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Shut up and Traaiiiin!!!!!
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18-07-2008 12:34am#1Ok, so today isn't exactly day one. I've been back in the gym about three weeks, but kinda just playing about, getting into it. Today it begins!
My main goals are to get fit - i'm not sure quite what the end-line of this is, but I want to be able to give the gf an enjoyable night without feeling like my lungs are gonna explode.
Added to that I wanna get the body fat down down down. Aiming at around 10-12% from a lofty 25ish (according to the bro's Tanita scales).
I'm not quite sure how much muscle I have, but we could always use a bit more of that. That would definitely be secondary to losing the bodyfat though, so whilst I shall be lifting as heavy as possible, the diet shall remain strict, and by that I mean good clean foods, and a regular, close relationship with hunger.
I'm not sure if I'm doing things 100% correct, but I'll start with that and give it a go.
Stats go a little something like this:
Height: 181cm (a shade under 6 foot)
Weight: 93/92 kilos. It fluctuates a little.
Age: 29 - not yet over the hill so I can achieve something if I go for this.
Bodyfat: 25.6% - from what would have to be considered an unreliable source. Possibly in my favour though
I was a bit of a half-assed gym-goer a few years ago; I got biggish, but never defined. Since then I have dabbled, but now after a few weeks psyching myself up, I'm pretty determined to get into my best shape as an adult. So here goes:
Workout:
Started out with 30 mins on the x-trainer (I know I know, weights first, but remember what I said). I've been steadily ramping up on this and basically did a very intense half hour. I put it to a very high setting and went fast. All these machines are different (well between this one and the one in work anyway), but I ran off about 550 cals and kept it right at the cusp of lactic acid build-up in my quads.
So Weights-wise, I'm roughly going to divide the week into a split (5 days) of chest-tri's/back/shoulders-biceps/leg (squats)/ and top it off with deadlifts on day five. All in no particular order.
After warm-down, stretching and some RAM.....
Chest-Triceps day:Dips (bodyweight) 5x4sets - pleased with this; my body weighs a lot.
Bench 8x4 sets - drop-sets 50-45-40-40 kg. I can comfortably bench a set of 8 reps @70kg, but I was starting to feel it from the dips.
Skullcrushers 8x3 sets - not sure the total weight, but had 25kg total in plates on one of those kinda "w" shaped bars (the name eludes me right now). My palms slightly facing away to work that inside tri.
Cable-Crossover Flyes 8x3 Sets - Not gonna lie, I was shagged by now. So I was running these at 15-12.5-10kg. I literally could do no more.
Diet:
Breakfast: Porridge; Tea.
Post Gym: RAM
Lunch: Tomato Soup; 2 eggs(1 yolk removed), scrambled; water.
Snack: Litre of low-fat milk, 5 brazil nuts
Dinner: 2 egg tomato omelette - one yolk removed; water.
Dinner sucked, I'll admit that, even for weight loss goals. The last few weeks it's been chicken/fish and an ass-load of veg, but I got held up and this was the best I can do.
Couple of things though - I rarely eat red meat, and will be limiting my supplements to the occasional RAM. That's just how it'll be. I understand that might limit me, but it'll be unwavering. Any Red Meat I do have will be accompanied by a few beers (I rarely drink, so I figure these'll go hand in hand nicely as i do love 'em both)
I was very tired after this work-out. Still feeling it a bit, but not bad, IMO, for someone who has seen little of the inside of a gym in the last couple of years, after 3 weeks training.0
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Bit late posting this but I have most of it written down.
Workout:
Again 30 mins on x-trainer, similar intensity to yesterday, which again too it out of me. But sure who's complainin'? :P
Started with Lat pulldowns.
8x2sets @55kg
8x2sets @60kg
5x1sets @65kg
3x1sets @70kg
1x1set @75kg
Seated rows - shoulder blades tight
5x5 @ 40-50-55-50-40kg
1 arm dumbell rows
7x4 sets (each side) @ 20kg - starting to flag by now.
Shrugs - dumbells
8x2 sets @ 55kg total(27.5 each)
8x2 sets @ 60kg
Almost forgot ... Dumbell Flies.
8x3sets 12.5kg each arm. Just finished this to show myself who was boss, i.e., the Iron. And that I felt in the past my mid-traps have been neglected.
Diet:
Similar to yesterday.
