Ironwill2008 V3.0

[ironwill2008]

Dark and overcast today, starting to spit snow; equally dark in the gym, but at least the temp was tolerable. Today's training was:

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

Dumbbell Row
50x10 W/U
90x10
90x10
90x10

Smith Machine Incline Press
95x10 W/U
135x10
165x10
215x9

Worked my way through here in about an hour. Top set of Lunges still at 2 reps, and I lost a rep on the backoff set. I may need to readjust the loads here if I can't break through before much longer.

Hit reps-across on Dumbbell Rows, so I'll bump up to 95s next week. I still have some gas in the tank for these.

Machine Inclines met previous numbers, which is okay with me for now. More work to be done here.

Not much else to report for this one. After a rest day tomorrow, I'll close out the week's training on Friday with RDLs, Curls, and Dips.

Post-WorkOut meal was my wife's version of Huevos rancheros along with fried spuds, a tasty homemade cheddar biscuit, and a glass of milk.

[OT2000]

I thought it was just ravioli when I picked it up at the store; I guess there are a million different variations of Italian pastas. Haven't found one of them yet that wasn't tasty though!

Those come fresh in a refrigerated package; drop 'em into a couple quarts of salted boiling water with a TB of olive oil to keep 'em from sticking together, and 7 minutes later, they're good to go. These were sauced with some butter melted with a clove of crushed garlic; very simple and easy.

That sounds like the brand I use sometimes when I am near a Publix. They have several varieties with the linguine being my favorite. Made with the right ingredients, flour/eggs etc. Cooks in a few minutes and then I usually toss in a sauce, either a fra diavolo or an ogliolio.

[Payton1221]

Bill,

I know you typically just post meals, but what do you like for snacks? As for me, I just love apples--any apples but pink lady, Fuji, and Golden Delicious are my favorites (ironically, the common Red "Delicious" is my least favorite). My wife say that don't fill her up, but they score quite high on the payton1221-satiety scale I'm also a fan of sunflower seeds (in the seed). The process of eating seeds for 15 minutes or so usually will satisfy a craving without really adding but ~100 calories to my daily intake.

[ironwill2008]

That sounds like the brand I use sometimes when I am near a Publix. They have several varieties with the linguine being my favorite. Made with the right ingredients, flour/eggs etc. Cooks in a few minutes and then I usually toss in a sauce, either a fra diavolo or an ogliolio.

That one was Buitoni, a national brand, I think. As with the one you mention, just a few ingredients, and cook time is 5-7 minutes. Other than the butter/garlic sauce I mentioned, or marinara, sometimes I'll just dress it with good-quality olive oil; I like Lucini; it's really peppery.

Bill,

I know you typically just post meals, but what do you like for snacks? As for me, I just love apples--any apples but pink lady, Fuji, and Golden Delicious are my favorites (ironically, the common Red "Delicious" is my least favorite). My wife say that don't fill her up, but they score quite high on the payton1221-satiety scale I'm also a fan of sunflower seeds (in the seed). The process of eating seeds for 15 minutes or so usually will satisfy a craving without really adding but ~100 calories to my daily intake.

We're currently on a Chex Mix kick here; I'll make up a huge panful (I use one of those aluminum turkey roasting pans) and it'll be gone within a week. Other than that, fruit (apples, pears, and bananas for me) and oatmeal cookies are my go-to, along with an occasional cup of ice cream.

[ironwill2008]

End of the week of training today. Bright, sunny day, lots of light streaming into the gym. Today's training was:

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

Alternate Dumbbell Curl
20x10 W/U
40x10
40x9
40x7

Dips
bw +50x6
bw +50x6
bw +50x6

The session consumed one hour on the nose. RDLs felt a bit heavy today; when the 315 set felt unusually heavy, I expected a battle on that top set, and I got one. Subsequently, I lost that previously-hard-won 3rd rep, and settled for a double. Not really surprised or disappointed though; that's just the way things sometimes go when working right up to the edge of one's ability. More work needs done here.

