Sirrus' Workout Journal

[sirrus]

I've done a small bit of weightlifting on and off since mid high school. I've never been consistent for a period of time longer than months. I'm 21 years old now, and I've finally made the decision to start again, only this time stick with it. Ideally, for the rest of my life.

My wife and I both began trying to eat better and work out consistently on 3/2/04. After 23 days, I must admit that I feel a lot better already and have made some gains.

When I started at the beginning of this month I weighed 140 lbs. My goal is to weigh 168 with 9% body fat by January 1st. I am tracking all of my food intake/nutrition with DietPower 4.0 (GREAT program!). For the first 23 days I haven't been following much of a set program as far as lifting is concerned, but I have gained about an inch on my biceps, 2 inches on my chest, and as of this morning I weigh 144.8.

I've decided that on Monday, after reading about it on this forum, and taking a look at the website... that I will begin the Max-OT program. Everything I've read so far looks great, and I'm sure I that even though I've been getting results, that they will be a lot better when following something such as that rather than 'OK, today will be upper body day, I suppose'

An interesting twist, though. At the current time, I have access to a Bowflex Ultimate and that is all. So I'll be doing something unique (at least I haven't heard of anybody else doing this... who knows, there's probably someone) and we'll see how it works out for me. Yes. Max-OT on a Bowflex Ultimate.

I'm currently taking NutraBiotics Micronized Creatine Monohydrate which I have been on for two weeks. As of yesterday I received in the mail Universal's Ribose Powder, EAS Myoplex Original, and Universal's Animal Pak (That's PAK! The multivitamins, not STAK! The prohormones. No prohormones for me).

In my opinion, at 5' 10", 144.8 lbs, 13.4% body fat, I am in terrible shape. I think I look awful, and I'd like to bulk up and cut down the fat. I don't want to be huge. I took some before pics about 4 days ago. Needless to say, I was not happy. I've made some pretty good gains, and I still look awful. I can't imagine how bad I must have been three weeks ago. I should have taken some pictures then. Too bad I didn't. Oh well, what's done is done.

OK. I'm done writing for now.

[Wolfnatas]

Welcome to the club!

As you progress in this hobby and read more & more about ways to build muscle, I think you may find yourself looking to replace that bowflex with a squat rack. Free weights are still the king, and anything else is second best. That being said, you can still make gains without the free weights. Just keep up the motivation and don't skip workouts!

I wish you the best of luck in your efforts, and hope to see you posting about the sale of your bowflex and the purchase of a squat rack. :

[sirrus]

Yes, I definitely want to get free weights eventually. I have no doubt that they are the best. But until that time comes, I'll just have to work with what I have at hand.

[MonStar]

Good luck with the journal man, looking forward to seeing your workouts. You're going to post your exercises and weights and everything like that, right?

[atherjen]

Hey Sirrus! Best of luck with yout goals! Keeping a journal is a great way to stay on track!
did you say you were married at 21? gosh... I cant see myself being married that young..(I guess Id need a bf first! LOL )

[sirrus]

Yep, planning on posting everything!

Yes, got married in July. Definitely ready for it though. We've been best friends for 7 years now!

[sirrus]

How awful. Last night at work, some time between the hours of 8:30 and 9 o'clock, I went from feeling perfectly fine to having a sore throat. By the time I started going to sleep it was probably one of the worst ones I've ever had. I didn't get to sleep for 3 or 4 hours, and I kept waking up all night, and whenever I actually did sleep... I dreamed about being places where my throat really hurt.

Sure, I want to get better and all... but if this affects the beginning of my new workout routine on Monday, I WILL be upset.

[BigPete]

Man, i feel for you i really do, i was sick for a week about a fortnight ago and it sucked, i couldnt train at all, i tried to sweat it off at first by basically killing myself on the weights but i started feeling really hot and felt like i was gonna pass out, my advice to you is, if you have the flu or another illness, just forget about training, get some medication in ya and rest, rest, rest

[sirrus]

Well, I feel a lot better, but I'm still sick. It's probably not going to be a good idea for me to start Max-OT today after all.

