Dynamo's Online Journal

So I am not sure how most people do these things, but I will post my routine, my thoughts, my food intake, and hopefully get some feedback from you guys.

I was reading yesternight about how low volume sets build high density muscle and more readily attack the fat in the region for reasons i don't feel like typing. While high volume (8-12 reps) will continue to build muscle strength through the mitochondria proliferation etc....I decided I was at the last 10-15 lbs of fat I want kill off so this week I chose to start powerlifting. I usually like to keep in the 8-12 range because I lift weights for jiu jitsu and explosive power isn't necessary or even desired.
Therefore my thoughts are as follows:

I want to get stronger, not so much bigger (never wanted to be mr universe)

Keeping with high volume sets will be good for maintaining muscle mass and conditioning my muscles for extended periods of strenuous activity while low volume sets will increase muscle density thus increasing the amount usable fibers. Therefore I should powerlift to generate more muscle and do high volume to condition the new muscle into high endurance stuff. Let me know if my logic is right here.

With that said i did some ab workouts today:
Incline Situp:
5 sets each with 45lbs on my chest
Reps: 8, 8, 6, 5, 5

Side Bend:
5 Sets
1:
45x12
2:
55x12
3:
65x10
4:
65x10
5:
65x10
More on my exercise later. See ya!

P.S. During my run I have never felt worse than I did today, I suppose its due to the amount of oxygen required to repair the muscles. I dunno but I almost past out twice and threw up once, there were lots of f bombs dropped.

I bought some nitrean a while back, good stuff. I also decided to vary my workout a little bit, I did 3 weeks of hypertrophic work outs (reps 10-12) and now I'm on week two of, umm, the other kind of work out (reps 5-8), I have to say I have had some tremendous gains.
In five weeks I've gone from dumbbell pressing 35x12 to 55x10.
Hip adduction & abduction has gone from 170x15 to 235x15.
Dumbbell Curls have gone from 25x12 to 35x8
two handed dumbbell triceps extensions have gone from 45x12 to 75x12
I started working out the quads and hams directly this week too, after 5 or so years of not working out I am happy to say I leg press 530x12 so I haven't lost it all. I will implement squats this week but I am scared for my knees so I will be taking it very slow with them.

I think I am going to do a 4 week hypertrophy 2 week powerlifting split from here out. I don't really feel like posting my workout if anyone wants to know it let me know but one thing I enjoy about my work outs is I have alot of exercises per muscle group memorized so when I go in the gym its rare I'll actually do the same movement two weeks in a row and if I do I'll vary in which order they come (i.e. week1: fly, press, machine press, then week2: press, fly, machine press).
On a final note I really enjoy doing machine assisted exercises at the end of my 3 exercise* routine because it allows me to go all out and not compromise form and in my opinion form is the most important thing when weight lifting, i'll gladly scrap 50 lbs to lift the weight properly.

*when I work out I do opposing body groups (chest/back, tri/bi, legs/shoulders) and I do three exercises per body group and three sets of each exercise with the last exercise usually being a machine.

P.S. I took pictures at the end of month one, I'll take some after month three and post them up to show the differences.

This past month and a half has been great! I'm weak as all hell but I'll build myself back up for sure!! I can't wait to see my changes in 6 months, I've lost a noticeable amount of body fat and I decided I won't cut and bulk in the traditional sense. I will make sure I get the proper nutrients but I won't eat to excess, perhaps my hypertrophy will be stunted but hopefully not. This week and next week are exam week I hope I can keep with my routine, and since I started lifting weights I spend far less time with my friends, it seems to upset them and I even have some ignoring me.
This is a totally unexpected side effect, nothing that bothers me enough to change, but I guess since I started lifting again I've put alot into perspective and started doing stuff I really want, at this point I think of a quote I read at some time its "you have to ask yourself two questions and they must be answered in this order: where am I going? and who am I taking with me?" Who knows, now that I think about it I actually make less of an effort to hang with my usual crowd, I'm glad I started lifting again, I never thought it would have such great psychological as well as physiological affects. Peace.

