Starting February 16, 1999 For previous workouts go to: These are my actual workouts that I do on a day to day basis. After each workout I will write down here which body parts I did, the exercises and the actual poundages I used. I've never seen this done before so I'm going to do it, as I think people might be interested. In the future I hope to get pictures of me training but I might have to wait until I get a digital camera instead of the old Polaroid. I hope this section is useful to you, try doing the same workouts and adjust the poundage to your level. My schedule is a bit out of the ordinary and I often try new exercises so it may seem a bit weird at first (like doing the same body part 3 days in a row sometimes) but it is very effective. Anyone who trains with me tends to achieve personal bests on the first day and gains noticeable size in a couple of weeks. Here we go:
February 16, 1999 Chest, Back, Biceps February 16, 1999 Weight = 190 I've had the previous 3 days off for general recovery and am ready to rock again! I'm also going off of that program for a while and am returning to 4 or 5 day a week training. Trained: Chest, Back, Biceps Chest: Bench press, Machine flyes. Back: Chins, Bent-over Rows. Biceps: Machine Preacher curls. February 17, 1999 Weight = 193 Trained: Shoulders, Legs, Calves To warm up I did one set of 25 wide-grip chin-ups. Shoulders: Dumbbell Press, Machine Press. Legs: Squats. Calves: I just did seated calf raises today working up to 3 sets of 12-15 with 4 plates. February 20, 1999 Weight: 191 Trained: Chest, Back This was a short workout as I only had about 40 minutes before the gym closed. Chest: Bench Press. Back: Bent-over Rows, Lat Pulldowns February 21, 1999 Weight: 191 Trained: Back, Chest, Thighs, Calves, Biceps Back: Chin-ups, Bent-over Rows It was after this that I saw a friend of mine training and it turned out he was training roughly the same bodyparts so we decided to finish together. He was just finishing up on supported rows so I did one set of those using the stack for 12 reps. We did bench press for chest and warmed up at 135 for 15 and 225 for 12 reps. We added a 10 per side (245) and I did 2 sets of 12, then lowered it to 225 for one more set of 12. Next was legs, I wanted to do squats or leg press but he was a
bit tired and suggested supersetting leg extensions with leg curls. I hadn't done
this for a long time so I went with it. I haven't done extensions since I did my
knee in last year and figured it was about time to try them. At this time my partner had to leave, no matter how hard I tried to convince him he needed to do calves ; ) I did seated calf raises starting with 3 plates for 15 easy reps, then to 4 plates for 3 sets of 12 reps. I should have been done, but I haven't done biceps for a while so I did 3 sets of machine biceps preacher curls. That was finally the end! February 22, 1999 Weight: 192 Rest between sets: 2:00 or less Trained: Back, Chest, Shoulders, Biceps You're probably wondering why I'm doing back and chest 3 times in a row, and actually, I am too. It just felt like the right thing to do, and this was a better workout than the last 2! Something must be working though, about 6 people this week have told me I'm looking bigger and more ripped, and I'm actually noticing this myself, and I don't like to fool myself. Back: Started with wide-grip chin-ups again but could only manage 26 today,
then 12 on the second set (1.5 minute break), then I did 10 to behind the neck. Chest: Bench press warming up with 135 for 20. I did a "21"
set with 205 lbs. doing 7 reps from the bottom to halfway up, 7 from the top to halfway
down, and 7 full reps. I went to 225 next and did "15's" (same as 21's but
just 5 per portion). Then I did a set of 12 and a set of 10 with the 225. By
now my chest was as pumped as my back and was overall huge! Shoulders: I decided I needed some shoulder work today (chest and back were so pumped, the shoulders looked small) so I did 4 sets on the machine press. Biceps: Did the machine preacher curls again (going to try free weights next time). I started with about 3/4 of the stack (120?) for 15 reps, then 2 short of the stack (160?) for 10 reps, then I tried the stack and did 6 full reps and several partials in the middle range. Did the same for the next set, and for the last one I did the stack for 6 then dropped it to half the stack and did 3 one-armed curls with each arm. Then I went home and had a protein shake followed by a huge steak! February 24, 1999 Weight: 193 Trained: Triceps, Shoulders, Legs Triceps: Close-grip Bench Press, single-arm Triceps Pressdowns. Shoulders: Side Laterals. Legs: Squats. February 26, 1999 Weight: 192 Trained: Back, Biceps Today was a good day as I set 2 personal records! The first was in chin-ups--I added one more totaling 28 consecutive wide-grip chins. The second was in deadlifts in which I did 455 for 2 singles, which technically isn't a record because I've done that weight before but this is the first time since my knee surgery, and the last time I tried (2 weeks ago), I only got it 2 inches off the ground. Back: I started by doing a max set of chin-ups and managed 28-- one
more than last time! That was it for those and I did the deadlifts next warming up
with 315 for 10 reps. I went to 405 and did 2 sets of 4, that felt good so I tried
455. I got psyched up and made the lift quite easily, although I couldn't have
gotten a second rep. I did 10 shrugs at the top then lowered it. I was quite
happy with that so decided to try it again for the next set. It was a bit harder the
second time but still not too much problem, again I did 10 shrugs before lowering it.
