and so this is fifty....

[TomK]

Originally Posted by kfisherx

Yeah for DW and her pull up goals! That is sooooo cool when I see chicks doing pull ups.
Sorry Tom for the hijack more stocked for her.

karla - no problem! I agree chicks doing pull ups is cool - especially when they are hawt chicks like the DW

Originally Posted by Biskit

Tom,
Far be it from me to stand in the way of the DW! I found this very informative explanation of why Magnesium is a vital electrolyte (along with potassium and calcium) but often overlooked. Your wife is certainly correct in that you need calcium and potassium, but:

"So what’s the connection between magnesium and muscle cramps? Think of a key and a lock. Normally stored in muscle and bone, magnesium acts like a key that unlocks muscle cells, allowing potassium and calcium to move in and out when needed as a muscle does its job.
Without adequate levels of any of these three nutrients, the muscle becomes irritable, says Dr. McLean. “It’s a crude analogy, but to keep the muscle cell adequately healthy and alive, you need to get potassium into the cell, and you need to have magnesium to open up the door to let the potassium in,” he explains. Make no mistake: Both potassium and calcium are also vital to this process. It’s just that the body generally has adequate amounts of these two electrolytes on hand, says Dr. Brilla. If the body is going to get low on any electrolyte, it is most likely to be magnesium, she says."

As an aside, I take ZMA. I have found it to be a fantastic supplement.
I take two before bed. It helps with sleep btw, the magnesium has a relaxing quality to it naturally. So, nuff said.

Peace out.
Deb

Thanks for the update, I appreciate the info. I've tried ZMA before - without any impact. Perhaps I just couldn't isolate that supp on my system. So far I have had my banana, my G2 and later on the Mag supp We will know soon enough what works.

[Biskit]

You're welcome, and good luck!

Deb

[TomK]

Thursday - 6/18 - Scheduled Day Off. I considered an early morning run, but decided instead to stick with the plan. I have limited leg soreness - hard to tell if it is doms from yesterday's DL's or a hangover from the prior cramping. Today will be rest & supps focused on the cramping.

[TomK]

Friday – 6/19 – Chest and Back
This was intended to be a very straight forward day in the gym. However, work once again tried to get in the way of my workout. I had to limit my training to 50 minutes, so my PT and I agreed to remove the additional arm training from the session. I suggested that tweak as my bi’s continue to generate doms (as does my back after the Wednesday DL session).

Warm ups
Antagonist Sets – BB Bench Press and T Bar Row (one minute rest between exercises, two minutes between sets)
BP – 235x2, 240x2, 230x4x2, 225x7, 225x6
T Bar Row – 135x6x4 (with 2 second pause at top)
Antagonist Sets – Incline BB Bench Press and Wide grip lat pull downs (no rest between exercises, 2 minutes between sets)
Incline BP – 185x6x4
Lat Pulls – 100x6, 120x6x3

This turned out to be a great workout, at least in terms of results. The 225 sets were strong and I’ve clearly made significant progress towards my strength goals. My PT was really please and the DW even gave me the props after watching one of my sets. (On a related note, the DW continues to make progress – hitting 3 sets of 4 pull ups today). I’ve had no leg cramps for a full day, so the additional supps seem to be working.

[TomK]

Does anyone know why a log post would not be readable by a Mac. My post above is readable on both my PC's, but the DW's mac just downloads gibberish.

[TomK]

Saturday – 6/20 – Squat Club!

The DW and I started my Father’s Day weekend with a great session. We had a good time, the gym was crowed and we had to adjust our workout – but it was still great.

Warm Ups
Squat – 275x8, 295x8x2, 295x10
RDL – 175x8x4
Walking DB lunges – 35(e)x10(e)x4
Calf Raises – 270x8x4
Glute Kick back – 35 to 45 (e) x8x3
Ham Curls – 65x8x3 (slow lift – 3-4 second raise and 3-4 second decline – we were working on time under tension
Speed Squats on Smith – 185x15x3

This was a fun little workout. I was a bit uncertain about doing legs after my cramping earlier this week. However, the lifts all went well. We will see about the DOMS in the morning.

[TomK]

Sunday – 6/21 – Sports massage. I needed this more than I realized. My upper back was tight. My glute/ham tie-in was super tight. It felt great to have everything release.

Monday – 6/22 – Chest and Back

My right bicep has not fully recovered. We again modified the workout to avoid excess use of the arms.

