Ironwill2008

[ironwill2008]

I started this thread in the Workout Journal forum, and decided to continue it here in the Over35 Workout Journal forum, with you young folks.
I figured I might as well start an on-line journal; everyone else has! Besides, I haven't seen too many from guys my age, and maybe I can prod some of you other "mature" iron-pumpers to work a little bit harder, and get a little stronger.

I started bodybuilding 15 years ago, at age 45. I was a 2-pack-a-day smoker, a drinker, ate badly, and had arthritis in my shoulders and hands. I was plain old sick and tired of being sick and tired. Picking up an Olympic bar has proven to be one of the BEST things I've ever done.

I started out weighing 130 pounds, soaking wet, at 5' 8". I'm as ecto as they come. I made all the usual noob mistakes:doing way too many sets, training way too many days a week, not eating nearly enough, eating too clean to really gain weight, the whole deal. After a year, I had gained about 10 pounds and then stalled out, training at home, with very minimal equipment. I realized I needed to get to a gym, where I could squat, bench and deadlift safely. I joined a gym, got some real good advice from the owner about split routines, and the importance of compound exercises.

When I was 56, 4 years ago, I was at my all-time biggest and strongest, weighing 200 pounds, at about 10% BF. I was deadlifting 405 for reps, 430 for 1; squatting 315 for reps, 335 for 1; and benching240 for reps, 260 for 1. These stats have dropped off a bit in the last few years, and accepting that was difficult at first. I've come to grips with the realization that I'm not as young as I used to be!

Over the years, I've gradually shortened my workouts, and usually do what some would consider an abbreviated routine. I change it frequently, and still really enjoy training. It has restored my health, and I can do pretty much anything I want, physically, and I have no trouble keeping my waistline in check. Of course, nutrition plays a HUGE part in this story, but this is a workout journal, and I won't comment much about my nutrition, unless asked.

The routine I just started Sunday is a transition from the 5x5 Bill Starr-type routine that I always go to during the winter. It's a 4-way split, with more exercises than the basic 5x5.

Today training was: Chest/ tri's/ abs

Smith machine Incline Press
135x10 W/U
135x10 W/U
185x10
195x10
205x10

Flat Dumbbell Press
75x12
80x9
80x9
Haven't used 'bells for presses for a few months; feels really good, but wrestling them into position is rough on my old wrists.

Incline Flye
50x7
45x9
45x9

French Press
85x10
95x5
85x9

Pressdowns
70x9
70x9
70x7

Hanging leg raise
18-9-9

This workout took me 60 minutes to complete. The arthritis in my wrists and hands is affecting my grip strength, especially with the dumbbells. Oh well, if it's not one thing, it's two things! Friday, it's deads; I can't wait! Excuse me for now, I have to go eat.

[orca]

Welcome. Very strong workout.

[ironwill2008]

Thank you for the reply, orca. I've found that it's very hard to try to better my loads or reps these days, but that never keeps me from trying! Have a great day!

[ironwill2008]

Just knocked out another workout. Logged it in my training log as it went down; I'll post it here.

Today's training: Back/ Biceps/ Abs

Deadlift
135x6 W/U
135x6 W/U
185x6
225x6
275x6
315x6
355x3

Curl-grip pulldown
160x11
170x10
180x7
I get a good lat pump from these.

Wide-grip seated row
160x8
160x8
160x8
160x8
These give me a good pump, too.

Barbell curl
90x8
90x7
90x6

Hammer curl
30x6
30x6
30x6
I haven't done these in about 6 months. I rotate them into my routine from time to time. I get a very unique pump in the outside of my upper arm, near the elbow, from them.

Crunch 25/13/10, done rest-pause style.

This workout took 65 minutes to complete. I took some extra time between sets of deads,to concentrate on what I was doing. In next week's back workout, I think I'll work-in some dumbbell rows; I haven't done them in a while, either. I'm through for the day. I'll be back in the gym Sunday afternoon, to do calves/shoulders/ abs. Have a good weekend.

[ChocoChick]

Wow - great life transformation. Good to have you here.

