hard work. One tell-tale sign -- there's only 1 squat rack here, and it's almost alway busy. What a huge difference from Bally's (of which I'm a lifetime member but don't go there much).

Last week I hurt my back moving furniture, a consequence of doing it first thing in the AM without proper warmup (should have known better). Nothing serious, just a minor strain that kept me out of the squat rack and deadlifts for a few days. Substituted leg press and T-bar rows instead. Back is almost 100% healed, so squats yesterday at a lighter weight (225) went pretty well.

[widebody195]

At Bally's this time. Dodging all of the poseurs, I managed to get in a good 30 min workout

pullups: bwx8, bwx8, bwx8
incline db: 60x10, 65x8, 60x10
deadlifts (work sets after warmups): 225x8, 225x8, 225x8. These felt good. Back is healed up.

[widebody195]

Have not had a lot of time to post, but I've been faithfully getting to the gym 5 days per week. This 5-day, 30 minutes of intense lifting is doing wonders. Not keeping track too much of weight, more going by feel these days. Chest and quads have grown noticeably. Haven't weighed myself lately but I think I'm still around 170, much leaner than before as a result of swimming too.

We're going to the pool a few days a week. The kids knock themselves out on the waterslide while I work on my tan. More motivation to stay in shape this summer.

[widebody195]

I haven't been posting much to the training log lately, mainly because at 5 times per week in the gym it gets to be too much, and I haven't had a lot of time lately to do it. But today was an exception. It was one of those rare, 1 in 1000 workouts that I wish I could have every day.

Today was full-body day, chest/back/legs. Very basic, simple: flat bench, barbell rows, and squats 3-4 sets each. I was a bit stiff from Monday's workout but energy levels good. Warmup and abs were routine, nothing to indicate that this would be an exceptional workout.

Bench press: 185x8, 185x8, 185x6 + 135x10 superset burnout. I've been steadily increasing bench weight in the past few weeks. Today's bench work was good. Strong lifts, good focus, solid pump. I was tempted to do more but held back because I'll be hitting chest again in 2 days.

BB row: Squat rack was busy, so I went to the Smith machine. Loaded up with 135 lbs, felt light. Decided to keep the weight and go slow and strict. Lift, squeeze, lower, 4 sets x 10 reps each. At the end of the 1st set, my whole upper body felt like it was going to explode! I felt a mile wide. My pecs were blown up even more than from bench press. Boy that felt good.

Squats: Squat rack still busy, so loaded up the Smith machine again and prepared to do it all on the Smith. After warmup, the squat rack opened up, so I changed course and moved the plates to the empty bar. 1 quick warmup, then:
235X10 - this felt almost too easy
255x10 - now that's more like it. In mid-set (around rep 5-6) I felt a huge rush of blood into my quads, like a turbo kicking in. Finished strong, with a phenomenal pump.
255x10 - this was the one of my best squat sets ever. Form was perfect, legs were like massive steam pistons pushing up and down, up and down, accompanied by my muffled testosterone-fueled grunts. I was so focused that a bomb could have gone off next door and I would have been oblivious. After I racked the weight, I had huge endorphin rush and a mind-blowing pump. My legs had never felt so huge.

As I sipped my whey shake, in the locker room afterwards, I tried to figure out why today went so well. Sleep? Diet? Swimming the night before? Not sure, but probably a combination of all of them. Be back tomorrow for shoulders, arms, and calves, and Friday for chest/back/legs again. Here's to a repeat of today.

[jtroster]

One of those workouts is what we go to the gym for. Enjoy the afterglow;)

[BergMuscle]

One of those workouts is what we go to the gym for. Enjoy the afterglow;)

x2

[widebody195]

Thanks JT and Berg. The "afterglow" is soreness the next day, but it's all worth it when the soreness goes away and you come back stronger and harder next time. ;-)

Thursday and Friday went well, and the weekend off was needed to recover.

On Monday I was all rested and ready to hit the weights again...

8/20: Really torched the pecs today, and on Tuesday felt the effects. Haven't been this sore in a long time. What I did:

Bench press: 185x8, 185x8, 185x9 - 3rd set I had a spotter assist with the last 2 reps. Immediately ran over to the dumbell rack and did 3 sets of 10 db flyes with 30 secs rest between sets. Finished with a few minutes of isometric flexing. Pecs really blew up.

BB rows: straight bb rows, 155x10x3 sets.

Squats: after warmup - 255x10x3 sets. Felt strong. Weights can go up next time.

