Workout Report

http://i.imgur.com/4zS9u.jpg

Too lazy to type it.

been holding out on workouts for a week or two because of the back pain, but it seems to be improving. and form was pretty good today

@189.# lbs

finished it off with 30 crunches/30bicycle kicks, 30/30, 40/40 while microwaving trader joes lasagna

Dear somnambulists, callipygians, and otherbigwords,

So, it has been a while. Over a week, now. This was due to a forced hiatus from what can only be described as a debilitating injury. It seems I severely tweaked something around my sacrum, leading to extreme pain the likes of which I've never before experienced. It involved tightening of the lower back (so much so that my hamstring was absolutely rigid, limiting my mobility to almost nothing at some points), sciatic pain at every attempt to walk, and a general sense of panic whenever I moved incorrectly (shortness of breath, seeing stars, momentary paralysis).

Spent the better part of the last week sleeping on a harder surface (getting off a soft bed was near impossible without rolling off). Did absolutely no lifting, and minimal exercise (played basketball a few times, hiked a very short trail).

Feeling much better now. It seems doing no extreme workouts for a week facilitates healing. Incredibly, I regained all my flexibility today (I could grab my toes without doing any previous hamstring stretches). I couldn't bend over more than 90 degrees when the pain was at its worst.

Tried rolling it, but never got the right spot. I feared it was a ligament tear or damaged nerves, but I guess I won't know until the next time it happens. This has happened before in a very mild way in the form of sciatic pain (always assumed it was a pinched nerve, which may still be true) and light pain by the sacral region. This all just means I've got to work on correcting my form for all my lifts! A process that never ends.

Nuff bout that, update time!

Prehab stuff

Bench: 45x10; 135x5; 175x3; 205x3; 225x1; 245x1; 265x1;

Bench supersetted with 5 pullups: 225x2,3; 205x3 -> 4 sets of pullups

Pullup-pushup superset workout: 5-25; 4-20; 3-15; 2-10; 1-5

Some standing banded core workouts

@189.6lbs

So, here it comes again.

With my schedule getting busier (increasing working hours per week... by about 15 hours o_O) it's becoming somewhat difficult to lift on time, sometimes even at all.

However, I must carry on! Tonight I finished past midnight, once again, but it was well worth it.

Treadmill jog for just 2 miles tonight, with a big negative split. Something along the lines of 8:55, 7:45. After about 5 weeks of just doing these lighter runs I will begin workouts (hills, baby, hills!). And I should increase my distances too... I will welcome any training protocols from expert runners at any time! I'm thinking of focusing on 800m training, as has been my goal for a while. Hitting my old PR will be an astounding accomplishment, especially if I'm going to be 20-30lbs heavier than when I did it!

Deadlift: 135x5; 205x3; 275x2; 345x1; 395x1; 445x1 (SB)

Standing banded crunches: 2x20 (I think the average one? http://articles.elitefts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Long-band-calibrations.jpeg) band looped around the top of a squat rack, standing roughly 4 feet away horizontally, lumbar flexion full ROM

Continued doing the quick-drop method of deadlifting. And another silly setup today. You can follow the warmup scheme with each plate tacked on. A perfect combination of laziness and efficiency: http://i.imgur.com/oeWR8.jpg A good way to set a midnight PR for sure!

That's it for now! Hopefully I will be able to do better in lifting schedule-wise. And I should definitely stop eating large McDonalds meals 40 minutes before running/lifting.. I've had the belches every time at the gym for the past week and a half!

Til next time, Me

Sorry for the lack of updates, my faithful followers!

Another quick update, but I promise I'll give better ones for the next few workouts.

8/20

Had a 9 mile hike, lost like 6lbs in water, and as such felt no will to lift. Nuff said

8/21

Ran around 2.25 miles outside (first time not running on a treadmill since I started!). Pacing is very strange when there's nothing directing your movement. Got some rays, and concluded the jog with a ~19.5s 150m sprint (roughly 12s 100m), so it was overall a nice little run.

