I'm waiting for the resolution people to leave before I start up again - got busy buying my mother-in-law a house - took 3 months off. I'd like to be able to bench ~275-300 by summer (was benching 205x8reps this fall ~225-240max?) and run a 5k at or under 20 mins. Once summer hits though, I'll probably be golfing instead of going to the gym.
Yeah the gym is crazy busy now. I've tried all times of the day and still can't get a solid workout without waiting in between sets. I hear you on the golf thing. I usually don't lift as heavy in the Spring and Summer so I can stay decently fresh for golf, softball, baseball, etc... Spent the weekend doing some heavy drinking and it showed in the weight room this week: Only got 325 flat bench yesterday and couldn't get past 115lb dumbbells after. Ran out of gas at 245 incline when I can usually get a couple reps at 275. Then I failed at 335 deadlifting today. I'll have to work on my legs over the next couple weeks and try to get that deadlift up to where I think it should be. On the plus side I lost 1lb despite all the carbs over the weekend.
Been doing mostly cardio. I'd like to get back into the weights, but I don't have any type of program to work with, and there's no way I'm going to pay for a trainer at what they want to charge. So, I'll probably look into some materials at the book store or something. Haven't really had any type of regiment since high school which was over 12 years ago lol and all that knowledge is long gone.
Anybody use medicine balls as part of their workout? I am not good at sticking to lifting, and am considering using some medicine ball workouts as a change of pace.
I've used medicine balls as part of my ab workouts. Not a huge fan personally. I'd rather stick to the ab bench with heavy weight and the captains chair for reps. Then again I don't spend more than half an hour a week on abs. Met and made a new cardio goal for myself last week. Biked 12.1 miles in 30 minutes. I'd like to break 12.5 miles in 30 minutes (just average 25mph over 30mins) by next week then do 25mph for 45 minutes within a week of that and 25mph for an hour 2 weeks after that.
took longer than a week lol. Got over 12.6 miles in 30 minutes (12.7 in 30:06). If I could stop hurting myself on the weekends and stop being old this would be so much easier! Brian, what are you doing for cardio and how's it working out?
6 month progress bump. Hope you guys are sticking with it too. Not doing any cardio now that spring sports have started up. Bw 187 Bf% 14% Squat 345 (still have some noob gains left) Deadlift 425 (passed my goal this week. New goal 465) Bench 345 (20lbs to go to meet my goal) Added 2 more goals. Get my 3 lift total above 1200 (raw) Get my military press to 225 (got 195 this week) Looking for a new gym. Im getting sick of the flat billers doing curls in the squat rack and taking 45mins to do 3 singles on the bench at the gym I use now. Any suggestions? Some place with at least a deadlift platform would be nice.
I work out at "The Gym" in Plymouth off of 55 and 494. Kinda a drive for you i believe. By My Chiropractor gave me a brochure for the Press Gym in Little Canada. I cant remember what the monthly dues were. But i think like $20. I think i am too looking for another gym. Some boxing people are buyin the gym i am at, and took a lot of equipment out to put in a full size boxing ring and punching bags in it. Not too happy with the change i might add. But anyways. Nice job on hitting some of your goals. I have 4lbs to go to hit 185 for body weight. Yeah Buddy! (Ronnie Coleman)
Nice work! How is the Press? I was thinking about that place and Southside in Burnsville. Haven't visited either yet, though.
Actually I have not tried it yet. Have not been out that way since yet. But my chiro, who use to be a big time power lifter, says he loves it. He says its not like a lifetime or ballys at all. But i plan on going to try it out next time i am in that area.
3 month progress bump. Who's still at it? bw: 178 bf%: 11.6 via bodpod squat: 375 deadlift: 425 bench: 325 ( went down with the weight loss ) raw total is still 75lbs short of goal and need another 20lbs on strict standing overhead press to get my other goal. Should be easier to reach once I start gaining weight in October. new goal: 172bw or 8.x% measured bf by early October without sacrificing strength (lofty goal lol) Also, still looking for a new gym.
Impressive numbers. I do lift atleast 3 times a week but only doing dumbells no flat bench. Dumbell bench 90lbs for 5 reps x 3 sets Smith machine squats 225lbs x10, 275lb x10, 325lb x8 sets No deadlift for me, already short don't want to shrink any more. The last time I did flat bench I maxed out at 275 for one rep, but it's been over 4 years ago. Bw: 160-165 depends on the week Bf%: 15% from my bathroom scale
Lol at the dl comment. Im glad i can finally dl and squat again. No major injuries this year (knock on wood). Have you tired low back squats for depth? Theyll work your posterier chain a lot better than those smith squats. Check out the "so you think you can squat" youtube vids if youre hesitant about doing real squats. Set any goals this year?
