Ironwill2008 V3.0

[Gxp23]

Lookin good!

Just moved from DB rows back to BB myself, still trying to find that sweet spot in the form though...

[ironwill2008]

Lookin good!

thnx; I appreciate the comment.

Just moved from DB rows back to BB myself, still trying to find that sweet spot in the form though...

......and I'm about ready to do the opposite, G. I'm already just about tapped on Bb Rows.

[ElrondHubbard]

It (rosemary) goes well with potatoes too, Mark. I'll also usually add some to chicken marinades.

Rosemary's great. We have a huge one growing in our back yard, and the honeybees love it as much as we do. It's nearly always blooming.

[NoCarbsNoSugar]

no bacon in that picture...
how dare you?

[ironwill2008]

Rosemary's great. We have a huge one growing in our back yard, and the honeybees love it as much as we do. It's nearly always blooming.

I grow it (and several other herbs) in big pots out on our 2nd -story deck all through Spring and Summer. Once it took off and began growing, with me harvesting it several times a week for meals, it didn't get an opportunity to flower. But when we bought our herb seedlings last Spring, my wife picked up a lavender seedling ( a close relative to rosemary; they look almost identical), which I potted up in it's own container. Before long it was flowering, and dozens of big black and yellow bumblebees started visiting it every day. It was really neat to stand out there among them and watch them work, going from one flower to another collecting pollen, and completely ignoring me.

I snapped this pic one sunny day last July; it's currently the screen-saver on one of my wife's laptops; we'll continue to enjoy it as the snow flies this Winter:

no bacon in that picture...
how dare you?

Lulz.

Although I occasionally cook up some Pasta Carbonara (a favorite of our youngest grandson), a pic of that dish has never made it here as a PWO meal.

[ironwill2008]

Another week of training draws to a close. Didn't quite meet all the day's goals, but progress was made, and I lived to post it. Today's training was:

Romanian Deadlift
bar x10 W/U
135x5 W/U
185x3
225x3
275x3
315x3
355x2
275x4 backoff set

355x2 Romanianz

EZ Bar Curl
45x10 W/U
95x10
95x9
95x8

Dips
bw +50x8
bw +50x8
bw +50x8

Worked my way through in an hour. RDLs sill haven't moved, but I'll keep working them. I still feel like I've got something left for them, but only time will tell.

Picked up a rep on EZ Curls. I don't really have a goal weight for these, although a decent set @100 would look good in here. Gotta get 95 to 3x10 first though; don't want to put the cart before the horse.

Was able to get my 3x8 on Dips even with some wrist 'discomfort.' There will eventually come a day when I'll no longer be able to tolerate Dips, but that day was not this one.

Football, wall-to-wall, is on schedule for the weekend. Then I'll return to the gym on Monday to work Front Squats, Leg Presses, Chins, and Seated Machine Presses.

Post-WorkOut meal was a quick chicken salad with croutons, crumbled blue cheese, and olive oil & vinegar dressing. My customary glass of cold milk was at hand.

[ironwill2008]

Tough session today to start the week. I'm near-limit on just about everything in here, so adding a rep is a full-time job any more. Today's training was:

Front squat
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x8
165x8
185x8
230x6

Leg Press PWO
580x12 W/U
670x12
760x12
850x9

Chinup
bw +55x6
bw +55x6
bw +55x4

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

Spent an hour and twenty minutes on this session. Fronts didn't advance, but I was happy just to meet last week's numbers. I'll work to get to reps-across before even thinking about adding any more weight to the bar.

Lost a rep on Leg Press. These are a real challenge to increase, and I expect the top-set reps to see-saw up and down as I work to get them to 12.

To even-out the lost LP rep, I regained the rep I lost on Chins a couple weeks back. These too are at limit.

Machine Press didin't advance, but I feel like there's one more rep in there somewhere, and when I get it, I can add a touch of iron to the carriage.

That's it for this one, and I'm glad it's in the books. I'll use tomorrow to rest (I figure I'll need it), then on Wednesday, I'll return to the gym for a go at Lunges, Rows, and Incline Presses.

Post-WorkOut feast, courtesy of my wife's cooking skills, was a veggie and cheese omelette, cheese grits, fried spuds, bacon, toast, and a glass of milk. It is now officially nap time.

[Gxp23]

Nice, you definitely earned that meal IW along with all the gains it will provide for the next session!