I have to say i love weight lifting, I was reading the Atomic Dog interview on testosterone nation and it got me thinking about how much I've changed over these last three months. In the article he says testosterone is responsible for ambition in both men and women and there is a huge lack of it in men these days. I would have to say I would agree.
I noticed since I started weight lifting my ambition and discipline have increased a noticeable amount, I also get angry really easily now, but I control the anger thing and pimples, **** they pop up everywhere now.
What I find pretty awesome is when I'm in the gym and there is one more rep that I don't feel like doing, I tell myself "if I don't do this then when it gets tough out there in the real world i'll end up giving up just like I did on this last rep, I gotta try, if I don't get it at least I can say I tried..." and i go for it, sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. My grades in my classes have improved alot too, I think its because I've become a little more goal oriented these days instead of sex oriented, interesting as I am a huge testosterone jockey now.
Random thought: In my college gym no one is respectful of the weights you get alot of fatheads coming in and throwing around weight like they know what they're doing and never put anything back its really starting to piss me off I think im about to start breaking arms. Oh and whats up with these fatheads? Don't they know momentum isn't helpful? I love how in many instances I put up less weight than these fatheads but I'm way more built, haha its only been three months I know, but its not like i've been sitting around playing world of warcraft and eating twinkies for the past 5 years. Ok enough ranting for me, just thought i'd share, peace.

Start:
dumbell press: 35x12
lat pulldown: 90x12

7 Weeks later:
dumbbell press: 60x12
lat pulldown: 130x12

I have other exercises I do but since I didn't start w/ them on week 1 i don't bother listing. My weight has been fluctuating between 203 and 206 Im trying for some rock hard abs now too. I was doing 60-70 bicycle crunches 3 days a week but I think I will focus more on diet now. School ends in a week at which point my diet will be in my hands and I will not have to choose between which mystery meat looks leaner...
From all I've read on this forum and elsewhere ab definition depends on diet more than anything, I thought I could muscle my abs into showing, you know, do situps with 45lbs on my chest etc..but after I did that I felt like I was going to throw up for a week. I'll work my way back to to high volume high weight situps. I actually want some freakishly strong abs for jiu jitsu.

I am pissed...

Did arms yesterday. Sore as all hell today. I'm not liking how my biceps are progressing I think they're taking too long to do much of anything. Meh i'm done, ****.

I started doing squats yesterday!!! Oh man My everything hurts so bad, i love it! I 've been scared to do them because of having bad knees but I went for it anyway.
Squat:
one set of 115x12 then 2 sets of 135x12.

Leg press:
430x12x3
Now that I think about it I didn't like my form too much on the leg press, i think i was bringing the weight down too fast.

I feel so weak I remember warming up with 225 back in the day, legs progress fast though so gimme a month im sure i'll be squatting close to 225.

I've been super sore lately, usually from the time of my workout to 2 days after that part of my body is incredibly sore and I find it hard to sleep at night, any suggestions?

Check out At Large's ETS microlactin supp. I take 4 capsules a day (at night), which is a half dose, and it works wonders on squatting and DLing soreness. It also gives me a REALLY deep sleep. Pretty good.

Also, why are you squatting with such high reps? Why not go with a more traditional 5x5 (which seems like its situated in a good range that will build strength AND hypertrophy fast). If you want a bigger squat, 12 rep sets aren't going to take you there the fastest.

Well everything I've read about so far says 8-12 reps is good for hypertropy while 5-8 is good for maintaining during a cut and building muscle density?? I do want strong legs sure but I'm not looking for huge legs either, I'll measure tonight and post my leg circumference. Also I'm experimenting with a 4 week high rep (8-12) cycle then a 2 week low rep (5-8) cycle and I want to see how my body responds. 25 inches.

its definitely alright to experiment, but everything I have been told points to sticking in the 5-8 rep range for most exercises. And the 2-4 rep range for deadlifting.

It is kind of a false dichotomy to pit strength against hypertrophy, because indeed if you are getting stronger you are probably getting bigger (ignoring neuromuscular adaptation for a minute).

I would say as long as you are going 'balls out' in the gym so to speak and pushing yourself hard and eating a TON, you will get bigger and stronger.

Ooooh yes! today was a good day. New personal records for me, all of them are.

dumbbell fly
40x10
40x8
40x6

seated cable row:
140x12
140x10
140x9

bent over dumbbell row:
75x11
75x9
75x8

bent arm db pullover:
55x10
55x7
55x6

lat cable pulldown:
140x12
140x10
140x10

Dips:
BWx10
BWx8
BWx8
and as usual I ran 4.2 miles in 30 minutes. I'm trying to work my mileage to around 10mph.

I went to the dining hall at my school after I worked out finished off 1.25 quarts of silk soy milk and had 5 plates of food. I never felt better, there was actually real turkey there today so I went back for more and more, and the vegan chili was amazing, and the corn bread, ooohh man!! Maybe it was just so good b/c of my workout, who knows...Today was a great day fellas. Today also marked the start of month 3.

Edit: I've gained 5 lbs in 3 months and my visible body fat has dropped and i've dropped an inch off my waist as well. I firmly believe my 5 lbs is muscle.