Breakfast: Porridge; tea (can't start the day without)
Post-gym: Banana
Lunch: Scrambled eggs - 4 egg whites, one yolk; glass of milk
Evening snack: 7 Brazil nuts(I counted, lol); litre of milk
Dinner: Baked fish - lots, with 1 baby potato, onions and brocolli; I also had a mini, mini dessert of creme brulee. I kmow, I know. Sorry
Apart from that dessert though, happy enough.0 -
Woke laaatte!!! Not a good start. Threw down an Espresso, a banana, some Brazil nuts and a handful of Pine nuts. And hot-footed it.
Workout:
Hit the gym almost straight away. Another 30 mins on the x-trainer (I love it, it's my 2nd home), didn't go too hard though because, well, it was...
Leg-day
Squats. No excuses here. I'm squatting paltry, meagre weightage here. However this is for three reasons - 1) Technique, 2) Technique, 3) Technique.
I'm actually squatting properly. My ass is almost grazing the floor at the bottom of my lift, and my back is coming up straight, with the weight toward my heels/mid-foot (this is not something I have ever been able to get right in the past). Now for the bad news:
Front squats
8x2 sets @ ahem, 50kgs
Standard squats
8x2 sets @ 60kgs
6x2 sets @ 60-50kgs
I won't lie, that was tough. But I was very happy with my technique. A year from now I'll be squatting a lot more than that ... PROPERLY!
Plate loaded Seated Squat-Machine
Was able to man-up a bit with this, which relieved my blushes from the squat. feet high on the plate, pushing from the heels to engage my hammers a bit more...
8x5 sets @ 80-80-90-100-90kgs
Seated Calf Raises
Skinny-boy calves, plenty of strength(ish) - none of the size
13x3 (each side) @30kgs (highest the dumbells go to) ... too easy.
Standing Calf Raises
8x2 @100kgs ... Ahh, that's more like it. Dinged my lower back slightly putting the bar back (had it in a squat position across my Traps), it's a bit stiff now, but I'll live :pac:
Leg Curls - standard leg curl machine.
8x4 @ 50-50-55-50kg
Not too sure if this is the best way to go about working my Hammers, but I have no idea what to substitute. Lunges maybe? Anyway, I was shattered, so the stability of a machine was comforting, TBH.
Diet:
Breakfast: Banana; handful of Brazil nuts; handful of pine nuts; espresso.
Post-workout: RAM; More Brazil Nuts
Lunch: Small slice of Pizza; Medium size piece of fish (Baked Cod, no batter)
Snack: Just about half a cup of boiled Lentils (don't ask:rolleyes:) but tasty and healthy; Glass of milk.
Dinner: Chicken Stir Fry: 2 Large breasts, carrots, green pepper, Brocolli cooked in Sesame oil with Ginger Garlic, lime Juice and literally about 5 noodles only. This was awe....SOME!!!
Diet was a bit sh!t today. Breakfast was a joke on leg day, and to be honest I felt very, very weak after. The RAM was a saviour. And the leftover slice of Pizza ... WTF? Very disappointing - just no need for it. But I feel if this was a bad day(diet-wise), then it was still a pretty good bad
day compared to what it could have been.
I will repent
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Very little left in the tank after legs day. Didn't sleep as long as I'd hoped either, but I decided with work tonight(my work shift is 1 week nights/1 week days, with 3-4 12 hour days every other week), I'd give one last push before my enforced rest-day - no way of making it to the gym tomorrow.
i had planned on making it deadlift day, and when my back (which had suffered a little after the calf raises) felt perfect, I almost did. But I knew I wouldn't be able to commit 1000% to these, and I didn't want to do anything stupid, like taunting my back into injury. After-all there's no rush for me. This is a marathon, not a sprint.
So it went:
Workout:
30 mins x-trainer. The legs didn't have it. I put on as much up tempo as my mp3 player culd muster and went with it. The Doms, and general flatness in my legs made this excruciating. for many posing here, the workout, or the intensity I'm going for, might be par the course, but trust me, for someone not long back in the gym, I am leaving nothing in the locker room. I mean that. :eek: From my usual +500kcal workout, I was down to about 450 this time.
Seated Barbell military press:
8x5 Sets @20-20-30-27.5-25kgs - Shoulders are a weak point. big-time.
