I have decided, for various reasons, to log online my training for the next few months.
The main reason for doing it is that I felt I was slipping in my training mentality. I spent three months from the New Year following Joel Marion’s “Stripped for Hypertrophy” programme and saw some really good gains in terms of strength and size, but about the three month mark, I started to lose focus a bit and have spent the last two or three weeks drifting a little bit.
Don’t get me wrong, I am still training, but just lacking the intensity and focus that breeds the best results.
Hopefully introducing the discipline of posting everything along with any encouragement/ comment others might make will help to maintain the focus and drive to excel.
Well, now I have a forum to post in, I’ll get all the background info out of the way.
I’m 33 years old and weigh 274 lbs at 6ft 5". I wouyld estimate somewhere around 12%bf, (able to see the outline of the top two rows of abs). I have been playing rugby for more years than I can remember, and recently, as old age has started to slow me up, have been compensating with increasing my strength.
I have been weight training in the off season to gain strength for two or three years now, but usually manage little during the season due to the demands of the sport.
This season, I tore my ACL along with a number of accompanying fractures etc, so have been pretty much gym bound since then, although it has only been the last couple of months that leg training has been an option.
Having got accustomed to the “stripped for hypertrophy” programme, I have decided to follow some Waterbury stuff and see where that takes me in terms of strength and size.
Essentially, I intend following the programmes he outlines if strength and size are your goal, so ABBH is first.
First day of the ABBH programme was done earlier today and to be honest, I thought it looked like it would be easy on paper.
10 sets of bench and 10 sets of bent over row. SLight mistake I made was not supersetting, which would have given me slightly longer rest times, but still managed fine. Weights as follows:
BB Bench Press - 10 x 3 x 117.5 kgs
B.O.R. - 10 x 3 x 82.5 kgs.
I haven’t done any 1RM stuff for a while, so used the exrx calculator based on my 5rm.
I think it probably worked out perfectly for the bench press, but left me a little light for the B.O.R.
Interesting psychological point, I was benching without a spotter for the first 8 sets, managed them ok, got a spotter for the last two sets, and was close enough to failure on the 3rd rep of the ninth set that he had to cover the bar, and needed finger assistance on the last rep of the tenth set. I do wonder if this was just the presence of the spotter lessening my need to finish.
I guess the otehr thing people tend to be interested in is diet.
I have a target of 4,500 cals per day.
Within this I aim for 400g of protein, 350g of clean carbs and 175g of good fat.
For the most part I tend to go with something along the lines of:
Breakfast: Omelette made with 4 whole eggs and some chopped ham. Pint of semi skimmed milk. Two or three slices of wholemeal bread.
During Workout: 2 servings of Surge.
Post workout: Some form of meat and carbs. Today, for example, was 800 gms of extra lean mince and 250 gms of whoelmeal pasta.
Mid afternoon Snack: Metabolic Drive Bar
Evening Meal: Meat/ fish with salad. Usually around 500 gms of chicken or white fish with a big handfull of green salad or veggies.
Before Bed: Low-Carb Metabolic Drive shake.
That’s pretty much an average day for me.
Additionally, in the morning I am taking 2 multivitamins, 4 Flameout caps, 2 HOT-ROX and 4 Biotest BCAA tablets. After workout I will take another 4 BCAAs, and in the evening, I take a further two HOT-ROX and four more BCAAs.
It’s the 125th Melrose sevens today, a big day for everyone locally. A good way to be out in the fresh air and semi-active while at the same time avoiding the lure of the gym.
Lashing down with rain though so hopefully that doesn’t put a dampener on things.
[quote]InCorporeSano wrote:
Sevens is amazing. Went to the big tourney here in San Diego this year, absolutely fantastic play. You playing or watching? [/quote]
One of my friends works for Kukri and was involved in organising the San Diego Sevens.
I was just watching, I am too old and slow to play. In fact, not even playing 15’s at the moment after the knee op.
Weather was a bit crappy, but on the whole a good day out, and won by a Scottish Team too which is always good.
[quote]Otep wrote:
It looks like you know how to train and eat. It’s gonna be cool reading your log.
