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Striving for Elusive Lean Gains (LG Mass)

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Posted by: MorteSubite

Here's my first journal on here. I'm currently 168lbs, 6', and 21 years old. My body fat is about 13.5% currently as a very rough estimate.

I have been weight lifting seriously for approximately 2 months now.

Bf is estimated with a Taylor scale (accurate to .5%, according to them...)

I will add some pictures shortly aside from the avatar shot.

Goals:

Gradually increase to 180lbs at approximately the same body fat over the next 3-4 months or so. I'd love to decrease body fat in the process, but I'll try to keep the goals modest.

Supplements:

All the Whey - Isolate
-taking about 22g protein 30min preworkout and 30g protein postworkout

Creatine Ethyl Ester - from CNW
-taking about 4g about 45-60min preworkout and postworkout, 4g in the morning on nonlifting days
-started approximately 3 weeks ago

LeptiGen Mass
-taking 2 serving per day mixed with Gatorade powder to make it palatable
-started 5 days ago. I feel a bit leaner overall and it is reflected in the appearance of my abs.

Multivitamin

Green Tea Extract
-2 300mg servings per day. Sundown brand.

Fish Oil - 1200mg
-about 8-10 per day. taken 2 at a time over the day.

Nutrition:

I've played around with my calories and believe my maintenance level is a bit lower than I had though previously. I think my maintenance level of calories is about 2600-2700. I'm going to try stay right about there for my caloric intake as is recommended for LG Mass.

I've started logging my food intake (eaten across 4-5 meals a day) on fitday to keep track of things over time.

Some examples of foods in my diet.
-I usually start things in off in the morning with either a Banana and Milk smoothie (24oz milk, 2-3 bananas), or some eggs (2 with yolks, 3 whites) and 2 breakfast sausages.
-I eat about a cup of oats a day, and have a good amount of ham, turkey, salmon, tuna, and chicken in my diet for meats. I have beef every so often, prepared in a george foreman grill.
-I allow myself about 1 drink of alcohol a week, and sometimes skip it.

I've been eating about 20-25% fat/45-50% carbs/25-30% protein for that breakup.

Injury Info:

I am currently letting my lower body recover as injured my right foot early on last week. I will let it recover (no legs workouts) for a few weeks to make sure I don't reinjure it and I get things healed up. Despite that I still stretch my legs every time I workout.

Workout Strategy:

For my workouts I am using a 6-8 rep scale for most exercises, optimally increasing by 1 rep per week and increasing weights by 1 increment after the 8 rep week. I am looking for a blend of strength and endurance.

This is done my apartment complex gym, which is entirely comprised of machines. Some machines have variable resistance with a lower initial resistance and a high maximum resistance. I'll mark these with a * and average both values for a estimate of overall resistance.

I am working out my upper body twice a week, with different exercises being done each day.

Thursday (3/10) Workout:

Warm-ups (these will always be included, in both workouts)
-Stretching
-Knee Raises (2x10)
-Roman Curls (2x10)

Workout:
-Bench - 130* (first set 8, second set 7, last set 5)
-Tricep Pushdown (done on lat pulldown machine with wide bar) - 60 (8x3)
-Shoulder Press - 84*(first set 7, second set 5)
-Dips - (3x6)

Felt a bit weaker than usual in later sets for bench.
Shoulder press is always a bit difficult with the machine there. I've felt a lot better (can do 3 sets of 8 at 90) doing the same exercise at a machine at another, but far far more crowded gym on campus.

Saturday (3/12) Workout:

-Lat Pulldown 120 (3x6)
-Chin-ups (6,6,4)
-Bicep Curls - 50 (8,8,10)
-Butterflies - 70 (3x6)
-Wrist Curls - 40 (3x10)

Lat Pulldowns felt very good and have always been an exercise that I haven't had a problem with.
I usually die on the 3rd set of chin-ups, they really are exhausting when done properly.



Posted by: Robboe

Good shit.

I like how you've not set yourself unrealistic goals for as soon as next week.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Posted start pictures in my gallery. 2 legs and 2 upper body pictures. Taken today. Comments and constructive criticism are welcome

TCD: Yeah, that's just ridiculous. This should allow me to learn a bit more over time. I'm reading your journal / conversation with Twin Peak. Looks very interesting. Best of luck for it.



Posted by: Twin Peak

Interesting. Good luck.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks.

Going to do light cardio today, basketball for about 30 minutes or so. Hopefully my feet will feel good.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Ended up playing a 5 on 5 game to 20. Very good game except that I twisted my ankle. Icing it now. Other than that, feet are doing fine.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

From looking at your pictures, it looks like you have ham hocks for legs( that's good), but you need much more size in the upper body. I wonder long term if you make serious progress training on machines rather than in a gym using free weights.

Your diet looks OK and I like that you have set specific and attainable goals.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Ego, thanks for the comments on the pictures. I didn't think that lower body and upper body development difference was much to speak of, but it wouldn't be first time I was wrong about something like this.

I haven't done any lifting in any serious manner prior to this January so I'm guessing my legs are doing ok due to basketball, running, or just genetics? Who knows.

I've been thinking of the free weights vs. machines issue. I have the option of training using free weights if I switch to lifting in the mornings (the university gym isn't crowded then) rather than afternoons (peak energy for me during the day).

I'll try out a full week just at the university gym in the soon to see how that feels. Free weight equivalents for curls, military press for shoulder press, bench press, and some other arm exercises. However, some things would still be done with machines, like lat pulldowns, tricep pushdowns, and butterflies. Any comments on that?



Posted by: Robboe

You look nice and lean so gains should be easier to assess. Have you taken measurements?



Posted by: MorteSubite

I don't have anything to take them with. I guess I could get a cloth tape measure next time I'm at wal-mart or a similar store.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Free weight equivalents for curls, military press for shoulder press, bench press, and some other arm exercises. However, some things would still be done with machines, like lat pulldowns, tricep pushdowns, and butterflies. Any comments on that?
Its OK to do some things on machines, but progress physique and strength wise comes much quicker for most people using compound exercises on free weights. Compound exercises are those that work several muscle groups at one time such as bench presses, barbell rows, chins, shoulder presses, deadlifts and squats. Pulldowns are fine, but do not neglect barbell rows or chins. I think you can build strength better doing close grip bench presses rather than pushdowns for tris. Building tri strength will also build your bench in the long run as a strong bench press is a product of not just chest, but tricep, front delt and lat strength.

I am not sure what "butterflies" are.



Posted by: MorteSubite

I have and will continue to be doing chins. Do you think it would be best to simply do one set of chins to failure as opposed to stopping around 6-7, waiting and trying for more? In later sets, I never have the same endurance as the first.

I haven't done any barbell rows as of yet, but I will look up some information for that and try it out. Thank you for the advice on working the triceps.

I guess I got the name wrong for butterflies (not surprised on that). I'll describe what it does. You sit, facing away from the machine and grip a handle (on an extension of the weight machine) with each hand, left on the left side and right on the right. Then you bring the handles in a 90 degree rotation so both handles meet directly in front of you.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
I have and will continue to be doing chins. Do you think it would be best to simply do one set of chins to failure as opposed to stopping around 6-7, waiting and trying for more? In later sets, I never have the same endurance as the first.
Myself, I do 3-4 sets, all to failure. You're right, I can never do as many reps the last couple of sets as on the first one, but the back is still working hard and the harder it works, the bigger the muscles get over time. Its up to you how you approach it, but I don't like to stop and "save" anything on chins or pullups.
Quote:
I haven't done any barbell rows as of yet, but I will look up some information for that and try it out. Thank you for the advice on working the triceps.
Here's a great site someone else led me to which lists and describes almost every important exercise. Bent barbell rows are listed under upper back, but you can also bookmark this for future reference on other movements.

http://www.bsu.edu/webapps/strengthlab/home.htm

BTW, are there any instructors at the university gym who can show you exercises you are not familiar with so that you do them right? If not, is there a football team, maybe the strength training coach can help you out??
Quote:
I guess I got the name wrong for butterflies (not surprised on that). I'll describe what it does. You sit, facing away from the machine and grip a handle (on an extension of the weight machine) with each hand, left on the left side and right on the right. Then you bring the handles in a 90 degree rotation so both handles meet directly in front of you.
OK, these are called among other things Pec ( as in pectoral muscle) Deck Flyes. Its good for building thickness in the chest, particularily the inner chest, and can be an auxiliary chest movement. But make sure you are still doing benches and dips for the chest also.



Posted by: MorteSubite

I'll try switching to doing chins until failure. I haven't done pullups in a long time, so I'll try those out soon as well, see how they go.

There is usually at least one trainer available at the university gym (usually just students who are pretty familiar with the equipment). I'll to make sure that I am doing the free weight exercises correctly.

Thanks for the reference information and the clarification on the pec deck flyers.

My next workout will be tomorrow morning at the university gym.



Posted by: PreMier

Good luck, I will be reading along



Posted by: Robboe

I've started noticing some of the cell volumising effects this morning (there's nothing else to attribute it to since i'm on the same # of carbs as last week) and i've only been dosing since Saturday.



Posted by: MorteSubite

My stomach felt absolutely horrible this morning. Barely got down 1/2 cup of oatmeal and my skim protein shake before I got to the gym. I think I need to lay off the spicy foods

Bench and Military Press were done using free weights.

