Pumping Iron with Adriftpanda,Chainsaw13 and Icehog3 II

[Sancho]

Nice Huy!

Charlie, nice work! On your question, I'll probably keep this up until I start stalling excessively and or not progressing linearly anymore. What started your HT lifting lately?

Tom, glad you've got a way of working around it. Sounds painful none the less.

Tonight was decent
Squats 5x5
Bench 3-5x5
Row 5x5
Tricep pull down 1x10 at 140 lbs

[swingerofbirches]

Don't blame you for not switching until you stall, Chris. Especially if it's a routine that you really enjoy.

I switched to this 3 week hypertrophy routine because Id done power lifting style (5x5s) and various versions of more typical lifting (3/12, 3/8, 4/10) and while I've gained a lot of muscle and strength my weight loss has fizzled. I had to eat so much to fuel the heavy lifting and I was putting on muscle so I wanted to switch things up for a bit so that my lifting was more cardiovascular and more focused on growing the muscle that's already there.

The results have actually been really good and I am feeling sore like I haven't felt in a long time but I understand why people say that you can't really do hypertrophy for more than 3-4 weeks at a shot.

I lifted heavily when I was in high school and college but never really switched up my routines to any great extent and since I've started lifting again I've done a lot of reading and video watching and decided that I'd adopt the Arnold approach this time around. He said he never did the same workout twice. I'm not going that crazy but I'm only doing 4-6 weeks of the same routine before switching it up.

Prob more than you wanted lol

[icehog3]

Some good stuff there, Charlie, I switch up my workout every time, and my general program every couple months.

Could feel the back/kidney was still going to an issue with chest today, so I decided to go pretty light and with minimal rest....25 sets in about 35 minutes.

Inciline Bench 5 sets
Decline Bench 5 sets
Wide grip Bench 5 sets
Vertical Bench (plate loaded) 5 sets
Dips 5 sets

Probably not going to do much for size, but I am still super pumped/tight an hour later.

[swingerofbirches]

Nice, Tom! Sorry you're back/kidney are still hurting but maybe you're peddled back lifts will actually help you in the long run. You know, you're lifting which is good but you're not going 100% so when your back feels better that first few workouts back will probably be killer! A month or two back I read about The Rock and his workouts in the run up to shooting Hercules and he had a really serious hip injury just 6 weeks before shooting Hercules. So he took 4 weeks off completely and was really worried about not being in good enough shape to start shooting, but he said that it ended up making him even better. He said that the layoff was the rest his body needed and when he started lifting again 2 weeks before shooting he managed to get bigger and more cut than he thought he could if he'd worked out all 6 weeks. I've read a number of stories like that so maybe your "lighter" lifts during recovery will actually be a blessing i disguise. Just trying to be positive :)

Hypertrophic Shoulders today ... my shoulders are soooooooo weak. :( lol

Shoulder Press (Hammer Strength) - warmup 1/10 @ 70 - 8/10 @ 90 with drop sets to 70 & 50lbs @ sets 4 & 6
Plate Front Raise - 8/10 @ 25 (plate angled outward, extension at top of raise)
Low Mount Cable Close Grip Raise Flatbar (to chin, elbows out) - 8/10 @ 80 superset with High Mount Cable Rope Pull (to nose, elbows out) @ 80
Bent Over Cable Raise (single arm) - 8/10 @ 20 )performed as alternating circuit)

In the name of always switching things up, i finished off with a heavy (for me) bi/tri superset ...

Cable Curl EZ Bar - 4/8 @ 140 (failure @ 6 on 4th set) superset with Cable Angled Close Grip Pulldown - 4/8 @ 170 (complete)

Gonna be some really heavy cardio tomorrow; off day on weights.

Sunday will be my last hypertrophic chest/back superset day. I'm actually kind of excited to get back to some heavy lifting. :)

[icehog3]

I absolutely agree with some of your thoughts, Charlie, sometimes change (even perceived "negative" change is a benefit).

Good luck getting back on the heavy stuff!

[mosesbotbol]

Anyone using a phone app to log their workout?

I find if I am working out by myself, I forget 20+ years of exercises I use to do regularly... At my age, I really need to keep track better or I never move up in weight or do enough variety of exercises per muscle group. Weight lifting has a new low of dullness and I'd like something to keep the pace up before I wander off to stretching area...

Everything is all X-fit and gobbling up floor space at every gym! Seems like a great routine if you have a trainer and I would love to go that route, but that's big bucks. I am thinking maybe a month of it would be cool to build a routine.

Anyone else into X-fit?

[icehog3]

Felt strong on back today, back/kidney didn't bother me a bit until the last couple sets.

T-bar rows 225, 250, 270, 295, 315
Cable rows 260, 270, 280, 290
Barbell rows 245, 275, 305, drop set 305/245
Wide cable pulldowns 220, 240, 260 drop set 240/180

[swingerofbirches]

Did something out of the norm today. A friend of ours is a fitness class instructor at a local YMCA and she's starting a new class next month and wanted is t be her guinea pigs so she could fine tune her presentation before the class actually begins. It's basically an aerobic weight lifting class, so lots of bar work for bis/tris/back/shoulders and a LOT of squatting and deadlifting (lower weight, higher intensity).

Class was 1.25hr and was actually a lot of fun. I'm glad to have done it since I missed my morning cardio thanks to a work emergency. :)

Chest and Back tomorrow! :)

[Sancho]

Glad to hear it's feeling better Tom! Nice sets!

Charlie, appreciate the follow up! Nice workout!

Moses, I use fitocracy on iPhone. Doesn't track progress but their database is decent and the included workouts are okay for mixing stuff up.

Off day today due to knee pain again, too much crawling on concrete playing with trains with the kiddos :) worth it.

[icehog3]

Hope the knee feels better tomorrow, Chris. :)

[Sancho]

Knee was good today, Thanks Tom!

Squats 5x5
Ohp 5x5
Deadlifts 135,185,245x5

My grip strength on deads is not so good, ended up resetting my grip each rep. I suppose this is normalish?

[swingerofbirches]

Glad your knee felt better, Chris.

Do any of you guys use straps? I see people use them all the time at the gym, and, like you Chris, i'm to the point where my weight capability is exceeding my grip strength.

[Adriftpanda]

I do use wrist straps sometimes, but rarely do I use them. I just always carry them in my bag. Versa Grips.

However, I do use chalk when I deadlift.

[icehog3]

Glad the knee was better, Chris! :tu

I have straps in my bag, but haven't used them for a couple years now. My grip strength is good, I do fail sometimes on my heaviest sets, but find that my grip strength continues to improve without them.

Shoulder day today....it's "push" movements that have really been bothering my back/kidney, so I lifted short, somewhat light with perfect form, and got through a short shoulder workout without aggravating it at all.

Military press 135, 145, 155, 165, 175, 185, 195
Barbell shrugs 275, 275, 275, 335, 335

That's it, short and sweet. Back feels the best it has in over a week. :tu Hope that lasts through the night.

[Adriftpanda]

Week 9 of my pl program and everything seems to be coming along well. Next week will be my last week and that's all pr stuff. Will update with all my final numbers and how much it jumped. Pretty stoked on the numbers.

Pause bench 3x3
wide grip touch n go bench 4x3
supported chest t-bar row 4x5 w/drop set 1x5
neutral grip db press 4x4

facepulls 3x15
finished it off with a super set of arms

[icehog3]

Nice going, Huy, looking forward to hearing what the gains were.

Arms yesterday:

Cambered bar curls 115, 125, 135, 145, 155, 165
Preacher curls 170, 145, 145
Skullcrushers 145 @ 3 sets
Cable pushdowns 145, 125, 105, 95

Off day today.

[Adriftpanda]

Volume press day.

OHP 4x4
Wide grip pause bench 4x6
Wide grip lat pull down 3x8
DB unilateral press 3x6
DB row 3x8

Didn't have time for arms but it's all good. Deadlift party tomorrow.

[icehog3]

Party!?!? :wo

Legs yesterday.....back toiday.....hospital tomorrow? ;) :lr

[Sancho]

Haha, looking forward to it Huy!

Thanks for the kind words Tom! Glad the backs feeling better, anything now 24hrs later?

Squats 5x5
Bench 3-5x5
Rows 5x5

Cable pull downs 2 sets to failure

[icehog3]

Still better than it was a couple weeks ago, Chris, but still nagging. Maybe it's permanent like my shoulder? ;) :hn

[icehog3]

Back day, did heavy cable/pre-fatigue. Good pump.

Wide cable pulldowns 200, 230, 260, 270, 280, 290, 300
Cable rows 240, 270, 290, 310, 260
Barbell rows 225, 255, 275, 295
Close grip barbell rows 3 sets @ 215

[Adriftpanda]

Volume legs today. Decent day of training so I rewarded myself with pizza, ice cream and cookies.

low bar squat 4x6
front squats 4x4
close stance hack squats 3x10
bulgarian split squats 3x10

and finished off with some core work.

[icehog3]

I slept in today as I didn't sleep well until early morning. So no pizza, ice cream or cookies for me today. OK, maybe 1 cookie before bed. ;)

Going to try to do a double before hockey tomorrow as I am off work. Getting the duct tape ready now. :)

[Adriftpanda]

Off this weekend. Eat, eat, watch some football and eat some more for me.

[icehog3]

How's the eating going, Huy? :D

Got in a short "double today". now I can take tomorrow off before my second hockey game in 2 days.

Cambered bar curls 125, 135, 145, 155, 165, 175
Preacher curls 110 @ 4 sets
Seated Military Press 135, 165, 185, 200, 220, 175
French Curls 105, 115, 125, 140
Pushdowns 125, 115, 105, 95

[zemekone]

bishes

[zemekone]

hopefully ill be posting here everyday, i figured how to unblock it in my work computer :D

[icehog3]

geRRy! :D

[Adriftpanda]

GeRRy!