8/21: easy day, pecs quite sore but everywhere else OK.

superset: db lateral raises and db presses, 25x12 + 25x10 x 3 sets - good burn
smith machine military presses: 50 lbs (+61 lb bar) x6 x 2 sets

superset: preacher curl and tricep pushdown, 50x10 + 160x10 x 3 sets

seated calf: 120x20, 120x15, 120x12 - another really good burn

Other notes: Finally getting some grudging respect in the gym from the serious hard-core lifters there. The guys I mentioned before that are massive, cut, and train brutally hard. Even though I'm lifting only about half of the weight they are, I'm starting to get nods, "how'ya doin's, and an occasional spot from these guys. It comes from being in there every day with them and working just as hard as they are.

[Stenn]

Wow! Lots of heavy 10-rep sets of squats going on in here. Good work! I'm glad you're enjoying your new gym. It sounds like we're both finding out that a "serious" gym can be a great inspiration.

[widebody195]

August 27: beginning a 2 week deloading period to give my muscles and joints a break from the heavy lifting. Still will come in every day but the focus will be on light weights, higher reps, good form, and of course, a good pump. The schedule:

Monday: pushups/cable crossover superset: 50+40x15, seated low pulley rows: 100x15, front pulldowns: 100x15
Tuesday: leg press: + calf raise superset 180x20, smith machine military press 95x15, bicep curl 30x15, tricep pushdown 50x15
Wednesday: dips: 15x3, incline db press: 40x15, deadlift: 135x15
Thursday: leg extensions: 60x15, seated calf raise: 90x15, lateral raises 20x15, bicep conc curl 20x15, db pullover 45x15
Friday: db fly/bench superset: 30x15+30X15, assisted chinup 70x15, t-bar row 70x15

[Stenn]

Wednesday: dips: 15x3, incline db press: 40x15, deadlift: 135x15
Thursday: leg extensions: 60x15, seated calf raise: 90x15, lateral raises 20x15, bicep conc curl 20x15, db pullover 45x15
Friday: db fly/bench superset: 30x15+30X15, assisted chinup 70x15, t-bar row 70x15
It seems odd to me to see pullovers all by themselves on Thursday. I would have expected them with one of your chest exercises on Wednesday or Friday.

A lot of folks are doing the deloading thing lately. It looks like a good idea. I've been doing 12-rep sets lately which almost qualifies as a de-load. I may do a week or two of 20-rep sets before resuming my heavy Rippetoe routine.

[widebody195]

sytennison, strange, but pullovers always were more of a tricep exercise for me than anything else. Maybe its my form. It involves a little chest and some lats, but not as much as tri's.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Just finished the first week of my high-rep deloading. The heavy weights have been replaced by intense, searing, burning sensations as I crank through 15-rep supersets (total 30 reps per set). The pain is excruciating, but the pumps are phenomenal and worth it. I get motivated by a phrase seen on a USMC t-shirt at the gym "Pain is weakness leaving the body." Whenever I get to rep 10 or 11 and my muscles are crying out for mercy, I think of that phrase and it gets me through.

Luckily, there's no residual soreness because the weights are light. In a sick sort of way, I'm enjoying this torture so I think I'll keep it up for a while longer until I'm ready to go heavy again.

[Stenn]

The heavy weights have been replaced by intense, searing, burning sensations as I crank through 15-rep supersets (total 30 reps per set).
The long sets take a whole different kind of discipline than heavy sets. It's like every exercise is a calf workout. I'm glad to hear you're ejoying them. Personally, I can't wait to get back to heavy sets.

[widebody195]

I've never trained arms as much as I have recently, and the payoff is that I'm noticing some nice cuts on the deltoids and increased size and thickness in my bi's. I used to dislike training arms, but with the higher rep routine, I'm enjoying the intense burns.

I've been feeling pretty strong, and my muscles are itching to max out again, so I'm starting a gradual transition to heavy weights, and readjusting the workout schedule to do one major multi-joint exercise per day.

Monday: deadlift, pulldown/t-bar row superset, standing bicep curls
Tuesday: bench press, incline db press/flye superset, tricep pushdowns
Wednesday: squat, calf raise, db military press/lateral raise superset
Thursday: pullup, bb row, pullover, preacher curls
Friday: incline bench press, db bench press, lateral raise, leg press/calf raise superset

We'll see how this one plays out.

[widebody195]

Been off of the boards for a while but not out of the gym. I've been going faithfully, increasing weights and intensity. So below is a summary of what I've been doing for the past few weeks. I've changed the sequence slightly from my last post, hitting 2 major bodyparts per workout, and squeezing arms in whenever possible.

