Ironwill2008 V3.0

[Marius_Ursus]

I like how you don't got crazy with the volume, but you still have plenty of mass and strength.

[ironwill2008]

I like how you don't got crazy with the volume, but you still have plenty of mass and strength.

While heavy (for me) relatively low-rep compound exercises is what suits me best, and what I mostly stick with, I've trained with much higher volume in the past (I've trained just about every way one can train, at one time or another over the past 24 years), but my current routine is what works best for me at this time. With my advancing....uh.....chronological....uh......chall enge, maintaining as much strength as possible while not gaining any more than a modest amount of fat is paramount.

[Marius_Ursus]

While heavy (for me) relatively low-rep compound exercises is what suits me best, and what I mostly stick with, I've trained with much higher volume in the past (I've trained just about every way one can train, at one time or another over the past 24 years), but my current routine is what works best for me at this time. With my advancing....uh.....chronological....uh....challen ges, maintaining as much strength as possible while not gaining any more than a modest amount of fat is paramount.

Your training makes a lot of sense to me, Will, for any age group. You hit all the muscle chains, multiple times per week, with around 15-25 reps.

It's perfect.

I mean...well, that style of training works best for me, too. I've done 20 reps, 12 reps, 10...I don't even like going as high as 10. My favorite rep range is 5-8 for three sets...sometimes as few as 3 reps depending on the dependings.

[ironwill2008]

Your training makes a lot of sense to me, Will, for any age group. You hit all the muscle chains, multiple times per week, with around 15-25 reps.

It's perfect.

About 4-5 years in, I felt like I had a pretty good grip on what I needed to do in the gym (volume/intensity/frequency/sets/reps/exercises) in order to continue to make progress. I was fortunate to have found a RL mentor going into my 2nd year of training, and he pretty much immediately put me on the right path after my first year of fumbling around on my own.

My bigger battle, believe it or not, was in constantly reminding myself that I needed to continually eat more and more calories/macros in order to gain more and more muscle. When you're already cramming 5-6 meals a day down your pie hole, it's hard to believe you're gonna need even more in order to put on those next 5 pounds of lean mass. Starting at age 45 at a body weight of 130 (there's a 'before' pic of me posted in my BodySpace), I had reached my goal weight of 200 lean pounds after about 11 years. By then, I was eating about 4800 calories a day (I worked a very physical outdoor utility company construction job), and had to break all of it down into 8 meals in order to be able to cram all of it in by the end of each day. I was eating so much food that if I had to fart, I was scared to.

......My favorite rep range is 5-8 for three sets...sometimes as few as 3 reps depending on the dependings.

That's pretty much my own blueprint, found over time by trial and error.

[HoosierHardGain]

Just wondering, Bill. You said your last rep on the lunges were very challenging. What would you have done with the bar if you couldn't get back up?

[Marius_Ursus]

About 4-5 years in, I felt like I had a pretty good grip on what I needed to do in the gym (volume/intensity/frequency/sets/reps/exercises) in order to continue to make progress. I was fortunate to have found a RL mentor going into my 2nd year of training, and he pretty much immediately put me on the right path after my first year of fumbling around on my own.

I remember your telling me about him. I was envious because of how long it took me to figure this stuff out among all the books and magazines.

My bigger battle, believe it or not, was in constantly reminding myself that I needed to continually eat more and more calories/macros in order to gain more and more muscle. When you're already cramming 5-6 meals a day down your pie hole, it's hard to believe you're gonna need even more in order to put on those next 5 pounds of lean mass. Starting at age 45 at a body weight of 130 (there's a 'before' pic of me posted in my BodySpace), I had reached my goal weight of 200 lean pounds after about 11 years. By then, I was eating about 4800 calories a day (I worked a very physical outdoor utility company construction job), and had to break all of it down into 8 meals in order to be able to cram all of it in by the end of each day. I was eating so much food that if I had to fart, I was scared to.

Oh, I believe it! I'm eating more now than I used to, just cinched my belt down a notch. I was eating wrong. The sad part is I knew it, just didn't want to apply myself to my diet.

That's pretty much my own blueprint, found over time by trial and error.

Same.

[Cantplankwell]

About 4-5 years in, I felt like I had a pretty good grip on what I needed to do in the gym (volume/intensity/frequency/sets/reps/exercises) in order to continue to make progress. I was fortunate to have found a RL mentor going into my 2nd year of training, and he pretty much immediately put me on the right path after my first year of fumbling around on my own.

