Ironwill2008 V3.0

[ironwill2008]

Thank you for you comments. I've been doing StrongLifts and after a few weeks I couldn't fully recover and felt my knees tired. I took a week off but I think it was a bit too late. As you said, I need to figure out the right timing for me.

As you gain time under the bar, it will become apparent to you when you should schedule your deloads. The 'trick,' then is to stick to your schedule rather than thinking, when deload week comes around, that you still feel fine and are gonna blow off deload and train heavy. I've been there---a bunch of times---and it's best to stick to a schedule.

I like your approach of doing different exercises. That would be good for me to try some that intimidate me (front squat) or that I enjoy but haven't done in a while (leg curl).

Thanks again.

YW.


Indeed, light training for a week is a great time to audition new exercises and to brush up form on those that are difficult for us.

Hey Bill, re: adding a rep on lunges. I got to thinking this morning, maybe you should try adding an extra set at the end. Lower the weight and pump out 6-8 reps. Maybe that might stimulate some of the support muscles and eventually let you knock out that extra rep.

Thanks, Hoos. I've done that in the past (a backoff set) with other exercises, but have never done it with Lunges. if I can't break through in the next few weeks, I'll either do that (add that lighter set) or reset everything back down to a top set of 225 and run the reps up.




I have also got to be realistic here; while I never use "high mileage" as an excuse, the fact is that the last time I hit 275x3 was almost 2 years ago, and that two years is now on my top end. That weight/reps (275x3) may well be beyond me now. Not that I won't keep hammering away at it.

[ironwill2008]

Going a little off-topic here. Follow along as I pull the annual maintenance on our 20KW Generac Backup generator. It's been in place for two years now, and so far has only been called on a few times for commercial power interruption. With the increased instances of severe storms here these past few years, it's good to know we won't be without power no matter how bad the weather gets. The local power company here has a poor record of maintaining their facilities (a long story about that, but won't get into it now), and we decided back in 2015 to be proactive.

Anyway, here's what's involoved:

The unit, a 20 kw Generac, running off of natural gas (a relatively cheap and reliable fuel source)






Opening it up






Draining the oil (looks bad, but it's really not what it seems)






Installing new air filter






New oil filter






Adding fresh oil, Mobil 1 synthetic (rec by Generac)






Adjusting valve lash on cylinder 1 (.002-.004)






Valve lash adjustment cylinder 2







.....continued below.....

[ironwill2008]

.....continued from above.....


Checking spark plug gap (had new plugs, but they weren't needed; regapped/reinstalled old ones)






Buttoned back up. Reinstalled the housing, put the unit back online.

That's it, for another year or 400 hours of run time, whichever comes first.

[ironwill2008]

Closed out the week's training with a solid session. Primary goal today was to reach reps-across on RDLs again. Today's training was:

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

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

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

Finished off the work here in one hour. I reached reps-across again on Romanianz, so I'll bump up a nickel next week. These have become a real grind, and the goal is still 365x3. Got some work yet to do.

Curls didn't advance, but all reps were with good form, and provided me with a solid biceps pump. And while achieving a pump isn't necessarily a signal of certain growth to come, what it does is let you know that work is being performed, and indicates the muscle(s) involved in doing that work.

My hands and wrists were okay today for a change, and I was able to get back to my usual 3x8 on Dips with no drama.

Nothing else to add for today. After resting over the weekend (that 'Summer Projects To Get Done' list of mine notwithstanding), I'll head back to the gym on Monday and hit Front Squats, Leg Press, Chins, and Seated Press.

Post-WorkOut feast was a plate of pasta with home-made, fresh-herb marinara, a tasty salad, garlic toast, and a glass of ice-cold milk.

[grouchyjarhead]

Glad to see progress in the RDLs. They ain't easy!

[ironwill2008]

Glad to see progress in the RDLs. They ain't easy!

Hey, what's up!

Lulz. I've been chasing that one rep for what seems like a year. I've got 15 more pounds to get on that bar to meet my goal, so it looks like it's gonna be a while.

