Review My Regime for Strength

[thosebananas]

na i was joking about the magic pills

dont have a blender so ill just eat some before bed… how much in tablespoons? lol

it cud also be ive been thru it before… noing that the painful “i cant fucking walk days” calm down after a few weeks. and also not walking into the gym without a plan. i used to just walk in and copy someone or just bench cuz its “cool” now i love being the physco whos screaming out reps at deadlift and noone else does deadlift. same with farmers walks and most of the olympis lifts…

on the 5x5 regime… how long should the rests be…? ive heard anything from 1 minute to 3 minutes… i usually do 1 min or under or else i thnk im wasting time and cheating.

[bryan_kav]

with de 5x5 thing i always prefer doing exercises back to back . . ie. bench and bent over row. push press and chins etc. .

i HATE wasting time too plus its great for fat loss!after you feel like youve been in the ring for 10 rounds! good buzz tho. .

eg

Bench and have another bar loaded with row weight or the dumbell for a dumbell row at the end of the bench. . . if barbell do bench straight into Bent over row and 30-60 secs rest. . if dumbells. . bout 30secs. . cos your recovering for your bench while rowing. . its great time saver and increases your work capacity/ fat loss/ overall enjoyment. .

give it a go. . . you’l want the rest if doing it properly trust me

haha ppl that copy are funny. . especially when they try copy a dumbell snatch or bench throws or something. . . ‘call the ambulance’

[thosebananas]

so kinda superset things together… wat about legs thou?

or i suppose i cud do a set of squats then a set of weighted situps?! etc? or have i got the wrong end of the stick?

rite off to bed… got 9am tutorials then gym at about 11.15. looking forward to it.

[bryan_kav]

nah dont do abs and legs supersets. . do your straight and extended sets on legs and do abs and direct lower back stuff after or you will lose ‘core stability’ basically hard to keep technique right on a back squat if l.back and abs are bollixd u get the point. .

apologies you were talking bout legs and i got into talking about supersetting upperbody. . i confused the situation

[thosebananas]

lol… no bother… so 5x5 tomoz. take 60secs or under for rest?

i no what u mean by “you’ll want the rest” but i like forcing myslef to work when i havnt fully recovered or my body doesnt want to do it. because i cud have to scrummage again and again and again with no break etc…

are farmers walks for grip mainly or legs? or can i just not grip enough to trouble my legs… was thinking of taking the 50 kg dumbells and doing runs or longer strids or something to add a twist to the legs workout? any ideas? cuz i dont think 100kg will trouble my legs too much so how cn i make farmers walks harder?

[thosebananas]

just home from legs session… in pain… but i had a revelation and won a fight against my body today.

8.30am wake up
8.45am 2 HOT-ROX Extreme, 2 Norateen, multivit, 5g creatine in ribena, half a scoop of promax in porridge.

9.15am workout began:
weighed in at 289lb

3x5 140kg - doing the third set i looked at myself and just went fuck this… ur not squating to 90 degrees… 70 at best! so i dropped the weight back to 100 and got a 12-14inch bench. and box squated to it. did 5x5 at 100kg. first three sets were touch and go on the bench but the last few reps of the last 2 sets i basically sat on the bench and had no idea how i was getting up again… but i did it somehow! some hard hard reps today. blurred vision, felt my nose was gonna explode with blood. but good. so overall i did 8 sets of 5 but im not counting the first 3 cuz they were shit. this was my revelation, i havnt been squating deep enough… so its 12 inch box squats from now on!!

5x5 single leg step ups (leaving foot on bench so no momentum can be gained) with 25kg dumbells.