I found a place that had some awesome southern comfort food. Ordered red snapper, catfish and cornbread. I ate a few cookies today as well. Cookies are like vitamins to me.

[icehog3]

I take a lot of vitamins, Huy, I wish vtamins were like cookies. :)

The fish sounds good, love me some good catfish.

[swingerofbirches]

Yesterday was hypertrophy shoulders and today was some hard cardio.

I'm a bit torn about how to mix up my routine this coming week. I've been on hypertrophy for 3 weeks now so i'm considering doing HT Mon-Wed, Thurs off and doing 5x5 on Friday.

[Dave128]

Getting the duct tape ready now. :)

:tu

[Sancho]

GeRRy long time brother!

Squats 5x5
OHP 5x5
Deadlifts 135,205,255x5
Lat pull downs 3 sets to failure

Felt good tonight, almost BW deadlifts, although since focusing on this lifting routine I've been watching the scale less and less

Huy, where's your PR's? This is it for your routine yeah?

[Adriftpanda]

No PRing this week. My coach wants to wait another couple weeks before I PR, he wants some numbers to go up. Current bw is 178 so with my numbers so far, its pretty decent.

Pause bench 3x3 @235 weight was a tad too heavy so I had a spotter, my wife.
wide grip bench (touch n go) 4x4 @225
chest supported t-bar row 4x4
neutral grip db press 4x4 @90
facepulls 4x8-10

fst-7 some arms to get a good pump.

[swingerofbirches]

I somehow tweeked my good shoulder yesterday afternoon, so with two bum shoulders I decided to try something new today.

I did a 5x5 powerlifting routine today followed up by a small arm workout.

Since this was my first 5x5 in a while I started off at weight that I knew I could complete the workout lifting.
Squats - 5/5 @ 180
Deads - 5/5 @ 180
Bench (hammerstrength) - 5/5 @ 180

Cable Curls - 5/20 @ 80 (final set being a dropset until technical failure) superset with Close Grip Tricep Cable Pulldowns @ 120 (final set being a dropset until technical failure)

I'm gonna repeat this routine on Wed & Fri, with the exception being that on Wed i'm going to lift secondary chest/back superset(s) and on Fri i'm going to lift shoulders secondary (assuming my shoulders feel ok by then).

[icehog3]

Sorry to hear about your shoulder, Charlie. As the "owner" of a permanently trashed left shoulder, I feel your pain...literally.

After a decent chest workout yesterday, got in a good back workout today

Bent over rows 185, 215, 245, 265, 285, 305, 225
T-bar rows 225, 250, 270, 295
Superwide pulldowns 180, 200, 220, 240, 260
One arm rows 115, 135, 160
Pullups (bodyweight) 2 sets

Legs tomorrow, should have been today but after 3 hockey games in 3 nights ...No way, Jose. :r

[Sancho]

Hang tough Charlie!
Nice sets Tom, you and your crazy doubles...

Tonight:
Squats 5x5
Bench 5x5
Row 5x5
Tricep rope pushdowns 3 sets to failure

[swingerofbirches]

Thanks Tom & Chris ... the left shoulder (good one) is actually feeling a tiny bit better, so with any luck it'll be in good shape come Friday.

Tomorrow will be another 5x5 day ... i'll update on weight tomorrow.

Tom - how do your sets work? Do you do a certain number of reps at the weights you specify? Sorry if i'm missing the obvious.

[Adriftpanda]

Fun day of training, my favorite training day.

OHP 3x4
Wide grip pause bench 4x4
Wide grip lat pull downs 4x6
DB unilateral military press 4x5
DB row 3x8

Finished off with some quick bicep. Didn't have time to hit tris so I'll just superset it tomorrow.

[icehog3]

Hi Huy, Charlie, Chris!

Charlie, I go higher reps than I used to when I was younger. For instance, on the Barbell rows yesterday is was:

185 -25
215 -18
245 -14
265 -13
285 -10
305 -8
225 -15

Pretty much as close to failure as possible, and rarely below 6-8 reps in any given set. The days of "maxing" for single reps are long gone for this old guy. ;)

[swingerofbirches]

Dang ... you're moving some weight, Tom! Nice job!

5x5 again today ... Squat @ 220 / Deadlift @ 220 / Bench @ 200 ... finished up with Cable Curls (ezbar) 5/20 @ 80 supersetted with Close Grip Angled Cable Extensions 5/20 @ 120

On a positive note, the good shoulder is feeling a bit better today. I'm hopeful that it'll be fine here in another day or two!

[icehog3]

Good news on the shoulder, Charlie! :tu

[Adriftpanda]

Deadlift party with myself last night.

Deads 4x4
Halted deads 4x5
Shrugs 4x10
Seated v-grip rows 4x6

finished it off with some tricep movements bc I miss doing it.

cable extensions 5x12-15, 15 sec rest
dips 4x10
seated db overhead extensions 4x8-10

[icehog3]

Nice, Huy!

Off today, International Chest Day tomorrow before work.

[swingerofbirches]

Did a little bit of back work today before my cardio.

Close Grip Row (HammerStrength) - 4/8 @ 230
Wide Grip Cable Row - 4/8 @ 160
Straight Arm Lat Pulldowns - 4/8 @ 120
Long Bar Shrugs - 5/10 @ 150

Just wanted to get a little back lift in ... i've got a rly busy weekend coming up and wanted to be able to do arms & shoulders (and cardio) tomorrow before things get busy so that i'll be on track next Monday to start again with 5x5s.

You guys have any pre-workout or fat burner recommendations?

Currently all I take is the GNC Men's Health Energy Vitamin Pak ... but i'm looking for a little bit of a boost and pre-workout should give me a boost before i hit the weights and a good (GOOD being a very key word) fat burner to help me shed some of this belly/love handle fat.

[Sancho]

Good news Charlie!

Huy, gotta love deadlift parties did some myself today :)

I'm not using anything pre workout, stuff all gave me the jitters. I'm using Optimum Nutrition Gold, on Tom/Huy's recommendation. Like it a lot better than any GNC product which was akin to swallowing drywall cement.

Squats 5x5
OHP 5x5
Deads 135,185,265,185x5
Close grip cable pull downs 3 sets to failure

[Adriftpanda]

Squats yesterday, off today and tomorrow.

squats 4x6
front squats 4x3
close stance hack 4x8
bulgarian split squats 3x10

some core work +calves. Donuts and pancakes to recover today :)

[icehog3]

Chest today, strength super low, so I prefatigued with some machine work and then did rep sets of inclines: 185, 205, 225, 245, 265. Then some flyes and machine inclines to finish. Decent workout for such a low energy day.

[icehog3]

Second low energy day in a row, and knew I had two hockey games, so I prefatgiued again with cables for back. The pullups I finished with really ended the workout on a good note...and pump.

Cable Rows 200, 230, 250, 270, 290, 310
Cable pulldowns (neutral grip) 200, 220, 240, 260, 280
Barbell rows 205, 225, 245, 265, 285, 225
Pullups 4 sets to failure

[swingerofbirches]

Good work, Tom!!!

Today was 5x5 (Squat @ 230 / Deads @ 200 / Bench @ 180 / OHP @ 160) ...

Followed by a hypertrophic shoulder workout:
Low Cable Pulls (5/20 @ 80)
High Rope Cable Pulls (5/20 @ 80)
Bent Over Cable Side Extensions (5/20 @ 20)
Shrugs (3/20 @ 110)

Finished with a superset of Cable Curls (5/20 @ 80) and Close Grip Cable Pull Down (5/20 @ 120)

My goal for the next month and a half or two is to do the following:
Monday - 5x5 + shoulders / Cardio
Tuesday - Cardio
Wednesday - 5x5 + chest & back / Cardio
Thursday - Cardio
Friday - 5x5 + legs
Saturday - Bis/Tris & Cardio

I'm really looking forward to this routine. :)

[Sancho]

Perk up Tom! How many games have you been in this week? Still solid for low energy.

Good work Huy, I don't like those Bulgarian squats

Nice Charlie, program looks pretty heavy on PL

Squats 5x5
Bench 3-5x5
Row 5x5
ISO bench 2x5
Cable pushdowns 3 sets to failure, I may switch these to drop sets or maybe dips to mix it up.

Felt okay, bench is still giving me problems, progress there for me is slow slow slow.

[swingerofbirches]

Chris, if tomorrow rolls around and I haven't recovered enough (or Friday) then i'll back of the 5x5 by one time this week. I'd considered doing Mon/Wed/Sat, but figured that i'd rather have 2 full days off 5x5 over the weekend. If I feel like i'm in danger of overdoing it or hurting myself i'll just cut it down to 5x5 twice this week.

I'm feeling good and sore today lol ... we'll see how tomorrow goes.

My biggest struggle is that i'm trying to put on muscle while dropping fat/weight. It's a tough combo.

[icehog3]

Tough combo for certain, Charlie....best of luck with both goals!

Switching it up always seems to help me, Chris.

After two low energy days in a row, took yesterday off after a tough hockey game Sunday night, and did a psuedo double today. Felt much better, kept it basic.

Cambered bar curls 125, 135, 145, 155, 165
Preacher curls 135, 135, 135, 135, 110
Seated Military Press 135, 155, 175, 185, 195, 185
Skull crushers 105, 125, 135, 145, 125, 105

[swingerofbirches]

Good work, Tom! Like I said before, you move some weight!!!

I managed 60min of cardio this evening. I know that gaining muscle while losing weight is tough stuff but if you want crazy results you gotta do crazy work. :)

What kind of cardio do you guys do? Tom, anything beyond hockey (i know what a workout that is; i grew up in Chicago)? Chris?

[icehog3]

Charlie, it's strictly hockey for me. My team and two others I play for, I usually get 3 to 4 games a week, plus some rat time.

