Squat Day - Cycle 4

Squat Day
Cycle 4

Overall Impression:

i was kinda outta wack today....this workout was done on wednesday btw y'all...

ok, so some notes...i need to up my protein intake. im barely having any protein and i think thats not too healthy for me. otherwise im eating a lot healthier.

The Workout:

Squats
- 225 lbs x 1 rep
- 245 lbs x 1 rep
- 275 lbs x 1 rep
- 295 lbs x 0 reps
ok, so i wanted to see if i could nail 295. on paper it looks like i cant. but, i think i can. i made some very stupid basic and silly mistakes.
1.) i took a 45 second break between 275 and 295 whereas my usual breaks ranged no lesser than 2 minutes
2.) i took a shitload of time to unrack the bar because i wasnt concentrating properly
3.) when i stepped back my shoelace was untied and it distracted me. how ****ing riddiculus!!!
so, when i went down, i was fine. nice and smooth. exactly like 275 in fact. but, then on the way up, just at midpoint, i exhaled all my air and ive never done that. the result: i started losing height and i had to deweight the bar on the safety racks! pretty silly mistake. no matter though...such problems do come...next time ill get this.
so the plan for next week: 245 for 5x5 plus a walkout with 295. if that goes well, i will try for 250 for 5x5 the week after and after that i will nail this 295. but im happy because if i hadnt made those mistakes i would've easily scored.

Unilateral Romanian Deadlifts
- 65 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets

Regular Romanian Deadlifts
- 135 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 80 lbs x 12 reps x 3 sets, 90 lbs x 5 reps x 1 set
- Overhead Plate Side Bends supersetted with Plate Side Bends = 20 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets for both

Shoulder Prehab Work
- Shoulder Protractions

Military Press Day - Cycle 4

Military Press Day
Cycle 4

Overall Impression:

gym was extremely overcrowded. i did my workout in a hurry because i was really really pressed for time today and in addition to that the whole football team was working out at the same time so all the 15 power cages were taken up. ****!

The Workout:

Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press
- 55 lbs x 3 reps x 3 sets
smooth and easy

Pull-ups
skipped. no pull-up bar free.

High Cable V-Bar Rows on the Lat Pull Down machine
- 140 lbs x 10 reps x 4 sets
almost everything was to failure

Tricep Exercise
skipped. all the benches were taken up and i didnt want to wait for 10 minutes till they got free.

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups 80 lbs x 12 reps x 2 sets
- Overhead Side Bends 10 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets
i didnt want to neglect ab work

Deadlift Day - Cycle 4

Deadlift Day
Cycle 4

Overall Impression:

today was a nice warm day....65F sunny i loved it! so, i think i have my weekly plan more or less laid out here for me:

Saturday OR Sunday: Deadlift Day
Monday: Military Press Day
Wednesday: Squat Day
Friday: Bench Press Day

simple. i like it.

The Workout:

Deadlifts
- 275 lbs x 6 reps
- 275 lbs x 4 reps
- 275 lbs x 8 reps
ok this was a huge mountain of problem today lol....i started out with 275...i got 6 reps with the over-over grip. it was easy work. felt alright too. then, i took a 4 minute rest. got under the 275 again and tried to pull 6 reps as planned (plan was 275x6x3). 3 reps were alright...my focus was too much on the grip. rep 4 was pretty ok. then, on rep 5, just a little before lockout, my grip starts to give way. i panic and drop the bar immediately. then, i rest a good 5 minutes and then i shift to an over-under grip and nail 8 reps with 275....i was very stubborn. i wanted 18 reps total come what may lol...

Bulgarian Squats
- 40 lbs x 8 reps x 2 sets

Glute Ham Raises
- BW x 6 reps x 2 sets

Grip Work
Barbell Curls supersetted with Incline Dumbbell Curls
- 70 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets and 15 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets respectively
Seated Dumbbell Curls supersetted with Preacher Curls
- 40 lbs x 5 reps x 2 sets and 30 lbs x 5 reps x 2 sets respectively

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 80 lbs x 10 reps x 1 set
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 20 lbs x 10 reps x 1 set
i was too lazy to do ab work lol..

Bench Press Day - Cycle 3

Bench Press Day
Cycle 3

Overall Impression:

damn this cold!!!

