Monday, March 26, 2018
March 26, 2018 Check-In
Last week was "deload" week, a week with lighter weight to recuperate, and so the sprints on the bike were set at 1.
I continue to work on getting healthier. I'll do some extra tracking this week. The glucose was 119 and blood pressure was 143/86 with an 82 pulse this morning.
I lifted the same all three days last week:
Deadlifts at 145lbs for 4 sets of 5
Squats at 115 for 4 sets of 5
Bench at 110 for 4 sets of 5
Pull ups for 3 sets of 3
And some stretching
This week is starting the second strength cycle for this year. Because of weekend events I'll be lifting Monday, Wednesday, and Friday this week and next. The sprints for the HIIT workout will be set at 22. I think I will keep with this type of rotation until I can get to a solid 90 RPMs on 25.
Here's what I lifted today:
I continue to work on getting healthier. I'll do some extra tracking this week. The glucose was 119 and blood pressure was 143/86 with an 82 pulse this morning.
I lifted the same all three days last week:
Deadlifts at 145lbs for 4 sets of 5
Squats at 115 for 4 sets of 5
Bench at 110 for 4 sets of 5
Pull ups for 3 sets of 3
And some stretching
This week is starting the second strength cycle for this year. Because of weekend events I'll be lifting Monday, Wednesday, and Friday this week and next. The sprints for the HIIT workout will be set at 22. I think I will keep with this type of rotation until I can get to a solid 90 RPMs on 25.
Here's what I lifted today:
Deadlifts 135x5, 205x5, and 220 for 2 sets of 5
Squats at 135x5, 175x5, and 180 for 2 sets of 5
Bench at 135x5, 155x5, and 170 for 2 sets of 5
Pull ups for 3 sets of 4
And some stretching
I'll do something similar on Wednesday. Friday I'll go hang with a trainer to check my form.
KEEP GRINDING!
Monday, March 19, 2018
Weekly Check In 3-19-18
Did this week's sprints on "25" (the max setting on the exercise bike)
Bodyweight Pull-Ups for three sets of 4
Due to shoulder pain I tried cutting out overhead press and curls
I lifted 3 times this past week.
Tuesday:
Deadlifts 255 for 4 sets of 2
Squats 210 for 4 sets of 2
Bench 195 for 4 sets of 2
Thursday:
Deadlifts 255 for 3 sets of 2, and one set of 3
Squats 210 for 3 sets of 2, and one set of 3
Bench 195 for one set of 2 and felt some pain so I went with 3 sets of 2 at 190 lbs
Skipped the bodyweight Pull-Ups
Saturday:
Deadlifts 255 for 3 sets of 2, and one set of 3
Squats 210 for 3 sets of 2, and one set of 3
Bench 135 for a set of 2, 155 for a set of 2, 175 for a set of 2, and 195 for a set of 3. I think this teaches me that I'm lifting heavy enough to need warm up sets.
Bodyweight Pull-Ups for three sets of 4
Sunday, March 11, 2018
Third Week of Strength Cycle #1, 2018
Started feeling better this past week. Had my doctor's appointment, and worked on building some stuff at home.
Worked on HIIT with the exercise bike resistance set on 24 for the sprints. In May I may increase the time on the sprints. For now I'll just keep cycling between 22-25 at 20 seconds with 2 minutes in between. I'm hoping to get to a higher speed before adding time.
I lifted 3 times this week.
Tuesday:
Deadlifts 240 for 4 sets of 3
Squats 195 for 4 sets of 3
Bench 185 for 4 sets of 3
Pull-Ups with 6 pounds extra for three sets of 4
Overhead Press 35lb Dumbbells for three sets of 5
Curls 25lb Dumbbells for three sets of 5
Thursday:
Deadlifts 240 for 3 sets of 3 and one set of 6
Squats 195 for 3 sets of 3 and one set of 5
Bench 185 for 3 sets of 3 and one set of 5
Pull-Ups with 6 pounds extra for two sets of 4 and one set of 5
Overhead Press 35lb Dumbbells for two sets of 5 and one set of 6
Curls 25lb Dumbbells for two sets of 5 and one set of 7
Saturday:
Deadlifts 240 for 3 sets of 3 and one set of 7
Squats 195 for 3 sets of 3and one set of 6
Bench 185 for 4 set of 4 (just couldn't get that extra rep out)
Pull-Ups with 6 pounds extra for 2 sets of 4 and one set of 5
Overhead Press 35lb Dumbbells for 2 sets of 5 and one set of 7
Curls 25lb Dumbbells for 2 sets of 5 and one set of 7
I'm going to go lighter on the accessory work and focus on primary lifts. I may be pushing it too hard.
KEEP GRINDING!
ABOUT THE BLOG: This blog started years ago to talk about self-care and weightlifting. It stopped for a few years. It was been restarted when I was told that I was diabetic. I had an A1C of 9.3. A1C is an estimate of your blood sugar level over the last 3 months and 6.5 is pre-diabetic, and usually over 7 is considered diabetic. In March I was re-tested and my A1C was 5.0. That's below pre-diabetic (so, essentially non-diabetic). It was nice to have my doctor say, "you used to be diabetic." I'm still working on improving my insulin sensitivity and not thinking I'm out of the woods yet. My September retest came back with and A1C of 4.9. March 2018 test came back with 5.2 A1C. I'm happy for all of the people who enjoy and appreciate this blog.
