Skinny Bastard No More

Bigger Stronger Leaner Over 35 Lifter
#21

Mday… awesome work thus far! You certainly have a well thought out goal(s) and plan of attack… topped with a great attitude nothing will stop you my friend!

I look forward to watching your progression, and am excited to see what the culmination of your efforts will reveal at the power lifting event you have decided to enter.

With regards to your question… yes, I too am “results oriented”. I (like most men) am very visual as well. I want to lose fat, gain muscle and get stronger. I know I am getting stronger… but I look in the mirror and I don’t see the 6 pack abs, the spider web vacularity and the cross striations yet. I mean, c’mon… what gives! I have been busting my ass for 6 weeks now! Sheesh… (or as SKIDMARK likes to say… “FEH?!”) How long is this gonna take?

What I do, how I handle it… is I look at it like a bank account. You keep putting a little bit in at a time… consistently and continuous… then one day you look at the balance… and it is a pleasant surprise. This adds fuel to the desire and the determination.

I also use peoples comments (negative and positive) to fuel my psyche. Especially the negative. Boy, are they gonna be surprised in a couple of months.

With a specific goal in mind, you should be fine with this matter anyhow.

And… with your wife by your side, you are very lucky! My wife supports me and my endeavours whole heartedly… but I doubt I could get her out of bed at O’dark-thirty in the morn to go to the gym.

My kudos to your lovely lady as well…

#22

hel320 said it best some where, and I paraphrase him as I write this. It’s about you vs the weight. So you have long levers wtf, its you vs the weight.

Of course as I say, my opinion and 6 bucks will get you a damn nice cup of Starbucks…

#23

bunny,thanks for the comments. The bank account is a great way to look at it. I will have to keep this one in mind. Also, having my wife lifting with me is such a motivating force. Pound for pound she is much stronger than me. I would love to see what she could really do if she put her mind to it. Plus, she would look great in a bench shirt!!

willy, I totally agree with your/hel320’s comment about making excuses. For about two years I told myself that I couldn’t squat because I was too tall. After complaining about my legs not growing, a gym friend of mine finally got real with me and said that my legs wouldn’t grow until I started squatting heavy. I started in with all the reasons why I couldn’t squat. I got about three words out of my mouth before he turned and walked away muttering something about “weakass”. I turned around and got my sorry butt in the squat rack.

No excuses from now on!!
mday

#24

[quote]mday wrote:
I would be interested in hearing everyone’s feelings on an issue I struggle with. How does everyone deal with the need to see immediate results? For me, gaining a clean pound or two a month is an achievement. It gets really frustrating to have to put in 30 days of hard work in the gym and at the dinner table only to see a one pound gain. How does everyone else handle this?

mday[/quote]

Keep doing that and you will have put on 12-24 good pounds in a year! It may not be the stuff of magazine headlines, but in the real world that is pretty good for someone beyond adolescence/youth.

What best motivates me now is having specific long-term goals progress towards which can be monitored by smaller benchmarks along the way. I have probably made my worst mistakes in this endeavor by trying to force (feed/diet/train) for the immediate future (apart from errors in not properly dissociating bodybuilding and strength training). The ability to keep perspective is a great advantage of age, even if it must be constantly practiced.

#25

[quote]mday wrote:
bunny,thanks for the comments. The bank account is a great way to look at it. I will have to keep this one in mind. Also, having my wife lifting with me is such a motivating force. Pound for pound she is much stronger than me. I would love to see what she could really do if she put her mind to it. Plus, she would look great in a bench shirt!!

willy, I totally agree with your/hel320’s comment about making excuses. For about two years I told myself that I couldn’t squat because I was too tall. After complaining about my legs not growing, a gym friend of mine finally got real with me and said that my legs wouldn’t grow until I started squatting heavy. I started in with all the reasons why I couldn’t squat. I got about three words out of my mouth before he turned and walked away muttering something about “weakass”. I turned around and got my sorry butt in the squat rack.

No excuses from now on!!
mday[/quote]

Your experience with your friend is the key. It’s not about limitations, it’s about what you can do. Frankly, you don’t know what you can do since this is a new endeavor.

I am too small-boned and don’t weigh enough to be a champion in powerlifting. My legs and arms are too long for my height. I can’t afford enough food to gain weight, etc,etc, I don’t care - what I can do is find some food and eat it, bench as well as I can bench, squat as well as I can squat and when I hit a roadblock, find a way around it by asking the advice of people more experienced than me.

