Today was the hardest workout I ever had. A training log. - JP Fitness Forums

justinbass · 04-08-2008, 08:32 PM

April 8th, 2008 was the hardest workout of my life, to date.

I'm not kidding. It took every ounce of my resolve to finish it. But finish it I did. And I am proud of that. It was my first Hypertrophy 1 B workout from The New Rules of Lifting. I had to take longer breaks between sets than I am used to doing to regain my breath, sweat was pouring down my face, and at the end I almost got sick. But I finished.

Now it is 3 hours later, and I feel great.

Today is the day I make a training log, and stick with a routine for a long time.

My Story:
I am 27. I've been "active" my entire life. I've belonged to one gym or another since I was 17. Some months I make great progress, some months I barely maintain what I had, and other months I forget to workout. I played sports all of my life college. I am lucky that I've always ate healthy and prefer clean food(thanks to my parent's influence).

Recently I decided I want to be a monster. Not a steroid fueled, bulging monster, but rather a lean, fit, 30 pullups at a time, kind of monster. I want to be in great shape. During the last 3 months, I've been making gains better than I ever have. I don't skip workouts, and I "try harder" while at the gym. A month ago I bought NROL and read it cover to cover in a day.

A month ago I could honestly say that I'd never ever done a deadlift, and I hadn't squatted in years. Now I love them.

So here we go.

justinbass · 04-08-2008, 08:48 PM

And here it is. The hardest workout to date:

NROL: HYPERTROPHY 1 B

Day 2 - April 8, 2008
Weight: 185

Straight Sets with 60 sec rests

Squat
1 x 10 x 135
3 x 10 x 155

Deadlift
3 x 10 x 135
1 x 8 x 135

Superset with full 60 sec rests

Bulgarian Split Squat
4 x 10 x BW (Body weight)

Step Up (higher than knee level)
2 x 10 x 30
2 x 10 x BW (Body weight)

Straight set with 60 sec rest

Reverse Crunch
1 x 20

Hanging Bent Leg Raises (Hanging Knee raises?)
2 x 15

Notes:
I didn't feel that the Reverse crunch was doing enough, so I switched to Handing Knee Raises for my final two sets.

justinbass · 04-08-2008, 09:05 PM

I didn't take notes during my break in program. Sorry. I did write down my first hypertrophy workout, so here it is.

Sorry about the out-of-order thing. It seemed wrong to not start out this thread with my hardest workout first.

NROL: HYPERTROPHY 1 A

Day 1 - April 6, 2008
Weight: 185

Superset with full 90 sec rest

Dumbell Incline Bench Press
1 x 6 x 120 (2 60s)
1 x 6 x 140
1 x 7 x 150
1 x 5 x 160
1 x 3 x 160

Cable Seated Row with Overhand Grip
1 x 5 x 150
4 x 5 x 162.5

Superset with full 90 sec rest

Dumbell Shoulder Press
1 x 5 x 80 (2 40s)
1 x 5 x 90
2 x 5 x 40
1 x 6 x 40

Wide Grip Lat Pull Down
1 x 6 x 150
1 x 5 x 162.5
3 x 6 x 162.5

Superset with full 90 sec rest

Barbell Close Grip Bench Press
1 x 8 x 95
1 x 8 x 115
2 x 5 x 135
1 x 3 x 135
1 x 7 x 95

High Pull
1 x 8 x 65 (fast)
1 x 7 x 85 (fast)
1 x 10 x 65(slow)
2 x 6 x 65(slow)

Straight set with 60 sec rest

Swiss Ball Crunch
1 x 20
1 x 20 (alternating left and right for obliques)
1 x 20

Notes:
I underestimated the amount of weight I could do for some of these exercises, so my numbers are all over the place. My High Pulls felt sloppy on the first two sets, so I did a slower, my controlled movement on the last three sets. This workout felt good.

liftintexas · 04-09-2008, 06:44 AM

good luck, Justin. On a great path.

when you say lean and fit - does that have any target weights or body fat or anything? Awesome that you've tied your goals to doing "something" like 30 pullups.

justinbass · 04-09-2008, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by liftintexas

good luck, Justin. On a great path.

when you say lean and fit - does that have any target weights or body fat or anything? Awesome that you've tied your goals to doing "something" like 30 pullups.

Thanks.

I don't have a target weight. I do have a mental picture of what I'd like to look like. Less body fat, more defined muscles, more visible abs. In the right lighting, at the right time of day, I have visible abs. I'd like to have visible abs in any lighting any time.