[ironwill2008]

Thanks so much for the kind words, ChocolateGirl. I hesitate to take any credit for the life-change; the discipline required is a gift. Thanks again; have a great weekend!

[ironwill2008]

Just finished up another training session, this time for:

Calves/Shoulders/Abs

Leg press calf raise
200x20
400x10
500x6

Seated calf raise
160x14
170x8
180x7

Military press
barx10 W/U
85x6 W/U
115x10
120x6
120x6

Lateral raise
25x10
25x10
25x9

Bent lateral
25xx11
25x11
25x9

Crunch
25-13-10, done rest/pause.

This workout took 60 minutes to complete. Everything felt good, except my hands. Advancing arthritis is becoming an issue in my grip strength, especially in compound exercises like Military presses. It's becoming increasingly difficult to clean the bar into a press position. I guess it's just another factor in getting older. I can't imagine (and really don't want to!) what kind of shape I'd be in today, if not for pumping iron, and following bodybuilding nutrition, all these years. Hope everyone had a good weekend. Tomorrow, it's back to the gym for my favorite-legs.

[ironwill2008]

Another day's training in. I was really motivated today. That's never a problem for me, but today I was especially ready to roll. Maybe because it was leg day; I don't know.

Leg extensions
45x10 W/U
100x10 W/U
125x11
130x10
135x8

Squats
135x10 W/U
185x10 W/U quads pumped up like baloons.
225x8
255x8
275x6
285x3

Hack squats
250x10
300x9
350x6 felt really heavy.

Stiff-leg deads
135x6
185x6
205x6
225x6
245x6

Lying leg curl
45x8
45x7
45x7

This workout took me 70 minutes to complete. I did a couple extra sets of stiff-leg deads, just because I was feeling pretty froggy, and at my age, you have to strike while the iron's hot! As soon as my stomach settles down, I'll hit a protein shake, and a banana, and another 100 grams of simple carbs of some sort, whatever looks good. There's a pound of steak and a pound of chicken in the fridge, and it will all be gone by tomorrow. Gotta go; time to eat and rest.

[ironwill2008]

Just finished up chest, triceps and abs. I was a little distracted today, but eventually got in the groove.

Here's today's training:

Flat bench dumbbell press
60x10 W/U
70x10 W/U
80x10
80x10
80x9

Smith incline press
185x8
200x6
200x6

Incline flye
50x9
50x9
50x8

French press
95x6
95x6
95x6

Pressdown
70x10
70x10
70x10

Hanging leg raise 18-10-10

Took me 65 minutes to get this done.Would have been quicker,, but I got off to a slow start. I had a little trouble getting my head into the workout at first, but once I got that squared-away, it was smooth sailing, as always. I haven't done a few of the exercises in this current routine for quite a while. I've been working on barbell stuff almost exclusively over the winter; I do this every year. So, for a big change-up, I'm getting back to using more dumbbells, and even some cables. It's all good, and every exercise has some merit. The French presses are one of my favorite triceps exercises. My tris are pretty well-developed, and I credit this to the French presses, which I've been doing for years, and also to dips. I can't dip nearly as heavy as I once was able to, due to arthritis in my shoulders, but back in the day, would strap on a ton of weight for dips. Wish I could still do 'em, but have learned over the years not to try to push through joint pain; it's a dead-end street. My wrists have some arthritis, too, and are aching a bit from the 80's I used for chest. Oh well, ya just have to make a few sacrifices, I guess. Deadlifts are up for Friday; I can't wait.

[ironwill2008]

Another one in the bag. Today's training covered:

Back/Biceps/Abs

Deads
135x6 W/U
185X6 W/U
225x6
275x6
315x6 spinal erectors pumped up
360x3

Curl-grip pulldowns
90x10 W/U
180x10 good lat pump
180x8
170x9


Wide-grip seated row
160x9 more pump
160x8
160x7


Dumbbell row- easing into these; haven't done them for a while.
70x8
70x8
70x8


Barbell curl
65x8 W/U
90x8
90x7
90x6


Incline dumbbell curl
30x6 bi's are DEAD!
30x6
30x6


Crunch 25-15-10, done rest-pause.