[ironwill2008]

Had a quiet, restful weekend, and that translated into a good session in the gym today. And while the numbers didn't move upward, they didn't move downward either, and at this stage of the game, that's a lot to be thankful for. Today's training was:

Front Squat
bar x10 W/U
95x8 W/U
135x8
165x8
185x8
225x6

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

Chinups
bw +55x6
bw +55x6
bw +55x5

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

Worked my way through the list of exercises/sets in about an hour and twenty minutes. Fronts remained @ 6 reps on the top set; I still need 2 more reps on that set to qualify for a little more weight added to the bar.

Leg Press was tough today, and I was happy just to escape with 9 reps on the last work set. Getting these to 12-across is proving to be a formidable challenge. Just the way I like it.

Held my own on Chins again today. I'm pleased to be able to keep hitting that extra rep I picked up a couple of weeks ago, seemingly out of nowhere. I'll continue to hammer away at these.

As with the other three exercises on the slate today, Presses remained as previous. I'm pretty much at limit on these; any further progress is going to be slow to appear.

That is it for today; while this was a good, energetic session, nonetheless, I'm glad it's in the books. After some rest tomorrow, I'll go after Lunges, Barbell Rows, and Inclines on Wednesday.

Post-WorkOut meal was my wife's version of huevos rancheros, with a baked tortilla cup of rice, beans, cheese, salsa, and two eggs. This was accompanied by some bacon and a glass of milk.

[OT2000]

That whole house generator will probably come in handy. I'm lucky to have had underground electric where we rarely lost power through some bad storms and a couple of TS, hurricanes. Just moved to NC, I am considering one now as I know they get hit and power loss is likely.

[ironwill2008]

That whole house generator will probably come in handy. I'm lucky to have had underground electric where we rarely lost power through some bad storms and a couple of TS, hurricanes. Just moved to NC, I am considering one now as I know they get hit and power loss is likely.

Wherever you live, if you have yet to suffer through an extended power outage, you're fortunate. Increasingly, power companies are cutting---if they even still have one---their maintenance budgets and simply keeping the money for their fat-cat CEOs/executives.

Bastages!



We've had many issues with the local power company here, but what made us decide on a whole-house backup generator was the severe storm that blew through here in June, 2012, which left our entire area, for miles around, with no electricity for nearly five days. That meant no gasoline (stations had no power for their gas pumps, no groceries (stores very quickly ran out of edible food, even the few with their own backup generators, no restaurants, etc. Couldn't even buy any ice anywhere.

To make things even worse, this happened during one of the worst heat waves I've seen here in 40 years, with temps running close to 100 degrees for the entire week. With all the windows wide open, it was 95 degrees in our house. Needless to say, we lost two refrigerators full of food.

I dragged my feet over spending the $$$ for a generator for a couple of years after that, and every time a severe storm was predicted, I'd bitch about the lack of maintenance of the power line right-of ways and how one tree limb could knock out our power for half a day---or worse. My wife finally told me to either get a generator or quit running my mouth.

I had the Generac installed, and the peace of mind it affords was worth every cent it cost. And it wasn't cheap; due to possible insurance issues if there were ever a house fire caused by the electrical wiring or some problem with the gas line, rather than buy a generator outright and install/wire it myself, I opted to hire it done by licensed electricians, and the gas lines upgraded/installed by a licensed plumber.

[ironwill2008]

Good session today. Still shy of my rep-goal on Lunges, but the effort was there, and that's most important these days. Today's training was:

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

Barbell Row
95x10 W/U
135x10 W/U
165x8
185x8
205x7

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

Got this one in the books in a little less than an hour. Lunges are still @ 2 reps on the 275 set, so as I mentioned a few posts back, I'm going to add an additional, backoff set of 225x3 after the top set in an effort to bust through my plateau. That tactic (a lighter. higher-rep set after the top set) has worked well for me in the past, so I have every expectation that it will work this time as well, as long as I work at it.