Lateral Raises:
8x5 Sets @ 12.5-10-10-10-12.5
Facepulls:
8x5 Sets @ 30kg - was definitely happy with this number
Barbell curls:
8x4 Sets @ 20-22.5-25-20kgs - this was tough and I was in the mood to head home, but i caught a glimpse of my side profile in the mirror and my arms looked savage (for me) Seriously, it was quite inspiring.
Dumbell Front Raises:
8x3 @ 12.5-10-8kgs. It was a toss up between these and hammer curls, I went for these because my left Brachialis was tight after the Facepulls.
In the end, however, I did them both - felt too much like an excuse and would have been a sorry way to finish the last couple of days.
Hammer Curls:
8x2 Sets @ 12.5kgs. 2 Sets, that's your lot. I was fading fast, and the arm was feeling tight. i make no excuses, I outdid myself just doing them.
With such a hard week's workout, and a bad night sleep and now working through the night, my CNS is in shreds. Even just typing this is taking extreme effort, and I've even managed to swing a few hours off work and leave early. TBH, if I'd been fresh, you could have added at least 20% to all those lifts today, but I'm happy I'm doing it, rather than making excuses and not doing it. so ... go me :pac:
Diet:
Breakfast: Porridge (P.S. my porridge is oats & Water - no bullsh*t proper porridge); espresso; Trusty Old Brazil Nuts.
Post-workout: RAM
Lunch: Roast Chicken breast; Brocolli
Snack/Lunch II(Long Day): Tomato Salsa and Low-fat cheese; Pint of Milk
Dinner; Lentils & Tomato; Chicken Breast; Pint Milk.
Wow, I'm actually just completely shagged now. I'm off to my bed, and a days rest 0 -
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Today was meant to be rest day, but I got out of bed early afternoon feeling very refreshed. Even now, I still feel fine. Basically I couldn't not go to the gym today, and I had a rush of excitement when I said "Screw the rest day," and packed my stuff (Actually I realised, due to the nature of my shift work, that Tuesday would be a much better rest day, as I would have less spare time). So I went to the gym in work.
It really is a bonus having a gym in work. However, it's not a particularly good gym. In fact, with no racks or Oly bar, back and shoulders/bicep day are the only 2 I can really perform properly here. And as I'd just done Shoulders/Bicep, it was back day again.
Workout:
10 minutes on an exercise bike, and then when 1 of the 3 :eek: x-trainers freed up, I did 25 mins on here. Went fairly hard it has to be said. But being a different model machine to the one in my regular gym, I can't compare. I was tired though :P
Did a full range of 8 reps in the weights.
Lat Pulldowns:
8x5 Sets @ 60kgs, didn't push this quite as hard as last week. No particular reason, other than not feeling as comfortable.
1 arm Bent over Rows:
8x4 Sets @ 20kgs - an extra rep from last week
Dumbell shrugs:
8x4 Sets @ 60kgs (total) Again, up from last week slightly - keeping it simple with reps/Sets/Weights - I still had a 12 hour night-shift ahead of me :P
Reverse Dumbell Flyes:
8x4 Sets @ 10kgs - no 12.5s at this gym, and 15's are beyond me, pure and simple
Seated Rows:
I was gonna do 5x5s here again but said screw it...
8x5 Sets @ 50kgs. Felt Niiiice
Diet:
Breaky: 3 egg whites, 1 yolk, drop of milk - scrambled; Porridge; Espresso.
PostWorkout: Pint of Milk; 7 Brazil nuts; Biscuit
Lunch: A bag of popcorn (too many Carbs, I know); tub of tomato salso with low fat string cheese (about 650 cals total)
Snack: A weird food day - it's tough getting decent grub on nights. More Salsa (I basically buy this in Tesco);more low-fat cheese and a pint of milk(700-800 Cals - quite easily measured from the labels TBH).
Dinner: Grilled skinless chicken fillet and green lentils.
Diet is not great, but not the worst, considering it's nights and preparing food isn't easy given my low free time levels. That string cheese has a pretty good Protein/Fat balance, as far as cheese goes - and one of the few decent protein sources available that you don't have to cook.
I was a million times fresher today, and even now at 5 AM, I'm feeling great. A rest day tomorrow and then a couple of days off work, to really focus on the gym and diet, is the plan. So I'm pretty excited about it.