5x5 “bulgarian split squats” - never done these before so im not sure if i did them right… is the leg on the bench meant to be striaght or bent like a lunge? i played about a bit and found the one that was hardest… slight bend in the back leg and i went down untill the dumbells i was holding touched the floor. used 17.5 g dumbells

5x5 “super set on leg press” basicaly did 5 reps of leg press then fully extended and did 10 reps of calves.

then i did the 10rm, break 9 reps, break, 8 reps and so on for both quads and calfs

basically had to crawl hpome from the gym… im sitting in my flat wondering how the fuck im going to get out of this chair and go to classes today. expecting a fucking welder flame on my legs tomoz… ALL GOOD THOU!

10.20am workout finish

10.35am 1.5 scoops of promax and 5 g creatine.

1330 - 2 HOT-ROX, 2 Norateen, 2 burgers plain

15.30 - 1 scoop shake with milk

1700 - 1900 Feel asleep

1915 - 6 grilled burgers, 3 eggs fryed in EVOO, handfull of cheese

10-1 working

01.30 1.5 scoops of promax in milk

then bed
thats it so far… as always ill edit it as the day goes on.

cheers

[thosebananas]

how high u reckon this box squat is/was? its the bench im standing behind… its about 2/3 inchs below my knee…

[bryan_kav]

no lateral lunges? they require a certain amount of flexibility to do but are a great exercise

there’s no way you done your ‘10rm’ only took 10 secs break and done 9 reps, 8 reps etc. . .
up the weight and follow this. . much better feeling than doing submax weights

get your 10rm and do it. . after 10 reps hold with slight bend in knees for 10 secs bang out another 5 hold for 10 secs (slight bend in the knee) bang out 4 reps 10 secs 3 reps etc. down to one. .

yea box is about 35cm i’d say. . i would need a lower one. . hate even saying 90degree squats. . only squat ‘parallel’ (hip below knee) or below meself. . 90degrees is still not a low squat by any stretch of the imagination. . box squatting was a good idea

good stuff

[thosebananas]

u reckon that was box was low enough… ?? im 6ft1

to be fair i dont no what my 10rm is… i just kinda guessed… ill no to go higher next time. it wreaked thou… last few reps where squeezzed out of no where.

i couldnt find anything online about lateral lunges… wat are they?

DOMs hasnt set in in anyway yet… which i think is quite worrying… just really fatiqued legs. tomorrow should be fun.

bulgarian split sqauts - was i doing them right?

im heading to work 10-1 then got class at 9. so i shud we fucked tomorrow but shoulders are getting blasted tomoz:

1RM shoulder pull down x5

military press/push press 5x5
Lateral Pull down 5x5 Superseted together.

Seated Dumbell Press 5x5

Upright Row 5x5

Barbell Bicep Curl
Overhead Barbell Tricep Extension Superseted 5x5

Standing forward raises with a hold 5x5
Seated Side raise with a hold 5x5

by the tricep extension do u mean using the bar with the two close grips going the same way… because im not sure if there is one.

just updated the rest of my day… not sure if its any good.

Cheers

[bryan_kav]

yea it looks alright i use an aerobics step

well get on the leg press and do a heavy ass weight and if you can do any more than 10 . . its not your 10rm!!! haha

lateral lunge = sideways lunge = barbell on back or on front squat position (preferable) or dumbells used for resistence

do not look like this antelope doing them but you get the idea. . he’s a clown

and step out a bit further. . watch your weight first. . do bodyweight ones until your flexibility improves if you are tight in any way

yea split squats sound ok. . you can let your back leg bend a bit more by the sound of things

do upright rows back to back with lateral raises and superset your arms yea but use 3/4 sets of 7/8 reps back to back ok?

a straight bar or a heavy dumbell will do. . .stand doing everything you can. . dont sit for dumbell overhead presses/ raises. . why would you? doesnt make sense. .