Keep pushing toward your dual goals, Brother! :tu

[swingerofbirches]

5x5 again today (squat @ 180 / dead @ 180 / bench @ 190 - focusing super closely on form for all exercises) followed by chest/back supersets. 3/10 Incline Bench (HammerStrength) @ 120 w/ Close Grip High Row (HammerStrength) @ 180 , 3/10 Decline Bench (HS) @ 140 w/ Close Grip Low Row (HS) @ 180 , 3/10 Cable Flys @ 80 , 3/10 Dips @ 130 , superset 3/10 Barbell Wide Grip Rows @ 110 w/ Shrugs @ 110 , 3/10 Reverse EZBar Curls @ 50 ... followed it all up with 45min of basketball shoot around.

I feel sick LOL

[icehog3]

THAT is some serious volume, Charlie! :tu :ze

Off day today, leg day manana.

[swingerofbirches]

Thanks Tom! :) I think that this is part of me learning what works for me. I lifted when I was younger but it was a more traditional style of lifting and i've been lifting again for awhile now as an adult and my body (sports, lifting) has always responded best to high volume. I think that I may just be one of those people that has to work out like this if i'm gonna get the results that I want. I have a hard time with feeling like I didn't leave it all out there too, so this kind of lifting helps me feel like i'm giving it everything I have.

Good luck with leg day! I'll be doing hypertrophic legs tomorrow after my 5x5 so i feel your pain.

Just cardio today ... not sure if that's gonna be the elliptical/treadmill or if i'll get some pickup basketball in.

[icehog3]

Hola Psychos. :)

Didn't feel like training when I got to the gym so I knew I had to do something different for back. Ended up being pumped as a MoFo by the time I left.

T-bar rows 225 x 10 sets. Dropped rest time every set until I wasn't even catching my breath for the last one. 25 reps on set 1, down to 10 reps by set 10.

Cable rows 240 x 6 sets, decreasing rest again

Barbell rows 175, 195, 215, 235, 255

Finished with 3 supersets of pullups to failure and cable pulldowns:
Bodyweight/220, bodyweight/200, bodyweight/180

[swingerofbirches]

"Pumped as a MoFo" - new standard for being pumped lol :)

5x5 today - Squats (200) / Deads (200) / Chest (200) / OHP (160)

It occurred to me today that i've never counted the weight of the bar when totaling up my squat and dead weights. 200 up there means 200 in plates. Idk how much the bar weighs honestly.

Tomorrow is arms and cardio.

Last night was pickup bball for an hour.

[icehog3]

Standard Olympic bar is 45 pounds, Charlie, it that's what you're using.

Did you get pumped as a MoFo? :D

[swingerofbirches]

Well that puts my 5x5 squats and deads @ 245 LOL

No, I didn't get "pumped as a MoFo" :(
Honestly it wasn't my best workout ever. I barely had the energy to get through my 5x5 portion so I did't get to leg hypertrophy; I think that my basketball playing last night took it's toll. I'll just tack it onto the end of my arm workout tomorrow. Hopefully tomorrow is my "pumped as a MoFo" day!!! :D

[icehog3]

Hope so too, Charlie. :tu

[swingerofbirches]

Arms today ...

I tried to push the weight and progressively load ... my biceps are really really laggy and i'm starting to get frustrated. So if anyone has any advice for growing bis, by all means, post up anything you're willing to share.

Superset - Set 1 - Cable Curl 10 reps @ 140 / Close Grip Cable Pull Downs 10 reps @ 170
- Set 2 - " " 10 reps @ 150 / " " 10 reps @ 180
- Set 3 - " " 8 reps @ 160 / " " 8 reps @ 200
- Set 4 - " " 6 reps @ 170 / " " 6 reps @ 200

Superset - Reverse EZBar Curl 4/10 @ 60 / Overhead Rope Extensions Set 1 - 10 @ 120
Set 2 - 10 @ 130
Set 3 - 8 @ 140
Set 4 - 7 @ 140

Dips (Hoist Machine) Set 1 - 10 @ 215
Set 2 - 10 @ 215
Set 3 - 10 @ 235
Set 4 - 8 @ 235

Preacher Curl w/ EZBar - Sets 1-4 - 10 @ 70 / 10 @ 70 / 8 @ 70 / 7 @ 70

Standing EZBar Curl - Set 1 - 5 @ 80
Set 2 - 4 @ 80
Set 3 - 3 @ 80

Finished up with front (3/15 @ 30) and back (3/15 @ 60) forearm curls, since my forearms and grip strength need to get better for me to progress in my deads without straps.

30 min of cardio (treadmill set at 15incline and 3mph)

Still didn't feel "Pumped as a MoFo" ... i pushed the weight today but got less of a "pump" than usual. Meh :(

[GreekGodX]

Arms today ...

Still didn't feel "Pumped as a MoFo" ... i pushed the weight today but got less of a "pump" than usual. Meh :(

Here's my arm Rx. When I workout biceps my arms are so pumped that it sometimes hurts. You have a lot of volume but the key to bicep training is the eccentric phase (lowering of the weight). I made the biggest improvements on my arms when I started doing weighted negatives on pull-ups (think eccentric phase). Physiologically our biceps are made to hold weight. So if you want them to grow, try doing a 3-second negative on each rep. Pair that with gripping it like someone is trying to steal it from you and that should give you quality reps. Think at the top to flex your bicep and hold that flex as you are lowering the weight.

Also my preference is to do triceps before biceps in a superset. For me it "greases" my joints, lets me get better reps, and more blood flow. Focus on the pump with partial movements as well. Say after you do pulley bicep curls, last rep only lower it halfway down and do 5-10 partial reps at the top (or as many as you can do on every set). Hope you can find something that works in that, Charlie.

Love all the action in here :)

Been working on my strength. Unfortunately tweaked my back deadlifting so working around that. Lifting heavy makes it feel better until the next day.

[icehog3]

Good to see you in here, Son. :tu

Today was shoulder day. Insomnia last night, funny that I recently read that lack of sleep decreases tolerance to pain. Maybe that was just in my head today, but after a set at 205, shoulder hurt so bad I had to shut it down, do a couple rep sets, then just a few machine sets to stretch it out. Maybe it was psychological, but it freaking hurt. :r

Military Press 135, 155, 175, 185, 195, 205, 135, 135
Seated machine press 95, 115, 135
Abs

Hoping for better sleep and a better workout before my hockey game tomorrow.

[icehog3]

Arm day, nice and easy on my aching shoulder.....

Cable pushdowns (V grip) 90, 105, 115, 125, 135, 145, 165, 95
High dips 4 sets to failure (bodyweight)
Cambered bar curls 135, 145, 155, 165, 175, 135
Hammer Curls 3 sets @ 55
Preacher curls 160, 160, 135

[Sancho]

Hope you can get back in the swing Tom, pain sucks, and you've been fighting it a long time. Do you ice it at all?

Had some recovery days myself after doing something to me knee again, back at 100% today and went to task:

Squats 5x5 @205
OHP 4-5x6 @100
Deadlifts 135,225,275,275,225,135x5

I'm going to feel it tomorrow I'm sure, but right now I feel awesome :)

[swingerofbirches]

Good stuff Tom & Chris.

Sunday was a cheat day so I took Sunday & yesterday off completely.

Today I got back to it ... 5x5 with some extra shoulder work ... also couldn't resist the leg press :)

5x5 Squat @ 275/ Dead @ 225 / Bench @ 210 / OHP @ 160
Leg Press - 4/8 @ 660
Low Cable Pull 3/8 @ 140 superset with High Rope Pull @ 160
Front Straight Arm Raise 3/8 @ 60

[icehog3]

Nice workouts, Chris and Charlie! :tu

Chris, I don't use ice except on new injuries, wish I had a full body ice tub like the professional sports teams have, I would give that a whirl.

International Chest today today, strength low, hit the moderate weights for some high reps and short rest periods.

[swingerofbirches]

Arms this morning ... PUMPED AS A MOFO!!!

Did the same arm workout as last time and got an awesome pump off it this time. Last time was strange cuz my pump was minimal and the soreness didn't hit me until about 2 days later but I'm already feeling it today. Good stuff!!!

[icehog3]

Yes, Charlie! :tu

Back today. Fogot my preworkout drink, my headphones, and was late. Great day...not.

Cable pulldowns 180, 200, 220, 240, 260, 280, 290
Cable rows 220, 240, 260, 280
Barbell rows 225, 255, 275, 295

Dat's all, folks. :td

[icehog3]

Took the pain and repped out for shoulders.

Seated Military Presses 125 x 20, 145 x 20, 165 x 20, 185 x 16, 195 x 13, 205 x 9, 165 x 16

Tricep pushdowns 105, 115, 125, 135, 145, 125, 105

[swingerofbirches]

Good work, Tom!

I played bball last night but started feeling sick as the night went on and work up with a pretty wicked sinus thing ... so today is a rest day.

[icehog3]

Feel better soon, Charlie.

Kind of an off-day, just bi's and abs. Leg day manana.

[swingerofbirches]

Sick again today :(

How'd legs go, Tom?

[icehog3]

Hope you feel better tomorrow, Charlie.

Legs went well.....didn't do much, 6 sets of leg presses at 655, some seated hamstring curls and some stretching. Between 3 games this week and another coming Monday, it's all I could muster. :lr

[icehog3]

Chest and back today, doubled up because I'm concerned about the roads tomorrow before work. Reps on chest, a littlle heavy on back.

Incline bench 185, 205, 225, 245, 265, 275
Bench press 245, 275, 295, 275
Decline Bench 245, 275, 295
Machine Flyes 175, 205, 220, 250

T-bar rows 205, 225, 250, 270, 295, 320
Barbell rows 205, 225, 245, 265, 285, 305
Cable rows 6 sets at 260
2 sets of pullups

That should hold me if I skip tomorow. :lr

[swingerofbirches]

Still sick today ... i'm starting to become hopeful that tomorrow i'll be able to get back to the gym. I'll go lighter since it'll be my first day back after 4 sick days off and feeling pretty weak.

Nice work today, Tom!

[swingerofbirches]

A little sick today but definitely on the up-swing ...