The Workout:

Bench Press
- speed-strength work @ 65% of 1RM with 135 lbs x 2 reps x 6 sets
- 2 second Paused Bench Press 195 lbs x 1 rep
the speed-strength work was cool...my last set of 195 was really bad....i completely lost my groove mid way...but i didnt attempt it again because i wasnt bothered by it...i watched this vid on youtube: EliteFST Bench Press Promo for DVD and i found that point on my bench where the bar feels weightless. it was just a little bit - a very very little bit off where i usually bench. it makes a little bit of a difference - i probably need to exploit it more...oh well, im not too bothered about benching so its alright...

Dumbbell Bench Press
- 50 lbs x 20 reps x 2 sets
this was pretty cool...

Dumbbell Rows
- 70 lbs x 10 reps x 4 sets

Facepulls
- 100 lbs x 12 reps x 2 sets

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Downs = 80 lbs x 8 reps x 3 sets

Squat Day - Cycle 3

Squat Day
Cycle 3

Overall Impression:

today was a good workout....i want to ask someone anyone who is good with diet....my PWO meal was 4 large pieces of pick chicken plus 2 glasses of half and half milk. plain. what did i eat in this meal? protein plus carbs or fats???

The Workout:

Squats
- 225 lbs x 8 reps x 3 sets
- 245 lbs x 1 rep
- 265 lbs x 1
this was tres tiring...shite!

Unilateral Romanian Deadlifts
- 65 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets

Regular Romanian Deadlifts
- 135 lbs x 10 reps
felt awesome!

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 80 lbs x 12 reps x 3 sets
- Overhead Plate Side Bends supersetted with Plate Side Bends = 20 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets for both

Shoulder Prehab Work
- Shoulder Protractions

Military Press Day - Cycle 3

Military Press Day
Cycle 3

Overall Impression:

im loosing some fat...i think...the double chin is still there though today's workout was alright...i so wasnt in the mood to lift but this semester im not going to slack off like last semester. i have to be focussed and positive.

The Workout:

Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press
- 50 lbs x 3 reps x 3 sets
this was actually pretty light. i didnt want to go upto 60 (which would've been pretty easy too) because im doing dumbbell bilateral work after a long time and the last time i did this i got a shoulder dislocation so i need to get my confidence back on this. slow and steady is the way for now...

Pull-ups
- Density Training = 5 reps x 8 sets @ 8 minutes
This was exceedingly difficult....i thought it would be easy but shifting from a narrow bar to a thick bar is damn difficult...it will take me a while to get used to this.

High Cable V-Bar Rows on the Lat Pull Down machine
- 140 lbs x 8 reps x 3 sets
close to failure

Tricep Exercise
Skull Crushers supersetted with Bent Arm Dumbbell Pullovers
- 50 lbs x 8 reps x 2 sets and 40 lbs x 12 reps x 2 sets respectively

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups 80 lbs x 8 reps x 2 sets
Im gonna do more ab work on my squat day next time.

Deadlift Day - Cycle 3

Deadlift Day
Cycle 3

Overall Impression:

i dont like the cold im so not used to it...it really puts me off my groove!

The Workout:

Deadlifts
- 275 lbs x 5 reps x 3 sets
my form was a little off. but, unlike last time i was able to complete all 3 sets. unfortunately, my calluses on my palm almost got ripped off. grip is an issue not because its weak per se but because of the cold...my hands become numb

Bulgarian Squats
- 40 lbs x 8 reps x 2 sets

Glute Ham Raises
- BW x 8 reps x 3 sets

Grip Work
Barbell Curls supersetted with Incline Dumbbell Curls
- 70 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets and 15 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets respectively
Barbell curls supersetted with Hammer Curls
- 90 lbs x 2 reps x 1 set and 50 lbs x 2 reps x 1 set respectively

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 80 lbs x 10 reps x 3 sets
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 20 lbs x 10 reps x 1 set

Bench Press Day - Cycle 2

Bench Press Day
Cycle 2

Overall Impression:

i flew back from bombay on the 16th....it was a 30 hour flight. shit. ive been eating a lot of food since. thats good.

today's workout was weird. im not very happy actually. i barely worked out for 45 minutes...actually, more like 30. its freezing here in san antonio - 40F and for someone like me who's used to warm sunny beaches, thats miserably bitterly cold! it took me forever to warm up and i did not break into a sweat! not one drop of sweat the entire workout. i had to be extra careful because ive read that when your body isnt warming up properly chances of having serious injuries is very high...im gonna have to adjust to not sweating so much. this cold is killing me lol..