-Bench - 115 (3x6)
-Tricep Pushdown - 110 (3x6)
-Military Press - 75 (3x6)
-Dips - 2x7
-Pec Deck Flyers - 80 x 7, 90 x 6, 80 x 7

Overall, energy was noticeably less than working out in the afternoon, but I tried to get myself excited about trying new things out.

Bench (barbell, regular grip) felt good. I am hesitant to go up too high without a spotter. I can do this comfortably without worrying about getting up the last reps. Next week I'll ask the gym staffer if he can spot me and try to get up a bit higher. 125-135 should be within reason.

For close grip bench, would it be recommended to do that before/after regular bench or would this be done as a substitute?

Tricep Pushdown was done on a different type of machine. Not a lat pulldown machine, but on one of the cable crossover stations; i.e. machine directly attached to a long chinnup bar directly attached to another machine (with both machines being identical). The resistance felt very different than doing it on the lat pulldown machine.

Military Press (barbell) felt good, but unstable. I didn't feel that I was weak in the exercise, but I felt very unstable during the exercise (not to the danger of having the bar flying or anything of that nature). I guess it is due to the fact that machines don't work stabilizer muscles at all and control your range of motion. First set felt good, second set I barely got the last one up, but the third felt great.

Dips were really odd. The exact same exercise as usual, but the upper middle of my back felt like it was in quite a bit of pain (only during the dips). I'm not sure what caused this, so I cut it short at 2 sets. Any ideas?

Pec Deck Flyers was a slightly different type machine that at the apartment gym which accounts for the different weights. The first set at 80 felt easy, but when I switched up to 90 I found the last few inches of the exercise extremely difficult to complete, therefore, I switched back to 80.

Next workout will have: Chins, pullups, bicep curls (probably preacher w/ an ez bar), wrist curls, lat pulldown, barbell rows.

I am this out as a Chest and Tricep breakup on day 1 and a Back and Bicep breakup on day 2. Friend of mine seems to think that Chests should always be done with Biceps, but I think I'll try this out to see how it feels. Any comments on that strategy?



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks PreMier! I hope I accomplish my goals.

I need to my feet and lower legs to get better so I can start working them out again. It's really frustrating.

TCD, check your messages. Sent you a question about volumization



Posted by: PreMier

You will, just remember consistency is key.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
-Bench - 115 (3x6)
-Tricep Pushdown - 110 (3x6)
-Military Press - 75 (3x6)
-Dips - 2x7
-Pec Deck Flyers - 80 x 7, 90 x 6, 80 x 7



For close grip bench, would it be recommended to do that before/after regular bench or would this be done as a substitute?
. After regular bench and it is not a substitute. Close grip should be emphasizing the tris, not the pecs and the weight you can lifts should be much less because you have less leverage and less help from the delts and lats with a closer grip.
Quote:



Military Press (barbell) felt good, but unstable. I didn't feel that I was weak in the exercise, but I felt very unstable during the exercise (not to the danger of having the bar flying or anything of that nature). I guess it is due to the fact that machines don't work stabilizer muscles at all and control your range of motion.
Exactly.
Quote:
Dips were really odd. The exact same exercise as usual, but the upper middle of my back felt like it was in quite a bit of pain (only during the dips). I'm not sure what caused this, so I cut it short at 2 sets. Any ideas?
I'm stumped ..hopefully someone with more knowledge of the anatomy and such can answer this.

Quote:
I am this out as a Chest and Tricep breakup on day 1 and a Back and Bicep breakup on day 2. Friend of mine seems to think that Chests should always be done with Biceps, but I think I'll try this out to see how it feels. Any comments on that strategy?
Its a matter of personal preference. Some people train chest and tris together and back and bis. Myself, I never did the tris and bis justice by fatiguing them with training chest before tris or back before bis. The arms then gave out too quickly. So I usually train bis with shoulders, sometimes with chest and tris are worked after legs.

More advanced bodybuilders may intentionally train tris after chest or bis after back if their arms genetically are already big or overdeveloped relative to other body parts. The fatigue factor causes the arms to quit early and thus get not more overdeveloped.



Posted by: PreMier

Quote:
Originally Posted by Egoatdoor
I'm stumped ..hopefully someone with more knowledge of the anatomy and such can answer this.
(To Morty)Were the dips with any weight? Make sure you keep your shoulder blades 'pinched' while doing these. I used to roll mine out and extend myself furthe upward(lockout), and I tore my rhomboid in December. Just be careful, and if you were using weight, lower it a bit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Egoatdoor
Its a matter of personal preference. Some people train chest and tris together and back and bis. Myself, I never did the tris and bis justice by fatiguing them with training chest before tris or back before bis. The arms then gave out too quickly. So I usually train bis with shoulders, sometimes with chest and tris are worked after legs.

More advanced bodybuilders may intentionally train tris after chest or bis after back if their arms genetically are already big or overdeveloped relative to other body parts. The fatigue factor causes the arms to quit early and thus get not more overdeveloped.
This isnt true.. I just benefit better with less direct armwork. Doing a set of pushdowns after heavy pressing(including CG bench) yields better results. My arms sure arent over developed. Standard push/pull lists the exercises like this, and many people do it.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

Quote:
Originally Posted by Egoatdoor
.
More advanced bodybuilders may intentionally train tris after chest or bis after back if their arms genetically are already big or overdeveloped relative to other body parts. The fatigue factor causes the arms to quit early and thus get not more overdeveloped.
Hi Premier. I wasn't necessarily saying this was true in all cases. It was just an example of why one may intentionally switch to a chest/tris and/or back/bis routine. I know a female trainer who did the self same because her upper arms no matter what she did before ( high volume, low volume, different reps etc.) kept growing disproportionately to her chest, delts and forearms. Now she can't lift as much weight due to the fatigue factor and the imbalance is starting to work itself slowly away.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by PreMier
(To Morty)Were the dips with any weight? Make sure you keep your shoulder blades 'pinched' while doing these. I used to roll mine out and extend myself furthe upward(lockout), and I tore my rhomboid in December.
Dips weren't with any weight. Unfortunately, I wasn't keeping my shoulder blades pinched. I'll make sure to do that in the future. Sorry to hear about the muscle tear, that sucks.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Egoatdoor
. After regular bench and it is not a substitute. Close grip should be emphasizing the tris, not the pecs and the weight you can lifts should be much less because you have less leverage and less help from the delts and lats with a closer grip.
I'll try out 75 or so as a starting weight and see how I do next week

I'm going in tomorrow for x-rays to see what's up with my feet. Hopefully I just have some sprains (feet have had burning pain in the forefoot underneath the balls of the feet) the past day or two. I'm praying I didn't cause a stress fracture with any stupidity on my part.

If so, I'll be a funny looking guy in the gym working out with some type of heavy brace/cast

As far as with working arms separately from chest or back, I don't think my strength is much different. I have done curls as the first part of my workout and later after bench and shoulder press without significant difference in strength. Maybe that's odd, but I don't think it makes a heck of a lot of difference for me.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Weighed in this morning. 165. I think I underestimated my maintenance calories necessary.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Today's workout:

Lat Pulldowns - 120 3x7
Chinnups - 6,4,5 - very smooth bar, my grip suffered in later sets.
DB Rows - 40 3x8
Sitting Preacher Curls - 45 3x7 - need to find out the exact weight of the ez bar, estimating at 15 for now. used to do curls standing at the other gym, getting used to this.
Wrist Curls - 45 3x8

Felt pretty good overall, more energy than on my workout on Tuesday.

LG Info:
Seem to be getting a dry mouth more often taking LG Mass than previously. Seeing some effects of cell volumization and oddly, a slightly better sense of well being.

Other Info::

Slightly upset stomache (not nearly as bad as Tues.) this morning (had a Grilled Chicken Salad in Balsamic Vinegar for my last meal last night).

Doctor thinks that I have Plantar Fasciatis in my feet (which is often characterized by substantial heel pain). I didn't think that was the case as pain has been concentrated underneath the balls of my feet. As my right foot has been a significant amount worse than the left, I had them take x-rays of it to look for a stress fracture or something of that nature. I should find out those results this afternoon. In the meantime, I'm taking Ibuprofen as an anti-inflammatory.



Posted by: Robboe

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
LG Info:
Seem to be getting a dry mouth more often taking LG Mass than previously. Seeing some effects of cell volumization and oddly, a slightly better sense of well being.
Yup, as you know, i have dry mouth also.

Quote:
Other Info::

Slightly upset stomache (not nearly as bad as Tues.) this morning (had a Grilled Chicken Salad in Balsamic Vinegar for my last meal last night).
Without giving TMI, have you noticed any effect of LG on your "emissions"? I've found it doesn't give me them, but if i have them, it seems to potentiate them. lol.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by TCD
Without giving TMI, have you noticed any effect of LG on your "emissions"? I've found it doesn't give me them, but if i have them, it seems to potentiate them. lol.
Haven't noticed any effects on that.

I did just get off the phone with the doctor. No bone problems with my feet. Apparently where the plantar fascia muscle attaches to the forefoot is just very inflamed. I hope to have this rehabilitated sufficiently in the next month



Posted by: M.J.H.

Good luck bro!



Posted by: PreMier

Would some kind of arch support help this?



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by PreMier
Would some kind of arch support help this?
Probably, I have a high arch so that could use some help. The problem is making sure that things don't worsen things. I've tried overall full-length gel inserts, which increased pain dramatically.