Decided to do a pretty easy 5x5 followed by some 3x8s to round out a full upper body workout since i've been off for 4 days :/

* 5x5 - Squats @ 245 / 3x5 - Deads @ 245 / 5x5 - Bench (HS) @ 200 / 5x5 - OHP (HS) @ 140
* Bent over barbell rows - 3/10 @ 180 supersetted with barbell shrugs 3/10 @ 180
* Cable Curls EZBar 3/8 @ 160 supersetted with Close Grip Angled Pull Downs 3/8 @ 200 ... final set of each drop-setted by 20lbs down to a total of 100lbs under starting weight; all dropset sets done until technical failure

No cardio today ... as long as i'm not dead in the morning i'll start back up with cardio tomorrow :)

[icehog3]

Hope you keep getting better, Charlie, listen to the body tomorrow for sure.

Cambered bar curls 125, 135, 145, 155, 165
Preacher Curls 4 sets @ 115
Seated Military Presses 135, 155, 175, 195, 205, 215
Dummbell shrugs 4 sets @ 105
Skull crushers 95, 115, 125, 135, 145, 155
Cable pushdowns 105, 115, 125, 135, 145

[swingerofbirches]

Good work, Tom! :)

How are the shoulders and back holding up?

[icehog3]

Back is better than it's been, Charlie, not completely pain free but nothing like it was. Still have a hard time with flat bench, that's about it back wise.

Left shoulder has bad days and worse days. Today was only a bad day. :)

How you feeling?

[icehog3]

Decided to change back workouts up this week to "shock" it.

Did all heavy cable work today, on 3 days rest (usually take 5).

Going to do all rowing (no cables) and pullups on Friday. Have hockey the next two nights, so should be interesting to see how much gas I have Friday, put my plan is to row heavy.

Today:

Shoulder width grip pulldowns 200, 230, 250, 270, 290, 310
Super wide grip pulldowns 180, 200, 220, 240, 260
V grip cable rows 240, 260, 280, 310
Shoulder width grip cable rows 200, 220, 240, 260
One arm rows (machine) 135, 160, 180

[swingerofbirches]

I'm hanging in there, Tom. Not nearly as sick as I was a couple of days ago. Looks like you got some good work in today!!!

Got an hour of cardio in today ... might get a little basketball in later this evening.

More 5x5 tomorrow.

[icehog3]

Glad you're feeling better, Charlie.



Where've our cohorts been?

[swingerofbirches]

I have no idea ... was wondering the same thing.

[icehog3]

Huy? Chris? Son? Me and Charlie miss you fellas! :D

[swingerofbirches]

5x5 today ... Squat @ 275 / Deads @ 245 / Bench @ 210 and then legpress 2/10 @ 720 and final set 1/8 @ 720 ... 30min of cardio.

[icehog3]

Good to see you are obviously feeling better, Charlie.

All the flat and incline benches were occupado when I got to the gym, so I started with some decline.

Decline bench 225, 255, 285, 315, 365
Verical bench (plate loaded) 250, 275, 305, 335, 355
Incline bench 185, 215, 235, 255, 275
Machine flyes 235, 265
Dips (varying widths) 6 sets to failure

Back to do back again tomorrow for the last part of my "shockl" routine. Hockey game tonight.

[swingerofbirches]

lol you're my benchpress hero, Tom. 210 is my 5x5 max ... so the idea of 300+ is hard to wrap my head around.

I managed to get in cardio today ... no lifting, as tomorrow is going to be a HEAVY lifting day.

I picked up a new pre-workout today that i'm excited to try ... NDS Cardio Cuts ... hold on tight! :)

[icehog3]

I've been lifting for 35+ years, Charlie...and unfortunately, have Frankenstein's neck and a worthless shoulder to show for it. You'll get there. :tu (The 300 bench, not the monster's neck)

Did the second half of my back shock workout today. After all the heavy cables Wednesday, I didn't have gas for long on the rowing today, and the reps drooped down to 6 real fast.

T-bar rows 225, 250, 270, 295
Barbell Rows 215, 245, 275, 295, 265, 245
Pullups (bodyweight) 12, 11, 9, 8

That was it. We'll see how the lats feel tomorrow, even though I didn't have much volume, I feel pretty "full" even 9 hours later.

[swingerofbirches]

Had a great arm day today! Pumped as a mofo!
It was heavy weight for me and progressive loading (bis/tris).
Finished it off with 30min of cardio.

Started a new pre-workout today ... Cardio Cuts by NDS ... pre-workout and thermogenic. We shall see if I notice any results :)

[icehog3]

Let us know how the NDS stuff works, Charlie, and glad you got the MoFo. :tu

Skipped tofay, double tomorrow. Worked out better for my shoulders last time anyway, hitting biceps first.

[swingerofbirches]

Got an hour of elliptical in today ... it's been 2 days of NDS and i'm liking it so far. It doesn't hit you like a truck, like a lot of other pre-workouts ... no tingles or tomato face. Thus far I can say that the Black Cherry is much better tasting than the Grape. LOL

Tomorrow will be 5x5 + shoulder day! Looking forward to it!

Good stuff Tom ... have fun with the double!

[icehog3]

Thanks, Charie....I kinda like the "truck in my face" effect, so I will probably pass on the NDS. :D

Wasn't a true double today as I only did one exercise per bodypart, saving some gas for hockey.

Have a good shoulder day tomorrow for me!

Preacher curls 165, 185, 165, 185, 165, 155
Seated military press 135, 165, 185, 205, 205, 185
Tricep pushdowns 95, 105, 115, 125, 135, 105, 95, 95
Shrugs 4 sets @ 315

[Sancho]

After my week of straight 12's got back to the gym today:
Squats 5x5
Bench 3x5
Row 5x5

[icehog3]

Good to see you back, Chris. :tu

[GreekGodX]

Back is still bothering me but went the heaviest I've gone in 2 weeks. Felt good, trying just to do what I can to not cause any pain.

6x3 Snatch Grip high pull 225
6x3 Back Squat 365 ATG
Lots of accessory work for glutes and hamstrings. Followed by lots of stretching for my lower body.

[icehog3]

Hope that back just keeps getting batter, Son! :tu

[swingerofbirches]

Good to see you again Chris & Christos!

Yesterday was 5x5 (squats @ 275 / deads @ 245 / OHP @ 180) followed up by ...
Leg Press - 3/7 @ 720
Shoulder Cable Row (?) - 4/10 @ 100 (last set dropset; technical failure at each drop) supersetted with Rope Cable Pull (high mount, pull to nose) - 4/10 @ 120 (last set same as above)

Today was an hour of elliptical.

[GreekGodX]

Hope that back just keeps getting batter, Son! :tu

Thanks Pops :) It feels really good. Doesn't help that I sit most of the day though. For any of you looking for mobility work, search for "mobility wod" on youtube. This guy has a ton of very useful stuff.

Conditioning today. Ran stairs and sled work. Very intense. Lots of weighted abs until failure. Working on the beach body for the summer :r

[icehog3]

Let's hit the beach at Shack, Son! :D

International Chest Day.

Incline bench 195, 215, 235, 255, 275, 295
Pro-elite Bench (machine) 190, 200, 210, 225, 200, 180
Bench press 225, 275, 325
Decline Press 225, 275
Dips 3 sets to failure

[Sancho]

Nice work all! Good stuff on that YouTube feed, gotta spend some time watching that.

Squats 5x5
OHP 3-5x5
Deadlifts 135,225,285x5 small milestone for me as that puts me a few percentage points over body weight :D

Was gonna finish with some cable work but ran out of steam.

[GreekGodX]

Chest, back, and shoulders today. I split my workouts into upper body and lower body. 4 "lifting days" a week.

Bench ramped up with triples until 315. 315 4x1 Supersets with bent over rows 225x10
Floor press 315
Military press 145 4x5 supersets with pull-ups super strict form, pause at bottom neck to bar pause at top 4x5
Anterior delt work, front raises, biceps, and triceps.

Heard Arnold and Pavel Tsatsouline talk about muscle awareness and contractions during reps. Enjoy those little tips to think about during workouts.

[icehog3]

Nice wrokout today, Son! :tu

Back for me, mixed up the free weights and cables for reps.

Cable pulldowns 220, 250, 270, 290, 240
Bent over rows 205, 235, 265, 285, 235
Cable rows 260, 280, 305, 260
T-bar rows 250 x 4 sets
Dead hangs x 4

[swingerofbirches]

Had a GREAT lift last night!

5x5 - squat @ 295 / bench @ 220 / wide grip barbell row @ 205

Followed by some chest & back work ...

Decline bench 4/10 @ 180 SS w/ high rows @ 230 (HS) with last set of each dropsetted until failure at each drop
Flys 4/10 @ 130 SS w/ low rows @ 180 ... dropset like above
Barbell Shrugs - 5/10 @ 225
Flat bar Lat Pulldowns - 4/8 @ 120

Wrapped it up with a superset of dropsetted bis & tris (cable curls starting @ 100 / angled pull downs starting at 140, dropped 20lbs every drop and drops done until technical failure at each drop)

This morning was just 30min of fasted cardio to start the day. Feeling awesome!!! :)

Hope everyone had great workouts and even better days!

[icehog3]

Nice lifts, Charlie! :tu

[swingerofbirches]

Arm day today ... similar to last Saturday's workout ... Great pump, already pretty sore.

Pulled something in the right side of my back that's making it hurt when I inhale a full breath. It's eased a bit throughout the day so hopefully itll be feeling fully better by Monday's 5x5.
I've officially learned my lesson; when arm day is done, don't screw around with heavy shrugs :/

[icehog3]

Hope you feel better quickly, Charlie, I have that back pain that I originally thought was a kidney , and it still isn't 100% 6 weeks later.

[Sancho]

Heal quick Charlie!

Yesterday was
Squats 5x5
Bench 5x5
Row 5x5
Some cable work to failure tri's and bi's

[icehog3]

Hi Chris!

