And unto this...RONIN

[Ronin]

Go the Supersets!!

Waldron programming per chance?

Lol, na it's all Ronin bro. Although I am part of "team Powertech" :nod: You a Sky regular too?

[Beowulf]

Did my industry placement there not too long ago but thinking I may have to make the jump from world to Sky this year.world (lack of caps is on purpose) is a bit of a drain on the old motivation especially when you get moaned at for adding too much additional weight to the calf raise and when you ask one of the staff for a spot they tell you to "go make some friends its called networking"...bit of a ranting tangent there forgive me hahaha

[Ronin]

Not at all bro, I started off at world too, so I know where you're coming from. Trainers that wouldn't give you the time of day unless you were paying them...people glaring at you if you dared to grunt in their presence...bars not unloaded...not to mention the classes of polytech students that would descend on the place and take up every piece of equipment possible - even if all they were doing was standing around it comparing biceps :pfft: . Come over to a serious gym mate, Phil will see you right.

[Ronin]

Allllrighty then, after a bit of thinkee thinkee, this is where I'm at with regard to the next spell of training.

Mon

Squat

Bench

Dead

Wed

Bench

Squat

Dead

Fri

Dead

Bench

Squat

First exercise for each of the days will be aimed at heavy (for me :pfft: ) triples, doubles and singles, with the other two being lighter, volume-based. I'm not intending to follow any structured plan or routine with regard to sets & reps, how I feel on the day will largely dictate what I do. Having said that, the aim will still be to show progress each week, even if it's only one more rep. And I will expect an online ass-kicking if I start to show signs that this more free-form approach is leading to a lack of intensity/motivation.

Tuesday & Thursday

These days will be completely arbitrary in that I will do whatever I feel needs to be addressed, or whatever I am feeling vain about I should really include some cardio again, at least for the remainder of this month. Other than that, I'll be focusing largely on assistance/vanity work, so it'll be these two days that will see the likes of curls, calves, shrugs, rows, whatever. My weekly sessions with my trainer will also likely fall on one of these days, and he will have carte blanche to do with me as he will :pray:

I understand that doing squat/bench/dead 3 days/week might be a bit demanding, especially for the remainder of this month while I'm in a caloric deficit. That's the reason that this plan isn't written in stone. If it does become too much, I will address the issue then. But I'm confident I can make it work. The idea is to make use of the compunds to help with the fat loss for the remainder of Feb, then pack on some mass once I move to overeating.

Any constructive comments...fire at will.

[Phedder]

Liking the main idea you've got going :nod:

Some people can have issues working the same motion so often. If you find you start having issues, or even just get bored of the same movement 3 times a week, you could use alternate versions of the main movements. For example, on Monday do your usual squats for the heavy work, and then maybe do incline bench and deficit deads for the volume stuff? You could also use a different alternate movement each session, so for bench through the week, on Monday you could do incline bench, Wednesday you have your heavy flat bench, and then Friday you could use DBs instead for the greater ROM and stability etc.

Just my 2c :shifty:

[Ronin]

Cheers Sam, knew I could count on you for some input

If you find you start having issues, or even just get bored of the same movement 3 times a week, you could use alternate versions of the main movements.

That's pretty much the train of thought I was going with as far as adapting to any excessive demands. I'll start off with the standard forms, and see how it goes. But if problems develop, that'll be my first approach, rather than just scrapping the idea and moving onto something else. Cheers man.

You counting the days yet?

[Phedder]

That's pretty much the train of thought I was going with as far as adapting to any excessive demands. I'll start off with the standard forms, and see how it goes. But if problems develop, that'll be my first approach, rather than just scrapping the idea and moving onto something else. Cheers man.

Great minds think alike eh :pfft:

You counting the days yet?

Have been for longer than's probably healthy Been away from my beloved chalk, and a bench that actually allows for some decent leg drive for far too long!

[Beowulf]

Ah those wretched polytech students..... :grin:

[Ronin]

84.35kg (up 1)

In - (so far) 1281cal, 172P, 46C, 46F

Haven't fiished eating yet, but not sure what to have...

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Squats

10 x 60kg

3 x 100

2 x 120

1 x 130 PB

0 x 135kg :x

5 x 1 x 120kg

2 x 3 x 100kg

Bench

2 x 10 x 40kg

6 x 10 x 50kg

2 x 10 x 40kg

Dead

10 x 60kg

9 x 10 x 90kg

X-trainer, 10min, ~150bpm, 196cal

Bike 10min cooldown

Fairly happy with today's effort, we'll see what the body has to say tomorrow.

