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uh: my training journal


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found out that the ez-bar i was using was 35 pounds, which would explain why it was so difficult to curl with when i started using it compared to the preloaded things.. so add 5 pounds to all my preacher curls since i started doing 90..

today i added 5 anyway

 

270 bent row x24

105 preacher curl x24

150 assisted dip x22 (getting heavier, i assume that makes it more difficult to raise the reps consistently)

190 crunch x24 (third time same weight, the machine doesnt have anymore)

 

the bent rows i'm doing are pretty quick and dirty. i'm going to stay at 270 for a workout or two to fix my form, and drop the weight on preacher curl to about 90 so i don't start hurting myself.

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305 deadlift x24

130 ohp x24

145 bench press x24

65x2 side raise x24 (although most of these reps were not total range of motion, i count them because i want to)

85x2 shrug x24

40 front lat raise x24

 

finally broke the deadlift plateau. adding weight on each of these next time. awesome workout!

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310 deadlift x16

140 ohp x24

155 bench x13

75x2 side raise x12

95x2 shrug x24

70 front raise x25

 

-

 

so deadlifting tonight was interesting. left hamstring failure caused an amazing experience. i've been seeing flashes of light on my 285 lb bent row, at the top of the rep. today i saw flashes of light while deadlifting and after doing 16 reps, i waited for a few minutes to do the next set, but i failed mid-pull and saw intense light, got dizzy, wondered if i was dying, and then it all melted into the music shaking. this was my queue to stop deadlifting for the night. i am not going to take a break, i believe this was a side effect of muscle failure (intense release of endorphins).

 

my overhead press was usual.

my bench i read how to do better last night so i widened the grip (elbows perpendicular to the floor at the bottom of the motion) and this made it more difficult, plus i got way more stimulation in the chest so of course i failed with fewer reps than usual (although it was a new weight).

side raises are strange to me, it seems like i fail when i do them rapidly, but if i breathe enough fresh blood through the muscles i can do more reps on them. nonetheless i let it slide and considered the first time this happened a failure.

the shrugs are getting hard as fuck to get done because of pulling the dumbbell off the rack, but they are still easy to do.

and the front raise was funny because i did 1 rep more than i wanted to, since 1 time i wasn't sure if it was the full range of motion or not.

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290 lb bent row x24

115 preacher curl x24

255 assist dip x24-26

285 assist pullup x2 1/2

190 crunch x40

 

tonight was run of the mill

i read to pull with the elbows (something i knew a few years ago, but forgot since getting back into the gym) on the barbell bent row, and haven't done that until about 280lb. i can't do that for more than a set or so, before doing the previous form (mostly arm muscles, less back). it's not so bad, i hope it catches up before i have to drop weight.

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310 deadlift x18

145 ohp x22

155 bench x24

75x2 side raise x23

100x2 shrug x24

80 front raise x24

 

2 more deadlifts than last time, on 19 got all the way up but dropped the bar instead of locking out.

front raises needed cheating form to get up, i.e. pushing w/ back

will probably drop weight on that to stay solid

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295 bent row x24

120 preacher curl x24

240 assist dip x22

285 assist pullup x4

190 crunch x104

 

ive been doing 40 crunches at 8 reps a set for a couple weeks, and i decided to spice things up and do a lot. it wasn't as difficult as i thought to reach the 100 mark, and decided it wasn't worth it to do anymore, because i needed to eat protein and all.

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310 deadlift x24

145 ohp x23

160 bench x20

75x2 side raise x22

110x2 shrug x24

70 front raise x24

 

i dropped weight on front raise since it was hard to get the bar up at 80 without momentum. still needed momentum on the 70. i'm only doing these to make ohp easier to get into start position.

 

145 ohp with slightly wider grip (outside end of close grip) than last time since i realized i was doing only close grip on all my lifts and that it probably isn't the best. it was hard utilizing untrained muscles, so i failed before reaching 24.. and was surprised that i did so many *flexes like anchorman*

 

deadlift i wasnt expecting to do all 24 of. happy day for me!

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300 bent row x19

95 preacher curl x24

240 assist dip x24

285 assist pullup x4

190 crunch x48

 

the bent rows i did with really wide grip this time, as opposed to the previous totally close grip i was amateurly doing. i read only recently the differences between grip stances and started doing bench and bent row equally as wide as the bar is built for since that's when the bench is perpendicular to the floor for me and it's when the bent row is the same width, which keeps it in balance. so this time i actually failed.

deloaded preacher curl because i was rocking back and forth on all my reps as was adding weight up to 135 and felt silly, the form is more important than the amount of weight. momentum doesn't count as muscle stimulation on the intended exercise..

did all 24 dips, happy about that.

1 more pullup than last time, as usual

190 crunch is getting boring, so i did 1x16, 1x8, 1x24 instead of 5 sets of 8.

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315 deadlift x24

145 ohp x24

160 bench x24

75x2 side raise x24

125x2 shrug x24

50 reverse grip preacher curl x8

60 reverse grip preacher curl x24

50 front raise x24

 

amazed that i did all 24 reps without failure on the deadlift.

it was also much easier than i expected, also.

going to start using barbells to shrug from now on.

found out that the 'front raises' ive been doing are actually called reverse grip preacher curls,

and also started doing front raises.

