Hi all, let me give u a quick rundown,

I first started training 8 years ago @ 15 years old doing powerlifting, After 3 years i stopped training but took short spells of returning and again stopping. I have been back now since December 06 training in s bodybuilding manner.

All is going good however when I entered the MT shape up comp with the intentions of cutting, I messed up badly, I dropped weight too fast and too harshly which led to my weights in the gym falling dramatically so after 5 weeks I knocked it on the head and decided to build more muscle mainly concentrating on my lagging parts inc back an shoulders.

I am back at my comfortable weight of 13 and a half stone, I feel strong at this weight although I dont like the fact that I am carrying quite a bit of bodyfat ( Im only 5ft 7 ). However since takin this approach my weights have been rising consistantly which can only mean im building muscle.

Sooooo, my conclusion now is to keep building muscle whilst maintaning this bodyweight, gradually clean up my diet, get my cutting diet worked out on paper and finally put it into action early next year.

I will get current pics up soon.

Watch this space.

Good luck with it mate. I am also going for strength and just cleaning my diet up aswell.

Cardifflads new start

thank you sir, My intentions are to get the bodybuilders physique, just not this year lol.

so training went well tonight, back and biceps consisted of,

4 x narrow grip pulldowns max of 90kg for 8reps (2forced)
4x lying flat barbell rows max of 55kg for 10 reps
4x reverse grip cable rows max of 65kg for 12 reps

4x seated preacher curls with e-z bar max of 40kg for 10reps
4 x stading dumbbell curls 10-15kg dumbbells for 12 reps
3 x concentration curls 7kg dumbbells without rest
3 x cable peak builders 12 reps at 15kg

took some pics tonight, please please please feel free to comment and point me in the right direction.

critics and compliments welcome.

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q3/biggers_2007/S5000593-1.jpg

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q3/biggers_2007/S5000594.jpg

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q3/biggers_2007/S5000599.jpg

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q3/biggers_2007/S5000600.jpg

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q3/biggers_2007/S5000602.jpg

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q3/biggers_2007/S5000595.jpg

come on peeps lets hear your views

well you dont look fat even though you are carrying a little - more 'full house' but i deffo wouldnt want to put much more on as you know - getting rid is a pain in the ass !!

we all have different goal but if i were you i would hammer ther weights eat fairly clean and solidify your gains

and your a hairy MOFO !

lol thanx boar, i contemplated gettin waxed but id like to make a real good improvement then add to the gains with the waxin at the time lol.

leg day!!

training in an empty gym today so obviously I didnt want to go all out for my own safety,

bout 15mins on the station bike to warm up follewed by

4 x sets leg extensions 10 - 12 reps rising to 45kg then failure with 35kg
4 x hack squats(very deep) maxin at 25kg each side 8 reps,
4 x leg press maxing at 300kg (very deep) last set was 200kg for 15 reps, small rest then another 6 reps
3 x sets of dumbbell lunges using 9kg dumbbells 10reps follwed by set of 8 then set of 6.

I do calves and hams on a tuesday night after shoulders in case you are wondering.

weight this morning was 13 stone 6.

quick note, legs are sore as ****, any critics on me leg workout?

if you dont fancy squats (and not everyone does) then i would do the heavier ones first i.e leg press

if i were to do a legs only day (without squats) it would be:

leg press
stiff leg deadlift or that lying hamstring curl thing
lunges with heavier dumbells
calf raise

thanks boar, reason I do the current routins is because my legs r very poor, I borke my femur a few years ago quite badly so my left leg is worse than my right, I got the idea of leg extensions first from dorian yates videos and book and from talkin to him in Dublin last October where he uses them to pre exhaust the quads.

IIRC he uses leg extensions as his main builder.

thanks for the comments boar and for your advice, I change my routine every 8 weeks so All critics/advice is bein takin on board.

on a mental note, me, my fiance and my little girl are just back from an all you can eat carvery..

Man I am now lying on the sofa with the top button button of my jeans open watchin masters football!!

please note this does NOT happen often its fathers day after all

ORIGINAL: bigin

My intentions are to get the bodybuilders physique, just not this year lol.

Well in my opinion you've already got that bigin - you'd just need to shed a little bodyfat to reveal it - you've got some seriously good mass there - well done!

I don't know whether you are doing any dedicated cardio sessions, but I certainly find that 2-3 days of cardio per week on non-training days helps me to keep the fat at bay, whilst still keeping my carbs and general calorie intake high enough to continue making gradual gains.

Keep up the good work - particularly impressive V-taper by the way.

thanks for dropping in Kridge and thank you for the kind comments.

As far as cardio goes at the moment i am doin virtuallly none, I know how important cardio is to shed fat. When I started cutting for the MT shape up contest I was doin 20-45 mins fasted am cardio on the stationary bike 5 mornings out of 7, within 3 weeks I had shed 22lbs but my diet was well off, I was eating virtually no carbs and hence my weights in the gym where dropping horrifically. Saying that the will power I had for cardio was really good.

Over the next 8 weeks I have 3 weddings to attend and after that I plan to introduce at least 2 am fasted cardio sessions per week again for the reast of the year.

thanks again Kridge.

I pigged out today too mate - i got a big box of toffee and a tobelarone , i feel a bit sick now but it was nice to have a day off , back at it tomoz !!

toffee kicks dick, I went and got a starbucks caramel cappacino this evening as well, I think im going to start running monday and thurs mornings before breakfast,

hoping for 45kg incline dumbbell presses for a sloid 8 reps tomorrow night. When I started my disastrous cut earlier in the year these dropped to 17.5kg for 15 reps.

we update, chest and tris tonight, managed 6 reps at 45kg incline dumbbell presses tonight and 1 forced rep, routine from start to end was;

5 x sets of incline dumbbells maxing at 45kg dumbbells then 1 set of 27.5kg to failure(9)
4 x sets decline barbell press maxing at 110 kg for 10 reps and 75kg to failure,
4 x dumbbell flies at a slight decline very wide,deep slow reps maxing at 15kg for 12 reps
3 x sets of pec dec starting at 17.5kg for 12 reps then 12.5kg to failure = 1 set

4 x sets of upright dips reps of 12
4 x sets v bar tricep push downs maxing at 30kg
4 x sets flat bench skull crushers max 25kg,

Slept in this morning for work so only managed 2 slices of toast on the way out the door which I hate doing,

Usual breakfast consists of a large bowl of porridge and a whey shake. Also missed out on my idea of an early morning jog abviously, I need a kick in the stones!!

Shoulders tonight, felt good after a good days eating so;

4 x sets seated dumbbell shoulder press max 32.5kg dumbbells 8 reps
4 x sets standing dumbbell side lateral raises max 10kg for 8 reps
4 x sets seated bent over rear delt raises max 10kg to failure(14 reps)
4 x sets front raises using 20kg disc to failure each time 10 - 15 reps

Calves and hams
4 x lying leg curls max 35kg to failure(12reps)
4 x stiffleg deadlift using 50kg barbell for 10 reps
4 x standing calve raises 120kg 10 - 15 reps
4 x seated calve raises 30 kg each set to failure

feel very tired tonight after the workout so just had some chicken and naan bread with a taste of sweet chilli sauce, now for a shower and an early night,

Please feel free to critic my routines so far. everybodys help and tips are appreciated.

You have some good solid size to you mate arms are a strong point!

"When i let go of what i am, i become what i might be"

thanks mate, I dont train arms that often in the hope to get my back and shoulders on the same level, I have a fairly strong chest although I carry a lot of fat there as well which takes it all away.