Logbook

[O-Train]

Hoping this will help motivate me to be more consistent with my workouts. Doing a 5/3/1 style program with some modifications. I used 95% instead of 90% to calculate my weights. I also plan on only doing the prescribed reps and not going to failure with the last set. Squat work is limited, although my wrist is feeling better it still isn't great. Planning on 5lb upper 10lb lower increases every cycle. 5' 11'' weight right now is around 215.

Quads 27'' Calves 15.75/16'' Arms 16.5/16.75''

Accessory work is different than 5/3/1, basically just what I feel works/what I feel like doing. Asked the guy at the front desk today about a GHD. They don't have one but to my suprise after I explained what it looked like he responded: "I think we may have something you'd be interested in." Apparently they got in a reverse hyper recently! The pad on the top isn't secured at all so it's kinda sketchy to use but whatever...I'm happy.

3x5 65,75,85%
Deadlift 255x5 295x5 335x5
Hack Squats 180x12 210x5
Unilateral Hamstring Curl 100x8 115x9
Standing Calf Raise 340x11 340x8 340x7

Military Press 100x5 115x5 130x5
Flat Dumbell Press 70pl x3 85pl x7 85pl x4
Pendlay Rows 135x4 185x8 185x8
Twisting Dumbell Curls 45pl x8
Tricep Pressdowns 6pl x7 9pl x9 9pl x7
Chinups BW x6

Squats 135x5 135x6 225x4 225x8 (deep and light, some pain but not bad)
Stiff Leg Deadlift 135x6 275x7 295x6
Unilateral Leg Extension 100x9 100x9 100x6
Reverse Hyperextension 45x8
Standing Calf Raise 340x12 340x9 340x8

[O-Train]

Workout felt good today. Had lots of energy. Went to failure on my last set of bench. Form is improving a lot, feeling more stable now.

Bench Press 155x5 175x5 200x8
Seated Dumbell Press 50pl x4 65pl x8 65pl x6
One Arm Dumbell Row 100x10 100x10
Rolling Dumbell Tricep Extension 40pl x8 40pl x6
High Elbow Row 10pl x8 10pl x11 10pl x8

[O-Train]

Had a good workout today but I was tired from work so I kept to 3 reps for my last seat of deads.

3x3 70,80,90%
Deadlift 275x3 315x3 355x3
Hack Squats 180x6 250x3 220x7
Unilateral Hamstring Curl 100x4 120x9 120x8
Standing Calf Raise 340x12 340x10 340x8

[macka]

sometimes you just have to take it easy to avoid injury when you are tired.

[O-Train]

sometimes you just have to take it easy to avoid injury when you are tired.

That's true. In this case tired is a relative term. I'm always kinda tired after work, just more so than normal this week. Glad it's Friday and a 3 day weekend.

[O-Train]

It's been a terrible week for training. The Thanksgiving holiday got things off to a bad start then didn't have a chance to train again till today. Probably go tomorrow or Sunday. Did more exercises than normal today but not a lot of total sets.

Military Press 105x3 120x3 135x5
Flat Dumbell Press 70pl x5 85pl x7 85pl x4+70pl x3
Pendlay Rows 135x6 205x5 195x6+135x8
Twisting Dumbell Curls 50pl x7
Tricep Pressdowns 9pl x10 9pl x7
Lateral Raises 30pl x7
Chinups BWx6

[O-Train]

Went a little heavier with squats but still taking it kinda easy. I think if I keep the reps low with higher weight it should be ok for my wrist.

Squat 135x5 225x5 275x3 315x2
Stiff Leg Deadlift 135x7 275x8 295x6
Unilateral Leg Extensions 100x8 110x8 110x7
Standing Calf Raise 360x10 360x7 360x7

[O-Train]

Bench Press 165x3 190x3 210x3
Seated Dumbell Press 50pl x4 70pl x7 65pl x7
One Arm Dumbell Row 100pl x10 105pl x7+90pl x7
Rolling Dumbell Tricep Extension 40pl x9 40pl x7
High Elbow Row 10pl x10 10pl x9 10pl x9

[O-Train]

Start of 5,3,1 75,85,95%. One thing I need to stop doing is going for PR's so often. Today I worked up through my weights doing singles but I should have just stuck with the 5,3,1. The heavy weights just didn't feel like they would go today. Hopefully I'll remember this and only go for a max again around the beginning of December.

Deadlift 225x1 295x1 335x1 375x1 420x0
Hack Squats 180x3 250x3 230x6
Unilateral Hamstring Curl 100x4 125x8 125x6
Standing Calf Raise 360x10 360x8 360x8

[Anthony]

keep up the good work

[O-Train]

Havn't really been posting or training lately. Went once this week but had a 3 week layoff before that. Found out towards the end of October that my contract wouldn't be renewed so I've been looking for work for the last couple weeks. Feeling depressed which makes it difficult to find motivation to train. Need to apply for EI but I don't want to.

Not training for 3 weeks messes up numbers so for the time being I'm not going back to 5/3/1. I thought up an interesting split so hopefully I'll be able to drag my ass to the gym atleast a couple times a week. Thought about a big muscles/little muscles split. I figure I can keep the tempo a lot higher when working smaller muscles and take longer breaks when training larger muscles. Plus I also figure it will increase training frequency and allow my lower back to rest. Havn't worked out all the details yet but on monday I trained Chest, shoulders, triceps, biceps and calves. The other day will be back, quads, hamstrings and glutes. The only exception is posterior delts which get trained with back.

Exercise selection and rotation will be key and I figure for the big muscle days I can shift the focus back and forth between squats and deadlifts. One of the main reasons I wanted to give this a try is that I felt like I wasn't giving certain muscle groups enough focus, specifically back.

I noticed from this workout that my shoulders and calves arn't sore so I need to do more for them. Everything else feels toasted.

Dumbbell Chest Press 60pl x7 80pl x8 90pl x3+70pl x4
Standing Military Press 115x3 125x3
One Arm DB Tricep Extension (cross body) 20pl x8 30pl x6+ Rolling DB Tricep Ext 30pl x8
Dumbbell Concentration Curls 30pl x8 35pl x9+ Standing twisting DB Curls 35pl x5
Machine Chest Fly 105x8 150x8 180x3
Dumbbell Laterals (thumbs down) 20pl x8 20pl x9 20pl x8
Cable Tricep Pressdowns 10pl x4+9pl x2
Standing Calf Raise 340x10 340x8 340x7

Looks like a lot but it took about an hour. Needs some work.

I figured out yesterday that "lateral" as a movement means "farther from median plane" (I normally just use the term abduction). I always thought that "lateral" raise was a bit of a misnomer but it's not.

[O-Train]

Figured out my exercises for Big Muscle Days (1 and 2). Not sure on number of sets but I'm sure the workouts will figure themselves out.

Day 1:
Back Squat
Stiff-leg Deadlift
Barbell Hack Squat
Unilateral Glute/Ham Kickback
Pendlay Row (pronated grip)
Cable Long Row
Face Pulls

Day 2:
Deadlift
Standing Good Mornings
Machine Hack Squat
Reverse Hypers
One Arm Dumbbell Rows
Rack Chins
High Elbow Cable Row

Probably going to use more sets for barbell/machine hack squats because those are the main quad exercises. May need to finish with leg extensions.

