Well, I'm off work for a couple of days, which means I can get my training done during the day. Which is good - so, after a leisurely morning, I got to the gym at 10.30 and began training.
I've also decided to change my training protocol ever so slightly. So, I am now doing a programme that will look a little like this...
Monday - Squat, bench, row, dip, hyper, weighted sit ups
Tuesday - Squat, press, deadlift, chin up, weighted sit ups
Friday - Squat, bench, row, dip, chin up, tricep extension, DB curl/preacher curl
I'll work in the following way... 1 x warm up set, 1 x intermediate set, 3 x working sets. All 8 reps per set.
So today's workout was...
Squat: 70kg, 90kg, 3 x 125kg
Bench: 60kg, 70kg, 3 x 80kg
Row: 40kg, 50kg, 3 x 60kg
Dip: 60lb, 45lb, 3 x 35lb
Hyper: 5 x 10 @ 10kg
Weighted sit ups: 5 x 30 @ 15kg
Monday, 25 March 2013
Surprise Saturday.
So, no rugby. What's a man to do? Train, that's what. Train and try to emulate what I might do in a game. So, it was either to be higher reps and lower weights in an effort to get a good old sweat on. Or it was going to be shouting a load of rubbish, occasionally headbutting things and standing on people who were simply in my way.
Thankfully, I chose the former as I'm not sure the 18st powerlifter would have taken kindly to being stomped on and I think the 11st skinny six-pack boys would have cried if I'd headbutted them.
So, I did the following...
Squat: 1 x 10 @ 60kg, 4 x 10 @ 80kg
Barbell press: 1 x 10 @ 30kg, 4 x 10 @ 40kg
Deadlift: 1 x 6 @ 60kg, 4 x 6 @ 80kg
Clean and press: 1 x 10 @ 30kg, 4 x 10 @ 40kg
Bench press: 1 x 10 @ 60kg, 4 x 10 @ 70kg
Dumbbell curl: 1 x 10 @ 17.5kg, 4 x 10 @ 20kg
I have to say that I really enjoyed this session and it was something a little different to my normal sessions. I trained well and kept the intensity up. On Sunday, I did ache - particularly on my inner thighs and my trapezius.
Thankfully, I chose the former as I'm not sure the 18st powerlifter would have taken kindly to being stomped on and I think the 11st skinny six-pack boys would have cried if I'd headbutted them.
So, I did the following...
Squat: 1 x 10 @ 60kg, 4 x 10 @ 80kg
Barbell press: 1 x 10 @ 30kg, 4 x 10 @ 40kg
Deadlift: 1 x 6 @ 60kg, 4 x 6 @ 80kg
Clean and press: 1 x 10 @ 30kg, 4 x 10 @ 40kg
Bench press: 1 x 10 @ 60kg, 4 x 10 @ 70kg
Dumbbell curl: 1 x 10 @ 17.5kg, 4 x 10 @ 20kg
I have to say that I really enjoyed this session and it was something a little different to my normal sessions. I trained well and kept the intensity up. On Sunday, I did ache - particularly on my inner thighs and my trapezius.
Saturday, 23 March 2013
Freezing Friday
The last regular training session of the week and delighted I am to be doing it! Following the normal plan today - squat/bench/row/dip/pull up/tricep cable.
So, the weights...
Squat: 70kg, 90kg, 105kg, 125kg, 140kg
Bench press: 50kg, 65kg, 75kg, 90kg, 100kg
Barbell Row: 45kg, 55kg, 65kg, 75kg, 85kg
Dip (assisted): 80lb, 75lb, 65lb, 55lb, 45lb
Chin up (assisted): 80lb (5 x 5)
Tricep cable extension: 25kg, 30kg, 35kg, 40kg, 45kg
Squat felt good, but I was stopped after set 4 and went cold, so did another set of 5 @ 100kg as a re-warm up.
Bench press was a solid session and wasn't too bad, really. Fairly standard stuff, really.
Row again felt good and powerful, which is what I'm aiming for.
After previous weeks, I've decided that actual dips are going to be better than the dip machine. But I wasn't sure where to start, assistance-wise as I've not dipped in a good while. Felt really good and I think I'll give actual proper bodyweight dips a go next week.
Chin up - by God are these difficult! Something to work on over the next few weeks/months. I want to get towards bodyweight on these - might take some time though!
