Haven't posted in a while. I've been getting in small workouts here and there but nothing big lately. Just pulled myself out of a bit of a rut and I'm back on track now. Yesterday I did chest and managed to push out 275 for 4 reps. I also did some triceps.
Today was a bit different. I didn't really want to do arms, back, or legs, so I decided to work everything that is underdeveloped. This includes my traps, forearms, abs, and cardio ability. My workout was quick but effective.
Another thing I've noticed is that my bedtime really makes a huge difference in how the following day goes. I feel lethargic and foggy-brained for the entire next day if I go to sleep after 1 a.m. irrespective of how many hours I get total. I'm slowly dialing my bedtime back. My target time is 11:30 p.m.
Workout:
1) Cardio
-1 mile @ 7:00 pace
2) Abs
*L pullups superset w/ cable crunches (80 lbs.)
-7x8 on each exercise
3) Forearm Wrist Roller
-5 rolls up and down w/ 25 lb. plate
4) Shrugs
-6x10 w/ 155
Diet:
Meal 1:
-3 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-4 egg whites + 1 whole egg
-Peach
-Raspberry, blueberry, and banana smoothie
Meal 2:
-Strawberry, mango, and blueberry smoothie w/ vanilla protein powder (30g)
Meal 3:
-Chipotle salad: lettuce, brown rice, fajita veggies, chicken, 3 scoops corn
Meal 4:
-Grilled salmon w/ teriyaki marinade
-2 cups sautéed carrots
-1 cup sautéed red peppers and squash
Monday, August 25, 2014
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Cheat Day and General Thoughts
Had a cheat day today and went with Jordan F. to La Vic's to get some burritos. We made the obligatory stop at Yogurtland next door. I found myself not really wanting to eat the burrito I had ordered because I've mentally conditioned myself to have a distaste for fast-food and especially burritos. More importantly, I realized just how much my lifestyle has changed over the past six years. While in middle school I would frequent unhealthy foods. I ate dessert every night and often too much. Now I genuinely think refined sugar tastes worse than sugars from fruit. I'm so glad that I got on a path toward positive growth.
On conventional diets....
People get upset and disappointed when their diets fail because they don't realize that every diet is bound to fail. The key to improvement is through gradual changes in lifestyle. One less cookie a day and then two tomorrow. Eventually you eliminate the negative and hold on to the positive. It's a process that takes months and potentially years. It definitely took me about two years to realize that I can't hope to improve physically by starving myself of carbs for an indefinite period of time. Learning processes are long and tough. Your diet fails because it is a short term crutch rather than a long term solution.
On cheat days...
I do cheat days for a few main reasons: to get any urge out of my system, to realize that I truly dislike eating poorly, to see the sad reality that is the eating habits of Americans. Let me address the latter first. I find it very saddening that people choose to eat poorly when there are other options available, but I use it as encouragement and a fuel for my goals. When I sit in Yogurtland and eat my cookies n' cream yogurt with oreo crumbs on top I look around and realize how silly the very act is. Seeing the habits of many people who do not care for their physical health encourages me to work harder in order to maintain mine.
Cheat days are a mental reset button for anybody maintaining a relatively new lifestyle. I intend for this health "phase" to last for the rest of my life but it is rather new, so I am still adjusting from my old lifestyle. I occasionally desire sweets and fast food. It's a good idea to get this out of your system every now and then to keep progress moving forward. One day of high carbs and high calories will not hurt your long term progress. The cheat day is best had after a good single achievement or after a series of positive progress has been noticed. For example, a cheat day can be had after a couple weeks of perfect dieting or after a series of grueling workouts. The important thing is to stretch cheat days apart as far as possible; they'll mean more to you and you'll get more out of them when they're not frequently occurring.
On conventional diets....
People get upset and disappointed when their diets fail because they don't realize that every diet is bound to fail. The key to improvement is through gradual changes in lifestyle. One less cookie a day and then two tomorrow. Eventually you eliminate the negative and hold on to the positive. It's a process that takes months and potentially years. It definitely took me about two years to realize that I can't hope to improve physically by starving myself of carbs for an indefinite period of time. Learning processes are long and tough. Your diet fails because it is a short term crutch rather than a long term solution.
On cheat days...