My bigger battle, believe it or not, was in constantly reminding myself that I needed to continually eat more and more calories/macros in order to gain more and more muscle. When you're already cramming 5-6 meals a day down your pie hole, it's hard to believe you're gonna need even more in order to put on those next 5 pounds of lean mass. Starting at age 45 at a body weight of 130 (there's a 'before' pic of me posted in my BodySpace), I had reached my goal weight of 200 lean pounds after about 11 years. By then, I was eating about 4800 calories a day (I worked a very physical outdoor utility company construction job), and had to break all of it down into 8 meals in order to be able to cram all of it in by the end of each day. I was eating so much food that if I had to fart, I was scared to.

That's pretty much my own blueprint, found over time by trial and error.

Hi Will, just some questions If I may?

How did you start off on day one with the Bench Press and squat? what kind of weights were you doing back then say like the first two years...how did it progress?

Did you ever reach times when you were overtraining, or "over reaching"? what did you do about it.

Thanks

[ironwill2008]

Just wondering, Bill. You said your last rep on the lunges were very challenging. What would you have done with the bar if you couldn't get back up?

Good question, and the main reason why it takes me so many workouts just to add a few pounds to the bar or just one rep. My wife snaps my pics, but she couldn't clean that much weight if I got stuck. I'd have to dump the bar behind me and get my trailing leg out of the way.

I'll counter that by posting again that I've been doing BB Lunges for almost 23 years, and the first 3-4 of those years with spotters, taking every heavy set to the point of failure, so I have a pretty good feeling for knowing when there isn't another rep left in the tank. I never mention in here how much I "used to lift back in the day" for a number of reasons, but I will say that I've Lunged a fair amount more than 275 in the past.

I remember your telling me about him. I was envious because of how long it took me to figure this stuff out among all the books and magazines.

His efforts and interest in my progress greatly shortened my learning curve. And while I was totally immersed in bodybuilding and learning everything I could on my own, it's likely that without his guidance, I would have simply gone the way of most other beginners---making little/no progress, becoming disillusioned and frustrated, and then quitting altogether.

Oh, I believe it! I'm eating more now than I used to, just cinched my belt down a notch. I was eating wrong. The sad part is I knew it, just didn't want to apply myself to my diet.

The biggest nutritional mistake I see (and geez, there are a zillion of them, based on posts on this site by the minute) is people putting importance on the names of foods rather than in the calorie/macro/micro content of those foods.

Sugar (by name) is vilified, carbs are vilified, fats are vilified, and on, and on, and on, and.............. with little concern for logic nor common sense.

Hi Will, just some questions If I may?

How did you start off on day one with the Bench Press and squat? what kind of weights were you doing back then say like the first two years...how did it progress?

I had a cheap bench and a pair of spin-lock dumbbell handles, set up in a spare bedroom on the 2nd floor of my house when I first started. I did a mix of about 20 different exercises, 6 and often 7 days a week. I Benched, and Squatted what I could manage to Press over my head (which wasn't much). I was probably Benching maybe 90 pounds to start, and about the same for squats.

When I joined my first commercial gym, after about 10 months of fumbling around on my own, and came under the mentorship of the gym owner, that's when things really too off. My first day, he took me straight to the power rack, taught me how to do a proper High Bar Squat, and I was off to the races.

Did you ever reach times when you were overtraining, or "over reaching"? what did you do about it.

There were several times when I knew I was over-reaching, but it was more because of my job than from poor training practice. Busting one's tail climbing utility poles all day long in 100 degree heat for months on end while still adhering to a strict training routine will do that to a guy.


I countered it by trimming some sets from my routine, eating more, and getting as much rest as possible---all the usual stuff that everyone should be doing.

[Bo_Flecks]

There were several times when I knew I was over-reaching...

Sort of been having a side conversation about this in the dad bod thread of the O35 misc. I think I have talked more bodybuilding in the last two days than I have in a year. lol

[ironwill2008]

Sort of been having a side conversation about this in the dad bod thread of the O35 misc. I think I have talked more bodybuilding in the last two days than I have in a year. lol

For those of us who have been doing this (bodybuilding) for a long time, and posting about it for a long time here as well, topics can get pretty stale. And beginners' questions can always be answered by stating the basics, so the same ground gets covered over and over. Tough to remain engaged, but for the few who will actually listen to good advice, it can be life-altering. I know it sure was for me.