I think I'll try for 2 reps next time. Biceps: I can finally do light curls now without my wrist hurting, so it was a good thing my biceps were pre-exhausted from the back work. I found that hammer curls hurt the least and I used 35 lb. dumbbells for 3 sets getting 15 each arm on the first and 12 on the others. I finished with 2 sets on the Apex, preacher curl machine. Trained: Chest. Bench Press: Warmed up with 135 for 20 reps and 225 for 2 sets of 10
and 6, then went for 275 and got 6 on the first set and 4 on the second with that. I
went back down to 225 and did another set of 10 and one of 8 followed by some partial reps
and holds in the middle range. I finished off with 185 lbs. and did "18's"
(like 21's but with 6 reps per phase instead of 7). Trained: Back, Chest, Biceps Back: Bent-over Rows. Chest: Bench Press, Machine Flyes. Biceps: My wrist is still a bit sore on regular curls but I found I can do hammer curls with a light weight. Luckily, my biceps got worked fairly well from doing back so I didn't need too heavy a weight to work them. I started with 35 lb. dumbbells and got 12 easily, then went to 40 lbs. and stayed there for 4 sets of 12, 12, 10, and 8 reps. I did these seated and with strict form lifting both arms at the same time, holding and squeezing at the top for a second, then lowering slowly. What a burn! After these I did 3 heavy sets to failure on the machine preacher curl. March 3, 1999 Weight: 192 Trained: Back, Legs, Shoulders. I was sore in my whole upper back area from yesterday's workout but felt I needed a bit more in the lower area so decided to do two sets of wide-grip chin-ups to failure. Unfortunately I didn't set myself a new chin record today but managed 25 on the first set and 10 to behind the neck on the second set. These felt good and it was enough for today. Legs: Leg Press, Seated Calf Raises Shoulders: Dumbbell Press. I did 2 sets of Roman chair crunches for abs and that was it for the day! March 6, 1999 Weight: 189 Started a cutting phase yesterday : ( Trained: Back, Chest, Shoulders, Traps, Biceps Back: Chest: Shoulders: Traps: Biceps: Still can't do heavy curls so I did hammer curls using 40 lbs. for 2 sets of 12 and one set of 8. Finally finished, I felt like a zombie for the next hour. March 7, 1999 Weight: 188 Trained: Chest, Back, Quads, Calves, Abs I decided to do a few light sets of chest and back before moving on to legs so I
started with bench press at 135 for 20, 185 for 3 sets of 12, 20 and 15 reps. I
finished by doing a set of "21's" with the 185. The one-legged leg press felt good last time so I decided to do it again. I warmed up with 3 plates a side for 15 reps each leg then went to 5 plates for 2 sets of 8 each and finished with 4 plates getting 12 with each leg. Calves: After the leg press, I stayed there to do calves and using 4 plates a side, and one calf at a time, did a set of 20 (each calf) and 3 sets of 15 a set of 12 and a set of 8. I did seated calf raises next and got 12 on the first set with 1 1/2 plates and 25 on the next set with 3 1/2 plates. (The first set felt quite hard for some reason). Abs: 3 sets of 20 Roman Chair crunches, that was it! March 10, 1999 Weight: 188 Trained: Chest, Shoulders, Back I've been getting a bit behind in my updates the last few days,
but I write everything down immediately after each workout, so here it is. Chest: Bench Press. Back: I made an attempt at my chin-up record but fell far short only getting 20. I guess I was tired out from doing chest but I kind of expected that. After this I did wide-grip upright rows for the shoulders using 115 lbs. for 3 sets of 10, then went on to bent-over rows using 205 for 3 sets of 10. Next was Lat pulldowns starting at 180 lbs. for 10 and 220 for 2 sets of 8 March 13, 1999 Weight: 187 Trained: Legs. I decided to test my max on legs today so did kind of a powerlifting workout with low reps and several singles, going deep (glutes to calves) on all reps (except where indicated). I warmed up with 245 (I used some 100 lb. plates I found there) for 8 reps and 295
for 6 reps. I went to 335 and did 5 (not to failure) then tried 395 and managed 3 to
below parallel, and then 1 more after a slight pause. I didn't make it as low
as I wanted on these so I dropped back to 315 and worked my way back up. I got 8
with the 315 (was starting to get intense by this time) then 335 for 3, 365 for a
