Thursday, August 30, 2012

Thu 8/30 - Cardio

Cardio:
  • Ran 4.2 in 38:55 (9:45,9:26,9:24,8:42), 9:15 pace, c/d 16mins.  Total 55mins
Started out feeling GREAT.  Knees/calves/feet felt good.  I thought, "I'm back!".  ~5 min into the run my calves just began to ache.  What the heck is going on?  This used to be an EASY run only a few weeks ago.  I'm not cutting *that* hard, but could it be due to low cals/carbs?  Normally in the past if my legs were feeling "dead" it was more in the quads.  Now my legs from knees down are just all screwed up.  Frustrating.

Nutrition:
Tough low carb/calorie day today.  I think it was tougher because I was home today, so I knew food was just a few steps away the whole day.  Eating window today was 2PM-8PM.  I weighed 171.6 this morning, which was a little higher than I expected, but only by about a pound.

Thu Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/30/2012 6AM BCAA 10g



7:30AM 55 mins: 39run/16walk.



9AM BCAA 10g



2PM Chicken 7oz 49 0 2 210

2PM Yellow Squash 13oz 4 12 0 65

2PM Chobani Yogurt 6oz 18 7 0 100

5PM Jerky (Walmart) 1oz 14 3 1 80

7:45PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193
8PM Whey Protein W2 1 scoop 25 3 3 140
8PM Cottage Cheese 1cup 26 12 0 160
All Day Almonds .5oz 0 0 0 0







TOTALS: Grams 180 37 7     948

Calories 720 147 67     933
Percent 77% 16% 7% 100%

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Wed 8/29 - Back/Shoulders/Bi's & Cardio

Cardio:
  • Evening 51 min walk after "dinner" and then ate dinner #2 after the walk.
Absolutely beautiful day.  I didn't sleep well at all last night w/ only about 4 hours.  I was up for good at around 4:45 and was going to walk in the AM, but decided to wait until later in the day.  Really didn't want to be at work today.

Workout:
I didn't have high expectations for this WO with little sleep last night.

  • (Pullups) 11/+3,3,3,2,2,2 (7).  Pretty good.
  • (120#Military) 17/+4,4,4,3,3 (6) Felt really good again, but I think I pushed it too far on activation set.  Only got half reps on last rep of last 2 sets.
  • (135#SeatedRow) 11/+3,3,3,3,3 (7) Bumped weight up on this today.  Left elbow really bothering me on these, but don't think going lighter would have been any less painful.  That said, maybe I should have gone lighter so I could get 4 rep mini-sets.
  • (60#RearDelts) 12/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (10)
  • (80#Curls) 20/+4,4,4,4,4,3,3 (8) Really good bi's again. More activation reps and more sets this week.
  • (20#LateralDelts) 10/+3,3,3,3,3,3 15#/+8,8 (9)  Added the two sets at end with lighter weight because felt I needed more reps.  Might need to go lighter here from the start to get higher rep mini-sets. 
  • (TortureTwist) 50/+16,14,14,14 (HipThrusts) 25,25,25 (8).  I was going to do weighted crunches on the ball, but I tried that before the WO during warmup and was having balance issues so I did torture twists and hip thrusts instead.  I went to high volume on first set of twists and hit a wall quickly.  These were good, but I still like lying leg raises to hip thrust better.  I want to start adding in some weighted ab work for hypertrophy.
  • (45#BentOverRows) 12/+4,4,4,4,4,4 (7) Bumped up weight for bent rows and they felt really good again.  These take a lot out of me.  I'm breathing really hard and sweating a lot after these.
  • (25#FrontDelt) 15/+4,4,4,4,4,4,3 (8) Good today.  Did them slow and under control on way up and down.
  • (45#Shrugs) 20/+5,5,5,5,5,8 (7).  Haven't done shrugs in a while and just decided to add them on today
49 mins
Back: 21
Shoulders: 40
Bi's: 8
Core: 8
Total: 77 sets (activation + mini-sets) 

Decent WO, especially given lack of sleep.  Most of my lifts were as good or better then last back WO, so that's good.  I didn't do as much back work.  My left elbow is really bothering me and heavy pulling motions really bother it (ie. Seated Rows).  This is why I didn't do Reverse Grip Pulldowns or Close Grip Pullowns.  Hopefully by next week my elbow will be able to handle those again.  If not, I'll swap out pullups and do at least one of those.

