# No whining



## nadirmg (Nov 6, 2007)

Oh man, here we go.

Stats:
26 years old
5???6???
138lbs
Target bf %  10%  <--- Oh, geeez help me???.

My goals are to put on more muscle (how much, I don???t know).  Once I get a tape measure I???ll set that goal.
Develop more strength (how much, I don???t know).  I???ll know where I stand once I use this journal to start tracking my progress.
BF% target ??? Need to get calipers or scale ??? I???m leaning towards calipers.

To get an idea of what I???m going for check out picture ______.  This is me three years ago but I had no idea what I was doing diet-wise.  I just knew I wanted to be slim and have defined and not big muscles.  No breakfast, just a salad for lunch and nothing until dinner which was always brown rice and some kind of sauted veggies or soup.  I got the results that I was looking for but I was ALWAYS friggin??? hungry and it sucked ass.  

About 3 months ago I started reading up on eating 6 meals a day, centering it around getting protein, and making sure I???m getting enough calories.  It makes sends when I read it but when I look at the picture of me 3 years ago I wonder if I can get anything like that (plus muscles this time around).

So I got all excited, started eating 6 meals a day, even doing whey protein, which 6 months ago I would have thought was ridiculous.  Anyway I began to see a dramatic change in how much I was able to lift.  Stuff I was never able to lift with my puny muscles ??? I could lift.

Than I got overzealous and screwed my shoulder up.  It???s been 2 months since then.  It was a huge blow to the momentum I???d built up and I was reduced to doing legs a couple times a week.  Utter misery and hell.

Now I???m easing back into arms, adding in stuff like chest press, incline press, bicep curls and stuff ??? still staying away from the stuff that puts all the weight on my left shoulder.

I hope this journal keeps me going and helps me be committed because sometimes I really feel like giving up waiting for my damn shoulder to heal because I can???t lift the way I want to lift.
I plan (keyword there) to be merciless in evaluating for myself.  Hopefully anyone that reads my journal will be merciless in giving me good advice/critiques.

Baaaah!  Anyway, here we go.


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## nadirmg (Nov 6, 2007)

*11.05.07 Meals*

Meal 1
1/4c oatmeal
1/2 cut up apple
1 whole egg + 2 egg whites 
1tbs ground flax
1 multivitamin
3 fish oil pills

Meal 2
1/2 sweet potato
1 scoop of whey
2 egg whites

Meal 3
1 cup of lettuce
1 cup of homemade chili (lean ground turkey and kidney beans)
1/2 of brocoli and cauliflower
3 fish oil pills

Meal 4
1/4 almonds
1/4 mix berries
1/4 peanuts

Meal 5
1/4c oatmeal
1 whole egg + 2 egg whites
1tbs ground flax

PWO snack
1 scoop of whey
1 cup of FF yogurt

Meal 6
1 c WW pasta
1 can of tuna
1 cup of salad (cucumber, green bell pepper, tomato, LF feta cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar)
1/2 PB sandwich
1 orange
3 fish oil pills


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## Big G (Nov 6, 2007)

How did you fuck your shoulder up?

No protein in meal 4? That's wierd. That's more like a snack than a meal.

How many grams of protein are you taking in? Doesn't look like much.

I'd ditch the starchy carbs after meal 4. you don't need a cup full of pasta before bed! Have a casein shake instead (long lasting protein - perfect for sleep).

Sups? Multi-vit?


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## nadirmg (Nov 6, 2007)

Big G said:


> How did you fuck your shoulder up?



I was doing seated military 35lb DB presses.
in the 3rd set of 12 reps my left shoulder failed on count 10, and then i had 35lbs pulling my arm down in a very unnatural way that was accompanied by all kinds of popping and tearing noises.  
i thought i had dislocated it or maybe had torn my rotator cuff but the doc it wasn't the latter and to lay off the weights for a while... 

getting damn sick of not being able to do pull-ups and shoulder stuff.


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## nadirmg (Nov 6, 2007)

Big G said:


> No protein in meal 4? That's wierd. That's more like a snack than a meal.
> 
> How many grams of protein are you taking in? Doesn't look like much.
> 
> ...



Big G, thanks for the advice, and pardon my ignorance.  I'm still new at all this  
Doesn't the protein in the almonds and peanuts count?
My protein yesterday was 174g.
I thought carbs after the workout is a good time to eat them?  Maybe pasta is a bad choice, but any suggestions?  
I've thought about casein... sometimes I'll do CC right before bed, which has casein in it.

And I forgot about my supps.  3 fish oil pills after major meals and a multivitamin with breakfast - will adjust above meal plan.


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## katt (Nov 7, 2007)

Hey - thought I'd stop in and check this out!  What type of workout plan do you have?


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

katt said:


> Hey - thought I'd stop in and check this out!  What type of workout plan do you have?



how's it goin' katt?

now, this is how i'd LIKE to be lifting but because of my stupid left shoulder, a lot of the back and most of the shoulder exercises i'm unable to do.

I used do low weight with 4 sets of 20 reps on every exercise.  i'm in the process of moving towards a workout that will up my muscle mass though.

_for example instead of doing:_
bench press at 100
4x20 
_i'm going for more something like this:_
bench press at 130
4x12

once my body gets used to the increased weight i'll start doing staggered weights/reps, like:
130x10
135x8
140x6
and increase weight/decrease reps as necessary.


*Chest Days:*
Bench press
Incline dumbbell press
decline dumbbell press
dumbbell flys
push-ups w/swiss ball


*Back Days:*
Pull ups
Lat pull-down
Standing barbell rows
Seated t-bar rows
Dead lifts!
Back extensions


*Leg Days:*
Seated hamstring curls
Seated quad press
Ass-to-the-ground squats
Seated calf raises
Pistol Squats w/dumbbells


*Shoulder Days*
Military Dumbbell press (which is how I jacked up my arm)
Behind the head barbell press
Rope pull to face on cable machine
Shrugs
Dips
Dumbbell raises (side and front)
And whenever my shoulder gets itself sorted out i'll be looking for a good exercise that works my anterior deltoid.  any ideas?

*Abs (everyday)*
Crunches w/swiss ball
Planks
Leg raises on dip thingy (left, center and right side)

*Arms:*
Most of the exercises i do are compound lifts, so i'm not focusing on arms too much... except for bicep curls.

i'm still filling in the holes and replacing exercises with better ones i find.  totally open to suggestions.


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## Fitgirl70 (Nov 7, 2007)

I totally agree Big, I would drop the pasta too.  I would drop the pasta all together after lunch to be honest with you.  But here I sit working for a dietitian and I'm just now getting my fat butt on the ball too.....so who am I?

Don't mistake your nuts for protein either.  Those are fats (with protein) and not that much to be honest with you.  One ounce of salted, dry roasted peanuts only has 6.71g protein, but has 165 calories and 14g of fat.
One ounce of whole almonds is no better at: 169 calories, 5.87g. protein and 14.2g of fat.


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

Fitgirl70 said:


> I totally agree Big, I would drop the pasta too.  I would drop the pasta all together after lunch to be honest with you.  But here I sit working for a dietitian and I'm just now getting my fat butt on the ball too.....so who am I?
> *Errm, then how about brown rice with dinner?  That's certainly not as starchy as pasta.  Or perhaps a sweet potato or some kind of squash?*
> 
> Don't mistake your nuts for protein either.  Those are fats (with protein) and not that much to be honest with you.  One ounce of salted, dry roasted peanuts only has 6.71g protein, but has 165 calories and 14g of fat.
> ...



yah, i still have a long way to go figuring out my diet.  Looking at fitday really shows where the fats are coming in and where i'm missing protein.  i guess i just need to bite the bullet and start spending more money on tuna/chicken/eggs.  
i could always pull a Big G and eat 11 egg whites for breakfast.... holy crap i'd explode.


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## the other half (Nov 7, 2007)

good luck with your journal and your journey. 
nothing sucks more that having an injury that prohibits you from doing the things that you really want to do. just give it time, keep going to the gym and passing time doing the little things, next thing you know it will all come back together agian.


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

*11.06.07 Meals*

Meal 1
1/4c oatmeal
1 whole egg + 2 egg whites
1 multivitamin
3 fish oil pills

Meal 2
1/2 sweet potato
1 scoop of whey
1 whole egg + 2 egg whites

Meal 3
1 big-ass turkey sandwich (8 slices of of turkey, 2 slices of mozz
cheese, lettuce, tomato, mustard and LF mayo) - need to get FF mayo...
1/2 of brocoli and cauliflower
3 fish oil pills

Meal 4
1/4 almonds
1/4 mix berries

Meal 5
1 scoop of whey


Meal 6
1 chicken breast
1 can of spinach
1 cup of brown rice
3 fish oil pills

Treat
4oz of bourbon - hey, now, eeeeevery now and then is ok!!


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## Fitgirl70 (Nov 7, 2007)

yes and yes on both of those.....veggies (especially sw. potatoes and green veggies) are you friend!


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## Fitgirl70 (Nov 7, 2007)

hey, why no pics?


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

Fitgirl70 said:


> hey, why no pics?



i was meaning to upload them last night.
but the bourbon made me forget...


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

the other half said:


> good luck with your journal and your journey.
> nothing sucks more that having an injury that prohibits you from doing the things that you really want to do. just give it time, keep going to the gym and passing time doing the little things, next thing you know it will all come back together agian.



man, i hope so.  actually i was working up to a little bit of shoulder stuff on monday but was a little to aggressive.  now my shoulder's been hurting again...WHY did i have to get excited and push myself too far....


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## Big G (Nov 7, 2007)

nadirmg said:


> Doesn't the protein in the almonds and peanuts count?



NO!!

Protein is comprised of numerous "amino acids", most of which your body can actually make for you. The remaining 9 amino acids are considered Essential Amino Acids and you *must *get them from food. 

The protein in Almonds and Peanuts is considered an "incomplete protein" becuase the protein molecules contain an insignificant amount of one or more of the Essential Amino Acids.

Your body can not repair your muscles if it is deprived of any one of these essential amino acids. Imagine building a house, but not including 1 out of every nine bricks! Disaster!

For protein, stick to meat, fish, eggs, whey, casein - i.e. animal sources.

You could mix rice and beans for example (which are both incomplete proteins) because rice has the essential amino acids that beans lack, and vice versa (i.e. together they make a complete protein) but, honestly, I'd stick to animal sources if I were you.

ONE OTHER THING...

Almonds and peanuts are both high in Omega 6 oils. Your body needs this kind of oil, but it needs Omega 3 oils with it to be able to utilize it.

I put some peanut butter in my bedtime shake and to utilize the oil I add some walnuts (high in Omega 3s). For breakfast I spread peanut butter on my toast and, again, to utilize it, I have some Fish Oil capsules (again, high in Omega 3 oils).

Make sense?


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

Big G said:


> NO!!
> 
> Protein is comprised of numerous "amino acids", most of which your body can actually make for you. The remaining 9 amino acids are considered Essential Amino Acids and you *must *get them from food.
> 
> ...



That is the most clear explanation I've gotten on animal proteins vs. non-animal proteins.  THANK YOU!!

I'm taking 3 fish oil capsules after every major meal, so maybe i'll make sure when i have nuts to have them with the fish pills as opposed to a snack 2-3 hours after i take the fish oil.  aah, that makes soo much more sense.

question: what about cheese/yogurt/CC?  are these indirectly animal proteins?  or should i always have some animal proteisn WITH the dairy.  i don't do dairy too often maybe once every other day.  no i take that back, usually i'll have a slice of cheese on my sandwich or a string cheese as part of my snack. 

looks like i need to consider casein...
btw, Big, seriously 11 egg whites for breakfast everyday???


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## Big G (Nov 7, 2007)

Re: Workout plans...

Ditch the decline dumbbell press... This targets your lower chest which will cause a breast-like chest development. Your lower chest gets involved with flat bench-pressing anyway, so you don't need to hit it any more.

Ditch the dumbbell flys.. they just don't do shit for building mass. Use cable Xover if you want to target the center of your chest.

Check exrx.net for anterior detoid exercises although, again, avoid isolation exercises. I believe that your anterior gets blasted anyway doing military presses. It certainly gets hit doing a bench press. A lot of the bigger guys don't do shit for shoulders because they're hit so hard bench pressing anyway.

If you must do some "curls for girls" do them at the end of your workout. Don't wear your arms out at the start of your workout. you'll need 'em.

PS. If you've still got energy for curls at the end of your workout, you're not working hard enough! Strap weights to yourself next time you do chins. Do 40 or 50 reps, no matter how many sets you need to do to get 'em done. You won't feel like doing curls after that lot (and your lats will grow like freakin' wings!)


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

Big G said:


> Re: Workout plans...
> 
> Ditch the decline dumbbell press... This targets your lower chest which will cause a breast-like chest development. Your lower chest gets involved with flat bench-pressing anyway, so you don't need to hit it any more.
> 
> ...



Thanks for all the advice Big!


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## Big G (Nov 7, 2007)

nadirmg said:


> That is the most clear explanation I've gotten on animal proteins vs. non-animal proteins.  THANK YOU!! You're welcome.
> 
> I'm taking 3 fish oil capsules after every major meal, I personally think that's too many. Take 'em with your vitamins (A, D and K are oil soluble, so you need oil with your multi-vit) and take them with snacks high in Omega 6 oils - peanuts, almonds etc. (e.g. so maybe i'll make sure when i have nuts to have them with the fish pills as opposed to a snack 2-3 hours after i take the fish oil.  aah, that makes soo much more sense. Remember though that your body is able to process Omega 3 oils without the presence of Omega 6 oils, so if you snack on some Walnuts, or have a little bite of salmon, you don't need to supplement Omega 6 oils with it.
> 
> ...


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## Big G (Nov 7, 2007)

Additionally... since you're obviously reviewing my food log...

Note that my meal 6 is just a casein shake with a few fresh strawberries and cranberries in it (i.e. very low carb - a far cry from my high carb breakfast). I use casein and whey so I get the quick-hitting power of whey with the long-lasting effects of the casein. Plus I use heavy cream and water instead of milk to avoid the lactose (sugar, remember?). You're actually better to have a tablespoon of heavy cream in your coffee in the morning rather than fat free milk. It sounds crazy I know, but your body can process fats. It's the carbs that'll getcha. Don;t be afraid of fats. Have a salad with salmon, olive oil, avocado and walnuts as meal 5 if you want. It's loaded with fat, but it's very low carb. Eating fat won't make you fat. Good fats rock!  And they taste Mmm-Mmm-Good!!

FYI... My meal 5 is always enormous (love to come home and stuff myself on the couch) but it's only ever grean veg and meat, fish or egg.

Look up the "Thermic Effect of Food". You'll see how the body has to generate a lot of heat (i.e. burn a lot of calories) trying to get the calories out of leafy green veg. Hence you can eat a lot of them (even in calorie terms) but oly get a limited amount of calories from them (after having burned so may calories just trying to get the nutrients out).


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## Big G (Nov 7, 2007)

nadirmg said:


> breast-like chest development??!  boobs are great, just not if they're mine



Agreed! Most guys (correction... "most guys who actually know what the fuck they're doing") will do incline first because the upper chest is very stubborn and is hard to grow. Then flat presses. And no decline at all. I'm doing flat first then incline at the moment, but only because I've been doing incline first then flat for the past 3 months. Gotta keep changing it up to keep getting growth.

Keep your eyes peeled. You'll see, even in magazines, guys with breast-like chests. it looks just awful and it's really hard to correct since you keep hitting your lower chest more no matter what you try to do.


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

Big G said:


> Additionally... since you're obviously reviewing my food log...yea, haha i'm always running out of ideas for stuff to eat and it helps me be creative to see what other people are eating
> 
> Note that my meal 6 is just a casein shake with a few fresh strawberries and cranberries in it (i.e. very low carb - a far cry from my high carb breakfast). I use casein and whey so I get the quick-hitting power of whey with the long-lasting effects of the casein. Any ideas for a good (inexpensive) casein powder?Plus I use heavy cream and water instead of milk to avoid the lactose (sugar, remember?). You're actually better to have a tablespoon of heavy cream in your coffee in the morning rather than fat free milk. It sounds crazy I know, but your body can process fats. It's the carbs that'll getcha. Don;t be afraid of fats. Have a salad with salmon, olive oil, avocado and walnuts as meal 5 if you want. It's loaded with fat, but it's very low carb. Eating fat won't make you fat. Good fats rock!  And they taste Mmm-Mmm-Good!!Hmm, one of my goals is to keep my fat consumption below 30% everyday.  I'll have to think about all this.  Plus my shoulder really limits what I can and can't do at the gym.  I wonder if this will get in the way of me burning fat?
> http://www.ironmagazineforums.com/images/smilies/thumb.gif
> FYI... My meal 5 is always enormous (love to come home and stuff myself on the couch) but it's only ever grean veg and meat, fish or egg.



Hahaha, yea just came back from the grocery with 2 1/2 dozen eggs and some Ezekiel bread


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

*11.07.07 - Meals*

Meal 1
1/4c oatmeal
1 whole egg + 1 egg whites  ...ran out of eggs today...
1 multivitamin
3 fish oil pills

Meal 2
1/2 sweet potato
1 scoop of whey
1/4c almonds

Meal 3
1c WW pasta
1 can tuna
1 cup of greek salad (green peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, olive oil, LF feta cheese)

Meal 4
2 egg whites (hard-boiled)
1 string cheese
1/4 mix berries

PWO snack
1 apple

PWO snack
2 scoops of whey
1/2c strawberries
1/2 FF yogurt

Meal 5
4oz. chicken breast
1/2c black beans
7oz. sweet potato
3 fish oil pills

Meal 6
1 slice of bread
1 tbsp PB
1/2c CC


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## nadirmg (Nov 7, 2007)

*11.07.07 - Work out*

Legs and some back

Squat press
270x10
270x10
270x10
270x10
i think because of the way the machine is made there's NO WAY i was actually squatting that much weight.

Squats with BB on shoulders - what do you call that?
105x10
115x10
115x10
115x10

Deadlifts
110x10
110x10
110x10
110x10
110x10

Back Extensions
bwx20
bwx20
bwx20
bwx20

Pistol Squats
bw+40lbs 3x10

Planks
3 1-minutes planks

Swiss ball crunches
3x20
3x20
3x20

Leg raises
3x20
3x20
3x20

today was a good day.  only my second day doing deadlifts and i'm still concentrating on getting the form right before i really start upping the weight.  i'm gonna feel that tomorrow.  
the regular squats killed me.  still can do more weight, but like deadlifts i'm working on form, going ALL the way down.. none of those little half squats you see the pretenders doing...
pistol squats totally kicked my ass today.  pistolios.. at the end?! of my workout.  ugh.  my legs were already shot and i was ready to collapse.

you know how.. well guys do at least... you have to relax your quads when you're at the urinal taking a leak?  well when i did that at the gym bathroom right after my WO i almost fell backwards.  nearly a very awkward situation.  there i'd be laying on my back holding my junk, "help me....i can't get up.."


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## Big G (Nov 7, 2007)

nadirmg said:


> Squats with BB on shoulders - what do you call that? Just "Squats", no?
> 
> Deadlifts
> 110lb:5x10 - shoulder limitations here?
> ...


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## nadirmg (Nov 8, 2007)

Big G said:


> Quote:
> Originally Posted by nadirmg View Post
> Squats with BB on shoulders - what do you call that? Just "Squats", no?
> 
> ...



Some shoulder limitations do come into play here.  But this was only my 2nd time doing deadlifts.  Probably next time around I'll start upping the weight.

Pistol squats are single leg squats.  Rest one leg on a bench behind you (for balance) and put all weight on the leg you're standing on.  Some weight will unavoidably go to the leg resting on the bench so that's where the 20lb dumbbells in each hand come in.  This really works the hamstrings.  Yea, I go as low as I possibly can.  And yea, after all those squats and deadlifts I was dying.


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## nadirmg (Nov 8, 2007)

Fitgirl70 said:


> hey, why no pics?



pics from my cut 3 years ago are up.  those pics + more muscle are my target!  *ROAR!*


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## Big G (Nov 8, 2007)

nadirmg said:


> But this was only my 2nd time doing deadlifts.:



Watch your back, Dude. Push your stomach & chest out so that your back arches inwards. Keep that bend in it all the time. NEVER pick the bar up or put it diown with a rounded back. I got to 325lb recently but apparently a nearby trainer thought my back was rounded as I put it down. I had no idea. Dangerous! 

Sumo Deadlifts are apparently better for keeping you back in the right position. Sumos are just like RDLs (Regular Deadlifts) but your feet are further apart and you grab the bar from between your feet, rather than on the outside.

Be careful! Ask someone experienced at the gym to watch you.


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## fufu (Nov 8, 2007)

Did you get an MRI for your shoulder? What kind of doctor diagnosed your injury?


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## nadirmg (Nov 8, 2007)

fufu said:


> Did you get an MRI for your shoulder? What kind of doctor diagnosed your injury?



the dr. said it was probably a soft tissue injury.  an x-ray showed that it wasn't a rotator cuff injury.  but without an MRI he couldn't tell me just how bad it is.  i decided to skip the expensive MRI.

all it's going to do is confirm that it's not a rotator cuff injury, and that it's some kind of ligament strain or soft tissue injury.  and there's not much he can do about that.

so i guess i'm pretty much screwed until my shoulder is healed.


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## nadirmg (Nov 8, 2007)

*11.08.07 Meals*

Meal 1 -  6:30am
1 whole egg
5 egg whites
2 slices of toast
pb
multi-vitamin
2 fish oil pills

Meal 2 - 9:30am
1 scoop of whey
1 cup of sweet potato

Meal 3 - 12pm
.75cup of brown rice
.75cup of black beans
.25 cup of ff yogurt
.25 tomato
1 orange
.5cup of broccoli
2 fish oil pills

Meal 4 - 3:30 pm
1 can of tuna
.5cup of strawberries

Meal 5  (PWO shake) - 7pmish perhaps?
2 scoops of  whey
.5cup of mixed berries
.5cup of yogurt
ice cubes

Meal 6 - 8pmish
5oz chicken breast
2cups  iceberg lettuce
1/2 onion sauted with olive oil
.25cup of almonds
2 fish oil pills

Pre-Sleep Snack 10:30
.5cup CC
1tbs PB

Total: 2409 calories
F 65g - 25%
C 227g - 36%
P 226g - 39%

1 gallon of water throughout the day


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## the other half (Nov 9, 2007)

looks like you are getting some great advice and knowledge, both on the lifting and the eating part. i personally have a hard time being really strict with the eating, which in part just slows down my progress on the lifting.
im such a dumbass sometime.

good luck and keep asking questions.


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## nadirmg (Nov 9, 2007)

the other half said:


> looks like you are getting some great advice and knowledge, both on the lifting and the eating part. i personally have a hard time being really strict with the eating, which in part just slows down my progress on the lifting.
> im such a dumbass sometime.
> 
> good luck and keep asking questions.



yeah, i know what you mean.  it really does take a lot of forethought (and $$$) to eat right.  isn't it crazy that the HEALTHY stuff is expensive?  i mean like fruit and veggies...sheesh..


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## nadirmg (Nov 9, 2007)

*majorly discouraged*

spoke with the dr's office and my insurance today.  looks like an MRI is gonna set me back at least $1300, which is simply not feasible.  if i saved up for a couple months i could do it but just getting the MRI doesn't fix my shoulder...

yesterday was chest day.  i don't even want to post my WO.  i thought i was doing pretty well but gradually the pain in my shoulder started coming back and it hurt just to push myself up after doing a plank at the end of my WO.  i mean, shit, it's been 2 months since the accident!!

i don't know how i'm going to do things if i can't even to simple BP and incline BP .  i can't do deadlifts, good mornings and legs every day i go to the gym  
that's just gonna leave me with a crazy-ass unbalanced body.

i'm trying to decide if i'll drop my calories and just do a ton of cardio and take several months off from lifting all together or keep doing legs and back 2x a week - because that's really all i can do that doesn't make my shoulder worse.


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## the other half (Nov 9, 2007)

ya i have been in the grocery business for 23 years know, just started working in the produce dept 2 years ago. i hear all the time about how fucking expensive our produce has gotten. the funny thing is that most of the complaining comes from the people that have moved from calif. or ariz.
and dont realize that it cost alot of money to ship it all the way up north.
i guess thats why they build costcos and wall marts.

as far as finding cheap casien protien, i personally think that you get what you pay for. it is just a matter of finding who sells it the cheapest. we get most of our stuff  online, not gnc or other stores.


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## the other half (Nov 9, 2007)

ouch that hurts, both the pocket book and the pain in your shoulder.


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## Big G (Nov 10, 2007)

Don't get down. Your shoulder will heal in time. It sounds like you fucked it up pretty good. You're going to have to work round it. There's no point being a pussy bitch, throwing your hands in the air and eating a big tub of ice-cream!

You have work to do! 

You want to get rid of some of your body fat (not be one of those guys that just talks about doing that month after month after month) and your shoulder isn't stopping you there. So do that.

Additonally, make a list of exercises that you _can _do without pain. Break them apart into some kind-of workout. Jumble them togther into a full-body program (excl. shoulders) if you like. 

Once your shoulder heels you can alter your workout plans to correct any apparent imbalance in your appearance (if there even is one by that point).

It's awful to get unjured and not be able to workout. I've been lucky with muscles, ligaments, tendons etc, but I did have renal failure and damned-near-black-you-out-from-pain headaches that turned out to be sodium deficiency related (danged all-natural diet - I salt my food nowadays).

Anyway... buck up... truck on... give that shoulder the rest to needs and work around it. It will heel. Get advice on rehab. Maybe just swimming a couple of times a week for the next few months on top of a full-fledged cardio/weight fat-burning program would be just the ticket.

Something anyway.


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## nadirmg (Feb 20, 2008)

*At long last!*

Back in November I hurt my shoulder AGAIN at the gym.  Apparently I was too over-eager after my initial rotator stress injury and didnâ??????t give it enough time to heal properly.  I decided I just needed some time off because it drove me insane to go to the gym and still not be able to workout the way I wanted to.  Since then itâ??????s been 3 months and Iâ??????ve been rehabbing my shoulder.  It rarely hurts anymore when I do normal things anymore and can even roll over in bed without wincing in pain!  Sweet!

Fortunately over the holidays and my birthday I havenâ??????t gained serious weight.  Over the past 3 weeks Iâ??????ve gotten back on my diet.  My goal is to shed the extra fat Iâ??????ve got (down to 10% for starters) and increase my muscle mass, strength, and endurance.

Diet:
Right now Iâ??????m at 136lb and Iâ??????m 5â??????5â??? tall.  Iâ??????m trying to get 1.5g of protein per lb of myself.   Iâ??????m aiming for at least *200g* of protein a day and trying to keep my fats percentages at 25% or less.  Generally Iâ??????ve been running about fat-20ish%, carb 30ish% and protein 50ish%.  But itâ??????s not something I strictly adhere to.  As long as Iâ??????m getting my 200g minimum grams of protein a day I can fudge a little on the other places.  Pretty much anything thatâ??????s processed I donâ??????t eat with the exception of 1-2 slices of WW bread a day, FF CC, reduced fat string-cheese, and natural PB. 

Iâ??????ve been logging my meals and you can check it out in my signature.  Any ideas of ways to increase protein and fibrous veggies are moooore than welcome.  

Workout:
Iâ??????m spending most of my time working on my back and legs, which Iâ??????ve always neglected for the most part.  Iâ??????ll continue rehabbing my shoulder and add in some arm things as I go starting out with low weight and high reps.  Fortunately I can do bench presses and cable flys without any discomfort, but Iâ??????m keeping the weight low.  I *REFUSE *to jack my shoulder up again and have to sit another 3 months out all because I got in a rush 

Iâ??????m in my second week of working out again and itâ??????s great to be sore everyday.  I missed the pain sooooo much.  Legs, back, chestâ???¦ HURT!  From now on Iâ??????ll be posting my workout notes in a general manner.  Right now I'm not emphasizing major gains in muscle mass or strength.  My short-term goal is just to get back into a routine (which involves working out at 5:45am) find a good rhythm and NOT screw my left shoulder up again.  Hopefully by summer time Iâ??????ll have shed some fat, increased my LBM, and will be able to do full body workouts again.


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## nadirmg (Feb 25, 2008)

*Saturday 02.23.08 - Chest/Triceps*

Warmup:
Crunches w/swiss ball
     3x20
     2X20 (side to side
Leg Raises (laying down on bench)
     20x - w/o hands stabilizing
     20x - half w/o hands stabilizing
     20x - need hands the whole time
Back Extension
     20x - 3 sets of left, right and straight back extensions

Chest:
Bench Press
     15x60lb
     15x80lb
     15x90lb
     15x80lb
I don't know what the deal is.  This gay gym I go to, planet fitness, doesn't have REAL bench presses.  They have these machines with bench press bars that slide up and down vertical bars.  The secondary and tertiary muscles don't really get a workout and I'm not actually pushing as much weight as I load up... @##$@!  ...I digress..

Standing fly pulldowns (w/cables)
     15x30 on each cable
     15x30 on each cable
     15x25 on each cable

Standing cable flys
     15x25 on each cable
     15x25 on each cable
     15x25 on each cable

Tricep push downs (w/straight bar)
     15x40
     15x40
     15x40

Tricep push downs (single arm)
     15x20
     15x20
     15x20


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## nadirmg (Feb 25, 2008)

*Catching up on workouts from the weekend.*

*Sunday 02.24.08 - Legs*

Crunches w/swiss ball
3x20 - straight
2x20 - left to right

Decline crunches
2x20  with superset of left-to-right X10

Let Extension - where you hang from your elbows at a 90-degree angle
3x20

Leg Press
10x180
10x270
10x330
10x270

Calf raises on leg press machine
20x180
20x180
20x180

Squats - Guys were hogging the squat bar, so I had to use the gay chest press machine instead
10xbar+90
10xbar+110
10xbar+120
8xbar+90  Muscles totally gave out.  Next time I'll get 4 sets of 10 though.

Lunges w/15lb dumbbells
2x20

And I was spent.


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## nadirmg (Feb 25, 2008)

*Unorganized thoughts about workouts/diet*

Ok, so I'm still trying to figure out what my routine is going to be.  I'm aiming for 3-4 days at the gym a week.  I'm sticking to my diet like crazy right now.  But one day during the weekend I'm easing up and, while I don't go nuts, I allow myself to eat some yummy munchings and crunchings.

Feeling a good bit of healthy soreness.  I missed it so!

Also, I'm refuse to let myself step on the scale for a couple weeks.  I know when I started I was 136.  That's what I weighed in at 10 years ago too.  But now I'm trying to put on some muscle weight - I know it's not just going to jump on me, so I'm just gonna keep working out, eating right, and I'll let the muscle develop at it's pace.

After all, I'm still rehabbing my shoulder and if I get to hasty I'll just set myself back again.


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## nadirmg (Feb 26, 2008)

*Legs for retards*

Anyone got some tips/links for me?  I'd like to spend more time working on my legs and I'm sick of just doing squats.  I'd like want to really strengthen my legs as a whole but it just seems like I'm not making any progress on adding weights.

