Mon., 12/31/12, Chest and Tri's

Well.... I had a merry Christmas; I hope everyone out there did as well. The only down side was: Getting The Flu! I puked til I passed out- not a super fun experience, but alas, I survived.
So today was the first workout back after relaxing and celebrating Christmas with my family on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday; throwing up on Friday; and recovering on Saturday and Sunday.
I didn't go too crazy today- not wanting to mess myself up. Here's what it looked like:
incline dumbell press: 20's-10; 30's-10; 40's-10; 55's-12; 70's-10; 85's-10; 100's-10
flat dumbell press: 50's-12; 75's-12; 100's-6
dips:                                           10; 10
   superset with machine fly: 150-8,  8 then right back to dips for 1 more set of 6 + 2 rest-pauses
rope pushdown: 70-20; 100-11; 120-7
seated 1-arm dumbell extension: 35-10,6
lying triceps extension: 70-8; 90-8
I finished it all up with 1 more set of machine flyes just to pump more blood into the chest... it was a great pump!

On a progress note: I think the increased frequency must be cranking up my metabollism, because I measured my waist Christmas morning and it was 31 1/4" and this morning it was 31". It usually hangs around 32" in the off season- look out!

Dec. 24, 2012, Full-Body Workout

This morning I arose at 4:20am to train myself at 5:45 and several others immediately following- getting it all in early before the Christmas festivities all start.
I will not train again until Saturday, so I wanted to hit all the big muscle groups to avoid extreme soreness next week. The game plan was to hit each muscle group with just 1 or 2 exercises, doing sets of 10 until I could not get 10, increasing the weight each set. Here's how it went:

OBVIOUSLY SQUATS: 45-20; 95-15; 135-12; 225-10; 315-10; 405-8
seated leg curl: 110-10; 125-10; 140-11

incline dumbell press:        30's-10; 50's-10; 75's-10; 100's-14
super set with barbell rows: 95-10; 135-10; 185-10;  235-8

machine fly: 170-12,?,?
super set with straight arm rope pulldown: 130-?,?,?

20 minutes on the treadmill.....
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Sat., 12/22/12, Delts

Today is shoulder day, but my neck is a little creeky and my shoulders are stiff and sore. So I did not want to put a bunch of weight on them. Instead I did some giant sets. At the end I put some real intensity into it, but I didn't have to use much weight. Here's what it looked like:

laterals; bent over laterals; seated dumbell presses; dumbell front raises; hammer strength press; machine rear laterals; and machine laterals: I went through this 4-6 times (I'm honestly not sure) with 8-12 reps each exercise and increasing the weight each set......they were pumped!

Fri., 12/21/12, Back/ Bi's

Basic stuff today. I didn't do any barbell rows- that's unusual for me. Here it is:
bosu crunch: 30/ bench crunch: 30
under hand grip pulldown: 90-15; 120-12; 150-12; 180-12; 210-9; 240-6
seated double D grip row: 150-12; 180-9; 210-9
1-arm plate-loaded nautilus row: 90-10; 135-8,8
dumbell preacher curl: 20's-12; 30's-12; 40's-7
spider curl: 30-8, 4+2/ 20-10
barbell curl: 90-8,8,8

Thur., 12/20/12, Chest/Calves/Tri's

I got a killer pump today! Not too much volume is needed right now with my slightly increased volume (in other words: I can't destroy it too bad, because it's gonna get worked again in 4-5 days.) Here's what today's workout looked like:

calf press: 90-30; 180-25; 270-20; 360-15; 450-12; 520-8
smith machine calf raise: 180-15; 270-11,11 + 2 drop sets
bosu crunch: 30, 60
swiss ball leg raise (I made this up: lie across a swiss ball, hold onto a machine with your hands, and raise your legs to 90 degrees.): 15,15
incline dumbell press: 20's-20; 35's-15; 50's-12; 65's-10; 75's-10; 85's-10; 100's-8
machine fly: 150-12; 170-8 + 4 + 3
dip (for chest): 10, 10, 10
rope pushdown: 100-15; 130-8; 110-7
1-arm dumbell lying tri-extension: 40-8,5 (no rest)
1-arm reverse pushdown: 60-11,7,6 (no rest)
free-motion cable chest press (just to finish it all off and tie the chest and tris together): 60-12,15

Wed., Dec. 19, 2012, Leg Day

Today I officially broke the routine: I trained my legs on Wednesday. If you've followed me, you know that for a long time I've been training legs on thursday. I recently changed the split: now it's day#1 chest/ tri's; day#2 back/bi's; day#3 shoulders; day#4 legs. This increases my frequency a bit because I'm usually training 5 days a week- so 1 day gets hit twice and it changes every week.

So today's workout: NUTS!
I started with hamstrings- lying leg curls: 30-20; 60-15; 90-12; 120-11
followed by seated leg curl: 110-12; 125-10; 140-9
Then it got fun-
squat: 45-20; 135-10; 225-6; 315-30
reverse lunges: 95-10
leg extension: 135-14

.....I want a pizza!

Mon., 12/17/12, Back and Biceps

Incredible pump this morning. I didn't do too much volume, just enough to get it done thoroughly. Here's how it went:
three abs and lower back circuits to start: bosu crunch, hyper-extension, roman chair, and swiss ball crunch
then warm up with pulldowns: 80-15; 110-10; 140-12
wide pull-up: 12, 12, 12, 9
under-grip row: 135-8; 185-8; 225-8; 275-5
nautilus plate-loaded pulldown: 180-12; 270-8,8
seated dumbell curl (keeping the palms up): 20's-12; 30's-10; 40's-11 (I think)
bent-over concentration curl: 40-10; 50-6; 60-6
reverse curl: 40-15; 50-12; 60-8 + 1 set of cable curls: 150-?+3 drop-sets

Fri., 12/14/12, Chest/Tri's

This is the whole workout from beginning to end:
bosu crunch: 30,30,30
knee-ups: 30,30,30
incline smith machine press: 50-15; 100-12,8,6; 150-10; 200-7+ 2drop-sets
flat dumbell press: 50's-12; 65's-12; 80's-10
cable-cross-over: 60-12; 80-12,?
cross-bench-pullover: 50-12; 60-12; 70-12
lying triceps extension: 50-15; 70-12; 90-12; 110-8
seated rope cable extension: 80-12; 100-10,8
seated 1-arm dumbell extension: 35-10,10,10

Thursday-Legday 12/13/12

Another leg workout in the books. I've said it many times and I'll say it again: Leg day is the hardest workout; it requires more energy, taxes the nervous system more, just plain wears you out! I'm still alternating starting with quads one week and hams the next. So this week I started with quads. I agrivated my lower back a little last week with V-grip rows. It wasn't too bad, I just have to be careful; I herniated a disk 3 years ago, so I HAVE to be careful: I didn't want to put 405 on my back today. So, I did all sets of 10 including more sets on the way up than usual. Check it out:

squat: 45-20; 95-10; 135-10; 185-10; 225-10; 275-10; 315-10; 365-10 (and if I had gone down again, I would not have come up: failure.)
leg press: 450-10; 630-10; 810-11
seated leg curl: 110-12; 140-12 (barely!)
lying leg curl: 135-5+ 4drop-sets (absolutely killer!)
alternating lunge: 95-10 (these were only to stimulate the glutes a little more, no failure, I was pretty much toast at this point)

Immediately after the workout: I had 45g whey protein; did 20 minutes cardio; ate a big sweet potato and an orange; and 1 hour 15 minutes after that had a very large portion of this chicken and pasta dish that my wife makes, it has a bit of fat, a ton of carbs and a lot of protein... that's how you grow!

