A month on Armstrong pull ups program

[vege]

No gym possibility for one month. Decided to do Armstrong pull ups program to stay in shape and to improve in doing pull ups in general. I will also do hill sprints every second day, for leg muscles. Numbers below mean repetitions in one set. I'll put the last 3 days in this post and then each day separately, as they come to pass.
I walk all day long (I'm a tourist in Barcelona at the moment), and this resulted in weight loss, from 71 kg to 69 kg. I'll try to put on some weight again, or at least not to lose more...
Normally, I can do 7-8 pull ups in first set. Let's see if this program works. One month. One man. One training bar. LET'S GO!

First day, week 1:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 30, 25, 25
PULL-UPS: 7, 7, 6, 6, 5

Second day, 1 week:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 30, 25, 25
PULL -UPS: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 7

Third day, week 1:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 35, 20, 15 ( my muscles are sore!)
PULL -UPS: 3 repetitions x 9 sets



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[AS1]

hill sprints and pull ups both rule. i'm trying to improve both right now aswell, still stuck with a supporting resistance band on pull ups though!

[Fallen_Horse]

Seems solid, here is some more info for anyone who doesn't know about the program:
http://www.savannahstate.edu/cost/nrotc/documents/Inform2010-thearmstrongworkout_Enclosure15_5-2-10.pdf

Also keep up with it! I would be really interested to see how it turns out. Go go lat spread!

[vege]

AS1,
you just have to be patient with pull ups and do them regularly. Couple of months ago I could do only 2 in one set. Don't give up! And for the hill sprints: wanted to do them again today, but postponed for tomorrow or today late in the evevning, since my quads are so sore, I couldn't believe it. It's strange, because yesterday (day after hill sprints) they weren't! And I woke up today with sore quads. I guess it's good sign:)

Fallen Horse,
thanx for the link and support! I already feel I'm improving:))))

So,
Fourth day, week 1:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 30, 25, 25 ( felt good!)
PULL -UPS: 3 repetitions x 13 sets ( yeah!:)

[angryvegan]

Damn! Your upper body is ripped. I am a super skinny guy, on my 8th week on stronglift 5x5, gained 12lbs. where did you start off? do you follow a routine to get that great V look?
Angryvegan

[vege]

Angryvegan, thanx
I'm not that strong, it just looks like that, really. I can't lift much weight. And I started lifting just 2 months ago. I guess muscles and definition comes from doing hatha yoga for 5 years before that. And also, I lost all my fat through fruitarian diet (80/10/10 Diet by Dr. Douglas Graham) before I started to go to gym and eating cooked vegan food again.
All best with your workouts!

[vege]

Fifth day, week 1:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 30, 25, 25
PULL-UPS: 4 repetitions x 10 sets

(this is the day where you should choose the hardest day for you during the weak and repeat it. I chose day four and increased the number of repetitions from 3 to 4)
[

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[vege]

Made 2 days rest, as the Armstrong program recommends. Yesterday I was doing hill sprints and I noticed I am in better condition then the last time. Didn't really count and measure, but overall feeling is I'm better then the last time.

Today was the first day of the Week 2. Haven't notice any improvements in number of pull ups I did, when compared to Week 1:( Actually, it dropped in last 2 sets! ((((
Maybe it's a normal process, I have a constant soreness in muscles, since on this program...
Nevertheless, I'm noticing improvement in morning push ups routine - now 30 push ups looks very easy. Tomorrow I'll increase the number, maybe 35 or 40...


OK, these are the data for today:

First day, Week 2:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 30, 30, 30
PULL-UPS: 7, 7, 6, 5, 4

[vege]

Today it was a disaster. I was tiered even when I did morning push ups. And then later, I did less pull ups then last week. I don't know what is happening... My muscles are sore. I was wondering: how can you avoid overtraining on this program when you're expected to do the same exercise every day? I'm loosing strength from my upper back and shoulders and hands... I'm yearning for some bench presses, really... But I will stick to the program. Maybe it's going to be better soon...

Second day, Week 2:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 25, 20, 20
PULL -UPS: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5 (damn it! I'm getting weaker!)

[Fallen_Horse]

Perhaps it is a case of 'too much, too fast'. Try taking a few days off and starting the program again, but with less ambitious goals?

How much rest are you getting? How much food? Any supplements?

[vege]

Fallen Horse,
honestly, I've been doing more exercises than this program says. I would finish Armstrong program and then after few hours I would do another set of push-ups just for fun. Maybe I should have stick only to this program and do nothing more. Anyway, today I was feeling better, at least I did as good as last weak. I won't do anything else except this program now. Maybe it was the weather also, I'm like old people, when it's cloudy and rainy, I feel like shit. Today sun is shining again. I was at the sun 2 hours before exercising:))))
Sleep - better then ever. Food - I eat like pig, sometimes I force myself to eat. Supplements - no. Actually, no money for that. Just fruits, veggies, beans, chickpeas and lentils, nuts and seeds, tofu and stuff like that. I'm eating more tofu now, though. I hope it's not that soy estrogen that's making me weak lately..?

Third day, Week 2:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 35, 20, 20
PULL -UPS: 3 repetitions x 9 sets

[Fallen_Horse]

Haha doubtful. Make sure you are getting enough B12 through fortified foods or a supplement. Other than that you should be good. And just stick with the program!

[vege]

Hm... B12, never really thought about it. I'm not a 100% vegan, that's why. Maybe one or two eggs or can of sardine every two or three months isn't enough for the B12... I should find another source of B12, since I plan to become a 100 % vegan. What do you experienced vegans suggest? Shot or pills of B12? Or eating fortified cereals should be enough? I never eat those, I always looked at that as a junk food, don't know why, it looks too dead for me, and dry. But better dead grains than dead sardines, right? ))))
I'll buy some today! Thanks!

[Fallen_Horse]

Agreed! There is a big debate thread about the whole thing, which I have linked below, but if you don't want to get into the battle, then I would suggest some fortified foods (vegan milks, cereals, etc) or a B12 tab every few days. Thankfully the vit is cheap, so it's a solid way to make sure you are getting enough...

http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=22046

[vege]

Surprisingly, today I was feeling great! But I didn't dare to increase the numbers of repetitions in "working set", so i kept it on 3. I improved comparing to last week, I did 20 sets:))))

Fourth day, Week 2:
MORNING ROUTINE PUSH UPS: 30, 25, 25
PULL -UPS: 3 repetitions x 20 sets