Not only added a rep on Rows, but feel like I improved my form at the same time; I felt every rep in my back rather than in my biceps. I'll need to be vigilant moving forward though; this exercise has a way of allowing bad form to sneak back in there.

Machine Inclines didn't advance, but I'm pretty much at my limit on them; any additional progress will likely be slow to appear.

Nothing else to report. I'll rest tomorrow, then get back in there on Friday for a run at Romanians, Curls, and Dips.

Chicken/rice/black bean/cheese enchiladas fresh out of the oven







Post-WorkOut meal was one of those tasty rascals plated up with a glass of cold milk alongside.

[HoosierHardGain]

Nice work, Bill. I'd still like to see you try a backoff set on the lunges for a few weeks to see if that wouldn't push you past the 2 reps.

[ironwill2008]

Nice work, Bill. I'd still like to see you try a backoff set on the lunges for a few weeks to see if that wouldn't push you past the 2 reps.

Thanks; I had a good day.

I mentioned above that that's what I'm going to do, Hoos. I'll add a set of 3 @225 after the top set. I expect that will work to get me over the 2-rep hump, but if it doesn't, I'll cut the top set back by 10% and work my way back up.

[HoosierHardGain]

Thanks; I had a good day.

I mentioned above that that's what I'm going to do, Hoos. I'll add a set of 3 @225 after the top set. I expect that will work to get me over the 2-rep hump, but if it doesn't, I'll cut the top set back by 10% and work my way back up.

Oops, yeah, sorry. Reading comprehension failed me there

[ironwill2008]

Oops, yeah, sorry. Reading comprehension failed me there

NP, Hoos.

Those 3-rep sets work well to progress the weight, right up until they no longer work well to progress the weight!

[Payton1221]

. . . I'll add a set of 3 @225

LOL. Backoff set @ 225!

Keep killin' it Bill.

[ironwill2008]

LOL. Backoff set @ 225!

Keep killin' it Bill.

Well, it's a lot lighter than 275!

[OT2000]

Wherever you live, if you have yet to suffer through an extended power outage, you're fortunate. Increasingly, power companies are cutting---if they even still have one---their maintenance budgets and simply keeping the money for their fat-cat CEOs/executives.

Bastages!



We've had many issues with the local power company here, but what made us decide on a whole-house backup generator was the severe storm that blew through here in June, 2012, which left our entire area, for miles around, with no electricity for nearly five days. That meant no gasoline (stations had no power for their gas pumps, no groceries (stores very quickly ran out of edible food, even the few with their own backup generators, no restaurants, etc. Couldn't even buy any ice anywhere.

To make things even worse, this happened during one of the worst heat waves I've seen here in 40 years, with temps running close to 100 degrees for the entire week. With all the windows wide open, it was 95 degrees in our house. Needless to say, we lost two refrigerators full of food.

I dragged my feet over spending the $$$ for a generator for a couple of years after that, and every time a severe storm was predicted, I'd bitch about the lack of maintenance of the power line right-of ways and how one tree limb could knock out our power for half a day---or worse. My wife finally told me to either get a generator or quit running my mouth.

I had the Generac installed, and the peace of mind it affords was worth every cent it cost. And it wasn't cheap; due to possible insurance issues if there were ever a house fire caused by the electrical wiring or some problem with the gas line, rather than buy a generator outright and install/wire it myself, I opted to hire it done by licensed electricians, and the gas lines upgraded/installed by a licensed plumber.

Unfortunately I went two weeks without power after Hurricane Charlie. I don't think anyone was prepared for that storm in Orlando, sure as heck not the power companies. Only place that had power was three restaurants where I lived. I waited an hour to pick up some SteaknShake. Never thought a burger could taste so good lol

That is rough to be without power in that kind of heat. Smart move on the gen, especially a whole house. I own a portable now but that powers little but is better than nothing.

[ironwill2008]

Unfortunately I went two weeks without power after Hurricane Charlie. I don't think anyone was prepared for that storm in Orlando, sure as heck not the power companies. Only place that had power was three restaurants where I lived. I waited an hour to pick up some SteaknShake. Never thought a burger could taste so good lol

That is rough to be without power in that kind of heat. Smart move on the gen, especially a whole house. I own a portable now but that powers little but is better than nothing.

