Back in da House of Pain

[LSUAlum2001]

Getting hurt sucks and it seems like it happens EVERY time I'm getting to where I want to go in my workouts.

It wasn't a lifting issue. A damned torn ACL from playing in a local flag football league totally knocked my will to hit the gym into the ****ter for over 1 year. My knee wasn't where I wanted it to be until very recently, and the injury was 2 years ago.

12 years ago it was a dislocated right elbow, which, once again happened outside the gym while I played basketball.

I can't give up my intramural sports, because it's a supplement to my cardio. If I can find ANYTHING to help break up the monotony of cardio, I'm doing it.

Enough bitching..

I dove back into the Encylo of Bodybuilding and I'm designing my workouts from it.

Chest
Flat
135x15
155x10
175x8
195x6
205x4

Incline
135x10
145x8
155x6
175x4

Machine Pullovers
120x3x15

Very weak in chest. It seems my Max OT workouts has given me a muscle memory problem after 6 reps. My body says: "WTF are you doing? You've done 6 reps." and wants to shut down at any weight over 200, so I have to take it slow.

Back
40 reps of Chins (not in succession. It took me a few sets)

Bent Pullovers
105x4x10

Deadlifts
135x10
185x8
205x6

Abs
Crunches
3x25

Peace. I'm outta here.

(a repost from the wrong area)

[LSUAlum2001]

Today's assault in the gym..

Shoulders:
Clean and Press: 75x12, 95x10, 95x8, 105x8, 105x6
Dumbbell Raises: 20x8, 25x8, 25x8, 25x8

Upright Rows: 80x10, 90x8, 110x6
Push-Press: 105x6, 115x4, 125x2

Abs:
Crunches 5x25

Traps are a little sore from the pressing movements, but I feel this is a good direction with the higher reps and different exercises.

BF was measured yesterday @ 16.5% @ 187.

Back in the gym tonight for round 2 vs the iron beast.

[LSUAlum2001]

Before I get into the gym today, I'll go ahead and give an update to what I'm taking, what I'm doing and where I plan to go.

What I'm taking:
Supplements:
Jungle Warfare 3xday
Diesel Nutrition NOS 4xday
Betagen 3xday
Whey with Skim 2/3xday
Niacin 1xday (My good cholesterol was low in my last bloodwork and the Dr said that this could help increase it.)
Omega 3 1xday
Multivitamin 1xday
Glucosamine/Chondroitin 3xday (Total ACL reconstruction a couple of years ago)
Amino Acid 1xday (Getting rid of a bottle I have)

I'll switch to Bad Ass Mass in 2 more weeks. The rest will probably stay consistent over the next 14 weeks.

What I'm doing:

I've been through too many different workout programs over the years and I'm settling back on basics. I have a OTS Serious Growth (1st edition) around somewhere which I've used on and off, but I would need to quit work to follow it near 100%. If anyone could loan me $5mil I'd be able to do a 1 year study on the effects of following it 100% (Level 3 Variant) which has you in the gym 3 different times a day, 6 days per week.

I've been on Max-OT, but I feel like I ran into a rut with this over the last few months. Before my ACL tear it was really helping me, but, when I came back after getting over the psychological effects of having a major injury, I hit a plateau. A new direction was needed.

So... I dusted off the Encylo of Modern Bodybuilding and I'm creating my routines from this 700 page bible. In Max-OT I was only hitting each body part 1xweek. My new routine has a 2xweek routine for each, which I think will be the shock to the system which should push me in the right direction. I'm in the gym ~1 hour a day during lunch, which is the ONLY time I can get in a decent workout.

Here is the program:
Mon: Chest/Back
Tues: Shoulders/Arms
Wed: Legs
Thurs: Chest/Back
Fri: Shoulders/Arms
Sat: Legs
Sun: Rest

I'll have the reps and lifts up throughout the week.

My immediate goal is to settle around 180 lbs at ~10% BF which means I need to shed ~12 or so pounds of grease off of my body and add ~5-7 pounds of lean mass. My long-term goal is to move to 185-190 with ~5-7% BF. I'm trying very hard to adjust not only my caloric intake, but the amount of intake at each sitting. My portions are cut way down and I'm spreading out meals more throughout the day:

Breakfast:
Fruits/Oatmeal

Snack:
1 scoop whey with 3/4 cup skim

(Gym-time)

Post workout snack:
2 scoops whey with 1.5 cups skim

Mid-day Meal:
~400 calories which will vary day-to-day. I'm looking for 20/30/30 breakdown of fat/carbs/prot in this mid-day meal.

