NEW PR!

     Great day in the power rack. Let's get right into it!

••••••••••

SQUATS:

Sumo:

Bar x10

Standard:

95lb x10

135lb x10

(165lb x5) 3x

SEATED LEG PRESS / CALF RAISE:

100lb x20 / x15

Sumo:

100lb x20 / x15

120lb x20 / x13

LEG EXTENSIONS / SPLIT SQUATS:

(100lb x10 / Body Weight x10 ea. leg) 3x

ABDUCTOR / ADDUCTOR:

(70lb x10) 3x / (50lb x10) 3x

MULTI HIP MACHINE:

Kickbacks:

35lb x12 ea leg

41lb x10 ea. leg

47lb x8 ea. leg

SEATED HAMSTRING:

(110lb x15) 3x

••••••••••

     Yup, a 5rep PR. I've never done this before in my life, not even years ago when I first started training. I'm very happy. My knees were a little achy, but they held up and powered through. They're not very happy with me right now, as I type this up, but they'll get over it. Eventually. I'm totally exhausted and I'm friggin' ravenous. I feel like an empty pit right now and I'm not so sure that the pets are safe. We had an early dinner because I couldn't wait any longer but I'm still hungry lol. I'm gonna have to wrangle something up in a few minutes. 

     The gym is closed on Monday but I'm going to probably do some KB stuff here at home. I don't really want to lose a day of training. I may even attempt some stuff this weekend, but it will need to be something that doesn't involve my knees too much. We'll see. Right now, I'm just riding high on the achievements of this morning. 

Solid

     The overhead presses seem to be working - my shoulders are feeling much more solid. Here's what I did:

••••••••••

OVERHEAD PRESS:

Bradford Press:

Bar x10

Strict:

67lb x7

77lb x4

77lb x5

77lb x4

KB PUSH PRESS:

Single Arm:

35lb x5 ea.

35lb x10 ea.

(45lb x5 ea.) 2x

FRONT RAISE:

(Bar x5) 3x

ISOLATERAL PRESS:

+10lb ea. x12

+12.5lb ea. x5

+15lb ea. x5 (lowered the seat a little)

+10lb ea. x10

LEANING REAR DELT FLY:

(70lb x10) 2x

80lb x6

80lb x4

ROTARY TWIST:

70lb x10 ea. side

80lb x10 ea. side

90lb x10 ea. side

MACHINE CRUNCH:

(80lb x10) 3x

••••••••••

     Everything went well and aside from normal muscle soreness, I had no shoulder pains or weird noises. Any day without weird noises is a win. Not only do they feel better in that way, but they also feel better to my touch. I was scratching an itch the other day and noticed a considerable difference in how my shoulder felt. They're a smidge bigger and decidedly more solid - less squish. I can't be upset with that. Oh no! Is the dreaded "bulk" beginning to happen? Is this when I start looking like a man? I'm gonna have to head on over to some influencers on the 'gram to see what they say. I'll let you know if I'm past the point of no return. 

Commit

     I did some extra core stuff today. Happy that I did it; disappointed that I'm so weak. I just searched for a kettlebell core workout and I found this little ditty on YouTube. I modified a couple of things but kept the basic premise the same. I did 2 complete rounds.

••••••••••

PLANK PULL THROUGH:

20lb KB, 3 pull throughs per hand, x5 ea. side

NORTH SOUTH PLANK:

20lb KB x5 ea. side

1/4 GET UP:

20lb KB x5 ea. side

RUSSIAN TWIST:

20lb KB x10

DEAD BUG:

20lb KB x10

HIGH KNEE MARCH IN PLACE:

20lb KB Suitcase Carry x10 ea. knee, ea. hand

20lb Waiter's Carry x10 ea. knee, ea. hand

KNEELING WOOD CHOPPER:

20lb KB x10 ea. side

HOLLOW FLUTTER KICKS:

20lb KB held in a press, x10 ea. leg, 3x

TWIST KNEE PLANK:

x10 ea. knee

••••••••••

     I would like to formally apologize to all of my ancestors. I'm a weak potato and it's shameful. I've said it before and haven't followed through but I'm really going to commit to Wednesdays being a KB day at home. I can't go on being so out of shape. I guess that's all I can say about that. 👍✌

Shift The Focus

     It was a good night of deadlifts. Let's get right into it!