Bumped up to 40s for DB Curls, and got a good biceps pump along with the repz. Working these to 3x10 before moving up again.

Wrists (actually, my left wrist in particular) were a bit dodgy today, so I got 3x6 and called it a day.

That's it for this 'un. After resting over the weekend, I'll make a return to the gym on Monday for a go at Front Squats, Legt Presses, Chins, and Machine Presses.

Post-WorkOut meal was a tasty pot roast accompanied by potatoes and carrots, along with a glass of milk.

[irongrandpa]

Good week Bill.

[ironwill2008]

And another week of training off to a good start. Numbers didn't move much, but they also didn't regress, and at this stage of the game, that's a victory. Today's training was:

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

Leg Press PWO
580x12 W/U
670x12
760x12
850x10

Chinup
55x6
55x6
55x4

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

Worked through in an hour and a quarter. Still @ 6 reps on Fronts. The struggle is real.

Was able to maintain my 10-repper on Leg Press. Any further increase here will likely be pretty slow. To say the least.

Chins remained the same, but I'll take it. These aren't getting any easier either.

I was able to hit reps-across on Seateds again, so I'll bump up a nickel next week and see what I can do with them.

Nothing else of importance nor interest to add; after a rest day tomorrow, I'll work on Lunges, DB Rows, and Inclines on Wednesday.

Post-WorkOut meal was a chunk of egg/cheese/spinach casserole, accompanied by a homemade biscuit with honey and a glass of milk.

[ironwill2008]

Good week Bill.

Hey, thanks, Bob. It's a battle just adding a rep these days, but it's that challenge that keeps me in the game.

[tnthudson]

Great Monday numbers, Bill, I especially like the seated press. I'm looking at a goal of 95 lbs. for reps on that in the (hopefully) near future, so that's really impressive numbers to me.

[OT2000]

To still get 10 reps @850 is impressive.

That casserole looks tasty. I am assuming flip once then oven finish?

[ironwill2008]

Great Monday numbers, Bill, I especially like the seated press. I'm looking at a goal of 95 lbs. for reps on that in the (hopefully) near future, so that's really impressive numbers to me.

Thanks, Todd.

Just keep grinding; you'll get there and beyond.

To still get 10 reps @850 is impressive.

I was wheezing after that set, but what was even worse was having to unload the machine. If only someone made 100-pound plates that only weigh about fiddy.

That casserole looks tasty. I am assuming flip once then oven finish?

It was really good, especially with some Frank's. My wife actually made that (most egg meals posted here are her work; I do pretty much all the other stuff); it was all done in an 8x8 casserole dish in the oven for about an hour.

[ironwill2008]

Good session today; bright and sunny in the gym, and temp was tolerable. Today's training was:

Barbell Lunge
bar xa0 W/U
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x3
185x3
225x3
225x3
225x3

Dumbbell Row
50x10 W/U
95x10
95x9
95x8 wheezin

Smith Machine Incline Press
95x10 W/U
135x10
165x10
215x9

Worked my way through here in just over an hour. I've reconfigured my Lunge sets/reps in an effrort to get a bit more volume; I've been stuck trying to get to 275x3 for months now, and what I've been doing hasn't gotten me over the hump. I'll stick with 2 plates as my top load, and gradually add reps to the three top-weight sets.

Bumped up to 95s for DB Rows. I'll work this weight to 3x10 before bumping up again. I expect to eventually get to 105 or maybe even a couple of decent sets @110. Time will tell.

Incline Presses remained @ 9 reps, but that's OK. I'm pretty well tapped-out on these, and will consider a change in the near future. Still getting a good pec pump from Inclines, but a pump doesn't guarantee gains.

I'll rest tomorrow, then work to move forward on RDLs, Curls, and Dips on Friday.

Post-WorkOut meal was baked tilapia and veggies along with garlic toast and a glass of cold milk.

