I know I need to do this as well. I used to exclusively track with pen/paper but I kept losing my notebook.
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Fitness |OT5| Intermittent Farting, Wrist Curls and Hammer Strength Machine Spotters
- Thread starter MjFrancis
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I know I need to do this as well. I used to exclusively track with pen/paper but I kept losing my notebook.
I don't track my lifts. I know what I have done and know where I want to be all in my head. I know so many say you need to write it down to keep track but I have been lifting for 17 years and never have written anything down and always knew/know my last lifting sessions, routine and weight used.
I have a horrible memory so I generally forget what I lifted in my previous workout. But do you remember where your lifts were 5 years ago? 10 years ago? I'd like to be able to look back on these one day and laugh at how puny I was.
iAmMaximus
Member
EDIT: Missed the part about pen + paper. I usually use MyFitnessPal for tracking calories but pen + paper never fails for tracking your routine.
So I've modified my workout based on the OP and have been going for 8 reps instead of my usual 12... how does the rest of gaf feel about this particular issue? I went up in everything 5-10 pounds across the board to make up for the lack of reps, and have increased my protein intake by about 80g a day to about 230. I weigh 180 am 24 and am 6' 1"
I like Fitocracy. I couldn't care less about the social network aspect of the site, or the points and the leveling up stuff. Just adding more weight to the bar is enough for me to gauge my progress.
That said, the layout is nice, the smartphone app is good and it shows nice graphs to track progress.
I also keep a log in Evernote though.
In other news, I stopped doing Kroc Rows in this new gym because they have so many fancy weird machines for back that I thought I'd give them a shot, since I'm only going to attent for 4 weeks and then it's back to my usual gym. And honestly, I fucking hate Kroc Rows so every excuse to not do them seemed very alluring.
Unfortunately, my grip has really suffered as a result. Last cycle I was able to pull 3 reps DOH at 395lb before having to switch to mixed grip.
Today? Last warmup set at 385lb. Tried DOH, bar didn't move an inch. It was pretty shocking. I was like, "ok, who's the funny guy who glued my bar to the floor?"
Back to Kroc Rows ASAP.
Also, at my last workset at 415lb, I felt an acid reflux when locking out my 4th rep. Never felt that before. Felt like throwing up and actually had to pause for a second for it to go away. Has anyone experienced something like this? It was really weird.
BronzeWolf
Banned
What are your objectives?
HisshouBuraiKen
Member
Krocazuma's revenge
I track in google docs, I plan workouts one month out at a time, copy the sheet at the end of the month and increase the weights accordingly.
overall health/strength/stamina. I've had some issues with clicky joints, but this has been improving my energy, my outlook on life, body, etc.
I was doing regular bench press in my routine, but my shoulder clicked, have substitued in the incline press. Was wondering if I could get some thoughts on this as far as fixing the imbalance, because I'm certain that's all it is.
No it doesn't. Insulin spike helps but you can get that from your protein shake.
This is great advice. Also performance in the lifts is going to be very dependent on anthropometry. A guy with short arms and legs but a longer torso is probably going to progress faster on squat and bench than a dude with long limbs and a short torso, but this second guy will likely have much faster progress on deadlift.
Have you decided what program to follow after you exhaust SS?
i would guess that from the picture you posted.
To add to this here's my current routine. Used to do 12 for each,but doing 8 now. Also used to take as long of a rest between sets as I felt, now take from 90 sec to 3 minutes, more the former though.
Monday:
Incline Press- 3 sets of 8, moving up 10 pounds each set.
Bent over Row- 3 sets of 8, moving up 10 each set
Shoulder Press- 3 set of 8, can't hit 8 or even close on final 2 sets start at 105 and add 10 each time
Preacher curls- 3 sets of 8 moving slow on the down, explode back up. Worked through some forearm tendonitis and a clicking elbow. Fixed the clicking with hammer curls.
Tuesday: leg and core. This took a while to work up to as my right patella tracks poorly
Squats- 3 sets of 8, add 20 pounds each step up
Deadlifts- 3 sets of 8
Planks- 2 70 seconds
side planks- 2 35 seconds each side
Hanging leg raises on pull up bar.
Wednesday- repeat mon.
Thursday- Repeat Tues.
Friday- Repeat mon.
Weekend- rest.
I like Fitocracy. I couldn't care less about the social network aspect of the site, or the points and the leveling up stuff. Just adding more weight to the bar is enough for me to gauge my progress.
That said, the layout is nice, the smartphone app is good and it shows nice graphs to track progress.
I also keep a log in Evernote though.
In other news, I stopped doing Kroc Rows in this new gym because they have so many fancy weird machines for back that I thought I'd give them a shot, since I'm only going to attent for 4 weeks and then it's back to my usual gym. And honestly, I fucking hate Kroc Rows so every excuse to not do them seemed very alluring.
