a_welch503 WORKOUT JOURNAL

[.V.]

I'm going to try this again. I just accidentally erased it 3 times now.

I have never kept any kind of journal before in my life. People tell me that with weight training, it helps to keep things straight and gets you good pointers from more experienced people. If anyone wants to read this and offer advice, ask questions, or give pointers on mistakes not to make, feel free.

Well, here goes.

HISTORY:

OCTOBER 2003

HEIGHT: 6'0". AGE: 34 Y/0. SEX: M.
WEIGHT: 300 LBS approximate. Last official weight about a month ago, 192 lbs. The 2X shirts that fit at that time are now WAY too tight. My 42 loose fit pants are too tight, time to drag out the old 44 waist pants.

Late october: Had another MS attack, it's been a while since I had one like this. Left my legs too weak to lift my body weight effectively for a couple of days. Had to use a cane for one day and of course take time off of work.

NEITHER ONE OF THESE IS ACCEPTABLE. TIME TO DO SOMETHING.

I read about Atkins. I thought I'd give it a try. It don't make too much sense to me as a practicing Healthcare instructor and Paramedic to eat that much fat and such low carbs, but the food guide pyramid that I follow is not really working for me. It is more like a feed lot pyramid because I am really fattened up for slaughter. Atkins is worth a try.

Began High protein, High fat, Low carb < 20 grams / day regimen. Spread over 3 meals one every 6 hours.

Eat sugar free jello and boiled eggs when I am hungry between meals.

It seems to be working. But I am not getting any stronger.

Time to start lifting weights.


NOVEMBER 2003:

Started the following:

SQUATS: 1 SET 5 REPS
DEADLIFTS: 1X5
BENCH PRESS: 1X5
UPRIGHT ROW: 1X5
BENT OVER ROW: 1X5
BICEP CURLS: 1X5
TRICEP EXTENSIONS: 1X5
MILITARY PRESS: 1X5
AB ROLLERS: 1X8

Pretty weak, but that was all I could do. Weights were very light.
Equipment used is an old cheap weight bench and orbitron wal-mart plastic and cement weights. If I stick with it and get results, I will buy some good ones.

Gradually worked up to same routine with 3 X 10. Same weight.

Started doing cardio work. Walking 1/4 mile slowly then resting and walking 1/4 mile back.

Gradually worked up to running about 1/2 mile and walking 3 1/ miles. Took my little girl along on her bike - good for her, encourages me to try to keep up.

Running started with about 10 steps then walking then 20 steps the next time and so on.

[.V.]

Here is what I do now:

FOUR DAY WORKOUT PLAN:

DAY 1:

Breakfast: 2 whole eggs, 4 oz sausage
Lunch: Steak, 1 cup salad
Supper: Chicken, 1 cup salad

WORKOUT:

WARM UP - 5 MINUTES ON CARDIO GLIDE

AB ROLLERS - 3 SETS X 20 REPS
PUSH UPS - 3 SETS X 20 REPS
LEG LIFTS - 3 SETS X 20 REPS
PULL UPS - 3 SETS X 6 REPS

MILITARY PRESS 3 X 12 65 POUNDS
SQUATS INTO CALF RAISE 3 X 12 100 POUNDS
DEADLIFT INTO SHRUG 3 X 12 100 POUNDS
UPRIGHT ROW 3 X 12 65 POUNDS
BENT OVER ROW 3 X 12 65 POUNDS
BENCH PRESS 3 X 12 84 POUNDS
BICEP CURL 3 X 12 20 POUNDS
TRICEP EXTESION 3 X 12 12 POUNDS

Drink water and eat an Atkins advantage bar for recovery 20 grams protein, 10 grams fat, 3 grams carb.

Pretty weak, but much better than when I started.

DAY 2:
20 minutes on cardio glide. Run 3/4 mile. Walk 3 1/4 miles.

Still not good but better than the first 10 step run where I thought I was going to fall over dead.