Monday: Chest/Legs: Bench, incline db press, cable crossovers, squats, seated calf
Tuesday: Back/Shoulders: Deadlift, pulldown/T-bar row superset, db shoulder press/raise superset
Wednesday: Arms/calves or off
Thursday: Legs/Chest: Squats, incline bench, db bench/flye/pushup triset,
Friday: Back/Shoulders/Tri's: Pullups, bb rows, pullover, military press, lateral raise

9/17: Squat: 225x10,x10,x10 Bench: 175x10,x8,x6, Inc db press: 50x12,x10,x8, cable x-over:50x15,x12,x10

9/20 still glowing from my post-workout endorphin high, pecs pumped up like ballons (see below), feelin' good

Squat: 235x10,x10,x10, seated calf superset, incline bench 150x10,x8,140x8, triple set chest: db flat bench 50x10 + db flye 25x10 + 10 pushups.

Gym music was turned down today, so it was fairly quiet. For some reason, the 45 lb plates were pretty loose so they clanged together loudly at the top of each squat rep. That, accompanied by my muffled animal-grunts, made for quite a scene. Got a few appreciative looks and thumbs-up's. Nice to be getting some respect from guys who can curl more than I can bench.

Buoyed by this, I next attacked chest. After incline bench, the triple chest set was brutally hard. Left a puddle of sweat on the bench and floor (which I wiped up, of course).

9/21 Back and shoulders, plus some biceps

pullups bwx10,8,8+1+1+1 rest pause; bb row 135x10,x10,x10, db pullover 65x12,x12,x10; deltoid superset: lateral raise 30x10+db press 30x10, 3 sets, standing bicep curls 60x10,x10,x10

9/24 Legs and Chest

Squat 245x10,x10,x10, seated calf x12,x10,x8, bench: 180x10,x8,x6+2, inc db press 55x12,x9,x8, cable x-overs, 50x15,x12,x8, still felt strong to went to pec dec, 80x8,x8, great squeeze and hold for peak contraction. Pump was phenonmenal

[Stenn]

Great work going on in here. I like the direction those squats are going!

[widebody195]

Thanks Steve. The squats and deads have been working out pretty well. It's good to be back under the heavy stack.

9/25 Back and shoulders

Deadlift 235x10,x10,x10, superset pulldowns/t-bar rows: 115x10+80x10 x 3 sets, 115's were easy, 80's were not. superset db press/lateral raise: 50x10+25x10, 50x9+25x10, 50x7+25x10 ran out of gas on the last 2 sets of db press/lateral raise.

9/26 Arms & Calves

Stopped in for a quick 20 min arms and calves session. Don't remember the weights, but I did 3 sets of EZ bar curls, 3 sets of concentration curls, 3 superset lying tricep press (nosebreakers)/close grip press, and finished with 3 sets of seated calf.

9/27 Legs & Chest

Squats: 255x10, x10, x10; Incline Bench: 155x10, x9, x7 + 3 rest pause, Chest triple set: db flat bench 55x10+db flye 25x10+10 pushups, 3 sets

I'm very pleased to note that my chest is getting stronger all around. Was slightly sore from Monday's chest workout but was able to power through the incline bench, and made it through the triple set. The 25 lb flyes following db flat bench felt pretty easy, so I'll be going up in weight next time.

[widebody195]

Flat bench: 185x8,x8,x7+1; Incline db press 60x10,x10,x8, db flye 35x10,x10, cable crossover 60x12,x10, squats 255x10,x10,x10, seated calf, 3 sets

stopped into the Vitamin Shoppe over the weekend looking for some protein bars, and they happened to have NitroJack (their generic version of NO-Xplode) on sale. So I picked up a 1.2 lb can for $20 and decided to have a go at it.

Today was the first day on this stuff, which is a caffeine, creatine, argnine blend. Mixed up 1 scoop about 45 min prior to workout time per the recommendation. Taste was tolerable, kind of like bad orange soda. Since I'm not a coffee drinker and my metabolism is faster than most, I felt the caffeine buzz within minutes of downing the drink. By workout time, I was wired pretty good. I believe the "Intensity, Strength, Power" claims of the product lasted officially through the 2nd set of bench press, after which I noticed a slight decline in intensity but still managed to power through the rest of my workout pretty well. As for the claimed pump from NO, it was very interesting. My muscles started feeling pumped during warmup and abs, which has never happened before. After the workout, however, the pump was about the same as before, though I had been getting great pumps before taking NO, so I'm not sure it could have gotten any better.

Anyway, I'll call it a success since all of my weights went up and I felt really strong and focused in the gym. Next time I'll take it closer to workout time.

[Stenn]

Today was the first day on this stuff, which is a caffeine, creatine, argnine blend. Mixed up 1 scoop about 45 min prior to workout time per the recommendation. Taste was tolerable, kind of like bad orange soda. Since I'm not a coffee drinker and my metabolism is faster than most, I felt the caffeine buzz within minutes of downing the drink. By workout time, I was wired pretty good.