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  • 2 weeks later...

300 barbell bent row x25

225 barbell bent row x8

100 preacher curl x24

225 assisted dip x14

285 assisted pullup x2

190 crunch x40 doing 3x8 and then 48 reps without resting for 90 seconds.. thus making it a bit more cardiovascular

 

deloaded the barbell rows for a set after i finished so that i could check if i should drop weight since i widened the grip. focussing on elbows doing the motion for back muscles is a lot easier this way, so i'm going to probably drop the weight next time to around 285 just so that i'm not building a bad habit.

 

i wish the dip machine assist had smaller pound increments so that i could more consistently gain strength on it. it's 15 pounds more every time but so far it is only slowing me down a little.

the week off was worth it, i recovered a lot. nice to be back in the swing of things.

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320 deadlift x14

150 ohp x19

165 bench x14

80x2 side raise x8

130x2 shrug x24

70 reverse grip preacher curl x24

70 front raise x24

 

deadlift failed soon, the grip was maybe wider than usual at the last rep, first time i wasn't 100% on that, since my pants were baggy..

took a vega electrolyte hydrator right afterward and it really energized me, the overhead presses flied during the 2nd set..

and the bench press i'm still getting used to doing with my new educated form (elbows in a little) it's awkward. i'm probably going to ask a trainer to show me what to do next time.

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305 bent row x14

105 preacher curl x23

225 assist dip x20

285 assist pullup x2

190 crunch x24, 16, 16

 

found out how to bench press with better form, lessened grip width on the bent row to do its reverse motion, and it's a more comfortable grip than totally wide (by one segment).

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320 deadlift x23

150 ohp x24

157.5 bench x24

80x2 side raise x24

135 shrug x24 right, 17 left

 

deadlifts went smoothly, on the last rep i thought id be cool and go slow and steadfast but then failed due to going too slow.. lol.

drank some vega gel right afterward and did 4 overhead presses. thought i failed cuz my muscles went dead, but spent a few minutes waiting for the gel to digest and then managed to do the rest. it was an amazing energy increase.

the bench press was supposed to be 165 but i put 5 and 2.5 on the left side instead of 10 and 5, lol..

did raises one hand at a time, slightly leaned over, and my abs got put into it as a result of this.. maybe i didnt rest long enough after the bench.

at this point i was feeling exhausted, and loaded up a barbell for the shrugs (the 130lb dumbbells are officially not good enough), did all 3 sets except the 1st rep on the last set of the left arm pulled some shoulder muscle so i called it quits for the night.

leg muscle spasmed a bit walking out, i think from the shrugs (and needing protein after the deadlift).

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320 deadlift x24

155 ohp x19

165 bench x24

80 dumbbell side raise x8 right arm

 

so at this point i'm too fatigued to be motivated, and my left arm's forearm bones hurt,

so i just decide to quit and go home for the night (with shrugs, reverse grip preacher curls, and front raises planned)

 

i also had trouble doing deadlifts because of fuzziness/ringing/numb arms, at one point felt like i was about to die unless i breathed enough oxygen in. my hypothesis for this is that i wasn't getting enough sugar into my blood from my energy bar and that's because the oj i drank had gone bad, so my stomach was slowed down. i managed to do all 24 reps but it slowed me down a lot. by the time i was preparing for the bench press i wanted to lay down and go to sleep. maybe i'll finish up this workout tomorrow.

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So i did the rest of my workout that i usually do on deadlift day.

 

dumbbell side raises 80 x16 (+16 from last night) on right side, x24 on left side

135 barbell shrug x24

75 reverse grip preacher curl x24 (EZ bar from now on for this)

85 front raise x24

 

the shrugs were hard because i thought i didn't need to bring chalk in, which made my grip slippery (and it's hard as hell to grip a barbell for shrugging). the EZ bar makes reverse grip preacher curls way less angular in motion and more of a vertical affair, which makes it seem to combine better with front raises and feels like more muscles are being used. happy to be getting front raise up because i need it to catch up with the weight i do overhead press at.

 

feeling less guilty now that i made up for almost passing out last night @ the bench.

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325 dl x19

155 ohp x24

170 bench x22

 

came home after feeling like i was tired, usually do side raises, shrugs, reverse grip preacher curls, and front raises

but my left radius bone (forearm) is still hurting from the preacher curls and i'm not going completely wreckless on myself today.

found out from some forum searching that the deadlift dizziness is from breathing lots while squatting before rep.. inhale a bunch while standing instead so the blood doesnt stay in the legs too long.

still taking it easy cuz of the arm problem..

but probably back on track minus preacher curls (and those other arm exercises) for day after tomorrow.

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315 bent row x21

210 assist dip x24

190 crunch x24 (3x8), 32(1x32)

 

nothing amazing happened tonight, except for vega gel which i bought a box of and have been using. it's noteworthy i think to mention that arnold shwarzenegger's pumping iron youtube excerpt where he talks about how good he feels from lifting is similar to the feeling this gel gives me to a small degree in my vessels shortly after taking it:

Warning, this isn't children friendly

http://youtu.be/rfDwTNU6dzU

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