Wed., 12/12/12, Shoulders/Calves

I started with calves, focussing on the weak point. Total focus and concentration went into every set, flexing and squeezing the calf muscles, visualizing new growth. I did 7 sets of calf presses and 4 sets of 1-calf presses, and they were tight and pumped. For delts I did the normal rotator cuff exercises, and then changed it up. First was the Hammer Strength press: 50-15; 90-12; 140-12; 180-12; 230-10; 270-5 +fail+2drop-sets. Second was machine lateral raise: 80-15; 100-12; 120-12, 7. Third was machine rear lateral: 120-15; 140-12; 160-?,?. Then I hit a light circuit of arnold press, front raise, behind the neck press, and dumbell front raise; just to further the pump. And I finished it off with seated dumbell shrug: 25's-15; 50's-15; 75's-15; 100's-12. And boom, that's it! Got a great pump and really stimulated the muscle fibers. I then drank 50g whey protein and ate a sweet potato, an orange and 1/2 cup oatmeal. That's how you grow.

Mon., Dec. 10, 2012, Chest

I got a great workout in this morning. Just chest today; I did a little ab work to warm up before the real work. The focus was on squeezing the muscle and keeping it as isolated as possible; sets were close together ( 1 minute or less); intensity was high. Here's what it looked like:

incline dumbell press: 20's-20; 35's-10; 50's-10; 65's-10; 80's-10; 90's-10; 100's-10 +fail
incline hammer strength press: 180-10, 10 to failure
machine fly: 150-10; 160-10; 170-10; 180-7
dip: 12,12,10

Fri., 12/07/12, Shoulders

Good workout today. I had plenty of time and I used it:
3 sets machine crunch
2 sets bosu crunch
1 set leg raise
3 sets rope crunch

6 sets smith machine calf raise
4 sets calf presses

rotator cuff work (I do this before every shoulder and chest workout: lateral dumbell rotations, light laterals, fronts, pulldowns and cable internal rotations)
5 sets lateral raise with rest pause and drop sets on the end
3 sets machine laterals
4 sets seated cable rear laterals
5 sets hammer strength press (facing the pad)
3 sets rear shrugs + 1 set dumbell shrugs

20 minutes stepmill

12/06/12, Thursday-Legday

KILLER!
lying leg curl: 30-10; 45-10; 60-10; 75-10; 90-10; 105-10; 120-6+2+2
standing 1-leg curl: 75-10,5
squat: 45-20; 135-10; 225-10; 315-10; 405-9
leg press: 360-12; 540-12; 720-10+3
walking lunges: 135- ?
leg extension: 135-12+2+2
AND THEY WERE DEAD!!!!

WED., 12/05/12, ARMS

I decided to change it up a bit today. I started with cambered bar curls, which I rarely do- I much prefer a straight bar- but I thought it would be good to confuse the muscle a little. I wanted to hit it from a wide range of angels. Here's what the workout looked like:

cambered bar curl:                        50-10; 60-10; 70-10; 80-10; 90-10; 100-6; 110-5
superset with lying tri-extension: 50-10; 60-10; 70-10; 80-10; 90-10; 100-10; 110-10

1-arm spider curl:                       35-8; 25-8
superset w/ seated tri-extension: 100-13,10

high cable curl:                       60-12, ?
superset w/ rope pushdown: 100-10; 120-8+2

kneeling cable tri-extension: 100-15,?
superset w/ cable curl:           100-15,10

hammer curl:                         40's-6 + 30's-5 + 20's-5 + 10's-6(drop-set)
superset w/ 1-arm kick back: 25-8,6

Tue., Dec. 4,2012, Back

I wanted to start the workout a little different than normal today. So, I started with T-bar rows. I was stiff and cold when I started so I took my time and warmed up thoroughly. I did 2 sets of 12 with 45lb, then 70 for 12, 90-12, 135-10, 180-8, and finished with 270 for three good reps, 2 rest pause reps and 1 drop set. Now I was warm (ha ha.) Next was wide grip pull-ups: 3 sets of 10, the last set I had to pause to get the last 3. After that, old style rows with the end of the bar sticking out of the wall and a double-D handle around the neck (I used 25's for a better range of motion): 75-12; 125-12;    175-8; 225-6; 200-8. I finished with straight arm pulldowns with a rope: 100-12; 120-12; 140-10,8. And I was PUMPED!

Mon., Dec. 3, 2012, Chest

I got a good pump this morning. It was a typical chest workout for me; basic stuff: incline dumbell presses, flat presses, dips and pullovers; a bunch of feeler sets for my first exercise and 3 sets of 10-12 reps on everything. I kept the sets about a minute apart and just really focussed on the chest.

Fri., Nov. 30, 2012, Calves, Shoulders

I got an excellent workout in this morning. I got a great pump! Here's what it looked like:

calf press: 90-12; 180-12; 270-12; 360-12; 450-10
smith machine calf raise: 90-12; 180-12; 270-11+ 1drop set

bosu crunch: 30,30,30

seated dumbell press: 20's-20; 35's-15; 50's-12; 65's-10; 80's-10
laterals: 20's-15; 30's-12; 40's-10
incline rear laterals: 25's-15; 35's-10; 50's-8
seated dumbell shrug: 50's-15; 75's-15; 100's-12

Thur., Nov 11, 2012, Leg Day

I started with Quads today, keeping the sets pretty close together, doing higher reps to start and increasing the weight and decreasing reps as the sets went on, and some straight sets of 10- basic stuff:

Squat: 45-20; 95-15; 135-12; 225-12; 315-12; 405-6
alternating lunge: 95-10; 115-10; 135-10
leg press: 450-10; 720-10
seated leg curl: 95-15; 125-10,8
leg curl: 60-12; 75-10; 90-8

Wed., Nov. 28, 2012, Arms

Good workout today- excellent pump in the biceps and triceps. I did 6 supersets of dumbell curls and rope pushdowns, 2 supersets of machine curls and machine exensions, 2 supersets of hammer curls and seated 1-arm extensions, 2 straight sets of concentration curls, and 2 straight sets of lying dumbell extensions.

Update on what my diet looks like- here's what I ate today:

meal #1- 5oz chicken breast; 1 cup oatmeal; 1 apple
meal #2- 5oz chicken breast; 1 cup oatmeal
post-workout: 50g whey protein
meal #3- 5oz chicken breast; about 300g sweet potato; 1 orange
meal #4- 5oz chicken breast with pasta and a little cheese
meal #5- about 8oz 93% lean ground beef, 1/2 can corn, 1/2 can black beans, salsa and cheese
before bed- 24g whey protein

Again I don't eat exactly the same thing every day, but this is a very good representation of my diet.

Tue., Nov. 27, 2012, Back/ Calves

Today I did calves and back. It was a great workout. I kept the sets close together, and really focussed on the mind-muscle connection- squeezing and flexing the muscles. I started with calves and only did one exercise, because I will do a 2nd calf workout this week. I did 8 sets of standing calf raises on a straight Smith machine going up in weight on each set. Then I super-setted hyper-extensions and crunches just pumping blood in the abs and lower back. For the lats: I warmed up with 3 sets of pulldowns then did 4 sets of wide grip pull-ups; 2 sets of free-motion pulldowns; 2 sets of high, wide grip seated rows with a straight bar; and finished with 3 sets of bent-over barbell rows. The pump was great. I ended the workout with 20 minutes on the treadmill.