[ironwill2008]

Been a strange day today. The strangeness started at 5:00 AM this morning, when I got up to take a leak, and realized our backup generator was running. I looked out the window, and noticed the porch light on my neighbor's house (whose house is supplied with electricity from the same pole/transformer/secondary splice as mine) was on, meaning there wasn't an 'area' outage, but only at my house, which is an unusual situation (just one house being without power in a neighborhood; generally, a commercial power failure involves many houses/businesses). I got dressed, went outside (colder than a brass monkey out there), opened the generator cabinet to look at the status readout. Of course, it said, "Commercial AC power failure." What was really perplexing was that everything in the entire power pole line coming all the way up our hill was replaced about 4 years ago---all the poles, primary lines (they even added two additional phases to the original one phase), transformers, and all the attachments. By eye, I couldn't see anything wrong at the pole, and nothing at the house was out of order that I could see. Called the Power Company and reported the outage. The repairman got here at about 10:00 AM, and did some checking at my meter base; he determined there was no power at the meter, meaning the problem was in their equipment and not my generator's transfer switch or wiring. This was a relief to me, since I knew the repair would be relatively simple and quick.

He found a loose splice connection up at the pole where my power drop had been cut over to the new pole and transformer back when everything else was replaced. He said some water had seeped into the splice (a cylindrical crimp-type splice) and froze, which forced the splice open (water expands when it freezes). He recut the entire splice, and had my commercial power restored in about 15 minutes. Of course, I brought him out a big cup of hot coffee before he got started working.

If it hadn't been for our Generac, we would have had a real problem; it was 15 degrees this morning, and would have been seriously cold in the house after 6 hours of no electricity. We installed that generator 2 years ago, and this was actually the first time other than a couple of very short power outages that it had to come online for several hours. Generacs aren't cheap, but it has already proven to be money well-spent.












Anyway, after all that, it was time to close out the week's training, and yet a little more strangeness. Today it included:

Romanian Deadlift
bar x10 W/U
bar x10 W/U
135x5 W/u
185x3
225x3
275x3
315x3
355x2 1/2*

Alternate Dumbbell Curl
20x10 W/U
40x10
40x9
40x8

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

Completed the work in about an hour. Got 2 good reps on the top set of RDLs, went for a *3rd*, and the strap on my right hand broke; right then is when my wife happened to have snapped the pic; you can see the right side of the bar tipped and the plates on that side on the floor. With my wonky grip, I at least managed to "ease" the bar down enough that it didn't completely crash to floor, possibly breaking a plate. That strap was frayed previously, but I didn't thnk it would break, especially with only 355 on the bar. SMH; I need to get some new straps.

After that nonsense, I banged out 3 sets of Dumbbell Curls, adding a rep to the last set in the process.

I managed to get back to my customary 3x8 on Dips, and decided that was plenty good enough for today; no point in pushing my luck one iota further.

Really glad this one is in the books. I'll rest over the weekend, enjoy the Super Bowl on Sunday, then return to the gym on Monday for a shot at advancing Front Squats, Leg Presses, Chins, and Machine Presses.

Post-WorkOut meal was my wife's handiwork---a cheese/veggie omelette, fried potatoes, bacon, toast, and milk.

[medjen]

Broken straps? yer teh hardkorz, Bill!

Glad you had the generator to prevent any cold-weather sequelae. That could've been a real mess.

[Gxp23]

Damn IW, looks like Mrs IW is trying to give you some serious gainz with that PWO meal right there ^^

[ironwill2008]

Broken straps? yer teh hardkorz, Bill!

Lulz. As I said, that strap was already a bit frayed right where it exits the loop on the end of the strap just from use, but it still surprised me when it let go. I wouldn't have mentioned it except that the one pic I had to post for that set was right when it broke! The same thing happened to me several years ago, using worn straps, but it was during a set of Deadlifts, with a lot more weight on the bar than I had yesterday.

