Close Grip Bench Press
95lbs x 20
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 12
175lbs x 8
175lbs x 8
HS Dips
2 plates x 15
2 plates x 15
2 plates x 12
Cable Rope Pulldowns
60lbs x 12
60lbs x 12
60lbs x 11
HS Preacher Curl
1 plate x 15
1 plate x 14
1 plate x 12
1 plate x 13
Dumbbell Curls
25lbs x 14
30lbs x 12
30lbs x 12
30lbs x 12
Hammer Curls
25lbs x 12
30lbs x 10
30lbs x 11
Seated Barbell Wrist Curls
90lbs x 15
90lbs x 12
90lbs x 13
Okay, I need to change every thing up come Monday. I don’t know what to do… All I do know is that what I’ve been doing for the past few months isn’t working out too well. I feel weaker than I did last year and I feel like I’m going down, instead of uphill. Not happy at all, but something has to be done.
Box Squats
45lbs x 12
135lbs x 8
185lbs x 6
225lbs x 5
275lbs x 2
275lbs x 2
Front Squats
135lbs x 6
135lbs x 6
135lbs x 5
135lbs x 2
Leg Press
4 plates x 10
4 plates x 10
4 plates x 6
4 plates x 5
Seated Calve Raises
2 plates x 12
2 plates x 12
2 plates x 9
Standing Machine Calve Raises
360lbs x 12
400lbs x 12
400lbs x 8
Very satisfied with today’s workout, very satisfied indeed. After reading some articles while at work, and not working (I hope nobody from work reads this) I saw some stuff about box squats and I figured I’d try it. WOW!
No wonder they are so popular, my legs were just screaming in agony on that last set, I BARELY got the 2nd rep out. Fantastic!
Front squats are now in 100%, I HAVE to make sure I keep doing them. I suck horribly at them, but they have to remain. Not only do they work, but they feel much better at my knees. I hate them with an extreme passion and hope they die though.
The last set of leg presses almost killed me, as I couldn’t even get a 6th rep out and I almost dropped it. I managed to squeeze 2 inches of push to rack it… Close call.
Bench Press
45lbs x 18
135lbs x 12
185lbs x 8
225lbs x 6
225lbs x 6
225lbs x 5
225lbs x 3
Incline Dumbbell Press
80lbs x 8
90lbs x 6
85lbs x 6
65lbs x 11
Incline Dumbbell Flies
30lbs x 12
30lbs x 12
30lbs x 11
30lbs x 8
Lateral Dumbbell Raises
30lbs x 10
30lbs x 11
30lbs x 12
35lbs x 6
HS Shoulder Press
1 plate x 16
1 plate x 12
1 plate x 11
1 plate + 10lbs x 7
Absolute bullshit… Last year I could press 3 plates, this year I’m struggling with 2 plates. Completely joke, I don’t know why I’m so weak now compared to last year. Those 6 and 5 reps were all struggling too, I gave it all on those and it barely qualified. Damn it all to hell.
Reverse Grip Barbell Rows
45lbs x 26
135lbs x 15
225lbs x 9
275lbs x 6
315lbs x 2
315lbs x 3
225lbs x 7
Dumbbell Rows
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 8
100lbs x 8
HS Iso Row Single Arm
3 plates x 10
3 plates + 25lbs x 8
3 plates + 25lbs x 7
3 plates + 25lbs x 7
Wide Grip Pulldowns
150lbs x 12
165lbs x 12
180lbs x 8
180lbs x 5
Bent Over Lateral Raises
30lbs x 12
35lbs x 12
35lbs x 11
Cable Rope Face Pulls
70lbs x 12
70lbs x 9
70lbs x 9
I enjoyed today, about 10min into it I just got a rush of energy which is odd considering how tired I was all day. The 315lb rows were not clean form, they were mildly jerked up but I have to get back up to where I was last year. It’s very important, to me!
Rack Pulls - Knee Level
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 10
225lbs x 6
315lbs x 5
405lbs x 1
455lbs x 1
405lbs x 3 w/ belt
315lbs x 6 w/ belt
Good Mornings
135lbs x 10
135lbs x 10
135lbs x 7
Parallel Back Extensions
1 set of 9
1 set of 10
1 set of 9
Dumbbell Shrugs
100lbs x 12
100lbs x 12
100lbs x 8
Today’s rack pulls were fun! Straps started being used w/ 405lbs if wondering.
Now, you’re probably thinking, “why no weights with the extensions and why so little reps?”
Well, that’s because after the pulls & good mornings, my hams were absolutely DONE and I mean DONE. I finished lifting around 6ish, it’s now 8 and my legs are still wobbly.