I'm going to be getting a new pair of sneakers for workouts and basketball in the next few days. My current exercise sneakers are about 7 months old and quite worn from basketball



Posted by: MorteSubite

A few random comments tonight.

Noticed that I am losing some body fat around the midsection.

Going out tonight to get some Saucony Grid Aura TR6 trail running shoes (I've got the TR5s right now and love them). Trail running shoes have pretty good arch support and cushioning, which should help.

If I get some more cash in the next few weeks I might get myself a pair of real basketball shoes for when I play (I've always played in running shoes in the past).

Figured out that the Chicken Whopper without mayo is actually a healthy thing to eat (except for the almost 1300mg of sodium...) on campus (there's a burger king right next to the building I have all my classes in).



Posted by: MorteSubite

Workout today:

-Pec Deck Flyers - 80 (3x8)
-Bench - 115 (3x6)
-Dips - 3x6
-Military Press - 75 (3x6)
-CG Bench - 75x6-1 set, 85x6-2 sets
-Tricep Pushdown - 110x8-1 set, 115x8-2 sets

Felt much more stable on the free weight exercises today. The gym staff were enforcing the 'you must have a spotter for every set even if you know you can do it' rule today, so I had snag people left and right to finish my sets

Started off light on Close Grip Bench and went up a bit since the first set didn't feel like much. Should be able to get up to 95 next week.

Dips felt good since I made sure to keep my shoulder blades pinched together (thanks PreMier!).

For Military Press, I've been doing them in front of my head, however, I've seen a few people do them behind the head. Any comments on benefits for these different approaches?

Weight is hovering around 167 now, so it seems that I dropped a pound.

Almost out of LG Mass. I have a day or two left (at my dosage of 2 servings/day). Quite frankly, it is very expensive (even at DPS' prices) for my budget. I'm not sure if after only one container I should have seen much positive effects, but I haven't found a heck of a lot to write home about as of yet. I'll probably buy another container to stick out for about a month total to see the results after that.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
For Military Press, I've been doing them in front of my head, however, I've seen a few people do them behind the head. Any comments on benefits for these different approaches?
The front presses work almost exclusively the front delts. Behind the head does recruit some of the side delts also, so everything else being the same should improve your overall shoulder width. One problem with behind the neck presses are it does put more stress on the rotator cuff. I injured my cuff 3 1/2 years ago ( doing something else, not these presses) and thus can no longer do behind the necks shoulder presses or pulldowns behind the neck.

Quote:

Almost out of LG Mass. I have a day or two left (at my dosage of 2 servings/day). Quite frankly, it is very expensive (even at DPS' prices) for my budget. I'm not sure if after only one container I should have seen much positive effects, but I haven't found a heck of a lot to write home about as of yet. I'll probably buy another container to stick out for about a month total to see the results after that.
Good idea. I usually find it takes a month minimum to see the affects( or the lack of affects) of any supplement or diet change.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Ordered 2 more tubs of LG Mass from DPS Should give me a 6 week period total at 2 servings/day.

Workout:

Chinnups - 6,6,5
Lat Pulldowns - 130 3x6
Preacher Curls - 50 3x6
DB Rows - 45 3x6

Did not take LG since Sunday since I ran out. Should get the shipment from DPS around Thurs. I feel no different from when I have been on it.

Workout felt great. I think Chins are best at the beginning of the workout for me. Had a lot of strength throughout the exercises.

Feet are recovering very well, I think the 1 month recovery schedule should be spot on.

@MonStar - Thanks man! I need all that I can get

@Egoatdoor - I may try the back presses in the future but I think I'll stick with the front presses for now. Thanks for the explanation and sorry to hear about that injury.



Posted by: MorteSubite

I used the wrong weight for the EZ curl bars. They are 25lbs, not 15, so for a current adjustment of previous curl weights from what is written in the journal, an addition of 10lbs is necessary.

Got the 2 tubs of LG Mass in. Going to start taking them today.

Workout:

Bench: 115, 7,7,6 (missed the last rep)
Military Press: 75 7,6,5 (disappointed with my endurance on this)
Pec Deck Flyers: 100 3x7
CG Bench: 90 3x6
Tricep Pushdown: 110 3x7 (was stupid and forgot what weight I was doing in the last workout for this )

Feet are slowly getting better. I had about 30 minutes of intense cardio before my workout so that may have affected my energy level (couple friends were at the gym and I got suckered into playing a bball game ).



Posted by: Robboe

Did you notice any inreased recovery from the LG, or any really good workouts from it?

My workouts are pretty intense anyway, but i'm quite sure it has helped me with my workouts and with recovery. I train more frequently than most people also (6 day rotation instead of the typical 7).

As far as the lean gains go, i've put on 1.5lbs this week and all i've done with my calories is add 10g carbs a day. I'm still in my calorie range for dieting and i'm still doing my cardio here and there. I refuse to attribute it completely to the LG mass though.



Posted by: MorteSubite

I have put on 2lbs (170 now). Mirror inspection leads me to believe most is lean (yeah yeah, stupid method, but I don't feel bloated or have any bigger a gut which is where I usually gain fat first).

As far as recovery goes, I think it does help a small amount there. As far as overall energy in workouts, there is a noticeable, but small difference overall, that I have noticed once I came off for these few days.

I agree with you that it is very difficult to attribute things directly to LG Mass due to so many other extenuating factors.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Workout:

Chinnups: 3x6
Lat Pulldowns: 130x3x7
Dips: 3x6
Preacher Curl: 65x3x6
Wrist Curl: 45x3x10
DB Row: 45x3x7

Back on LG Mass.

Felt very good today. Saw a guy I worked with early last year in the gym. About 18" arms, but his legs were damn small. Kind of typifies how everyone just wants to work out their upperbody...

I'm going to try adding light squats next week. I think my feet are good enough for it.



Posted by: MorteSubite

I'm changing my workout structure around to what I think will be more beneficial with Chest and Bis worked the first day and Back/Shoulders and Tris worked the second. Today was the first day of that new structure.

Bench: 120x2x6, felt good, went up to 125 for final set. 125x6 felt good. I think I can do 130 or perhaps 135 next week. We'll see how it goes!

Pec Deck Flyers: 110 6,6,5 Left arm felt very fatigued, going to stick with the same weight next week to get it down.

Preacher Curl: 70x3x6 - felt very good, should get to 75 next week no problem.

Wrist Curl: 55x3x10

DB Rows: 45x3x8

Ab Pulldown: 115x3x8
Added weighted exercise for abs. (using ropes on the cable crossover machine, position starts at kneeling with head up and bring arms and rope down to the ground)

Squats (to parallel): 135 8,8,4
Started Squats. Going light to get form down and due to the fact that I busted my hip this week (sore but getting better).
Hip started hurting at the 4th rep of the last set, I would rather not risk further injury/

I'm happy with how things have been progressing thus far. Next week I may try changing over to BB Rows since I'll be at a power rack anyway. Dead lifts will be coming too, once I feel my legs are good



Posted by: Robboe

Barbell rows are the dogs bollocks.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by TCD
Barbell rows are the dogs bollocks.
Haha, doesn't sound like much fun. Would you recommend sticking with db rows?



Posted by: MorteSubite

I finally got some measuring tape (cloth) to get some measurements. Not sure what all the standard ones are, but I took what I thought were logical.

Cold, nonflexed.

Chest: 37"
Biceps: 13.75" Right, 13.5" Left
Forearms: 12"
Waist: 32"
Thigh: 23"
Calf: 14.25"

Weight: back to where it was... 168



Posted by: Robboe

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Haha, doesn't sound like much fun. Would you recommend sticking with db rows?
"The Dogs Bollocks" = awesome.



Posted by: MorteSubite

haha, I need to get more familiar with your terminology

I'll try them out. Around 75 to start with or so should be ok, I would think?



Posted by: Robboe

It's not really "my" terminology as it is more southern terminology - namely cockney. I'm about 400 miles north of London, but i think it sounds canny cool regardless.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Workout:

Second day of the new split.

Chins: 7,7,4
Military Press: 90 3x6
Lat Pulldowns: 140 3x7
CG Bench: 105 3x6
Dips: 3x7

Exercise specific notes:

Just for clarification, CG Bench is done at shoulder width. I'd guess that's the optimum width? Any comments appreciated on that.

Absolutely died on the last chins set... next week I'm going to do all chin sets to failure so the numbers should bounce around even more

Dips felt good except for a rather intense pain in the heel of my hands from the grips (hard plastic). Maybe I should get gloves for dips to cushion that?

I decided to remove tricep pushdowns. I think I am doing enough with them in this workout. Opinions?

Overall notes:

I'm very happy with how things have been progressing in terms of adding weight. I feel like I can increase weights at a very fast rate now for the free weight exercises.

I finished all the free weight exercises with a lot of confidence. Hard to explain but I'm finally feeling comfortable with the routine and the exercises. Progression should be significantly faster from here on out

Other info:

Played 2 games of 21 for basketball last night. Legs are feeling quite good especially with a new pair of basketball shoes that I got



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by TCD
It's not really "my" terminology as it is more southern terminology - namely cockney. I'm about 400 miles north of London, but i think it sounds canny cool regardless.
Good stuff, I learn new things every day. I don't know a heck of a lot about England today (except for politics).



