WarHammer's first shot at a journal.

[The_Warhammer]

Ok folks, I'm trying the lifting thing to get some muscle mass. GF loves all the weight I've dropped this year, but would like to see some more muscle mass on me. I used to have more, but I think I did way too much to get lean and get my cardio levels up. I think I lost a good bit of muscle mass in the process.

I'm looking for some advice on my routine. I'll be honest, I copied from lots of others. Mostly from Feind_73's as his seemed to be the easiest to read and best explained what muscles he was trying to work on. Kudos to you Feind_73 and thanks.

I have some questions.
Am I being too aggressive by trying to work out so many times a week right off the bat? I have a tendency to have an "all or nothing attitude" If I'm in, I'm 100% in and dedicated. What's the point of doing anything halfway?
I have a small gym in my apartment complex. It's got a fairly complete weight machine, but the barbell and dumbells are in my apartment. I'm thinking about just taking them down there and letting anyone use them so I don't have to do things in two locations.

I'm still new to this so would I be better off reducing this to a 3x/week schedule? If I were to cut it back to 3x/week, should I also cut out some of the exercises as well until my body gets used to pushing the weights around? Mentally I'm all in and devoted to this, physically, I know I need to ease into it.

When I was in the military we focused on isometrics. Where would I put things like push-ups, scissor kicks, hello dolly's and 8-count bodybuilders (some call them Burpee's I think) in?

One thing I read was to pre-exhaust the "helper" muscles so that the larger muscles are targeted better, does the order of the exercises I have listed accomplish that?

I'm also going to post my diet as well, as I understand that the real changes come from the diet part of the equation.

I'm still learning, so appreciate ANY help/advice.
Proposed routine:
Day one-Quads, hams, calves
Seated calf raises
Lying leg curls
Leg extensions
Leg press
BB squats

Day two-Back, traps, rear delts, abs
Behind the back BB shrugs
BB Good Mornings
Narrow grip pulldowns
Butterfly
Hanging knee raise
sit ups/crunches
BB deadlift
BB rows

Day three-Chest, side and front delts, calves
Standing cable fly
Chest dips
Behind the back DB laterals(side raises)
Front DB raise
Behind back side cable lateral
Machine Shoulder (Military) Press
Incline smith machine bench press
Flat smith bench press
Clean and press
Leg press machine calf Raises

Day four-Triceps, biceps, forearms, abs
1 arm cable pulldowns
Skullcrushers
Rev grip cable pulldowns
Preacher curl
BB seated wrist curls
DB curls
BB curls
Sit ups

Thanks again everyone!

[ProOne]

War....imo I would do the compound lifts first (squat, deadlift, bench, clean) and do the supplementary excercises after such as this: deads 5X5, shrugs, bent over rows, pulldowns. I do biceps on my back day also......then leg day, squats 5X5, stiff leg deads for hams, leg extensions, calves and then onto shoulders which includes bb presses, side laterals, rear laterals.....chest day is bb bench 5X5, db inclines, fly's, and then triceps, close grip bench or skullcrushers, dips, and pushdowns. Diet and rest is key and I think you'd make decent gains at 3 days a week. Of course abs and cardio on any day AFTER doing the weights. Hope it helps you and good luck.

[The_Warhammer]

Thanks!

I also got some tips to make my workout simpler for now as I am a newbie and just starting out.

[Old-Time-Lifter]

When are you resting?

I know alot of guys do arms directly after shoulders and chest, but I don't like that idea personally. If you're doing compound exercises like benching you're working your chest, tri's and delt's.

In fact in powerlifting as I came up on a meet I would drop all supplementals and just bench for the last few weeks.

Bench, Squat and Dead....... eat and sleep.

[The_Warhammer]

Originally, the plan was to rest on the weekends. Now, I am going to do a much simpler routine that is a more whole body workout 3x a week. So rest every other day and weekends.

[The_Warhammer]

Grats to IronWill for suggesting a much simpler routine. Going for a full body workout 3x/week
Leg press 3x12
Leg curl 3x12
Lat pulldown 3x10
Bench press 3x10
Military press 2x10
Barbell curl 2x10
Triceps pressdown 2x10
Calf raise 2x10 (I'm doing 3x10 since I like them so much)
Crunch 2x max (I'm doing seated cable crunch with 50lb weight)
I'm also adding Planks, 3x 30sec.
I'm also doing 10min of cardio on the treadmill at 7mph after the lifting.

I did this tonight but was not in the best mood. My Search and Rescue pager went off right as I was heading out the door to lift. Seems it always goes off at the most inopportune times. Why can't people need help when I'm not doing anything or in meetings at work. Just kidding!!!!

Also, there was a guy there that was hogging the leg press machine and his kid was bouncing off the hardware even though he didn't meet the min age for being in there. I don't mind the kid as I think it's important to get kids introduced to exercising and fitness as soon as they can for their entire lives, but he was like a little hyperactive atom. Bounce, bounce, bounce, bounce...