Mon., 11/ 26/ 12, Chest

After 4 days off, I'm feeling refreshed and ready to rock it. I got an excellent chest workout in this afternoon! I kept the sets close together (30seconds-1minute) to pump the blood into the muscle and actuall weaken it so that I didn't have to use so much weight. The results were great... killer pump!
I start off every chest and every shoulder workout with rotator cuff exercises with light dumbells and cables (I do not like bands), after that:
incline hammer strength press: 20-20; 50-12; 90-12; 180-12; 230-10; 270-10; 320-?; 360-3+3drops
high incline dumbell press: 50's-12; 65's-12; 85's-8
dips: 12,10,10
machine fly: 170-12

Wed., Nov. 21, 2012, Legs

Awesome workout today! Here's what it looked like:
standing leg curl: 30-15; 45-12; 60-12; 75-12; 90-10
leg curl: 90-10; 105-8
squat: 45-20; 135-10; 225-10; 315-10; 405-9
leg press: 360-10; 540-10; 720-12
smith machine lunges: 50-10; 100-10
1-calf press: 90- ?, 15,15,12,12
seated calf: 70-12, 120-10,10
smith calf: 180-12,11
20 minutes stationary bike

And they were pumped!

Tue., Nov. 20, 2012, Back/ Rear/ Delts

Today was a big workout (again I'm squeezing everything in before thanksgiving and taking 4 days off.) Here is what it looked like:

wide-grip pull-up: 12,12,10,10
face-down-incline dumbell row: 65's-12,7
row: 225-8,7
close-grip-pulldown: 225-7

incline rear lateral raise: 35's-15,10

barbell curl: 40-?; 60-12; 80-10; 100-6
concentration curl: 40-8,8
hammer curl: 30's-9,?

Mon., Nov. 19, 2012, Chest/ Shoulders/ Tri's

This week I am only training Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and am taking off Thursay through Sunday for Thanksgiving. SO, I get to do 3 jacked up workouts instead of 5 smaller workouts. I got a killer pump this morning. Anytime I do multiple bodyparts in a workout I'm not going to do as much volume, it's usually just 2-3 exercises per muscle and 2-3 sets per exercise. Here's what this morning looked like:
7 sets (including warm-ups) incline dumbell press
4 sets flat dumbell press
1 set dips and 3 sets cable crossovers

3 sets lateral raise
3 sets seated behind the neck press
2 sets alternating front raise

3 sets rope pushdowns
2 sets 1-arm lying tri-extension
2 sets 1-arm seated tri-extension

20 minutes stepmill

Fri., Nov. 16, 2012, Shoulders

Game-Face on this morning. I did abs, calves, and shoulders:
1 set bosu crunch; 1 set rope crunch; 1 set swiss ball crunch; 1 set leg raise;   5 sets calf press; 3 sets pin loaded calf press; 3 sets smith machine calf raise;   rotator cuff work; 5 sets seated dumbell press ( up to 80's for 11 reps- 2 more than last week); 3 sets machine rear laterals; 3 sets seated dumbell laterals; 2 sets Arnold press; 3 sets seated dumbell shrug;   20 minutes stepmill
It was an excellent workout; I sweat like crazy.

Thur., Nov. 15, 2012, Legs

I got a great leg workout. It was a typical leg workout for me: 1 working set for each exercise with several warm-ups or feel-sets.

squat: 45-20; 95-6; 135-6; 225-6; 315-5; 365-20
hack squat: 90-10; 180-10; 270-12
leg curl: 90-10; 105-7,7
reverse lunge: 135-9

Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012, Arms

Well, my back is very sore from yesterdays workout. And every thing in my upper body is sore: chest, back, delts, bi's and tri's...and today is arm day, ha ha. I got an excellent pump- no weight records, but pump. Here it is:

incline dumbell curls: 10's-?; 15's-?; 20's-10; 30's-10; 40's-8; 30's-10
super-set with rope pushdown: 50-30; 70-15; 80-?; 100-12; 120-12; 140-9; 120-?

hammer curls: 30's-12; 35's-10,?
lying tri-extension: 80-12; 100-8,10

1 arm machine curl: 65-15,?,?,7

1 arm seated tri-extension: 30-15,15,?,8

Tue., Nov. 13, 2012, Back

I really had a good workout this morning. I feel like it was the best back workout I've had recently. Everything was very controlled, and I really focussed on the lats. I stretched thoroughly and did some light ab work before starting on back. Then warmed everything very thoroughly with 3 high rep sets of pulldowns before doing anything heavy. I've just been very careful of my neck, not wanting to ding anything. So here's the workout:
pulldown: 70-12 close, 12 wide, 12 behind the neck; 110-12; 140-8
wide grip pull-up: 12,12,10,5+3  + hypers
under-grip-seated-cable row: 150-12; 170-9  + hypers
row: 225-8,8  + hypers
hammer grip(palms facing eachother) pulldown: 200-9,6+2
When I was done my lats felt tight, pumped, and huge!

Fri., Nov. 9, 2012, Calves/ Shoulders

Excellent pump this morning. I started with calves, and only did 1 exercise for them, I just did a bunch of sets:
calf press: 90-20; 180-15; 270-15; 360-15; 450-11,12,10,10,8
leg raise: 20,20+20 crunches
seated dumbell press: 20's-25; 35's-15; 50's-12; 60's-10; 70's-10; 80's-9
incline rear lateral: 40's-10,10,10
seated lateral: 20's-12,12; 25's-12; 30's-?; 35's-7
hammer strength press (facing pad): 90-20; 140-12; 190-6
shrug (slow squeeze): 135-15; 225-12; 245-12; 265-10

I was a good bit stronger than last week. The workout was pretty much the same, but I beat last weeks workout on just about every working set! ....growing some muscle.

Thur., 11/08/12 LEG DAY!

Typically days before leg day I am visualizing the workout; knowing what weight I will use and how many reps I am striving for. It takes a lot of mental preparation to do one of my leg workouts; the intensity is incredible. I have been running all over, doing stuff all week. And yesterday afternoon I reallized that today was leg day and I had not even thought about the workout at hand. So this morning I was not going to try some new weight or break any records. I was just going to super-set quads and then super-set hams: 4 exercises total, 2 quads and 2 hams. And it turned out awesome! Here's what it looked like:

squats:                             45-20;   95-10; 135-10; 225-10; 315-10; 335-10; 355-7
super-set with leg press: 90-10; 180-10; 270-10; 360-10; 450-10; 520-10; 590-10

seated leg curl:                      80-15; 110-12; 140-8
super-set with hyperextensions: 10;        10;     10

Mon., Nov. 5, 2012, Chest

Nothing but chest today. It was short, sweet, intense, to the point. All sets were close together, not a lot of rest, pump. Here it is:

incline dumbell press: 20's-25; 35's-20; 50's-12; 70's-10; 80's-10; 90's-10; 100's-10
flat dumbell press: 70's-10; 85's-10; 100's-8
dips: 10, 9, 8  

 

Fri. Oct. 02, 2012, Shoulders/ Calves

Today's workout fast-paced, and killer. I was sweating like a dog.
calf press: 90/ 180/ 270/ 360/450/ 540-12,10
machine calf raise: 225-15, 12,12
seated dumbell press: 20's-20; 35's-15; 50's-10; 60's-10; 70's-10; 80's-7
lateral: 20's-12; 30's-12; 40's-7 + 3 drop sets
machine rear lateral: 100-15; 120-15; 140-15; 160-?
hammer strength shoulder press (facing pad): 90-15; 140-9,8
shrugs: 135-15; 225-15,12,10
20 minutes stepmill

