Balham Beast's Arms Race

[BalhamBeast]

Saturday 17th November

I am still not quite right this week – a lot of my joints are playing up and I have low back ache. It’s not bad, but it’s there. I spend most of my workday standing and that probably doesn’t help. My right (bad) shoulder felt wrong yesterday as well, despite the fact I’d not trained for two days and had done nothing particular to aggravate it. It was a bit better this morning but I was very careful to get it warmed up and mobilised so that I could bench. Was also quite surprised to find my weight has dropped by 3lbs this week to 10 stone 12 (152lbs). I guess it’s mostly water and, uh, colonic. I definitely look less bloated.

Chest & Back (and a bit of rear delts)

Bench Press

Bar x 20
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
50kg x 5
55kg x 5
60kg x 5

Shoulder was actually OK on these but I was very anal about retracting my shoulder blades and pulling the bar apart. Had an instructor give me a hand-off on the last set but did the reps on my own. Pretty pleased with that (I got three last time). Didn’t go heavier this time as I didn’t want to push my luck and was not feeling in good enough shape for testing maxes. After all, trying to beat my max every week as a 24 year old was what broke my shoulder in the first place.

Superset: Incline Dumbbell Press/Rear Delt Flyes

20kg x 8/10kg x 15
2 x 22kg x 6/10kg x 15

Shoulder felt creakier on these than it did on the flat bench, but likely because dumbbells are less stable than a bar. Didn’t push my luck.


Superset: Rear Delt Cable Flyes/Cable Crossovers

3 x 5kg x 10/7.5kg x 10

Tried 10kg initially on the crossovers but it was a shade too heavy for the reps I wanted.

Seated Cable Rows

35kg x 10
40kg x 10
45kg x 6

Not terribly pleased with these but I guess I was starting to get tired by this point.

Straight Arm Pulldowns (Drop Set)

25kg > 20kg > 15kg >10kg

30 reps total, 10 reps on heaviest weight. One drop set was enough.

Wide Grip Pulldowns

30kg x 10
35kg x 10

Had enough. Didn’t go to 40kg this week as shoulder felt a bit clicky.



Ultraman says hi.

[BalhamBeast]

Sunday 18th November

Legs

Box Squats

Same set-up as last time.

Bar x 20
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
45kg x 10 (last two reps were hard)
50kg x 6 (+1)
55kg x 1 (Did two reps last time but wasn’t feeling it today. I could have ground out a few more but my form would have been ****ty)

Bulgarian Split Squats

As last time, with 5kg body bar.

2 x 12 per leg

Leg Extension

40kg x 10
50kg x 10
60kg x 8

Exactly the same as last time. No progress here yet.

Single Leg Curl

20kg x 10/10
25kg x 10/10
30kg x 7/7 (+1)

The 30kg set was to failure. I was a bit disappointed to get 7 because I thought I got 8 last week, but turns out I only got 6 so I’m a bit happier now. I have to be really careful not to hyperextend my knees on this as they are hypermobile.

Leg Press

120kg x 10
140kg x 10
160kg x 10

Didn’t go heavier today – was feeling quite tired. And hungry. Mostly hungry.

Stretched a bit; went home; ate.

[BalhamBeast]

Monday 19th November

Working around a cranky shoulder today. Right bicep feels a bit gnarly too but then one is linked to the other so that’s not so surprising. Rotator cuff is definitely pissy; maybe biceps tendon too. Didn’t push too hard, weight-wise. Maybe I need a deload next week.

Shoulders

Military Press

2 x Bar x 10 (Extra warm-up set)
25kg x 10
30kg x 10
32.5kg x 5
35kg x 3
37.5kg x 2
40kg x 1

Deliberately kept reps a bit lower on the heavier sets so as not to put undue stress on the joint.

Rear Delt Flyes

Done on incline bench as usual.

3 x 14kg x 10
8kg x 30 (ouch)

Supserset: Seated DB Press/Seated Lateral Raise

16kg x 6, 5, 5/8kg x 10, 10 , 10

Did the DB presses slowly, hence the low number of reps.