Warm ups
Antagonist Sets – BB Bench Press and T Bar Row (no rest between exercises, two-three minutes between sets)
BP – 240x2x2, 230x4x2, 225x6, 225x5
T Bar Row – 135x6x4 (with 2 second pause at top)
Antagonist Sets – Incline BB Bench Press and Hammer Machine lat pulls (no rest between exercises, 2 minutes between sets)
Incline BP – 185x6x4
Lat Pulls – 90(e)x6x4

This was just an okay workout; I lost a few reps on the bench. This was my last really heavy lifting session for a week. My PT wants me to reduce my lifts (is that a deload?) for the rest of the week.

[TomK]

Tuesday through Friday.


I have been away this week, traveling for work. I managed to run twice, both times were on Thursday. I ran in the morning in Washington, DC along the National Mall. I have not had the chance to run in DC in several years. It was beautiful day and the Mall is a spectacular place to run. There is truly something majestic when the forward view on your run is either the Capital or the Washington Monument. Later on Thursday evening I ran here in Boston in a charity event. There were 12,000 runners participating in the event. We started at the Common, ran along Commonwealth Avenue to Kenmore Square and then returned. The course was too narrow for such a mass start, and there were too many people who lacked any understanding of race etiquette. I maintained my good attitude by reminding myself that 1) everyone is a newbie at some point, 2) they paid their $$ to the charity and 3) there was beer party and rally following the run!

[TomK]

Saturday – 6/27 – Full Body Workout.

Squat Club & Heavy Leg workout gave way to a full body session. This was the first day in a week that the DW was back into the weight room – she completed her rest week – her PT will be pleased. Per my PT’s instructions, I lifted at a reduced intensity. The changed routine was still a lot of fun. The gym was not crowded and we were able to play for 90 minutes – 8 exercises, 33 sets and 290 reps!

Warm Up
Pull up – BWx2x5
BB Bench Press – 185x10x4
Squats – 225x10x4
RDL – 145x10x4
Uni DB Row – 50(e)x10x4
Arnold Press – 35x10x4
Curls – 25/30x10x4
Tricep Rope Pressdown – 50x10x4

I modified my bicep curls. I lifted 25on my right and 30 on my left. My right side has a bit of a tweak and isn’t recovering as fast as I would expect. I think the uneven work allowed me to remain stable while protecting the right bicep. The weather here in Boston has marginally improved, we have had so much rain – it just kills everyone’s mood.

[TomK]

Monday – 6/29 – Chest & Back Strength Training.
This is the final week of the cycle for my Bench Press training. Today was a back to basics lifting session after a relatively light workload last week. My nutrition plan and weight are in the crapper, after hosting relatives and young kids all weekend. However I am well rested and my lifts showed that today.

Warm Up
Antagonist Sets – Bench Press and Chin Ups (2 minutes rest between exercises)
Bench – 245x2x2, 235x4x2, 225x6, 225x9
Chin Ups – BWx6x4, BWx4x2
Antagonist Sets – Incline BB Bench Press and Hammer Machine Rows with OH grip (1 minute rest between exercises)
Incline Bench – 185x6x4
Hammer Row – 220x6, 230x6x3
Crunch – BWx12x4

This was a good day of lifting. All the sets felt smooth, not easy, but smooth. The final set of 225 for 9 was really good. I am more confident that I will meet my initial strength training goal for 2008.

There was “good news, bad news” part to my workout. MY PT informed me that he is leaving next month to start Grad School. I’m pleased that he is going to school. I’m bummed because he is the best PT I have seen over the last three years. The only real downside is that I will have to audition a new PT and then “train” him/her to train me.

[TomK]

Wednesday – 7/1 – Shoulders, Traps, Delts & Deads


Not my usual workout. I only managed 5 hours of rest, so the first big lift of the day was just getting my sorry butt out of the rack. Once I accomplished that, getting to the gym seemed easy.

Warm ups
Arnold Press – 50(e)x8x2, x7 (failed on last rep of the first exercise)
Upright BB Row – 95x8x3
Mil Press – 115x4, 95x8x2 (no strength here, dropped weight to maintain form)
Rear Delt Machine Fly – 100x10x3
Front raise – 20(e)x8x3
Lat raise – 20(e)x8x3 (had to drop weight on both exercises to maintain form)
Dead Lifts – 185x1x30

Well, I now believe I have enough data in the sample set to state my initial hypothesis - anytime I get less than 6.5 hours of uninterrupted sleep, my lifts go into the crapper. Maybe on bad sleep days I’ll just switch over to cardio – who knows. When I failed on the Arnold’s, I suspected that I would have to continually trade off lbs for form. This is the one day a week I lift on my own and I have to watch everything – usually my PT or the DW just bark at me if/when I get sloppy. I added the DL’s at the end of the session just so I could walk away with a sense of accomplishment. The weight was just a fraction below BW and I managed to do 30 good reps – each one from and to the floor.

[TomK]

Friday – 7/3 – Chest and Back Penultimate workout!

My training session was 2 hours later than usual – I couldn’t see waking up at 5:30 am on my day off. My PT was happy to delay the start time, although I think he just added another client to my usual time.

Warm Ups
Antagonist Sets – Flat BB Bench Press and Wide Grip Lat Pull Downs (2 minutes rest between all exercises)
Bench Press – 250x2x2, 240x4x2, 235x6, 225x8
Lat Pull Downs – 140x6x6
Antagonist Sets – Incline BB Bench Press and Hammer Machine Row w/overhand grip (no rest between exercises – 2 minutes between exercise pairs)
Incline Bench – 185x6x4
Hammer Row – 115(e)x6x2, 125(e)x6, 135(e)x10

This was one of my best training sessions. I hit my goal for one set on the final Bench Press lift! I’m very happy with the way my PT put this progression together. My PT is really pleased – I guess there is something very satisfying for a trainer to get a client through a program and to position them for achieving a personal goal. My test is Monday morning – the goal is 225x8x3.

[kfisherx]

Wow.... Good reminder for me on the sleep thing. I believe this is possibly one of the factors in my own crappy lifting lately. I just woke up from a 12 hour slumber so OBVIOUSLY needing more rest during the week. LOL!

[Willie]

Tom, WTF is up with the weather?!? I am finally home (so glad), but my wheels were going to fall off if one more person told me that I brought my "Seattle weather" to Boston. HOLY HELL, that was some rain!

[TomK]

Saturday – 7/4 – Holiday Squat Club.

Our family was able to join us for the holiday; this is the first time we have all been together in Boston. Since the kids were interested in touring the city, we (the DW and me) just did a quick abbreviated workout.

Warm ups
Squats – 185x8x3
RDL – 165x8x3
Push up (on DB) then Walking Lunges 10/ 25(e)x8(e)x3
Hamstring Curls – 115x8x3
Quad Ext – 145x8x3
Cable Kickbacks 37.5x8(e)x3

We had a great holiday – the city of Boston knows how to throw a party! The Pops concert and fireworks were just spectacular.

Sunday – 7/5 – Cardio. Just an easy run around the city - 26 minutes at a medium pace.

[TomK]

My goal for 2009 was to improve my Bench Press to 225 for 3 working sets of 8 reps. When I started working with my current PT (Oct 2008) my tested 1RM was 225.

Today we tested my progress against this goal.

225x10, 225x10, 225x8



I'm not sure who is the happiest - my PT, the DW or me. My PT set the test goal or 3 sets of 10 - the first two sets were smooth. On the last set I lost my form (started to slow down) on rep 8 and he assisted me to rack the bar for 9.

[TomK]

Tuesday – 7/7 – Scheduled day off

Wednesday – 7/7 – Shoulders & Arms. There were a couple of changes here. MY PT wants me to train Shoulders and Arms together – keep a focus on the smaller muscles in one session. I am also feeling a bit of a “tweak” in my right bicep, so I reduced the workload there – splitting bi’s into different weights was funny but it allowed me to keep working. All lifts today were done on 60 seconds or less of rest. My other goal was to keep my HR and intensity up for the entire session. This was a good focused workout; I accomplished all my training goals for the session.

Warm Ups
10 minutes on the elliptical 10mph
Arnold Press – 40(e)x8x3
Upright Row – 75x8x3
Military Press – 95x8x3
DB Shrugs – 80(e)x8x3
Uni High Cable Curls – 20(r)/30(l)x8x3
Uni Tricep Cable Press Down – 30x8x3
Front Raises – 15(e)x8x3
Lat Raises – 15(e)x8x3
Uni Rear Delt Fly – 70x10x3
Bicep Machine Preacher Curls – 50(R)/75(l)x8x5

[kfisherx]

NICE BENCH!!! Now for 2 more sets and you hit that goal.

[TomK]

Originally Posted by kfisherx

NICE BENCH!!! Now for 2 more sets and you hit that goal.

Karla - Thanks. I guess I posted the results without clarity.

I hit my starting goal - Post #1 - do 225 for 3 sets of 8.

I did three sets at 225 - 10 reps, 10 reps and 8.

My PT raised the "bar" on Monday morning - telling me he wanted 10 reps for three sets. In retrospect, I'm certain that my PT announced the new standard, just to get me to push through the mental block of hitting 8 reps. It was a good motivational "strategery" - I'm happy.

Now I'll just have top do more reps!

[TomK]

Thursday - 7/8 – OT Post on the Holiday weekend.

We always enjoy the 4^th. The DW’s birthday is just a couple of days ahead of the national celebration, so that usually makes for an extended festivus. This year I was able to arrange for all of the kids to join us in Boston for an extended long weekend. Over the visit we managed to stop by all of our favorite restaurants and watering holes. We also toured the freedom trail and visited most of Boston’s historic venues. On the 4^th, we spent the afternoon on the Charles River esplanade with 100,000 or so of our new best friends. Later that evening, we watched the Boston Pops Concert and fireworks from the Hancock tower. It was all in all, just a great family adventure. I’m putting up a few pictures. First, Zeke and I have posted a more “summer time” avatar. Next up is a photo of the DW and I just after we finished the Charity Run in Boston Common. After that we have a couple of family shots – one outside our brownstone heading to dinner, the second is the family after seeing the USS Constitution on the 4^th. Finally, there is a shot of the DW and I done at the harbor. It was a great time; the City of Boston knows how to throw a Fourth of July party.

[Willie]

Tom, those are great pics! Your family looks happy and healthy

[LisaS]

Great looking family Tom!
I was in Boston once years ago and so far I recognize most places and landmarks that you mention - that makes it really fun to read. The USS Constitution was interesting. I walked there when I was in town - that bridge was a trip to walk over.

[TomK]

Originally Posted by Willie

Tom, those are great pics! Your family looks happy and healthy

Kate - Thanks. As you can see - the weather finally turned nice - like you, we have had it with all the rain.

[TomK]

Originally Posted by LisaS

Great looking family Tom!
I was in Boston once years ago and so far I recognize most places and landmarks that you mention - that makes it really fun to read. The USS Constitution was interesting. I walked there when I was in town - that bridge was a trip to walk over.

Lisa - They look good because they are all partial to the DW! The Navy Yard is a fun place to visit. The tall ships are in town this weekend, so it looks like we will head back there. By the way, the DW doesn't enjoy walking across the bridge - she doesn't know why someone thought it would be cool to have open decking that let's you see the harbor below your feet.

[TomK]

Friday – 7/9 – Chest & Back.
Zero motivation! Still, I got my butt to the gym; after all – someone had to be there to spot the DW for her heavy lifts. Bench was done with a 2 minute rest, all other lifts done with a 1:30 rest period.

Warm ups
Pull Up – BWx2x4
Bench – 205x8x3
Narrow neutral grip lat pull downs – 120x8x3
DB Incline Bench – 70(e)x10x3
Uni DB Row – 60(e)x8x3
Push Up (decline – feet on bench) BWx10x3
Hammer Machine Rows – 115x10x3

The weights were lighter. MY PT wanted me to get in at least 6 sets – so I hit that target. The DW was my spotter; this is the first time she felt comfortable spotting me over 200. I think it helped to see a female trainer on the next bench spotting her client on a series of 225 lifts. It worked out okay, and when I started to struggle on the last rep she was able to guide the bar onto the rack without difficulty.

[kfisherx]

Okay so...

WOW the pics are incredible. Love the new AVI and you guys really are a handsome family. Your wife and you look so fit! That is so nice to see in this country.

Good job getting your unmotivated butt into the gym. And I too struggled with spotting those heavy weights for my guy friends. It is not really that hard though and a spotter really doesn't have to be able to lift the weight they are spotting. Just help out when the lifter gets stuck. Once you break through that paradigm of having to be able to lift the weight, it all becomes more comfy.

[TomK]

Saturday - 07/11 – Squat Club!
The DW made a lazy start of the day and didn’t get to the gym until almost noon. The unanticipated benefit of the late start was and almost empty gym. We were able to focus and get through our workout quickly.

Warm Ups – Our session included 2 - 30 second jump rope intervals before all sets. The first warm ups were 5 rounds of jumping rope; the goal was to keep our HR up for the entire session.
Squats – 225x12x3
RDL – 185x8x3
BB Rev Lunges – 45x10(e)x3
Squats w/side steps – 45x8(e)x3
Ham/Glute Raise on swiss ball – BWx10x3

Adding in the jump rope drills really added to the intensity. At one point the DW challenged me to do 1 legged jumps. I was able to do it – much to her chagrin, she couldn’t match the exercise. I would gloat, except she reads my log, will end up practicing and drive me into the ground next time on another variation. Saturday night was fun –we went to the Sox game.

Sunday – 7/12 – Cardio – walked all over Boston and Charlestown visiting the Tall Ships of Sail Boston. It was a great weekend for everything except my nutrition plan. I have been eating like crap and the scale and my mid section are giving me hints. It is now my time to clean up the nutrition plan and focus on good foods.

Monday – 7/13 – Upper Body Strength and Conditioning.
Since my PT is headed off to graduate school later this summer, we decided to focus on conditioning for the next several weeks. To my great surprise, he designed a workout that also will require me to maintain some of the strength gains we put together over the last cycle.

Warm Up – No rest between drop sets
Drop Set, BB Bench – 250x3, 225x4, 205x6 (3 min rest) 250x2, 225x4, 205x5
Narrow grip Cable Row – 180x4, 160x6, 140x10 (3 min rest) 180x2, 160x4, 140x10
Triple Set – Incline DB Press, DB Fly, Incline PU on Bench (no rest between)
DB Press – 90(e)x6x2 / Fly – 35(e)x10x2 / PU BWx15 (2min between sets)
Triple Set – Wide grip lat pull down, Wide grip low cable row, Lat Pull over on Cable
WG Pull Down – 140x10x3 / WG low row – 140x10x3 / Lat Pull Over – 40x15x3
Planks on Swiss Ball – 60 sec x3
Side Planks – 30 sec x 3 each side

That was a good workout! I had a lot of fun with the variety and I’m completely gassed. I’m also energized by the intensity. Here is to a great day in Boston!

[TomK]

Wednesday – 7/15 – Show Muscles – Arms and Abs

Today was my light day. I worked Abs and Arms. I have definitely tweaked my right bicep; even a light day of arms work was moderately uncomfortable.

Warms Ups
Abs – Leg raises & Crunches BWx12x4
Back Ext – BWx12x4
DB Curls – 30(e)x8x4
Skull Crushers – 65x10x4
Cable Curls (using rope) – 45x8x4
Tri Press down (using rope) – 45x8x4
Deadlifts – 225x1x30

[TomK]

Of the internet that is...

Shifted to high intensity workouts last week. Between company, vacation and business travel I haven't had the time to log my workouts. I lifted UB on Wednesday, off Thurs, Chest/Back HI of Fri, Legs (as usual with the DW) on Saturday, Ran Sunday, HI Chest/Back on Monday, then finally a rest day on Tuesday. I'm suppossed to do anothe UB lift today. I'm currently sitting in O'Hare hoping to get back to Bosotn in a reasonable amount of time. Maybe this afternoon I'll be able to get to the gym.

[TomK]

Friday – 7/24 – Shoulders and Abs – Endurance Training

Finally, a chance to log a workout – the day started with an incredible storm. It poured. There were very few people in the gym this morning – not many folks wanted to slog through the storm. All sets were done with 60 seconds rest between sets.

Warm Up
KB OH Snatch – 16KG 10x4
BB Mil Press – 95x10x4
Close Grip BB Bench Press – 135x10x4
Superset – DB lateral raises and Incline Bench Rear Delt Fly (no rest between exercises)
Lat Raises – 20(e)x12x4 / Rear Fly – 10(e)x12x4
Farmers walk w/KB OH – 12kg(e)x10 yardsx4
Abs – Crunch with legs elevated at 90 degrees, holding medicine ball OH – 25x4
Abs – Cable Oblique Twist – 15x15(e)x4

This was a very good workout. It was very intense – I feel great and satisfied. My PT leaves next week, so Monday will be our last workout. He has promised to push this old man as hard as possible for our last session. That should be fun.