Everything felt good today. Workout took 1 hour, 20 min.; I spent some extra time on a few exercises I haven't done in a while. I absolutely love to deadlift; it's the lift that suits my body best, I guess. I like how my spinal erectors pump-up; it's a great feeling to have such a solid lower back. But I didn't get it overnight; I've been doing deads for 14 years now, once a week.I remember the very first time I did deads; I worked up to a final set of 185x5, and the next day, I could hardly move! I hadn't injured myself; it's just that I had tapped into muscles, ligaments and tendons that I'd never reached in the previous first year's training. I had thought, prior to this, that I was in great shape, and it was a REVELATION that this exercise could affect me so profoundly. I've been hitting them hard ever since, and between these and squats, I'm a completely different person than the guy who bought a k-mart plastic weight set 15 years ago. Enough rambling; it's the endorphins, I guess! Gotta go eat. Have a great weekend. Train HARD!

[ectoBgone]

Hey, I just spotted this journal. Glad to see you started one. I appreciated the introduction too as I can identify with some of it with respect to being a hardgainer. It's always encouraging to hear about guys making huge gains after starting out scrawny. I'll be keeping tabs on your journal as you look like you really know what you're doing.

I do have one question from your intro. What did you mean when you said that you were "eating too clean to really gain weight"? I'd be interested to hear that unpacked a bit. Thanks.

[ironwill2008]

Hello, ectoBgone! Thanks for the kind words and encouragement! Everything I've learned, I learned by experience. Sure, I read a lot, and still do, but I've made mistakes and learned from them, and made good progress, and learned from it, too. I've kept a training log from the very first day I started to lift weights. I still have all 15 years' worth. I decided to start putting it on this site for exactly the reason you cited- so other guys like I was 15 years ago- older/ thinner/ weaker/ unhealthy ectos would see that it's NEVER too late to make big improvements. I don't consider myself anything special, other than I have a real gift of self-discipline, something which comes in really handy when I just don't feel like training, or eating, for that matter!
As for the comment about eating "too clean", as I stated in my intro, I made every noob mistake in the books, and even invented a few myself, when I started. I read up on general nutrition, and at that time, the big thing was "fat-free". I took it to heart, and micro-managed my fat intake. I'd run and hide form anything that had a gram of fat in it! After stalling out on increasing my bodyweight, I realized the value of healthy fats, and the difference between them and unhealthy types. I also read a couple of eye-opening medical texts about dietary cholesterol, and how it is the raw material the body uses to manufacture testosterone, and other hormones. To this day, I don't worry about fat intake, as long as it's healthy fat, and especially not trans-fat. Sorry this is so long-winded; I have trouble sometimes getting across my point in a concise manner. Hope I answered your question. Again, thanks .

[ectoBgone]

Yup, that answers the question very well, thanks. I just recently discovered the same exact thing about good fats and how negligent I was with them. It was a bit of a leap of faith for me at first to start adding fat to my diet on purpose, but it seems to be paying off. I'm glad to hear someone else needed it too.

[ironwill2008]

I felt the same way about adding fat back into my nutrition plan, but after a couple months of the no-fat deal, my joints hurt, my skin was dry, and I just didn't have a lot of energy. The biggest factor for me was realizing that red meat is not evil! I found I am at my biggest and strongest when I eat red meat. I think it's the amino acid profile in it; I believe it's ideal for building muscle. At least it has been for me!

[ectoBgone]

Oh yeah. This is my growth fuel.

[ironwill2008]

Originally Posted by ectoBgone

Oh yeah. This is my growth fuel.

EXACTLY!!! LOL!

[ironwill2008]

Here's another one in the book. As I usually do, I've made a change or two to this routine. I'm constantly tweaking something, depending on circumstances, etc.