Feel free to comment or ask questions, some of the exercises are somewhat obscure.

[Talo]

I noticed from this workout that my shoulders and calves arn't sore so I need to do more for them

Being sore is not a good enough reason to hit them more. Be careful with the smaller muscles because you can over train them fast and you don't want to be hit with an injury.

[O-Train]

Being sore is not a good enough reason to hit them more. Be careful with the smaller muscles because you can over train them fast and you don't want to be hit with an injury.

Very true. I guess what I was trying to get at is that in comparison to other small muscle groups I didn't train my calves and shoulders adequetely. It's probably as simple as pushing to failure on the final set by adding a drop set or possibly adding one additional set. Nothing major.

[O-Train]

This was a fairly crazy workout. Nutrition beforehand wasn't great and I was dehydrated too. My hamstrings started cramping up after squats. Didn't feel very strong but it was great to kick my ass in the gym. Decided not to do any glute/ham kickbacks. By the time I got to back exercises I was basically done. Started feeling light headed and almost blacked out after my first set of pendlay rows. If I keep doing this workout I think my hamstrings will grow a lot. Barbell hack squats are a great quad exercise.

Soon as I got home I had a couple big scoops of jam then a protein shake and some ground beef which made me feel a lot better.

I have a phone interview next Tuesday which I'm excited about.

Back Squat 135x4 225x3 275x5 275x5
Stiff Leg Deadlift 135x6 275x8
Barbell Hack Squat 135x8 185x7+ Uni. Leg Extension 100x3+80x2
Pronated Pendlay Rows 135x6 185x5
Cable Long Rows 10pl x8 12pl x8 12pl x7
Face Pulls 8pl x10 10pl x10 11pl x10

[O-Train]

I'm starting to re-think training legs w/ back. Gets my heart rate and bp up high. I can tell because my ears start feeling like they're plugged/need to pop. Plus by the time I get towards the end of the workout I'm gassed. Weight has dropped to just over 200lbs because frankly I'm just not motivated to eat. Same with working out, it's been a difficult few weeks. I'm thinking I probably havn't lost much muscle but restricting calories while not training isn't a great way to get bigger...

Had a really important job interview last Friday. Went well so I'm hopeful. Tried deadlifting today and I can still pull 405 which is 2x BW...I guess that's a good starting point. Grip felt really strong with that weight so it's the rest of me that needs to catch up.

Deadlift 135x3 225x1 315x1 365x1 405x1
Standing Good Mornings 135x8 185x4 175x7
Machine Hack Squats 90x9 180x10 180x6
One Arm Dumbbell Rows 100x8 100x6
Rack Chins BW x8 BW x7
Cable High Elbow Rows 10pl x8 + 9pl x4

[faller]

I know i couldn't do back and legs in the same workout. i have to do a small muscle group after a big one. legs/shoulders, back/triceps leaves me feeling "energized", back and leg's just left me feeling like i'm done for the day, completely burned out.

[CreatineAmonster]

Some serious weight on the DL's man I wonder how heavy you would be lifting if you were just doing back and not legs and back. KUTGW/

[O-Train]

I wanted to use multi-quote but I always forget how. Training Legs and Back does leave me burned out for sure. Actually the first time I tried it turned out I had a stomache virus. Started feeling really sick that night and by 4AM I could barely turn from back to front or vice versa. I really want to get back to training consistently and see how it treats me because I can't give it an honest appraisal right now. This time around I'm just sore although I feel like I needed more energy to give my lats a better workout.

Thanks CreatineAmonster. I guess my deadlift is ok but I know it still needs a lot of work. The main reason that I'm breaking up training how I am is that I'm just not getting to the gym very often. So when I do go I need to get a lot done. Also one aspect of training that people often overlook is training frequency. It's great to focus on one muscle group and get the most out of the workout. However, in the long run it may more beneficial to do less more often. Even training a muscle group 1.5x/wk vs 1 is the difference between working that muscle group 78 times a year vs 52. I think that's one of the big reasons (along with others) that I had really good results from DC training.

[O-Train]

Weights are down but I'm starting to feel like I'm getting back into the swing of things. I especially noticed with bench that the weight felt heavier than it should have. Started feeling lighter on my last set. I've been doing laterals w/ thumbs down. No clue how DK moves 70's. Did a couple rest/pause style sets to finish but only w/ one rest.

Barbell Bench Press 135x7 185x6 185x7
Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press 60pl x6 65pl x4
Dips BW x8 BW x7
Seated Dumbbell Curl 35pl x8 40pl x7+2
Dumbbell Laterals 20pl x8 20pl x8+4
Dumbbell Chest Fly 40pl x8
Cable Tricep Pressdown 10pl x2+9pl x4+8pl x4
Standing Calf Raise 340x10 340x8 340x7+300x3+260x4

[O-Train]

Well...I did some more reading today. Instead of leading me further astray I think what I'm going to try and focus on is fairly basic. The difficulty I'm having with program design is that I want to ultimately get much stronger but I still also have an interest in bodybuilding. Now of course size and strength go hand in hand but the biggest are not the strongest and the strongest are not the biggest so specificity of training is hugely important.

I've realized that what I have setup now is a little too diluted when it comes to some isolation exercises. However I do think I still need to keep some and I won't be doing farmers walk or fat bar deadlifts...at least not right now...so I need to find a middle ground.

I want to incorporate heavy high rep sets and triples for squats, deads, bench and mil press. I like the exercises I've choosen for legs/back so I'll keep those.

The days will be setup like this (reps for last set indicated)
Squat 20, Mil 3, DL 3, Bench 10, Squat 3, Mil 10, DL 10, Bench 3 (then Squat 20)

Standing Military Press
Flat Dumbbell Press
Rolling EZ Bar Tricep Ext.
EZ Bar Curl
Dumbbell Laterals
Dips
Standing Calf Raise

Barbell Bench Press
Seated Dumbbell Press
Rolling DB Tricep Ext.
Seated Dumbbell Curl
Dumbbell Laterals
Dips
Standing Calf Raise

I think for dips I want to aim for 20 total reps done with as little rest as possible. Once I get stronger I'll have to buy a dip belt. I would have liked to incorporate biceps into a pulling exercise but I can't because I've split back and biceps.

[O-Train]

Had an ok workout today, just glad I went. 20 rep squats won't work for me w/ a low bar placement. My wrists gave out before my legs did and my belt was too tight which constricted my breathing. I'll go heavier and shoot for 10 reps like the other exercises. I think I need to wear pants when doing barbell hack squats because the barbell kept getting stuck on my hamstrings. I figure it will slide better with pants instead of shorts. Wanted to do stiff leg deadlifts but my back just wasn't having it and my form would have been garbage so I did uni hamtring curls instead.

Back Squat 135x5 225x3 250x13+4
Stiff Leg Deadlift 135x6 Uni Leg Curl 110x6 120x4 120x4+110x1
Barbell Hack Squat 135x5 225x2 225x2 + Machine Hack Squat 90x20
Pronated Pendlay Rows 135x5 205x5 185x8
Cable Long Rows 12pl x10 12pl x7
Face Pulls 10pl x10 12pl x10

[O-Train]

Apparently today is the most depressed day of the year. So everyone should go to the gym, it will make you feel better. I've been dealing with depression/anxiety and not training makes it a lot worse. Last week I decided just to get to the gym and not worry about exactly what I would do or plan everything out. Strength is down but it's good just to focus on lifting again.