Rear Delt Cable Extension (in Cable Crossover)

5kg x 12
7.5kg x 8, 7

Barbell Shrugs

60kg x 12
70kg x 8
80kg x 6

Need straps or something! I have to use a mixed grip on these and swap the grip halfway through.
Front Raises w/plate

10kg x 10
15kg x 8

Felt harder today and not too comfortable so just kept it to just the two sets.

[RyouBakua]

if the shoulder is buggin you, a deload might be a good thing

although you have a strong military

its almost the same as your box squat

[BalhamBeast]

Well my squat's plain embarrassing, but then I have a lot of physical issues related to my ankle and hip mobility (or lack thereof). And I do a boat-load of mobility work. (sigh)

[RyouBakua]

i can understand that since i have knee issues


heres a link to my log
stop by if you got some time
i appreciate any and all input

www.tinyurl.com/RBsNewLog

[BalhamBeast]

Tuesday 20th November

Very busy writing school reports so I’ll keep this brief.

Arms

Weighted Dips

Bodyweight only x 10
+5kg x 7
+10kg x 6
+10kg x 5

Superset:Overhead DB Extension/Seated DB Curls

22kg x 10/8kg x 10
24kg x 8/10kg x 8
26kg x 6/12kg x 6

Nixed the preacher curls due to shoulder/possible bicep issue.

Tricep Annihilation

Tricep Rope Pressdowns done as a strip set followed immediately by push-ups. I did curls as well last time but just wanted to concentrate on tris this time.

20kg > 15kg >10kg > 5kg (30 rep total, 10 reps on heaviest weight)/5 push-ups
17.5kg >12.5kg >7.5kg > 2.5kg (30 rep total, 7 reps on heaviest weight)/5 push-ups

Two more reps at 20kg so that’s a plus.

Hammer Curls – Drop Sets

14kg > 8kg > 4kg (Too heavy! 20 rep total, only two reps on the heaviest. Left arm could cope with it, right could not. Obvious issue there).

12kg > 8kg > 4kg (6 reps on heaviest weight)

That was it. Practised a bit of gymnastics , went home.

[RyouBakua]

good weighted dips

then you really turned it up with supersets and drop sets

[BalhamBeast]

I really like drop sets because you can hit strength and hypertrophy in the same set. They hurt, but it's a good hurt (plus I like the pump. It makes my arms look less small. )

[BalhamBeast]

Saturday 24th November

This week has been busy – writing school reports, getting up at 4.30am on Thursday to take my girls to a regional swimming gala (one girl won two golds, and it is the first time in the history of the school that one of our pupils has made the finals), planning, yada yada. I was ready to crawl into bed at 9pm last night but my stupid Sky+ box has decided it doesn’t like recording so I had to stay up until 11pm to watch The Walking Dead instead of getting an early night and watching the next day like I normally do. Consequently, I hit the gym on a paltry five hours’ sleep (because my body still refuses to sleep past 4.45am). Lack of sleep and a niggly shoulder should have made it a poor workout and really I should be deloading, but strangely, I was feeling strong so I went with it. Made sure I did all my pre-hab/mobility crap before getting into the rack , naturally.

Shoulders

Military Press

Bar x 10
25kg x 10
30kg x 10 (easier than normal)
32.5kg x 5 (deliberately keeping reps lower)
35kg x 5
37.5kg x 2 (went up easily)
40kg x 2 (this was when I knew I was on for a PB)
42.5kg x 1 (currently max – no trouble today)
45kg – FAIL (got as far as my eyebrows, but couldn’t lock out)

Well, that was no good. Really wanted a new PB. So I decided to do what I did when I was trying to move up from 40kg – uneven loading. I took one of the 2.5kg plates off and put a 1.25kg back on.

43.75kg x 1 – PB!

I put the smaller plate on my right, which is my bum shoulder. Got it up. Happy.

Rear Delt Flyes

4 x 10kg x 10 (approx 10 seconds between sets – wasn’t facing the clock so I just allowed myself ten breaths)

Lighter weight but more intensity.