[thosebananas]

so its kinda like a groin stretch but with a bent leg… sweet look forward to it.

split squats were burning my ass and hammys.

ive always sat for dumbell presses… and i find seated raises a lot harder so i did them that way. but im up for changing thins up abit.

gonna aim for 4 x 8… with bicep/tricep and upward row/front raise

with dumbell press, should i push press a bit if it gets tough or go down a weight?

just home from work… had 2 scoops with milk. looking forward to DOMs tomoz. in class from 9-11 so ill be in the gym around 11… ill probable post everything around 1/2pm…

im sure u use an aerobic step but the question is… how many do u use?

cheers for the replys… hope they keep coming! if ur ever in glasgow ill sort you out with VIP at a club for you and as many people as you want…

[bryan_kav]

yea exactly like a groin stretch . . but not really and its weighted. . and make sure you sit back into the exercise not up in the toes.

yea 4x8 sounds a bit better. you supersetting them?

i reckon yes if it helps you squeeze out the last rep or two. . but not if your pushing for the whole set. . push presses have their place and so do shoulder presses. .

now once you have that shoulder workout nailed . . STICK TO IT. . you change your workouts every week and select different exercises each session. . do what your doing now and stick to it for a few sessions or you will not perform each exercise regularly enough to make progress and have no measure of improvement.
be consistent (at least for a few weeks)

and forget about the hold on the lateral raises i know your trying to ‘feel the burn’ but it is not necessary and can actually be counterproductive. do the reps correctly 0-3-0-1 tempo and you will be fine.

you were saying about not getting doms straight after the workout (2-3hours) i wouldnt be worried it can take 24-48 hours to set in. . but again dont seek fatigue/ pain. . doesnt necessarily mean you had a good workout or are growing. . doms does NOT necessarily mean you are growing and even if its completely absent you are more than likely still growing and adapting . .provided you train hard and eat right

your body has just dampened the pain mechanism and reinforced the muscle fasia itself/ nerve endings and not necessarily the contractile components of the muscle each contractile component doesnt have a nerve supply and they are the elements of the muscle that grow. . its kind of like a kick in the hole for the muscle and usually after one or two sessions major doms subsides as the body has recognised the ‘problem’ (your lifting) and rectified the situation. . DOMS is essentially useless! lack of doms only means that the nerve endings (nocireceptors) arent damaged. .

DOMS hasnt yet been 100% explained scientifically but has been put down to lactic acid/ lactate build up, damaged nerve endings, nerve endings exposed to free radicals, direct muscle fibre trauma, eccentric exercise and numerous others but has not been fully explained. . but each muscle fibre does not have its own nerve supply so my moneys on the damaged nerves in contact with the cell membrane/ musculotendonous junction. . damaged nerves are NOT a good thing imho. . . phew that was a ramble

one step with one set of the 2" things that make it a little bigger. . still max 8" from the ground. just touch it/ take a small bit of the weight off and explode up through it. . kind of like a concentric squat. . or you could try setting up the pins on the rack so that in the started position you are below parallel and let weight rest on the pins and then explode up through it concentrically . . its good stuff cos you can attempt heavier. . its mainly concentric you probably wont get any DOMS
im ok with it

No prob on the replies. girlfriend says shes taking my laptop if i dont get off this website. . haha

oooo VIP look forward to it! haha. . i dont talk about training when im out . . i swear!

[bryan_kav]

how do you start one of these threads? i know very newby of me . . haha

wanna post differences in bodyfat after one tub of HOT-ROX. . i think i proved the ‘spot reduction’ thing

[thosebananas]

theres a wee button at the top of all the sections with “post” written across it… it looks like a stamp. click it and hey presto…

didntget to the gym yesterday to do shoulders, kinda had a all nighter lock in at work and then a house party when i got home.didnt drink thou, just had the craic!!

so i went today instead…

10am Wake up
10.30 2 HOT-ROX Extreme, 2 Norateen, multivit, 5g creatine in lucozade
11.30 am workout start

military press 5x5 60kg
supesetted with
lat pull down 110 lbs 5x5

standing dumbell press 5x5 25kg dumbells

upward rows 5x5 40kg
supersetted with
standing forward raises 5x5 each arm 12.5kg dumbells

