Yet Another NROL Training Log

JorgenMan · 03-03-2008, 05:59 PM

I've just finished the Break-In program, and I'm starting Strength I after work today. I figured I'd post my information, if only to give myself a spot to keep a record.

So, for starters, here are my ending Break-In numbers. I don't think the starting numbers are very significant, since I was still figuring out what weights were appropriate. Supersets, etc. are all as described in the book. Weights are in pounds.

Squats
115 x 15
115 x 15

Static lunge (each leg)
50 x 15
50 x 15

Two-point DB row (elbow out)
35 x 15
35 x 14

Pushup
15
15

Swiss-ball crunch
20
19

Deadlift
145 x 15
145 x 15

Step-up (each leg)
20 x 15
20 x 15

DB one-arm shoulder press
30 x 15
30 x 10

Close-grip lat pulldown
120 x 15
120 x 14

Reverse crunch
20
20

I really need to get better about watching my tempo and rest periods, so I'll be working on that. I'm afraid I'm not very precise about what I eat, and I don't think that will change any time soon. I'm 5'11" and have brought myself up to 150 pounds from 143 after a few months of lifting. So, I just try to make a conscious effort to get enough to eat and keep it relatively healthy. I know that's not the fastest way to a great body, but that's what I'm willing to do at the moment.

I'll be working out twice a week. I'd like to do three, but work and family commitments just don't give me enough time.

JorgenMan · 03-05-2008, 01:48 PM

Wow, that first workout really kicked my butt. A day and a half later, and I'm still very sore.

Squats:
155 lb. x 6, 165 x 1, 145 x 6, 155 x 1, 115 x 11, 95 x 20

Superset:
Bulgarian Split Squats:
30 x 10, BW x 11, BW x 15
Step-ups
BW x 10, BW x 10

Superset:
Back extensions
BW x 10, BW x 10
Swiss-ball crunch
BW x 10, BW x 10

I started with too much weight on the squats, and my form suffered a bit. The split squat/step-up superset just killed me. I had to take ~90 second breaks in between exercises. I'm finally regaining the ability to walk, though.

Next workout tomorrow.

JorgenMan · 03-07-2008, 08:58 AM

Great workout yesterday.

Superset:
BB Bench:
115 x 6, 145 x 1, 135 x 6, 160 x 1, 115 x 10
BB bent-over row:
85 x 6, 115 x 1, 105 x 6, 135 x 1, 95 x 11

Superset:
Close-grip lat pulldown:
140 x 7, 140 x 7
DB shoulder press:
70 x 6, 70 x 5

Lower-body Russian twist:
BW x 10, BW x 10

JorgenMan · 03-10-2008, 09:58 AM

Feeling a bit under the weather today, so I think I'll postpone my workout until later in the week.

JorgenMan · 03-21-2008, 03:04 PM

I ended up missing both workouts last week due to illness. Here's my Monday (4 days ago) workout:

Deadlift:
155/6
185/1
165/6
195/1
95/12
95/20

Superset:
Romanian Deadlift:
65/10
75/10
95/10
Static lunge:
45/10
55/10
55/9

Superset:
Good morning:
50/10
70/10
Incline reverse crunch:
BW/10
BW/10

I felt really good about this one, like I used a good amount of weight to set a good baseline. Next workout is after work today.

JorgenMan · 03-21-2008, 08:09 PM

Today's workout: Strength 1D

Superset:
Chin-up:
BW / 6
30 / 2
25 / 6
40 / 1
BW / 9
Barbell shoulder press:
60 / 6
90 / 1
70 / 6
90 / 1
45 / 12

Superset:
DB bench press
45 / 8
45 / 8
Wide-grip cable seated row
100 / 8
80 / 8

Lower-body Russian twist
10
10

I went a little too light on several of the exercises, but I've found it's best to be conservative when you're establishing a baseline. A good workout nonetheless.

bigDman · 03-21-2008, 08:11 PM

nice chin upss!!!