Lateral Raises

4kg x 30

Light weight, lotta reps. Trying to burn out those weak medial heads.

Rear Delt Cable Extension

3 x 5kg x 10

Again, staying lighter but stricter.

Single Arm Cable Laterals

4 x 2.5kg x 10 (per arm)

Did two sets with my arm in front of my body and two sets behind. Cables are harder than dumbbells it seems – a 2kg dumbell feels like nothing. Tried to keep tension on the muscle and avoided resting t the bottom.

Face Pulls

10kg x 10
12.5kg x 10
15kg x 10

New exercise for me so kept it light. Need to fix that shoulder.

Scap-only Pulldowns

2 x 50kg x 10

More shoulder fixing stuff – it’s basically a reverse shrug.

And that was it.

Chest and Back should be Sunday but I’m concerned about bench and may give it a miss this week. That 70kg bench by Christmas may be unrealistic given the shoulder grumbles but will see how I feel.

[RyouBakua]

42.5 on the OHP is still pretty good

face pulls are a good one. i use them for my rear delts

and the pulldown shrugs are excellent isolators.

(you can do them with rows too)



have you read TWD comics?

(its not the same as the show)

[BalhamBeast]

I haven't but I've read about them (I know there are a few changes such as the differences with Shane and Lori's deaths, for instance). I like that the show is a little different so that you're never quite sure if a character will die or not, or when.

[BalhamBeast]

Sunday 25th November

Blimey, only a month until Christmas.

Woke up at 3.40am because it was so damned windy outside. If I didn't know better I'd have thought Sandy had blown across the Atlantic to pay us a visit. And because I'd already been asleep for five hours, I was wide awake and hungry. Not peckish, but that painful kind of hunger that cannot be ignored. So I had a scoop of whey and went back to bed. Managed to get another two hours in before the gym.

Legs

One thing I've noticed from my recent leg workouts is that my glutes are getting plenty sore but my quads are largely unaffected. I really want to develop my outer quad in order to balance the fact that I have wide hips and soft inner thighs. So I decided to mix things up a bit. I've taken leg press out because moving a lot of weight with a short ROM is going to put more stress on my knee joints than my muscles. I also decided to hit the leg extension first.

Leg Extension

20kg x 20
40kg x 10
50kg x 10
60gk x 10

Box Squat

Bar x 20
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
2 x 50kg x 5

These weren't feeling good today - 50kg felt like a hell of an effort. Perhaps it was down to doing the leg extensions first, but I still felt these mainly in my glutes.

Smith Machine Hack Squats

My gym doesn't have a hack squat machine and, being a T-Rex, I can't do them with a barbell because my arms just aren't long enough to hold it below my bum. Also, I don't have the mobility. So I tried experimenting with the Smith machine. Initially I tried holding the bar against my lower back and leaning into it, but that was pretty uncomfortable so I just ended up just putting the bar on my shoulders and my feet together and out in front. Sort of worked. I can't do a normal squat with feet close together because I'd just fall back onto my bum but the Smith Machine makes it possible.

Bar x 10
20kg x 10
2 x 30kg x 10

Wasn't going heavy as I was experimenting. Didn't get a quad burn the way I do from leg extension but they seemed to be doing something.

Bulgarian Split Squats

10kg bar held overhead x 10 (per leg)
20kg bar on shoulders x 8 (per leg)

Up until now I've been doing these with a 5kg body bar but using the same thing every time doesn't exactly aid progression. So I grabbed a 10kg short bar and put that overhead. Didn't hurt my wrists too much if I held it where the collars would normally sit.
Decided to go heavier so I got one of the oly bars. These hurt my wrists like hell (I have carpal tunnel in the right one) if I try to hold them overhead so I just put it on my shoulders. Seemed to work just fine but bloody hell it made it hard! One set of each felt like enough.

Single Leg Curls

20kg x 10 per leg
25kg x 10 per leg

Didn't go to 30kg today - I could feel my feet rotating out a the top of the movement and my ankle was getting tetchy.