I've changed my goals a little bit. Instead of aiming for 168 by January 1st, I backed it up to August 1st because I've already gained 7 pounds in less than a month. I've also decided that I'd probably rather be 8% bodyfat than 9% bodyfat. Just based on what I'd imagine it would look like on me.

I need to get some protein powder. I've decided to switch my ratios from 40c/20-30f/20-30p to Max-OT's recommended for my age/height/body type/etc of 53p/37c/13f. It's too difficult to do without a protein supplement, for me anyway. Now that I've cut my average daily fat intake from about 23% to about 7 or 8%, instead of replacing that with protein, it's been replaced with mostly carbs. So rather than about 45-48% carbs, instead I'm at mid to high 60's and that's about twice what I'm aiming for, and protein is still at about 25-30%... half of what I'm aiming for.

NutraBiotics has a good deal on a 50lb bag of protein, but I've heard that All The Whey is a good brand, and that they have a low price guarantee and will beat NutraBiotics... so I'll have to look into that to see 1st, if it's true, and 2nd, if it's a good product.

One thing positive, since cutting my fat intake down to less than 10%, my stomach (which is where almost all of my excess fat probably is) area does feel a lot less... dense. I always noticed when I ate something with lots of cheeses and such, that it seemed like I could actually feel it settling and sticking to my lower 2 abs. Further burying them.

I've been reading conflicting information about body fat percentage... I believe I read somewhere that in order to clearly see all of your abs, it has to be at about 8 or 9%... but in order to see them without flexing them, it's got to be at 6 or 7% or so... and that just doesn't seem to make sense... because I'm at about 13 or 13.5%... and you can see my top four (barely) when flexing... And I know that I can't possibly be as low as 9%. I'm definitely not fat by any means, but I've definitely got a bit of a pudge, which I hate and am going to destroy.

Basically, I want my abs to look like this without flexing at all. So whatever percentage that is, I want that. Anybody got an idea?

[sirrus]

Well, I finally decided... sick or not, I'm starting today anyway.

Pre-workout I took 5 grams of creatine and a teaspoon of ribose powder.

Weight: 145.8 lbs
Body Fat: 13.5%
Right bicep: 12 4/5" flexed, 11 4/5" relaxed
Left bicep: 12" flexed, 11 1/8" relaxed
Waist directly at top of the hip bone: 32 1/4"
Chest: 39 1/8" relaxed

Workout start: 4:15 p.m.
Workout end: 4:51 p.m.

Squat Set 1, 6 reps @ 200
Squat Set 2, 6 reps @ 220
Squat Set 3, 6 reps @ 260

Not really sure my form is right... Seems to hurt my shoulders holding the bar in the only spot that it won't put pressure on my spinal cord. Also--I know there is no way on earth I could squat that much real weight. Bowflex is definitely not the best tool for this.

Leg press Set 1, 8 reps @ 310
Leg press Set 2, 6 reps @ 310
Leg press Set 3, 6 reps @ 310

This really made me shaky. I felt like I could do a lot more weight (Bowflex weight, that is...) But at the same time, I was so shaky, that I don't know.

Stiff leg deadlifts Set 1, 8 reps @ 310
Stiff leg deadlifts Set 2, 6 reps @ 310
Stiff leg deadlifts Set 3, 6 reps @ 310

Also not sure about the form on these... Didn't seem to be much of a hamstring workout to me... Also, I know there's no way on earth I could actually lift that much real weight. Bowflex definitely not the best tool for this either. 2nd and 3rd set, on the fifth rep my left hand had trouble keeping the grip with that much weight.

