Friday, April 1, 2011
Pumped
Given the events of this week, I needed to workout so damned hard I would have to drag my broken ass to the car afterward. I did my run on the treadmill as it was still cold and raining. Then maxxed out the leg press machine for three sets, twelve reps at 400 pounds, maxxed out the hip abduction machine at three sets, ten reps at 305 pounds - no wonder my upper legs are getting large, eh? Then on to the hip adduction machine three sets, ten reps at 265 pounds, leg extension machine three sets, eight reps at 145 pounds. After that zercher squats three sets, ten reps 135 pounds and then regular squats for two sets of the same weight. Then on to the hack squat machine for three sets, 8 - 12 reps at 200 pounds. And finally the hamstring machine for 3 sets, 8 -12 reps at 140 pounds and the standing calf machine for three sets, ten reps at 235 pounds. That's just the leg stuff I think is boring.
Now the chest - Split level pushups with a 25 pound medicine ball for twenty reps each arm, close handed stance on the medicine ball for 15 reps. The time killer - wide stance pushups on the Smith Machine moving the bar up one slot until basically arm level and then back down to the bottom for ten reps each level and a short break in the middle - that basically came to 90 pushups in the end. Then I used the Smith Machine to do incline bench presses ten sets, three reps at 145 pounds and after that incline dumbell flyes three sets 8 -12 reps with 45 pound dumbells. On to decline bench press three sets 8 -12 reps at 155 pounds, pec fly machine three sets 10 reps at 190 pounds, and finally dips - two sets, ten reps wide grip and two sets, ten reps normal grip. And my chest is my favorite area to work out. I wanted to do flat bench with close grip but both benches were used and I just did not feel like working in with someone or waiting around for it to come open. And I wanted to do weighted dips with far fewer reps but I could not find the belt.
Now I normally do not work out like that. I really wanted to test my limits and see just how long I can workout. Turned out to be a little over two hours. Needless to say, my chest had to have been twice its size when I left and my legs were feeling pumped pretty large as well.
A couple guys I chat with a lot gave me a pep talk this week. Both commented that I really have bulked up and just are not a skinny dude anymore. One commented that the change to my body is most noticeable through my chest and shoulders. That was nice. It doesn't weird me out when friends comment on my physique but it tends to do that when random people comment.
Anyway, I have come to enjoy a good pump through my muscles. Used to be that only my forearms would pump up but now each part of me that gets worked through real good gets pumped. Sure it could swell me up nearly twice my size for a while but it feels great.
Now the chest - Split level pushups with a 25 pound medicine ball for twenty reps each arm, close handed stance on the medicine ball for 15 reps. The time killer - wide stance pushups on the Smith Machine moving the bar up one slot until basically arm level and then back down to the bottom for ten reps each level and a short break in the middle - that basically came to 90 pushups in the end. Then I used the Smith Machine to do incline bench presses ten sets, three reps at 145 pounds and after that incline dumbell flyes three sets 8 -12 reps with 45 pound dumbells. On to decline bench press three sets 8 -12 reps at 155 pounds, pec fly machine three sets 10 reps at 190 pounds, and finally dips - two sets, ten reps wide grip and two sets, ten reps normal grip. And my chest is my favorite area to work out. I wanted to do flat bench with close grip but both benches were used and I just did not feel like working in with someone or waiting around for it to come open. And I wanted to do weighted dips with far fewer reps but I could not find the belt.
Now I normally do not work out like that. I really wanted to test my limits and see just how long I can workout. Turned out to be a little over two hours. Needless to say, my chest had to have been twice its size when I left and my legs were feeling pumped pretty large as well.
A couple guys I chat with a lot gave me a pep talk this week. Both commented that I really have bulked up and just are not a skinny dude anymore. One commented that the change to my body is most noticeable through my chest and shoulders. That was nice. It doesn't weird me out when friends comment on my physique but it tends to do that when random people comment.
Anyway, I have come to enjoy a good pump through my muscles. Used to be that only my forearms would pump up but now each part of me that gets worked through real good gets pumped. Sure it could swell me up nearly twice my size for a while but it feels great.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Double up
Due to circumstances involving a potentially former co-worker, I ended up on tap to run a double shift at the gym last Sunday. 13 hours of scanning keytags, answering phones, reading, weightlifting talk, and earning a pretty decent amount of commission. Somehow that really wore me out at the end of the day. In the middle of the day, I went down to Subway for some lunch. The plan was to buy two footlongs, one for a late lunch, and then one for dinner while I work on closing. I bought those and then found out that the Borders near the Fashion Mall is closing, so I hauled my ass down there and found some books and magazines on fitness that I have been wanting for a long time. Then I almost lost my mind and picked up a ton of manga, comics, and all sorts of silly crap. As the line crept forward, I dumped out everything but the fitness stuff. I got back to the gym and ate a footlong. An hour later, I ate the other footlong, and then after work I dropped by McDonald's for dinner because a sweet tea really sounded like a delicious drink and then ended up with nuggets, fries and all that. I don't normally eat like that but I just could not get full all day.