[Payton1221]

Front squat
205x6

Looks like 235 to me

[irongrandpa]

Tough session today to start the week. I'm near-limit on just about everything in here, so adding a rep is a full-time job any more. Today's training was:

Front squat
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x8
165x8
185x8
230x6

Leg Press PWO
580x12 W/U
670x12
760x12
850x9

Chinup
bw +55x6
bw +55x6
bw +55x4

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

Spent an hour and twenty minutes on this session. Fronts didn't advance, but I was happy just to meet last week's numbers. I'll work to get to reps-across before even thinking about adding any more weight to the bar.

Lost a rep on Leg Press. These are a real challenge to increase, and I expect the top-set reps to see-saw up and down as I work to get them to 12.

To even-out the lost LP rep, I regained the rep I lost on Chins a couple weeks back. These too are at limit.

Machine Press didin't advance, but I feel like there's one more rep in there somewhere, and when I get it, I can add a touch of iron to the carriage.

That's it for this one, and I'm glad it's in the books. I'll use tomorrow to rest (I figure I'll need it), then on Wednesday, I'll return to the gym for a go at Lunges, Rows, and Incline Presses.

Post-WorkOut feast, courtesy of my wife's cooking skills, was a veggie and cheese omelette, cheese grits, fried spuds, bacon, toast, and a glass of milk. It is now officially nap time.

Good workout. Also, there's nothing quite like that entire wall of dumbells in the picture.

[ironwill2008]

Sorry for the late reply, guys; I thought I'd replied to these posts earlier.

Technology marches on (and my memory takes a step back!)

Nice, you definitely earned that meal IW along with all the gains it will provide for the next session!

Thanks, G. And just to let you know, the yolks were included!

Looks like 235 to me

Lulz. I have no idea where the "205" came from, Mark ( I corrected my OP); there were a couple of 2 1/2s on there, bringing the load to 230.

Good workout. Also, there's nothing quite like that entire wall of dumbells in the picture.

Hey thanks, Bob. I've had those dumbbells for almost 20 years now; I doubt I could afford to buy them at today's prices!

[ironwill2008]

Hectic day today, capped by massive computer problems on my end (I think). I'm posting this on a borrowed laptop. Today's training was:

Barbell Lunge
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x2
225x6 backoff set

Barbell Row
135x10 W/U
165x8
185x8
220x5

Smith Machine Incline Press
95x10 W/U
135x10
165x10
215x8

The session required an hour to complete. Lunges again didn't advance; in fact, i lost a rep on the backoff set. I'll continue to work hard to move these forward.

Bumped Barbell Rows up by a nickel and managed 5 solid reps. Goal on these is a good set @ 2plates, and based on how the added 5 pounds felt today, it's going to take some work to get there.

Incline Presses were a repeat of last week's effort. I'm pretty much at limit on these, and will consider a substitute chest exercise if I can't get them to move in the next week or so.

That's all Ive got for today. I'll rest tomorrow by putting up Christmas lights, and trying to resolve this annoying problem with my laptop. I just junked an HP printer that proved to be a POS, and I have a feeling that my HP laptop is going to meet the same fate.

Post-Workout meal was a meatball sammich with provolone and marinara, a tasty salad, and a glass of cold milk.

Not certain when I'll be back on here. Technology marches on.

[ironwill2008]

Cold and overcast today, with not a hint of sunshine coming through the gym windows. That didn't slow me down though; I still had a solid session to close out the week's work in the gym. Today's training was:

Romanian Deadlift
bar x10 W/U
135x5 W/U
185x3
225x3
275x3
315x3
355x2
275x5 backoff set

EZ Bar Curl
45x10 W/U
95x10
95x8
95x8

Dips
bw +50x8
bw +50x8
bw +50x8

Completed all the scheduled work in about an hour. My grip on RDLs was a bit lacking today, even with straps. But even at that, I still managed to add a rep to the backoff set. Top set is yet to advance from a double, but I'll continue to work on it.

Lost a rep on Curls. Not sure why, other than I'm about tapped out on them, and probably should expect them to see-saw up and down. I'm about due to find a substitute biceps exercise, and I'll probably do that after the next deload week in a couple of weeks.

Managed to get my usual 3x8 on Dips, and was glad to have been able to do it.

That'll be all for today and this week. I'll rest over the weekend with as much football on TV as I can find, then head back to the gym on Monday to work on Front Squats, Leg Press, Chins, and Seated machine Press.

Post-WorkOut meal was marinated and broiled chicken, french fries, a very crisp salad, and a glass of milk.

[NoCarbsNoSugar]

have your computer problems been solved?
hate it when that happens

[ironwill2008]

have your computer problems been solved?
hate it when that happens

Yes, but what's troubling is I don't know what I did to resolve them. I did a virus scan with a well-known program which didn't find anything, but after that, everything began to work normally again.



Technology marches on.....................

[Payton1221]

It (rosemary) goes well with potatoes too, Mark. I'll also usually add some to chicken marinades.

