AK's Journal

TBH I'm not especially experienced in that side of it. However, as a start teh 5/3/2 wekk rotation that T0NY got me doing is feeling good. Combined with some suitable complementary exercise (floor press, inc, dec, etc) and I would expect +ve results. Iain or T0NY may offer better tho

Limits, like fear, are often just an illusion: MJ 12/9/09
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Try a relatively slow and simple build up, e.g.

Week 1: 110kg, 5 triples
Week 2: 115kg, 3 triples
Week 3: Max Triple
Week 4: 115kg, 5 doubles
Week 5: 120kg, 3 doubles
Week 6: Max Double
Week 7: Max Single

Adjust weight accordingly of course.

You booked a ticket for the Hercules mate?

I know that a fair few people from my gym and UK-M are meeting at Nandos right near the venue at 12.00 befor it starts for some food. Then go out for drinks and more food after the show i think.

Let me know if your still coming down and il PM you my mob. number.

Balls i totally forgot about that!

I'll try and get one ordered over the weekend mate and let you know the outcome.

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Still about 100 tickets avaliable mate, so let me know.

Awesome - i'll get back to you the other side of the weekend man.

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Ak_88


Cheers Iain - i've earmarked 140 for 1 next year, but i've been told it could be achievable this year! We'll have to see

Mmm some good advice so far. I you want any chance of 140 by the end of the year then you'd need to bench soley for strength as has been suggested. You can still do BB work on the assistance stuff so should be no probs on that score.
 
You do need to accistomed youself to hitting singles. 100x8 will not get you 140. I'll be honest I don't see you lifting 140 this year. But it's an excellent goal for next year.
 
Low reps, more sets, speed, power and technique!

Stonehenge
 
Where the banshees live and they do live well

Cheers Iain - i'll put it on the backburner for next year then if it's going to end up being too much of a rush to do it properly

Quads/Calves

Staggered Leg Press

Per leg as master/slave

160kgx12
150kgx12
140kgx12

Front Squats

50kgx10
55kgx8
60kgx8

Walking Lunges

25kgx~16
25kgx~16

Feeling rather sick by now

Leg Press Calf Raise

135kgx10x10 - 30 seconds rest between sets.

Core work and some stretching to finish.

Good session. Fancied a change from leg extensions and fronties seemed a viable option, first time i've ever done any sort of squats following something else i think. Whether it was because i was warmer or the flexibility stuff i've been doing has started to work, i managed to use a narrower stance and hit good depth. Didn't have to drive outwards with my hips as much with this stance too.

Knees were more than likely over my toes but TBH i seem to do that all the time and i've never had an issue with it. Paused at the bottom too to try and reinforce to myself how to maintain the arch coming out of the hole.

May play about with this session a bit next week again, perhaps superset the Fronties with extensions

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how do you rate lunges?

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Love/hate thing doing them. They are great, but soul destroying.

Walking lunges are much better than static ones too. IMO they need to be > 8 reps per leg though, the last 4 paces per leg will make you want to die.

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static variations are a great bullsh1t exercise that I throw in sometimes after real training. they would be better if the goal is to actually strengthen the prime movers.

with lunges I think it's far too much energy balancing rather than moving weight.

on the other hand, sets are completed quicker...

and your strength has come on wonders, from this time last year at least. some very decent weights/sessions here. nice stuff..

how much are you weighing now?

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Yeah - theres definately a lot more coordination required with them and once i'm worn out i tend to wobble a bit, but hopefully it'll aid my core strength and stability a bit, they also leave me positively dead, so something must be working right.

Weights at ~217lbs i think now, somewhat blubbery but i felt the softly softly approach wasn't getting me anywhere, having learnt from IB i just needed to cut the crap and get to where i wanted to be. I'm throwing in some AM cardio on non-leg days to see if it helps, but ultimately i'm not fussed about my condition for now. My main focus is just adding weight to the bar and on the scales, with that some decent mass will surely come.

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Back Thickness/Biceps

Makeshift Tbar Row

75kgx12
70kgx10
60kgx12

Wide Grip Cable Row

77kgx12
70kgx12
66kgx12

Barbell Row

80kgx10
75kgx10

Lower back was niggling by this point so stopped there, lats were dead anyway.

DB Preacher

17.5kgx10
15kgx10

Incline Supinated DB Curls

12.5kgx10
12.5kgx10

Standing Ez Bar Curl

30kgx10
25kgx12

Good session today. T-bars are taking a lot out of me, but going up week by week so not a problem. As mentioned above, lower back was niggling a bit, whether this is from a poor nights sleep or doing the fronts yesterday i don't know, but i'll keep an eye on it.