Tricep extension again was good - thought I'd push the weight up a little and managed 45kg which is a new PB!
So, the weights...
Squat: 70kg, 90kg, 105kg, 125kg, 140kg
Bench press: 50kg, 65kg, 75kg, 90kg, 100kg
Barbell Row: 45kg, 55kg, 65kg, 75kg, 85kg
Dip (assisted): 80lb, 75lb, 65lb, 55lb, 45lb
Chin up (assisted): 80lb (5 x 5)
Tricep cable extension: 25kg, 30kg, 35kg, 40kg, 45kg
Squat felt good, but I was stopped after set 4 and went cold, so did another set of 5 @ 100kg as a re-warm up.
Bench press was a solid session and wasn't too bad, really. Fairly standard stuff, really.
Row again felt good and powerful, which is what I'm aiming for.
After previous weeks, I've decided that actual dips are going to be better than the dip machine. But I wasn't sure where to start, assistance-wise as I've not dipped in a good while. Felt really good and I think I'll give actual proper bodyweight dips a go next week.
Chin up - by God are these difficult! Something to work on over the next few weeks/months. I want to get towards bodyweight on these - might take some time though!
Tricep extension again was good - thought I'd push the weight up a little and managed 45kg which is a new PB!
Wednesday, 20 March 2013
Wednesday the weird.
Sometimes, things go well. Sometimes things go tits up. Mainly, things go tits up. But today, stuff just happened and it made me feel good!
I've been having a little think about my training and nutrition etc. I generally get between 5 and 7 hours sleep per night, which is plenty for me. So that side of things is good. Nutritionally, I've become a lot better - making smarter choices and actually having treats, instead of those treat items becoming part and parcel of my daily intake. So, in caloric deficit, I'm struggling to make decent gains in the gym - I've definitely gained strength and my technique on the squat/deadlift has come on massively over the last 6-8 weeks. But, I'm beginning to stall, because I'm not eating enough - because I want to lose bodyfat more than I want to gain muscle.
So, I'm going to keep the core of my workouts the same and I won't be looking to add weight every week - I'll do it when the previous session was completed with good form and all 5 of the heavy set were done in one go.
With that in mind, I had a slight change to today's session.
Squat: 65kg, 75kg, 90kg, 110kg, 110kg - all x8 reps.
Standing Press: 40kg, 45kg, 55kg, 60kg, 3 x 65kg
Deadlift: 60kg, 90kg, 110kg, 125kg, 135kg
Weighted sit up: 5 sets x 30 @ 15kg
The squat went well with the extra lighter set. But it's not too difficult as I'm a 140kg squatter anyway.
Standing press went OK until the last set and without almost doing a push-press, I couldn't get more than 3 reps.
Deadlift would have gone a lot better if I'd remembered my lifting straps - my grip was beginning to give out at 125kg, so I didn't push to the 145kg as there's no way that I could have held on. I disappointed myself there.
Sit ups went well - this was the first time that I've done 5 sets of 30 with the 15kg. Looking at ways of making it heavier next week - I think I might do a middle set with a 20kg plate and see how that feels.
I've been having a little think about my training and nutrition etc. I generally get between 5 and 7 hours sleep per night, which is plenty for me. So that side of things is good. Nutritionally, I've become a lot better - making smarter choices and actually having treats, instead of those treat items becoming part and parcel of my daily intake. So, in caloric deficit, I'm struggling to make decent gains in the gym - I've definitely gained strength and my technique on the squat/deadlift has come on massively over the last 6-8 weeks. But, I'm beginning to stall, because I'm not eating enough - because I want to lose bodyfat more than I want to gain muscle.
So, I'm going to keep the core of my workouts the same and I won't be looking to add weight every week - I'll do it when the previous session was completed with good form and all 5 of the heavy set were done in one go.
With that in mind, I had a slight change to today's session.
Squat: 65kg, 75kg, 90kg, 110kg, 110kg - all x8 reps.
Standing Press: 40kg, 45kg, 55kg, 60kg, 3 x 65kg
Deadlift: 60kg, 90kg, 110kg, 125kg, 135kg
Weighted sit up: 5 sets x 30 @ 15kg
The squat went well with the extra lighter set. But it's not too difficult as I'm a 140kg squatter anyway.
Standing press went OK until the last set and without almost doing a push-press, I couldn't get more than 3 reps.
