Here we go again !! 3rd attempt at a journal.

[Hellrazor]

So yeah this is my 3rd journal, the first was good and really enjoyed it. My 2nd one was started with good intentions but for a few reasons was cut short. Now I`m going to be training hard and bulking for the next 8-9 weeks. My phone is almost out of memory as I`m jotting everything down as text messages ( Im lazy and cant be bothered buying a diary )

So I guess I might as well do this and transfer everything over !

I`m currently 185lb ( 13st 5lb ) Was around 175lb about 8 weeks ago but was injured and couldnt train MMA for a while. Ate crap for a few weeks and now I`m back doing Low ( ish ) volume weights to put a bit of size on for my summer hols

The programme is

Day 1. Chest and tris
Day 2. Back
Day 3. off
Day 4. off
Day 5. Shoulders and Bi`s
Day6. Off
Day 7. Legs ( On a sunday to dissuade me from drinking at the weekend..nowt worse than squatting with a hangover )

I usually keep my sets as low as poss ( 6-8 large - 2-4 smaller ) and go to failure on every set, with me being on a cycle at the mo I may add a few more sets but not going to failure ( I get doms like you wouldnt belive when I go higher vol than normal ).

I`m running a cycle of test prop / cyp ( 500mg ) and deca (400mg) so should see some decent gains over the next few weeks. I`m trying to get around 4-5,000 cals a day but as clean as possible where I can.

Anyway I`ll start from my last workout which was :

Shoulders and Biceps.

Seated dumbell press : 30k bells..4 sets.10, 7, 6,6. ( last week only got 7 reps out on my first set so happy with that ) !

Lateral Raises : 10k x 10, form was a bit off so dropped to 8k bells x 10, 8.

I felt my rotator cuff flaring up after finishing my last set and attempted an invisible military press...it hurt so I didnt bother with any more shoulders, better safe than sorry eh ? . .

Biceps. I never usually do more than 4-5 sets

Ez curl bar - 40k x 6...Hmm not the best, dropped to 35k x 8.

Dumbell curls - 17k bells x 10, 7.

After doing biceps my shoulders felt fine so I decided to try a bit of machine front press, I dont usually use machines but I felt guilty not doing more so did 80k for 2 x 8. RC`s felt ok and gave them a good stretch / massage afterwards. Hope they feel ok tomorrow..fingers crossed.

All in all not the best workout but hey ho...looking forward to leg day

On 2nd thoughts ...I`m actually not looking forward to leg day as both my legs feel like theyve been shot at point blank range thanks to my good friend Mr. Prop !!! I`ll tough it out though

[Franco]

Good luck Hellrazor

Keep the journal going this time you you northern monkey

[Hellrazor]

Ok had to re-arrange a little and do chest and triceps, no biggie will do legs on wed instead. Heres how the chest session went.

I`m still really paranoid about doing any bench work so always start with flat dumbell press.

Flat DB ( 3 sets ) - 42k bells x 7, 5 ( theres only 38`s and 42`s unfortunately and the 38s are too light for the first set, 42`s a bit too heavy... so always gonna have a bit of a problem here ) Dropped to 38`s for 3rd set x 6.

Ok I usually go with the hammer strength chest press here but wanted to try an incline barbell see how my shoulder felt so went ahead with it but stayed light.

Incline barbell - 70k x 8, 8. Although the weight was light it felt real uncomfortable on my rotators so gonna give it a miss next time and stick with what I can get away with. Damn !!

Instead of inc dumbell flyes this week I decided to go with cable xovers as I havent done these in a looong time, felt nice.

Cable x-over - 45k x 8, 40k x 8. Total of 7 sets but pecs felt exhausted so left it there. Now onto tri's !

Weighted dips - 14k bell x 9, 10k x 7 . . . ( Tri`s were weaker this session but I`m guessing its from doing the incline bench as I do hold the bar quite narrow grip.

Skullcrushers - 35k x 6, 30k x 8. Again worse than last week but hey ho I`m pretty sure its from doing bench, we will see next week !!!

Next session will be on wed - Legs !!

[Hellrazor]

Leg Day !! Wed 30.05.07

Ok so wasnt particularly looking forward to this but it went really well, pretty much smashed my previous on all excercises. Here`s how it went.

Squats - 3 sets.

100k x 12. . . ( felt pretty comfortable so added an extra 10k )

110k x 10, stopped about 1 rep before failure as had no spotter. Felt good so decided to add another 10 and go for 6-8 reps.

120k x 10. Found a pal in the gym and asked him to spot me, failed on the 11th rep. Over the moon with squats as my previous best was 110k for 8 reps.

Vertical leg press - 3 sets

120k x 12, 130k x 12, 140k x 10. Last set was absolute balls to the wall, agony inducing failure. Next week gonna start with 130 and go from there.

Leg extensions - 1 drop set.

80k x 8, 65k x 5, 50k x 4, 35k x 4......Quads were absolute toast after this and could barely stand up.