It sounds like you and I respond about the same to this kind of stuff. For all the caffeine in it, you would think they'd have latte and cappuccino flavors.

[widebody195]

Steve, still undecided on the effectiveness of NitroJack. If so, it would be the latest in a long line of supplements that were a waste of money for me.

10/2 Back and shoulders

Deadlifts: 245x10,x10,x10 lat pulldowns 120x12,x10,x10, T-bar rows 50x12,x10,x10,x10, seated db presses 50x12,x9,x6 incline rear delt raises 15x12,x10,x10

1 scoop of Nitrojack 15 minutes prior to workout + 1 banana. Buzz not as pronounced as yesterday, but again, pump came on fast and strong during warmup ab exercises. Tremendous focus and intensity during deadlifts. Obviously ran out of gas during db presses, though.

10/4 legs and chest

ATG squats 135x10,x10,x10. I have a confession: my previous squat work has not been true "gluteus maximus to turf", more like quads just going down to parallel. Inspired maybe by all of the articles on T-Nation and Bodybuilding.com extolling the virtues of ATG, today my squats went all the way down to where I couldn't go any more. And it was very humbling. Wow, those extra few inches make all the difference in the world, and it works a completely different part of the quads. I predict I will be very sore from this. My legs started cramping after just the 2nd set, but I managed to Ed Corney-grunt (see the video posted on my Bodyblog) my way through the third set.

Incline bench: 155x8, 155x7, 155x5+1 with spotter assisting on the last rep of the 3rd set. My gym has a lot of aging equipment, and the 45 lb Olympic bars all have slightly different weights. This one felt heavier than the other bars; then again, it might be a lame excuse after pounding through those squats.

Dumbbell chest triple set: DB flat bench 55x10 + db flye 30x10 + pushups bw (feet elevated) X10, no rest between sets. Whew that was hard, but the pump and admiring stares from a few gym members were worth it.

Today I did not have the chance to take NitroJack prior to working out, so I didn't feel the surge of energy and bulging pump during warmup that I would have otherwise. However, energy levels throughout the entire workout were good and I didn't poop out at the end. So I might have to rethink whether NOx benefits me or not.

10/5 back, shoulders, biceps

pullups bwx10,,x9+2,x8,x6,x5; bb row 135x12,x12,x10,x10, db pullover 75x12,x10,x8, superset db flye 30x10+db shoulder press 30x10, 3 sets, rear delt flye 60x10,60x10,50x10, db preacher curl 25x10, 25x10, db conc curl 20x10, 20x10

As expected, my quads are very sore today, from the kneecap all the way to the hip joint. Man, those ATG squats are effective!

1 scoop NitroJack 30 minutes before workout + 1 banana. The food in my stomach probably blunted the caffeine and energy jolt of Nitrojack, but within minutes of taking the NOx (still seated at desk), I felt the pump coming. Today I had great sustained energy through this long and tough workout. For some reason, not very strong on pullups today, but after the workout found out why. I weighed myself on the scale in the locker room -- 178 lbs! This after losing a few pounds of sweat in the gym. That's 6 lbs heavier than a few weeks ago.

[Stenn]

Welcome to the wonderful world of ATG squats! Now you know why most folks avoid them. Once you get past parallel, it's a whole new ballgame. I'm surprised that your hamstrings and glutes aren't sore.

[widebody195]

Welcome to the wonderful world of ATG squats! Now you know why most folks avoid them. Once you get past parallel, it's a whole new ballgame. I'm surprised that your hamstrings and glutes aren't sore.

Yes, they are sore today. It was DOMS. Next step, 20-rep squats. Someday I'll get up the nerve to do them

[widebody195]

ATG squats 145x10,x10,x10, seated calf raises x12,x10,x8, flat bench 190x8, 190x7, 190x6+2, incline db press 65x10, 65x7, 60x7, cable crossovers, 50x15, 50x12, strip set 50x10+40x10+30x10+20x10+10x10.

See my Bodyblog for a description of this workout!

[widebody195]

Back to Bally's again (ugh!), but decided to drop in on a yoga class afterwards to see what it was all about

ATG squats 155x10,x10,x10, seated calf raises 180x10,x10,x10, incline bench press 155x10,x9+1,x8+2, triple set: db bench press 60x10+db flye 30x10+10 pushups, 60x8+30x10+10, 60x6+30x10+10

Definitely getting stronger on ATG squats, so I'll keep increasing the weight. Incline bench felt good too, reps going up.