Couple questions on supplementation;
Everything about your log says mass. Why take HOT-ROX?
Why take so few BCAA’s? From what I understand, you’re taking close to the minimum useful dosage.
[/quote]
Thanks for the encouragement, the HOT-ROX is a bit of a throw back. I was trying to shift a bit of fat earlier on in the year and am pretty much just using up the supplies that I had, got another month or so’s worth, not sure if I’ll continue after that. I figure they aren’t doing any harm and if I can shift a bit of residual fat while I am mass building, all well and good.
Also they have some Carbolin 19 in which is marketed for mass gain so I figure where I wouldn’t perhaps take that as an additional, while I have them in the cupboard, why not.
As far as the BCAA’s go, your right, that’s pretty much the minimum dosage. I could probably happily take more, but am also getting them from other sources, I do take PhD Battery +/-3 which has BCAA’s in it, and I may be wrong, but I think Surge does too. Will need to check up.
It may well be worth banging the dosage up from 12 per day though, fair point.
Today’s workout comprised of 5 x 10s at 60% of 1RM, 60 secs rest between sets.
Front Squat - 62.5 kgs
Reverse Crunch - No additional Weight
Standing Calf Raises - Bodyweight + 2 x 40kg dumbells.
Only day 3, but my initial thoughts on this program are that it seems light on activity. It is making quite a nice change to be in and out of the gym in a short period of time. I found the exercises today ok, I think the weights were about right. I am trying to build back up my quad strength since the knee op, so that’s why the squatting numbers may seem a little low.
Nice to do an ab exercise too, never really bother with my abs normally and just let the big compounds I do work them.
Hopefully I’ll manage to persuade someone that it’s not wierd to want to take photos and get some photos up soon. Don’t want to wait too long or it wont be a true reflection of the progress.
I’ll definitely be following this thread. First off, since I’m possibly facing shoulder surgery this year, and also because I’m curious to see how the Waterbury programs work for you.
[quote]InCorporeSano wrote:
I’ll definitely be following this thread. First off, since I’m possibly facing shoulder surgery this year, and also because I’m curious to see how the Waterbury programs work for you.
[/quote]
Glad you’re going to follow it. I am mainly posting here for myself, but it doesn’t hurt to have a bit of interest to encourage me.
Rest day today so nothing really to report. Still seems like low intensity and therefore difficult to resist the urge to sneak to the gym for a bit of extra work.
Body and mind is feeling much better though, perhaps this programme will just serve as a nice lower intensity programme after “Stripped for Hypertrophy” which was pretty intense.
Well, I got really bored in my hotel room this evening so decided to try some picture taking. Quality seems to come up really poor, far worse than it looks on my comp. before I upload it. Apologies for that.
I’ll get some decent digital camera rather than camera phone ones when I get back home.
If I managed the technology right, the photos should embed below:
I may be deluding myself, but I’m sure my quads look better in real life!
Still, it’s a good incentive to get working on them. Apologies again for the quality of pictures and for the hotel room decor!
First time for trying to pose too, didn’t realise how tricky it actually is. Need to do a bit of work on it if I am going to post photos more often. Maybe need a bit of tanning work too, scottish summers aren’t very forgiving!
Dips and Chins are on the programme for today. At my bodyweight, there is no chance of me doing sets of 10 chins, although I can manage the dips. As the gym does not have a chin-up assist machine, I have done the following:
Dips: 5 x 10
Close grip pulldowns: 5 x 10 x 85 kgs.
I got to the 85 kgs using the exrx one rep max calculator. I can do at best 5 chin ups, putting in 5 reps at my body weight gives me a 60% of 1RM at 85 kgs.
Today is a rest day, so I thought I would share some observances with you.
DOMS seems to be a major thing on this workout. I never seem to have it the day after, but always two days after exercising any given body part. It’s not something I have experienced for a long time as I usually only have one day off at a time and do full body workouts so the body part is never getting rested for two consequetive(sp.?) days.
Not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing.
Secondly, I am finding it very difficult to stick to the programme. I am used to high volume, go to the gym most days and stay there for an hour and a half. Visiting the gym every second day and being out in 30 - 45 mins seems like I am not working hard enough.