Thur., 11/ 01/ 12, LEGS

I got a killer leg pump today! It wasn't the strongest I've ever been, but it was very focussed and I really felt the muscle. It was a very basic leg workout for me: Just one failure set for each exercise; 2 exercises for quads, 2 for hams, and 1 for glutes:

Squats: 45/ 95/ 135/ 225/ 315/  365-15
hack squat: 90-10; 180-10; 270-11
standing leg curl: 60-12; 75-8; 90-6
lying leg curl: 105-10
alternating lunges: 135-10

Wed., Oct. 31, 2012, Arms

Arm day! It was a good workout. I didn't do a crazy amount of volume, I just focussed on feeling the muscle and getting a great pump. I did:
6 super-sets of curls and rope pushdowns;
2 super-sets of hammer curls and lying triceps extensions
2 super-sets of preacher curls and seated 1-arm extensions
2 super-sets of cable curls and 1 arm under-grip pushdowns

TUE., 10/30/12, BACK/ CALVES

Great workout today! I started with my back, and did calves last, for a change. Here's what it looked like:

row: 45-30; 95-12; 135-10; 185-8; 225-6; 275-8 + 2 drops
Free Motion pulldowns: 150-12; 170-9,8
seated row: 180-?, 8
deadlift (just feeling it): 135-10; 225-8; 315-6; 405-6
calf presses:90; 180; 270; 360; 450; 520; 590; 660-(I did not keep track of reps, most sets around 15)
seated calf raise: 90-12; 140-12; 190-10 + 2 drops

10/19/2012, Chest

Well, I'm done with the super-set, chest-back, split. Today I start a new split: Mon-chest; tue-back, calves; wed-arms; thur-legs; fri-shoulders, calves; off sat and sun. Today's workout was great:
Incline db press: 20's-15; 35's-10; 50's-10; 65's-10; 80's-10; 90's-10; 100's-10
flat db press: 55's-10; 70's-10; 85's-9
incline hammer press: 90-10; 180-10; 270-6
dips: 10; 8; 8 + 1-set machine fly: 180-?

This video is only the last feel set. I meant to get this one and the work set, but my battery died..sorry.

Fri., Oct. 26, 2012, Calves/ Shoulders

I got a good pump this morning. I started with abs, then did calves (really focussing on my week point) and finished with shoulders. I'm still being really cautious with my neck, so not too heavy or intense on the shoulders. I did make one a critical mistake this morning: I started with seated calf raises. The weight resting on my INCREDIBLY SORE QUADS was pretty painful (yes yesterday's leg workout was highly effective.) So I didn't go crazy on them, just did a few good squeezing sets and went on to the press.

bosu crunch: 20, 20, 20
seated calf raise: 25-20; 50-?; 90-15; 140-10; 190-10
calf press: 450-15, ?, 10
lateral raise: 5's-?; 15's-10; 25's-10; 35's-11
incline rear laterals: 30's-15; 40's-10,8
hammer strength shoulder press: 90-20; 140-15; 190-10
seated shrugs: 50's-20; 60's-15; 70's-10

10/ 25/ 12, Thursday/ Legday

I still did not want to put a bunch of weight on my neck(though it is feeling much better.) So today I went to the gym with the idea of constant tension in mind and also not resting long between sets, so as to not be able to use the same weights. If you have been following me long you know that my base squat strenght is so I can squat 365lb for 20 reps or more when properly warmed up. Today I stretched throroughly and then began my leg work with squats:

*The key notes for this workout are that I used a more narrow stance for squats than usual; I used the Constant Tension Technique (which is keeping the muscle tensed throughout the intire range of motion and never stopping or pausing); and also I only allowed about a minute between sets (which I usually do a bit more on leg day.)

Squat: 45-20 ; 95-12; 135-12; 225-12; 315-20 (I think)
leg press: 450-12; 630-10; 840-6
leg curl: 60-12; 90-12; 120-6
1-leg reverse lunges: 50's-6, 10
leg extension: 120-18
....and they were so tight it was stupid, and I struggled not to throw up.... Yeah Buddy!

Wed., Oct. 24, 2012, Rest

Today is a scheduled rest day. I decided to do some light weight work, to help recover the muscles. I just did some abs, light stretching and three exercises for chest and back with half the weight that I usally use.
To give you a diet update, this is what I ate yesterday:

meal #1-  5oz chicken breast; 1c oatmeal; apple
post workout:  50g whey protein
meal #2- 5oz chicken breast; sweet potato
meal #3-  5oz chicken breast; sweet potato
meal #4-  5oz chicken breast; 1c oatmeal
meal #5-  6oz chicken breast with bbq sauce; baked potato fries; broccoli with cheese

Tue., Oct. 23, 2012, Arms

I got a great pump this morning. I'm still not using crazy weights yet, but the intesity is cranked- the pump is awesome! I 've been taking 1-3g L-arginine before my workouts, and this has increased the pump I feel. I started with calves, always prioritizing my weak points. here's what the workout looked like:

seated calf raise: 25-?; 50-?; 90-15; 140-15; 190-10,10

calf press: 450-12, 15, 13

alternating dumbell curl: 10's-20; 15's-?; 20's-20; 30's-15; 50's-10
superset with rope pushdowns: 50-25; 70-15; 90-20; 110-15; 130-11

concentration curl: 35-9,5,5

lying 1 arm dumbell extension: 35-12,8,6

cable curl: 100-20,?,?
superset with under hand 1 arm pushdown: 60-??? awesome pump!

Mon., Oct. 22, 2012, Chest/ Back

Continuing on this split, today I supersetted chest and back. I'm still being really careful of my neck, so I didn't go crazy heavy. I warmed up thoroughly and stuck with rep range: 20, 15, and 10(or failure), for the most part. Here's the exercises I did:

6 total super-sets of incline dumbell press and rows

3 super-sets of  flat dumbell press and T-bar rows

3 super-sets of free-motion pulldowns(a machine our gym has with individual handles that are way out to the sides, it give a very wide pull that is unique) and dips

And finished with 1 super-set of machine flyes and straight-arm-rope-pulldowns

FRI., OCT. 19, 2012, SHOULDERS/ ARMS

I'm still going light, taking care not to put too much stress on the neck. But it is feeling pretty good. I've got good range of motion, it's just a little sensitive. So here's todays pump:

laterals: 5's-15; 10's-15; 15's-20; 20's-15; 25's-15; 30's-15

hammer strength shoulder press: 90-20; 140-15; 190-9

machine rear laterals: 100-20; 120-15,10

seated dumbell curl: 10's-15; 15's-15; 20's-12; 25's-12; 30's-12; 35's-9
superset with rope pushdown: 40-15; 60-15; 80-15; 100-12; 120-8,8

1 arm machine curl: 65-10,9,8

1arm machine triceps: 80-15, 12, 10

hammer curls: 30's-12,9,6
superset with 1 arm lying triceps extension: 30-12,8,6

Thur., Oct. 18, 2012, Legs

I got  great pump in my legs today. I did not do any squats... that's the 1st leg workout that I have not done any squats in about 3 years. Because of the ting in my neck (it is much better today), I did not want to put any weight on it. So I did just 5 exercises:

 calf presses: 90-30; 180-30; 270-25; 360-20; 450-12,9

leg raises: 20, 20, 20
superset with back extensions:20, 20, 20

seated leg curl: 65-15;95-15; 125-10; 140-8

leg press: 90-25; 180-25; 270-10; 360-10; 450-10; 540-10; 630-10; 720-10; 810-8 + a drop set with   5-10 reps with each taking 1 plate off each time. (there was no rest at all except adding and taking off weight...crazy pump!)         