Calf raises Set 1, 8 reps @ 310
Calf raises Set 2, 20 reps @ 310
Calf raises Set 3, 8 reps @ 310
Calf raises Set 4, 8 reps @ 310

I don't know how I'd go about doing each of the different kinds of calf raises Max-OT specifies on a Bowflex, so I just did all the sets the only way I could figure out how to do them. Definitely could have done a lot more weight on this one. I've got strong calf muscles.

Post workout... I'd say that I'm very interested in working out at a gym next time I do these excercises. I need to find a workout partner, but that might prove difficult. What a situation.

I'm not sure how to describe how I feel... I'm definitely totally worn out... When I try to walk right now, my legs are still very weak and shaky. But at the same time, no specific muscles ever felt pumped, and right now none of my muscles feel fatigued at all... which, maybe those two things don't matter... but... Just saying that the difference between this, and workouts I used to do that "felt effective" felt different afterwards.

At the end of the workout I felt drenched as though I'd fallen in a pool. That usually doesn't happen. Definitely a lot of energy went into it, that's for sure.

The Bowflex has been really good for things like curls, leg extensions, bench, and what not... but these excercises... Not really super-happy with that.

After I do Max-OT for a few weeks, and see how this all works, maybe I can find a workout partner for workouts that have excercises like today... and other things that the Bowflex is good for, I can do by myself. We'll see.

[sirrus]

Food Intake & Nutrition: 03/29/2004

Spread out through about 6-8 even meals...

60oz Water

2 cups Special K
3/4 cup fat free milk
Universal Animal Pak Multivitamin
Additional Vitamin C Supplement
2 Neurogen+ tabs from NutraBiotics

1 cup lowfat cottage cheese
2 cups fat free milk

1 cup water, 1 cup ice, 1 Vanilla Myoplex Original Packet

Yves Veggie Dog w/ hot dog bun, ketchup, mustard, 2 cups fat free milk

Salad w/ iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, 1.6 oz crackers, 3 tbsp ranch dressing.
Vitamin C supplement

1 chicken breast w/ soy sauce, 1 cup rice, 1 cup steamed celery, cauliflower, and carrots, 2 cups fat free milk

1/2 cup lowfat cottage cheese

For a total of... 2384 calories... not enough, but being sick I just couldn't swallow anymore. I was aiming for 2707.

Fat: 16%
Protein: 35%
Carbs: 49%

[sirrus]

Well, today my legs feel sore and weak... as if I'd worked them out super hard yesterday.

Excellent.

On the other hand, I still feel really sick, and I think that I actually *really* shouldn't continue working out until I'm totally over this. Down to 144.6 lbs this morning. 3rd day to lose in a row.

Not so excellent.

[sirrus]

Well, once again, I decided to work out yesterday after I'd been up for a few hours after all. Max-OT day 2.

Start: 2:10p.m.
End: 2:53 p.m.

Straight Bar Curls 80x6, 90x4
Alternating Dumbbell Curls 40x6, 45x6
Cable Curls 90 x 6
Cable Push-downs 70 x 6, 80 x 5
Lying Tricep Extensions 100x6, 110x4

Dumbbell Kick-backs 25x6
these were kind of hard to do on the bowflex.

dumbell wrist curls 80x6
barbell wrist curls, 160x6, 100x6
these made my wrist feel like it might break. my forearms could have done a lot more weight, but my wrists won't take it at this point. also, real weights would have been better for this by far. little too difficult to do it correctly with cords going everywhere.

leg raises 0x15, 0x12
wow. not even weighted. i sure am a weak pansy.

rope 80x10, 80x10
these didn't seem to be incredibly difficult, maybe i need to up the weight.

crunches 0x10
by the time i was doing the 10th rep, i felt like i was going to throw up. must mean i'm doing a good workout! ha.

Most of this was fine on the Bowflex... Especially the Cable excercises, obviously. Didn't notice a ton of difference from when I've used the machines at the gym.