Yoga class was mostly stretching and some balance exercises, some ab work at the end. The most annoying thing was the music. The instructor played the same song over and over and over and over again, for one solid hour. I normally like Pachabel's Canon, but now I can't get it out of my head. !@#$%^&!!

[BigBT]

Good looking sets tonight. I like the thought of coupling it with Yoga. I wish I had the time to add something like that. I suppose it would be counterproductive to bring in an ipod next time....
Belated welcome to the journals.

[widebody195]

Hi BigBT, thanks for visiting. I'm not going to join in on the yoga class anymore. My wife found a "Buns of Steel" yoga tape that I'll follow in the comfort of our bedroom. It's harder than the Bally's class, but the instructer on the tape is hot!

[widebody195]

10/12 Back, shoulders, arms

pullups bwx10,x9+1,x8+2,x8+2 bb row 135x10,x10,x10,x10, rear delt flye 60x10,60x10,60x10 superset db flye 30x10+db shoulder press 30x10, 3 sets, preacher curl 50x10, 50x10, db conc curl 20x10, 20x10

10/15 Legs and chest

ATG Squats 165x10,x10,x10 Seated calf x12,x10,x10
Flat bench 190x8, 190x1 felt a strain in the lower back after the 1st rep, so I racked it. 135x10, 135x10. Incline DB press 65x8, 50x8, 50x8, cable crossover 50x10, pec deck machine 90x10, 90x10, cable crossover drop set, 50x10+40x10+30x10+20x10+10x10, lots of hard flexing on the last few reps.

My body is telling me that I need a break. Muscles and joints are aching, so I'm going to take it easy for the next week.

[Stenn]

My body is telling me that I need a break. Muscles and joints are aching, so I'm going to take it easy for the next week.

Sounds like a good call. The only problem with taking breaks is that it makes for boring journaling. :)

[widebody195]

Couldn't stay away from the gym too long, muscles were starting to itch for a workout, so I went in for a full-body "easy day."

ATG squats 135x10,x10,x10
seated calf x12,x10,x10
pullups: bwx10,x8,x6
bb row: 135x10,x10,x10
bench press: 135x10,x10,x10
incline db press: 50x10,x10,x10

[widebody195]

With about 4 weeks to go until the official start of the holiday season, with lots of time off and possible overeating anticipated, I'm switching gears a bit to a 3 day per week, full-body routine, training every major muscle group 3 times per week. I think training the same body part 3 times per week (as opposed to 2) might jack my metabolism up a bit and help fend off the excess caloric intake. I'm also starting out easy with relatively light weights until my body gets adjusted to the new schedule.

Monday: Squats ATG 145x9,x10,x9, bench press 145x10,x10,x10,x8, bb row: 135x10,x10,x10,x10, Smith machine military press: 110x10,x8,100x10,x8

[widebody195]

PUllups bwx10,x8,x7,x5

Deadlifts 235x6,x3,x4,x4 (removed gloves) 235x10,x8. Started wearing gloves for the pulling events because my callouses were becoming unbearable. On the first few sets of deadlifts, I kept feeling the bar wanting to slip out of my hand. I had to put it down early when it was clear I was going to drop it. Note to self: grin and bear it and don't wear gloves!
Incline bench: 135x10,x8,x8,x6
incline rear delt raise 15x10,x10,x10,x10

[Hibiscus09]

PUllups bwx10,x8,x7,x5

Deadlifts 235x6,x3,x4,x4 (removed gloves) 235x10,x8. Started wearing gloves for the pulling events because my callouses were becoming unbearable. On the first few sets of deadlifts, I kept feeling the bar wanting to slip out of my hand. I had to put it down early when it was clear I was going to drop it. Note to self: grin and bear it and don't wear gloves!
Incline bench: 135x10,x8,x8,x6
incline rear delt raise 15x10,x10,x10,x10

Maybe straps would help with the slippage.

Nice job on the workouts!

[Stenn]

There are a few of things you can do to fix callouses and slipping during deadlifts.

Definately get rid of the gloves.
Use chalk if your gym will allow it.
Use an over/under grip. This helps A LOT.

The last one's kinda anti-intuitive but....

Don't grip the bar too tightly.

If you're putting a death-grip on the bar before pulling, with your thumbs wraped all the way around, the bar is only going to slip down into the hook of your fingers. As it does this, it will fold your skin over and cause callouses. You're better off starting with the bar just in the hook of your fingers so that when you pull, the bar doesn't slip. The thumb is used more for keeping the fingers in place rather than for lifting the bar.

Before I learned these tricks, I was deadlifting 200, having trouble with my grip, and thinking about straps. Now, I'm deadlifting 300 strap-free and I don't even think about my grip. My hands have very few callouses.