Anyway, one of the books I picked up was "Huge in a Hurry" which is a book on strength training that will build size. It's basically high weight, high sets, with very low reps in order to, in theory, stress the muscles out entirely. You are supposed to fail on the tenth set and while I have been working these exercises in, I find it hard to just go to failure when I have at least five more chest exercises on the dock I can't wait to get to. Anyway, I have been taking in any amount of information on fitness that I can over the last five years in order to keep things fresh and exciting.
Anyway, one of the books I picked up was "Huge in a Hurry" which is a book on strength training that will build size. It's basically high weight, high sets, with very low reps in order to, in theory, stress the muscles out entirely. You are supposed to fail on the tenth set and while I have been working these exercises in, I find it hard to just go to failure when I have at least five more chest exercises on the dock I can't wait to get to. Anyway, I have been taking in any amount of information on fitness that I can over the last five years in order to keep things fresh and exciting.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Size
For those who read this blog you are well aware of my transformation over the years. Nearly five years ago, I took up weightlifting and have since put on more than 60 pounds. Thing is, I rarely actually see how big I have gotten. It is very hard to explain. It is not that I still see that 150 pound guy, it is just that I do not see that 213 pound guy. People tell me how amazing it is how much I have been able to change my own body but it so odd that I just do not see the extent like they can.
Now an exception came yesterday. I went for a run before absolutely hammering my chest. I was sweaty as all hell at the end of my workout but that dude looking back at me in the mirror was just humongous. It was a short moment where I looked at myself and did not even recognize me. After an utterance of the word "damn" and I put my hand on my thick ass chest did I recognize myself again. While short, I did get to fully see how far I have come. I still can not even fathom how I have been able to take a body I was so sure would never bulk up and take it as far as I have, especially having done it largely on my own.
I am back to not seeing that humongous dude. I am not the kind of guy that takes shirtless pictures of myself to document my progress so I have nothing other than shirts that continue to grow smaller and pants that continue to tighten up around my upper legs.
Now an exception came yesterday. I went for a run before absolutely hammering my chest. I was sweaty as all hell at the end of my workout but that dude looking back at me in the mirror was just humongous. It was a short moment where I looked at myself and did not even recognize me. After an utterance of the word "damn" and I put my hand on my thick ass chest did I recognize myself again. While short, I did get to fully see how far I have come. I still can not even fathom how I have been able to take a body I was so sure would never bulk up and take it as far as I have, especially having done it largely on my own.
I am back to not seeing that humongous dude. I am not the kind of guy that takes shirtless pictures of myself to document my progress so I have nothing other than shirts that continue to grow smaller and pants that continue to tighten up around my upper legs.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The coming test
I have a police officer PT test coming up next month. Clearly, I have not a problem with most of it. But it is the running that really has me nervous. I have not done cardio in a year just because it bores me. So in preparation for this test, I will run Monday, Wednesday, and Friday before I get into chest workouts. It will replace most of my leg workouts for a month because I want to spend some serious time on this.
And as a sidenote, I have been thinking about spending a few sessions with one of the trainers at my gym job once I get a new full time job. Not so much because I need help gaining the last bit of mass, but I would like help in maintaining the size once I get there. I know how to get bigger but not how to stay a certain size. Clearly this poses a different problem as I have aspirations of becoming a trainer myself. I mentioned it to a guy I work out with every now and then and he gave me the business over the entire idea. He told me it would be a waste of money since I have come so far on my own, and that I am basically already a trainer so why would I need to spend time with a different one? I certainly do not feel that way. If you are a doctor, you are going to see a different doctor for your own problems, right? Same for psychiatry. It's that and the trainer I want to work with is gigantic so he definitely know how to pack on muscle.
Also, I will be getting my Adult CPR/AED certification in a couple weeks. That clears a small hurdle toward getting my trainer certification.
And once I get a new job, I'm thinking of joining a Crossfit gym and really taking it to the next level. Those guys are also gigantic and have a lot more endurance than I. Clearly, I have a lot of ideas and are working in about a thousand directions at once. Hopefully something happens soon...
One more sidenote - I took my suit out to have a look to see if I need to get it cleaned for interviews. Turns out that was a yes. Cat hair covers the bottom of the jacket, I spilled crap on an elbow, and the entire thing was dusty from not having been touched in a couple years. To completely follow character, I planned on throwing the suit in the car to drop off after my workout only to spill milk all over the pants, drop them in the parking lot at home, and then ball the entire thing up and throw it in the backseat. If these people can make it look decent, I will be completely surprised.