single, 395 for another deep single finishing at 405 for a full deep single. I should say that I didn't feel too bad leaving the gym but later that evening I drove to a friend's house and as soon as I got out of the car both legs locked up in an extreme cramp. I staggered halfway to the house, then it got too bad so I went back to the car, sat there for 10 minutes until it settled down enough to drive and went home, called my friend and said I couldn't make it. Talk about a good workout! March 14, 1999 Weight: 187 Trained: Back?, Chest, Biceps After a 5 minute cardio warm up on the bike I decided to try for my wide-grip chin-up record today. It was so close, I got 29 and two halves! I couldn't believe I couldn't squeeze out one more but I could only bring it halfway up even after pausing for a few seconds and trying again. Oh well, should get it next time for sure. That was it for back. Chest: Bench Press. Biceps: EZ Bar Curls. My wrist is still a bit sore from the sprain but I decided it's time to work it a bit so I tried EZ curls for the first time in about a month! I used 25 lbs. per side and got 12 easily and my wrist only hurt a bit from these so I put on 35 a side (95 total I think) and did 2 sets of 12. After these my wrist didn't hurt at all! I decided to superset some standing close-grip presses in to hit the shoulders and triceps a bit so did 12 presses followed by 10 curls for 3 sets. I finished with machine preacher curls for 3 sets to failure. March 16, 1999 Weight: 187 lbs. Trained: Chest, Light biceps Chest-- Bench Press: Did the usual warm-up with 135 for 12 and 225 for 10, then attempted 275 and got 6 followed by 2 sets of 4! I went back to 225 and did 2 more sets of 12 and 10 then went to... Incline Dumbbell Press: I started with the 100's and only managed 3 reps on the first set, I must have been tired from the bench press. The second set I psyched up more and got 5 reps so on the last set I used 90 pounders and got 8 with that. Machine Flyes: I did machine flyes next using the stack for 4 sets to failure (12, 12, 10, 8). Dips: I finished chest with bodyweight dips getting 40 on the first set and 20 on the last two. Biceps: I used an EZ curl bar again starting with 70 lbs. for 12, then 90 for 12 and 110 for 10. I finished with 10 more with 90lbs. I would have done more but I had to go so will continue biceps tomorrow. March, 17, 1999 Weight: 188 Trained: Back, Traps, Shoulders Back: Lat Pulldowns. I did these today for a change so I could go heavier in an attempt to make my chin-ups stronger. I warmed up with 160 for 12, then 180 for 12 and 200 for 10, then started my working sets at 220 for 8, 240 for 6 and 250 for 4 reps, then back to 200 for 10 slow ones, as the reps were starting to get a bit sloppy at 250 although I made the most of it by holding and squeezing at the bottom of each rep. Supported Rows (weight stack machine): I started these at 200 lbs. for 10, went to 250 for 6 and finished with 2 sets of 8 at 230 lbs. Traps: Shrugs. I warmed up with 315 lbs. for 12, went to 405 for 15, then 495 for 2 sets of 6 and 5. I dropped it back to 405 and did 2 more sets of 12. Unfortunately, I picked a smooth slippery bar and the grip was tough even with straps which is why I could only get 6 with the 495. I'll make sure I get the good bar next time! Shoulders: Dumbbell Shoulder Press. I don't usually do shoulders after back and traps but I though I'd try it for a change, kind of like pre-exhausting the rear delts. I warmed up with 45 lb. dumbbells for 12 then went to 55's for 12 and 65's for 2 sets of 8 and 6. I finished on the press machine with 2 sets to failure (12 and 11 reps) at 130 lbs. March 19, 1999 Weight: 190 Trained: Chest, Biceps Chest: Bench Press. 135/12, 225/8, 275 for 2 sets of 5 and
4, 225 for 10. Biceps: I tried seated hammer curls but my wrist was bothering me again and I only did one set of 12 with the 45's before switching to the machine curl where I did 5 more hard sets. March 21, 1999 Weight: 189 Trained: Deadlifts, Back, Shoulders Great workout today, I set personal records in deadlifts and shoulders! For the deadlifts I warmed up with 325 lbs. for 10 reps then went to 415 and that
came up so easily I decided to try for a max lift today. (I used the thick Olympic bar
that weighs 55 lbs.). I added another plate totaling 505, put in a good effort but
could only get it an inch off the floor. I lowered the weight to 465 and tried
again--same result, about 2 inches this time. Now I was mad! I rested about 4
minutes, psyched up, went to the bar and actually lifted the sucker right up, and even did
a few shrugs at the top! I decided to quit while I was ahead and moved on to lat
