It's been a long while since I've done anything with this blog (not that much was done in the first place!), but it's also been a long time since I've blogged anything at all anywhere. Lately I've been mulling over in my head what to do, and decided I'd like to bring this one back and give it another shot. Seeing a post on Crackberry about the new Blackberry Wordpress Appication cemented for me that I wanted to start blogging again, especially since I can now blog on the go as well, which will make it much easier for me.
This blog started off strong in my mind, I was consistently receiving a few hits, spiking when I got mentioned on bigger blogs, and I had a vision for what I wanted it to be like. At the time I was also working out constantly, staying fit, getting stronger, and eating right. Since then, I, like the blog, have started drifting away. The blog was removed from Wordpress for a time, because I had posted some affiliate links, and while the site was dead also happened to be when I didn't work out for a few months straight.
I've gained weight, I've lost strength, and I don't feel near as healthy. This blog for the foreseen future will be chronicling my journey back to health, and hopefully I can help out some other people along the way.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Hard Work and Today's Workout
I spent the past two weeks without strength training due to quite a few factors, some of which I'll cover in later posts. This made me force myself to come home and put myself through a workout after work on Tuesday. It was hard to talk myself into it, it was hard to do, and it probably wasn't the smartest workout I've ever done, but the point is this:
I did it.
You have to work hard to get what you want, this applies to almost all areas of life, training, financial matters, your career, etc. There's some amount of work required for success in each one. The amount of work varies at times, but the best things come from hard work in my experience.
So, without further adieu, here's the lowdown on today's workout:
A1: Decline Dumbbell Bench Press 1x15 (40 lb dumbbells)/1x12 (45 lb)/1x20 (35 lb)
A2: Dumbbell Row 1x15 (40lb)/1x12 (45 lb)/1x20 (35lb)
B1: Dumbbell lateral raise 3x15 (15 lb dumbbells)
B2: Lat Pulldown 3x15 (not really sure how much weight we used, and also, in my experience, the weight on different machines seems to be a different amount of resistance)
C1: Preacher Curl 2x15 (45 lb first set, 35 lb second set felt like so much more though)
C2: Overhead Unilateral Dumbbell Extension 2x15 (15 lb dumbbells)
A buddy of mine from work wanted to train with me today, as he hasn't trained since the beginning of the summer. He plans on training with me more often, and we both plan on doing the training without the other if our shifts don't allow a joint workout, as we'll be pushing each other to improve each time.
I did it.
You have to work hard to get what you want, this applies to almost all areas of life, training, financial matters, your career, etc. There's some amount of work required for success in each one. The amount of work varies at times, but the best things come from hard work in my experience.
So, without further adieu, here's the lowdown on today's workout:
A1: Decline Dumbbell Bench Press 1x15 (40 lb dumbbells)/1x12 (45 lb)/1x20 (35 lb)
A2: Dumbbell Row 1x15 (40lb)/1x12 (45 lb)/1x20 (35lb)
B1: Dumbbell lateral raise 3x15 (15 lb dumbbells)
B2: Lat Pulldown 3x15 (not really sure how much weight we used, and also, in my experience, the weight on different machines seems to be a different amount of resistance)
C1: Preacher Curl 2x15 (45 lb first set, 35 lb second set felt like so much more though)
C2: Overhead Unilateral Dumbbell Extension 2x15 (15 lb dumbbells)
A buddy of mine from work wanted to train with me today, as he hasn't trained since the beginning of the summer. He plans on training with me more often, and we both plan on doing the training without the other if our shifts don't allow a joint workout, as we'll be pushing each other to improve each time.
Monday, November 19, 2007
New Training
Instead of using my own training routine, which was cool for a while, I'm going to be using one from T-Nation. My routine was hard to keep to, wasn't consistent, and I just didn't really know enough while going about trying to make it up.
The routine I'm going to be using for a while is Blending Size and Strength, Version 2.0 created by Dr. Clay Hyght. My first day of using it was today, and it felt great. It's a much better split than what I tried to do, and I feel much more worked than I have in a long time without doing squats or deadlifts (which will be coming up in the next few days). I went early this morning, and I've gotta say, I've never been this sore so short a time after a workout before. You can find the workout here.
Anyways, here's how today went:
A1: Barbell bench press 6x3 - 165 lbs.
A2: T-bar row 6x3 - 90 lbs.
(had to do the C exercises before the B exercises, because the barbell I needed for overhead press in the cage was already being used)
C1: Skullcrusher 3x5 - 55 lbs.
C2: Barbell curl 3x5 - 55 lbs.
B1: Standing barbell shoulder press 5x5 - 75 lbs.
B2: Pull-Up 5x5 - assisted with 40 pounds
Notes
I'll probably switch to doing a bent-over barbell row for my rowing exercise on most weeks.
I can't do many pull-ups at all (maybe 4-5) and using that much assistance was the only way I could get that many done. Used the assisted pull-up machine at my gym, could feel it a lot more than when I use the pulldown machine.
Doing the C exercises first hurt my performance on the B exercises, so I'll try not to have to do that again, I just wasn't prepared for changes today.
