[quote]darwin420 wrote:
What’s the opinion on doing chin-ups instead of pull-ups for this routine?[/quote]
New poster to your thread here…
This article
http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1954579
argues that chins are the better option because you can do more at once increasing the time under load. Personally, I’m doing chins until I can get 3x10 then I switching to wide grip pull ups.
[quote]darwin420 wrote:
What’s the opinion on doing chin-ups instead of pull-ups for this routine?[/quote]
Between the two, chins are by far easier to perform. For me at least. They, chins, are a good substitute to curls. Pull-ups are fantastic for back development. The first time around I did chins. This time I’m doing pull-ups. Whatever you choose, do dead hang - go all the way down, giving a full ROM and so that there is no momentum. Plus its easier to measure progress, “How many 3/4 reps did I do last week?”
[quote]slimsaw00 wrote:
darwin420 wrote:
What’s the opinion on doing chin-ups instead of pull-ups for this routine?
Minutiae. . . go for it!
-Matt
[/quote]
I’ve been thinking about it, especially given the lack of any real progress at the pull ups. 
[quote]soldog wrote:
darwin420 wrote:
What’s the opinion on doing chin-ups instead of pull-ups for this routine?
New poster to your thread here…
This article
http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1954579
argues that chins are the better option because you can do more at once increasing the time under load. Personally, I’m doing chins until I can get 3x10 then I switching to wide grip pull ups.[/quote]
Hey Soldog! Welcome to the party!
Great article. I’d never seen the two compared before, and I’m guilty of falling under the “misconception.”
I think this article right here has convinced me to do chins instead of pulls.
[quote]TheDudeAbides wrote:
darwin420 wrote:
What’s the opinion on doing chin-ups instead of pull-ups for this routine?
Between the two, chins are by far easier to perform. For me at least. They, chins, are a good substitute to curls. Pull-ups are fantastic for back development. The first time around I did chins. This time I’m doing pull-ups. Whatever you choose, do dead hang - go all the way down, giving a full ROM and so that there is no momentum. Plus its easier to measure progress, “How many 3/4 reps did I do last week?”[/quote]
Lots of great responses so quickly! Thanks guys!
Since I’m incapable of doing a pull-up (I used to get 10-15 at a time when I was in the Marine Corps), I’ve been going as high as I could, letting myself down slowly, until I dropped. I figured that the stress would help build the back muscles up to the point that I could get back into doing sets of pull-ups.
This is the ONE exercise in my entire routine that has been giving me problems, and little to no progress. I think I’m going to switch to chins until I can get the full two sets. Then I’ll try pull ups again (rather than adding weight to the chins). Maybe that will work?
Owie. HIIT Cardio today. My legs were still sore from blasting out 205 on my squat yesterday. But, I always feel good about 30 minutes after a session, so no real complaints.
Question for the crowd: Which would I receive more benefit from: HIIT or endurance cardio? I know HIIT keeps the fat burning for the next 24 hours, but I’ve also read in articles and on the T-Cell that HIIT can also be counterproductive when bodybuilding.
I’m at ~22.5% body fat, and I know I need to drop at least 10%, so which might benefit me more? I’m open to suggestions.
do both.
personally i preferred HIIT when losing fat. it burnt more calories and was more fun… way more fun and lasted less. i hate cardio its so boring. i’d rather play soccer or basketbal or somethin for cardio
[quote]darwin420 wrote:
As you read this post, just imagine me laughing maniacally.
This is for all those doctors who gave up on me, and told me I was doomed to back-related weakness.
This is for the Old ME who used that diagnosis as an excuse to get FAT and LAZY.
This is for all my friends who think I’m crazy because of my new obsession with Iron.
.
..
…
..
.
I DEADLIFTED 200 MOTHER-FUCKIN’ POUNDS TODAY!
… okay, so, for many of the people on this site, that’s peanuts, but for me, it is a MAJOR accomplishment.
Anyhoo… on to the…
LIFTS:
BACK SQUAT:
(warmup) 115x5, 135x3, 155x1
(working) 195 3x5
→ funny story about my squats: I meant to rack 190, but racked it to 195. I didn’t even notice until my second working set, lol. But, I’ll tell ya, I wanted to puke during that last set.
DEADLIFT:
(warmup) 115x5, 135x3, 155x1
(working) 200x5 !!! OORAH !!!
→ I’m so goddamn proud of this! I was a little bit light headed when I was done, but oh hell yeah it was worth it!
BENCH:
(warmup) 65x5, 75x3, 85x1
(working) 115x5, 115x5, 115x4
→ I had a spot for the last two sets, but only needed the help on rep 4 of the last set. I’m still gonna count it, though.
DIPS:
BWx4 (+1 negative)
BWx3
→ I got one extra dip today! and I was able to get the negative on the first set. No improvement on the second set, though.
INCLINED SIT-UP:
BW 3x5
→ Okay, starting this week I’m adding these to my A days, and hyperextensions to the B days. I was surprised I was able to get all 3 sets, as sit-ups were impossible for me just 2 months ago (because of my back problems). This is ANOTHER major victory for me today! I’ll add weight on the next A day.
As has become my ritual, I closed out my session with 10 minutes of HIIT on the bike, in 20/60 intervals. Ouchie. Now I’m starving. Ravenous, even.
Okay, awesome shit in the gym. First, props to the awesome dude who spotted me on bench. He was benching almost twice what I was doing.
…wow, that was long. haha.[/quote]
Fast forward a year or so when your D/LING and squating 300+ or more for reps. Imagine how good that will feel!