pulldowns. A sometimes partner of mine was there doing shoulders so I decided to work in with him. He was doing dumbbell press with 50 pounders so I started with them. For some reason these felt very easy today and I got 23 reps before losing it (more from surprise at how easy it went than from loss of strength--the set was so long I lost focus). I figured this would be a good day to try the 70's, which I did and got 9 in the first set and 6 in the second! Again, I decided to quit while ahead and moved on to machine press where I did 150 for 14, the stack (220) for 4 and back to 150 for 8. I finished with seated one-armed side laterals using 25 lbs. for 3 sets of 10, 8 and 8. I think that after this I'll start more workouts with heavy deadlifts. They seem to have gotten me into the zone today! March 23, 1999 Weight: 187 Trained: Traps, Chest, Calves I decided to do shrugs as a warm-up for chest today. I started at 315 for 15 reps, then 405 for 12, 495 for 8 and 585 for 4. I finished with a set of 12 bent-over rows with 225 lbs. Then it was time to start the chest workout. I did flat dumbbell bench press starting with 70 lb. DB's for 12 then 100's for 11 reps. I tried 120's but could only get 2 sets of 3 so I went back to 100's for one final set of 9. I did the machine press next getting 11 at 275, 2 at 325, then back to 275 for 3 sets of 9, 8, and 8 and finishing at 265 for 9. These sets were all to failure plus a few attempts to get one more rep and some slow partials for extra burn. Lastly, I did cable crossovers starting at 90 lbs. for 12, 10, 10, and 8 then doing a triple drop set from 110 for 8 to 90 for 5 to 70 for 5. My chest was toasted after these. At this point a friend asked me to spot him on squats so I took that opportunity to get a set in myself just using 225 for 10 deep reps. This was because the guy was doing half squats with 315 so I said he should go deep and use less weight, which he did and discovered he could barely get 3 reps with the 225. Calves were next (I didn't want to do a full leg workout today) and I did standing calf raises using 500 lbs. on one leg for 4 sets of 6. March 25, 1999 Weight: 188 Trained: Arms, legs? Chest? I'm trying something different these days: I'm starting each workout with a few sets of a heavy exercise which seems to set me up for an awesome workout. Last workout I did heavy shrugs, the one before I did deadlifts so for this one I chose leg press. This first exercise is like a warm-up for the workout to come and so far I've had incredible workouts doing this. I warmed up on leg press with 6 plates a side (they were already loaded on) and did 15 reps doing the first 6 slow then speeding up the reps (lower slowly, then blast up). I did 7 plates for the next set for 10 reps the same way (lowering slowly, then blasting up hard). After the last rep I held the weight in the middle and did some explosive partials to get more feeling of intensity. The last set I used 8 plates a side and did the same thing as the last set. That was it, just enough to get me pumped and maybe release a few endorphins. No set was to failure but each was done in a way to increase the intensity of the set. Now, on to arms! I began with E-Z Bar Curls warming up with 75 lbs. which felt ridiculously easy so I raised it to 125 lbs. and got 12 on the first set, then 10, 3 sets of 8 and one of 6 reps. Each set was to failure and a bit beyond (after the last rep I can do with good form, I bring the bar to the top position then drop it to halfway, catch it and bring it up again). I can usually get 2 or 3 of these half reps after each set. Talk about intensity! I did Hammer Curls next to hit a different part of the arms (some forearm and the outside of the biceps). I did these seated on a bench with a slight backwards incline using 2 dumbbells and curling both dumbbells at the same time. I started at 50 lb. dumbbells and got 3 sets of 10, 8 and 6 reps, then did one more drop set getting 5 with the 50's and 5 with the 40's. To finish biceps I did concentration curls sitting on the bench with my elbow on the inside of my knee and used the 50 lb. dumbbell to get 2 sets of 8 and one drop set getting 4 reps with the 50 and 5 with 40 lbs. My biceps were good and pumped now, and well worked! I wanted to do pullovers today but my chest felt a bit tight so I did 3 sets of Close-grip Bench Press to work the triceps a bit and stretch out the chest area for the pullovers. I just used 135 and did a set of 20 and 2 sets of 15, then on to the pullovers. I did these on a decline bench