Back day....Heavy on cables, high reps on rows today.

Pulldowns 200, 220, 240, 260, 280, 290
Barbell rows 185, 205, 225, 245, 265
Cable rows 260, 280, 305, 260
Pullups 2 sets

[swingerofbirches]

Back still feels a tad tweeted but i managed to get some squats (275) and benchpress (200) and some cardio in on Monday and some cardio in today. I'm gonna shoot for a shoulder day tomorrow ... either shoulders or make this week a "one muscle group per day" week just to switch things up. If I go that route I'll either work shoulders or chest tomorrow.

Thx for the well wishes guys! :)

[icehog3]

Hope the back keeps improving, Charlie.

I had good luck with my shoulder when training it after bi's last time, so I skipped the gym today and will do arms and shoulders tomorrow....see if it still holds true.

[swingerofbirches]

Upper back feels ok today ... the shoveling of last night and today has taken a slight toll on my lower back tho! LOL

Managed to get a quick chest workout in today ... wasn't a very long workout and was pretty low volume but was high weight for me (remember, weakest chest on earth LOL) and my chest was swollen and will definitely be sore tomorrow.

Flat Bench (HS) 5x5 @ 200
Incline Bench (HS) 4x5 @ 150
Decline Bench (HS) 3x5 @ 220
Flys (machine) 3x5 @ 145
Isolation Press (HS; single arm, seated sideways) 3x8 @ 45
Dips 3x5 @ 230

Tomorrow is gonna be heavy weight, low volume back day ... continuing on with the "shock the system" by having an oddball lifting week. :)

Hope everyone is well and lifting hard!

[icehog3]

Sounds like a good workout, Charlie, hope the back stays well.

Arms and Shoulders today:

Olympic Barbell Curls 95, 105, 115, 125, 135
Cambered bar curls 135, 155, 135
Preacher Curls 155 x 4 sets
Military press 135, 165, 185, 195, 205
Shrugs 315 x 3 sets
Skullcrushers 105, 125, 145, 155, 115
Cable pushdowns 95, 115, 125, 135, 155, 115

[swingerofbirches]

Get it Tom!

[swingerofbirches]

Heavy back day today (again, heavy for me lol)

Squats - 5x5 @ 275
Standing Barbell Rows - 3/8 @ 245 (last set was failure @ 6) superset with Shrugs - 5/10 @ 245; last set was until failure (6) @ 295
Lat Pulldown - 3/10 @ 140
Wide Grip Cable Pulldown - 3/10 @ 140

Cardio for 30min

[icehog3]

You musta been pumped as a MoFo, Charlie! :D

Off day today (in training all day), back at it manana.

[swingerofbirches]

lol my back (and chest from two days ago) are pretty worked today ... i was indeed pumped as a MoFo lol

Just cardio today.

Also, since my wife has decided that she really likes my NDS Cardio Cuts i've cut back on taking it and am using now only on days when i do only cardio. That said, i've tried ACG3 pre-workout a couple of times this week and i must be defective because i don't feel like it does anything for me. All the online feedback i read talks about how intense it is but i just don't get much out of it. C4 and Neon Sport really hit me. Idk :/

[icehog3]

I think the pre-workouts depend on the indiviidual, Charlie, my friends and I often get completely opposite (good/bad) results from the same supp. I try most, but just shi#can the ones that don't work for me.

Pounding headache when I woke up (went to bed with it too), so I had to pass today. Hope to be good to go manana.

[swingerofbirches]

Cardio Cuts before an elliptical session tonight ... worked great. Got a good boost in energy without it being "overkill" and definitely felt the thermogenic.

Since i'm relatively new to pre-workouts i'm glad to hear that you've had similar experiences with some PWs working and others not. I'm gonna stick with Neon and C4 for now on heavy lifting days and Cardio Cuts on cardio-only days.

Feel better, Tom!

[icehog3]

Good deal, Charlie, that's the way to go with the PWs. :tu

Headache gone, if only I wasn't at work! :ze

[swingerofbirches]

Took some Neon Sport (Watermelon), which worked awesome, as per usual ... I think that on the whole I may have overdone it today though.

Started out with a banana & granola bar then shoveled snow for 2hrs or so (a lot of elderly neighbors lol), came inside and had a protein bar and hammered a pre-workout, did a smaller volume arm workout than usual (4/10 superset angled grip cable pull downs (prog load from 160-200) w/ cable curls (130) followed by 4/10 superset overhead cable rope extensions (130) w/ EZBar reverse curls (60)) then finished up with 15min of elliptical.

I managed to get home, take a shower and cook up some eggs with spinach in em and sliced up an apple with some almond butter, which helped settle me down. Still feeling absolutely gassed tho. I think that an afternoon nap may overtake me LOL

[icehog3]

Sounds like a ballbuster, Charlie...enjoy the nap.

International chect day today, went heavy. Now 4 more hours at work and then a hockey game for my cardio.

[swingerofbirches]

No nap .. just more shoveling lol

Have a good game, Tom!

[icehog3]

Thanks, Charlie, about 45 minutes out now.

Back workout manana, then 2 more games. :ze :ih :ih

[swingerofbirches]

Only got in 30min of hard cardio today ... which was actually ok by me as I'm still kind of whipped from ytrdys workout and endless snow shoveling. :)

Supposed to be 5x5 and chest/back tomorrow.

[Sancho]

Been slacking on updates this week, haven't slacked.

Tonight was
Squats 5x5
Bench 5x5 with a dropset finish
Row 5x5

[icehog3]

Tweaked my back doing back this morning and cut the workout short before I got to the heavy rows. Luckily, skating always seems to loosen it up, and I had 2 games today, and feel fine now.

Hi Chris and Charlie!

[swingerofbirches]

How often do you guys shut it down?

I'm feeling like my joints (and muscles) could rly use a little recooperation time. When u guys shut it down how long do you go for? Do you fully stop lifting for a week? Do you take a couple days off and then warm up light?

[icehog3]

I go on 4 or 5 "long weekend" vacations a year, Charlie, and I don't lift when I go. Just relax, eat what I want for the most part, and let my body rest. So 4 or 5 times a year I take 4 or 5 days off. Usually come back refreshed physically and, maybe more importantly, mentally.

[GreekGodX]

I do what Tom does. Unless my performance is really off. I pay close attention to how my body feels and how are my lifts going. A usual sign for me that I need a break is when my grip strength goes down. In that case I will take 3 days rest. Also I try to have a "deload week" which is more or less a week of stuff I don't normally do. Normally after 6 weeks. So higher reps and new exercises or a combination. Try not to go above 60% of my max during that week.

[Remo]

Morning young bucks (not Tom)….Got on the scale today at 214, down from about 230, 8 mos. ago, trying to drop some weight and see if that helps my back issues and keep the surgeon at bay….no more heavy lifting for me, mostly cardio and short card type stuff, lots of body weight exercise. I am thinking if I go down to 200 lbs. I will be one ripped 42 y.o :r

[icehog3]

Good deal, Mike, I'll even give a pass to that back-handed slam. :lr

[swingerofbirches]

Thx for the advice guys ... i'm gonna shut it down this week, as far as lifting goes. I did 30min today and i'll do cardio the rest of the week but lifting is off the to-do list until next week. :)

[icehog3]

Shoulders and arms today, did shoulders first, didn;t think I'd have the tolerance to do them after bis today. Just two shoulder exercises, both presses, and one each for bis and tris, preacher curls and skullcrushers.

No hockey games 'til Friday, so tomorrow is leg day. Oh joy. :r

[swingerofbirches]

Good work Tom!

What's a typical leg day for you?

[icehog3]

Been mostly heavy leg presses with some hacks or hammie curls lately, Charlie. Tough to get my shoulder back in position for squats, though if I am having a "good" shoulder day I will do some. Never been much good at front squats. With skating games an average of 3-4 nights a week, my legs get worked hard, so I usually only hit them once every 7-10 days at the gym.

[Sancho]

I am in the same boat, just kinda listen to how I'm feeling and go from there.

Last night was
Squats 5x5
OHP 5x5
Deadlifts 135,225,295x5

Sort of getting bored of this program, may make a change to something different next month we'll see how I feel. Maybe try high volume at 80% working weight or some such.

[Sancho]

Today was off, had a rough night without much rest, so I went lighter and off my 5x5.

Squats 2x20
Bench 2x5 then dropset
Close Cable row 5x8
Cable curls 3 sets to failure

Hopefully Friday or Saturday are better days.

[icehog3]

International chest day, concentrated on inclines....good day, pumped like a MoFo. :D

Hi Chris!

[swingerofbirches]

Get it fellas!!! #PLAMF (pumped like a MoFo! :) )

Heading to GNC tonight to pick up my wife's multi-vitamin, some Gold Standard protein & another tub of DNS Cardio Cuts. I'm REALLY liking this stuff! Unfortunately (kind of lol) my wife is loving it as well. I only say that because it's not cheap ... so i've switched to only taking it on days when I'm only doing cardio. She takes it daily for the thermogenic. I'd like to do the same but i'm being a bit cost-conscious about it so i'm gonna look for a similar product to try when at GNC tonight.

I'm starting to feel like this deload week is helping me recover. I'm gonna get some light cardio in tonight after bball practice of the season.

[swingerofbirches]

I'm getting antsy without the lifting lol

[icehog3]

You'll know when it's "time", Charlie. :tu

Back day today, went heavy on the rows.

Bent over rows 185, 215, 235, 255, 285, 305, 245
T-bar rows 225, 250, 270, 250, 225
Cable pulldowns (super wide) 200, 200, 220, 240, 260
4 sets of pullups to failure

[swingerofbirches]

Move that weight, Tom!!!

I felt like I wanted to lift ytrdy but figure that I've already abstained for 5 days so I might as well go the full 7.

[swingerofbirches]

First workout back after my deload week and it was a pretty good one.

Did 5x5 followed by flys (3x8 @ 145), barbell rows (4x5 @ 185) superset with barbell shrugs (5x10 @ 185).

