Strength Training Journal

[bigboy15]

Thought I'd start a new one. Trying to thicken up my girly pecs and get stronger, as always.

Height: 6ft
Weight: 240

Basic layout of a lifting week is:

Day 1: Bench and assistance/hypertrophy work

Day 2: Deadlift and assistance/hypertrophy work

Day 3: Sled drag or other form of GPP

Day 4: Military Press and assistance/hypertrophy work

Day 5: Squat and assistance/hypertrophy work

Day 6: Sled drag or other form of GPP

Day 7: Off

I'm cutting and I have been losing about 1 lb/week with little effect on strength levels. I won't go into a lot of detail on diet because it's nothing special, just low(er) carbs.

[bigboy15]

It's Thursday, July 9th 2009

Workout: 8:30 pm

Bench:
125X5
160X5
190X5
235X5
270X5
300X6 (forgot my journal, it was either 6 or 8 reps. Not positive)

Floor Press:
70X10
85X10
85X8
85X6

Dip:
BW+45X10
BW+100X6
BW+102.5X6
BW+102.5X6

Pendlay Row:
135X10
225X3
275X6
275X6
275X6

Rope Face pull:
60X15
60X15
60X15

Lying Ez bar Tricep Extension: (assuming bar weight=25lbs)
BarX10
120X10
120X10
120X10
120X10
120X10

music choices for the night:

Megadeth warchest


Overall pretty decent workout. I was experimenting with the floor pressing, hoping that it would hit my pecs better than regular dumbbell presses because of the limited range of motion. Have never done them before and my strength was definitely in the ****ter.
__________________

[bigboy15]

It's Friday, July 10th 2009

Workout: 7:55 pm (gym closes at 9! )

Deadlift:
135X10
205X5
255X5
315X5
385X5
435X3
485X5

Barbell Shrug:
225X10
315X5
405X5
460X10
460X12
460X12 Strip 405X6 Strip 315X6 Strip 225X6

Lying Leg Curl:
100X10
100X10
100X10
100X10
100X10

Weighted decline situps: (weight behind head)
+5X10
+5X10
+5X10
+5X10
+5X10

Seated Calf Raises:
2 plates/sideX12
2 plates/sideX12
2 plates/sideX12
2 plates/sideX12
2 plates/sideX12

Hammer Curl:
30X10
50X8
60X6
70X6

music choice for the night:

Various tracks from disturbed and Eminem's Lose yourself. Not that I like Rap, but the lyrics always remind me of deadlifting.

COMMENTS:
Not a great workout to be honest. Was having trouble keeping in the groove on deadlift for some reason which was odd, because this lift is usually spot on for me. I was running really short on time so most sets had about 60s of rest. Threw in some hammer curls at the end for fun

[ossizen]

You have a journal again?

Ah, working out before closing time... best time for one I think.

[Tyrbolift]

subscribed

[-Lucifer]

*subbed*

[theshoupguy]

Subbed - nice weighted dip stats too man, you're a fkin' beast.

[Tyrbolift]

Originally Posted by Tyrbolift

subscribed

Oh wait. You're one of those powerlifter types.

*unsubscribed*

[W8isGR8]

Holy ****....when did you put on 100 lbs? I know i've been gone for awhile but damn....

[AHTTG]

Originally Posted by bigboy15

hoping that it would hit my pecs better than regular dumbbell presses because of the limited range of motion.

lol wut?

[bigboy15]

Originally Posted by ossizen

You have a journal again?

Ah, working out before closing time... best time for one I think.

Yeah, I'd have to agree. I usually like to go in about 1:45-2 hours before they close because I like that there's not many people and hate feeling rushed. Lately they've had the A/C off to save money which is kind of stupid. If it wasn't for the fact that this particular gym is about 4 minutes from my house I'd go elsewhere.

Originally Posted by Tyrbolift

subscribed

Enjoy the ride (no homo)

Originally Posted by DaRk LuCiFeR

*subbed*

Welcome aboard

Originally Posted by theshoupguy

Subbed - nice weighted dip stats too man, you're a fkin' beast.

Haha thanks man, I haven't done dips consistently in quite a while because they have aggravated my sternum in the past. I've been doing them for a couple weeks now and so far I seem fine. We'll see what happens as I try to push the weight up a little bit.

Originally Posted by Tyrbolift

Oh wait. You're one of those powerlifter types.

*unsubscribed*

Haha not really, I just like to lift heavy things. I feel like my training is most effective when I do low reps and split my training days up based on particular lifts and assistance exercises rather than by body parts. I feel like I do higher than average volume as well.

I'm not really sure what I'm training for right now, I just enjoy being big and strong. I may do a meet or a contest of some type in the future but I don't really have any plans yet.

Originally Posted by W8isGR8

Holy ****....when did you put on 100 lbs? I know i've been gone for awhile but damn....

Haha thanks man. It has been a while. Junior year I was probably 185ish, Senior year I was about 205ish and struggled to stay around there for wrestling, because of all the endurance work, but got pretty lean because of it. (I was 215lb class) After I graduated I maintained for a while until I got settled in at college sometime around October/November of 2008 and decided to take advantage of the all you can eat cafeteria and got up to 242 back in April of 09'(when I took my avatar picture).

