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Dear Diary... my life on a cut
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yeah but... no, actually you're totally right.jsb wrote:sorry but no you couldn't, It would be worse then an austin powers sketch all they would have to do to catch you would be put a really nice pair of expensive shoes in a giant mouse trap and you'd be caught and even at that point you'd just be going, emmmm pretty shoes
Wednesday 4th October Day 37
I was giddy today, for no apparent reason, but it was great to be in such a silly mood!! Teaching begins on Monday, and already I haven’t got time to scratch my arse. Insomnia is still annoying me, woke at 5 this a.m. and couldn’t get back to sleep (until 5 mins before the alarm went off ) but am actually too busy to worry about it, and haven’t time to be tired. Also means I’m going to have to take extra care of myself to prevent burnout.
BB Press: [1(62.5) 6(50)] [1(62.5) 6(50)] [1(62.5) 6(50)]
Seated Row: 3 × 6(17pl)
One-arm alternate DB Press: 3 × 8(15)
Cable 7 sec Iso Hold: (13.5) 3(18 )
Jack-knife push-ups: 3 × 10
The bench felt much more comfortable this week and my weight was up, albeit only a little. I’m fully expecting my bench strength to increase in small increments, but I’m getting steadily closer to my bw, so that’s all good. Couldn’t figure out why the row was a little tougher than normal, but I’ve only just realised I thought I’d used 16 plates last week, when I’d actually used 14, so there’s an extra 13.5kg on my row :rolleyes: je suis un muppet…0 -
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Monday 9th October Day 43
There was a guy wearing flip-flops in the gym today. And he was doing DB work. :eek:
There was a guy in the gym today wearing a lifting belt to do seated rows. And they weren't heavy. :rolleyes:
There was a guy in the gym today who went to great pains to step into the squat rack when I was done and did squats with the weight I'd left on it (100kg). He kept high fiving his training buddy. They were quarter squats.
My gym is teh funny
Leg day today:
Back squat: 5(80) 5(80) 4(90) 3(100) 3(100)
Leg curl + Leg Extension Isometric Holds: 4 × 10 sec holds supersetted
One-arm DB Snatch: 3(17.5) 3(22.5) 3(22.5) 3(22.5)
Bulgarian split squats: 3 × 8(15)
Chins: 4 sets of 4, one done between each leg exercise crossover.
The snatch sucked, for some reason my form was kinda off and my grip kept failing. The squats were goooood- there was absolutely no-one around who I would have felt comfortable with/ trusted to spot me so I had to bang them out on my own. Got the 100's no problem (after posting about it last week I kept thinking about what t-ha haid said about driving through the hips, something I forget to do sometimes, but forced myself to remember today- thanks dude!!), and really, really wanted to go for 110kg, but without a spot I was just too nervous. Chins felt easy. Miss doing higher rep work though for my legs. Miss completely destroying them from time to time. Reasonably ok day, nothing exciting, fairly solid.
Oh, and i did a weigh-in/ measurement day on Friday- I'm still losing weight/ size- yay!!!! 27 inches around the waist now- 5 inches down from the beginning of the cut and weighing in at 151lb, nearly a stone lost, and strength still being maintained- woohoo!!0 -
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Thursday 12th October Day 46
My body has now decided that 5.15am is the best time for me to wake up and stay awake. That's three mornings in a row now
Deadlift: 5(80) 5(90) 4(100) 3(110) 3(115) 6(100)
Seated Cable row: 8(72) 8(77) 8(82) 8(89)
Bent Over DB Row: 3*8(17.5)
Superset:
A-bar pull downs: 7(8pl) 6(10pl) 8(9pl)
Assisted pull-ups: 7, 5, 4.
Stupid, crappy, motherfu**ing, couldn't pull a bloody coke-can open, weak-as-muck pathetic back.0 -
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Monday 16th October Day 50
I'm not training today (taking well deserved break after a weekend of heavy lifting!!) but there were a couple of things I wanted to mention in my journal, in light of some of the recent things that have been going on with the fitness board and some misconceptions that seem to have appeared about what I'm doing.
This isn't a quick weight loss plan in the traditional sense. This isn't Liptorim or Atkins or the Cabbage Soup Diet (although the metabolic processes behind what I'm doing are very similar to the first two). It's not soemthing that you'll ever see advocated by e-diets for housewifes who want to look good for party season. The thing is, I was a healthy weight before I ever began this diet. I ate well. I didn't need to lose any weight. The reasons for why I'm doing it are a little varied, some are personal, but mostly I decided to do it to see would I have what it takes to get on a stage. I wouldn't for a second recommend what I'm doing to anyone who was looking to shed a few extra pounds. There are easier ways to do it than this, you just need patience. That's not to say that what I'm doing is unhealthy- it's not at all, it's just quite extreme and definitely not for the faint hearted.
I have had to put aside much of my social life for the last seven weeks to concentrate on the cut. You have to dedicate yourself to it 100%. Your meals are timed exactly, your calories and grams of macroutrients are planned in advance, you have to be aware of where you'll be at any time for 24 horus in the future. And besides which, you have to be comfortable functioning on well below maintenance calorie levels, so you spend a good bit of time groggy and tired. But there's also a great mental clarity that comes with cleansing the system like this. Feed up days aside, everything I've eaten for the last 50 days has been very, very good for me: lean meats, healthy fats, green veg, eggs and small amoutns of dairy. For anyone who reads this and thinks 'yeah, I could do what she does' I'm not going to stand in your way. All I will say is take a look at your diet. How clean is it right now? Do you eat any processed foods, sweets, chocoaltes, soda's, enough fruit and veg, any take aways, do you drink? Do you knwo what your macronutirent ratios are, do you know how your body responds to different ratios of fats and carbs? Have you got a good, solid weight lifting and cardio plan in place (you need both for this)? Do you know what whey, creatine, BCAAs and various other supplements do for your body (as you'll be takin htem in abundace to maintain lean muscle mass)? Challenge yourself to proper clean eating for 14 days and see how you go first. Going straight into a cutting diet like this from a sub-optimal diet is like jumping into the deep end after taking two swimming lessons- you'll have the right idea but you'll more than likely flail around a little, and then it'll be sink or swim time. I came into it as an advanced swimmer who wanted to get to a racing level. I don't want that to sound facetious (even though it probably does) but what I mean is that I've spent a long time reading about and implementing good nutritional information. I'm no cleverer or wiser than anyone else, I've jsut had a good bit of self-education behind me and I still have a LOT more to learn. I was under no illusions from the beginning about how difficult it was going to be, and believe me, it's been very hard. I know of very few people who've stuck to this particular plan for longe than 6 weeks, with four weeks usually being the point where people just don't want to do it anymore and pack the whole thing in. Luckily I have "the determination and drive of a well-aimed bulldozer"- those are Dragan's wordsd, not mine
For anyone who does really want to do something like this in all seriousness, pm me if you have any questions. That's the one thing that's helped me more than anything- good support, something that should never, ever be underestimated.