We bought some. I added it to chicken and liked it. I assume that most of the sausage patties that I have ever eaten had it as one of its main ingredients.

[ironwill2008]

We bought some. I added it to chicken and liked it. I assume that most of the sausage patties that I have ever eaten had it as one of its main ingredients.

Good deal in trying some different seasonings, Mark; herbs and spices are the key to eating well while avoiding meal boredom. Reading the frequent posts in the 'nutrition' forum from people trying to eat nothing but plain chicken make me sad. At one time, I was among them, before I started experimenting with the multitude of seasonings available (for all foods, not just chicken).


Sage is another frequently-used herb in sausage.

[mirroroferised]

Just reading through the last few days in here and noticed a post you made that you're eating egg yolks. Can't believe you're doing that and living to tell the tale

Good workout. Also, there's nothing quite like that entire wall of dumbells in the picture.

I envy that every time I come in and look at the pics. I wish I could find a way to make that kind of space work in my home gym

[Gxp23]

In for some DB spyder curls.

[ironwill2008]

Just reading through the last few days in here and noticed a post you made that you're eating egg yolks. Can't believe you're doing that and living to tell the tale

Me too, Dave, expecially considering as how everyone knows egg yolks are THE SILENT KILLER!!!


Lulz. That topic (cholesterol in eggs causing heart/health problems) pops up in the 'nutrition' forum at least several times per week despite the fact that it's been debunked quite a while ago. If someone has high blood cholesterol levels, it's due to their genetics, not necessarily what they eat/have been eating.

I envy that every time I come in and look at the pics. I wish I could find a way to make that kind of space work in my home gym

These days, with ready availability of just about any piece of weight training equipment imaginable, the biggest impediment to having a well-equipped home gym is simple floor space. Very few houses have enough square footage available in a secondary room (i.e., a room other than the living room or the family rec room) needed for more than a basic setup.

I bought those dumbbells, new, almost 20 years ago for about $1500.00; today, they're at least double that much.

In for some DB spyder curls.

I haven't given it much thought yet, G, but it will probably be something with dumbbells. My wrists just will no longer tolerate a straight bar.

[ElrondHubbard]

Yes, but what's troubling is I don't know what I did to resolve them. I did a virus scan with a well-known program which didn't find anything, but after that, everything began to work normally again.



Technology marches on.....................

Story of my life! I recently lost all sound on mine, and I haven't been able to get a clue as to why it's not working. I may have to re-install the OS.

With that, and the number of sticky and reluctant keys I'm accumulating on this laptop, it may be time to bite the bullet and get a new one soon.

Your meals and your weights moved continue to inspire, as always. (Although in all honesty, I don't see how you manage to get by with such small portions. I'd want about twice that!)

[ironwill2008]

Story of my life! I recently lost all sound on mine, and I haven't been able to get a clue as to why it's not working. I may have to re-install the OS.

With that, and the number of sticky and reluctant keys I'm accumulating on this laptop, it may be time to bite the bullet and get a new one soon.

Sounds like you're due for an upgrade. This time of year, stores are practically giving laptops away. In the past couple of weeks, I've seen name-brand units with 1T hard drive/8gigs RAM for less than $300.


I'm no computer wizard, but know enough to be able to figure out most common issues. If the sound has completely gone, it may be due to simply having inadvertently selected some option you didn't know you made.

Your meals and your weights moved continue to inspire, as always. (Although in all honesty, I don't see how you manage to get by with such small portions. I'd want about twice that!)

Thanks; I appreciate the comments. These days, it's very tough just to add a rep to something, but rather than look back on what I "used to lift," I choose to only look forward, wherever that may go.


I usually portion out what will total 600-800 calories per meal, and then eat 3 or 4 times a day, whatever it takes to get me to about 2600 calories, my current maintenance calorie level/very slight calorie surplus.

[OT2000]

Just reading through the last few days in here and noticed a post you made that you're eating egg yolks. Can't believe you're doing that and living to tell the tale

Been eating 6 eggs a day crew So cheap here..got 18dz fresh from a local farm for a couple of bucks. Don’t wash them and they will last a very long time.



Back to the rosemary talk, I wish my wife liked it. She can’t stand rosemary and I love it so we never use it.[/QUOTE]

[ironwill2008]

^^^^please excuse the fat-finger, unintended edit

Been eating 6 eggs a day crew So cheap here..got 18dz fresh from a local farm for a couple of bucks. Don’t wash them and they will last a very long time.

Pretty much the same deal here, OT; we'll eat eggs several times a week, and I always have at least 4 at a time.





