Tomorrow becomes TODAY!! GFY!!!!

[ricka182]

02-22-10

So this week started off to sh.it... Felt pretty good all day, looking forward to a good session.. I get home, mix my intra and pwo, do some warm ups to the blood pumping good.. lay back on the bench, get 5 reps..and pop goes my shoulder. GDAMNIT!!! I almost dropped the bar on my face.. I recovered, put the bar back and popped it back in. Waited about 5 minutes, tried again...on the first rep I could feel it right away. I tried, and got 3 in before I just knew it would go again.. I stopped so it wouldn't pop, because it hurts like hell!

So nothing really today...I can say the lousy damn 150 I had on the bar for the first set felt pretty light. Looking forward to getting my real 1RMs in 2 weeks....then I start the bulk.. I don't care how much I weigh, I just want to be bigger..

I'll reevaluate my shoulder on Wednesday before trying again...want to lift, but don't want to F it up..

[ricka182]

Shoulder still F'ed up...energy levels have dropped to new lows..overall just feeling ****ty. I think I need to just eat like I used to for a few days, even if it means gaining some fat. I'm not about to sit down and eat a fried dinner with a side of lard, but eating so little and very few carbs for so long has really taken it's toll on me. I feel leaner, but I'm still weighing the same; I can't tell if I am actually gaining muscle or just being static and wasting my time...very frustrating after so long and so much money spent on diet foods and supps.

From here, I plan to just do whatever for this week and next. Then I will reevaluate, again, and start to plan the bulk I've been wanting to do..I already have the diet pretty much set, just a few tweaks here and there. Routine is fairly solid too, but will ask for advice when the time is right...

Never quitting, never giving up, never getting fat again!!!! I just need a F'ing break.....

[ricka182]

So I'm feeling better now. I haven't touched a weight in over a week, and I think I really needed that break. I originally planned on doing these full body workouts 3x a week, at 60-70% max, for only 4 weeks maybe. I wound up going for almost 10 weeks, at 80-90% max, still at 3x a week. It was just too much to take over time..

Current plan is keep resting through the weekend, and then crash diet and detox for 10 days. I'm not a big fan of crash and detox, but I haven't been the best as to what I've been putting in my body lately. Got drunk a lot, got high a few times, and just ate whatever I damn felt like...not really proud of all that either. Life is full of choices, and I make good and bad decisions. I've enjoyed resting, but now with my bulk stack nearly stocked and complete, I'm ready to go back at it.

I'll be following my own routine for a 6 weeks, then 5/3/1 for 6 weeks. Lots of eating, and will be starting heavy cardio after the first 6 weeks. The weather is getting a little better, and by then I'll be able to run outside again. I hate running, but I lost more fat and felt a lot better when I was running last year.

Okay, back to work...

[ricka182]

So no major pains or aches anywhere, feeling much better. About 75% ready to get back to it. I've been taking it easy since last post, still haven't touched the weights. Spent the last few days setting my diet and routine, mostly diet. I'm torn between multiple opinions on what and when I should eat. I've decided to use a Zig-Zag approach. I will eat lighter on MWF, and eat bigger on Tu&Th. MWF will be days with lighter workouts, while Tu&Th will be the heavy days. I know there many people who could just keep telling me this or that, but I've made the decision and am going to run with it. I won't make any changes until at least 4-6 weeks. I may not even step on the scale until 4 weeks...I can't let a number stop any progress I could be making.

As for what I've been eating....this week is fruits and veggies only. A protein shake at wake and before bed is the only other extra. The fruit consists of many little Dole fruit cups, a banana, and an apple. Veggies, or veggie I should say..Broccolli and cheese, about a pound for dinner. I'm eating like this to detox and clean my body up a bit on the inside. Also taking a cleanser to aid in that endeavor.

I'll keep on keeping like this for the week, then take a few days to incorporate real foods back into my diet. Next week I'll be setting my 1RMs to plan out weights for the routine.

More updates if anything changes...

