Pain is Weakness Leaving the Body

Training Logs
1

I had a spine injury a few years back after getting thrown off my horse. He jumped, bucked and spun, I could have handled any two of those but all three was a bit much and it’s a long way down when your horse is 17 hands. I’ve been back in the saddle for a while now and we had a great ride just last weekend.

I did a bunch of self guided physical therapy and things are pretty much back to normal aside from the fact that my lower back pops more often than it used to. Having strong spinal erectors seemed to cushion the impact and lifting has really helped me to rehab the problem so I’m thankful for that.

Unfortunately I was out of the gym for a quite a while, and my lifting progress got significantly set back. Once I started to recover I had to pretty much start over from scratch. I’ve been back in the gym for about 15 months now and my weights and volume have finally started to really pick back up. I’m still far weaker than I should be, but I’m happy to be making progress.

I started with a full body routine for the first few months and then switched to a push/pull routine. Once I started to get a bit stronger I added a heavy/light rotation to that and it’s been working well. Just recently my strength has gotten to be enough that the workout was a tad long and I wanted to add in a bit more variety so I’m moving to a three day schedule instead of two. My diet has been really dialed in lately and my recovery / work capacity are doing well so I’m upping my number of workouts per week as I drop the number of exercises per workout.

Being out of the gym while I was injured coincided with being really busy at work and night school as well as getting married and I managed to let my self go and pack on a bunch of weight, mostly fat. Currently I’m cutting and I’m down 36lbs since getting going again. (so far losing at a 4:1 ratio of fat to lean tissue) On the plus side, I spent a bunch of time doing research while I was out of commission and my diet and training knowledge are better than they’ve ever been previously.

Today’s training article on reverse lunges made me laugh and decide to post this log since I had just made up my mind to start a new routine that included them a few days ago.

So here’s the new routine. Workout A is 5x5, Workout B is 4x10, using alternating periodization. Both workouts are straight sets after any warmup sets. For progression I do rest pause, so all reps and sets are always completed and I move up when I can do all of the sets and reps for that exercise with good form and no rest/pause. Items labeled A or B are only done on that workout.

UPPER PULL

Bent Row
Behind the Back Barbell Shrugs
Good Mornings
Pullups
Strict Wide Upright Row
Face Pulls
A) Supported Leg Raise B) Situp Bench
Short Elliptical HIIT

UPPER PUSH

Military Press
Flat Bench
Chest Dips
Dumbbell Flys
EZ Curls
Reverse EZ Curls
A)Side Planks W/External Rotator B) Stomach Vacuums
Short Elliptical HIIT

LOWER

Squats
Calf Raises
Deadlift
Barbell Reverse Lunge
Farmers Walk
Hip Thrusts
Wrist Roller
A) Half Kneel Cable Chop B) Pallof Press & Hold

I don’t start the new routine till Monday, but I’ll grab my log and post some weights from the current cycle at lunch. Most of the exercises are the same so it’ll give some reference.

2

Ok, so here’s my last few workout sessions on the old routine:

Tuesday Jun 2 - Volume Pull Day

Bent Row 4x10x135
Pullups 4x10x-65 (assisted)
Strict Wide Upright Row 4x10x55
EZ Curls 4x10x35*
Reverse Curls 4x10x10*
Deadlifts 4x10x170 Warmup 115
Farmers Walk 4x50xGym
Situp Bench 4x10xSetting 2
Elliptical HIIT 30 Sec intervals, level 18, 60 Calories, 4 min 10 sec

Thursday Jun 4 - Volume Push Day

Military Press 4x10x95
Good Mornings 4x10x120 Warmup 80
Lever Bench 4x10x185
Chest Dips 4x10x-70 (assisted)
Face Pulls 4x10x35
ATG Squats 4x10x135 Warmup 90
Calf Raises 4x10x190
Side Planks with External Rotators 4x10x15
Elliptical HIIT 30 Sec Intervals, level 18, 60 Calories, 4 min 15 sec

Sunday Jun 7 - Strength Pull Day

Bent Row 5x5x170 Warmup 115
Pullups 5x5xBodyweight or -10 Assisted 5/0 5/0 4/1 4/1 3/2
Strict Wide Upright Rows 5x5x75 Warmup 50
EZ Curls 5x5x55*
Reverse EZ Curls 5x5x30*
Deadlift 5x5x220 Warmup 150
Farmers Walk 8x70xHalf Gym
Dragon Flags 5x5x5Sec hold
Elliptical HIIT 15sec intervals, level 20, 60 calories 3 min 55 sec