Originally Posted by dynamo

I've gained 5 lbs in 3 months and my visible body fat has dropped and i've dropped an inch off my waist as well. I firmly believe my 5 lbs is muscle.

That's great man, keep on with it.

Looks solid man keep it up you seem motivated and to enjoy working out which is a major plus. Keep on keep'n on. Lemmie know if you start a hypertrophy workout (how it goes) cause i just started rippetoes and im gonna do that prolly for a month or so here and then switch to a hypertrophy or 5x5.

As far as the past goes, dont over do it man, I learned my lesson about overtraining to try and get where i thought i should have been at the time and all my lifts dropped dramatically. You'll get there!!!

Haha! good stuff, did legs and shoulders yesterday after playing half field soccer for an hour.

Squat:
155x12
155x12
155x12

Leg Press
480x12
480x10
480x10

Machine Standing Calf Raises:
200x12
200x12
200x10

Military Press
100x10
100x8
100x7

Front Dumbbell Raise with arms Rotated to Lateral Raise:
20x10
25x4 straight to 20x8
20x10

Shoulder Press
55x12
55x10
50x10 <---for some reason I couldn't even get 55lbs off my shoulders I presume it was because I didn't rest long enough. Oh is it improper gym etiquette to grunt and groan and yell when doing leg presses? I couldn't help it but I felt kind of embarrassed after I was finished, once I realized I was making funny guttural sounds.

So its been 4 weeks I start my 5 rep sets for the next 2 weeks, we'll see how it goes. My strength has been increasing quite well. Hopefully this two week split will keep my muscles mixed up enough to keep growing. I'm looking forward to the results. I do take pictures after each month of working, I really like what I'm seeing. School just ended so I went to sams club bought my workout food (chicken fish and boca burgers and various cereals). I will be able to better manage my food and hopefully in the upcoming months get rid of this padding over my beautifully dormant 6 pack. Ok I'm out, peace.

I like your six minute mile goal I just hit a new PR for my 2 mile 11mins 51 seconds which I was really happy with considering I didnt condition to much this year cause I didnt play soccer for my university this year due to an overload of classes.

thats awesome! I love running, after the feeling of throwing up I usually have a 20-30 minute orgasm afterwards, I mean what more could you ask for? Besides that it definitely keeps my metabolism up and my water weight down, both of which are a plus for me since my naturally occuring state is a waterlogged fatty.

Last couple weeks have been slow but steady. I just incorporated deadlifts into my workout for the first time ever. I thoroughly enjoy them. Here is what I did yesterday:

Leg Press:
450x10x3 (the press machine at school is so busted the guide rails are rusty as all hell I can put up close to 700 on a properly functioning one.)

Squat:
185x10x3

Deadlift:
225x10
265x10 (I felt like I was going to fall through the floor and my fingers were going to rip off)
265x4
225x6

Lateral Raise:
30x10x3

Standing Military Press:
105x10x3

Rear Lateral Raise:
30x10x3

That sums it up. I enjoy the whole body pain I feel now from the dead lifts. hehe, I guess there aren't too many 'strong' people who stop by the gym either, when I started doing the DLs everyone stopped what they were doing and watched me, it felt pretty good. Peace out.

sigh...what I thought was a dead lift wasn't. What I thought was a 'good morning' was a dead lift. So I don't know what I did yesterday but I'll describe it for you.

I start out with an alternating grip and in a squat stance where my thighs are parallel to the ground, then I lift the weight with my legs until my legs are extended and then using my midsection I finish the extension to where I am standing straight up. Does this exercise have a name? I couldn't find it on exrx. Either way its a beast of an exercise. Peace.

Originally Posted by dynamo

sigh...what I thought was a dead lift wasn't. What I thought was a 'good morning' was a dead lift. So I don't know what I did yesterday but I'll describe it for you.

I start out with an alternating grip and in a squat stance where my thighs are parallel to the ground, then I lift the weight with my legs until my legs are extended and then using my midsection I finish the extension to where I am standing straight up. Does this exercise have a name? I couldn't find it on exrx. Either way its a beast of an exercise. Peace.

Sounds like you deadlifted with a rounded back. Keep that up and you are going to ruin your spine.

Get low, take the alternated grip, and pull with your back and push with your legs at the same time so your back doesn't round. Your legs mostly start the lift and your back mostly finishes it off.

Originally Posted by OGROK

Sounds like you deadlifted with a rounded back. Keep that up and you are going to ruin your spine.

Get low, take the alternated grip, and pull with your back and push with your legs at the same time so your back doesn't round. Your legs mostly start the lift and your back mostly finishes it off.

