Tuesday, December 31, 2019
End of the Decade Check In (2019)
Overall this year felt really good. In the decade I got myself to be diagnosed as diabetic, that wasn't so great. Being able to turn that around was really good and the kick I needed to get back on track. Trying to figure out if I have a muscle imbalance or scoliosis will be the challenge for the next year.
I did my final 100 daily push-ups today. I may do them tomorrow to start the year with something since the gym is closed. I've been in touch with my friend recuperating from cancer. She's the reason I did the 100 a day. If I missed reporting I would add 10, if I missed the day I would add 25. Lately I would just add 25 even if I did the push-ups and failed to report to my friend. She really appreciated that and I hope it helped. I'll see what I try to add in on a daily basis for this coming year. Mainly because having the daily routine was helpful.
Until now I had taken the "don't feed the trolls" approach to the blog. I still don't like leaving up comments that name and trash talk my family, so I'll have to figure out how to deal with comments that in the past I just deleted. Some people were worried about the personal threats, many were offended by the misogynistic comments, the transphobic comments, the homophobic comments, etc.
I'll ask you all to voice what you'd like. I think I will still remove some comments depending on how chicken-sh*t they are (I don't know if anything happens for "foul" language on the blog). So enough of that.
Adding running and dropping my A1C to 4.5 was super fun and challenging. I lifted a little more in competition than I had before. I definitely want to push myself a bit harder next year. The workouts will reflect that. I'll be doing strength for at least one more month, maybe two, then a peak block until the end of April. After April I'll do some hypertrophy blocks until August or September. I'll also try to get some more running in.
OK, the cardio workouts have been fairly tame on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Here are the lifting workouts for the last two weeks. Today I did a deload workout and I'll post my deload workouts next week.
I did my final 100 daily push-ups today. I may do them tomorrow to start the year with something since the gym is closed. I've been in touch with my friend recuperating from cancer. She's the reason I did the 100 a day. If I missed reporting I would add 10, if I missed the day I would add 25. Lately I would just add 25 even if I did the push-ups and failed to report to my friend. She really appreciated that and I hope it helped. I'll see what I try to add in on a daily basis for this coming year. Mainly because having the daily routine was helpful.
Until now I had taken the "don't feed the trolls" approach to the blog. I still don't like leaving up comments that name and trash talk my family, so I'll have to figure out how to deal with comments that in the past I just deleted. Some people were worried about the personal threats, many were offended by the misogynistic comments, the transphobic comments, the homophobic comments, etc.
I'll ask you all to voice what you'd like. I think I will still remove some comments depending on how chicken-sh*t they are (I don't know if anything happens for "foul" language on the blog). So enough of that.
Adding running and dropping my A1C to 4.5 was super fun and challenging. I lifted a little more in competition than I had before. I definitely want to push myself a bit harder next year. The workouts will reflect that. I'll be doing strength for at least one more month, maybe two, then a peak block until the end of April. After April I'll do some hypertrophy blocks until August or September. I'll also try to get some more running in.
OK, the cardio workouts have been fairly tame on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Here are the lifting workouts for the last two weeks. Today I did a deload workout and I'll post my deload workouts next week.
Tuesday:
Squats 135x10, 170x6, 180x6, 190x6
Deadlift Row 45x10, 95x10, 145x5
Dumbbell Side Bends 25lbsx20, 20x25, 15x30
Leg Curl 65x15, 60x15, 55x15
Pull-ups three sets of 1, they are essentially partials
100 Push-ups and stretching
Thursday:
Bench 135x10, 155x6, 160x6, 165x5
Incline Bench 100x10, 10, 15
Overhead 70x8, 60x10, 50x10
Face Pulls 15lbs x 15 for 3 sets
Sit-ups 3 sets of 11
Back Extension with 2.5lbs for 3 sets of 20
100 Push-ups and stretching
Saturday:
Deadlift 185x10, 225x6, 240x6, 255x5
Hammer Curls 25x8, 20x15, 15x12, 12x30
Face Pulls with an overhead press 15lbs for 3 sets of 12
Leg Press 140 for 3 sets of 20
Back Extension with 12lbs x 15, 15, 20
Lat pulldown 30x30, 40x30, 50x30, 60x25
100 Push-ups and stretching
Tuesday:
Squats 135x12, 180x6, 190x6, 200x6
Deadlift Row 45x25, 100x10, 150x5
Dumbbell Side Bends 30lbsx30, 25x30, 20x35
Leg Curl 70x15, 65x15, 60x15
Pull-ups three sets of 1, they are still essentially partials
125 Push-ups and stretching
Thursday:
Bench 135x15, 160x6, 165x6, 170x5
Incline Bench 105x10, 10, 15
Overhead 75x6, 65x6, 55x10
Face Pulls 20lbs x 15 for 3 sets
Sit-ups 3 sets of 12
Back Extension with 5lbs for 3 sets of 20
225 Push-ups and stretching
Saturday:
Deadlift 185x10, 235x6, 250x4, 265x1, 195x4, and 235x1 (I was frustrated by not getting 265 for more than one rep so I kept working different weight)
Hammer Curls 30x5, 25x6, 20x10, 15x25
Face Pulls with an overhead press 20lbs 10, 15, 15
Leg Press 160x12, 170x12, 190x15 (I may just do squats next block)
Back Extension with 25lbs x 10, 10, 15
Lat pulldown 60x15, 75x12, 90x8, 95x6, and 105x4
100 Push-ups and stretching
That's all for now. Time to ring in the new year. Be safe and enjoy! Please share your health or fitness goals, successes, and challenges in the comments!