8/22

Started with the usual, then progressed to hell..

2.5mi jog on treadmill (getting faster now, finally)

Squat (lo-bar): 135x5; 185x3; 235x20

kaput

Now, let me reiterate: sets of 20 SUCK. After 10 reps I was ready to rack it, probably from the fatigue of having run and possibly a bit sore from that hike (really rough terrain compared to the paved roads I've been frequenting over the past month and some...). At around 15 the reps truly became good mornings. I'm actually quite surprised (and pleased!) that I could do good mornings with 235 on my back.

Judging from the red band across my back I noticed that I really pushed the bar up with my hands during those last few reps. NEVER DO THIS! It was probably the panic reflex, thinking the bar would slide off my incredibly sweaty everything. This also contributed to the transformation from squats to weighted, standing kowtows.

And finally, at rep 18 I was ready to call it quits. However, at this point I just felt a responsibility to the barbell to at least finish my set, as I already did 90% of my workout. Numbers 19 and 20 were probably the worst feeling squats ever. But I finished. All in 90 seconds of brutal, unforgiving gravitational resistance.

And, once again, my form went to shit. I think it may be a sign that I really need to work on technique. It's nearly impossible for me to tell if my legs are symmetrical or not, which is kind of an issue. I seem to be right-on when I check others' forms, but when it comes to my own it becomes a psychological thriller.

Next squat workout may be without the jog, and moving on up to 245.

8/23

Jog on treadmill for a bit over 2.25mi (20min)

Bench: 95x5; 135x5; 175x3; 215x2; 240x3; 225x2x8 (30-40s rest)

BTN OHP: 95x5; 115x5

Plank for 60s with feet elevated on bosu ball

Suspended leg-raises on dip bar (no back support) for 10 reps

This workout was fun, but I went to the gym a bit late, and ended around 12:30. Definitely not recommended. Will not do again.

Til next time,

A quick update tonight:

2.5mile jog

Arnold Press: 25x10; 35x7; 45x7

Bench: 135x5; 185x4; 225x5,4,3,3; 135x13

Elbows Out Tri Ext Incl: 27.5x12x2

Bicycle Kicks on decline situp bench: 45s, 25s

Behind neck OH BB Press: 95x5; 105x7x2

Bench was wide-grip until the last set on 225, because somebody switched the bar and I hadn't thought to adjust myself. It was also a thicker bar with a much deeper knurling, so my body was all sorts of confused at first. On top of all that, I abandoned PL form until 225 because I felt a little tight, but still managed a decent number of sets.

Stims are almost completely eliminated!

And tonight I had this ingenious idea... mix strawberry jam with cottage cheese. The result: DONT DO IT! Especially with a bowl of cottage cheese... and two spoonfuls of jam. It didn't taste bad, but it was waaaay too sweet..

Anyway... Must be getting up early tomorrow, so I bid y'all adieu

Workout Report 8/18/12 

I would call today something of a success. It may be the fact that I slept from 7:30PM until 11:30PM last night, then again from 2AM until 10AM this morning (with a couple short bouts of consciousness thrown in there by my very thoughtful and considerate hypothalamus), but I ain't complaining!

To start, the usual jog.

Jog on the treadmill (I know, I know.. I'll eventually go out into the real world. But for now, the treadmill helps me keep pace without getting all overexcited and doing those stupid 7-pace starts that kill the rest of my run) ~22.5min -> 2.5mi

Various front and side lunges with the bar on my back

Deadlift: 135x5, 205x3, 275x1, 325x1, 375x1, 425x1 (SB)

4 minute break

Deadlift: 325x5x3 with 1.5min breaks

Pendlay Row: 205x1, 185x1

BB Row: 135x10, 155x7, Wide grip 135x7

Good Morning: 135x10

20 Crunches

Crucifix hold type thing for abs (Can't find the name) 30s

Today marks a milestone for me: Did not have to use straps for any sets! Perhaps that means my wrist sprain is totally cured? I'm not too sure, but I'd like to err on the side of caution for now... I will continue using wraps and straps for another few weeks until it feels completely healed.

