Beast Building...

Bigger Stronger Leaner Powerful Women
1

After much convincing by my boyfriend, I’ve finally decided to start a journal about my training. I guess he’s proud of the fact that I’m doing this program with him. That and he’s been impressed by my numbers lately, so he’s been encouraging me to share my accomplishments (even though I think I have a loooong way to go).

I’ve started doing Beast Building, the program laid out by Christian Thibaudeau. I’ll say upfront that I am not much of an explainer (I’d rather just ‘do’ which is another reason why it took me while to decide to go through with this training log), so I won’t go into the very intricate details of the program, but the articles are worth the time:

Beast Building, Part 1: Beast Building - Part 1

Beast Building, Part 2: http://www.T-Nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/beast_building_part_2

Beast Building, Part 3: Beast Building - Part 3

We (boyfriend and I) just finished week three of Phase 1/Part 1 and we’ve got one week to go. I may be mentioning the bf a lot as this program requires a partner to help out with some of the exercises, so we do them together.

Here’s a run down of the first three weeks:

Week 1

Monday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 8-15 sets in 20mins of each of the following (using 80% of 1RM):
Flat Bench - 88 lbs for 12 sets of 3
Sumo DL - 195 lbs for 12 sets of 3
Bent-over Row - 105 lbs for 12 sets of 3
Finished up with some ab work:
3 super sets of cable crunches x10, weighted Swiss Ball crunches xAMRP and normal crunches xAMRP

Tuesday - Isometric holds with max force for 6-9 seconds followed by Explosive Contrast exercise for 3-8 reps. These are complexes performed 6-8 times:

  1. DL Hold for 9 secs followed by Power Cleans from Hang with 70lbs for 5 reps - Did complex 8 times
  2. Squat Hold for 9 secs followed by Jump Squats with 75lbs for 8 reps - Did complex 8 times
  3. Military Press hold for 9 secs followed by Push Press with 75lbs for 5 reps - Did this complex 8 times

Wednesday - OFF

Thursday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 8-15 sets in 20mins of each of the following (using 80% of 1RM). NOTE: These are different exercises from Monday’s:
Military Press - 75lbs for 12 sets of 3
Squat - 165lbs for 12 sets of 3
Chin-ups - BW for 12 sets of 3

Beach work: 3 supersets of 30lb barbell curls and 50lb skullcrushers, 10 reps each, then hammer curls with 20lb dumbbells 3 sets of 10.

Friday - OFF

Saturday - Heavy Weight Overload session with partials and accentuated eccentrics:
1a. Partial bench press in power rack (w/bar set 2-3 inches above sticking point) - 125lbs for 5 reps
1b. Manual eccentric bench press - 95lbs for 4-5 reps
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

2a. Partial deadlift in power rack (w/bar set right below knees) - 285lbs
2b. Eccentric only deadlift - 255lbs, held for 8-9 seconds
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

3a. Partial pullups - BW+15lbs for 3-4 reps
3b. Negative pullups - BW+35lbs for 10-15 seconds
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

Bench press with 20 lb barbell - 100 reps
BW squats ? 100 reps
Chest supported dumbbell row - 100 reps

Week 2

Monday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 8-15 sets in 20mins of each of the following (using 85% of 1RM):
Flat Bench - 95 lbs for 12 sets of 2
Sumo DL - 205 lbs for 12 sets of 2
Bent-over Row - 115 lbs for 12 sets of 2
Finished up with some ab work:
3 super sets of cable crunches x10, weighted Swiss Ball crunches xAMRP and normal crunches xAMRP

Tuesday - Isometric holds with max force for 6-9 seconds followed by Explosive Contrast exercise for 3-8 reps. These are complexes performed 6-8 times:

  1. DL Hold for 9 secs followed by Power Cleans from Hang with 70lbs for 5 reps - Did complex 8 times
  2. Squat Hold for 9 secs followed by Jump Squats with 75lbs for 8 reps - Did complex 8 times
  3. Military Press hold for 9 secs followed by Push Press with 75lbs for 5 reps - Did this complex 8 times