••••••••••

DEADS:

133lb x12

177lb x10

(221lb x5) 3x

KELSO SHRUG:

67lb x10

Kelso / Upright:

77lb x10 / x15

97lb x10 / x10

PENDLAY ROWS:

Overhand / Underhand:

67lb x10 / x10

77lb x8 / x8

87lb x6 / x6

ISOLATERAL ROWS:

Wide, Single/Single/Double:

30lb x12 / x12 / x10

35lb x10 / x10 / x8

40lb x8 / x8 / x6

ISOLATERAL Z TWIST:

5lb x10

(10lb x10) 2x

ASSISTED PULLUPS:

Wide Grip:

80lb x10

80lb x8

80lb x6

••••••••••

     I think tonight went well. I'll talk about the accessories first. I wanted to do something different tonight because I was getting bored, that's why I threw in the Kelso shrugs and Pendlay rows. I'm not sure that I did either one correctly, but they felt good lol. I also thought I'd try some Z twists on the isolateral machine and I really liked them there! Doing them on the other row machine with the straight bar is OK, but the attachment itself weighs so much that it makes them much harder for me to do correctly. On the isolateral machine, you just have the D handles. It allowed me to lighten the weight and really focus on doing them right. I'm getting better on pullups....slowly. Now let's move onto the deads. 

     I dropped the weight back from last week and got 3 solid sets of 5. I had Frank take a video of me so I could see my form. I wanted to make sure that it was OK as I'm getting into the heavier (for me) weights. It actually looked pretty decent. Decent, aside from the fact that I look like a got-damn beached whale. I cannot believe how terrible I look. That's all I could see in the video was the size of myself, and I hate it. I was going to post the video, but I'm not at the point where I can do that because I'm embarrassed by the way I look. So here's where I deal with this "split brain" issue that I have. My Emotional Brain is so focused on appearance and being self-conscious of my extra weight, that it's not letting my Logical Brain be proud of the fact that I'm lifting more than I ever have with proper form.

     I see people who are bigger than me and they don't seem to care. And I'm not trying to be rude or anything here. I'm saying, I see people who are twice as big as me wearing shorts and tank tops and "lettin' it all hang out" and I'm over here in long pants and t-shirts, sweating my ass off and being mortified because you can see the outline of my thick gut. I'm disgusted with myself when I look in the mirror and see the curve of my spare tire because I chose to wear a large t-shirt instead of the bulky, baggy extra large shirt. I'm zero percent comfortable in my own skin and it sucks. I need to drop some pounds and at this point, it's a massive uphill battle that's wearing me down. 

     Maybe I'll end up sharing that video. Maybe it'll just get deleted. At least the the Chat GPT version of me has a smaller stomach. 

It's Been Over A Month

     As most Bros will tell you, Monday is bench day. I don't feel like a Bro, but I benched like one. Here's what I did:

••••••••••

BENCH:

95lb x10

115lb x8

(135lb x4) 3x

Narrow:

65lb x15

95lb x8

115lb x2

STANDING CABLE FLY:

Low/High:

(25lb x10) 3x

Mid:

(35lb x10) 3x

High/Low:

(40lb x10) 3x

TRI PUSH DOWN:

Overhand Push Down / Underhand Pull Down:

35lb x10 / x10

40lb x8 / x8

SINGLE ARM PULL DOWN:

10lb x8 ea.

10lb x10 ea.

(15lb x7) 2x

INCLINED PRESS:

(Bar x15) 3x

••••••••••

     For some reason, we screwed up and didn't do the incline presses after the bench like we normally do. By the time we realized it, my shoulders were done from the flys. The last set I did, I felt a little strain on my right shoulder - the same area that clicks/snaps when I do lateral raises. I tried doing weight on the inclines, but it wasn't happening. 

     I have FINALLY managed 3 full sets of 4 reps at 135lb. I looked back and it's been a month and a half since I've been trying to get that. I hope it's not another month before I can manage 5 reps. I'm trying for it next Monday, so stay tuned.