Arm work also seemed a bit tougher today, not sure why, but still got a good pump.

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I think lunges are great if your training for a sport. Probably less so for BB style training. A finsher at best.

Stonehenge
 
Where the banshees live and they do live well

Meant to be quite good for the glute-ham tie in if memory serves correct, that said generally i use them as a finisher.

Besides, more glute work with a back as fcked as mine can't be all bad

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Chest/Triceps

Flat BB Bench

102.5kgx6+1
95kgx6+1
85kgx7

Decline DB

37.5kgx6
32.5kgx8
32.5kgx8

Cable Crossovers

17.5kgx9
15kgx12
12.5kgx12

Smith Floor Press

70kgx8
65kgx8
60kgx8
50kgx10

Dips

BWx5+3 negatives
BWx4+4 negatives

Pushdowns

35kgx12
38kgx10
35kgx10

Hip and ham stretching to finish.

Good session today. Rep numbers were down a bit on the bench but i wasn't expecting to get a full 8 out as we're now in unchartered waters for the bench work. Tri's as per usual seemed to be the weakest link for the pressing work, but by the time i was done with all the chest stuff it felt absolutely smoked, moreso than usual

Feet are still a tad sore but seemed to get better as the session went on today - makes me think/hope it's just deconditioning from no cardio for quite some time. Will try doing some AM cardio on saturday again since tommorow is hams and glutes.

On the plus side - lower back has been very well behaved the last few days and my right shoulder seems to have vanquished all signs of previous problems, ain't prehab work grand

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I think lunges are great if your training for a sport. Probably less so for BB style training. A finsher at best

I was trying to be diplomatic, but what Iain said sounds better

lunges are sh1t

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Well i like 'em, and theres precious little other quad work on offer to me at the moment, so they'll be staying

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sh1tier than that first sentence 

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I see lots of girls doing lunges

Nice bench work mate..... floor press in a smith, hmmmm, not thought of that, how do you find it?

Limits, like fear, are often just an illusion: MJ 12/9/09
My journal

I've seen the hams & glutes of one of the guys doing the juniors of this weekends finals (well in pictures ) and he puts it down to twice weekly lunges!

I actually prefer doing it in a smith to what i was doing previously - which involved carefully balancing the bar on the end of a bench and pulling it from there into the starting position. I figured once it got heavier it was going to put my shoulder under undue strain so moved into the smith and i find it much smoother.

Other than getting pinned under it last weekend when i failed LOL

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Glutes/Hamstrings/Calves

Sumo Deadlifts

120kgx5
120kgx5
120kgx5

Good Mornings

60kgx8
60kgx8
50kgx10

Seated Hamstring Curls

80kgx12
80kgx10

Glute-Ham Raises

BWx15
BWx12

Seated Calf Raise

52.5kgx10x10 - 30s between sets

Core work and stretching to finish.

Pretty good session today. I think ive finally nailed the form for Sumos, they were smooth all the way through and powered up with some serious glute clenching

GM's i think i'm going to change out next week, they're beginning to feel a bit too stressful on my lower back without giving a good hamstring stretch now. Instead i'll do the other exercises first and then have some 12-15 rep RDL or SLDL's to finish with.

Flexibility seems to be coming on quite nicely now in my hips and hams too, might need some new exercises too as i'm running out of range of motion

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Back Width/Shoulders

Seated Row

77kgx12
70kgx12
63kgx12

Underhand Pulldowns

Done on a plate-loaded machine today rather than a Lat pulldown, the movement arc is much more suited to underhand PD's than a cable machine.

80kgx10
80kgx10
70kgx10

Chins

BWx7
BWx6
BWx7

Barbell Push-Press

60kgx5
50kgx7
50kgx6

DB Laterals

12.5kgx10
10kgx12

Face Pull/Rear Fly

31kgx12/8kgx12
31kgx12/8kgx12

Bit hit and miss today. Felt very laboured throughout and pretty much lost interest by the time i'd finished with the OHP work. Think i'm going back to training weekdays - 2 on 1 off 2 on 2 off. The split'll take a bit longer, but i'm sure theres no harm in giving each body part and extra 2 days rest as the split progresses.

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Am I right in thinking your looking to compete in the not-so distant future?
What your current condition like? Are you making insane progress seeing as though your bumming round all day?