The Workout:

Bench Press
- DE work @ 60% of 1RM with 125 lbs x 2 reps x 6 sets
- 2 second Paused Bench Press 205 lbs x 1 rep
this went as planned. its funny. before, my weakness on the bench was getting the bar off my chest. now its at midpoint. shit. i think ill have to do more tricep work then. my shoulders also felt a tad bit weird today..

Pull-ups
- 4 sets x 6 reps
i didnt do the usual density training because im gonna do my deadlift workout either tomorrow or day after and i dont want to tire my grip. im gonna move the pull-ups to my military press day (between the press and the row variant) and im gonna more the tricep work to today. or i might keep the tricep work to that day. in any case, pull-ups arent today any more. i need a heavy deadlift and military press workout and relatively lower volume type squat and bench workouts so as to allow recovery. and excess pulling work is screwing my grip. ive gotten straps (should be arriving sometime soon) but i only want to use them for back work - not for deads for as long as i can help it.

Dumbbell Rows
- 65 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets
- 80 lbs x 5 reps x 1 set
kept this light and easy. on my left hand, the callus on the pinky finger's base almost got ripped off last deadlift session and its still a little sore...i didnt want to push my luck lol.

Facepulls
- 100 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets

Ab Work
skipped it

Squat Day - Cycle 2

Squat Day
Cycle 2

Overall Impression:

i think ive become fat :(

The Workout:

Squats
- 225 lbs x 8 reps x 3 sets
high rep squats are killer lol...anything above 5 reps is killer infact. i used to hold my breath for 3 reps, then breathe, then 2 reps, then breathe, then 2 more reps then breathe and then 1 rep. this is very very difficult and i thought i was gonna get stuck mid way on the last set on the last 3-4 reps.

Unilateral Romanian Deadlifts
- 45 lbs x 7 reps x 2 sets

Regular Romanian Deadlifts
- 110 lbs x 5 reps
my lower back was damn damn tight by this time and i didnt want to push it. i was afraid perhaps i might re-injure myself...so i quit after 5 reps. but, i have to add: after the ab work, my lower back was lose and ready to be pounded by heavy weights again.

Grip Work
Bilateral Dumbbell Hammer Curls supersetted with Bilateral Incline Dumbbell Curls
- 20 kgs x 6 reps x 2 sets and 8 kgs x 10 reps x 2 sets respectively

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 35 kgs x 12 reps x 3 sets

Shoulder Prehab Work
- Shoulder Protractions

Military Press Day - Cycle 2

Military Press Day
Cycle 2

Overall Impression:

im eating more food. im gonna need to cut calories. i need to lose some weight. especially around my stomach lol....i cant believe ive increased size everywhere including my stomach...i wish i was able to lose fat just off my stomach lol...

The Workout:

Military Press
- 120 lbs x 8 reps
- 120 lbs x 6 reps
- 120 lbs x 3 reps
ok so i was supposed to do 3x8-10 today with 120 lbs. but a lot of things went wrong. firstly, i slept in a weird position last night. a lot of my muscles were stiff. even after warm-ups. secondly, my left arm kept moving in an awkward ROM throughout. i did some prehab exercises, i did more warm-ups but to no avail. it scared me. i realized that after i did the high pulley cable rows my left shoulder was moving fine. which makes me wonder whether perhaps next time in this situation i should just do some heavy pulls and then get back to the militaries.. thirdly, high rep militaries are tough because i dont know where i am supposed to breathe and that really fucks things up. if i re-rack the bar and then unrack it im wasting a lot of energy. thats not good. fourthly, my grip was off. on the bars back at school i have this mark at which i know i need to place my pinky finger but this bar here is difficult to judge since i dont even know the width i hold the bar at. i need to remember this next time. and to top this all off, i forgot that im dealing in kilos right now so my bar weight around 11-13 kgs and the plates which i added plus the bar did not amount to 55 kgs as i had thought - it came to 125-127 lbs. ill try for this next time. Lastly, i strained my neck doing these militaries and i cant turn my head from side to side without wincing in pain. thats pretty horrible.

High Cable V-Bar Rows on the Lat Pull Down machine
- 135 lbs x 12 reps x 3 sets
- 155 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets
mostly all to failure or near failure

Tricep Exercise
Lying Dumbbell Extensions supersetted with Bent Arm Dumbbell Pullovers
- 8 kgs x 12 reps x 3 sets and 18 kgs x 10 reps x 3 sets respectively

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups 35 kgs x 8 reps x 2 sets

Deadlift Day - Cycle 2

Deadlift Day
Cycle 2

Overall Impression:

a pretty horrible workout!