Finished by dicking around on the Power Plate (well it's not actually a Power Plate - it's a cheaper version), mostly stretching stuff. I use it to do eccentric training on my bum achilles and it's handy for stretching and mobility stuff. Wouldn't do a whole workout on it, though. It makes me itchy.

[RyouBakua]

lol at t rex comment

seems like you thrashed legs pretty good though



have you tried doing squats with DBs?

you can hold them various ways like goblet/deadlift and it might help your mobility

[ectobryan]

I love reading your journal...so entertaining. Ditto on the face pulls. If done with rope on the cable machine, give them a good tug to the outside when the rope gets near your face...burns the the lateral deltas as well as rear. Thanks for sharing your workouts.

[BalhamBeast]

Thanks gentlemen.

Monday 26th November

So glutes were sore today (I guess I omitted the fact I did two sets of 20 rep single leg hip thrusts yesterday) but I can feel a little tenderness in the quads if I prod them, though mostly around the medialis rather than the outer sweep. Oh well, it's a start!

Today should have been chest/back but really ended up being mostly back as my shoulder was super cranky. Tried benching but it didn't feel good once I got some weight on the bar. And that was after an extended warm-up that included more scap pulldowns and face pulls.

Chest/Back

Bench Press

Bar x 20 (Felt OK)
30kg x 10 (Felt OK)
40kg x 10 (Felt mostly OK)
50kg x 4 (Did not feel good at all. Aborted!)

Rear Delt Flye

8kg x 30
10kg x 20
12kg x 15

Higher reps today. Seems they can take a lot of volume.

Meadows Rows

5kg x 10 per arm
10kg x 10 per arm

The T-Bar on its own feels pretty heavy so those weights are misleading.

Superset:Wide Grip Lat Pulldown/Straight Arm Pulldown

30kg x 10/20kg x 10
35kg x 10/20kg x 10
40kg x 10/20kg x 10

I had to narrow my hand-spacing on the last set as the wider grip wasn't making my shoulder happy.

Low Cable Row

30kg x 15
35kg x 10
40kg x 10

Nothing exciting here. Wanted to stay as strict as possible so didn't go heavy.

Plate Pullover

15kg x 10
20kg x 10

Did 10 presses with the plate following each set.

I've noticed my biceps feel a bit cranky as well, though that is probably related to the shoulder issues. I have a feeling my higher than normal carb bulking diet is causing inflammation in my body. I may go low carb for a few days to see if it fixes things. I'm holding a lot of water right now and even my boobs are a bit tender. I know some women would welcome a bit of boob size but I prefer mine to stay as small as possible! Having sore boobs is no good when you're lying face down on the incline bench trying to do the rear delt flyes.

[BalhamBeast]

Tuesday 27th November

Arms today but I decided to skip dips so as to avoid aggravating my shoulder further. It's normally OK with dips but I didn't want to take any chances.

I extended my warm-up to include face-pulls (20 reps, light weight), scap pulldowns (30 reps, light weight), lever machine scap rows (30 reps, light weight) and cable external rotations (2 sets of 10 reps per side).

Arms

Triset:Tricep Rope Pushdown (strip set)/Push-ups/Hammer Curls

#1 22.5kg > 17.5kg > 12.5kg > 7.5kg (20 reps total, 7 reps heaviest weight)/5 push-ups/20 hammer curls (8kg DBs)
#2 20kg > 15kg > 10kg > 5kg (20 reps total, 7 reps heaviest weight)/5 push-ups/20 hammer curls (8kg DBs)


Superset:Overhead DB Extension/Seated Supinating DB Curls

22kg x 10/8kg x 10
24kg x 10/10kg x 10

Did not go heavier - giving my joints a break.


Superset:Cable Curls (with bar)/Cable Pushdowns (with bar)

10kg x 15/15kg x 15
12.5kg x 10/17.5kg x 10
15kg x 10/20kg x 10

Single Arm Cross-body Cable Curls - Strip Set

7.5kg > 5kg > 2.5kg (20 reps total, 6 reps heaviest weight)

And that was it.