I do cheat days for a few main reasons: to get any urge out of my system, to realize that I truly dislike eating poorly, to see the sad reality that is the eating habits of Americans. Let me address the latter first. I find it very saddening that people choose to eat poorly when there are other options available, but I use it as encouragement and a fuel for my goals. When I sit in Yogurtland and eat my cookies n' cream yogurt with oreo crumbs on top I look around and realize how silly the very act is. Seeing the habits of many people who do not care for their physical health encourages me to work harder in order to maintain mine.
Cheat days are a mental reset button for anybody maintaining a relatively new lifestyle. I intend for this health "phase" to last for the rest of my life but it is rather new, so I am still adjusting from my old lifestyle. I occasionally desire sweets and fast food. It's a good idea to get this out of your system every now and then to keep progress moving forward. One day of high carbs and high calories will not hurt your long term progress. The cheat day is best had after a good single achievement or after a series of positive progress has been noticed. For example, a cheat day can be had after a couple weeks of perfect dieting or after a series of grueling workouts. The important thing is to stretch cheat days apart as far as possible; they'll mean more to you and you'll get more out of them when they're not frequently occurring.
Friday, August 15, 2014
Week 7 Progress Pics...ABS
I have abs again. It feels pretty good. Consistency in ab workouts is absolutely essential. My abs have responded very well to consistent workouts (3 times a week.) The phone picture quality was especially crappy tonight. I'm convinced that my 10mp back camera is worse than my 2 mp front camera. I also forgot to turn on HDR, which really helps when taking low-light bathroom selfies. Anyway...
This is a shot from the right. The abs on this side appear to me more normal and well defined. It really depends on how I flex, but generally this side appears to be blockier and larger. It's not due to some imbalance since I'm fundamentally sound whenever the core comes into question. I think it's purely genetic.
The above shot is of my left side. My abs are uneven and the top one has always been tiny. I find that explosive cardio (sprints and explosive jumps) and gradual overall core strengthening (side planks) develop the serratus very well.
Shoulders, Back, and Insanity
Came into the gym with a lot of things to get done. I wanted to knock out both a shoulder workout and a back workout within the timespan of about an hour and a half. This was completely do-able and keeping the tempo up also kept the energy up.
Workout (Back and Shoulders):
1) Military Press*
*I really like to do partial reps on these since they don't aggravate my rotator cuffs and tend to target my medial deltoids more effectively. I generally lower the weight down to my head and push back up.
-2x15 w/ 115 lbs.
-4x15 w/ 135 lbs.
2) DB Shoulder Press
-1x10 w/ 60 lbs.
-2x10 w/ 70 lbs.
-2x8 w/ 80 lbs.
3) Lat Pulldowns
-1x20 w/ 120 lbs.
-1x10 w/ 160 lbs.
-1x10 w/ 180 lbs.
-3x5 w/ 210 lbs.
4) Seated Cable Rows
-4x10 w/ 160 lbs.
5) Shrugs
-3x10 w/ 90 lbs. on each hand
6) DB Rows*
*I did these very slowly with a tight contraction at the top. I placed all of the emphasis on my form rather than the weight.
-5x10 w/ 65 lbs. (for each side)
Workout (Insanity):
I did the pure cardio workout and went for a mile run after the workout. I spent an additional thirty minutes stretching my lower body after the run.
Note: I'm going to only post diet information when it changes. If I don't post anything that means that my diet was the same as the previous day or had one small alteration. In today's case, I had lamb instead of another meat. I'm not the biggest fan of lamb for various reasons and I don't think I'll ever have it again.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Total Body
I spent most of today working on PCB dev. so I didn't have much time to workout. However I did decide to go to the gym in order to get in a quick total body workout rather than doing Insanity. I threw in some leg exercises, back exercises, ab exercises, and some quick cardio.
Workout:
1) Leg Press
-2x10 w/ 220 lb. (single-legged)
-2x10 w/ 320 lb.
2) L-Pullups
*Hold you legs up in the air perpendicular to the body for the entire pull-up.
-5x8
3) Cable crunches
-5x8 w/ 80 lbs.
4) Walking Lunges
-3x25 steps w/ 110 lb. barbell
5) [superset] Calf Raises + Calf Walks
*Walk around with a 45 plate in each hand. Make sure to flex the calves at the top of each step.