The Workout:

Deadlifts
- 275 lbs x 5 reps x 2 sets
- 275 lbs x 5 reps messed up
this really really sucked. so i got the first 2 sets with 5 reps. no problem. everything was just fine. then on set #3, on each and every rep the bar slipped from my fingers just before lockout! i took a 10 minute break after 3 reps and went back at it and wala...the same thing happened again. im very disappointed. this is actually my fault: my pull-up day was just day before yesterday and my forearms, etc are sore. i shouldnt have gone in today but i want to finish another 2 workouts before i fly back to Trinity on tuesday night...oh well, ill be sure to do 275 for 3x5 next time. im just kinda disappointed with this.

Bulgarian Squats
- 40 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets

Hyper Extensions
- BW x 10 reps x 2 sets

Grip Work
- skipped it for obvious reasons

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 35 kgs x 10 reps x 3 sets
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 7.5 kgs x 12 reps x 2 sets
this is probably the only exercise (or pair of) which i actually enjoyed doing today.

Bench Press Day - Cycle 1

Bench Press Day
Cycle 1

Overall Impression:

ok so all the food hogging ive been doing has paid off. weighed in today at 181 lbs. im looking a lot thicker all around too. im happy. the only sad part is that i think ive gained some fat on my stomach. that sucks...

regarding the workout: it was gooooood

The Workout:

Bench Press
- DE work @ 55% of 1RM with 110 lbs x 3 reps x 6 sets
- 2 second Paused Bench Press 200 lbs x 1 rep
i'm happy. the paused bench set felt really really light and easy. i could've easily knocked out 2-3 more reps. im happy. i've gotten a bit stronger. nice!

Pull-ups
- Density Training 5 reps x 8 sets @ 8 minutes
this was fantastic. this is the most number of pull-ups ive ever done in my life. 40 pull-ups in 8 minutes. whoo-hoo!!!

Dumbbell Rows
- 60 lbs x 10 reps x 3 sets
- 85 lbs x 8 reps x 1 set
nice nice!!

Facepulls
- 135 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 35 kgs x 6 reps x 1 sets
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 7.5 kgs x 10 reps

Squat Day - Cycle 1

Squat Day
Cycle 1

Overall Impression:

I ate 3 slices of toast with cinnamon as my pre workout meal and i had this really really horrible heart burn throughout my workout. it was painful as hell and even though i gulped down over a litre of water, it didnt help at all.

The Workout:

Squats
- 245 lbs x 5 reps
- 265 lbs x 1 rep
- 225 lbs x 5 reps x 3 sets
So something was feeling a little off today. Just like how it felt on my military press day. so i decided to warm-up a bit more, do a heavy set of 245 for 5 which seemed difficult and then i did a set of 265 just to see what it would feel like. i dunno why but i have this feeling that i need to work on my feet positioning. its nothing major but its all slowly coming back to me. 225x5x3 was damn difficult after the 265 lbs set lol.

Unilateral Romanian Deadlifts
- 45 lbs x 6 reps x 2 sets

Regular Romanian Deadlifts
- 135 lbs x 10 reps
i started off this set without putting my feet close enough so a lot of pressure came onto my lower back. i got scared that i might re-injure it so i just quit after 10 reps and decided against doing any other sets. next time ill be aware of this and ill do 1 more set.

Grip Work
- Alternate Arm Dumbbell Hammer Curls 45 lbs x 8 reps x 2 sets
- Static Holds and Wrist Curls and Reverse Wrist Curls Circuits

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups = 35 kgs x 6 reps x 4 sets
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 7.5 kgs x 12 reps

Shoulder Prehab Work
- Shoulder Protractions using the Push-up Plus exercise and the Dumbbell Bench Press Plus exercise

Military Press Day - Cycle 1

Military Press Day
Cycle 1

Overall Impression:

weird day...im not very happy with the military press work but i think everything else went off pretty well. im trying to narrow down what could've lead to this weird workout and im pretty sure its something to do with diet...i ate some rice and fish before my workout. i cant think of anything else.

The Workout:

Military Press
- 132 lbs (60 kgs) x 5 reps x 3 sets
something was wrong right from the start. it just didnt feel right to me. my elbows wouldnt come out far enough, my grip was all wrong, the bar was uneven, one of elbows refused to lockout....really weird stuff. this is the second military press workout which hasnt been as per plan. i was supposed to do 3x6x132 today.