[ricka182]

Yeah, I cheated... I wasn't going to step on the scale until the end of the week, but I had to. I looked in the mirror today, and saw a leaner me. I don't mean skin and bones, but something just looked different. I started with my waist measurement, which usually hovers near 43"..big and fat, and full of beer carbs.. Today, it was down to 41"...that's 2" in 3 days. I know it's not all fat, and probably very little fat at all..but it's just good to see a lower number there.

So I stepped up to the scale..took a long piss and deep breath... Beginning of the week I was just over 240...today, I'm at 230.5! I know some of the weight is literally just crap from my intestines and colon, coming out thanks to the detox diet and pills...but I'm almost below my unholy plateau of 230. I haven't been lower than 233 since last year, but now am pretty sure I can get below 230 by Friday. I'll be eating regular foods again this weekend, but will keep everything in moderation as much as I can. Beer will be my biggest fight, but the sweets can also get me at times..

[ricka182]

I'm half asleep right now..but I just wanted to add in I did it. I got under 230 for the first time, in a very long time.. Today was 229.5 Don't care if it's just .5 under...it's still under. I didn't eat much at all today either, or get any of my detox pills and vitamins in on time.. Trying hard not to just go to DD for breakfast tomorrow to celebrate.. That would kind of be against what I'm trying to get done, and it would probably hurt like hell being the first real food I've had all week.. Maybe just a couple eggs at home instead...

[ricka182]

I'm back above 230. But I'm not mad, or dissapointed. I'm eating what tastes good, but watching quantities heavily, all this week. I will start a new bulking run one week from today. All my supps are in line, my diet is squared away, and I may in a real gym as well...still debating on whether or not I want to pay so much. I don't think I get any reimbursement from my company, and I'm looking at a 2 year commitment at the minimum unless I want to pay a lot more each month and down...so I don't know if I want to spend money on something that I can do at home for free. I just hate using my home gym, because the room it's in is such a tight fit it makes it a real pain in the ass to get around without banging into something.

Gym at home, or gym on the road...either way, it starts next week. I'll set my maxes this week, and work out the final few calculations for weight progression, then I just go. I want at least 8-10 weeks out of this, maybe 12-16... I may also do it 8 and 8... All I know is no more GD cutting for a while..

[ricka182]

I'm gearing up, to tear it up! Set some maxes yesterday, will do the rest later today. Then time for calculations for weight progression over the next 10-12 weeks. I'll be starting a lot lower than what I can do, and slowly work my way up to a new max, hopefilly 25% over what I'm at now...and then repeat with new calculations after 8 weeks.

I'm satisfied with the numbers I was able to pull, but would have liked to get a bit heavier. I know my home gym was restricting me on Lat Pull downs, and my flat bench max could have been a bit higher, but I caught the J-hook on the way up and that threw off a little. I should have put the bar back, reset and tried again but I just wanted it done.

Currently looking at :

Flat - 200
Flye - 180

Lat Pull Down - 160
Low Row - 185
Bent Row - 150(estimated) Will start with that as max, and go from there. Never done any bent rows with consistency before, so better to start light and work up..

I'll calculate down to about 45-50% of where I'm at above, and plan out for weekly 5Lb increases on heavy lifts, and 10Lbs every 2 weeks for light lifts...more to come later tonight..

[ricka182]

I'm finally back in the gym tomorrow..been over a month since I was able to lift good and heavy.. Looking to bulk for 8-10 weeks...got the routine and diet all worked out on paper...may be moving to a gym in the next few weeks if I get them to drop the damn enrollment fee, but for now staying at home and using what I have, it's enough for now..

Still tired from a long weekend, a lot of being outside in the cool air....I feel like I could go to bed right now..but I need to go food shopping and do laundry...then lots of sleep...again...:zzzzzzzzzzzzz:

[kitarpyar]

I'm finally back in the gym tomorrow..

Boy, doesn't this sound sweet.

[ricka182]

So I've already made one change to my diet, by increasing my snack size. I figured 1/2 oz of nuts would be a good size....then I realized how little 1/2 oz was, so now it's a full ounce for snack time. Other than that, got everything else worked out right on paper...diet, check...routine, check....supps, check...