Last workout was squats and calve raises. Today I just did bench press, chinups and lateral raises. Trying to not get caught up in doing too much or too many exercises, just get to the gym and focus mainly on compound lifts with a couple accessories.

Setup the power rack so that with an arch I could still touch but if I failed the bar rested on the pins and I could get out. Worked really well and I had a lot of confidence pushing myself to failure.

Hopefully my lifts will rebound quickly. Squat is 315x2 below parallel and bench today was 225x2.

[Mr.Freeze]

seem's like you're right, but tomorrow will be a better day :D


http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110117/CGY_blue_monday_110117/20110117/?hub=CalgaryHome

[O-Train]

Wanted to train yesterday but going today worked out well. Still just getting back into things so my recovery times are longer than normal. Did deadlift today and finished off with some hack squats and standing calve raises. Still keeping things simple. Strength seems to be fairly good right now. My heavy sets were 365x3, 385x3, 365x2. I've decided to skip over the really light stuff for warming up because I couldn't figure out a point to doing it. For my warm up I did 225x2 275x2 315x1 which worked fine and I still felt fresh for my heavier sets.

[bcaamuscle]

Are you doing your hacksquats in a machine or with barbell?

[O-Train]

Are you doing your hacksquats in a machine or with barbell?

Both, but today I used a machine. Technique on barbell hack squats still isn't great.

[Gawd]

Today I just did bench press, chinups and lateral raises. Trying to not get caught up in doing too much or too many exercises, just get to the gym and focus mainly on compound lifts with a couple accessories.

Good plan. No point in over complicating things some times. Just get in and get it done. :D

Subbed.

[O-Train]

Good plan. No point in over complicating things some times. Just get in and get it done. :D

Subbed.

Exactly.

Today was barbell shoulder press and finished with push press. Then did some flat dumbbell chest press and chin ups. Workout was quick and felt good.

[O-Train]

Squats are starting to improve. I start training for work in Toronto next week so I'll probably only have a chance to lift on weekends for the next 2 weeks. I think after that I'm going to transfer my membership so that my home gym is in Mississauga. I could get a Universal Goodlife membership but that costs 28 bi-weekly which I think is too much. Even though my new employer has a fitness subsidy I'm still too cheap to spend a lot on a gym membership.

With everything I've been hearing about the 401 I don't want to get stuck in rush hour. Plan is to get up early and train in the morning at a gym close to work. It will work out well with traffic and I think if I trained after work it would end up going too late into the evening. What I want to do is go mon-fri with lifting on mon,wed,fri and do cardio and flexibility on tues and thurs. Should work well I hope and I'll get to spend more time w/ my family in the evening.

Today was Squats, face pulls and calf raises. Squat was 315x4 for two sets. Still not great but I was driving with my hips a lot better today so it felt pretty good.

[massabsamurai]

trust me, 401 is a disaster zone at anytime.

[O-Train]

Finally got a chance to train today. Have to go back to Toronto again tonight so won't be able to train again till Sat/Sun (aside from some chin ups and push ups).

In the process of switching my Goodlife membership over to a corporate membership. It's pretty awesome because the corporate membership is a higher level membership so I'll be able to train at any Goodlife. Plus it's cheaper and my fitness subsidy almost covers the whole thing.

Bench Press 135x8 185x3 225x4,3,3
Chinups BWx9,6,4
Dumbbell Laterals 25pl x10 30pl x4 +25pl x2

[steve_d]

out here corparate is no different than regular - just 5$ cheaper. Can't wait till Wednesday, trainyards opens finally for me! puts my goodlife to shame, and cheaper

[O-Train]

out here corparate is no different than regular - just 5$ cheaper. Can't wait till Wednesday, trainyards opens finally for me! puts my goodlife to shame, and cheaper

For me it's a big difference. I think it's about 150 less/yr but the corporate is a premium plus membership. Then when I factor in the subsidy it's about $48/yr plus a bit of tax because it's a taxable benefit.

[Talo]

You should do the meet in scarbourgh in 2 weeks .

[O-Train]

You should do the meet in scarbourgh in 2 weeks .

It probably won't work out because I'll still be doing training in Toronto so weekends I like to see my family as much as I can. If I did compete I'd want to get some decent lifts first ie. 300 bench 500 deadlift. I kind of just like lifting for the sake of lifting. What Federation is it with?

[Talo]

100% Raw . It's Toronto's first event .

[O-Train]

100% Raw . It's Toronto's first event . Thanks for letting me know.

I've had what I think is a sinus infection over the last few days. Wanted to lift heavier but took it kinda easy today. Talked to the people at the front desk and it looks like I'll be able to train in Mississauga over the next couple weeks before my other membership kicks in. Looking forward to getting back into a routine again. Hopefully I'll finally have a chance to focus more on flexibility maybe even some cardio.

Deadlift 225x2 315x2 385x2 315x3,3
Machine Hack Squats 140x8 200x8,8
Standing Calf Raise 300x8,7,7

[O-Train]

First day training in the morning. Back is trashed from yesterday so I just did some cardio, abs and stretching. Gym in Missisauga is kinda garbage. They have 2 smith machines and 2 half racks but not a single cage. I let them know that they should get one...Not sure what they will think of chalk. Everyone I watched lifting sucked pretty bad.

[O-Train]

Regained some confidence in this new gym today. There was a guy wrapping his knees and I thought for sure he's going to use a 2'' ROM with ugly form. Not sure if he had 4 or 5 plates/side but he went below parallel for a few reps. Plus I noticed he was using chalk which means I can too.

Did some military press/push press, flat dumbbell press and some chin ups. Nothing special. I think training in the morning will work out well. Still adjusting to getting up at 6am but it's not too bad.

[Talo]

Looks like you found a nice place !

I sure do miss my old place :(

[O-Train]

Looks like you found a nice place !

I sure do miss my old place :(

Yeah, I was skeptical at first but I think this place will work out fine.

Today I just did some extra stuff that I've been neglecting lately. For face pulls I had to use a lat pulldown. Single pulley so didn't use a lot of weight.

Rolling EZ-bar tricep ext. bar+50x6 +70x6 +100x3 +90x5
EZ-bar curls +90x4 +90x3
Face Pulls 55x10 70x10 80x8

[JMP]

Yeah, I was skeptical at first but I think this place will work out fine.

Today I just did some extra stuff that I've been neglecting lately. For face pulls I had to use a lat pulldown. Single pulley so didn't use a lot of weight.

Rolling EZ-bar tricep ext. bar+50x6 +70x6 +100x3 +90x5
EZ-bar curls +90x4 +90x3
Face Pulls 55x10 70x10 80x8

Glad your found a new place and its working out , its important you like where your working out , makes it that much easier to get up and go to it !

[bcaamuscle]

Gotta love where you workout, there's nothing worse than having to force yourself to go to a gym, stuff headphones in and try to tunnel vision because there are 25 mexican kids doing bicep curls in the squat rack wearing jeans..oops little off track there ;)

[O-Train]

Glad your found a new place and its working out , its important you like where your working out , makes it that much easier to get up and go to it !