Squats felt alright, and that 130kg means I've now met my initial squat goal of 1.5 x BW. Having got my dead goal of double BW last year, I now just have to hit a BW bench and all three initial goals will be met :grin: The miss on 135 was annoying though, I felt afterwards that I may have given up too soon on that one :x

Bench and deads were, as stated, really just for numbers, so not a lot to say about them.

Weekend and today's eats were a bit off the mark, due to running dangerously low on whey. Thus it was a bit of a balancing act between trying to get enough protein, but keeping cals down.

However, something must be working, my belt is down to it's last holes now, so it may soon be time to buy another one. Even at the tightest, it's not really feeling like I'm getting anything out of it, pushing the ab out as hard as possible just doesn't really feel like it's pushing against the belt the way it used to. So if anyone's after a York lifting belt in XL, watch this space

[Ronin]

83.8kg (down 0.55)

In - 1733cal, 258P, 70C, 46F

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Calf Tri-set

Calf Raise

3 x 20 x 390lb

Seated Calf Raise

3 x 12 x 60lb

Calf Crunch

3 x 20 x BW

Calf Raise

2 x 10 x 217kg

10 x 257kg

6 x 257kg

10 x 257kg

8 x 257kg

10 x 257kg

10 x 257kg

Inc DB Curl

5 x 8 x 16kg

Preacher

10 x 25kg

3 x 10 x 30kg

Cable Curl

5 x 20 x 60lb

Wrist Curl

3 x 10 x 32.5kg

2 x 8 x 32.5kg

X-trainer, 20min, 377cal

Bike, 5min cooldown

And a long walk home :x

[morattigirl]

However, something must be working, my belt is down to it's last holes now, so it may soon be time to buy another one. Even at the tightest, it's not really feeling like I'm getting anything out of it, pushing the ab out as hard as possible just doesn't really feel like it's pushing against the belt the way it used to. So if anyone's after a York lifting belt in XL, watch this space

Good shit Ronin! And whoop whoop for ya PB too :clap:

[Ronin]

Thanks MG :wink:

83.25kg (down 0.55)

In - 1802cal, 270P, 88C, 42F

Out

Warmup row 100m

Bench

Warmup 20 x bar

5 x 60kg

3 x 70kg

3 x 75kg

1 x 80kg PB

0 x 85kg

2 x 1 x 75kg

2 x 3 x 70kg

5 x 65kg

4 x 65kg

Then just for shits 'n' giggles...

Superset

Squat

5 x 10 x 60kg

Dead

4 x 10 x 80kg

8 x 80kg

Bike 10min cooldown

More shits than giggles :pfft: I'll be doing that again, but maybe not for a little while. I had been hoping to get 10 x 10 for both, but by this stage my lower back was screaming. Couldn't stand up straight, couldn't bend over, and it took about 10 minutes til I could walk properly Tonight will be an evening on the couch with an icepack and a wheat-bag.

Haven't benched in ages, so kinda happy with the PB. It actually took 2 goes, cos the guy I had spotting for me grabbed the bar too soon. I usually stall at about the 3/4 mark, then push through it, he saw the stall and jumped in. Fair enough I guess, so I asked him to only take over if the bar started heading back down, and the 2nd go went up well. Tried for 85kg, which would've given me the BW bench that I'm aiming for, but as soon as it came down I knew it wasn't going back up :pfft: Possibly should've had another go, but decided to be happy with one PB for the day.

f*ck knows what I'm gonna do tomorrow...have to see how the back is

[groovy]

Hey Ronin. Nice work on the PB for bench. :clap: :clap: :clap:

If your not already doing it, i recommend doing the Agile 8 have helped me a bit regarding the flexibility of my hip. I have only started doing it since 2-3 weeks, but i can notice a big difference.

http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/weight-training-weight-lifting/warm-up-your-hips-agile-8-a-631289.html

Hope it helps.

[Ronin]

Thanks mate, might have to give it a crack. Dunno whether the back problems are hip-related or not, but it can't hurt to try eh.

Today

82.9kg (down 0.35)

In - 2141cal ( :shock: ), 271P, 113C, 68F

Overestimated in terms of cals & fats, although I did have my mince on toast tonight, so that added more carbs & cals than normal. Still...