I've got to get over trying to go heavier and listen to what my body is telling me, and that is 4-rep mini-sets seems to work better for some (most?) muscle groups. Also need to work this into a progression plan, meaning:
  • Start with a weight that I can get 15-17 activation reps, 4-5 rep mini-sets week1/2
  • Week 3/4, move to a weight for 12-15 activation reps, 3-4 rep mini sets
  • Week 5/6, move to 10-12 activation reps, 3 rep mini sets
  • Week 7/8, 8-10 activation reps, 2-3 rep mini sets
  • Week 9/10, deload week(s)
Nutrition:
Decent day today.  Got into a little bit of cereal this evening, but that was OK.  Weight was 169.8 this morning.

Wed Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/29/2012 Noon BCAA 10g



12:15PM WO - Back/Shoulders/Bi's



1:30PM Creatine 5g



1:30PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

2PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

2PM Broccoli/Snap Peas 5oz 3.5 10 0 50

2PM Sweet Potato 4.6oz 3 27 0 120

2PM Banana 1 small 1 23 0 90

5:30PM Chicken 6.5oz 46 0 2 195

5:30PM Salad 14oz 8 19 0 100

5:30PM Oatmeal 1/4cup 3 14 2 75

6PM Apple 1 med 0 25 0 95

6PM 51 min walk




8PM Egg Whites 2whites 7 0 0 34

8PM Apple Jacks 2servings 2 50 1 200

8PM Milk (FF) 1Cup 8 13 0 90

8PM Casein Protein C1 1 scoop 25 11 2 160

8PM Chobani Yogurt 6oz 18 7 0 100
11PM BCAA 10g


All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83







TOTALS: Grams 201 206 16  1,724

Calories 803 825 145  1,772
Percent 45% 47% 8% 100%

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Tue 8/28 - Cardio

Cardio:
  • 46 mins before work.  Knees and feet feeling a bit better.  I was tempted to start running, but decided to give it another day or two.   
 I was going to go for another walk in the evening, but spent a good bit of time cleaning out my freezer.  I put 4 cans of diet Mountain Dew in the freezer this morning and forgot about them.  They exploded all over the freezer.  I was frustrated at first, but decided it was just a good excuse to clear out some old stuff in the freezer and make some space.  Maybe this is a hint that I need to cut down on my caffeine intake!

Nutrition:
Added some carbs in this evening that weren't planned, but still a decent day.  Better to be moderate and under control than too strict and not be able to maintain adherence.  This happens easily when trying to cut too hard.  Weight was 171.6 this morning, so I'm doing well.

Tue Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/28/2012 7AM BCAA 10g


 

8AM 46 min walk



 

2PM Creatine 5g


 

2PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

2PM Chicken 6oz 42 0 1.5 180

2PM Salad 12oz 7 16 0 86

2PM Egg White 3whites 11 1 0 51

2PM Sweet Potato 3.4oz 2 20 0 88

4PM Chobani Yogurt 6oz 18 7 0 100

7PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

7PM Yellow Squash 9oz 3 8 0 45

8:30PM Oatmeal 1/2 cup  5 27 3 150

8:30PM Apple Jacks 28grams 1 25 1 100

8:30PM Milk (FF) 1Cup 8 13 0 90
  8:30PM Casein Shake C2 1 scoop 24 3 1 130
  All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83
 





 
 
TOTALS: Grams 197 127 16  1,435
 
  Calories 788 507 145  1,440
      Percent 55% 35% 10% 100%

Monday, August 27, 2012

Mon 8/27 - Chest/Tri & Cardio

Cardio:
  • Walked 41 mins in the evening.  It was a nice night and my feet were feeling OK.  Also, I didn't want to be in the house and be tempted to start chowing down bowls of cereal :)
Workout:
  • (45#Incline) 18/+4,4,4,3 (5) 
  • (150#Bench) 11/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (9)
  • (Dips) 15/+3,3,3,3,3,2 (7)
  • (30#IncFlys) 12/+4,4,4,4 (5)
  • (LyingLegRaise) 30/+7,7,7,7,7,7 +20,20,20,20 hip thrusts (11)
  • (50#OHTriExt) 11/+4,4,4,4,3 (6)
  • (100#PushDown) 10/+4,4,4,4,4,4 (7)
  • (110#PeckDeckc) 12/+3,3,3,3,3 (6)
45 mins exactly
Chest: 25
Tri's: 20
Core: 11
Total: 56 sets (activation + mini-sets)