I am feeling incredibly bloated at the moment, and I'm concerned because parents' evening is coming up next week and I only have one pair of smart trousers. I am too scared to try them on but I know they'll be uncomfortably tight. So I will have to abandon my bulk, at least for the next week, in order to fit into them. And no, I don't have any money to buy bigger clothes. Or any clothes, for that matter.

[BalhamBeast]

Saturday 1st December

I can't believe 2012 is nearly over. All that build up to the London Olympics and bam, it's all behind us now.
I've been feeling **** this past week. Pretty sure it's hormones. I've been feeling emotionally low, my boobs have been sore and my joints all flared up. I had a bad day on Thursday where I got a dressing down because I was a bit grumpy with someone I work with and I feel rather fed up.

But I did get a good night's sleep last night and even though I didn't feel like going to the gym today, I made myself go. Didn't even try to lift heavy but I got some stuff done.

Shoulders

Did a lot of scap stuff, cable external rotations and face pulls to warm up.

Military Press

2 x bar x 10 (bar on its own felt heavy today...that's when I knew for sure I'd be going light today)
25kg x 10
30kg x 9 (one rep less than I've managed recently. Didn't have any more in me).

Superset: Military Press/Rear Delt Cable Flye (Cable Crossover machine)

3 x 32.5kg x 5/5kg x 10


Rear Delt Flye

10kg x 20
12kg x 15
8kg x 30

Didn't go up to 14kg today because someone was using the 14s, so I went for reps instead. Didn't much enjoy lying on the incline bench this time because my tits hurt. I hate having tits. They're not normally sore so I pretty much ignore them but they're pissing me off right now. Wish I was flat chested.

Lateral Raises

6kg x 30

Just one set. Incidentally, is it normal to be much stronger at rear delt work than laterals?

Single Arm Cable Laterals

3 x 10 x 2.5kg (per arm)

Didn't really rest between sets.

Barbell Shrugs

Bar x 10
60kg x 10
70kg x 8

Wasn't really feeling it today.

Plate Front Raises

10kg x 10
15kg x 8

Shoulder doesn't like these much.

On the plus side, weight back down to a more normal 154lbs, so some of that bloat must have disappeared. I did make a point of eating much less the last three days - no treats, certainly.

[BalhamBeast]

Sunday 2nd December

Man, I've been sleeping a lot. I fell asleep in the afternoon yesterday (had dreams and everything) and took me a while to lose the grogginess. Thought I might have some trouble getting to sleep last night as a result but no, slept just fine.

Despite that, I really wasn't in much of a mood to go to the gym this morning. Usually I go around 8am or so, but I just felt like staying indoors. (It is cold right now - below freezing at night). Eventually I had something to eat and then went to the gym around 11am. Stayed about an hour but didn't seem to do a whole lot. I just wasn't really into it today.

Legs

Box Squats

Bar x 20
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
45kg x 8
50kg x 6

Leg Extensions

40kg x 10
50kg x 10
60kg x 10

Bulgarian Split Squats

(Oly bar on shoulders)
10 reps per leg (yup, just one set)

Single Leg Hip Thrusts

(Foot on a box)

20 reps per leg (one set only also)

And that was it.

Where's my mojo?

[RyouBakua]

i agree thats its tough to lift when the weather is all high and low

but at least you got in there!


maybe change up the routine to keep it fresh?

[BalhamBeast]

Yeah I will be in January because I'll be starting my cut. (Well...diet...I've never been close to cut in my life!)

Whilst the weather, darkness etc certainly contribute to my mood at the moment, I think honestly, it's the fact I'm not that into training legs. Not because it's difficult but because, well, I just don't care about building my legs in the same way that I do about my arms and shoulders. I'm a bit of a bro like that.

[BalhamBeast]

Monday 3rd December

Shoulder hasn't been as bad this week. It's not quite right, but then it's been not quite right for 20 years. I figured I'd be OK to bench so long as I didn't go heavy. I also did some additional shoulder stuff and a lot of scap and RC stuff to warm-up.

nb, bar means Olympic Bar (20kg) unless otherwise stated.