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Inc Fly

10 x 11kg

5 x 8 x 16kg

X-over

4 x 12 x 50lb

ss with

X-under

4 x 12 x 30lb

H/S Shrug

3 x 12 x 40kg p/s

BTN Press

2 x 10 x 35kg

2 x 8 x 35kg

6 x 35kg

7 x 35kg

Krocs

5 x 10 x 56kg

Tri P/d

3 x 12 x 70lb

BB Shrug

3 x 10 x 140kg

6 x 180kg

7 x 180kg

6 x 180kg

Bike 10min cooldown

Really had no idea what I was going to today, even as I walked through the door . So just felt my way through it, and ended up with a kinda generic upper body thingee.

Krocs were fucken mean, I probably shouldn't have done it, but I just love doing them. Lower back was really feeling it by the end. Should make deads-day tomorrow a lot of fun :pray:

The H/S Shrugs...no idea what else to call them. Just sat on the H/S Row, and did kind of a straight-armed row, just retracting the shoulder blades. Was trying to target the lower traps, but I don't think I succeeded :pfft:

The last few BB shrugs involved a "wee bit" of momentum.

[Ronin]

83.2kg (up 0.3)

In - 1399cal, 206P, 48C, 43F

+ chilli beans & a handful of corn chips

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Deads

10 x 60kg

5 x 100kg

3 x 140kg

1 x 160kg

1 x 180kg

1 x 185kg PB

1 x 187.5kg PB

5 x 3 x 120kg

Bench

2 x 10 x 40kg

3 x 10 x 50kg

3 x 12 x 40kg

Front Squats

5 x 10 x 40kg

Bike 15min

Re-feed day, decided to turn tonight's lamb mince into nachos, sans cheese & sour cream :cry: . And maybe a wee treat later :grin:

Happy to hit the PBs on deads, especially after being stalled on 182.5 last time I was doing them, plus being several kilos heavier then. The 180 went up pretty well so I decided to jump straight to shooting for a new PB. 185 was a bit of a grind, but not a killer, so figured it was worth pushing on. First shot at 187.5 I fucked the setup and it wouldn't budge. The powerlifter chick next to me offered to be my cheerleader if I wanted to try again...couldn't exactly say no :grin: Set up...pull...off the floor...to the knees...encouragement's coming thick and fast...mid-thigh...grunting...nearly there...yuss!!, lockout...CRASH!!!...FUUUCK!!! Right fucken strap broke, and the whole thing hit the deck :oops: The gym owner came over, I think he was ready to hit me over the head with the barbell, thinking I'd just dropped it, but he was fairly cool once I'd explained. Fucken embarrassing though, and I'm out one pair of straps :x

Also, my left elbow felt a bit "funny" for the rest of the session, I assume the weight of the bar suddenly coming onto my left arm must have strained it. Consequently, bench was pretty painful, but it feels better now. A weekend off and I should be ready to hit it again on Monday.

Front squats were just cos I felt like it. Elbow and wrist flexibility still an issue here.

So overall, pretty happy with the first week. Haven't really done the big 3 for ages, and first week back into them I hit PBs on all 3. Feeling a bit burnt, but I have my usual weekend off, so recovery should be fine. Once I start eating again, it should get even better.

[Phedder]

Been a great week for you indeed mate, solid effort :clap: Gonna be some hard work coming up for your grip though

[Ronin]

85.65kh (up 2.45)

Overdid it a bit on the carbs over the weekend, so hopefully this is mostly water.

In - 1557cal, 236P, 58C, 43F

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Squat

10 x 60kg

5 x 2 x 120kg

5 x 5 x 100kg

Bench

2 x 10 x 40kg

5 x 10 x 50kg

9 x 50kg

5 x 12 x 40kg

Dead

10 x 60kg

6 x 10 x 90kg

X-trainer 10min, 199cal

Bike 10min cooldown

Squats felt good, but wasn't really in the mood to push for singles. Bench was ok, as usual tris gave out before chest did. Cut the deads a bit short due to grip failing. I miss my straps :roll:

Got a sesh with the PT tomorrow, told him to do whatever he likes to me. That may have been a mistake

[Ronin]

84.0kg (down 1.65)

Guess I was right about the water weight

In - 1663cal, 259P, 70C, 38F

Actually will be a little higher than this, as I had my chicken breast inside a PB sandwhich (hadn't allowed for the wholemeal bread and PB)

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Bike 15min while waiting for PT

Back & shoulder sesh with the torturer, didn't record it as I went, but I'm pretty sure it went a little something like...