Nah no rounded back I'm quite familiar with all the bad techniques out there, I kept the head up the whole time, upper body was bent at a 45 degree angle just about, with respect to the ground, until i got to the point of finishing off w/ my back, plenty of lower back and ab work as well. I'll do a video of it one day so everyone can see what I was doing but next week i'll spend my time doing normal dead lifts.

Sounds like a pseudo/odd straight leg deadlift

monday was a fine day, I went with the intention of ripping the arms alll up and I did just that.

Dumbbell curls:
40x10x3

Close Grip Bench:
150x10x3

Preacher Bar Curls:
60x10x3

Tricep Extension:
65x12
65x12
65x10

Seated Bicep Isolation Curls
40x10
40x8
40x7

Tricep Kickback:
40x12x3

I have more strength in my left arm than right, so I focus on it much, its slowing catching up and I think it has alot more to do with neuromuscular failure than lack of strength so I spend alot of time squeezing out that last rep on my left arm, usually til it shakes. I have gained alot of feeling back in my fingers almost to the point of where I can feel detail such as the ridges on the edge of a quarter. Alright peace.

I took measurements last night of my body parts not flexed here is what I have:
24" thighs, 44" upper body, at nipple height (just wrapped the tape around my whole body), 15" upper arms, 22" head, 34" waist.

Dips:
BW+40x10
BW+40x10
BW+45x8

Bent Over Barbell Rows:
140x10
140x10
145x10

Decline Dumbbell BP:
60x10x3

Tbar Rows:
150x10
150x10
160x8

Dumbbell Fly:
30x10
30x10
30x9

Bent Over Dumbbell Row
60x12
65x10
65x10

I haven't felt this sore in a while, I think alot of it has to do with my new dip belt which makes me look like the **** at my gym. The ladies just stare when they see you walking around with 45lbs in between your legs. Not a bad thing eh :P Alright off to fix the car, This weekend i'll make a video of my bastardized deadlift for everyone to see and maybe it'll be cool. Peace out.

Two thumbs up for strutting your 45 lb faux-testicle for the ladies.

Keep up the good work, you've got some lofty goals to meet.

I figured i'd vent a little so below is somewhat of a rant dealing with crap that has been on my mind lately:

You guys are right, you can't talk about this stuff with normal people, all you end up getting is alot of flak. Not sure why, its not like weight lifters are habitually using drugs, some are but thats a different story and not related to me. I tell my friends I weigh out my food and they call me weird. I tell them I don't want to eat that **** and they call me weird. I tell them I don't want to stop and they called me weird.
My dad lifted his whole life, he was big, he was able to bench 360lbs when he weighed 180lbs in h.s. he told me. I see these powerlifters and they don't phase me, they don't cause me to do a double take because I lived with it my whole life. I've never consistently lifted until now but I've been pumping iron since I was at least 10 years old. I know what those concrete weights feel like, I know how it is to go into a musty 100 year old unfinished basement and brush the spiders and spiderwebs off old unused equipment and assemble and old rickety bench just to lift until I can't get the weight off my chest.
I relate to the fat people too. Maybe I love lifting because when I was in first grade I weighed 90 lbs and was the fattest mother****er in that room and they knew it and they made sure I did too and perhaps after playing in my neighborhood and getting tired of running around and being the slowest and usually the last I would end up in my basement again. I didn't know it at the time but I guess I really enjoyed only having myself to criticize me, and I idolized Arnold, Stallone, and Van Damme.
Now its happening all over again. They ask me why do you eat so much? They tell me you don't need to bulk, you're big enough already. She asks when are you going to get rid of that last bit of fat? Don't get big I don't like big people. And all I can say in return is I am not going to stop I am not trying to get big its just a side effect of my goal to be strong. If I wanted to get big don't you think I would just eat **** and watch tv all day? This is why I tell them. and as for her, I love her immensely, and she knows this, though she still proclaims she doesn't like body builders and powerlifters, and she will voice her opinion on how she dislikes my appearance, but, I tell her I won't stop and she threatened to leave and sure enough I said ok, go, even after we've been together for almost three years, she didn't. Guys I've stopped lifting so many times over the years probably because I was too weak and lazy but I won't stop now. I've realize this is a part of who I am and I don't want to lose it.
Today I was sitting at work in a meeting and all I could think about was my form on the squat and if i'd use a bench to help me get the proper form. Then I thought about how funny i'll look today when I do SLDLs but I'm excited to incorporate them into my routine. I'm tired of haters, guys, and now I have to go back to work. See you in the gym. Peace.