Absolute bullshit… Last year I could press 3 plates, this year I’m struggling with 2 plates. Completely joke, I don’t know why I’m so weak now compared to last year. Those 6 and 5 reps were all struggling too, I gave it all on those and it barely qualified. Damn it all to hell.[/quote]
what the fuck
what happened? I am not gonna browse these 21 page
Absolute bullshit… Last year I could press 3 plates, this year I’m struggling with 2 plates. Completely joke, I don’t know why I’m so weak now compared to last year. Those 6 and 5 reps were all struggling too, I gave it all on those and it barely qualified. Damn it all to hell.
what the fuck
what happened? I am not gonna browse these 21 page[/quote]
I don’t know, I got sick a couple times and after that it wasn’t the same. Last year I was able to bench 325, squat 405 and deadlift 500. This year I’m nowhere close to where I was, I have a more muscular build but my strength is lacking. It’s quite odd, I can feel it slowly coming back but it’s still incredibly frustrating to know that you can and have done something, but can’t do it anymore. I will get back there though.
Box Squats
95lbs x 12
95lbs x 12
135lbs x 8
225lbs x 8
275lbs x 6
315lbs x 3
315lbs x 3
Front Squats
135lbs x 10
135lbs x 6
135lbs x 5
135lbs x 4
Leg Press (plates x 2)
4 plates x 10
5 plates x 8
5 plates x 8
5 plates x 6
5 plates x 5
Seated Calve Raises (plates x 2)
1 plate x 12
1 plate x 12
1 plate x 10
Standing Calve Raise Machine
400lbs x 8
440lbs x 8
480lbs x 6
480lbs x 4
Love love love the box squats. I keep a wide stance and I have it set so that I sit just above parallel. I never felt squats in my quads so much as I do now. Front squats are still dreadful, however the fact I managed to do 10 on my first set was nice, however it quickly dropped after that. Soon enough I’ll be able to keep the reps from dropping so quickly. Leg press felt great as always, I can always feel it in my quads more than any other exercise. Oddly, my hams are still super sore from Friday however it didn’t seem to bother me much.
Incline Dumbbell Press
40lbs x 12
50lbs x 12
70lbs x 10
80lbs x 8
90lbs x 6
90lbs x 6
Flat Dumbbell Press
80lbs x 6
80lbs x 6
80lbs x 7
80lbs x 5
Standing Cable Chest Press
40lbs x 15
45lbs x 12
50lbs x 15
60lbs x 9
Cable Flies
50lbs x 12
60lbs x 9
60lbs x 9
60lbs x 8
Lateral Dumbbell Raises
35lbs x 12
35lbs x 12
35lbs x 12
40lbs x 9
40lbs x 7
30lbs x 12
I think I’ve been doing so much incline, that I’m stronger at that now than I am with flat presses. For supplemental shoulder exercises after doing chest, I don’t know what else I can add. It seems cable raises are garbage for me (or I’m just not doing it right) and after the presses I don’t believe I need to do front raises. I’m just wondering if anybody has any suggestions for various exercises to help me build the much desired shoulder cap.
Barbell Rows
45lbs x 20
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 12
225lbs x 8
275lbs x 4
315lbs x 3
Dumbbell Rows
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 8
100lbs x 8
Single Arm Iso Row
3 plates x 10
3 plates + 25lbs x 8
3 plates + 25lbs x 6
3 plates + 25lbs x 6
Low Rope Rows
75lbs x 12
75lbs x 15
75lbs x 15
90lbs x 10
Wide Grip Pulldowns
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 12
150lbs x 10
Rope Face Pulls
70lbs x 10
70lbs x 10
70lbs x 10
I think the best part about today was talking to a guy between sets about where to get the best massive burgers around Toronto. It was pretty standard otherwise, haven’t done low rope rows in ages and completely forgot about them. I loved them last year, so I’ll be doing them again this year. It’s a great exercise to drop the weights and just focus solely on the movement.
Rack Pulls - Knee Level
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 8
225lbs x 6
315lbs x 5
405lbs x 2
495lbs x 1
405lbs x 2
Good Mornings
135lbs x 12
155lbs x 10
155lbs x 8
155lbs x 7
Parallel Back Extensions
1 set of 15
1 set of 15
1 set of 10
1 set of 11
Dumbbell Shrugs
100lbs x 12
100lbs x 12
100lbs x 12
100lbs x 11
Seated Cavle Raises (Plates x 2)
1 plate x 15
1 plate x 15
1 plate x 13
Standing Machine Calve Raises
480lbs x 6
520lbs x 6
560lbs x 6
600lbs x 5
Super tired today after work, what a long ass day. Anywho, I always take some caffeine before I lift, however after almost falling asleep in the parking lot I decided to double what I normally take. Yeah, wired. Anywho, I’m quite content with my rack pull strength going up. It felt great to pull those 5 plates, yippee.
