Greetings T-Nation.
(cliff notes at the bottom if you dont read novels much)
I’ve been lurking a while here, posting occassionally, and currently have a little downtime in my training to start and stick to a log. Follow if you want, post if you want, but be warned, you miiiiiight catch gingervitis (is it contagious over the internet? I don’t know…)
Background: I’m a little guy by nature, by genetics. Dad was 5’9 and about 150 when he was in the Army Rangers and he can’t be any more than that now… metabolism be damned, all he does is drink and eat, but I digress.
Started playing football in 8th grade, I was a wiry little shit at 123 pounds doing powercleans and benches, not a whole lotta squats and I literally never heard of a deadlift until I was about 15-16 probably. at 15 years old I powercleaned 190 pounds at 123 pounds, and benched 150 (I have long arms, no chest, and i constantly hurt my elbows and shoulders hitting people in and out of pads)
16 years old I crush my T12 vertebrae about 50-60 percent in the bottom of a dogpile. dropped from 140 or 145 pounds to maybe 135 until I finally came to college and started eating and lifting when I was about 19.
At the beginning of this year I was 172 pounds and maybe 9-10 percent bodyfat, I’m 5’9.
I have approximately 14.5 or 15 inch arms, and had 23 inch upper legs at the height of my ‘bulk’. The reason I’m starting a log now is actually twofold… a little advice would be great, and to track my progress back up.
Three weeks ago today I was in a car wreck… totalled my 72 cutlass with a frame off restoration and built engine. Wrapped around a telephone pole… beat and bruised me, slight concussion probably… and my left arm took a deep cut in it, my tricep muscle was torn and it took six staples and a stitch or two to seal it all up.
So I’ve been to the gym twice or three times since then, giving my body time to rest… drinking too much… things of that nature. Diet went to shit because my metabolism shut down, and my work capacity is ridiculously low. I went in and did some box jumps and pull ups and rows(a few exercises I could actually do) and was sweating bullets and panting. Ridiculous.
Lifts::
in the past I’ve done
235 powerclean (not a squat clean, an actual 'power’clean)
335 x 2 below parallel squat
425 x 2 dead
225 x 2 bench
48" box jump
(and I have videos of some of them too, give it a little time and I’ll have 'em posted)
185 x 2 push press
Goals:
I want to put some size on, I put on 30ish pounds in a year and got leaner, all I have to do is tear my muscles down and feed them, they do all the work for me, since I love going to the gym. I have to drag myself out of there in an hour/hour and a half or else I’ll stay for 2 hours.
I like to have heavy lifts, and to be strong, but I’m not all about powerlifting or bodybuilding either. I want to be bigger, I want to be stronger, and that’s a pretty broad goal… I like to have little goals like ‘455 deadlift by the end of the summer’ and such
Training:
As you could imagine, a little bit of a tricep tear, some bruised thighs and my wrist is kinda weak could wreak some tolls on my gym life.
I’ll put on here what I do in the gym and occassionally throw a video up here. I feel like a tool if I have someone take a video of something unimportant though, curls or some bullshit.
TLDR: skinny kid my whole life decided to put some muscle on and has been injured several times, working on keeping my size and strength up despite the hurdles life throws my way.
Thanks for following, chime in with some input