KEEP GRINDING!!
Sunday, December 15, 2019
December 2019 Workout Check-In
So I did get my December run challenge in. I think I set it too late into the year. I was probably as ready for this in August as I was now in December. I'll put in more outdoor time as I can.
Last meet in April I took the week off afterwards. This time I started with lighter lifting. I hope that will help me with the next set of goals.
Besides the cardio on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I lifted the usual Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Saturday after running was definitely a challenge. In the future I'll add outdoor runs to the PR and Goals page. I'll update that page tonight as well.
Tuesday:
Squats 135x10 for 3 sets
Dumbbell Side Bends 15lbs x 10 on each side for 3 sets
T-Bar Row 35x15, 30x15, 25x15 all done with minimal rest, just enough to remove the weight and write the last set down
Leg Curl 60lbs x 10, 55x10, 50x10 with the same short breaks
Pull-ups three sets of 1, the bicep recuperation break has had an impact. I'll be getting it back up to speed as quick as I can
100 Push-ups and stretching
Thursday:
Bench 135x10 for 3 sets
Incline Bench 95x10 for 3 sets
Overhead 65x10, 55x10, and 45x10 with only breaks for removing weight and noting it down
Face Pulls 10lbs x 15 for 3 sets
Sit-ups 3 sets of 10
Back Extension 10, 10, and 15
100 Push-ups and stretching
Saturday:
Deadlift 185 for 8 for 3 sets
Hammer Curls 20x8, 15x12, 10x15, and 5x40
Face Pulls with an overhead press 10lbs for 3 sets of 10
Leg Press 130x12, 12, nd 15
Back Extension with 10lbs for 3 sets of 15
100 Push-ups and stretching
KEEP GRINDING!!
Last meet in April I took the week off afterwards. This time I started with lighter lifting. I hope that will help me with the next set of goals.
Besides the cardio on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I lifted the usual Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Saturday after running was definitely a challenge. In the future I'll add outdoor runs to the PR and Goals page. I'll update that page tonight as well.
Tuesday:
Squats 135x10 for 3 sets
Dumbbell Side Bends 15lbs x 10 on each side for 3 sets
T-Bar Row 35x15, 30x15, 25x15 all done with minimal rest, just enough to remove the weight and write the last set down
Leg Curl 60lbs x 10, 55x10, 50x10 with the same short breaks
Pull-ups three sets of 1, the bicep recuperation break has had an impact. I'll be getting it back up to speed as quick as I can
100 Push-ups and stretching
Thursday:
Bench 135x10 for 3 sets
Incline Bench 95x10 for 3 sets
Overhead 65x10, 55x10, and 45x10 with only breaks for removing weight and noting it down
Face Pulls 10lbs x 15 for 3 sets
Sit-ups 3 sets of 10
Back Extension 10, 10, and 15
100 Push-ups and stretching
Saturday:
Deadlift 185 for 8 for 3 sets
Hammer Curls 20x8, 15x12, 10x15, and 5x40
Face Pulls with an overhead press 10lbs for 3 sets of 10
Leg Press 130x12, 12, nd 15
Back Extension with 10lbs for 3 sets of 15
100 Push-ups and stretching
KEEP GRINDING!!
Saturday, December 14, 2019
Run Goal Completed!
I had set a goal to run 3 miles outdoors in December with my friend Sara. We ran 3.2 miles this morning then I went to the gym for a regular Saturday workout. I appreciate her and her husband coming out and them waiting for me to finish. They are both better runners than I am for sure! For me running 3.0 miles on the treadmill is easier than outdoors. I'll have to keep working at it. The reason I'm happy about this is that it is the first time I ran 3 miles outside in over 10 years. Very exciting!!!
I did active recovery for this week. The gym was actually packed when I got there so I changed my intended workout today. I'm thinking I'll be sore tomorrow. I'll post this week's workouts tomorrow and share what I'm thinking of doing for the next couple of months.
KEEP GRINDING!!!
I did active recovery for this week. The gym was actually packed when I got there so I changed my intended workout today. I'm thinking I'll be sore tomorrow. I'll post this week's workouts tomorrow and share what I'm thinking of doing for the next couple of months.
KEEP GRINDING!!!