DAY 3:

Same basic food items. Eggs, Pork, Chicken, Beef, Salad or Green vegetables. 1 measured cup of veggies or salad. Broccoli or Asparagus, or Green beans. Salads mostly.

Repeat Day 1 workout. And protein bar.

DAY 4:

20 Minutes on cardio glide. Go to work. There is never a chance to run or walk on day 4. This is just the cardio glide before I go to work.

Diet plan does not change, and have no plan to yet unless I find something that will work better.

What I am doing now seems to be working FOR ME at this time.

[.V.]

This is day 7 on IM injections of Decadron to get rid of the latest MS attack. Cheeks are starting to get sore. I hope this is the last day of taking this stuff. Talked to doctor again. Starting on daily copaxone therapy next week. Supposed to reduce the number and frequency of attacks.

By the way the signature is my reminder of why I am doing this.

Today I weigh 189 pounds. My last measurements on 4/18 were:

CHEST 42.5 INCHES. WAIST 36 INCHES AT NAVEL (34 INCHES AT BELTLINE) . HIPS 40.25 INCHES AROUND BUTTOCKS. LEFT THIGH 24 INCHES AT TOP. RIGHT THIGH 24 INCHES AT TOP. LEFT ARM 15 INCHES. RIGHT ARM 15 INCHES


FIRST MEASUREMENTS IN OCTOBER: CHEST 46" PROBABLY A C-CUP. WAIST 49.25. HIPS 50". LEFT THIGH 27.25". RIGHT THIGH 26.5". LEFT ARM 14". RIGHT ARM 14"

People are telling me I look too skinny. I dont, because I still have a fat butt and fat backs of my legs and about 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches deep fat below my belly button. From the belly button up, I have visible abdominal muscles.

My wife said I look ethiopian. I told her I am too pale for that.

They are right, I do look pretty bad, but it is because I am still carrying too much fat and need to put on some more solid stuff. I am sure a lot better off than I was at 300 pounds.

People say I looked good at 240. But that was just big, not strong. Fat is not strong. When the shirt comes off, I see the truth.

Today is the day I am going to implement the advice people here have given me for increasing weight. Except squats and deadlifts because after the accident, I only have 100 pounds total left. I guess I will be going to buy my olympic bar and plates sooner than I had planned to.

I will have to build my own squat rack if I can just find out how big it should be. If I am going to buy good weights, I need good stuff to use them on and enough weight to do some good. But not cause an injury.

After My day 3 workout today, I will post the results to see what I accomplished, or didn't accomplsh. We will see.

[kungfu74]

Hey Welch, glad to see you have started a journal here! looks like you have already made a ton of progress from past experience! good job as that is not easy!

[.V.]

04-29-2004

Implemented changes I had planned in workout yesturday.

Here is what I did:

5 min on cardio glide warmup

Ab rollers 3 x 20 Leg lifts 3 x 20 Push ups 3 x 20 Pull ups 3 x 6

Mil Press 3 x 6 - 71 lbs. Squat/calf raise 3 x 8 - 136 lbs. Deadlift/shrug 3 x 136 lbs. Upright row 3 x 6 71 lbs. Bent over row 3 x 6 - 84 lbs. Bench press 3 x 6 - 100 lbs. Bicep curl 3 x 6 - 26 lbs. Tricep extension 3 x 6 18 lbs.

I just figured out yesturday morning that the metal plates from my dumbells will fit on the bar with my junky weight set. That gives me 36 more pounds to work with.

Cursor asked exactly what I was eating: Here is what I had yesterday. I've never added it up before. Just followed what I thought was right. Looks like I need to add more protein, but I need to find a way to do it without too many calories. Also, I have to add it slow, because apparently any protein you dont turn into muscle may be stored as fat.

Breakfast: 2 whole eggs. 2 sausage patties.
After workout: 1 protein bar
Lunch: 1 chuck eye steak. 1 cup salad vegetables(lettuce, tomato) with cheese added. Sugar free salad dressing.
Supper: 1 large ground chuck patty. 1 cup salad vegetables(lettuce, tomato) with cheese added. Sugar free salad dressing.
Evening snack: 1 boiled egg with black pepper.