Am I not eating enough?  Maybe I'm not pushing myself enough?  Help?

My meals are in a link in my signature.  Should I start posting a rough draft of my meals in along with my w/o plan as well?


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## the other half (Feb 26, 2008)

good to have you back. 

"if you squat, the muscles will come"
i dont think i would venture away from them, they are one of the 3 major movements that will produce the mass that you are looking to put on.

just find different ways of increasing your weights. lower rep range, then try step outs, they will get you comfortable with the heavier weight.
i found that the knees dealt with the weight better than my back did.
it felt really heavy standing there, but once i squated, it was easier than i thought it would be.
and if you dont have a lifting partner try and find one. they can give the spotting that is needed, plus the positive mental bust.


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## nadirmg (Feb 26, 2008)

thanks, it's good to be back!  yea, i need to find a lifting buddy.  shouldn't be too hard, the guys that lift in the morning are pretty cool and serious about lifting.

but what are step outs?  are they kind of like lunges with the barbell across your shoulders?


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## the other half (Feb 27, 2008)

sorry, i was just reading my post and i kind of jumped from one thing to another.

step outs are just that, you load the bar with a heavier weight than you can squat, and just unrack it and stand there for 15 seconds with it on your traps and then step back in and rack it. it will get you used to the weight and break the mental block.  i would just put an extra 10 pounds on the first time and work up alittle from that.


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## nadirmg (Feb 27, 2008)

*Wednesday - 02.27.08 - Legs*

Decline crunches
40x
40x
20x

Squats - This is the most I've attempted before!  Was never really sure how much I'd be able to handle.  Will increase in later workouts.
100x10
140x10
150x10  - Holy crap I could feel my glutes screaming!
140x10

Leg Curl
100x10
100x10
100x10
100x10

Leg Extension - wiped out after the squats...
90x10
90x10
90x10
90x10

Calf press - Super setted with below bb lunges
90x20
90x20
90x15

BB lunges - 20lb dumbbells
20x
20x
20x

Hip Abductors (both machines)
90x20
90x20
90x20
90x20

Great leg day!  Oddly I found myself thinking, 'I was able to do this much??' on some of the exercises.  Feel like I'm making some progress


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## the other half (Feb 27, 2008)

keep it going big guy. now use that mind frame everyday and you will be suprised at how the pr's will start coming.


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## StanUk (Feb 27, 2008)

Nice looking squats man


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## nadirmg (Feb 28, 2008)

StanUk said:


> Nice looking squats man



thanks!  i'm hoping to get two 45s on each side in the next month or so!


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## nadirmg (Feb 28, 2008)

Rest day!

Meals today

Meal 1 - 1 whole egg, 3 whites, oatmeal, 1/4c ff milk, whey
Meal 2 - 1/2 can of green beens, whey, 1 string cheese
Meal 3 - spinich, boiled boneless skinnless chcien breast, 1 sm apple, 1c broccoli
Meal 4 - Whey, 12 baby carrots
Meal 5 - Tuna Salad
Meal 6 - Veggie soup, Turkey, mozz cheese, FF mayo, 2 slice WW bread
Pre-Bed Meal - 1/2c CC, 1 TBSP Nat PB

Inside of my legs feel a little tight.  Other than that no soreness after my crazy-ass hard leg day yesterday??   I thought for sure my legs would be killing me all over.  I guess that means I can up the weight, decrease reps, and start upping the reps slowly!


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## JailHouse (Feb 28, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> Rest day!
> 
> Meals today
> 
> ...



Are you trying to bulk or cut?  I'm eating more than that on a cut.  Also canned veggies are no good, go for the frozen ones.


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## nadirmg (Feb 28, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Are you trying to bulk or cut?  I'm eating more than that on a cut.  Also canned veggies are no good, go for the frozen ones.




well i'm not trying to cut... there's only 135lbs of me so...
and yea, you're right.  i'm almost never getting above 2500 in a given day.  usually low 2000's.  

no canned veggies huh?  thanks for the tip, jailhouse!
does that go for canned beans as well?

what should i increase food-wise?  i'm getting complete protein sources in almost every meal... usually i get about 200g of protein a day.  should i just eat larger portions?  to tell you the truth i almost don't think i could eat more.  i'd have to start lifting seriously to burn up the extra calories and with the should rehab slowly coming along i'm hesitant to up the weight (except for legs/back).

thoughts anyone?  thanks!!
(and you can check out my food-log in my signature below)


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## JailHouse (Feb 28, 2008)

Ya dude no caned veggies theres almost no nutritional value to them.  Try steaming some frozen ones, they taste way better and are much better for you.  Your protein intake is plenty you souled up your carbs to make up for the cals you need.  Id try to get in at least 2500 cals a day.  
I'm not an expert at all.  If you want some good info search the user name "Jodi" shes knowledgeable about all of this.  Have fun bulking, its the best part of BB.


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## nadirmg (Feb 29, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Ya dude no caned veggies theres almost no nutritional value to them.  Try steaming some frozen ones, they taste way better and are much better for you.  Your protein intake is plenty you souled up your carbs to make up for the cals you need.  Id try to get in at least 2500 cals a day.
> I'm not an expert at all.  If you want some good info search the user name "Jodi" shes knowledgeable about all of this.  Have fun bulking, its the best part of BB.



just to be sure i understand you...

no *canned *black beans or garbanzo beans?  kidney beans?  pintos?  all bad?


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## katt (Feb 29, 2008)

I second the nix on the canned veges.. just because of the sodium and how long they have actually been on the shelf..

I do, however, use the canned beans.  I get the lower sodium kind and rinse the hell out of them in the collinder


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## nadirmg (Feb 29, 2008)

katt said:


> I second the nix on the canned veges.. just because of the sodium and how long they have actually been on the shelf..
> 
> I do, however, use the canned beans.  I get the lower sodium kind and rinse the hell out of them in the collinder



sweet, i was about to freak out if i had to cook all my beans! 
good idea about rinsing 'em off.  will definitely do that   thanks katt!


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## nadirmg (Mar 1, 2008)

*Saturday - 03.01.08 - lats/biceps *

Crunches
20x - then i realized the gym was closing in 45min, so i got down to business with the rest of my w/o

Assisted Pull ups (70lbs help)
10x
10x
10x
10x
This is the first lat w/o i've done since i hurt my shoulder in Sept of last year.  i'm easing into these since my shoulder _joints_ carry a lot of the load.

Seat rows (wide grip)
60lb x 10
60lb x 10
60lb x 10
60lb x 10 - again light on the weights, hopefully my shoulder will get stronger soon

Single Dumbbell rows
20lb    x 10
22.5lb x 10
25lb    x 10
27.5lb x 10 - asked a guy in the gym about my form and he REALLY helped me out.  i'd been doing them wrong the whole time until today...

Barbell rows
60lb x 10
70lb x 8
70lb x 6 - shoulder told me to stop here

Seated dumbbell hammer curls
20lb x 10
22.5 x 8
25lb x 6

Standing Bicep curls
30lb x 10
40lb x 8 ....blah

Gym was about the close and my arms (and shoulder) were fatigued.  yea, you don't actually _use_ your shoulder muscles extensively for lats/biceps but the joint still takes a lot of the load so i called it quits.  all in all not too bad considering it was my first lat day in almost half a year


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## nadirmg (Mar 2, 2008)

*Sunday 03.02.08 - Cardio/Legs/Lower back
*

Cardio
rode my bike up to the gym approx. 1.5 miles.  terrain uphill most of the way.

Crunches
30x
30x
30x

Leg raises
(laying down on bench - did not use arms to hold my upper body down to force my core to contract more)
20x
25x
25x

Squats - Smith machine 
no warm-up set since i rode my bike.  quads were already *TIGHT* and full of blood!
110lb x 10
130lb x 10 - *PR*
140lb x  4 - *PR*... but too much weight and my form was heinous
130lb x  8  - *PR*

Calf press
90lb   x 20
100lb x 15 - *PR*
90lb    x  20
by this time my legs were toast.  i know i could have done more if i hadn't ridden my bike up to the gym.  plus i had to ride back to my apartment..had to save some energy.

Dead lifts
105lb x 10 - usually i do 4 sets of 10 with this weight but i'm upping it now.
125lb x 10 - *PR*
135lb x 10 - *PR*
145lb x 10 - *PR*
145lb x 10 - *PR* - a fifth set!
had someone check my form and fortunately my back was straight.  need to work on using my hammies too though... still, i'm amazed i was able to do that much all at 10 reps.  guess i'm making progress.

Cardio
rode bike back home.  first half was against the wind.

very pleased with today's w/o.  weight increases and multiple PRs make me happy.  wonder much could i have done if i hadn't done the bike?...
starting to see more muscle definition in my arms and legs.  abs getting harder!  summer is just a couple months off and i will be ready for it


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## JailHouse (Mar 2, 2008)

Congrats on the PRs.  
Me personally I dont like to do squats and deads on the same day.  Its better to do them completely fresh so you can get the best results out of them.


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## nadirmg (Mar 2, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Congrats on the PRs.
> Me personally I dont like to do squats and deads on the same day.  Its better to do them completely fresh so you can get the best results out of them.



thanks!

ya i probably won't do it like that again.  i did lats and some back yesterday.  so in retrospect i'll do deads with lats and then put legs a full workout later so everything's all rested up


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## nadirmg (Mar 3, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Are you trying to bulk or cut?  I'm eating more than that on a cut.  Also canned veggies are no good, go for the frozen ones.



just curious but what are your stats?  i'm 27 years old, 5'5'' and about 135 lbs, so my maintenance is right around 2250-2500.  

depending on your size, yes, you would eat more than that on a cut 
i'm still trying to decide specifically what i'm going for.  i think i'll end up bulking.

need to get 2500-2700cal a day...wow that's a lot of food (if it's healthy food, that is) lol


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## goob (Mar 3, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> just curious but what are your stats? i'm 27 years old, 5'5'' and about 135 lbs, so my maintenance is right around 2250-2500.
> 
> depending on your size, yes, you would eat more than that on a cut
> i'm still trying to decide specifically what i'm going for. i think i'll end up bulking.
> ...


 
You must be quite cut already at that weight/ stat.  I'm 5'7/8" 155lb's.  Started out at about 138 lb's.   Mind, I have'nt tried to bulk properly.

What training program are you doing?


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## SamEaston (Mar 3, 2008)

Great deads! 

Im with JH on that one. I never do deads and squats on the same day - gosh i would die!

You've got some great potential mate. Keep training safe and adding weight to the bar and you'll be in fantastic shape a year from now


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## nadirmg (Mar 3, 2008)

goob said:


> You must be quite cut already at that weight/ stat.  I'm 5'7/8" 155lb's.  Started out at about 138 lb's.   Mind, I have'nt tried to bulk properly.
> 
> What training program are you doing?



i wouldn't say i'm quite cut. i do have pretty good muscle definition however it's under that thin layer of fat that i hate so much...

weighed myself today and now i'm up to 138.  could be a temporary weight increase because i've upped my caloric intake  *shrug*

and i'm not really on a training program of any kind.  i just steal ideas from people


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## nadirmg (Mar 3, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Great deads!
> 
> Im with JH on that one. I never do deads and squats on the same day - gosh i would die!



oddly enough my legs aren't sore at all.  lower back is.. eh.. a little sore.  but what _is_ sore are my lats from my workout earlier last week.

before i get too far into my program i need to take some pictures and document where i started out at.  i think it'd be really motivating to see the change over weeks/months!


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## the other half (Mar 3, 2008)

*little layer of fat, little layer of fat.* shit, what i would do to be able to say that.

besides, you are young enough to be able to put some good mass on with the proper supp. and good eating. at 5'5 if you get up to 165 or 170 you are gonna look huge.


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## nadirmg (Mar 3, 2008)

the other half said:


> *little layer of fat, little layer of fat.* shit, what i would do to be able to say that.
> 
> besides, you are young enough to be able to put some good mass on with the proper supp. and good eating. at 5'5 if you get up to 165 or 170 you are gonna look huge.



lol.  oh, please no.  i hope i don't get that huge.  if i get too huge i'll just end up looking shorter


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## the other half (Mar 3, 2008)

you say that now, but it is an addictive life style. one body part always seem to be lagging so you have to bring it up and then you start the whole vicious cycle.


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## nadirmg (Mar 3, 2008)

the other half said:


> you say that now, but it is an addictive life style. one body part always seem to be lagging so you have to bring it up and then you start the whole vicious cycle.



ok i take it back...  i just took some pictures of myself to mark the first month of my training.  i may be lean.. but dang i'm skinny....   i need to put on some weight!!!!   
*goes to the frig to eat cottage cheese and PB before bed*

i'll upload those pictures if i can find my usb cord for the camera


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## JailHouse (Mar 3, 2008)

the other half said:


> you say that now, but it is an addictive life style. one body part always seem to be lagging so you have to bring it up and then you start the whole vicious cycle.



agreed


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## JailHouse (Mar 3, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> just curious but what are your stats?  i'm 27 years old, 5'5'' and about 135 lbs, so my maintenance is right around 2250-2500.
> 
> depending on your size, yes, you would eat more than that on a cut
> i'm still trying to decide specifically what i'm going for.  i think i'll end up bulking.
> ...



I'm around 5'9 or so I'm weighing around 170-175 BF around 12-15%.  So ya I would eat more on a cut.  Bulking is a lot of fun, all you can eat, never being hungry, always getting bigger cant beat that.


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## SamEaston (Mar 4, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> lol.  oh, please no.  i hope i don't get that huge.  if i get too huge i'll just end up looking shorter



No, you won't mate. Get a nice V-taper going on and you'll look larger than life. 



the other half said:


> you say that now, but it is an addictive life style. one body part always seem to be lagging so you have to bring it up and then you start the whole vicious cycle.



Amen to that


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## nadirmg (Mar 4, 2008)

*Tuesday 03.04.08 - Chest*

Flat Bench DB Press
25lb x 10
27.5lb x 10
30lb x 10
30lb x 15

Smith BB Press - how much does the smith bar weigh??
50lb x 10
70lb x 10
80lb x 7
90lb x 4 - 45 on each side was what i was lifting when i hurt my shoulder.  a fairly quick recovery, but i still need to take it slow 

Leg Raises on bench (no hands!)
25x
25x
25x
25x
upped my reps from 20 to 25 today for a new PR.

Cable Cross Pull Downs for pecs
30lb x 10
40lb x 10 - PR
40lb x 10 - PR
40lb x 10 - PR

Cable Butterflies
30lb x 10
30lb x 10
30lb x 10
30lb x 10

Standing Tricep Extension w/cable - Standing
30lb x 10
30lb x 10
30lb x 10
40lb x 7 - PR

ran out of time even though i still wanted to do more triceps.  really feel good that i'm up to my usual weights already.  i think it'd be wise to stay there for a few weeks.  just to make sure my muscles and ligaments in my left shoulder are strong before i really start pushing the weight up.

today my lats were still sore, and finally the doms kicked in in my lower back from my deads the other day 
legs are tomorrow!

today i was insanely constantly hungry.  think i may need to start bringing more food with me to work...???

Yesterday's Meals - Any ideas?  What to up.. what to cut out?  eat more? less?  Thanks!
Meal 1 - 1 whole egg, 3 whites, oatmeal w/FF milk , 1 slice WW toast w/FF cream cheese and 1 scoop of whey, vitamins
Meal 2 - Almonds, oatmeal, string cheese, sliced turkey, scoop of whey
Meal 3 - 1 apple, broccoli, fresh spinach, boiled chicken breast, 1/2 small sweet potato
Meal 4 - 1 scoop of whey 1/2 small sweet potato 
Meal 5 - homemade tuna salad, 1 slice WW bread
Meal 6 - 1 cup turkey chili, 1/2c kidney beans, 1/2c brown rice, 1 cup green beans, Tilapia fillet
Meal 7 - 1/2c cottage cheese, 1 tbsp natural PB

Total Calories 2530  (only???!  i was freakin' eating all day!)
Protein 259g
42/38/21
P/C/F


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## JailHouse (Mar 4, 2008)

Your diet look good IMO.  I wouldn't be scared to up the cals tho, but thats just me I get outta control on a bulk.
Are you doing shoulders separate from chest?
Congrats on the PRs.


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## nadirmg (Mar 4, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Are you doing shoulders separate from chest?



you could say that... but actually i'm still not adding much shoulders in yet.  still waiting for my left shoulder to recover.  in a week or so i'll start adding in baby weights, but i'm still rehabbing it with the big rubber bands my therapist gave me...


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## nadirmg (Mar 4, 2008)

Ok, i took these pictures last night so i can see more or less where i started out.  looking lean for the most part except around those lower abs.

goals:
get bigger pecs
get bigger delts
widen those lats
continue to develop the abs!

*not* jack up my shoulder again while building muscle mass!!!











time to get with it!


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## SamEaston (Mar 5, 2008)

You look good mate! Very slim so i would agree with what JH said and up the cals quite a bit. It certainly won't do you any harm.

Oh and congrats on the PR's. Keep em coming


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## katt (Mar 5, 2008)

Yeah, I agree w/Sam.  Up the cals, you're very lean.   You're diet looks good though and I like your workout... looks great! 

As far as the smith bar,, I have no clue how much it weighs.. 

That "eating all day" feeling... yeah, it's constant with me, I think just because now I'm dieting and taking tons of fresh veggies, which take forever to chew..  that's it... I just get tired of chewing..


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## nadirmg (Mar 5, 2008)

katt said:


> Yeah, I agree w/Sam.  Up the cals, you're very lean.   You're diet looks good though and I like your workout... looks great!
> 
> As far as the smith bar,, I have no clue how much it weighs..
> 
> That "eating all day" feeling... yeah, it's constant with me, I think just because now I'm dieting and taking tons of fresh veggies, which take forever to chew..  that's it... I just get tired of chewing..



thanks, katt!  i will be upping the cals.  how should i go about doing that though...?  i listed what my meals were yesterday.  do you have any ideas what i should eat more of?  

lol, yes.  even though i feel like i'm eating all day.. i'm also HUNGRY all day!!


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## SamEaston (Mar 5, 2008)

Going by your macros your level of fat is quite low so i would up that a bit if i were you. 

Also, the good thing about fat is that its so calorie dense that you only need a little to increase your cals, which is great when you're sick of eating all the time or when you don't have time to eat very often. 

I suggest peanut butter or oily fish or some nuts to help you on your way


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## JailHouse (Mar 5, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Going by your macros your level of fat is quite low so i would up that a bit if i were you.
> 
> Also, the good thing about fat is that its so calorie dense that you only need a little to increase your cals, which is great when you're sick of eating all the time or when you don't have time to eat very often.
> 
> I suggest peanut butter or oily fish or some nuts to help you on your way



great advice there.  if you add some fish oil to your meals it'll put your cals up, and they have countless benefits.


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## nadirmg (Mar 5, 2008)

ok, so here are my thoughts on what to add/increase:
more beans and brown rice - carbs
avocados - fat
peanuts and/or almonds for some quick fat and calories
bananas
beef - steak or lean ground
raisins in with my oatmeal and/or peanuts

i feel like i'm already getting enough leafy greenies at this point. usually three cups of 'em throughout the day so...

how do my ideas sound?

also i'm already taking 2 fish pills with breakfast and 2 with dinner every day.


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## the other half (Mar 5, 2008)

i say pizza, spaghetti, lasagna. you feel so much better after you eat a meal like that


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## nadirmg (Mar 5, 2008)

the other half said:


> i say pizza, spaghetti, lasagna. you feel so much better after you eat a meal like that



you're kidding about actually eating that, right?


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## the other half (Mar 5, 2008)

we had pizza during my daughters b-day party 2 weeks ago, and i dont see us eating any of those for the next 4 months. that sucks

warning label:
great meals for bulking only


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 5, 2008)

the other half said:


> we had pizza during my daughters b-day party 2 weeks ago, and i dont see us eating any of those for the next 4 months. that sucks
> 
> warning label:
> great meals for bulking only



just to be clear... but you're joking about me eating the pizza.
that stuff (the crust mainly) is super bad, right?  lol.. superbad


----------



## the other half (Mar 5, 2008)

joking for a daily meal, yes, but a cheat meal once in a while, why not.
ya gotta keep your sanity.


----------



## goob (Mar 5, 2008)

Looking good dude.  A lot of people would kill for that definition.


----------



## katt (Mar 6, 2008)

Superbad.... I had to laugh.. great movie..


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 6, 2008)

I sooooo wanna see that movie. Sounds great!

Look mate - you could probably eat whatever you want and it wouldn't make a difference. A pizza here and there isn't going to kill you, whereas it would probably make the buttons pop off my jeans, blinding a passer-by


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 6, 2008)

*Thursday - 03.06.08 - LEGS!*

Warmup - Static stretching

Back Squats - Smith Machine - how much does the Smith bar weigh?  anyone know?  i'm estimating 20lb...
90 x 7
110 x 7 
130 x 7
150 x 7 - PR
150 x 7 - PR - added a fifth set today.  this set was slow going.
i was paying very close attention to my form.  wouldn't call is 'ass to grass'.. but hips are even with or below knees.

Seated Leg Press
360 x 7
360 x 10 - PR
360 x 10 - set/rep PR
360 x 7

Calf Press + s/s 20lb DB lunges (10 lunges each leg)
90 x 20
135 x 15 - weight PR
135 x 15 - PR
135 x 10 

Seated Leg Curl + s/s 30 crunches
100 x 10 - hold for 1 count
120 x 10 - hold for 1 count - PR
130 x 10 - PR - no hold count - legs totally slaughtered 

Hip Abductors - Both Machines
115 x 10
115 x 10
115 x 15

i've never tried to do this much weight on stuff before.  part of it was that i thought i couldn't do it.  the other part is because i wasn't going for more muscle size.  so i'm surprised how i've been able to up the weight - especially on legs which are my weak point.

can't wait to hit legs again next week and do even better!  
lats/back are next though.  diet is going well too.  eating a lot more closer to 3000-3200 - with more fats/carbs.  trying to keep fats under 30% though.  and still NO processed foods except cottage cheese, string cheese, WW bread and PB.  maybe an occasional cheat here or there, but NOT a daily occurrence.  

thanks for all the encouragement, ladies and dudes!   it helps me keep going (and wake up early to w/o in the morning)  lol


----------



## the other half (Mar 7, 2008)

way to keep pushing the max on your exercises.
once you hit the top, then the mass will start progressing also.

i would think that the smith bar would be 20#max. go with it. it looks better on paper any way.


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 8, 2008)

Those are some impressive squats for your weight.  Make sure your goin at least parallel or even better ATG bro.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 8, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Those are some impressive squats for your weight.  Make sure your goin at least parallel or even better ATG bro.



thanks, JH.  i was really working on form last time.  still getting an idea for how much my knees/back can take.  

as far as weight i'm squatting goes... this is only the beginning!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 8, 2008)

*Friday - 03.07.08 - Back/Lats*

Warm-up
Treadmill - 1 mile
Time 6:30
Beginning Speed 8.0 - Ending Speed 10.0
Avg Speed 9.0

WG Assisted Pull-ups + s/s 20x Crunches
70 x 10
55 x 10
55 x 10
55 x 10 - using legs to help me up - aim for better form next week.  but used less assisting weight this time 

Seated Rows - WG
75 x 10
75 x 10
75 x 10
90 x 10 - weight PR - next time no backward lean/lunge to help me get weight going

Supersetted Leg/Back Extensions
25x Legs / 10lb + back weight x 20
25x Legs / 10lb + back weight x 20
25x Legs / 10lb + back weight x 20
25x Legs / 10lb + back weight x 20

Single Arm Bent Over DB Rows
25 x 10
27.5 x 10
30 x 10
35 x 10
PR - started 1st set with 25 instead of 22.5 - ending with 35lb instead of 30!)

Seated Preacher BB Curls
40 x 10
45 x 4 
Shoulder was telling me to stop

Seated DB Curls
20 x 6
Shoulder was started to feel stressed so I called it a day.

Good w/o today.  Started off with a 6.5 min mile and continued to steadily increase the weights while knowing my limits with my shoulder.


----------



## StanUk (Mar 9, 2008)

very impressive looking workout nad, nice pull ups man


----------



## goob (Mar 9, 2008)

Good workout dude, great work on the pull ups.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 9, 2008)

goob said:


> Good workout dude, great work on the pull ups.



stan and goob,

thanks guys but its not really that great...   these are 'assisted' wimpy pullups, subtacting 55lb pounds off my own bodyweight.  so i'm only pulling about 90lbs each time.  before i hurt my shoulder i used to be able to do 4 sets of 10 x my bw.  my lats have really gone through a lot of atrophy over the past year.    

still though i gotta start with baby steps to preserve my shoulder.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 9, 2008)

*Sunday - 03.09.08 - Chest
*

Smith Bench Press
90 x 10
110 x 10
120 x 5 - w/o spotter
120 x 6 - with spotter shoulder getting really shaky so i stopped

DB Flat Bench Press
27.5 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10 - PR - started at 27.5 instead of 25 so i had 3 sets of 30 this time

BW Dips - I LOVE dips
10x
10x
10x
10x

Single arm Tricep extension - Cable pull-down
tris were pretty much gone by this point 
30 x 10 (each arm)
30 x 10
20 x 15
20 x 15 

Cable Flys
30 x 10 
40 x 10
40 x 10
50 x 6 and failed - PR - started my 40s on this earlier.  next time I'll start out with 40s and go up to 50s!

Cable Crunches
50 x 20
60 x 20
60 x 20 
60 x 20 

Good w/o today.  I'm working on warming up for 1 set with my weight i know i can do 10 reps of and immediately moving up to higher weight - trying to grow those muscles.
although some of these (ex. db presses and stuff that put strain on my shoulder) i will be taking it a low slower on so i don't regret being overzealous.


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 10, 2008)

You're a damn fast runner.  Did you ever run track for a team?


----------



## the other half (Mar 10, 2008)

he was one of those that chased the chickens around the farm in texas


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 10, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> You're a damn fast runner.  Did you ever run track for a team?



naw, i never did track.  i hate running.
gimme a mountain bike and an ipod and i'm good for cadio


----------



## katt (Mar 11, 2008)

Nice wo..!   I love dips too... when I do them at the beginning..  we are doing them at the end of our tri workout and they pretty much suck..


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 11, 2008)

*Tuesday - 03.11.08 - Legs!
*

Today I upped the weight on back squats, calf press and Leg Press and needed long RIs so I only did those three today.. which was plenty...

Back Squats
120 x 10
140 x 10
160 x 10 - weight PR 
170 x 5 - will try to get a solid set of 10 reps next time

Leg Press
360 x 10
410 x 10 - weight PR
410 x 7
410 x 10- YEAH!
My current goal for back squats is to get 2 45lb plates on each side (smith machine), build up strength and then transfer it (slowly) over to the regular squat rack.

Calf Press - legs were so tired i need help lifting it up so i could swing the support bar underneath... had to drop the weight down to 90 but considering my increases with the squats and leg press i wasn't to bummed.
135 x 15
135 x 15 
90 x 20
90 x 20

BB Hammer curls - just for fun 
22.5 x 10 - each arm
25 x 10 - each arm

GREAT pump in my legs today.  I'm starting to think legs may be my favorite.. when i was doing the leg press i could really see my quads sticking out.  i was so happy  Also my calf muscles have really started getting some definition.


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 11, 2008)

Your leg strength is catching up quick.


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 11, 2008)

the other half said:


> he was one of those that chased the chickens around the farm in texas



this made me laugh


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 12, 2008)

Fantastic leg workout mate! When do you think you'll move over to the squat rack for those squats? What's stopping you at the moment? 

You reminded me to put dips into my new program! Thanks


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 12, 2008)

the other half said:


> he was one of those that chased the chickens around the farm in texas



only when we were ready to kill and eat one of them!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 12, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Your leg strength is catching up quick.



yah, i gotta catch up on my leg strength.  a few weeks ago i was only squatting about the same weight as i can bench (low 100s).  so i need to up it over 200 quick.

plus working out my legs like i am now will help strengthen my core!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 12, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Fantastic leg workout mate! When do you think you'll move over to the squat rack for those squats? What's stopping you at the moment?
> 
> You reminded me to put dips into my new program! Thanks



i know... you're right.  i should just move over to the squat rack now.  i guess it's still a subconscious fear that i can't squat as much weight as i'm loading up.  having the safety of the smith machine really helps give me confidence i won't kill myself  

thinking about adding stepouts too.  that will get my back used to carrying all that weight.  hopefully it will make transitioning to the squat rack a little easier!

muwhahaa, yes, dips are great, aren't they?


----------



## katt (Mar 12, 2008)

Wow - nice numbers on your squats & presses!!   Yeah, I have this love/hate relationship with my leg workouts too... 

Nothing better than walking out of the gym feeling like your going to fall over...


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 12, 2008)

katt said:


> Wow - nice numbers on your squats & presses!!   Yeah, I have this love/hate relationship with my leg workouts too...
> 
> Nothing better than walking out of the gym feeling like your going to fall over...



thanks, katt! aah, i know the feeling!  sometimes when i get off the leg press machine my legs feel like i'm about to crumple down to my knees on the floor 

here's a question tho... my legs really aren't that sore today...   does that mean i can really handle more punishment?  or maybe i'm just not pushing myself enough?


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 12, 2008)

here's a general question i was pondering...

right now i'm on a bulk.  i'm 5'5" and weigh about 135lbs.  i'd like to get up to 145-150 and then reevaluate.  i'm not doing in carb cycling thing with my diet and i'm not really interested in try it out at this point yet. 

*so here's the question: * should i be eating more or less carbs based on if it's a w/o day or not?  OR should i just be eating a constant steady level regardless of whether or not i worked out the day before?


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 12, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> i know... you're right.  i should just move over to the squat rack now.  i guess it's still a subconscious fear that i can't squat as much weight as i'm loading up.  having the safety of the smith machine really helps give me confidence i won't kill myself
> 
> thinking about adding stepouts too.  that will get my back used to carrying all that weight.  hopefully it will make transitioning to the squat rack a little easier!



Yeah, walkouts are good for getting you used to handling more weight, but they wont do you any good until you get in the rack!

Yes, the Smith is safe, and its a good starting point but free squats are where its at. If you are scared that yoo won't be able to squat the amount of weight on a free bar as you will on the Smith, thats because you won't. Dont even attempt it, because you will hurt yourself. 

My advice to you is get in the rack and start off squatting with just the bar to make sure you have the correct form. Smith squats will not prepare you for this. Then, slowly add weight in small increments. Be prepared to squat less than 100lb for a couple of weeks at least. You might feel like an idiot but believe me you will actually look like a proper knob-end if you hurt yourself while squatting.



nadirmg said:


> here's a question tho... my legs really aren't that sore today...   does that mean i can really handle more punishment?  or maybe i'm just not pushing myself enough?



You probably need to migrate to free squats now and involve more of your muscles, instead of Smith squats which are helping you more than you probably realise. 