I used a reverse grip on the barbell curl, and both it and the skullcrusher were done using an EZ-curl bar. Won't use reverse grip next time.
On weights, the exercises that will go up the most next week will be overhead press and barbell curl, as I was able to complete all sets and reps without struggle at all, so I probably could have gone heavier, just wasn't sure. Could have done more on bench, but that was all I was comfortable with for now, as I did it without a spotter (my max is 185, so I'm not too disappointed).
My lats are the weak point on my pull-ups, and they're extremely sore right now. Not really sure how long it will be until I can do the 5x5 on my own, but once I get there I plan on adding more resistance. Could be a while.
More tomorrow about things, if anybody has any comments on today's workout, feel free.
The routine I'm going to be using for a while is Blending Size and Strength, Version 2.0 created by Dr. Clay Hyght. My first day of using it was today, and it felt great. It's a much better split than what I tried to do, and I feel much more worked than I have in a long time without doing squats or deadlifts (which will be coming up in the next few days). I went early this morning, and I've gotta say, I've never been this sore so short a time after a workout before. You can find the workout here.
Anyways, here's how today went:
A1: Barbell bench press 6x3 - 165 lbs.
A2: T-bar row 6x3 - 90 lbs.
(had to do the C exercises before the B exercises, because the barbell I needed for overhead press in the cage was already being used)
C1: Skullcrusher 3x5 - 55 lbs.
C2: Barbell curl 3x5 - 55 lbs.
B1: Standing barbell shoulder press 5x5 - 75 lbs.
B2: Pull-Up 5x5 - assisted with 40 pounds
Notes
I'll probably switch to doing a bent-over barbell row for my rowing exercise on most weeks.
I can't do many pull-ups at all (maybe 4-5) and using that much assistance was the only way I could get that many done. Used the assisted pull-up machine at my gym, could feel it a lot more than when I use the pulldown machine.
Doing the C exercises first hurt my performance on the B exercises, so I'll try not to have to do that again, I just wasn't prepared for changes today.
I used a reverse grip on the barbell curl, and both it and the skullcrusher were done using an EZ-curl bar. Won't use reverse grip next time.
On weights, the exercises that will go up the most next week will be overhead press and barbell curl, as I was able to complete all sets and reps without struggle at all, so I probably could have gone heavier, just wasn't sure. Could have done more on bench, but that was all I was comfortable with for now, as I did it without a spotter (my max is 185, so I'm not too disappointed).
My lats are the weak point on my pull-ups, and they're extremely sore right now. Not really sure how long it will be until I can do the 5x5 on my own, but once I get there I plan on adding more resistance. Could be a while.
More tomorrow about things, if anybody has any comments on today's workout, feel free.
Starting Over
So, things sort of went to the wayside there. I stopped training seriously for a while, stopped eating right, and pretty much everything else I need to do to stay fit. I've decided to start over now, and I have a pre-new year's revolution to try and keep to these things and improve myself as much as I can until then.
I'm going to start over with this blog too, and send it in new directions, as my training right now isn't just my lifting. I'm in high school, everything I do is training for college and training for life. Due to this, I'm going to talk about other things relating to my life, with the hopes of helping other people like me out as they can learn from my mistakes.
Hope this ends up being a good decision, and I'll need all the support I can get, so any ideas anyone can give would be awesome.
-Thryah
I'm going to start over with this blog too, and send it in new directions, as my training right now isn't just my lifting. I'm in high school, everything I do is training for college and training for life. Due to this, I'm going to talk about other things relating to my life, with the hopes of helping other people like me out as they can learn from my mistakes.
Hope this ends up being a good decision, and I'll need all the support I can get, so any ideas anyone can give would be awesome.
-Thryah
Monday, October 1, 2007
Monday Workout
Deadlift: 5x5 @ 225 lbs.
Pull-Ups: 4x5 @ bodyweight
Bent-Over Barbell Row: 4x8 @ 55 lbs.
Dumbbell Shrugs: 5x5 @ 55 lbs. dumbbells
I didn't post my last two weeks workouts because I was experimenting, and wasn't in there consistently. Probably should have posted them, but didn't get around to it. My weight on the Bent-Over Barbell Row is low because I've just started the movement, my second workout trying it actually, and i like it much more than T-Bar Rows, it's just going to take some getting used to. Luckily, before my workout, I checked T-Nation, and today's article happened to be about rows. Check it out here. Another great post is by Mehdi, on how to perform them. Read it here.
Pull-Ups: 4x5 @ bodyweight
Bent-Over Barbell Row: 4x8 @ 55 lbs.
Dumbbell Shrugs: 5x5 @ 55 lbs. dumbbells
I didn't post my last two weeks workouts because I was experimenting, and wasn't in there consistently. Probably should have posted them, but didn't get around to it. My weight on the Bent-Over Barbell Row is low because I've just started the movement, my second workout trying it actually, and i like it much more than T-Bar Rows, it's just going to take some getting used to. Luckily, before my workout, I checked T-Nation, and today's article happened to be about rows. Check it out here. Another great post is by Mehdi, on how to perform them. Read it here.
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