Leg curls - 3 sets.

50k x 10, 50k x 10, 45k x 7.

Think I will start doing stiff leg deads again next week, had a prob with my lower back and it stiffens up quite bad when doing them. Seems to be a little better now though.

Rotary Calf - 100k x 12.
Standing calf machine - 120k x 8.
Seated donkey raises - 60k x 8.

Overall a lot better than last week, waking up today my legs werent half as sore as they were last week. I am a tad concerned about not doing enough sets seeing as though I`m juicing. Will add a few more next week and see how it feels.

Next session is Back on friday !!

[Hellrazor]

Okay got a few sessions to pop up as I havent been able to get on my pc....here goes.

Back day - Fri 1st june.

Deadlifts - 120k x 8, 5. Once again my grip let me down on my 2nd set, the weight felt light but hands just gave in. MUST GET SOME CHALK !!!!!!

Chins - 4k bell x 8, bodyweight x 8, ( grip was pretty much gone so did....pulldowns 80k x 6 for final set.....

Rested a while then went onto...

Barbell row - 60k x 10, 10 Grip felt okay after a little rest.

One arm dumbell row - 42k x 10.

I have thought about doing deadlifts last as they seem to be wrecking all lifts after them due to my piss poor grip. I realise they are the king and should really be done with maximum effort but I will try next week and see how I feel.

[Hellrazor]

Shoulders and Biceps....Sun 3rd June.

Only had 25 mins before gym closed so had to do a quick session with limited rest between sets !

Seated dumbell press...30k bells, 3 sets....x 9, 8, 6. Although my reps havent really increased from last week I put the bench completely vertical as last time I realised I had it tilted back slightly making it a fair bit easier

Decided to do my laterals last this week as they stopped me doing more presses last time...

Standing military press 3 sets...45k x 8, 40k x 8, 6.

Lateral raises 3 sets...6k x 12, 8k x 8, 8.

Getting the same pains in my RC while doing these but cant drop them theyre one of my favourite excercises, will see how I feel next week

Barbell curl 2 sets ...40k x 8, 35k x 7

Dumbell curls ...18k x 6, 6. Will use the 16`s next time, felt a little bit too heavy after the bar curls !!

Decent workout considering I did it all in under 20 mins !

Next session will be on wed...Chest and triceps !

[Hellrazor]

Wed...Chest and tris

Flat dumbell press - 42s x 8, 7 ...dropped weight to 38s x 7.

Decline bench press - 80k x 8, 7

Wide grip weighted dips - 10k x 8, 7. Shoulders started feeling funny after the second set so didnt want to risk injuring them and stopped.

Skull crushers - 30k x 10, 10, 10. Had to leave the gym in a hurry but tris felt like they were pretty fried from the dips and skulls anyhow. Happy with the rep increase on the flat press and last week struggled with 70k on barbell so happy with 80k decline.

Legs tomorrow...yipee

[Hellrazor]

Friday - LEGS !!!!

Best session I have had in a while, smashed all my previous bests.

Squats - 120k x 10, 130k x 8, 7.....Really happy with the 130k squats !!!!

Plate loaded Vertical Leg press - 140k x 11, 150k x 8. Way heavier than last week !!

Force leg extensions - 15`s x 8, 8.

Leg curl - 50k x 11, 7 .....dropped to 45k x 8.

Standing calf - 150k x 12....After the set my spine was hurting from the compression so didnt bother with any more sets !

Seated donkey calf - 70k x 8, 7.

Really happy with todays session, looking forward to upping my squat next week !!! next session is shoulders and biceps either sun or mon.

[Hellrazor]

After looking back to last week it was actually back day next, heres how it went !

Deadlifts - ( I said last week I was going to do these last but....When I looked at the bar someone must have been using it and left a load of chalk on it ...Bonus ) Decided to go heavier than usual see how it felt.

130k x 6, 7 ....Felt a hell of a lot better with the chalk, failed on my first set but got 1 more rep out on my 2nd ..go figure !? Grip was still pretty ****ty after the 2nd set.

Chins - 6k dumbell x 7, 2....after the 1st set I could barely move my fingers and only got 2 reps on the 2nd set WTF ??? Rested a while and got a good strict set of 8 out with my bodyweight. BW x 8.

Bent over barbell row - 60k x 9, 8. My form on the 2nd set was a bit **** due to my grip going and me trying to rush the reps before my fingers slipped off the bar.

One arm dumbell row - 46k dumbell x 9. After this I pretty much coulnt even grip my water bottle so called it a day !! Very happy with the increase on my deadlifts, my friend is bringing some chalk in for me next few days so see how I go next week. Really considering doing deads on a seperate day as I really feel like theyre messing the rest of my back development up. Not sure how to squeeze them in though ?

Next session is shoulders and biceps.....although I may change it around slightly and do shoul / tris and chest / bis to avoid the overlap from back day. We`ll see...