Wed., Oct. 17, 2012, Update

I have been working on my car- laying on the concrete, holding my head and arms in weird positions- for about a week. It is finished! However, on Monday during my chest and back workout I had a sharp ding in my neck (lower left trap) and could not turn my head yesterday. Today I really feel it but it's not nearly as bad. I just hit core (abs and lower back) lightly and did 20 minutes interval training on the stepmill yesterday and today. I am letting it heal up before I put anything on it. I plan on hitting legs tomorrow as scheduled, though I may not if I feel it would hurt me.
So that's where I've been!
Here's what I've been eating:
(Yesterday: Tue., Oct. 16, 2012)
meal 1:  5oz chicken breast; 1c oatmeal; apple; 1tbs olive oil
meal 2:  5oz chick brst; 1c rice
meal 3:  5oz chick brst: 1c oatmeal
meal 4:  8oz ground turkey; 1c rice, salsa, spinach
meal 5:  50g whey protein powder (in water); apple; 1tbs olive oil

I got about 230g protein which is about 40g less than usual.

Mon., Oct. 15, 2012, Chest/ Back

I had a good chest and back workout this afternoon. I misjugded the weight on my first excercise, as you can see from this video. I weakened myself a little more than I thought with my first sets:
Incline hammer press: 20-20;50-12; 90-10; 180-20; 270-15; 360-3+2drops
superset with pulldowns: 60-20; 90-?; 110-20; 160-15; pullups: 10

flat dumbell press: 50's-20; 75's-15; 100's-8
superset V grip pulldown: 135-20; 150-15; 195-6

dips:     20; 15; 10; 10
s/s row: 135-20; 155-15; 225-6

pullover: 30-20; 40-15; 50-10

Fri., Oct. 12, 2012, Arms

   This is the easy day, the fun day, the day that's kind of like taking a day off. I take all working sets to failure; I work hard and intense. But training biceps and triceps just plain does not take it out of you like legs, back, chest or even shoulders. The weights are not nearly as much and you're not tearing up nearly as many muscle fibers.
   That being said: I got a killer pump! Icould not touch my thumb to my shoulder for about 15 minutes after the workout. I started this rep scheme (20 not so hard reps; 15 challenging reps; and a set shooting for about 10 to total failure) with the idea of recovery- pump the blood in the muscle and weaken it before my work set so that I cannot use as much weight, not putting as much strain on the joints- but it is an incredible pump!
   I did 3 exercises for biceps supersetted with 3 exercises for triceps. First was alternating dumbell curls and lying triceps extensions; then concentration curls and seated 1-arm extensions; and finishing with dumbell preacher curls and pushdowns.... short and sweet! Again all exercises were: 20, 15, 10(or failure.)

Thur., Oct. 11, 2012, LEGS

I went out of town for the day to take my son to an eye doctor yesterday. So I got to go to a Life Fitness. It was pretty cool. I played with lots of different toys:

I started with 6 sets of squats (including warm-ups.) Next I hit a 40 degree leg press for 3 sets: 20,15,10 and supersetted it with lying leg curls same reps. Then I supersetted machine squats with kneeling 1-leg curls and I stuck with this same rep pyramid light weight for 20reps then a challenging weight for 15 and finishing with a set aiming for about 10 going to failure (when you truely go for failure, 10 is just a thought, it may be 8, 9, 10, 11 whenever there is no more left.) I finished my thighs and started my calves by super setting cybex leg presses with "hack" calf raises, but only 2 sets of presses and I don't no how many reps (between 10 and 15) calves were 20,15,10. I then went to seated calf raises: 20, 15, 10 and finished with standing calf raises: 20,10,10 (15 did not happen!)

AND THE PART THAT EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW ABOUT: immediately after the workout I had 55g whey protein, 5g BCAA's, and 1 scoop CellMass. About 1 hour later I had 4oz chicken breast, 2 slices of pizza, a small thing of fries, and 1/2 a vanilla milkshake from chick fillet...oh yeah, and an apple.

...my legs are sore today.

Wed., Oct. 10, 2012, Chest and Back

Killer pump this morning! I did the same as last week with reps: 20, 15, 10(or fail.) And it was intense! I didn't finish all that I intended, because I was nausiated and I felt it would be counter productive to go on (looking at my white face in the mirror)...ha ha! It was awesome. So this is what I managed to achieve:

Incline dumbell press: 20's-25; 35's-12; 45's-8; 60's-20; 85's-15; 100's-12
superset row:                 45-20;   95-10;  115-8; 135-20;  185-15; 245-8

flat dumbell press:  50's-20; 75's-15; 100's-8
superset T-bar row:   70-20;   90-15; 135-7

Wide pull-ups: 10;   8; 8
superset dips:   10; 10; 10+ pull-overs: 50-8

Lateral raises: 20's-20; 25's-15; 35's-8

incline rear laterals: 20's-20; 30's-6+3    I was done!

Mon., Oct. 8, 2012, REST

Well this is day number 4 of a 5 day weekend. I've eaten lots of food most of it clean, though I had a burger and fries yesterday and a couple random things over the course of the last few days. I'm weighing about 192lb with a 32 inch waist. I don't like my waist to get over 32" in the off season (its about 29" contest weight), I find it's just too much work to get it off if it's any bigger. On Friday I did 20 minutes on the stepmill (did some interval training) and today I did 20 minutes on the treadmill- so I'm keeping the blood flowing working on recovery.
This is Week # 16 of a 57 week off-season... only 41 weeks to go and I will begin my prep for the 2013 World Championships. That's the game plan...God willing.

Thur., Oct. 5, 2012, Legs

"Recovery week."...haha. I did my rep scheme (20,15,10) on everything but lunges. It was an awesome workout. The pump was insane, my legs felt like swollen rocks. Everybody should try this wokout, adjusting the weight accordingly, obviously. The volume is not too extreme; the intensity is not too extreme; the pump is awesome! Here it is:

squats: 45-20; 95-6; 135-6;  225-20; 315-15; 405-8

leg curl:                   75-20;   90-15; 120-8
superset leg press: 360-20; 540-15; 720-10

reverse lunges: 95lb 1 set no idea how many reps

.....yes they are sore today.

Wed., Oct. 4, 2012, Arms/ Calves

I got a crazy pump from this arm workout! I followed the same rep scheme: 20, 15, 10 (or fail.)
I also got a killer calf workout in with only 8 sets total the form was very strict and slow and they are sore today. here are a few clips from the workout:

Tue., Oct. 10, 2012, Chest/Back/Delts

This week is really focussed on recovery. I'm training Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and taking Fri- Tue off. My rep scheme is 20, 15, 10 (or fail) Here's today's wokout:

incline dumbell press: 20's-30; 35's-12; 60's-20; 80's-15; 100's-9
superset bentover row: 45-25;  95-12;  135-20;  185-15;   245-7

flat dumbell press: 50's-20; 75's-15; 100's-6
superset T-bar row: 70-20;  90-15;   135-8

pull-up: 10; 10; 10
superset dips: 10; 10; 12

lateral raise: 20's-?; 35's-10,10

rear laterals: 20's-20; 30's-15; 40's-10

Fri., Sep. 28, 2012, Shoulders

Today was the last time I do  this particular crazy shoulder pump for 4-6 weeks. It was killer just like the last 3 times I did it. My delts were so tight it felt like I coouldn't put my arms all the was down.
Here's the workout:

laterals: 20's-20 + 15's-15 + 10's-10 I got through this 4 1/2 times with 1 minute between sets.
seated dumbell press: 50's-10; 65's-10; 75's-6
incline rear laterals: 30's-10; 40's-10; 50's-9
seated dumbell shrugs: 50's-15; 75's-15; 100's-?

