My Fitness Quest
Krazeyivan
Newcastle, UK
Hi all
Love reading the stories of peoples trials and successes.
Well I decided to start back at the gym - I trained for years at a local gym (got very strong bench etc) - then for other reasons I stopped and over the last 2 years I have had a session here or there but nothing major. My size and fitness has gone to be honest and weight is not pretty.
Last September till December I did the "cambridge diet" see http://www.cambridge-diet.co.uk/
I was on about the lowest "Sole source" diet about 615 kcal a day. Hard but I did lose about 35 pound.
But as time has progressed and a rather poor personal start to 2009 I am back around 18 stone (252lb) which is terrible. No action now will see me looking like a beach ball - I'm only 5"10/11 tall.
So yesterday I got myself back to the gym I enjoyed for all those years!
The aim is to go back to strength training and massively kick up the CV - I do play lots of golf but I need more.
Day 1 breakdown (15th June) - All weights are working sets after warmup
Leg Extension (5 x 8 reps of 35kg)
Hack Squats
1 x 8 reps - No add weight just carriage (50kg)
2 x 8 reps - 130Kg
1 x 8 reps - 150Kg
Deadlift (4 x 70kg)
Calf Raise (4 x 8 reps 150Kg)
Hamstring curl (4 x reps 35Kg)
CV - 30 Mins Medium resistance on the Spinner - heartrate must be above 140 at all times.
My initial breakdown for the first week is not too concerned with weight at the moment but getting the correct exercises selected.
Note each day I'll be doing 30 mins of CV after weights - Spinner/Treadmill or Crosstrainer
Mondays (Heavy Legs/Calfs/Hamstrings) I play golf saturday so I need days to recover.
Tuesday (Chest/Forearms/Triceps)
Weds - Pure CV Day - Running/Cycling/Cross-trainer
Thurs - Upper Back/Chins/biceps
Friday - Shoulders/Calfs (they need lots of work)
Sunday - Pure CV Day - Cycling
That is the initial aim and I'll see how it goes. I'll provide more detail as I decide on exercises.
Diet wise I was awful - Pizza, Chinese takeaway, eating before bed - but I'm not going to massively change it in a heartbeat - steady roll over should be easier.
So I'm only having water from now - with 1 can of diet pepsi a day as a treat.
No pop - (I drink massive amounts of this - or did
)
I have breakfast - cereal with milk OR porridge oats and water (I do love this)
Snack - muesli bar (Carmens Classic from Austrialia yum)
Lunch - plain chicken breast sandwich in wheat or brown bun
Snack - muesli bar/or protein shake
Gym - around 5pm
Get back around 7pm and I had last night breaded chicken breast with boiled potatos small portion.
NO food after 8pm for me - water only (after my can of course)
That is a quantum leap from where I was, but will let that bed in for a month or so then get a bit stricter.
Sunday I'll have a pizza if I wish too or fish and chips or something.
I hope this provides people with inspiration - if your currently thinking about getting back to training and getting some wellbeing. And also I hope this helps the people that have been going for a while (you've dragged me in!) to keep going you'll get to your goals! :thumbup
Apologies if thats a muddle I'll do better next post - promise
Love reading the stories of peoples trials and successes.
Well I decided to start back at the gym - I trained for years at a local gym (got very strong bench etc) - then for other reasons I stopped and over the last 2 years I have had a session here or there but nothing major. My size and fitness has gone to be honest and weight is not pretty.
Last September till December I did the "cambridge diet" see http://www.cambridge-diet.co.uk/
I was on about the lowest "Sole source" diet about 615 kcal a day. Hard but I did lose about 35 pound.
But as time has progressed and a rather poor personal start to 2009 I am back around 18 stone (252lb) which is terrible. No action now will see me looking like a beach ball - I'm only 5"10/11 tall.
So yesterday I got myself back to the gym I enjoyed for all those years!
The aim is to go back to strength training and massively kick up the CV - I do play lots of golf but I need more.
Day 1 breakdown (15th June) - All weights are working sets after warmup
Leg Extension (5 x 8 reps of 35kg)
Hack Squats
1 x 8 reps - No add weight just carriage (50kg)
2 x 8 reps - 130Kg
1 x 8 reps - 150Kg
Deadlift (4 x 70kg)
Calf Raise (4 x 8 reps 150Kg)
Hamstring curl (4 x reps 35Kg)
CV - 30 Mins Medium resistance on the Spinner - heartrate must be above 140 at all times.
My initial breakdown for the first week is not too concerned with weight at the moment but getting the correct exercises selected.
Note each day I'll be doing 30 mins of CV after weights - Spinner/Treadmill or Crosstrainer
Mondays (Heavy Legs/Calfs/Hamstrings) I play golf saturday so I need days to recover.
Tuesday (Chest/Forearms/Triceps)
Weds - Pure CV Day - Running/Cycling/Cross-trainer
Thurs - Upper Back/Chins/biceps
Friday - Shoulders/Calfs (they need lots of work)
Sunday - Pure CV Day - Cycling
That is the initial aim and I'll see how it goes. I'll provide more detail as I decide on exercises.
Diet wise I was awful - Pizza, Chinese takeaway, eating before bed - but I'm not going to massively change it in a heartbeat - steady roll over should be easier.
So I'm only having water from now - with 1 can of diet pepsi a day as a treat.
No pop - (I drink massive amounts of this - or did
)I have breakfast - cereal with milk OR porridge oats and water (I do love this)
Snack - muesli bar (Carmens Classic from Austrialia yum)
Lunch - plain chicken breast sandwich in wheat or brown bun
Snack - muesli bar/or protein shake
Gym - around 5pm
Get back around 7pm and I had last night breaded chicken breast with boiled potatos small portion.