Box Squats
135lbs x 8
225lbs x 6
275lbs x 6
315lbs x 4
335lbs x 2
335lbs x 2
Front Squats
135lbs x 10
135lbs x 6
135lbs x 7
135lbs x 4
Leg Press (plates x 2)
4 plates x 12
5 plates x 8
5 plates x 8
5 plates x 5
Leg Extensions
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 11
Seated Calve Raises (plates x 2)
1 plate x 15
1 plate x 15
1 plate x 13
Machine Calve Raises
480lbs x 8
480lbs x 8
520lbs x 6
520lbs x 5
Felt good today, also made a carb/protein shake to consume slowly throughout the session. What is making me the most happy though is actually my carb cycling diet. It’s actually working out a lot better than I though it would. In the two weeks I’ve been doing it, I’ve lost 6lbs while slowly increasing my strength. I am now down to 262lbs, though visually it makes little difference.
Thursday and Sunday I consume very little carbs, I try to keep it under 100g. Only carbs I do take in on those days come from veggies and whatever there is in nuts. On my high carb days which are Monday, Wednesday and Fridays I just slam carbs into everything. Milk, oatmeal, pasta, various fruits, rice… Whatever it is, providing it has nutritional benefits, I’ll eat it. I aim for around 1000g of carbs on those days. On Tuesdays and Saturdays, I lower it by about half and increase my fat intake, adding peanut butter to the shakes I drink through the day. It’s definitely not a superb diet by any means, but I’m experimenting and so far I’m quite happy. As time goes on, it will get more refined.
Incline Dumbbell Press
40lbs x 15
50lbs x 15
70lbs x 6
80lbs x 6
90lbs x 6
90lbs x 4
Flat Dumbbell Press
70lbs x 8
70lbs x 10
70lbs x 10
70lbs x 9
Standing Cable Chest Press
50lbs x 15
60lbs x 15
60lbs x 13
60lbs x 11
Cable Flies
50lbs x 10
50lbs x 10
50lbs x 9
50lbs x 10
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
40lbs x 15
50lbs x 12
60lbs x 12
60lbs x 11
Lateral Dumbbell Raises
35lbs x 10
35lbs x 10
35lbs x 10
40lbs x 8
December 1st, and the first day with snow!
I like seeing the incline press slowly creeping it’s way towards the 100lb dumbbells. As my first exercise I prefer to keep the reps low and the weights higher. The rest is pretty standard, my dumbbell raises are getting much better I notice as well. Even as I do them, I can see the cuts in my shoulders and such, even with my bodyfat where it is I can see the shape coming through. It’s gonna look real nice whenever I decide to lean up!
Reverse Grip Rows
45lbs x 20
45lbs x 20
135lbs x 12
225lbs x 8
275lbs x 6
275lbs x 6
Dumbbell Rows
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 10
100lbs x 10
HS ISO Row
3 plates x 8
3 plates + 25lbs x 6
3 plates + 35lbs x 6
4 plates x 5
Low Rope Rows
75lbs x 15
75lbs x 13
75lbs x 15
75lbs x 12
Todays was a bit shorter than usual, but I honestly felt like I left everything at the gym today. I just busted my ass, got down to business and went at er’ By the time I finished my low rope rows I felt as if I was completely wiped out.
Close Grip Bench Press
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 12
135lbs x 12
185lbs x 10
205lbs x 6
225lbs x 5
Dips
3 sets of 10
1 set of 5
Cable Rope Pulldowns
70lbs x 12
80lbs x 10
80lbs x 9
90lbs x 9
Barbell Cheat Curls
60lbs x 12
100lbs x 6
100lbs x 6
110lbs x 5
110lbs x 5
HS Preacher Curl
1 plate + 25lbs x 12
1 plate + 35lbs x 8
1 plate + 35lbs x 7
1 plate + 35lbs x 7
Hammer Curls
40lbs x 10
40lbs x 10
45lbs x 8
Reverse EZ Grip Preacher Curl
45lbs x 12
45lbs x 12
45lbs x 8
45lbs x 6
Realizing I could only reverse grip curl 45lbs at the end there was kind of embarrassing. I hope nobody saw me! I might have already said this earlier, but with the cheat curls I make sure it’s way over the top. I know some guys cheat curl and do more of a clean than anything. I just use a bit of back movement to lift it up, and on the way down I don’t just drop it, it’s more of a slower (but not really slow) movement. Apparently it’s working because one day later and my biceps are sore as hell for the first time in ages.