Wednesday - OFF

Thursday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 8-15 sets in 20 mins of each of the following (using 85% of 1RM). NOTE: These are different exercises from Monday’s:
Military Press - 80lbs for 12 sets of 2
Squat - 175lbs for 12 sets of 2
Pullups - BW for 12 sets of 2

Friday - OFF

Saturday - Heavy Weight Overload session with partials and accentuated eccentrics:
1a. Partial bench press in power rack (w/bar set 2-3 inches above sticking point) - 145lbs for 5 reps
1b. Manual eccentric bench press - 100lbs for 4-5 reps
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

2a. Partial deadlift in power rack (w/bar set right below knees) - 315lbs
2b. Eccentric only deadlift - 295lbs, held for 8-9 seconds
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

3a. Partial pullups - BW+15lbs for 3-4 reps
3b. Negative pullups - BW+35lbs for 10-15 seconds
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

Decline bench press with 20 lb barbell - 105 reps
Leg press with no weight - 105 reps
Cable rows with 10lbs - 105 reps

Week 3

Monday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 8-15 sets in 20mins of each of the following (using 90% of 1RM):
Flat Bench - 100lbs for 12 sets of 1
Sumo DL - 220lbs for 12 sets of 1
Bent-over Row - 120lbs for 12 sets of 1
Finished up with some ab work:
2 super sets of cable crunches x10, weighted Swiss Ball crunches xAMRP and normal crunches xAMRP

Tuesday - Isometric holds with max force for 6-9 seconds followed by Explosive Contrast exercise for 3-8 reps. These are complexes performed 6-8 times:

  1. DL Hold for 9 secs followed by Power Cleans from Hang with 75lbs for 5 reps - Did complex 8 times
  2. Squat Hold for 9 secs followed by Jump Squats with 75lbs for 8 reps - Did complex 8 times
  3. Military Press hold for 9 secs followed by Push Press with 75lbs for 5 reps - Did this complex 8 times

Wednesday - OFF

Thursday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 8-15 sets in 20 mins of each of the following (using 90% of 1RM). NOTE: These are different exercises from Monday’s:
Military Press - 85lbs for 12 sets of 1
Squat - 185lbs for 12 sets of 1
Pullups - BW+5 for 12 sets of 1

Friday - OFF

Saturday - Heavy Weight Overload session with partials and accentuated eccentrics:
1a. Partial bench press in power rack (w/bar set 2-3 inches above sticking point) - 175lbs for 5 reps
1b. Manual eccentric bench press - 105lbs for 3-4 reps
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

2a. Partial deadlift in power rack (w/bar set right below knees) - 325lbs
2b. Eccentric only deadlift - 295lbs, held for 8-9 seconds
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

3a. Partial pullups - BW+15lbs for 3-4 reps
3b. Negative pullups - BW+35lbs for 10-15 seconds
Did complex 5 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

Bench press with 20 lb barbell - 110 reps
Leg press with no weight - 110 reps
Cable rows with 10lbs - 110 reps

It’s a lot, I know. Well, today we started Week 4 - Deloading week. Thank god! Cuz I’ve been tiiiiireeed lately.

Monday - ‘Giant Clusters’ of 6-8 sets in 20 mins of each of the following (using 90% of 1RM):
Flat Bench - 105lbs for 7 sets of 1
Sumo DL - 235lbs for 6 sets of 1
Bent-over Row - 125 lbs for 7 sets of 1

As far as diet, we are attempting to eat clean - as much protein and veggies as possible with each meal. We cook a lot of our food from the Precision Nutrition cookbooks. It has just been a pain in the butt lately because we have to cook a LOT of food given the amount of calories our bodies need to complete the workouts. Cheat meals are happening 3-4 times a week, but all in all, I weighed in before I started BB and I weighed in last week and it seems like I’ve been maintaining my weight. The same goes for my boyfriend.

As far as the workouts, one of the reasons I love following programs that seem to be created initially for men is because they allow me to lift heavy. Therefore, it’s definitely safe to assume that I am LOVING the workouts so far. They’re kicking my ass, but I am loving them. I’m hitting numbers I’ve never hit before and that makes every workout a rush.