I decided my bodyfat was getting a little higher than I'd like so I started cutting not too long after that. I'm about 230ish in the morning now, I'll throw up a couple pictures of what I'm looking like now when I finish responding to everyone.

You look pretty good too man, legs in particular are a lot thicker.

Originally Posted by AHTTG

lol wut?

Haha I know. It doesn't really make sense logically, but for me I've always felt my chest working more in the upper range of the movement than the lower. Dave Tate says the same thing. After trying it, I'd have to say the results were mediocre. I seemed to feel it more in my shoulders than my chest, and my chest wasn't sore the day after either.

[bigboy15]

Got about 8.5 hrs of sleep last night. I'll be weighing myself again tomorrow morning as usual.

(at 230ish)
PICTURES:

EDIT: pics need resized. hold on
EDIT: **** this **** I'll do it later

[-Lucifer]

Originally Posted by bigboy15

[img]http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/363/resize2s.jpg[../img]
[img]http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/5943/resize1s.jpg[../img]

Looking sw0le as hell, son!

GJ.

[Tyrbolift]

Damn bro! Those ARE 19's.


















Negged

[bigboy15]

Quick update now that I'm home. Ended up spending the day ripping out about 200 ft of fencing and by the time I got done the gym was closed. so no sled dragging for the 11th. I guess ripping out that much fencing is pretty good gpp anyways.

[bigboy15]

Today is Sunday, July 12th, 2009.

WEEKLY WEIGH IN:

Weight before breakfast: 229.2


Down almost a lb from last week and everything appears on track. May have lost some of that yesterday from working about 5 hours in the sun, so a further decrease in carbs may be necessary before too much longer. I'll wait until next week though and see what happens. Military pressing coming later today.

[bigboy15]

It's Sunday, July 12th 2009

9 hours sleep last night

Workout: 3:30 pm

Military Press:
BarX10/shoulder warmup excercises
80X5
100X5
120x5
150x5
170x3
190x3


Flat dumbbell press:
75X8
120X4
120X5

Low incline dumbbell fly:
50X10
50X10
50X10
50X10

Wide Grip weighted Chin:
+25X6
+32.5X6
+32.5X6
+32.5X6 DROP BWX8

Dumbbell Row:
130X10
130X10

Dumbbell standing lateral:
35X10
35X10

Lying Neutral grip dumbbell tricep extension:
25X10
55X8
55X8
55X8
55X8

Ez grip tricep cable pushdown:
150X16

music choice for the afternoon:

Varied

COMMENTS:
I was outside today for the dumbbell presses and it was hotter than a mofo. The first set I did with the 120's I tried to use a special dumbbell pressing rack that's outside and it was quite difficult unracking a dumbbell and pressing it without hitting the upright for some reason. Only got 1 rep and decided to bail and just do them like normal before I nailed myself in the face. Usually I do a little lighter weight and do 10 rep sets but felt like goin a little heavier today. After 2 sets I decided to switch to fly's because I had already done floor pressing earlier this week.

I also found out the gym is now going to be enforcing a new "no extreme weight slamming policy because weight slamming scares off the soccer moms." I the fact that the gym decreased it's hours, does not run the air conditioning, and no longer has child care doesn't scare off customers but deadlifting does....hmmmm Guess I'll have to start deadlifting outside

[theshoupguy]

Originally Posted by bigboy15

I also found out the gym is now going to be enforcing a new "no extreme weight slamming policy because weight slamming scares off the soccer moms." I the fact that the gym decreased it's hours, does not run the air conditioning, and no longer has child care doesn't scare off customers but deadlifting does....hmmmm Guess I'll have to start deadlifting outside

Lmao, sounds like you might need to switch gyms, man.
Awesome lifts, too - no wonder you're freakin' huge, haha.

[bigboy15]

Originally Posted by theshoupguy

Lmao, sounds like you might need to switch gyms, man.
Awesome lifts, too - no wonder you're freakin' huge, haha.

Haha thanks bro. You should start a journal!

There's probably better options around, but this gym is about 5 minutes from my front door. I'll have to wait and see if they say anything next time I deadlift.

I've been going there about 3 years and it used to be really hardcore. They had dumbbells up to 180 and didn't care about deadlifting or grunting and the like. With the economic downturn and the opening of local fitness clubs (like 24 hr fitness) their membership rates have decreased and the management has made decisions which are in my opinion not so well thought out.

They also lost many of their staff members who were accomplished powerlifters/bodybuilders and I'm sure that hasn't helped things either. Sad part is most of them went into the military to acquire insurance for their growing families, which they couldn't get working in the fitness industry.

[AHTTG]

What are some of your PRs in db presses? That seems to be an obvious weakpoint over your flat bench, unless that last workout was a fluke.

[-Lucifer]

Originally Posted by bigboy15

Guess I'll have to start deadlifting outside

Do it, phaggot.

Just like Ronnie does walking lunges outside.