with an E-Z bar weighing 100 lbs. I hook into the decline bench and with a good stretch I could just reach the bar on the floor which I brought to my chest. I started by pressing the weight to arms length using a close grip, then bringing my arms back in a wide arc behind my head (keeping them straight but not quite locked) until I felt a full stretch in my chest, abs, and lats, then back to the starting position immediately followed by the next rep. I started these slow and as the tightness disappeared, went faster until the last few reps were fairly explosive. The first set I got 20, then 15 and 2 sets of 10. After the last rep in each set I switched to close-grip bench press to finish off the triceps usually getting about 6 -8 of these. Now my whole upper body was pumped but I wanted one more exercise for the triceps and chose Dips! I got 25 on the first set and after 15 on the second set, slowed the reps right down and did some slow partials in the upper range to isolate the triceps, then did a few more full reps until I couldn't lock out anymore. That was enough for one workout, felt great, actually I still feel great 3 hours later! March 27, 1999 Weight: 191 Trained: Back, Shoulders, Quads, Calves I've been overloaded at work lately and haven't had time to post this until now (March 31) Sorry for the delay. Back: Shoulders: Started with Dumbbell Shoulder Press warming up with the 50's for 12 then the 60's for 8. I attempted the 75's but couldn't quite get it started so I went to 70 lbs. and pumped off 10 good ones. Wide-grip upright rows were next starting at 115 lbs. for 2 sets of 12 and 10, then to 135 for a set of 8 and back to 115 for a final set of 10. I then did a set of Close-grip Military Press using 115 lbs. for 10 reps followed by 10 to behind the neck. I finished with rear laterals doing 2 sets of 10 with 45 lb. dumbbells, then lowering to 35 lbs. for 2 sets of 12 and one of 10. That was enough for shoulders today. For legs I just did leg press starting at 6 plates a side for 10, then 8 for 8 and 9 for 10 reps. Then I jumped to 12 plates and got 3 one the first set, then waited about 5 minutes and got 7 on the next set. This was very intense but it felt great! There's nothing like being crushed under over 1000 lbs. of weight and having to use every ounce of your being to push it away, and then doing it again! That was enough of the heavy stuff, I dropped it back to 8 plates and did 12 easy ones so went to 9 plates next and got 10. While I had the machine loaded up I did some calf raises on it with the 9 plates a side. I did 5 sets getting 20, 15, 15, 12 and 12 reps. I finished with standing calf raised using 500 lbs. for 3 sets of 15. March 31, 1999 Weight: 187 Trained: Deadlifts, Chest Since I had the last 2 days off (working too late) I decided to try to beat my deadlift record today. I warmed up with 225 for 8 and 315 for 6, then did 405 for 1 and up to 455 for a fairly easy single. Since my record is currently 465, I tried 475 but couldn't quite get it. The first attempt, I got it about an inch off the ground and on the second about 6 inches. This is alright as even the attempts will make me stronger. I went back to 455 and did 1, then one more at 405 followed by 15 shrugs. I'll get that 475 next time! Chest: Did bench press warming up with 145 for 8 (using the thicker 55 lb. bar for these today). I decided to continue with low reps and heavier weights today so went to 235 for 8 and then got 4 with 285. I added on 20 more and got 1 easy rep with the 305 so I added another 20 (325). I lifted it off the rack then decided I should get a spotter for this, just in case. Turns out I didn't need him after all, I got the rep without much struggle. I decided that was enough singles so dropped the weight to 285 and actually got 8 reps, more than I ever have with that weight! I followed that with a set of 5 within 2 minutes. I finished chest with cable crossovers starting with 70 a side for 12 then 110 for 10 and 130 for 8. I then did a drop set starting at 130 for 6, then 110 for 6, 90 for 7 and 70 for 12. My chest (in fact, my whole body) was exhausted after these. I started with some biceps work, realized the futility of it, and went home. Time enough tomorrow for arms, and maybe legs!
|
|
Bodybuilding
- Exercises - Intensity!
- QuickTips - Fat Loss
- Weight Gain - Routines
- Supplements - Secrets
- NaturalPhoto-Gallery
Photos of me Muscles
MyMessageBoard
Old-Workouts Machines
OverTraining About Me
Proportion Testimonials
RandomThoughts Vote-(FitnessEngine)
|