[BenBlue]

For those of us who have been doing this (bodybuilding) for a long time, and posting about it for a long time here as well, topics can get pretty stale. And beginners' questions can always be answered by stating the basics, so the same ground gets covered over and over. Tough to remain engaged, but for the few who will actually listen to good advice, it can be life-altering. I know it sure was for me.

So much truth. It does get stale, but i'm always lurking in hopes of having an interesting conversation and learning something new. Some pretty great guys to chat with as well in terms of new products, new studies, and training routines, but most new threads these days are very stale topics with people who just don't have a real desire to soak up knowledge that's being offered. Everybody wants to be big and strong, but very few people actually have that "it" factor that allows them to understand and apply what they're being taught/learning.

[ironwill2008]

So much truth. It does get stale, but i'm always lurking in hopes of having an interesting conversation and learning something new. Some pretty great guys to chat with as well in terms of new products, new studies, and training routines, but most new threads these days are very stale topics with people who just don't have a real desire to soak up knowledge that's being offered. Everybody wants to be big and strong, but very few people actually have that "it" factor that allows them to understand and apply what they're being taught/learning.....

......and then sustain that effort for years, usually in isolation, working only to move them further toward their goal, grinding out rep after rep, constantly striving to add a few more pounds to the bar, or just get one more rep than last time. Eating when they aren't really hungry because they need to hit their daily calorie total---or not eating when they'd really like to because they're currently cutting a few pounds of chub, and nobody ever got leaner by eating too much.


That 'it' factor is extremely rare, and becoming more and more rare; few individuals these days will even dare to set a challenging personal goal for themselves, much less stick with it over the long haul.










Bodybuilders aren't necessarily 'better' than anyone else, but they are certainly cut from a different cloth.

[ntrllftr]

Du not forgits 2 eat rite!

[ironwill2008]

Du not forgits 2 eat rite!

Lulz.

How are you, Carl?

[ntrllftr]

Lulz.

How are you, Carl?

Still been lifting and got my ass handed to me last year in my last show. Looking to improve for the over 50 masters. Funny thing is I just posted on FB about out training a bad diet with a photo. lulz!!! It's going well. Glad to see you're still active here helping peeps out! Especially since you and a few others that I see still around have very sound advice and will benefit from yer wizardry err wisdom

[ironwill2008]

Still been lifting and got my ass handed to me last year in my last show. Looking to improve for the over 50 masters. Funny thing is I just posted on FB about out training a bad diet with a photo. lulz!!! It's going well.

Not surprised one bit that you're still training; some of us will just never quit.

Hats off to you for competing; that's a level of dedication, determination, and discipline that few can even comprehend.

Glad to see you're still active here helping peeps out! Especially since you and a few others that I see still around have very sound advice and will benefit from yer wizardry err wisdom

Thanks, Carl; I keep trying. But the rise of social media has brought about even more proliferation of broscience, nonsense, plain old bull****, and scams than from just a couple of years ago. Then, the nonsense was primarily from just a few sources; now it arrives from all directions to steer noobs (and some more-experienced people too, who should know better) away from the right path.

YouTube, in particular, has pretty much saturated the internet with some of the dumbest **** to come down the pike. But a lot of it tells people what they want to hear, and after that, there's little chance of ever getting through to them. If some noob can buy a program from some scammer that "guarantees" he will build a pound of muscle each and every week while at the same time give him a set of abs that look like a washboard (all with a silly fru-fru routine of Wrist Curl and Leg Extension supersets), why would he ever listen to someone telling him to bust his hump on basic compound lifts, weigh/measure/track all his food portions, and stay home and sleep instead of going out and partying every weekend?



Some of the goofy notions and preconceived ideas I see posted by beginners in the 'losing fat' forum (for just one example), makes me weep for the future of humanity. srs.

[ntrllftr]

I could go on and on about your last post but my typing skillz suck.
I will however...

QFT...

And while building muscle and strength or losing body fat isn't exactly rocket science, at least some measure of detail and accuracy is required.

Consistency is, by far, the most important factor in making significant change in one's body composition/physique. EVERYTHING branches off of consistency.