Gotta love where you workout, there's nothing worse than having to force yourself to go to a gym, stuff headphones in and try to tunnel vision because there are 25 mexican kids doing bicep curls in the squat rack wearing jeans..oops little off track there ;)

Thanks guys. This week is the first time I've trained in the morning and I think for people who don't mind training early/it works with their schedule it's the way to go. Not a lot of people and they tend to be more serious about what they're doing. You don't get the same problems with teenagers and new people.

[JMP]

Thanks guys. This week is the first time I've trained in the morning and I think for people who don't mind training early/it works with their schedule it's the way to go. Not a lot of people and they tend to be more serious about what they're doing. You don't get the same problems with teenagers and new people.

I hear ya O-train , im in at 5:00am , works perfect for work and WAY less people.....feel great all day!

[Robocop]

What do ya guys do for the odd time ya need a spot in the morning? Enough people there that someone can help out if needed??


I hear ya O-train , im in at 5:00am , works perfect for work and WAY less people.....feel great all day!

[O-Train]

What do ya guys do for the odd time ya need a spot in the morning? Enough people there that someone can help out if needed??

Should be people around and you notice the same people who train at the same time. Training in the AM usually revolves around someone's work schedule. Depending on the gym setup you could maybe even ask someone working at the gym to give you a spot. I've run into the same issue with bench press because I finally figured out a great self-spotting system with a power rack but this new place doesn't have even 1 power rack.

Must have tweaked something doing deadlifts because I wanted to go heavier with squats today but my lower back decided for me. Standing Calf raise has a different setup than I'm used to seeing. Has a weight stack suspended on a cable.

Squats 135x5 225x3 275x4 225x8,10
Seated Hamstring Curl 90x8 115x8
Standing Calf Raise 215x8,7,6

[faller]

What do ya guys do for the odd time ya need a spot in the morning? Enough people there that someone can help out if needed??

The people there at that time of day are usually pretty serious about getting the job done. Lets face it, anyone getting up at that time of day to train isn't interseted texting...

[O-Train]

Did some cardio, stretching and abdominal stuff. No weights today.

[JMP]

The people there at that time of day are usually pretty serious about getting the job done. Lets face it, anyone getting up at that time of day to train isn't interseted texting...

Agreed , this one of the reasons why \imo this is the best time of the day to be in there !

[O-Train]

Going to write out home gym requirements so I can reference it later if I ever go that route.

1x Power Rack (chin/dip attachment)
1x Adjustable Bench
1x 7' Olympic Barbell
2x Olympic Dumbbell
1x Olympic Curl Bar
6x Olympic Collar
10x45lb Olympic Plate
2x35lb Olympic Plate
2x25lb Olympic Plate
20x10lb Olympic Plate
6x5lb Olympic Plate
6x2.5lb Olympic Plate (815lbs Total)
1x4'x6'x3/4'' Floor Mat
1x Dip/Chin Belt w Chain

I think that's everything.

[O-Train]

Was tired this morning so workout wasn't great but it went ok.

Bench Press 135x7 185x3 205x7(2)
Also did some supinated lat pulldowns and dumbbell lateral raises.

[O-Train]

Tried out a new hack squat machine today. I think it's actual name was a Hammer Strength V-Squat or something like that. I liked it, the motion felt more like a regular squat than a hack squat. With a lot of machines I can't sit back but this machine allowed me to.

The bars at this gym are kinda garbage. Not sure if the ends of the bar are fused or just seized up but on a lot of the bars they don't turn. I think that makes the bars move around more or maybe my hands have just gotten soft cause I've been feeling it in my hands.

Deadlift 225x2 315x2 345x3(2)
Hammer Strength Squat 54x8 234x8 324x8
Standing Calf Raise 220x8 220x7 220x6

[O-Train]

Traffic was bad this morning because of the weather so I didn't have much time at the gym. It worked out fine because I just wanted to do some cardio and stretching anyways. Went on the bike for 20 minutes.

[O-Train]

Military Press 115x3(2) 135x5 pp135x4
Flat Dumbbell Press 80x9 80x6
Supinated Lat Pulldown 180x8(2) 180x5

[O-Train]

Military Press 115x3(2) 135x5 pp135x4
Flat Dumbbell Press 80x9 80x6
Supinated Lat Pulldown 180x8(2) 180x5

[O-Train]

Did some squats, seated ham curls and standing calf raises. I got 315x6,315x4 on squats. I think I could do more reps but I should get some wrist wraps because after a few reps they start to really bug me.

[O-Train]

Did some squats, seated ham curls and standing calf raises. I got 315x6,315x4 on squats. I think I could do more reps but I should get some wrist wraps because after a few reps they start to really bug me.

[O-Train]

Got 315x6,315x4 on squats. Think I should get some wrist wraps which will make it easier to do a few more reps w/o wrist pain. Also did some seated ham curls and standing calf raise.

[faller]

Still adjusting to getting up at 6am but it's not too bad.

I'm already at the gym at this time :ne

Funny how a guy gages a gym by who trains there. For the longest time i thought my gym was kinda lame, good equipment, just kinda geriatric until i started going at different times of the day. There's actually some pretty decent guys training there.

It twas encouraging :)

[O-Train]

I'm already at the gym at this time :ne


I'm sure when I'm your age I will be too :).

Still been training. Got sick last week so I started back up yesterday with some Bench, supinated lat pulldowns and lateral raises. Today just went on the bike for a while and did some abs and stretching. There is a great spot at the back of the gym which is a balcony one floor up. I just pedal away and watch people err...exercise...At first it put me in a bad mood but now I just smile and find it highly entertaining when there isn't anything good on T.V.

[O-Train]

Workout was decent today. Miscalculated weight on hack squat so I ended up using a lot more weight than I thought I was but it worked out ok. Went for 420 on deadlift and missed it. I think it came down to technique and training inconsistency but the way I'm training right now is garbage. Figured out a simple periodized progression which I'm going to start using. I'm going to incorporate 5 days. One day for squat, deadlift, bench and military press then another day for misc. exercises and any areas I feel I've neglected. Each time through will represent 1 microcycle which should take about 1.5 weeks. I'm going to use 1 75%, 2 85%, 3 95% (failure/recalculate max) 4 65% deload. So each mesocycle will be ~6weeks.

I'm using low 1rm numbers to stay on the safe side. Deadlift 405, squat 375, bench 250, mil press 155

Workout today:
Deadlift 135x2 225x1 315x1 420x0 405x1
Hack Squat 396x2 396x5(2)
Standing Calf 235x7 235x6(2)

The rest of this week will be fairly light so I can start properly next week.

[O-Train]

Just did some cardio on the bike plus stretching and abs. I'm already noticing an increase in flexibility from incorporating stretching 2x/wk. Works really well after going on the bike for about 20 minutes and hopefully it's helping with recovery somewhat too.

[O-Train]

Today would have been military press but my back is still wrecked from deadlifts.

Flat DB Chest Press 85x7 85x4+60x8
DB Lateral Raises 35x6 35x6+30x3
Supinated Lat Pulldown 195x8 195x4 180x6

[O-Train]

I think this schedule should work well. One rotation will be 5 weeks. Lifting days will be mon, tues, thurs, fri.