Posted by: MorteSubite

Workout today was a mixed bag. I think part of resulted from doing landscaping work all day yesterday.

Bench: 135 5,3

Decided 135 was too much then. Waited 3 minutes before switching down to 130.

130 6,5,3

Preacher Curl: Messed up and did 70 for 6 reps before realizing I was doing the wrong weight. Then adjusted.

75 6,6,4

Wrist Curl: 65x3x8
Ab Pulldown: 125x3x8
Barbell Rows: 85x3x8
Pec Deck Flyers: 100x3x8

Going to try to keep increasing about 5lbs per week on exercises or increasing reps, depending on what is more prudent. Should have a separate leg day at the end of the week if I feel good.

I've increased the LG dose to 3 per day.



Posted by: Robboe

How long have you been using the LG now?



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Workout:


Just for clarification, CG Bench is done at shoulder width. I'd guess that's the optimum width? Any comments appreciated on that.
That's fine. Right about where I do it. The point is to keep your elbows in and bring the bar more to your midsection for the Tri's.

Looking good in here, where in VA are you from BTW?



Posted by: Robboe

I always bench to the nipples regardless of the movement.



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by TCD
I always bench to the nipples regardless of the movement.
How can you do CG Bench correctly and bench to nipples? That puts your arms and shoulders in an ackward unnatural position.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by TCD
How long have you been using the LG now?
Since March 7th, however, I had a period of about 1 week where I came off of it due to poor planning on how much was left. I'll be finishing up my 2nd jug tomorrow. Thankfully I have a third waiting in the fridge



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by rock4832
That's fine. Right about where I do it. The point is to keep your elbows in and bring the bar more to your midsection for the Tri's.

Looking good in here, where in VA are you from BTW?
Edit: Form was not correct previously... Corrected now

I'm in Blacksburg (Virginia Tech) currently. I'm going to be moving to the Arlington area in about 3 months for my job upon graduation; hunting for an apartment right now.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Workout:

Chins: 7,6,5
Military Press: 95 6,5,3
Lat Pulldowns: 150 6,6,5
CG Bench: 95 3x6
note: previously i had not been using proper form. My elbows were out and I was bench to the chest. Now elbows are in and benching right under the nipples. Definitely much more difficult.
Dips: 6,6,5

Felt pretty crappy today. Arms and shoulders were sore last night. I guess I should have postponed the workout for a day or something but I kept on anyway to keep the schedule.



Posted by: Robboe

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
How can you do CG Bench correctly and bench to nipples? That puts your arms and shoulders in an ackward unnatural position.
Ok, i just did the movement now and yeah, CGBP is slightly below the nipples, but that's only if i use an EZ bar. if i dod CG on the smith it's pretty much nipple level and it's not painful or awkward to do.



Posted by: Robboe

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Since March 7th, however, I had a period of about 1 week where I came off of it due to poor planning on how much was left. I'll be finishing up my 2nd jug tomorrow. Thankfully I have a third waiting in the fridge
Sweet.

I don't miss the gas at all, but i sure as hell want some more. Even dosing around workouts would suit me nicely.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Workout:

Bench: 130 6,4,4
Preacher Curl: 75 7,7,4
Wrist Curl: 70x3x6
Ab Pulldown: 130x3x7
Barbell Rows: 95x3x8
Pec Deck Flyers: 110x3x6

Legs:
Low weight in order to become familiar with exercise and form.

Squats: 135x2x8, 185x1x4
SLDLs: 95x2x10

Notes:

Very disappointed with my bench again. It seems like I've lost significant stability on all reps. I'm going to stick with the same weight or go down 5lbs and see how it is next week.

The upper back area where I rest the bar is quite sore now. I need to do some more lower back exercises since those felt a bit too sore during the SLDLs. Probably weighted roman curls next week.

Overall, my legs are feeling very good overall during these exercise. On a daily basis, however, I still have noticeable soreness in my shins which I am workin to get rid of. Thankfully I didn't feel any of that during the exercises and haven't felt any pain since then.

Weight Progress:

I believe that my home scale is busted. The scale and the scale at the gym (very expensive digital one) used to be within 1lb of each other.

Now, I weighed myself at the gym after my workout at 174.6 and came home and weighed myself 10 minutes later (without drinking anything / or going to the bathroom) when I got home and got 170.4.

I believe that the gym scale is correct. If that is so, then progress is quite good.

LG:

Gas is an unpredictable beast. Sometimes it's bad, sometimse it's not a big deal. Can't predict it.

Workout Strategy:

I've had several exercises where I can count on scaling up weight and reps week on week like Preacher Curls and Lat Pulldowns as an example. Some are just staying constant without much progress though...Dips have been very slow in increasing reps, Chins the same way, and Military Press and Bench have been rough lately.

Due to this, I have been thinking of trying out GoPro's P/RR/S system for about 6 weeks and evaluating the results. Any comments?



Posted by: MorteSubite

Nutrition/Diet Update: Water consumption has decreased for me over the past 6 weeks. I just haven't been concentrating on drinking much water overall. I had been drinking about 1-2 gallons per day previously.

Gains have slowed also. To experiment, I am going to increase my water intake to about 1-2 gallons per day once again and see how it affects my gains. I think it will be interesting to track how this goes



Posted by: Robboe

Knock your calories up a bit. Just 100-200 and see what happens.

And yeah, got for the Gopro routine and give it a shot.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Took in 3100 cals yesterday, Fat/Carb/Prot:24/35/41.
No bloated feelins thus far.

I'm having a nice breakfast shake right now. 24oz milk, scoop of Milk Protein Isolate, and a cup of oats

I'm going to try to go for about 2700-2800 calories for low activity days and about 3000-3200 for high activity days.

Going to start reading on GoPro's workouts now



Posted by: MorteSubite

I have noticed vastly increased vascularity over the past few days over my upper chest, neck, and upper arms. Not sure what is causing it but it certainly looks interesting.

Workout tomorrow morning, bed time



Posted by: MorteSubite

One Tough Workout:

Tricep Pushdowns (done with Rope attachment): 120 3x8
CG Seated Row: 120x6,130x6 *
Dips: 12,12,8 (So much energy here!!)
Lat Pulldowns: 150 3x7
Military Press: 85 6,6,5 (concentrating on form)
CG Bench: 85 3x8 (concentrating on form)
Chins: 6,5,5
Upright Row:65 1st set: 9, 2nd set: 8 *
Skullcrushers:55 2x6 *

* = new exercises that I am trying to get acquainted with. I'll be starting GoPro's P/RR/S program next week.

Felt good overall. I saw a friend of mine that I hadn't seen for about 4 months last night who noted that I looked a good amount bigger and asked if I'd been working out.



Posted by: Rocco32

Looks like your doing great buddy, just finished your journal. Cool that your moving to Arlington, that's where I am Why are you moving here?

Good luck with P/RR/S, if you have any questions there are plenty of people to ask including myself. So do you recomment the LG Mass?



Posted by: Robboe

I do.

I want some more for pre and post training meals.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Looks like your doing great buddy, just finished your journal. Cool that your moving to Arlington, that's where I am Why are you moving here?

I'm starting a network security job in DC at the end of the summer, so I've got to get a place

I'm looking at some places in north Arlington but most are a bit too expensive. It seems very tough to get a place that's walking distance to the metro (subway), a decent place, and affordable.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Good luck with P/RR/S, if you have any questions there are plenty of people to ask including myself. So do you recomment the LG Mass?
I'm going to try to use GoPro's routine pretty strictly except that I don't think I'll be able to do calf raises or leg press in the next month or so. I am still recovering from a few injuries which get very touchy when I do those exercises. Squats and DLs are fine though, go figure....

I recommend LG Mass as a good supplement that does work, but it really depends on your budget. It definitely does help with the lean bulk but it is damn expensive for what it does.

I would say buy two jugs, try it out, and see if you like it.



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
I'm starting a network security job in DC at the end of the summer, so I've got to get a place

I'm looking at some places in north Arlington but most are a bit too expensive. It seems very tough to get a place that's walking distance to the metro (subway), a decent place, and affordable.



I'm going to try to use GoPro's routine pretty strictly except that I don't think I'll be able to do calf raises or leg press in the next month or so. I am still recovering from a few injuries which get very touchy when I do those exercises. Squats and DLs are fine though, go figure....

I recommend LG Mass as a good supplement that does work, but it really depends on your budget. It definitely does help with the lean bulk but it is damn expensive for what it does.

I would say buy two jugs, try it out, and see if you like it.
What company? I work in the Security field for Lockheed Martin. Yeah, it's expensive around here. My wife and I have an apartment in Arlington, 1 bedroom at $1,100 a month



Posted by: MorteSubite

Going to be working for PricewaterhouseCoopers.



Posted by: MorteSubite

First day of P/RR/S!

Power - Leg workout:

Squats: 155x6,185x5,205x5
Ankle felt bad so I stopped with one set at 205. Legs felt fine otherwise. Damn joints and feet, I hate them!

Leg press is horrible for my feet, I'm just skipping that part of the Power area

Single Leg Extension: 90x6x3 sets
I tried to do the exercises from memory...supposed to just do 2 sets...
Also noticed my left leg is much stronger than right.

Lying Leg Curl: 65x6x3
Felt the difference in strength in this as well.

SLDL: 105x2x6
Gym closing in 5 minutes message came up when I was walking over to do this so I had to do it quickly.