(4 rounds)
-20 reps w/ 3 plates on calf raises
-20 or 30 steps
6) Sprints
-4x50m
Diet:
I'm finding it super hard as of late to continue eating the foods I like since my house's stock of food is very low. We have almost no lean meats available. It's very saddening. Anyway, today's meal plan was lower in calorie count since I didn't really do anything for the greater part of the day.
Meal 1:
-7 egg whites
-4 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-27g whey protein shake w/2% milk
-1 cup raspberries
Meal 2:
-Raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, blackberry, and banana smoothie
Meal 3:
-Lean ham.
-Apple
-Lemon quest bar
Meal 4:
-Three homemade burger patties (ground steak w/ tomatoes and shallots)
-2 cup sautéed carrots
Workout:
1) Leg Press
-2x10 w/ 220 lb. (single-legged)
-2x10 w/ 320 lb.
2) L-Pullups
*Hold you legs up in the air perpendicular to the body for the entire pull-up.
-5x8
3) Cable crunches
-5x8 w/ 80 lbs.
4) Walking Lunges
-3x25 steps w/ 110 lb. barbell
5) [superset] Calf Raises + Calf Walks
*Walk around with a 45 plate in each hand. Make sure to flex the calves at the top of each step.
(4 rounds)
-20 reps w/ 3 plates on calf raises
-20 or 30 steps
6) Sprints
-4x50m
Diet:
I'm finding it super hard as of late to continue eating the foods I like since my house's stock of food is very low. We have almost no lean meats available. It's very saddening. Anyway, today's meal plan was lower in calorie count since I didn't really do anything for the greater part of the day.
Meal 1:
-7 egg whites
-4 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-27g whey protein shake w/2% milk
-1 cup raspberries
Meal 2:
-Raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, blackberry, and banana smoothie
Meal 3:
-Lean ham.
-Apple
-Lemon quest bar
Meal 4:
-Three homemade burger patties (ground steak w/ tomatoes and shallots)
-2 cup sautéed carrots
Monday, August 11, 2014
Abs and Insanity
~This post is for yesterday (Sunday)~
Went to the gym to do a quick ab workout and then came back home for a round of Insanity pure cardio. I really like how quick the insanity workout is. I haven't checked out the other videos but I assume they won't fit very well into my schedule since they're targeted more toward people who work out solely in their homes. This generally means they are higher volume with much lighter weight.
Workout:
1) Superset
(5 rounds)
-10 hanging leg raises
-10 cable crunches w/ 80 lbs.
-5-8 L pullups*
*This is just a pull-up where you hold your legs up and in front like an L.
2) Dragon flags*
-4x10
*The superset really tired me out so I did these very carefully. It takes a lot of mind-muscle connection and control to be able to eliminate the extensive use of the hip flexors and lower back in this exercise but some involvement will be unavoidable. If you can't do the entire set then just stop and finish off the reps when you're ready to go again. You'll know when your abs have stopped working when you start feeling a lot of pressure in the hips and lower back.
3) Leg Raises*
*I do these the same way as in the video below. Go to 2:00...
-5x10
4) Insanity Pure Cardio
I really like this. Generally I'll change out a couple of the exercises for things that push my body a little harder, like burpees for example. I tend to run either before or after and these runs never exceed two miles.
Went to the gym to do a quick ab workout and then came back home for a round of Insanity pure cardio. I really like how quick the insanity workout is. I haven't checked out the other videos but I assume they won't fit very well into my schedule since they're targeted more toward people who work out solely in their homes. This generally means they are higher volume with much lighter weight.
Workout:
1) Superset
(5 rounds)
-10 hanging leg raises
-10 cable crunches w/ 80 lbs.
-5-8 L pullups*
*This is just a pull-up where you hold your legs up and in front like an L.
2) Dragon flags*
-4x10
*The superset really tired me out so I did these very carefully. It takes a lot of mind-muscle connection and control to be able to eliminate the extensive use of the hip flexors and lower back in this exercise but some involvement will be unavoidable. If you can't do the entire set then just stop and finish off the reps when you're ready to go again. You'll know when your abs have stopped working when you start feeling a lot of pressure in the hips and lower back.
3) Leg Raises*
*I do these the same way as in the video below. Go to 2:00...
-5x10
4) Insanity Pure Cardio
I really like this. Generally I'll change out a couple of the exercises for things that push my body a little harder, like burpees for example. I tend to run either before or after and these runs never exceed two miles.