Incline, even though not that many sets was really good with the higher reps.  I think I should bump the weight next time.  That will give me less reps on activation set, but could still hopefully get 4 reps in the mini-sets.  If not, then 45#s is right for now. 

Last week I used 165#s after incline and it was a bit too heavy.  150# felt good today, evn if heavy after hard incline.  I REALLY worked on the last reps of the last 2-3 sets.  Chest was really worked.

After incline/bench I didn't know what to expect from dips.  I was surprised I got 15 dips on the activation set.  These were really good today.

I bumped up incline fly weight today.  This movement bothered my left elbow, but I don't think it was just because of increased weight. The weight was right fro activation set and mini-sets for this movement and volume was right as well.

I had core listed as last exercicse, but did it in this position to give my tri's a little rest.  Lying leg raises were really good today.  Lots of volume and did 4 sets of 20 hip thrusts at the end.  The hip thrusts really work my lower abs and I try to hold them at the top for a second.  Really
good.

Overhead tri extensions were pretty good, but tri's were worked and I hit a wall pretty quickly.  Was glad I could get 4 reps in the mini-sets as that seems to be better than 3, especially for isolation exercises.

For tri pushdowns, I started at 120#s, but it was too heavy.  Tri's were beat.  I dropped to 100#'s and got some good reps.  Same as above, glad I could get 4 reps on mini-sets.  Had I stuck with 120#, that wouldn't have been possible.

Peck deck felt OK, but had a hard time squeezing chest hard at contraction.  I think chest was just done.  Bench really tough today.

Overall a great WO.  Chest was really pumped after this WO, and tri's were worked well.  Great amount of time at 45 mins exactly when I hit my watch to stop the time.  Based on the Myo-rep WO's I've done the last couple of weeks, I seem to get a better WO at higher rep ranges.  This is especially true for isolation movements (bi's/tri's).  Incline felt really good today with the higher reps.  That said, bench felt great today with lower reps, but that might be due to the amount of volume and that it followed tough incline.
 

Nutrition:
Good day today.  Pretty clean.  I was right about where I wanted to be this morning at 172.8#s so I didn't restrict carbs too much today.  Lower carb tomorrow.

Mon Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/27/2012 11:30AM BCAA 10g


 

11:45AM WO - Chest/Tri's



 

1PM Creatine 5g


 

1PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

2PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

2PM Broccoli/Snap Peas 5oz 3.5 10 0 50

2PM Sweet Potato 4.6oz 3 27 0 120

4PM Chicken 3.2oz 22 0 1 96

4PM Egg Whites 2whites 7 0 0 34

4PM Banana 1 small 1 23 0 90

7:30PM Chicken 6oz 42 0 2 180

7:30PM Salad 12oz 7 16 0 86

7:45PM Apple 1 med 0 25 0 95

7:45PM 41 min walk



 

8:45PM Oatmeal 1/2 cup  5 27 3 150

8:45PM Milk (FF) 1Cup 8 13 0 90

10PM Casein Shake C2 1 scoop 24 3 1 130
  11PM BCAA 10g


 
  All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83
 





 
 
TOTALS: Grams 199 151 17  1,535
 
  Calories 798 606 151  1,555
      Percent 51% 39% 10% 100%
 

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Sat/Sun 8/25-26 - Cardio & Weekly Recap


Cardio:
  • Saturday - 60 min walk with my Mom before she headed back to Williamsburg.  She and Cranny were in town for one night for a wedding.
  • Sunday - Nothing.  I was active all day, but didn't get out for a walk/run.  Crazy weather.  It was sunny for 20mins, then rained like crazy for 30 on-and-off all day.  Needed a day off anyway.  Feet/calves feeling a little bit better.
Nutrition:
Did a short re-feed on Friday after a big cut week (4,000 cals Mon-Thu).  Calories for Fri/Sat/Sun were ~2,700/2,000/1,500.  Kind of tapering down for the week.  Weight Fri/Sat/Sun was 169.8/170.8/173.2.  That's about perfect from last Sun night when I was 191.2.  Cut hard all week, then carb'd back up a bit and tapered getting ready for the week.  I'll probably cycle carbs/cals this week on WO days and get back down to consistent sub 170 by end of the week.