Also, i would make sure you are going at least to parallel each rep. If you're not, that is something you can work on with the free (and empty) squat bar 



nadirmg said:


> here's a general question i was pondering...
> 
> right now i'm on a bulk.  i'm 5'5" and weigh about 135lbs.  i'd like to get up to 145-150 and then reevaluate.  i'm not doing in carb cycling thing with my diet and i'm not really interested in try it out at this point yet.
> 
> *so here's the question: * should i be eating more or less carbs based on if it's a w/o day or not?  OR should i just be eating a constant steady level regardless of whether or not i worked out the day before?




I would eat more carbs on a training day than not, but keep your protein and fat intake the same. This means you'll increase your calories on training days. 

Does that help any?


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 12, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Yeah, walkouts are good for getting you used to handling more weight, but they wont do you any good until you get in the rack!
> 
> Yes, the Smith is safe, and its a good starting point but free squats are where its at. If you are scared that yoo won't be able to squat the amount of weight on a free bar as you will on the Smith, thats because you won't. Dont even attempt it, because you will hurt yourself.
> 
> ...



thanks for the wealth of info, sam!  i will definitely start using the free bar from now on.  i've done some work with the free bar already but once i started upping the weight i moved to the smith.  time to move back over before i get to ahead of myself!

about carbs.. that's pretty much what i was thinking.  more carbs on w/o days, less on non-w/o days.  makes sense!    thanks again!


----------



## the other half (Mar 12, 2008)

pizza, lasagna, spaghetti


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 13, 2008)

the other half said:


> pizza, lasagna, spaghetti



"how 'bout noooooooo"
-dr. evil


----------



## StanUk (Mar 13, 2008)

Your squats are really coming along nad, keep it up pal!


----------



## goob (Mar 13, 2008)

StanUk said:


> Your squats are really coming along nad, keep it up pal!


 
Damn straight, good work nad's.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 13, 2008)

*Thursday - 03.14.08 - Lats and Bis*

Single-Arm Rows s/s Seated MG Rows

35 x 10-------------------- 90 x 10
40 x 10-------------------- 90 x 10
40 x 10-------------------- 90 x 10
45 x 10 (sloppy form)---- 90 x 10
weight PRs on both - i was able to do this because i usually do pull-ups FIRST but this time i didn't so i went at these two with full power!  RWAWR!

Assisted Pull-ups
(40) x 10 - PR - went down on assisted weight (55-->40)
(40) x 6
(40) x 7
(40) x 9
this is the least amount of assistance i can get from the machine the next step is going to bw pull-ups.  i may stay at (40) for the next to times just to build up some strength (also to give my shoulder some time to catch up).

Seated DB Curls
25 x 10
25 x 8
22.5 x 10

Standing DB Hammer Curls - starting with back of hands facing in front of me
22.5 x 10
22.5 x 10
20 x 10

Standing BB Curls  s/s Pendlay(sp?) Rows
40 x 10 ------------------70 x 10
40 x 8 (failure)----------90 x 10
---------------------------90 x 6

starting to actually feel stronger when i lift now.  seeing progress with my pull-ups and seated rows.  lately my shoulder has been doing pretty well.  i'm thinking about adding in _some_ shoulder stuff with my lat days.  i don't want to do 'em with my chest because my shoulder will already be exhausted from benching.

wish i had my camera this morning when i was at the gym.  i couldn't believe that was me in the mirror.  AMAZING pump today - i think the diet has a *LOT* to do with it.

Alright here are some goals that I've set for myself:
Goal: Get my body weight from 135 up to 145.
Goal: Bench 150 (for starters, ya?)
Goal: Squat 235 in squat rack (bar + two 45lb plates on each side)
Goal: Pull-ups bw x 10


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 13, 2008)

goob said:


> Damn straight, good work nad's.



thanks, goob!



StanUk said:


> Your squats are really coming along nad, keep it up pal!



seriously, dude.  i was --> <-- THAT close to puking toward the end of my leg workout earlier this week.  i love it!


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 13, 2008)

Gra8 work out!!  Do you take any pre work out supps for that pump you were talkin about????


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 14, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Gra8 work out!!  Do you take any pre work out supps for that pump you were talkin about????



no supps, man.  other than whey, flax seed, fish pills and a multivitamin.

i eat a really well-balanced breakfast.
1 scoop of whey
1 whole egg, 3 whites with 1 TBSP FF cream cheese
1 slice of ezekiel bread with natty PB
1/2 cup of oats (uncooked) with 1/2 cup of FF milk, 1TBSP flax seed
1 small banana
1/2 grapefruit
2 fish pills, 1 multivitamin
and last but not least... 1 cup of coffee 

i just added the fruit in over the last week for more carbs and some quick energy since i work out in the mornings.  i'd eat more eggs, but they already give me enough gas as it is...


----------



## StanUk (Mar 14, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> thanks, goob!
> 
> 
> 
> seriously, dude.  i was --> <-- THAT close to puking toward the end of my leg workout earlier this week.  i love it!



That is definatly the sign of a good workout


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 14, 2008)

Your goals look attainable, but i would watch out for the squat goal. The last thing you want is to force yourself to add weight to the bar when you just start out with them. Honestly, i've been squatting for just over a year, never used the Smith -ever - and im still using baby weights because my form deteriorates very quickly the more weight i add. 

I would get someone to check your form is good before piling weight on. Even better, post a vid into your journal and im sure the lads will be happy to critique you!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 14, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> I would get someone to check your form is good before piling weight on. Even better, post a vid into your journal and im sure the lads will be happy to critique you!



you just want to see me stick my ass out when i squat.

but yea, last week when i did squats on the squat rack i had someone check my form.  he gave me some very helpful pointers but said i wasn't doing anything BAD.  next week i'll be moving back over from the smith to the rack  

and don't worry.  i'll be taking it slow and cautious.  i just wanted to get some goals out there so i'd know where i was headed and could point back to where/when i started out from.


----------



## DOMS (Mar 14, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Your goals look attainable, but i would watch out for the squat goal. The last thing you want is to force yourself to add weight to the bar when you just start out with them. Honestly, i've been squatting for just over a year, never used the Smith -ever - and im still using baby weights because my form deteriorates very quickly the more weight i add.
> 
> I would get someone to check your form is good before piling weight on. Even better, post a vid into your journal and im sure the lads will be happy to critique you!



Sam is a smart lady, listen to her.  There are some exercises that it _may_ be okay to rush on, but Squat isn't one of them.

Solid job on the workout!

Where does the point five come from when you're using the DBs?


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 14, 2008)

DOMS said:


> Sam is a smart lady, listen to her.  There are some exercises that it _may_ be okay to rush on, but Squat isn't one of them.
> 
> Solid job on the workout!
> 
> Where does the point five come from when you're using the DBs?



thanks DOMS!  ya, i see what you guys are saying.  at the weight i'm doing right now i can already feel my back telling me, 'this is a lot of bloody weight!'.  thanks for the warnings, guys.  i promise i won't get _dangerously _ cocky/overconfident.

i hurt my shoulder last year rushing my military DB press too quickly   so i've learned my lesson 

my gym has 15lb, *17.5*lb, 20lb, *22.5*lb, 25lb, *27.5*lb, 30lb DBs... from there it goes up in 5lb increments.


----------



## the other half (Mar 14, 2008)

good looking progress, so far, like they say, your weight will go up easy for awhile, then you hit the wall, and even a 5 pound jump will test your limits.
diet is good and clean , just don't burp in front of anyone after those fish oils.
i have really gotten into the hardboiled eggs lately. i have my  morning meal, then i will take a muscle milk shake, 6 eggs, and a whole bell pepper to work for my snack. works pretty good, i only eat one yoke, to many calories and cholesterol in them.


----------



## King Silverback (Mar 14, 2008)

Fantastic w/o's BRother N!!! I agree w/the Squat on the regular bar my Friend, you'll build up strength faster w/that than the smith machine imo, you will be suprised how quickly you will build up the strength for that!!! Best wishes in your goals too, Believe to Achieve!!!

What is ezekiel bread???


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 17, 2008)

*Saturday 03.15.08 - Lower back, shoulder, some chest*
Dead lifts
105 x 10
145 x 10
165 x 10
175 x 10

Back Extension - w/10lb plate on my shoulders
20x
20x
went up to a 20lb DB
15x
15x

i was very nervous about adding in shoulder stuff.  scared i'd screw my shoulder up again so i'm starting with embarrassingly low weight to be on the safe side.  the good news is i didn't hurt my shoulder during the w/o and my shoulder isn't bothering me at all.  (i'm also icing my shoulder after chest/shoulder/back w/o's.

Shoulder Press m/c
45 x 10
55 x 10
65 x 10
75 x 10

Seated Lateral Raise m/c
40 x 12
45 x 12
45 x 12
45 x 12

DB Shrugs
55 x 10
55 x 10
55 x 10
55 x 10

Smith Bench Press
70 x 10
110 x 5 - for some reason my right pec was killing me so i stopped and droppd the weight down
90 x 10
90 x 10
100 x 6

Double Crunches
20x
20x 
20x
20x

decided i wasn't going to be showing PR when i up the weight anymore not at least until i reach my full potential where i am now.  then once i really start challenging myself to go up those extra 5 or 10 pounds THEN i'll add the PR.  doesn't really feel like a real PR when i have PRs every single day.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 17, 2008)

*Monday - 03.17.03 - LEGS!  *

ah, i love leg days.  once again i forgot to bring my camera to the gym.  blast!

sam, i'm taking your advice on the smith vs. squat rack and dropping the weight down so i can move over to the squat rack and start building up my strength there (at a safe weight level).  and i'm being really picky about my ATG form too.

so here we go...

ATG Squats - w/free bar
125 x 10
145 x 10
145 x 10
155 x 10 - not bad.  i only had to come down 15lbs to move to the rack.  although i can tell my back isn't ready to up the weight.  i'll hang out at this weight for a bit until i'm REALLY comfortable with it.

Leg Press
360 x 10
450 x 8
450 x 8
450 x 3 - omg, i seriously could not do anymore and my form was terrible.

Leg Curl  s/s 20 crunches
110 x 10   s/s crunches x 20
110 x 10   s/s crunches x 20
120 x 10   s/s crunches x 20
120 x 10   s/s crunches x 20

Calf Press s/s 20lb DB lunges
90 x 20---s/s-------10 lunges each leg
135 x 20--s/s-------10 lunges each leg
135 x 15--s/s-------10 lunges each leg
135 x 15--s/s-------10 lunges each leg

Cable Crunches
70 x 20
90 x 20
90 x 20

legs are really feeling stronger.  i'm surprised i'm able to free squat a 45lb plate on each side of a 55lb bar with no trouble anymore.  just putting that much weight on my shoulders would have made me nervous 2 months ago.  i seriously need to take some pictures if nothing else than for my own records.  

question: below my hips where the glutes connect to my quads on the side of my legs.  i've got this bulge of muscle.  it's also where i feel a lot of the burn when i'm squatting.  i never knew there was a muscle there until today when i noticed it in the shower.  is this actually part of my glutes??


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 17, 2008)

Archangel said:


> What is ezekiel bread???



ezekiel bread is the bread i use.  it's a little over $4 a loaf and you buy it frozen.  but when you warm/toast a slice up it tastes like homemade bread.  
for 1 slice:
80 cals
.5g fat
15g carbs 
3g dietary fiber
4g protein 

DELICIOUS bread.


----------



## katt (Mar 17, 2008)

Gj on moving away from the Smith Machine on squats.. I think you'll see alot of improvement!


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 17, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> sam, i'm taking your advice on the smith vs. squat rack and dropping the weight down so i can move over to the squat rack and start building up my strength there (at a safe weight level).  and i'm being really picky about my ATG form too.
> 
> question: below my hips where the glutes connect to my quads on the side of my legs.  i've got this bulge of muscle.  it's also where i feel a lot of the burn when i'm squatting.  i never knew there was a muscle there until today when i noticed it in the shower.  is this actually part of my glutes??



Good lad on the squats - that's still alot of weight to be doing for ATG squats - good job mate! Now tell me tomorrow how much more pain you are in after doing free squats 

Is the muscle you are referring to the tensor fasciae latae??


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 17, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Good lad on the squats - that's still alot of weight to be doing for ATG squats - good job mate! Now tell me tomorrow how much more pain you are in after doing free squats
> 
> Is the muscle you are referring to the tensor fasciae latae??



yea the tensor fasciae latae!  it was bulging like crazy.  i gets it gets totally blasted during ATG squats, huh?

we'll see about the soreness tomorrow.  lately my legs have been pretty resilient and haven't been killin' me too bad.  aah, but the deadlifts i did on saturday are keeping the lower back nice and tender.



katt said:


> Gj on moving away from the Smith Machine on squats.. I think you'll see alot of improvement!




why, thank you ladies


----------



## StanUk (Mar 17, 2008)

Your squats are going from strength to strength, keep it up nad!


----------



## King Silverback (Mar 17, 2008)

Fantastic w/o's BRother N!!! I wouldn't even think that the weight your using is light or embarassing, your in there doing it to it, more than ALOT of people can say, FORM is so much more important thatn weight imo!!! Better smart and continue than a second of stupidity because your embarassed and then injure or re-injure something, your doing Great my Friend, keep at it!!!


----------



## the other half (Mar 17, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Now tell me tomorrow how much more pain you are in after doing free squats *now we know what kind of person you really are sam. enjoying other peoples pain!!!!!!*
> 
> Is the muscle you are referring to the tensor fasciae latae??


isnt that a coffee drink that you buy at starbucks?


----------



## King Silverback (Mar 17, 2008)

Thanks for the info too!!!


----------



## the other half (Mar 17, 2008)

bar squats yaaaaaaa!!!!!!! 

good job on the legs press. assuming that it is the angled, that you are almost lay down in, just make sure not to let your hips pull up off of the padding, when you bring it to your chest.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 17, 2008)

the other half said:


> isnt that a coffee drink that you buy at starbucks?



you know, Brother Half?  i thought just for a minute about saying something just like that but i thought... nah... that'd be too cheesy


----------



## the other half (Mar 17, 2008)

oh, so you are saying i'm "cheesy"????!!!!!! 

thats ok, katt calls me lots worse.


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 17, 2008)

keep the squats and cals up and ur bulk will be a breeze!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 17, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> keep the squats and cals up and ur bulk will be a breeze!



thanks!  i'm stuffing my face every day!  not happy about my pants fitting a little bit tighter but that's to be expected with a bulk, right?



the other half said:


> oh, so you are saying i'm "cheesy"????!!!!!!
> thats ok, katt calls me lots worse.



i didn't say YOU were cheesy!  hey, i'm just glad someone else's brain works like mine.  great minds think alike.  no shit.



the other half said:


> bar squats yaaaaaaa!!!!!!!
> 
> good job on the legs press. assuming that it is the angled, that you are almost lay down in, just make sure not to let your hips pull up off of the padding, when you bring it to your chest.



yea, i noticed when i went up to 450 from 410 today my form was starting to suffer for it.  probably need to back it down and build up my strength using the CORRECT form 



Archangel said:


> Fantastic w/o's BRother N!!! I wouldn't even think that the weight your using is light or embarassing, your in there doing it to it, more than ALOT of people can say, FORM is so much more important thatn weight imo!!! Better smart and continue than a second of stupidity because your embarassed and then injure or re-injure something, your doing Great my Friend, keep at it!!!



haha, i've done the second of stupidity before and hurt my shoulder again.  the reinjury was last november and i was only able to start lifting at the beginning of february.  NOT going to make that mistake again.  no freakin' way.


StanUk said:


> Your squats are going from strength to strength, keep it up nad!



thanks, stan!  i think i was probably always able to do this much, i just didn't think i could, so was never was able to.  once i build up to my latent max then the uphill battle will begin.  it'll be balls to  the wall tooth and nail from there on out   BRING IT!


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 18, 2008)

You're doing good mate - really good.

I saw in Goobs journal that you were interested in starting Front Squats. My advice to you is to start with the bar only until you figure out how you want to hold the thing, and spend a few sets getting used to the shift in weight, and the balance of the bar - its much harder than it looks, believe me. 

Then you should be able to progress pretty fast. When Goob started out he was doing 90lb, and i wouldn't recommend going above that on your first day of them. You certainly can't take as much weight on Fronts as you can on Back Squats, however i like them better than Backs because they feel more stable and any forward lean is pretty much eliminated, which removes alot of the stress from the lower back. Bear in mind, for every person who swears by them, theres someone else who absolutely hates them - you just have to give them a go and see what you think 

Let us know how you get on if you do try them


----------



## katt (Mar 18, 2008)

ok, I'm seeing that TOH and you think too much alike.... it's scary..


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 18, 2008)

katt said:


> ok, I'm seeing that TOH and you think too much alike.... it's scary..



i'll take that as a compliment.  right, BRother Half???


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 18, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Now tell me tomorrow how much more pain you are in after doing free squats



leg's are feeling nice and tight today.  not too sore, but tight.  maybe the doms will hit my legs tomorrow?  they are a little sore, but i can upstairs and junk no problem.  my hammies are feelin' it more than anything though.


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 18, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> leg's are feeling nice and tight today.  not too sore, but tight.  maybe the doms will hit my legs tomorrow?  they are a little sore, but i can upstairs and junk no problem.  my hammies are feelin' it more than anything though.



Some times it takes a day or two for the doms to come full force.


----------



## StanUk (Mar 18, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Some times it takes a day or two for the doms to come full force.



Agreed, especially with legs, I always find im fine the day after and then the following day my legs are jelly!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

*Wednesday - 03.19.08 - Lats/Back/Bis*

Assisted Pull-ups
(40) x 10
(40) x 10
(40) x 10
(40) x 10

One-armed DB Rows-----s/s-----Double Crunches
35 x 10-------20x
40 x 10-------20x
40 x 10-------20x
40 x 10-------20x

MG Seated Bar Rows
90 x 10
105 x 10
105 x 10
105 x 10 (form started to suffer on last 5 reps)

DL-----------s/s------Zottman Curls
125 x 10-------22.5 x 10 (each arm)
125 x 10-------22.5 x 10
125 x 10-------22.5 x 10

Standing Cable Rope Curls------s/s------BB Curls
50 x 10-----------40 x 10
70 x 10-----------40 x 10
60 x 10-----------40 x 10


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## StanUk (Mar 19, 2008)

Nice workout nad, DB rows are one my favourite back excercises!


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## SamEaston (Mar 19, 2008)

StanUk said:


> Nice workout nad, DB rows are one my favourite back excercises!



Mine too - especially unilateral rows. Gives a great squeeze in the back, nice 

Nice deads too mate - ooh, high reps, that'll sting especially after that leg day you just had


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Mine too - especially unilateral rows. Gives a great squeeze in the back, nice
> 
> Nice deads too mate - ooh, high reps, that'll sting especially after that leg day you just had




yea... i was kinda bummed because i couldn't get my deads above 125 today.  my legs really were tired.  also my grip was suffering from all the pullups, one-armed rows, and seated rows, so the bar was already starting to slip out of my grip.  if i went up 10 more pounds i wouldn't have been able to hold it.

time to work on my grip strength, eh?
and yes, my legs are a little more sore today.  not looking forward to tomorrow with the aftermath of the deads...


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## Gazhole (Mar 19, 2008)

Grip strength is the key :thumb

I wouldnt be too hard on yourself though, dude - thats a damn good workout up there. Throwing supersets in is hard work


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## SamEaston (Mar 19, 2008)

Gazhole said:


> Grip strength is the key
> 
> I wouldnt be too hard on yourself though, dude - thats a damn good workout up there. Throwing supersets in is hard work



Agreed - especially following your leg workout.

Let the DOMS commence  . . . . .


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## katt (Mar 19, 2008)

Nice supersetting there!! How long do those workouts take you?   TOH will love this one.. Zottman's are his fav...


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

katt said:


> Nice supersetting there!! How long do those workouts take you?   TOH will love this one.. Zottman's are his fav...



thanks, katt!

my w/o's take me about 45 min.  I do at least 60sec RIs since I'm working on upping the weight - that and supersetting makes a bit longer.  whenever i start adding in hiits i'll need to start waking up earlier....

zottmans... i've been doing those back since highschool.  i just didn't know what they were called   BRother Half was the one that enlightened me.  thanks bro!


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

Gazhole said:


> Grip strength is the key :thumb
> 
> I wouldnt be too hard on yourself though, dude - thats a damn good workout up there. Throwing supersets in is hard work



haha, yeah.  now that i'm increasing the weight i'm seeing how important grip strength is.  i guess i'm like JH - i'm my own worst critic 

cheers, gaz.


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Agreed - especially following your leg workout.
> 
> Let the DOMS commence  . . . . .



lol.  thanks sam.  i think.


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## the other half (Mar 19, 2008)

dude, you keep this up your goal weight is gonna be 170, cause your getting addicted to the iron.


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

the other half said:


> dude, you keep this up your goal weight is gonna be 170, cause your getting addicted to the iron.



rofl, can you imagine a 5'5'' guy that weighs 170lb?  with all those muscles on me i'd look reeaaaallllyy short.
although now that i think of it, i still need to go buy a scale so i can start weighing everyday.

but seriously, i've really been enjoying my trips to the gym lately.  the pretty blonde girl that's there in the morning is good motivation too  
she reminds me of jamie eason :


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## JailHouse (Mar 19, 2008)

speaking of weight gain, have you gone up any on the scale?


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> speaking of weight gain, have you gone up any on the scale?



i dunno.  i need to buy a scale and find out   i'll get one tonight/tomorrow.  i'm pretty sure i'm gained _something _(fat or muscle - one of the two) because i can tell my pants fit not _quite _as loosely as they used to.

thing is i didn't want to start weighing myself obsessively every day right off the bat.  i'm not expecting much gain.  not until it's been at least a month or two.  but we'll see.

*crosses fingers*


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## goob (Mar 19, 2008)

The only way is up.........


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## King Silverback (Mar 19, 2008)

Great lookin w/o, your grip strength will come, just be patient Brother N!!!


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## katt (Mar 19, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> but seriously, i've really been enjoying my trips to the gym lately.  the pretty blonde girl that's there in the morning is good motivation too
> she reminds me of jamie eason :




lol.... now the truth comes out....  

Whatever works right??


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## the other half (Mar 20, 2008)

i make the mistake of weighing myself every morning that we workout. but i really only pay attention to the weight on friday, after cleaner eating, cardio, and lifting all week. 

i think that you would be suprised, at what someone that is 5'5 and a 170 lbs. looks like,  besides you cant get any taller, so you might as well get *BIGGER*


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## Scarface30 (Mar 20, 2008)

hey man, thought I'd drop by. workouts are coming along great dude

as for the grip, do you train grip directly? check out Gaz's blog, he has a write up in there about it.


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## StanUk (Mar 21, 2008)

Looking good still Nad, keep up the good work pal!


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## goob (Mar 21, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> haha, yeah. now that i'm increasing the weight i'm seeing how important grip strength is. i guess i'm like JH - i'm my own worst critic
> 
> cheers, gaz.


 

Hint: (You can cheat by buying lifting straps, until your grip catches up)


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## the other half (Mar 21, 2008)

are you saying that katt and i cheat!!!!!!!!


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## katt (Mar 21, 2008)




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## SamEaston (Mar 21, 2008)

goob said:


> Hint: (You can cheat by buying lifting straps, until your grip catches up)



But how is your grip going to catch up if you cheat? 

That's why i don't use straps - i mean, my grip is pretty bad but if i used straps it would be so much worse!


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## nadirmg (Mar 21, 2008)

*Friday - 03.21.08 - Chest
*
Flat Bench - at the rack
55 x 10 - warm-up w/bar
105 x 10
105 x 10
125 x 10
135 x 3 - stopped here b/c of shoulder

DB Flat Bench Press
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10
sat down at the bench with 35dbs but the extra 5lbs was a huge jump up and given my shoulder i chickened out.  probably for the better.

Cable Flys
40 x 10 (20lb each arm)
40 x 10
50 x 10
40 x 10

Diamond Push-ups
20x 
17x 
8x 
i had this weird feeling in my shoulder.  it wasn't a twinge in the muscle or joint, but it felt like electricity running down the surface of my right tricep.  really weird - not painful but i stopped just in case.  anyone one what that might be?

Dips - my fav!
bw x 10
bw x 10
bw x 10
bw x 10

Decline Twist Crunches
10x (each side)
10x 
10x
10x

Cable Crunches
70 x 12
60 x 10
60 x 10

mixed feelings about today.  i decided to stop using the smith machine on bench presses too.  need to start building up stabilizing muscle strength too or i'll have a hard time transitioning from smith to rack.  didn't need to come down in weight too much.
i guess i'm getting close to the wall now and will have to really work hard on upping the weight, which is fine.  the only thing is that my shoulder will hold me back.

it will be hard - wanting to move forward to put on more mass and up my strength but at the same time not forcing myself to go forward at the risk of hurting my rotator cuff again.  frustrated about it but i'm resolved to spend however much time it takes to build up my shoulder strength again.

tomorrow is arms/shoulders day, so i'll start on it then.  i'm frustrated but i  refuse to be discouraged.


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## RasPlasch (Mar 21, 2008)

Strong workout today! 
Im glad you aren't letting your shoulder discourage you. When do you think you will start upping the weight and lowering the reps?


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## nadirmg (Mar 21, 2008)

RasPlasch said:


> Strong workout today!
> Im glad you aren't letting your shoulder discourage you. When do you think you will start upping the weight and lowering the reps?



thanks!
probably in a month?  i need a couple workouts on my shoulder with high reps and lower weight to help strengthen it before i start asking it to do heavier stuff.


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 21, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> i had this weird feeling in my shoulder.  it wasn't a twinge in the muscle or joint, but it felt like electricity running down the surface of my right tricep.  really weird - not painful but i stopped just in case.  anyone one what that might be?



Ooh ooh, i get that over my elbows when im doing things like upright rows, it feels dead funny doesnt it? I reckon it's nerves getting pinched, but im not too sure what to do about it. 

Don't rush the shoulder mate - its simply not worth it


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## JailHouse (Mar 21, 2008)

Good job on stepping the weights up!  How did 135 feel on a regular flat!


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## King Silverback (Mar 21, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Ooh ooh, i get that over my elbows when im doing things like upright rows, it feels dead funny doesnt it? I reckon it's nerves getting pinched, but im not too sure what to do about it.
> 
> Don't rush the shoulder mate - its simply not worth it


Agree with Sister Sam here, don't rush the shoulder by any means my Friend!!! Slow and Continued progress are what we are ALL lookin for!!! Your w/o looked SOLID to me, excellent transition from Smith to Free imo!!!


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## nadirmg (Mar 22, 2008)

Archangel said:


> Agree with Sister Sam here, don't rush the shoulder by any means my Friend!!! Slow and Continued progress are what we are ALL lookin for!!! Your w/o looked SOLID to me, excellent transition from Smith to Free imo!!!



thanks for the encouragement AA!  yea i guess i got addicted to the quick improvement i had at the beginning.  i suspect it was always able to do this much i just never asked my muscles to do it before.  no that i'm hitting the wall 'slow and continued progress' is something i'll have to get used to 



JailHouse said:


> Good job on stepping the weights up!  How did 135 feel on a regular flat!



felt great!  like i was actually lifting the weight myself!  imagine that... 



SamEaston said:


> Ooh ooh, i get that over my elbows when im doing things like upright rows, it feels dead funny doesnt it? I reckon it's nerves getting pinched, but im not too sure what to do about it.
> 
> Don't rush the shoulder mate - its simply not worth it



it feels strange doesn't it?  and it's always in my right tricep... don't worry, sam.  i'll be careful with the shoulder.  i may need to guys to help keep my ego in check though..


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## nadirmg (Mar 22, 2008)

*saturday -  02.22.08 - shoulders/arms/grip
*
back extensions - straight extensions w/30lb BB s/s side extensions with 20lb DB
30 x 12 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 12
30 x 12 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 12
30 x 15 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 15
30 x 15 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 15

shoulder press machine
50 x 10
70 x 10
70 x 10
70 x 10

DB shrugs
65 x 12
65 x 12
70 x 10
70 x 10

lat raise machine
25 x 15
30 x 15
30 x 15
25 x 15

standing face pulls - w/rope at lat pull-down
30 x 20
30 x 20
30 x 20
30 x 20

seated zottman curls
25 x 10 (each arm)
27.5 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10

DB curls - started w/palms facing back
20 x 10
22.5 x 10
20 x 10

standing DB wrist curls
12.5 x 15 
12.5 x 15 
12.5 x 10 
12.5 x 15 

BB face pulls
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10

standing BB curls ----- s/s ------ plate curls
40 x 10 ------ s/s ------- 25 x 10
50 x 10 ------ s/s ------- 25 x 10
40 x 10 ------ s/s ------- 25 x 10

today i started hitting the light weight on my shoulders to try and help rebuild their strength.  upping the weight on my bench will be impossible unless i start fortifying them.  also i hit my bis and grip strength pretty hard today.  at the end of my w/o my forearms were ROCK HARD.  the way my arms are still tired an hour after my w/o i know i'm gonna have 'fun' driving tomorrow.


----------



## Scarface30 (Mar 22, 2008)

nice job man, that's some great volume going on there

something I find even better for grip are static holds, or as Gaz was doing monkey hangs. wrist curls are good and all but if you want to seriously increase your grip strength try one of those!


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## SamEaston (Mar 23, 2008)

Any reason you're doing machine stuff for your shoulders? You might be better using very light free weights instead of building the shoulders up using machines then doing yourself a damage when you move to free weights (which is ultimately what you want to do, right?).



nadirmg said:


> i may need to guys to help keep my ego in check though..



No problem


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 23, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Any reason you're doing machine stuff for your shoulders? You might be better using very light free weights instead of building the shoulders up using machines then doing yourself a damage when you move to free weights (which is ultimately what you want to do, right?).



you have a point, sam.
but i'm still just easing into it.  back in november when i re-injured my shoulder all it took was 2 lateral raises with a 10lb DB to put me out of commission for another 3 months!  
doing DB benches with 30lb is scary too even if it's not a 'shoulder' exercise.  in the next week or two i'll probably move off the machines and do some raises and presses with the 5 pounders but in the meantime i just want to see if my joints, ligaments and stuff can perform that movement while supporting some kind of weight.

i should probably buy those tiny weights and do that at home.  i can't bring myself to lift 5lb DBs at the gym...


----------



## goob (Mar 23, 2008)

Nice Wo Nad.

How do you do a BB Face Pull?


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## Triple Threat (Mar 23, 2008)

goob said:


> Nice Wo Nad.
> 
> How do you do a BB Face Pull?



If they're what I think they are, another name for them is upright rows.  And upright rows, if done incorrectly, can wreak havoc with the shoulders.  It's not an exercise I would do if trying to recover from a shoulder injury.  Been there, done that.


----------



## goob (Mar 23, 2008)

Triple Threat said:


> If they're what I think they are, another name for them is upright rows. And upright rows, if done incorrectly, can wreak havoc with the shoulders. It's not an exercise I would do if trying to recover from a shoulder injury. Been there, done that.