Tuesday Jun 9 - Strength Push Day

Military Press 5x5x125 Warmup 85
Good Mornings 5x5x150 Warmup 100
Flat Bench 5x5x160 (just switched from lever bench @ 265 and looking for the right weight, no spotter or safety rails so have to do that cautiously)
Chest Dips 5x5x-20 (assisted)
Face Pulls 5x5x50 (added this recently and still moving up weight rapidly)
ATG Squats 5x5x190 Warmups at 130 & 155
Calf Raises 5x5x235 Warmup 160
Stomach Vacuums 5x5x18sec
Elliptical HIIT 15sec intervals, level 20, 60 calories, 4 min 03 sec

Thur Jun 11 - Volume Pull Day

Bent Row 4x10x135
Pullups 4x10x-65 (assisted)
Strict Wide Upright Row 4x10.60
EZ Curls 4x10x35 (doesn’t count bar weight since I don’t know much the short ones weigh)
Reverse EZ Curls 4x10x10 (doesn’t count bar weight since I don’t know much the short ones weigh)
Deadlift 4x10x170 Warmup at 115
Farmers Walk 4x50xGym length
Situp Bench 4x10xSetting 2
Elliptical HIIT 30sec intervals, level 18, 60 calories reading 4 min 15 sec

3

Had some extra time after I got home so I took the dogs for a 1.5 Mile walk around the park. That’s the fourth day in a row. The weather has been just fantastic lately.

4

Ok, took the dogs for another walk. They’re both worn out but I feel great, loving the sunshine. Ready for the gym tomorrow. That G-Flux stuff really works during a cut.

5

Sun Jun 14 - Volume Push Day

Military Press 4x10x95
Good Mornings 4x10x120w80
Wide Lever Bench 4x10x185
Chest Dips 4x10x-65 (assisted)
Face Pulls 4x10x40
Squats 4x10x135w90
Calf Raises 4x10x190
Side Planks w/ex rotators 4x10x15
HIIT Elliptical 30 sec intervals, level 19, 60 cal, 4:00

Weighed the EZ-Curl bar at 31.25lbs, I’ll round down to 30lbs and use that going forward.

Squat motivation song today was: Coming Undone by Korn

Last day of the old routine, tomorrow I start the new routine and a three week re-feed.

6

Mon Jun 15 - Strength Pull Day

Bent Row 5x5x170w115
Behind the Back Shrugs 5x5x95
Good Mornings 5x5x155w105
Pullups 5x5xbw
Strict Wide Upright Rows 5x5x80w55
Face Pulls 5x5x55
Supported Leg Raise 5x5xbw
HIIT Elliptical 15 Sec Intervals, level 20, 60 cal 3:48

Pullups went great this morning, finally back to doing bodyweight pullups for all sets. (barely)

New routine seems good so far, the shorter duration was good, we’ll see how the extra workouts play out by the end of the week.

7

Tue Jun 16 - Strength Push Day

Military Press 5x5x125w85
Flat Bench 5x5x160
Chest dips 5x5x-20 (assisted)
Dumbbell Flys 5x5x20 (my shoulders did not like this so I didn’t push very hard and I’m going to replace that exercise)
EZ Curls 5x5x85
Reverse EZ Curls 5x5x65
Vacuums 5x20sec
HIIT Elliptical 15 sec intervals, level 20, 60 calories, 4:09

Day two went pretty well, tomorrow is the test since it’s leg day.

8

Wed Jun 17 - Strength Leg Day

ATG Squats 5x5x190w155/130
Calf Raises 5x5x235w160
Deadlift 5x5x220w175/150
Reverse Lunges 5x5x85 (both sides)
Farmers Walk 8x70xHalf Gym
Hip Thrusts 5x5x135
BNS Wrist Roller 5x5x10 (forgot to bring a carabiner, weight will be higher next time)
Kneeling Cable Chops 5x5x25

Squat motivation song today was: Black Betty by Ram Jam

Ok, so today marks the finish of new workout A. Overall I like the three day format and doing 8 exercises instead of 9 is a better fit time wise. The tonnage is totally imbalanced between leg day and the other two days though, this morning was brutal and way too long though I gritted my teeth and worked through it. I’m going to have to reshuffle the exercises before workout B starts tomorrow.

Hip thrusts had great glute activation but they were surprisingly hard to get setup right with the equipment I had and just one person, I’ll have to read up on how to do that easier. Reverse lunges were painful in a good way, I’m going to cut down the reps since I’m doing both sides though. I’m going to replace dumbbell flys with tricep rope extensions since I already had plenty of pec work and they did funky things to my shoulders.

9

Ok, here’s the revised schedule. I shuffled a number of things but the big change was moving deadlifts back to pull day.

PULL

Bent Row
BTB Shrugs
Pullups
SW Upright Row
Deadlift
Face Pulls
A) Supported Leg Raise B) Situp Bench
Elliptical

PUSH

Military Press
Good Mornings
Flat Bench
Chest Dips
Tricep Rope
Wrist Roller
A) Vacuums B) Side Planks W/Hab
Elliptical

LEGS

ATG Squats
Calf Raises
Barbell Reverse Lunge A) 5x3 B) 4x6 (for each leg)
Farmers Walk
Hip Thrusts
EZ Curls
Reverse Curls
A) Kneeling Cable Chop B) Pallof Press

My glutes were on fire most of the morning so hip thrusts are here to stay even if they are a bit hard to setup.