Ok, I think that’s all for now. Tune in later on this week and I’ll keep ya’ll posted on the workouts.

2

This looks great. I look forward to seeing your progress!

3

your program looks INSANE!!!

I commend you for sticking to it…and those are some decent looking numbers as well! :slight_smile:

4

WOOHOO! The first two responses to my post! Thanks sbmart2 and mom-in-MD. I hope to finish the program. I just need to catch up on sleep first…

Today’s workout:

Tuesday - Isometric holds with max force for 6-9 seconds followed by Explosive Contrast exercise for 3-8 reps. These are complexes performed 6-8 times:

  1. DL Hold for 9 secs followed by Power Cleans from Hang with 80lbs for 5 reps - Did complex 6 times
  2. Squat Hold for 9 secs followed by Jump Squats with 75lbs for 8 reps - Did complex 6 times
  3. Military Press hold for 9 secs followed by Push Press with 75lbs for 5 reps - Did this complex 6 times

Finished up with some ab work:
3 super sets of cable crunches x10, weighted Swiss Ball crunches xAMRP and superman crunches xAMRP

5

weird, it wasn’t posting at first…

6

So excited to follow along! Glad you started a journal!

7

not bad lil beastie.

you make me want to lift!

-JT

8

I waited until today to post so I could wrap up the last two workouts in Phase One. Wednesday was an Off day and Thursday’s workout went like this:

‘Giant Clusters’ of 6-8 sets in 20mins of each of the following (using 90%-95% of 1RM):
Military Press - 95lbs for 6 sets of 1
Squat - 195lbs for 7 sets of 1
Pullups - BW+10 for 6 sets of 1

Friday - OFF

Saturday - Heavy Weight Overload session with partials and accentuated eccentrics:
1a. Partial bench press in power rack (w/bar set 2-3 inches above sticking point) - 185lbs for 5 reps
1b. Manual eccentric bench press - 105lbs for 3-4 reps
Did complex 4 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

2a. Partial deadlift in power rack (w/bar set right below knees) - 325lbs for 1 set and 335 for 2 sets
2b. Eccentric only deadlift - 295lbs, held for 8-9 seconds
Did complex 3 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

3a. Partial pullups - BW+15lbs for 3-4 reps
3b. Negative pullups - BW+35lbs for 10-15 seconds
Did complex 3 times, resting 90 seconds between exercises

Decline Bench press with 20 lb barbell - 115 reps
Leg press with no weight - 115 reps
Cable rows with 10lbs - 115 reps

Negative grip Pull-ups (just for fun :)) - 5 reps with BW

Now in Phase 2 it gets better. The goal in Phase 2 is do half CNS training and half muscle building. So first two workouts of the week (Monday and Tuesday) are CNS training. Although instead of isometric training without weight (exerting strength without movement), this time we’re going to add weight to the isometric exercises.

Then the last two workouts of the week (Thursday and Friday) are the muscle building days using plain-old heavy lifting supersets. I’m excited!!

And I don’t think I mentioned supplements in my first post, but I’m taking Creatine and Beta Alanine as well as a Spike tab pre-workout on the CNS days. Post workout on CNS days includes Power Drive and Surge (my fav is chocolate, YUM!)

9

Whew! That’s really all I had to say after today’s workout. Here it is:

Monday - Lower Body/Neuromuscular Emphasis
Complex A:
A1) Functional Isometric Front Squat (w/max weight) - 135, 155, 165, 165 - All four sets held for 8 seconds
A2) Front Squat - 135, 160, 160, 160 - 3 reps for first three sets and 2 reps on last set
A3) Speed Squat (w/50% of 1RM) - 115, 115, 115, 115 - 5 reps on all sets

Complex B:
B1) Functional Isometric Deadlift(w/max weight) - 205, 205, 205 (grip gave out here), 205 w/straps - All four sets held for 8 seconds
B2) Deadlift - 205, 225, 235, 255 - 3 reps on all sets
B3) Jump Lunges (w/15% of BW) - 45, 45, 45, 45 - 4 reps per leg for each set

Ab work:
2 super sets of cable crunches x10 (80lbs), weighted Swiss Ball crunches xAMRP (20lbs) and superman crunches xAMRP (20lbs)

I also started Beta Alanine for the first time today and 20 minutes after taking it I felt like I had a thousand ants crawling all over my body! Blehhhhhh, horrible experience. I can’t wait for my body to get used to it so I won’t have to go through that experience again, but the results during the workout made it worth taking it.