Then I added in some extra calf work:
smith machine calf raise: 90-15; 180-12; 270-10;360-10; 450-8

THUR., SEP. 27,2012, LEGS

Trying to be smart, and taking the advice of those older and wiser than me, I decided not to try to set record this week. So I changed my workout  a little bit. I hit failure on everything, but wore myself out before I got to big weight so that I wouldn't be able to do as much. Here is what I did:

leg extension: 45-30; 90-20; (1-leg) 75-12,10; 135-12; 180-12; 225-10
superset leg curl: 30-20; 45-15; 60-12; 75-12; 90-12; 105-9,6

squat: 135-12; 225-12; 315-12; 405-5

smith machine lunges: 90-8, 8, 10
superset hyperextension: 12, 12, 12
...and that was it. They were pumped and I was exausted.

Wed., Sep. 26, 2012, Calves

I had a very short workout today- just calves. I saved calves for today because I thought I would get a better workout if I did them by themselves. I did just 2 exercises: 1-calf presses and regular calf presses... and I have no idea how many sets I did- a bunch. They are pumped. I was visualizing the calves of Nasser El Sonbaty (look him up.)

I haven't done a diet update in a while. This is what I ate yesterday:

meal 1-  1 1/2vup egg white; 1cup oatmeal; 1tbs olive oil
meal 2- chicken breast
immediately post workout- 50g whey protein, bcaa's, glutamine, creatine
meal 3- chicken breast; 3 smal sweet potatoes
meal 4- chicken breast; small sweet potato; apple
meal 5- protein shake
meal 6-  6 eggs(yes with the yolk); sausage; about 1cup grits, cheese

It's not exactly what I eat every day but it is a good representation.

Tue., Sep. 25, 2012, Arms

It's the fun day. The day everybody loves. It doesn't take nearly as much out of you as legs or back or even chest....So how do I make it as uncomfortable as possible....
To start with I only had 55g of carb before my workout (I normally like to get at least 100g) and the workout was 5 1/2 hours after I woke up. Half hour after waking I ate my 1 1/2cup egg white and 1cup oatmeal with some fishoil and olive oil. 3 hours after that I had a chicken breast with no carbs (I was in a little time crunch.) So my pre-workout drink is 16oz water and visualizing Phil Heath's arms.

Then:
incline dumbell curls: 10's/ 15's/ 25's/ 35's/ 45's-8
superset w/ rope pushdowns: 50/ 70/ 100/ 130/ 160-7

concentration curl: 35-8; 45-6; 55-8
superset lying triceps extension: 70-10; 90-8; 110-8

cable curls: 120-12, 8; 100-?
superset reverse pushdown: 120-12, 10; 100-?

seated hammer curl: 30's- 12, ?
superset seated 1 arm ex.: 30-15,8

AND THEY WERE PUMPED!

MONDAY, SEP. 24, 2012, CHEST/ BACK

So here's the workout for today, set for set. I got an excellent pump. I was not quite as out of breath as last week, but it was still pretty intense.

incline hammer strength press: 20-20; 50-12;   90-12; 180-10; 270-10; 360-6
     superset w/ bent over rows: 45-20; 95-12; 135-12; 185-10; 225-10; 275-6

incline dumbell press:             70's-12; 85's-10; 100's-9
superset w/ 1arm dumbell rows:70-12; 85-10; 100-10

machine fly:                                         150-12; 170-9
superset w/ straight arm rope pulldowns: 130-?, 6

pullover: 50-15, 9

Fri., Sep. 21, 2012, Shoulders

I really like training my shoulders by themselves, it allows me to focus on them and really put the work in without over-doing it. This was my 3rd time that I've done the same basic workout, and it is killer. The pump is insane. It literal feels like I cannot lift my arms over my head they are so tight. Here is what this weeks' rendition looked like:
light cuff work
Laterals: 10's-10; 15's-8; 20's-20/15's-15/10's-10 I did this double drop 4 times and finished with a single drop of 20's rest pausing to 20 and 15's rest pausing to 15. They Were PUMPED!
seated dumbell press: 50's-10; 65's-10; 75's-6
incline rear laterals: 20's-15; 35's-10; 50's-8
shrugs: 135-12; 225-12; 315-9

Thur., Sep. 20, 2012, Legs

Killer Pump Today! My legs were (and still are) swollen! It was basicly the same workout I've been doing with a couple modifications:

squats: 45-20; 95-6; 135-6; 225-6; 315-4; 385-15

leg press: 450-10; 630-10; 860-10
   superset with leg curls: 90-10; 105-10; 120-8

seated leg curl: 110-12, 8, 9

Tue., Sep. 18, 2012, Arms/ Calves

I'm keeping calves on Tuesday because it seems like the best time to get them. The arm super sets were awesome. My arms were crazy pumped! Here's the wokout:

Calf press: 90-15; 180-15; 270-15; 360-15; 450-15; 540-15; 680-10,10
seated calf: 90-12; 140-12; 190-8+ 2 drop sets
smith calf raise: 180-12; 270-10,12
abb circuit: roman chair, bosu, reverse crunch, hypers, crunch

incline curl: 10's-15; 20's-12; 30's-10; 40's-10; 30's-8
(superset) rope pushdown: 50-30; 80-12; 110-10; 140-8; reverse grip straight bar-150-10?

concentration curl: 40-8, 8, 7
(superset) lying tri extension: 90-8,8,8

seated hammer curl: 30's-10,8,8
(superset) seated 1 arm extension: 30-15, 12,10.....COULD'NT TOUCH MY SHOULDER PUMP!

Monday, Sep. 17, 2012, Chest/ Back

I'm switching my split around a little to give the body a change. Now Monday is chest and back; Tuesday is biceps and triceps; Wednesday is rest; Thursday is legs; Friday is shoulders; and Saturday and Sunday are off. I will do this for a while and then switch it up again. It is a major change! Super sets (going back and forth with little to no rest) are hard- my forearms are on fire and my heart rate is through the roof! Here's what the workout looks like:

incline dumbell press: 15's-20; 30's-15; 50's-10; 65's-8; 80's-8; 90's-8; 100's-10
{super set dumbell row:             "                                                            100's-7

flat dumbell press:       85's-12; 100's-8; 85's-9
{superset V-pulldown: 180-12; 195-8; 180-8  

incline hammer strength: 180-10; 230-8,8
{superset wide pulldown: 150-10; 170-8,7

dips:                             10, 10, 10
{superset seated rows: 160-10, 10, 8
 

Sat., Sep. 15, 2012, Delts/ Tris

This was my second of at least 4 shoulder workouts starting with 5 drop sets of lateral raises. I'm shooting for 5 sets: 20lb-20/ 15lb-15/ 10lb-10. Last week I got 3 complete and did the last 2 with fewer reps. This morning I got 4 completed by the skin on my teeth and 1 set with fewer. My shoulders get so tight after this first exercise that it is hard to bring the dumbells back into position for presses- it's awesome! The video is from last Friday (09/07.)