 
Got ya.  Yeah, I've done them before also, and have felt the strain they put on the rotators.


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 23, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> you have a point, sam.
> but i'm still just easing into it.  back in november when i re-injured my shoulder all it took was 2 lateral raises with a 10lb DB to put me out of commission for another 3 months!
> doing DB benches with 30lb is scary too even if it's not a 'shoulder' exercise.  in the next week or two i'll probably move off the machines and do some raises and presses with the 5 pounders but in the meantime i just want to see if my joints, ligaments and stuff can perform that movement while supporting some kind of weight.
> 
> i should probably buy those tiny weights and do that at home.  i can't bring myself to lift 5lb DBs at the gym...



I know mate - i understand.

You need to get them little weights you just strap onto your wrists, then you can just go about your business, doing lat raises every now and then without anyone having a clue what you're up to!


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 24, 2008)

making progress!  Can you explain your split layout?


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 24, 2008)

thanks JH!

back extensions - straight extensions w/30lb BB s/s side extensions with 20lb DB
30 x 12 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 12
30 x 12 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 12
30 x 15 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 15
30 x 15 ------- s/s ------ 20 x 15

are you talking about the split thing up there?  it's just a super set.
straight back extensions on the left followed by a superset of side extensions on the right.


----------



## StanUk (Mar 24, 2008)

looking good Nad, still making good progress pal keep it up!


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 24, 2008)

I was talking about your Mon-sun work out schedule, what body part on what days.


----------



## King Silverback (Mar 24, 2008)

Great w/o BRother N, slow and STEADY progress my Friend, thats the BEST thing!!! You seem to have a plan, now keep at it!!!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 25, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> I was talking about your Mon-sun work out schedule, what body part on what days.



hrrm, generally i don't have set days of the week i do things on.  i try not to any more than 2 days off in a row.  but sometimes i don't get all the body parts done during the course of 7 days.

but here's the order i do 'em in
day 1 - legs
day 2 - back/lats/bis
day 3 - chest/tris
day 4 - shoulders/arms

for example.  i slept like crap sunday night and only got 4 hours of sleep.  i didn't want to go to the gym with only 4 hours of sleep (didn't want to get up at 5am either), so my leg day, which is usually on mondays got moved to today.  i don't really adhere to a strict schedule.  if i don't have flexibility then if i mess up the world might end


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 25, 2008)

Archangel said:


> Great w/o BRother N, slow and STEADY progress my Friend, thats the BEST thing!!! You seem to have a plan, now keep at it!!!



thanks AA!  a plan?  no way, i'm still figuring all this out one day at a time.



StanUk said:


> looking good Nad, still making good progress pal keep it up!



thanks stan.  funny how since you've started calling me 'nad' a few other people have too lol


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 25, 2008)

Tuesday - 03.25.08 - Legs!

Front Squats - first time trying them out
bar (55) x 10
75 x 10
95 x 10
105 x 10
not too bad, certainly hit the quads more than the hams and glutes though.  my shoulder may not do too well with this one.  we'll see how it goes.

Leg Press
270 x 10
360 x 10
410 x 10
430 x 10

Leg Curls s/s Leg Extensions
110 x 10 ------ s/s ------  90 x 10
120 x 10 ------ s/s ------ 100 x 10
130 x 10 ------ s/s ------ 110 x 10
130 x 10 ------ s/s ------ 110 x 10

Calf Press s/s DB Lunges
135 x 20 ------ s/s ------ 20lb dbs x 10 (each leg)
135 x 19 ------ s/s ------ 20lb dbs x 10
90 x 20   ------ s/s ------ 20lb dbs x 10
90 x 30  - ----- s/s ------ 20lb dbs x 10

Cable Crunches
100 x 20
110 x 20
120 x 20
120 x 20

and today marks 3.5 years since i quit smoking cold turkey.  not a single drag since then.  i could really go for a djarum and black though...


----------



## katt (Mar 25, 2008)

wow - 3 1/2 years is sweet!   Workout doesn't look bad either.. 

so you liked the front squats, huh?


----------



## the other half (Mar 25, 2008)

ya, becarefull with the front squats. once your shoulder is 100% i would give them a go.

killer leg press. good workout all the way thru


----------



## RasPlasch (Mar 25, 2008)

Congrats on the 3.5 years free from smoking!
You own at leg pressing!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 26, 2008)

*wednesday - 03.26.08 - chest/tris
*
flat bench on the rack
105 x 8
125 x 8
135 x 8 - rep PR
140 x 4 - weight PR

dips  ------ s/s ------ diamond pushups
bw x 10------ s/s ------ 15x
bw+15 x 10* ------ s/s ------ 13x - weight PR
bw+15 x 8* ------ s/s ------ 10 x
bw+10 x 5* (then bw x 1) ------ s/s ------ 0x
*first time adding weight to my dips.  the combination of the weighted tips and superesetting them with diamond pushups totally wasted my tris.

DB flat bench
27.5 x 8
30 x 8
30 x 8
30 x 8
still staying at 30lb for the sake of my shoulder.  would gone up to 35 but my tris were already gone.  so i stuck with 30lbs.

swiss ball crunches ------ s/s ------ planks
30x ( 10x left, middle, right) s/s (until failure)
30x ( 10x left, middle, right) s/s (until failure)
30x ( 10x left, middle, right) s/s (until failure)
didn't time my planks but they hurt like a mofo.

cable flys
40 x 8
50 x 8 - weight PR
50 x 8
50 x 8

good w/o today.  upped the weight on a couple of things and feeling stronger these days.  just need to get my shoulders stronger,  benching the 30lb DBs and holding them above my head like that... feels like my shoulders can't support much more than that at this point.


----------



## katt (Mar 26, 2008)

dips ss w/pushups....   I've seen that before...lol..

Great workout!


----------



## JailHouse (Mar 26, 2008)

Good job brother your makin IM proud.  What do you mean by on the rack on ur BB becch?  How is your shoulder feeling now with all these higher pressing numbers bro?


----------



## RasPlasch (Mar 26, 2008)

Do you mean benching on a smith machine?

Nice job on the 140 bench though you are movin on up.
Great job on adding weight on the dips, they are tough.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 27, 2008)

RasPlasch said:


> Do you mean benching on a smith machine?
> 
> Nice job on the 140 bench though you are movin on up.
> Great job on adding weight on the dips, they are tough.



nope i've stopped useing the smith machine all together.  free bar only from now on   yea, they're tough, but dips are my favorite!



JailHouse said:


> Good job brother your makin IM proud.  What do you mean by on the rack on ur BB becch?  How is your shoulder feeling now with all these higher pressing numbers bro?



i just mean i didn't use the smith machine.
i think my shoulder is slowly getting stronger.  it feels great to put on more weight, bench it, and think, 'woah, i can handle this much?!' 
but for now it's probably wise not to start pushing heavier DBs.  benching BBs has a little safety since you don't use quite as many stabilizing muscles.



katt said:


> dips ss w/pushups....   I've seen that before...lol..
> 
> Great workout!



yea, i steal most of my best moves from the pros 
thanks katt!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 27, 2008)

*a general question....*

ok i may post this in the open chat forum later but...

what are you's guy's thoughts on talking to girls at the gym.  i mean seriously.  it's a great place to meet girls you know are serious about fitness.  a great thing to share in a relationship, right?  

but is there a way to talk to a girl at the gym that you've never spoken to without it coming across as "i'm full of myself and now I'M HITTING ON YOU!"?  seriously, i don't think it can be done.  but i'd like to know if it's worked for any guys out there.


----------



## katt (Mar 27, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> ok i may post this in the open chat forum later but...
> 
> what are you's guy's thoughts on talking to girls at the gym.  i mean seriously.  it's a great place to meet girls you know are serious about fitness.  a great thing to share in a relationship, right?
> 
> but is there a way to talk to a girl at the gym that you've never spoken to without it coming across as "i'm full of myself and now I'M HITTING ON YOU!"?  seriously, i don't think it can be done.  but i'd like to know if it's worked for any guys out there.



Boy that's a tough one,,, other than saying "hi" or "hows it going" I would think that a guy is hitting on me..   But, I guess,,, if you doing cardio next to a cute one, you could strike up a conversation about something random, and it wouldn't be so noticeable????  Or helping spot?     That's just tough.. I'm so focused when I'm in the gym I'm sure most people think I'm a snob.. lol

I realized you wanted the guys input, but I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 27, 2008)

katt said:


> Boy that's a tough one,,, other than saying "hi" or "hows it going" I would think that a guy is hitting on me..   But, I guess,,, if you doing cardio next to a cute one, you could strike up a conversation about something random, and it wouldn't be so noticeable????  Or helping spot?     That's just tough.. *I'm so focused when I'm in the gym I'm sure most people think I'm a snob*.. lol
> 
> I realized you wanted the guys input, but I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in



That also applies to me. And if someone comes over to me when im between sets they get such a dirty look  mostly because im timing my rest intervals for 60s so i don't have time for chit-chat. 

However, i have struck up a few conversations with lads in my gym (inbetween sets), completely by mistake. For example, when i need to use the squat rack i normally do it first out of all my exercises, so if someone's on it, i just go up and ask them how long they're going to be and do they mind if i wait? (i always do this now because last time i didn't ask, the guy was on it for half an hour - i was losing the will to live and seizing up all the while). A couple of times the lads have said 'you can work in with me if you want' which always leads to a bit of banter, or they sometimes say 'can you watch my form on this while you're standing there' etc... which presents lots of opportunities in itself 

I mean, you seem like a nice guy so its pretty unlikely that a lass is going to think you're a retard, but you could help the situation along by asking her to watch your stance, while squatting for example, and say something like 'Look, i can't tell if my back is curving at the bottom of this squat. Would you mind checking for me while i do this set?' Not only does this show that you're not afraid to ask for help, it makes it perfectly clear that you know what you're talking about and you're serious about your training, PLUS it also gives her a PERFECT opportunity to check out your ass. 

Go get em tiger


----------



## goob (Mar 27, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> ok i may post this in the open chat forum later but...
> 
> what are you's guy's thoughts on talking to girls at the gym. i mean seriously. it's a great place to meet girls you know are serious about fitness. a great thing to share in a relationship, right?
> 
> but is there a way to talk to a girl at the gym that you've never spoken to without it coming across as "i'm full of myself and now I'M HITTING ON YOU!"? seriously, i don't think it can be done. but i'd like to know if it's worked for any guys out there.


 
Exactly.  It's a good time in that the endorphins are flowing, you feel great, albiet a little sweaty.  Confidence is high.

However, it's hard to gauge how to initiate conversation.  Best bet is to 'scan' e.g thanks to the plentiful mirrors in gyms, try and catch girls checking you out.  If you catch them a few times, they will respond much better to any conversation opener, as 8 times out of 10 they will want you to open them.  

That's the key, and if they genuinley are interested, it really dose'nt matter what you say, as long as it's not _too _arrogant or just plain idiotic.
 " Why do we this to ourselves?" "This is meant to be _good_ for you?"  That sort of shit works well to open conversations. Easy, non-threatening, generalized.  You can build from there.


----------



## Pylon (Mar 27, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> ok i may post this in the open chat forum later but...
> 
> what are you's guy's thoughts on talking to girls at the gym.  i mean seriously.  it's a great place to meet girls you know are serious about fitness.  a great thing to share in a relationship, right?
> 
> but is there a way to talk to a girl at the gym that you've never spoken to without it coming across as "i'm full of myself and now I'M HITTING ON YOU!"?  seriously, i don't think it can be done.  but i'd like to know if it's worked for any guys out there.



I'd say if it comes about naturally, it's good.  If it is feel forced, it will seem forced and therefore creepy.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 27, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> DB flat bench
> 27.5 x 8
> 30 x 8
> 30 x 8
> ...



forgot to say this but the last two sets of these i did one-armed presses


----------



## countryboy (Mar 27, 2008)

Nice job on the workouts.  Great to see the shoulder coming along...

Can't help with the "chit chat" stuff ..  as I usually don't say much to anyone except "Hey, whats up?"

I think Sam gave you some good info..


----------



## the other half (Mar 27, 2008)

im right there with sam, but when youre doing your squats, ask her if your shorts are wedged in your ass, and if so, would she pull them out for you.

that has always worked for me.


----------



## SamEaston (Mar 28, 2008)

the other half said:


> im right there with sam, but when youre doing your squats, ask her if your shorts are wedged in your ass, and if so, would she pull them out for you.
> 
> that has always worked for me.





Dirty bugger!!


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 28, 2008)

the other half said:


> im right there with sam, but when youre doing your squats, ask her if your shorts are wedged in your ass, and if so, would she pull them out for you.
> 
> that has always worked for me.



at least TOH gives good w/o advice


----------



## StanUk (Mar 28, 2008)

Nice work Nad, your still doing great pal! hows life treating you?


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 30, 2008)

StanUk said:


> Nice work Nad, your still doing great pal! hows life treating you?



thanks, stan.  i'm at a crossroads right now, man.  i'm in a dead-end job living in a place where there are NO quality girls - just redneck ones.
trying to decide whether to look for work back home in texas or go back to school for my MBA.

on the bright side... i'm 10lbs away from my bench press goal


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 30, 2008)

*catching up on workouts from the weekend*

*friday - 03.38.08 - lats/bis
*

pull-ups med. grip
bw x 10
bw x 8
bw x 6
bw x 7

i was amazed.  this was the first time i tried bw pull-ups in 6 months.  before i've never been able to do pull-ups with a full extension at the elbows.  i'd never had the strength in my lats/bis to actually pull myself up.  for some reason i can do it now...  who cares.  i'm just gonna go with it.

seated rows ------ s/s ------ single DB rows
90 x 8  ------ s/s ------ 35 x 8
105 x 8 ------ s/s ------ 45 x 8
105 x 8 ------ s/s ------ 45 x 8
105 x 8 ------ s/s ------ 45 x 8

straight-bar half squat pull-down rows - wtf do you call these?
60 x 10
80 x 8
90 x 8
100 x 8

zottman curls (seated)
25 x 8 (each arm)
27.5 x 8
30 x 7
30 x (5 reps left arm failed on 5 with right arm)

Leg raises ------ s/s ------DLs
20x ------ s/s ------110 x 20
20x ------ s/s ------110 x 20
20x ------ s/s ------110 x 10 (no gloves today - hands were dying)
ok someone was using the only bar in the gym, so i was forced to using low weight barbells, hence the high reps.  yes, i was sore the next day.

felt strong this work out.  amazing because lats/back has never been my strong suit.


----------



## nadirmg (Mar 30, 2008)

*catching up on workouts from the weekend*

*saturday - 03.29.08 - shoulders*

ok this workout i stopped using all the shoulder machines.  only using free weights now - still being careful with being to aggressive.

bent over lateral db raises
5 x 20
7.5 x 20
7.5 x 20
10 x 20
i felt ultra lame doing the 5 pounders, but on my 2nd set with 7.5 my shoulders were really burning.  didn't feel so wimpy anymore - realized this is actually where i'm at now.  the baby weights are no longer an ego issue anymore.  

plate raises
25 x 20
25 x 20
25 x 20
25 x 20

military db presses
10 x 10
10 x 10
12.5 x 10
12.5 x 10
ok, this is what i hurt my shoulder doing 6 months ago.  except i was doing it with 35lb dbs.  
just doing 10lbs was a huge hurdle for me to overcome.  just thinking about doing military presses use to make me cringe - sure that my shoulder would give out again and i'd have to stop working out once again.  but doing the 10lb dbs showed me that i CAN still do it.  i just need to be careful.  moving forward.

rope face pulls
50 x 10
60 x 10
70 x 10
80 x 10

shrugs - smith machine
90 x 10
140 x 10
140 x 10
140 x 10

db shrugs
60 x 10
60 x 10
55 x 10 - 2 sec hold each rep
60 x 10 - 2 sec hold each rep

first workout in a long time where i was burning the whole time.  felt good.  my shoulders haven't burned like this for half a year.  and the best part is i proved to myself that i can get past the specter of my shoulder injury.


----------



## the other half (Mar 31, 2008)

good workouts, way to be smart on the shoulders. its  gonna get there, and when you do, you will be going all out balls to the walls after that.


----------



## Pylon (Mar 31, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> just redneck ones.
> trying to decide whether to look for work back home in texas or go back to school for my MBA.



Where are you now?  And what school are you looking at?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 1, 2008)

Pylon said:


> Where are you now?  And what school are you looking at?



no i'm in hickory, NC.  i'm looking to join baylor's mba program and specialize in international management.



the other half said:


> good workouts, way to be smart on the shoulders. its  gonna get there, and when you do, you will be going all out balls to the walls after that.



cheers, TOH.  yep, it felt good using those shoulder muscles even if it was baby weights.  looking forward to going crazy though!

*tuesday - 04.01.08 - legs*

last night i started studying for the GMAT.  i woke up and was exhausted.  did not want to go to the gym before work.  but i'm glad i did - big day today.

back squats
bar x 10
125 x 10 ATG
145 x 10 ATG
165 x 10 ATG - PR for free bar
175 x 8 ATG - PR (5lbs heavier than my max on the smith - finally caught up!)

squat press
360 x 8
450 x 8
470 x 8 - PR - 20lbs up
470 x 8

seated leg curl ------- s/s ------- leg extension
120 x 10        -------- s/s ------- 100 x 10
130 x 10 - PR -------- s/s ------- 110 x 10
140 x 10 - PR -------- s/s ------- 120 x 10 - PR
150 x 10 - PR-------- s/s ------- 135 x 10 - PR
woah.. up 20 on my curls and 25 on my extensions?!?!

calf press ------ s/s ------ DB lunges
135 x 20 ------ s/s ------ 22.5 x 10 - PR- up 2.5lbs each DB
135 x 20 ------ s/s ------ 22.5 x 10
135 x 20 ------ s/s ------ 22.5 x 10
135 x 20 ------ s/s ------ 22.5 x 10

sooo glad i went in to the gym today.  4 hours later my legs still feel rubbery and i had PRs on each exercise except calf press.  happy with the free squat prs but amazed with my curls and extension gains...  is this normal??

ah, and those db lunges hurt like a !@#@&$!!!  only thing is.. i was so focused on legs today i ran out of time and couldn't do the cable crunches i was planning on.  i'll do some crunches tonight before bed to make up.


----------



## Triple Threat (Apr 1, 2008)

Lookit all those PRs.


----------



## Stewart14 (Apr 1, 2008)

Dude, great job on the squats!  I am liking your bodyweight to squat weight ratio going on there, to me that is more impressive than a 200 pounder squatting 300 (which by the way, I weigh 220 and I have trouble barely being able to squat 300 for a couple of reps), so .....


----------



## Pylon (Apr 1, 2008)

I'd go with the MBA, unless there is something really good drawing you to TX.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 1, 2008)

Pylon said:


> I'd go with the MBA, unless there is something really good drawing you to TX.



see, here's the best part about it.  the MBA program i want to join is in texas, in my hometown, so i can live with my parents for free while i go back to school.  no brainer, huh?


Stewart20 said:


> Dude, great job on the squats!  I am liking your bodyweight to squat weight ratio going on there, to me that is more impressive than a 200 pounder squatting 300 (which by the way, I weigh 220 and I have trouble barely being able to squat 300 for a couple of reps), so .....



thanks, stewart.  really, my legs have always been one of my weakest muscle groups, and i'd never really spent anytime developing my legs until about 2 months ago.  thanks for the encouragement!


Triple Threat said:


> Lookit all those PRs.



thanks dude.  i hadn't been doing PRs for a while because i was getting them every week.  so i layed off the PRs until i had hit my max wall.  after being there for a week or so i'm starting to see some gains finally 

getting closer to some of my goals!


----------



## Pylon (Apr 1, 2008)

Forget what I said, then.  Get yer Stetson and head south!


----------



## goob (Apr 1, 2008)

Great workout nad, I can see you adding to those PR's for quite a while yet....

Excellent job.


----------



## countryboy (Apr 1, 2008)

Great workout...  Awesome numbers...

When deciding between work and school, I would vote for school if it is at ALL possible..  believe me..  coming from a 40 year old with only some basic college, and a bunch of computer certs.

The college degrees will open many doors in the future, and the $$$ will be there too!

Plus the Pa & Ma hotel is always a great place to stay..


----------



## the other half (Apr 2, 2008)

sweet PR'S!!!!!!!

i would probably die if i tried to go ATG on my squats. there is noway my knees would let me back up after going down that far.


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 2, 2008)

Nice job! Your legs are looking very strong.


----------



## countryboy (Apr 3, 2008)

...  is it quiet in here or what..??


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 3, 2008)

yea, i haven't been to the gym since tuesday.  need to finish my grad school application - finish the essays and my resume.  once i do that i'll just need to study for the gmat a few hours each day.

need to try to get into the gym after work today but i NEED to finish these essays.


----------



## Pylon (Apr 3, 2008)

School first, man.  The gym will still be there.


----------



## countryboy (Apr 3, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> yea, i haven't been to the gym since tuesday.  need to finish my grad school application - finish the essays and my resume.  once i do that i'll just need to study for the gmat a few hours each day.
> 
> need to try to get into the gym after work today but i NEED to finish these essays.



No rest for the wicked....

take care of the school work..  We'll be here


----------



## the other half (Apr 4, 2008)

look at me. brains dont get you anywhere

maybe thats the problem!!!!!


----------



## countryboy (Apr 4, 2008)

the other half said:


> look at me. brains dont get you anywhere
> 
> maybe thats the problem!!!!!



...but you have Katt.....


----------



## the other half (Apr 4, 2008)

well, she has the brains and the looks in this family!!!!!!


----------



## goob (Apr 4, 2008)

the other half said:


> well, she has the brains and the looks in this family!!!!!!


 
That leaves you with......er,...................really hard to think, ehmm,.....................er........ehmm.............I...don't......................what could.......................



.......I'll have to think about this.


----------



## the other half (Apr 4, 2008)

the rifles!!!?????


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 7, 2008)

*catching up on workouts*

haven't been on IM for the past several days since i'm studying for the GMAT but i _have _been going to the gym for the past 4 days in a row.  totally wiped out so i'm taking the day off tomorrow.

today was my best leg day yet.  i can tell i'm making progress in my lats, and my shoulder are slowly gaining strength and stability when i'm lifting.  for chest i've decided to mix things up a little bit by adding in incline press and incline db flys - will start that next week.


*Monday - 04.07.08 - Legs*

Back Squats
Bar x 10
145 x 10
165 x 10
175 x 10
185 x 10 - weight PR and got all 10 reps up 10lbs

Squat Press
360 x 10
450 x 10
450 x 10
500 x 10 - weight PR up 30lbs

Calf Press
115 x 20
160 x 15 - weight PR up 25 lbs
160 x 15
160 x 15

DB Lunges
22.5 x 10 (each leg)
22.5 x 10 
25 x 10 - weight PR up 2.5lbs each DB
25 x 10

Leg Curl ------s/s------ Leg Extension
130 x 10 ------s/s------ 110 x 10
140 x 10 ------s/s------ 120 x 10
150 x 10 ------s/s------ 130 x 10
155 x 10 - weight PR up 5lbs ------s/s------ 140 x 10 - weight PR up 10lbs

*Sunday - 4.06.08 - Shoulders*

Cardio
rode bike up to gym 15min (uphill and upwind)

Bent-over Lat DB Raises
7.5 x 10
7.5 x 10
10 x 10
12.5 x 10

Plate Raises
25 x 10
25 x 10
25 x 10
25 x 10

Military DB Press
12.5 x 10
15 x 10
17.5 x 10
17.5 x 10

Rope Face Pulls
60 x 10
60 x 10
60 x 10
75 x 7

DB Speed Shrugs
60 x 15
60 x 15
60 x 15
65 x 15

Rev. Pec. Deck
40 x 10
40 x 10
40 x 10
40 x 10

Cardio
rode bike back home - 10min

*Saturday - 04.05.08 - Back/Lats*

Pull-ups
bw x 10
bw x 10 - rep PR
bw x 6
bw x 5

Seated Rows Close grip
90 x 8
105 x 8
105 x 8
105 x 8

Single Arm Rows
40 x 8
45 x 8
50 x 8 - weight PR up 5lbs
50 x 8

Straight Bar half squat rows
80 x 10
90 x 8
100 x 8
110 x 8

Seated Zottman Curls
27.5 x 8 (each arm)
30 x 6
30 x 5
30 x 5 (left ) 4 (right)

Triple set - Weighted back extensions/Leg raises/Decline Crunches
+30 x 20/20/20
+30 x 20/20/20
+30 x 20/20/10
+30 x 20/20/10
holy shit was murderous

Seated Curls
40 x 20
60 x 5
60 x 4
40 x 10
30 x 10


*Friday - 04.04.08 - Chest*

Bench Press
125 x 5
125 x 7
140 x 9 - (spotter on last 3)
145 x 9 - weight PR - up 5lbs (spotter on last 3) 

Dips -------s/s------- Diamond Pushups
bw x 10 ------s/s------- 10x
+10 x 10------s/s------- 10x
+10 x 10------s/s------- 10x
+10 x 10------s/s------- 7x

Incline DB Press
25 x 10
27.5 x 10
27.5 x 10

DB Flys
22.5 x 8
22.5 x 8
25 x 8


----------



## the other half (Apr 7, 2008)

i like how you throw in the dips and diamond pushups in between your chest exercises. that has to kill  you.

looks good, keep up on the "PR'S".

good luck in the studying!


----------



## countryboy (Apr 7, 2008)

Awesome...  Keep it up..  Good luck on the GMAT!


----------



## King Silverback (Apr 7, 2008)

Awesome w/o's BRother N!!! And SEVERAL PR's to add to it, Good Stuff, keep it up!!!


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 8, 2008)

Hey - wow you've been busy in here!

Best of luck on the gmat. Try not to kill yourself at the gym before you go though 

Hee hee


----------



## Pylon (Apr 8, 2008)




----------



## nadirmg (Apr 8, 2008)

thanks, guys.  the gmat is hard!  you're not allowed to use calculators!?!?!!!!!  !!!!

geez, i swear.  i can't remember the last time.  i had to do an equation like this 25/.125

seriously.  in real life these days NOBODY has to do that shit anymore....


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 8, 2008)

Wow that must be tough. I'm pretty sure I would fail a math test if I didn't have a calculator. It must be irritating to do every problem the long way, lol.


----------



## goob (Apr 8, 2008)

Wohh.. Loads of PR's in those workouts. Good work captain Nad.

How do you like the speed shrugs?  I  have'nt seen anyone else do them.


----------



## StanUk (Apr 8, 2008)

Nads man, your kicking ass with your squats! 10 x 185? you've really upped the weight on those chief, keep it up!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 8, 2008)

StanUk said:


> Nads man, your kicking ass with your squats! 10 x 185? you've really upped the weight on those chief, keep it up!



lol, yea i'm halfway to my 2008 improvement goal!  just another 40lbs or so and i'll have 2 45's on each side of a 55lb bar   thanks, stan!



goob said:


> Wohh.. Loads of PR's in those workouts. Good work captain Nad.
> 
> How do you like the speed shrugs?  I  have'nt seen anyone else do them.



thanks goob.  speed shrug are pretty fun.  since i'm still working on my grip strength i kinda HAVE to do speed shrugs - it's a race to do as many as i can before my grip strength gives out 



RasPlasch said:


> Wow that must be tough. I'm pretty sure I would fail a math test if I didn't have a calculator. It must be irritating to do every problem the long way, lol.



stupid test...


----------



## King Silverback (Apr 8, 2008)

SOLID w/o's BRother N!!! You'll be bustin out w/2+ wheels on each side before ya know it my Friend, keep at it!!!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 8, 2008)

thanks, AA!

btw, what is a w/2+wheels on both sides?


----------



## Pylon (Apr 8, 2008)

Nice work, nad.

A "wheel" is a 45 lb plate.  Gym rat lingo.  Use it in the gym, it will help your street cred.  Also, talk about which flavor of Gatorade tastes best.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 8, 2008)

Pylon said:


> Nice work, nad.
> 
> A "wheel" is a 45 lb plate.  Gym rat lingo.  Use it in the gym, it will help your street cred.  Also, talk about which flavor of Gatorade tastes best.



thanks!  will do!
and i'm not going to forget about those 'after' pics, btw


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 8, 2008)

WOW! look at those PR!!!  lookin good in here


----------



## Pylon (Apr 9, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> thanks!  will do!
> and i'm not going to forget about those 'after' pics, btw



Not after...current.  After would imply I'm done, right?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 9, 2008)

Pylon said:


> Not after...current.  After would imply I'm done, right?



that's a good point


----------



## King Silverback (Apr 9, 2008)

Hope all is well BRother N!!!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 9, 2008)

*wednesday - 04.09.08 - chest
*
from now on i'm dropping the reps down from 10 to about 6-8 so i can start increasing the weights.  also focusing on form.

incline bench press
75 x 6
105 x 6
115 x 6
115 x 6

flat bench press
125 x 6
145 x 6 spot on last 3 reps
145 x 6 spot on last 3 reps
145 x 6 spot on last 3 reps
doing incline first really wiped me out

dips
bw x 10
+15 x 6
+15 x 6
+15 x 6

incline db flys
22.5 x 8
22.5 x 6
22.5 x 6
25 x 6

flat db flys
25 x 6
27.5 x 6
30 x 6
35 x 6

weighted swiss ball crunches with 25lb plate held above head
8x
8x
8x
8x
i could feel those down in the core of my abs.  gonna maybe up the reps or weight on abs to get more burn out of it.

flys and dips felt really good today.  today i worked out after work, sort of unusual, so i ran into some people i don't see often.  apparently one of them commented to my friend that i was starting to get bigger and wanted to know if i was on something   nope, just eating more.  3,300 calories today


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 9, 2008)

Awesome you started incline bench. How was it?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 9, 2008)

RasPlasch said:


> Awesome you started incline bench. How was it?



it's awesome.  hits a totally different part of my chest.  the plan is to start tightening the top of my pecs and pull 'em up so as to avoid man-boobs.


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 9, 2008)

Lol yeah man boobs are never good. And you didn't feel any discomfort in your shoulder?


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 10, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> it's awesome.  hits a totally different part of my chest.  the plan is to start tightening the top of my pecs and pull 'em up so as to avoid man-boobs.



My mate has moobs (man boobs) but then he's fat. If you're quite lean i dont think there is any possiblity of developing moobs, is there??

That's excellent weight on the flat bench BTW!


----------



## countryboy (Apr 10, 2008)

Awesome job!

Keep up the great work....  3300 calories..  Man, that would be nice.

..but I am on the other side of the dinner plate..


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 10, 2008)

countryboy said:


> Awesome job!
> 
> Keep up the great work....  3300 calories..  Man, that would be nice.
> 
> ..but I am on the other side of the dinner plate..



I feel your pain. Im on 1400cals at the mo - it's rubbish. Oh well, needs must eh


----------



## Fitgirl70 (Apr 10, 2008)

Have you tried the dive bomber pushups, Nad?


----------



## goob (Apr 10, 2008)

Great work on the Flat bench Nads.  The workouts just keep getting
 better.!!!!!