Deadlift would have gone a lot better if I'd remembered my lifting straps - my grip was beginning to give out at 125kg, so I didn't push to the 145kg as there's no way that I could have held on. I disappointed myself there.
Sit ups went well - this was the first time that I've done 5 sets of 30 with the 15kg. Looking at ways of making it heavier next week - I think I might do a middle set with a 20kg plate and see how that feels.
Tuesday, 19 March 2013
Mondays are no fun.
Phelgmatic. That is the word of the day and it sums up my gym session, really.
You'd think that I'd be buoyed by last week's PBs. But, no. Instead I just feel like I could sleep and not bother with anything. I'm blaming the amount of junk food that I ate during the weekend. Must eat better during the weekends.
Anyway - the training plan...
Squat: 75kg, 90kg, 110kg, 125kg, 145kg
Bench: 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 90kg, 100kg
Row: 45kg, 55kg, 75kg, 80kg, 85kg
Hypers: 1 x 10 @ bw, 4 x 10 @ 10kg
Sit ups: 1x30 @ 10kg, 4 x 30 @ 15kg
But before I did that, I had to hang around and weight for the squat rack to become free. So I ended up doing...
Wide grip lat pullwdown: 55kg, 65kg, 75kg, 80kg, 85kg (all 10 reps)
Leg press: 200kg (2 x 10)
So, after the 2 time filling exercises were done, I dived onto the squat rack and had a reasonable squat, didn't get as low on a couple of the 145kg reps, so I'll do the same session next week and hope for some improvement in the next week.
Bench was OK - being un-spotted, I'm a little nervous about having that weight overhead. So I didn't do the prescribed 105kg.
Rowing is still difficult, especially at that weight, but I've had a decent gain in it before, so I'll stick with it.
You'd think that I'd be buoyed by last week's PBs. But, no. Instead I just feel like I could sleep and not bother with anything. I'm blaming the amount of junk food that I ate during the weekend. Must eat better during the weekends.
Anyway - the training plan...
Squat: 75kg, 90kg, 110kg, 125kg, 145kg
Bench: 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 90kg, 100kg
Row: 45kg, 55kg, 75kg, 80kg, 85kg
Hypers: 1 x 10 @ bw, 4 x 10 @ 10kg
Sit ups: 1x30 @ 10kg, 4 x 30 @ 15kg
But before I did that, I had to hang around and weight for the squat rack to become free. So I ended up doing...
Wide grip lat pullwdown: 55kg, 65kg, 75kg, 80kg, 85kg (all 10 reps)
Leg press: 200kg (2 x 10)
So, after the 2 time filling exercises were done, I dived onto the squat rack and had a reasonable squat, didn't get as low on a couple of the 145kg reps, so I'll do the same session next week and hope for some improvement in the next week.
Bench was OK - being un-spotted, I'm a little nervous about having that weight overhead. So I didn't do the prescribed 105kg.
Rowing is still difficult, especially at that weight, but I've had a decent gain in it before, so I'll stick with it.
Thank Funk It's Friday
Another training week draws to a close. More squats squatted, more benches pressed, more deads lifted.
I head off to the gym straight from work so that I can finish early and get some food as early as possible and I also know that this is my biggest gym session of the week.
Squat: 70kg, 90kg, 105kg, 125kg, 145kg (x3), 105kg (x8)
Bench Press: 50kg, 65kg, 75kg, 90kg, 105kg (x3), 75kg (x8)
Row: 45kg, 55kg, 65kg, 75kg, 90kg (x3), 65kg (x8)
Tricep Dip Machine: 3x8 @ 110kg
Bicep Curl: 3x8 @ 50lb (22.7kg)
Tricep Cable Extension: 3 x 8 @ 35kg
Squat went well - the middle rep on the heavy set wasn't so great and I didn't go as low as I'd hoped. The 8 reps on the final set were a bit of a killer though.
Bench press was also good - managed to breeze through the warm up sets and because I'm un-spotted, I did 2 reps, re-racked, then did the last heavy rep.
Rowing is getting very tough now. The jump from 75kg to 90kg is not a kind one and I really struggled with the last 90kg rep.
The assistance exercises are going well - up to 110kg one dip machine. I really ought to be less lazy and go use the assisted dip station upstairs. I don't think that I'll be that far off bodyweight, which will be a real achievement at just under 18 stone. Managed to have a good bicep curl session, although I was using odd dumbbells - one has a thick grip and the other is thinner so they felt very different in my hands.
