Thursday, January 25, 2007

Perfect 10: Week 1 Workout 2

All notation: weights x reps x sets

DB Shoulder Presses: 40x10x3
DB Rows (Elbows Out): 40x10x3
GHR (Purple Band): BWTx10x3
Preacher Curls: 45x10x3

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

SOB Training: Week 1 Workout 2

I patterned the exercises after a setup in The New Rules of Lifting, since I'm doing a few exercises in Perfect 10 that were supposed to be done this workout. Still sore from Monday and stressed from today's workday, I was still raring to go.

All notation: weights x reps x sets (180 seconds rest between sets)

Barbell Squats: 115x30x2. Did I do 30 straight? Hell no. On set 1, I got to 20, took 5 seconds rest, got 5, then another 5 seconds, then got the last 5. I have never done a 30 rep set of squats: After 20, I was so out of breath it felt like the bar wouldn't let me breathe any more. I puked after both sets, I think I've discovered a new mortal enemy!!!

Seated Cable Rows: 60x30x2.

Close Grip Pushups: BWTx30x2

Supine Hip Extension: BWTx30x2

Lateral Step-ups: BWTx30x2. A lot easier than 30 rep squats, at least on my stomach. My ass and hips were hammered.

Twisting Situps: BWTx30x2

Was gonna do HIIT, but had my son's basketball game to go to. Though, I would have needed major motivation for that.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Perfect 10: Week 1 Workout 1

All notation: weights x reps x sets

DB Shoulder Presses: 55x3x6
DB Rows (Elbows Out): 55x3x6
GHR: (BWT+10)x3x6
Preacher Curls: 65x3x6

Monday, January 22, 2007

SOB Training: Week 1 Workout 1

Yesterday, I abandoned TBT and decided instead on Chad Waterbury's SOB Training program. The reasons for this? I had already done this program and just could not get motivated to do this again. Also, I was plateaued at 233 lbs and felt I need a "buster". Lastly, after emails from Kris and John McDonald, I realized that I also had a jones for big weight and lots of it. As much as I have to train for PRTs, I have weightlifting goals (like a 300 bench) that I can't keep abandoning.

This program combines two elements and is trained every other day for 32 days. 2 out of every 4 lifting days are heavy with high volume (10x3, 12x2, 6x5 at 5-8RM) and the other two are low weight and high rep (4x15, 3x20, 2x30, 1x50 at 18-50RM). Since there is no room for much else and I've been putting in a lot of GHR work, I'm restarting Perfect 10 and am adding GHRs as a third movement, since I can do those a lot without feeling drained.

Here goes.

Lunchtime:
HIIT Aerobics (Elliptical: Level 18 for work sets a,d Level 9 for active rest): 4 rounds

Evening:

Flat Bench Press: 105x3, 145x3, 175x3x10. Reps weren't very explosive but good and steady. Felt good even mentally to have something heavy in my hands, to strain.

Chinups (Green Band): 10 sets of 3

14" SSB Box Squat: Tested first to 195x3 and 225x3 then a 2RM at 255. After converting that to a 262 1RM (Brzycki's Formula), did 225x3x8 to get my 10 sets at 85% 1RM.

Snatch Grip Deadlifts: warmed up from the SSB squats, I loaded up the bar to 245 lbs and pulled a 2 RM with it. Converted that to a 252 1RM, then pulled 215x3x9.

I'm seriously motivated after this.

Week 2 of Perfect 10

07JAN14: Day 1 (70 seconds rest between sets)(weight x reps x sets):

DB Rows (Elbows Out): 50x3x7
DB Shoulder Presses: 50x3x7. Like torture at the end. Come to think of it, heavy reps were always this way in the past so this may be exactly what I needed.

07JAN15: Day 2 (180 seconds rest between sets)

DB Rows (Elbows Out): 25x25x2
DB Shoulder Presses: 25x25x2. I barely made the first set, it burned. The second set: Made 16 reps, rested 5 seconds, did 5 reps, rested 5 seconds, did, 4 reps.

07JAN16: Day 3 (120 seconds rest between sets)

Was at the gym at Bangor because my son wanted to get some basketball practice in. My friend Desi was there so with the Virtual Meet on the horizon, I decided to test my bench using a one second pause, a spotter, and him watching my body.

Flat Bench Press: Worked up to a 175 for 5 reps, rested for 5 minutes.
1st attempt: 210. Got it slow but steady and clean. 5 minutes rest.
2nd attempt: 225. Desi called me on it. Ass came off the bench slightly and couldn't lock it at the top. Rested 5 minutes.
3rd attempt: 225. Ass came off again and I was too gassed to get it past the halfway point. I have my work cut out for me. Maybe, TBT might not be the thing to do. Need to handle the heavy stuff more often.

T-Bar Row: Worked up to a 140 triple.

Then I did the Perfect 10 thing:
DB Rows (Elbows Out): 35x10x4
DB Shoulder Presses: 35x10x4. It could be the program, or having gotten my CNS amped. But this was easier than last week. Maybe, I could have done 40x10x4!!!


