Fishsticks Log... Putting Theory Into Practice

I just realized how little progress I have made from new years until about a month ago.
I’ve made more progress in both strength and size during the last month than the last 4-5 months. This month also happens to be when I’ve logged all my workouts and made sure to push more weight/more reps each workout, and made absolutely sure getting 3500kcal, even if not as “clean” as desired, every day.

I started out at 142lbs last summer, now I am standing at the same height of 5’10 at 168lbs, probably slightly fatter but also a tad bigger and stronger. My weight gain has however been more in spurts than steady, because inconsistent training and diet. Haven’t measured BF%, don’t really care about a little fat as long as strength and size comes with it. My upper 3-4 abs are visible, if that gives you a picture.

It’s also pretty darn embarrassing to sport some pygmy 35-36cm (14-14.5’) arms with almost one year under my belt. My legs measure 62cm, chest 106cm, shoulders 122cm.

My diet still needs some work, as I tend to have “gaps” during the day, most particularly during school where I am not eating much, only to chug down the remaining 50% of the calories that day during 2-3 hours in the evening. I will try to solve this by always bringing at least 1000kcal worth of decent food to school every day.

My usual day looks something like this;
Meal 1 (breakfast) oatmeal, milk and fruit, 1000kcal~
Meal 2 either 100g nuts or two slices of bread with animal liver (don’t know what you call this in english, but rich in protein and fat), 500-600kcal~
Meal 3 omelette, 500-600kcal~
Meal 4 shake with whey protein blended with milk. 300kcal if it’s only that, 500kcal if it’s my post-workout shake which also consist of more milk and carbpowder.
Meal 5 steak, pasta, pork chops etc. Usually around 1000-700kcal, depending on which.
Last meal can be an additional shake if I’ve eaten a lot of carbs during the day, some nuts, or whatever to fill out the remaining cals that’s at least half decent nutritional wise. In total 3400-3600kcals.
This obviously needs some work, so feel free to criticize.

I am also not shy of eating an extra burger or pizza should the opportunity arise.

Anyway, I’ve set myself three very distinct goals to meet within the end of 2009.
Achieve an arm circumference of at least close to 40cm.
Deadlift 200kg
190lbs bodyweight

Currently, my deadlift max 140kg. Which means to be I must add at least 10kg, in addition to about +1cm arm circumference every month.
I’m maybe aiming too high, but it’s better to go full throttle for something seemingly impossible, than shortchanging yourself on setting too low goals.

During the last month I’ve done a traditional 4-way split, the usual chest/triceps, back/biceps, shoulders/traps, legs. Made very good progress on this, compared to other programs I’ve used (I’ve tried all that full body “beginner” stuff, 5x5 etc, didn’t work out too good for me).

I will try to mix up with chest/biceps, legs, shoulders/triceps, back/traps, to see how I respond to training arms two times per week, one directly and one indirectly.

Logs will start from next workout.

Forgot to post. Anyway, here’s the log for the previous workouts this week. Will do legs later today too.

back 28.05.2009
deadlift 115kgx5x3
barbell rows 75kgx4x10
pulldown 95kgx10x3
dumbbell rows 35kgx10x2
shrugs 97,5kgx9x3

Good workout, managed to increase weight or reps on almost all exercises since last time.

chest/shoulders 29.05.2009
dips +15kgx10x3
dumbbell bench 27,5kgx10x3
incline bench 60kgx5x3
military press 40kgx5x3

Lesson learned this session… I can’t do chest and shoulders in same session. I usually get 40kg for at least 8-9 reps, but I was just way too burned out after all the chest work. Too much pressing in one day, will group shoulders and triceps togheter next time.

Forgot to mention my age. I’m 17 years old.

Yesterdays workout;
squat 85kgx8x4
legpress 215kgx10x3
legcurl 75kgx10x2

Dropped some volume because I’m going to do a running test at school tomorrow, and I don’t feel like not being able to move my legs.

My shorts ripped completely open when pushing out of the hole on the last rep for the last set on squats, hahaha began laughing too much to finish the rep.

Today;

arms
dumbbellcurl 12,5kgx10x3
one-hand cable curl 22,5kgx10x1
machine preachercurl 40kgx10x1
narrow grip bench 65kgx7x3
frenchpress 35kgx12x3
grip 5kgx60sx2 (I hold two 5kg plates in each hand and squeeze them together for a set amount of time)

Do you like fish sticks?

Seriously though, good luck.

[quote]IronAbrams wrote:
Do you like fish sticks?[/quote]

I practically lived of those things when I was younger.

Got a bad case of backside shoulder stretch/tension… Don’t know how the hell it happened, started feeling it yesterday and it got worse when I woke up today. Hurts when I move my neck to the opposite side of the shoulder, or down towards my chest. This happened during my two rest days, so I don’t think it’s lifting related.

