Derek

50?!!!! Are you kidding me?

Nope! My legs hurt...

Quick post tonight becuase I'm falling asleep on the keyboard... I've been keeping weights light for another two weeks to rehab my injuries a bit more, so this week I've tried some of UK trainer Neil Hill's week three workouts (muscle annihilation) from his Y3T training program - and they're horrible! My quads are so sore right now I literally have to lower myself into my chair using my arms. Here's what I've done:

1/2: Shoulders (weight x reps)

DB Laterals: 2 sets of sixty reps, 15x12 + 20x12 + 25x12 + 20x12 + 15x12 with no rest between. Twice...

DB Shoulder Press: 45x20, 50x20, 50x20

DB Partial Laterals - moving the weight about 4 inches and doing 10reps out, 10 forward, 5 out, 5 forward: 25x30, 25x30

Rear delt laterals, moving weight back one rep, out the next, forward the next: 20x12, 20x12

Db Shrug 10sec holds: 40x10, 40x10

1/3: Quads

Leg extension: 3 sets of forty reps: 150x10 + 130x10 + 110x10 + 150x10 with no rest, three times! Ended up having to rest pause and do partials on the second round of 150.

Leg Press: 450x50, 450x50. Yes, fifty. Lots of rest pauses and yelling spotters.

Smith Squat: 225x20, 225x20

Was supposed to do lunges at this point, but couldn't walk.

Bed time! Back day tomorrow!

Love the routine! Hit it hard and keep us posted!

Still strong AND SWOL baby!

Awesome to see you getting it done Robert! I know exactly what you mean by training smarter as you get older and wiser - injuries can really put things in perspective! Keep training hard and smart brotha!

Thanks guys! Slaying shoulders bright and early tomorrow!

@RC: Yeah buddy! I expect you to be out-doing my numbers in your own journal in no time! Git it!!

Happy New Year!

It's the first day of 2012 so I've decided it's definitely time to get back on my training journal! I've been training this entire time and keeping a detail workout notebook, but going from paper to digital hasn't been happening enough. I love looking through all my old routines on here, it really is great to have this resource! It's great to be able to compare my contest prep for every contest I've ever done, especially since I am now 7 WEEKS OUT from my next show! Our baby is due on March 21st, so I'm going to get one show in on February 18th before having an extended off season to be a papa .

My training:

I had been keeping with the same program and split give/take until mid November, at which point I decided my core and joints were feeling good enough that I wanted to try a 2-a-day split again. I used to love these before my most recent injury - I'm addicted to training and with 12 workouts a week you get plenty of it! Here is the program I drew up and had planned to follow for 5 weeks: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AkmOcUtqsvw6dFdIT29QSVd0VmVyRWFjNl9ldDNTdlE&hl=en_US#gid=0

It went really really well at first. I started taking creatine again after not using it for 6 months, and my strength went way up and I was recovering great. I was even able to train abs lightly almost every workout. Some highlights while I was on this routine were: Squats (405x7 for 4 sets), Bench Press (265x5), Db Lunges with 100lb dumbbells for sets of 8 on each leg, and Deadlifts (405x5 for 5 sets). I've been really happy to get back up to these weights after struggling with my abdominal strain since August of 2010, but lo and behold after my heavy deadlift workout listed above I re-injured them! SO bummed and limited in my training that I was close to dropping the idea of competing, but I decided to go to a local chiropractor who uses soft -tissue techniques such as Active Release (ART), Grosten Technique, and keniso taping. If anyone reading this hasn't tried these technique I highly recommend them! It's been 3 weeks and I am almost back to training at that level again, with my only real limitations being no ab training and no deadlifts for at least 2 more weeks. I've gone back to my original split training each muscle group once per week and am keeping the weights lighter and the reps over 8. My weight is up to 193lbs at 9% BF, which is tied with the biggest I've ever been. Not 200lbs like I've been shooting for, but I figure I am where I was prior to this injury, so now after this show I can forge new ground! Here is my workouts from yesterday:

12/31: Hams/Calves AM Arms PM

AM

41 inch box jumps: 10, 10, 10

Superset with Power Step ups on a bench: 15, 15, 15

Romanian Deadlifts: 135x20, 155x20, 155x20, 155x20, 155x20 (short rest)

Prone Leg Curls: 70x12, 80x12, 80x12, 80x10

Seated Leg Curl FST-7: 90x12

Smith Calf Raise (1 second assent, 6 sec descent): 225x10, 315x10, 315x10, 405x10

Seated Calf Raise: 135x15, 135x15, 160x15, 160x15

Leg Press Calf Raise: 190x 100 (needed 4 or 5 rest pauses - wicked burn!)