So that's a PB equalling bench press, a deadlift PB and a squat PB this week. Pretty pleasing stuff!
I head off to the gym straight from work so that I can finish early and get some food as early as possible and I also know that this is my biggest gym session of the week.
Squat: 70kg, 90kg, 105kg, 125kg, 145kg (x3), 105kg (x8)
Bench Press: 50kg, 65kg, 75kg, 90kg, 105kg (x3), 75kg (x8)
Row: 45kg, 55kg, 65kg, 75kg, 90kg (x3), 65kg (x8)
Tricep Dip Machine: 3x8 @ 110kg
Bicep Curl: 3x8 @ 50lb (22.7kg)
Tricep Cable Extension: 3 x 8 @ 35kg
Squat went well - the middle rep on the heavy set wasn't so great and I didn't go as low as I'd hoped. The 8 reps on the final set were a bit of a killer though.
Bench press was also good - managed to breeze through the warm up sets and because I'm un-spotted, I did 2 reps, re-racked, then did the last heavy rep.
Rowing is getting very tough now. The jump from 75kg to 90kg is not a kind one and I really struggled with the last 90kg rep.
The assistance exercises are going well - up to 110kg one dip machine. I really ought to be less lazy and go use the assisted dip station upstairs. I don't think that I'll be that far off bodyweight, which will be a real achievement at just under 18 stone. Managed to have a good bicep curl session, although I was using odd dumbbells - one has a thick grip and the other is thinner so they felt very different in my hands.
So that's a PB equalling bench press, a deadlift PB and a squat PB this week. Pretty pleasing stuff!
Tuesday, 12 March 2013
Tremendous Tuesday
Lessons that I've learned today... Not eating much, then trying to pull a personal record deadlift isn't easy. But then PRs aren't easy.
Today's pre-workout food... Nothing. No food until post training today. Maybe not ideal, but every week, I'm having a fasting day where I consume no more than 600kcal. I felt OK about not eating today and it didn't really affect me that much - I think that I got more fatigue from consecutive days working out than I got from not eating.
Anyway - the workout today...
Squat: 75kg, 90kg, 110kg, 110kg
Overhead Press: 40kg, 50kg, 55kg, 65kg
Deadlift: 90kg, 110kg, 125kg, 145kg
Sit ups: 5 x 30 (+15kg)
Squat went well - nice and low, good explosive power on the way back up. Nothing too taxing as it's a lighter squat workout.
Overhead press seems a little easier now that I'm gripping the bar better. Equal PR on that one, which was pleasing.
Deadlift was always going to be challenging. The last set was really a 5 sets of 1 rep as I had to re-wrap to the bar and by heck (as my granddad would have said) was it heavy. But, I wanted to make sure that I shifted the weight 5 times. I'll keep at 145kg until I pull it in one set of 5. But, it was new territory - 3 plates and a little bit more!
Sit ups were a PR in terms of reps at that weight, too.
So I celebrated with 600kcal of fish, stir fry veg and noodles. Tomorrow, I might eat a little bit more and I feel that I'll have earned it!
Today's pre-workout food... Nothing. No food until post training today. Maybe not ideal, but every week, I'm having a fasting day where I consume no more than 600kcal. I felt OK about not eating today and it didn't really affect me that much - I think that I got more fatigue from consecutive days working out than I got from not eating.
Anyway - the workout today...
Squat: 75kg, 90kg, 110kg, 110kg
Overhead Press: 40kg, 50kg, 55kg, 65kg
Deadlift: 90kg, 110kg, 125kg, 145kg
Sit ups: 5 x 30 (+15kg)
Squat went well - nice and low, good explosive power on the way back up. Nothing too taxing as it's a lighter squat workout.
Overhead press seems a little easier now that I'm gripping the bar better. Equal PR on that one, which was pleasing.
Deadlift was always going to be challenging. The last set was really a 5 sets of 1 rep as I had to re-wrap to the bar and by heck (as my granddad would have said) was it heavy. But, I wanted to make sure that I shifted the weight 5 times. I'll keep at 145kg until I pull it in one set of 5. But, it was new territory - 3 plates and a little bit more!
Sit ups were a PR in terms of reps at that weight, too.
So I celebrated with 600kcal of fish, stir fry veg and noodles. Tomorrow, I might eat a little bit more and I feel that I'll have earned it!
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