Well, it appears my second log has disappeared in the transition. Luckily, I had only just begun it so not much was lost. I will try to remember what I posted. I finished up about 5 months of bulking on in the first week of January, having gone through the S2B program and the Barely Legal Program. My weight increased from 174 to 195 in that time. My end of bulking measurements were:
The bracketed numbers were the change over the one-month course of BL. Haven't got an exact bf% measurement but based on "looks" and some number crunching calculations, I'd say it's around 15 percent.
For the cutting phase, I will be doing a 4 week course of phase 1 of Homegrown Muscle (Iron Manual), the program I started all this craziness with back in January 2004. Not sure what I'll do after that; perhaps a 10X3 routine. Also doing at least 2 days per week of HIIT.
Diet-wise, I'm shooting for a 40/30/30 PFC split in the 2500 calorie range. In the first two weeks however, my diet has sucked as I have had a number of famly birthdays/celebrations to contend with. The weekdays haven't been too bad, but the weekends have been less than spectacular. This will need to improve.
Goalwise, I would like one day to be 180 at less than 10% BF. That's unlikely to happen with this cut, but it's what I'm working towards. I can likely get down into the 10 percent range, but the weight will be below 180 if I do it. We'll see.
So that's the introductory bs. Now I need to catch up the workouts this past 10 days or so.
I'd forgotten how difficult this routine was in terms of endurance. It was really a shock to the system after doing low or midrange rep work for the past 5 months. The 12 reps just knocked me out.
I switched up the order of the first quad to put the pullup up front. I found that I was failing because my forearm strength was shot after the RDLs. It worked a lot better having the pullups out of the way first.
Having said that, I almost died during this w/o. My gym is in a pool complex and is VERY warm and, with the high reps, I really overheated and could barely make it through the second quad. It was really only a feat of pure will that got me through it. I have decided to try to workout more at my downtown gym (which has equipment limitations unfortunately - though my new dip belt I got for Xmas will help) and also reduce the reps into the lower end of the range ... 8 instead of 12 ... and see how that goes.
Hey brother! Glad to be back on the forums and "talking" again. I missed hanging out with you! Hey, if you get a chance, check out Waterbury's newest routine for cutting. I posted a link in the training section yesterday. I'm going to start it on the 30th. It looks wicked brutal. I imagine it'll have the fat just dripping off of me... well, at least I hope. If nothing else it'll get me into wicked good shape. check it out. It'd be cool having someone else doing it along with me. Just an thought.
Those hanging leg raises kick your ass don't they? Sheesh. I just started doing them again and I forgot how much they hurt. Hard to keep the hip flexors out of the motion too.
Good to see an update on you my friend. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
BB Squat 3X8 @ 185
Pullup 12, 12, 10 @ b/w
DB BP 3X12 @ 65 (EH)
BB Romanian DL 3X8 @ 175
QUAD 2:
Dip 3X8 @ b/w + 25
BB Lunge 3X8 @ 100
BB Bent Over Row 3X10 @ 100
Hanging Leg Raise 3X12 @ b/w
Well, I seemed to solve the overheating problem. Lowering the reps and increasing the weight have really helped. This felt much better, though still a bitch. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
QUAD 1:
Pullup 3X8 @ b/w + 15
BB Squat 3X8 @ 195
DB BP 3X12 @ 65 (EH)
BB Romanian DL 3X8 @ 185
QUAD 2:
Dip 3X8 @ b/w + 25
BB Lunge 3X8 @ 105
BB Bent Over Row 3X10 @ 105
Hanging Leg Raise 3X12 @ b/w
Managing to increase my weights slowly using the 8 rep scheme. Still getting kicked in the ass by this program, endurance-wise, but not too bad in terms of the weights being moved. Room to grow.
Terry - I'll look into the CW program you mentioned. Thanks. I'd love to pair up but not sure it will work, timing wise. I still have 2 1/2 weeks of HGM to go. But I'll definitely let you know. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
There up to date. Still have a w/o to do tonight, if I can find the time. I've been trying to get to it all weekend! [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]
QUAD 1:
Pullup 3X8 @ b/w + 15
BB Squat 3X8 @ 205
DB BP 3X8 @ 70 (EH)
BB Romanian DL 3X8 @ 195
QUAD 2:
Dip 3X8 @ b/w + 25
BB Lunge 3X8 @ 110
BB Bent Over Row 3X8 @ 110
Hanging Leg Raise 3X12 @ b/w
Felt better today. Managed to up many of hte weights and got over 200 on my squats for 8 which I'm pretty pleased about since it's in the middle of a quad. I just hope my endurance improves soon so I'm not sucking wind all the time! I really did forget how tough this sucker was.