I do that with my lifts, I set my goal and then foresee them as an ineveilability that I WILL SET OUT AND ACCOMPLISH WITH RELENTLESS DETERMINATION! The mind is a very powerful tool that you should use to your utmost advantage in your lifting progress.
[quote]lordstorm88 wrote:
do both.
personally i preferred HIIT when losing fat. it burnt more calories and was more fun… way more fun and lasted less. i hate cardio its so boring. i’d rather play soccer or basketbal or somethin for cardio[/quote]
Wouldn’t that be overkill, though? M/W/F - lifting; Tu/Th - HIIT; Sat and/or Sun - endurance cardio.
Or are you suggesting maybe Tuesday HIIT, Thursday Endurance?
Other than running around with my son, I really try to leave the weekends as a recovery period.
But, again, I’m open for suggestions. The more efficient I can make my routine, the better.
[quote]BigKDawg wrote:
Fast forward a year or so when your D/LING and squating 300+ or more for reps. Imagine how good that will feel!
I do that with my lifts, I set my goal and then foresee them as an ineveilability that I WILL SET OUT AND ACCOMPLISH WITH RELENTLESS DETERMINATION! The mind is a very powerful tool that you should use to your utmost advantage in your lifting progress.
[/quote]
I totally agree. I used my back as a crutch for so many years, and having broken through that artificial threshold, I know I won’t be stopped again! I can only imagine how awesome it’s going to be to DL/Squat 300+ … Right now I’m visualizing myself Squatting with 2 45 plates on each side (and I’m so damn close, too), and breaking through 250 on my dead.
Now you’ve made me curious, though… given that I keep on with a good diet and continue as I am with my lifts and cardio, what’s a REALISTIC target date for breaking through the 300 range? I know everyone’s different, but even a ballpark figure couldn’t hurt, for curiosity’s sake.
sure only 2 days cardio. there isnt a reason for more anyway if you only want to reach 10%. heck i doubt you even need cardio to reach 10% below that i think you should start cardio. though it does help anyway, im just bored personally lol
Well, I AM still a piece of lard (especially around my mid-section)… Given that I eat enought and keep making progress, won’t the two days of cardio help me burn more extra calories? I did up my food intake, so I AM going for mass, but if I can minimize the fat gain (or even better accelerate the fat loss), I’ll be so much happier.
I’m content to do the HIIT session Tu/Th, I was just trying to see if there might be something more optimal that I could try. It never hurts to ask, right?
of course more is better if you keep 1 day off and you still are progressing so sure if you wanna do cardio 2 days do it. if you want 4 do that too!
just try to get it in before breakfast, or maybe eat only some whey protein without many carbs before you do it
I’m not a big fan of fasted cardio. I always feel so much better when I have some food in me, plus it’s been better for my schedule to get the cardio in around noon each day (before lunch).
Haha… here I am talking about making my workouts more optimal, and I just admitted to a major sub-optimal part of my cardio days. That’s great. Good one, Darwin.
Since I like discussion on my log, here’s another question for the party: How sick do YOU have to be to skip a workout?
I ask because I’m feeling pretty damn out of it right now, but I’m still going to the gym. I’m just curious what threshold others have when it comes to training while ill.
[quote]darwin420 wrote:
How sick do YOU have to be to skip a workout?
[/quote]
If I had to stay home from work, then I don’t workout. I have trained tired, onset of sickness, at the tail end of being sick.
If you’re feeling sluggish, for more than two days, you need to reexamine your diet, rest, and how much you’re doing outside the gym.
[quote]TheDudeAbides wrote:
darwin420 wrote:
How sick do YOU have to be to skip a workout?
If I had to stay home from work, then I don’t workout. I have trained tired, onset of sickness, at the tail end of being sick.
If you’re feeling sluggish, for more than two days, you need to reexamine your diet, rest, and how much you’re doing outside the gym.[/quote]
Oh, I know that I’m fighting off a cold. It’s mostly congestion in my head. It just prompted me to wonder at what point others decide they’re too sick to work out, not implying that I felt I was.
Truthfully, my only complaint right now with my diet/training is feeling a little bit bloated every now and again, but I’m reasonably certain that’s from the Creatine (5g/day). My energy levels are fine, and I haven’t felt sluggish in 7 weeks.
We’ll see in another couple weeks how my diet is holding up when I get my body fat measured again. Part of me feels like I’m eating too much (even though I only upped by 500kcals), but then again, my strength is increasing (as evidenced by my continued lift progression). I dunno, we’ll see.
[quote]darwin420 wrote:
Since I like discussion on my log, here’s another question for the party: How sick do YOU have to be to skip a workout?
I ask because I’m feeling pretty damn out of it right now, but I’m still going to the gym. I’m just curious what threshold others have when it comes to training while ill.[/quote]
Head colds, sore throats - train away
stomach/intestinal probs - take the day off: ie don’t shit your pants or blow chunks (except on leg day) while training.
Fever - stay home don’t spread it.
i’d say take it off. its hard to breathe when you are sick and stuff. the important thing imo is to somehow eat as much as you should, if not maybe even more. your body not only needs calories/protein to keep the muscles it has but also to fight off the sickness
Just got back to the gym. It was an okay session. Nowhere near as awesome as Wednesday was, but I’m not complaining.
Well, except for the guy who was curling in the squat rack…
ME: Hey, are you almost done, or can I work in some squats?
DOUCHEBAG: What? You need to squat?
ME: Yeah, you know, in the SQUAT RACK.
DOUCHEBAG: (Scowls, scampers off to curl and admire himself in the mirror)
… I thought my gym might possibly be an exception, but, nope, we have our own squat rack curler. Damn.