Unfortunately, my grip has really suffered as a result. Last cycle I was able to pull 3 reps DOH at 395lb before having to switch to mixed grip.
Today? Last warmup set at 385lb. Tried DOH, bar didn't move an inch. It was pretty shocking. I was like, "ok, who's the funny guy who glued my bar to the floor?"
Back to Kroc Rows ASAP.
Also, at my last workset at 415lb, I felt an acid reflux when locking out my 4th rep. Never felt that before. Felt like throwing up and actually had to pause for a second for it to go away. Has anyone experienced something like this? It was really weird.
Do some farmers walks! I love em.
I've been using all dem fancy machines for back too. You can really load an isolated plate rower. I definitely have had some upper back growth.
I suggest you just do SS and don't change anything.
Mmm, hadn't thought of that! Will give them a shot.
I'm still adding Kroc Rows back though. I feel they also carry over to my bench.
I tend to do stuff overkill lol. Starting strength will achieve my goals faster then? Also any advice on balancing my shoulders?
edit- also in SS, it requires a regular bench press, but at the moment, my clicking shoulder is too much of a mental block for me to do regular press.
Less is more. I cringe when I see guys do 5 different kinds of brocep curls. Or barbell shrug and then dumbbell shrug and then smith shrug.
I have a friend who does this, but from my understanding, I never really overlapped anything in my workout... (sorry still noob at all this despite being in for 8 months). I'm going to use GAF as my bible now, because you hear different things all over the place. I had a friend who does 5 sets up, then 5 sets back down and then finally maxes on each set, makes sure to go up until fail.
edit- and again this isn't mainly about aesthetics (that's a bonus though), but more about health. I want to get my shoulder to stop clicking in certain motions, and to get my patella tracking better. I'd also like to get my overall strength and energy levels back up. Sorry to ask again, but the lack of regular press in SS, will substituting inclined work better?
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
I'm a total newb and probably don't know what I'm talking about, but this sounds crazy to me.
I think 3 sets of 8 deadlift reps at high weight would kill me dead.
Deadlifts have been killing me lately. I sliced the inside joint of my right ring finger about a month ago by trying to open a box of printer paper at work, and it has been really hurting during deadlifts. I have been having to start my sets with the bar resting on the meat of my hand rather than my fingers but it will slip as I'm doing my sets (especially sets of 10). I can't even unbend it after my sets for like a minute or so. Injuries suck!
Thug Waffle
Member
a buddy just introduced me to pb+banana sandwiches post-workout.
step up to the bar, curls are on me
Seriously, I'm so grateful I have good insurance through my wife now. I've put out 0.00 for two doctors appointments, and won't put out anything for blood work, X-rays and physical therapy.
Find yourself a woman with insurance man
BronzeWolf
Banned
You are doing both bench press and overhead press on the same day. Twice a week. That seems like overkill and adds a lot of volume where it's not needed. If you follow SS you will be benching and Pressing overhead 1.5 times a week.
Let's contrast your tuesday/thursday lifts (why tuesday/thursday? and monday/friday?)
I Deadlifted that 5RM on Monday along with heavy squat, let's see how much volume it was under SS:
Squat 320x3x5 = 4800 lb
Deadlift 345x1x5 = 1725 lb
Bench Press 190x3x5 = 2850 lb
-------------------------------------------------
Total session volume = 9375 lb
Total per week (3 sessions) = 28,125 lb (probably even less because Power Cleans and Overhead Press are very low colume compared to Bench Press/Deadlift)
Since I am getting stronger (I am adding weight to the bar on a constant basis) and getting bigger (losing fat), I am still breaking homeostasis with very little volume (better chance of recovery).
Now let's see your program (Using my numbers + I lowered the weights for 8RM instead of 5RM)
A:
Incline Bench 165x3x8 = 4200lb
OHP 115x3x8 = 2760 lb
Rows 135x3x8 = 3240 lb
------------------------------------------------
Total A: 10,200 lb
B:
Deadlift 315x3x8 = 7,560 lb
Squat 300x3x8 = 7,200 lb
-----------------------------------------
Total B: 14,760lb
Total per week (2A+2B) = 49,920 lb
So in a day under SS, I am lifting half the volume you are, which lets me recover a whole more easier than you. That means that If I don't eat/sleep/drink protein for a day, the impact is not as severe as you are doing under your program.
Plus, you are not getting that much stronger than I am because on the 8RM scheme, you are promoting hypertrophy more than strength. 5RM promotes both, plus I do ancillary workouts (dips, curls, chinups) to promote hypertrophy on the zones that I want, without adding too much volume to the overall lifts.
Also, you are squatting only TWICE a week, so under regular circumstances I am adding 10 pounds more per week to my squat than you. That obviously sacrifices a little bit of bench and OHP advancement, since I am lifting 1.5 times instead of 2 times a week, but that only means that I am losing 1.25lb increases weekly, which on the OHP and Bench are not that really important since they advance so slowly anyway.