Saturday, August 9, 2014
Back Day
Hit back day with Jordan F. today. It's amazing what a full night's sleep will do. I felt a level of energy that was absolutely astounding. As I said, from this point on the gains and fat loss will be accelerated. I cannot wait to see the results.
It's hard for me to get an effective back workout using conventional methods (db rows, etc.) because of my herniated disc. If I twist excessively then it aggravates the disc and I'll feel it the next day. My solution is generally to isolate my mid and upper back entirely. I love hammer strength machines because they help me isolate the group in question perfectly. I truly miss doing exercises that require a stronger lower back, but T-bar rows and hammer strength rows will suffice.
Workout:
1) Lat Pulldowns
-1x20 w/ 120
-1x15 w/ 160
-3x10 w/ 180
-1x10 w/ 190
-5x5 w/ 200*
*Noticed that the lat pulldowns are getting easier and easier. I don't know what has caused it but my lat recovery and development continue to surpass my expectations. I'm going to up the weight on these next time to 210.
2) Hammer Strength High Row
-3x10 w/ 2 plates on each side
3) Hammer Strength Row
-2x15 w/ 2 plates on each side
-1x15 w/ 2 plates + 25 " "
-4x10 w/ 3 plates
4) EZ Curls*
*We performed these incredibly slowly and with absolute control.
-4x10 w/ 95 lbs.
+1 set of 21s to finish w/ 60 lbs.
I think I'm going to edit my diet a bit and start lowering my overall carbohydrate intake from grains. My diet was the same as yesterday except with the substitution of salmon for chicken. I'm going to try and space out my caloric intake over a longer period of time (eat more small meals) so that I don't get as hungry as often in the day.
It's hard for me to get an effective back workout using conventional methods (db rows, etc.) because of my herniated disc. If I twist excessively then it aggravates the disc and I'll feel it the next day. My solution is generally to isolate my mid and upper back entirely. I love hammer strength machines because they help me isolate the group in question perfectly. I truly miss doing exercises that require a stronger lower back, but T-bar rows and hammer strength rows will suffice.
Workout:
1) Lat Pulldowns
-1x20 w/ 120
-1x15 w/ 160
-3x10 w/ 180
-1x10 w/ 190
-5x5 w/ 200*
*Noticed that the lat pulldowns are getting easier and easier. I don't know what has caused it but my lat recovery and development continue to surpass my expectations. I'm going to up the weight on these next time to 210.
2) Hammer Strength High Row
-3x10 w/ 2 plates on each side
3) Hammer Strength Row
-2x15 w/ 2 plates on each side
-1x15 w/ 2 plates + 25 " "
-4x10 w/ 3 plates
4) EZ Curls*
*We performed these incredibly slowly and with absolute control.
-4x10 w/ 95 lbs.
+1 set of 21s to finish w/ 60 lbs.
I think I'm going to edit my diet a bit and start lowering my overall carbohydrate intake from grains. My diet was the same as yesterday except with the substitution of salmon for chicken. I'm going to try and space out my caloric intake over a longer period of time (eat more small meals) so that I don't get as hungry as often in the day.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Insanity and Update
One of the things that I used to do and discontinued doing until recently was using Insanity as a substitute for gym workouts. It's very useful and wonderful if you're in a crunch for time. Today I couldn't get into the gym so I chose to do the pure cardio workout. It felt great and I went for a mile jog after. Following the workout, I did a ten minute stretching session. I think my body is in need of a deep tissue massage.
Insanity is most effective when paired with another regimen. I find that on its own it is not enough to achieve my goals. It really shines when paired with an intense weight training program since it's HIIT cardio and thus more efficient (in terms of time and effectiveness.)
The goal is to do the pure cardio workout every two or three days either in the mornings or after my weight training session. Now that classes are over I'm also going to have some time to get back into mountain biking.
I'm most excited to see the effects of increased sleep on my fat loss. I've reached a plateau and even taken a few steps backward. This isn't good and I attribute it mostly to my sleep deficiency rather than my training methods and/or diet. Getting five to six hours per week night is not enough for the mind or the body.
Insanity is most effective when paired with another regimen. I find that on its own it is not enough to achieve my goals. It really shines when paired with an intense weight training program since it's HIIT cardio and thus more efficient (in terms of time and effectiveness.)