[ironwill2008]

Put in a solid session today to bring the week's training to a close. Although the numbers didn't move from last week's totals, the session was energetic. Today's training was:


Romanian Deadlift
bar x10 W/U
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x3
350x2

EZ Bar Curl
45x10 W/U
90x10
90x10
90x9

Dip
bw +50x8
bw +50x8
bw +50x8

Worked my way through here in an hour on the nose. I'm still stuck @ 2reps on RDLs, but that 2nd one didn't feel like it killed me today, so I expect I'll get a 3rd eventually and punch my ticket to add more weight.

I was pleased to be able to maintain the extra rep on Curls I picked up last week. Still working these to 3x10 in order to qualify to add a couple more pounds to the bar.

Managed to get my 3x8 on Dips, and hands and wrists are still attached to my forearms, so that's a good thing.

Going to rest for the next two days, hoping there isn't any amount of damage to the house or trees from this giant storm that The Weather Dude is predicting to roll through here some time this evening. I get a kick out of the weather nerds using the term, "Monsoon-like" to describe a storm that they also say will only last an hour or so. If only they had ever had to be out in such weather IRL, rain coming down in buckets that goes on for weeks on end.


Anyway, back in the gym on Monday for Front Squats, Leg Press, Chinups, and Seated Presses.

Post-WorkOut meal was a pair of very tasty stuffed 'maters, loaded with herbed rice, peas, onions, garlic, bread crumbs, and parmesan cheese. As always, a glass of milk accompanied.

[Marius_Ursus]

Pretty strong butt pulling a 350 double like that with an RDL.

[ironwill2008]

Pretty strong butt pulling a 350 double like that with an RDL.

Thanks, Tom. That's another lift I feel is very important for building/maintaining overall strength, and one I've worked hard for many years.

[OT2000]

How did you fair during the storm you mentioned yesterday?

[ironwill2008]

How did you fair during the storm you mentioned yesterday?

Thanks for asking, OT; apparently, they were wrong----again.

We had a lot of rain from about 7:00 PM til midnight, but nothing out of the ordinary; no high wind, no "Monsoon-like" downpour, or anything near as bad as the Accu-Guess knuckleheads were predicting. It seems that any time there's even just a slight chance for more-severe-than-usual weather, all the TV weather geeks just wear it out. It's to the point now that I have a hard time believing anything any of those goofballs predicts. It's way past the point where their 'cry wolf' predictions are merely annoying.




Twenty years ago or so, the National Weather Service put in a forecast lab in the area, complete with a big RADAR 'balloon' antenna, and a huge room filled to the brim with all kinds of scientific weather forecasting equipment. I worked in Verizon Installation at the time, and got the service order to put in their initial phone service lines and equipment, so I got a good look at all their stuff.

If I had that much equipment to refer to just to tell if it was gonna rain or not, and I couldn't be any more accurate than these jokers, I'd expect to get fired. I could do at least as good with one of those "Magic 8-Ball" thingies.

[ironwill2008]

Good session today; I was fired up and ready to go. today's training was:

Front Squat
bar x10 W/U
95x8 W/U
135x8
165x8
185x8
225x5

Leg Press PWO
580x12 W/U
670x12
760x12
850x8

Chinup
bw +55x6
bw +55x6
bw +55x5

Smith Machine Seated Press
95x10 W/U
165x6
165x5
165x4

Session required an hour and twnety minutes, start to finish. Still @ 5 reps on Fronts; I need to find a way to work harder here.

Leg Press remained as previous, but I feel like I'm pretty much at limit on these, so any further gains will be slow to appear.

Somehow managed to recover that 5th 'ghost rep' on the 3rd set of Chins. No idea where it came from, but I'll glady log it.

Seateds stayed at 6-5-4; I need to dig deeper if I'm going to get these up to 6-across.

That's all I've got for today; yard work will comprise my 'rest' day tomorrow, then it'll be the gym on Wednesday for Lunges, Rows, and Inclines.

Salmon over charcoal and mesquite chips FTW.





Post-WorkOut meal was the above salmon, a well-done sweet tater with butter, a spinach and fruit salad with raspberry vinaigrette, and a glass of milk.

[ironwill2008]

Another good session today to keep the ball rolling forward; I had plenty of energy. Today's training was:

Barbell Lunge
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x2

V-Grip Seated Row PWO
90x10 W/U
180x10
180x10
180x9

Smith Machine Incline Press
95x10 W/U
135x10
165x10
210x8

Finished the scheduled work in right at one hour. Still @ 2 reps on the top set of Lunges, but I'm sure there's a 3rd in there somewhere. I'll keep grinding.