Machine shoulder press (parallel grip)

3 x 10-12 x 100lb

s/s with

Wide-parallel grip Lat P/d

3 x 10-12 x 165lb

H/S Row

3 x 10 x 30kg/side

s/s with

Lat Raise

3 x 20 x 8kg

Straight-arm pulldown

3 x 20 x 50lb

s/s with

Front Raise

3 x 10 x 13kg

Nice sesh, achieved a good pump in the delts & traps. Left elbow was feeling a bit niggly beforehand, and was pretty fucken sore by the end of it. PT's recomendation was to skip heavy bench tomorrow, may take his advice depending on how I feel in the morning. But lower back is also pretty sore still, so I'm currently alternating the ice pack between the elbow and back. I'll see what the body has to say tomorrow, might look at having a crack at bench (even if it's not all that heavy) and follow it up with a leg sesh that doesn't involve squats & deads. Or maybe I'll just cowboy up and soldier on.

[Ronin]

84.6kg (up 0.6)

In - 1934cal, 278P, 105C, 44F

Out

Warmup row 1000m

Bench

5 x 60kg

2 x 70kg

2 x 75kg

1 x 75kg

5 x 45kg

2 x 10 x 45kg

Leg Press

10 x 120kg

2 x 6 x 280kg

5 x 10 x 200

4 x 20 x 120kg

calf Raise

10 x 10 x 390lb

Xtrainer, 20min, 370cal

Bike 10min cooldown

Cals were a bit higher than intended today. Tried some liver, as I'd heard good things about it, but didn't realise until I checked after eating it, that it was quite calorie-dense.

Elbow felt fine this morning so I figured I'd give bench a shot. Mistake. Had to pull out due to really bad pain. Seems that pushing and pulling both set it off.

Lower back was real bad right from the get-go, so I decided against squats & deads. Even the leg press got to be too much after a bit. I think a physio visit is in my future. It's at the point now, where if I sit on the couch for a bit and then stand up it feels kinda "numbish" if that makes sense. Then it gets incredibly sore, kind of a burning pain. Fun huh?

[morattigirl]

Elbow felt fine this morning so I figured I'd give bench a shot. Mistake. Had to pull out due to really bad pain. Seems that pushing and pulling both set it off.

Lower back was real bad right from the get-go, so I decided against squats & deads. Even the leg press got to be too much after a bit. I think a physio visit is in my future. It's at the point now, where if I sit on the couch for a bit and then stand up it feels kinda "numbish" if that makes sense. Then it gets incredibly sore, kind of a burning pain. Fun huh?

Firstly, liver..... ewwww lol

Secondly, no fun no fun.... go get yourself sorted!

[Ronin]

Firstly, liver..... ewwww lol

Actually wasn't too bad, taste was ok, but it felt really weird in my mouth. Gonna have to try some different ways of cooking it. Cheap as f*ck too, $6.99/kg

[morattigirl]

Firstly, liver..... ewwww lol

Actually wasn't too bad, taste was ok, but it felt really weird in my mouth. Gonna have to try some different ways of cooking it. Cheap as f*ck too, $6.99/kg

I shouldn't really dis it, I haven't even tried it :pfft: it just looks gross! How do you cook it? Just fry it up?

[Ronin]

I coated it in a mix of salt, pepper and flour, then fried it with onion rings. Make up a beef broth cup-a-soup, tip it into the pan and reduce it til its basically like a gravy.

Gotta try something a little more flavoursome next time, maybe chilli of some sort. And might swap the flour for ground almonds, try for something a bit crispier.

[Phedder]

Where abouts is the elbow pain? When I injured my Brachialis (self diagnosis, could be wrong ) The pain seemed to concentrate between the medial epicondyle and olecranon process area, grabbing a can of something and doing 50 curls and 50 hammer curls then doing some tricep kick backs as well each night definitely helped, just getting the blood flowing to the area really.

[Ronin]

Damn you, now I'm gonna have to dust off my anatomy text book

TBH it's kinda hard to pinpoint, the whole elbow area radiates pain after a couple of sets. I knocked back a couple of painkillers today and once they'd kicked in, I narrowed it down (kinda) to the bottom of both the biceps and triceps, and the top of the brachioradialis. So I'm guessing that all I've done is pull the tendons around the joint when my strap broke on deads last Friday. Tried a few cable curls & extensions with both pronated and supinated grips, on just one plate, to try to figure out what hurts the most, and the scientific conclusion was...fucken everything :pfft: Actually flexion was a bit worse than extension, and more so with supinated grip.