Bicep curls 4x8 35kg EZ bar
supersetted with
standing behind head tricep presses 4x8 30kg dumbell

tricep kick backs on bench with 25kg plate 4x8 2 normal sets, 1 quick set, 1 set - put weight behind head, relax then push out slow… slow forced reps!

standing grip - 2 x 25kg plates, pinch grip untill failure 3 sets

13.00 Finish

13.15 1.5 Scoops of promax, 5 g creatine

15.00 - 2 plain burgers

17.00 2 HOT-ROX Extreme, 2 Norateen

17.45 tin of tuna, with a drizzle of EVOO

19.30 2 burgers with a handfull of cheese

8-12 work- solid walking

02.00 Promax with milk

0300 bed

playing rugby on saturday, so im taking tomoz off… then i mite go in on sunday, depending how i feel. saturdays match could either be really easy or really hard…

[thosebananas]

its my first match in 3 weeks on saturday?

since ive been eating fuck all carbs… i was thinking of havin pasta tonite and then a big bowl of porridge in the morning!!

wat u reckon.

[thosebananas]

scratch that… match cancelled. olympics tomoz!

[stuward]

I read something recently that suggested that a big carb meal before an endurance event is not as helpful as gradually building up for the previous week. I don’t know what your sport is, rugby I think. You may want to talk to some rugby players and coaches and see what they recommend. There is no question that you will need carbs. The only question is how much.

Stu

[thosebananas]

ie always found a big carb load the night before and morning of a match and as much water as i can ramm into to my body the night before was wat was best for me… but then again i was always eating carbs as normal…

no maybe i should think about building up the carbs over the week… if this is the case then, i will pretty much be doing this every week so therefore ill not be on a low carb diet? how much will lack of carbs affect my performance?

[bryan_kav]

sorry about the delay

my carb intake varies from abou 40grams a day on lifting days (mainly pre and post workout) to 70 grams (boxing and taekwondo days) where i would SOMETIMES take about half a scoop of a cho during training. . . only simple sugars(viper = glucose, maltodextrin and some protein) that should EVER be taken in as far as im concerned is before and after training.

stu is right if building up to an endurance event gradual increase in complex carbs through the week is beneficial (carb loading) but a rugby match isnt a marathon!

i dont play rugby but i know its a stop-start sport regardless of position and im sure a half scoop of promax (defo whey hydrosalate + glutamine + BCAA’s anyway) and a lucosade mixed in a shaker with added water sipped JUST before and at half time would do the trick for gycogen replenishment and getting your protein in (BCAA’s and glutamine in Promax mixed with a carb drink will help kerb catabolism/muscle breakdown during the match). . .then a half scoop promax with the leftovers of your shaker after will do after aswell.

When on a low carb diet your body is metabolising fats (lypolysis) most of the time for energy but at high intensities your body favours carbs and if there isnt enough carbs (glycogen) available there is a theoretical reduction in performance BUT when on a low carb diet your body gets more efficient at oxidising fats (it has to!) I refer to CT’s caveman theory. . i dont think a cave man carb loaded before is got chased around the place by a tiger or something. . but he ran anyway. . and he didnt have any carbs a bit off track but a valid point from CT.

so instead of oxidising fats at low intensities and then having this metabolic shift at increased intensities >70% max your body uses fats and the Gluconeogenisis (glucose production) in the liver and Carbs ingested before during and after the game is enough to supply the brain and the ATP PCR (used at 90-100% max) energy systems in the muscle. phew i ramble did that answer anything i dont know. . .i hate carbs. .

that old guy in stu’s profile pic is a legend

[kinein]

since there is no set or rep info or weights, i cant say its good or not. but what I can say is your trying and if you take one step in the right direction and don’t stop for anyone or anything, you’ll find your way. It looks good, but I’m sure as time progresses you’ll find tweaks to your workout. finish your workouts every time satisfied. that is the most you can ask.