I can't even imagine two weeks with no electricity; 5 days was intolerable.


That storm that occurred here in 2012 was an anomaly, and probably won't be repeated again in my lifetime, but as I mentioned, and to make a long story short, prior to my filing a formal complaint with the Public service Commission, 4 to 6 hour service interruptions, and sometimes up to an entire day, were a common occurrence in my neighborhood. I logged 14 such occurrences in an 18-month time span before petitioning the PSC with my complaint. It actually was answered by the power company after much wrangling and back-and-forth between myself, the PSC, and American Electric Power (the parent power company here); about 2 months later, they rebuilt the entire pole line coming up our hill (which feeds about 275 homes), and added 2 additional phases to the single phase that was previously in place. They replaced and upgraded every pole (most were at least 60 years old), all the crossarms, all the lines in every span, and all the transformers. But to force them (AEP) to live up to their agreement with the PSC, it took what amounts to holding a gun to the CEO's head.






I should give AEP credit for finally doing something, but the way in which they handled the whole situation, and the way they continue to ignore the same issues almost everywhere else around here, still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I should also add that my issue was never with the power company line crews; they did an excellent job on the rebuild---first-class work all the way. My gripe is with the piss-poor upper managers who dictate company maintenance policy.


Bastages.

[Domicron]

I had the Generac installed, and the peace of mind it affords was worth every cent it cost. And it wasn't cheap; due to possible insurance issues if there were ever a house fire caused by the electrical wiring or some problem with the gas line, rather than buy a generator outright and install/wire it myself, I opted to hire it done by licensed electricians, and the gas lines upgraded/installed by a licensed plumber.

We just had a couple bad storms, and the first one over the weekend knocked out our power for a day and a half. usually our power might flicker for a little, or we will lose power because a transformer freezes (or whatever it is that happens when it's real cold) but this is the first time in awhile that we've had power out this long.

In the past i wouldn't think anything of it, because i'm usually always at work. i looked into getting a generator after this time just because i have a kid in the house now, and the wife, but i think we don't lose power frequently enough to make it worth it.

great workouts, Bill, and great looking food.

[ironwill2008]

We just had a couple bad storms, and the first one over the weekend knocked out our power for a day and a half. usually our power might flicker for a little, or we will lose power because a transformer freezes (or whatever it is that happens when it's real cold) but this is the first time in awhile that we've had power out this long.

In the past i wouldn't think anything of it, because i'm usually always at work. i looked into getting a generator after this time just because i have a kid in the house now, and the wife, but i think we don't lose power frequently enough to make it worth it.

great workouts, Bill, and great looking food.

Hey, thanks, Raymond. I'm still working hard to move forward one millimeter at a time. I've been spending a bit more time in the kitchen, trying to come up with a few different meals.


A backup generator big enough to power the entire household in normal fashion isn't cheap, as I mentioned, and it's feasibility has to be weighed against your history of power failures as well as the terrain in which you live. Around here, there's not a lot of flat ground (something you probably have plenty of out there), so pole lines often cross hilly/mountainous terrain, and that always involves lots of big trees in or along the right-of way, the bane of aerial utilities. It wouldn't be a big problem if the power co. would routinely trim said ROW of overhanging limbs, leaning trees, or any other potential hazard (like they used to do, 30 years ago), but this costs money, apparently money the power company fat cats would rather spend on giving themselves huge bonuses rather than on line maintenance. Just about every time there's a thunderstorm anywhere around here, of even light intensity, the next day, in the newspaper, there'll be a story concerning how many hundreds---or usually, thousands--- of power company customers who are subsequently out of service.


Bastages.

[Domicron]

Hey, thanks, Raymond. I'm still working hard to move forward one millimeter at a time. I've been spending a bit more time in the kitchen, trying to come up with a few different meals.


