MonStar's Journal: Stopping the Madness!

[M.J.H.]

Jill: Hey there, thanks for the support. Yeah, now onto page 8. So I think that I am heading in the right direction. I definitely want to see this journal get to 25+ pages, no question about it. Going to keep everything nice and simple. Not let anything get too complicated, etc.

rock4832: Hey man, yeah yesterday I was thinking about my sh*tty workout all day at work. And I decided to do some more back when I got home. Definitely a late workout, but at least my lats got another beating, lol. Anyway, today my Swiss ball presses felt great! I recommend them 100%. They're tough at first because you have to balance and all that, but it's a nice new feeling. I am so used to doing DB and BB presses on a stable bench, on a Swiss ball it's a whole new feeling.

 

[M.J.H.]

Sunday; 10-10-2004

Arms

Good arm workout today I think. Nothing too crazy, dropped 2 exercises from my arm session. Usually I do a total of 6 arm exercises, dropped it down to 4 from now on. Going to try and up my intensity and focus on less exercises. Arms were pumped as hell today, really looked massive in the mirror.

Incline DB Curls
4 sets of 6 with the 50's

Decline Skullcrushers
2 sets of 6 with 145
2 sets of 12 with 125

Reverse Curls
3 sets of 5 with 125

Seated French Presses
2 sets of 4 with 170
1 set of 8 with 145

Some great great sets for my arms today! Worked out with this older guy from my gym who really trains balls to the friggin' wall. He's 44 but trains harder than anyone my age. Really pushes himself to the limit. He spotted me on almost all of my sets for arms. Hit 2 sets of 6 with 145 with some fingertip assistance, blasted my triceps. And some good slow reverse curls for my arms, huge PR. I have never done cambered-bar reverse curls with 125! Then some French presses---I do these more press style by the way. Seated, behind-the-neck, but I flare my elbows a lot doing them.

Diet:
- MRP + 1% milk
- cheese tortellini + chicken
- mixed fruit
- cottage cheese + peaches
- V-12 preworkout
- whey protein postworkout
- 2 marinated chicken breasts, mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables
- 1/2 peanut butter sandwich

Sleep: 7 hours. Then took a 15-minute nap before the gym in the tanning bed, lol.

Day 6 of M1T, 15mg a day.

 

[Duncans Donuts]

Had any issues bingin?

 

[camarosuper6]

You are definitely a strong mofo MonStar.

 

[M.J.H.]

DD: None, thus far. Since I have started this journal I have not had one single binge. I am actually feeling better than ever. Some foggy-mindedness from the M1T, but other than that I feel great bud. Thanks for stopping by and reading, appreciate it.

camarosuper6: Thanks man, keep in mind a few of the reps today were done with some assistance. Nothing major of course, I just had a spotter today and I usually don't, that's all. Thanks for the kind words.

 

[M.J.H.]

Monday; 10-11-2004

Legs

Good leg workout today! Ouch, really beat up my legs with today's workout. Thighs and glutes and lower back and all that were toasted. Trying to hit my lower back hard like SF said, really trying to bring up my deadlift one way or another. We'll see what happens.

Hack Squats
2 sets of 8 with 520
3 sets of 4 with 660

Good Mornings
4 sets of 4 with 255

DB Lunges
4 sets of 6 with the 80's

Seated Calf Raises
2 sets of 12 with 335
2 sets of 25 with 265

Overall workout today was awesome, really hit my legs hard. Started off with some heavy hack squats today, blated my thighs and hips and all that. Great sets, I really like hack squats a lot. Moved onto some good mornings, lower back was completely wasted from them. And then finally some DB lunges and some calf raises and then I called it a day. Overall workout was good.

Diet:
- MRP + 1% milk
- V-12 preworkout
- whey protein postworkout
- mixed nuts
- turkey breast + gravy, mashed potatoes
- melon
- MRP shake, protein cookie
- chicken salad sandwich
- cottage cheese + peaches
- chicken noodle soup

Sleep: 7 hours.

Day 7 of M1T, 15mg a day.

 

[BigDC]

sweet

Sweet mike

Rock those legs! I hit my chest today and i was about 1 or 2 reps up on everything from last week (I think the creatine is kicking in already). I only got minimal sleep, though, after getting home at 5 am after being at the hospital all night.

Keep pumping, we'll sync our workouts sometime soon.

 

[Saturday Fever]

Looks really solid. Next time around, wave up the intnesity on the Good AMs and wave down the reps. Your lower back will be blowing up.

 

[M.J.H.]

Dave: Hey man, thanks for stopping by, appreciate the post. Yeah I am going to be dropping the # of exercises that I perform per workout some, but I am going to try hard to up the intensity. Maybe do some more dropsets, go a bit heavier sometimes, etc. I am probably going to be doing 3 exercises on my chest/shoulder/back workouts, and then 4 exercises on my arms/legs sessions, so we'll see how this works. This way I am more likely to do completely different exercises each workout.