Sat:

TOTALS: Grams 161 285 26  2,025
Calories 643 1140 237  2,020
Percent 32% 56% 12% 100%
Sun:

TOTALS: Grams 152 180 24  1,523
Calories 606 720 214  1,540
Percent 39% 47% 14% 100%

10,439 calories for the week.  1,491/day average.

Week Ending 8/26/12:
Decent Week.  2 runs, 3 WO's, 0 doubles. My feet and calves were killing me all week for some reason.  I have no idea why.  Left elbow is bothering me and left shoulder is still giving me some trouble.  Need to start doing my PT exercises and keep an eye on the left elbow.

I "logged" 2 runs, but they were short with walking during/after.  Hopefully feet will feel better this coming week and I can get some decent runs in.  Playing that by ear depending on how feet/calves feel.

The three WO's were really good this week.  That's one bright spot.  I was also happy with being able to get my weight back down after going a bit crazy in PA.  I did in 1 week what I thought would take at least 2.  I'm still really liking the Myo-reps, and will do them for a couple more weeks.  Need to have some consistency in the diet for those couple of weeks and then determine if the Myo-rep protocol is working like I *think* it is.  Could be that I just like the format of the WO's a lot, but the results also have to be there.

Coming up this week, 2 chest/tri WO's and 1 back/shoulder/bi.  Cycling carbs/cals on WO days and hopefully get at least a couple of runs in.  Tinkering with the idea of doing full upper body Myo-rep WO's, but think I'll use the split again for at least this week.

Friday, August 24, 2012

Fri 8/24 - Back/Shoulders/Bi's (Myo-reps)

I weighed 169.8 this morning.  21+ pound drop from Sunday night.  Time for a re-feed today.  No cardio this morning to give feet a rest in hopes of getting them better.

Workout:
  • (Pullups) 10/+3,3,3,2,2,2 (7)
  • (150#CloseGripPull) 10/+3,3,3,3,2,2,2 (8)
  • (120#Military) 16/+4,4,3,3,2 (6) Really good.  Shoulders on fire rest of WO
  • (120#SeatedRow) 10/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (8)
  • (LateralDelsts) 10/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (8)
  • (80#Curls) 17/+4,4,4,4,4,3 (7) Really worked last rep of last 3 sets.  Great Bi's
  • (60#RearDelts) 15/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (9)
  • (LyingLegRaise) 30/+7,7,7,7,7,7 +20HipRaises at end (8)
  • (25#FrontDelt) 15/+4,4,4,4,4,4,4 (8)Really good today
  • (40#BentOverRows) 12/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (9) Really good.  Could really feel these in back today.
  • (20#IncCUrls) 12/+4,4,4 (hurting shoulder so finished with standing curls) +6,6,6,6 (8)
52 mins
Back:  32
Shoulders: 31
Bi's: 15
Core: 8
Total: 86 sets (activation set + mini-sets)

I haven't done pullups in a while, opting for reverse grip pulldowns so I was pleasantly surprised I didn't have much trouble getting 10 reps on the activation set.  Mini-sets of 3 got difficult quickly though.

Close grip pulldowns were pretty tough after pullups, but I was fairly happy with these.  I would have liked a few more sets of 3 though rather than 2's.

Military was great again.  Really felt the shoulders working and think this rep range might be better for a lot of exercises.  Shoulders were on fire.

Seated rows were good.  Really squeezed the back.  Right weight I think.

Lateral/Rear/Front delts were all pretty good, especially front delts.  I might want to start with rear delts given I need to be working on them more due to the impingement in my left shoulder.