10

Thur Jun 18 - Volume Pull Day

Bent Row 4x10x135
BTB Shrugs 4x10x85
Pullups 4x10x-60 (assisted)
SW Upright Rows 4x10x60
Deadlift 4x10x175w120
Face Pulls 4x10x47.5
Situp Bench 4x10xSetting 2
HIIT Elliptical 30 sec intervals, level 19, 60 calories, 4:16

Work volume seemed reasonable with deadlifts back on pull day.

11

Fri Jun 19 - Volume Push Day

Military Press 4x10x95
Good Mornings 4x10x125w85
Flat Bench 4x10x135
Chest Dips 4x10x-65 (assisted)
Tricep Rope 4x10x35
BNS Wrist Roller 4x5Ex25
Side Planks w/hab 4x10Ex15
HIIT Elliptical 30 sec intervals, level 19, 60 calories, 3:57

Work volume was good, heavier than I expected actually but fine. Workout was a bit long but I was doing a few new things so I probably wasted some time. I’m going to cut the wrist roller back to four reps per side for this workout. So far the remixed routine is going well, if leg day is fine on Monday then I think I’m all set for a while.

12

Went for a 1.5 mile walk last night after dinner.

13

Went for a 1.5 mile walk yesterday morning.

14

Went for a 1.5 mile walk today.

15

Mon Jun 22 - Volume Leg Day

ATG Squats 4x10x140w95
Calf Raises 4x10x195w135
Reverse Lunges 4x6Ex85
Farmers Walk 4x50xgym
Hip Thrusts 4x10x135
EZ Curls 4x10x65
Reverse EZ Curls 4x10x40
Pallof Press 4x6Ex20

Squat motivation song for today: At Last by Etta James

Ended up supersetting squats and curls since the rack was originally busy and I had to start out of order. Worked out ok though.

Overall workload was decent. This is the end of workout B and the remix appears successful so I’m going to call it good and stick with that schedule going forward.

Felt strong this morning, likely due to extra sleep this weekend and the extra calories I’ve been getting since I’m in a refeed.

16

Went for a 1.5 mile walk last night.

Tuesday Jun 23 - Strength Pull Day

Bent Row 5x5x170w115
BTB Shrugs 5x5x100
Pullups 5x5xbw
SW Upright Row 5x5x80w55
Deadlift 5x5x220w175/150
Face Pulls 5x5x62.5
Supported Leg Raise 5x5x5
HIIT Elliptical 15 Sec Intervals, Level 20, 60 calories, 3:58

Workout went great this morning, ready to move up on a bunch of exercises.

17

Wednesday Jun 24 - Strength Push Day

Military Press 5x5x125w85
Good Mornings 5x5x155w125/105
Flat Bench 5x5x160
Chest Dips 5x5x-15 (assisted)
Tricep Rope 5x5x50
BNS Wrist Roller 5x2Ex50
Vacuums 5x5x20sec
HIIT Elliptical 15 sec intervals, level 20, 60 calories, 3:48

18

Thursday Jun 25 - Strength Leg Day

ATG Squats 5x5x195w155/130
Calf Raises 5x5x235w160
Reverse Lunges 5x3Ex95
Farmers Walk 8x70xhalf gym
Hip Thrust 5x5x145
EZ Curls 5x5x85
Reverse EZ Curls 5x5x65
Kneeling Cable Chop 5x3Ex30

Squat motivation song for today: She’s Country by Jason Aldean (Can’t listen to metal all the time you know)

Workout went well. I’m not happy with the total duration of my routine though, today came in at 1:43 which is longer than optimum. I’m happy with the three day schedule, I can’t add any more days per week (I’m already at five) and I like my current exercise selection so that doesn’t leave a lot of room for changes. It’s a retail gym so it’s tough to superset but maybe I can find a few ways to sneak that in without hogging equipment so that I can shorten things up a bit.

19

Friday Jun 26 - Volume Pull Day

Bent Row 4x10x135
BTB Shrugs 4x10x85
Pullups 4x10x-60 (assisted)
SW Upright Row 4x10x60
Deadlift 4x10x175w120
Face Pulls 4x10x50
Situp Bench 4x10xsetting 2
HIIT Elliptical 30 sec intervals, level 19, 60 calories, 4:03

Workout was shorter today at 1:15, maybe it’s just leg day that’s too long? If so that’s fixable, I’m going to try supersetting my curls with the squats and calf raises, that should save time and not take up much extra equipment, just a bar almost no one uses.

20

Went for a 1.5 mile walk this morning. It’s going to be pretty hot today but so far it’s just warm and muggy so the dog had a great time.