Anyway, pressing doesn’t hurt, so I will go and do chest in some mins :slight_smile:

I just realized the OP created an account before that episode of South Park aired. That. Is. Awesome.

chest 04.06.2009
dumbbell bench 30kgx6x3
27,5kgx9x1

dips bw+17,5kgx9x3

incline bench 60kgx8x3

I also tried out the iso-lateral hammer strength chest machine… I just don’t understand that thing. I do more weight on the hammer strength shoulder press… It also feels very awkward, I like the HS shoulder press tho.

back 05.06.2009
deadlift 120kgx5x3
bent over rows 77,5kgx8x3
pulldown 100kgx8x3
dumbbell rows 35kgx10x2

slept 4-5 hours last night, so felt pretty shit and tired today. Still got up more weight than last session, thought the form on BO rows was kind of sloppy for the last reps.

[quote]Fishsticks wrote:
slept 4-5 hours last night, so felt pretty shit and tired today. Still got up more weight than last session, thought the form on BO rows was kind of sloppy for the last reps.
[/quote]

hey, doing what you gotta do. nice job. whenever i’m tired or worn down, i think of matt kroc and his stories, then i know what i have to do. cheesy right? it works though haha.

i’m struggling with sloppiness on the bent rows, too. keep it up man!

[quote]grettiron wrote:
Fishsticks wrote:
slept 4-5 hours last night, so felt pretty shit and tired today. Still got up more weight than last session, thought the form on BO rows was kind of sloppy for the last reps.

hey, doing what you gotta do. nice job. whenever i’m tired or worn down, i think of matt kroc and his stories, then i know what i have to do. cheesy right? it works though haha.

i’m struggling with sloppiness on the bent rows, too. keep it up man![/quote]

Thanks :slight_smile: I feel that exercises like dumbbell rows and bent over rows are exercises you should care more about moving a lot of weight than having strict form. Obviously not turning it into a deadlift, but it seems like most big guys use some momentum and rocking on the two.

Anyway, my metabolism is fucking weird. I’ve been eating 3500kcal+ for over two weeks now, and I weighted myself… not gained a pound. I don’t do any form of cardio, and my lifting is not very intense… I like to have relatively long pauses in between sets. Guess I’ll have to bump it up to 4000kcal/day o_O. I’m 170lbs, 4000kcals is what seems to be what the 200lbs+ guys bulk on… I wouldn’t last very long in a famine considering how inefficient my body is lol.

Which reminds me of one of those “clean bulk, you always have to be below 10% bf!” articles… It calculated my caloric need to gain muscle at a steady rate to be something like 2500-2600 or something… I’d lose weight on that.

[quote]Fishsticks wrote:
grettiron wrote:
Fishsticks wrote:
slept 4-5 hours last night, so felt pretty shit and tired today. Still got up more weight than last session, thought the form on BO rows was kind of sloppy for the last reps.

hey, doing what you gotta do. nice job. whenever i’m tired or worn down, i think of matt kroc and his stories, then i know what i have to do. cheesy right? it works though haha.

i’m struggling with sloppiness on the bent rows, too. keep it up man!

Thanks :slight_smile: I feel that exercises like dumbbell rows and bent over rows are exercises you should care more about moving a lot of weight than having strict form. Obviously not turning it into a deadlift, but it seems like most big guys use some momentum and rocking on the two.

Anyway, my metabolism is fucking weird. I’ve been eating 3500kcal+ for over two weeks now, and I weighted myself… not gained a pound. I don’t do any form of cardio, and my lifting is not very intense… I like to have relatively long pauses in between sets. Guess I’ll have to bump it up to 4000kcal/day o_O. I’m 170lbs, 4000kcals is what seems to be what the 200lbs+ guys bulk on… I wouldn’t last very long in a famine considering how inefficient my body is lol.

Which reminds me of one of those “clean bulk, you always have to be below 10% bf!” articles… It calculated my caloric need to gain muscle at a steady rate to be something like 2500-2600 or something… I’d lose weight on that.

[/quote]

i feel your pain man. i’m 180 and sucking down 3700 to 4400 cals a day. i’ve had some success though: 175 to 180 in a little more than a month.

some of us are freaks like that, just keep eating!

shoulders 06.06.2009
military press 40kgx8x2
seated MP 50kgx8x3
lateral raises (cable) 15kgx10x2

Have to do seated MPs in the smith’s machine, which feels kind of weird… I think I’ll stick with military presses from now.

legs/calves 07.06.2009
squat 90kgx5x3
leg press 220kgx11x3
calf raises machine 110kgx15x4
leg curl 75kgx10x3

arms/traps 08.06.2009
barbell curl 37,5kgx10x3
narrow grip bench 67,5kgx6x3
one hand cable curl 25kgx15x2
frenchpress 37,5kgx12x2
shrugs 100kgx10x4
plate grip 5kgx80sx2

I log the top sets. E.g on barbell curls I didn’t do 37,5kgx10 for 3 straight sets. I did maybe 30kgx10, 35kgx8, then 37,5kgx10. On some exercises I will maybe ramp only for one set and do straight sets from there, depends on how I feel.

I also think I’ve discovered the holy grail of pre workout meals for best performance; an entire 600-700g pizza :smiley:

chest 11.06.2009
dumbbell press30kgx8x3

dips bw+20kgx10x3
incline bench 62,5kgx8x3

back 12.06.2009
deadlift 130kgx3x3
bent over rows 80kgx8x3
pulldown 100kgx9x3
dumbbell rows 37,5kgx10x2

shoulders 13.06.2009
standing military press 42,5kgx8x4
side laterals 17,5kgx10x3