Curls were awesome today.  I think this was mainly because I dropped the weight a little and got more reps.  I'm noticing a theme here :)  When I get the activation set in the 12-15 range and mini-sets (effective reps) in the 4 range, I seem to get more out of the exercise.  That's my perception anyway.

Core was lying leg raises and these felt good as usual.  When the last mini-set ended, I continued with hip raises (20) to the ceiling.  These really burned my lower abs good.

Bent over rows felt good today.  Sometimes I can't really tell if they are "working", but today they felt good.  My back is really tight tonight.

Bi's felt so good earlier in the WO I decided to give them another exercise.  I did dumbbell curls lying on the incline bench.  This really started to hurt my left shoulder and left elbow (another joint that started bothering me recently that I need to keep an eye on), so after 4 sets of that, I finished with 4 more sets of 6 standing, which felt better.

Great WO today.  A little longer than I would have liked, but I did a lot of volume today.  Surprisingly, I had a lot of energy even though I cut really hard this week and had only a little over 4,000 calories all week.  I did this WO at 12:30 fasted from the night before at 8PM.  Then I started a re-feed.  Which leads me to...

Nutrition:
Well, I decided not to bullshit around with the cut this week, and it worked.  Worked amazingly well actually.  I dropped from 191.2 on Sunday evening to 169.8 this morning.  Mostly water/glycogen for sure, but I'm very happy with the results.  I have to admit, I'm not looking as lean as I was previously at 169, so I probably need to get back down after today's re-feed and stay there for a little while to get the belly veins popping back out again.
For today's re-feed, I kept it to 6.5 hours, maintained protein, kept fat low and just increased carbs significantly.  I should have eaten cleaner carbs, but was craving cereal so I ate quite a few bowls of that.  Carbs were at 386g and calories were about 2,700.  A healthy amount for sure, but not insane and it was good I kept fat low.  In PA I ate a lot of high fat foods (cookies, cake, ice cream) and no doubt this is largely why I'm not looking as lean as I did previously at the same weight.
Back to it tomorrow.  I won't be cutting real hard over the weekend.  I'll try to stay between 1,800-2,000 cals before dropping back down next week.  I'll see where I am Monday morning as planned to determine how hard the cut will be next week.  All that really means is varying the amount of carbs I'll be eating, but it certainly won't be as few as this week.

Fri Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/24/2012 Noon BCAA 10g


 

12:15PM WO - Back/Shoulders/Bi's


 

2PM Creatine 5g


 

2PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

2:30PM Chicken 6oz 42 0 2 180

2:30PM Ranch Dressing 1tbs 0.2 1 7.7 73

2:30PM Naan 4.5oz 10 60 10 380

3PM Sweet Potato 8oz 4.8 47.2 0 208

3PM Banana 1 small 1 23 0 90

4:30PM Cracklin Oat Bran 50grams 4 35 7 200

4:30PM Apple Jacks 56grams 2 50 1 200

4:30PM Milk (Fat Free) 2cups 18 26 0 180

4:30PM Apple 1 med 0 25 0 95

5PM Froyo (Sugar Free) 1/2cup 3 15 3 100

5:15PM Oatmeal 1/2 cup  5 27 3 150
  8:30PM Egg White 2 Whites 7 0 0 34
  8:30PM Chicken 5oz 35 0 1 150
  8:30PM Salad 12oz 7 16 0 86
  9PM Kix 30grams 2 25 1 110
  9PM Milk (Fat Free) 1 Cup 9 13 0 90
  9PM Froyo (Sugar Free) 1/2cup 3 15 3 100
  11PM BCAA 10g


 
  All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83
 





 
 
TOTALS: Grams 186 386 47  2,648
 
  Calories 743 1542 421  2,706
      Percent 27% 57% 16% 100%

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Thu 8/23 - Cardio

I weighed 170.4 this morning.  That's less than when I left for PA.