Notes:

Felt very good except for my ankle with the squats. I don't think I challenged my legs a ton, but it is a good start. I don't want any more fun with plantar fasciatis in my feet

Workout length: 25 minutes



Posted by: Rocco32

Nice w/o, sorry about the ankle though that sucks. Are you doing anything for it?



Posted by: MorteSubite

Iced it for about 20 minutes last night. I've got some ibuprofen left over, but thankfully it's not hurting at all this morning.

My shins, feet, and ankles just have a lot of aches and pains whenever I stress them hard through workouts or exercise like basketball.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Found an apartment in Ballston (area in Arlington)! 3br townhome that's about a 5-8 minute walk from the Ballston metro and a bit closer to the Ballston Gold's Gym. Good location and pretty nice place overall, decent price.

Applied for the place. Now I have to wait for them to check my credit (and that of the other roommates) before they approve or deny the application.



Posted by: Rocco32

Awesome buddy! Do you mind if I ask how much? I go to Ballston's Gym, awesome women there



Posted by: gwcaton

Cool , another prrs'er Good luck and nice first wo



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Awesome buddy! Do you mind if I ask how much? I go to Ballston's Gym, awesome women there
It's $2075 in Ballston Park. Only one parking space is included in the deal, so that'll probably tack on another $80 ($40/each for additional permits).

When we were in the rental office filling out the lease application, another group of three people came in looking for a 3br place, while we'd just taken the only one available. I was damn happy we got there early that day.

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwcaton
Cool , another prrs'er Good luck and nice first wo
Thanks man! I think it's a really good program. I just have to learn how to do some new exercises for it



Posted by: MorteSubite

Power - Arms:

Barbell Curl: 2x6x75
Preacher Curl: 2x6x80

I tried upping the weights on both of these...85 for BB and PrC however I had significant wrist pain with that. Hopefully that won't be an issue in the future.

Hammer Curl: 2x4x30
CG Bench: 3x6x100
Skull Crushers: 2x6x65

Single Dumbell Extensions: 2x6x15
Right shoulder was in a bit of pain for this, so I didn't want to aggravate it.

Notes:

Arms felt very good overall with the except of some wrist and shoulder pain as noted. I'm really liking this so far!

Workout length: 45 minutes



Posted by: Rocco32

Nice w/o. You might want to switch to EZ Bar curl rather than BB if your having some issues. Those problems quickly esculate to much larger problems! Your putting up some nice weight buddy!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Nice w/o. You might want to switch to EZ Bar curl rather than BB if your having some issues. Those problems quickly esculate to much larger problems! Your putting up some nice weight buddy!
That's a good idea. I'll do that next time I do the BB curl. I've been doing preachers with an EZ bar already. The pain with that was less than that when using a regular barbell.

I'm happy with the progression of weights on most exercises. I don't think I'm lifting much, but I figure that I should be putting up a good amount by the end of the summer. I have to keep driving myself to improve.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Power - Chest/Abs:

WM indicates Warmup set
BW indicates Body Weight

DB Bench Press:
WM-35sx6
WM-45sx8
50s-4,6,5
I lost control of the left DB on the first set, strength was still there, not stability.

Incline Bench Press:
95x6
100x6
105x4

Weighted Dips:
WM-BW+10x6
WM-BW+15x6
2xBW+25x6

Ab Pulldowns:
2x130x6
130x10

Decline Crunches:
BW+10x20

Notes:
I think DB Bench will go up once I get more used to the exercise. It's extremely awkward.

I felt great on weighted dips. Very good exercise

Workout length: 60 minutes



Posted by: MorteSubite

Nutrition Update

I've upped my calorie intake to about 3300-3500 calories per day, depending on whether or not it is a workout day (if so, then about 3500).

Weight Update
170 in the morning.
~15% BF

I think my emphasis on relatively low rep ranges previously was a large reason why I'm pretty much at the same size as at the start of this journal, but for some exercises I'm lifting a significant amount more.

P/RR/S Strategy

I'm going to alter my strategy in the next P/RR/S set to be RR/P/RR/S in order to promote growth.

LG Mass Info

I will not continue this after my current supply runs out. Though I am happy with it for the most part, It is simply too expensive for my budget.



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Power - Chest/Abs:

WM indicates Warmup set
BW indicates Body Weight

DB Bench Press:
WM-35sx6
WM-45sx8
50s-4,6,5
I lost control of the left DB on the first set, strength was still there, not stability.

Incline Bench Press:
95x6
100x6
105x4

Weighted Dips:
WM-BW+10x6
WM-BW+15x6
2xBW+25x6

Ab Pulldowns:
2x130x6
130x10

Decline Crunches:
BW+10x20

Notes:
I think DB Bench will go up once I get more used to the exercise. It's extremely awkward.

I felt great on weighted dips. Very good exercise

Workout length: 60 minutes
Great w/o Anything DB like that takes some getting used to, but once you do it'll shoot up. Still, 50 is a great weight! So when are you moving again, I forgot?



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks rocco! It's harder for me to get the DBs into position than the motion of the exercise.

The lease starts mid-June. It looks like I'll be moving in the end of the month with one of the guys moving in right when the lease starts.



Posted by: gwcaton

Nice wo

You should be able to go straight to the working sets on the weighted dips. The db bench and incline bench work should have you warmed up already. You probably could of done 40-45 lbs



Posted by: MorteSubite

I had no idea how much I could do with weighted dips. I've never done them before.

I know I could have done 35 and 40-45 could be possible.

Thanks for the tip. We'll find out in a few weeks if I can do the 45 (that'll be a nice incremental goal).



Posted by: Robboe

Weighted dips rock.



Posted by: MorteSubite

I agree, they felt great

Robboe, changed your name go along with going to Designer Supplements? Just curious, what're you working on there?



Posted by: tucker01

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite

Robboe, changed your name go along with going to Designer Supplements? Just curious, what're you working on there?

Melting Point if he knows what is good for him



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by IainDaniel
Melting Point if he knows what is good for him
I did a bit of searching to find out what Melting Point is but didn't see anything too conclusive.

Is it primarily a test booster?



Posted by: tucker01

No Fat Burner, Meant to be pretty potent Check out Anabolicminds.com in the DS section thread called uncoupler. Sounds very promising. At least to the easily fat like me



Posted by: MorteSubite

Damn, that's a huge discussion. It looks quite interesting. All these supplements...no budget for them.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Picked up some Vitamin B6 and B12. I couldn't remember which one increased appetite so I got them both. It looks like B12 is the one that increases appetite, right? Each pill has 250mcg which is 4167% of the daily value. I'll take one a day and see if it helps

Tomorrow morning is back and delts!



Posted by: MorteSubite

I'm going to log calorie amounts per day and the Fat/Carb/Protein breakup starting from now.

4/28
3300cal
28/30/42



Posted by: Robboe

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
I agree, they felt great

Robboe, changed your name go along with going to Designer Supplements? Just curious, what're you working on there?
I just wanted the same username over the boards. On a UK site, i'm under "Da Vinci", but so long as the name or avatar is the same or similar, and my sig has the info in it, people should be the idea.

The only place i'm still "The_Chicken_Daddy" is WannaBeBig, but i don't post there anymore.

And unfortunately for Iain, i'm not a scientist, so i won't be working on any of the products. I'm just an all-round good looking company rep, brand promoter, article writer, user feedback controller, general consultant etc...



Posted by: Robboe

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Picked up some Vitamin B6 and B12. I couldn't remember which one increased appetite so I got them both. It looks like B12 is the one that increases appetite, right? Each pill has 250mcg which is 4167% of the daily value. I'll take one a day and see if it helps

Tomorrow morning is back and delts!
If you take them together, you get B9.



Posted by: Robboe

Only joking.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Hehe. Some people might believe that It seems that B6 taking far in excess of the daily value can be harmful so I'll probably just return that. I don't think I have much use for 5000% of my B6 needs per day.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robboe
I just wanted the same username over the boards. On a UK site, i'm under "Da Vinci", but so long as the name or avatar is the same or similar, and my sig has the info in it, people should be the idea.

The only place i'm still "The_Chicken_Daddy" is WannaBeBig, but i don't post there anymore.

And unfortunately for Iain, i'm not a scientist, so i won't be working on any of the products. I'm just an all-round good looking company rep, brand promoter, article writer, user feedback controller, general consultant etc...
Ah, the man of many different names.

I saw the Activate testers request threat and thought of giving that a go before my senses kicked. I don't think I'd be happy with myself if I used something like that before I realized what I could do naturally in addition to the fact that I don't know nearly enough about that type of thing to intelligently use it. I hope you guys get some good individuals for that test (Pirate seems like a great pick for one out of the 2 or 3)

I'll keep on an eye DS' supplements. It looks like you guys have got quite a lot interesting things going (especially with all the hubbub about Superdrol previously).



Posted by: MorteSubite

Power - Back/Delts:

WM indicates Warmup set
BW indicates Body Weight

Delts

Military Press:
85x6
95x6
95x5

Upright Row:
80x6
2x85x6

"Cheat" Lateral:
2x15x6

Back

Rack DL:
205x6
205x6
205x5

Bent Row:
3x115x6

Weighted Chins:
BW+10x6
BW+10x5
BW+10x4

CG Seated Row:
140x6
140x6
140x5

Notes:
I'm not sure if I did more of a regular side lateral or more of a cheat lateral but nonetheless, they were damned hard.