All in all, I did a good workout, maybe not the intensity that I wanted as I was thinking about the Search and Rescue page from earlier.

Got back and had a protein shake. Did some network consulting work for a friend. Filled out my BodySource logs and Fitday logs.

Nothing spectacular, but it's a start.

Hope everyone else had a good day.

[ProOne]

War, in your original post you said you were looking to build mass; not sure that routine is going to get it done for you. Anyway, good luck and I hope you reach your goals.

[The_Warhammer]

Pro, would it be a good one to just get into this? I want to make sure I ease into it physically. I am all in mentally, but want to make sure I am bringing my body up to speed safely and with proper form.

[The_Warhammer]

Life came up and I wasn't able to get a full workout in. I did manage to get some reps in with the barbell I keep in my room before bed. I did 3x10 BB curls, 3x10 Good Mornings (can you do Good Mornings right before bed?), 2x10 deadlifts, 3x10 triceps extensions, 3x10 shoulder shrugs.

Not alot of work, but better than nothing. I did get a good pump with the curls, shrugs and extensions.

Downed a protein shake and then called it a night.

Hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!

[The_Warhammer]

I must've done something wrong Friday night. Sat, I went to pick up something and when I bent over to pick it up, an explosion of pain in my lower back. So sharp, it took me down. I've never felt anything like it before.

It was supposed to be a rest day anyway, turned out to be a do much of nothing day, just resting on the couch.

Man this stinks. I did manage to walk to the grocery store with my son and grab a few things, but this isn't fun.

I'm going to take it easy again today. Was supposed to get some nerf dart tag in with my son, but I don't think that's going to happen now.

According to the forumites, it could be a pinched nerve. I hope it's something simple like that. Hope it clears up soon.

Add to that I think I'm coming down with something. Sore throat, ear won't equalize pressure, runny nose... I'm just batting a thousand. Well I guess it's a good reason to get some rest. I WANT TO LIFT though!!!

[The_Warhammer]

So gbg suggested some lower back stretches that seemed to help ALOT! Here's the link she sent me:
http://www.lower-back-pain-answers.c...g-stretch.html

I have to say, they helped ALOT. Thanks to her for sending me that link.

I took it easy this morning, took some more advil and did some more stretches.

By 10am, I was actually thinking about getting the son out on the bike path.
Told him to get his bike ready and I strapped on the roller blades.

Got on the path and took it nice and easy. Eventually, I could feel the kinks working themselves out. Was feeling really good during and by the time we got back. My back is still a little stiff and sore, but it's a good thing.

I'm going to keep taking it easy and not aggravate it. I really gotta thank all the forumites that had all the great advice.

[The_Warhammer]

So Monday I spent about 3 hours riding in a car back and forth from a seminar. My back was really stiff by the end of the day and I was REALLY looking forward to working out and working the stiffness out.

Get in the house and BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!!! My Search and Rescue pager goes off. Not going to be able to go anywhere for a while. So I figure I can do some isometrics and BB and DB work in the apartment. I get an urgent email from a friend needing help. Sigh... If it's not one thing its another.

Eventually, everything calms down and I do some BB, DB and isometrics. Couldn't do a few of the exercises on my full body routine, but I got SOME exercise in. I figured it was better than nothing.

Make myself a shake and turn on the TV for a min. Decide to check out the on demand exercise shows on cable. I decide to try out some of the ab shows and pilates abs shows. Before I know it, I was cussing at the TV and calling the lithe and thin, nubile instructor all kinds of things she didn't deserve. I was really working out a sweat!!! When I was done 20 min later, it was like my abs were on FIRE!!! I hate TV, but I have to say, I was impressed at the workout.

That was yesterday. Today, was watching the clock. I wanted to get to the gym and make up for lost time yesterday. All day long I could feel my abs and thought about that smiling, hot, pilates instructor and thought how she totally kicked my a$$. So I got home, had a quick pre lifting snack. Let it settle for about half an hour and then hit the gym.
Man it felt good! Got a good pump on! I was mentally picturing the muscles getting bigger. I was mentally picturing vascularity. I was mentally picturing stretch marks. I got home and looked my arms. They were more vascular than I remember. They looked pretty cool! I could see that my biceps were pumped and they were just rock hard! It was just amazing seeing all this!

Added benefit... I had a runny nose all weekend. During the workout tonight, it just simply went away. It was like I had taken an antihistimine. Absolutely no runny nose. Completely dry! As for my back, it felt strong and solid like last week before the nerve thing. Geez! I don't know what the explanation for it is, but it was like I had taken some cold medicine and everything cleared up. Amazing!

I probably shouldn't have worked out tonight, but I just felt like I needed to make up for the light workout I did last night.