Looking forward to a nice easy workout session to get things moving again, but really waiting to make some pain on Wednesday and Thursday...

[ricka182]

First day on the new diet and routine, and so far so F'ing good! I may need to bump up the cals a bit to fight some hunger on the light days, but other than that it's all very yummy, and easy to eat. Nothing funky, just simple foods...and a complicated routine.. Ok, so not really complicated..but I always overthink stuff like this....

Diet This is what I will eat on M-Tu-F, regardless of opinions..it works for me..

Breakfast: 3 eggs, slice of toast w/butter
Snacks: 1oz peanuts
Lunch: 4oz chicken and 1/2c rice pilaf
Dinner: 6oz lean beef, slice of provo cheese, slice of bacon
Pre: Custom mix of - Vitargo VS2 and BCAAs..mixed with grape powerade, taken with Hemavol and C-Bol
Post: 1 scoop Syntha-6, 1 scoop VS2, mixed with 2c water
Bedtime: 1 scoop Cassein

Session Summary These are all way light, some as light as 40% 1RM...weights will progressively move up, at a rate of +10 every 2 weeks..

Flat Press - 100 x15 reps x5 sets
Chest Fly - 90 x20 reps x3 sets

Squat - 130 x15 reps x5 sets
Calf Raises - 135 x15 reps x5 sets


Other Supps

BioForge - Test Booster - Will be cycling through 3 different test boosters over 12 weeks
E-Bol - Ecdy - Helps with protein synthesis and makes me hungry
Hemavol - Pumps and Energy - I love this stuff, always feel good and have a great session with it.
Beta Alanine - Muscle Endurance
TT-33 - Fat Burner
C-Bol - Creatine Nitrate
IntraBolic - One of the best Intra mixes you can buy IMO..
LG BC+EAA - Always good to have extra BCAAs, and this stuff tastes pretty goo\d and does the job.


Multi-V, Joint-V, Fish Oil, CLA, Fiber Tabs round out the supps bill...I know it sounds like a lot, but I find that it works, for me. I understand hard work in the gym is what will make my muscles grow, but I also feel having the support of the supps makes a positive difference.

Overall, I rate today 7/10...sounds low, but I know things will only get better. Looking forward to another light day tomorrow for Back and Shoulders...then W&Th are the real working days....strangely enough, I'm looking forward to the DOMS......

[ricka182]

Yeah...Hell Yeah!

Another solid workout today. Had a few seconds I wanted to drop some reps, but I said to myself **** no, and pushed myself to finish. I'm really starting to feel the high rep count quickly.. Tomorrow brings the first heavy day, chest and legs. Using a 5/3/1 rep scheme, sort of. More to explain on that tomorrow...

Diet

Same as yesterday...very yummy

Session Summary Again, a light day with high reps, focusing on a good stretch and form..

Lat Pull Down - 90 w/ 3 sets x20 reps with a wide overhand grip, 3 sets x20 reps with a narrow underhand grip.

Smith BTN OH Press - 5 sets x15 reps @ 50Lbs..I don't count the weight of the smith bar piece. Used a limited, slow ROM.

BB Shrugs - 120 x15 reps x5 sets - Held for a 2 second pinch at the top

DB Lat Raises - One of my weakest points..did a mix of side and front with 10 and 20 DBs...



I give today an 8/10..felt good, wanted more but stayed in control to maintain consistency and stick to my plan of attack...

[ricka182]

What an F'ed workout...but I still feel semi ok about it. When I went over my routine, I pre-planned all my weight progressions for each workout. I was hoping for 5Lbs each week on most lifts. I'm not so sure that will happen now...which means I'll have to rework my speadsheet over the weekend. I also screwed up when calculating my maxes.. I figured my 1RM on Flat, and forgot to do Incline. So I just dropped 25% off the flat max..and I should have dropped more. I had to sit up and roll the bar down my chest on the 2nd set which sucked big time, and hurt a bit..and I almost crushed my boys... I wound up reworking it right away, and at least getting my reps in. And I tried too much on squats..I could only manage just above paralell with ****ty form..so I'll have to drop that down too. I was pretty pissed at first, but this is my first real attempt on heavy weights to me in a while, so I can live with it.... Anyway, enough bitching...