Snack
1 scoop whey with 3/4 cup skim

Evening meal:
Salmon & Salad (or another lean protein)

Evening snack:
Fruits/Vegs

My meal plan will be adjusted as I move forward, but this is where I'm at right now.

I'll be back with an update with today's luncheon incursion.

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSUAlum2001]

A good start to a bad week..

I?ll start with the good before I delve into why this is a bad week.

Today: Arms & Abs

Standing Barbell curls: 50x15, 70x10, 80x8, 90x6, 100x4
Seated Dumbbell curls: 30x4x8

Close Grip Bench: 135x10, 150x8, 165x6, 185x4
Standing Barbell Tricep Extensions: 70x8, 80x8, 90x8, 90x8

Wrist Curls: 60x4x10
Reverse Wrist Curls: 30x3x10

Reverse Crunches: 4x20

Not a bad start to the week. Standing BB curls were good start. I?ll up the weight to a more brutal weight in the earlier sets. My usual curls are done on the preacher bench with an EZ bar, but I used the straight bar for this exercise and I was tinkering with weights today. My next armed incursion will be in 3 days so I?ll be able to load up to the right weight for me. Seated curls were different. I?m usually working standing DB curls, which allowed me to slightly cheat. Bi?s were burning at the end of each set.

I rarely incorporated CGBP in my previous workouts. I?ve always tried to separate each workout as much as possible and CGBP?s secondary muscle group is chest. However, I kept my form as strict as possible which allowed me to load the weight as much as possible on the triceps and minimize chest involvement. I?ll jump into the 165-185 range sooner in my next workout to tax the triceps more. And, as an ongoing theme, standing tri extensions are something I?ve never done with a BB. I?ve always done them with a DB (using both arms) but I?ve ran into a little problem. The highest DB at my gym is 100 and I?m using that with no problems. The next best thing would be for me to move to an EZ curl bar which, aside from giving me a different stress, allows me to add more weight. My balance was a tad shaky, but my triceps were blown at the end.

Wrist curls are wrist curls, but I?ve added a little movement at the end which overstressed the forearms. At the end of both movements, I raised my forearms off the bench at ~20 degrees in reference to the bench. I couldn?t grip anything for a few seconds after each set.

I was slated for 5x25 on the reverse crunches, but I was doubled over after each set of 20. I called it at 4 sets. I also needed to get back to work. No need in getting canned during this economy because I spent more than an hour at the gym when I should be at work creating this post.


Now for the bad.. I have this really expensive donjoy ACL knee brace which is supposed to keep my knee in the correct alignment during sports activities. (I don?t need it at the gym.) Of course, it failed to do so last night and I tweaked my LCL. I was OK after a minute or so, but checking my strength in a set of sissy squats told me that it really wasn?t ok. In the first few degrees of the movement, as my thighs begin to move over the toes, I feel a weak spot in my right knee right. It?s only in that one spot, but it?s there. PT today said it was a sprain, and that the knee is structurally sound. He told me to take it easy for a few days, which is good because I don?t plan on hitting legs until later in the week. However, this is an ongoing issue and I?m afraid that I will need surgery to get this knee at full strength, which is something I haven?t had in about 2.5 years. Going under the knife again won?t be too bad except for the fact that I switched to a high deductible HSA this year and the surgery would probably cost me about 2K before hitting my max individual out of pocket.

..until next time.

Peace. I?m outta here.

[LSUAlum2001]

In for a half session today..

Chest:
BB Bench
135x15, 155x10, 170x8, 185x6, 205x3
Incline Bench
135x10, 145x8, 155x6, 175x3
Machine Pullovers
135x15, 135x10 (drop set to 125x5), 125x15

Abs:
Crunches
5x25

Had to delay the back workout until later tonight..

Weight hovering around 185. I hope my strength comes back to where it was pre-knee injury. The weights are a little depressing right now, but I feel that I'll see results soon if I stick with it.

The chest/back workout moved up a day to give my LCL another day of rest. I'll hit legs tomorrow and Saturday if the knee is right.

Back for updates later..

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSUAlum2001]

One more thing...

Cardio is for the birds, but I have to do it to get down to my short and longterm BF% goals.

Upright Bike
30min with HR average at 150.

10K race in a month in New Orleans, but that is immediately followed up with free beer until the beer trucks run out. And that doesn't include the beer and jello shots I'll be consuming during the run.

Burn 350 calories, drink 1500 calories.

Did I mention cardio is for the birds?