Also, one thing about Phase 1 is that we weren’t allowed to do ANY cardio. CNS kicks your ass, so you need all the rest you can get and none of your downtime is allowed to be spent on cardio. I think due to that rule and a bit of over-indulgence :), I’ve packed on some weight. It’s not affecting my training numbers, but it is making me feel sluggish and gross. Good news is low intensity cardio can be incorporated in the second phase. So I’m hoping that a couple of days of long, fast-paced walks paired with much cleaner eating should do the trick.

10

Killer workouts. I like the giant clusters with MP, squats and pullups.

The tingling feeling goes away when you body gets use to betalinine. It is really freaky if you sneeze after taking it.

Claire

11

maybe I’m the only one that doesn’t know, but what is this stuff you are taking?

Workouts look INSANE! (in a good way…) :slight_smile:

12

Claire - Yea, I wait for that tingly feeling to go away. Make me feel like a crackhead on the bus on my way to the gym in the morning, hahaha.

Mom - Beta Alanine is something I just recently learned about too because I had to start taking it for this program. It’s a non-esstenial amino acid and the only natural occuring beta-amino acid in the body. It’s used to boost the synthesis of carnosine which is a natural occuring di-peptide that’s found in our type 2 muscle fibers. In OTHER words, it works kind of like creatine but boosts a different kind of energy source for your body to use. And where creatine helps give you extra energy to pull off that last rep, beta alanine helps delay fatigue so you can get through a longer, harder workout.

As if my blabbing wasn’t enough, here’s the T-Nation article that explains more: All Articles - T NATION

Today’s workout was bad, but not as bad as yesterday’s:
Tuesday - Upper Body/Neuromuscular Emphasis
Complex A:
A1) Functional Isometric Military Press (w/max weight) - 75, 85, 90, 95 - All four sets held for 8 seconds
A2) Military Press - 75, 80, 80, 85 - 3 reps for all sets
A3) Push Press (w/50% of 1RM) - 75, 75, 75, 75 - 5 reps on all sets

Complex B:
B1) Iso/dynamic contrast pullups(w/max weight) - BW+10, BW+10, BW+10, BW+10 - All four sets held for 10-15 seconds
B2) Pullups - BW, BW, BW, BW (chins) - 3 reps on all sets
B3) Speed pullups - BW and 5 for all four sets

Didn’t have time for abs today, but I don’t care. I’m tired! Thank god I’m done with the CNS workouts for this week at least :slight_smile:

13

Geez - looks like killer workouts! Keep up the good work! =D

14

thanks molly! to have you even looking at my workouts means a LOT to me. I can’t wait till your comp this saturday!!!

So Wednesday was an off day, but despite all my efforts, my exhausted body still didn’t get enough sleep. I also started feeling sickly yesterday, so I left work early and downed 3 glasses of chamomile tea, a whole bottle of oj, doubled up on my greens, multi and vitamin c for the day and had 3 zmas before bed.

I woke up this morning feeling not bad, so thankfully, I was able to continue this week’s workouts. Here’s today:

Thursday - Lower Body/Muscle Growth and Strength
A1) Front Squat - 135x5, 135x5, 135x5, 135x5
A2) Romanian Deadlift - 115x6, 135x6, 155x6, 155x5
Rested 90 seconds between sets

B1) Leg Press - 180x8, 190x8, 210x8
B2) Pull-through - 75x8, 80x8, 85x8
Rested 90 seconds between sets

C1) Standing Calf Raise - 65x8, 95x8, 115x8
C2) Lying Leg Curl - 70x8, 80x7, 80x6
Rested 90 seconds between sets

This workout felt good. A nice change from CNS ass kicking to just plain 'ol muscle building :slight_smile:

15

Towards the end of Thursday and all of Friday succcckkked. I felt like complete crap. It was like the sore throat I had was taunting me with the cold that would follow, but it wouldn’t develop into the cold! But I think the ass kicking I was giving it with all the orange juice, sleep, vitamins and greens I was ingesting was aiding my part of the battle.