Chest/Back

Bench Press

Bar x 20
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
45kg x 10
50kg x 10

Rear Delt Flyes

10kg x 20
12kg x 15
14kg x 10
6kg x 30

Triset: Body Rows/Push-ups/Lateral Raises

3 x 8/10/10

nb: Body Rows are done on a locked Smith Machine, feet on floor.
Lateral raises were done with 6kg DBs.

Superset: Rear Delt Cable Flye/Cable Crossovers

5kg x 10/7.5kg x 10
7.5kg x 7/10kg x 8

Hit failure on the 7.5kg rear delt set - went for 8 but didn't get it.

Low Cable Rows

35kg x 15
40kg x 10
45kg x 6

Superset: Wide Grip Pulldown/Straight Arm Pulldown

30kg x 10/20kg x 10
35kg x 10/20kg x 10

I do these more for feel so I focus on the lats rather than hauling as much weight down as possible using my biceps and back extension. Hence the relatively low weights.

And that was it. Took some mental tenacity to get through this lot (as I am still not in a training groove - damned hormones!) but I felt better and more positive after.

Weight is about the same as yesterday. I like the way my upper body looks right now, but I hate the way my lower body looks. Whilst I hate restricting food (I love to eat) I am almost looking forward to cutting because I feel much happier within myself when I'm lighter. I feel a bit like a tank at the moment.

[BalhamBeast]

Tuesday 4th December

I have the joys of Parents' Evening this afternoon, which means going into school on what is normally my day off. Still, I made the effort to get out of bed and train. I decided to throw a little light quad work in as well as doing arms because I wasn't satisfied with my lacklustre workout on Sunday.

Usual scap/shoulder activation stuff to start.

Arms (and a bit of Quads)

Leg Extension

3 x 20kg x 20

Burrrrrn!

Leg press

2 x 80kg x 20


Tried positioning feet together and right at the bottom of the plate in order to hit quads more. Kept it lighter, too. Just two sets but I was eager to get on with arms.

Triset:Tricep Rope Pushdowns/Push-ups/Standing DB Curls


15kg x 15/5 push-ups/8kg x 15
17.5kg x 12/8 push-ups/8kg x 12
20kg x 10/6 push-ups/8kg x 12
10kg x 12/6 push-ups/8kg x 12

I went down to a low weight at the end in an attempt to rep out but tris were so fried I could only get 12 with it!


Single Arm Cross-body Cable Curls

5kg x 15/15
7.5kg x 10/10

Superset: Tricep Overhead DB Extension/Seated Hammer Curls

22kg x 10/10kg x 10
24kg x 10/10kg x 10

Left it at that as I was short of time.

Standing DB Curls

4kg x 20

Well this was just a finisher. I thought I was going to crank out a lot of reps with this pitiful weight but no, only got as far as 20. Guess I did enough with the exercises before then!

I still feel like a big blob but fortunately I can get my only pair of smart trousers done up so I don't have to worry about turning up for parents' evening in a tracksuit. Much of the bloat should be gone by the end of the week although with the Christmas festivities approaching, I can't see myself dieting until the whole shebang is done with!

[RyouBakua]

i understand completely about loving food and not cutting during the holidays

Yeah I will be in January because I'll be starting my cut. (Well...diet...I've never been close to cut in my life!)

Whilst the weather, darkness etc certainly contribute to my mood at the moment, I think honestly, it's the fact I'm not that into training legs. Not because it's difficult but because, well, I just don't care about building my legs in the same way that I do about my arms and shoulders. I'm a bit of a bro like that.

yeah, sometimes i dont want to train legs either

then i think of stuff like this and it usually goes away

[BalhamBeast]

Well, I never had the problem of skinny legs. They've always been sturdy and my battle from the beginning was persuading my upper half to catch up. My arms and shoulders are still ridiculously stubborn.

[RyouBakua]

arms and shoulders look good in the avi

[BalhamBeast]

It's a question of balance, really. Juliette Bergman is often considered to have perfect proportions. Her calves, arms and neck all measured 14". My calves are nearly 15", my neck about 13.5" and my arms are 12.5" on a fat day. My delts are also quite flat so I don't have that capped look.