"Moobs", haha.   Although I probably would not bee laughing if I had them.

One thing i always wondered- would you get 'moobs' if you stopped lifting after building big pecs????


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 10, 2008)

MMMMMMmmmm......3300 calories.....


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 11, 2008)

goob said:


> "Moobs", haha.   Although I probably would not bee laughing if I had them.
> 
> One thing i always wondered- would you get 'moobs' if you stopped lifting after building big pecs????



Nah, don't think so. I mean, you're pecs would have to be one hell of a size to leave loads of excess skin behind when they shrunk 

And you wouldn't be laughing if you had them. My mate (who is fat) has a twin brother (who is thin) and he calls them his Bitch Tits. My mate laughs, but you can tell he's dying inside


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 11, 2008)

workouts are coming along great in here man. you're definitely on your way to the goals you've set out - and then some! PRs across the board in here too...very nice.


----------



## King Silverback (Apr 11, 2008)

I agree, excellent w/o's my Friend!!!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 12, 2008)

*catching up on workouts*

*saturday - 04.12.08 - shoulders
*bent over lat raises
7.5 x 8
10 x 8
12.5 x 8
12.5 x 8

plate raises
25 x 8 (2 sec neg)
25 x 8 (2 sec neg)
25 x 8 (2 sec neg)
25 x 8 (2 sec neg)

military DB press
17.5 x 10
20 x 7
22.5 x 6
25 x 6

DB shrugs
65 x 7
70 x 6
75 x 6
75 x 7

cleans
50 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8
first time i did cleans plus i'm taking it easy on my shoulder so i kept the weight pretty low.

weighted crunches w/bosu ball
+25 x 8
+25 x 8
+25 x 8
+25 x 8

*friday - 04.11.08 - back
*
chinups 
on smith (supinated grip)
bw x 10 (neg last 3)
bw x 5 negs
bw x 4 negs
bw x 3 negs

GMs
40 x 8
50 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

floor lift deads
145 x 7
165 x 6
165 x 5
165 x 6

single arm rows
50 x 6
55 x 6
60 x 6 - PR - up 5 lbs
60 x 6

seated rows close grip
105 x 8
120 x 8 PR - up 15 lbs
120 x 8
120 x 8

DB curls
27.5 x 6 (each arm)
30 x 6
30 x 6


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 12, 2008)

*no whining version 1.01 beta*

over the past week i've been getting a lot of help on a new routine, changing my diet and deciding which supplements to get.  i'm very happy with what i've got now and i'll start it all next week. 

ok here's the gist of the new 4-day split:

Monday - Rest Day - Low Carb
Tuesday - Horizontal Push/Pull - High Carb
Wednesday - Quad Dominant Legs - High Carb
Thursday - Rest Day - Low Carb
Friday - Vertical Push/Pull - High Carb
Saturday â€“ Hip/Hamstring Dominant Legs - High Carb
Sunday - Rest Day - Low Carb

diet:

i've decided to switch to a carb cycle diet.  not doing any 'no carb' days at this point.  low carb days will basically be only green veggies throughout the day and a cup of oats (at the most) for breakfast.  i'm still bulking until i hit 150 lbs.  so could be doing this a while.  i was 139 this morning.  i'll be eating at 20% over maintenance so, hitting about 3000 cals per day.  once i hit 150 i'll start cutting using the same diet and macros - just at a 10-20% calorie deficit.

Daily Supplements!

10g of fish oil
multi-vit
1g of vit-C 
vit-E

Extra ones for w/o days:
1g of vit-C
1 scoop of dextrose
1 scoop of creatine

all thanks and recognition go to Built, who helped me put this together.  
thank you thank you thank, Built!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 12, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> thank you thank you thank, Built!



dammit.  i hate it when i find typos in my journal


----------



## King Silverback (Apr 12, 2008)

Good lookin w/o BRother N, and I like the new routine, Best Wishes to you my Friend!!!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 12, 2008)

two of the songs i had on my work out playlist today.






YouTube Video
















YouTube Video


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 12, 2008)

1st video doesn't work. But the Killswitch song is awesome. I'm going to put that on my Ipod.


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 13, 2008)

Killswitch Engage are the shit. I listen to them all the time. 

Your new program looks alot like mine - cool! Just wondered though, why are you doing any low carb days while you're trying to bulk?


----------



## goob (Apr 13, 2008)

Good program and diet.  No doubt it will ive you some great results, wish i was that organised.....


----------



## Built (Apr 13, 2008)

Hey awesome - you posted this!

Now, the carb cycling I did mention is entirely optional - I only do it for calorie control, but I find it a very comfortable way to eat. Nadir, if you don't want to eat that way there's really no need. Just keep the calories up and of course the protein and fat and you'll do well. 

Good luck!


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 14, 2008)

new program looks good man. I used to do the exact same format and I have to say it was about the best program I've done.


----------



## countryboy (Apr 14, 2008)

New program looks good....

I will be switching also..  will be closer to 3 day split..  but similar to the push / legs / pull..

Good luck!

P.S.  I agree, why are you limiting your carbs?  Keep everything in proportion and eat away my friend!  You are bulking!

Can I consume calories vicariously through you


----------



## Built (Apr 14, 2008)

The one thing that's great about increasing fats for a bulk is it's a lot easier to get in the volume of food required if you're having a hard time stuffing it all in.

Other than that, there's no need to limit carbs. In either event, if you gain fat too quickly, cut back on the calories - there is a limit to how much muscle you can pack on. Eat too much more (of ANYTHING) than this and you'll just get chubby.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 14, 2008)

mmm yea, i was working on my meals for today on fitday and i was really surprised how quickly i ran out of carbs (for a rest/ss day).

i'm thinking i may shoot for a .5g fat and 1g protein per lb of LBM and eat the rest of my 3000 cals fall where they will - be that fats, protein, or carbs.  at least until i get the hang of this new split routine.

thanks for all the encouragement guys!  sorry i haven't been in and out of people's journals as much as i have.  i'm scheduled to take the gmat on may 10th.  after that things will calm down for me.  until then i could be in and out a lot of the time.


----------



## Built (Apr 14, 2008)

Your plan for your diet is perfect.

Use that and you'll do fine with the split.

Good luck with the gmat!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 15, 2008)

*Tuesday - 04.15.08 - Horizontal Pull/Push Abs/Calf
*
Rack Pulls - Mixed Grip
135 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
225 x 5

Bent Over Rows - Alt. Supinated/Pronate Grip
105 x 8
105 x 8
125 x 8

One Arm Rows
45 x 12
45 x 12
45 x 12

Weighted Crunches w/Bosu Ball
45 x 8
45 x 8
45 x 8

Standing Single Leg Calf Raises
bw x 8
bw x 8
bw x 8


----------



## katt (Apr 15, 2008)




----------



## SamEaston (Apr 15, 2008)

Nice rack pulls and bent over rows there mate!

Oh and best of luck with the gmat - fingers crossed for you!


----------



## countryboy (Apr 15, 2008)

Great workout... Good luck on the GMAT!


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 15, 2008)

I think those weighted crunches look killer, great workout!

I like the new split too


----------



## Built (Apr 15, 2008)

Racks are awesome - I love how heavy I can go with these - really works grip, traps, all while torching the posterior chain.


----------



## Triple Threat (Apr 15, 2008)

Built said:


> Racks are awesome - I love how heavy I can go with these - really works grip, traps, all while torching the posterior chain.



Other than being able to load more weight, what are the advantages of racks over conventional DLs?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 15, 2008)

because i'll be hitting the posterior chain in full force tomorrow   rack pulls keep the focus on the upper body pull motion where as deads would bring in the lower body muscles that i'll be using tomorrow... at least i think that's why...


----------



## Built (Apr 15, 2008)

Tomorrow is quad dominant.

Today was posterior chain - with a focus on the upper half. 

On hamstring dominant day, you'll hit the posterior chain again, but with emphasis on the lower part.


----------



## goob (Apr 15, 2008)

Wohhh nice rack pulls dude. You ,must be able to dealift around the same too.

Good work.


----------



## heeth (Apr 15, 2008)

hey just checkin out your journal.  hows your goal coming along?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 15, 2008)

katt said:


>



back atcha, katt!  how's it going, you spinning nut!



SamEaston said:


> Nice rack pulls and bent over rows there mate!
> 
> 
> Oh and best of luck with the gmat - fingers crossed for you!



thanks, it was my first time to try rack pulls.  LOVE 'em.  
i'm about to start studying again...



countryboy said:


> Great workout... Good luck on the GMAT!



thanks, dude!  



b_reed23 said:


> I think those weighted crunches look killer, great workout!
> 
> I like the new split too



yes, it's a good split, ain't it?  built gave it to me 
weighted crunches on the ball are hard.  i was probably doing to much moving with my legs to adjust for the weight changing position instead of forcing my abs to do all the lifting - hafta get better at it!



goob said:


> Wohhh nice rack pulls dude. You ,must be able to dealift around the same too.
> 
> 
> Good work.



nah, my deads are a solid 30 below what i can rack pull.
i'll bet my pulls will jump up next week - first time doing 'em today, so i wasn't sure how to guage how i'd do across 5 sets.  thanks, goob!




heeth said:


> hey just checkin out your journal.  hows your goal coming along?



only 5 lbs left to go on my bench
only 50 lbs left to go on my bench
about 10 lbs until i hit 150 (bodyweight)
and i need 4 more reps on the 3rd set and 5 or 6 more reps on my pull-ups

i'm getting there but already thinking about raising my goals   thanks for stopping in!


----------



## Built (Apr 15, 2008)

For the crunches, sit very close to the edge of the bosu, basically on the floor with half your butt on the ball. You may find it works better if you tuck your feet under a rack, or take a heavy dumbbell and anchor your feet around/under it to hold you down. I don't need to do this, but my lower is heavier than my upper - for men, this isn't always the case.


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 15, 2008)

soild workout dude. very nice rack pulls

so what exactly are you studying? and forgive me for sounding dumb, but what are GMATs? I know it's an exam, but what for?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 16, 2008)

Scarface30 said:


> soild workout dude. very nice rack pulls
> 
> so what exactly are you studying? and forgive me for sounding dumb, but what are GMATs? I know it's an exam, but what for?



thanks, scar!

GMAT - Graduate Management Admissions Test.
i'm going back to school to get a masters in business administration for international business.  it'll pair well with my experiences in japan.  hopefully i won't be doing this chump translating job too much longer


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 16, 2008)

*wednesday - 04.16.08 - Quad Dominant, Ham Accessory, Biceps

*
ATG Back Squats
145 x 5
145 x 5
185 x 5
195 x 5 - weight PR up 10
205 x 5 - up another 10

ATG Front Squats
105 x 8
115 x 8
115 x 8
115 x 8
115 x 8

Standing Bicep Curls
25 x 8
25.7 x 8
25.7 x 8

One Arm Preacher Curls
20 x 8
20 x 8
20 x 8

I was supposed to do 3 sets of split squats, but i ran out of time.  Plus I don't think my legs could've taken it : )


----------



## katt (Apr 16, 2008)

Nice PR's on the squats! You must have been feeling strong today??


----------



## the other half (Apr 16, 2008)

i think you have found a new passion that you really enjoy. between your desire, dedication, and organization of what you are doing, and all the research and knowledge that you have acquired. im really impressed.

i bet you 20 bucks that by the end of the year your weight goal will be 165.


----------



## Built (Apr 16, 2008)

No KIDDING your legs were fried!

Next time try 3x8 for the fronts.


----------



## StanUk (Apr 16, 2008)

Good job nads, still kicking ass i see!


----------



## goob (Apr 16, 2008)

Great squatting nads!!!!!  Superb PR, bet that felt good.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 16, 2008)

katt said:


> Nice PR's on the squats! You must have been feeling strong today??



thanks, katt!  it felt unreal.  when i looked at the 45, 25, and a 5 lb plate on each side i thought, 'no way i'm actually gonna be able to do that much'.  hasn't really hit me that i broke 200 yet 



the other half said:


> i think you have found a new passion that you really enjoy. between your desire, dedication, and organization of what you are doing, and all the research and knowledge that you have acquired. im really impressed.
> 
> i bet you 20 bucks that by the end of the year your weight goal will be 165.



TOH, thanks dude!  i don't know about knowledge and research - i get a lot of help and encouragement from you guys - the rest i just steal.  you're right though, i LOVE it.  i love all of it!  165?  



Built said:


> No KIDDING your legs were fried!
> 
> Next time try 3x8 for the fronts.



you're right, i had the number of sets wrong.  it should have been 3 x 8.  no more writing my workout at 5am in the morning!!



StanUk said:


> Good job nads, still kicking ass i see!



hah, i'm kicking my ass up to catch up with you guys 



goob said:


> Great squatting nads!!!!!  Superb PR, bet that felt good.



thanks goob!  mmm, it was a great boost.  now if only i could start making gains on my bench!


----------



## JailHouse (Apr 17, 2008)

whats up Nad??  Nice job with the squatting.  Its amazing how fast leg strength can progress.


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 18, 2008)

WOW - excellent squattage mate. Not surprised you gave the splits a miss, they're a task all on their own they are!

So hows the studying coming? Is it one of those tests where you can't really study for it properly, its all about how you analyse the data and the method you use to reach your conclusion? I bleedin' HATE those.

Well you have my sympathies mate. Im officially nervous for you ...  ... see. So now you can just be calm and walk in there and do your best !


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 18, 2008)

unfortunately, yes.  it's one of those bleeding tests.  there's really very little calculation involved - it's all about how you manipulate the data to find the answer that's hidden among the (a)-(e) answers....

thanks for worrying for me.  after i post my workout for today i'm off to study.  pretty lame friday night, eh?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 18, 2008)

*Friday - Vertical Pull-Push, Abs and Calves
*
Military DB Press
25 x 5
27.5 x 5
27.5 x 5
30 x 5
30 x 5

Bent Over Lat Raises
12.5 x 8
12.5 x 8
15 x 8

BB Front Raises
30 x 12
30 x 12
30 x 12

Weighted Chins w/2-3 sec neg
+10 x 5 (pronated grip)
+10 x 5 (supinated grip)
+10 x 5 (pronated grip)
+10 x 5 (supinated grip)
+10 x 5 (pronated grip)

Unweighted Chins - no neg
bw x 5 (supinated grip)
bw x 5 (pronated grip)
bw x 4 (supinated grip)

One Arm Lat Pull Downs
30 x 8
45 x 8
45 x 8

Seated Calves w/3 sec pause at bottom
135 x 12
90 x 12
90 x 12

Weighted Crunches on Bosu Ball
50 x 8
50 x 8
50 x 8

remarks:
*military press* - next step up is the weight i hurt my rotator cuff on... :nails:
*weighted chins w/negs* - those mofos totally raped my biceps/lats/abs it's the last 3-4 inches to get my chin over the bar that are misery.  i wanted to die.
*weighted crunches* - got my feet under a bench to hold them down and it worked much better
*seated calves* - the 3 sec pause adds an element of ultra burning i've never experienced on seated calves before.
*overall* - first time doing vertical push-pull.  wow - i loves it.  awesome w/o.  i will be DOMSinated later.


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 18, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> unfortunately, yes.  it's one of those bleeding tests.  there's really very little calculation involved - it's all about how you manipulate the data to find the answer that's hidden among the (a)-(e) answers....
> 
> thanks for worrying for me.  after i post my workout for today i'm off to study.  pretty lame friday night, eh?



Gawd - i feel your pain! 

Hey - i've been watching telly all night. Time to go to bed now methinks (it's 1:30am in the UK)

Excellent workout there BTW. Laughed out loud at the mofos raping your biceps ... disturbing mental image though 

Oh, and 'DOMSinated' - beautiful, really  If you don't pass this test, you could always get a job thinking up new words to put in the dictionary


----------



## Built (Apr 18, 2008)

I am the DOMSINATOR! Muahahahahahahaha!

Okay, no more millies. I want you to try hang cleans for 5x5 followed by 3x8 Oly bar corner presses next time for shoulders. If you want to do a third, try 3x12 Arnold presses. 

Okay? 

Enjoy your lat-DOMS over the weekend... Oh, and if you get calf DOMS really bad, do as I do - wear high heels for a few days. 

<giggles>

Seriously, nice work - keep it up!


----------



## Built (Apr 18, 2008)

PS chins and weighted negative chins hit your abs like a mofo! I do a lot of stuff that hits abs coincidentally (sprint intervals are another major ab-destroyer)- which is why there is so little direct ab work in any of the programs I've set up.


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 18, 2008)

Im glad to see your progression with the shoulder exercises


----------



## goob (Apr 19, 2008)

Excellent work on the weighted chins.  Are these done close grip?


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

goob said:


> Excellent work on the weighted chins.  Are these done close grip?



I sure hope so! <stern look>


----------



## goob (Apr 19, 2008)

Built said:


> I sure hope so! <stern look>


 
Er.....?<puzzled look>


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

Why would you be puzzled? I just hope he's not gripping wider than shoulder. Narrow is better for lat development. Doesn't trash the RC either.


----------



## goob (Apr 19, 2008)

Built said:


> Why would you be puzzled? I just hope he's not gripping wider than shoulder. Narrow is better for lat development. Doesn't trash the RC either.


 
I always thought WG was the king of chins?  They are harder after all.


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

They're harder because the rotator cuff gets more strain. It's an awkward position.

If you want your workout to feel harder, do wide grip.

If you want wingspan (and shoulders that survive your addiction to iron!) keep the grip narrower than shoulder.


----------



## goob (Apr 19, 2008)

Built said:


> They're harder because the rotator cuff gets more strain. It's an awkward position.
> 
> If you want your workout to feel harder, do wide grip.
> 
> If you want wingspan (and shoulders that survive your addiction to iron!) keep the grip narrower than shoulder.


 
Fair enough, i'll take you word for it.

Sorry for whoring up your journal Nads,  actually no I'm not.  Not one tiny little bit..... hahaha <evil laugh>


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

Don't take ANYONE'S word at stuff like this: check around, see if what I say holds water, and either convince yourself I told you good information, or come up with a good counter argument. 

Keeps everyone humble.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 19, 2008)

Built said:


> I sure hope so! <stern look>



i'm assuming that look was for me.
don't worry - all my chin/pull ups were close grip.  doing it that way used my back more than my arms and shoulders so, yea, it really hits the lats.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 19, 2008)

*Saturday - 04.19.08 - Hamstring Dominant, Quad Accessory, Triceps
*
RDLs - mixed grip
w/u 135 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5

GMs
75 x 8
95 x 8
105 x 8

Leg Curls - toes pointed*
117.5 x 12
117.5 x 12
127.5 x 12

Front Squats*
105 x 10
125 x 10
125 x 10

Weighted Dips**
+15 x 8
+20 x 8
+22.5 x 8

Close Grip Bench Press**
105 x 8
115 x 8
125 x 5 - no spotter and my shoulder was feeling if-y

* antagonist pair - not superset
** antagonist pair - not superset

*remarks
*leg curls - not really sure what this was supposed to be, so i did seated leg curls?  that ok?
overall - first time doing this one.  now i've got an idea of the weight i can handle so i'll _start_ with the highest weight i did today and go from there next time.  lots of weight increases here.  don't really think it's PRs so much as the fact that i can do higher weight at lower reps.  still though, two 45's on each side for RDLs was cool


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 19, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Gawd - i feel your pain!
> 
> Oh, and 'DOMSinated' - beautiful, really  If you don't pass this test, you could always get a job thinking up new words to put in the dictionary



well you know.. my verbal score happens to be higher than my quantitative score   it's a sign.

nope, i need to get well over 600 points.  i'm shooting for 650.



Built said:


> I am the DOMSINATOR! Muahahahahahahaha!
> 
> Okay, no more millies. I want you to try hang cleans for 5x5 followed by 3x8 Oly bar corner presses next time for shoulders. If you want to do a third, try 3x12 Arnold presses.
> 
> Okay?



alright - i'll try out the hang cleans.  not sure if i'll be able to get away with the corner presses.  some people have destroyed the corner where the only oly bar is.  that's originally why deads and such became 'no-nos'.

anything i could try instead of corner presses?



RasPlasch said:


> Im glad to see your progression with the shoulder exercises



thanks, bro.  me too!!



goob said:


> Excellent work on the weighted chins.  Are these done close grip?



yup!  close grip per built's instructions.  whew that was an exhausting several sets.


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

Try Arnold presses, standing. You can also try setting the oly bar into the squat cage for corner presses. Also split jerks/push presses.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 19, 2008)

will do!

man, i can already tell the RDLs from today's workout will have me sore tomorrow!  oddly, my abs are more sore than anything from yesterday


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

I am NOT surprised to hear about your abs. 

Of all the things I post on the internet, my abs get the lion's share of the feedback, and I do so little direct ab work it's almost laughable - until you train the way I do.

Then you see WHY I do so little direct ab work. 

RDLs are the SHIT for hammies. That movement is the reason I called the split "Baby Got Back" - there is just no polite way to do those damned things LOL!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 19, 2008)

for the leg curls - was the seated leg curl machine what you had in mind?

yea tomorrow baby's gonna have _sore_ back.
i'm gonna have to go back and rewatch the RDL and rack pull movies.  somehow the movement felt all too similar to me.  and today i was deadlifting (235) more than i was rack pulling (225) earlier this week.  

it's supposed to be the other way around, right?


----------



## Built (Apr 19, 2008)

Generally, yes. RDLs go down lower, rack pulls I like at about 2" above the knee;  they are similar though, no doubt about it. 

STICK YOUR ASS BACK AND UP - arch your back, weight stays close to the body or your lower back gets torched - not good. 

I don't use leg curls but you can if you like. Try pull throughs, good morning, split squats, SHELC...


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 21, 2008)

great lower workout on the previous page nadirmg! RDLs, probably one of my top 2 or 3 favourite movements. I just love 'em!


----------



## goob (Apr 21, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> will do!
> 
> man, i can already tell the RDLs from today's workout will have me sore tomorrow! oddly, my abs are more sore than anything from yesterday


 
I actually missed the RDL's, great job on them, your not far off what i'm doing at the moment, great progress.


----------



## JailHouse (Apr 21, 2008)

Every ones Deads are up high recently.  nice job nads


----------



## RasPlasch (Apr 21, 2008)

Hey man. Haven't commented in your journal for awhile. How much do you weigh now? Can you see any changes in your body since you started bulking?


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 21, 2008)




----------



## nadirmg (Apr 22, 2008)

Scarface30 said:


> great lower workout on the previous page nadirmg! RDLs, probably one of my top 2 or 3 favourite movements. I just love 'em!



yea, man.  RDL's are one of the best, huh?



goob said:


> I actually missed the RDL's, great job on them, your not far off what i'm doing at the moment, great progress.



thanks, goob!  now you're talking crazy though.  it'll be a long time before (if) i catch up to you.



JailHouse said:


> Every ones Deads are up high recently.  nice job nads



thanks, JH!  glad you're back!



RasPlasch said:


> Hey man. Haven't commented in your journal for awhile. How much do you weigh now? Can you see any changes in your body since you started bulking?



umm... my pants fit tighter now.  i'm weighing in around 139-141 these days.  backing the calories down to about 3000 to try for a leaner slow bulk.



b_reed23 said:


>



thanks, b.  how are things going with you?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 22, 2008)

*Tuesday - 04.22.08 - Horizontal Push/Pull, Abs, Calves
*
Rack Pulls
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5

Bent Over Rows
105 x 8
105 x 8
105 x 8

Single-Arm Rows
55 x 12
55 x 12
55 x 12

Low Incline BB Press
125 x 5
135 x 4
125 x 5
125 x 5
125 x 5

Low Incline DB Press
35 x 8
40 x 8
40 x 8

Cable Crossovers
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

Weighted Crunches
55 x 8
55 x 8
55 x 8

Standing Single-Leg Calf Raise
bw x 8
bw x 8
bw x 8

*remarks*
rack pulls - man.. talk about losing all your energy on the first exercise.  i was worn out after these.
low incline DB press - flat and low incline DB presses are probably the exercises i'm least happy with right now.  maybe everyone's bench press progresses this slow but it feels weird since i'm making gains in everything else.
overall - is it time for bed yet?


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 22, 2008)

Loving the Rack Pulls - there's something incredibly satisfying about lifting heavy shit, isn't there 

Im the same as you in terms of benching strength. Whereas every single other lift increased (increases) steadily, my bench is really quite static. I wouldn't worry about it - its just a case of plugging away at it i reckon. 

Oh and Built - you're so right about those RDL's, Gosh i feel like i'm waving my arse around in mid-air!!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 22, 2008)

one of today's tracks






YouTube Video













SamEaston said:


> Loving the Rack Pulls - there's something incredibly satisfying about lifting heavy shit, isn't there



i know exactly what you mean.  i've really gotten addicted to moving heavier stuff around.  slowly but surely my shoulder is getting stronger.  i can tell because i'm pressing more weight without worrying about my shoulder giving out - instead it's my muscles that are slowing me down  

i guess that means i'm making rehab progress and finally can start really challenging myself


----------



## katt (Apr 22, 2008)

Wow - that's one heck of a workout!!!   I miss the high volume we did.. But it'll just be a little while before we are at it again..

cutting sucks..


----------



## Triple Threat (Apr 22, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> my pants fit tighter now.  i'm weighing in around 139-141 these days.  backing the calories down to about 3000 to try for a



Depends on where they're fitting tighter.  In the thigh - good.  At the waist - eh, not so good.,   but not unexpected.   Do you have a target weight in mind or are you just going with the flow?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 22, 2008)

damn.  i got in a rush when i was entering in my w/o info.  my last two sets of rack pulls weren't 235.  they were 255.


----------



## the other half (Apr 22, 2008)

oh, 255!!!! thats a common mistake we all make, miss marking our numbers by "30 FUCKING POUNDS". 

dude you are kicking some serious ass, we are going to go on vacation in june and when we come back you will be squating triples.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 23, 2008)

*Wednesday - 04.23.08 - Quad Dominant, Ham Accessory, Biceps
*
Back Squats
145 x 5
195 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5

Front Squats
105 x 8
125 x 8
125 x 8

Split Squats
70 x 10 (10 left - then 10 right)
70 x 10
70 x 10

Preacher Curls
40 x 8
50 x 8
40 x 8 - w/2-3 sec negs

Zottman Curls
27.5 x 5
25 x 8
25 x 8

*Remarks
*Back squats - will stay here until i get 5x5 at 205
Front Squats - feeling stronger on these - finally figured out how to hold the bar 
Split Squats - after the back and front squats these just about killed me.  MUCH harder than DB lunges.
Overall - not _too_ bad today.  i felt tired the whole time.  might need to give my breakfast more time to start getting into my system.


----------



## Triple Threat (Apr 23, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> my last two sets of rack pulls weren't 235.  they were 255.






the other half said:


> oh, 255!!!! thats a common mistake we all make, miss marking our numbers by "30 FUCKING POUNDS".




And sometimes we even miss by 20 pounds.


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 23, 2008)

Aren't split squats amazing?? I absolutely love them, and they destroy you beyond belief! 

I might need to put them back in my program, i miss them and seeing them in your journal is making me jealous


----------



## Built (Apr 23, 2008)

Eat a good meal at bedtime if you train in the AM.


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 23, 2008)

nice squats!! and great DB rows on the last workout!!


----------



## goob (Apr 23, 2008)

Great front squats Nads.  You are making some astounding progress.



Oh, almost forgot....


----------



## katt (Apr 23, 2008)

ok,, back squats, front squats AND split squats... holy hell!

Are you just planning on pulling yourself where ever you need to go tomorrow, because you legs are going to be fried.


----------



## Built (Apr 23, 2008)

Meh. If I can do it, so can he.


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 23, 2008)

goob said:


> Oh, almost forgot....





great workout nad your legs are going to be hating you tomorrow! split squats are a killer movement, huh?


----------



## the other half (Apr 23, 2008)

i've fallen and i cant get up!!!!!!!


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 23, 2008)

he will be walking on his hands all day.....it's easier than dragging himself, and he will get the extra shoulder work in


----------



## Built (Apr 23, 2008)

b_reed23 said:


> he will be walking on his hands all day.....it's easier than dragging himself, and he will get the extra shoulder work in



Oooooh, I like how you think!


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 24, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> Aren't split squats amazing?? I absolutely love them, and they destroy you beyond belief!
> 
> I might need to put them back in my program, i miss them and seeing them in your journal is making me jealous



yea - i tried 'em with 105 starting out.... almost fell down.  which would have been supremely embarrassing.  had to back it down to 70 and that was still a challenge.



b_reed23 said:


> nice squats!! and great DB rows on the last workout!!





goob said:


> Great front squats Nads.  You are making some astounding progress.
> Oh, almost forgot....



thanks, guys!  i tell ya, after that work out i felt nauseated.  i had to force myself to eat a post w/o meal - i just had NO interest in food after that.  leg days are always like that...  



katt said:


> ok,, back squats, front squats AND split squats... holy hell!
> 
> Are you just planning on pulling yourself where ever you need to go tomorrow, because you legs are going to be fried.





Built said:


> Meh. If I can do it, so can he.





Scarface30 said:


> great workout nad your legs are going to be hating you tomorrow! split squats are a killer movement, huh?





the other half said:


> i've fallen and i cant get up!!!!!!!





b_reed23 said:


> he will be walking on his hands all day.....it's easier than dragging himself, and he will get the extra shoulder work in



thanks guys.  uuuugh... i'm dreading tomorrow.. usually leg doms get me the 2nd day after my leg w/o but i'm already feeling it today..  :nails:  



Built said:


> Oooooh, I like how you think!



.....  
billie, please stop giving her ideas..


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 24, 2008)

alright.  today is a rest day.  but here's a bit of a progress report.

lately my pants have been fitting a little tighter than i want them to, so i've been trying carb cycling for the past week.  so far it's a lot easier than i thought it'd be.  i eat carbs everyday, but on rest days, like today, i limit them to green veggies and sweet potatoes except for oatmeal at breakfast.
so far i'm liking it!

today i put a shirt on that i haven't worn in over a week.  the sleeves felt noticeably tighter around my bis/tris 

today i was changing out the water cooler jug at work, and that jug today felt lighter to me than it's ever felt before.  all those deads and rack pulls are payin' off.

also tonight i'm taking update pictures - it's been 8 weeks since i started my bulk.  i'm looking forward to comparing the before and now pics.


----------



## katt (Apr 24, 2008)

Pictures are good!   Yeah, we have one of those water jug coolers at my office also... they aren't light, that's for sure .


----------



## countryboy (Apr 24, 2008)

WOW!

Great looking workouts!  

Way to go..


----------



## goob (Apr 24, 2008)

Right. From now on, any attempts to take the good name of goob in jest, will be met by a swift posting of this picture:


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 24, 2008)

i look like a turkey mutant from porno horror land!


----------



## goob (Apr 24, 2008)

Love it.


----------



## the other half (Apr 24, 2008)

=nadirmg at the gym on leg day

nadirmg after the leg workout.