PM

DB Hammer Curl: 30x10, 40x10, 50x10, 60x6, 60x6 (with lots of body english)

Superset Cable Press Down: 20x15, 20x15, 50x12, 50x12, 70x12, 70x12

EZ Barbell Curls (with band attached): 105x5, 105x5, 105x5, 105x5, 105x7

Superset Close Grip Bench (with band attached): 185x5, 185x5, 195x5, 195x5, 195x6

Seated DB curl with unevenly loaded Db (love that trick!): 40x10, 40x10, 40x10, 40x10 - arm-splittingly painful!

Superset Weighted Bench dips: 45x12, 45x12, 45x15, 70x10 drop 45x5 drop bodyweight x 7 - complete failure!

So I'm working as intensely as possible to see if I can build muscle while dieting for this show. Pics from my arm workout:

http://www.veganmuscleandfitness.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/011-e1325461113482.jpghttp://www.veganmuscleandfitness.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/007-e1325461131903.jpghttp://www.veganmuscleandfitness.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/015-e1325461168156.jpg

Did this program for 6 weeks over the summer and had incredible strength and physique results.

 

Start to finish numbers:

 

Bench: 195-235

 

Squats: 225-405

 

Dead Lift: 225-365

 

Leg Press: 810x3-1035x3

Awesome results man, that's a crazy jump on squats! Keep a post on how it goes the second time around, we're excited to see!

@Robert Yeah buddy! Make sure you're good and rested, then pull out all the stops with rest pauses, forced reps, and cheat reps to get TONS on weight for 8-12 reps on at least one set per exercise! IHW (Intense Hard Work)!

You can use it for more than 6 weeks, but I'd be very careful to pay attention to any aches and pains you are feeling and add a third rest day per week when needed. Another way to enhance recovery would be to increase the rep range from the standard 8-12 at max weight to a lighter 15-20 for a week or two to ease up on your joints and connective tissue. Hitting every muscle every workout also means you're hitting every joint and ligament, so be careful to make sure you aren't over-training!

I love this program! It's a great way to switch things up and build some mass quickly!

Thanks for the shout out brother! Glad one of my programs workout well for you, and it looks like your are making good gains with this one! Keep it up!

I love the song I used in this routine! "Bang your head!"

Great prizes Robert!

Excited to see this roll out Robert!!

That's so awesome Robert! Spreading the word far and wide!

Looking forward to hearing about the photo shoot and seeing the pics!

 

Have fun!

Will do man, I'm excited to get more shots on the site! Did you catch our radio interview tonight? It went really well, especially for our first I'd say. And Marcella said thank you very much for the gifts! (She's too big to zip up the hoody right now though!)

@vege: Anytime buddy!

@Robert: SO awesome! You're the best brotha!! How's training been going?

As for training, I've been trying to mix it up every few weeks so this week I'm doing a little more volume. This is as much for fun as to confuse and stimulate my muscles

Monday: Calves, Shoulders

Every exercise was super-setted with 20 reps of seated calf press or standing calf press)

Smith Shoulder Press: 95x15, 115x12, 135x10, 155x10, 1l0, 10 drop 115x10

Arnold Press: 35x25, 25, 25

Upright Row SS DB Shrugs: 115x10 SS 70x10 for 3 sets

DB Lateral to Shoulder Fly: 15x15, 15, 15

Tuesday: Quads, light arms

Leg Press: 450x15, 15, 15, 15, 15, 15, 15, 15, 15, 15 (German volume set - brutal!)

Leg Extensions: 150x12, 12, 12, 12, 12

Squats: 225x2 (was going to do 4 sets of 15 reps here, but legs weren't functioning so I moved on)

Seated Dumbbell Curls: 30x10, 40x10, 50x10

Cable Press Down: 80x15, 100x12, 120x12

I normally do a lot more exercises, but I was completely spent after the leg press set!