Speaking of shoulders...

Saturday 8th December

Shoulders


Military Press

2 x Bar x 10
25kg x 10
30kg x 10
32.5kg x 7
35kg x 4
37.5kg x 2
40kg x 2

My left shoulder's been cranky since Thursday - I think it's because I had to demo how to kick up into a handstand for one of my pupils and did so without a warm-up. Made sure I did all my scap stuff before doing the millies today, though. I didn't go for a PB today but was happy to get two reps at 40kg. That's pretty heavy anyway.

Rear Delt Flyes

3 x 14kg x 10
6kg x 30

Rear Delt Cable Flyes

5kg x 12
7.5kg x 10

Cable Lateral Raises

Strip set: 5kg x 5 > 2.5kg x 10 (both arms)
2.5kg x 15


Cable Front Raises

First time I've done these and I've forgotten what weight I used. It was either 5kg or 2.5kg. 2 x 10

Single Arm Dumbbell Upright Row

3 x 10kg x 10

I've stayed away from upright rows for a very long time due to my rotator cuff issues, but read about these recently and decided to give them a try. Doing one arm at a time enables me to manage my shoulders a bit better. I didn't go too heavy - I really just want to see how the joints respond.

Weighed self: 11 stone 1 (155lbs). I'll be looking to drop around 15lbs over the next few months. Having said that, I may put more on at Christmas! I'll have to manage my gluttony somewhat.

[BalhamBeast]

Sunday 9th December

Left shoulder is feeling very dodgy today. Good job I was training legs. Of course, this being legs, I had to make myself go to the gym but I got it done. No squats. Someone was in the squat rack the whole time. But my legs felt stimulated (and by stimulated, I mean wobbly) so I guess what I did was sufficient.

Legs

Leg Extensions

20kg x 20
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
50kg x 10
60kg x 10

Started lighter and did a whole mess of reps on the first set. Tried to be as strict as possible and pause for a second at the top of each rep. Those last reps were challenging at 50kg; at 60kg I was gurning like a baby with a mouth full of creamed spinach. Nearly fell over walking over to the leg press. Job done.

Leg Press

80kg x 10
120kg x 10
140kg x 10
160kg x 10
40kg x 20

Went a bit lighter and tried to keep tension on the muscle and avoid locking out as much as possible. It's hard on the heavier weights, though, especially as a have a tendency to hyperextend my knees.

Bulgarian Split Squats

20 reps per leg (no extra weight)

Single Leg Hip Thrusts

20 reps per leg

Leg Curls

20kg x 12 (per leg)
25kg x 10 (per leg)

Again, went lighter, focussed on form.

Assisted Pistols

2 x 5 per leg

WTF are these, you ask. Basically I can't do pistols without holding onto something, because I lack the mobility. At home I started doing them on my good leg after my foot operation, using bands which I'd suspended form my pull-up bar. So I figured I could do something similar by holding onto one of the handles in the cable crossover with both hands and using the weight (I set it to 30kg) to balance me and help me get back up again. Still only got five reps but these are quite effective.


I also jumped on the treadmill for 10 minutes and did a couple of short (1 minute, roughly) running intervals to test my achilles tendon. I want to get back to running but going straight out there for a 3 mile run is just asking for trouble. I'll see how it reacts tomorrow.

[RyouBakua]

i understand about the knee mobility. i can do the descent but going back up it protests


can you describe the kip up into the handstand?


ive always wanted to get my kip but i have trouble. (which is weird because i usually catch on fast)

[BalhamBeast]

Kick not kip. I'm not doing it on a pull-up bar. (Yikes!)

The pistols are problematic because I lack ankle and hip mobility. I do mobility exercises but I've sprained the right ankle numerous times, initially in childhood. According to my physio, if you do it young you can damage the growth plate which may lead to bone spurs forming. It's possible this is the case with me because I have poor dorsiflexion. I do those wall-ankle mobs but they actually hurt when I push the ankle past the point it's comfortable with, which is why I think something's blocking it.