[widebody195]

Hibs, Steve,

Thanks for the hints on grip. I do use an over/under grip, but the problem is that my gym has several Olympic bars of different thicknesses and knurl patterns. I happened to be using a more "slippery" one, and plus my gloves are new so the leather is not broken in yet.

I'll try a looser grip next time. I "borrowed" my wife's emery board to file down some of the callouses and my hands feel much better!

[widebody195]

Lower back quite sore today, not sure if it's from the struggle with deadlifts on Wednesday or other reasons. I did not want to risk an injury so I skipped squats and used the hack squat machine instead. Still managed to get in a challenging leg set, especially going ATG on the hack squat.

Hack squat: bw+sled weight+50 lbs x 10,x10,x10,x10 (total weight unknown)
DB bench press: 70x10,x10,x10 wow, haven't done db bench in a while, quite pleased with being able to do 70's and it didn't seem too difficult!
DB incline flye: 35x10,x10,x10
T-bar row: 50x12,x12,x12,x12 these were not difficult, but again I was struggling with the grip (no gloves this time). I'm contemplating using straps.
Rear delt flye machine: 70x10,x10,x10,x10

I'm doing much more rear delt work these days. My better half has pointed out some flaws in my posture that need improvement, so I'm hoping that will correct it.

Overall, a good workout. Took 1 scoop of NitroJack prior to workout, felt a bit of a rush and had good sustained energy.

[user654415165]

I have heard that sets across with deadlifts can be pretty tough on the posterier chain. Maybe a heavier warmup leading to one really heavy workset could alleviate some of that pain?

[widebody195]

squat rack was busy, so I reversed the order of exercises
bench press 155x10,x10,x10,x8
bb row 135x12,x12,x12,x12, next time, weight is going up.
db military press 45x10,x10,x8,x8
ATG squats 155x8,x8,x8

I started taking ZMA over the weekend, after reading about how nearly 100% of athletes were deficient in zinc and how standard zinc supplements (which I've been taking to keep those dreaded germs my kids bring back from school from taking me down) don't cut it as they are bound with calcium which reduces their absorption.

Anyway, I must report I had some pretty wild dreams the first night. My wife claimed that it was the first time I ever talked in my sleep (in 10 years of marriage). Hopefully I didn't say anything to get me in trouble!

[widebody195]

Thursday 11/1 Back blast

superset Pullups+ deadlifts, 60-90 seconds between exercises bwx10+235x10, bwx8+235x10,bwx7+235x10, bwx8
T-bar rows 70x10,x10,x10,x11
rear delt flyes 80x10,x10,x10,x10

Today was a great workout. I didn't have any problems with grip (thanks Sytennison for the hints on not maintaining a "death grip"). The pullup/deadlift superset was awesome. If you had an infrared camera on me, my whole back would have been glowing.

Friday 11/2 chest and legs

Hack squats 70x15,x15 - 15 Rep hack squats ATG are tough, felt lightheaded after the last set. Big swollen quads.

Incline bench 135x10,x10,x8,x8
DB bench 75x4,70x7,x6,x8,x5 - now I know what "pre-exhaust" means. After 4 sets on incline bench, try as I might, I couldn't budge the 75's more than 4 reps on db press. Dropped back to 70's (working weight from last week that felt easy), and struggled through the next 2 sets. Then I ran into an old gym buddy whom I haven't seen in a while, and he took one look at me and said "wow, you're getting strong, and it shows!" With my ego as pumped up as my pecs, I proceeded to bang out 8 reps on the next set. Boy that felt good. It just goes to show you how much weightlifting can be mental.

Superset cable crossovers + Rear delt incline raise 50x12+20x10, 50x12+15x12, 50x12+15x12, 50x10+15X10

[widebody195]

Pecs still moderately sore from Friday's punishment, other muscles feel pretty good.

ATG squats: 165x10,x10,x10 legs cramped up after the 2nd set, but managed to get through the 3rd set in reasonable fashion.
Flat bench press: 165x10,x10,x10,x8+2 unsure about how bench would go today because of the residual soreness, but on warmups I felt strong, so decided to go for it.
Barbell row: 145x10,x10,x10,x10
DB military press: 50x10,50x7+2
Smith machine military press: 100x10,100x6 it was clear my shoulders were toast.

[jtroster]

Some good workouts here.

[widebody195]

Thanks JT for checking in.

Today was full-body day again.

pullup/deadlift superset: bwx10+245x10, bwx9+245x10, bwx8+245x10, bwx7
incline bench: 135x10,135x10,135x8,135x10 (spotter assist on last set)
db incline rear delt flye: 20x12,20x10,15x12,15x12

Nothing like pullup/deadlift supersets to get the heart rate into the stratosphere.