Cardio:
  • Ran 20 mins in 2 bouts and walked the rest for total of 1:11.  Feet/calves still killing me.  No idea why.  I haven't been running much the last week or so.  Puzzling.  I've been rolling tennis balls under my feet and that seems to be helping a little. I've got to get rid of this pain.  Stretched calves real well afterward.
Nutrition:
Another low cal/carb day.  I actually went out to lunch yesterday and today with friends.  Both restaurants were fine with just putting a plain chicken breast on the grill for me with no sauce and steamed veggies today, salad with no dressing yesterday.  I just used a drizzle of balsamic vinegar on the salad.  It's really not THAT difficult to eat out healthy (even if your friends do give you an odd look or two).  Today's portion lunch portions were small so when I got back to the office I got a salad and some grilled chicken from the cafeteria and ate again. Protein probably should have been higher today, but should be fine with BCAA's this morning and I'll probably have another 10g before bed.

This week hasn't been too bad until this evening.  I was hungry and carbs, the cereal in the cupboard specifically, were calling me.  Some doses of caffeine helped that.  Hopefully that won't affect my sleep tonight. 

Plan is to fast through my workout tomorrow and then eat some carbs and have a small refeed.  Then closer to maintenance calories Saturday and possibly Sunday, then see where I am Monday morning.  From there I'll either keep the cut like this week (which I wouldn't look forward to) or more likely go back to carb cycling on WO days.

Thu Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/23/2012 7AM BCAA 10g


 

7:30AM 71 min (20 run, 51 walk)


 

10AM BLOX BCAA 10g


 

Noon Chicken (Jacksons) 5oz 35 0 1 150

Noon Asparagus 2oz 1 2 0 12

1:30PM Salad 10oz 5 13 0 71

1:30PM Egg White 2 Whites 7 0 0 34

1:30PM Chicken (Salad bar) 2.5oz 18 0 1 75

3:30PM Chicken (Salad bar) 2.5oz 18 0 1 75

6PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

6PM Yellow Squash 10oz 3 9 0 50

6PM Chicken 3oz 21 0 1 90
  TBD Casein Shake C2 1 scoop 24 3 1 130
  All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83
 





 
 
TOTALS: Grams 179 31 13     962
 
  Calories 715 124 121     959
      Percent 75% 13% 13% 100%

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Wed 8/22 - Chest/Tri's & Weight Update

I weighed 171.4 this morning.  That's down from 191.2 Sunday night, 186.0 Mon AM and 176.2 Tue AM.  20 pounds in 4 days! 

Feet still killing me today and had to be at work early this morning so I didn't get any cardio in before work for both reasons.  I wouldn't have walked/ran even if I had the time.

Workout (Myo-reps):
  • (45#Incline) 15/+3,3,3,3,3,3,2 (8)
  • (165#Bench) 10/+3,3,3,3,3,3,2 (8)
  • (Dips) 8/+2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2 (9)
  • (25#InclineFlys) 12/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (8)
  • (50#OHTriExt) 15/+3,3,3,3,3,3,2 (8)
  • (120#TriPushDn) 12/+3,3,3,3,3,2 +70#X15 (8)
  • (110#PeckDeck) 12/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (8) 
  • (LyingLegRaise) 25/+6,6,6,6,6,6 (7) 
  • (10#TriKickBack)
43 min
Chest: 32
Tri's: 26
Core: 7
Total: 65 (as usual, sets are listed as activation set/+mini-sets)

Incline was really good today.  I decided to do it first because I still feel like my upper chest (and chest in general) is lagging behind other body parts.  This was a good weight and all sets really worked chest, especially the last 3-4 mini-sets.

I had 50# dumbbell bench penciled here, but decided to use the machine.  Dumbbells are just kind of hard to do Myo-reps because it's too short a rest time to set them down, then get set back up, and holding them on the lap gets tedious.  So, after doing that for incline, I switched to the machine.  I only used 165#, but this might have been too heavy after really hitting incline hard.  I was barely getting 3 reps after a couple mini-sets and needed an assist the last 3 sets.  Here's where I don't know if I should have just stopped after I could only get 2 reps on about the 4th set, but I wanted more volume, so gave myself an assist.  Regardless, this really worked chest hard.

Whoa, dips were really tough, but felt good.  I've been getting a lot more dips lately, but today my tri's were already pretty fatigued from hitting bench/incline hard.  Repped out sets of 2, which is right in line with the protocol after the activation set of 8 reps.

Incline flys were good.  I had 30# penciled in, but after dips, I realized my chest was already fairly hammered, so I lightened that up to 25# and I think that was the right choice.  Felt good.