JorgenMan · 03-24-2008, 03:14 PM

Duh, just realized my DB benches on Friday were 90 pounds (45 per DB), not 45.

JorgenMan · 03-25-2008, 07:45 AM

Boy, this workout is tough. I dropped the weights down on my squats until I can really get my form right.

Squats:
135 lb. x 6, 155 x 1, 135 x 6, 165 x 1, 115 x 11, 95 x 20

Superset:
Bulgarian Split Squats:
BW x 15, BW x 15, BW x 12
Step-ups
BW x 15, BW x 9

Superset:
Back extensions
BW x 10, BW x 10
Swiss-ball crunch
BW x 10, BW x 10

JorgenMan · 03-26-2008, 02:29 PM

Thanks, Dman.

So, is it normal for me to have such a hard time with this squat workout? I've always thought I was in decent shape (for someone who doesn't work out), but by the time I get to my second set of step-ups, my legs are completely exhausted, and I'm even resting when I'm technically not supposed to.

Another question (a bit of a long one): I'm only able to get to the gym twice a week. I've got some dumbbells and a bench at home, and I'd like to get another workout in during the week without disrupting my NROL schedule. Is there a good way to do this and still allow my body to recover from my NROL workouts (which are what I'd like to focus on)?
This extra workout would me mainly to keep my muscles busy. For example, my schedule now has me doing squats once every two weeks. I'm sure I don't need to recover for two weeks, but I don't want to be fatigued when I do deadlifts (I do squats one Monday, DLs the next Monday). I don't have the equipment to do heavy lifts at home, so it would be something more suited to dumbbells.

For example, am I going to have any trouble if I do squats/lunges on Monday, upper body on Thursday, a squat/lunge-ish DB workout on Saturday, and DLs on the following Monday?

Or, could I do DLs on Monday, some sort of at-home DB workout on Wednesday, and upper body at the gym on Friday? If so, would I be better off doing upper body on Wednesday, so I could recover from DLs, or something like DLs, so I wouldn't be fatigued for Friday? Or squats, maybe?

Sorry for the long post. I'm not expecting answers to every one of my little questions. I'm just trying to convey what sort of ideas I have for adding another workout to my schedule. Any advice will be appreciated.

JorgenMan · 03-31-2008, 09:04 AM

Well, I had a work meeting run late on Thursday, so I didn't get to the gym. I tossed the kids into the air for a while at home and did some DB bench presses (4x100, 5x100, 5x100, 4x100) and DB rows (4x6x100) afterwards. It actually turned out to be a decent workout. That, and shoveling gravel/pushing wheelbarrows around through loose gravel for two and a half hours on Saturday.

I'm not sure what I'll do today. I could either pick up where I left, which means I would do my bench press workout (Strength 1-B) today, or I could call what I did Thursday my DB bench press workout (Strength 1-D), do deadlifts today, and do BB bench/row later this week (swap workout B and D). I'll probably do the latter.

JorgenMan · 04-01-2008, 09:06 AM

Argh. Had another hour-and-a-half surprise meeting right as I was about to leave work yesterday, so I missed my workout again. I'll be going after work tonight, though.

rachael24 · 04-01-2008, 09:12 AM

Good stuff...Keep us updated!

JorgenMan · 04-02-2008, 06:31 PM

Well, add this to your list of reasons to make sure you're paying attention in the gym:

I hadn't had a good workout in over a week, so I came to the gym excited to lift some big (for me) weights. So, I went to the bench press and busted out my first set of six reps, at ten pounds heavier than last time. Then, I did my single-rep heavy set, and when I pulled it off the supports, I knew something was wrong - it was way too light. Seems I had only put on 135, which was 10 pounds lighter than last week. I probably should have increased the weight and done it again, but I didn't. So, I did 135 for my next set of six, which is what I did last week. Well, I could only do 4 reps compared to last week's six. At this point I realize I haven't done a single set of rows, which are supposed to be supersetted with my bench press. So, I had only had half the rest time I was supposed to. Needless to say, my bench press numbers are crap. Everything else was pretty good, though.