March 21st Wk 1: 1. 75%Squat 2. Bench 3. Cardio, Core, Stretching 4. Deadlift 5. Supplemental
March 28th Wk 2: 1. Mil Press 2. 85%Squat 3. Cardio, Core, Stretching 4. Bench 5. Deadlift
April 4th Wk 3: 1. Supplemental 2. Mil Press 3. Cardio, Core, Stretching 95%4. Squat 5. Bench
April 11th Wk 4: 1. Deadlift 2. Supplemental 3. Cardio, Core, Stretching 4. Mil Press 5. 65%Squat
April 18th Wk 5: 1. Bench 2. Deadlift 3 Cardio, Core, Stretching 4. Supplemental 5. Mil Press

[O-Train]

Should have gotten 10 reps on my squat sets but I could just tell it wasn't going to happen. Feels like my muscles are recovered but my CNS isn't. Maybe I need to warm up better or get more sleep.

Day 1 Squat 75%
Squat 225x4 285x5(2)
Seated Ham Curl 115x6 130x7
Standing Calf Raise 235x8 235x6(2)

[O-Train]

Not getting off to a great start. Felt sick on Tuesday so I couldn't train. Then I was debating going to the gym Wednesday but the weather was complete garbage. I think all the snow plow drivers are down in Florida already. Went in today but everyone was still driving like it was yesterday so I only had time for 15 minutes at the gym. Got my bench press in but then had to go to work.

Day 1 Bench 75%
Bench 135x7 190x10, 190x9

[O-Train]

There was a roll over on the 401 last Friday which meant no time for the gym. Still feeling a little congested/sick today but nothing major. It effected my recovery so I trained accordingly.

Deadlift 225x5 305x10
Hack Squat 324x10
Standing Calf Raise 235x8,7,6

Not much of a workout but if felt like a lot.

[O-Train]

Military Press (75%) 95x5 115x8 115x7+2
Flat Dumbbell Press 60x4 85x7 85x5
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x3 210x3+195x4 195x6

[O-Train]

Started wk 2 85% today. Still getting wrist pain from squats. One of these days I'll look into getting some wrist wraps.

Squat 225x4 275x2 320x6,4
Seated Ham Curl 115x5 140x5+115x4
Standing Calf Raise 235x9,7,6

[Talo]

Wrist pain during squats ? How about during bench press ?

How are you holding the bar ? If your gripping it with your hands like a normal squat , try holding your arms out wide and touching the plates and not gripping the bar. That could help you with the pain as the wrists will stay straight.

[O-Train]

No pain while benching. For squats I use a low bar placement and a narrow grip so I'm using my hands a lot to pull the bar in tight. From the articles I've read a close grip = tight which is what you want although they did mention wrist pain. I'll try widening the grip some but I think what I need to focus on is flexing my wrists hard to bring them in to neutral because it's the awkward extended wrist position that is causing the pain.


Wrist pain during squats ? How about during bench press ?

How are you holding the bar ? If your gripping it with your hands like a normal squat , try holding your arms out wide and touching the plates and not gripping the bar. That could help you with the pain as the wrists will stay straight.

[Talo]

I use a wide grip with squat ( helps with my shoulders ) and can still keep it tight.

Focus more on keeping the traps tight an that will help with staying tight :)

[O-Train]

Yeah, I've found that helps a lot. I started with just pulling my shoulder blades together but lately I've been making a conscious effort to retract my head back towards the bar. I use a grip like this but only slightly wider:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwuSTqA1FlU


I use a wide grip with squat ( helps with my shoulders ) and can still keep it tight.

Focus more on keeping the traps tight an that will help with staying tight :)

[O-Train]

Bench Press 135x5 185x3 215x5(2)
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x3 210x6 210x4+195x3+180x3
Dumbbell Laterals 30x10 35x6+30x4

[O-Train]

85% Deadlift 225x3 295x1 345x5 345x2
Hack Squat 234x5 414x4+324x5
Standing Calf Raise 235x9 235x8 235x6

[O-Train]

Military Press 95x5 135x5 135x4+ Push Press 135x2
Flat Dumbbell Press 65x4 85x9 85x5
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x4 210x7 210x4+195x3

[O-Train]

Today was heavy squat day. Would have liked to get more reps but I kinda messed up my back on the weekend. Was doing Parent n Tot gymnastics w/ my daughter and I was trying to show her how to do a butt drop on the trampoline. It was a heavy duty trampoline and I messed up the landing and jammed my back pretty good. I guess I'm too old/heavy to be messing around on trampolines.

Squat 225x3 275x1 325x1 355x1 355x1
Seated Ham Curl 130x8+2
Standing Calf Raise 235x9 235x8 235x7

[O-Train]

Felt kinda weak today. Seemed like I was missing my groove for Bench and the weight felt heavier than I thought it would.
Bench Press 135x5 185x3 225x1 240x1(2)
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x4 210x5 195x7+3
Dumbbell Lateral Raises 30x10 35x7 35x5

[O-Train]

Should have been 95% deadlift day but I took it kind of easy because I could tell my back is still a little messed up.

Deadlift 225x1 315x1 365x2
Hack Squat 304x7 394x8 394x7
Standing Calf Raise 235x9,8,7

[O-Train]

Wore my belt today for Mil Press. Seemed to help a bit.

Military Press 95x5 135x2 150x2 150x2+push press 135x4
Flat Dumbbell Press 65x4 90x6 90x4
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x3 210x7 210x4

[O-Train]

Deload day

Squat 135x6 225x4 245x8 245x10
Seated Ham Curl 115x10 115x7
Standing Calf Raise 195x11,9,7

[O-Train]

Another deload day

Bench Press 135x5 175x5 175x8
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x8 165x8+5
Dumbbell Lateral Raises 30x10 30x10
Face Pulls (single pulley) 55x4+70x5 70x12

[Talo]

Lots of volume for a deload, IMO :)

[O-Train]

Lots of volume for a deload, IMO :) Maybe.

Would have done some hack squats but the machine was out of order.

Deadlift 135x3 225x5 225x5
Seated Ham Curl 120x8 120x8
Standing Calf Raise 195x9(3)

[Talo]

62 reps on deload day , but I guess you know what to do.

[O-Train]

62 reps on deload day , but I guess you know what to do.

I kinda just make it up as I go along. It had been a few days since I lifted because of Good Friday so I had more energy than normal. I know what you mean though. If I was feeling really burnt out I would do hardly anything during a deload.

[O-Train]

Last deload workout.

Military Press 95x4 115x5 115x8
Flat Dumbbell Press 60x8 70x10
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x8 165x11

[cog]

Hacks seem strong compared to squats.

[O-Train]

It's only because I'm using a lever plate loaded hammer strength hack squat. I bottom the thing out but it doesn't require nearly the core strength/stability compared with a barbell squat or hack squat which is an area I need to work on. It's basically all legs but I like the machine a lot because the motion closely mimics a squat and I can drive a lot with my hips. Probably closer to a squat than a hack squat.


Hacks seem strong compared to squats.

[O-Train]

Started a new cycle today. Realized this morning that I hadn't planned out my numbers yet so what I'm going to do for squat and deadlift is add 10lbs x% and just add 5lbs to all my lifts for mil press and bench press. Probably doesn't make sense but I'll see how it works.