NO food after 8pm for me - water only (after my can of course)
That is a quantum leap from where I was, but will let that bed in for a month or so then get a bit stricter.
Sunday I'll have a pizza if I wish too or fish and chips or something.
I hope this provides people with inspiration - if your currently thinking about getting back to training and getting some wellbeing. And also I hope this helps the people that have been going for a while (you've dragged me in!) to keep going you'll get to your goals! :thumbup
Apologies if thats a muddle I'll do better next post - promise
0
Comments
Pop: You can continue to drink as much as you want as long as you get 1 gallon of water per day. Diet whatever isn't going to stop you, and the FDA has spent 35 years unable to prove the bullshit about harmful effects.
Food: You're not eating enough at all. Eat at BMR+300 or BMR+400.
Move your forearms with your biceps, makes more sense on that.
Deadlifting and squatting same day is fine, so long as your upper back day is really dedicated to that. Otherwise you could just put it there.
Eat your basal-metabolic rate +/- 200. Get lots of protein (Ideally 250 grams a day, at least 200 grams though).
Watch what cereal you eat. Bran, shredded wheat, oats or Kashi Go-Lean are best.]
If you drink milk, drink skim or 2%. Whole is for weening.
Your focus should be weightloss and fitness. The most effective exercise for these both is the controlled fork lift.
I do roller work (rope and weight) for forearms every night too - they are a very dense muscle and can take a lot of punishment.
The deadlifting that I put with squating is just to keep myself growing and getting back into it - weight is light just getting my body used to it.
Back day is when I will be doing my main sets - the gym has installed an excellent T Bar row - which looks great - that will be integrated too.
16th June Chest Report
Bench Press - I used to do 1 week high reps 1 week strength work (no more than 6)
4 Sets
1 x 8 - 80Kg
2 x 8 - 100Kg
(Then I decided to see where I was at strength wise for this week only)
1 x 5 - 120Kg
1 x 1 - 140Kg
Incline Bench Press (dumbell) - 4 x 8 (30Kg Dumbells)
Dumbell Flys (flat) - 4 x 8 (18 Kg Dumbells)
Crossover Cables - 4 x 8 - 25Kg
Triceps Push downs - 4 x 8 - 35Kg
French Press - 4 x 8 - (15Kg)
CV - 35 Mins Medium Resistance Spinner
As expected my energy levels died after a while - the weight was fairly OK just could'nt keep the muscle endurance. In my bath afterwards I could not haul myself out as the triceps were out of commission
I've added some food to today (17th) - fresh fruit and more protein feel better for it too. PS - Any milk I use is always Semi Skimmed.
I was encouraged when I was training at my best to enter strongman events or bench press events. I never bothered to be honest.
My best on the bench press at 140Kg was 15 reps and my usual routine had me doing up to 180kg (PB of 7 reps)
My best one off lift was 200kg - thats all without a power suit only a belt.
I'm miles from that at the moment but it does make it easier when you have the muscle memory and did train hard once upon a time - so you know whats involved.
Even this recent work has me feeling fresher and fitter, looking forward to my gym visits again! I do want to correct a few errors on last time - keeping myself limber and getting my general level of fitness up.
I decided that Summer was over for me (No Holidays sob!) And it was winter - hence pile the size muscle and strength on till after xmas - from Jan its diet and lean up time.
I am back loving the gym - I visit a few in the area one has a pool, sauna, steam room etc and very nice ladies doing a VERY hard spinner class - but I did that too - nearly killed me but boy was it worth it.
Weights wise everything is going great
Chest - Bench is going great again - I can rattle off 140kg for 10 reps no problem and max at the moment has gone to 180Kg for 2 reps. Dumbells is at (incline chest press) 15 reps using 60Kg dumbells (yes thats each)
It really is the easiest body part for me barrel chest and short arms make gains very simple in this area.
Legs - I decided that I was sick of going anywhere on holiday and having even a hint of chicken legs! So I have bombed them. I always suffered a bit doing legs getting the barbell across the back was hard for me and TIGHT hamstrings make form a pain - a lot of work has gone into form first at light weight - I'm doing perfect squats now (after getting some help) and can do 100Kg for 10 right down. Yes I know thats pretty weak but I'm getting there. Calves are again an area for improvement and they are much denser but no real size gain yet - unlike my friend who only has to look at the calf machine to get lumps of meat on the back of his legs! --- Still I have chest I suppose.
Back - LOTS of deadlifts power movements - I really have been putting that early work for the first 8 weeks to good use, keeping it fairly light netted me good gains when i started properly. I'm at a max lift of 205Kg with 190Kg possible for 4 reps.
Thats with no belt (the 205kg I had to use straps to hold the weigh) Yes I know I need to use a belt but my form was perfect on that lift and I just purchased a powerlifter belt for heavier weights. I have not yet returned to chins but that will happen soon.
Diet has not been amazing but its a lot cleaner then before I started back at the gym. Using maximuscle products and its been helping a lot - I love cyclone!
Starting weight coming back was 17 Stone 3 pound - I'm 18 Stone 2 pound now. There is much belly to shift but this week I'm putting in a pure CV day on the field with sprints and HITT. The main cut will be the start of Jan time - I've no great target weight wise when that happens the only target is ABS much show! - I will be taking this carb cycling into consideration that I have seen on other threads and take it steady week on week. Right now its off season training for me.