The results were from diet and exercise. Here is a quick summary of how I responded to being diagnosed as diabetic. I'm going to post this review every so often. Mostly when I post the blog to Twitter or Facebook.
My lifting approach was to gain muscle to help with insulin sensitivity so I focused on compound exercises mostly (deadlift, bench, squat, overhead press) with some other things to round out such as pull-ups and bicep curls. I'm currently still doing full body workouts and on a strength routine.
Between now and the end of April I will be focusing on strength. I will be lifting heavier with sets of 5 or less for the most part. I may go up to 4 "sprints" for cardio at some point.
Between now and the end of April I will be focusing on strength. I will be lifting heavier with sets of 5 or less for the most part. I may go up to 4 "sprints" for cardio at some point.
I did 1 rep max testing with Lee from the Power Plant and here is what I pulled on 11/22/17
Squat 235
Squat 235
Bench 220
Deadlift 285
Deadlift 285
Wednesday, March 07, 2018
March 2018 A1C Check In
I had another A1c check today. The doc asked me, "are you even diabetic? It says you are on your file however your A1c is normal."
Came in at 5.2, a little higher than the last two times. I'll have to keep an eye on that however I'm still much lower than 15 months ago when I came in at 9.3, and as you can see from the video on the link above 9.3 is HIGH!
My blood pressure and weight are a little higher than last time as well. I weighed in at 156 this morning and my blood pressure at the exam was 139/88 which is higher than when I measure at home. I've had few vertigo episodes the last week and I am trying to figure out what has triggered that. It has been over a year for that. I may also have scoliosis and will need to keep an eye on that. Lots to manage.
I'm lifting for sets of 3 this week, so a bit higher than last week, and also up to 24 on the resistance bike for the sprint portion of my cardio. Next week I'll do sets of 2, and I'll also go up to 25. Then I go back to sets of 5. I'll have to figure out how to increase to make best use of that final month of strength training before going back to sets of 8-12.
ABOUT THE BLOG: This blog started years ago to talk about self-care and weightlifting. It stopped for a few years. It was been restarted when I was told that I was diabetic. I had an A1C of 9.3. A1C is an estimate of your blood sugar level over the last 3 months and 6.5 is pre-diabetic, and usually over 7 is considered diabetic. In March I was re-tested and my A1C was 5.0. That's below pre-diabetic (so, essentially non-diabetic). It was nice to have my doctor say, "you used to be diabetic." I'm still working on improving my insulin sensitivity and not thinking I'm out of the woods yet. My September retest came back with and A1C of 4.9. I tested again March 7, 2018 and came back with a 5.2. It is exciting to be working on this and I'm pleased people feel inspired by reading this blog.
The results were from diet and exercise. Here is a quick summary of how I responded to being diagnosed as diabetic. I'm going to post this review every so often. Mostly when I post the blog to Twitter or Facebook.
Came in at 5.2, a little higher than the last two times. I'll have to keep an eye on that however I'm still much lower than 15 months ago when I came in at 9.3, and as you can see from the video on the link above 9.3 is HIGH!
My blood pressure and weight are a little higher than last time as well. I weighed in at 156 this morning and my blood pressure at the exam was 139/88 which is higher than when I measure at home. I've had few vertigo episodes the last week and I am trying to figure out what has triggered that. It has been over a year for that. I may also have scoliosis and will need to keep an eye on that. Lots to manage.
I'm lifting for sets of 3 this week, so a bit higher than last week, and also up to 24 on the resistance bike for the sprint portion of my cardio. Next week I'll do sets of 2, and I'll also go up to 25. Then I go back to sets of 5. I'll have to figure out how to increase to make best use of that final month of strength training before going back to sets of 8-12.
KEEP GRINDING!
ABOUT THE BLOG: This blog started years ago to talk about self-care and weightlifting. It stopped for a few years. It was been restarted when I was told that I was diabetic. I had an A1C of 9.3. A1C is an estimate of your blood sugar level over the last 3 months and 6.5 is pre-diabetic, and usually over 7 is considered diabetic. In March I was re-tested and my A1C was 5.0. That's below pre-diabetic (so, essentially non-diabetic). It was nice to have my doctor say, "you used to be diabetic." I'm still working on improving my insulin sensitivity and not thinking I'm out of the woods yet. My September retest came back with and A1C of 4.9. I tested again March 7, 2018 and came back with a 5.2. It is exciting to be working on this and I'm pleased people feel inspired by reading this blog.
The results were from diet and exercise. Here is a quick summary of how I responded to being diagnosed as diabetic. I'm going to post this review every so often. Mostly when I post the blog to Twitter or Facebook.
My lifting approach was to gain muscle to help with insulin sensitivity so I focused on compound exercises mostly (deadlift, bench, squat, overhead press) with some other things to round out such as pull-ups and bicep curls. I'm currently still doing full body workouts.
Between now and the end of April I will be focusing on strength. I will be lifting heavier with sets of 5 or less for the most part. I may go up to 4 "sprints" for cardio at some point. I didn't get an A1C between 4.8 and 5.0 that I wanted yet 5.2 is still good. Next test is in September.
Between now and the end of April I will be focusing on strength. I will be lifting heavier with sets of 5 or less for the most part. I may go up to 4 "sprints" for cardio at some point. I didn't get an A1C between 4.8 and 5.0 that I wanted yet 5.2 is still good. Next test is in September.
I did 1 rep max testing with Lee from the Power Plant and here is what I pulled on 11/22/17
Squat 235
Squat 235
Bench 220
Deadlift 285
Deadlift 285