75% Squat 185x6 245x3 290x6(2)
Seated Ham Curl 115x4 140x6 140x5
Standing Calf Raise 255x7 255x6 255x6

[O-Train]

Bench Press 135x6 165x3 195x10 195x8
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x4 210x5 210x5+195x3
Dumbbell Lateral Raises 30x10 35x7 35x6

[O-Train]

Deadlift day 75% no belt. Felt like I could have pulled a PR today. Maybe after I go through this cycle after the deload week I'll do some max testing.

Deadlift 225x3 275x1 315x6 315x6
Hack Squat 324x6 414x5
Standing Calf Raise 235x9,8,7

[O-Train]

There was an accident on the 401 so my workout got cut short.

Military Press 95x6 120x7 120x7+1
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x3 225x2+210x3+195x3+180x3

[O-Train]

From the article I posted I know that I have a long torso but my arms are relatively short compared to my torso. I also have short thighs so my starting deadlift position needs to be lower to create better leverage and utilize my legs more.

[O-Train]

Had a short workout today but it went well. 85% Squat

Squat 225x3 275x3 330x6 330x3
Calf Raises 235x10 255x7 255x5

[O-Train]

Bench Press 135x6 185x3 220x5 220x5
Supinated Lat Pulldown 165x3 225x4 210x6 210x4
Dumbbell Laterals 30x6 35x8 35x7

[O-Train]

Deadlift 225x3 275x2 315x1 355x4
Hack Squat 324x5 414x6
Standing Calf Raise 255x8,7,6

[O-Train]

No work or gym today. Bored out of my mind so I'm pricing out gym equipment for when I eventually get a house and hopefully setup a home gym. Even if I don't I just like looking at gym equipment.
Found a good place in Toronto called Fitness Avenue. They seem to have good prices.
Squat Rack $300
Lat Attachment for Squat Rack $80
Adjustable Bench $130
815lbs Olympic plates (rubber coated) Thinking if I bought everything all at once I could get these for ~$600
2 Olympic Dumbbells 20'' w/ collars $70 +$8 for a pair of spring collars
7' Olympic Bar (rated at 700lbs) $80
4'x6' x3/4'' rubber stall mat $40 (System Fencing - Rockwood)
Plate and Bar Holder $70
Total $1378 Plus Tax = $1557.14

Probably some other odds and ends so $1600-1700 total. Not bad for what I think would be a nice little setup.

[O-Train]

85% military press today. The gym got a new cable setup which is really smooth and nice to use. Only issue I had was when I tried to use 220 on lat pulldowns and realized that the new handles are up too high for me to lock in my legs and the weight weighs more than me. May have to focus on body weight lat pulldowns and then eventually switch to weighted pullups.

Military Press 115x3 140x4 140x3+140pp x3
Flat Dumbbell Press 65x6 90x6 90x5
Supinated Lat Pulldown 160x6 220x5 200x7

[O-Train]

Got sick the end of last weekend and it's kind of carried over through the week. Plus I had a fair amount of work to get done so I decided it would be best to take this past week off from the gym.

My body should be amped and ready to go so If all goes as planned I want to do some max testing. I'm hoping to get 420 deadlift, 405 squat, 275 bench (1100 total) and 160 strict press.

[O-Train]

Well, today's workout kind of sucked. I was hoping for a much heavier squat but looking back I was kind of setting myself up for failure because I haven't lifted close to 400lbs lately. Went right down to the uprights on my first attempt at 365...and stayed there. Got it the second time but had to go down really slow and didn't go quite to parallel. Didn't even bother trying 405 but I know I can do more than I did today. Traffic was brutal so I only had time for squats. Need to strengthen my core and work A LOT on speed. My body just isn't responding the way it should because I feel like I should be strong enough but the power and muscle coordination isn't there.

May go back to 5/3/1. Not sure if I have time for a WestSide program. If I want to get serious about lifting heavy I'll have to start incorporating box squats and speed days/max effort. I'll see how my other lifts go and figure it out.

[O-Train]

I have a good idea of why I had difficulty with squats on Wednesday. I think I have an upper respiratory tract infection (URI) which combined with a little bit of seasonal allergies was causing some serious post nasal drip yesterday. I'm not 100% sure but I think there was so much mucus draining into my stomach that it was causing a lot of nausea which eventually led to vomiting. I really need to focus on getting at least 8 solid hours of sleep every night.

Should be ready to go by monday. Going to ditch the rest of the max testing because I have a good idea of what my max lifts should be. I'm going to go back to 5/3/1 with a squat, deadlift, bench and overhead press day. I really like rest-pause sets so for accessory work I'm going to incorporate a regular set followed by a 10 breath rest then another set. With DC there would be 2 rests and 3 sets total but I'm just going to do 2. 5/3/1 doesn't incorporate any speed work so I'm considering incorporating some lower weight, higher rep speed work but with accessory lifts. So instead of have a DE bench day I could just focus on speed/power with flat dumbbell press.

[Talo]

Are you going to use the maxes that you posted up top
I'm hoping to get 420 deadlift, 405 squat, 275 bench (1100 total)

Are you going to do a meet this year ?

[O-Train]

Are you going to use the maxes that you posted up top

Are you going to do a meet this year ?

I'll use those as max lifts because with 5/3/1 it's based on 90% of 1RM (I may use 95%). Otherwise I probably wouldn't because those are lifts I know I could get on a good day but as we both know a lot of days are not good training days. I haven't given a lot of thought to doing a raw powerlifting meet lately. I started a new job/career the end of January so I'm focusing a lot on work. It's something I think I'd like to do but it's kind of an after thought. I mainly just lift to get bigger, stronger and to feel good. Competition is something that I only really think about if I'm looking for a challenge or if I'm lacking motivation.

[Talo]

Right on. I'll be watching as always.

If you do decide there is one coming up in September in your area so you have lots of time to train / think about doing it. Once you do it you will love it and your numbers will grow big time after that !!

[O-Train]

Right on. I'll be watching as always.

If you do decide there is one coming up in September in your area so you have lots of time to train / think about doing it. Once you do it you will love it and your numbers will grow big time after that !!

Thanks for letting me know, I appreciate it.

Crunched all the numbers: 95% through to 75% (based on 95% of 1RM)
Deadlift 380,360,340,320,300
Squat 365,345,325,310,290
Bench 250,235,225,210,195
OH Press 145,135,130,120,115

Going to be training 3x/wk.
Along with standing calf raises I'm going to use a lever squat machine for accessory work on deadlift and squat days. I'm going to try and treat it similar to a box squat by bottoming out the machine then exploding out of the hole. Probably do 2-3 sets with relatively light weight and high reps focusing on speed.

On bench days accessory work will be face pulls, dumbbell lateral raises and rolling dumbbell tricep extensions (focusing on speed).

OH Press day accessory work will be flat dumbbell press (focusing on speed), supinated seated rows with the spine extended, elbows tucked close to the body, pulling more towards the waist and finish with some dumbbell bicep curls.

For the accessory exercises which are not being used to focus on speed I will do regular straight sets or finish with a rest pause style set depending on the day.