     So not a lot of volume on this session, but still got some good progress, and it sure does feel good to rep out those plates. 

Weighing Heavy

     I was feeling pretty good and I figured I'd strike while the iron was hot. I went back to some heavy sets for squats and I was not disappointed.

••••••••••

SQUATS:

95lb x10

115lb x6

135lb x5

(165lb x3) 3x

45° LEG PRESS:

[(240lb x10 pulse) 3x] 3x

STANDING CALF RAISE / SHRUG:

+45lb x10 / x12

+70lb x8 / x12

+95lb x6 / x12

SMITH MACHINE SQUATS:

Narrow, HIgh bar

Heel Elevated:

Bar x? - just did a few to get the feel for placement, form, etc.

65lb x10

95lb x5

Flat:

115lb x5

135lb x5

SEATED LEG EXTENSIONS:

Single/Single/Double:

(40lb x10 / x10 / 100lb x5) 2x

It was at this point that my knees just said "no". 

MULTI HIP MACHINE:

Knee Raises:

(18lb x10 ea.) 3x

Kickbacks:

18lb x10 ea.

23lb x10 ea.

29lb x10 ea.

••••••••••

     My knees held up well during the squats which kind of surprised me. The squats on the Smith Machine started to really aggravate them and y the time I did the leg extensions, they were toast. The 165lb felt better than last time though and I don't think I struggled as much to get the 3 reps. Next week I'll try for the full 5. I believe I can do it. I've been trying to give a much more concerted effort at targeting my quads (as I said before) and I like the way it's making my legs feel. It's tricky to get that balance between enough to stimulate my legs but not so much that it destroys my knees in the process. 

     Overall, a good squat session for me, so I won't complain. 

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Undeniable

     It was a good night for overhead presses. Here's what got done:

••••••••••

OVERHEAD PRESS:

Bradford:

Bar x10

Strict:

67lb x8

72lb x6

(77lb x4) 3x

Push:

89lb x4

109lb x3

114lb x2

Z PRESS:

Bar x10

67lb x5

(72lb x3) 2x

HANGING LEG RAISE:

5x2

I threw these in for fun, just to do something while Frank was lifting.

CABLE LATERAL RAISE:

5lb x12 ea.

10lb x10 ea.

(15lb x3 ea.) 2x

ROTATOR CUFF ABDUCTION & ADDUCTION:

(5lb x10 add. / 5lb x10 abd.) 2x

ISOLATERAL SHOULDER PRESS:

+10lb x12

+15lb x4

+15lb x3

+10lb x10

CONVERGING SHOULDER PRESS:

Wide overhand grip:

40lb x15

40lb x10

Mid overhand grip

(50lb x10) 2x

SEATED REAR FLY:

70lb x10

80lb x8

90lb x5

70lb x10

••••••••••

     I'm pleased with what I did tonight. I have to thank Frank for forcing me to start the strict presses with 67lb. I was going to start with 50lb, but apparently, that would have been too low. I still have the tendency to undercut myself and not push myself as hard as I should, that's why it's good for me to have Frank as my partner.

     I'm also pleased because it's undeniable that I'm making progress. There are days, a lot of days, where I'm disappointed and discouraged with what I perceive as a lack of progress. I look in the mirror and see no changes. I look at the scale and see no changes. Yet I look at my training log and I cannot deny that I see changes. The numbers are inching up. They may not be flying up as fast as when I was 35, but they are creeping up. My physique is not what it should be, that's true. I have my suspicions. Some of it is within my control, but some of just is not. At the moment, I'm trying to control what I can and not stress over anything else. I won't lie though, it's maddening to have to work twice as hard just to stay in the same place and not fall backwards. But it is, what it is. I'm sure it's building character or some other bullshit motivational thing. Regardless of appearance and/or weight, the undeniable fact is that I am getting stronger. Seeing as how I'm getting stronger, and I'm not some novice lifter, then to my mind, I'm building muscle. Eventually, hopefully, it will be more noticeable than it is now. I have changed shape a wee bit but not as much as I would have hoped by now. All I can do is keep going.

     All things considered, I'm doing well. It's undeniable.