Meh. I may just have to fire up my P90X cardio DVDs at the house.

[LSUAlum2001]

A quick 30 minute session this AM:

Back only..

Back
40 reps of Chins (not in succession. It took me a few sets but not as many as last time.)

Bent Pullovers
95x12
115x10
125x8
135x6

Deadlifts (no straps or belt today)
185x10
225x6
245x4

Abs
Skipped due to lack of time. I have a party to attend in 45 minutes.

..and then it's Tarheel ASSWHIPPING TIME!

GEAUX TIGERS!

I may squeeze in a session tomorrow. It depends on how long it takes me to get my yard in order from the winter layoff. It looks like **** out there.

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSUAlum2001]

I made a rare evening lift, which I usually avoid because it keeps me up until 1am or so, but I missed my usual lunchtime workout today.

Sacrifices, like lack of sleep, had to be made.

Hit Shoulders and Arms today, but I skipped on forearms. I'll probably super-set them into my leg workout from here on out. I was in the gym for nearly 2 hours, which I want to set as my upper limit in any given gym session. Moving them to my leg day won't be a big deal.

Enough of the BS. Tonight's numbers:

Clean and press: (resetting the weight to my thighs each rep)
95x10
105x8
110x7
115x5

DB Lateral Raises:
25x8
25x8
25x8
30x6 (Moved up to the 30's on my last set to add to my misery)

Upright Rows: (Heavy and I cheat a little..)
100x9
100x6
110x4

Push Press:
115x6
135x4
155x2

Seated DB Curls:
30x8
35x8
35x8
40x6

Standing BB Curls:
50x15
60x10
80x6
90x3

Close-grip BP: (Left wrist was in a little pain..)
135x10
155x8
185x6
205x4

Standing Tricep Extensions with EZ Bar:
75x9
75x8
85x0 (****ing left shoulder started cramping and I couldn't get it out. Shut it down here.)

Reverse crunches:
2x25
3x20 (I changed positions slightly and increased the intensity.)

Now I'll be up watching a bunch of crap on TV and trying to get some work done for tomorrow.

Geaux Korea!

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSU1]

yo im in my man

pretty good lifts man, cgbp stands out as a nice effort

geaux tigersssssssssssssssss!

[LSUAlum2001]

yo im in my man

pretty good lifts man, cgbp stands out as a nice effort

geaux tigersssssssssssssssss!

Thanks. I'm trying to catch up on missed time. Hopefully I'll see the other lifts going up in weight over the next 6-8 weeks.

I heard the word out of LSU spring camp is lots of players flying around on the defensive side of the football. If the new defensive coaches can bring in the scheme to go with the talent, that D will be killing people all season. The O should be putting up 35-40ppg easily.

I'm going to throw a couple 100 on LSU to win it all next season.

[LSU1]

for sure, chavis is a welcome addition down here

maybe we can get away from playing a damn safety as our nickel back for once and all

and no more mccray as nickel...

ive heard jj is lookin really good at qb

[LSUAlum2001]

for sure, chavis is a welcome addition down here

maybe we can get away from playing a damn safety as our nickel back for once and all

and no more mccray as nickel...

ive heard jj is lookin really good at qb

Word on JJ. It's too bad he wasn't ready earlier last season.

I'm stoked that they finally stuck Chad Jones at one position: FS. He says he'll be playing at 230 next year. If that guy can keep his speed and quickness at that weight, he'll be crushing WRs all season long.

Good reports on Al Woods turning it on with the new DL coach, too.

We need to find a punter and place kicker for next season. That, IMO, will be the only question mark going into the season.

[LSUAlum2001]

It looks like I'll be shelving standing tricep extensions for seated DB extensions.

Hitting legs at the gym today.. Not looking forward to gimping around for the next few days.

[LSUAlum2001]

The aftermath from leg day..

Started with Squat..

Squat
135x20
185x10
205x8
225x6
275x4

Lunges
95x10
115x8
125x8
135x6

Prone Leg Curl
50x20
90x10
100x8
110x6

Stiff-leg Deadlift
135x10
185x6
225x4

Good Mornings
95x10
125x6
165x4

Standing Calf Raises
175x15
215x15
255x15
275x15

Not much going on. Tired from my awesome 3 hours worth of sleep last night.

Off to the office kitchen to mix up a post workout shake.

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSU1]

nice lifts man, squats arent too shabby at all

how much does the acl issue affect you on squats?

[LSUAlum2001]

nice lifts man, squats arent too shabby at all

how much does the acl issue affect you on squats?