I say we need pictures!

Other than that, good work, yours is one of the most consistant logs I read, you don't often skip sessions do you?

Journal

Hey mate. Not too distant future would be vastly optimistic Mainly though that comes down to uni committments over the next 2 years, injury issues forced me to rethink things a bit, as well as needing a lot, lot more size to be anywhere near competitive! If i were to put a timescale on it i'd say late 20's now, but thats based on how i can train at the moment.

I'll get some pics up over the next week or 2, but stats wise i'm about 217lbs - arms are about 15.7", quads just short of 25" (half way up), chest just shy of 44". Waist? Hmmm nah we'll leave that out

Current condition isn't great, but TBH at the moment i'm not fussed by it - moreso concentrating on adding strength in the gym and adding weight on the scales, with which lean tissue (and inevitably fat) shold come. It went downhill a bit too fast when i came back from uni as my diet was the same, but minus all the little things i used to do like walking to town, lectures etc.

Having fannied about with cutting and bulking over the last 3 years i've just decided to put my image worries on the back burner for now and gain some real mass, lean or otherwise, and cut down later. That said, i've started doing morning cardio to try and maintain/improve it a bit whilst not compromising my progression with weights.

Nah i don't skip sessions - training in the gym is one of my great enjoyments no matter what i'm doing. If i'm put in a situation where i need to skip a session or feel particularly crap i'll just move everything back 24 hours to fit it in rather than leave it out for a week.

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Weight/chest/arm/even waist measurements are pretty much the same as mine. Strength levels aren't a world apart other than your squat is a fair bit better.

Will you be competing o'naturelle or, ahem, joining the bigger boys?

Journal

I wish i could still squat though! Thats one of the main reasons i put competition aspirations aside for now, no point having big legs if it means being crocked for the other 6 days of the week! I'm still learning what i respond best to r/e exercises, diet and so on, once i get a better idea of whats ideal i can crack on at full speed.

Natty for me all the way. I've nothing against those in untested comps, i think they look absolutely awesome, but for me i can't ignore the potential sides with gear use. I know theres no conclusive research and you can probably cycle quite safely, but having a mother as a nurse, i've had it drummed hard into my head how bad steroids are. I can toss her opinion aside as typical media hype, but theres always that niggling thing at the back of my mind.

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http://www.laweekly.com/2005-07-28/news/sympathy-for-the-devil/

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Is it your back that gives you jip when squatting? Or was it your knee?
How do you cope with front squats?

I'm in a similiar position to you now, I find not deadlifting awkward now, especially as I'm probably going to start splitting up bodyparts again... Will just be a mass of t-bar rows, db rows and chins. Oh, and shrugs!

I'm also limited with my overhead work as I have a low ceiling... Not ideal but ill manage!

Journal

Lower back or  hip thats been giving me grief. Originally 'went out' in early new year, packed in any free weight stuff that didn't feel right. Probably about 3-4 months recovery before i started bringing little bits and bobs back in. Managed a few months squatting - hit a PB of 130x10 and subsequently blew a gasket somewhere.

That was the proverbial straw for me, since then i've gone on a blitz to strengthen the hell out of my core and posterior chain muscles to give my lower back and hips more stability.

I did some fronties last week and they seemed OK, will be doing them again tommorow i think and see how i fare.

Deadlifts are overrated though, sumos are the way to go

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I've yet to be convinced on the sumo's! But hey, if they work...
130x10 is excellent mate, think I could manage about 5 at the moment on a good day.
Though I'm at the stage now where I can freely eat a **** load but have stopped rugby this season and my gut seems to be expanding! I'm tempted to just give up on increasing my lifts for the time being (not the best environments really!) and try and pack on some muscle and go for volume. Simple splits, simple exercises, and see what happens! I'm about 95-97kg but certainly dont look or feel that heavy. I wouldnt mind a belly if I had the muscle to go along with it. Watch this space!

Journal

LOL - thats my thinking as well. The factor that theres been very few weeks in say the last 2 months where my strength has not increased in some manner (be it reps or poundage) over 2-3 sessions. As long as this continues i'm happy to add weight in whatever form it comes in.

IMO too many (myself previously included) who become hung up on whether they're gaining muscle, what arbitrary % their bodyfat is, etc.

Unless you're heavily muscled and/or are a competitive BB'er, you should be training movements, not muscles. Although strength and size aren't always synonymous, you put strength on your 8-12RM bench and your chest is going to grow!