The goal is to do the pure cardio workout every two or three days either in the mornings or after my weight training session. Now that classes are over I'm also going to have some time to get back into mountain biking.
I'm most excited to see the effects of increased sleep on my fat loss. I've reached a plateau and even taken a few steps backward. This isn't good and I attribute it mostly to my sleep deficiency rather than my training methods and/or diet. Getting five to six hours per week night is not enough for the mind or the body.
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Legs
Decided that I didn't want to do another chest day just yet so I opted to do legs. I placed most of my emphasis on my calves and HIIT sprints. There have been small periods during my training "career" where I've been able to hit my calves very effectively, but these periods are always short-lived. Today I thought of imitating natural movement in my calf workout by walking with a 45 plate in each hand. Rather than performing a typical farmer's walk, I walked only on my toes and changed the positioning on each go around. I walked around the gym twice before going straight into my seated calf raises. I found that the weighted walking was very effective and it provided a wonderful pump. I've also found over the years that high volume is more effective for calf development than just pure weight.
Workout:
1) Squats
3x10 w/ 135
2x10 w/ 185
2x8 w/ 225
-0.25 mile jog
2) Front Squats
4x10 w/ 135
-15 second sprint @ 16 mph
3) Walking Lunges
4x24 w/ 110
-15 second sprint @ 16 mph
4) [superset] Seated Calf Raises and Weighted Calf Walking
(10 rounds)
-15 steps on each leg + 20 reps w/ 4 plates
-15 second sprint @ 16 mph
Diet:
Meal 1:
-5 egg whites
-4 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-27g whey protein shake w/2% milk
Meal 2:
-4 slices of tri-tip
-1 cup roasted mixed veggies
Meal 3:
-Quest bar (chocolate brownie)
-1.5 cup almond milk
Meal 4:
-7oz grilled New York steak (marinated in teriyaki sauce)
-2 cups mixed veggies
-2 cups sautéed celery
Workout:
1) Squats
3x10 w/ 135
2x10 w/ 185
2x8 w/ 225
-0.25 mile jog
2) Front Squats
4x10 w/ 135
-15 second sprint @ 16 mph
3) Walking Lunges
4x24 w/ 110
-15 second sprint @ 16 mph
4) [superset] Seated Calf Raises and Weighted Calf Walking
(10 rounds)
-15 steps on each leg + 20 reps w/ 4 plates
-15 second sprint @ 16 mph
Diet:
Meal 1:
-5 egg whites
-4 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-27g whey protein shake w/2% milk
Meal 2:
-4 slices of tri-tip
-1 cup roasted mixed veggies
Meal 3:
-Quest bar (chocolate brownie)
-1.5 cup almond milk
Meal 4:
-7oz grilled New York steak (marinated in teriyaki sauce)
-2 cups mixed veggies
-2 cups sautéed celery
Monday, August 4, 2014
Update on What's Going On
It's absolutely astonishing how much work it takes to maintain a blog. I have been really busy with my three classes but they are coming to an end. I'm going to try and maintain my promise to update this frequently (everyday was/is the goal) and not become a once-a-week kind of guy. I will update the empty posts as soon as I can and fill in all the information.
As far as the progress goes, I think I've come pretty far. Despite this, I feel that I'd be farther along if I were getting more sleep. The maximum amount of sleep I can get in a night while still performing all of the tasks I need to do throughout the day is about 8 hours. Since it takes me a good thirty minutes to an hour to fall asleep, this number is generally closer to 7 and sometimes even 6. I take a nap after school but this isn't sufficient as it's not REM sleep. I'm quite confident that the progress will be accelerated when classes finish and I start sleeping between 9 and 10 hours per night. It'll be refreshing.
I've managed to get sick for the past two weekends. It takes me two to three days to get over these little colds but they negatively impact my workout and leave me fatigued for the larger portion of the day. I think I've narrowed the source of these sicknesses down to 24hr fitness, as they don't clean any of the machines and the entire place is a dump. I try to keep my hands away from my face but I'll occasionally slip and itch my nose or mouth, thereby giving myself a cold. I do not recommend going to the Hillsdale location. I will be ending my membership there in a couple weeks when my lifting buddy Jordan F. heads back to college.
Well, it wouldn't be a problem if I had a better immune system. I think my immune system has been on hiatus for the latter part of my life.