Anyways, that' all I wanted to say. Seven days left now, it's getting quite exciting 0 -
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Thursday 19th October Day 53
*hushed voice* And so it begins…
It’s final hurdle time. The beginning of the end is nigh and I’m starting to manipulate my body for the final day of the cut. Even that in itself is an achievement for me- to be in a position where I’ve created a ‘clean slate’ as it were. My body fat is low enough now that any minor changes I make to my diet will be practically instantly recognizable physiologically and that’s an exciting feeling. Today will be the last day of high water and some sodium, and the fun will really begin tomorrow when my water levels start dropping. As such (and out of sheer curiosity) I got on the scales this morning to check how they read with all this extra water in me – the needle swayed and then stabilized firmly between the 149 and 150lb mark. I’ve broken through 150lbs!!! So that’s 15lb lost since the start of the cut- YYAAYAYAYAYYAY!!!! As if that wasn’t enough of a great way to start my day I then got to eat porridge for my brekkie- never before have complex carbs tasted so, so good. My belly is now toasty warm and full of oaty goodness.
My legs, however, are still protesting. A lot. But that’s hardly surprising given the battering I gave them the other day. I was still in no mood for the same ol’ same ol’ lifting before I hit the gym today and whilst trawling the archives of the interweb for inspiration I came across this little ditty by Alwyn Cosgrove. I’m quickly becoming a fan of Cosgrove’s no-nonsense, no BS attitude, and he’s Scottish which gives him a big thumbs up from me (there’s something inherently fabulous/ hard-as-nails/ damn well sexy about Highland men) and so when I saw this, I knew it was just the thing to kick my ass and give me something to play with in the final few days of the cut. It was a choice between doing either back + HIIT or something else, and one look at this told me there was no way HIIT would be called for if I did it right:
Perform the following as a complex (one exercise straight after the other, in Bear style fashion) with a moderate weight:
Deadlift
Romanian Deadlift
Bentover Row
Power Clean
Front Squat
Push Press
Back Squat
Good Morning
Perform 6 reps of each (48 total reps). It should take about 60 seconds. Rest 90 seconds, then perform 5 reps of each; rest 90 seconds, 4 reps of each; rest 90 seconds, 3 reps of each; rest 90 seconds, 2 reps of each; rest 90 seconds, and then do 1 rep of each.
Oh-HolyMoly-Sclamoly-Mother-of-:eek: This is a seriously hard workout. Feic x-fit, this was pushing me to my lactic acid threshold and beyond. I did it with 30kg and it was truly killing me by the end. It takes it’s toll on you big style and puts quite a lot of stress on your back- by the end my lower back was niggling at me quite a bit doing the bent over rows. It’s designed as a workout in its own right, as it works virtually every muscle group in the body for when you're stuck for time, but I was done after 15 minutes and so I threw a few more things in for the craic (can anyone say overtraining?? )
A1: chins: 5, 4, 4
A2: t-bar row: (bar +) 6(27.5) 6(30) 6(30) 8(22.5)
B1: 3 * farmer’s walk: 20m w/ 30kg DBs
B2: BB military press: 6(30) 8(30 8(30)
Dips: 3 × 8
I started to do one-arm DB snatches too, but by then my arms and shoulders were completely fried and I left it. I’m well chuffed with the farmers walk- that’s the highest weight I’ve ever used without wraps so hopefully my grip is slowly but surely improving. Oh and supersetting the fw and BB press left my traps and shoulders hy-ooooooooge by the end of the workout- it looked fantastic!!! It was a fun day, and needless to say, I’m now pooped to the nth degree. But it’s all good
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Friday 20th October Day 54
Hit chest and biceps in the gym today, but it was a struggle and I was very very tired. I'd initially planned to get some HIIT in, but I think my body is just beginning to say NO to all these crazy ideas I have after the torment of 20 rep leg day and the Cosgrove Complex yesterday, so all in all today was much more of a 'normal' gym session:
A1: Incline DB Press: 6(17.5) 6(17.5) 7(15)
A2: Flat DB Press: 6(17.5) 8(15) 6(15)
A3: Push-ups: 12, 10, 10
Pec-deck: 10(8pl) 8(9pl) 6(10pl)
EZ-bar curls: (bar +) 8(10) 4(12.5) 4(12.5) second two sets done reeeeal slow with neg's
Preacher-curl Neg's: 2*3(12.5)
Jack-knife push-ups: 3*8
well if the vascularity that's showing in my arms right now is anything to go by, I'm gonna be a veiny mofo when I'm dry Have to teach one class today, then I think it's homeward bound and get some LIT in this evening, and debate whether I have the energy to go to a 'do' I'm invited to. Can't see it happening though. 0 -
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Sunday 22nd October Day 56 - the LAST DAY!!!!
In the final 36 hours of the shred I drank two tiny sips of water. I was in desperate need of hydration!!!! But first there were important things to do, like take my measurements, the final ones…
Well, there you have it. Over the course of 8 weeks I reduced my waist size by 5.3 inches, and dropped 17lbs in weight. But more importantly when I figured out the relative bodyfat loss: lean muscle mass increase I figured out that with a starting point of about 23% bodyfat (I was never 30% to begin with in fairness) and a finishing up bf of about 12% it works out that I lost about 20lbs of fat and put on around 4lb of muscle which I’m absolutely ecstatic about. And from looking at the pictures it looks like most of those 4lbs were directly on my abs!!!!