Additionally, all of my sets on deadlift until 425 were the quickdrop-pull method, where you set up by the bar, drop down and grab the bar, and immediately pull. Not too sure what this method is called (I really need to brush up on my modern terminology here!) but it worked wonders. There was absolutely no straining to finish reps today. I could probably have kept increasing, but I felt it would be prudent to stick with the workout I had planned for the sake of rebuilding strength.

Overall, all went well and I'm happy with what I achieved today. Let's hope this continues for the foreseeable future!

PS For those that are wondering... the picture is of my setup for deadlifts. Every set was with one more plate, as you can see. I was a little lazy on the plate changing, so I just kept tacking on more plates haha. People at the gym were probably thinking, "Wow, what a weirdo!"

Today marks the 2nd day of my whatever cycle, and I just want to note that I've almost completely eliminated any stims at this point (caff cut in half, all the other stuff absolutely gone).

Simple and easy, here we go:

20min jog (no real extreme soreness from yesterday's hell workout, interestingly enough)

Bench: 135x5; 175x3; 215x3; 235x3; 185x12

Wide grip: 135x18

Close grip: 135x10

OH BB tri-extensions: 45x10; 75x10; 95x7

OH press behind head: 95x5x3

Decline situps: bwx10; 25lbsx10 (30-40 degree)

Planks: 45lb x 30s; * This is where I got stupid and things became interesting.

I tried setting up a rig to do heavier weighted planks, by stacking plates on two sides, loading up a barbell, and sliding under with a blue mat but it turned out to be a terrible idea.. because barbells roll. So i stopped after a 20 second set with 95 on the mat.

Today, kiddies, was the first day of my hypertrophy/resetting phase. Something like 3 years ago one of my track coaches mentioned to me the best hypertrophy workout for squats was to do a single set of 20 reps on squat on a medium weight and pump it out, even if you have to stand there for 30 seconds to breathe and finish that last rep. And so I thought, "Hey, this is the perfect time to try it out!"

He'd also told me that it was probably responsible for the most trepidation he ever felt entering the gym on a given squat day, for this workout is no laughing matter. Additionally, he said do the one set then gtfo. I did not listen, and we'll see if I'm going to be paying for it for the next week...

I started today a bit differently, hitting the treadmill for a bit of a warmup first. Nope.tif it was harder on me than I expected.

Treadmill: 1.6 miles (was going to do 1 mile slow, but the Yankee game was on ESPN. We won! Idk why Swish was on first base [and why the stupid ump couldn't see it was CLEARLY AN OUT] but Soriano got it done, so it's all good)

OH Squats and Lunges with 35lb plate

Squat: (High bar) 135x5; 205x3; (Low bar) 275x3; 315x2; 225x20

Squat sets supersetted with various vert jumps

Random hip/adductor/abductor movements with band

Barbell Rows: 135x12x3

All this took around 50 minutes, including the breaks (which were of normal length). As you can clearly see, I did not stop after my 20 reps. I have a feeling DOMS will be giving me a visit very soon, and it will feel gloriously painful. Also, I was originally going to do my 20 reps at 255 but I felt like I should begin a bit easier for my first attempt ever.. and I'm very glad I did. the first 10 reps were cake, but I felt a twinge of fear when I started losing composure. The next 5 reps were easy but weird, as my form began to slowly deteriorate. The final 5, though, were horrendous. They looked like a combination of good mornings, OH presses, retarded lunges, and pregnancy breathing exercises. My shirt turned 5 hues darker and I could feel my earbuds starting to buzz from the oversaturation within my earholes.

I think I will be continuing this for the next 5 or 6 months to develop as much of a solid base as I can before continuing to more explosive work. Next week I think I will go ahead and try the 255, but we'll see how the warmups feel. I'm not sure if it was due to the running or lack of my typical warmup drills, but the hips felt tighter than normal, and I didn't want to press my luck against possible injuries.