Glad you had the generator to prevent any cold-weather sequelae. That could've been a real mess.

That's no joke, and as cold as it is right now (it was about 15 yesterday morning when the generator kicked on), just a week ago ended a two-week stretch of weather with lows below zero, and daily highs in the teens. That Generac wasn't cheap (for insurance reasons, rather than doing the work myself, I hired a licensed electrician for the install and all the subsequent electrical work, which turned out to be fairly extensive for this old house, as well as a licensed plumber to run a new gas line from the meter all the way out to the generator), but just for the peace of mind, it's worth it to us.

Damn IW, looks like Mrs IW is trying to give you some serious gainz with that PWO meal right there ^^

LOL. Truth be told, I only ate half of that omelette for that meal, G; I just now ate the other half along with a couple of biscuits. We've been eating a lot more eggs here lately, usually for a couple of meals a day. No real reason for it other than my wife cooks all the egg meals (I handle the rest), and she's always looking for different casserole recipes, etc. I used to do all the cooking, but in this last two years or so, now that she has more time, she's been getting more involved in the kitchen. More power to her!

[tnthudson]

Bill, I had to chime in on your Generac post. My wife and I made a decision about two years ago to get a whole-house Generac (22KW), after the derecho storms wreaked havoc a few years back.
As with anything, it has only been insurance thus far- the best way to avoid power outages is to put a big chunk of money in a generator, haha.
But I'm with you- it's money well spent. I don't (thankfully) have to worry about losing a freezer full of food, or where to spend the night if it's super-cold like it was in your situation. Generac FTW!

[ironwill2008]

Another week of training off to a good start on a cold but sunny day. Today's training was:

Front Squat
bar x10 W/U
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x8
165x8
185x8
230x7

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

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

Smith Machine Seated Press
95x10 W/U
170x6
170x4
170x4

Burned an hour and a quarter while getting through this session. I was able to add a tough rep on Fronts; one more and I'll qualify to add more weight.

Lost a rep on Leg Presses; I'm pretty much at limit on these, so that's no surprise. I'll continue to work them for the next several weeks though.

Chinups didn't advance, but like LPs, these are at limit.

Bumped Seated Machine Press by a nickel. It's going to take some time and work to get these back up to 3x6.

Finished for today. Some plumbing repair work is scheduled for tomorrow, then it'll be back in the gym on wednesday for Lunges, Rows, and Inclines.

Post-WorkOut meal was a plateful of chicken cacciatore over pasta and a glass of milk.

[Payton1221]

I've never noticed the hundo's before. I assume they NEVER leave the leg press--right?

[ironwill2008]

Bill, I had to chime in on your Generac post. My wife and I made a decision about two years ago to get a whole-house Generac (22KW), after the derecho storms wreaked havoc a few years back.
As with anything, it has only been insurance thus far- the best way to avoid power outages is to put a big chunk of money in a generator, haha.
But I'm with you- it's money well spent. I don't (thankfully) have to worry about losing a freezer full of food, or where to spend the night if it's super-cold like it was in your situation. Generac FTW!

It was that derecho at the end of June, 2012, leaving a wide area here without commercial power (we had no electricity for about 5 days, through near-100-degree heat) that got me thinking about a backup generator. Besides losing 2 refrigerator/freezers full of food, there were no gas stations, restaurants, nor convenience stores open either, so we had to drive a considerable distance just to get a cup of coffee. I looked into buying and installing a Generac myself, but decided that for possible insurance implications if there were ever a house fire, that the smart way to go would be to hire it professionally done. I got a few estimates, and was surprised at the cost, and put it off for the next 2 years. During that time, we had several more "short-term" (1 to 8 hours) electric service interruptions (that's a long story for another time, dealing with the local power company to get that corrected), and every time, I'd bitch about the outage. Finally, my wife said that she didn't want to hear any more complaining, and to either have a generator put in or quit griping about the power outages.