After a walk in the morning it was time to carb up, so it was a mixture of (dry) PB + Honey + bread and dear God it made me feel so nauseous. But the sugar rush hit me with a bang and for about half an hour I was running around like a mad woman. Then it was time for the boys to come over and after a couple of shots of whiskey (on an empty dry tummy!!!) it was time to disrobe and do the photos. The photos are on the TT website though, so if you want to see them... well you'll have to ask but just for the recod, here's a couple of of my back 'after' photos
Posing is actually quite tiring and draining and by the time we were done I was pooped but ready for the celebrations to begin. And celebrate we did!!! Due to the dehydration, sluggish metabolism and general undernourishment I think I must have stayed pished as a fart for a good 15 hours long after I’d stopped drinking- in fact my classes on Monday morning were a bit of a haze for me
Anyhoodles, it’s all done. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about this whole experience over the next few days, but for now I’m off to polish off the left over ice-cream and enjoy the results of my experience. Thank you all for joining me in my journey- if anyone wants to know more about the diet or the training or how to try and stay sane when doing something like this (ok, so I didn't quit succeed at the last bit but I can tell you what NOT to do!!!) just drop me pm or post up here. This is unshredding g’em, signing off 0 -
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g'em wrote:Sunday 22nd October Day 56 - the LAST DAY!!!!
In the final 36 hours of the shred I drank two tiny sips of water. I was in desperate need of hydration!!!! But first there were important things to do, like take my measurements, the final ones…
Well, there you have it. Over the course of 8 weeks I reduced my waist size by 5.3 inches, and dropped 17lbs in weight. But more importantly when I figured out the relative bodyfat loss: lean muscle mass increase I figured out that with a starting point of about 23% bodyfat (I was never 30% to begin with in fairness) and a finishing up bf of about 12% it works out that I lost about 20lbs of fat and put on around 4lb of muscle which I’m absolutely ecstatic about. And from looking at the pictures it looks like most of those 4lbs were directly on my abs!!!!
After a walk in the morning it was time to carb up, so it was a mixture of (dry) PB + Honey + bread and dear God it made me feel so nauseous. But the sugar rush hit me with a bang and for about half an hour I was running around like a mad woman. Then it was time for the boys to come over and after a couple of shots of whiskey (on an empty dry tummy!!!) it was time to disrobe and do the photos. The photos are on the TT website though, so if you want to see them... well you'll have to ask but just for the recod, here's a couple of of my back 'after' photos
Posing is actually quite tiring and draining and by the time we were done I was pooped but ready for the celebrations to begin. And celebrate we did!!! Due to the dehydration, sluggish metabolism and general undernourishment I think I must have stayed pished as a fart for a good 15 hours long after I’d stopped drinking- in fact my classes on Monday morning were a bit of a haze for me
Anyhoodles, it’s all done. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about this whole experience over the next few days, but for now I’m off to polish off the left over ice-cream and enjoy the results of my experience. Thank you all for joining me in my journey- if anyone wants to know more about the diet or the training or how to try and stay sane when doing something like this (ok, so I didn't quit succeed at the last bit but I can tell you what NOT to do!!!) just drop me pm or post up here. This is unshredding g’em, signing off
Well done G'em, looking very good indeed. Your dedication is fantastic. 0 -
Thanks guys, I really appreciate it. And the thing is, for once in my life I really do enjoy the way I look. Meh, it's not everyday you manage to get abs like this for yourself But anyways, that was two weeks ago. The week directly after the cut I continued to lift and enjoy getting my life back. Then last week was a week off, but it's back to business now. I have two choices: I can sit back and let go of all my hard work and effort, or I can keep going and try to better myself again. Take a wild guess which option I'm likely to go for?!!??
So I'm going to hang on to my diary for now.. waffleicious as ever I'm actually quite busy with work so I'll only be posting up my journal intermittendly when I get time, so it's likely to be quite a long read- hope you don't get too bored!!!
Saturday 4th November
The aftermath of GGS. This is where I knew things could get little bit sticky if I didn’t watch myself. I could ether learn from the whole GGS experience or turn my back on it and let old habits creep back in.
Took my measurements this morning for a 2 week update and I was very, very pleasantly surprised. It’s also a prime example of how the scales are not always a good reflection of progress. I finished up GGS at 147lb. I was also dehydrated and quite starved. This morning I was 151lb. But my measurements, with the exception on an inch back on around my waist, are exactly the same, and hilariously, my calliper readings are still going down. So that 4lbs is rehydration and muscle. Fan-tastic
So I did learn my lessons after all, and I’m going strong (literally!!). Diet for 85-90% of the time has been clean as a whistle, and I plan on keeping that figure above 90% for the forseeable future. I’m still eating many of the same meals as I was on the shred, there’s just a bit more of them, and I eat 2-3 pieces of fruit a day and of course, I have my oats first thing.
Breakfast: P + C,
PWO: P + C,
Late Lunch: P + F + C (but starchy carbs only on training days, otherwise its just veg/ salad),
Dinner: P + F (usually with veg/ salad),
Pre-bed: P + F.
I’m also trying to keep my fluid intake up to about 3.5-4L a day (water + green/ herbal teas).
My insomnia has disappeared, I sleep solidly for 8 hours a night, I’m off the Lipo-6 and the creatine, my skin has cleared up, and my sense of well-being is back on par. Today was just a final random day in gym before I start my full-body workout plan next week. I’ve been taking it easy the last week, but I knew damn well there’d be no way I could stay out of the gym entirely for a week, but 2 gym sessions in 10 days is as much of a rest as I can take!! Also starting the RAM today, and given how I’m feeling straight after the session, I can tell it’s going to be given a real test!