07JAN18: Day 4 (90 seconds rest between sets)

DB Rows (Elbows Out): 45x5x6
DB Shoulder Presses: 45x5x6. This day, too, felt easier. I'm really digging the high frequency stuff for hypertrophy.

Sunday, January 14, 2007

Perfect 10: Week 1 Workout 3

HIIT Aerobics (Elliptical): 3 hard rounds

DB Shoulder Presses: 45x5x5
DB Rows (Elbows Out): 45x5x5

Week 2 of both starts tomorrow: I'm practically recovered and am raring to go. I'm also back at 232.5 lbs from 3 weeks ago. My goal at the end of this and TBT in 8 weeks is mid 220s bodyweight, 240 bench, 285 snatch grip DL, 260 front squat.

Friday, January 12, 2007

TBT: Week 1 Workout 3

HIIT Aerobics (Elliptical): 3 hard rounds

Close Grip Pushups: BWTx15x2

GHR (Green Bands): 2 sets of 15

Reverse Curls: 35x15x2

Snatch Grip DL: 125x15x2. As if the high reps weren't hard enough, the 35s made for an even longer pull.

14" Front Box Squat: 90x15x2.

My wife, son, his best friend and I went to the gym on Bangor base. While they played basketball, I supervised my wife's workout and jumped in a few times on some stuff.

15 minutes steady state aerobics.

Hoist Assisted Neutral Grip Chinup (BWT 237.4): 77.4x15, 87.4x11, 97.4x10, 107.4x8, 77.4x15.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Last Two Days

All Notation: Weights x reps x sets

TBT: Week 1 Workout 2 (07JAN10)

HIIT Aerobics (Elliptical): 3 rounds hard

Dips (Test RMs): 15 reps with a green band, 8 with a purple band, 3 with a black band.
Dips (Work sets): 2 sets of 8 with a purple band

14" Front Box Squat: 85x8, 115x8, 135x8. Not easy.

Snatch Grip DL: 135x8, 155x8, 175x8x3. The last set had to be paused at the 5th rep due to my grip giving out. I love what these do for my back and grip, and I suppose my regular deadlift will be like cake afterwards. But this really is one looooong-ass pull!!!

GHR (Test RMs): 15 reps with a green band, 9 with a purple band, 6 with a black band.
GHR (Work sets): 2 sets of 8 with a purple band

Chinups (Green Band): 5x5. We did not get to the gym as we would have wanted because of snow and icy roads so instead of 3 sets of 8 on the Hoist, I got my 24+ reps this way.

Barbell Curls: 65x8x3.

For every workout Chins, GHR, 14" Front Box Squat, and Snatch Grip DL will stay the same except for the rep schemes. My GHR and biceps got better last time I did this so I'm hoping for the same this way. Should get me pretty lean, too, and conditioned. We'll see the results in 8 weeks.

Perfect 10: Week 1 Workout 2 (07JAN11)

DB Shoulder Presses: 35x10x3
DB Rows (Elbows Out): 35x10x3

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

Perfect 10: Week 1 Workout 1

All Notation: Weights x reps x sets

DB Shoulder Presses: 50x3x6.
DB Rows (Elbows Out): 50x3x6
Metabolic Overdrive (Elliptical): 3 rounds hard.

For the next 9 weeks (week 8 off), these are the two weaknesses I'm addressing via 4-10 different workouts a week (The last weeks of P10 have AM and PM workouts). The rep schemes from 6x3 to as much as 1x50. We'll see if 1) I can stand it and 2)it brings benefit.

Monday, January 08, 2007

TBT Week 1, Workout 1 (Test Day)

Today was to be 3 sets of 5 but, because of the almost 3 weeks off, I decided to test myself to get an idea for the weeks to come. I have got to keep the layoffs to a minimum, it took a bit of motivation just to get started. Because it was a heavy test day, I did no aerobics today. For this cycle, one for Kris' Virtual Meet but also for PRT measurement, there will be no unilateral work and all three days will have chinups and GHR. I'm also thinking of using my off days to bring up two key lifts: DB Shoulder Presses and DB Rows (I'll use Perfect 10 for that).

Close Grip Bench Press: 105x5, 125x5, 145x5, 165x5, 175x4, 195x1. Not bad, in line with what it should be for a 225 bench. If there's anything I learned from the last cycle, I won't lose much if I don't bench heavy but I had better be doing the work with other things. Like dumbbells.

Snatch Grip Deadlifts: 135x5, 160x5, 185x5, 210x4, 235x1. Whatever will make my pull harder. That, and it's my weakest deadlift variation.

14" Front Box Squat: 95x5, 115x5, 135x5, 155x4, 175x2.

Chinups: 1 Rep with purple bands, 2 sets of 5 with green bands. Because of the setup, setup for much higher reps is going to be out of the question. Will have to use an assist machine, when I can.

These three were done in between sets of everything else:
GHR: 3 sets of 5 with bodyweight.
Single Leg Calf Raises: 3 sets of 6 each leg.
Hammer Curls: 15x5, 20x5, 25x5, 30x5, 35x5, 40x2.