Less than 3 weeks until my photo shoot! Working hard!

Thank you Derek! But please, what is bean shake, give me just short description, how its made?

It's my whole foods based weight gain shake. I just say bean shake because it is faster . Here's the recipe: http://www.veganmuscleandfitness.com/vegan-weight-gainer-revision-and-more/

Awesome, thanks guys!!

@Vege: I get a lot of clean low fat calories by eating TONS of grains and beans. My daily meals look something like:

Meal 1: 1 cup oat bran, protein shake

Meal 2: 1 cup oat bran, bean shake, sprouted gran bagel (sometimes with almond butter), 1 grapefruit

Meal 3: Quinoa and black beans, half an avocado, salad

Meal 4: Bean shake, sprouted grain bagel (sometimes with almond butter), apple

Meal 5: This is a wildcard. We often eat out, or eat something like the recipes we have on our blog

Meal 6: Bean shake

I am also drinking 3-4 liters of water a day between meals - extremely important when you're eating this much!

@Nicholas: Don't worry man! You've been working hard and following your diet, so two days of rich food and time away from the gm might actually be beneficial! A lot of top tier trainers suggest taking a week off every two or three months. I never do this (too obsessed with working out!), but I often notice if I have a weekend out of town eating rich food and not working out I feel great when get back to lifting! Enjoy yourself and don't stress, you'll be that much stronger when you get back

@Belle Thanks! We had a great time there. Working hard to get that goal!

Thanks Nicholas! How's your weight gain coming? You've been getting some solid workouts in, nice consistency!

For food, I am hitting between 5000 and 6000 calories a day (4000 on my cardio days) Which is usually 25% protein, 60% carbs, 15% fat. I try to keep it as close to that as possible and so far, so good!

Hey Buddy, it was a great time! Pics are Here (http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.163271030428655.43421.110820642340361&type=3) for those who want to check it out. Rock Boston this weekend RC!!

I am so behind on this journal! I actually wrote up everything I had been doing for several weeks about 3 weeks ago, then mistakenly closed the browser without submitting it! I was so frustrated I had to put it off another couple of weeks I guess (bad excuse I know!). So here's what I've been up to:

After my contest in late July I was feeling really good, so I tried to get back into training with a total body routine. Naturally my core injury came right back (but before it did I was able to squat 315 for sets of 20 again!), so I spent most of August trying to design myself a new mass building program that wouldn't over-train my core. One of my biggest struggles as an athlete is second guessing myself or my game plan if things aren't going well, and this was one of those instances. By September I just decided to get back on the program that worked so well pre-contest, and I've been following that split since. Wish I hadn't wasted all that time, but I am now up to 190lbs, so I'd say it's going well! Here's what a recent week looked like:

Monday: Calves, Shoulders

Seated calf raise: 90x20, 135x20,20,20

Leg Press Calves FST7: 450x15

Seated Barbell overhead Press: 95x12, 115x10, 140x10,10,10

DB Front Raises: 25x 10,10,10

Cable Face Pulls SS DB Shrugs: 60x12 SS 70sx12 for 3 sets

Machine Lateral FST7: 70x12

Tuesday: Quads, Light Arms - Both my legs and arms have been growing!

Leg Extension FST7: 160x15

DB Lunges: 80s x 8,8,8,8,8,8 each leg w/ 90 seconds rest each set (these are the worst thing ever, but they kill my legs and don't hurt my core!)

Leg Press: 630 x 15,15,15,15

Squat: 225x 15,15,15

Barbell Curl (very strict): 65x 12,12,12

Seated Db Curl: 30x10, 40x10, 50x10

Concentration curls: 25x10, 35x10

Cable Press downs: 90x12, 110x12,12

Skull Crushers: 80x12,12, 100x12 SS close grip to failure

Wednesday: Cardio/abs

Swim 1000m or 20min step mill

Crunches: 50x3 sets

Leg Lifts: 20x3 sets

Russian Twists: 30x 3 sets

Plank: 1minx 3 sets

Thursday: Back/ light Bi's

Pull Ups: 0x15, 30x10, 50x10,10,10 (Haven't been doing these as consistently so my strength on them went way down)

T-bar Row: 90x12, 135x12, 180x12, 12, 12 Just got back to these and I remember why they're my favorite!