Today was a subpar day for the playground.

Bench for the fail, as I always say on days like this. Perhaps it's due to my somewhat-rapid decline in weight? Perhaps the long day that I've had? Or perhaps it's because I'm constantly lifting at such late hours (even by PST standards).

In any case, a brief review of today's workout:

Bench: 45x5; 95x5; 135x5; 185x3; 220x3; 240x1; 260x1

Dead bench (about 90 degree arm angle in the squat rack): 135x3, 225x3, 245x2

That's it. Yep. Just about 30 minutes, not including my sad walk out the door.

260 was to be a triple, but I stopped about 40% into my ascent so I had to rack it onto the oh-god-i'm-going-to-die pins on the bench (great invention, btw).

But it's all groovy, I've decided now's as good a time as any to begin my reprogramming. I guess this week is the week I begin my hypertrophy-style workouts. Higher reps, build base, maybe start lifting earlier (AM!). Going to have to start changing my daily routines to sleep earlier (sans melatonin) and wake up uber early as well.

Til next time,

Workout Report 8/11

Deadlift for the head…lift day

Now, previously I’d mentioned that sleeping on soft beds definitely hindered my progress due to slower recovery/increased soreness. I switched to sleeping on a particularly firm surface (deflated inflatable bed [ah yes, the irony] + bedsheet [for all the good that’ll do anything] + carpet [aka the floor]) and all parts of my back (and legs, thankfully) felt much better on a per day basis. 

However, I think my lack of progress lately is attributable to my terrible programming and more or less lack of assistance work relevant to my weaknesses. Time to change this.

After doing various warmup drills, I went straight into weighted deadlifts today.

Deadlift: 135x5x2; 225x3x2; 315x2; 365x1; 405x1

(2 plate) Deficit: 335x1 -> 3 shrugs because I felt weak

(1 plate) Deficit: 315x7

All manner of rows and planks (including a 70s plank with 45lb on back, feet elevated 1.5-2ft)

Kroc Rows: 90x10x2 per arm

Decline situps: bwx10; 25lbs x 12 (something like a 40 degree slope)

That said, the 405 was not hard but it was slow on the start and lower back felt more strained than it should have. What I think I should be doing is some rack pulls (maybe half the height to my knee) for some lockout strength and higher repping at lower weights. Next week I will restart my deadlifting program altogether, doing 2 or 3 sets of 3-5 reps. Perhaps sets at 365 next week, progress by 5lbs per week. This will be for building momentum until I gain some stability and consistency in my lifts.

Also, lifting at 10PM. Not the best time, but I had to move to my new address today.

These are for archival purposes, for those whom I contacted later regarding my reports. And for personal logging (yes, by day I'm a weightlifter and by night I'm a Lumberjack). I've also taken the liberty to censor some of my sailor-speak for public viewing purposes.

8/9

Benches for the [expletive]! 

As per Steve's suggestion, I went for reps on 225 today. Unfortunately, it seems being fasted before a lift is not conducive to PRs. However, that just sets the bar higher for when I'm well nourished the next time I attempt this. That, and it just means it's time to include hypertrophy work once a week from now on.

Bench: 45x5, 95x5, 135x3, 185x2, 225x1, 255x1 -> 4.5min rest -> 225x7,5,3, 135x19

Dips: 10xbw

Standing BB press: 115x3,1,near death

And that's all she wrote! Super tired means super lazy. However, I expect repping out will be significantly easier the next time around. So fear not, gents, for though my numbers were not of PR-caliber today, the 255 felt explosive to a fault off the chest (one of those body-follows-the-bar type reps). And I may have done PAP incorrectly (closer to 1rm and a longer rest, perhaps?) so I will have to execute that better next time. 

Finally, I've been taking motrins before each workout but perhaps NSAIDs are detrimental to nutrient distribution during lifts? If anybody's got some intake on this, please do share with the group.

@197lbs so eating real breakfasts seems to be helping with that maintenance.