[Hibiscus09]

Nice job on the workouts! :) I hope you've had a great day.

[widebody195]

Hi Hibiscous, thanks and same to you!

Today was full-body day at Bally Total Fitness. The equipment was different and so was the clientele.

Hack squats: 70x20, x20 these were pretty tough

DB bench and Hammer strength row superset: 75x10 + 70x12, 75x8+90x10, 70x10 + 90x10, 70x9+90x10 mastered 75 lb dumbbells on db press, yeah! Hammer strength rows were too easy, didn't dial in the working weight well enough

Pec deck and rear delt flye superset 75x10+75x10 x 4 supersets. Again, weights felt light so I concentrated on perfect form and superslow eccentrics.

That's it, a relatively light workout. I wasn't in the mood to go all-out today.

[widebody195]

Bench press+BB row superset 170x10+155x10, 170x10+155x10,170x10+155x10,170x9(+1 spotter assist)+1555x10

Incline DB slye + DB incline rear delt lateral superset 40x10+20x10, 4 sets

Pulldowns+Pec Dec superset 120x10+80x10, 115x10+80x10, 115x10+80x10

I'm experimenting with this new superset routine to try to cram more sets adn reps into the limited time I have at the gym. In theory, alternating push-pull supersets allow for my muscles to recover more fully between sets for a given rest period, so I can go heavier and harder. It seemed to work today. Despite fasting for a full night and going without breakfast (I had a routine physical today), my bench press and bb row supersets were strong. I felt so good I decided to hit the chest and back hard today with two more supersets, saving legs for tomorrow.

[widebody195]

ATG Squats 170x10,x10,x10
Deadlifts 235x10,x10
DB Military press 50x10,x9, 45x10,x8

A short but tough session today. Squats and deads in the same workout is a rarity for me. I might be paying for it tomorrow.

[jtroster]

ATG Squats 170x10,x10,x10
Deadlifts 235x10,x10
DB Military press 50x10,x9, 45x10,x8

A short but tough session today. Squats and deads in the same workout is a rarity for me. I might be paying for it tomorrow.
I also do squats and deadlifts on the same day. However, I pick one of the two to go heavy and the other I do light. Right now I'm doing heavy deads and light ATG Front Squats.

[widebody195]

JT, I hear you. I couldn't manage my normal working weight on deads last Wednesday, so I went down 15 lbs and dropped a set.

Still sore from Wednesday's lower body blast, I attacked upper today.

Pullup/incline bench superset: bwx10+135x10,bwx10+135x10,bwx10+135x10,bwx5(+3 rest pause)+135x10
DB bench press/seated row superset:
75x10+140x10,75x8+140x10,70x9+140x10,70x8+140x10
Pec dec
90x10,90x10,
Pec dec/rear delt flye 100x10+100x10,100x10+100x10,100x10+100x10

[Stenn]

ATG Squats 170x10,x10,x10
Deadlifts 235x10,x10
DB Military press 50x10,x9, 45x10,x8

A short but tough session today. Squats and deads in the same workout is a rarity for me. I might be paying for it tomorrow.

Wow, that is a tough one. I would have done the presses between the squats and deads to give my lower body a breather.

[widebody195]

Yes Steve, maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment :)

Today I hit a nearly deserted Bally's the day before Thanksgiving, for a full-body blast.

ATG Squats 175x10,x10,x10
Bench press/pullup superset: 175x10 +bwx10, 175x10 + bwx8, 175x8+bwx8
Incline db press/bb row superset: 60x10+135x10,60x10+135x10,60x7+135x10
pec dec/rear delt flye superset: 100x10+100x10, 3 sets

Workout felt great. Now I can gorge on turkey tomorrow without guilt!

[widebody195]

Beginning a 4 day split which will take me through Christmas, then another break. However, I felt a bit lethargic after the excesses of the weekend. But the turkey sure tasted good!

Squats ATG 180x10,x10,x10
bench press 180x10,x8,x6
incline db press 60x10,x7, 50x10
cable crossovers 50x12,x11,x10

[Stenn]

I like the new workout, simple but effective.

[jtroster]

What is your split?

[widebody195]

Hi Joel,

My 4 day split is roughly:

Monday: Chest and Legs
Tuesday: Back, Shoulders, Biceps
Wednesday: off
Thursday: Chest and Legs
Friday: Back, Shoulders, Biceps

Today was back shoulders and biceps day. For some reason, I have serious DOMS in the pecs and quads, haven't been this sore in quite some time. Oh well.

Deadlift: 235x10,x10,x10
T-bar row: 80x10,x10,x10,x10
Dumbbell Military Press: 50x10,x10,x6
Incline rear lateral raise/incline concentration curl superset: 20x10+20x10, 3 sets

[widebody195]

Getting over a cold, and still sore from Monday, but I had a great workout today.