Diet

Breakfast: 6 eggs, 2 slices of toast w/butter
2 Snacks: 1oz peanuts - 1 before lunch, and another about an hour before session start..
2 Lunches: 4.5oz chicken and 1/2c rice pilaf * Ate this twice about 90 minutes apart..
Dinner: 12oz ham
Pre: Custom mix of - Vitargo VS2 and BCAAs..mixed with grape powerade, taken with Hemavol and C-Bol
Post: 2 scoops Syntha-6, 1 scoop VS2, mixed with 2c water
Bedtime: 1 scoop Cassein + 1 sccop whey mixed with water and milk

Session Summary This day almost sucked 100%...

Incline Press - 160 x5 reps - 170 x0 (fail point) - 145 x5 reps - 155 x3 reps - 165 x1 rep...

Chest Fly - 125 x5 reps - 140 x3 reps - 160 x1 rep - I could have a lot higher on these. Last set @ 160 used a 10 sec in, 10 sec hold, and 10 sec out...

Decline Press - 150 x5
Flat Press - 150 x5

Squat - 210 x5 reps x3 sets - I need to drop this down a bit. I almost fell both to front and back trying to stabalize myself....

BB Calf Raises - 210 x10 reps x3 sets - Easy enough, but grip was ****ty on last set..



Overall, I rate this only a mutha-****in 6/10...because I failed at what I wanted today, but not overall. I will make my adjustments for next week heavy days after I make sure I can do tomorrow with no fails. Tomorrow is heavy day for Back and Shoulders...

I'm going to down my night time shake, punch myself in the face, and go to bed...

[ricka182]

Today was heavy day for Shoulders and Back, and I am very pleased. I even decided to add some SLDLs for fun... No failures either..all movements successful...even though I know I could have gone higher, I need to stay on pace, low and slow to properly build without burning out after a few weeks like I usually do..

F**K!!! Just realized I screwed up some rep counts, but no big deal.. I thought the reps were low, so I held them all longer...oh well, will be sure to not do this again next week..

anyway, today went like this :

Diet

Same as yesterday, but only 1 snack..didn't have time to eat, real busy at work..

Session Summary

Seated Low Row - 115 x5, 130 x3, 150 x1 - This is where I messed up. I was supposed to do 5 reps of each weight, not 5/3/1...

Bent BB Row - 135 x5 reps x2 sets, 150 x5 reps x1 set. Starting to like this move..

SLDL - 150 x10 reps x3 sets - Started with regular DLs, but felt I was leaning too far forward, so started SLDLs and had more control..

Standing OH Press - 95 x5 reps x2 sets, 105 x5 reps x1 set

DB Lat Raises - One of my weakest points..did a mix of side and front with 10 and 20 DBs - Kept the same as light day because I have no other DBs yet...

BB Shrugs - 200 x5 reps x5 sets - Love these, but grip was killing me afterwards. Need to find a way to grip better, or use straps...



Overall, I rate today an 8/10. Pretty good day, could have been better, could have been worse...

[ricka182]

Diet

Breakfast: 2 fried eggs, 2 slices of toast...forgot to buy eggs..
Snack: 1oz peanuts
Lunch: 4.5oz chicken and 1/2c rice pilaf
Pre: Custom mix of - Vitargo VS2 and BCAAs..mixed with grape powerade, taken with Hemavol and C-Bol
Dinner: 6.25oz bacon cheeseburger on 1 slice of toast
Post: 1 scoop Syntha-6, 1 scoop VS2, w/milk
Bedtime: 1 scoop Cassein w/milk

I started using milk in my shakes to get some extra calorieand make them taste better. I was still around 2600 cals last week, so I have room to spare..

Summary

Flat Press - 150 x15r x5s - May bump these reps up to 20 next week.
Chest Fly - 90 x20r x3s - Easy, easy, easy....more weight next week for sure..