Rotation will be squat, bench, deadlift, OH press. mon, wed, fri, mon etc. Then the %'s go up. Rotation 1 75,80,85% 5x3. Rotation 2 80,85,90% 3x3, Rotation 3 75,85,95% 5,3,1. The last set of each being as many reps as possible.

[O-Train]

Squat 3X5. Didn't have time for everything but I got my squats in so that's all that really matters.

Squat 225x4 275x1 290x5 310x5 325x5
Standing Calf Raise 255x9+3

[O-Train]

Picked up my grippers today. I ordered the Captains of Crush Trainer and #1. I have a harder time with my left hand partially because it's my non-dominant hand and partially because the way the spring is setup it's harder to close with your left hand. I can close the trainer with both hands and am really close to getting the #1 with my right hand. The trainer is rated at 100lbs and #1 is rated at 140lbs. Crazy to think that a handful of people in the world can close the #4 rated at 365lbs.

[O-Train]

Having some issues with my rotator cuff/bicep tendon in my left shoulder. Benching didn't go great today although I think I set my starting #'s too high for bench anyways. Only got 3 reps at 225 and needed help with the 4th rep. I'll move all my bench #'s down by 5lbs 245,230,220,205,190. Hopefully the shoulder won't cause too many problems.

Bench Press 135x3 190x5 210x5 225x3
Face Pulls 70x10 85x8 70x10
Rolling DB Tricep Extension 30x15 30x10
Lateral Raises 30x10 30x7

[Talo]

The shoulder can be a bitch. Try ans Get some deep tissue work done. A few treatments of that and some banded pre-hab ( diesel crew has a great video ) and your shoulders will thank you.

[O-Train]

The shoulder can be a bitch. Try ans Get some deep tissue work done. A few treatments of that and some banded pre-hab ( diesel crew has a great video ) and your shoulders will thank you.

I'll take a look at the video. Good idea on the massage. I can reach the area so I'm going to start with some cross friction self massage followed by ice and if needed my wife's friend is a RMT so I may end up having her work on it too. I'll have to look into what coverage I have from work.

[O-Train]

Deadlift today. Again I didn't have time for everything. I may just stick do doing squat/deadlift and calf raises on leg days.

Deadlift 225x3 300x5 320x5 340x5
Standing Calf Raise 255x10+4

[O-Train]

Overhead Press 115x5 120x5 130x5
Flat Dumbbell Press 65x12 65x10
Supinated Seated Row 120x10 120x9 120x7
Dumbbell Bicep Curls 40x8

[O-Train]

Had a great workout today. It was short but the squats went well. 325 felt like a warm up and 345 went up without too much difficulty. 3X3 80,85,90%

Squat 225x3 275x1 310x3 325x3 345x3
Standing Calf Raise 255x10+5

[O-Train]

Needed a bit of help with the 3rd rep at 230. Right wrist is sore and left shoulder is still bothering me so I didn't do lateral raises. I think I hurt my wrist doing face pulls but I'm not sure. It's the same one that's been bothering me for a while now off and on.

Bench Press 135x6 185x2 205x3 220x3 230x3
Face Pulls 70x10 85x12 85x10
Rolling Dumbbell Tricep Extension 35x12 35x10

[O-Train]

My wrist has been bothering me a lot and I'm fairly sure it was from the way I was holding the rope while doing face pulls. Took all of last week off and it's feeling better but still some pain and weakness with certain movements.

Deadlift 225x3 275x2 320x3 340x3 360x3
Standing Calf Raise 255x10+5

[O-Train]

Tried doing overhead press but it's too soon for my wrist. Hopefully it won't be an ongoing issue. Just did some other fairly light stuff that wouldn't aggravate anything. My left shoulder was bothering me during dumbbell press. Still having bicep tendon/rotator cuff issues w/ a fairly noticeable click. Going to be doing more rotator cuff and shoulder retraction work.

Supinated Seated Row 100x12 120x11 120x10 120x8
Flat Dumbbell Press 50x12 60x6
Rotator Cuff DB 5x15 5x12

[Talo]

you sound like your falling apart !

[O-Train]

you sound like your falling apart !

They're both chronic issues that have been acting up lately. Probably because I've been trying to lift heavier. I don't think my body is designed to lift heavy stuff, I just try and force it to.

[O-Train]

Today was 5/3/1 squat day. Wrist felt fine for this which is good. Wanted to get three reps at 365 but looking back a month ago when I had crappy workout and missed 365 for 1 I'm happy with 2 reps.

Squat 135x3 225x3 290x5 325x3 365x2
Standing Calf Raise 255x10,7,5

[O-Train]

5/3/1 Bench Press today. Wrist held up, left shoulder still bothering me but I'm doing dumbbell external rotations every couple of days which seems to be helping. Needed help with the 2nd rep at 250 but it went okay.

Bench Press 135x5 195x5 225x3 250x2
Supinated Seated Row 120x12 140x8 140x8
Rolling DB Tricep Extension 35x12 35x10

[O-Train]

Finally got back in the gym today. Been on training for work and I have it again next week so I had to make up for lost time. Did deadlift 5,3,1 and also OH press 5,3,1.

Deadlift 225x3 300x5 340x3 380x2
OH Press 115x5 130x3 145x3

[O-Train]

New rotation of 5/3/1 started up today. 3x5 75,80,85%

Squat 225x4 295x5 315x5 335x5
Standing Calf Raise 275x8 275x6+255x3+235x4

[O-Train]

Had a good workout today. If any of you guys are ever asked to spot someone don't be like the guy that spotted me today. Hooked one finger around the middle of the bar and left it there the whole time. Not only was it not helpful but every time the bar touched my chest his finger dug into my sternum. Moral of the story is even among the guys who look like they know what they're doing most of them don't have a sweet clue. Proper spotting is such a basic aspect of weightlifting but the majority of people don't know how.

Bench Press 135x7 195x5 210x5 220x5
Seated Supinated Lat Row 120x10 140x8 140x8
Rolling DB Tricep Extension 35x10 35x10

[Talo]

Did you explain it to him after ? If not he wont change because he thinks he helped you :)

[O-Train]

Did you explain it to him after ? If not he wont change because he thinks he helped you :)

I should have but for whatever reason I tend to lack that certain finesse necessary to tell someone they did something wrong without offending them. Especially in a situation where I've asked them for help. Also he just didn't seem like the type of guy that would take constructive criticism. I guess I'm a part of the problem by not trying to fix it.

For all the people that train at around the same time as me there is only one guy I absolutely trust to spot me but he wasn't there today. Although he's also the only guy at the gym I've seen put more weight on the bar.

[O-Train]

Workout yesterday was a real grinder. Felt really rundown and hadn't gotten enough sleep all week. I barely got the reps for my heaviest set but on a better day I don't think it would be nearly as difficult. Looking back I've done 350x8 for deadlift so that's a good short term goal for where I want to be.

Deadlift 225x3 305x5 325x5 350x5
Standing Calf Raise 275x8 275x7 275x6

[O-Train]

Messed up my neck yesterday at the gym doing military press. Won't be able to train this week and on vacation next week so I guess I'm taking a break from the gym.

[O-Train]

First day lifting again. Went to the gym last week but just did cardio. Kept things light and didn't focus on anything in particular.

