PtReyesGreg's Workout Journal
Well I'm finally taking the plunge and starting an online workout journal here. I originally posted this in the "regular" journal area but realized I really should put it here in the Over 35 area, so I deleted that one and am creating a new journal here. I am 40 years old 6'1" tall and 228 lbs. I estimate that I am about 20% bodyfat, so a primary goal is to cut that down to 15% and get my weight down to 200 pounds. I want to use this journal to record my progress and to provide a record of my journey.
I have been working out on and off for many years, but for the past year fairly regularly. I just finished a 12 week hypertrophy program cycle loosely based on the old Body For Life plan. Basically it was an Upper / Lower split that followed the pattern of 5 sets of 12,10,8,6,12 reps. Doing this my max lifts were:
Bench Press 6 reps of 205
Military Press 6 reps of 125
Squats 6 reps of 235
Stiff Leg Deadlifts 6 reps of 235
I accept the fact that all of these lifts still mean that I am well within the beginner realm. Thus, I have decided to start a linear progression 5x5 program. I have spent a lot of time comparing different programs with their various strengths and weaknesses and have decided to run the "Hard Work 5x5" for the next 6 months. It is described here: [url]http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/stre...dley-j-steiner[/url]
Basically, the plan I will be using has two parts A and B as follows:
Workout A
Hypers - 1 x 20
Squats - 5 x 5
Bench Press - 5 x 5
Stiffleg Deadlift - 5 x 5
Pullups - 5 x 5
Military Press - 5 x 5
Leg raises - 1 x 25
Workout B
Hypers - 1 x 20
Front Squats - 5 x 5
Decl Bench Press- 5 x 5
Stiffleg Deadlift - 5 x 5
Chins - 5 x 5
Military Press - 5 x 5
Decline Situps - 1 x 25
I plan on following this plan for 6 months (or longer) and trying to increase the weight on lower body lifts by 10 pounds per week and on upper body lifts by 5 pounds per week. I plan on trying to increase my chins and pullups by 2.5 pounds per week. In order to have a chance at achieving this progression I am deloading all of my lifts by roughly 20% to start this program.
On Monday I completed my first Workout A as follows:
Hypers 20-0
Squats 5-135, 5-155, 5-185, 5-185, 5-185
BP 5-135, 5-155, 5-165, 5-165, 5-165
SLDL 5-135, 5-155, 5-185, 5-185, 5-185
Pullups 5-0, 5-0, 5-5, 5-5, 5-5
MP 5-75, 5-85, 5-95, 5-95, 5-95
Leg Raises 25-0
On Wednesday morning I completed my first Workout B as follows:
Hypers 20-0
Front Squats 5-85, 5-95, 5-105, 5-105, 5-105
Decline BP 5-135, 5-145, 5-155, 5-155, 5-155
SLDL 5-135, 5-155, 5-185, 5-185, 5-185
Chins 5-0, 5-0, 5-5, 5-5, 5-5
MP 5-75, 5-85, 5-95, 5-95, 5-95
Decline Situps 25-0
Both workouts felt good overall. I'm a little worried that I might have deloaded too much (~20%) on Bench, Squats, and Military Press. I think it will pay off, though, as the linear progression starts to kick in as the weeks pass. I've tried similar routines in the past and didn't start low enough so I didn't want to make that mistake this time.