I go to Snap fitness for now and they don't have free weight for squat. I do want to get into 10% bf and another inch on my biceps. I got to a point where I am not seeing a progress but I am trying different workout routine.
Right on. What workout are you doing? Im thinking about switching away from 531 to either westside or 531 for powerlifting in the fall. Im thinking about giving dc a try if i stall out on those after a year or so.
I amfallowing "Bodybuilding for beginners" book and there are different routines for each month. I am on months 5 and it's a split routine. Legs, shoulders, abs-day one and biceps, triceps, chest, back-day two.
That book seems to be setting you up for some slow gains. Working chest and back the day after lifting legs, shoulders, and abs is overkill and you're not giving the targetted groups much in the way of recovery time. In regards to the gym - its something those of us that dig cross fit a little more than the rest don't need to deal with. $50 in equipment and you're set on spending money until you get bored and want to add some new workouts.
Crossfit can be fun (depending on the programming), but I would NEVER substitute it for my strength training. I'm thinking about doing it in place of cardio this winter, but it depends on how serious I want to get with my lifting. This old guy only has a few good years left in me anyhow lol
.5lbs away from 172. On track to hit 172 or lower this week then time to start bulking. 1rms went up 10lbs on deadlift and bench/squat are the same. Pretty happy with how I'm holding onto muscle despite the weight cut. Hoping to put on a clean 10lbs this winter and add 5-10% on each of the lifts. cardio has been kicking my ass though. Cut a handtimed 4.8 40m, and met my goal of running 5k in under 30min. Might start changing my sprint intervals to 100m and cut the distance running down to 1 mile this winter. 03subyr, how's the progress going?
Ended up at 169 and 8.0% bf via bodpod last month. Since then back up to 178 on a bulking diet. Squatted 385, dl'ed 445, and benched 325 raw. Thinking more seriously about finding a real gym to get away from these know it all crossfitting college brotatos. Whatre everyones goals for the winter? Im hoping to stuff my face this weekend then hit my lifting goals by end of january. Mini diet, rebulk, then an 8week cut in March. Hope to get to 6% bf with the same lifts and maybe gain a few lbs of lean mass.
Wow Sheen you are really into hard core lifting. What gym do you go? I just joined LT in Savage and doing a lot of legs and biceps routines. 275 squat max and 250 bench. I went down in bench since I used to do dumbells. 3 sets of 8 with 90lbs dumbells for bench.
Laaaaaate reply. Still looking for a new gym. Haven't found one I like or that's convenient enough yet. Currently at: bw:180 squat: 385 deadlift: 450 bench: 350 strict overhead press: 205 Met all my goals except squat. 5weeks to get there (turn 30 mid-May).
My squat went up to 300lbs 8 reps and bench 225lbs 7 reps. I have not tried maxed weight though. I am kind of giving up onbodybuilding since I am not gaining any weight but I still lift just for fun. I do see increase in strength but I don't look like Arnold yet.
I need to find a good gym in Minneapolis/St Paul for cheap, amy suggestions? I live on Minnehaha Parkway by the 46th street bridge.
For lifting? Powerlifting? Cardio? Crossskinnyfat? You have health insurance? That usually covers $10-20 a month at the franchise gyms if you go regularly. There are a bunch of franchises in the area... Golds, LA Fitness, Anytime, Snap, Lifetime, etc... all of them offer as low as $10 a month around this time of year and around New Years. Otherwise, there are a handful of powerlifting gyms with really good equipment but not as convenient hours.
I eat 160g of protein a day how much more do I need to eat? I just have bad genes I need some "juice" to grow. My wife goes in lifts a little bit and comes back with 13" biceps.