Well, shake's almost gone. Gotta hit the shower and then off to a good night's rest.

How's everyone else doing? How are all the other newbies doing? Are you staying on track with your goals, both diet and exercise?

[The_Warhammer]

Went and lifted tonight and did it feel good!!!!
I am TOTALLY onboard with resting and not trying to push it too hard now! I was throwing the weights around pretty easily. My son even came along and I showed him how to work around the weights. He's only 11 and was watching me intently as I was going through the exercises. I made especially sure my form was 100% correct. I wanted to make sure he understood form over tonnage. I went through my entire routine in about 45 min, but took longer than that as I worked with my son on exercises.

Got him doing some BP, squats, curls, crunches and lat pulldowns. It felt good working with him since I only see him Wed afternoon and on the weekends. Didn't push him or anything. Just showed him what the movements should look and feel like.

It was good to see him focus something that wasn't connected to a TV or had a keyboard and mouse.

Drinking a shake now and gonna grab a shower before bed. Hope everyone else had a GREAT friday and plans for an even better weekend!!!

[ProOne]

Hey War....I'm following along....what workout did you finally decide on? Glad to hear all s going well.....I also have my 11 yo on a light lifting program...we do mainly compound movements for 10 reps with good form...have a great weekend and keep hitting it hard.....

[The_Warhammer]

Originally Posted by ProOne

Hey War....I'm following along....what workout did you finally decide on? Glad to hear all s going well.....I also have my 11 yo on a light lifting program...we do mainly compound movements for 10 reps with good form...have a great weekend and keep hitting it hard.....

Thanks!
I'm currently doing:
Leg press 3x12
Leg curl 3x12
Lat pulldown 3x10
Bench press 3x10
Military press 2x10
Barbell curl 2x10
Triceps pressdown 2x10
Calf raise 2x10
Crunch 2xMax

I also throw in some planks and push-ups. I do no more than 10 min of cardio, but I've been experimenting with before or after.


What kind of routine is your son doing? It was fun working out with mine. He was wiped out when done, but he had fun!

[ProOne]

Basic movements with light db's.....bench, shoulder presses, rows, shrugs, curls, tricep ext, and step ups

[The_Warhammer]

Only thing I would add are calf raises. I truly believe in those suckers. Not only do they help you motor around, but the act of doing a calf raise really seems to challenge my sense of balance. I think all kids, especially at that age, when they are growing like weeds could always benefit from balance work.

Keep up the GREAT work! Hoping to hear about some more bonding experiences as well.

[The_Warhammer]

Lifted tonight after resting this weekend. Man did it feel good! Got some fuel beforehand. Didn't drink too much water. Did the standard routine and just hit it.
Previously, the inside of my right arm at the elbow was annoying me. It was just sore. I don't know why. I think it was a tendon or ligament or something. It definitely wasn't muscle, at least I don't think it was.

Anyway, had the whole gym to myself and just went at it. Was able to hit all the exercises in about 40 minutes. Didn't take a lot of time between sets or exercises. I wanted to keep my heart rate up. Got a good sweat going. Felt good. I was even able to do squats like I did before I hurt my back.

Got back to the apartment and downed a shake. While I was doing that, I noticed a vein on my right bicep. It was actually more than just barely under the skin. It was actually visible running down the length of the bicep. I thought, COOL!!! I love biking, but this is really just cool! Seeing my body change like this, just really cool!

I've got pics of when I started, but I haven't been able to get them out of my phone yet. I'd like to make some more progress before posting them so I can compare if I've made any progress.

I really feel good about tonight's effort. I had a good level of intensity. I was moving through the exercises. I was able to up the weights on just about everything compared to last week.

I really like the way this is making me feel. I just wish I had more time to lift more each session.

Well that's it for tonight. I'm gonna finish my shake and head to bed.

Hope everyone else is doing well tonight!!!

[The_Warhammer]

Man did that feel good!!! I did the same routine as I usually do but just felt really good doing everything. I switched the cardio to the end and I think that's the way I'm gonna go. I felt better during the lifting part. I think doing the cardio in the beginning robs me of energy to give the lifting part my all.

Son was sick and coughing so I told him next time buddy. He was disappointed, but I think it was the right decision.

I've been wanting to get in the gym since Monday. Been reading alot about other people's updates and some other threads in the O35 section and I just wanted to lift! It felt great! My body is responding positively. I know the greatest changes will happen in the beginning, but heck, it's like the reward system. I'm actually seeing positive results every time I hit the gym.

Well it's time to have a PWO shake and then head to bed.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to these boards, your input really helps motivate me.

[The_Warhammer]

I wasn't able to workout Fri nite as I had some other obligations. Needless to say, I was feeling it. I wanted to lift instead of what I was doing, but it was for a good cause and fun in a diff sort of way.