Onward ...!
PS I forgot to mention I have been doing cardio/HIIT twice a week: 10 minutes on the StairMaster, workout 9 (intermittent hills) at level 12; then 10 minutes on the stationary bike, one minute warmup, 8 rounds of HIIT at 15/45 sec intervals (level 3 at 80 rpm/ level 10 at +140 rpm), then 1 minute cooldown. Also some shoulder stretching and ab work on those days too.
CARDIO DAY: 12 minutes on the stationary bike, one minute warmup, 10 rounds of HIIT at 15/45 sec intervals (level 3 at 80 rpm/ level 10 at +140 rpm), then 1 minute cooldown. Then, 10 minutes on the StairMaster, workout 9 (intermittent hills) at level 12. Finished off with some ab work: weighted situps, side planks, weighted back extensions, blah, blah, blah ...
When I did S2B, the instructions for HIIT were that your recovery period should be three times your work interval. So with a 45 work interval, you should have a 135 sec rest. I believe the idea is to have a long enough RI that your heart rate returns back to normal.
QUAD 1:
Pullup 8,8,7.5 @ b/w + 20
BB Squat 3X8 @ 210
DB BP 3X8 @ 75 (EH)
BB Romanian DL 3X8 @ 205
QUAD 2:
Dip 3X8 @ b/w + 30
BB Lunge 3X8 @ 115
BB Bent Over Row 3X8 @ 115
Hanging Leg Raise 3X12 @ b/w
Man, did this feel good today. I felt really strong and engaged. I increased weights on all exercises except the leg raise. Couldn't quite get that last rep on the pullup at +20 but considering I struggled with +15 last time, I was happy with this. Really pleased to be over 200 on both squat and RDL in Quad 1 and the DB BP with 75s is a new PB for me. Never had the balls to pick up 75s before! And then I go and do 3X8 no problem. It's not that long ago I remember struggling with 50's so this is sweet. Woohoo.
You're family. Unfortunately that means sometimes I listen to you like I do my loud children which is just enough to know you're not hurting but not enough to actually retain the storyline of the Doodlebops.
CARDIO DAY: 14 minutes on the Stair Master, one minute warmup, 6 rounds of HIIT at 30/90 sec intervals (150 ft/min and 60 ft/min), then 1 minute cooldown. Then, 12 minute hill program on Stationary Bike at level 6. Finished off with some ab work: weighted situps, side planks, weighted back extensions, blah, blah, blah ...
QUAD 1:
Pullup 3X8 @ b/w + 20
BB Squat 3X8 @ 215
DB BP 3X8 @ 75 (EH)
BB Romanian DL 3X8 @ 210
QUAD 2:
Dip 3X8 @ b/w + 30
BB Lunge 3X8 @ 120
BB Bent Over Row 3X8 @ 120
Hanging Leg Raise 3X12 @ b/w
I love those little 2.5 pound plates. I wasn't going to increase my weights today but I saw the little fellers and went, hell, I can add a couple of them OK! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] So I ended up adding 5 pounds to four of my lifts. Not much but still an improvement!
I think I will do one more workout using the 3X8 rep scheme and then drop down to the 4 to 6 rep range for the last two weeks.
Weight is SLOWLY coming off. I'm back down to 190 from a high of 195. I'm a little impatient though .... especially when I read about that damned Gymrat and the fat "dripping" off him! [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] (J/K bro - I'm really happy for you ... jealous as all getup but happy nonetheless! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img])
The slow incremental progress adds up. Be happy with your progress. If it comes off to fast you run the risk of burning off some of that new found muscle.
Great log K-Court. Interested in the HIIT interval recommendations that you mentioned. I've been trying to do some intervals on the Stairmaster - it's a pretty good workout!
Rob: You're doing awesomely (had to make that an adverb). I'm really impressed with the weight you're using. Regarding the increasing weight, the general guideline is to add no more than 5% when you add (which might be each week), and, since that isn't necessarily sustainable for too long, even less. The smallest increase possible (2.5 lbs for some lifts) can add up to a lot over time.
Cuts Like a Knife: The De-fatting of K-Court
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