Superset (sort of):
BB bench press:
125 x 6
135 x 1
135 x 4
150 x 1
105 x 8
BB bent-over row:
95 x 6
125 x 1
115 x 6
145 x 1 (+10 lbs)
105 x 9

Superset:
Close-grip lat pulldown:
140 x 8
140 x 8
DB shoulder press:
70 x 7
70 x 5

Lower-body Russian twist
10
10

JorgenMan · 04-03-2008, 09:00 AM

JorgenMan · 04-04-2008, 09:42 AM

Yesterday's workout:

Deadlift:
165 / 6
200 / 1
185 / 6
225 / 1
115 / 12
100 / 20

Superset:
Romanian deadlift:
95 / 10
105 / 10
115 / 10
Static lunge:
55 / 10
55 / 10
65 / 10

Superset:
Good morning:
65 / 10
95 / 10
Vertical hanging leg-hip raise:
BW / 10
BW / 10

I really need to work on flexibility, especially in my hamstrings. I have a hard time getting full ROM on RDLs.

tcoy777 · 04-07-2008, 02:42 PM

I am almost positive the Bench and Bent over Rows were straight sets not Supersets.

Your workouts are looking good. Keep up the good work.

JorgenMan · 04-07-2008, 04:23 PM

Thanks for the encouragement.

I just double-checked, and the BB bench press and bent-over rows in Strength I are a superset.

JorgenMan · 04-08-2008, 08:13 AM

7 Apr workout:

Superset:
Chin-up
20 / 5
35 / 1
25 / 6
50 / 1
BW / 10
Barbell shoulder press
65 / 6
95 / 1
75 / 6
105 / 1
65 / 14

Superset:
Dumbbell bench press
100 / 8
100 / 5
Wide-grip cable seated row
70 / 8
80 / 8

Incline sit-ups (no room to do Russian twists)
BW / 10
BW / 10

The shoulder press rack was available this time, so I was able to lift much more weight than last time. I actually think I could have done a bit more. I'm still trying to figure out a good weight for the wide-grip cable seated row. The amount of weight I'm using now feels okay, but I'm not able to hold it at my stomach at all.

Mahler · 04-08-2008, 08:18 AM

Hey, how did I miss this one. Another NROL convert.
Great to see you posting your training.
The workouts are coming along fine and you seem to be making good progress.
Best of luck with the program.

tcoy777 · 04-08-2008, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JorgenMan

Thanks for the encouragement.

I just double-checked, and the BB bench press and bent-over rows in Strength I are a superset.

I stand corrected. I looked to last night. Ooops I missed that on my first week. I wonder if that will help or hurt the benches.

JorgenMan · 04-08-2008, 09:11 AM

Everyone's different, of course, but I was surprised how much less I was able to lift when I didn't superset the bench press.

JorgenMan · 04-09-2008, 09:44 AM

After this thread about Lou's recent blog post on tempo, I've been seriously reconsidering the way I'm doing step-ups (3-second eccentrics, not putting any weight on my foot when it touches the floor, upper body bending forward to keep balance). So, I tried to find a couple videos (example below) to find out how other people do them.

In the thread I mentioned, Lou says 3 second eccentrics are unreasonable for step-ups, so that takes care of the first point. As for the second point, the book says, "as soon as [your foot] brushes the floor, lift again with [your leg]." I have been taking this to mean that you should never really put any weight on your bottom foot until you're done with the set. None of the videos I've seen of step-ups do this, though - everyone puts their weight down before doing up again.

So, how does everyone else do step-ups?

JorgenMan · 04-10-2008, 09:18 PM

Squat:
135 / 6
165 / 1
145 / 6
175 / 1
125 / 12
105 / 14

Superset:
Bulgarian Split Squat:
20 / 15
BW / 15
BW / 15
Step-up:
20 / 15
BW / 12
BW / 10

Superset:
Back extension
BW / 10
BW / 10
Swiss-ball crunch
BW / 10
BW / 10

Hey! I finally did three sets of step-ups!