How much do you weigh? 160 sounds way low. What's your total caloric intake? ****, when I was LEAN I ate 200g a day at 170bw. Right now I'm maintaining 180 and eating 250g. Caloric intake is ~2000cals on off days, 2100 on 2 training days, 2700 with a small carb refeed on 1 training day, and in excess of 9000k on Saturdays where I ****load/skipload. Other than Saturdays I keep my carb and fat sources very clean. In terms of looking like Arnold, if you mean BIG, then yeah you have to eat. If you mean "ripped" then you have to adjust your nutrition to get LEAN. If you want BOTH, then you need gear, years of hard work, elite genetics, the hormones of a teenage boy, or any combination of those lol Honestly the wife might just have awesome genetics. Or she's seeing noob gains that you've already passed. In general though you have to gain a lot of weight to gain mass in your arms (assuming they're already in good shape). At this point in my life, I'd be happy to gain 5lbs of lean mass a year. And I know I need to gain 10lbs or more for every inch in my arms.
I will try to eat more but 2000 cal sound pretty low. I probably eat closer to 3000 but I lift 5 times a week. I will try increasing my protein intake to 200g a day. I am only 160lbs if I could get to 170lbs by the end of the year I would be extremely happy. I don't need to be lean just average big, mid teens body bat.
2000 is low but the weekly avg is over 3k per day. But I don't need 3k if I'm sitting on my ass all day, you know? Do you weigh your food and log everything? Most people way overestimate their intake. Then they start weighing stuff and realize it takes 4 chicken breasts to get 50g protein for 1 meal... 2.5lbs of lean meat to get 250g protein for a day... and so on.
No I don't weigh my food. I take protein shakes 3 times per day for about 90g and my meals should have another 60-70g.
I hit 315 last week on bench, that is all I wanted. I can't squat for **** and other than that I do more core than anything. Understand I lift fat, and I mean up to but not limited to 5-600 pound chunkers for a living.
id like to have more of a local gym that has some nice equipment... mainly do free weights but i try to do at least 20 min of cardio with every workout. being that I'm 6'1" 160 I'm not really your power lifting type... although i would like to up my strength and build.
There is a snap fitness near the intersection of Hiawatha and 46th that I use to go to when I lived over there. North side of the road and just east of walgreens in the suites that are street front. It was around $40 a month, but it's small. I spend the extra cash and go to a traditional gym that is open 24/7 like lifetime.
HaHa, talk about years and years of gear use to look like Arnold, his genetics did help him though. Still one of the most amazing physiques to date. I honestly would take Arnolds phsique over Ronnie or Cutlers anyday. However Sheen is right, you need to eat big to get big...however eat clean!! or you will be fat lol
At one point I was eating 4200 calories a day to gain. Try doing that while eating clean. Thank god for weight gainer!
Depends on your macro split but that's not hard at all. Lots of calorie dense clean fat sources out there... coconut oil, peanut butter, fish oil pills, etc... Now if you meant try doing that with whole foods then yeah that's a lot of chewing. If you meant to do it low carb low fat then you're doing it wrong!
40-40-20 Protein, carbs, fats. Best ratio for building muscle. 1.5-2 grams of protein per pound of body weight. Gained me 10 solid pounds in 3 months and my metabolism is a monster. Now keeping on that 10 pounds was the hard part
Right on, my metabolism is on the "high" side as well... especially considering my age. What are your stats? Height, weight, lifts?
I prefer the classic look too. Frank Zane and his ridiculous v-taper and Franco Columbu with his massive, thick back. Actually, everything looked ridiculous on his small frame. Plus he out lifted Arnold, who he trained with, at around 50lbs lighter. Max, what exactly are your goals? To get hyuuuuge? Then yeah, eating and training like a bodybuilder is probably the most efficient way to get there. To look "ripped?" Then just eating like a bodybuilder can get you there. To get strong? Then training like a powerlifter and eating enough to at least maintain can get you there. Generally "fit?" There are a million ways to get there. Do you have specific strength, health, or aesthetic goals?
At the moment I'm 3 months out from shoulder surgery so my stats arent even relevant. Back at my prime I was 5'10 179 pounds at about 8% body fat. I can't remember my lift maxes it was a couple years ago. Right now I'm just trying to get healthy and back to 100%. In the meantime I got my car to Keep me busy!
I guess strength is number one goal I will never eat like bodybuilder so no ripped for me. I like my pizza too much to give it up. I don't need to be ripped I think mid teens of body fat is ok for me. I really want to gain another inch on my arm.
Nice, a legit 8% is pretty damn lean. How was that measured? Max, the general rule is 10lbs bw for 1" in the arms. Biceps/triceps are such small muscle groups. Its like trying to add mass to your calves. Doable, but not real efficient and difficult to do without everything else getting big along the way.