That was all it took to finally prod me into action; I got one more estimate, and had the thing installed a week later. No regrets, especially after the other day.

I've never noticed the hundo's before. I assume they NEVER leave the leg press--right?

Lulz; I wish! My wife uses that machine 3 times a week, and I don't want her trying to handle those 100-pounders, so I load/unload all the plates when I use it. Shlepping those plates all over the gym is a workout in itself, one I'd be happy to be able to avoid, but it can't be helped.

[Payton1221]

Lulz; I wish! My wife uses that machine 3 times a week, and I don't want her trying to handle those 100-pounders, so I load/unload all the plates when I use it. Shlepping those plates all over the gym is a workout in itself, one I'd be happy to be able to avoid, but it can't be helped.

Srs: moving those at least constitutes as a set! And if you set them flat, picking them up is nigh on impossible!

I've been experiencing some knee discomfort after squatting, so I've been experiencing with some other exercises that hit both my quads and glutes and last night I tried Step-Ups. My step was about 18" (just enough for my femur to be ~ parallel), and I did body weight x 40, then w/20# bells x 25, and then with 30# bells x 22 (IIRC). This exercise is no joke! It won't replace squats for me, but I will do this again from time to time. Have you ever tried them?

[tnthudson]

I hear ya man, no regrets. And I think a whole-house generator should add value to the house if/when we ever go to sell it.

Payton, I saw your post on step-ups, I have done them in the past and they are the real deal, you're right.
Another thing I'm trying per a dude that knows his stuff (Tom Venuto) is front squats, but with my heels only slightly elevated (on a plate) and I go below parallel, but only 3/4 up. Give it a whirl if you ever have a chance, you have to go pretty light and the quads are on fire. Tom says it really helps develop the teardrop-shaped outer quad. (Sorry for the slight hijack)

[ironwill2008]

Second of three sessions this week saw a dark, raining, cold day, but a bit more comfortable in the gym. Today's training was:

Barbell Lunge
bar x10 W/U
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x3
185x3
225x4
225x4
225x4 wheezin

Dumbbell Row
50x10 W/U
95x10
95x10
95x8

Smith Machine Incline Press
95x10 W/U
135x10
165x10
215x9

Worked through here in an hour. I added a rep to each of the three top sets of Lunges. I'll continue this process until I can't add any more, which will probably be due to cardiovascular limits rather than leg muscles. I need to increase the volume of these sets before going back up to 275 again, and the best way I know to do that is to keep increasing reps. When I hit my rep ceiling for those 3, 2-platers, I'll add another set at the same weight. Not much fun, but a worthy challenge.

Added a rep to DB Rows on my way to 3x10, and an opportunity to bump closer to my goal of 105x however many.

Inclines didn't advance today, but they didn't regress either, and at this stage of the game, that's a good thing---good enough for today, anyway.

That's it. Didn't get my plumbing job done the other day, so that's penciled-in for tomorrow's rest day. After that, on Friday, I'll close out training for the week with RDLs, Dumbbell Curls, and Dips (as many as my hands/wrists will tolerate).

Post-WorkOut meal was an 11 oz NY Strip steak seared in a screaming-hot cast iron skillet, a pile of hand-cut fries, a bowl of baby limas with some butter, and a glass of milk.

[ironwill2008]

I've been experiencing some knee discomfort after squatting, so I've been experiencing with some other exercises that hit both my quads and glutes and last night I tried Step-Ups. My step was about 18" (just enough for my femur to be ~ parallel), and I did body weight x 40, then w/20# bells x 25, and then with 30# bells x 22 (IIRC). This exercise is no joke! It won't replace squats for me, but I will do this again from time to time. Have you ever tried them?

I've never done Step-Ups, Todd, but with enough weight, they'd be a good lower body (and grip) workout. I am, however, surprised that they don't cause discomfort when Squats do, but that's why it's always a good idea to experiment when a training issue surfaces.

Have you tried a closer or a wider foot position with Squats?

