Thread: Better Than I've Ever Been (Classic)

Thanks TOH. The ankle is feeling better, so Im going to give this jump training stuff (Kelly bagget's program) a try. We shall see. Its just a shame a cant dunk anymore, when I used to fly through the air! of course, I was a skinny kid back then and about 40-50 pounds lighter

Weighted Pull Ups

bwx8; 20lbx5; 20lbx5; 20lbx6. Felt decent, but kinda a pain holding the db between my legs. Might have to try using the belt

DB Rows


[60x8] 80x6; 90x6; 100x6; 110x3 (failed on 3rd rep with left hand). Felt great as usual. But also as usual I continue to feel my grip is holding me back. But maybe its getting better- the 90lb DBs were fine in my hand, but the 100s were hard as hell to hold onto. I dont know why Im somuch stronger on this exercise than other exercises - like disproportionately strong compared to like pull ups, presses, etc... Im pretty sure my form is strict. anyways, im not complaining!

Hammer Pulldowns

270x8; 360x5

Yates Rows

[135x8] 225x5; 225x5; 135x10. Forgot my straps again (im horrible at remembering stuff like that), and thus my grip was compromised on my two working sets. So i threw in an extra, and unneeded, set at the end in frustration

DB Bicep Curls

45x6; 50x5

Reverse Flyes

105x9; 115x9


I also did some stretching at the end, as well as HIIT on the bike for 15 minutes.

OK workout today after a bad weekend re my diet.

Incline DB Press

[55x8 warmup] 75x6; 75x6; 75x6; 75x5

BB Push Press

95x6; 95x6; 135x6; 135x4

Standing Alternating DB Press

30x10; 40x7

Machine Flyes

265x5; 220x9

Tricep Cable One Arm

20x10; 30x5

skipped shoulder prehab due to mad busy gym

bike- hiit for 13 minutes

Had my first workout of the vertical jump bible training program yesterday. My legs are still sore!!!

Here is the program:

4 square drill: 2x10
low squat ankle jumps: 3x30
Rhythmic Lunge jumps: 3x10 (per leg) (these were sooo hard!!!)
1,2,3 jumps: 3x5
20 yard sprints: x3

[5 minute break]

front squats: 3 sets of 8 reps at 95lbs
leg curl: 125x8; 140x8; 125x8
low depth jumps: 5x4

All in all a good workout. Fairly easy so far, with the exception of the lunge jumps which were really hard.
I will be following this jump program twice a week for the next month, and I have high hopes.

Had a good workout today, but should have looked at my numbers for last session (didnt push myself as hard as I could have)

Weighted Pull Ups

bwx6; 25lbs x5; 25lbx x5; 25lbx5 (followed by bwx8).. Felt really good. 25lbs is still a little heavy, but happy I could consistently get 5 reps

DB Rows

70x8; 90x6; 90x6; 90x6. Felt fine, grip as always is bothersome. Should have pushed myself with the 100lb dbs

Yates Rows

225x5; 225x5; 185x8 (strict and slow form)

Hammer Pulldowns

320x6; 360x5

Reverse Flyes

135x8; 115x8

DB Curls

40x8; 45x5

planks - 2.5min hold; weighted ab machine x2; various stretching...

Ok, havent posted the last couple of workouts - my bad. Here is todays:

Pull Ups

bwx10; bwx10; bw + 25lbs x 4; bw+25lbs x5. Weighted pullups are still a little hard, but Ill keep doing them since bw alone seem a bit too easy now. I should probably spend more sets doing the weighted, instead of squeezing out reps at bodyweight. Next time!

DB Rows

80x8; 90x6; 90x6. Seriously, I may have to drop these. grip is becoming a major bummer

Hammer Machine Pulldowns

320x8; 360x5

Hammer Machine Rows

180x10; 230x8; 270x6

DB Curls

40x10; 50x6

Core Work

Planks - 2.5min total; 1 set of birddogs, various stretches/yoga moves

Cardio

12 minutes HITT on bike

Had a decent workout today. I was traveling since last Wednesday and was unable to hit up a gym during that time, so its nice to get back on track. Buuuttt... Im taking a trip to Europe for almost three weeks in early July, and its doubtful Ill be able to do much in the way of working out then!