Managed to get new squat and bench max during my 5x5.

Squat - first 3 of my 5x5 sets @ 275 and last two sets @ 315
Dead - 5x5 @ 225
Bench - first 4 sets @ 180 and last set for 3 reps @ 230

[icehog3]

Nice job, Charlie! :tu

Clean up day today, shoulders and arms

Cambered bar curls 125, 135, 145, 155
Barbell curls 105, 115, 125, 135
Preacher curls 4 sets @ 135
Seated military press 155, 175, 195, 215
Standing Military press 3 sets @ 155
Skull crushers 115, 135, 155
Cable pushdowns 115, 135, 155, 105

[Sancho]

Nice Charlie!

Did cardio for a while then:
Cable push downs 3x10
Wide grip Lat pull downs 5x8
Dips 3x10
Military press 5x5

[icehog3]

Hi Chris!
:)

International Chest Day, did volume on inclines, went a little heavy on bench.

Incline bench 205, 225, 245, 265, 285, 275, 255, 235, 205
Bench press 275, 305, 325, 355
Machine flyes 205, 225, 190, 175
Dips (bodyweight) 5 sets to failure

Playoff hockey game tonight, will play it by ear whether I do back tomorrow or Thursday.

[swingerofbirches]

Get it, Tom!!!

Shoulders & Cardio today.

5x5 OHP @ 200lbs (new high for me)
4x8 High Cable Rope-to-Nose (150) SS w/ Standing Cable (150) w/ last set as dropset in 30lb increments until failure at each drop
4x10 Seated Overhead Dumbbell Press 25lb/ea
5x10 Side Dumbbell Raises @ 15lb/ea

Cardio - 3.7mi interval running/walking; 2min on & 2min off

[icehog3]

Another PB, Charlie, nice! :tu

[swingerofbirches]

PB?

Forgive me, as i'm sure that i should know that abbreviation. I'm just blasted and not quick on the uptake tonight. lol

[Sancho]

Personal best? I'm guessing here. Nice sets Tom and Charlie! Good luck in the playoffs Tom!

[icehog3]

PB is correct = Personal Best. :tu

Thanks Chris....big win tonight, I scored twice and we are one win away from advancing to the Finals. :ih

[Sancho]

Awesome Tom! That's great!

Tonight was wild rowing

Pendlay row 5x5
Barbell row 5x5
Concept2 rower 10km

[icehog3]

Took today off after Tuesday's late game. Gonna row like Chris on Thursday, row 'til I am pumped as a MoFo. :D

[Sancho]

That should be a shirt Tom!

Did some cardio intervals 1.5 miles
Some body weight stuff to failure as the racks were occupied.
Dips (assisted) 5 sets to failure
Chin-ups (assisted) 5 sets to failure
Squats 2 to failure

[icehog3]

I'll copyright it, Chris! :r

Back started out badly today, I felt a good tweak in my left lat on my first set of pulldowns. Decided to do strict heavy rows instead, and actually got a PLAMF workout in.

Barbell rows 205, 235, 255, 275, 295, 305, 325 285, 245
T-bar rows 4 sets @ 270
Cable rows 220, 240, 260, 280, 290, 290

[icehog3]

Shoulders and arms hoy.

Barbell curls 95, 105, 155, 125, 135
Cambered curls 135, 145, 155, 155
Preacher curls 115 x 3 sets
Seated Military Press 165, 185, 205, 215, 205, 185
Skullcrushers 105, 105, 115, 115
French curls 105 x 3 sets

[swingerofbirches]

Nice work, Tom!

Today was 5x5 Squats (315) & Leg Press (720)

Did some arm work today but stopped when my left shoulder (my typically good one) started hurting too much.
4 Sets : Close Grip Cable Pull Downs (progressive load 180 - 205) SS w/ Cable Curl EZBar (progressive load from 130-150) - each dropsetted in 30lb increments on last set; each to failure
Seated Preacher Curl @ 70 - 4x8
Overhead Rope Extensions @ 140 - 4x10

Had to stop before i hurt my shoulder too much to lift again on Sunday :/

[icehog3]

A good day, Charlie! :tu

[Sancho]

Nice work Tom and Charlie!

Today was
Chins and Dips (assisted) 3 to failure
Deadlifts 135,225,225,275,275 x5
Concept2 10km

Feeling a pretty good pump, this maybe the plamf

[icehog3]

Sick here, missed yesterday and today, tomorrow is still up in the air but likely a no-go as well. Hit it hard for me, Brothers.

[swingerofbirches]

Dang, Tom, hope you feel better soon.

I'm coming off a weekend of bad eating so I managed 1.25hrs of cardio today ... had to break the 1000cal burned marker. I'm shooting to drop weight/fat for the next couple of weeks anyway as we have a little trip coming up at the end of March.

Tomorrow will be 5x5 and more cardio.

[icehog3]

Good deal, Charlie. :tu

I am sick as a MoFo and am gonna be out for at least tomorrow, and I am guessing longer. This sh!t got a hold of me this time. :hn

[swingerofbirches]

Dang Tom, sorry to hear that you're not feeling well. Hopefully you'll be back in the saddle soon.

Yesterday was another 1000+ calorie burned cardio session.

Today was heavy chest/back finished up with a hypertrophic arm workout. Heading back later to do some cardio with the wife ... doubt it'll be the 1000 though. Need to peddle back a bit today so i can hit it hard tomorrow and friday.

[icehog3]

Keep fighting the good fight, Charlie...hope to join you again before the week is out.

[swingerofbirches]

Hey Tom ... any opinions on good but cheap pre-workout?

I'm loving the cardio-cuts but it's expensive and my wife uses it daily for the thermogenic and cardio so i want to go to CC only on cardio-only days. I'm cycled down on carbs those days anyway so the fat burner is a nice little boost. But i'm trying to achieve my full 40/40/20 split on lifting days, so i'm taking in 40% carbs and would prefer to be taking the most effective and cost effective pre-workout that I can on those days.

So far i've tried Cardio Cuts, Ab Cuts, C4 & Neon Sport.

Anyones thoughts are appreciated.

[icehog3]

None of the pre-workouts I have in my mix could really be considered inexpensive, Charlie. Right now I have original Jack3d, Pump Fuel, NO Explode, Hemo-rage and Prodigy in rotation. Unfortunately for me, it seems to be "yu get what you pay for".

[swingerofbirches]

No lift today ... another 1000cal cardio day.

I hear ya, Tom. I'm probably just going to hunt online until i find a sale or good deal on a pre-workout that I know works. Nobody wants to gamble on a tub of stuff that may turn out to be a big bust. :/

[Adriftpanda]

New to the board here, hi guys.

Charlie, I have a couple questions for you. Are you tracking how many calories you're consuming a day? And if you are, what is it?

As far as a pwo, I'm like Tom. I have a rotation of them I go through. ESP by Metabolic, Muscle Prime by Allmax, and AMP Matrix by Aesthetic Labs.

I don't know your tolerance for caffeine, stim, etc. but for price point, C4 is probably your best best. If there is a Costco near you, they sell 2 tubes for around $35-40, can't beat that.

If you can go without a pwo, more power to you, it's opening Pandora's box.

[swingerofbirches]

Hey Huy!

Yeah I track my food and try to stick to a 40/40/20 (carb/protein/fat) split on lifting days and a 30/50/20 split (or thereabouts) on cardio only days. I try to consume between 2000-2200cal/day. I shoot for 200g of protein per day considering that at absolute peak physical condition id prob be 205-215?

I'm a big guy (278 as of this morning), just for reference. I've lost a good bit of weight and put on a decent bit of muscle over the last year and a half.

Any and all advice is appreciated. Thx for the Costco tip!
I have a really high caffeine tolerance :( lol
I'm honestly really new to supplements despite a bit of pre-workout dabbling. So I'm also open to hearing whatever anyone has to say on stims vs no-stims.

[swingerofbirches]

The funny thing is that from my belly up and my mid-thigh down I look like a completely different person than in my middle ... if I posted a pic of my belly and then one of just my chest and up you wouldn't think it was the same person. In fairness my mid section is way smaller than it used to be, it just still bares the evidence of my sinful past. :)
I only recently started taking my diet really seriously (a couple of weeks) and my body is always slow to respond so I'm sure that I'll start seeing mid-section results here in a few weeks to a month.

[icehog3]

Slow, steady improvement, Charlie, sounds like you're on the right path.

[GreekGodX]

Here's the cheapest pre-workout I know of that works great.
http://truenutrition.com/p-995-buzz-saw-30-servings.aspx?

[Adriftpanda]

Made my weekly Costco trip. Saw the twin pack of C-4 for $39. Not sure if you have a Costco near you though.

[swingerofbirches]

Good call guys! I called my local GNC and they said that they'd price match the C4! :)

[swingerofbirches]

So a friend of ours went to the Arnold Classic in Columbus a couple weeks back and apparently she got me a TON of pre-workout sames. Got em when we hung out last night. SO AWESOME!!! :)

[icehog3]

Let us know about any new good ones, Charlie. :tu

[Sancho]

Did some body weight stuff and my concept2 10km again, this cardio break has been interesting. Probably keep this up for another week or so and then start the lifting back up again hard.

Looks like the iron is flying around here still :)

Good to see ya back Huy!

[swingerofbirches]

Ugh ... had a nasty sinus thing for the last few days. Hoping to be able to get back at it tomorrow.

Good stuff, Chris. How long you been on cardio-only?

[icehog3]

HI Chris, Charlie and Huy.

Been on antibiotics since Thursday here, since I started the crud moved from my chest up to my sinuses and back again. I too hope to get back in by tomorrow, the body will dictate. Missed 8 days already, getting itchy to get back.

[swingerofbirches]

Wishing you a speedy recovery Tom ... i'm sure that after 8 days you're going nuts. :/

I managed to get back to the gym for the first time since last friday. I went 5x5 on Squats and did 3x5 on large movement exercises as a warm up lift to get my body back into a lifting rhythm.