Overhead tri's were good, but this is another exercise where Myo-reps are a bit problematic.  It's hard to take a 10 second rest with a heavy dumbbell and then have to get it back overhead again in a short period of time.  Need to think about how I'll handle these going forward. I think 4 reps in mini-sets might be better here too.

My left elbow has really been bothering me the last couple of days, and I think tri pushdowns is one of the exercises that might be contributing to it (maybe OHTriExt's too).  I was on the fence about doing these, but thought I'd start off and if my elbow started hurting, I'd scrap it.  The elbow felt OK, and I was good about stopping when it got too much and didn't cheat.  I think that's where I get in trouble.  Wanted a little more work at the end, so I dropped the weight to 70# and repped out 15.  Tri's must have been pretty dead, because this should have been really light, and it didn't feel all that "light".  This is another exercise (similar to bi's) where I think my Myo-reps mini-sets need to be in the 4-5 range instead of 3, so I need to start lighter.

Peck deck was good.  This seemed like a pretty good weight.

Stood in front of the fan to cool down.  Grabbed a light dumbbell and did a set of tri kickbacks while cooling down.

I was short on time and had an all hands meeting at 11AM and was going to scrap core, but I can't keep doing that, so I did it and got on the AHM call a few minutes late.  I sacrificed taking a shower so I could get this in.  Hope my teammates don't mind!  Glad I did these.  They felt really good after doing Capt Chair leg raises yesterday that weren't great.

This was a really good WO.  Still adjusting and tweaking the Myo-reps and need further adjustments (increasing tri/bi reps, for example) but really loving this protocol.  I know I keep saying that, but it really is a GREAT workout and keeps the time more to what I've been wanting for months (i.e. shorter workouts, but very high intensity).

Nutrition:
I weighed 171.4 this morning.  That's down from 191.2 Sunday night, 186.0 Mon AM and 176.2 Tue AM.  20 pounds in 3 days!  Yes, that's just a repeat from above.  These past 3 days have been really clean, low carbs and low fat, but I've kept my protein up.  It hasn't been too hard yet.  I'll keep same diet through Friday and then have a bit of a re-feed over the weekend.  Nothing crazy though.  I'll just bring my calories up from ~1,000/1,100 to closer to maintenance for a day or two, then another week of moderate cutting (not as hard as this week) to get back down to around 10% BF and take it from there.

Wed Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/22/2012 10AM BCAA 10g



10:15AM WO - Chest/Tri's




1PM Creatine 5g



1PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

1:30PM Chicken 5.5oz 39 0 1 165

1:30PM Asparagus 5oz 3 6 0 30

2:30PM Sweet Potato 3.6oz 2 21 0 94

4PM Jerky 56g 23 3 2 120

6:30PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

6:30PM Broccoli/Snap Peas 6oz 4 12 0 60
7:15PM Cottage Cheese 185g (3/4c) 21 10 0 130
10PM Casein Shake C2 1 scoop 24 3 1 130
11PM BCAA 10g


All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83







TOTALS: Grams 193 62 15  1,144

Calories 772 246 131  1,149
Percent 67% 21% 11% 100%
 

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Tue 8/21 - Cardio

Cardio:
  • 7:30AM - Walked 31 mins before work - ran 6 mins to get HR up a bit, then walked.
  • 11AM - Ran 20 mins, then finished with 30 mins walking on treadmill at 11% incline. 
  • Did Myo-reps Captain Chair for core 15/+5,5,5,5,5,4,4.  Should have done lying leg raises.
Run at lunch sucked.  Calves felt like knots.  Feet hurt - felt like they were on fire.  Don't know what's going on.  Feet were "on fire" all day.  Had to take my shoes off at work.

Nutrition:
Weight on Sunday night was 191.2, Monday morning 186.0, this morning 176.2.  I was under 1,000 cals today with 34g carbs.  Determined to get weight back down quickly.  I'm back to Intermittent Fasting (IF).  Monday and today were 7-hour eating windows (2-9PM), with workout/cardio at end of fasting period.