Even more, I am spending 6 hours a week at the gym while you are spending 8 hours a week.
That's why I recommend SS or any other tried and tested n00b program. They already take into account many things you don't consider when you are a novice and it's better than certainly almost anything you come up with
Yes, it seems it won't on the short term, but on the long run, it's way more efficient than what you are doing.
Barbell Deadlift, Overhead press and power cleans
Do the incline you are already doing instead of regular bench press, switch when you heal.
Don't know yet, I might look into 5/3/1 since it's highly regarded around here. I have already done Texas Method and I like it, but I feel like trying something new.
Lovely Salsa
Banned
According to scooby you need to have 7% bf to have a visible 6 pack....so basically ill never have it
FallingEdge
Member
It depends the person but no, you do not. People can have visible abs around 12 or even a bit higher.
Thug Waffle
Member
what about skinny track pants?
Uhh what? Most people can start seeing abs at 12%
TheFightingFish
Member
Not as a sandwich, but PB + banana is a staple for me when I just want to get some calories in me. Also sometimes I'll take a graham cracker, spread a nice layer of PB on it, spread a small bit of Nutella on that, and then layer banana slices over the top of that. I'll do that when I'm really running a ton and have some calories to burn, it's crazy good.
I have the insurance in my family, my wife doesn't get it through her job.
You talking about Under Armour legging type things? Or full on track pants that are skin tight?
I'm not sure how common the 12% thing really is. I couldn't see mine at all at 12%, and just barely at 10%. I had to go sub 10% before I noticed anything significant.
Thug Waffle
Member
Sounds delicious. I know I probably shouldn't have the bread, but whatever lol.
Does anyone know of any online resources for general athletic training? Since I can't really bodybuild because of my wrist, I just want to be a bomb athlete in general. I'm not new to this sort of training at all, but it's been three years and at the time I was actually training for a specific sport (football). Hopefully, I can gather some cool ideas or routines from the web.
and i sucked at googling this
I've posted pictures here with visible abs and people more knowledgeable than me seemed to think I was around 11-12.
my earlier post:
track pants that are pretty much skin tight. definitely not leggings.
edit: after a quick google search, I guess they kinda look like this:
although some are even more slim than that
FallingEdge
Member
Care to post a pic? Could be your genetics or it could be that your abs aren't as developed as you thought?
Me at "12"
Thug Waffle
Member
i have always had chicken legs, but at times they've been stronger and more functional than the legs of kids over 100lbs heavier than me (so, linemen). if you have good leg aesthetics, i don't see why it matters how skinny you are because your legs are still beast relative to your size.
but i get that the people you're seeing are just flat-out too skinny. i'm more lenient on what's "too skinny" for obvious reasons, but i agree, there's a limit.
I guess to some degree it probably depends on how big your abs are in the first place. I had practically no significant muscle on my body, so I had to cut really low to see my girly abs. Some dude who is in much better shape probably looks much more rounded out at a slightly higher body fat %.
I added a pic that sorta gives an example of the track pants I'm talking about
right hur:
Thug Waffle
Member
I added a pic that sorta gives an example of the track pants I'm talking about
right hur:
i'm going on record saying i love those and would totally wear them depending on the day's workout. but i personally am more impressed with the people in my gym who are just in phenomenal overall shape, like aesthetically functional.
some people do look really silly in those, though. sort of like the guys with beer bellies working out in an under armor t shirt.
They'd probably look fine if you didn't have to squeeze your way into them. When I see people wearing them, they look like they are trying to use them in the same way you wear Under Armor leggings, except they are track pants so they just look weird as fuck.
I really don't care what the hell people wear at the gym, was just wondering if this trend existed outside of Cali, since we get some pretty damn weird trends here in Cali.
Thug Waffle
Member
haha i feel you. that trend definitely isn't just a cali thing. i'm in the chicagoland area and i see it quite a bit.
i'd totally wear a pair of leggings under those and like three layers up top if i was doing cardio/plyos
I've been doing straight barbell curls followed by incline dumbbell curls, feels good man
Depends on what your goal is and how your body responds, my biceps & traps don't really respond to the less is more approach, I've tried it and it didn't work. Once I started going with overkill that's when I got the results I wanted.
Spiritreaver
Member
My brain. I'm a really lame fitness dude.
Spiritreaver
Member
Lol, I actually enjoy doing 3 different shrugs in one workout. I just really like shrugging.
I usually don't mix BB and DB shrugs, but incorporate other stuff that can be augmented to target traps. Obviously back lifts.
I used to have some really shitty traps a ocuple of years ago, they still aren' beastly, but way better
Oops, didn't mean to post twice.
D
Deleted member 47027
Unconfirmed Member
I like shrugs a lot because they take AGES and have to be super heavy for me to feel.
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