Cosgrave Complex: (DL, RDL, BOR, HC, FS, PP, BS, GM): 6 rounds descending reps 6-1(30)
A1: Dips: 3 × 10
A2: Close-grip lat pull-down: 10(10 pl) 8(11pl) 6(12pl)
A3: Push-ups: 3 × 12
Walking lunges: 3 × 12 steps (25kg DBs)
Hang clean ATG: 2 × 8(30)
And then I was pooped!! Lovely little workout, lunges were 5kg up in each hand; absolutely mofo-ing killed me.
Monday 6th November
New workout to try today – woohoo!!! It’s a full-body plan that’s kindly drawn up for me which revolves around 3 days lifting/ one day conditioning. My initial thoughts on seeing the program were… “This program is gonna kick my ass!!!!” Really looking forward to giving it a go though and I think I’ll get a lot from it. It basically goes:
Monday – Day 1
Tuesday – conditioning: complexes/ crossfit type stuff etc
Wednesday - LIT
Thursday- Day 2
Friday - HIIT
Saturday – Day 3
Sunday - Off
Basically for each lifting day the first two exercises are heavy compound strength builders and the other exercises are more cardio orientated and every day has about 8 exercises in total. Woohoo!! (not!!). It’s going to be quite different to anything I’ve ever done before but I’ve learnt that I enjoy and respond well to complexes so I guess this is a natural progression, and a chance to put a new training regime to test. I’m going to give it hell for leather between now and Christmas (7 full weeks) so we’ll see what happens.
Squat: 10(60) 8(80) 6(90) 5(100) 20(50)
Barbell Flat Bench Press: 10(40) 8(45) 7(50) 6(55) 20(30)
Lat Pull Downs: 12(6pl) 14(6pl) 12(7pl)
Bent over rows: 12(30) 15(30) 12(35)
DB Lateral Raises: 10(9) 12(7) 12(7) 12(7)
Tricep Pushdowns: 15(8pl) 12(8pl) 15(7pl) 12(7pl)
EZ bar curls: 12(17.5) 12(17.5) 12(17.5) 12(15)
Weighted Cable Crunch: 25(7pl) 25(7pl) 25(7pl) 18(7pl)
My initial reaction to the program was entirely accurate. My ass has been whooped 17 shades of nasty. It’s a big program so I’m just going to make a note of a few things:
- PB for reps @ 100kg on squats. As D says, “noice!!” but I need to remember to keep that ass down, I wasn’t as low as I should have been for the last couple.
- the most agonising and painful of all the exercises was the set of 20 reps on the bench press. I’ve repped out on squats and DLs before, never for chest work, and it sucked arsicles to the nth degree. It was horrific and painful and I felt like a weakling n00b by the end.
- BOR was good i.e. my traps are fried, but I can up the weight next time, didn’t push myself as much as I could have. Although my lower back gets a bit niggly towards the end.. not so good…
- the lat raises weren’t done as well s they could have towards the end of the sets- I was pausing too much and so pooped the thought of dropping weight didn’t even cross my mind. Same can be said for ez-bar curls- too much pausing.
- tricep psuhdowns were fine, and I got into a ‘groove’ with my weights, and I seemed to do well with the way I structured it. Will try and incorporate that with more of the lifts.
- on the final set of crunches it was actually my arms and not my abs that stopped me finishing, they were just too sore to keep going.
- my abs already hurt
- in fact most of my upper back and arms are beginning to scream in agonising pain. The RAM definitely has its work cut out for it.
- my arms are hyoooooge and feel like I’m walking around with two limbs of bulging veins and hard round muscles attached to my sides. I like it. No honestly, we’re talking one of the best pumps I’ve ever felt, *ever*!!!!
But overall? I loved this workout, I really did. It’s intense and it’s pretty hardcore, but I like that a lot. It’s going to take a lot of getting used to, and it means I’m going to have to mind myself and make sure I get plenty of rest for recovery, but I think it’s going to suit me.
The only issue I can see with this program isn’t to do with the program at all, it’s to do with me- I need to give this thing it’s dues every time I step into the gym, anything less won’t do it justice or do me any favours at all. So… well I guess I just need to give it hell for the next 7 weeks I suppose.
Tuesday 7th October
Conditioning Day. Someday I want to try some proper GPP for this- sledge hammer work, log lifts, ooh and *definitely* some tyre flipping, that would be soooo much fun!!! Anyhoodles, made up my own circuit today with a bit of help from D.
5 DB swings (12.5kg)
10 thrusters (Oly bar)
15 Push-ups
0.25 mile run
For four rounds
Waiters walk: 4 × 40m (25kg)
– must increase the DB weights next time, my hip drive can withstand a lot more weight than that, even at cardio pace
– need to lower thrusters bar weight, maybe try it with an ez curl bar instead, can’t afford to poop my shoulders out on a non-lifting day
– push-ups are slowly improving, got the first two sets of 15 no probs, then two slight pauses after 10 on the second two sets (but, as has been quite rightly pointed out, I was bold to do these the day after heavy benching )
– I set a decent pace with the runs, was doing the quarter mile in just over two and a half minutes
– the next time some muppet stands in your way when you’re holding a 25kg plate over your head and forces you to step around him instead of making way.. just do the world’s gene pool a favour and ‘drop’ (fling) the weight in his general genital area.
This was a grand little plan I made up, not too taxing (for me anyways, I guess it’s quite an evil circuit) and not too little. As D said to me earlier “cross-fit who??!?, it’s all about g’em-fit!!!” :cool:
I’d normally punish myself quite a bit on conditioning days, but this new full-body plan won’t let me do that. I have to stay on the ball and ready to tackle whatever evil-ness is in store with the lifting plan, which means I need to shift my thinking into ‘overall outlook’ mode. I woke up this morning feeling as if a herd of wild boar had trampled me during the night and my upper back and arms are screaming at me. But not much going on in the legs interestingly after the heavy squats. This, however, will change after Thursday’s workout. I have a new type of walking lunge to do and I know it’s going to leave me quite incapable of sitting down afterwards. Is it totally wrong that I’m masochistic enough to actually be looking forward to this!?!?