Estimated totals: This is from a book. Since I don't measure food(except salad) this is not 100% perfectly exact, but it should be close.

Calories: 1300. Protein: 80g. Fat: 66g. Carb: 14g.

This AM workout. Cardio glide 20 minutes. No running or walking today. No weights today. I get to stay home, rest and clean my house today because the Doc. took me out of work until monday to give the meds more time to work. Tomorrow is lifting day again. I will see if I can use the same weights again that I did yesturday. They are not much, but they will get bigger in time.

[.V.]

04-30-2004

Warm up 5 min on cardio glide.

Ab rollers - 3 x 20. Leg raises 3 x 20. Pull ups 3 x 4. Military press 3 x 6 - 71 lbs. Squat / calf raise 3 x 12 - 100 lbs. Deadlift / shrug 3 x 12 - 110 lbs. Upright row 3 x 6 - 67 lbs. Bent over row 3 x 6 - 100 lbs. Bench press 3 x 6 100 lbs. Bicep curls 3 x 6 - 26 lbs. Tricep extensions 3 x 8 16 lbs.

Could not lift more than 100 pounds from floor into squatting position safely today. Have to work with 100 for now. Lowered deadlift/shrug to 110 pounds to keep squad and deadlift weight about the same.

I did not feel like I was getting a good workout only doing these few repetitions, but as the day wore on, I could really feel it in the muscles. They felt like they have never been used before. Looks like the people reccomending the lower reps with higher weight were right.

Someday, I wont have to use weenie weights, If I keep it up, I can eventually lift real weight.

[.V.]

Today was REALLY sore after yesterday. It felt good to feel stuff that hasn't been felt in a while. Especially the back and shoulders which have been slow to build any increases in strength. I think though, tomorrow I will do pull ups earlier instead of at the end of the workout so I will have enough strength left to do 3 x 6.

Did my 20 min cardio today then went and ran. New milestone met. Made it to 2nd park bench on the way up the hill. About 100 yards further than previous place I could make it to before switching to walking. This puts me over 1/2 way up the mountain before I have to change to a walk now.

[.V.]

05-02-2004

Today's workout:

Abrollers 3 x 20. Leg raises 3 x 20. Push ups 3 x 20. Pull ups 3 x 6. Mil press 3 x 6 -75.2 lbs. Squat / calf raise 3 x 12 - 110 lbs. Deadlift / shrug 3 x 12 - 110 lbs. Upright row 3 x 6 - 67 lbs. Bent over row 3 x 6 - 100 lbs. Bench press 3 x 6 - 100 lbs. Bicep curls 3 x 6 - 26 lbs. Tricep extensions 4 x 6 -= 16 lbs.

This MS attack seems to be about over now. No balance problems - no excessive weakness. I was able to lift 110 from the floor to over my head and lower it into shoulders to do 3 sets of squats this time. Couldn't make it with more than 100 2 days ago.

[LifterMike]

Way to go welch your making awesome gains, looks like your kicking the ms's ass! Keep up the determination and your sig is a good reminder for all of us

[.V.]

05-04-04

Pull ups 3x6 again - still can't get #7. Keep trying.
Ab rollers 3x20. Push ups 3x20. Leg raises 3x20. Military Press 4x8 - 75.2 lb. Squat/Calf raise 3x12 - 110 lb. Deadlift/shrug 3x12 - 110 lb. Upright row 4x8 - 75.2 lb. Bent Over row 4x6 - 100 lb. Bench Press 4x6 - 100 lb. Bicep Curls 4x6 - 26 lb. Tricep Extension 3x6 20.

People who suggested getting stronger by less reps and more weight were right. The mil press was easy for the first time ever today. Increase weight by 6 lb next time. Upright row - Add 10 lb next time. Add 6 lb to squats and deads next time.