My legs and upper back were still sore from yesterday... and today it's even worse. especially when i have to walk down my steps. Seriously, I look like I'm retarded when I'm trying to get down the steps without collapsing.

My abs are really sore today. Biceps and triceps not so much.

Yet again, at the end of yesterday's workout I didn't feel the "normal" stuff I used to associate with good workouts... no big pump or fatigue... but I felt totally spent, and while I was doing most of the sets anyway, I know I couldn't have done any more.

Nice. I can't wait to do the next one. It looks like it will be a lot of fun.

Yesterday ended up coming out to: 23%f/32%p/46%c

[sirrus]

Start: 8:16 p.m.
Finish: 8:37 p.m.

Military Barbell Press
4x80, 5x70, 4x70
These were great.

Seated Dumbbell Press
40x6, 45x5
Should have used more weight. Those were the weights for each side. Is that how I'm supposed to write it, or should I have said 80 and 90 lbs?

Standing Side Lateral Dumbbell Raises
6x40, 6x60, 6x70
I don't know if I did these right or not... I couldn't quite figure out how much weight to do either so that I had the right number of reps without sacrificing form... Also, those were total weight... not each side. Not sure why I wrote it down differently from the last excercise. Still don't know which one is the correct way to do it.

Barbell Shrugs
200x6, 160x6
When I did 200, I didn't feel like I was doing them very well... but then when I did 160, I felt like I could have done more. Maybe 180 was my correct weight.

Upright Rows
100x6, 120x6
I've never done this excercise before... I think I did it right, but it felt like it was working my biceps moreso than my shoulders...

All in all, this was a lot faster than the first two workouts... Didn't feel super tired when I was done like the previous workouts... Then again, the shoulders are a lot less taxing to work than legs/full body like day one... and arguably less so than biceps, triceps, and abs. So... I'd say that as far as this particular workout went, I don't really know how well I did it overall... but as far as my overall progress so far is concerned, I was happy to step it down a bit today. I'm still really tired and sore from day 1 and 2, so it was nice for a small "break"

[sirrus]

Another short workout today.

Start: 4:18 p.m.
End: 4:38 p.m.

Lat Pulldowns
100x6, 110x6, 80x6, 90x6

When I did 100, I felt like I could do more... so I upped the weight, but then I realized I wasn't able to pull it down all the way... And that I probably hadn't been pulling it down all the way even when I did 100. My third set, I meant to put 90 lbs on there, but accidentally did 80. It seemed a lot easier than I thought it was going to be.... but of course, it was 10 lbs lighter than I thought it was.

Seated rows
100x6, 120x6
I think 110 probably would have been the best... at 100 lbs, it was too light, but at 120, my arms wanted to give out before my back would have. I seemed to be working my arms more to control pulling the weight.

Good Mornings
100x6, 160x3, 120x6

100 was too little... then I thought "Hey, I did a lot more than this on deadlifts and squats, maybe I should up it to 160... but that was too much, I did the third one and then almost collapsed. 120 felt pretty good, but I feel like I could probably have done more. Never done this excercise before... I think I liked it.

Hyper Extensions...
I don't have any way of doing these that I could think of, so instead I tried to do some lower back extensions... But the back has always been the most difficult thing for me to work... Almost always, no matter what, I always find myself working my arms or my chest or my abs instead when doing "back" excercises... and in almost every one of those cases, those muscles give out long before my back really even gets tired of doing it. Hyperextensions have been the only thing I've ever done that has worked my lower back... Too bad I can't do them right now. And the only thing that has ever *really* worked my upper back (to the point where it was actually sore the next day) was something I just did for the first time a couple of weeks ago... and that is deadlifts. And I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to work like that.

Hmmm...

Well, I'm still sick today, and I started getting kind of nauseous halfway through my workout, so it was hard to do it very well. It's hard to do much of anything when you feel like that.

Actually, I'm feeling kind of like that looking at this screen right now, so I'm going to quit typing now.