I lifted Sat nite instead. Got most of my workout in. There were a few people in the gym I guess working off their Thanksgiving dinner still. Went back to the apartment and did some extra work with the DB's.

Downed a shake and watched a movie with the kids before heading to bed. I'm starting to have some soreness with my right elbow. It's not the joint or the muscles. It's the tendons I think. It's on the inside and right where it attaches to the joint. I'm going to keep an eye on it and take some anti-inflammatory for it.

[The_Warhammer]

Got a full routine in and felt GOOD! Didn't do cardio afterwards, but didn't feel bad about it. I got back to the apartment and did a 20 min pilates abs routine on the On-demand. That was the first time I did that after a lifting session and it felt really good. By the end, I was shaking from the exertion. Man, who would have thought just stretching would be so strenuous! For those of you who knock it, I'd suggest giving it a try. It's harder than it looks.

After that, did some checking in the mirror and I can see some results. It feels good to see some results. I am in this for the long haul and planning on it taking a year at least, but it's good to see results.

Had some roast chicken and some milk for PWO refuel. I ran out of protein powder so just had some straight milk. The chicken was plain roasted with some dry marinade and very tasty. I'm a little worried about the sodium in the dry marinade, but I'll give it a little wiggle room.

Elbow was less sore than in the past. Hopefully it is acclimating to the loads and I won't even notice it in a couple of weeks. Didn't take any ibuprophen or acetomeniphen all day. Everything feels fine.

Hopefully everyone else is staying on target and staying true to themselves. Keep it up everyone!

[unimoose]

Looks like you are getting advice from some very solid people on this forum. That will be a very big plus. Good luck with reaching your goals and welcome to journaling!

[Seawren]

Quote: "I got back to the apartment and did a 20 min pilates abs routine on the On-demand. That was the first time I did that after a lifting session and it felt really good. By the end, I was shaking from the exertion. Man, who would have thought just stretching would be so strenuous! For those of you who knock it, I'd suggest giving it a try. It's harder than it looks."

Great idea Warhammer - I'll have to check out On Demand. I never thought to look there. I have heard that pilates really works the core and is actually very demanding! Good Job!!

[The_Warhammer]

Originally Posted by unimoose

Looks like you are getting advice from some very solid people on this forum. That will be a very big plus. Good luck with reaching your goals and welcome to journaling!

Thanks!!! I'm going to try and keep this going as long as I can. The only thing in my way is me and I am DETERMINED to make this work. Thanks again!

[The_Warhammer]

Originally Posted by Seawren

Quote: "I got back to the apartment and did a 20 min pilates abs routine on the On-demand. That was the first time I did that after a lifting session and it felt really good. By the end, I was shaking from the exertion. Man, who would have thought just stretching would be so strenuous! For those of you who knock it, I'd suggest giving it a try. It's harder than it looks."

Great idea Warhammer - I'll have to check out On Demand. I never thought to look there. I have heard that pilates really works the core and is actually very demanding! Good Job!!

I figure anything is worth trying at least once. I'm already paying for it. Might as well use it. I have a feeling I'm going to feel it in the morning.

[ProOne]

I'm going to check it out also....

[Seawren]

Hope you got out of the office and into the gym today!!!

[The_Warhammer]

Yep! I had a meeting after work today and hung out with my son for a bit. Took him to his mom's house and then hit the gym.
Wasn't easy as it was snowing outside and would've been much easier to stay in the warm apartment. I lifted instead.

Did my usual routine and then came back and did pilates from on-demand.

Afterwards, I had some leftover chicken from dinner. I usually do a shake, but tonight I was feeling like the chicken. Felt like I wanted something more substantial than the shake.

Elbow was still letting me know it was there. I took some tylenol right after the chicken and I'm already starting to feel it kick in.

So that's it for my update. How did everyone else do today?

[Seawren]

Originally Posted by The_Warhammer

Yep! I had a meeting after work today and hung out with my son for a bit. Took him to his mom's house and then hit the gym.
Wasn't easy as it was snowing outside and would've been much easier to stay in the warm apartment. I lifted instead.

Did my usual routine and then came back and did pilates from on-demand.

Afterwards, I had some leftover chicken from dinner. I usually do a shake, but tonight I was feeling like the chicken. Felt like I wanted something more substantial than the shake.

Elbow was still letting me know it was there. I took some tylenol right after the chicken and I'm already starting to feel it kick in.

So that's it for my update. How did everyone else do today?

Great job of getting to the gym! It's not easy with snow outside and a warm home calling to you! Glad you made it there! Sounds like you are kind of getting into that pilates! I am going to check it out eventually!!

[ProOne]

Hey War...Tuesdays workout was Deadlifts, shrugs, bent over row, pull downs, straight bar curls, and dumbell curls, with 20 minutes of HIIT on the arc trainer.....tonight is chest and triceps

Keep hitting it hard!!