Til next time, my fellow callipygians!

8/7

So, my loving, adoring, Timaniacs, this is a day delayed and for that I pologize.

Squizzzats day:

high bar: 135x5, 205x3, 275x3, 325x3, 335x3

Low Bar: 340x3

Rack Pulls (~2-3inch below knees): 315x3, 405x3, 495x3

Shrugs: 315x10,10,15

Hip workout thing (For those who don't know, squat down with bands around legs and sidle while keeping the band taut the entire time. I hold a 45lb plate and hold out on the step and in to my chest at the end of the rep/step, then do overhead squats at the end of a set): 5 steps right, 5 OH squat, 5 steps left, 5 OH squats, then a set with 6 reps in each set

10 feeble attempts at the legup-situp combo thing (whoever can name this workout wins a prize)

@194lbs (I think I'm just gradually dying, so I don't need the mass anymore. My body figures why not just release all inhibitions and lift all these weights while everything degrades)

- The Wonderful Blunderful TsK

8/4

I will continue sending these reports until somebody replies :(

Bench Day

Bench: 135x5, 175x3, 215x3 [all dead reps until this set], 235x1, 260x2, 255x2, 245x2, 225x5

Wide Grip 1.5 (dead) reps: 185x3, finished with one more dead rep

Elbows out tri-extensions: 25x15x2, elevated

Dips with thick-[expletive] band: 10,8,5 (each to failure)

Random leg raises on decline with 6lb med ball between feet, sets of 10

Planks on yoga ball thing for 60s, 60 rest then 30s

@196lbs

Funny story: some dude saw me rep 260 and then probably saw me fail on 245 (failed on 3rd rep, but there was a peg lower than the default one, so I racked it there [failed ~80% up]), so after my 1.5 rep sets he goes "Hey dude, need a spot there? You alright?" Funny man. 

Until next time, my beloved, loyal followers.

8/2

I've figured it out, my deadlift woes for the past 2 years was so simple! It's my [expletive] bed. It was always too soft, and my back always hurt for it. I started sleeping on air mattresses (the [expletive] cheap kind) 3 days ago, and even though I haven't deadlifted in approx 10 days I went into the gym feeling less than ready to rip the world. Warmup sets felt weak, 315 wasn't cake, and 405 took more effort than applying peanut butter to your tongue. I think I will sleep on the floor on from now on, with a conservative bed set aside for activities. 

[expletive] on squat rack so I forewent (omg i had no idea that was the past tense til google squiggly-lined foregoed)  the squat, and it behooved me to continue to dl day. Turns out my left wrist sprain is worse than I wanted it to be, as applying any kind of earth-bound pressure to it causes excruciating pain. BTW said [expletive] were wearing sleeveless tees and belts... the entire time I was there. 

DL: 135x5, 225x3, 315x1, 405x1

Deficit (2 plates stacked): 315x3x4 45s rest

sort of rack pulls (elevated 2 plates): 315x3 i think

Shrugs: 315x10

Good Mornings: 155x10

Decline Situps: bwx15, 25lbsx8

And for a cool-down workout, dodging naked dudes in the bathroom [I mean, I understand that San Fran is the gay capitol of the world, but why the [expletive] do all these [expletive] (actually not [expletive] in the slightest, if you know what I mean) trounce around flopping their sopping wet [expletive] -infested [expletive] [expletive] for all to see? Wear the [expletive] towel you're wiping your face with! AND FOR THE LOVE OF GOD IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BRING A TOWEL DON'T SHOWER THERE

A quick thanks to my dedicated readers out there.

Til next time

7/31

bench:135x5, 175x3, 215x2, 235x1, 265x1, 245x3, 235x4, 225x4

standing db press: 60x5, 65x5

weight still hovering ~195lbs

7/26

Various warmups and prehab drills

Bench: 135x5, 185x3, 225x3, 255x2, 235x4,3, 225x4

DB Arnold Press Standing: 55x5

DB Press Standing: 65x4