JorgenMan · 04-22-2008, 08:25 AM

Argh! I did it again! On my second bench press set, I thought I had 45's on the bar, but it was really just 35's. It probably shouldn't have made a big deal, but it threw me off for the rest of my bench presses.

Superset:
BB bench press:
115 / 6
125 / 1
135 / 5
165 / 0
95 / 14
BB bent-over row
105 / 6
135 / 1
125 / 6
155 / 1
105 / 10

Superset:
Close-grip lat pulldown
150 / 8
150 / 8
DB shoulder press
70 / 8
70 / 5

Lower-body Russian twist:
15 / BW
15 / BW

JorgenMan · 04-26-2008, 11:15 PM

Thursday's workout:

Deadlift:
175 / 6
215 / 1
200 / 6
245 / 1
115 / 12
125 / 20

Superset:
Romanian deadlift:
105 / 10
115 / 10
115 / 9 (lost grip)
Static lunge:
65 / 10
65 / 10
85 / 10

Superset (I didn't realize I wasn't technically supposed to superset these, but I don't think it matters too much):
Good morning:
95 / 10
95 / 10
Vertical hanging leg-hip raise:
10
10

My form slipped up on my heaviest DL and on my good mornings, so I need to watch that next time. Good workout overall, though.

JorgenMan · 04-28-2008, 09:46 PM

Today:

Superset:
Chin-up:
20 / 6
40 / 1
30 / 6
65 / Fail (55?)
BW / 9
Barbell shoulder press:
70 / 6
105 / 1
85 / 6
115 / 1
85 / 9

Superset:
DB bench press:
100 / 8
100 / 6
Wide-grip seated cable row:
80 / 8
60 / 8

Lower-body Russian twist:
BW / 15
BW / 15

I guess I got a little excited for my big chin-up, because I wore myself out trying 65 pounds, then wore myself out more trying 60, so I couldn't even do 55. I think I could have done 60 fresh, but definitely could have done 55. Oh well.

I still have no idea what weight to do on the seated rows. Less, I think, because I still have to use momentum to get the weight up.

JorgenMan · 05-02-2008, 09:26 PM

Squat:
145 / 6
170 / 1
155 / 6
180 / Fail
135 / 10
115 / 12

Superset:
Bulgarian split squat:
40 / 15 (misread my last workout - it was supposed to be 20# total, not 20# per DB)
BW / 15
BW / 15
Step-up:
BW / 15
BW / 15
BW / 10

Back extension:
BW / 10
BW / 10
Swiss-ball crunch:
10
10

JorgenMan · 05-05-2008, 09:48 PM

Superset:
BB bench press:
115 / 6
145 / 1
135 / 6
165 / 1
115 / 11
BB bent-over row
115 / 6
145 / 1
135 / 6
155 / 1
100 / 10

Superset:
Close-grip lat pulldown
160 / 8
160 / 8
DB shoulder press
70 / 8
70 / 8

Lower-body Russian twist:
15 / BW
15 / BW

I felt good about this one. For starters, I didn't screw up my weights on the bench press sets (which I feel is commendable, even though I lifted almost the exact same amounts as my first workout in this program). Other than that, I made good progress all around. I plan on posting my total progress (for Strength I) as soon as I finish Strength I (two more workouts to go).

JorgenMan · 05-09-2008, 11:36 PM

2008-05-09

Deadlift:
195 / 6
235 / 1
205 / 6
255 / 1
145 / 12
135 / 20

Superset:
Romanian Deadlift:
115 / 10
115 / 10
125 / 10
Static lunge:
85 / 10
85 / 10
95 / 6

Good morning:
85 / 10
85 / 10

Hanging leg/hip raise:
10
10

Form felt really good on the heavy DL, and I took a bit off the GMs so I could do them right, and they felt good, too.