=nadirmg the day after legs


----------



## katt (Apr 24, 2008)

Hey Nadirmg are you gonna do the "total destruction" challenge???  Huh Huh..

I think you should do it..


----------



## Gazhole (Apr 25, 2008)

I second that, you must join us in our quest for the craziest workout!

Thats awesome about your shirt being tighter, looks like this program is paying off. Keep it up, once the gains start coming you gotta milk it for all its worth!


----------



## goob (Apr 25, 2008)

Hmmmm...







*+*




*=*


----------



## the other half (Apr 25, 2008)




----------



## countryboy (Apr 25, 2008)

the other half said:


>



yes, I looked in here for "the picture" after reading in Goob's journal...

part of my life I will never get back...


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 25, 2008)

goob getting a little payback, huh...


----------



## King Silverback (Apr 25, 2008)

Brother N, hope all is well my Friend, sorry been away, been dealing with some personal issues, but the Archman is back!!!


----------



## SamEaston (Apr 27, 2008)

goob said:


>



Bloody hell ... what is going on in here ...


----------



## goob (Apr 27, 2008)

Scarface30 said:


> goob getting a little payback, huh...


 
I tend to subscribe to "an eye for a eye(^47,000,000)" theory.


----------



## countryboy (Apr 29, 2008)

Yo Nadir....

The weekend is over!!  Get off the babysitter and get back to the gym.. 

Have you finished with the testing yet?  

Later,


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 29, 2008)

countryboy said:


> Yo Nadir....
> 
> The weekend is over!!  Get off the babysitter and get back to the gym..
> 
> ...



hah, i wish i was through with the test.  it's next saturday.  and i have been working out, fyi, just been too busy to post.  i've got an phone interview this week, the gmat next weekend, and another phone interview the week after 


ahem.  now that goob has had his revenge on me and posted the picture AGAIN (cookie monster and gonzo) though i did nothing to cause second reprisal, i trust he feels his retribution is done.  are we cool, goob?

i hope i'm not making a mistake by posting these update pictures.  anyway... this is nine weeks into my bulk.  i'm seeing more muscle definition in the pictures but i feel bigger than i think i look in the pictures, if that makes any sense.  from the first picture you can probably tell i'm a lefty since my right pec isn't as developed as my left one.




















never done a bulk before so, not really sure if i'm making good progress or not.  i like the difference i'm seeing and i'm feeling a lot stronger.

here's the 'before' back picture:






and the 'now' picture with a little bit of lighting adjustments:






i can really see tell a difference in the before and now picture with the back picture, but not so much with the others for some reason...  
i'll post my w/o's later when i get some more time.


----------



## Built (Apr 29, 2008)

Holy CRAP! You grew a back! WOW!

Seriously, nice work! Tricep shot is smokin', too! Pecs look great, biceps - size AND veins. DAMN!


----------



## countryboy (Apr 29, 2008)

*good GOD Nads!*

Looking awesome my friend...



damn your life is busy..  Good luck with all...


----------



## JailHouse (Apr 29, 2008)

You must be doing some thing right cuz you look great.


----------



## b_reed23 (Apr 29, 2008)

DAMN....gotta love those lats poppin!


----------



## Scarface30 (Apr 30, 2008)

great progress man! keep it up!


----------



## Gazhole (Apr 30, 2008)

Looking great man! Seriously, nice fucking work


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 30, 2008)

Built said:


> Holy CRAP! You grew a back! WOW!
> 
> Seriously, nice work! Tricep shot is smokin', too! Pecs look great, biceps - size AND veins. DAMN!





countryboy said:


> Looking awesome my friend...
> 
> 
> 
> damn your life is busy..  Good luck with all...





JailHouse said:


> You must be doing some thing right cuz you look great.





b_reed23 said:


> DAMN....gotta love those lats poppin!





Scarface30 said:


> great progress man! keep it up!






Gazhole said:


> Looking great man! Seriously, nice fucking work



thanks everyone!  it's nice to be able to post pictures without people thinking 'pssh, showoff'.  i can't get away with posting 'em on facebook  

that's what i love about this site.  everyone (almost everyone) is here for the same thing: self improvement.  and it sure is nice to see results after 2 months of hard work!  and getting kudos from you all makes it even better!


----------



## Gazhole (Apr 30, 2008)

Keep training hard and the results will keep coming.

Hell, i started off at 112lbs, lol.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 30, 2008)

wow!    112 pounds??  how much are you up to now and how long has it taken?  have you been constantly bulking this whole time or have you been throwing in some cuts to keep your body guessing?


----------



## Gazhole (Apr 30, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> wow!    112 pounds??  how much are you up to now and how long has it taken?  have you been constantly bulking this whole time or have you been throwing in some cuts to keep your body guessing?



Well right now im about 170-175 but i got myself upto 190-195 before i injured myself and had to lay off, lol. So close to my goal of 200 .

My goals have varied from program to program, sometimes strength, sometimes conditioning, sometimes hypertrophy. I've just focused on making tough programs and eating right (and a lot - 4000+ calories over 8 meals a day at one stage).

Started training around about age 16 so around 5 years now i guess, lol. I really cant remember too well. I made most of my progress in the last 2 or 3 years thanks to IM though 

Wanna see a before picture? Its horrible.


----------



## goob (Apr 30, 2008)

Yeah, we are even.  The gonzo pic was more of an afterthought than a second attack.  It was a bit of an overkill.  Like launching a nuclear attack after having my foot trod on.....

BTW,looking awesome dude, truely excellent work, you look more muscular than me, no joke.  Also, perfect shape for the chicks on the beach.....

Excellent work.


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 30, 2008)

gaz-  yea i'd love to see a before picture!

wow, so you've gotten up to the 190's, huh?  i guess it IS possible for me to put on some muscle then!  if you were as light as 112, then you can't be 6ft, right?


----------



## nadirmg (Apr 30, 2008)

goob said:


> Yeah, we are even.  The gonzo pic was more of an afterthought than a second attack.  It was a bit of an overkill.  Like launching a nuclear attack after having my foot trod on.....
> 
> BTW,looking awesome dude, truely excellent work, you look more muscular than me, no joke.  Also, perfect shape for the chicks on the beach.....
> 
> Excellent work.



thanks, goob!  but.. uh, no.  i seriously doubt that i look more muscular than you do.


----------



## Gazhole (May 1, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> gaz-  yea i'd love to see a before picture!
> 
> wow, so you've gotten up to the 190's, huh?  i guess it IS possible for me to put on some muscle then!  if you were as light as 112, then you can't be 6ft, right?



Its totally possible. Its more possible than not possible by a large margin. And no, im 5'10", lol.

Though when i started i was probably shorter than that...maybe 5'9" ?

Oh, and enjoy:

http://pics.livejournal.com/gajita/pic/0001cfds

Wasnt even at my lightest in that before pic, lol.


----------



## King Silverback (May 1, 2008)

WOW, BRother N, Excellent progress my Friend!!! Lookin SOLID!!!


----------



## katt (May 1, 2008)

ok so I just got a look at your new pics......

Daaammmnnnn.... nice work!!!!!   Great looking back you've got there...

hmmmm    reminds me of a song  




YouTube Video


----------



## nadirmg (May 2, 2008)

katt said:


> ok so I just got a look at your new pics......
> 
> Daaammmnnnn.... nice work!!!!!   Great looking back you've got there...
> 
> ...



thanks katt!  you've got great lats and delts too!
haha, the split i'm using was made by Built and it turns out it's name is 'baby got back'.  coinkydink.



Archangel said:


> WOW, BRother N, Excellent progress my Friend!!! Lookin SOLID!!!



thanks, arch!


----------



## nadirmg (May 2, 2008)

i'm thinking about getting equipment to start working out at home once i move back to texas.

*bench press
rack pulls
squats*
are the main things i need to be able to do with the rack.

is there a single rack that i can do all of those on? space in my apartment and of course money are factors i'm dealing with so i'm trying not to get a squat rack AND bench press.  

also it'd be great if the rack had a bar at the top so i could do chin/pull ups.


----------



## Triple Threat (May 2, 2008)

I have one that looks somewhat like this (chinup bar is slightly different).

Rock-Solid Fitness / Home Gym Center L.L.C. > RockSolid RS-PPC MultiSports Power Cage


I paid $225, but that was late 1980's.


----------



## Gazhole (May 2, 2008)

^ Yeah, that looks good. I was gonna suggest some sort of power cage, too. Great piece of kit.


----------



## King Silverback (May 2, 2008)

I agree, a power cage would be plenty!!! Best Wishes Brother N!!!


----------



## countryboy (May 2, 2008)

Any specific reason you don't want to go to a gym?

I know if I bring stuff in the house it will just collect clothes..  

..  I need the "get out of the house" motiviation..

Keep up the good work!


----------



## nadirmg (May 3, 2008)

Ok, power cage.. i was kinda thinking along those lines.  just wanted to make sure it'd do all the big lift stuff for me.  thanks guys!



countryboy said:


> Any specific reason you don't want to go to a gym?
> 
> I know if I bring stuff in the house it will just collect clothes..
> 
> ...



still not sure if i'm going this direction or not.  it depends on how far away the gym is from my new apartment if/when i move back to texas.  i'm kinda the same way about getting out of the house.

it also depends what the gyms in texas will have as far as equipment goes.


----------



## Triple Threat (May 3, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> Ok, power cage.. i was kinda thinking along those lines.  just wanted to make sure it'd do all the big lift stuff for me.



No problem with that.  I'm constantly using the cage.  Squats, GMs, BB Lunges (OK, these are done outside the cage, but I do use the pins to get started), all sort of bench presses, floor presses, pull-ups, chin-ups.  Rack DLs too.  

If you have your own cage, you can even use it to do BB curls.


----------



## nadirmg (May 3, 2008)

*catching up on workouts*

saturday - 04.26.08 - vertical pull push, abs, and calves
hang cleans
80 x 5 
90 x 5
90 x 5
80 x 5
80 x 5

1-armed oly bar corner press (bar is 55lbs)
25 x 8
25 x 8
25 x 8

arnie presses
25 x 10
22.5 x 10
22.5 x 10

weighted chins
+10 x 5
+10 x 5
+10 x 5
+10 x 5
+10 x 5

unweighted chins
bw x 5
bw x 5
bw x 5

single-armed lat pull downs
45 x 8
45 x 8
45 x 8

weighted crunches w/bosu ball
55 x 8
55 x 8
55 x 8

seated calf raises (3 sec pause at bottom)
135 x 12
90 x 12
90 x 12

sunday - 04.27.08 hamstring dominant quad accessory tris
RDLs
185 x 5
245 x 5
245 x 5
265 x 5 - PR
245 x 5

GMs
105 x 5
115 x 5
125 x 5 - PR

leg curls
120 x 12
130 x 12
130 x 12

front squats
125 x 10
135 x 10 - PR
135 x 10 

weighted dips
22.5 x 8
25 x 8 - PR
25 x 8

close grip bench
125 x 8
125 x 8
125 x 8

tuesday - 04.29.08 - horizontal pull push abs and calves
rack pulls
235 x 5
255 x 5 - PR
255 x 5
255 x 5
255 x 5

bent over rows
115 x 8
115 x 8
115 x 8

one-armed rows
55 x 12
55 x 12
55 x 12

flat bench
115 x 5
145 x 5
155 x 5 - weight PR up 10 lbs
155 x 5
155 x 5

low incline db press
40 x 8
40 x 8
40 x 8

cable crossovers
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

weighted crunches
60 x 8 - PR up 5 lbs
60 x 8
60 x 8

standing calf raises
bw x 8 each leg
bw x 8
bw x 8

wednesday - 04.30.08 - quad dominant ham accessory biceps
ATG back squats
165 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5

front squats
125 x 8
135 x 8
135 x 8

split squats
80 x 10 (10 reps left then 10 reps right)
80 x 10
80 x 10

bicep curls
27.5 x 8
27.5 x 8
30 x 8

preacher curls
bar + 40 x 8
bar + 40 x 8
bar + 40 x 8

friday - 05.02.08 - vertical pull push, abs and calves
hang cleans
90 x 5
90 x 5
90 x 5
80 x 5
80 x 5

oly bar press - single-armed
25 x 8
25 x 8
25 x 8

arnie press
22.5 x 10
22.5 x 10
25 x 10

weighted chins
+10 x 5
+12.5 x 5 - weight PR up 2.5 lbs
+12.5 x 5
+12.5 x 5
+12.5 x 5
+12.5 x 5

unweighted chins - SO freakin' easy so i'm doing 2-sec negs
bw x 5 
bw x 5
bw x 5

one-armed lat pull downs
45 x 8
45 x 8
45 x 8

weighted crunches
65 x 8 - PR up 5 lbs
65 x 8
65 x 8

seated calves - 3-sec pause between reps
135 x 12
135 x 12
135 x 12 - PR - first time to do all 3 sets at 135

couple of PRs in here over the past week.  i'm especially happy about the flat bench, RDL, and weighted chin ones.


----------



## SamEaston (May 3, 2008)

My god man ... for a second i thought that was todays workout 

Hey, if you get a home gym then how are you going to chat up the laydees?? Hmmm, bet you didnt' think about that eh??


----------



## Built (May 3, 2008)

Hang clean and bench coming up - good work!


----------



## goob (May 3, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> My god man ... for a second i thought that was todays workout
> 
> Hey, if you get a home gym then how are you going to chat up the laydees?? Hmmm, bet you didnt' think about that eh??


 
I know.  For a moment I thought he'd stolen one of my older workouts...

Excellent work on the hang cleans.  You really are not far at all from what I'm doing.  And you'll pass me by shortly too....


----------



## DOMS (May 3, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> My god man ... for a second i thought that was todays workout



 I did too!

That a solid workload, nadirmg!


----------



## JailHouse (May 3, 2008)

Looks gr8 nads, so gr8 that im stealing it


----------



## nadirmg (May 3, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> My god man ... for a second i thought that was todays workout
> 
> Hey, if you get a home gym then how are you going to chat up the laydees?? Hmmm, bet you didnt' think about that eh??



yeees, i've already thought of that.  there aren't really any ladies to speak of at my gym that i'd talk to anyway.  



Built said:


> Hang clean and bench coming up - good work!



thanks, built!  



goob said:


> I know.  For a moment I thought he'd stolen one of my older workouts...
> 
> Excellent work on the hang cleans.  You really are not far at all from what I'm doing.  And you'll pass me by shortly too....



thanks, goob!  if any of my lifts DO catch up to you my bench will be the last one - weak chest 



DOMS said:


> I did too!
> 
> That a solid workload, nadirmg!



thanks DOMSter



JailHouse said:


> Looks gr8 nads, so gr8 that im stealing it



haha, it's a great split, isn't it?  thanks, JH.


----------



## nadirmg (May 3, 2008)

ok, just a couple of updates.  

i'm keeping some of my main goals listed in my sig.  over the past week i met my first flat bench goal of 150 (actually did 155 for 3 sets of 5 reps too).  so my second goal is now to get 170.  just 15 lbs more to go.

i haven't been really keeping you in the loop with my weight, but today i weighed in at 143.  up 8 pounds from when i started bulking.  more than halfway towards my goal of 150.

in may believe i'll get my first squat goal of 235 - now i can squat 4 sets of 205 x 5 so it's time to up the weight again.  

i've been doing weighted chins for 3 weeks now (using +12.5).  10 reps of bw chins will be no problem.  so i've changed my goal to 5 reps +20 lbs.  that should keep me busy for a while 

also yesterday i bought 8.65 pounds of top sirloin tips for $16.  score!


----------



## Built (May 3, 2008)

Steak + squats = size.


----------



## vader (May 3, 2008)

sounds like your doing great,meeting and beating set goals are awesome.
Get a big sweet potato with that steak


----------



## countryboy (May 3, 2008)

Looking Good!  A couple of goals achieved already..  Excellent!






nadirmg said:


> .....
> 
> also yesterday i bought 8.65 pounds of top sirloin tips for $16.  score!



OK, lunch is covered..  what's for dinner??


----------



## Scarface30 (May 4, 2008)

back logged a little bit, huh? oh well - all the workouts are looking fantastic dude this is really weird, but I weighed myself just the other day and was 143...lol

how's the studying coming?


----------



## King Silverback (May 4, 2008)

Excellent w/o's BRother N!!! Congrats on your PR's and Goals met too my Friend!!!


----------



## nadirmg (May 4, 2008)

vader said:


> sounds like your doing great,meeting and beating set goals are awesome.
> Get a big sweet potato with that steak



thanks vader!  yes indeed, meeting goals rocks.



countryboy said:


> Looking Good!  A couple of goals achieved already..  Excellent!



thanks, country!  on to the next set of goals.  we're never finished!



Scarface30 said:


> back logged a little bit, huh? oh well - all the workouts are looking fantastic dude this is really weird, but I weighed myself just the other day and was 143...lol
> 
> how's the studying coming?



thanks, scar.  yea i got lazy with updating my journal - mainly because i was studying.  speaking of which i'm so sick of the gmat i'm just ready to take it and get it over with already... 



Archangel said:


> Excellent w/o's BRother N!!! Congrats on your PR's and Goals met too my Friend!!!



thanks, AA!


----------



## nadirmg (May 4, 2008)

*sunday - 05.04.08 - ham dominant quad accessory triceps
*
RDLs
195 x 5
245 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5
275 x 1 - PR - just wanted to see if i could do 1 rep.  that was all i could do.
265 x 3

GMs
105 x 8
125 x 8
125 x 8 

leg curls*
130 x 12
130 x 12
130 x 12

front squats*
135 x 10
135 x 10
135 x 10

weighted dips**
25 x 8
27.5 x 8 - PR
27.5 x 8

CG flat bench**
145 x 8
145 x 7
145 x 6

*antagonist pair
**antagonist pair

*remarks*
*RDLs* - i remember the first time i did RDLs back in february one wheel on each side was a challenge for me.  today my warmup set, 50 pounds heavier than that original 145, was so easy i almost laughed out loud.  even got a 1-rep at 275 today!
*overall* - back feels like it's getting a lot stronger recently.  pretty happy with that but i need to start working on my grip strength or i'll hit a ceiling before long.


----------



## JailHouse (May 4, 2008)

your deads are coming along at record speeds.  Nice PRs!!


----------



## Built (May 4, 2008)

You're on FIRE here!

Okay, grip: Every time you're under something you can hang from, do it. Jump up and hang off the power cage between sets of squats, jump up and hang for as long as you can when you walk under the cable crossover station - any where you can, just do it. 

I also found my grip came up a lot when I started doing hang cleans.


----------



## b_reed23 (May 4, 2008)

wow...your working your ass off in here!!!!


----------



## SamEaston (May 5, 2008)

Looking great! Astounding progress all round actually. I can't wait to see you in a years time, if you keep going like this you'll be MASSIVE!!


----------



## countryboy (May 5, 2008)

Nice job on the PR's..!!


----------



## Triple Threat (May 5, 2008)

Great going on the RDLs.  How's that back feeling today?


----------



## nadirmg (May 6, 2008)

Triple Threat said:


> Great going on the RDLs.  How's that back feeling today?



haha, the back recovered just in time to do rack pulls today   ugh, i'm tired.



countryboy said:


> Nice job on the PR's..!!



thanks, country!  we will continue kicking our asses into shape and be awesome.  



SamEaston said:


> Looking great! Astounding progress all round actually. I can't wait to see you in a years time, if you keep going like this you'll be MASSIVE!!



oooooh, those are some pretty high expectations  
i'll try not to be a disappointment  



b_reed23 said:


> wow...your working your ass off in here!!!!



yes ma'am.  it's crazy.  i'll kill myself in the gym and be dragging myself through the day at work *need...must.. have.. carbs...*



Built said:


> You're on FIRE here!



thanks built!  i can't tell you enough how much i love baby got back.  it makes the other workouts i used to do look ridiculously useless.



JailHouse said:


> your deads are coming along at record speeds.  Nice PRs!!



i tell ya man, those deads are rough.  it's the initial lift that kills me, but once i'm into my second rep it's not too bad.


----------



## nadirmg (May 6, 2008)

*tuesday - 05.06.08 - horizontal pull push abs calves
*
rack pulls
235 x 5
275 x 5
275 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5

BO rows
125 x 8 - PR up 10 lbs
125 x 8
125 x 8

one-armed rows
60 x 12 - PR up 5 lbs
60 x 10
60 x 10

low incline BB press
125 x 5
135 x 5
145 x 5 - PR up 10 lbs
135 x 5
135 x 5

low incline DB press
40 x 8
45 x 8
45 x 8

DB flys
30 x 10
30 x 8
30 x 8

weighted crunches
70 x 8
70 x 8
70 x 8

standing SL calf raises
bw x 8
bw x 8
bw x 8

*remarks*
rack pulls - sweet.  i got two sets at 275.  it wasn't hard to lift - it was my grip that was failing first.
BO rows - time to up the weight!
one-armed rows - these things wore me out.  i've only got 65, 70 and then 75 dbs left.  what to do after i can pull those....
overall - today i felt like i worked really hard.  lately i've been really pushing myself to lift heavier if my body can take it.  i think a lot of what is keeping me from making more gains is the mental 'no, i probably can't do it yet'.  safety first, but i don't want to spend 2 weeks lifting at the same weight if i can go heavier.


----------



## the other half (May 6, 2008)

dude, you the man, keep this up and with all the size your going to put on you might even get a couple of inches in height out of it as well(doing alot of hangs for your grip)
props to you  man!!!!!!!!!!


----------



## StanUk (May 6, 2008)

still whooping ass I see Nad, some very nice looking rack pulls there!


----------



## countryboy (May 6, 2008)

The way you are going I don't think you will need to "cut" just keep going!  and keep it clean...


----------



## King Silverback (May 6, 2008)

Incredible w/o's BRother N!!! Inspiring stuff my Friend!!!


----------



## goob (May 6, 2008)

Superb Rack pulls Nads.  Thats something i've not tried.  Can you put more weight on it than off the floor deads?


----------



## Built (May 6, 2008)

goob said:


> Superb Rack pulls Nads.  Thats something i've not tried.  Can you put more weight on it than off the floor deads?




Yep - and that's the point. You practice the lockout - and get used to moving more weight. It also hits the upper part of the posterior chain a bit more than off the floor deads. Works the hell out of traps, forearms...


----------



## JailHouse (May 6, 2008)

goob said:


> Superb Rack pulls Nads.  Thats something i've not tried.  Can you put more weight on it than off the floor deads?



Ya there the best, If you look at your self when your locked you can see every upper body muscle flexed hard.

That looks like a intense wo nads.


----------



## nadirmg (May 6, 2008)

the other half said:


> dude, you the man, keep this up and with all the size your going to put on you might even get a couple of inches in height out of it as well(doing alot of hangs for your grip)
> props to you  man!!!!!!!!!!



yep time to start doing monkey hangs tomorrow!  lol i could certainly use a couple of extra inches... added to my HEIGHT.  goob, i know what you were thinking.



StanUk said:


> still whooping ass I see Nad, some very nice looking rack pulls there!



thanks, stan!  good to have you round again.



countryboy said:


> The way you are going I don't think you will need to "cut" just keep going!  and keep it clean...



keepin' it clean and only cheating once a week.  probably not too bad on a bulk, right?



Archangel said:


> Incredible w/o's BRother N!!! Inspiring stuff my Friend!!!



thanks, AA.  naw, really i'm just riding on everyone else coattails.



goob said:


> Superb Rack pulls Nads.  Thats something i've not tried.  Can you put more weight on it than off the floor deads?



you're supposed to be able to, but i won't until my grip strength starts coming up.  i'm seriously going to start working on it tomo.  i swear.




JailHouse said:


> Ya there the best, If you look at your self when your locked you can see every upper body muscle flexed hard.
> 
> That looks like a intense wo nads.



thanks, J-Ho.  you're right, when you're locked you look freakin' awesome!!


----------



## countryboy (May 6, 2008)

I hear ya about the grip strength...  I started "hanging around" today...  found a great use for the smith machine..


----------



## the other half (May 7, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Ya there the best, If you look at your self when your locked you can see every upper body muscle flexed hard.


 thats not cool, i cant see all my muscles, must be all the fat, dammit!!!!



countryboy said:


> I hear ya about the grip strength...  I started "hanging around" today...  found a great use for the smith machine..


or the squat rack.


----------



## goob (May 7, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> yep time to start doing monkey hangs tomorrow! lol i could certainly use a couple of extra inches... added to my HEIGHT. goob, i know what you were thinking.
> 
> 
> 
> !!


 
??? ????

Is there something you are ashamed of, that you would like to be bigger?


----------



## nadirmg (May 7, 2008)

goob said:


> ??? ????
> 
> Is there something you are ashamed of, that you would like to be bigger?



yes.  














my pecs.


----------



## nadirmg (May 7, 2008)

*wednesday - 05.07.08 - quad dominant hamstring accessory biceps
*
back squats
145 x 5
195 x 5
215 x 5 - PR up 10
215 x 5
215 x 5

front squats 
145 x 8 - PR up 10
145 x 8
145 x 8

split squats
90 x 10 - PR up 10
90 x 10
90 x 10

standing bicep curls
30 x 8
30 x 8
30 x 8

one-armed preacher curls
22.5 x 8
22.5 x 8
22.5 x 8

*remarks*
overall - absolutely killed myself today.  happy with the PRs but, man, this was one of the hardest w/o's i've made myself do so far.
random - getting warmer these days so i've been wearing a tank top.  now i can see my shoulders really well.  i've got veins in my shoulders when i do bicep curls   also this dude that works out in the mornings same time as i told me that i'm getting bigger.  and that always helps the ego


----------



## DOMS (May 7, 2008)

Great job one the PRs!  And on getting into better shape!  What's your body weight?


----------



## nadirmg (May 7, 2008)

thanks, DOMS  
on the 2nd i weighed in at 143lbs.


----------



## DOMS (May 7, 2008)

That's a 1.5 times bodyweight squat.  That's a very respectable squat.


----------



## JailHouse (May 7, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> *wednesday - 05.07.08 - quad dominant hamstring accessory biceps
> *
> back squats
> 145 x 5
> ...



I can feel your pain today nads, we had similar work outs.  I dunno about you but I was absolutely fucking ashamed of how shitty I felt lol.  Vary nice job with every thing you did up there.  How did you like those preachers, I thought they were awesome.


----------



## nadirmg (May 7, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> I can feel your pain today nads, we had similar work outs.  I dunno about you but I was absolutely fucking ashamed of how shitty I felt lol.  Vary nice job with every thing you did up there.  How did you like those preachers, I thought they were awesome.



totally loved 'em.  puts less stress on my wrists!  and it really forces me to use my BICEP to do the lift - which is the whole point, right?  lol
yes, today's w/o was treacherously rough.  i was one whipped gym rat when it was through    meaning i felt like poo.



DOMS said:


> That's a 1.5 times bodyweight squat.  That's a very respectable squat.



really?  cool!  i think it'd be cool if i could squat twice my body weight   THAT is a lofty goal still.


----------



## Built (May 7, 2008)

<feels the love>


----------



## countryboy (May 8, 2008)

Great job man...

Need to start calling you "Mr. PR!"


----------



## Triple Threat (May 8, 2008)

DOMS said:


> That's a 1.5 times bodyweight squat.  That's a very respectable squat.



Agreed.  I don't see too many people at the gym I go to who even dare to squat.    And if they do, they're in the smith machine.


----------



## goob (May 8, 2008)

> Originally Posted by *goob*
> 
> 
> _??? ????
> ...


 


nadirmg said:


> yes.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Well.  At least your honest....


----------



## nadirmg (May 8, 2008)

ã???ã®ããã??????ã???ã???ã??????ã??????ã??????


----------



## goob (May 8, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> ã???ã®ããã??????ã???ã???ã??????ã??????ã??????


 
There's no need to give us a visual representation of actual size.

Have you no shame nads?


----------



## countryboy (May 9, 2008)




----------



## nadirmg (May 9, 2008)

*friday - 05.09.08 - vertical push-pull abs calves
*
hang cleans
90 x 5
90 x 5
90 x 5
90 x failed on 4.5
80 x 5

unilateral corner press
30 x 8 - PR - up 5 lbs
30 x 8
30 x 8

arnie press
25 x 10
27.5 x 10 - PR - up 2.5 lbs
27.5 x 10

weighted chins
+20 x 5 - PR - up 7.5
+20 x 5 
+15 x 5
+15 x 5
+15 x 5

unweighted chins
bw x 5
bw x 5
bw x 5

unilateral lat pull-downs
45 x 8
60 x 8 - PR - up 15 lbs
60 x 8

weighted crunches 
75 x 8 - PR up 5 lbs
75 x 8
75 x 8

calf press - 3 sec pause btw reps at bottom
160 x 12 - PR up 25 lbs
160 x 8
135 x 10

*remarks*
hang cleans - next week i'm going for 5 sets of 90 x 5
arnie press - these felt good today.  i can do more weight next week.
weighted chins - today i decided to challenge myself.  ended up surprising myself by doing +20 lbs over my bw.  even my last set at +15 today was 2.5 lbs heavier than my max last week.  today i also met my first goal +20 x 5.  goal II: +20 x 5 x 5.
unilateral lat pull-downs - big jump here today too.  the pull-down station goes up in 15lb increments, so this was a major step up, plus it didn't give my rotator cuff any trouble either.
calf press - holy crap my calves were dying...
overall - good workout and going to continue to challenge myself like i did today.  at the end of my 3 shoulder exercises the front of my delts were absolutely torched.

*update*: this morning i weighed in at 145 - 10 lbs up from when i started bulking  
5 more lbs to go then i'm gonna cut for a month.  oh and tomorrow i'm taking the GMAT.  wish me luck!


----------



## goob (May 9, 2008)

Holy shit, have you been stealing volume from me?  Mother of all sweet and holy...

Excellent hang cleans dude.  Watch as you put the weight down, I almost fucked my back doing 100 and taking it back down from high position.  But your form is probab;y better....


----------



## nadirmg (May 9, 2008)

thanks goob 

i was actually wondering about how to let the weight down afterwards.. it seems to pull my shoulders and back forward unless i spend some extra energy to let it down in a controlled manner.

nah, i haven't stolen volume from ya.  or maybe i have since you're doing the texas method?


----------



## Built (May 9, 2008)

I let it kinda bounce off my quads a bit as I lower the weight.


----------



## nadirmg (May 9, 2008)

Built said:


> I let it kinda bounce off my quads a bit as I lower the weight.



ok, i'll give that a shot next week


----------



## Built (May 9, 2008)

Don't slam it, but you should be able to kinda "bump" it a bit before you put it down. You feeling your forearms come up from these? Trap? Delts?


----------



## nadirmg (May 9, 2008)

Built said:


> Don't slam it, but you should be able to kinda "bump" it a bit before you put it down. You feeling your forearms come up from these? Trap? Delts?



yea, it's my trapezius that feels like it's getting pulled up and over my shoulders.  not painful, but weird.


----------



## Built (May 9, 2008)

It's growing. You just watch.


----------



## JailHouse (May 9, 2008)

Good luck with the O lifts.  All the people Ive ever seen that are hard core about are pretty chiseled.  Vertical day is tomorrow for me, pray for me please..


