Today was chest day. It was slightly disappointing since I'm not used to feeling so weak. I'll first detail the workout and then talk about what I ate today. Keep in mind this workout was meant to get me back into the groove more than anything so it's nothing crazy or particularly unique.
Exercise List:
1) Flat bench (5x5 235 lb.)
2) Incline dumbbell bench (6x6 80 lb.)
2 sets 45 deg. angle
2 sets 35 deg. angle
2 sets 30 deg. angle
3) Decline hammerstrength (3x8 225 lb.)
4) Cable Flyes (4x12 70 lb.)
I started off on flat bench by warming up for 1 set of 135 (10 reps), 1 set of 155 (5 reps), 1 set of 185 (5 reps), and 2 sets of 225 (3 reps). I moved into my working set of 235 for five sets of five reps.
The next exercise was incline dumbbell bench. I started at a higher angle and lowered it as my sets progressed. I performed 2 sets on a 45 degree angle with the 90 lb. dumbbells but felt like I wouldn't be able to maintain strict form and push out 6 reps for four more sets. I dropped the weight to 80 lb. per dumbbell for the other sets. I've become a fan of decreasing the angle as I get more fatigued because it allows me to still place an emphasis on my anterior deltoids (front of the shoulder) and chest while maintaining consistent rep counts.
I moved over to hammer strength decline press for three sets with the equivalent weight of 225 on. That's the machine that looks like this:
I had to wrap this workout up pretty quickly because I needed to be somewhere. It took a total time of around 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete with adequate rest breaks in between sets. I like to take around one minute in between each set and two to three minutes in between each exercise.
The final exercise was perfumed on the cable flye machine. I set the arms to #3 (3rd notch down from vertical) and performed the motion by arching my back slightly and bringing my arms down together near my thigh area. The motion looks like making a snow angel standing up. This was a great exercise and I definitely felt a wonderful pump but I do not think it's advisable to perform every chest workout. The angle seemed to put a lot of stress on my rotator cuffs. If you have bad shoulders, stick to a traditional cable crossover.
Below is the diet. Today was a lower carb day. I had no carbs at dinner besides the vegetables. I like to have most of my carbs during the daylight hours because I feel less bloated. It's just a personal preference and not based on anything having to do with gains.
Diet for the Day:
Meal 1 (breakfast):
30g Whey Protein Shake w/2% milk
4 eggs worth of egg whites and 1 whole egg scrambled
1 Cup of Quaker steel cut oats (seasoned with pure cinnamon)
Apple
Meal 2 (pre-workout 35 min):
Apple
Apricot
Plum
Orange
Meal 3 (post-workout):
30g Whey Protein Shake w/ chocolate milk
1 cup brown rice w/ bits of grilled chicken
Meal 4 (pre-dinner snack):
Grilled chicken breast
Assorted vegetables (green giant frozen veggies...not what I would prefer but I was out of fresh veggies)
I only ate one of these breasts and all of the veggies in the bag.
Meal 5 (dinner):Grilled chicken breast (2nd of the two I grilled)
Sautéed carrots, squash, mushrooms, and onions
Homemade ground steak meatball (steak, onions, garlic, tomato bits)
I'm a big fan of eating fruit before a workout. I find the most effective natural pre-workout is an Apple. I prefer not to use conventional pre-workout supplements because the non-stimulant ones do nothing for me and the stimulant based ones make me feel like a tweaker. Stick to fruit. Very quick energy that won't keep you up at night (1.3 dimeth....) I've also found if I'm planning on doing a long and strenuous workout (2+ hour leg workout for example) I'll bring along a small bag of Welch's fruit snacks to eat in the middle. The sugar provides some quick energy and no it will not make you fat.
Q & A:
1) Copying your exercises is good and all, but how do I figure out what weight to start on if I'm just beginning?
This is a question that I wish more people would ask. The answer is not black and white though. You need to start at something reasonable and gauge from there. Your initial workouts may seem odd and useless since they'll be meant for you to see where you are. Here is a template that I used today to see where to place myself (first chest workout in 1.5 weeks - not too long but reasonably long to lose some touch with placement):
Pick your exercise and put on a weight that you used to do. If you can't hit it for your target rep range relatively easy on the first set, then you've evidently gotten weaker and should lower it. I say volume is important so try to go heavy while maintaining your rep count. Spotting is necessary but avoid forced reps. I tried to do 245 as my working weight for 5 sets of 5 reps but the first set didn't go so well. I lowered it to 235 and while it was still challenging, I was able to move the weight.
Once you find a weight that you can lift fine on the first set, try again on the next set and see how it feels. If it's starting to feel significantly harder, that's a good thing. Keep at it. If you can't do it more than twice, you're still too heavy or you burned out. If it's just as easy as the first set, you're probably lifting too light.
Another option is to use a one rep max calculator and structure your program based on the percentages of the one rep max. Here is a basic app you can use:
http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/OneRepMax.html
For flat bench, I'd advise using between 65% and 90% of your 1 rep max.
For dumbbell bench, I personally stick to around 75% to 80% of my 1 rep max.
Machines are hard to gauge since you can't accurately determine the amount of weight you're actually lifting due to mechanical assistance. I go as heavy as I can while pushing out between 6-8 reps for each set. On hammer strength I will occasionally use a spotter.
2) Why should I avoid forced repetitions?
If you're just starting out, go for it. They're great. You'll see lots of noob gains and then you may plateau. Everyone plateaus here and there. I hit a three month plateau and attempted to use forced repetitions as a means to break through it as an experiment. It didn't work. I checked out German Volume Training (GVT) which is a program that emphasis more sets over pure weight. You end up performing more total reps. The program uses exercises with 10 sets of 10 reps per exercise but not many people have time for that. I tone it down to around 6 or 7 sets of 8 reps per exercise when I need to break through a plateau. Link w/basic idea here:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/luis13.htm
For the advanced lifter or lifter who has been using forced reps for extended periods of time, it really taxes your central nervous system. Forced reps are awesome and you may feel wonderful, but if you do the math (ex. formula: x = sum of (reps * weight) ) you'll have lifted less total weight.
Scenario 1: You sit down on the flat bench and have your partner spot you to three extra reps for a total of thirteen on your first working set (200 lbs.) One minute later you sit down to perform your next set and can barely get five reps off. You've burned out and now have to either lower the weight, rest longer, use the spotter more, or combine all of the above.
Total reps = 18.
X = 18*200
X = 3600
Scenario 2: You sit down on the flat bench and perform ten reps using the spotter just to keep the last rep moving. Then you go again one minute later and perform nine reps.
Total reps = 19.
X = 19*200
X = 3800
This example is hypothetical and overly simplistic but the idea is the main point.
If you have a question feel free to leave it in the comments below. I'll try and answer it (if I can) with the least amount of bro science possible. If I made some unbearable grammatical mistake that is keeping you awake at night, don't hesitate to point it out. Also, if I failed to answer your question completely and we happen to be friends just shoot me a message.
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