See yis all Wednesday. 0 -
Best of luck shut up! Looks like you are very determined to give this your best - keep up the good work. Just one thing - might be a good idea to take measurments to track progress. Gives you a boost when you see the changes - which you will be seeing lots of shortly!! 0
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I took tuesday off as I said I would - no choice really, with work - and went back on wednesday. It wasn't a great start to the day. I was exhausted; my appetite was gone, and my trips to the bathroom were quick, but frequent, if you catch my drift
Anyway, by the time I got myself together, it was peak time at the gym. This limited me, I'd wanted to make it chast day, but as I'd be usung the dipping station, a bench, ez-curl bar (knew I'd remember), and cable crossover, well ... I'd have been waiting a while between exercises. So I decided for deadlifts and abs.
Workout:
Half an hour on the x-trainer. This went well, back to the way I was going early last week. So despite my iffy degestive tract, I was clearly in decent enough form.
Deadlift:
Ok, so my deadlift was 70kgs, pathetic I know, but really is about form, and the fact that I'll freely admit I'm soft and weak right now. I don't really feel great putting this down, but the honesty might kick me up the arse and act as motivation. Anyway, as the man says: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time (if you get that you're on my wavelength)
7 x 3 Sets @ 70kgs
5 x 3 Sets @70kgs
Bicycle Crunches:
20 x 5 Sets
Kneeling Cable crunches:
16 x 4 Sets @ 30 kgs
Leg Raises:
16 x 3 Sets - these hurt
Diet:
Tuesday's diet was mediocre. Fairly disciplined until the Kit-Kat chunky I had an hour before bed - I know, I know
Back to Wednesday:
Breakfast: Porridge; 3 Brazil nuts.
Post Workout: RAM
Lunch: Scrambled eggs; Pint of Milk
Snack: Pint of milk; 2 large handfuls of popcorn - not great, but I'd been caught out by lack of prep.
Only four meals, not enough cals today I reckon, in spite of the popcorn. Must try harder. Diet isn't 100% right now.
Will post up Thursday later. After I'm done eating for the day :pac:0 -
I slept a good 10/11 hours last night, and could've gone some more, but finally crawled out of bed at about 1. Felt great though. Chest n Triceps today
Workout:
30 mins X-trainer. Really getting into the swing of this now. I know just how to push myself on this yoke. Will keep pushing up the levels til I reach the highest level, and work it from there.
Dips:
5 x 5 @ Bodyweight. An extra set from last week, go me
Bench Press:
8 x 5 Sets @ 50-50-50-45-40 Not really setting the world alight here, and what I was happy with last week (with 1 set less), I'm not happy with today. Maybe the dips have something to do with it, but it's tough when I used to be able to bench more than 70 for reps. Anyway, we mustn't grumble.
Skullcrushers:
8 x 4 Sets @ 25kgs + EZ curl bar, dropping to 20kgs for the last Set. My tri's were on fire, and TBH it's my downfall on the bench - my tri's that is. Or perhaps more specifically at my elbow, it goes from comfortable to very, very weak from about the 5th - 6th rep on the bench. It's like a switch, it's so sudden.
Inverted grip bench with EZ-Curl:
8 x 5 Sets @35kgs - barely felt it in the upper chest to be quite frank. The Tri's/elbows were eaten alive by now though.
Cable Crossover Flyes:
8 x 5 @ 12.5-12.5-10-10-7.5kgs (each side, in case that wasn't clear - same goes for last week). Well well; something I actually felt an improvement on. Ok, started lighter, but longer sets I really did start to feel a burn in the pecs throughout these, without quite going into instant failure mod a là the tri's on previous exercises.
Diet:
Breakfast: Porridge; espresso; 4 brazil nuts.
Post-workout: RAM
Lunch: Litre of Milk; Soup.
Dinner: Stir-fry with Prawns and a little Rice; Large Glass of milk.
Snack: 2 Chicken breasts; Cup of Tea; a little bit of popcorn (200kcals worth roughly)
Cals were certainly not evenly spread throughout the day, but not too bad. The popcorn isn't amazing, but as a snack, and in terms of fibre, it could be so much worse.
This still isn't perfect yet, and I have a tendency to let little things wreck my head, so I'm going to chill out a little and try to realise that this is such a better way of life than what I had a month ago. And I will look forward to improving it more. And getting stronger, and fitter, and hey, looking better too.
Goodnight:cool: 0 -
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