Cable Rows didn't advance, but I got a monster upper-back pump, so that let me know that work was being done, and where. I'll probably drop these after deload next week and pick up a different Row variant.

Based on how good I felt going in today, I knew I'd break through somewhere during this session, and I did so on Inclines. After having been stuck at 7 reps for a while, I managed to add an 8th. Now the task will be to keep it.

Done for today. Friday, after tomorrow's rest day, I'll hit RDLs, Curls, and Dips in an effort to build up some momentum to carry me through next week's light training.

Post-WorkOut meal was a half-dozen eggs, bacon, cheese grits, Texas toast, and a glass of milk.

[Payton1221]

Post-WorkOut meal was a half-dozen eggs, bacon, cheese grits, Texas toast, and a glass of milk.

Everytime I see the "half-dozen eggs," I remind myself that's what I need to fix soon. For whatever reason, it's a meal that I just don't think of.

Not sure if you're a canned salmon fan, but I have simple recipe: 1/2 can (bones/skin removed), breadcrumbs, onions, two egg whites, and creole seasoning. I make one huge patty, fry in a pan with just a spray of olive oil for about 2.5 mins/side . . . you're heating it more than really "cooking" it. I think it's delicious.

Good job on that 8th rep on the inclines too!

[ironwill2008]

Everytime I see the "half-dozen eggs," I remind myself that's what I need to fix soon. For whatever reason, it's a meal that I just don't think of.

Not sure if you're a canned salmon fan, but I have simple recipe: 1/2 can (bones/skin removed), breadcrumbs, onions, two egg whites, and creole seasoning. I make one huge patty, fry in a pan with just a spray of olive oil for about 2.5 mins/side . . . you're heating it more than really "cooking" it. I think it's delicious.

Good job on that 8th rep on the inclines too!

Thanks, Mark. I haven't tried canned salmon, but will probably do so eventually.

We have an egg meal at some point almost every day. They're so versatile that we'll never tire of eating them. IMO, they're about as perfect a food as food can get.

[Payton1221]

We have an egg meal at some point almost every day. They're so versatile that we'll never tire of eating them. IMO, they're about as perfect a food as food can get.

You are a good candidate for raising your own But seriously, backyard breeding is becoming very popular, and you don't need a rooster bird just for eggs that you eat, so with no rooster, there's no early morning crowing to disturb your neighbors. We had them for a while, but allowing them to roam free during the day is best but they must be protected from predators at night. You can expect an egg/hen MOST days, so the scratch feed that you give to them is more than offset by the eggs that you will no longer be buying.

The grandkids will love them. But Sherman? Who knows

[ironwill2008]

You are a good candidate for raising your own But seriously, backyard breeding is becoming very popular, and you don't need a rooster bird just for eggs that you eat, so with no rooster, there's no early morning crowing to disturb your neighbors. We had them for a while, but allowing them to roam free during the day is best but they must be protected from predators at night. You can expect an egg/hen MOST days, so the scratch feed that you give to them is more than offset by the eggs that you will no longer be buying.

The grandkids will love them. But Sherman? Who knows

Lulz. Cockers were bred as birders; to have chickens here would not end well for the chickens.

[ironwill2008]

Today's session marks the end of the week's work as well as that of this current three-week segment. Today's training was:

Romanian Deadlift
bar x10 W/U
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/u
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x3
350x2

EZ Bar Curl
45x10 W/U
90x10
90x10
90x9

Dip
bw +50x8
bw +50x8
bw +50x8

Completed the work in one hour on the nose. Still stuck in 2-rep jail on Romanians, but I feel like there's a little gas left in the tank. Another shot at a triple will come after next week's deload workouts.

Wasn't able to move Curls forward to reps-across; I'll keep at these until I get 3x10.

Met my 3x8 goal on Dips again, albeit with minor squawking from my left wrist. These too I will continue to work.

That all. As mentioned, I'll deload next week with three light workouts all of which will be MC'ed by my boy Sherman. I'm sure he can hardly wait.

Post-WorkOut meal was a baked chicken breast, mashed potatoes (!) with butter, green beans, a plateful of caprese, and a glass of milk.

[Bo_Flecks]

...a plateful of caprese...

Gotta' be honest. I had to Google this. Obviously, I am an uncultured cretin.