[bigboy15]

Originally Posted by AHTTG

What are some of your PRs in db presses? That seems to be an obvious weakpoint over your flat bench, unless that last workout was a fluke.

Yeah man, it is definitely a weak point. At school we don't have dumbbells going up over 100lbs so I usually do high reps with those (like 12-15 reps). For some reason when I came home I kept doing that, rather than taking advantage of the heavier dumbbells I have access to here. Probably because all the dumbbells over 110 are outside, and it usually averages 100+ degrees in the evenings when I lift lol

Yesterday was the first time I have used dumbbells above 110 for pressing in my life, and there was definitely little to no carryover from the lighter dbells. So I guess as of now my pr for a dumbbell press is 120X5, although I'm fairly certain I could get one more rep if I really strained myself. I'm not gonna lie though, holding a dumbbell of that size over my chest definitely got into my head. Hopefully next week I can get somewhere between 6-8...we'll see

Just out of curiousity, what's your PR?

Originally Posted by DaRk LuCiFeR

Do it, phaggot.

Just like Ronnie does walking lunges outside.

Haha depending on how hot it is next time I deadlift, I will. If I do, I'll video tape it just for you because your such a loyal subscriber

[bigboy15]

I think I'm going to start posting interesting articles I read from time to time to this thread. I won't post random crap, but stuff that I think is truly interesting and of value. If this becomes too much of a clutter for the readers/subscribers out there, let me know. Feel free to provide feedback/comment on any of them and let me know what you think!


On another note here is a picture of the sled I drag:






This is lunch from today:





Seems like there may be more sour cream on the baked potatoe than I remember...I'll have to keep an eye on that next time I have a potatoe, because I have a strong family history of heart problems and don't want to get carried away with my fat intake.

[AHTTG]

Originally Posted by bigboy15

Just out of curiousity, what's your PR?

115x8 last week and I will probably get that 120x6 on Thursday. But, I'm also weak on the db bench compared to most 3+ plate benchers. So yea, we need to work on that

[bigboy15]

It's Monday, July 13th 2009

7 hours sleep last night

Workout: 8:30 pm

Squat:
BarX10
155X5
195X5
235X5
295X5
335X3
370X4

Hack Squat:
3 plates sideX10
3 plates sideX10



Good Morning:
BarX10
175X10
175X10
175X10
175X10

Dumbbell Shrug:
150X10
150X10
150X10

Weighted Decline Situp: (weight behind head)
7.5X10
7.5X10
7.5X10
7.5X10
7.5X10

Seated Calf Raises:
45/sideX15
100/sideX10
100/sideX10
100/sideX10
100/sideX10

Barbell Curl:
BarX12
125X6
125X6
125X6

No music, Ipod decided to die



COMMENTS:
My squats suck. Feel free to make fun of them and insult me to provide motivation for their betterment.

[bigboy15]

It's Tuesday, July 14th 2009

8 hours sleep last night

GPP: 9:35 pm

Sled Drag: Two 35lb plates on the sled which is of unknown weight.

+Rigorous full body stretching
+Contrast shower

Did 6 passes (pass=down and back) across the back parking lot of the gym. I'm not sure how far the distance is, but it's quite a ways. No rest between passes. I usually time how long I'm pulling for as well, but my IPOD decided to turn off again. Probably not that great of a session, but before about a month or two ago I was doing no conditioning at all.

[bigboy15]

Originally Posted by AHTTG

115x8 last week and I will probably get that 120x6 on Thursday. But, I'm also weak on the db bench compared to most 3+ plate benchers. So yea, we need to work on that

Yeah man, I guess I never really paid much attention to the dumbbell weight in relation to bench. Maybe that'll help my pecs lol

[bigboy15]

It's Wednesday, July 15th 2009

8 hours sleep last night

Workout: 8:30 pm

DELOAD

Bench:
BarX10/shoulder warmup
135X5
135X5
160X5
160X5
190X5
190X5

Dip:
BW+45lbX12
BW+45lbX12
BW+45lbX12


Dumbbell Incline Fly:
30X12
30X12
30X12

Pendlay Row:
BarX10
155X12
155X12
155X12

Face Pull:
75X12
75X12
75X12

Lying Tricep: (assuming Ez bar weight of 25lb)
75X12
75X12
75X12
75X12
75X12

Nice easy start to my deload week. I usually deload every 4 weeks

[bigboy15]

Feeling kind of run down tonight for some reason which is weird considering I only did a deload workout last night. I think I'm going to switch tonight's lifting with tomorrow's GPP session

[bigboy15]

It's Thursday, July 16th 2009

7-8 hours sleep last night (doesn't feel like enough though)

GPP: 9:35 pm

Sled Drag: Two 35lb plates on the sled which is of unknown weight.

9 passes (pass=down and back) across the back parking lot of the gym

+forgot stretching

Got more passes tonight than I did the other day. Some of it was likely because the chain on my sled got twisted about halfway through which allowed me to stop and catch my breath. Either way I was toasted when I got done. Timer said I was pulling for about 16 minutes