My grip is horrible! I missed the last rack dl in the last set since my hand literally couldn't hold on. I was using a supinated grip and the left hand which was underhand was fine. In the last few reps of the chins, that was a problem too, my hands were slipping off of the bar. I think I'll use gloves next time for exercises where I need more grip.

Other than poor grip, workout felt great!

Workout length: 75 minutes



Posted by: MorteSubite

Just thought of something... Is http://www.bodysolid.com/Accessories...nts/MB502.html the correct attachment for doing CG Seated Rows? If not, I used the wrong one today.. hehe



Posted by: Robboe

I change the handle for the low pulley rows all the time, don't sweat it.



Posted by: gwcaton

Nice wo

Thats the attachment I use for CG seated rows but i have also used a chain with 2 seperate stirrup handles, a rope , a cambered bar . It's all good !



Posted by: Rocco32

Nice w/o buddy. Don't worry, grip will catch up When you did racked Deads, where was the starting point? Knee level or below?



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwcaton
Nice wo

Thats the attachment I use for CG seated rows but i have also used a chain with 2 seperate stirrup handles, a rope , a cambered bar . It's all good !
Thanks man!

Yeah, the gym has all those attachments. It's almost overkill but I'm glad they're available



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Nice w/o buddy. Don't worry, grip will catch up When you did racked Deads, where was the starting point? Knee level or below?
Do you think it'd be more beneficial to keep doing things without gloves to build up grip as opposed to going to gloves?

It's annoying since I know I could be more productive if I could grip better.

I used the lowest position for the power rods in the rack. It was about knee level, I'll check how close it is to knee level next time I'm in the gym (early next week).



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robboe
I change the handle for the low pulley rows all the time, don't sweat it.
Thanks, just trying to make sure I do the exercises properly



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Do you think it'd be more beneficial to keep doing things without gloves to build up grip as opposed to going to gloves?

It's annoying since I know I could be more productive if I could grip better.

I used the lowest position for the power rods in the rack. It was about knee level, I'll check how close it is to knee level next time I'm in the gym (early next week).
I think gloves is a personal choice. Wraps is what hinders a persons grip. I personally like it gloveless and use chalk or something to fight sweat.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Chalks is, unfortunately, not an option at the university gym.

I think I'll try it with gloves and see how it goes. I picked up a rather hideous looking pair from walmart for $1 when they had a clearance sale...They look ok other than that



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Chalks is, unfortunately, not an option at the university gym.

I think I'll try it with gloves and see how it goes. I picked up a rather hideous looking pair from walmart for $1 when they had a clearance sale...They look ok other than that
Haha, LOL! Give it a go then Certain exercises I do put my gloves on for



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Haha, LOL! Give it a go then Certain exercises I do put my gloves on for
If I get my digital camera working again I'll put a picture of them up



Posted by: MorteSubite

Well, it's working now albeit without the screen on it. Going in for the start of rep range tonight

4/29 - 3604 cals - 21/42/38



Posted by: gwcaton

Hey that avi looks awful familiar. LOL



Posted by: MorteSubite

Rep Range - Leg / Tris:

Legs

Leg Extension:
2x170x10

Hack Squats:
225x10
205x11
185x12

Lying Leg Curl:
70x8
65x8

SLDL:
135x10
155x10

Tris

Weighted Dips:
BW+20x8
2xBW+25x8

Pushdowns:
110x10
110x9

Kickbacks:
10x12
15x12

Notes:

Felt great! Should have started higher in weight for Dips, Kickbacks, and SLDLs.

Hack Squats were insane! Easily the hardest exercise in the entire workout. Those few inches below parallel are so damn tough but so rewarding! I think I picked very good weights. Is there any usual comparison as to how much someone should squat if they hack squat an amount or vice versa? The controlled motion does definitely help out for it.

Dips are surprising... While I was only doing 7 or so dips about a month ago, I'm doing 8 with 25 pounds on me. I think I can do 8 with 30 right now. I think 35 by next RR week is good

SLDLs were done without gloves. Didn't lose grip. I think my weights will improve quickly with this.

Kind of funny though, I have higher weights for the RR then last week for a few exercises. Since I'm still figuring out where my current limits are for legs.

Workout length: 70 minutes



Posted by: gwcaton

Nice wo

Quote:
Kind of funny though, I have higher weights for the RR then last week for a few exercises. Since I'm still figuring out where my current limits are for legs.
Thats normal. At least it is for me (so thats probably not a good comparison. LOL )



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwcaton
Hey that avi looks awful familiar. LOL
Yup! Took that this afternoon since Rocco mentioned that he'd put one in if he had a shot in his journal.

It's damned hard to get a good back picture with a timer when you can't review the pictures using the LCD... Have to transfer it to the computer before I can check if it's even getting the right area.

My arms looking absolutely tiny on the sides of that picture.. Hopefully the back makes up for it a little bit..



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwcaton
Nice wo


Thats normal. At least it is for me (so thats probably not a good comparison. LOL )
Thanks!

I guess it depends as gopro said a bit on if you're better at pure strength w/ low reps or if you're better at repping things out. In any case, I'd think that at any one time you should be able to do far more in the lower rep range in terms of pulling weight..

I haven't been able to seriously workout my legs since January so these past two leg workouts have been great!



Posted by: Rocco32

Nice w/o there Morte! But how did Tri's end up with legs LOL? I'd also maybe throw in another Quad exercise like single leg press. Looks like your doing awesome and nice pic



Posted by: MorteSubite

Leg Press and Single Leg Press have been tough for my feet. I'm going to try it again next week at low weights in order to see how I feel. I haven't tried it these past two workouts since I wanted to play it safe.

I'm going to try a new split this week...

Sat: Legs/Tris
Sun: off
Mon: Chest/Abs
Tues: Bis/Calves
Weds: off
Thurs: Back/Delts

I'm not sure if I'll stick to the exact days, but I think this should be interesting. I just want to throw different things together to see how they feel



Posted by: Rocco32

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Leg Press and Single Leg Press have been tough for my feet. I'm going to try it again next week at low weights in order to see how I feel. I haven't tried it these past two workouts since I wanted to play it safe.

I'm going to try a new split this week...

Sat: Legs/Tris
Sun: off
Mon: Chest/Abs
Tues: Bis/Calves
Weds: off
Thurs: Back/Delts

I'm not sure if I'll stick to the exact days, but I think this should be interesting. I just want to throw different things together to see how they feel
That's right, forgot about that

It's always good to experiment and find what you like. And to mix things up even when you do like them Looks good.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
That's right, forgot about that

It's always good to experiment and find what you like. And to mix things up even when you do like them Looks good.
Yeah, I like keeping things interesting. P/RR/S in of itself has done that quite well thus far.



Posted by: MorteSubite

4/30/05
3504 cals
15/52/33



Posted by: MorteSubite

RR - Chest/Abs:

DB Incline Press:
WM 25sx10
35sx10
40sx8
45sx8
50s-left arm couldn't do it.
45sx8

Bench Press:
115x8
105x9
95x10

DB Flyes:
2x15x12

Weighted Decline Crunches:
bw+20x12
bw+25x12

Cable Crunches:
3x120x10

Notes:

It took me forever to find out what I could do on the Inclines. I think I could have done 50s if I had started out with them. I think the next cycle will be much better since I'll be familiar with all the exercises.

I was so completely dead when I got around to the bench...

DB Flyes were a lot tougher than I thought they'd be.

Workout length: 45 minutes



Posted by: Rocco32

Nice w/o buddy! Yeah, it takes some trial and error the first time through to get the weights you need and it'll be easier your next time through You and Gary had pretty much the same w/o today



Posted by: gwcaton

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
RR - Chest/Abs:

DB Incline Press:
WM 25sx10
35sx10
40sx8
45sx8
50s-left arm couldn't do it.
45sx8

Bench Press:
115x8
105x9
95x10

DB Flyes:
2x15x12

Weighted Decline Crunches:
bw+20x12
bw+25x12

Cable Crunches:
3x120x10

Notes:

It took me forever to find out what I could do on the Inclines. I think I could have done 50s if I had started out with them. I think the next cycle will be much better since I'll be familiar with all the exercises.

I was so completely dead when I got around to the bench...

DB Flyes were a lot tougher than I thought they'd be.

Workout length: 45 minutes
Hey that wo does look pretty familiar !! Nice job it does take awhile to get the weights figured out but when you do it will be incredible



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwcaton
Hey that wo does look pretty familiar !! Nice job it does take awhile to get the weights figured out but when you do it will be incredible
Upper body workouts are decent but I just love the leg workouts! They're the most fun workouts now that they're feeling good. I wonder if the leg workouts will help speed for sprints. It'd be a nice side benefit for basketball



Posted by: MorteSubite

5/01/05
estimated cals (had a banquet for dinner...not sure what cal count was)
3600
30/35/35

5/02/05
3593
22/42/36

This is working well. At 172 in the mornings now.



Posted by: MorteSubite

5/03/05
3684
19/44/37

This is finals time, and I have had a few setbacks in terms of the amount of work that I need to do. I'm not sure if I'll be able to workout until Saturday.



Posted by: Seanp156

Just came browsing through here and thought I'd say good job. It's nice to see more new members(me included) take themselves seriously with their goals .