A backup generator big enough to power the entire household in normal fashion isn't cheap, as I mentioned, and it's feasibility has to be weighed against your history of power failures as well as the terrain in which you live. Around here, there's not a lot of flat ground (something you probably have plenty of out there), so pole lines often cross hilly/mountainous terrain, and that always involves lots of big trees in or along the right-of way, the bane of aerial utilities. It wouldn't be a big problem if the power co. would routinely trim said ROW of overhanging limbs, leaning trees, or any other potential hazard (like they used to do, 30 years ago), but this costs money, apparently money the power company fat cats would rather spend on giving themselves huge bonuses rather than on line maintenance. Just about every time there's a thunderstorm anywhere around here, of even light intensity, the next day, in the newspaper, there'll be a story concerning how many hundreds---or usually, thousands--- of power company customers who are subsequently out of service.


Bastages.

that's pretty amazing that they don't do that sort of thing. Around here it's common to see our power company trimming trees. it seems like common sense would say you could probably save money with some preventative tree maintenance instead of paying for emergency overtime (maybe even hazard pay) for crews to fix the outages after they've happened...

guess if they just leave you to suffer though, they can save even more money

[ElrondHubbard]

Will, I'm always impressed by your workouts, I always respect your advice, but what really keeps me coming back are those meal pictures! Always makes me hungry!

[ironwill2008]

that's pretty amazing that they don't do that sort of thing. Around here it's common to see our power company trimming trees. it seems like common sense would say you could probably save money with some preventative tree maintenance instead of paying for emergency overtime (maybe even hazard pay) for crews to fix the outages after they've happened...

I agree. Knowing what I do about the cost of repair/replacement/rebuild of damaged outside plant (poles, cables, lines, attachments, etc.), and in many cases the difficulty of simply getting equipment and materials into hard-to-reach sites, having contract crews cut ROW on a regular basis would be cheaper in the long run.

Not to mention, it would go a long way in helping to keep the lights on even in a severe storm; the vast majority of power outages are caused by falling trees or limbs that have grown above power lines.

The last time I saw a tree cutting crew anywhere around here working on a power line ROW for maintenance purposes was way over 20 years ago.

guess if they just leave you to suffer though, they can save even more money

Bingo. It's all about the $$$, and how much of it upper management can stuff into their own pockets.



Bastages.

Will, I'm always impressed by your workouts, I always respect your advice, but what really keeps me coming back are those meal pictures! Always makes me hungry!

Thanks, Elrond; I appreciate the comments.

I started posting the meal pics towards the end of my first journal here (IIRC) back in 2008, as a means of countering the popular broscience of the day (sadly, it's still touted all too frequently even to this day) that in order to make gainzz, you must eat nothing but boiled chicken, plain brown rice, and brokkoli at least 8 times a day. It was nonsense then, and it still is today.

[ironwill2008]

Dark, raining, thunderstorms outside, but none of that dampened (no pun intended) my enthusiasm to train. It's getting tougher to add just one rep to anything, but it's that challenge that keeps me coming back. Today's training was:

Romanian Deadlift
bar x10 W/U
95x5 W/U
135x3
185x3
225x3
275x3
355x1 heh-freakin'-vee

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

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

Got thorugh this one in an hour on the nose. That 1956 Buick that I occasionally mention here showed up in the gym again today in the form of a 355-pound barbell. I managed a decent single, and that was all I had for it. It always amazes me just how heavy a nickel can be; going to be a long grind to 365.

Curls provided a solid biceps pump but not an extra rep. I need to get 3x10 before considering adding more weight.

Hands and wrists were no problem today as I managed to hit my regular 3x8 on Dips. As always, I'll continue to keep these in here for as long as I can do them.

Another week gone by, as well as another month. That means my bud Sherman will roll in here on Monday to MC a light week of deload training for me. For him, pretty much just eating and taking naps when we're not out walking the hills around here.

Post-WorkOut meal was a plateful of fettuccine and meatballs with veggies, a cup of tasty chop salad, garlic toast, and a glass of milk.