Sunday, December 08, 2019
Post December 2019 Meet Check-In
I participated in the NASA NM Christmas Regional yesterday. It felt good and I did better than I expected. I was actually feeling like maybe this would be my last meet. However, it ended up inspiring me to keep at it. Sometimes doing "timecard" things works.
"Timecard" workouts are when you go workout even if you don't want to. Often after you get started you feel inspired, and if not, you still got your workout in. Since I had posted that I would attend this meet, I went though less that super pumped about it. Ended up feeling motivated to step up a little more.
There were a bunch of lifters and the meet lasted until about 7:30PM. It was long, and there were a lot of great lifts. Ultimately I completed 10 lifts. They all felt good. I had some good positive reinforcement from some of the judges and other lifters. I received some good constructive criticism from some of the judges on form of lifts.
I'll be wanting to see if I can get some significant strength gains the next couple of years. I'm not a trainer but from what I've read, I probably have a couple of years where I can pull off some good growth and then I'll be at a stage where I can get smaller yet consistent growth until I peak out. I'll spend some time thinking of goals. Arbitrarily I'll use Valentine's Day because102. a friend is doing a half marathon and we will be holding each other accountable to progress that weekend, and April 25 which is the next meet I'll attend.
So I weighed in at 171.0 with gear. I was hoping for 165, and I'll keep working on that. My best squat was 102.5 kilos (226 lbs), my best bench was 90 kilos (198lbs), and my best deadlift was 135 kilos (298lbs). All of that met my goals, and squats went over. I did successfully lift 204lbs on bench, however I racked it before given the command. I'll be using these numbers to set up my programming for the coming few months.
I still have some running and endurance goals as well. There were a lot of people I kept in mind during this meet. A friend Ali who talked about going to the Christmas regional a while back is how I got started in competing. Lee who gives tons of advice and coaching. Ruben who is working at reversing his diabetes. And lots of other people who inspire me to keep at it, even the critics provide motivation.
Low-end goals would be to increase each lift by 2.5 kilos. Here's what I would really be pleased by for April:
Squat - 112.5k/248lbs
Bench - 95k/209lbs
Deadlift - 145k/320lbs
These are semi arbitrary goals. I picked these by using Symmetric Strength's "analyze your strength" feature. According to that my bench is currently 6% above average, deadlift 3% above average, and squat 10% below average relative to other lifters. I did a rough calculation to get to 10% above on bench and deadlift and it gave me those numbers. 248 would bring me close to the average (250). 125k/276lb would get me to the 10% above. So I will try to get that average caught up this coming year.
Let's see how it goes!
KEEP GRINDING!
"Timecard" workouts are when you go workout even if you don't want to. Often after you get started you feel inspired, and if not, you still got your workout in. Since I had posted that I would attend this meet, I went though less that super pumped about it. Ended up feeling motivated to step up a little more.
There were a bunch of lifters and the meet lasted until about 7:30PM. It was long, and there were a lot of great lifts. Ultimately I completed 10 lifts. They all felt good. I had some good positive reinforcement from some of the judges and other lifters. I received some good constructive criticism from some of the judges on form of lifts.
I'll be wanting to see if I can get some significant strength gains the next couple of years. I'm not a trainer but from what I've read, I probably have a couple of years where I can pull off some good growth and then I'll be at a stage where I can get smaller yet consistent growth until I peak out. I'll spend some time thinking of goals. Arbitrarily I'll use Valentine's Day because102. a friend is doing a half marathon and we will be holding each other accountable to progress that weekend, and April 25 which is the next meet I'll attend.
So I weighed in at 171.0 with gear. I was hoping for 165, and I'll keep working on that. My best squat was 102.5 kilos (226 lbs), my best bench was 90 kilos (198lbs), and my best deadlift was 135 kilos (298lbs). All of that met my goals, and squats went over. I did successfully lift 204lbs on bench, however I racked it before given the command. I'll be using these numbers to set up my programming for the coming few months.
I still have some running and endurance goals as well. There were a lot of people I kept in mind during this meet. A friend Ali who talked about going to the Christmas regional a while back is how I got started in competing. Lee who gives tons of advice and coaching. Ruben who is working at reversing his diabetes. And lots of other people who inspire me to keep at it, even the critics provide motivation.
Low-end goals would be to increase each lift by 2.5 kilos. Here's what I would really be pleased by for April:
Squat - 112.5k/248lbs
Bench - 95k/209lbs
Deadlift - 145k/320lbs
These are semi arbitrary goals. I picked these by using Symmetric Strength's "analyze your strength" feature. According to that my bench is currently 6% above average, deadlift 3% above average, and squat 10% below average relative to other lifters. I did a rough calculation to get to 10% above on bench and deadlift and it gave me those numbers. 248 would bring me close to the average (250). 125k/276lb would get me to the 10% above. So I will try to get that average caught up this coming year.
Let's see how it goes!
KEEP GRINDING!