Squat 5x5 @ 315
Bench 5x5 @ 200
OHP 3x5 @ 180
Bent Over Barbell Row 3x8 @ 185
Shrugs 5x5 @ 180
Cable Curl @ 70 superset with Close Grip Cable Pulldown @ 160 - 5x10

I was pretty gassed after the lift and wheezy so i didn't do any cardio. I'm gonna shoot for some cardio tomorrow and hopefully my lungs can handle it.

Also, tried some Pre-Glow "Candy Melon" pre-workout. One of the samples my friend gave me. The packet says 2 servings so naturally i took the whole packet. It got me a little tingly but not insane. Boost felt ok, pump was crazy. Pumped like a MoFo as Tom would say. :)

[Sancho]

Feel better Tom! I'm starting to think I may have picked up the cold that ravaged my brood a week or so back so hopefully I don't end up in the same lifeboat.

Charlie, I've been doing primary cardio for about 1.5 weeks now. Still intermixing a single powerlift every trip or every other. I've been focusing on the erg rowers as they seem to give me a better upper body workout which I missed with every other cardio routine I tried. With that said I have to really watch my lower back as it's pretty easy for me to over stress that muscle on the rower.

What's your cardio preference? What are you doing your 1k burns on?

[icehog3]

Just saying hi, and keep pumpin' like MoFos, Charlie and Chris!

[swingerofbirches]

Feel better Tom! I'm starting to think I may have picked up the cold that ravaged my brood a week or so back so hopefully I don't end up in the same lifeboat.

Charlie, I've been doing primary cardio for about 1.5 weeks now. Still intermixing a single powerlift every trip or every other. I've been focusing on the erg rowers as they seem to give me a better upper body workout which I missed with every other cardio routine I tried. With that said I have to really watch my lower back as it's pretty easy for me to over stress that muscle on the rower.

What's your cardio preference? What are you doing your 1k burns on?

Nice! Glad that you're seeing good enough results that you want to extend it. I'm sure that your muscles appreciate the single power lift sessions. I was hesitant to do a deload week a few weeks back but my muscles were so happy for it.

I'm using an elliptical for my 1k burns, for the sake of my knees. On my non-1k burn days (basic 30-45min medium intensity cardio) I'll use the treadmill and usually cool down with the bike.

What kind of cardio you been doing?

[Adriftpanda]

My power lifting training ended a few weeks. Deloaded for a couple weeks but started Lane Nortons PHAT program to keep up with my powerlifting. I'm in no way a power lifter, but the program has built a nice foundation for training. Here are my final numbers.

I ended with a body weight of 182, I basically kept my BW the same through out training even though I was suppose to be in a surplus. 2,400-2600 caloric maintenance.

Pause bench 260
Squat 405
Deadlift (sumo) 460
Deadlift conventional 415

Those were all my 1rm.

[Adriftpanda]

And there was no cardio done lol

[swingerofbirches]

That's awesome, Huy, especially for your BW!!! It's inspirational. Gives me something to shoot for and i'm FAR bigger than you.

Are those 1 time maxes or 5x5 weight? 3x5 weight?

[Adriftpanda]

One rep max

[Sancho]

That's awesome Huy! Impressive numbers for sure.

I'm with Charlie, a little bit heavier ;) and not anywhere close.

Charlie, for my cardio I have been doing mostly erg rowers with stair steppers and maybe once a week on the treadmill.

My preference is the rower, I'm not threatening any Ivy League scholarship, but it kicks my ass. I feel like it gives me a good whole body workout which none of the other cardio machines seem to do.

[swingerofbirches]

I hear ya about the row machine, Chris. I like rowing but have gone away from it so that my muscles have a chance to recover from my lifting days.

Managed 600cal of 5am fasted cardio today.

[Sancho]

Tonight was another 10km rowing
Plus
Chins (assist) 2xfailure
Dips (assist) 2xfailure
Squats 1x20 post row

Was gonna go for another 20 reps but my calves were screaming so in the interest of walking tomorrow.... :) good pump that's for sure.

[Adriftpanda]

Volume push day with some shoulders.

Flat db press 4x8
Hammer strength incline press 3x8-10 w.drop set
Incline db flies 3x10
dips 4x10

seated db side delt raises 4x10
cable side delt raise 3x10-12
smith machine miltiary press 3x10
arnold presses 3x10

[Sancho]

Nice Huy, curious for the collective on the smith machine: thoughts? I've used the linear at one gym and it was uncomfortable and felt unnatural. Another gym has a startrac 3d which feels more natural.

Do you guys use the smith? Pluses minuses? You read a lot of conflicting info on these it would seem, but when I'm there late at night it does look to be a safer way to lift soloand still be able to go heavy.

[Adriftpanda]

I typically do not use smith machines for any exercises but because I did a lot of pushing movements with free weights, I wanted to give my shoulders a bit of a break.

Smith machines are good, people don't give them enough credit. I personally don't use it often but when I do, it's towards the end of my training because you get the assistance without having to worry about stabilizing the weight during the up and down motion, almost like having a spotter with you.

Just read your last sentence so I'm editing it right now. I train alone most of the time but have made some good gym friends over time, so I guess that helps when it comes to spotting and what not. But I personally believe free weights are the way to go if trying to get stronger and bigger. Don't be afraid to ask for spot. Loading a bunch of plates on a smith machines to squat or bench is not the same as the "bar."

[GreekGodX]

Nice Huy, curious for the collective on the smith machine: thoughts? I've used the linear at one gym and it was uncomfortable and felt unnatural. Another gym has a startrac 3d which feels more natural.

Do you guys use the smith? Pluses minuses? You read a lot of conflicting info on these it would seem, but when I'm there late at night it does look to be a safer way to lift soloand still be able to go heavy.

I use them only for bent over rows. If you set up correctly you can keep your lats activated for every rep. I think it helps a lot for that. Otherwise I don't use them. I think they have their place for helping new lifters.

[swingerofbirches]

Nice Huy, curious for the collective on the smith machine: thoughts? I've used the linear at one gym and it was uncomfortable and felt unnatural. Another gym has a startrac 3d which feels more natural.

Do you guys use the smith? Pluses minuses? You read a lot of conflicting info on these it would seem, but when I'm there late at night it does look to be a safer way to lift soloand still be able to go heavy.


I rarely use the Smith Machine but I see the value in it. I used it when I started squatting because it gave me confidence and stabilization and my wife uses it now that she's squatting.

It was mentioned before that a Smith be used at the end of a workout for the stabilization and that makes sense to me. I'd not thought about that because my workouts are structured so that I end on a large movement like an OHP or bench, but I can definitely see the value if you do.

If you start your workout with squats i'd shoot to end up in the squat rack. Like mentioned earlier, the stabilizers used are such a big part of gaining strength and size.

My 2 cents :)

[icehog3]

When you get to 37+ years of heavy lifting like me and some days your joints don't work the same, the Smith can be the difference between continuing to lift and quitting. The older I get, the more often I use it.

[swingerofbirches]

Got a decent chest/back lift in today. I lift alone so i don't usually do a full free weight chest/back list but that's what I did today, with the exception of decline bench and lat pull downs.

Tomorrow will be arms and shoulders, full free weights. Should be fun! :)

[icehog3]

Keep kicking arse, Charlie.:tu

Been a good 10 days since I have been in the gym due to my bronchitis. I have a scheduled 5 day break starting Wednesday. Trying to get motivated to get a few days in before then, I just get out of the groove a little too easily sometimes. :r

[icehog3]

Happy Birthday, Chris! :hb :ss :ze

[Adriftpanda]

Happy birthday, Chris.

Just got back from back and arms. Feeling flat and depleated because I woke up too late to eAt. Time to consume 300-400 grams of carbs today.

[Sancho]

Thanks Guys!

Got in tonight for some work

chins/dips 5x3-8
Barbell row 5x3
And some exciting post cake elliptical, at least I think nearly net zero' there so that's a win :)

[icehog3]

And some exciting post cake elliptical, at least I think nearly net zero' there so that's a win :)

:D :hb

[swingerofbirches]

Happy Belated Bday, Chris!!! :)

Hope you get a few killer lifts in before your deload, Tom.

Got in an hour of fasted cardio this morning. Decided to hold off on my arms/shoulders lift until tomorrow, due to massive soreness from the chest/back workout. LOL

[swingerofbirches]

Got another good freeweight chest/back lift in today. Also managed to do some squats, deads & legs. :)

[icehog3]

Good deal, Charlie! :tu

Going to do an all-body workout tomorrow, hit one exercise per bodypart. Then 5 days out of the gym....should be ready to get pumped as a MoFo by next Monday! :ze

[Sancho]

Nice work Men!

Today was :
5x3 chins and dips (with 100# assist)
Lat pull down 5x5
Cable row 5x5
BW squats 3x20

[Sancho]

Thanks for the well wishes as well :D

Good luck Tom! Got it mapped out yet?

[icehog3]

Hi Chris!

Done:

Leg Presses
Seated Hamstring Curls
Pullups
Incline Bench Press
Standing Military Press
Cambered bar Curls
Skullcrushers

Back at it next Monday, time to carb up for 5 days. :lr

You guys tear it up the rest of this week, and I'll see you all next week. :ze :tu

[swingerofbirches]

Well ... i'm pretty sure i ate ALL the food in Southern Ohio last night LOL

Back to the gym today, for my sins. :)

Doing all free weight arms today ... which leads me to a question. For those of you who superset arms, do you do antagonizing muscles (superset tris/bis) or same muscle (superset preacher curl w/ hammer curls)? I've mostly done antagonizing supersets and enjoy them but I do feel like doing same muscle supersets might be a nice switch. So I guess a second question would be, if you do same muscle supersets, how do you structure an arm day? Would you do a bicep same muscle superset and follow that with a tricep same muscle superset? Would you do all of your bicep exercises and then all your tricep exercises?