Today's training was Calves/Shoulders/Abs

Leg press calf raise
200x23
400x12
500x6

Seated calf raise
160x20
180x12
190x10

Smith seated press
95x8 W/U
115x8 W/U
135x8
140x6
140x6
I'm going back to the Smith machine to do presses; when I try Military presses with more than about 120 pounds, the arthritis in my wrists and hands gives me real problems while cleaning the bar. I can press it, no sweat, once it's up there, but the pain causes me to nearly loose the bar- not a good thing! Pressing 120 won't do me any good, so I'll change-up, so I can use more weight. I'll still go back to militaries, from time to time, and also work-in dumbbell presses occasionally.

Lateral raise
25x11
25x9
25x8

Bent lateral
25x11
25x10
25x10
I found, a long time ago, that I could swing 40 pounders up in this exercise, but the next day, my teres and rhomboids were sore, and not my rear delts. Hah! Here's another case where less is more. Rear delts are a small muscle, and if loaded even just a bit too heavy, will duck out of the way, and let the larger, stronger back muscles take right over. It always amazes me how adaptive the human body can be, when stressed, to let larger muscles take over , to lighten the load, if you allow it to.

Crunches 23-11-8, done rest/pause.

That's it for today. I burned 55 minutes on this session. I try not to let the arthritis thing bug me, but sometimes it does. Arthritis in my shoulders is one of the main reasons why I got into this in the first place. Getting older can be rough, but it beats the alternative! The wife and I will take it easy the rest of the day, and look forward to Monday. Tomorrow's training is my favorite- legs. Later...

[ectoBgone]

Nice workout. Interesting comments about larger muscles taking over, good food for thought. Good luck with leg day. Mine are still screaming from Friday.

[ironwill2008]

Thanks for the comments, ectoBgone. They are much appreciated.


Leg day has come and gone, and went well. There's just something about squats that is really appealing to me-the way the bar feels across my shoulders, or the tight feeling in my quads, after just a couple warm-up sets. Or, maybe it's only the ego-thing of moving some weight with good form; whatever it is, I like it!

So, today was Legs:

Leg extensions
55x10 W/U
100x10 W/U
130x9
130x8
130x8

Squats
135x6 W/U
185X6 W/U quads pumping up.
225x9
255x8
275x6 quads really pumped
285x4

Hack squats
250x12
300x10
350x6 calves started to cramp; felt like I had another rep in me, but didn't want to chance losing control with a bad cramp.

Stiff-leg deads
135x6
185x6
205x6
225x6
250x6 form wasn't good here; I was tiring.

Leg curls
45x8
45x6 hammies are DEAD
45x6

That will be enough. This workout took me 70 minutes; I'd prefer to finish in an hour, but won't rush getting my breath back between sets.That's also a bit of a holdover from my previous 5x5 routine, where I take all the time I want, usually 3 minutes, between heavy sets of 5 reps. I'll gradually speed-up this routine, and am not worried about trying to do it overnight.One thing I've learned is to make haste slowly- being aware of the importance of making progress, but not rushing it.

Next leg training day, I think I'll sub leg presses for the hack squats. No real reason other than I haven't used the leg press in quite a while, and a change is most always good, at least for me. I'm a little suspect, though, about any exercise that allows me to use 3 1/2 times my bodyweight; sometimes I wonder just how much benefit I get from them. What I should have done, somewhere along the way is to quit squatting for 2 months, and just do leg presses, and really work them, and see what my quads would look like. The only thing that ever kept me from doing that was I highly suspect that my quads would fade, and my butt would get bigger, neither of which I'm willing to risk.Besides, like I said, I like to squat, so why not squat? Well, that's it; time to cook some steak and chicken. Later...

[ironwill2008]

I feel good this morning; quads are already slightly sore. I'm sure there'll be more soreness to come. A month or so ago, while I was on a 5x5 Bill Starr -type routine, I concentrated on keeping my feet close together during squats, and hack squats, to target my Lateralis (outer thighs). I couldn't lift quite as much weight as usual, with this foot placement, but felt I needed the change. I'm back to a shoulder-width stance now, and even occasionally a little wider, for a few sets each workout. Today I'm feeling that change, in that my Medialis(teardrop muscle) is slightly more sore. I think it's really cool how you can pretty much zero right in on a lagging bodypart, if you really try.