Cable Row: 100x 10, 10, 10

Cable Pulldown: 100x 10, 10, 10

Pullover FST7: 50x12

Scott Curls: 50x12, 12, 12

1 Arm cable curl: 30x 10, 10, 10

Friday: Chest, calves

Seated calf raise: 90x20, 135x20,20,20

Leg Press Calves FST7: 450x15

Incline Bench Press: 135x12, 155x12, 185x10, 205x 8,8,8

DB Bench Press: 75x12, 12, 12

Decline Bench Press: 155x 10, 10 ,10

Pac Deck FST7: 65x12

Saturday: Plyo/Hamstrings AM Arms PM

Power Step ups: 20, 20, 20

High Box Jumps: 20, 20, 20

Romanian Deadlift: 65x 20, 20, 20

Prone Leg Curl: 70x 12, 12, 12, 12

1 Leg Curl: 35x 10, 10, 10

Seated Leg Curl FST7: 80x12

Barbell Curl FST-7: 65x12

Preacher Curl: 75x 10, 10, 10

Incline Curl: 35x 12, 12, 12

Hammer Curl: 30x10, 10, 10

Dips: 50x 10, 10, 10

DB overhead Extension: 70x12, 100x10, 10, 70x12

Underhand pressdown: 60x12, 12, 12

Sunday: Cardio/abs

Swim 1000m or 20min jump rope

Crunches: 50x3 sets

Leg Lifts: 20x3 sets

Russian Twists: 30x 3 sets

Plank: 1minx 3 sets

Whew! So I haven't been slacking too badly, but I still have a lot of work to do. I am pretty sure my next show will be an OCB event here in VA in mid February, so stay tuned for that prep! I would love to hit 200lbs before I start cutting, but we'll see! I also have a photo shoot in DC in 3 weeks, so perhaps some of those shots will be on this site soon!

Thanks alex, glad you like what I've been doing!

See you tomorrow Robert!!

Congrats Derek, 14lb gain in 1 month; that's impressive!

 

Go on, go for that 200lb bench mark, everybody on here knows you can do it!!!

 

 

 

My goal is to go from 149lbs at 6'2" to 165lbs. (Just started a training log as i saw how you and everybody else was doing one. I never thought that it would be as helpful as it is).

Thanks Nicholas!! I'm working and eating hard so I hope to make it happen . Some of the 14lbs was water and some of the rest was bodyfat so I'm now pretty much where I was before dieting down for the last show - that's how it came so fast! You've got those 16lbs in the bag man, just eat a lot of healthy food every single day and lift some big weights! Robert's book is a really big help when it come to weight gain especially, so if you don't have a copy I'd get one. There's a reason he's done what he's done . Good luck!

Both of you guys are beasts!

 

Bring it!

TY RC! I plan on it! Back up to 186lbs from around 172 on stage last month and have my sights on 200!!

My client Todd Rocked it last night and got second by only 1 point! He also won best poser so I was super proud of him! He's 5'10" and has a broader frame than me so I really think he can get up over 200lb in contest shape and do really well! He started training with me 9 months ago at almost 20% body fat and now competed as a plant-based bodybuilder at 4% bf! So cool!

As for my training, I struggled a bit for the first couple weeks after my show deciding the best way to move forward. I think without a doubt my biggest weakness as an athlete is second guessing myself and bouncing around trying to figure out what everyone else is doing instead of doing what I know works for me. I briefly tried messing with total body routines because I love high frequency/volume training a la Arnold and Ronnie, but my core is still not having that so after some failed attempts at new splits I'm back on the one I used for my last show:

Monday: Calves, shoulders

Tuesday: Quads AM, Arms PM

Wednesday: Rest/cardio/abs

Thursday: Back/ light bi

Friday: Calves, chest

Saturday: Hams AM, Arms PM

Sunday: rest/cardio/abs

This worked really well because by spacing out legs and back as much as possible my core doesn't flare up. I also put in a couple sets of biceps after back to bring up that area faster and I'm excited to see what happens there. Been back on this split a week and a half and my core feels good enough already to do sets of 50 crunches and 30 leg lifts, provided its on its own day. Good sign! If I can keep that up I'll have my barbarian abs back in no time!

Welcome! Awesome to have a wrestler/bodybuilder join our ranks!