Incline DB press

[50x8 warmup] 70x6; 70x8; 70x7; 70x6

BB Push Press

95x6; 135x5; 135x5; 135x4; 135x4

DB Alternating Shldr Press

35x10; 45x6

Machine Flyes

265x6; 285x4

Tricep Pulldowns

45x12; 52x8

Shoulder prehab work

HIIT Bike for 10 minutes

Im back from my 2 week vacation abroad - Spain and Sweden are amazing, btw. I didnt do much of anything in terms of weight lifting or cardio (save for swims in the ocean) while away, but I actually was able to eat fairly healthily due in part to the better diets over there.

If anything, my trip abroad made me realize how fat and out of shape americans are. It was a very very rare thing to see even a chubby person in Spain or Stockholm. if anything, i felt a little chubby at 13% bf! So now Im very motivated to kick some ass and stay truer to my diet and increase cardio. probably will lose a little muscle, but so be it.

My plan is to keep with a Push-legs-pull workout three times a week, but add 20-30 minutes of cardio after each workout. I also plan to either Run or play basketball the remaining 3-4 days in the week. Diet will mostly stay the same, but hopefully with no cheats. One big test of my new devotion will be tonight, when I go to my monthly poker game where there will be beer, pizza and wings for the taking. I think Ill be fine with some seltzer water, lol.


Pull Ups

bw x 10 for 4 sets

Seated Rows

180x10; 230x8; 270x5; 270x5

Hammer Pull Downs

270x8; 320x5

yates rows

185x6; 185x5 (these were hard for some reason)

DB Bicep Curls

35x10; 45x6

Reverse flyes

115x8

Planks

1.5 min x 2; various stretches

Stationary Bike

HIIT for 13 minutes; then another 12 minutes at constant speed

yesterday I also went for run, and tomorrow I will do the same or play ball.

Well Im back after a break from posting my progress, although Ive mostly kept up with the workouts. I just bought a house, and have been living in a temporary apartment until we close (hopefully next week), which has unexpectantly thrown off my schedule a bit. Also joined an intramural basketball team, so Ive been trying to think of a good way to balance playing ball 2 times a week with hitting the gym.

My goals right now are to slow bulk, while keeping my legs fresh for basketball and possibly integrating some polymetrics into the mix. So I am considering doing the following, which really isnt all that different from what Im doing now:

Monday: Push

Incline DB Press: 3-4 sets x 8-10 reps
BB Push Press: 3-4 sets x 4-6 reps
Machine Flyes: 2 sets x 10 reps
Standing DB Shoulder Press, Alternating, while on stability ball: 2 x 8-10 reps (IM not sure if this is a real exercise (adding the stability ball), but it sounds like it would be difficult)
Close Grip Bench Press: 2 sets x8-10 reps
Shoulder Prehab Work with Bands

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: Legs

Front BB Squats: 3-4 sets x 6-10 reps
Sumo Deadlifts: 3-4 sets x 3-6 reps
BB Jump Squats: 2 sets x 6 reps
Romanian Deadlifts: 2 sets x 4-6 reps
Ab and Core work

Thursday: Rest

Friday: Pull

Weighted Pull Ups: 4x6-10
Seated Row: 4 x 8-10
Seated Hammer PullDown: 2x8
Yates Rows: 2x6-8
DB Bicep Curls: 2x8-10

Saturday: Basketball
Sunday: Basketball

So here is yesterday's leg workout, even if I didnt follow my exact training plan. One reason Ive decided to post myworkouts again, is that I kept forgetting how much weight I moved last workout, and thus wasnt pushing myself as hard as I should have been. Looking at my old posts, I see that Im actually lifting a little less than I should be.


Front Squats: 95lbs x 1; 135lbs x 7; 135lbs x 7; 135 x 5
Sumo Deads: 135 x 8; 225 x6; 245 x 3; 245x3
Romanian Deads: 225 x6; 245 x 6; 275 x 3

I pretty much burned out after that, and quit the workout. Squats PLUS deads in the same workout is hard! Hopefully I can do better next week.