A little side-note on squatting to parallel, or below. When I first started training, like a lot of noobs, I got tied up into ego-lifting. I can look back at my old training logs, and see where I was "squatting" 405 lbs, way back in '95. What I was doing was about 1/4 squats! The gym owner, whose opinion I valued, kept telling me to cut back the load, and squat deeper, but I didn't want to listen. The result was thighs shaped like carrots- NO development in the lower quads, near the knees. What was worse than this was I was beginning to have some issues with my knees. They were becoming de-stabilized from not squatting to parallel.
Long story short- I finally realized I was doing it all wrong, cut my loads in half, and started over. I eventually built my squat back up to an honest, to-parallel, 335, and my quads filled out. Today, I'm not squatting that heavy , but the quads still have good shape. Next to my tri's, I think they're my best bodypart.

So, if your quads don't look like you want them to, do a real self-evaluation on how you're training them. I'm proof that it's never too late in the game to make changes for the better.

[ectoBgone]

This is all great information. Thanks for taking the time to journal it.

Oh, and that was a killer leg workout! Nice work.

[unimoose]

Great log and some very strong workouts. I made the same mistake about fats as well, a lesson I really only learned a few days ago. Glad you joined the journals section, I'm looking forward to reading more.

[ironwill2008]

Thank you for the kind words and encouragement, ectoBgone & unimoose. I was very fortunate to have been mentored by a few really knowledgeable people, back in the day, who helped me along. Sometimes I was a little slow to get their point! I'm just trying to pass this info along, plus what I have learned on my own. Maybe help others avoid my mistakes, as well as benefit from what I find to work well, and why. I surely don't claim to know it all; in fact, the more I have learned in 15 years, the more I realize I don't know.
I've only been active on this site for a few months, and have already picked up a ton of useful info. I try to learn from everyone, regardless of their training history. Have a great day, guys!

[ironwill2008]

Just finished up another training session. I'll toss it out here. Today was:

Chest/Tri's/Abs

Flat dumbbell press
60x6 W/U
70x6 W/U
80x12
85x6 pump city
80x9

Smith machine incline press
185x10
205x7
205x6

Flat flye
50x8
50x8
50x8

Smith close-grip bench
135x10
135x10
135x10 haven't done these in a long time; taking it easy for today; I'll hammer 'em next week.

Pressdown
75x12
80x8
80x8

Hanging leg raise 19-11-9 rest/pause.


That's all she wrote. This workout took 65 minutes. A few observations, along the way: when I'm coming back to an exercise that I haven't done for a while (I change routines frequently, and even change within a routine), I've learned the hard way to not go all-out on it the first week. And if it's a skill move, such as clean-and-press, etc., I'll take a couple of weeks, to get it up to speed. I don't mind muscle soreness at all; I seek it out; but ligament and/or tendon injury is something else altogether. One of my favorite sayings is "Make haste slowly". It's served me well; I've never suffered a serious training injury in 15 years. I'm not bragging; it's just that I had a couple of really good teachers, along the way. Just wanting to pay them forward.
Another note; as I said in an earlier entry in this journal, I haven't used dumbbells for chest in a while. When I pulled those 85's off the rack, and propped them up on my knees to kick them back, they were COVERED with dust!!! Just another positive indicator that I really needed to get back to the 'bells! Good day to everyone.

[ironwill2008]