Incline bench press 135x10,x10,x10
DB bench press 75x6,70x10,x10
close grip bench 95x10,115x10,x10
pec dec 70x10,90x10
hack squats 70x20,70x20

This was the first time I tried close grip bench, trying to target my tri's a bit more. As I develop the feel and balance, I can go up in weight a bit.

The 20 rep hack squats were tough. The sled at this gym is heavier than the one at Bally's, at least that's my excuse.

Friday December 1 Back, shoulders biceps

This is the workout I look forward to, lots of good exercises, but no squats or deadlifts :) I tried to keep up a fast tempo today, with about 1 min rest between sets

pullups: bwx10,x8,x8,x6
bb rows: 145x10,x10,x10,x10
db lateral raise 25x11,x10,x10
rear delt flye 70x10,x10,x10
ez bar bicep curl 50x10,x10,x10

[widebody195]

Great strong workout today. Energy level high, really motivated. Yeah!

squats 185x10,x10,x10
flat bench 180x10,x9,x7
incline db press 60x10,x10,x8
cable crossovers 60x10,x10,x10

[Stenn]

Great strong workout today. Energy level high, really motivated. Yeah!

Don't ya just love days like that? :D

[widebody195]

Another strong workout. I'm on a roll.

deadlifts: 245x10,x10,x10 these seemed too easy. Got to 10 and thought, what? done already?
t-bar rows: 75x10,x10,x10,x10 pump felt so good I did a 4th set
db military press: 50x10,x10,x6
rear delt flye: 80x10,90x10,100x10
preacher curl: 40x10,x10,x8,x8

[Stenn]

deadlifts: 245x10,x10,x10 these seemed too easy. Got to 10 and thought, what? done already?

LOL You don't usually hear people say things like that about deadlifts. Are you sure you're doing them right? :D

[widebody195]

Yeah, I couldn't believe it myself Steve. I've been on a bit of an energy/growth spurt lately, so I'm going to milk it for all its worth before taking off 2 weeks for Christmas.

Thursday December 6 Chest and legs

The heavier I go, the bigger my muscles will grow. Today all the weights went up.

db flat bench: 75x10,x10,x8
incline bench: 145x8, 135x8,x6
close grip bench: 115x10,x10,x8
horizontal pec dec: 110x10,x10

and now for the killer: hack squats 80x20,x20 almost lost consciousness after the last set. What a great feeling.

Tip of the day: count backwards - it makes the set seem shorter, and psychologically, the countdown to 0 helps you to get through the set.

Friday December 7 back, shoulders, bi's

empty gym today, so I got to experiment with supersetting that normally would be impossible during the crowded lunch hour.

Pullup/rear delt lateral raise superset: bwx10+20x10, bwx10+20x10, bwx8+20x10, bwx6+20x10
BB row/db lateral raise superset: 150x10+25x10, 4 supersets
seated concentration curls: 25x10, 25x8
cable bicep curls: 40x10, 40x10

Switched to a new whey protein today: GNC Wheybolic Extreme 60, with glutamine and leucine. The guy at GNC promised amazing results. We'll see.

[widebody195]

Monday December 10 chest and legs

I'm now proud to say (or maybe not) that I'm benching as much as I'm squatting. Considering that my chest has always been weak compared to my legs, this is a bit of a milestone.

bench press 185x9,x8,x7 spotter assist on the last rep of the last set
incline db press 65x10,x7, 60x8
pec dec machine 90x10,x10,x10
squats 185x10,x10,x10
seated calf 2 sets x20 reps

Tuesday December 11 Back, shoulders, biceps

Late afternoon express workout at Bally's.

deadlift: 255x5,x5,x5,x5,x5 the knurling on the Olympic bars at Bally's is really sharp. The pain in my hands is excruciating! Need gloves!
Hammer strength row: 140x10,x10,x10,x10
barbell military press+seated rear delt lateral raise superset: 95x11 + 15x10, 95x10+15x10, 95x10+15x10

In and out in 1/2 hour. Good sweat because of fast pace.

[widebody195]

Hi everyone,

I had a restful 2 weeks off with no working out, and back in the gym with a vengeance. I've decided to continue workout logs and journal entries at my bodyspace:

http://bodyspace.bodybuilding.com/widebody195/

Check it out and see you around!

[Stenn]

I've decided to continue workout logs and journal entries at my bodyspace
Is it possible to subscribe to a BodyBlog like you can a journal?

[widebody195]

Steve, not sure about that. I'm not able to spend much time on the boards these days so can't help you there. Sorry.