One weird thing that’s happening right now is that I actually think my body looks better now than it did two weeks ago at the end of the shred. Oh, don’t get me wrong, the photos turned out amazingly but now I understand what it means to be flat vs being pumped. These days I’m very definitely the latter and my arms look like they consist of three solid lumps of hard muscle sitting one on top of the other. It could be all the extra water I’m getting in (I’m drinking between 4-5L a day), it could be the reintroduction of small amounts of starchy carbs (1/4 cup oats every day, 75g potatoes on training days), it could be that I’m resting better (8 hours isn’t enough now!! a huge change from my 4-5 hours of sleep a night a few short weeks ago) or it could be a combination of lots of other things. Whatever it is, I love it, and I’m loving eating clean and lifting hard. This is the type of g’em I want to be for a very, very long time… strength and lean-ness gains notwithstanding
Rest day tomorrow… and by God am I going to need it… having just looked over the plan for Thursday I’m actually quite nervous!!! Bring… it… on 0 -
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Friday 10th November
I think the only reason I woke up this morning was so that my body could tell me, in excruciating detail, how much pain I inflicted on it yesterday There is one down-side also to be a newer, über-fit g’em- it’s costing me a fortune to rebuild my wardrobe!!!
HIIT:
3 min warm-up
4 × 30 sec x-trainer ‘sprints’
5 min 4mph walk
4 × 30 sec x-trainer ‘sprints’
5 min 4mph inc 3 walk
Had to take the break in the middle, I was pooped and very, very fatigued. May have to play this day by ear in future, it’s tough going between two full body days.
Later that day… it’s now 4pm and I am tiiiiiiired. Last time I felt this way was when I crashed during GGS. Hmmm… this program is tough.
Later still that day… oopsidaisily. It seems I’ve had an unscheduled carb-up. After my crash that afternoon I came home to chill out. There was one over-riding theme being pumped into my ears no matter how much I tried to distract myself: eat, eat, eat. I was ravenous. Now, thankfully my kitchen has been shed of any naughty foods so my feat was big, but pretty clean: muesli (a good brand), low-fat yoghurts, bit of low-fat cheese, fruit, (all on top of my ham and egg omelette for tea) and a pretty damn tasty pre-bed ‘snack’ of cottage cheese, vanilla whey and a good healthy spoonful of honey. I think my body was just feeling the effects of all the hard training during the week, and I allowed myself to indulge.
Saturday 11th November
Day 3 of the full-body program. After my carb-up last night last night I was expecting great things from today
Chins/ Pull Up [first 2 sets chins, second 2 pull-ups (asst.)]: 6, 4, 4, 5
Horizontal Press: 10(100) 8(120) 6(140) 5(160) 20(100)
DB flyes/DB push ups super: [12(12), 12] × 3
Front DB raises/DB rear delts super: [10(8), 12(8)] × 3
Dips: 10, 6, 5
Cable curl Drop set: [8(8pl) 12(3pl) 12(1pl)] [8(7pl) 12(3pl) 12(1pl)]
Jack-knife push-ups: 25, 25, 20
Plate held squats: 15(10) × 3
DB snatches: 12 each side (15) 12 (17)12(17)
- Chins/ pull-ups: lats must have been fried from the previous days’ of work, found the chins very hard. But doing the pull-ups straight after was worse, my forearms were protesting in a big way. Something weird happened on the last set- I started to do them, and then realised that D was pushing my legs at all… I think I may just have done two free pull-ups on my own!!! But I’m not going to count my chickens, I’ll wait till I can do it again before I start saying I can do pull-ups all on my lonesome
- Leg press: hehe, I have stroooong legs!!!! Chuffed with this, 160kg for 5 reps was sweet, I normally do horizontal leg press but this was a 45 degree one, and I like it. In fact I think I could probably have gone heavier, but as it was a new machine to me, I didn’t want to push it.
- Flyes/ push-ups: oooh, nasty. Killed me, and ended up doing some of my last push-ups from the knees.
- Raises + rear delts: fine, but subsequently my shoulders were knackered.
- Dips: triceps were totally banjaxed. Came in well under the required 12-15 reps for bw and as there was no graviton I couldn’t do assisted dips. Ploopy.
- Cable curl drop set: mother-f***in holy crapazola this was teh suck big stylee. By far and away the most pain I have ever inflicted on my biceps in a workout. Seriously, I was struggling to finish 12 reps with one 5lb plate ffs. Utter, agonising pain.
- Ab work: oops, went over the required reps on jack knifes (think the blood had left my brain and was trying to salvage some feeling in my arms…) but they felt good. And plate squats are haaaaaard!! But really getting some quality ab work done, and finding it easier to concentrate on doing the movements using my abs instead of my hip flexors. Dammit I’m going to get that 8 pack if it kills me!!
- Snatches: again, went over for reps, but no bother. I’ve decided these are my “you want to know how good girls can look when they lift? Watch this for ****s n’ giggles!!” As D said there’s a point during the snatch that, if we could freeze frame it, shows my traps in monster big mode, my abs under tension and brilliantly tense, my legs are primed and pumped and my shoulders… well there’s just more striations in them than is physically natural Plus they’re just fun!!!
Good day, I enjoyed it. Again it took longer than it should have, but I’m not overly concerned as this week I just needed to get used to the sequence of lifts involved as opposed to getting everything perfect. But I do think this workout will be the longest of them all, so it’s probably a great thing that it’s scheduled for a Saturday when I have more time on my hands.
My shoulders are totalled, my triceps are in ribbons, and I get the feeling drinking anything or doing stuff that involves lifting my hand to my mouth/ head level is going to be sore and difficult for a few days.