High Cable V-Bar Rows on the Lat Pull Down machine
- 135 lbs x 12 reps x 3 sets
this exercise actually felt good. i think the pressing work was the problem.

Flat Dumbbell Bench Press
- 55 lbs x 12 reps x 3 sets
this was better than the military press session. i dunno whats up with me...

Floor Skull Crushers
- 60 lbs x 12 reps x 2 sets

Ab Work
- Lat Pull Down Sit-ups 60 lbs x 15 reps x 2 sets
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 7.5 kgs x 10 reps x 2 sets
I will be doing more ab work with time...next workout volume will increase

Deadlift Day - Cycle 1

Deadlift Day
Cycle 1

Overall Impression:

So today was Day 1 of the Upper-Lower program My back is going to be sore as hell tomorrow. Along with my glutes and hammies. I am planning on doing some cardio tomorrow. Lets see if I wake up early enough to go to the gym...today's workout was good

The Workout:

Deadlifts
- 265 lbs x 6 reps x 3 sets
- 175 lbs x 10 reps x 1 set
This was tremendously difficult. On set number 3 i lost my grip on the last rep right at the top just a second before lockout so i repeated the rep after deweighting the bar for 30 seconds. my calluses hurt so badly right now lol..

Bulgarian Squats
- 40 lbs x 10 reps x 2 sets
i'm finally falling in love with this exercise

Hyper Extensions
- BW x 10 reps x 2 sets
as per the program i'm supposed to be doing glute ham raises but my gym doesnt have a GHR machine...so ill have to wait for another 10 days before i can do GHRs at my school gym.

Grip Work
- Alternate Arm Dumbbell Hammer Curls 45 lbs x 8 reps x 2 sets
- Static Holds

Ab Work
- Hanging Leg Raises BW x 10 reps
- Over Head Side Bends w/ Plate 5 kgs x 10 reps x 2 sets
I will be doing more ab work with time...

Training Split

I have just recently started a new Training Split so it will not be too difficult to update this log with a few workouts which have passed..

My split is more or less an Upper-Lower program with the layout being 3 workouts per week which means that my upper-lower is rotating 4 workouts in 3 sessions per week...i.e.

Week 1:
Lower 1
Upper 1
Lower 2

Week 2:
Upper 2
Lower 1
Upper 1

Week 3:
Lower 2
Upper 2
Lower 1

etc etc

The four workouts are:

Lower 1 - Deadlift
Upper 1 - Military Press
Lower 2 - Squat
Upper 2 - Bench Press

My exercise selection is:

Deadlift Day
- Deadlifts
- Bulgarian Squats 2x6-8
- Glute Ham Raises 2-3 sets
- Grip Work

Military Press Day
- Military Press
- Row Variant (Currently dumbbell rows)
- Press Variant (i rotate between flat db presses and uni shoulder presses)
- Tricep Exercise

Squat Day
- Squats 5x5 or 3x5, 2x8 or something. since we're not in any hurry for this i dont need anything set in stone
- Unilateral RDLs 2x6-12
- Regular RDLs 2-3x8-12
- Grip Work

Bench Press Day
- Bench Press maintenance work; Speed-Strength work @ 70-80% or 1,2,3,4,5RM testing
- Pull-ups Density Training
- Row Variant (barbell rows probably)

Major props to Eric for guiding me in designing this workout.

F = m.a.

Force = (Mass).(Acceleration)

I think its time for a new journal.

For those of you who are new and will hopefully be staying, I'd like to introduce myself. I've been lifting for close to 4 years now, and my goals at the moment are to get lean and strong. I have genetically lose shoulder joints and I have had quite a few shoulder dislocations. Therefore my training is slightly different from the Average Joe's. Consider me sub-par to the Average Joe

My goals at the moment are to get an Over Head Press of 185 lbs, a respectable Deadlift and my BF% down to 12 - at present its around 16-18.

I will try make this brief, Old Maxes on the Big Three were hovering around 335/205/355 (Squat/Bench/Deadlift). I have just come off a lower back injury so my current maxes are not really known. I do know that I can Squat 245 lbs for 3x5 at the moment and Bench Press 205 for a single.

But, my training is not powerlifting-oriented. It is a lot more strongman type with a huge emphasis on the Over Head Press and the Deadlift - I use the Bench Press and the Squat as a means to increase my OH Press and Deadlift. My OH Press max is currently ~155 lbs (90% of my BW) and my Deadlift max is somewhere ~315 lbs. I weigh ~175 lbs at the moment.

I will post my program in another post.

Thank you for reading, ladies and gentlemen