Squat - 100 x10r x1s / 150r x15s x3 / 150r x10s x1
Calf Raise - 140 x15r x1s / 140 x20r x4s

Overall, I'll say a 7/10 today. Still tired now, will be crashing early probably...

[ricka182]

Haven't done much lifting this week. Getting over an eye infection still... Feels okay now, if all goes well I'll be back lifting today possibly. I did some light work on shoulders and lats yesterday..just a few sets to get a lil' pump... Anxious to go heavy again next week...

[ricka182]

So I had this great F'ing plan all written up. Do this, eat that, lift this, feel that..blah, blah, blah... I've decided to just go freestyle for a while. Same routine schedule, but instead of trying to do this weight, or that weight..I'm just going to slowly make progression every week by adding weight, or reps. As simple as it sounds, I've found a way to overcomplicate the F out of everything, including lifting.

So I'll be doing progressive workouts each week..If that's the right terminology..

Mon - Chest and Legs
Tues - Shoulders and back
Wed - Off
Thurs - Chest and Legs - Lighter weights, higher reps, lots of dropsets..
Friday - Shoulders and back - Lighter weights, higher reps, lots of dropsets..

I'll add some assistance work for arms 2x a week..But I'm going to concentrate more on core moves : Flat Press, Standing Press, Squats, and Rows.. I know, rows aren't really a core move, but I love them and really feel good all throughout my back when I bust them out.. I'll mix low row and BB bent rows...

As for diet, I'll eat when I want to eat. Just better foods, and without stuffing myself. Small change in the supps.. I'm now running a BET stack, with a few other staple supps....

Diet :

4 eggs w/ 2 slices of toast
1oz peanuts
4.5oz chicken with 5oz rice pilaf
6oz ham and 2 meatballs.

I also had a few brownies as well, but they were small. And seeing as I made them and brought them to work, they are all gone, so no more cheating. But did I mention they were very yummy...Normally, I would have more peanuts instead of brownies...I'l change up a few things each week, but that's the basics of eating healthy for me..

Session :

Flat Press :
15x @ 95
10x @ 115
5x @ 135
5x @ 155
5x @ 165
5x @ 175
5x @ 180
5x @ 180

Chest Flye :
10x @90
20x @90
15x @110
10x @130
5x @ 145
5x @ 145 - Held tension for 10 seconds at end of last rep. Felt like my pecs were going to tear out.. I loved it..

Squat
20x @ 115
15x @ 120
10x @ 130
5x @ 140
5x @ 150 - Breathers
3x @ 160 - ATG Breathers
3x @ 170 - ATG Breathers



Overall, I say 8/10 today. I feel good, am tired and ready for bed, and looking forward to tomorrows session...

[ricka182]

I was tired most of the day, but anxious to get back to the weights...

More changes, as I've added some Lat Pulldowns on back day. I just love the feeling I get after a good set of LPDs...

Diet
Same as yesterday, but no brownies....

Session Summary

Lat Pull Down

20x @ 70
15x @ 80
10x @ 90
5x @ 110
5x @ 130
5x @ 150
5x @ 160 - Underhand grip
5x @ 170 - Underhand grip

Low Row

20x @ 90
15x @ 110
10x @ 120
10x @ 130
5x @ 140
5x @ 150
5x @ 160

Dead Lift

5x @ 135
5x @ 185
5x @ 205 - PR

Military Press

20x @ 65
15x @ 75
10x @ 85
8x @ 90
5x @ 105
5x @ 110

Upright Row

5x @ 110
5x @ 110
5x @ 110

Side Dumbell Raise

5x @ 20
5x @ 20
5x @ 20

I have no other DBs, so this is what I can do for now....


So as mentioned, a good day. One PR on MPs...felt like I could have done another 5 rep set, but wanted to get things moving. Total time was 1 hour 10 minutes...need to cut that down a bit by decreasing rest times in between sets and excersises.. Today gets an 8/10..

Off day tomorrow...9 holes of golf, and then racking some yummy IPA to a keg to get it ready for the weekend BBQ.....