I love the gym
Sunday 12th November
Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow … I’ve been assured that I’ll (eventually) get used to the intensity and volume of these workouts. But for now… ow ow ow ow… 0 -
Monday 13th November
I’m still sore Day 1:
Squat: 10(70) 8(90) 6(100) 5(110) 20(60)
Barbell Flat Bench Press: 10(40) 8(45) 6(50) 5(60) 18(30)
Lat Pull Downs: 12(7pl) 12(8pl) 12(8pl)
Bent over rows: 12(40) 12(50) 12(55)
DB Lateral Raises: 12(8 ) 12(8 ) 12(7) 12(7)
Tricep Pushdowns: 12(9pl) 11(9pl) 12(8pl) 12(7pl)
EZ bar curls: 15(17.5) 12(17.5) 15(15) 12(15)
Weighted Cable Crunch: 17(7pl) 15(7pl) 15(7pl) 15(7pl)
- squats were great. I think I’m slowly making good progress. The final 20 rep set of 60 might as well have just been the bar it felt so light.
- Bench: as soon as I started these I regretted it- my chest is in tatters after the fly/ push up superset and my triceps aren’t far behind. But once I got into it my strength reappeared (although the pain never subsided). Decided to go a bit mad and try for the 60kg for my final set, but didn’t have a great spotter (I can’t stand it when people hold the bar- if I need help, you’ll know all about it, otherwise don’t touch my f***in iron dude) so I can’t in good conscience call them my own. But I think on a rested, strong day I’d get them easily enough.
- Bent-over rows: made a huge leap here after last week but only because I inaccurately overestimated what last weeks’ lifts were in my memory!! 50kg was fine, but my form was suffering on the last 5 or so reps with 55. I’ll need to stick to 50 and keep it solid next week.
- Lat raises and curls were marginally better than last week, not as much rests and pauses. Got over-ambitious with the push-downs.
- Crunches: These were so awful I left the gym in a stormer of a bad mood!! I don’t like them at all- they’re fine in low volume, but they just felt nasty and wrong today. My forearms were literally in searing pain (from the pull-ups??) and it was them, and not my abs, that stopped me well short of finishing each set (although my abs are really quite horribly sore today). Besides which I’m doing a lot of direct ab work and I’m not entirely convinced I need it. I’d nearly be more inclined to go with an extra leg exercise as I’m not sure they’re being worked enough. Hmmm... will have to have a chat to himself about that…
But all in all, my arse is still getting kicked, and I'm still enjoying it, so it's all pretty damn good 0 -
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Tuesday 14th November
One of the TTers and I did some light active recovery- always love doing this kind of thing, it really helps to break the monotony of training.
3 × 100m
2 min rest
2 × 100m
1 × 200m
1 × 100m
2 min rest
3 × 100m
All done at 75-85% Max (it was all supposed to be done at 75% but dammit he’s so much faster than me and my competitive streak was unleashed!!! He still ran rings around me of course… )
Iex Backwards Pull
2 × 1.0
1 × 1.2
And that was that. Oh no, wait, we spent about 20 minutes doing cartwheels, round-offs and handstands just for sh n’ g
Thursday 16th November
Well, I did...speak to himself that is… and got a bit of a (reasonably well deserved) bollocking at the same time. (He pops by the site to check my journal logs and abuses/ encourages as and when it’s needed. As to who ‘himself’ is … well, a girl can’t give away all her secrets now can sheg'em wrote:I’m doing a lot of direct ab work and I’m not entirely convinced I need it. I’d nearly be more inclined to go with an extra leg exercise as I’m not sure they’re being worked enough. Hmmm... will have to have a chat to himself about that… ) The goals of this program are simple: strong + lean. The first part is achieved with my heavy compound lifts at the beginning of the sessions. Actually he describes it better... "the goal is to go in, hit it as hard as you can, give it all your all on the heavies, get a pump going on all the other stuff, maintain this pump as long as u can, finish your work in fast paced lifting style and then get the hell out". And in fairness, that's not what I've been doing. Not technically. My heavy lifts are fine (although I need to drop my warm-up weight- it's not a 'warmup' at all) but I'm still too concerned with numbers over performance for the others. So, as much as it kills me, and my ego, I need to drop right down so that I can do the cardio-part as it was intended. I'll do it, but only because I've been told to. I know I won't like it!!! (Although if it helps me achieve my two goals I may just be eating those last words...). I've been working on heavy, split-training for 2 years and I have to try and re-train myself in a whole new direction, and that's tough.
So there's a few changes to the program: weighted supermans on conditioning/ HIIT day, superset the jack-knives and plate squats, add in B. Split squats on Day 3 (I initially wanted to add the leg work, drop some abs, but I wasn't allowed ), and keep the lower volume of ab reps on the cable crunches (this is more to do with the crap gym-set up than anything). Day 3 is now going to kill me on a whole new level. I don't take whey to the gym with me, but I think taking some BCAAs directly beforehand might not be the worst idea in the world (speaking of which, where is that bloody order coming in??... Anyhoodles, back to today:
Day 2:
Deads: 10(60) 8(80) 6(100) 4(110) 20(60)
Walking double lunges: 12(15) 12(15) 12(15)
Incline DB press: 10(15) 8(17.5) 6(20) 5(20)
Seated Arnold/Military DB Press Super: [12(8 ) 12(8 )] [12(7) 12(7)] [12(7) 12(7)]
Hang Cleans: 12(25) 12(25) 12(25)
Skull Crushers: 12(17.5) 12(17.5) 12(17.5) 12(17.5)
DB curls: 10(8 ) 10(8 ) 10(8 ) 10(8 )
Hanging Leg Raises from pull up bar: 15, 15, 15, 15
- DLs: my back did NOT enjoy this. I had no choice but to cut the last set a little short, there was just something not ‘right’ and I trust my instinct where my back is concerned. The pain I was feeling wasn’t ‘normal’ and was too strong to ignore.
- AP/ MP: this is by far and away my most unfavourite exercise. In fact I think I hate it. It’s hard to keep good form, it’s frustrating, it’s exhausting and I can’t help feeling I’m screwing my shoulders over.
- Dropped weight for cleans and did them ATG, felt bueno.
- Started the leg raises from hanging pstn but my shoulders gave way after 8 reps so switched to the dip bars but did them with straight arms supporting my bw.