Oh, in recent news, I BENCHED 315 lbs. AT A BODYWEIGHT OF 155 LBS!
As far as the progress goes, I think I've come pretty far. Despite this, I feel that I'd be farther along if I were getting more sleep. The maximum amount of sleep I can get in a night while still performing all of the tasks I need to do throughout the day is about 8 hours. Since it takes me a good thirty minutes to an hour to fall asleep, this number is generally closer to 7 and sometimes even 6. I take a nap after school but this isn't sufficient as it's not REM sleep. I'm quite confident that the progress will be accelerated when classes finish and I start sleeping between 9 and 10 hours per night. It'll be refreshing.
I've managed to get sick for the past two weekends. It takes me two to three days to get over these little colds but they negatively impact my workout and leave me fatigued for the larger portion of the day. I think I've narrowed the source of these sicknesses down to 24hr fitness, as they don't clean any of the machines and the entire place is a dump. I try to keep my hands away from my face but I'll occasionally slip and itch my nose or mouth, thereby giving myself a cold. I do not recommend going to the Hillsdale location. I will be ending my membership there in a couple weeks when my lifting buddy Jordan F. heads back to college.
Well, it wouldn't be a problem if I had a better immune system. I think my immune system has been on hiatus for the latter part of my life.
Oh, in recent news, I BENCHED 315 lbs. AT A BODYWEIGHT OF 155 LBS!
Saturday, August 2, 2014
Chest and Cardio
Had yet another wonderful chest workout with Jordan F. I finally benched 315 (3 plates) on flat bench! Went into the gym to do a quick chest workout, felt a little stiff, and slowly eased into it. Upon entering the gym I had had no intention of maxing out. I'm not a very big fan of pushing my joints to their limits but my ego took over after I hit 275 for three reps. I took it easier on the subsequent exercises after my max to compensate.
I'm slightly frustrated with my lack of sufficient sleep. I tire quickly and have a general fatigue that sets in around 1 p.m. Napping does not help. I cannot wait until my summer classes are over. I predict that my metabolism will skyrocket when I start getting 8-10 hours a night once more. I'll also have more time and energy to put into my workouts. It's been way too long since I've been on a mountain bike.
Workout:
1) Flat bench
1x12 w/ 135
1x5 w/ 155
1x5 w/ 185
1x5 w/ 225
1x3 w/ 245
2x3 w/ 275
1x1 w/ 315 <---- ^_^
2) Hammer Strength Wide-Chest
3x10 w/ 3 plates
2x5 w/ 4 plates
3) [superset] Seated Machine Flyes + Cable Flyes *
*We performed these movements with single arms rather than both. In each rep we crossed the arm across the body. This superset yielded a fabulous pump and a wonderful stretch.
(5 rounds)
-10 reps on cable flye w/ 75 lbs.
-8 reps on machine flye w/ 110 lbs. SLOW
4) Incline DB Press*
*Took it nice and slow on this movement. Tempo was ~4 seconds down, 1 second up
-2x10 w/ 60
-3x10 w/ 80
Diet:
Meal 1:
-27g whey protein shake w/ almond milk
-Raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, and banana smoothie
-5 egg whites
-3 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
Meal 2:
-8oz grilled chicken breast
-2 cups sautéed carrots
-1 cup blueberries
Meal 3:
-5oz grilled chicken breast
-0.5 cup wild rice
-Lemon quest bar
Meal 4:
-8oz grilled steak
-2 cups sauteed green beans
I'm slightly frustrated with my lack of sufficient sleep. I tire quickly and have a general fatigue that sets in around 1 p.m. Napping does not help. I cannot wait until my summer classes are over. I predict that my metabolism will skyrocket when I start getting 8-10 hours a night once more. I'll also have more time and energy to put into my workouts. It's been way too long since I've been on a mountain bike.
Workout:
1) Flat bench
1x12 w/ 135
1x5 w/ 155
1x5 w/ 185
1x5 w/ 225
1x3 w/ 245
2x3 w/ 275
1x1 w/ 315 <---- ^_^
2) Hammer Strength Wide-Chest
3x10 w/ 3 plates
2x5 w/ 4 plates
3) [superset] Seated Machine Flyes + Cable Flyes *
*We performed these movements with single arms rather than both. In each rep we crossed the arm across the body. This superset yielded a fabulous pump and a wonderful stretch.