Went to visit the parents this weekend and that allowed me to get 12 hours of sleep last night. Woohoo! So I decided to go workout since I was feeling ok:

Saturday - Upper Body/Muscle Growth and Strength
A1) Chest-supported DB row - 35x6, 40x6, 45x6, 45x6
A2) Bench Press - 95x6, 105x6, 110x6, 115x4
Rested 90 seconds between sets

B1) Pull Ups - BWx6, BWx4 (+2 negatives), BWx3 (+3 negatives), BWx3 (3+ negatives)
B2) Incline Bench Press (was SUPPOSED to do High Incline DB Press!! GRR!) - 90x7, 90x6, 95x5, 95x5
Rested 90 seconds between sets

C1) Preacher Curl - 35x8, 40x8, 40x8, 40x6
C2) Decline EZ-bar triceps extension - 35x8, 40x8, 40x8, 40x6
Rested 90 seconds between sets

I was so irritated with myself for forgetting that I was supposed to do DB rows instead of incline bench, but either way I was lifting weights I guess.

I’m just looking forward to more rest tonight so that I can be 100% tomorrow and be totally ready for Monday morning’s CNS workout.

16

Today hurt :frowning: Not enough sleep again and watever that damn sore throat left behind is still lingering…

Monday - Lower Body/Neuromuscular Emphasis
Complex A:
A1) Functional Isometric Front Squat (w/max weight) - 165, 165, 170, 175, 180 - All sets held for 8 seconds
A2) Front Squat - 160, 165, 165, 165, 160 - 3 reps on all sets
A3) Speed Squat (w/50% of 1RM) - 115, 110 (knees were hurting on the first set, so decided to lower the weight and see if that would help, turned out that changing my stance helped out more so I went back up to 115 on last three sets), 115, 115, 115 - 5 reps on all sets

Complex B:
B1) Functional Isometric Deadlift(w/max weight) - 205 (weight was too heavy and my upper back was rounding), 195, 195, 195, 195 - All sets held for 8 seconds
B2) Deadlift - 255 (crappy form!), 235, 245, 245, 235 - 3 reps on all sets
B3) Jump Lunges (w/10%-20% of BW) - 40, 40, 40, 40, 40 - I didnt’t want to unload the barbell I was using for dls over and over so I just used the 40lb curl bar here. 5 reps per leg for each set

No abs today. The workout was brutal and I was tired. Even with a Spike tab, creatine, beta alanine, protein and strawberries in my body, I still couldnt manage to get up a good energy throughout the whole workout

Tonight’s plan: SLEEP!

17

It is offical. I’m sick and it totally blows, but I forced myself to go through with today’s workout (stupidly):

Tuesday - Upper Body/Neuromuscular Emphasis
Complex A:
A1) Functional Isometric Military Press (w/max weight) - 95, 95, 95, 95, 95 - Held all sets for 8 seconds
A2) Military Press - 85, 85, 80, 80, 80 - 3 reps for all sets
A3) Push Press (w/50% of 1RM) - 75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x4, 75x4

Complex B:
B1) Iso/dynamic contrast pullups(w/max weight) - BW+10, BW+15, BW+15, BW+10 - Held all sets for 10-15 seconds
B2) Pullups - BWx3, BWx3, BWx3, BWx2
B3) Speed pullups - BW for 4 sets of 5 reps each

Goin to see the doc tomorrow. Sad thing is, I’ll be spending my birthday at the doctor’s office :frowning:

18

Oh, that sucks!!
Is today your b-day then?

Happy Birthday!!!

Now get some rest, so you can get back to training!!

strong presses BTW, sheesh!!

19

ooook - I need to catch up on my posting!