Even though today looked fine on paper I found it very frustrating. I really and truly busted my backside to get everything done quickly (within most exercises rest periods between sets were 15-30 sec), and I was out of breath for much of it, but the workout still took an hour and fifteen minutes. Dammit body, adapt so I can do this properly!!!0 -
Friday 17th November
I have to be honest. I didn’t exactly go into the gym feeling 100% today but it was an entirely self-inflicted ailment (I was hung-over ) so there is absolutely no sympathy deserved (not that I’d get any from you lot anyways :P ). But how and ever I was ready for a good session, if for no other reason than to make myself feel a bit better for over-indulging last night. Come to think of it, over-indulgence is really something I’m going to have to watch out for in the coming weeks, now that Christmas party season is bearing down on us with scary haste. I’m a lot better than I used to be about tempering my appetite, (last night I ordered meat and salad – yay!! Unfortunately by the time it arrived I had imbibed a bottle of wine and I had to ask for a side of bread to aid soakage – boo…) but the problems happen when I have a drink (or 7) and my ability to resist goes out the window… guess it’s just one of those things I’ll have to play by ear and do my hardest to control. Once again I need to remind myself how much work went into getting me to this stage and what an awful, mindless bloody waste it would be to see it go to hell.
But anyhoodles, the gym. My back is in ribbons, it’s properly sore. Started off the session doing the Cosgrove Complex with just the oly bar so that I could do it at quite a high cardio-pace, but only got through two full 6 rep rounds before my back began screaming in protest. So instead I changed tactics and tried to do quarter mile runs and thrusters/ OH squats for rounds, but again had to stop, the back was too sore. Did some supermans but guess what? Had to stop with the pain in my back. At this point I did oodles of cat stretches to try and ease out some of the stiffness. At the beginning of the session it was just a general lower-back pain and I couldn’t actually figure out if it was muscular or skeletal, but after a bit it manifested itself as a tight soreness around the lower part of my left hand side- so at least it seems to just be muscular pain. I’m praying it’s not my sacro-iliac, which I have had trouble with in the past, but I’ve done very little running recently which is usually what aggravates it. I did a couple of intervals on the x-trainer, but at that stage I had lost all interest in working out and I left it at that. Ooopsy-bleugh!!! Kind of made up for things by going for a nice long brisk walk later that day. At least it's something.
I’d rather maintain a working back before tomorrows session tbh- there’s very little direct lower back work on Day 3, it’s more upper back work- and I’ll see how that goes.
Saturday 18th November
Measurements Day, and the news is… well, great actually!! My weight seems to have stabilised at 151lb, and my waist is down a bit again. My leg measurements are up slightly, but the bf readings have gone down, so I can only conclude that I’m putting on some decent muscle. In fact my bf readings are still going down overall all, and I’m half a % down from the end of GGS- my average reading this morning was 10.2%, which I think is a bit on the generous side, in reality I think I’m still at around 12-13%. So, one month on from the end of GGS and I’m sitting comfortably in happy camper-land. I like it!!!
Day 3:
Chins/ Pull Ups: 7, 5, 6, 8
Bulgarian Split Squats: 3 × 10(12.5)
Horizontal Press: 10(10pl) 8(12pl) 6(13pl) 5(13pl) 20(10pl)
DB flyes/DB push ups: 3 ×12(10), 12
Front DB raises/DB rear delts: [10(8) 12(8)] [10(7) 12(8)] [10(7) 12(8)]
Jack-knife push-ups/ plate held squats: [15, 15(10)] [15, 15(10)] [15, 20(15)]
Dips: 3 × 12
Cable curl Drop set: [12(7pl) 12(4pl) 12(2pl)] [12(6pl) 12(3pl) 12(1pl)]
DB snatches: 10(15) 8(17.5)
- last week wasn’t just a once off- I did two full pull-ups again today woohoo!!!! The others were done on the graviton.
- Leg work: added in the split squats today. Didn’t mean to use them as a pre-exhaust but the press was busy and the user looked like he was going nowhere fast so I had to make do. Turns out it was a pretty great idea (I think anyways). It warmed up my legs nicely and I was really able to work my legs hard on the press, and stumbled as opposed to walked away from it at the end. Nice.
- The ab work was hard in a superset. The plate held squats killed my shoulders and the last set was actually done like a zercher squat, the plate held against my chest, with a higher weight, as there was no way my shoulders could withstand holding the plate out in front of me, but I still concentrated on using my abs for the movement
- Dips were part bw, part asstd.
- Cable curl drop sets are still evil personified.
- By the time I got around to doing the snatches I was thoroughly poo-oo-ooped. Big time. So I made one of my executive training decisions and left it at two sets.
Consdiering the workload I got this done relatively quickly, in about an hour and 15 minutes. I went hell for leather on most exercises and performed it quickly and relatively efficiently. I now have to spend the afternoon writing my thesis, which, given the state my arms are in, is going to be a challenge But anyways, it was a good session, and I’m pleased. 0 -
Monday 20th November
I feel so much better when I eat clean, both psychologically and physically. That there wagon has me back on it and holding the reins. Cauliflower mash ftw!!!!
Squat: 10(60) 8(80) 6(100) 5(110) 20(70)
Barbell Flat Bench Press: 10(40) 8(50) 6(55) 5(60) 1(65) 1(65) 1(65) fail(70) 20(30)
Lat Pull Downs: 12(8pl) 12(8pl) 6(8pl)6(7pl)
Bent over rows: 8(22.5) DB 12(17.5)DB 12(17.5)DB
DB Lateral Raises: 12(8 ) 12(8 ) 12(7) 12(7)
Tricep Pushdowns: 15(8pl) 12(9pl) 12(8pl) 15(7pl)
EZ bar curls: 12(20) 10(20) 12(17.5) 12(17.5)
Hanging Leg Raise: 12 15 12 12
- squats: I could probably still be dropping down another inch or so on my squat, but I had no spotter and I was tentative to say the least. But hey, repping out on the 70kg was great (in an evil "aw-holy-crapazola-I'm gonna-puke-any-second" sorta way) and made those legs do some real work.