(5 rounds)
-10 reps on cable flye w/ 75 lbs.
-8 reps on machine flye w/ 110 lbs. SLOW
4) Incline DB Press*
*Took it nice and slow on this movement. Tempo was ~4 seconds down, 1 second up
-2x10 w/ 60
-3x10 w/ 80
Diet:
Meal 1:
-27g whey protein shake w/ almond milk
-Raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, and banana smoothie
-5 egg whites
-3 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
Meal 2:
-8oz grilled chicken breast
-2 cups sautéed carrots
-1 cup blueberries
Meal 3:
-5oz grilled chicken breast
-0.5 cup wild rice
-Lemon quest bar
Meal 4:
-8oz grilled steak
-2 cups sauteed green beans
Friday, August 1, 2014
Total Body
Did a total body workout and started lowering carb intake as well as overall calorie intake. I am going to be eating less rice and more vegetables. My workout today included an intense cardio session that came before the other movements. When I feel groggy as I walk into the gym the first thing I do is run, irrespective of the muscle group that I will be training that day. The distance doesn't matter but the activity does. Running always clears my mind and gets my blood flowing. It prepares me for a great workout and sets my mind straight. One of the hardest decisions for anyone is getting off of their ass and getting to the gym. The second hardest decision is actually doing the work it takes to make physical progress. If you are not in the right mindset, just get on the treadmill and move. When your blood is flowing and your brain is oxygenated you will be in a better mindset to lift. Oh, the endorphins help too.
Workout:
1) Cardio
-2 miles at 7 min pace
-5 intervals consisting of 30 second sprint and 1 min jog
2) Pullups
-3x15 wide grip
-2x10 close grip
3) Cable Crunches
-5x10 w/ 75 lbs.
4) [superset] GHD situps + Atomic Pushups
-4x10 reps on each exercise
(total of 4 supersets)
5) Walking Lunges
-3x24 steps w/ 110 lbs.
6) Captain's Chair Leg Raises*
-5x15
*I do a variation of these where I support myself with my hands in line with my body. I create an "L" shape and concentrate on making sure my body doesn't rock back as I perform the motion. I prefer this position over resting on the back pad of the captain's chair as it requires more concentration and stabilization.
Diet:
1) Meal 1:
-3 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-5 egg whites
-27g whey protein shake w/ almond milk
-Raspberry, blueberry, and banana smoothie w/ almond milk and OJ
2) Meal 2:
-5 oz grilled chicken sliced w/ 0.5 avocado
-2 cups squash
3) Meal 3:
-5 oz grilled chicken
-2 cups broccoli
-Raspberry smoothie w/ almond milk
4) Meal 4:
-Quest bar (chocolate)
-Cup of 2% milk
5) Meal 5:
-2 7oz grilled chicken breasts
-2 cups of sautéed green beans
-1 cup of zucchini
Workout:
1) Cardio
-2 miles at 7 min pace
-5 intervals consisting of 30 second sprint and 1 min jog
2) Pullups
-3x15 wide grip
-2x10 close grip
3) Cable Crunches
-5x10 w/ 75 lbs.
4) [superset] GHD situps + Atomic Pushups
-4x10 reps on each exercise
(total of 4 supersets)
5) Walking Lunges
-3x24 steps w/ 110 lbs.
6) Captain's Chair Leg Raises*
-5x15
*I do a variation of these where I support myself with my hands in line with my body. I create an "L" shape and concentrate on making sure my body doesn't rock back as I perform the motion. I prefer this position over resting on the back pad of the captain's chair as it requires more concentration and stabilization.
Diet:
1) Meal 1:
-3 Aidell's chicken teriyaki meatballs
-5 egg whites
-27g whey protein shake w/ almond milk
-Raspberry, blueberry, and banana smoothie w/ almond milk and OJ
2) Meal 2:
-5 oz grilled chicken sliced w/ 0.5 avocado
-2 cups squash
3) Meal 3:
-5 oz grilled chicken
-2 cups broccoli
-Raspberry smoothie w/ almond milk
4) Meal 4:
-Quest bar (chocolate)
-Cup of 2% milk
5) Meal 5:
-2 7oz grilled chicken breasts
-2 cups of sautéed green beans
-1 cup of zucchini
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