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Yeah good point. To be honest, I've always been more focused on keeping the weight going up, while not neccessarily following a strength routine. Now I don't really play any sport I should really try and do something abit more efficient. Heh, I've never actually been particulary fussed about my bodyfat%, I like my drink and chocolate far too much to get that fussy. But i would be happy if i could shed even a small amount of fat off my hips/lower back area.

Out of interest, what grip do you use for your bench then? When I first started my ring finger would be on the lines of the bar, now my pinky is about 1cm in from the line. It helps me lift more, and doesn't feel as torturous on my shoulders! Does it make much difference to chest development?

And lastly.... are 15rep squats all they're cracked up to be?

EDIT - Lastly lastly, whats the reasoning with the splits you've chosen? Training back width and thickness on two different days, were you not growing before?

Thanks for letting me pick your brain by the way.

Journal

Previously i've gone for index finger on the second ring of an Oly bar and gone as close as little finger on the same ring. Had a play about a while ago to see if it felt any different in terms of pec contraction, and it didn't Recently i've been using my middle finger on that ring and it feels nice and stable on my shoulders and i'm shifting some decent weight so i'm happy in that respect.

I think unless you're using a mega wide grip (like just short of the edges of the bench rack) then it won't make enough difference on your chest activity to tell, without putting your shoulders in a compromising position.

15's are great for squats - i found them more taxing than 20's. The weight is enough to make sure form doesn't dip enough, but also leaves you blowing out your arse by the end of them. For pure leg building though i much preferred hack squats - no issue of core/lower back strength endurance stopping you prematurely, all on the legs and the tendency to bounce out of the hole seems much lower.

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I was doing OK on a single back day, but i found towards the end everything was starting to drag a bit. Having to do 3 sets for 4 heavy compound movements left the end of the session very laboured. The way i'm training back ATM it seems quite good as i can do 9 sets with a good intensity throughout.

The terms thickness and width are pretty arbitrary though - it's probably better termed pulldown/chin movements and row days.

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Or even horizontal and vertical pulling perhaps as described by J.Defranco himself!

Cheers for the answers bud.

Journal

Quads/Calves

Staggered Leg Press

Per leg as master/slave

165kgx12
155kgx12
150kgx12

Front Squats & Leg Extensions Superset

60kgx10/25kgx10

Sick burp here, quite a mouthful

60kgx8/25kgx10

Walking Lunges

25kgx~16

Ready to chunder here, no more.

Leg Press Calf Raise

130kgx10x10 - 30 seconds rest between sets.

Core work and some stretching to finish.

Not a bad session considering i'm feeling pretty crap today. Haven't slept properly in my 2 days off so cardio was sacked off, and as a result my back tightened up a bit and i feel a little burnt out.

There was more in the front squats, but given how my back felt i decided it best not to be heroic.

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Back Thickness/Biceps

Forgot my notepad so this is from memory

Makeshift Tbar Row

80kgx11
75kgx11
70kgx10
60kgx12

Wide Grip Cable Row

70kgx12
66kgx12
63kgx12
59kgx12

Barbell/DB Shrug Superset

90kgx12/30kgx12
90kgx10/30kgx10
80kgx12/30kgx12

DB Preacher

17.5kgx12
15kgx10

Incline Supinated DB Curls

12.5kgx10
12.5kgx10

Cable Curl

17.5kgx12
17.5kgx12

Good session today - much more energy than Tuesday's efforts. Little change in the setup as last week my lower back was cained after doing the Tbars. Traps look like they're lagging behind where i thought they'd do OK with all the other back work, so for the time being i'll be doing the above instead of last week's stuff.

All in all a good session - very good pump throughout, although the BB shrugs seemed to put a bit too much strain on my lower back, may try these seated next week and see how it goes.

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Interesting that you do the 1 max weight/rep set then drop down for following sets...
 
I'm the opposite on traps, barely trained them all year..... I'd be happier if my chest was the area that responded like this rather than my traps however

Limits, like fear, are often just an illusion: MJ 12/9/09
My journal

Yeah - it's the method IB taught me and i think it's done me a lot better than working up.

I think his logic behind it was why do say 50kg for 8 first if you can do 60/70 first, it's almost like you're depriving yourself of intensity doing it succesively rather than dropping down each set.

I know i wouldn't be able to bench as much if i worked upwards because my tri's take such a caining, probably similar for other big movements.

My chest is exactly the same, but as long as i'm adding poundage i'm hoping it'll grow, at least thats what the optimist in me says

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