- Bench: I got a bit carried away here Babypink made an appearance in the gym and encouraged me to use and abuse him at will (he loves it really ) so I decided to see how well my bench was coming. I know it doesn’t look like very much, but believe me, for me those numbers are a big, big improvement!!! I got the 5 @ 60kg with no assistance and the three singles were all me too. I just did three of them because it seems while I have power on both the left and right hand sides, the left is a little unstable. I should have just tried for a 67.5kg single but I got a little big for my boots and didn’t make the 70kg. Ah well, it’s still some massive progress for me and I’m well happy
- Did DB rows instead of barbell… I know there was a reason why… I just can’t remember… was a bit over-ambitious to begin with though, oops
- Everything else was fine- hard, intense and sweaty… just the way I (or at least I’m growing to) like it All cable stations were busy so had to switch Thursday’s abs for today.
However… my back is still sore and I’m getting moderately concerned. I may have to leave out heavy DLs this week and do explosive DL work instead. Hmmm… That’s all for now though, I think anyways…
Tuesday 21st November
Conditioning Day. To try and get around the back pain I started doing a modified version of the Cosgrove Complex:
DL, HC, FS, PP, OHS, BS, GM (i.e. I took out the sequence of three direct back exercises right at the beginning and threw in more leg work).
Warmup: 4 reps of each with oly bar. Then…
6 reps each w/ 10kg on bar, 5 reps each w/ 10kg on bar… and there was the niggling little pain again. Dammit.
Instead did 4 rounds of
0.25 mile run (7.5 mph, 7.5mph, 8.0mph, 8.5mph)
10 thrusters (w/ bar)
10 OHS (w/ bar)
2 × Abductors / Adductors (12 reps with a good squeeze!!)
2 × waiters walk (40m w. 25kg)
:mad: I didn’t want to take any more chances so off I toddled to see the physio. Basically the news is pretty ok. It is a problem with my sacro-iliac, but it’s nothing too serious. Essentially my posture is crap, I’m rounding out my shoulders, not holding my ass and my abs in and as a result my right s-i is higher than my left, as is most of my right side (and it’s over-developed compared to the left). She cracked out my back for me and gave it a bit of a gentle prodding to try and ease out some of the stiffness, and I have to take it easy for a few days with heavy lifting, and do crap loads of core work (I’m strong in my core, certainly stronger than I was, just not strong *enough* for the weight I move). But I’m relieved it’s nothing too serious or long term. Planks, side-planks, spinal rolls, spinal twists and cat stretches are the order of the day every day for me for the next while (again, small mercies in the form of having my own private office) and I’ll just have to drop my weight further for the TBT and do it cardio-stylee.0 -
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Frequent wrote:g'em, I really believe you can stick with this. YOU are in control of the food: the food is not in control of you.
An overindulgence is just one thing - an overindulgence. Forget the guilt, just try again today. You can do this.
Thanks F And I know you're absolutely right, and 90% of the time I am fully in control. But it's those niggling 10% occasions when everything just goes out the window and I just can't muster the energy or the willpower not to give in that affect me most. It's weird- even when I'm overindulging, I know damn well that I'll regret it as *soon* as I stop. So what's my answer? Keep eating so the 'stop' part gets prolonged even further!!! Thing is, I know that right now I really am too tired and busy and stressed to battle with this as much as I need to, and instead of conquering it, I just need try try and fend it off until I'm in a position to tackle it with a better mindset. I don't even know if that makes sense?!?! I guess at the moment I can't give 100% effort, but if I can maintain 70% it should be enough damage limitation that when I get back up to scratch I won't have too high a moutain to climb to get back to where I was, it'll be more like a gentle incline!!
Ah the joys of the intricate and intimate relationship between mind and body. Honestly, the next person who tells me that emotional eating is a crutch for the weak-willed is going to get a 35kg DB in the nose :rolleyes:0 -
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I'm not going to ignore you!! I appreciate the feedback immensely. And erm... yeah, I squatted 70kg for 20 reps... but I'm happiest squatting 100kg - I can feel a shot at a 120kg (maybe 125kg?) 1RM coming up in the near futureOdysseus wrote:Hi Gem, what can I say I'm an endurance runner who smokes too much so feel free to ignore me. However, I have said this before, the pain you are prepared to endure in relation to your training is inspirational. If I read your journal correctly your were lifting 70kg in squats [that my body weight:eek: ]
It does make perfect sense. Pain is one of those funny things that, as you get used to it, or more accurately learn to guage it, can take on all sorts of different meanings depending on the context (it's late, so forgive me if I go off on one hereOdysseus wrote:My understanding of training to an extreme is that you get your enjoyment out of the relative pain, its what psychoanalysis calles jouissance, its pain and pleasure in the same packet. I can only say what helps me, but I know when i'm in pain I remind myself "that you knew this was going to hurt. So shut the fu*k up, and finished what you started". I repeat as need usually about 1000 times:) None of us are perfect, we know all know this,. Yet sometimes we expect ourselves to be superhuman, we are not, we can aim for it, but we must take cognisance of our limitations. Hope this makes sense. ). There' the pain that tells you that something is really wrong- it's that instinctual 'real' pain when you're trying to make your body do something it genuinely cannot do, and that pain can't just be ignored- thankfully that pain doesn't come around too often. But there's also that 'discomfort factor' pain- the one which, as you say, is just as much about pleasure as it is about feeling like turd. It's the pain that's your body saying 'meh... this isn't really so good, I mean, I can do it, I just don't want to'. That's the type of pain that's fun to beat. Much like enjoying DOMS for three days following a really heavy session I don't know if that's a healthy or an unhealthy mindset to have- I'm not a masochist, but I like the feeling of being alive that comes with being in pain when I push my body to it's limits, and then about 10 feet beyond that just for good measure.
I hope that at this stage when it comes to my training I have built a good understanding of how my body works and reacts to the stimuli I give it. I can control my form, my sets, my workout, my breathing, my rest times, my recovery... so why do I still have such an issue with what I put in my belly? It's one of those never-ending fights and it's a battle I think I have to accept will keep going on for a long time.
Now it's my turn to be the one not making any sense :rolleyes:0 -
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