As of now, it hasn't bothered me one bit. I've been very shy on getting back to hitting legs with regularity since the injury, but I need to get in there and strengthen the quads and hamstrings.

The PT said that the hamstrings are a bigger key to preventing knee injuries than quads and I'll be back to working legs again on Friday.

I'm using a split routine hitting each body part 2x per week, but I may not be able to make the Saturday workouts. I may give each BP a break by working them out only 1x per week every 3 weeks.

This week will be:
Shoulders & Arms Mon/Thurs
Legs Tues/Fri
Chest & Back Wed

Next week I'll roll Chest/Back into the Mon/Thurs role and give Legs a break. This rotation will give Shoulders & Arms a break in two weeks before returning to this week's plan in the 3rd week.

[LSUAlum2001]

Heading to the gym..

Chest and Back day.. Woohoo!

My best overall bodypart: Back, and, arguably my worst: Chest.

[LSUAlum2001]

Chest (Alternating barbell and dumbbell every other workout)
Flat Dumbbell: 45x15 (warmup) 60x10, 70x8, 75x6, 85x4
Incline Dumbbell: 50x10, 60x8, 65x6, 75x4
Machine Pullovers: 135x15, 142x12 (drop set to 137x3 to hit 15 reps), 140x10 (dropset to 137x5 to hit 15 reps)

Abs:
Crunches 4x20

I'll be back in the gym around 6ish to hit back..

..and I took a quick shot toward the end of the workout.

[LSUAlum2001]

Going to the gym as soon as I hit submit..

Back later tonight with an update.

[LSUAlum2001]

Update:

Back
Pullups: 10x1, 9x1, 8x1, 7x1, 6x1
Bent Rows: 95x10, 115x8, 125x6, 135x4
Deads: 185x8, 225x6, 275x0

I had to rush this workout and I tweaked my lower back on the last set of deads. Pullups were better as it took me less sets to hit my 40 target. Other than a sore back, it was a good, short workout.

Legs are still dead from Tuesday. I'll probably rest them until next week so I can destroy them again.

It's chillaxing time..

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSUAlum2001]

Giving my legs and back a rest today.

I'll head to the gym tomorrow AM and hit Shoulders/Arms again. Hopefully my lower back will feel better so I can do my usual Clean & Presses and Push Presses.

A change in my supplements:
Finished my Jungle Warfare and switching to Bad Ass Mass x2 per day.
Everything else stays about the same.

Weight is up to 191. BF staying consistent at 16.5%, which isn't surprising since I'm avoiding cardio like the plague. I'd like to add 5-10lbs of lean mass before I start my fat shedding phase.

Later all you magnificent bastages.

Peace. I'm outta here.

[LSUAlum2001]

Today's AM update:

Triceps:
CGBP 135x10, 175x8, 205x6, 220x4
Seated DB Extensions: 75x15, 85x10, 95x8, 110x6

Shoulders:
Clean/Press: 105x10, 115x7, 120x4 (Cleaning from thighs)
DB Laterals: 30x7, 30x8, 30x8, 30x8
Upright Rows: 100x10, 110x6, 115x4
Push Press: 135x6, 145x4, 155x2

Biceps:
Delayed until this evening.

I'll update the bicep workout after completion..

CGBP up to 220x4 which is a PR. 205x4 last time out on Monday. Seated DB extensions up to 110x6 which is also a PR. The next step up is 120 which is the heaviest DB at the gym.

Shoulders were OK today. Nothing special, but I'll hit them hard again on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Biceps were delayed. The daycare closes at noon and I was outta time. I have enough weight at the house to work through my usual lifts.

..until later.

[LSUAlum2001]

Currently:
5'10"
191
~16% BF

[LSUAlum2001]

Last couple of workouts:

Chest:
DB Bench
50x15
65x10
75x8
80x7
90x4

DB Incline
55x10
65x7
70x7
80x4

Chest Prest
160x10
160x8
160x8

Back:
Pullups
1x12
1x9
1x8
1x11

Bent Rows
95x10
115x8
125x6
135x4

DL
185x10 (Had to jet after this set)

Legs:
Squat
135x20
185x10
205x8
225x6
275x4 (Weights will go up next week)

Lunges
95x10
115x8
130x8
155x6

Prone Leg Curls
60x20
90x10
105x8
110x6

SL Deads
135x10
185x6
225x2 (Back still tweaked. Stopped at 2)

Good Mornings
95x10
125x6
155x4

Standing Calf Raises
175x25
215x20
255x15
295x15
315x12