TIA guys :)

[Adriftpanda]

I do biceps and triceps when I super set them.

I don't hit arms often, once a week. I feel like I do enough compound movements to the point where my arms are being exhausted enough so when it's times to hit arms, there already a nice flow of blood.

I'm more of an old school guy when it comes to arms, I keep it fairly simple and try not to get too crazy.

Here's my superset when I hit arms once a week:

Barbell curl -- incline skull crushers w/bb
Incline DB curls -- rope extensions

[Sancho]

Nice work Charlie, I can sympathize with the remainder of southern Ohio. I've done the same.

Maybe Christos can comment on the super setting as well?

I did something last night, was doing shrugs and tweaked my neck. So I Stopped and just did some cardio for a while. Probably will take the week end off and see if it will correct quickly.

[swingerofbirches]

Sucks about the tweaked neck, Chris. Hope it heals up fast and you're back at it. Enjoy the weekend!

So I did same muscle group supersetting last night but rotated biceps and triceps after each superset. Idk if that was a good or bad call but I felt like it was gonna give me the best shot at my muscles being able to endure a hard workout than doing bicep superset followed by bicep superset. If that makes any sense.

So I did close grip bench press SS w/ laying overhead EZBar extensions. Then EZBar Preacher Curl SS w/ dumbbell hammer curls. Then Skull Crushers SS w/ Close Grip Cable Pull Down. Then Seated Declined dumbbell curls SS w/ EZBar Zottman curls. Then for the very last SS, I did a EZ Cable Curl SS w/ Close Grip Cable Pull Downs with the final set of each being a drop set in 20lb increments until failure all the way down the stack.

I'll say that my arms feel super worked today. Next time I may do all biceps first with a little more rest between SS, just to compare and see which one I feel gives me a better workout. I shall report back with my findings. lol

[Adriftpanda]

Because the bicep and tricep muscles are one of the smallest muscle group, I personally believe there's no wrong way to go about training them. If you're super setting them bi/bi or bi/tri etc.

Like I mentioned, hitting big compound movements involves using your arm strength as is so when you're hitting isolating your arms, it's just accessory work.

Hope that made sense.

[Adriftpanda]

Oh, heavy leg day last night. Hit 315 for front squats for 8 singles and then a bunch of pause front squats for 275. Heavy leg presses and hack squats, that's all she wrote.

Lighter push day today.

[swingerofbirches]

Nice work, Huy!

Shoulders today on lunch break. Went heavy. I'm hurting. LOL
Going back this evening with the wife for a 1000+ burn. :)

[Adriftpanda]

Decent push day yesterday, lifted everything around 65% to 60% but reps were relatively high for me, around 8-12.

Volume leg day. Didn't bring my knee sleeves since I'm out of town, so I won't go too heavy for today's volume training.

[Sancho]

Last night was productive:

Ohp 3x10
Chins/dips 3x4
Concept2 10km

[Adriftpanda]

Volume leg and some abs last night.

Suppose to train today but looks like that won't happen

[swingerofbirches]

Ugh ... back to the grind tomorrow. Had a rly long weekend and got nearly no working out at all and a bunch of bad eating. :(

April had been a goal month for me and I plan to drop some serious fat. Tomorrow it starts. Hold onto your ass, hopefully LOL

[icehog3]

Good luck with the fat vetting, Charlie!

Been back to the gym for two days. First day back was kinda rough, but felt pretty good today.

[Sancho]

Bench 5x8
Barbell row 5x5
Dumbbell flies 3x10
Lat pull down 5x5

Good luck Charlie, shred it.

Picked up ON choc peanut butter when BB.com ran their sale last week. Good recommendation Tom :D

[icehog3]

Glad you like it, Chris. Second only to the Rocky Road flavor for me.

Finished my first time through the cycle yesterday, off toady, back in tomorrow. Good to be getting back in the groove.

[GreekGodX]

Bench 5x8
Barbell row 5x5
Dumbbell flies 3x10
Lat pull down 5x5

Good luck Charlie, shred it.

Picked up ON choc peanut butter when BB.com ran their sale last week. Good recommendation Tom :D

How much was it in the sale? Costco has 6 pound bags for $59.99. You can only get chocolate or vanilla.

[swingerofbirches]

Nice work guys! Keep hitting it! Pumped as a MoFo!

So I was told that ON makes the protein for GNC and that GNC basically asked ON for a carbon copy of Gold Standard minus a little of the fats.

Got shoulders and arms in today along with squats. Finished with an hour of cardio. :)

Last week was a bit of a debacle thanks to a rly long trip over last weekend and a crazy work week. Back on track tho. I anticipate next week being a good one!

[icehog3]

Good to be back on track, eh Charlie? :tu

Curious where you heard about ON making GNCs protein, not sure I buy that at all, Brother.

[swingerofbirches]

Yeah, I heard it from the guy at GNC and then looked up a bit online ... I didn't take it as gospel or anything but figured id throw it out there for conversation. :)

Good to be back on track for sure ... I messed up something in my elbow the other day when playing tennis with the wife and it's NOT happy with me right now :/

[Adriftpanda]

Yeah I don't know about that, haven't heard of that either.

My training is now limited to 4 days of training.

Power upper body
Power lower body body
Rest
Hypertropy/power upper
Hypertrophy/power lower
Rest
Rest

[Adriftpanda]

Dudes that work at GNC think they know everything.

[icehog3]

Hope the elbow heals up fast, Charlie.

How's the new regimen working, Huy?

[swingerofbirches]

Huy, that's rly close to the workout that Henry Cavill did for Man of Steel. Not sure if that has any value, but it's factual lol

[Adriftpanda]

I'm at a race with time since Mason came into our lives.

I follow Layne Nortons Phat program, Charlie. Well more of a hybrid program of Layne Norton.

[swingerofbirches]

Nothing today really except a nice walk with the wife. Nothing crazy but took just under 2hrs.

Hope everyone had a nice Easter!

[icehog3]

Back for me today. Before my time off, my left lat (back of rotator cuff?) was hurting when I tired doing pulldowns. Same thing today....did pretty good with barbell rows, T-bar rows and cable rows, so I will just keep working around it. Dropped my rest periods significantly to up the intensity in a different way.

Happy Easrter, Charlie, Chris, Huy, Gerry and all.

[Sancho]

How much was it in the sale? Costco has 6 pound bags for $59.99. You can only get chocolate or vanilla.

I paid right around 43$ delivered for 3.5lbs, so 12$ ish a lbs. didn't realize Costco carried ON, that's a better price for sure.

Sorry to hear about your shoulder Charlie, that's the worst. Keep on trucking.

Tom, if it's working, good on ya. I know your shoulders aren't exactly your best joint. Take it easy brother!

Huy, that's a pretty stout regimen. Are you maintaining now or pushing for new PB?

Tonight was light:
Chins and Dips 5x3, still assisted, but I did get 1 rep getting my head above the bar on Chins, just not quite past my chins. ;)

Elliptical 45 min

Happy Easter to all!

[swingerofbirches]

So in the spirit of letting my elbow heal up but not wanting to be driven insane by a week of absolutely no lifting, I've decided to start 531, which makes sense for me anyway since the next two months are rly going to be more about fat burn and current muscle maintenance.

Started today with squats ... leg press, leg curls & weighted calf raises as supporting lift. Followed by 30min of elliptical. Also, the wife and I walked just over 3.5mi when she got home from work today, so cardio wasn't bad today considering I squatted and such.

For my elbows sake I'm gonna skip tomorrow's traditional bench day and pick up on Thursday with deads and then see if I'm up to shoulders (OHP) on Friday. All the while keeping my cardio high and my diet on point.

[icehog3]

Volume day for shoulders, high reps on Military presses and shrugs. Stayed light, only up to 175 on presses and 275 on shrugs.

Hope the elbow heals up quickly, Charlie.

[swingerofbirches]

Nice work, Tom. Sorry your lat is still hurting. Hopefully it heals up soon.

[swingerofbirches]

Walked 3.14mi with the wife after work and just hammered out 30min on the stepper ... what a beast that thing is *exhausted*

[Sancho]

Nice work Charlie! Yeah that stepper will leave me feeling it for a few days haha.

Hope your healing Tom, how did the shoulder work go yesterday?

Tonight for me:

Bench dropset
Deadlifts 135,205,255,255,205,135 x6
Concept2 5km

My arms are wrecked :D

[Adriftpanda]

Heavy back and chest day. Been starting my back training with 100pull ups, usually takes me about 5 sets. I prefer to switch the grips from wide to medium. Nothing special today, heavy DB rows, wish they had heavier DB though.

[icehog3]

Walked 3.14mi with the wife

That's the "Pie" walk, Charlie! :noon

Shoulder seems to be doing better, Chris, I guess we'll see when I go heavier again. Nice workout for you today....you too Huy. :tu

Arms and abs for me today, hit 3 different exercises for bis and for tris. Off tomorrow.

[Sancho]

That's good Tom, is it just straight up that makes it act up? iE OHp vs seated press?

Liking the pie walk, although your a few days late ;)

Tonight was just 45 minutes of elliptical for me, my upper body is still wrecked from yesterday.

[Adriftpanda]

Heavy chicken leg day. Hit front squats for 315 working sets 6x4 and than heavy hack squats and a bunch of iso leg stuff for funnsies

[icehog3]

Exactly, Chris, trying to correct my range of motion for the presses, it's a little wonky from all the structural and muscle damage, but it actually seems to be improving slightly.

It's never to late for Pie! ;)

Nice leg day, Huy.

[swingerofbirches]

lol @ pi walk ... Pie is what got me into this mess lol

Took a 2mi walk ytrdy but consider that more of "active rest". My hams were a mess after my stair machine escapade. Feeling btr today which is good because today is deadlifting + some back work if my elbow is up to it.

[icehog3]

Hope it's a gopd worout, Charlie.

'bout to leave for International Chest Day myself....