Im sure my posting here seem schizophrenic and chaotic to say the least. Well, its been a crazy last 6 months or so - lots and lots of traveling that disrupted my gym schedule, I bought my first house, etc....

But in any event, things have mosty settled down, and Im pretty committed to staying the course with this new new workout- modified Bill Starr. I had good results on a modified Bill Starr in the past, and since Im slow bulking, I thought Id give it another shot (plus Ive been doing variations of push pull or push pull legs for a while).

Workout A

Flat DB Press: 5x5
Front Squat: 1x5
Rows: 5x5

Workout B

Sumo Deadlifts: 4x3
BB Push Press: 4x5
Hang Cleans or Box Jumps: 3x5
Core Work

Workout C

Flat DB Press: 1x5
Front Squat: 5x5
Rows: 1x5
DB curls: 2x8
Triceps: 2x8

first workout on a modified bill starr program. Kept it relatively light for the most part, but strong workout nonetheless

Flat DB Press: 5x5

60 x 5 x5: pretty easy. In hindsight, should have gone higher, but wanted to ensure I started off with a weight I could confidently control for 5 reps and 5 sets

Front Squats: 1x5

135x5. After a warm up, felt pretty good. Not sure I could go 5 reps at that weight tho

Hammer Machine Rows: 5x5

230lbs x 5 x5

Had a pretty good workout on Monday. Didnt post my last couple of workouts, but Ill try to be better from here on out. I am traveling (again) this Thursday thru Sunday, so Im considering doing my Friday workout (see my modified Bill Star) on Wednesday, and then the Wed workout at the hotel on Friday. I just highly doubt the hotel would have a squat rack or DBs of sufficiently high weight to do benches, squats and rows.

Flat DB Press: 5x5

70x5x5: felt pretty good, if not easy. Definitely will step up to 75lb for my 1x5 on wednesday, and then next Monday will likely tackle 75x5x5

Front Squats: 1x5

135x5. Felt decent, a little harder than I expected. I may end up doing 115x5 for 5 reps tomorrow instead of 135

Rows: 5x5

270 x 5 x5. felt great, as though i could easily up the weight. will step up to maybe 300 x 5 for my 1 rep day tomorrow.

various core work (planks, etc...)

Had a good workout yesterday, even though I did my Friday workout on Wednesday since I will be traveling the rest of the week. I was worried that being sore would affect my performance, but I felt very strong throughout!

Flat DB Press: 1x5

75x5. Was relatively easy, after a brief warmup with lighter weights. Im fairly confident I can pull off 75 x 5 for 5 sets come Monday

Rows: 1x5

310x5. Also pretty easy! Ill probably keep it at this weight, or perhaps go up to 320 for my 5x5 on Monday.

Front Squats: 5x5

115 x5 x5. Also relatively easy. The squat racks had mad people waiting in line to use them, so I just cleaned a bb from the ground to start my squats.

Flat DB Bench

75 x 5 x 5 sets. Pretty solid throughout. A little difficult towards the end. Definitely try 80lb DBs on my 1x5 come friday.

Front Squat

135 x 5. A little difficult, but easy enough to get the 5 reps in. Not so sure I can go 5 sets for 5 reps at this weight on Friday.

Rows

270x5; 320x5; 300x5 for 3 sets. Ok. So 320 is still too heavy for me to go 5 sets. I dropped it to 300 and it was mostly fine.

Well, i havent logged a few of my workouts, but as the semester nears an end next week (Im a teacher), I have missed a little over a week of the gym. things should be settled down now until xmas at least, and so Im faced with continuing my bill starr program (I was about to go into deload), or change it up. Since I havent been in the gym for about a week and a half, I decided to just restart Bill starr and hope I can keep at it for 9 weeks.

The next four weeks should be easy to stay on the routine, and hopefully I can find a gym when Im traveling for the deload week, which will be on xmas week.

So I went back to the gym, and here are my results:

Flat DB Bench: 5x5

70 x5x5

Hammer Rows: 5x5

300x5x5

Front Squats: 1x5

135x5