And as a sidenote, I have been thinking about spending a few sessions with one of the trainers at my gym job once I get a new full time job. Not so much because I need help gaining the last bit of mass, but I would like help in maintaining the size once I get there. I know how to get bigger but not how to stay a certain size. Clearly this poses a different problem as I have aspirations of becoming a trainer myself. I mentioned it to a guy I work out with every now and then and he gave me the business over the entire idea. He told me it would be a waste of money since I have come so far on my own, and that I am basically already a trainer so why would I need to spend time with a different one? I certainly do not feel that way. If you are a doctor, you are going to see a different doctor for your own problems, right? Same for psychiatry. It's that and the trainer I want to work with is gigantic so he definitely know how to pack on muscle.
Also, I will be getting my Adult CPR/AED certification in a couple weeks. That clears a small hurdle toward getting my trainer certification.
And once I get a new job, I'm thinking of joining a Crossfit gym and really taking it to the next level. Those guys are also gigantic and have a lot more endurance than I. Clearly, I have a lot of ideas and are working in about a thousand directions at once. Hopefully something happens soon...
One more sidenote - I took my suit out to have a look to see if I need to get it cleaned for interviews. Turns out that was a yes. Cat hair covers the bottom of the jacket, I spilled crap on an elbow, and the entire thing was dusty from not having been touched in a couple years. To completely follow character, I planned on throwing the suit in the car to drop off after my workout only to spill milk all over the pants, drop them in the parking lot at home, and then ball the entire thing up and throw it in the backseat. If these people can make it look decent, I will be completely surprised.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Adonis
So where have I been lately? Well....
I am going to save all of that for a later date...
But for now, I am going to try to resume blogging and leave that stuff out for the time being. I have much to talk about and really need to get it out. Recently I have found myself hitting up every single fitness type calendar there is on the internet just to see what is out there and how they compare and contrast. And mostly I love seeing the stuff that is clearly a fad.
Men's Health.com has a broken calculator on their side called the Adonis Index which asks for your jacket size and your waist size but never works, so I took it to Google to see if another site offers it. Turns out there is another site and it is not entirely clear that the site won't infect the hell out of your computer. It also features some horrible CG video. So what is the Adonis Index? Well on this site it asks for your height and your waist and then gives you what would be the best shoulder measurement for your body and then asks for a ton of crap to potentially give you more measurements for a perfect body. So for my height and waist size, I should be nearly 55 inches across my shoulders. Well it is entirely possible I am wider than that across my shoulders. I kind of want to see more measurements as I am confident my chest is quite a bit larger than they would advise.
Bodybuilding.com has a fitness calculator where you enter a measurement for your wrist and then it returns the recommended size you should be all over the rest of your body. Again, my wrists aren't very big so I am quite larger than their recommended measurements, especially in the chest, legs, and neck.
I have used multiple BMI calculators and while they all say my BMI is over 26, which makes me overweight, but they usually give a different number in the tenth position. My gym one tells me I am a 26.6 as an example. I am also 213 pounds now.
Then comes the Resting Metabolic Rate calculator and then the Basal Metabolic Rate calculator. Those vary a bit by site, but I find it interesting that my Basal Metabolic Rate is a range from 2100 - nearly 2300 calories a day while my Resting Metabolic Rate is a range from 2400 - 2800 calories. What is considered to be normal caloric intake for most people is 2000 cal/day while mine is over that without even doing anything.
I am going to save all of that for a later date...
But for now, I am going to try to resume blogging and leave that stuff out for the time being. I have much to talk about and really need to get it out. Recently I have found myself hitting up every single fitness type calendar there is on the internet just to see what is out there and how they compare and contrast. And mostly I love seeing the stuff that is clearly a fad.
Men's Health.com has a broken calculator on their side called the Adonis Index which asks for your jacket size and your waist size but never works, so I took it to Google to see if another site offers it. Turns out there is another site and it is not entirely clear that the site won't infect the hell out of your computer. It also features some horrible CG video. So what is the Adonis Index? Well on this site it asks for your height and your waist and then gives you what would be the best shoulder measurement for your body and then asks for a ton of crap to potentially give you more measurements for a perfect body. So for my height and waist size, I should be nearly 55 inches across my shoulders. Well it is entirely possible I am wider than that across my shoulders. I kind of want to see more measurements as I am confident my chest is quite a bit larger than they would advise.
Bodybuilding.com has a fitness calculator where you enter a measurement for your wrist and then it returns the recommended size you should be all over the rest of your body. Again, my wrists aren't very big so I am quite larger than their recommended measurements, especially in the chest, legs, and neck.
I have used multiple BMI calculators and while they all say my BMI is over 26, which makes me overweight, but they usually give a different number in the tenth position. My gym one tells me I am a 26.6 as an example. I am also 213 pounds now.
Then comes the Resting Metabolic Rate calculator and then the Basal Metabolic Rate calculator. Those vary a bit by site, but I find it interesting that my Basal Metabolic Rate is a range from 2100 - nearly 2300 calories a day while my Resting Metabolic Rate is a range from 2400 - 2800 calories. What is considered to be normal caloric intake for most people is 2000 cal/day while mine is over that without even doing anything.
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