As for the pullups. If I am completely fresh, I can currently do 14 pullups with proper form and full extension. The next set I can do about 9. Then 6 or 7. I don't know what it is about that lift in particular that makes me want to concur it. But I do.

Side note: I am a lot less sore right now that I expected to be. I plan to go for a short run this evening and return to the gym on Thursday for another day of Hyper 1 A.

-Justin

Mahler · 04-09-2008, 07:47 AM

Hey, Hey, Hey,
Justin is in it for the long haul.
Best of luck, buddy.

I'll be watching.

liftintexas · 04-09-2008, 09:47 AM

how's the eating?

justinbass · 04-09-2008, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by liftintexas

how's the eating?

I can happily say I was 100% clean yesterday, and so far so good today with no plans to mess up.

I don't count calories. I just do my best to eat clean. Eggs, seafood, chicken, lots of veggies, fruit, nuts, milk, yogurt, cheese, brown rice, oatmeal, whole wheat pasta and healthy cereals make up most of my diet. I drink nothing but water and coffee.

I love pizza, cheeseburgers and a good microbrew beer, so those sneak in every now and again to keep me honest.

Steer810 · 04-09-2008, 08:09 PM

Very cool man. You've got a good program going, good diet, good attitude, keep it up!

Since you are looking at doing CrossFit type stuff, if I may suggest, it may not be a bad idea to stick with NROL and complete the entire Hyp program and during this time throwing in a CF WOD once a week (or twice). This is all depending on your goals.

justinbass · 04-09-2008, 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steer810

Very cool man. You've got a good program going, good diet, good attitude, keep it up!

Since you are looking at doing CrossFit type stuff, if I may suggest, it may not be a bad idea to stick with NROL and complete the entire Hyp program and during this time throwing in a CF WOD once a week (or twice). This is all depending on your goals.

Not a bad idea. I saw a video of the Mini-Cindy WOD recently, and I plan to give that a try soon. I can't imagine what the last few minutes feel like.

liftintexas · 04-10-2008, 04:03 PM

sounds like a great plan and good job on clean eating!

justinbass · 04-10-2008, 05:54 PM

So I made a mistake and accidentally switched the wide grip lat pull downs and the seated cable rows. Whoops. To make tracking easier, I'll list them as though I had done them in the right order.

NROL: HYPERTROPHY 1 A

Day 3 - April 10, 2008
Weight: 185

Superset with full 30 sec rest

Dumbell Incline Bench Press
1 x 15 x 100 (2 50s)
1 x 14 x 110
1 x 13 x 100

Cable Seated Row with Overhand Grip
3 x 15 x 100

Superset with full 30 sec rest

Dumbell Shoulder Press
1 x 10 x 60
2 x 13 x 50

Wide Grip Lat Pull Down
1 x 15 x 100
2 x 15 x 112.5

Superset with full 30 sec rest

Barbell Close Grip Bench Press
1 x 13 x 95
1 x 10 x 95
1 x 13 x 95

High Pull
2 x 15 x 45
1 x 15 x 55

Straight set with 60 sec rest

Swiss Ball Crunch
1 x 20
1 x 20 (alternating left and right for obliques)
1 x 20

Notes:
I felt good about today. My forearms were tight by the 6th set of pulling. With time I imagine I'll get a stronger grip. It's kind of hard not too when picking weights up and moving them around. I came to the gym a little tight and sore, so I did a nice, long warm up before jumping into the workout.

On an unrelated note, I have my first show with a cover band I joined recently tomorrow night. We'll be playing for just over 3 hours. I hope my arms will make itt through.

justinbass · 04-10-2008, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by liftintexas

sounds like a great plan and good job on clean eating!

Thanks!

So far, so good. I might be forced to grab dinner at a bar tomorrow, so I am hoping they have a grilled chicken sandwich.

K-Court · 04-10-2008, 06:03 PM

Good luck, Justin. You look like you are setting yourself up for some serious success. The NROL workouts are definitely not for the faint-hearted.

justinbass · 04-10-2008, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by K-Court

The NROL workouts are definitely not for the faint-hearted.

You aren't kidding. I love that I am getting my heart rate into the 170s and loosing my breath from lifting. It has made me rethink my views of what a "good" workout consists of.

justinbass · 04-11-2008, 02:34 PM

April 10, 2008 - Rest Day.

Still eating clean.

Looking forward to doing squats and deadlifts tomorrow.

justinbass · 04-13-2008, 10:55 AM

NROL: HYPERT