Squat 135x5 225x10 225x10
Bench 135x10 185x6
High Elbow Row 70x12 120x10
Calf Raise 255x6 255x6
Rolling DB Tricep Ext. 35x10
Chin Ups BW x4+3

[O-Train]

Did 30 minutes on the bike on Wednesday. Today was another fairly light day. Just trying to get back into things.

Deadlift 135x5 225x5 275x5
Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press 50x8 65x7
High Elbow Row 140x10 140x10
Hammer Strength Unilateral Chest Press 120x12 120x12
Chin Ups BWx5 BWx3

[Thorgrim]

Had a good workout today. If any of you guys are ever asked to spot someone don't be like the guy that spotted me today. Hooked one finger around the middle of the bar and left it there the whole time. Not only was it not helpful but every time the bar touched my chest his finger dug into my sternum. Moral of the story is even among the guys who look like they know what they're doing most of them don't have a sweet clue. Proper spotting is such a basic aspect of weightlifting but the majority of people don't know how.

Bench Press 135x7 195x5 210x5 220x5
Seated Supinated Lat Row 120x10 140x8 140x8
Rolling DB Tricep Extension 35x10 35x10

Whenever i am forced to ask for a spot from someone I am not used to I always give specific instructions before the set like: "Help me un-rack but don't touch the bar unless I get stuck for more then a couple seconds or if I ask for help"
If i don't they usually **** it up.

[O-Train]

Step 1 of my home gym today...well...maybe step 0.5 Picked up a 5x7x1/2'' vulcanized rubber trailer mat from TSC. On sale for $44.99+tax.

Still have my gym membership so the plan is just to buy little bits at a time. Putting the word out for Christmas, Birthday etc...

Workouts haven't been anything special. As the consistency builds back up so to do the numbers.

[cog]

Any plans for a cage?I built a cheapo reverse hyper with plumbing pipe and a wood platform and a GHD with a wood platform for your feet and a heavy bag laid across the rack pins for the curved part where your knees touch.

[O-Train]

Any plans for a cage?I built a cheapo reverse hyper with plumbing pipe and a wood platform and a GHD with a wood platform for your feet and a heavy bag laid across the rack pins for the curved part where your knees touch.

Definitely have plans for a cage. Hoping to get one with a chinup bar, dip bar attachments, hi/low plate loaded pulleys for pulldowns and rows. Going to build a calf block and I saw an interesting video on youtube of how to do donkey calf raises with a bar pad in a cage: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1Grc_xpCzs

Also have some ideas using a land mine that attaches to a squat rack. Then get a dip belt or some kind of harness and hook that around the bar - load up the one end of the oly bar and use that for standing calf raises. Figure it would be a little less awkward than a bar across the shoulders. I only really have room for a squat rack so I'm trying to get a little creative.

[O-Train]

I've been on a bit of a spending spree lately. Given my current finances...probably not the best move but sometimes when opportunity strikes you just have to jump for it. Driving to Meaford tomorrow to pickup about 90 pairs of surplus combat boots that I won in a government auction. I'm hoping the sale of the boots will more than finance my second purchase (Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday to me).

Everything I need for my garage gym and less than what I thought I would have to pay. Plus the guy has a 3/4 ton truck and it looks like he may be able to help with delivery:
http://guelph.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-sporting-goods-exercise-exercise-equipment-Weight-lifters-dream-ALL-EQUIPMENT-AND-560Pounds-olympic-steel-W0QQAdIdZ423863726

Haven't been lifting lately because I'm having tendon issues in my right middle finger (kind of like trigger finger but maybe not). Hoping once everything is setup I can start getting strongish again.

[O-Train]

Just finished building a calf block out of some scrap pieces of 2x4. Feels solid and I can't wait to try it out with some weight on my back.

[O-Train]

Home Gym is all setup and ready to go. Turns out there is 600lbs of plates instead of the advertised 560lbs. Now just need to unload all these boots and get the dishwasher installed this weekend and I should have lots of room to start lifting!

[O-Train]

Had my first workout in my garage gym on Sunday. It went pretty well. The only thing I really need is a couple more spring collars and it would be nice to have a weight tree. Weak right now but hopefully things bounce back fairly quickly.

Bench Press Bar x10 135x8 135x10 185x3 185x4
Supinated Lat Pulldown 140x10 140x10
Posterior Delt Flys Handles+5x10 (3)
EZ bar curls +50x10 +50x13
EZ Bar rolling Tricep Extension +50x13 (2)

[RobmoriPL]

hell of a work out keep it up mate.....and gonna sub

[cog]

Used to love rolling tri extensions.

[O-Train]

Squats Bar x10 Bar x10 135x10 225x8 225x8 225x8
Standing Barbell Calf Raise 135x10 135x8 135x8
Wide Grip Lat Pulldown 140x8 140x8 140x6

[O-Train]

Bench Press 135x8 135x8 185x5 185x5 185x3
Supinated Lat Pulldown 140x10 160x10 160x7
Posterior Delt Flys Handle+5x12 (3)
EZ Bar Curls Bar+70x10 Bar+70x7
EZ Bar Rolling Tricep Ext. Bar+70x8 Bar+70x9

[O-Train]

This workout felt a lot better than the last leg day I did. Really focused on keeping my wrists neutral and squeezing the bar as hard as I could. Helped take the strain off of my wrists which let me focus more on the weight and it felt way lighter today. Still a long way to go to get back to semi-decent numbers.

Squats Bar x8 135x8 135x8 225x5 245x5 275x5
Barbell Calf Raises 135x11 135x9 135x9+partials to failure
Wide Grip Lat Pulldown 140x10 140x8 140x8

[cog]

I don't follow on the wrist issue.

[O-Train]

Squatting with a low bar placement can put a lot of pressure on your wrists because the bar doesn't rest on your traps like with a high bar placement. I use a fairly narrow grip width to keep everything really tight which probably puts more pressure on the wrists also.

[cog]

What does putting your hands collar to collar do for you?

[O-Train]

What does putting your hands collar to collar do for you? It may work, but I like using a narrow grip because it keeps the bar tight in place. As long as I grip hard and flex the forearms/keep the wrists neutral it works well.

Bench Press Bar x10 135x8 185x7 200x3 200x3
Supinated Lat Pulldown 160x10 170x9 170x5
Posterior Delt Flys Handle+5x15 (3)
EZ Bar Curl Bar+70x11 Bar+70x8
EZ Bar Rolling Tricep Ext. Bar+70x11 Bar+70x11

[O-Train]

Still alive. Got off the wagon for a while but I've been consistent for a week so hopefully I can build on the momentum. A little tough dragging myself out to the cold garage but it's more of an excuse than anything. May invest in a space heater for next winter. Just doing a simple program. Squats, chinups and lateral raises one day and bench press, ez bar rolling tricep extensions, standing calf raises and post delt/mid back flys the other day. May incorporate deadlifts every once and a while too but right now what I'm doing doesn't really matter...just have to keep doing something. Numbers suck obviously and I'm not really logging anything specific until I'm consistent for a while.

Couple things I've been doing different is using plates instead of dumbbells for lateral and post. delt flys. It feels good and should improve my pinch grip. Also been focusing on eccentric contractions for chinups. Partially out of necessity due to being weak/heavy but I'm liking it a lot. Looks kind of silly jumping and hanging but that's the beauty of the garage gym.