Like I said Dave, keep a journal! I for one would love to see your workouts, and diet and all that. Sorry to hear about you being at the hospital, I hope that everything turned out okay. I should be at the Y tomorrow, by the way, in the afternoon so I am sure that I'll catch you then. I have been going around 10-11:00 AM lately and I'll tell you, there are some attractive older women who train in the late morning! Really some nice eye candy.

SF: Okay, I'll do that my next legs session. Maybe go for 4-5 sets of 3 with 285 maybe? I am going to try and incorporate some hyperextensions into the scheme of things as well, just to toast my lower back from a different angle. I want to break 635 in deadlift so bad! Anymore though I feel so weak pulling sumo style, I am not sure what happened with that. Tomorrow I am going to hit back and the next day shoulders, most likely, or vice versa.

 

[Saturday Fever]

Sure, just increase the weight a bit, drop the reps but try to do the same total reps. So if 4 sets of 4 is 16 reps, do 5 sets of 3 with an extra 10-20 pounds. And we'll wave up from there next time around. 3, maybe 4 sessions and then we'll see how the dead looks again.

 

[Rocco32]

Awesome news with the no binging. Your doing awesome Mike!

 

[M.J.H.]

SF: Okay man, sounds good. I am most likely going to use 285-295 my next leg workout for good mornings. Probably going to do high/low maybe, 6 sets of 3 or something along those lines. Maybe even 8 sets of 2. Good mornings are a great exercise, but they definitely toast my lower back. After a few sets I am wasted.

rock4832: Thanks man, like I said I haven't even thought about binging in the past week or so. I mean I am really glad that I think I am finally overcoming this problem. I am going to try my best to hang in there!

 

[angelpaws]

Hey mike, havent dropped in to see you in a while. Im glad that you are doing so well. Things are really balancing out for ya.

 

[ncgirl21]

Hey Your doing awesome Mike!! I'm so proud of you

 

[M.J.H.]

angelpaws: Hey there, thanks for stopping by! I really appreciate the support. Yeah lately things have been going pretty well I have to admit. I mean its been over 2 weeks now with no binging at all, nor any real desire to binge at all. Every now and then late at night I'll get hungry or something and I'll just eat, but keep it clean. I mean I am honestly not struggling much with binging anymore at all at this point.

Andrea: Hey there! Haven't heard from you lately, thanks for stopping by. Appreciate the kind words.

 

[M.J.H.]

Tuesday; 10-12-2004

Back

Good back workout this afternoon, really hit my lats hard. I think that I can really start to feel the M1T kicking in, honestly. I can definitely tell in terms of my foggy-mindedness, that's for sure. Workout intensity has also been regularly good, too. I got a little irritable today, so I need to pay close attention to that.

Bentover Rows
3 sets of 3 with 405
2 sets of 8 with 345
1 set of 12 with 275

Nautilus Pullovers
4 sets of 6 with 280

CG Cable Rows
2 sets of 5 with 290
2 sets of 12 with 245

Blasted my upper back hard today, great sets of bentover rows. Took a video clip of 405 for 3 that I am going to upload in a post after this. Anyway, hit 3x3 with 405! Great sets there! I was definitely pleased with my strength on these today. Did them Yates style, double overhand grip, etc. I can't honestly really fit anymore weight on the cambered, bar, lol. Anyway, did some pullovers after that---nice and slow. Really hit my serratus and lats hard. Finished up with some seated cable rows, nice and slow as well. 2 sets of 5 with the stack and then 2 sets of 12 with 245. Great workout.

Diet:
- MRP + 1% milk
- V-12 preworkout
- whey protein postworkout
- tuna & cheese sandwich, banana
- cottage cheese + peaches
- tuna salad sandwich
- peanut butter
- whey protein + 1% milk

Sleep: 7.5 hours.

Day 8 of M1T, 15mg a day.

 

[M.J.H.]

Here is the video, uploaded thanks to SF's new Webb Train site, of me doing bentover rows today with 405 for a triple:

Bentover Rows 405x3
http://www.webbtrain.us/images/upload/MonStar_Bentover_Rows_405x3.WMV

Sorry if it didn't come out all that clear, let me know what you guys think.

 

[Saturday Fever]

The angle for those rows is great. It really shows that even that upright, you're still pulling your elbows back to hit the lats.

For anyone who hasn't seen it or tried it, on my website you can upload your own video clips. I get a notification about it and as soon as I approve it, it's available for viewing in the Downloads section. Everyone is more than welcome to quickly register and post clips.

 

[Duncans Donuts]

Really impressive Mike. You should move out here and play football with me

When you do Good AMs, what kind of form do you use? I just started doing them to improve that lower back strength and don't know if I'm doing them as well as I should.

 

[Saturday Fever]

Mind if I answer on form?

Stance is up to you and should vary occassionally. Knees should have a very slight bend. And the motion should be "his back, hips forward."

Don't worry about standing up, as most do. Worry about keeping your back as stiff as possible and letting your hips move back, then forward. And keep your back in a static position. If it starts rounding, your set is done. You don't correct form mid-set with this lift. You stop and start over again after some rest.