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Seanp156
Just came browsing through here and thought I'd say good job. It's nice to see more new members(me included) take themselves seriously with their goals .
Thanks Sean! I appreciate it.

I just need to finish this last week of projects, papers, and finals then I'm done until I decide to subject myself to more of this stuff (grad school...).



Posted by: MorteSubite

nutrition info...

5/04/05
3179
24/34/42

5/05/05
3409
19/48/34

5/06/05
3023
12/57/31



Posted by: MorteSubite

RR - Bis/Calves/Abs:

Bis

Alternating Dumbbell Curls:
2x30x8

Standing EZ Bar Curl:
70x9
65x9

Concentration Curl:
2x10x15

Calves

Calf Raises:
2x55x15

Sitting Calf Raises:
2x45x10

Abs

Kneeling Cable Crunches:
2x120x12

Notes:

RI was about 90 seconds.

I don't see much benefit to doing cable curls and an EZ bar is better for my wrists, so I went with that as a substitution.

Concentration curls were done sitting down on a bench. Very difficult.

Concentrating on working the ab muscles as much as possible with the crunches, felt great!

Calves feel good, 10 hours since the workout. I played an hour of tennis and shot hoops for an hour as well. Legs are really improving! I will stay with a higher rep range for the calves, but I will keep increasing weight.

Workout length: 35 minutes



Posted by: Rocco32

Looks good buddy. You just gotta tailor the exercises to fit what works for you! I didn't like cable curls before, but now I'm starting to like them, but I also see what your saying. Nice w/o!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks! Three classes are all done with two more finals left. Thankfully, the last 2 won't be too difficult



Posted by: Rissole

Hey Champ, thought i'd better pop in and say G'Day to a fellow Beast



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks Rissole!

Took a look at your gallery. Damn, very impressive!



Posted by: Rissole

Thanks bud but hey.... thats P/RR/S for ya



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rissole
Thanks bud but hey.... thats P/RR/S for ya
Haha, great stuff! Wait for a few years and maybe I'll have some impressive pictures too.



Posted by: MorteSubite

5/07

3808
22/49/29

probably not enough cals considering I did a solid 2 hours of exercise...



Posted by: Rissole

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
Haha, great stuff! Wait for a few years and maybe I'll have some impressive pictures too.
Yep for sure!! Stick at it
3800 is pretty high but that all depends on where they are coming from too



Posted by: Pylon

looking strong, morte. Good job!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rissole
Yep for sure!! Stick at it
3800 is pretty high but that all depends on where they are coming from too
All clean foods. Since that was a workout day and I did two hours of exercise on top of that, I think 3800 wasn't too high.

I think I've increased my metabolism from when I started in January and February. Back then I was making solid gains from only about 2500-2700 calories per day. Right now that level is needed for maintenance.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Pylon
looking strong, morte. Good job!
Thanks Pylon!

I finished my last final this morning and played 1 hour of basketball this afternoon. I got elbowed in my forearm this Sunday when I was playing 21 which gave me a nice bruise and some pain over the past day or so.

Tomorrow I'll be resuming lifting



Posted by: MorteSubite

5/08/05

3676
15/48/37
fat/carb/protein



Posted by: MorteSubite

RR - Delts / Back:

Single Arm DB Shoulder Press:
L 2x8x30
R 35x8, 30x8

Bent Lateral:
3x8x15

Side Lateral:
15x10
15x8

CG Chin:
BWx8
BWx7

T-Bar Row:
45x9
40x10

DB Row:
35x12
30x12

Pullover:
2x20x15


Notes:

Workout length: 40 minutes
RI: 60-90s

Working out in a new gym on campus as the other is unavailable. This is my first workout in 2 weeks due to graduation. This really kicked my ass today. My arms were very tired afterwards.



Posted by: Rocco32

Good w/o buddy! And congratulations on graduating!!!!!! That's awesome.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Good w/o buddy! And congratulations on graduating!!!!!! That's awesome.
Thanks Rocco! I was able to go out with a bang thanks to working hard on the exams.

How've you been?



Posted by: Rocco32

Doing very good! Just got a very large raise today so I'm pretty happy Good that you did so well!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Congrats man! That's awesome!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Shock - Chest:

Flyes* / Weighted Dips Superset:
70x10 / BW+20 x 10
70x8 / BW+20 x 4

*(modified, arms are at right angles like an L and reverse)

Bench Press Dropset:

Variable resistance so I'll post both min and max #'s.

92/141 x 10
81/123 x 7
71/108 x 7

WG Chins:
BWx4
- Thrown in as extras

Notes:

All campus gyms are closed this weekend.
Worked out at my apt gym (all machines). Used my backpack w/ 2 10lb dbs for weighted dips.

Workout length: 10 minutes
RI: cardiovascular recovery (< 20 sec)



Posted by: MorteSubite

RR - Bis/Tris:

Bis

Alternating Dumbbell Curls:
2x8x35

Machine Curl:
2x9x105

Concentration Curl:
2x12x20

Tris

Bench Dips:
3xBWx15

Pushdowns:
2x70x10

Kickbacks:
2x15x12

Notes:

I'm in Atlanta for a few days. Today's workout was done in the gym at a friend's apartment where I'm staying. They have DB's up to 45lbs so it is much better than your typical apt gym I didn't have the equipment to improv a shock workout so I figure a bit more RR sould be fine to shake things up

Machine Curl had a very limited ROM and felt like the machine wasn't constructed well.

There was not anything available that I could have done dips with, so bench dips were substituted, though they were far too easy (I can't figure out how you could do weighted bench dips...where would you put the weight?)

Pushdowns were done on a Lat Pulldown station as opposed to a cable crossover station.

RI was about 90 seconds.

Workout length: 35 min



Posted by: Rocco32

Great workout and way to improvise Morte. That's the sign of devotion and intelligence



Posted by: gwcaton

Nice wo ! Way to improvise!
Here's your bench dip with weights http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/...tBenchDip.html



Posted by: Rissole

That guys a pussy....!! Pile up 3 or 4 20kg'rs on there

Hey Morte, hows things??



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Great workout and way to improvise Morte. That's the sign of devotion and intelligence
Thanks Rocco! Just have to figure out what I can do for the next few days I'm here. I think I'm going to do Chest (RR) next workout.

I'm going to be doing some more travelling this summer so I'll have to continue improvising



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by gwcaton
Nice wo ! Way to improvise!
Here's your bench dip with weights http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/...tBenchDip.html
Thanks GW! I think that will require a cup if I want to do that w/ DBs (the only free weights in this place)..



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rissole
That guys a pussy....!! Pile up 3 or 4 20kg'rs on there

Hey Morte, hows things??
Hahaha! That'd certainly be a good way to tempt fate.

Rissole, doing well! Having fun in the gym and loving DBs for exercises. It's ridiculous how many exercises you can do with a good set of DBs and an adjustable bench.

Enjoying Atlanta right now and planning what else I'm going to be doing until I have to start work in August.

Improv workouts is probably going to kill any real consistancy with P/RR/S for a lot of time this summer, but I think I can still improve



Posted by: MorteSubite

RR - Chest/Calves:

DB Incline Press:
45sx9
45sx9
45sx8

DB Bench Press:
45sx12
45sx10 - left was weak
45sx12

DB Flyes:
2x15x13

Calves

DB Calf Raises:
2x70x15

Sitting DB Calf Raises:
50x20
60x22

Notes:

45s were the highest DBs available so I tried to improv a bit through higher reps.

Sitting DB Calf Raises were done with a db on each leg slightly before the knee joint while sitting on a flat bench.

I'm using EAS Carb Control shakes for my protein since I forgot to bring that. They cost $6 for 4 that only have 15g of protein each (all the damn protein bars either contain peanut butter or "may" contain peanut products so I can't have those). Target has all those stupid things like Cortislim in their nutrition section, but of course no jugs of protein...... Thankfully these don't have any sugar or other crap in them.

Despite all that, I'm realy enjoying these workouts. Tonight my friend and I were the only ones in the gym so we could be as loud as we liked.

Workout length: 35 minutes



Posted by: Rissole

Db's shouldn't make any difference bro ANYTHING you can do with a bar or mach you can do with DB's (even CG presses )
If you want dips with db's just put it sideways so the plates on each side are on your thighs (not good after leg day ) Just make sure when your up the db dosn't roll down your legs



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rissole
Db's shouldn't make any difference bro ANYTHING you can do with a bar or mach you can do with DB's (even CG presses )
If you want dips with db's just put it sideways so the plates on each side are on your thighs (not good after leg day ) Just make sure when your up the db dosn't roll down your legs
For CG DB Bench, would you just keep the DBs touching each other the entire time or would rotating your hands 90 degrees so the DBs are parallel to your body help? (this would affect the movement significantly so I'd think this wouldn't be as good an idea).

And yeah, I was thinking the same way for the leg weights with bench dips before. I think I'd only use those if I had some protective equipment to cover for any slips of the DBs down the legs.



Posted by: Egoatdoor

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
DB Bench Press:

45sx10 - left was weak

I've been having the same problem lately when lifting heavy. My left shoulder is weaker than the right due to an old rotator cuff injury. Tonight, I had a spotter help me with just the left hand and I was able to add a couple of reps. The right side was fine, but with a little push from the spotter on the left hand, I didn't have the problem of the left side giving out before the right side was completly fatigued.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Egoatdoor
I've been having the same problem lately when lifting heavy. My left shoulder is weaker than the right due to an old rotator cuff injury. Tonight, I had a spotter help me with just the left hand and I was able to add a couple of reps. The right side was fine, but with a little push from the spotter on the left hand, I didn't have the problem of the left side giving out before the right side was completly fatigued.
That's a good idea. I think I'll try that next time I do a DB Press.