[North]

Nice squats

[Hellrazor]

Thanks North ! I know it`s not much weight for most people on here but its the heaviest I have ever gone so I`m well happy.

[Hellrazor]

Shoulders and Biceps.

Seated dumbell press - 34k bells x 6 ( had no spotter so stopped what felt like 1 before failure ) found spotter and got 8, final set failed on 5 reps. Really happy with the increase on these.

Decided to do laterals second again this week as was rushed for time and figured doing presses after these would finish me off nicely.

Lateral raises - 8k x 15 ( usually struggle to get 10 but breezed them ) 10k x 8, 7. Once again a very good increase on my lateral raises from last time I followed db press with them.

Military press - 40k x 12, 45k x 8. Was going to do one more set but had to teach a class and didnt get done as quick as I thought which meant I had to skip biceps. i`m not concerned as I`m gonna start doing them with chest anyway. Very short session but way better numbers than last time

[Hellrazor]

Thu - Chest and biceps.

Flat dumbell press - 42k dumbells x 10, 6, 6. ( all sets were to complete failure ) Good improvement from last week !!!

Decline barbell - 80k x 10, 8.... Happy here as only got 8 on first set last week, felt fatigued after the 2nd set so dropped to 70 for an extra set ( usually been doing 2 sets ) 70k x 10.

Flat dumbell flye - 14k x 12 ( felt pretty easy until last 2) 16k x 10 ( agony ).

Not a bad chest session, slightly higher volume than normal so dreading waking up in the morning !!!

Biceps

Bar curl - 40k x 10, 8. Dropped to 35k x 7

Hammer curls - 16k x 8, 7.

Next session is the dreaded leg day, either tomorrow or sat depending on how I feel

[Hellrazor]

Ok So I went out for a drink last night, didnt go too mental. Partly as I knew I had work and partly because I Knew I had to train legs today. Felt like **** this morning, dehydrated etc...but had my best leg session yet. Heres how it went !

Squats - Ok so last week I finished with 130 for 8 reps so figured id go straight into that. Did 4 reps with 60k, 4 reps with 100k then straight on

130k x 10. Failed on the 11th rep and had to rack it. Decided to add 5k
135k x 8. Felt awesome and decided to add another 5.
140k x 6. Friggin awesome !!!! Well happy with these !

Leg press - Again I started on what i did my last set with last week so

150k x 10, added another 10k...
160k x 8. Again a fairly big increase from last week

Force Leg extension - Decidede to stay with the 15s as they were pretty tough last week.

15k x 10 ( 2 rep increase on last week )
20k x 6 .... A little too heavy will stick to 15`s for 3 sets next week.

Leg curls - 55k x 6, 45k x 8, 7. Nothing too flashy on these, would have done stiff deads but my lower back was a bit stiff from the heavy squat..gotta check my form out on video next week.

Rotary calf - 120k x 12, 10.

Seated donkey calf raises - 70k x 10, 8.

Could barely walk down the stairs after the calf raises they were ****ing super intense and to complete failure.

Wicked training session, just need to check my form on my squats as I felt myself leaning over a little on the heavier sets and my lower back was giving me a bit of jip. Next session is back....Think I`ll have 2 days off to recover ! So back day tues and I WILL Deadlift 140 to match my squat if it kills me

[HILL]

hey hellrazor just noticed your journal. training is looking good and it looks like you are having good results with the cycle. As you know im from near middlesbrough. which gym do you train at bro??

HILL

[Hellrazor]

Okay so I decided to take out the deadlifts and try to do them exclusively on a seperate day due to my forearms pumping up so badly after them and limiting my workout.

Chins - 6k....9, 6. Even after these my forearms were shot ! Dropped the weight and did 7 with my bodyweight. I was a bit disheartened at the lack of rep increase on chins but then I realised that I had infact been getting heavier every week so happy with the progress on these.

Bent over barbell row - 60k x 9, 8....Dropped to 50k x 10. The fact that I missed deads helped loads with these, form was good, each rep was slow and was ensuring a good squeeze at top of every rep. Back was pumped after these big time.

Dumbell row - 46k x 8....Grip was pretty much gone here so decided to drop the weight drastically and stay super slow and intense...30k x 10, 9. Again felt way better going with the lighter weight. May be forced to use straps in the near future as my grip doesnt seem to be getting better naturally

Pretty good workout, now I just need to figure out where to stick deads to avoid overlap hmmmmm........

[Hellrazor]

Thu 21/6/07.......Shoulders.

Dumbell shoulder press -

34k bells x 6 ( bench was straight so a bit too heavy ) dropped to
30k bells x 8, 6.....
dropped to 26`s x 7.

Lateral raises -

10k x 7
8k x 8
6k x 12. Did an extra set of presses this week so didnt really progress with these.

Military press - Shoulders were almost gone from 6 sets so decided to go a bit lighter with these -

35k x 12....
Felt easy so up to 40k x 8
35k x 10.

Slightly higher volume than normal but really started to strain my rotators. See how they feel in the morning !