There are 3 ways to lock your back. Arched like a powerlifter arches during a squat. Flat. Or rolled over. Rolled over is strictly for advanced lifters. I won't touch them. An arch will hit the lower back harder but has a smaller ROM. So the decision of arched vs flat is strictly personal.

Hope that answered the question.

 

[Duncans Donuts]

Thanks SF.

I've started doing them, but I bend at the knee - not overtly. I find that I can't keep the balance unless I do that. I'd assume that is appropriate? How much bend is appropriate at the knee?

 

[Saturday Fever]

A very slight bend. If your ROM is hindered by flexibility, then just use the smaller ROM and work on flexibility. But keep the bend slight.

If you're having balance trouble, really focus on hips back, hips forward. Falling forward is a sign of weak spots in the abs and lower back. Obviously we're working on the lower back, so extra abs work may be in order to help as well.

 

[Duncans Donuts]

Thanks SF. What's the best for hip strength?

 

[Saturday Fever]

The best? I used to do hanging leg raises for my abs and bring my legs up to parallel with the floor or a little higher. That does a good job on the hip flexors.

Also, you can lay on your back on the floor, push your lower back into the floor and raise your legs to point straight up. Both are excellent ways to strengthen your hip flexors. Although squatting with a wide stance is possibly the best way.

 

[Rocco32]

Another great w/o Mike! So I guess your not taking 4-ad with the M1T. May I ask why? I took a 4 week cycle of M1T w/o 4-ad awhile ago and it was bad. I'd never do that again, LOL.

 

[Cold Iron]

The best? I used to do hanging leg raises for my abs and bring my legs up to parallel with the floor or a little higher. That does a good job on the hip flexors.

Also, you can lay on your back on the floor, push your lower back into the floor and raise your legs to point straight up. Both are excellent ways to strengthen your hip flexors. Although squatting with a wide stance is possibly the best way.

Dammit. Too bad I didnt get a chance earlier, to look into mike's journal. I did back today and could have used the GM pointers. I, too, bend a little too much in the knees and probably dont use my hips enough.

SF or anyone for that matter, Do you use those pads for the bar? I like the feeling without it but I find the bar moving around more without it.

 

[Saturday Fever]

Pads fuck everything up.

 

[sara]

Very proud of you Mike keepin the same journal

 

[M.J.H.]

SF: Thanks man, appreciate the support. That's part of the reason I decided to post a different angle of my bentover rows. Just to give an idea of my my form is like. Thanks for taking the time by the way to approve the videoes and all that bud, appreciate it. By the way, your form description for GM's sounds a lot like the way that I do them. I don't do a huge ROM on them, by the way. I go down until I am comfortable, and make sure I am not bending my knees much, and then come back up. I get a deep aching feeling in my lower back after the set so I am sure that I am doing something right. By the way you have inspired me to maybe start throwing in some ab work maybe at the end of my leg sessions. I am thinking about dropping my calf work and doing some ab stuff instead.

DD: Hey man, I used to play football back in highschool actually. I was a tailback/fullback and an outside linebacker. I used to love it, but then I realized I was far more into working out than I was playing football or wrestling. The one thing that I try and focus on during GM's is instead of taking your chest/shoulders forward, think of it more as kicking back your hips and a*s, that helped me a lot. When you kick back your hips you naturally arch your back more, seems to work well for me.

rock4832: I didn't like the 4-AD at all actually, and I got some side effects from it. Right away my nipples felt sore, for some reason. That just freaked me out so I dropped it alltogether. Honestly the sides of M1T are not that bad, IMO. They're very tolerable at 15mg per day. Thanks for stopping by, bro.

Arnie's left nu: I actually use the pad or whatever it's called. The foam pad that goes underneath your neck/shoulders to prevent the bar from digging into your traps. I just put it extremely low when I do GM's, in my mid-trap area.

sara: Hey there! Thanks so much for the support, it's great seeing a new face.

 

[M.J.H.]

Wednesday; 10-13-2004

Shoulders

Pretty good shoulder workout today, kept it simple, got in the gym for 30-40 minutes and then got out. Nothing too long or extensive. Got some good shoulder sets in though, that's for sure. Really exhausted my delts completely with the sets, today.

Seated BTN Presses
3 sets of 5 with 185
2 sets of 10 with 150

Nautilus Lateral Raises
4 sets of 10 with 180

DB Front Raises
3 sets of 6 with the 55's

No huge PR's or anything today, I changed my workout up a little bit. I usually started off with seated DB presses, so I decided to hit up some BTN presses. Good sets, hit 3 sets of 5 with 185, then 2 sets of 10 with 150. Shoulders were pretty beat. Now usually, I do my Nautilus lateral raises last so I decided to do them 2nd today---nice for a change of pace. Hit 4 sets of 10, not bad. Finished up with some heavy front raises, my shoulders were fried.

Diet:
- MRP + 1% milk
- V-12 preworkout
- whey protein postworkout
- turkey & cheese sandwich
- tuna salad + crackers, pineapple
- chicken salad sandwich
- cottage cheese + peaches
- peanut butter

Sleep: 8 hours.

Day 9 of M1T, 15mg a day.