9/13/12, Thursday/LegDay/ 25 Birthday

So ever since last thursday, when I had this great revelation that my 25th birthday just happened to fall on leg day, I have been planning this workout- contemplating the weight; visualising Tom Platz' legs and his intensity; praying for strength to do what I had never done: squat 350lb for 25 reps (one rep for each year.)
So here is my happy 25th birthday workout:
10minutes stationary bike; light leg curls; light leg extensions; stretch thoroughly
SQUAT: 45-20; 95-6; 135-6; 225-4; 275-4;   350lb- 25reps
leg press: 450-10; 630-10; 860-10
leg curl: 60-12; 75-10; 90-8; 105-8
20 minutes treadmill; stretch thoroughly....EAT FOOD!

Catch up!

No, I have not missed workouts or got sick or given up or anything... I left my cumputer at my inlaws..ha ha. I've been killing it in the gym! Friday's delt workout was nuts! I'll write about that when I get the video up. Yesterday was chest and biceps. It went great. I started doing incline dumbell curls again and they got PUMPED! My volume is still low and intensity is off the charts. I am feeling good and getting stronger.
I have a pretty psycho goal for this Thursday (leg day).....stay tuned.

THURSDAY-LEGDAY 9/06/12

One more workout, one more rep! I had an awesome leg workout! My good friend and training partner, Buddy was there to help me push through the big set- squat 365 for 20 reps! There's always a little dred of this one set, but I look foward to it at the same time- a war in my head.
So here it is:
squat: 45-20; 95-6; 135-6; 225-6; 315-4;   365-20
leg press: 360-10; 540-10; 720-10
seated leg curl: 95-15; 140-8+ hypers
lying leg curl: 135-4+90-3+hypers

Food Update

I am not eating the exact same thing every day, but I am getting a close number on macronutrients: about 280g protein, 300-400g carb and 100g fat. This is what I ate yesterday:
meal 1: 50g whey protein; 1cup oatmeal
meal 2: 1 1/2 cup egg white; 150g sweet potato; apple
meal 3: 4oz turkey burger
(train) post workout: 50g whey protein, bcaa's
meal 4: 4oz chicken breast; 1/2cup black beans; salsa; a little cheese; about 20 multi grain tortilla chips
meal 5: 6 eggs; salsa; 2 english muffins
meal 6: 6 turkey meat balls; 2 red potatoes
(about 270g protien, 310g carb, and 125g fat)

Tue., Sep. 4, 2012, Back/ Calves

Sometimes calf training is a little discouraging to me, because it seems like no matter how hard I train them they do not want to respond- high rep, low rep, high intensity, low intensity, more sets, fewer sets.... Oh well, right?! Just keep pushing!
Today's workout looked like this:
calf press: start with 90lb and did sets of 15 til I couldn't get 15 (680lb) + 1set
seated calf: 90-12; 140-10; 190-8; 90-20
smith machine calf raise: 180-15; 270-10, 15
Rows: 4 feel sets then 275 for 8 or 9- total failure
close-underhand pulldowns: 2 feel sets; 225-10- failure
seated row: 200-10(?-failure)
wide-hammer-grip pulldown: 200-?-failure + 1 set behind the neck with 150

Mon. Sep. 3, 2012, Chest/ Bis

I had a great workout this morning. I have lowered my volume a little to focus on getting good intensity and being able to recover fully. I only did 4 working sets for chest and 4 for biceps- and they were good! Here it is:
incline hammer strength press: 20-20; 50-12; 90-10; 180-6; 270-6; 360-9 + fail + 3 drops
incline dumbell press: 50's-6; 75's-6; 100's-11
flat dumbell press: 50's-6; 75's-6; 100's-10
dips: 8; 25lb-6; 45lb- ?
incline dumbell curl: 15's-12; 25's-10; 35's-8+ rest-pause+ rest-pause
concentration curl: 40-6; 60-5+3

cable curl: 90-15; 120-12; 150-7

Fri Aug 31 2012 Shoulders and Tris

I got a great shoulder and triceps workout, a killer pump. I am getting stronger on all my movements. I've been doing very low volume for my triceps- only a few working sets- and they are stronger. I did as many reps on the french press at the end of this workout as I had been getting at the beginning, with the same weight! I think I may decrease the volume on all my muscle groups!

Thur., Aug. 30, 2012, LEG DAY!

I had an awesome leg workout this morning! My volume was low and my intensity HIGH! This is my complete leg workout:
leg extension: 30lb 40 reps; standing 1-leg curl: 30lb 15 reps; stretch thoroughly;
Squat: 45-20; 95-6; 135-6; 225-6; 315-4;   365lb 19reps
Leg Press: 360-10; 540-10; 720-10
Standing 1-Leg Curl: 45-12; 60-12; 105-6, 90-6, 75-6;

stretch thoroughly; 20 treadmill

Wed., Aug. 29, 2012, Rest

I am off today. I have a whole chicken, a whey protein shake, 1 cup oatmeal, 2 cups white rice, a sweet potatoe, and an orange in my cooler that will be gone by tonight. Eat, Grow.

Tue., Aug. 28, 2012, Back

 I got an excellent back workout in this morning. I didn't go really heavy on anything, I just felt the muscle and pushed it hard, squeezing every rep, and hit it from every side:

Close-underhand-pulldowns: 60lb-?; 80-?; 110-?; 140-10; 170-10; 200-8; 220-6; 240-6
T-bar rows: 45-12; 90-12; 135-13
Wide pulldowns: 120-12; 135-?; 150-10+ 1 set of hyper extensions
Rows:135-8+ 1 set of hypers; 225-8,8,6
...only 6 working sets- not too much volume- but a great pump.

Best meal of the week:

3oz chicken breast; 5 oz lean beef; 2 eggs; 4 small red potatoes-- about 70g protein, 70g carb, and 50g fat (obviously I would only eat this meal once a day, as it has half of my daily fat.)

Monday, August 27, 2012, Calves, Chest, and Bi's

I got a great workout this morning. After 3 days off I was feeling good. Though I must say that I felt a little nausiated at the beginning of the workout, because I ate a bunch of junk food yesterday. But by the end of the workout I was good.

I did bosu ball crunches for abs; calf presses and seated raises for calves; incline Hammer Strength presses, flat dumbell press, incline dumbell press, and dips for chest; and dumbell curls, concentration curls, and 1 drop set of hammer curls for biceps. I finished up with 20 minutes on the treadmill.

Fri., Aug. 24, 2012, Rest

Still not wanting to any stress on my neck, (though it is feeling good today) I am not training until Monday because all upper body moves stress the trapezius. So I have 3 rest days to eat good food and recover. I should be fully recuperated and ready to roll by then.

Thur., Aug. 23, 2012, Light Legs

I've had a tweek in my neck the past couple days, so I didn't do anything that puts stress on the neck- no squats! This is all I did:
leg raises super set with hypers extensions 3 sets of 20
leg press: 180-40; 360-10; 540-10; 720-10; 900-10
leg extension: 90-30, 30, 27, 13

  super set with leg curls: 60-20; 75-20; 90-10,8 no rest at all back and forth

Tue., Aug. 21, 2012, Back/ Calves

I was stiff as a board this morning. It was a great wokout yesterday, but it left me very sore in the chest, shoulders and biceps. That made me not really to excited about training back today. But it went well. I did 5 sets of seated calf raises, 4 sets of calf presses, and 4 sets of standing smith machine raises for calves- a good pump. The basics for back: Bent over rows, weighted pull-ups, old style

V-grip rows, T-bars, and behind the neck pulldowns. Good pump, again my volume for back is a little lower because it is one of my strong points. I'm really focussing on thickening up the upper back, so rows are overhand grip and I go wide on T-bars. I got 30 minutes on the stepmill afterward, and that's it.