----------



## nadirmg (May 9, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Good luck with the O lifts.  All the people Ive ever seen that are hard core about are pretty chiseled.  Vertical day is tomorrow for me, pray for me please..



God speed, JH.


----------



## SamEaston (May 10, 2008)

Hey babe! Hope you're doing well


----------



## nadirmg (May 10, 2008)

aaaaaaaaah ok, so i took the GMAT today.  FINALLY it's over.
turns out i got a much better score than i thought i did.  and it's 20% higher than the score i got the first time.

we'll see if it's enough to get me accepted AND loads of scholarship money.


----------



## Built (May 10, 2008)

GOOD! Such a great feeling to get these stupid standardized testing things OUT of the damned way. Such a waste of time - but it's gotta be done. 

Now go eat. Then lift something heavy.  STAT!


----------



## goob (May 11, 2008)

Built said:


> I let it kinda bounce off my quads a bit as I lower the weight.


 
Seems like a good idea.  I was taking it down in a jerky fast motion putting shitloads of strain on my back.  Not good.


----------



## b_reed23 (May 11, 2008)

AWSOME job on the GMATS!!!!!


----------



## King Silverback (May 12, 2008)

Great w/o's Brother N!!! Hope your test score helps you like you want it to my Friend, GOD Speed!!!


----------



## nadirmg (May 13, 2008)

*tuesday - 05.13.08 - vertical push-pull*

rack pulls
235 x 5
275 x 5
275 x 5
275 x 5 
275 x 4

bent-over rows
135 x 8 - PR - up 10 lbs
135 x 8
135 x 8

unilateral DB rows
60 x 10
60 x 10
60 x 10

incline DB press
45 x 5
50 x 5 - PR - up 5 lbs
50 x 5
50 x 5
50 x 5

incline bench press
125 x 8
125 x 8
125 x 6

DB flys
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10

weighted crunches on bosu ball
75 x 8
75 x 8
75 x 8

standing calf raises
bw x 8
bw x 8
bw x 8

*remarks*
rack pulls - felt much stronger on 275 today than i did last week.  grip still weak on last reps on 4th and 5th set.


----------



## katt (May 13, 2008)

Damn nice WO Nads.....   geez 275 on the rack pulls??  

Nads  .... oh great, now I think of you as a hair removal product..


----------



## nadirmg (May 14, 2008)

*wednesday - 05.14.08 - quad dominant ham accessory and bis
*
back squats - ATG
195 x 5
215 x 5
225 x 5 - PR - up 10 lbs
225 x 5
225 x 5

front squats - ATG
145 x 8
145 x 8
145 x 8

split squats
90 x 10
90 x 10
90 x 0 

standing BB curls
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

unilateral preacher curls
25 x 8
27.5 x 8 - PR - up 2.5 lbs
27.5 x 8

*remarks*
back squats - 10 more lbs to go and i'll have two wheels on both sides.  i'm going for it next week!
front squats - had trouble with the bar sliding off my shoulders (sweaty)
split squats - my legs were fucked up at this point - hence no third set
BB curls and uni preacher curls - concentrated on controlled movements lowering the weight even if i had to cheat it up on the last couple of reps.  veins were poppin' 
overall - fought the urge clinging tinge of nausea the whole time i was in the squat rack.  legs still rubbery 30 minutes later.  i think i'm gonna be hurting tomorrow.

on a side note - these highschool guys came in and started pushing some heavy weights around.  acting all tough and junk.  they got on the smith machine and by the time they were on their last set they had less than i was squatting on a FREE BAR.  they had some liddle biddy legs!!



katt said:


> Damn nice WO Nads.....   geez 275 on the rack pulls??
> 
> Nads  .... oh great, now I think of you as a hair removal product..



thanks, katt.  speaking of hair removal i've been thinking about shaving my legs....


----------



## Triple Threat (May 14, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> back squats - ATG
> 195 x 5
> 215 x 5
> 225 x 5 - PR - up 10 lbs
> ...



I see that you're still hoarding the PRs!  

What kind of bar are you using?   225 is two wheels on each side where I go.


----------



## nadirmg (May 14, 2008)

Triple Threat said:


> I see that you're still hoarding the PRs!
> 
> What kind of bar are you using?   225 is two wheels on each side where I go.



it's a 55 lb bar - heavier than usual, yea?
hah, i'm just enjoying the newbie gains.  i'm sure they'll dry up before long and i'll have to work hard like the rest of you guys (and girls, of course).


----------



## Pylon (May 14, 2008)

Enjoy the newbie gains...how I miss them so....


----------



## JailHouse (May 14, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> it's a 55 lb bar - heavier than usual, yea?
> hah, i'm just enjoying the newbie gains.  i'm sure they'll dry up before long and i'll have to work hard like the rest of you guys (and girls, of course).



oly bars are 45lbs.  You might wanna ask some one at your gym to be sure.

Nice PRs dude


----------



## King Silverback (May 14, 2008)

Great w/o's BRother N!!! Fantastic progress and PR's too!!! At my gym they have a 45# bar and a 55# bar, I like the 55# one because its thicker and easier to grip with!!!


----------



## nadirmg (May 14, 2008)

thanks dudes  

yea when i first joined planet wimpyness i asked them about the bar because it felt heavier than the ones at golds.  they told me it was a 55-pounder.


----------



## JailHouse (May 14, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> thanks dudes
> 
> yea when i first joined planet wimpyness i asked them about the bar because it felt heavier than the ones at golds.  they told me it was a 55-pounder.



I c.  I never knew of that.


----------



## the other half (May 16, 2008)

keep up the hard work, and im telling you, one day you will step on the scale and  its gonna read 165.


----------



## nadirmg (May 16, 2008)

*friday - 05.16.08 - vertical pull-push abs calves
*
weighted chins
+20 x 5
+20 x 5
+20 x 5
+20 x 5
+20 x 5

unweighted chins
bw x 5
bw x 5
bw x 5

unilateral lat pull-downs
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

hang cleans
90 x 5
90 x 5
90 x 5
90 x 5
90 x 5

corner press
30 x 8
30 x 8
30 x 8

arnie press
27. 5 x 10
27. 5 x 10
27. 5 x 10

weighed crunches w/bosu ball
75 x 8
75 x 8
75 x 8

calf press
160 x 12
160 x 12
135 x 12

*remarks
*today i didn't have any PRs.  but i did get all five sets of weighted chins with +20 today which means i'm moving onto my next goal for chins: +25 x 5 x 5.  i also got all five sets with 90lbs on my hang cleans.  felt really good today.


----------



## King Silverback (May 16, 2008)

Fantastic w/o my Friend, Great job on the weighted Chins, way outta my league!!! I'm on pullup welfare, LOL!!!


----------



## JailHouse (May 16, 2008)

Id say thats an amazing job on the pull ups, Id be dead after that.


----------



## Built (May 16, 2008)

Screw the PRs - you trained hard and well. 

Nice work on the chins and cleans.


----------



## b_reed23 (May 16, 2008)

...What she said....


----------



## goob (May 17, 2008)

Good work on the chins.

I realised why you've been etting so good now.  It was so obvious, but only if one was aware of the intracacies of Eastern philosophy and microclorean channelling.  

Because I've been slacking so much, the energy usually used by me was re-directed via the Tao Sechzuan energy highways to you.  So, by channelling this force, you have had access to a small amount of goob's special powers. The inner chi, has become reinforced by goob powers.  You will be 120% more irresistable to women because of this.


----------



## nadirmg (May 17, 2008)

Archangel said:


> Fantastic w/o my Friend, Great job on the weighted Chins, way outta my league!!! I'm on pullup welfare, LOL!!!



thanks, AA.  the chins really aren't that great.  i probably can't do 10 reps of them so..  



JailHouse said:


> Id say thats an amazing job on the pull ups, Id be dead after that.



thanks, JH.  it really is a tough exercise - but the results pay off big time.



Built said:


> Screw the PRs - you trained hard and well.
> 
> Nice work on the chins and cleans.



thanks, built!  yea i was really happy with them.



b_reed23 said:


> ...What she said....



thanks, billie!  



goob said:


> Good work on the chins.
> 
> I realised why you've been etting so good now.  It was so obvious, but only if one was aware of the intracacies of Eastern philosophy and microclorean channelling.
> 
> Because I've been slacking so much, the energy usually used by me was re-directed via the Tao Sechzuan energy highways to you.  So, by channelling this force, you have had access to a small amount of goob's special powers. The inner chi, has become reinforced by goob powers.  You will be 120% more irresistable to women because of this.



i don't think you've been slacking at all.  you've been channelling all of your energy into your workouts, especially the sprints - and the results speak for themselves.  therefore, this inexplicable display of sheer animal energy is none other than my own raw innate awesomeness    thanks for awakening me to who i really am!



goob said:


> You will be 120% more irresistable to women because of this.



that supposed to be some kind of fucking fortune cookie??


----------



## nadirmg (May 17, 2008)

*saturday - 05.17.08 - hamstring dominant quad accessory tris
*
RDLs
245 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5
275 x 5 
275 x 5

GMs
125 x 8
135 x 8 - PR - up 10 lbs
135 x 8

leg curls
130 x 12
140 x 12 - PR - up 10 lbs
140 x 12

front squats
145 x 10
155 x 10 - PR - up 10 lbs
155 x 10

med. CG bench
145 x 8
145 x 8
155 x 8 - PR - up 10 lbs

weighted dips
30 x 8 - PR - up 10 lbs
30 x 8
30 x 8

*remarks*
RDLs - finally could pull off a couple of reps at 275 - grip strength is going up!
front squats - nailed 155.  finally.
cg bench - really had to focus on this one - for some reason if i'm not 100% mentally into bench stuff i always do badly.  will try to start out at 155 next time.

40 minutes - tanning by the pool PR


----------



## Built (May 17, 2008)

Outstanding.

So great to see your grip come up with your deads, and those front squats are ace! Keep it up.


----------



## the other half (May 18, 2008)

now you realize that once you by pass all my numbers im gonna quit visiting your journal.

keep up the hard work.


----------



## King Silverback (May 18, 2008)

Good lookin w/o BRother N!!! Awesome PR's all across in here!!!


----------



## b_reed23 (May 18, 2008)

I think you may have stolen all the PR for this week....DAMN YOU!!!


----------



## katt (May 19, 2008)

The 40 minute PR by the pool is my favorite.. lol


----------



## SamEaston (Jun 15, 2008)

What happen to Nad?? He overdose on PR's or something??


----------



## goob (Jun 15, 2008)

SamEaston said:


> What happen to Nad?? He overdose on PR's or something??


 
His numbers were getting to close to mine.  So I killed and ate him, cooked with a nice piri piri sauce.


----------



## nadirmg (Jun 16, 2008)

ouch, you guys only noticed i was gone yesterday?  

long story short: next week is i'm moving back to texas so things have been really hectic.  i haven't been logging my workouts online or meals for that matter, but i've been doing the best i can.  albeit, 3 workouts a week, if i'm lucky.  
once i get back to texas i'll be back here though.

so, a couple of PR updates:
back squats
4x5x235
weighted pull-ups
5x5x25
hang cleans
5x5x90

here are some update pictures. i was too lazy to mess with the lighting this time around.  so you won't see as much contrast.  i think my shoulders have made most of the progress this time around.





























i'm about ready to start cutting for a month or so here.  the only thing is i still really want to increase my pec size.  i'm unhappy with the lack of progress that's happened there in comparison to my back, arms and shoulders, and legs.

hope it's well with you all.


----------



## JailHouse (Jun 16, 2008)

Whats up nads!!!!  Still loookin strong bro, you can see a difference in your arms.  How much do you weigh now a dayz?


----------



## b_reed23 (Jun 16, 2008)

nice improvements for sure 

you cut off your hair!!


----------



## SamEaston (Jun 16, 2008)

I noticed you were gone ages ago, i just didn't want to say anything because i was gone for a couple weeks myself and i wasn't sure if you had said that you were going and i just missed it. Sorry 

Yeah, you're looking really good. Shoulders have increased a bit and i noticed the lats coming up a fair bit too. Nice job sir!


----------



## nadirmg (Jun 19, 2008)

JailHouse said:


> Whats up nads!!!!  Still loookin strong bro, you can see a difference in your arms.  How much do you weigh now a dayz?



hey JH - thanks, dude.  i'm noticing a difference in my gut too.  continuing to eat a lot when not working out 3-4 a week... not a good idea.  time to get back with it.



b_reed23 said:


> nice improvements for sure
> 
> you cut off your hair!!



yeees, sadly keeping the hair short comes with interviewing.  i have one on monday with an investment company.



SamEaston said:


> I
> Yeah, you're looking really good. Shoulders have increased a bit and i noticed the lats coming up a fair bit too. Nice job sir!



thanks sam   yea, you were gone for a while there too.  are you back regularly?  or semi-regularly, like me?


----------



## nadirmg (Jun 19, 2008)

ah what the hell...

here's yesterday's and today's workout.

wednesday - 06.18.08 - horizontal pull/push abs and calves
rack pulls
285 x 5
285 x 5
285 x 5
285 x 4
275 x 5

bent over rows
145 x 8
145 x 8
145 x 8

one-armed db rows
60 x 10
60 x 10
60 x 10

incline db press
55 x 5
55 x 5
55 x 5
55 x 5
55 x 5

flat bench press
145 x 6
145 x 6
145 x 6

db flys
25 x 10
25 x 10
30 x 10

thursday - 06.19.09 - legs - quad dominant and biceps
front squats
195 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5

front squats
145 x 8
155 x 8
155 x 8

goblet squats
45 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

standing barbell curls
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

seated db curls
25 x 6
25 x 6
25 x 6


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## SamEaston (Jun 20, 2008)

Good job on the Front Squats - killer diller!

Yeah, im back now. Actually going on holiday tomorrow for a week but im officially back for good after that. I was still working out, i just couldnt' be bothered to type it all out


----------



## goob (Jun 20, 2008)

Holy fuck.  THose front squats wipe the floor with me.

If this keeps up I may have to kill and eat you after all.....


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 4, 2008)

So I haven't been around lately.  But I _have_ been busy and working out the whole time.

Here is my w/o for the past week.  I've made some good gains, although I've been slacking on my squats.  I hope everyone is doing great and I hope to get around to everyone's journals soon.

I'm moving up to Dallas on Saturday to start a new job with a investment company so things are crazy now.  But I hope to get back on here regularly once things settle down.  (hope being the keyword)

tuesday - vertical push-pull

rack pulls
235 x 5
305 x 5
305 x 5
305 x 5 
305 x 4

bent-over rows
145 x 8
145 x 8
145 x 8

unilateral DB rows
65 x 10
65 x 10
60 x 10

incline DB press
55 x 5
55 x 5 
60 x 5
60 x 5
60 x 5

incline bench press
125 x 8
125 x 8
125 x 6

DB flys
35 x 10
35 x 10
35 x 10

weighted crunches on bosu ball
80 x 8
80 x 8
80 x 8

standing calf raises
bw x 8
bw x 8
bw x 8

wednesday - quad dominant ham accessory and bis

back squats
195 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5 
230 x 5
230 x 5

front squats
155 x 8
155 x 8
155 x 8

split squats
85 x 10
85 x 10
95 x 0 

standing BB curls
70 x 6
70 x 6
70 x 6

seated DB curls
30 x 8
30 x 8
30 x 8

friday - vertical pull-push abs calves

weighted chins
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 5

unweighted chins
bw x 5
bw x 5
bw x 5

unilateral lat pull-downs
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

hang cleans
100 x 5
100 x 5
100 x 5
90 x 5
90 x 5

unilateral corner press
35 x 8
35 x 8
35 x 8

arnie press
30 x 10
30 x 10
30 x 10

weighed crunches w/bosu ball
80 x 8
80 x 8
80 x 8

calf press
160 x 12
160 x 12
135 x 12

saturday - hamstring dominant quad accessory tris

Romanian Deadlifts
245 x 5
265 x 5
265 x 5
275 x 5 
275 x 5

Good Mornings
125 x 8
135 x 8 - PR - up 10 lbs
135 x 8

leg curls
130 x 12
140 x 12 
140 x 12

front squats
145 x 10
155 x 10
155 x 10

med. close grip bench press
145 x 8
145 x 8
155 x 8 

weighted dips
35 x 8
35 x 8
35 x 8


----------



## Built (Aug 5, 2008)

Nice to see you're still tearing it up at the gym, bud! I see some nice-looking numbers on the rack pulls and front squats. 

This thread is, however, useless without update-pix.


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 5, 2008)

I'll hafta see if I can do something about that...


----------



## JailHouse (Aug 8, 2008)

Looks like every think is going nice.  Good luck with the move.


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 19, 2008)

It's been a little over a week since I got up to Dallas.  I've been working out at 24-hour Fitness.  

Over the past week I got 2 new PRs:

Hang Cleans
5 x 5 x 100

Weighted Dips
3 x 8 x +45 (grabbed a 35 and 10 pound plate... thought the 35 was a 25 pounder... wtf?)

It's going to be at least two more weeks until my routine really settles down but I've got my sites on something now.  I need to mix up my routine a little bit.  I've been on routine Built gave me since late March and I think it's time to change things up.  

I'm checking out some articles on T-Nation for ideas, but I really don't know how to change things up if I get rid of the big lifts (I do almost NO isolation work). 

Maybe I should just stay on my good 'ol baby got back routine and lower the weights and up the reps for two weeks and then up the weight back up after that.

Anyone have any ideas?  I'm thinking about going with the Texas method.

P.S.  I can't find my camera's USB cord.  No pics until I can find it


----------



## Built (Aug 20, 2008)

Hi there

Your split need not change all that much if you base it around heavy compounds and you're making good gains. I use some variation on BGB pretty much year round, with occasional breaks while I do short protein fasts (2 weeks at a time for example) or for specialization work (usually 6 weeks at a time). BGB is my bread-and-butter, "home" plan that I do to keep everything balanced in as simple and uncomplicated a way as possible. You can introduce small tweaks - change the rep range, change the workout order from straight sets to antagonist pairs, make minor changes in the exercises used (front squats instead of back squats, T-bars instead of bent over rows...) but keep the basic structure and you're sure to remain balanced front to back, top to bottom. 

That said, if you're up for a little challenge, you could do a specialization if you like. Do you have an "upper" and a "lower" you'd like to bring up?


----------



## the other half (Aug 20, 2008)

hey, i think i know you. well, if it makes you feel better, we havent been around for a couple of months now.

best of luck with your new life in the little state of texas


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 20, 2008)

Built, are you writing anything these days?  You haven't updated your blog in a while. 



Built said:


> Hi there
> 
> Your split need not change all that much if you base it around heavy compounds and you're making good gains.
> 
> That said, if you're up for a little challenge, you could do a specialization if you like. Do you have an "upper" and a "lower" you'd like to bring up?



I'm glad I won't have to change BGB much.  I love it just the way it is but want to keep my body guessing.  It's my first time to change/tweak a routine so I have no clue how long I should keep the changes before I revert back to the original.

I would love to concentrate on my shoulders and my hamstrings.  The shoulders I have to be careful with because of my rotator cuff but I've reached a point where, provided I use commonsense, I should be ok.
Hamstrings - I think I'll throw in some GHRs.  I wonder if I should sub GHRs for leg curls...

I went in to the old google document we were working on back in march/april to get some ideas, but the last half of it was missing...




the other half said:


> hey, i think i know you. well, if it makes you feel better, we havent been around for a couple of months now.
> 
> best of luck with your new life in the little state of texas



Howdy, stranger.  Are you guys just vacationing from the forum or from the gym?


----------



## the other half (Aug 20, 2008)

both. we have only hit the gym 2 time on a good week. i feel like a big squishy roll of goo. hopefully i dont look that bad.


----------



## Built (Aug 20, 2008)

Check the revision history on the doc. Whatever's missing is in there - it's like a wiki. 

I've got a few partial projects in the hopper, but nothing I want to publish just yet. 

Now, delts and hams would be a great block specialization. How comfortable are you with the following lifts:


Hang cleans / clean and press
Olympic bar corner press


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 20, 2008)

Built said:


> How comfortable are you with the following lifts:
> 
> 
> Hang cleans / clean and press
> Olympic bar corner press



As easy as breathing.


----------



## Built (Aug 20, 2008)

Awesome. 

Read this Get Built - Get Built - Q & A with the Iron Geek - Issue 4 - look for "Option 5:"
I'll set something up and send it to you by email.


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 20, 2008)

Thanks, Built!


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 21, 2008)

thursday  - 08.21.08 - vertical pull-push abs and calves

rack pulls
275 x 5
275 x 5
285 x 5
295 x 5 - PR
295 x 5

bent over rows
145 x 8
155 x 8 
165 x 7 - PR

unilateral DB rows
60 x 10
60 x 10
60 x 10

incline DB press
60 x 5
60 x 5
60 x 5
60 x 5
60 x 5

flat bench press
135 x 8
135 x 6
145 x 5

weighted crunches
+75 x 10
+75 x 10
+75 x 10

unilat. standing calf raises
bw x 10
bw x 10
bw x 10

Wish I could have done better on bench today but I didn't have a spotter and my arms were wiped from me PRs.  One a brighter note, I'm feeling much more confident with my 60lb incline DB press.  Maybe time to move up if I can get a spotter.


----------



## JailHouse (Aug 21, 2008)

Vary nice job on the bent rows.  I would've started with the bench press prolly.


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 21, 2008)

Thanks, JH.  Good idea.  It may be time to change the order for my pull and push.


----------



## Built (Aug 22, 2008)

You might consider doing a little more warmup of some sort if you start with bench. I often start with bench too, but when I start with pulling I find I don't need as much warmup for bench.


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 22, 2008)

Hmmm.  I normally do some basic stretches before I push/pull.  What kind of warm-up are you talking about?


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 26, 2008)

Alright.  Today was day one of your suggestion, Built. 





Built said:


> Awesome.
> 
> Read this Get Built - Get Built - Q & A with the Iron Geek - Issue 4 - look for "Option 5:"
> I'll set something up and send it to you by email.



*Today was Day 1 of specialization on delts and hams*.  
(What seemed like a good idea on the way to the gym will leave me hobbling tomorrow)  Thanks a lot, Built  

Military Press (standing, of course, or it would be MILITARY)
80 x 5
80 x 5
80 x 5
80 x 5
80 x 5
70 x 12
70 x 8
70 x 10
Felt fairly easy until I started going for high reps.  Still though I can probably go up to 90 and then back it down to 80 when I need to.

Romanian Deadlifts
225 x 5
275 x 5*
225 x 5
225 x 8
225 x 8
225 x 8
225 x 8
225 x 8

*Two things here:  I realized I've been doing RDLs with the wrong form for a long time (greed to lift heavier and not safer...) when I almost hurt my back on the heavy weight (which I have been lifting but not solidly or consistently).  So I swallowed my pride, dropped the weight 50lbs, and decided to do it with the right form, which was surprisingly hard.  Go figure.  Might try going up 5-10lbs next week.

All in all I'm surprised I could finish all my sets out at 225, so it wasn't all that bad.

For day 2 on Thursday I'm going to do this:

Unilateral Corner press
5 x 5
Arnie Press
8 x 10

assuming I can actually walk...
GMs
5 x 5
GHRs
3 x 8-12

Day 3 later this weekend will be maintenance on everything I didn't do tonight or Thursday.  Haven't figured it out specifically what I'll do yet.

Today's workout felt great!  I think I'll be able to grow some more on this


----------



## nadirmg (Aug 28, 2008)

Week 1. Block 1.  Block Day 1.  - 8/28

*Hamstrings*
RDLs
5 x 235 - went up 10 pounds from last time
5 x 235
5 x 235
5 x 235
5 x 235 - LPS
5 x 225 - LPS
5 x 225 - LPS
1 x 225 - it hurt sooooo good.  but i could do any more - LPS


*Deltoids*
Military Press
5 x 90 - up 10 on there too
5 x 90
5 x 90
5 x 90
5 x 90 - LPS

Arnie Press superset Lat. Raises
25 x 10    -    15 x 10 - LPS
25 x 10    -    15 x 10 - LPS
25 x 10    -    15 x 10 - LPS

I did the lat raises sitting on a bench leaning forward to take the stress off my RC.  Also trying to hit the back of my delt. too so... 2 birds 1 stone.
The LPS reeeaaaallllyyy adds some burn into those last 4 sets I do on hams and delts.  Not to mention it wears my muscles out.  But now that I'm home my muscles feel like... they've been massaged??? :wft:


----------



## Built (Aug 28, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> (What seemed like a good idea on the way to the gym will leave me hobbling tomorrow)  Thanks a lot, Built



Tee hee! Sigged!

Try this for warmup: Got Built? » High Intensity Interval Foreplay


----------



## RasPlasch (Aug 30, 2008)

I haven't been updating my journal as much. And I was worried that you hadn't been either. But I'm glad to see you're still going strong. Good job man.


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 3, 2008)

Edit: Update pics will be posted as soon as they finish uploading.

Alright.  This weekend I moved out of my aunt's house and into my own apartment.  This is means:

No unhealthy shit in the pantry/fridge
I can work out as late as I want without worry about coming back late
I'm MUCH closer to the gym.

I ended up not in some serious ... pain/soreness... i don't know what you call it, but after the first two days of the ham/delt specialization split the very very top of my glutes would feel completely exhausted and like they'd give out when I just bent down to pick up a pencil or something.

Moving into my apartment and doing a maintenance w/o just about killed me.  So I took two days off to recover (plus it was Labor Day weekend).

Now I'm back.  Here's today's workout.

for hams: 
RLDs
145 x 5
225 x 5
235 x 5
245 x 5
245 x 5 LPS
225 x 8 LPS
225 x 8 LPS
225 x 8 LPS

got all my sets and reps in, with the correct form, and i felt the weight was challenging for all that.

the gym was really crowded, so i did only rdls and clean and press today.
for delts:
clean and press
90 x 5
100 x 5
110 x 5 - PR
110 x 5
110 x 5 LPS
95 x 8 LPS
85 x 8 LPS
85 x 8 LPS

i could have don't more weight here but since I was hang cleaning it before my press after 8 sets of RDLs my grip was crap.  shoulders felt REALLY strong today.


----------



## Built (Sep 3, 2008)

Good job on the move, listening to your body when you needed to rest, and the shoulder-strength. I suggest using straps for RDLs on the days you do hang cleans first - I don't want your hamstring development being compromised because your HANDS were fatigued!


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 3, 2008)

wazzaaaaaaaaaa






Alright.  Please laugh along with me.  This is me back in March when I started lifting






And now, 5 months later











below is me - same shot on june 17th.







Back in March, again.






And now.






I finally took a leg shot.  How are you supposed to take these things anyway??






Sorry for all the pics.  But I gotta brag once every couple of months. 

I never thought I'd be able to make these kinds of changes.  Seriously.  When I look at that picture of me in February flexing one flaccid arm I can't help but laugh at myself.  Not because I looked stupid but because of the dramatic change that is in the next photo.

Here are a couple physique goals that I have.  I'd like to continue working on my delts/hams for the remaining 5 weeks, and then do a specialization on my pecs and quads.

After that I'm going to cut.  The weight (muscle) gains as well as the strength that came with it is GREAT.  But some of those pictures have me thinking I look pudgy.  Yeah, flex a bit and the muscles come out, but I don't want to be hiding under my 'extra layer' for much longer.  Makes me feel chubby.

I know I haven't been around here a lot in the past 2 months but I want to thank everyone for all the encouragement, ass kicking, and whip cracking that you've done for me this year.  

I'm not even CLOSE to being done, so please, keep it comin'.  

And a big thanks to Built.  Without her pointing me in the right direction, giving me tips, pointing me to links, articles and resources, I would be MUCH farther behind where I am now.  

You guys are the BEST.


----------



## Built (Sep 3, 2008)

NICE WORK!

WOW - no more 'love handles on a skinny bitch" for you! You have REALLY thickened out!

Glad I could help. You were clearly worth bothering to invest the time in.


----------



## Scarface30 (Sep 4, 2008)

shit man, your progress is outstanding!! great stuff there man


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 5, 2008)

Thanks, Scar!


----------



## JailHouse (Sep 5, 2008)

Good stuff bro!  You made some vary noticeable progress in a short time.  Whats the weight in the new pics?


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 5, 2008)

Thanks, JH.  I'm still at 145.  No weight gains in a while so I think most of the change is in body composition.


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 5, 2008)

Yesterday's workout

week 2 block 2 day 2
hams
RDLs (big surprise, right?)
135 x 5
225 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 5
235 x 8
235 x 8
235 x 8

(second day in a row of this weight and i did all the sets/reps.  time to go up on the weight on the next block?)

delts
clean and press
95 x 5
105 x 5
95 x 5 
95 x 5
95 x 5

arnie press    s/s  lat raises
27.5 x 10     -    15 x 10
27.5 x 10     -    15 x 10
27.5 x 10     -    15 x 10

Shoulders were WIPED out.  But my back wasn't too tired, which was nice for a change.  About to head up to the gym for my maintenance day.


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 5, 2008)

Today's workout week 2 block 2 day 3 (maintenance)

front squats
135 x 8
155 x 8
155 x 8

incline DB press
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8

bent-over rows
135 x 8
155 x 8
135 x 8

weighted chins
+30 x 5
+30 x 5
+30 x 5

weighted crunches
+75 x 10
+75 x 10
+75 x 10

standing BB curls - nice and slow
60 x 8
60 x 8
60 x 8


----------



## Built (Sep 5, 2008)

Just dropping in to remind you to eat... it is extremely important that you eat enough to gain while doing this or you WON'T recover well. This type of training is very, very taxing.

</concerned mom>


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 6, 2008)

Yay!  A rest day!  No weights for me today.

So on a completely random note... I just started a myspace.  Please, anyone/everyone add me?  Many thanks.

MySpace.com - ~wyst~ - 27 - Male - LEWISVILLE, Texas - www.myspace.com/wyst3207


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## RasPlasch (Sep 6, 2008)

How tall are you? Cause you look thick for 145!


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 6, 2008)

RasPlasch said:


> How tall are you? Cause you look thick for 145!



I'm only 5'5''.  Thanks for the myspace add, rasp.


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 7, 2008)

*sigh*

Looks like I'm going to have to slow down on my block training.
1) Something in my right leg hurts. *
2) My shoulder (not the r/c problem one) apparently doesn't have enough time to recover between workouts. **

* This is been bothering me for a while (2-3 weeks).  I first noticed it one day when I was just walking.  A twinge of pain in the inner part of my right thigh when I move it laterally (inside or outside).  Walking normally doesn't hurt unless I take a deep stride, but if I take a side step without being aware of how I'm moving my right leg, it hurts.  I didn't injure it lifting, it just showed up randomly (at least I hope that's the case).  For a while I just wrote it off as soreness or something but now it hurts down to me knee even when I'm sitting down.  wtf.

**I figured I might not be ready to start on a new block today.  The hang clean and press really took it out of my rear delt.  Two reps of military press and I new if I did any more then I'd have a serious problem.