I've been posting on this site now for only a couple of months, but already have seen many, many posts concerning shoulder problems. Since having to deal with this problem myself ( it's one of the main reasons I got into bodybuilding in the first place), I tried to learn as much as I could about the subject. Although my problems started with arthritis, all the stuff I learned is still valid to someone without it. And even without arthritis, I'm certain I would have eventually come to these conclusions anyway, sooner or later. Here's what I've learned over the years.
The shoulder joint is a shallow ball-and -socket. It's held together by small muscles whose job it is to keep the ball firmly in the socket. Great; no problem. Now, we lay on a bench, and try to push large amounts of weight away from the body. The load tries to pull the ball right out of the socket, causing the small muscles to stretch. Over the years, this constant stretching causes the joint to fit looser and looser. Then, the joint doesn't track properly, and it starts to hurt. If the small rotator cuff muscles are REALLY overloaded, they tear. Then, you have immobility, or at best, constant pain.
If you're lucky, you realize there's a problem, and find other ways to work your chest. Dumbbells work really well, because the hands aren't bridged together onto a bar, and the joints have a little freer range of motion. Also, since you can't control dumbbells heavy enough to equal what you can with a barbell, the joints aren't subjected to such heavy loads. True, the muscles won't be either, but I found I'd rather bench with the heaviest dumbbells I can handle, than not bench at all, because barbell presses kill my rotator cuffs.
I also found I could bench press on a Smith machine, with no pain. This may be an answer for some, but not for others. I have found it works for me. I know there are Smith haters out there, but I look on any piece of equipment as just another tool to build muscle and strength. Unless it's sold on a TV infomercial, it has some value!
As an aside, over the years, after not doing barbell bench presses for a few years, and having no shoulder pain, other than the aforementioned arthritis (to which I try to pay no mind), I'll think, "maybe I can bench a little; maybe it won't hurt my shoulder joints this time". Wrong. The times I've tried to go back, every time I got over 185 pounds, the pain came back, and stayed for a good month or two, after I quit benching again!
I put this out there for something to think about. It seems posts about shoulder pain are almost as common as posts from guys wanting to know how to build bigger arms! Everybody, train hard.

[ectoBgone]

I'm starting to believe. I've seen quite a few posts about this lately. It's really strange because the only time I got a shoulder issue was when I was doing DB presses instead of BB bench. For me, the hard part is getting the DBs into position from lying down. They start significantly lower than the actual ROM of a press, so when going heavy (8 reps) I feel very vulnerable when I first lie down and try to lift the DBs into position.

I tried the Smith for Bench before and it was fine on my shoulder, but it gave me wrist problems. Something about having to unlatch the weight put my wrist in an awkward position.

I am getting a little nervous with barbell benching though as it sounds like a ticking time bomb. I'm thinking the best alternative might be to go to dumbbells with power hooks.

[ironwill2008]

Hello, ectoBgone! That's an interesting post.Your observation about the 'bells being lower to start is probably EXACTLY the cause of your shoulder issue with them. It's hard to describe a motion in words, but how I clean the 'bells in position is I set them on my knees, and kick one up, then the other, as I lie back. I keep them away from my body, and they are above me, ready to press, by the time my back hits the bench.
The power hooks are probably what I'll eventually go with, too. A former training partner of mine bought a set of them a year ago, and swears by them. He's a natural-born bench presser;barrel-chested, with short arms, but still uses dumbbells mostly, to train his chest. I'm just so old-school, and have been dumbbell benching so long without using anything, that I've got this thing about using them! I know, that's dumb, but I get that way sometimes! Anyway, the question is going to be answered for me, about whether or not to get a set, in a couple of weeks, when I work my way back up to 90 lb.'bells. My arthritic wrists aren't going to allow me to handle them. Thanks for the post; more food for thought.

[alkell]

Hi, nice journal and nice weights too.

I know what you mean about squats. When I started lifting and my squat weights started to get heavier the depth got shallower and shallower. Recently I reset lower with the weight to concentrate on depth and have just started to get back to the weight I was squatting before but now with much better depth.

[ironwill2008]

Good morning, alkell! Thanks for the comments. You're making a wise move by re-setting your squat loads, and concentrating on good form. As I stated earlier, my hard-headedness caused me to lose a years' development in my quads. We've all got that "heavier is better" mentality, and to a certain extent, it's true. But that line of thinking MUST be tempered by the old saying, "It's not how much you lift, but how you lift it".
You've found out what I did; that eventually you get back to your former poundage, but now with good form, and the full muscle development that comes with it.
Thank you again; have a great day; train hard, and smart!

[liftiron68]

Just saw this newer journal. I'm new myself, only posting here for 2 months. Welcome and so far, great story and great workouts man. Keep it up!!