The only way not to get results is to quit or never do. A minimal result is still a positive gain and it’s best to focus on that rather than what didn’t happen. The thing we can’t stand is the pain of not getting our way immediately. This is a game that takes years to excel in or even be middling good. You have to enjoy the journey as much or more than you enjoy the goal.

You’ve got a great diet plan, a good training plan and a goal to work toward. I personally think you are close to maintenance calories for your weight and height but it may be too soon to add food. When I read your stats I immediately thought of an article I read a while back about a 6’6" powerlifter and his struggles to excel in his sport. I hope to find that for you soon.

My 2 cents.

#26

thanks skid,

would love the article if you can find it.

#27

05/30/08

Weight: 220
Another pound weight gain. I think I am gaining weight fairly quickly because I was at such a caloric deficit during my cutting phase. I was at about 3,300 calories for three months, and I lost about 30 pounds. At the end, I noticed that I was very flat and lost some strength. I am now eating at 3,750 and I still think I am eating below even my maintenance level. I will continue to increase the calories by about 250 to 500 every two weeks and monitor weight gain. I will probably end up somewhere near 5,000 calories according to most of the calculators.

Workout:
Last night I did a little bit of foam roller work and stretching. Tonight is repetition upper body and I am going to try and get some rollerblading in over the lunch hour (depends on the weather).

Nutrition: 3,774 calories 158g F(37%),273g C(27%),327g P(36%)
Here are some of the foods that I ate yesterday. I try and keep my food as clean as possible.
whole eggs, egg whites, bananas, asparagus, lean turkey, avocado, spinach, tomatoes, lowfat cheese, nuts, cranberries, carrots, cottage cheese, ground beef (85% lean), natural peanut butter, orange, apple, turkey jerky, sweet potato, fish (salmon), protein powder (whey), olive oil

Supplements: fish oil, creatine, BCAA, green tea

Sleep: Another 8 hours last night.

Mood: I was a little sore yesterday but the foam roller and stretching helped. I am excited about the workouts this weekend. I really need to push myself on the box squats on Saturday. Having this log and the goals do help keep me focused. Sunny and 77 both Saturday and Sunday. I need to finish painting on my house. Going up and down the ladder should help build my calves.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

mday

#28

I like what the other have have been telling you mday. Your routine looks solid, just listen to what your body is telling you. I like to drive myself very hard as well, but rest is a good thing. When you stop to let the aches and pains go away you feel like a million bucks. Nice job!

#29

I couldn’t find the original interview with that tall lifter I’d mentioned before BUT…

I found an roundtable article on Elite Fitness Systems site regarding Sumo deadlifting with Tim Harold of Westside Barbell adding his 2 cents.

http://www.elitefts.com/documents/sumo_deadlift.htm

Tim is 6’7" and according to his stats on westside-barbell.com the guy’s got a 2500+ total. He weighs in at 400+ lbs and is still fairly young.

I dunno that you want to go up to 400 lbs, but it shows that a taller lifter can excel in the sport…

And I think you’re right that the calories you’re taking in amount to maintenance for your bodyweight. I’m looking at 3600 cals to gain 10 lbs weight and I’m a diminutive 6’. What’s that mean for you, being pretty lean at 216?

Hope you find the article and info encouraging.

#30

Skid,

thanks for the link. I try and get to the Elitefts site as much as possible. There are some great articles on the site and they always have some great training gear.

I agree that I am still well below the calorie level I need to be at. Last time I tried to gain size, I went immediately from about 3,500 to 5,000 calories and my body did not like it. I figure I will work my way up a little slower this time. I plan on adding in some more protein, some additional complex carbs, and some more healthy fats. I will be adding milk to the menu in the coming week. I don’t have any problems with the lactose, so I should be fine.

I am also thinking about adding in a “cheat day” every Sunday. This will be the same day that I do my strongman type workout so the body should be primed for the extra calories. I got this idea from CrewPierce’s physique clinic. Thibs had him doing this type of thing once a week. Any thoughts?

Thanks again for the link.
mday

#31

[quote]mday wrote:
I plan on adding in some more protein, some additional complex carbs, and some more healthy fats. I will be adding milk to the menu in the coming week. I don’t have any problems with the lactose, so I should be fine.
mday[/quote]

I may be old-fashioned, but I think milk is tops for helping put meat on the bones and keeping the latter healthy. It starts and ends my day.

#32

05/31/08

Weight: 219

Workout: Repitition Upper Body
A. Max. Chin-ups
0/10,0/9,0/8
I need to get stronger here.