Back in the day , from starting out as a 130-pound scarecrow, on my journey to 200 lean pounds at my best, I was eating 3-4 dozen eggs a week, every week, along with red meat at least twice---and as many as---4 times a day. I worked a very physical, outdoor utility company construction-type job, burned calories like a blast furnace, and by the time I reached that 200-pound/10-12% goal, was cramming 4500-4800 calories a day down my pie hole. Good grief; I was so stuffed with food all the time that if I had to fart, I was scared to.

Back to the rosemary talk, I wish my wife liked it. She can’t stand rosemary and I love it so we never use it.

That's tough, but I guess we each dislike what we dislike.

In the herb world, the taste of cilantro has a reputation for being very polarizing; people either like it or they hate it.

[ironwill2008]

Tough session today; everything felt heavy. Still, it was a good session. Today's training was:

Front Squat
bar x10 W/U
95x8 W/U
135x8
165x8
185x8
230x6

Leg Press PWO
580x12 W/U
670x12
760x12
850x9

Chinup
bw +55x6
bw +55x6
bw +55x4

Smith Machine Seated Press
95x10 W/u
165x6
165x6
165x5

Burned off an hour and twenty minutes on this effort. I knew early-on that this was going to be a 'difficult' session. And even with knowing that such thoughts can be a self-fulfilling prophesy, I had no choice but to carry on. Fronts didn't advance; I met the same rep count as last week when I bumped up the load by 5 pounds.

I wasn't able to recapture the lost rep on LPs that went South last week, but I did manage to meet last week's numbers. I'll take it for today.

Chins didn't advance either, but again, I was just glad to have duplicated previous numbers.

Same story with Seateds as well. I'm pretty much tapped on these too. Sometimes, just managing to not lose any ground is a big victory, and that's as I'll count today's training session.

I'll rest tomorrow, then work to inch my way forward on Wednesday with Lunges, Rows, and Inclines.

Post-WorkOut meal was poached eggs on buttered toast, a couple slices of bacon, and a glass of milk. Nothing fancy, but very tasty and satisfying while providing needed calories/macros/micros.

[OT2000]

^^^^please excuse the fat-finger, unintended edit

Pretty much the same deal here, OT; we'll eat eggs several times a week, and I always have at least 4 at a time.





Back in the day , from starting out as a 130-pound scarecrow, on my journey to 200 lean pounds at my best, I was eating 3-4 dozen eggs a week, every week, along with red meat at least twice---and as many as---4 times a day. I worked a very physical, outdoor utility company construction-type job, burned calories like a blast furnace, and by the time I reached that 200-pound/10-12% goal, was cramming 4500-4800 calories a day down my pie hole. Good grief; I was so stuffed with food all the time that if I had to fart, I was scared to.






That's tough, but I guess we each dislike what we dislike.

In the herb world, the taste of cilantro has a reputation for being very polarizing; people either like it or they hate it.

We love cilantro, both of us. I enjoy it so much I will use it on sandwiches even(replacing lettuce, I use flat leaf parsley like this as well). Salsas, hot sauce etc we use it weekly. But you’re right, a lot of people do not like cilantro.

[ironwill2008]

We love cilantro, both of us. I enjoy it so much I will use it on sandwiches even(replacing lettuce, I use flat leaf parsley like this as well). Salsas, hot sauce etc we use it weekly. But you’re right, a lot of people do not like cilantro.

I don't use enough of it to merit growing some, but I'll buy a small package of fresh cilantro at the grocery for certain recipes (chili, for one, and chop salad for another). I've never found any of the dried stuff that has any flavor to it at all, but that can be said for many dried herbs like parsley.

[OT2000]

I've never found any of the dried stuff that has any flavor to it at all, but that can be said for many dried herbs like parsley.

Fully agree. Maybe oregano and thyme dried but even them pale in comparison to fresh. Dried parsley is about as flavorful as dried flour. It has to be fresh. I’m trying a mix of chopped fresh parsley and chopped fresh oregano more for flavoring meats lately.

[ironwill2008]

Fully agree. Maybe oregano and thyme dried but even them pale in comparison to fresh. Dried parsley is about as flavorful as dried flour. It has to be fresh. I’m trying a mix of chopped fresh parsley and chopped fresh oregano more for flavoring meats lately.

I too find that dried oregano, thyme, and basil are conditionally OK, but fresh is by far the way to go.


I remember, the first time I tasted parsley that I had grown, how shocked I was at how good it tasted---or maybe more correctly---that it actually had a flavor. And that it's good added to just about everything.

[medjen]

In the herb world, the taste of cilantro has a reputation for being very polarizing; people either like it or they hate it.

Cilantro tastes like soap. :P