Thanks Ego!




Posted by: Rissole

Quote:
Originally Posted by MorteSubite
For CG DB Bench, would you just keep the DBs touching each other the entire time or would rotating your hands 90 degrees so the DBs are parallel to your body help? (this would affect the movement significantly so I'd think this wouldn't be as good an idea).

And yeah, I was thinking the same way for the leg weights with bench dips before. I think I'd only use those if I had some protective equipment to cover for any slips of the DBs down the legs.
I would probably hold them parrallel but touching each other too. Different grips are great fr different ways to hit a muscle, give em a shot i bet they are great
I have used db's for dips before alot before and it works fine if you are careful



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rissole
I would probably hold them parrallel but touching each other too. Different grips are great fr different ways to hit a muscle, give em a shot i bet they are great
I have used db's for dips before alot before and it works fine if you are careful
Good advice! I'll let you know how it goes when the time comes for using them in exercises. I'll be extremely careful with the weighted dip bench.

Thanks Rissole!



Posted by: Rissole

No worries champ



Posted by: MorteSubite

RR - Back \ Delts:

Back

CG Chin:
BWx10
BWx8

WG T-Bar Row:
2x45x10

DB Row:
40x12
35x12

Pullover:
2x20x15

Delts

DB Shoulder Press:
35sx8
35sx10

Bent Lateral:
3x10x10

Cable Side Lateral:
LR: 30x12
L: 25x9
R: 25x11

Notes:

Workout length: 35 minutes
RI: 90s

Finishing out the second RR week with the Leg workout later today (this was yesterday evening). Felt good and fixed form with bent laterals. I like using both arms for the OH/Shoulder press instead of just one at a time.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Rep Range - Leg:

Legs

Leg Extension:
180x10
170x10

Hack Squats:
3x205x12

Standing (bent over) Leg Curl:
65x8
70x8

SLDL:
185x7 oh grip - slipped
185x12 supine (alt) grip

Single Leg Squats (Smith):
95x10 (getting used to it)
105x15

Seated Leg Curl:
130x12 - had to keep my arms clenched to do this properly. weird exercise.

Notes:

I really dislike the Standing (bent-over) leg curls. I can never get into a comfortable position for my right leg despite any adjustments to the pads and machine. The left leg is fine though... weird stuff...

Seated Leg Curl felt awkward too, but not nearly as bad.

I think I can go up at least another 20lbs for SLDLs. My grip is my biggest weakness.

I really like single leg squats in the smith machine!

RR - Done!!! On to Shock next week.

Workout length: 35 minutes



Posted by: Rocco32

Some great w/o's here Morte! Have fun with Shock week



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Some great w/o's here Morte! Have fun with Shock week
Thanks Rocco! I'm going to try to do all the workouts early in the morning so it'll be easier to jump from station to station.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Shock - Chest / Calves:

Cable Crossover / Incline Smith Press superset:
50x10 / 95x10
55x8 / 100x10

Incline Flye / Dips superset:
20x10 / BWx12

Machine Bench Press dropset:
130x10
120x8
110x8

Bit of Calf Work...

Standing Calf Raise dropset:
160x10
140x10

Cardio
Biked to and from gym, 1.5mi each way.

Notes:

Should have used higher weights for incline smith press (felt a bit weird but I'll get used to it), incline flye, machine bench press. I don't like the form that the machine bench forces you to use if you are using a parallel grip. I think the angled grip might be better.

I have no idea what was up with Dips. I had quite a bit of energy there. In the future I don't think I'll be able to crank out so many reps with appropriate weights in the other exercises.

I felt like an ass running around the gym from the Crossovers to the Smith machine all the time.

Workout length: 20 minutes (not including biking)



Posted by: Rocco32

Haha, nice w/o. I hear you on feeling like an ass running around the gym like that



Posted by: MorteSubite

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocco32
Haha, nice w/o. I hear you on feeling like an ass running around the gym like that
Thanks Rocco! I did the shock shuffle again today.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Shock - Arms:

EZ Bar Curl / CG Chin SS:
75x10 / BWx6

Preacher Curl / Reverse Curl SS:
75x10 / 55x5

Cable Single Arm DS:
40x10
35x9

Pushdown / Skullcrusher SS:
110x10 / 55x10
110x10 / 55x8

Reverse Grip Pushdown / Incline OH Extension:
80x10 / 20x10 R 20x5 L
75x10 / 15x10 R 15x5 L

Weighted Bench Dip:
BW+35x10
BW+25x10

Cardio
Biked to and from gym, 1.5mi each way.

Notes:
This really killed my arms..

Probably should have used a 45 for bench dip...but ah well.

Workout length: 42 minutes (not including biking)



Posted by: MorteSubite

Shock - Legs:

Leg Extension / Squat SS:
180x10 / 135x10
170x10 / 135x10

Wrists hurt quite a bit with the front squats so I changed to regular squats.

Leg Extension / Sissy Squat SS:
180x10 / BWx10
170x10 / BWx10

DB Lunges DS:
L (foot forward): 30s x 4
R: 30sx10
L: 15sx1
R: 25sx10

(Plantar Fascia hurt like hell with left foot forward)

Seated Leg Curl / Toes pointed Hyperextension SS:
160x10 / BW+20x10
140x10 / BW+20x10

Single Leg Curl (standing bent-over) DS:
70x10
60x10

Notes:

I almost fell over when I went to the water fountain after the workout...

This kicked my ass really really hard. I wish that I didn't have issues with Front Squats and Lunges. Any other exercises that I could sub in for those? (Is regular squats an ok substitution for front squats?)

I purposely drove to the gym today.. no way was I going to try to bike back after a leg day....

Workout length: 30 minutes



Posted by: Rocco32

Great w/o Morte!!!! Shock Legs can be a doozy Reg squats are perfectly alright in replacement of Front Squats, or you can do Hack Squats. Leg Press would be fine as well.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks Rocco! As far as workout times that we were talking about before. It'll probably be early in the morning or at night. I really don't have a set schedule yet so I'm just trying to guess.

I should have went for higher weights for squats, I thought that the Leg Extensions would tire me out more, but they didn't do so very much. I think I can go to 190 or maybe 200 with Leg Extensions now (one of my favorite exercises). Thanks for the advice too.


I prefer regular squats to hacks or leg press due to pressure on the feet (regular squats don't bother me at all).

I think I'll try how ATF squats feel next time I do them. If they feel good, might as well use them since they're better.



Posted by: MorteSubite

Weight update: 175

I don't think my bodyfat % has changed much at all. I'd guess 14-16% (according to my scale).



Posted by: MorteSubite

Shock - Back / Delts:

Back

BB Pullover / WG Pulldown SS:
50x10 / 120x10
50x10 / 120x10

Stiff Arm Pulldown / Reverse Grip Bent Row SS:
140x10 / 85x10
140x9 / 85x10

CG Seated Cable Row DS:
140x8
120x7
90x7

Delts

Seated Side Lateral / Machine Shoulder Press SS:
10x10 / 110x9
10x10 / 90x8

Reverse Pec Deck / WG Upright Row SS:
80x6 / 85x10
60x10 / 85x9

Cable Front Raise DS:
R 25x8 L 25x7
R 20x8 L 20x7
R 15x8 L 15x7

Notes:

CG Rows dropset kicked my ass... That was nuts.

Seated Side Laterals and Cable Front Raises cause my shoulders to pop on every rep. I tried to stay on low weights overall but I don't think they'll be that beneficial like that. Any ideas for replacements?

The gym doesn't have any Hammer Strength Shoulder Press stations which is what I assume was indicated by Hammer Machine Press in the workout plans? (we have a Hammer Machine Inc. BP and HS BP) I subbed the machine shoulder presses in for this workout.

That's it for Shock week. I think I'm gonna take a few days off before I start up the next P/RR/S cycle. I am very happy thus far. Shock week without a doubt left me the most sore. My legs are STILL sore (whenever I go to sit down on a chair slowly I feel it so much...) from Friday!

I think I may try a RR/P/RR/S structure for next cycle for more growth.

RI: about 30-45s
Workout length: 40 minutes



Posted by: gwcaton

Nice wo Morte


One question :
Quote:
Stiff Arm Pulldown / Reverse Grip Bent Row SS:
140x10 / 85x10
140x9 / 85x10
You S.A. pulldown more than you row or wg pulldown ?!



Posted by: MorteSubite

The explanation is actually pretty simple. I didn't do it correctly. Next time I do it properly I'm sure the #'s will make sense.

Thanks GW!



Posted by: Rocco32

Great w/o Morte! If you join Golds or Olympus they will both have HS machines Great weight and I agree with the choice to do RR/P/RR/S!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Thanks Rocco! Probably going to start that next cycle tomorrow!



Posted by: MorteSubite

Just copying Rocco and starting a new thread as I think it would be most appropriate especially where the title of this journal has nothing to do with my current routine.

http://www.ironmagazineforums.com/sh....php?p=1028892



(CLICK HERE here to view the original thread with full colors/images)

Striving for Elusive Lean Gains (LG Mass)


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