I keep looking at other peoples set/rep plan. 4x6 to 4x8 seems to be most common. I am going to try the 4x6 instead of the 3x6 and see how that works out. Mabey it will work, mabey not, only one way to find out. Mabey someone knows which is better 4x6 or 3x6 and will volunteer the info and keep me from wasting time.

05-04 was measuring day. No new growth in muscle size - too early to look for that yet. But I am getting stronger. I have lost another 6 pounds to 183 and another 1/2 inch of abdominal fat is gone. Only 1-2 inches abdominal fat left below the navel to go. navel up - all gone. Kind of funny looking half ripped abdomen and half jiggly flab.

05-05-05 Cardio day. Same cardio workout as last time. Made it to the 2nd park bench again before starting walking. I will try for the 3rd next time. The advice about eating the protein after the run was good. I was not too shaky for too long after running today. Only for about a half hour instead of two hours. I'm getting better at it, but I sure do hate cardio day.

I guess I will have to squatand dead with weenie weights again tomorrow. I made the squat rack with 4x4's and heavy brackets from the hardware store. It is quite solid and is going to work well, I think. I made it wide enough to fit comforatbly in and my bar is too short to fit. A good excuse to go buy the Olympic bar and weights I want without my wife complaining too much. If I don't buy the olympic bench on the same day, mabey I can be forgiven.

[kungfu74]

Originally Posted by a_welch503

05-04-04
I guess I will have to squatand dead with weenie weights again tomorrow. I made the squat rack with 4x4's and heavy brackets from the hardware store. It is quite solid and is going to work well, I think. I made it wide enough to fit comforatbly in and my bar is too short to fit. A good excuse to go buy the Olympic bar and weights I want without my wife complaining too much. If I don't buy the olympic bench on the same day, mabey I can be forgiven.

Maybe you ought to bring her with you when you go to look for a rack, have her be a part of the decision and she may not be complain at all...

[.V.]

05-06-04
Left arm pretty much useless today. Who would have thought that burning off body fat would possibly have bad consequences. My daily copaxone injection had to go in the arms today. There is no subcutaneous fat on the backs of the arms anymore to inject into. The medication went IM. That is not good with that medicine. The Tricep had a muscle spasm and I could not move the arm most of the day. No workout today. I wonder if 3 days off with no weights is going to be too long. Tomorrow is light cardio day. I will just see how it goes. Back on the weights day after tomorrow.

[.V.]

Hey Kungfu,

She wont go. She is against the whole weightlifting thing for me. You know, "you look terrible, what are you trying to prove doing this to yourself, your going to get hurt". That kind of thing. Sounds odd coming from a woman who used to own a gym, teach aerobics, and do personal training for people in the old days.

I guess now that we are not 20 anymore we are just supposed to get old and fat. I'll take old, but not fat anymore or ever again.

[LifterMike]

amen welch, your wife sure isn't being very supportive of you trying to improve your health, and this sounds pretty important to you, so I say dont take the flack! Buy the weight set as long as it isn't going to hurt any house payments or anything man! :

[.V.]

05-08-2004

Today's Workout:

Pull Ups 4x6. Ab-rollers 4x20. Push Ups 4x20. Leg Raises 4x20. Military Press 4x5 - 81.2 lb. Squat / Calf raise 3 x 12 116 lb. Deadlift / Shrug 3 x 12 - 116 lb. Upright Row 4x6 - 82.6 lb. Bent over row 4x6 - 100 lb. Bench Press 4x8 - 100 lb. Bicep Curl 4x6 - 26 lb. Tricep extension 4x6 - 20 lb.

Added the 6 lbs to the mil press. Almost too heavy. 4x5 was all I could get - failed on # 6 each time at the start of the rep not the start of # 7. My plan is as I get stronger to do 4x7 then 4x8 then increase the weight when # 8 no longer reaches failure. Only able to add 7.4 lb to the upright row. Got a good 4x6 with failure after # 6 on each set. Had to rest more than 2 minutes between each set. I wonder if that is too much time between sets? I will TRY to add 6 lbs to the bench press on 5-10. I believe I can make it with that weight.