Tue Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/21/2012 7AM BCAA 10g


 

7:30AM 31 min walk 



 

11AM 50 min (20 run, 30 walk)


 

2PM Creatine 5g


 

2PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

2:15PM Chicken 8oz 56 0 2 240

2:15PM Salad 8oz 4 11 0 57

4PM Chobani Yogurt 6oz 18 7 0 100

7PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

7PM Yellow Squash 7oz 2 6 0 35
  9PM Casein Shake C2 1 scoop 24 3 1 130
  All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83
 





 
 
TOTALS: Grams 181 34 13     977
 
  Calories 726 136 118     980
      Percent 74% 14% 12% 100%
 

Monday, August 20, 2012

Mon 8/20 - Back/Shoulders/Bi's

OK, let's go ahead and get this out of the way.  I went WAY overboard with my eating while in PA.  From Thursday evening through Sunday night I ate about anything and everything.  It was definitely a planned diet break, but I really should have eaten more protein.  Instead, I ate lots of carbs and tons of desserts.  They were great, and I don't regret it, but could have had a little self control.  I had lots of cookies, cake w/ ice cream, took the kids out for ice cream every night.  I basically ate until I felt uncomfortable several times a day, especially at night.  And, the scale shows it.  I was 191.2 Sunday night, and 186.0 this morning.  I haven't been 180+ in over 6 months.  Time to get to work.

Workout:
  • (180#RevGripPull) 11/+3,3,3,3,3,3,2 (8) 
  • (120#Military) 15/+4,3,3,3,3,2 (7)
  • (120#SeatedRow) 15/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (8)
  • (20#LateralDelsts) 10/+3,3,3,3,3,3 15#+8 (8)
  • (90#Curls) 15/+4,3,3,3 80#+3,3,3 (8)
  • (60#RearDelts) 15/+3,3,3,3,3,3,3 (8)
  • (25#FrontDelt) 12/+4,4,4,4,4,5 (7)
  • (40#BentOverRows) 12/+3,3,3,3,3,3,4 (8)
31 mins
Back: 24
Shoulders: 30
Bi's: 8
Total: 62 sets (activation + mini-sets)

Great WO in a short amount of time.  This was a tough 30 minutes.  A meeting ran over and only had 45 minutes to work out and shower and get to another meeting. 
Reverse grip pulldowns were good, but need to concentrate on keeping biceps out of the movement more. 
Military was great today. Weight was good and reps felt enough to get a burn and heavy enough for growth.
Seated rows were really good.  Tried to squeeze my back hard on contraction.
Lateral, rear and front delts all felt good.  They weren't in the old triple set, but hit them all.
Curls were pretty good, but need to start lighter to get more reps during the mini-sets.  Dropped to 80#s to get more reps.
Bent over rows were pretty good. 
I also had close grip pulldowns and core penciled in, but cut them out due to time constraints.


I would have liked one more back exercise, but an awesome WO even without it.
 
Nutrition:
I'm going to see how quickly I can get down back below 170.  That's 20 pounds as of last night, 16 as of this morning.  I think I can do that in under 2 weeks.  I don't regret the long cheat weekend, but I don't know if 2 weeks (if I can do it in that short a time period) and a TON of work for a couple of days of being a pig will be worth it.  A little self control would have made this a one week ordeal.  Much more manageable.  I'm going to try to do it quickly though, because the slower I do it, the more painful it's going to be.

Mon Time Item Size Prot Carb Fat Cal
8/20/2012 Noon BCAA 10g        

12:15PM WO - Chest/Tri's          

1PM Creatine 5g        

1PM Whey Shake W1 1 scoop 30 4 1 140

2PM Tuna (7oz can) 5.5oz 44 0 2 193

2PM Broccoli/Snap Peas 6oz 4.2 12 0 60
  2PM Sweet Potato 4.8oz 3 28 0 125
  4PM Chobani Yogurt 6oz 18 7 0 100
  4PM Egg White 2 Whites 7 0 0 34
  7PM Chicken 6oz 42 0 2 180
  7PM Salad 12oz 7 16 0 86
  9PM Casein Protein C1 1 scoop 25 11 2 160
  All Day Almonds .5oz 3 3 8 83
 





 
 
TOTALS: Grams 183 82 13  1,160
 
  Calories 731 327 118  1,176
      Percent 62% 28% 10% 100%