Mon., Aug. 20, 2012, Chest/ Bis

I had a great workout this morning. I did more volume for chest, because this is an area I want to thicken up a bit. I'm a little stronger than last week- climbing the ladder!
So here it is:
2 sets of bosu ball crunches and 1 set hanging leg raises for abs.
(chest) Incline hammer strength press: 20-20; 50-10; 90-10; 180-6; 270-6; 360-9; 270-8
incline dumbell press: 70's-8; 80's-6; 90's-6; 100's-8+2
crossovers: 90-8, 6
dips: 10, 10, 11
flat dumbell press: 50's-12; 60's-10; 70's-8; 80's-8, 7, 6; 60's-10
(biceps) curls: 45-8; 65-8; 85-8; 105-7, 6
seated hammer curl: 35's- 10, 9, 11

concentration curls: 30-6; 40-6; 50-6; 40-6; 30-8

Fri., Aug. 17, 2012, Abs/ Calves/ Shoulders/ Tris

Abs, calves, shoulders, and triceps- that's a big workout! It was a total (warm ups included) of 44 sets (3 for abs, 8 for calves, 26 for shoulders, 8for triceps):
2 sets of crunches on a bosu ball and 1 set on a swiss ball
8 sets of smith machine calf raises
6sets of seated dumbell presses
4 sets of seated laterals
4 sets of rear laterals
4 sets of hammer strength presses
3 super sets of alternate dumbell front raise and laterals
5 sets of barbell shrugs
5 sets of rope pushdowns
2 sets of machine tri extension
1 super set of lying tri extension and close bench press

It was supposed to be just shoulders and tris, but I added some abs and extra calf work.... One step closer to the goal...

Thur., 8/ 17/ 12, 3 SET LEG DAY

I had a great leg workout yeterday. It was another of my 3 set leg workouts- 2 working sets for quads and 1 working set for hams. The theory is to warm up thoroughly and totally dedicate all my energy and focus into that 1 set, taking it to failure and beyond. It stimulates the muscles to grow, but the low volume prevents overtraining ("stimulate, don't annihalate" -Lee haney.) I did 4 feel sets for squats, 2 feelers for leg press and 2 warmups for leg curls. At the end of the workout I threw in 2 low intensity sets of hyper extensions.

Mon., Aug. 13, 2012, Chest/ Bis

I got a killer pump this morning! The thumb wouldn't touch the shoulder... Pumped! I am again combining theories: low volume and high volume. How do I do that? you ask...I'm not entirely sure, but it basicly fleshed out as doing several "feel sets" and just 1 or 2 total failure sets. Here is what todays workout was:
incline hammer strength: 20-20; 50-12; 70-10; 180-6; 270-6; 360-7; 270-8
incline db press: 70's-8; 80's-8; 90's-8
machine fly: 140-10; 160-10; 180-7
dips: 10, 8,8
alternate db curl: 20's-6; 30's-6; 40's-6; 50's-6; 60's-5
concentration curl: 50's-8,6,5 (back and forth with no rest)
cable curl: 120-12, 11, 9

FRI, AUG 10, 2012, SHOULDERS/ TRIS

Another good workout today. I am getting stronger. And my shoulder (which I hurt pretty bad moving a dresser a year and a half ago) is doing very well, better than the other, ha ha.
I'm really focussed on bringing my delts up this offseason, so my volume is higher than I'm doing for other muscles. Here's todays workout:
seated dumbell press: 20's-15; 35's-10; 50's-8; 65's-8; 80's-8; 70's-8
seated laterals: 20's-10; 30's-10; 40's-6; 30's-12
incline rear laterals: 30's-10; 40's-10; 50's-8,8
hammer strength press(facing the pad): 90-8; 140-8; 190-5,6
alternate dumbell front raise: 20's-8; 30's-8; 40's- 8; 50's-6
seated dumbell shrug: 75's-10; 100's-10, 10,10
skull crushers: 50-15; 70-8; 90-8; 110-9, 6, 6

seated triceps extension: 100-20

Tue., Aug. 8, 2012, Abs/ Calves/ Back

2 sets bosu crunch
1 set hanging leg raise
6sets calf presses
3sets seated calf
3 sets wide pullups
1 drop set seated row
1 set close pulldown
1 set rows
3 sets behind the neck pulldown
 ...that's todays workout. A little different. It was a great pump, and not too much volume. I'm trying not to over do the volume. Intensity is the key here. Few sets focussed! I really just went by feel. I knew I would do wide pull ups and rows, everything else was just what I felt like.

SUN, AUG 5, 2012, LEGS

Today I went to the gym with the mind set that I was going to do 3 sets (working sets that is)- 1 set of squats, 1 set of leg presses and 1 set of leg curls all to total muscular failure.
I warmed my legs a little with 5 minutes walking on the treadmill, then a very light set of leg extensions and leg curls with thorough stretching. Then for squats I did 3 warm up sets with 95lb, 135, and 225. Then one very focussed intense set with 315lb for 25 reps and a fail. Next for leg presses I did 1 feel set with 540lb and one very focussed failure set of 860lb for 9 reps. And I finished up with leg curls one feel set with 75lb and one failure set with 120lb for 12reps plus 2 rest pause sets of 2 reps.

It was a killer pump! My heart rate was through the roof. After the squats I could not see straight for about 5 minutes.

SAT., AUG. 4, 2012, Rest!?

The last couple days have been a little extra off time. My wife and I just had our second son on thursday. So I have not trained at all since Tuesday, because Wednesday was a scheduled rest day. My wife's water broke at 3:55am on Thursday. My immediate response was, "Do I have time to cook some chicken?"...Ha Haa!...Just barely. We left at 5am, with cooling chicken and a cooler full of sweet potatoes, oatmeal and apples; and had the baby at the hospital (a one hour drive from my house) at 6:43am... a little close.
We had 2 nights in the hospital. I got the fold out chair as I would not want to leave my wife by herself at the hospital. I still got more sleep than she did. She is a champ though. They just let us come home late this morning, so sleep and adjusting a nursing schedule is what's up today. Either tomorrow or Moday I will pick up training. I kept my calories up and ate plenty of good food, though I also ate some junk in between.

TUE, JULY 31, 2012, Back/ Calves/ Abs

   In light of my great lat spazzum yesterday, my back workout was considerably lighter, less intense and shorter than last weeks.
   I started off with abs to warm everything up good- just 3 sets of bosu ball crunches.
   Then, prioritizing my weakness, I hit my calves hard with 9 sets of calf presses (on the leg press.) Then I did seated calf raises just 4 sets of 15 with 90 pounds (my quads are still to sore to put a bunch of weight on them.)
   Finally I came to back. Not wanting to "re-spazz", I took it slow, just focussing on stretching and squeezing the muscle:
6 sets of behind the neck pulldowns
3 sets of T-bar rows
3 sets of barbell rows
3 sets of double D pulldowns
No extreme weights, all sets of 8-12.