I hear ya man, no regrets. And I think a whole-house generator should add value to the house if/when we ever go to sell it.

I'm sure it would, especially in this day and age of a general lack of willingness on the part of power companies to spend even just a nickel on pole line right-of-way maintenance.

Payton, I saw your post on step-ups, I have done them in the past and they are the real deal, you're right.
Another thing I'm trying per a dude that knows his stuff (Tom Venuto) is front squats, but with my heels only slightly elevated (on a plate) and I go below parallel, but only 3/4 up. Give it a whirl if you ever have a chance, you have to go pretty light and the quads are on fire. Tom says it really helps develop the teardrop-shaped outer quad. (Sorry for the slight hijack)

Front Squats FTW.

[NoCarbsNoSugar]

Huevos rancheros

wow Bill
that looks very tasty!

[ironwill2008]

wow Bill
that looks very tasty!

Indeed, they are. They're one of my wife's creations, a variation of Huevos Rancheros; she cooks all the meals that contain eggs, and I cook the rest. Those are buttered tortilla shells placed in ramikens filled with black beans, rice, at least 3 kinds of cheese (pepper jack has to be one of them!), salsa, and two eggs carefully cracked on the top (so the yolks stay intact). Then they're baked for 40-45 minutes. I'll usually add more salsa on top at the table.

[ironwill2008]

Another 3-week training segment has raced by with the completion of this session; time flies when you're havibng fun. Today's training was:

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

Alternate Dumbbell Curl
20x10 W/U
40x10
40x10
40x8

Dips
bw +50x6
bw +50x6
bw +50x6

Completed this session in just under an hour. Top set of Romanianz still @ 2 reps, but I was able to bump the backoff set by a rep. Gonna continue to grind.

Also added a rep to DB Curls, and picked up a mean biceps pump in the process. 3x10 is the goal here before moving up the rack.

My dodgy wrists (mostly my left) restricted me once again to 3x6 on Dips. Actually, I was pleased just to get that many today.

That's all for this 'un. My bud Sherman will be in here on Monday to MC my week of light deload training.

I'm already having football withdrawl.

Post-WorkOut meal was a store-bought crab cake, fresh store-bought cheese ravioli, a salad, a cup of cranberry salad, and a glass of milk.

[Payton1221]

I've never done Step-Ups . . . but that's why it's always a good idea to experiment when a training issue surfaces.

Bill, these are no joke. If you have a step, you might want to try on your next deload. But I agree on the experimentation aspect.

Have you tried a closer or a wider foot position with Squats?

No but I will. Any chance that the old "plate under your heel" modification might help the situation? I know some of the golden era bodybuilders used this, but others insist that it's potentially harmful for your knees. Thoughts?

Front Squats FTW.

Agreed. When I referenced "squats," I was referring to front squats.

[ironwill2008]

Bill, these are no joke. If you have a step, you might want to try on your next deload. But I agree on the experimentation aspect.

I don't have anything tall/strong enough right now, but possibly the next time I have to saw some lumber for something I'll build a step.

No but I will. Any chance that the old "plate under your heel" modification might help the situation? I know some of the golden era bodybuilders used this, but others insist that it's potentially harmful for your knees. Thoughts?

I don't recommend that (plates, or a board, or anything else) under the heels. It's not the knees that are at risk; it's the feet. Placing something under the heels leaves the arches completely unsupported with all the load going to the heels and balls of the feet. And then adding heavy weight to this equation can't be a good thing.

If one were to try such a tactic, the only way to properly implement it would be with a pair of good weightlifting shoes, whose soles are wedge-shaped, which would raise the hells but still provide full arch support. But again, I don't think this would help your knee issue.

[rockeo]

greeting brother-bill!
hope all is more than well and
good to see you

its a...
very delayed Merry Christmas and Happy New Years and all that fun stuff...shame on me for being that busy lately...something tells me you understand

may you and your family be blessed in all you do!