[ironwill2008]

Hello. If you don't already know who I am, I'm Sherman, Bill's best bud. He puts me in here on deload weeks to provide some interest to an otherwise rather dull three workouts on the week. Right now, he's in the gym while I catch up on some sleep on my couch.

http://columbuscockerrescue.com Please help if you're able. Even if you can't adopt a dog at this time, a donation would be a grat help.

If Sherman leads off the week, that means it's a schedule of light deload workouts, all designed to allow me some additional recovery from the previous three weeks of heavy (for me) training. Here's what that was composed of for today:

Barbell squat
bar x10 W/U
135x8 W/U
225x8
225x8
225x8

Neutral-grip Pulldown PWO
90x10
90x10
90x10

Overhead Dumbbell Press
20x10 W/U
40x8
40x8
40x8

Rolled straight through here in about 25 minutes. Did a few sets of Back Squats to get things started. I don't recommend doing Squats outside of a power rack unless you're using bumper plates on a well-build lifting platform, but I wasn't going to get stuck at the relatively light loads I used today.

Racked the bar and then used the neutral-grip attachment on the cable for some Pulldowns.

I closed out the short session with three quick sets of Dumbbell Presses. These are much more difficult than the same exercise using a barbell, and even just 40s were plenty enough.

Done. I'll rest tomorrow out in the yard with the week's yardwork, then hit another light gym session on Wednesday; of what it will be comprised won't be determined until I step into the gym at that time.

Post-WorkOut feast was a marinated and broiled chicken breast, fresh green beans, a spinach saute, and some excellent sweet corn, all accompanied by a glass of ice-cold milk.

[HoosierHardGain]

Does Sherman get any of the post workout meal?

[ironwill2008]

Does Sherman get any of the post workout meal?

Always, Hoos. At the least, he gets some of the protein source, and usually some veggies and fruit. Of course, he doesn't get onions, grapes, or raisins, since those items are NO BUENO for canines (as is chocolate). About the only thing we've found that he doesn't like is mushrooms. Also he likes celery, but he can't seem to chew it up properly, so we don't give that to him either. Other than animal proteins, what he really loves is fruit; he'll even eat a few bites of raw lemon, something even I can't tolerate. If I eat a pear or a banana, he'll follow me around until I give him some of it.

[BergMuscle]

I always like how close your deload poundages are to my working poundages.

[ironwill2008]

I always like how close your deload poundages are to my working poundages.

Eh, it's all relative, Dan. Shoot, there are guys here who can probably Curl my body weight.

[ironwill2008]

Hi, folks. I'm out here checking on my vast empire. Gotz to keep those pesky squirrels at bay, otherwise they'll start thinking they own this yard.

http://columbuscockerrescue.com Please help if you're able.

Sherman is smart; when he's outside in the heat, he pretty much stays in the shade. Can't say that much for myself; yesterday was 'yard' day, and it was rough; temps in the 90s, with humidity to match. Glad it's done.


Anyway, this is Day Two of three light workouts for this week, nothing done with heavy weight, no sets anywhere near failure, and some exercises I either rarely use or plan to bring into my regular routine at some pint. Today's training was:

Machine Hack Squat PWO
90x10 W/U
180x10
180x10
180x10

LandMine Row PWO
25x10
25x10
25x10

Incline Flye
20x10 W/U
40x10
40x10
40x10

Rolled right through here in about twenty five minutes. Hadn't done any Machine Hacks in ages, so that made them a prime candidate for inclusion today. These will probably make an appearance in my regular routine maybe this Winter.

Same with LM Rows; I've been meaning to work these in at some point, but so far, haven't gotten around to it. These have a unique feel, something somewhere between a Dumbbell Row and a Machine Row (with a somewhat fixed path).

Closed out the session with a good stretch from some Flyes on the incline bench.

Can't think of anything else to add. I'll actually rest tomorrow (that's my story and I'm sticking to it, at least until my wife comes up with something that needs done around the house), and then close out deload week on Friday with one more light session.

Post-WorkOut meal was a pair of my wife's oerfectly-poached eggs on buttered Texas toast, bacon, and a glass of milk.