B1. Lat. Pulldown
160/8,150/10,150/12
B2. Seated DB Power Cleans
25/10,25/10,25/10
These are tough!! Really need to work on form next week

C. DB Seated Military Press
45/12,45/12,50/10,55/10
It took three sets for my shoulder not to hurt on this lift. I need to spend a little more time warming up on the shoulder lifts.

D1. DB Shrugs
80/10,85/10,85/10
D2. Seated Incline DB Curls
35/10,35/7,35/7

E. Wrist Roller
10/up down, 10/up down
I really need to do more forearm work!! Very weak

Nutrition: 4.177 calories 137gF(29%),380gC(35%),380gP(36%)
A big plate of whole wheat spaghetti and meatballs after the workout last night pushed me a little higher today. Tasted great!!

Supplements: Post workout drink,Fish Oil,BCAA, creatine

Sleep: Got about 10 hours last night.

Mood: I felt all right about the workout last night. I have never done any direct forearm work so I will need to increase strength here if I hope to pull significant weight in November. I felt good and the extra calories were great. Looking forward to the weekend. I need to get ready for a big max. effort box squat.

mday

#33

Great report and workout. Looks as if you are well on the way to your desired results

#34

Lookin’ good, mday.

You got it all together. Great program, good calorie target and best of all, you’re executing on it.

Can’t wait to see what you’re doing at 250 lbs.

#35

Good workout. Question. On the DB military presses are you bringing the dbs down over the shoulders ending up in line with your ears or to the front like BB mil presses?

#36

Willy, Skid,

Thanks for the support. The first full week went well. As both of you said, I just need to continue and keep the intensity level up. That is the main reason for the log.

hel320,
I do the DB military presses in line with my ears. I’ve done other variations on this lift (Arnold Press, palms in) in the past. What is the best for shoulder pain?

mday

#37

06/01/08

Weight: 219

Workout: First Max. Effort Lower Body last night

A. Box Squat
45/8,95/5,135/5,155/3,185/3,225/2,255/3
I did a lot of warm-up sets in order to make sure that I was ready for my max. attempt. I felt like I had good form on the 255 and I came off the box fairly quickly. I made sure to keep the knees out and focused on sitting back. 265 for three reps next week!!

B. Box Step-ups with DB (28 inch box)
50/9,50/9,50/12
I really tried to push the last set. These left me completely winded. Great exercise. I am going to switch to the BB next week, so I can add more weight.

C. Pull Throughs
160/10,160/12,160/12
I focused on keeping my back straight and squeezing the glutes,hams,posterior chain at the top of the lift. Felt strong

D. Ground Based Abs Circuit
4 exercises/10-15 reps each/2 sets
These were extremely tough. My abs need some work. My wife did the workout with me again and she loved this circuit. It even got her to break a sweat.

Overall, I was very happy with this workout. It is going to take me a while to learn how to grind through the squat. In the past, I’ve been afraid to really push the squat because of my technique issues and fear of getting stuck in the hole. I need to work on the fear factor.

Nutrition: 3,894C, 164gF(35%), 253gC(26%), 360gP(39%)
I also had a lite beer with my steak and grilled asparagus. A little bit of reward for the workout.

Supplements: Post workout drink,fish oil, BCAA, green tea, creatine

Sleep: I got seven hours last night.

Mood: Yesterday and today, I just feel really good. I think I am finally at the right volume of training for my body. I will need to see how I feel in the next few weeks. My wife is also enjoying the workouts. She is also increasing her weight and increasing the intensity level. She however, wants to see the scale drop unlike my goal

I am going to up the calories to 4,000 each day this week. We will see what happens.

I hope everyone is having a good weekend.

#38

Great workout mday. Looking forward to your progress. I’m also jealous as hell of that beer!

#39

[quote]mday wrote:
I do the DB military presses in line with my ears. I’ve done other variations on this lift (Arnold Press, palms in) in the past. What is the best for shoulder pain?

mday[/quote]

mday:

Have you tried a parallel grip … knuckles toward your ears? Some find that helps. Since you’re using DBs it might be worth a shot.

Are you doing any preventative rotator cuff work?

Cappy

#40

Depending on where the pain is sometimes the best solution is not to do presses at all.

But usually it’s the external rotators being weak which causes the pain. I do dumbbell cleans and face pulls for that and pressing is getting less painful.

The YTWL series can help a lot too.

If pressing is contra-indicated (I like them big words) then front plate raises and laterals can help until you can get back to it.