Being overzealous on the block training is causing my shoulder fatigue but the leg thing has me puzzled.  Might need to look into seeing someone next week so I can get some specific stretching/rehab things to do.

Man!  Right when I was really starting to pick up some momentum!  %$@#!!


----------



## Built (Sep 7, 2008)

Back it off. Take a few days off entirely, eat, rest, do a bit of cardio so you don't go snaky (just go for a walk every day, that's enough) and do some re-hab/prehab work as you feel ready. 

You can just pick this up again when you feel able. No biggie. We all have setbacks. Gotta train around your injuries.


----------



## JailHouse (Sep 7, 2008)

Does it hurt like bad doms or hurt like "oh shit I'm injured"?


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 9, 2008)

It hurt like, 'dammit, no!' kinda hurt.

Hasn't been giving me any problems at all since Sunday, though.  I'm gonna rest through Sunday this week before I even think about lifting weights.  Just to be sure.  I don't want to wind up out of commission for half a year because I got impatient.


----------



## Built (Sep 16, 2008)

Smart man. 

Can you do some pre/rehab stuff during the layoff? Maybe go for a swim and a hottub?


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 21, 2008)

well I was gonna try swimming today, but something weird is happening with my shoulder - actually the exact muscle that I strained two weeks ago.

it's twitching.  sometimes muscles twitch but by the time you realize it and try to feel it twitching with your hand it stops.  know what I mean?

well today my right rear delt has been twitching like CRAZY.  since 8am, so over 4 hours.  not constantly but off and on for 10-30 seconds at a time.  it's doing it right now.  i'm looking over my shoulder and can see it freakin' dancing right now.  WTF.

not sure what to do.  may it needs a good stretch with swimming?  maybe i should leave it the hell alone?


----------



## Built (Sep 21, 2008)

Potassium?


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## nadirmg (Sep 21, 2008)

Built said:


> Potassium?



It's been doing it off and on this whole day.  8am to as late as 10pm.  Totally weird.  Sure.  I'll try some potassium.  Sweet potatoes!


----------



## Built (Sep 21, 2008)

And bananas. I wouldn't worry about it - I've had these too. Get your electrolytes up - potassium, calcium, sodium.


----------



## nadirmg (Sep 22, 2008)

Had some more twitching/spazzing but nothing compared to yesterday.  I'm tired of doing nothing so I'm gonna start swimming a bit 3-4 times a week for the next 1-2 weeks and see how I do.

Might do bananas before I swim but I'm really trying to stay away from simple carbs since I'm not very active these days.


----------



## Built (Sep 22, 2008)

Just get a potassium supp. I need one myself, actually. 

If you're not in any pain, I say go for it.


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## nadirmg (Sep 22, 2008)

I've been productive tonight 

I've got the potassium supplement plus a sugar-free fiber supplement I've been needing since I'm low carbing it, except for my 25g of fibrous veggies - just no brown rice or oatmeal, which I'm usually getting.

Also hit the pool for about 12 minutes of laps.  I'm gonna sleep so well tonight.  Swimming will kick your face in.  Finished it up with 10 min in the sauna, 3 min in the hot tub, 5 min of steam room, and a 3 gallons of water that I'll be peeing every 1 hour or so during the night.


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## nadirmg (Oct 22, 2008)

I've been easing back into the gym for about two weeks now.  I'm usually there 3 days a week.  I'm gaining back the strength that I've lost over the past several weeks.

In fact I ripped a new PR on rack pulls this week: 315lbs.  

My shoulders still have not fully recovered.  I'm thinking what I need/want to do is this: continue working out but not hit my shoulders with heavy/direct exercises (ex. hang clean and presses).

I'm back on BGB and doing everything pretty much minus said exercises.  I need to start counting my cals again because I know I haven't been eating enough.  

I'm kind of at a crossroads though.  I don't really want to get much bigger.  Except for maybe my pecs.  Anyway I'm toying with the idea of cutting.  I'm pretty sure I can lose so fat, but I really want to lose the handles and pudge of fat over my lower abs.  But I've gotta add in cardio.

Built, I've been reading your articles on doing cardio to help me set up how I'm going to do it.  I want to get started on it Monday next week and am ready to drop the pudge!


----------



## Built (Oct 22, 2008)

You don't need to add in cardio to drop fat - but a little is good for your heart and your circulation. 

I am SO sorry to hear of your ongoing shoulder-woes. Dammit. Are you working with a physiotherapist for it?

What is your diet looking like lately? You tracking at all?


----------



## Merkaba (Oct 23, 2008)

lol...curling in the squat rack!  Righto!  

Good progress in the body composition.  This is my first time checking out this thread.


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## nadirmg (Oct 24, 2008)

Built said:


> You don't need to add in cardio to drop fat - but a little is good for your heart and your circulation.
> 
> I am SO sorry to hear of your ongoing shoulder-woes. Dammit. Are you working with a physiotherapist for it?
> 
> What is your diet looking like lately? You tracking at all?



Nah, I haven't been seeing anyone to help me nurse it back to health.  I don't have the money for it right now.  I did see someone almost a year ago, so I'll most likely resume the rehab stuff he taught me.

My diet... 
I've been eating healthy and clean.  But I haven't been paying attention to how many cals I'm getting.  Haven't been tracking in weeks.  But I am consciously eating 20-30g of protein each time I eat (5-6x a day), and I know I'm getting eat least 60g of fat a day.  So I can be too far off where need to be with my fat and protein.  Fiber I'm keeping up with broccoli and spinach.  Other carbs, however, I've been cutting drastically unless it's directly before/after a workout.

Speaking of which, I just did horizontal pull/push today and I'm famished.  Dropping the carbs really does make me feel puney in the gym (but it's helping me start to look good naked).



Merkaba said:


> lol...curling in the squat rack!  Righto!
> 
> Good progress in the body composition.  This is my first time checking out this thread.



Thanks, Merkaba - welcome to my thread... which I've not been posting in for a while.  Anyways welcome!  Is that you in your avi?


----------



## nadirmg (Oct 24, 2008)

Built said:


> You don't need to add in cardio to drop fat - but a little is good for your heart and your circulation.



Really?  I guess creating a calorie deficit and continuing to lift heavy is what does it then...

See, I'm already pretty lean for the most part.  I just can never seem to get rid of the last little bit.  That's why I thought I might need to add in cardio.  I'd really rather not do HIIT <yawn>.  lol

But I've always heard that people getting ready for competitions will do cardio to get down into the single digits.  Eventually you gotta add in cardio, right?

What's the REAL story, Built??  Teach me!


----------



## Built (Oct 24, 2008)

They do a shit tonne of cardio because they started their cuts too late, and they think they're going to train off the fat. 

Then end up training off the muscle, too.

You may benefit from a little HIIT at some point along the way, to mobilize fat stores so the steady-state cardio that ensues will have a fuel substrate that isn't muscle tissue, but most of your results will come from your diet. 

You still dropping weight, or are you in maintenance now?


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## nadirmg (Oct 24, 2008)

Built said:


> You may benefit from a little HIIT at some point along the way, to mobilize fat stores so the steady-state cardio that ensues will have a fuel substrate that isn't muscle tissue, but most of your results will come from your diet.
> 
> You still dropping weight, or are you in maintenance now?



I haven't weighed myself in weeks but my shirts still fit tight and I haven't noticed my pants getting ANY baggier, so my guess is that I haven't lost much.

In terms of strength, I'm still pushing myself to make gains where I can but I'm probably maxed out on stuff with my gimp shoulder like it is.  Strength did go down in my weeks off but I've regained most of that ground I lost.

I take some pictures so I can compare and see what's happened over the past couple weeks.


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## Built (Oct 24, 2008)

Track your calories and your weight so you can see what's happening. If you have some notion of your maintenance calories, drop those by 20% starting now. Or Monday if now is too fast.


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## nadirmg (Oct 26, 2008)

Alright, I believe my maintenance to still be around 2500 calories.  I'm still lifting about the same amount I was when I was lifting my heaviest and eating 3000+.  So I'm going to shoot for 2000, maybe 2100.  And see how I do.  

Incidentally about 2000 is what I've been eating at these days anyway.  I may not have been 'tracking' my cals, but I do have a good idea of what I've been eating.  It generally follows something like this:

Breakfast:
4 whole eggs w/olive oil
1 tbsp of FF cream cheese

Mini meal:
1 scoop protein
15 almonds

Lunch:
1.5 cups of broccoli
5-6 oz boiled boneless skinless chicken breast

mini meal:
1 scoop protein
15 almonds

workout shake:
1 scoop protein
2 tbsp dextrose

dinner:
1 brick of frozen spinach
1 can of tuna
1 tbsp of FF cream cheese

snack
1/2 cup FF cottage cheese
1 tbsp peanut butter

Roughly it works out to the below screenshot:







Really sucks not having my morning oatmeal and a piece of fruit right before workouts.  'Welcome to cutting', right?


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## nadirmg (Oct 26, 2008)

10.26.08 - lower - quad dominant ham accessory

back squat
185 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5

back squat
135 x 8
145 x 8
135 x 8

split squats
85 x 10
75 x 10
no third set

standing BB curls
70 x 8
70 x 8
70 x 6

seated high incline DB curls
25 x 8
25 x 8
25 x 8

those split squats did me in today.


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## Built (Oct 26, 2008)

Split squats are intense. All that balancing. 

Good job.


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## nadirmg (Oct 26, 2008)

So, Built.  A while back I commented on how you haven't posted any new articles on your blog.  You said you had some ideas/things you were working on. 

Are they done yet??  Inquiring minds want to know.


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## Built (Oct 26, 2008)

Ahhh, you got me. Yep, I've got a few things in the hopper at the moment, but nothing ready to roll.  Current interests of mine include satiety, glucose uptake, steroid-readiness and precontest prep.


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## nadirmg (Oct 27, 2008)

Built said:


> Ahhh, you got me. Yep, I've got a few things in the hopper at the moment, but nothing ready to roll.  Current interests of mine include satiety, glucose uptake, steroid-readiness and precontest prep.



I motion for precontest prep!  I'd love to get the breakdown on how to _methodically_ lose that last bit of fat.


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## Built (Oct 27, 2008)

Precontest prep isn't about fat loss - it's about preparing the sculpture for display. It's a manipulation, not a diet. 

Stubborn fat loss though, that's another baby of mine. 

We'll talk...


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## Merkaba (Oct 27, 2008)

nadirmg said:


> Thanks, Merkaba - welcome to my thread... which I've not been posting in for a while.  Anyways welcome!  Is that you in your avi?



Yea thats me. Thanks alot to Built actually.  



nadirmg said:


> Really?  I guess creating a calorie deficit and continuing to lift heavy is what does it then...



This is the epiphany that so many don't understand.  



nadirmg said:


> But I've always heard that people getting ready for competitions will do cardio to get down into the single digits.  Eventually you gotta add in cardio, right?
> 
> What's the REAL story, Built??  Teach me!


And i bet that those you "heard" it from either were on "help" themselves or had either read it out of a magazine from someone who had a little extra "help" holding onto muscle density while doing that cardio as well, making it that much more targeted to fat.


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## nadirmg (Oct 29, 2008)

Built said:


> Precontest prep isn't about fat loss - it's about preparing the sculpture for display. It's a manipulation, not a diet.
> 
> Stubborn fat loss though, that's another baby of mine.
> 
> We'll talk...



Looking forward to it!


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## nadirmg (Oct 29, 2008)

Merkaba said:


> Yea thats me. Thanks alot to Built actually.
> 
> And i bet that those you "heard" it from either were on "help" themselves or had either read it out of a magazine from someone who had a little extra "help" holding onto muscle density while doing that cardio as well, making it that much more targeted to fat.



Built has helped me out a ton too.  I know I'd still be a skinny bastard if she hadn't.  

Your pics look great, dude.  And all natural, eh?  Props.


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## nadirmg (Oct 29, 2008)

10.28.08 - Vertical Pull-push
weighted pull-ups
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 5

un-weighted pull-ups
bw x 8
bw x 8
bw x 8

unilateral pull-downs
50 x 10
60 x 10
60 x 10

unilateral corner press
35 x 8
35 x 8
35 x 8

calf press
90 x 10
135 x 10
135 x 10
90 x 10

I weighed myself yesterday (148).  Today I was 147.  Looks like I didn't lose much muscle during my weeks off.  Still a good 15 lbs heavier than I was back in March 

I'm really excited about the cut that I'm on but on day 3 I'm already missing carbs.. oatmeal, beans and rice....  Built, today I'm going to go back and read your carb-cycling article.  

How do you feel about refeeds during cuts?  Maybe that's just plain counter-productive (stupid)?


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## Built (Oct 29, 2008)

Refeeds are GOOD!

As you lean out, you need 'em more and more. 

Nice work on the weighted chins!  And Merkaba is indeed natty. Remarkable physique. 

You're not doing so bad yourself... 

Now, the carb cycling. I can set you up if you like. PM me this and I'll run some numbers:

LBM
Desired average calorie limit
Roughly how many grams protein you find comfortable
Roughly how high and how low your carb limit seems to feel
A ballpark of how many grams of fat you like to consume
Remind me it's for a four-day split.

I have a little calculator I built that spits out the numbers.


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## nadirmg (Oct 29, 2008)

Built said:


> Refeeds are GOOD!



You just made my day!



> As you lean out, you need 'em more and more.



That's kinda what I've been doing for a while now - but it's always been because I just felt like eating carbs and not because it was a planned refeed.  Usually it'd been a day on the weekend when I'm not working out and just resting.


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## RasPlasch (Dec 12, 2008)

.......Where'd you go?


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## nadirmg (Dec 26, 2008)

I'm still lifting!  In fact, I did a vertical pull-push split today.

The busy season at work is right now - plus with the holidays I'm only getting into the gym 2-3 times a week.  But I haven't lost any strength in my lower body.

My shoulders have lost a lot of strength since I'm still resting them.
And my lats aren't able to pull off weighted pull-ups like they used to (5 X 5 X +35).  But hey, I'm still lifting through the busy time and that's what matters.

I'd say the main reason for my losses is that I'm not eating right.  Bad bad bad!!!!
Can't wait to get really disciplined again, though.

Happy holidays all!


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## Built (Dec 26, 2008)

<polishes off main course of sweet potato pie>

Did you mention bad eating? LOL!

<pats tummy, remembers what it used to be like to have abs>

Really digging the 'tar!


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## RasPlasch (Dec 27, 2008)

Well look who's back!

I hope you start updating more often.


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## nadirmg (Dec 27, 2008)

Yeah yeah.... I know.  

I've noticed that when I'm really disciplined with my diet I'm more diligent with updating here.  I've been writing down my workouts in my spiral, just not here... lazy.


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## nadirmg (Jan 1, 2009)

4 more days and I'm back to the gym and my diet.

Happy new year


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## RasPlasch (Jan 1, 2009)

Yay!  haha.

Hope your return to the gym goes well.


Happy new year to you too.


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## nadirmg (Feb 13, 2009)

My return to the gym was shortlived. I got sick for about two weeks and had ZERO appetite.  

I can tell I'm much softer in the legs and can clearly see I've lost some size in my pecs... kind of frustrating.  At least I kept with drinking lots of protein and eating my fats though, so it ended up being like a really intense cut.

I started going back in this week and have set some preliminary goal areas.  My legs are PLENTY strong (and big).  I don't want to make any more size gains there.  In fact, I'd just like to tone up my legs and maybe get some extra room in my jeans.  So for squats, I'm backing down the weight and upping the reps.  I'll have to do more core work to make up for the decreased intensity though.  That's ok because summertime is coming.

My shoulders have been long ignored and I'm tired of not having them.  Here's my problem though.  Yesterday when I started warming up for some hang cleans, I started with the oly-bar empty.  After I clean it, it HURT my shoulders when I would drop it back down.  Something about the rolling forward movement really bugs my shoulders.

I'm not sure how I'm going to build any size in my shoulders without hang cleans and military presses (my RC hates those too).  So I'm hoping to rebuild some general strength with corner presses, arnie presses and lat raises (yes, Built, I have been reading your blog).  Maybe in a month of doing this I'll be able to ease back into hang cleans.

I'm also going to reintroduce the rehab exercises that I was doing when I first injured my shoulders.  Maybe that will toughen up my insertions on my delts, because that's where the pain comes from.

Anyways, I may not be posting, but I am lifting.  Gotta decide how to spend my time wisely these days.  Hope everyone is doing well!


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## RasPlasch (Feb 13, 2009)

Glad to see you are back.  And still alive.


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## the other half (Feb 17, 2009)

hope the lifting goes well and you find a way to get past the shoulder probs.

how is life in general going for you know that you are back in the big state?


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## ZackAttack (Feb 17, 2009)

Admire the discipline you have with your diet


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## nadirmg (Feb 19, 2009)

ZackAttack said:


> Admire the discipline you have with your diet


Thanks dude.


the other half said:


> hope the lifting goes well and you find a way to get past the shoulder probs.
> 
> how is life in general going for you know that you are back in the big state?



Same here.  I'm beginning to think I may have got myself in a tight spot I won't be able to get out of.  The thing that is starting to get me down is that, if I keep lifting like this, I'll look great everywhere but have non-existent shoulders.


Life in Texas is great.  I bought a motorcycle.  Fun.  Living in the DFW area is fun and it's close to home, which is nice.  The job I have is alright.  Probably won't stick with it through retirement but these days it's nice to have a job.  Period.

How about you and your lovely spotter?


RasPlasch said:


> Glad to see you are back.  And still alive.



What's up Rasp!  Still hitting the gym?  Any plans for spring break?


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## RasPlasch (Feb 19, 2009)

nadirmg said:


> Thanks dude.
> 
> 
> 
> What's up Rasp!  Still hitting the gym?  Any plans for spring break?






Hey man!   Yes I am sir.  And it is going swell.  


Cancun Mexico is my plan for spring break.  Going there with a buddy and staying in a 5 star hotel.  It'll be good shit.  Lots of drinking so my lifts are going to fall.  But I need a break anyways.

How about you?


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## nadirmg (Feb 20, 2009)

Decided to throw in a little bit of swimming.  It seriously kicks my butt and it will be good for my shoulders.  Did about 15 minutes yesterday and man I was wiped out.



RasPlasch said:


> Cancun Mexico is my plan for spring break.  Going there with a buddy and staying in a 5 star hotel.  It'll be good shit.  Lots of drinking so my lifts are going to fall.  But I need a break anyways.
> 
> How about you?



'spring break'?  what is this strange thing you speak of?
dude.  i work now.


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## RasPlasch (Feb 20, 2009)

Lol!  Oh yeah/  I forgot you have a life, unlike me.  


What do you do for a living?


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## nadirmg (Feb 24, 2009)

RasPlasch said:


> Lol!  Oh yeah/  I forgot you have a life, unlike me.
> 
> 
> What do you do for a living?



Lol yeah, my life didn't really begin until I was 21.  You'll get there 
I work at Fidelity Investments.


I've been having a tough-love conversation with myself.  It's been a year since I started lifting weights and I've gained 10 pounds since then.  Despite not lifting weights diligently and not eating at maintaintence for a month, I haven't lost of the weight.

Although if I'm honest with myself, I'd have to admit that its probably due to the recomposition of my body.  Dammit no!!

Part of it has been due to my laziness, not wanting to always prep/take food around with me.  This week I'm going to try and get back in routine of eating right (eating enough and cutting out bread).  I also want to start going in to the gym again at least 3x a week and build into what I can manage beyond that.

No more pity party because of my injury.


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## katt (Feb 24, 2009)

Yeah, that's the thing... once you start slacking on your diet .. It doesn't take long to start that downward spiral... I should know, I think I'm the worst at it..

Except for now that we are on track... but it's so hard - our gym is right next to Albertsons.. so if you workout in the morning, you come out of the gym and smell donuts cooking... or if it's in the evening it's the greasy deli chicken..


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## Built (Feb 24, 2009)

nadirmg said:


> My return to the gym was shortlived. I got sick for about two weeks and had ZERO appetite.
> 
> I can tell I'm much softer in the legs and can clearly see I've lost some size in my pecs... kind of frustrating.  At least I kept with drinking lots of protein and eating my fats though, so it ended up being like a really intense cut.
> 
> ...



Just getting caught up here...

I am SO sorry to hear of your shoulder pain. I've gone though this and it sucks - I had to give up pressing for eight months a few years back and it drove me NUTS. Patience is not a natural fit for me. 

The corner presses and Arnies will do your shoulders a world of good. If those movements don't hurt, stick with 'em. I've had excellent development from those movements, and they seem to help them stay healthy, too. 

With regard to the wheels - it's actually the low-rep stuff that promotes "tonus" - hardness. I have found - on me, anyway - that the higher-rep leg work builds size better than the lower rep stuff; kinda makes sense when you consider we walk around on our legs all day.

Just a thought. You'll surely find what works best for you.


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## nadirmg (Feb 24, 2009)

Built said:


> Just getting caught up here...
> 
> I am SO sorry to hear of your shoulder pain. I've gone though this and it sucks - I had to give up pressing for eight months a few years back and it drove me NUTS. Patience is not a natural fit for me.



Tell me about it.  I freakin' hate not being able to do hang/cleans.  They were my favorite shoulder exercise and was what was REALLY building up my delts.



> The corner presses and Arnies will do your shoulders a world of good. If those movements don't hurt, stick with 'em. I've had excellent development from those movements, and they seem to help them stay healthy, too.


Yep, I'm able to do these with ZERO pain.  I'm adding in lateral/forward delt raises to try and rebuild some simple strength in areas that need some rehab.

[/quote]With regard to the wheels - it's actually the low-rep stuff that promotes "tonus" - hardness. I have found - on me, anyway - that the higher-rep leg work builds size better than the lower rep stuff; kinda makes sense when you consider we walk around on our legs all day.

Just a thought. You'll surely find what works best for you.[/QUOTE]
Thanks.  I definitely need to get back into exercising my legs.  They're such a powerhouse of fat burning potential that I can't ignore them.  Plus, soft legs are just gross.



katt said:


> Yeah, that's the thing... once you start slacking on your diet .. It doesn't take long to start that downward spiral... I should know, I think I'm the worst at it..
> 
> Except for now that we are on track... but it's so hard - our gym is right next to Albertsons.. so if you workout in the morning, you come out of the gym and smell donuts cooking... or if it's in the evening it's the greasy deli chicken..



Hi Katt.  I'm so glad to see some of the good 'ol vanguard is still in the gym.  Yeah, I think part of my problem was that I never REALLY came back from the holidays with regard to my diet.  I wasn't pigging out or anything, mind you, I just wasn't monitoring and regulating like I should.

Hopefully I'll get my stringent with that over the next week.

I'm moving out of my apartment and into my aunt's place this weekend.  She's going on a yacht trip until Sept 2010 and I'm dog/house sitting for her - probly saving about $800 a month. 
Once the move is over and my stuff is in storage, I'll be able to put more time/thought into my workouts/diet. 

Over the next week, though, I'll be slowly moving forward towards a clearly defined routine.


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## nadirmg (Feb 25, 2009)

I spent yesterday reminding my muscles how to lift weights. I was surprised that I hadn't lost as much strength as I thought I had, based on what shows in the mirror.  At the same time, I didn't push myself because I want to make sure I'm still using the correct form before I try to get back to my strength levels of 3 months ago.

Feels good to be sore.  It'll be even better tomorrow.  Also feels good to eat more 

tuesday  - 02.24.09 - horizontal pull-push abs and calves
rack pulls
225 x 5
275 x 5
295 x 5
295 x 5
295 x 5

bent over rows
135 x 8
135 x 8 
135 x 8

unilateral DB rows
50 x 10
50 x 10
50 x 10

incline DB press
50 x 5
52.5 x 5
55 x 5
55 x 5
55 x 5

flat DB press
40 x 8
40 x 8
40 x 8

weighted crunches
+60 x 10
+60 x 10
+60 x 10

unilat. standing calf raises
bw x 10
bw x 10
bw x 10


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## katt (Feb 25, 2009)

ahhh.. rack pulls. I haven't done those for a long time.. I love those things! 

Nice job N


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## nadirmg (Feb 26, 2009)

SORE!

I'm laying off the weights until after I move out of my apartment this weekend.  No need to be suffering DOMS from not lifting for a month while I carry furniture down 3 flights of stairs.


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## the other half (Feb 26, 2009)

now what kind of thinking is that?
you must be educated!!!!

great job on the rack pulls. like katt said she really likes those and  i like watching her do them. they are to hard for me to do!!!!!


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## nadirmg (Mar 2, 2009)

against my better judgment, i did go in and do legs the day before i moved out of my apartment.  3 days later and i'm still limping around and avoiding stairs.

02.27.09

legs - quad dominant - biceps
back squats
135 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5

front squats 
135 x 8
135 x 8
135 x 8

db lunges 
20lbs x 10 (each leg)
20 x 10
20 x 10

standing bb curls (short bar)
bar +20 x 6
+30 x 6
+40 x 6



after work i'm going in and will be doing my vertical pull-push day.  pull-ups and RDLs.


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## nadirmg (Mar 3, 2009)

below is my workout from last night after work.

03.02.09 - vertical pull-push   abs/calves
weighted pull-ups
+25 x 5
+30 x 5
+35 x 5
+30 x 5
+25 x 5

pull-ups
bw x 8
-80 x 8 with 2-sec negs
-80 x 8 with 2-sec negs

uni-lat arm pull-downs
50 x 8
40 x 10
40 x 10

calf press (3 sec pause at bottom between reps)
90 x 12 
90 x 12
90 x 12
^
Supersetted with
V
planks
45sec
45sec
45sec

corner press
35 x 6
40 x 6
40 x 6

arnie press
25 x 8
27.5 x 8
27.5 x 8

db lateral raises
8 x 10
8 x 10
decided to stop here even with the low weight because i know my RCs were tired.


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## the other half (Mar 4, 2009)

good to see u back in the gym. when the shoulder does get better you are gonna start throwing some pretty good weights around. and then we will never be able to stop you.


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## nadirmg (Mar 18, 2009)

saturday - 03.14.09 - legs - hamstring dominant/quad accessory
RLDs
135 x 5
205 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5
225 x 5

front squats
135 x 8
135 x 8
135 x 8

CG bench
135 x 8
135 x 8
135 x 8

Dips
+25 x 8
+35 x 8
+35 x 8

03.16.09 - horizontal pull/push - 
rack pulls
225 x 5
275 x 5
275 x 5
285 x 5
285 x 5

bent over rows
135 x 8
135 x 8 
135 x 8

unilateral DB rows
55 x 10
55x 10
55 x 10

incline DB press
50 x 5
52.5 x 5
52.5 x 5
52.5 x 5
52.5 x 5

flat bench
135 x 3 - shoulder felt SUPER funky so I stopped chest here for the day and switched to some shoulder rehab

forward delt raises  s/s lateral delt raises
8lb x 10 x 10
8 x 10 x 10
8 x 10 x 10

I can tell my shoulders are really out of shape because they were screaming at me after those little 8lb dumbbells.... oh well.  It's somewhere to start and I don't see any point in trying to make gains in my chest/shoulders when my delts/RCs are obviously in need of some fundamental conditioning.

My conscience has been nagging at me about my diet.  I know I haven't been eating enough.  Most of that comes from being lazy about food prep.  Today I putting something on paper (probably for a month's time with lower/higher carb days) as another place to get back into a more strictly regimented diet.

Going half-assed on my diet (and I don't mean eating potato chips) while trying to rehab my shoulder just doesn't make sense...
Today or tomorrow morning I'm doing squats.


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2009)

thursday - 03.14.09 - legs - quad dominant/ham accessory - biceps
back squats
135 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5
205 x 5

front squats
135 x 8 
135 x 8
135 x 8

split squats
65 x 10 (each leg)
65 x 10
65 x hell no i was too tired

standing db curls
27.5 x 6
30 x 6
32.5 x 6

incline db curls      s/s      close grip pull-downs
27.5 x 6 <---------------> 50 x 10
27.5 x 6 <---------------> 50 x 10
27.5 x 6 <---------------> 70 x 10

planks
45 sec
45 sec

stairmaster
fat burner - lev. 7 - 10 minutes


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## katt (Mar 19, 2009)

Dang dude - you're legs are going to hurt. 

Yeah that diet thing is pretty important.. just look at it this way, it's so hard to really start it - but once you get going, it does get easier.


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## nadirmg (Mar 19, 2009)

katt said:


> Dang dude - you're legs are going to hurt.



Hah, that's the idea kitteh katt.  I'll be disappointed if I'm not limping.

P.S.  People at work have been eating that instant oatmeal with the mable syrup artificial flavoring.  I can smell the sugariness from my cubicle.  Waves of nausea are assualting me.


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## RasPlasch (Mar 19, 2009)

Awww man.  Have fun walking around tomorrow.


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## Scarface30 (Mar 19, 2009)

doesn't look as though you were off at all from those workouts! nice job man


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## nadirmg (Mar 20, 2009)

Scar, what's up dude.  It's kinda weird.  I've only lost a little bit of strength (both upper and lower body).  I think it's because I was still eating tons of clean food and going to the gym 1-2 times a week.  

With a lot of self-butt-kicking I will be back to where I was in no time.


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## sara (Mar 21, 2009)

nadirmg said:


> Scar, what's up dude.  It's kinda weird.  I've only lost a little bit of strength (both upper and lower body).  I think it's because I was still eating tons of clean food and going to the gym 1-2 times a week.
> 
> With a lot of self-butt-kicking I will be back to where I was in no time.



WITH SOME ASS KICKING EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE!
GREAT JOURNAL!


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## nadirmg (Jun 12, 2009)

What's up?  It's been a while since I've posted here but I'm still lifting and taking care of what I eat.  I'm 1/3 through a two month cut right now and it's looking good - not really sure how lean I'll get.  I just want to cut out some of the saddle-pudge.  That's where most of my fat is.

Think I hit a bit of a wall with leaning out so I'm going to have to start adding in some cardio and see if that won't jump start some things.

Last week I was at a part and a friend snapped this picture - thought my arms were looking decent and I'm glad I haven't lost much in the shoulder 







Hope everyone's doing well.
Hopefully now that summer is slowing down I'll be in and out a bit here.


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## katt (Jun 15, 2009)

Looks like the cut is definitely working for ya.. 

Looking good!


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## nadirmg (Jul 20, 2009)

I know I haven't been around here much - but I'm still in the gym lifting.  The past two months have started me wishing I'd get on her more and post my workouts but really it's the same routine - every now and again I'll change the weights or switch out one exercise for something else.  

I'll figure out something though because I really do miss being here.

Alright!  I finished my half-assed cut that I was doing for 60-days.  I certainly didn't adhere to my diet but I was fairly disciplined.

I also decided to do some tanning - it really makes a big difference.  
The below is probably the most cut AND yet meatiest I've been.

Through it all I've continued to do Built's Baby Got Back.  It seriously is awesome.  Every now and then I'll switch out an exercise, but for the most part it's pretty much been exactly what she taught me.  































And just for fun... me, a year and a half ago...






LOL!


----------