Mom- yes, it was my birthday last wednesday and thank you! I actually continued throwing all the things that i thought would make me better in addition to sleep at myself and I woke up on my birthday feeling good enough to cancel my doctor’s appointment. WOOHOO! I had a great birthday hanging out with my bf who also took the day off to hang out with me :). I finished off that day with a visit to a couple of stripclubs. That’s all I really wanted to do on my birthday, hehe.

Thursday morning I was feeling almost 100% and here’s the workout:

Thursday - Lower Body/Muscle Growth and Strength
A1) Front Squat - 135x6, 145x5, 145x4, 135x5, 135x4
A2) Romanian Deadlift - 155x6, 175x5, 185x6, 185x6, 185x6
Rested 90 seconds between sets

B1) Leg Press - 230x8, 240x7, 250x7, 260x8
B2) Pull-through - 80x8, 90x8, 100x8, 110x7
Rested 90 seconds between sets

C1) Standing Calf Raise - 100x8, 120x8, 140x7, 120x8
C2) Lying Leg Curl - 70x8, 80x8, 90x6, 80x7
Rested 90 seconds between sets

Friday - OFF. The bf and I actually left on Friday to go the JP Fitness Summit in Kansas City, MO. It was freakin AMAZING. We got to met Lou Schuler, author of News Rules of Lifting for Women. He was so nice and so knowledgeable. The Summit was a great way to meet other people who had a passion for fitness, nutrition and overall well-being. We got to bounce around ideas, learn about post-cardio nutrition :stuck_out_tongue: and ask all the questions we had on our minds about working out. It was great! And we’re totally going again next year.

Saturday - Upper Body/Muscle Growth and Strength
A1) Chest-supported DB row - 45x6, 45x6, 50x6, 50x6, 50x5
A2) Bench Press - 110x5, 110x4, 105x6, 105x6, 105x6
Rested 90 seconds between sets

B1) Pull Ups - BWx4 (+2 negatives, BWx3 (+3 negatives), BWx3 (+2 chinups, +1 negative), BWx2 (+1 chinup, +2 negatives), Lat Pulldown 85x8
B2) High-incline Dumbbell Press - 32.5x8, 40x8, 40x7, 37.5x8, 37.5x7
Rested 90 seconds between sets

C1) Preacher Curl - 40x8, 40x8, 40x8, 40x6
C2) Decline EZ-bar triceps extension - 35x8, 35x8, 35x8, 35x6
Rested 90 seconds between sets

And now this week:

Monday - Lower Body/Neuromuscular Emphasis
Complex A:
A1) Functional Isometric Front Squat (w/max weight) - 180, 180, 180, 180, 185 - All sets held for 8 seconds
A2) Front Squat - 160x3, 165x3, 165x3, 165x3, 160x2
A3) Speed Squat (w/50% of 1RM) - 115x5, 115x5, 115x5, 115x5, 115x5

Complex B:
B1) Functional Isometric Deadlift(w/max weight) - 195, 195, 205, 195, 195 - All sets held for 8 seconds
B2) Deadlift - 245x3, 255x3, 255x3, 255x3, 260x2
B3) Jump Lunges (w/10%-20% of BW) - 40, 40, 40, 40, 40 - 5 reps per leg for each set

Ab work:
3 super sets of cable crunches x11 (80lbs), weighted Swiss Ball crunches xAMRP (25lbs) and superman crunches xAMRP (25lbs)

Tuesday - Upper Body/Neuromuscular Emphasis
Complex A:
A1) Functional Isometric Military Press (w/max weight) - 95, 100, 100, 100, 105 - Held all sets for 8 seconds
A2) Military Press - 80x3, 85x3, 85x3, 85x3, 90x2
A3) Push Press (w/50% of 1RM) - 75x5, 75x5, 75x5, 75x4, 75x5

Complex B:
B1) Iso/dynamic contrast pullups(w/max weight) - BW+15, BW+17.5, BW+17.5, BW+17.5, BW+17.5 - Held all sets for 10-15 seconds
B2) Pullups - BWx3, BWx3, BWx3, BWx3, BWx3
B3) Speed pullups - BW for 4 sets of 5 reps each

20

That summit sounded FUN!

Sweet front squat btw!! :open_mouth: