As for the title I like to read books, mostly nonfiction.
Last June (2008) I found NROL in the local library, checked it out, read it and loved it. So I bought the book, along with a marcy bench, dumbbells and standard weights and did the break-in program. Right after the break-in program I hurt my hand punching the bag. It was a few weeks before the hand was completely healed, but by then my momentum faltered.
I tried to restart a couple of times, but by early 2009 I lost motivation for exercise and diet. A couple of times in spring I even ate a whole pound of M&Ms over 2-3 days. By April I had packed on 10 more pounds (to 265) and added 2 more inches in the waist (47) than I had in December.
In May I regained my motivation for exercise, so I restarted the break-in and finished it. Then I did Fat Loss I, finishing it in July. In that time I lost over 1.5 inches in the waist and about 7 lbs.
Those results encouraged me to take a serious look at diet. Just over a week ago I read about the TNT diet here on the forums, and it sounded so fun I decided to implement it the next day. So now 8 days later, this being my break between FLI and FLII, I've dropped a further 1.25 inches in the waist and 5 lbs.
NROL is also a "family" thing for us. My wife has been into NROL4W for a few months now. My 2 sons are also doing NROL routines with me "coaching" them. My second son has a lot of motivation for it, and right now he is in the middle of hypertrophy I. He also does chinups very well, doing around 5-6 without stopping. I can't even do one chinup.
Anyway, as my second son and I have increased the weights in squats, we saw a need for a squat rack. And more plates. So after research (mostly on these forums) I ended up buying (off of Craig's List) an Olympic weight set and a squat rack/bench with a lat tower.
As for statistics:
Age: 47
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 253 (was 265 in May)
Waist: 43.50 (was 47.00 in May and 45.00 in Jan)
Body Fat: 34.5% (This and the BMI are from an Omron scale)
BMI: 32.5
I consider my waist to be the most important number, and its been at least 2 years since its been around 43 inches. While the BMI has gone down with the weight, the body fat % has pretty much stayed in the same range since January.
Its a little hard to pinpoint all the positive "intangibles" from NROL lifting weights, but it has definitely contributed to a better overall fitness level for me. I can climb stairs and hills easier, I don't have as many "creaking" joints anymore and I have more energy. However I know I've got a lot more room for improvement...so I'm looking forward to experiencing the results of combining the TNT diet and NROL.
Its a little hard to pinpoint all the positive "intangibles" from NROL lifting weights, but it has definitely contributed to a better overall fitness level for me. I can climb stairs and hills easier, I don't have as many "creaking" joints anymore and I have more energy. However I know I've got a lot more room for improvement...so I'm looking forward to experiencing the results of combining the TNT diet and NROL.
It's so nice to experience those victories. I would say 'little victories', but they are not little!
Go for it! Way to go for getting your motivation back and having the whole family involved. I would love to get my two sons involved in lifting, but they are young still (under 12). I am doing NROLFW and love it. I just started stage 2.
You will love the results you see from proper nutrition and a good lifting program. Welcome!
Go for it! Way to go for getting your motivation back and having the whole family involved. I would love to get my two sons involved in lifting, but they are young still (under 12). I am doing NROLFW and love it. I just started stage 2.
You will love the results you see from proper nutrition and a good lifting program. Welcome!
I appreciate the encouragement! It just seemed like yesterday that my sons were around 12... My wife is also in NROLFW stage 2.
Supine hip extension with leg curl BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Barbell push press 85x8 + 75x4 75x12 75x12
Dynamic lunge 20dbsx12 20x12 20x12
Upper-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: My wrists only hurt on the first set of the front squats. The advice I read in the forums here helped me get the hang of it on the second and third sets.
In FLI I used two 20 dumbbells on the rotational lunge, and thought I'd start with that. I also went lower than before to nearly touching the ground, but this was tough on my knees.
Overall I think I did ok, since I finished it all, but throughout I could just sense a vast need for me to improve in form and endurance.
At lunchtime I went with my boss and his boss to the exercise club. I ran 1 mile and walked another. I also did dumbbell flys 25x12 20x12 20x12. After I got home from work, I volunteered to help my wife finish up a tile grouting project. After that I decided to relax by jumping into FLII B1...
Tue 28 Jul 2009 FLII B1
TNT warmups (10 jumping jacks, etc)
Snatch-grip deadlift 105x12 105x12 105x12
T-pushup BWx12 BWx12 BWx4 kneesx8
Had to rest after about 4-6 in a row. On the last set I dropped to my knees for the last 8.
Bulgarian split squat with overhead press 15x12
These were very tough. Had to rest a minute after 6-8 reps during the first set. When I started the 2nd set I experienced right knee pain, so I stopped. Next time I'll use the 10 lb dumbbells instead of the 15s.
Underhand-grip lat pulldown 65x12 65x12 65x12
Romanian deadlift/bent over row 95x6 95x6 95x6
I was running out of energy heading into the last superset, so I halved the reps for each.
Lower-body Russian twist BWx6 BWx6 BWx6
Comments: I know I didn't make one of the toughest NROL sessions any easier by the day's earlier activities. Plus I'm working out in the garage in the Texas heat. I took a number of breaks and there were a couple of interruptions, so the total time from the start of the warmups to the end of the session was about 75 minutes. The knee issue concerns me a little, but I think it will work itself out.
Question: what is the supine hip extension with leg curl? Is that feet on a swiss ball, hips up, rolling the ball into a hamstring curl?
Also (ok, two questions), how do you cross arms on a front squat? Maybe I have the wrong image in mind for a front squat, but I thought the bar is held on the fingers, with elbows up in front of you? How do you cross arms with that grip?
Last Tuesday I began measuring my waist differently (and hopefully more accurately). Even so it continues to decline. I now go two notches lower on my belt than I did before I started the diet. Weight went up some on the weekend because of eating out at Outback Steakhouse with the family, and then I consumed a dozen homemade chocolate chip cookies that my daughter had made. These were the first "cheats" in the diet. They were fun, and now I'm ready for more progress. I don't think the body fat % is accurate, and I don't think the BMI is very useful at this point.
Question: what is the supine hip extension with leg curl? Is that feet on a swiss ball, hips up, rolling the ball into a hamstring curl?
Bingo, that's it!
Quote:
Originally Posted by LancelotsLover
Also (ok, two questions), how do you cross arms on a front squat? Maybe I have the wrong image in mind for a front squat, but I thought the bar is held on the fingers, with elbows up in front of you? How do you cross arms with that grip?
Well, I place the bar at shoulder level on the rack, and instead of grabbing it with the hands, I cross my arms over the bar and the rest the bar on my shoulders. Its an alternative for some people, and I thought I'd try it out with lower weights. However I found its not as stable as the elbows up method.
Mon 03 Aug 2009 FLII B2 I'm going to try and post my meals, as I know from reading other blogs that some folks are more interested in diet. I'm following the TNT guidelines, drinking 3+ quarts of water daily and limiting carb servings to 2 per day, or none like today.
TNT Diet Breakfast: 2x sausage patties, 2x eggs (omega-3s) Lunch: can of tuna fish with mayo, cheese cubes, bell pepper Snacks: whey protein power in water - drank during workout Supper: salad, and Sauerkraut, 3x sausages
Exercise and NROL
Went to the club at lunchtime, hit the bag for about 20 minutes, walked some and stretched.
TNT warmups
Snatch-grip deadlift 85x12 85x12 85x12
Went lower weights to work on form
T-pushup BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Tough, but better progress than last time.
Overhead press 25x12 25x12 25x12
Supposed to be Bulgarian split squats with overhead press, but my knees aren't ready yet. So I did the overhead press by itself.
Underhand-grip lat pulldown 100x12 90x12 90x12
Romanian deadlift/bent over row 95x12 95x12 95x12
Lower-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: At home my exercise setup is in the garage, and today it was only 98 degrees here in Texas. I think being a bit cooler as well as a less intensive workout at lunch helped me get through the whole workout with some energy left over. At the same time I feel bad about not being able to do the Bulgarian split squats. But probably not as bad as I'd feel if I actually did them. That time will come, hopefully within a week...
Also helped my son through his NROL weight program, which is in the middle of Hypertrophy I. And today my wife finished NROL4W stage 2...
Breakfast: 3x eggs, cheese sprinkled on top Lunch: salad - has pepperoni, cucumbers, lettuce, onions, black olives and cheese Snacks: peanuts Supper: 5x homemade pizza slices (dough from only whole grains)
My wife makes all our pizza dough and most of our bread from scratch. Biscuits too. She grinds up the wheat kernels into flour and turns that into dough. I don't know much about the process, but I very much enjoy the end results. Last week we had some homemade Ezekiel bread with butter.
Workout
Went to the exercise club and hit the bag (longer and harder than usual), walked, and stretched. These workouts are usually around 30-40 minutes.
Breakfast: 2x sausage patties, 2x fried eggs, strawberries (2 servings) Lunch: sauerkraut with 2x sausage, 5x pepper jack cheese cubes Snacks: 2 scoops of whey protein powder in water after workout Supper: broccoli, squash, baked chicken, 1x cup of grape crystal light
I think this is the third week into the TNT diet, and I'm just not that hungry anymore. I have extra snacks stored at work but I keep forgetting to eat them. I drink 3+ quarts of water daily.
Workout
For lunch workout, went to the club and walked quite a bit. After I got home:
TNT warmups (no sweat - literally, no sweat! Probably because I did these indoors this time, instead of the garage. But I'm also getting used to doing them as well.)
FLII A3 Front Squat 75x12 85x12 85x12
Bent over barbell row 100x12 100x12 105x12
Supine hip extension with leg curl BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Barbell push press 75x9 + 65x3 65x12 65x12
Dynamic lunge BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Upper-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: Went up a little in pounds in the front squats and rows. Did semi-lunges - I didn't go very deep and I did them a bit gingerly. Still couldn't push off much on the barbell push press, its interesting how much the knee is involved in that. I'm hoping my knee is well enough on Friday so I can do the BSS with overhead press. Also I had more energy left over after this workout than any I've done in FLII so far. Must have been from the pizza from last night.
Hmm....I had pizza last night too, and then I worked out after work today, just got home, and I am wiped out! Don't know where that post workout energy is for me, I figured I'd have some. Must be your wife's homemade crust!
Diet
Breakfast: 5x bacon, scambled eggs
Lunch: doublemeat whataburger with cheese
Snacks: tuna with mayo, pepper jack cheese squares, red bell pepper
Supper: 1x slice of pizza, fish, green beans, rice
Exercise and NROL
TNT warmups - ended up with 4 of 5 kids and wife going through it with me
Snatch-grip deadlift 105x12 105x12 115x12
T-pushup BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
These were easier than last time
Bulgarian split squats with overhead press 10x12 10x12 10x12
Left side I did ok. Right side took only a shallow dip because of the knee...
Underhand-grip lat pulldown 100x12 100x12 105x12
Romanian deadlift/bent over row 115x12 105x12 105x12
Lower-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: This workout wasn't as taxing as previous ones. I'm still learning: I concentrated on advice on the RDL, and I think I finally did some actual Romanian deadlifts in the 2nd and 3rd sets. I'm also learning to breathe better with the weights. I received Starting Strength, and while skimming through it the information overload made me literally look like this -> . Its going to take time to apply the information in there. As for the diet, things are fraying a little.
Breakfast: 2x boiled eggs Lunch: salad, fish, rice Snacks: 4x cheese slices, 2 scoops of whey protein powder in water after workout Supper: 3x slices of pizza (some kind of store bought pizza), rooibos tea
This weekend was kind of between menu plans. Fortunately I haven't been that hungry. I drink 3+ quarts of water daily.
Workout
TNT warmups
FLII A4 Front Squat 85x10 95x10 105x10
I think I'm doing better at these...
Bent over barbell row 110x10 110x10 110x10
Supine hip extension with leg curl BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Barbell push press 85x10 85x10 85x10
Much better than last workout...
Dynamic lunge 10x10 10x10 10x10
I did these slowly and with no knee pain
Upper-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: Felt good after the workout, with no pain. Physically I'm just feeling better than I have been in years. Today I encouraged my 15 year old son to go higher than before, and he ended up bench pressing a personal record of 65x5. My wife starts NROL4W stage 3 tomorrow. The diet wandered a bit this weekend, I think in part because I reached a kind of a psychological celebration level. However I'm ready to get back on track tomorrow.
My ultimate goals include losing below 40 inches (from 43 currently), get to around 220 (from 254 currently), and reduce the LDL/trigylcerides and increase the HDL.
Lunch: sauerkraut with 2x sausage, 5x pepper jack cheese cubes
My Grandmother was from East Germany. She always had sauerkraut a lot. These meals remind me of her . . .
I would call her up and ask her what she was doing and she would say "just eating sauerkraut and sausages" (picture it in a really strong German accent)
She never weighed over 105lbs either.
__________________
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If you weren't born drop dead gorgeous, be thankful for the opportunity to develop character first.
It is too cool that your family is working out together! Your wife and I are right at the same stage. Does she like it? Does she have her own log?
And, re: your comment in my log about the squat numbers, they are pretty good for me. . . .and then I read Hazel2009's log, and SHE just posted squat numbers of 10 reps at 160 and 180!!!!! Holy cow; I can't imagine me being that strong.
P.S. Just noticed you got Starting Strength. Awesome book; I love it. That's what just improved my squats!
It is too cool that your family is working out together! Your wife and I are right at the same stage. Does she like it? Does she have her own log?
Yes, she does enjoy it, although she said the first stage 3 workout with the bodyweight exercises were very tough. I've talked her into setting up her own log sometime this week...
Quote:
Originally Posted by LancelotsLover
And, re: your comment in my log about the squat numbers, they are pretty good for me. . . .and then I read Hazel2009's log, and SHE just posted squat numbers of 10 reps at 160 and 180!!!!! Holy cow; I can't imagine me being that strong.
Well she's also doing better than me!
Quote:
Originally Posted by LancelotsLover
P.S. Just noticed you got Starting Strength. Awesome book; I love it. That's what just improved my squats!
Its certainly packed with information. I'm looking forward to learning more from it...
My Grandmother was from East Germany. She always had sauerkraut a lot. These meals remind me of her . . .
I would call her up and ask her what she was doing and she would say "just eating sauerkraut and sausages" (picture it in a really strong German accent)
She never weighed over 105lbs either.
Interesting. I've actually never tried sauerkraut before, but it was one of the recipes in the TNT diet. I hope to convince my wife to make more of it in the future.
Diet
Breakfast: omlet with 3x eggs, peppers, monterrey Jack cheese
Lunch: salad with lettuce, turkey, pepper jack cheese
Snacks: whey protein drink before exercise, more pepper jack cheese
Supper: some kind of grilled pork, green beans, homemade bread, even more pepper jack cheese and rooibus tea
Exercise and NROL
TNT warmups - now 5 of 5 kids went through this with me. 2 boys (17 and 16) and 3 girls (12, 9, 7).
Snatch-grip deadlift 115x8 125x8 135x8 135x6
Went up a lot here. It was easy, so I just kept adding on weights. I initially forgot I needed to do 10 reps instead of 8, so I added a last set of 6.
T-pushup BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
These are getting easier to do. I'm sticking with 12 instead of going down to 10.
Bulgarian split squats with overhead press 15x10 15x10 12x10
Did both sides without knee pain. Still these are very tough.
Underhand-grip lat pulldown 120x10 120x10 120x10
Went up here in pounds as well.
Romanian deadlift/bent over row 115x10 110x10 110x10
Energy level dropped after the BSS...
Lower-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: I initially felt like a Spartan sailing through this workout, and then felt mortal again during the BSS. I increased the pounds in many sets without a problem. It amazes me that the waist just keeps heading downward. I think I will be below 43 inches by the end of the week. I've done well these past two days on the TNT diet, and I'm really enjoying the meals.
I didn't write down meals after Monday, but I stuck to the TNT diet plan.
Workout
TNT warmups
FLII A5 Front Squat 105x10 105x10 115x10
Steadily going up on pounds here...
Bent over barbell row 115x10 115x10 115x10
Increase here too...
Supine hip extension with leg curl BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Barbell push press 90x10 90x10 90x10
Increased by 5 here, but last 3 reps on 3rd set were tough...
Dynamic lunge 15x10 15x10 15x10
Jumped up to 15s from 10s here. Did them slow and deep, and no pain...
Upper-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: Pretty good workout for me - no pain, the paramedics were never called, and I had some energy left over. I busy this week and didn't write down the meals, but I stuck to the plan at least through Thursday...
Diet
Friday was "Diet? What diet?" I had pizza for lunch with co-workers and homemade pizza for supper. There were salad type stuff somewhere in there too. And now that I'm remembering a little more, Thursday after supper I consumed multiple brownies baked by my daughter as well. At work there are always plenty of candy and other goodies, and I haven't eaten any of that in months. But when I get home, resistance is futile...
Today:
Breakfast: 1 pear and 2 fried eggs
Lunch: Salad with luncheon meat, cheese, lettuce, other veggies
Supper: chicken, rice, black beans, cheese, onions
Exercise and NROL
TNT warmups
Snatch-grip deadlift 115x10 125x10 125x10
T-pushup BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Bulgarian split squats with overhead press 15x10 12x10 12x10
Leaned a little too far forward and my right knee reminded me I'm not supposed to do that. These are very tough, they take a lot out of me. At least I'm not passing out between sets.
Underhand-grip lat pulldown 125x10 125x10 125x10
Went up by 5 more...
Romanian deadlift/bent over row 115x10 110x10 110x10
These are tough...
Lower-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: Tough workout toward the end. Its funny that I don't have any thoughts during the BSS, but during the first set of RDL with bent over row I had the feeling that I just wanted to quit weights. So I had this little positive talk with myself, saying you should have thought of this EARLIER, you moron, because you are already 2/3rds of the way through this workout.
You're right. I went back and looked at the book and it specifically says to avoid bread on page 38. And fruit, too, which I've been eating.
I originally started with Adam's diet described here in the forums before I got the book, where it allows 1-2 servings of whole grain at one meal and a fruit serving. I see now that the book doesn't allow any of that. So I've really been following "Adam's diet" the past 4 weeks instead of the TNT plan A.
Waist: 42.90(first time below 43 inches in...a long time) Weight: 251.4
Typical meals this week: For breakfast 1-2 servings of fruit, 2 eggs and sausage. For lunch a salad with cheese and luncheon meat. Supper has a salad, veggies, pork or chicken.
Workout
TNT warmups
FLII A6 Front Squat 115x10 125x5; 115x5; 115x10
Went to 125 in the middle set
Bent over barbell row 115x10 115x10 115x10
Supine hip extension with leg curl BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
I know it says to do 10, but I'm doing 12
Barbell push press 95x10 95x7; 90x3 90x10
Dynamic lunge 20x10 15x10 15x10
Upper-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: Making increases in lifting while the waist and weight steadily decline. My wife says that my "love handles" have shrunk and my traps and biceps have increased. Speaking of my wife, she now has a log here.
Well, my daughters baked a cake, but I resisted the temptation. My coworkers have a hanging motto that reads "I'd give up chocolate....but I'm no quitter!" True to form there is plenty of candy for all to eat, but I haven't had any in months. I think I'm just enjoying the diet, having eggs in the morning is great.
Exercise and NROL
TNT warmups
Snatch-grip deadlift135x10 145x10 145x10
I thought I'd do as many 135s as I could, and did it with ease. So I jumped to 145 and did fine too. That's the highest I've gone so far on this deadlift.
T-pushup BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Bulgarian split squats with overhead press 15x10 15x10 15x10
Still tough!
Underhand-grip lat pulldown 125x10 125x10 120x10
Romanian deadlift/bent over row130x10 130x7; 125x3 125x10
On the first set I thought I was doing 115 and thinking why are these so hard? Then I recalculated and found I was really doing 130. That changed my perspective a bit.
Lower-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: I hit some personal records in this workout. I'm not sure how it all works, but its working for me. I still can't believe my waist keeps going down, seems like a quarter of an inch the day after every workout. I've got 6 more FLII workouts left. I have yet to read Starting Strength...
Waist: 42.25 Weight: 248.4 - (below 250, but weight will probably bounce back up after a couple of planned social eat-outs)
Workout
TNT warmups (with my two sons)
FLII A6 Front Squat 120x8 130x8 135x8
135 is the highest I've gone with front squats. And its a 50 pound increase from my first workout...
Bent over barbell row 120x8 130x8 135x8
135 is the highest I've gone for the row. It too is a 50 pound increase since the first set of FLII...
Supine hip extension with leg curl BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Barbell push press 95x8 95x8 105x8
105 is more than I've done before...
Dynamic lunge 20x8 20x8 20x8
I would have used the 25 dumbbells, but my son was using them for his BSS
Upper-body Russian twist BWx12 BWx12 BWx12
Comments: I'm having a lot of fun. Since last Friday I have dropped 1 inch in the waist and 3-4 lbs. I'm increasing in all the weights pretty rapidly. I have no clue whether this is normal or not, whether I'm "catching up" to former strength levels or building it anew, etc. I just know I'm lifting heavier than before. I also have more endurance throughout the workout and at the end of it too.
NROL vs. the Bookworm
That time will come, hopefully within a week...
Must be your wife's homemade crust!
. Its going to take time to apply the information in there. As for the diet, things are fraying a little.
Linear Mode
