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Hellreaver
12-04-07, 3:48 am
Just had a damn good leg workout. I don't train my legs often because I have knee problems and I tend to avoid legs because of the pain...but sometimes I just say "fuck it" and do it anyways. Grit the teeth. Load the weight. Kick those legs boy, kick those legs! Only able to put up a little over 500 lbs for leg press for about 8 damn good reps. Sad to say, I'm no longer able to do squats. What shit. Well fuck it. I'll just do leg press and a lot of other stuff to make up for it. Did some leg presses supersetted with a few sissy squats, 4 sets, including a warm up. Then did leg extensions supersetted with bodyweight squats. Then some prone leg curls. And finally some calf presses with heavy weight. 300 lbs for 8 good reps. Not bad for someone who only does legs every couple weeks...On the bright side, yesterday I trained arms with enough intensity that I nearly vomited after I was done. Damn that was awesome. Never pushed an arm workout like that before. I was pissed off and I threw all my aggression into my arm workout. Can't do that kind of workout every time though. Well, that's it fellas.

Hellreaver
12-08-07, 1:11 am
Today was a back day. I felt like doing something that I haven't done in a long time, but for development I absolutely know I need to....Deadlifts. Now, I normally don't do them because of my knees. Too much weight and the pressure will make my knees fucking throb like nobody's business. But today I had to add some new shit. Time to switch up the routine. Started off with some barbell rows. Ended at just a weak ass 205 for 5 reps...What a pussy. Oh well. Nowhere to go but forward. Hit deads and ended with a set at 315 for 2 reps...saw a few stars and took a breath, then hit one last rep. Damn my deads are so fucking weak. A year ago I was doing much better. Gotta get back to that point. Wanna get some insane strength like Rage. That dude hits fucking mad numbers in weights. I can't even fathom doing hammer curls with 100 lb dumbbells...Anyways, on with the workout. Hit some behind the neck lat pulldowns, then some low cable rows. Finished off with some single arm standing cable rows. Won't post any numbers 'cause they ain't worth mentioning....yet. It'll get there. Effort and time. And reading the Animal journeys. That shit fires me up. Fuck yeah.

hjayss
12-08-07, 4:42 am
Looking good I like the split..throwing around nice weight but just get in more reps when the weight is to much for the joints...Keep it up bro getting stronger each day is the only way...

Hellreaver
12-08-07, 11:40 pm
Good shoulder day. Had to change some stuff up. Needed something new. Kind of bored with the same shit. So I went back to old school. Pulled out some standing overhead barbell presses. And it went a little something like this.....

Standing overhead BB press: Warmup set w/bar x 20, 90 x 15, 110 x 10, 130 x 8
Can't go too heavy with this exercise because of the dangers posed to the lower back.

Machine laterals: 130 x 12, 150 x 8 + 2 + 2 (rest pause), 170 x 6

Hammer Strength seated overhead press: 100 x 20, 190 x 8, 280 x 4,
(I realized after the first set I had failed to put enough weight on....)

Rear delt machine rows: 140 x 12, 160 x 10, 170 x 8

Hammer Strength standing shoulder shrugs: 280 x 15, 330 x 10, 370 x 8
Supersetted with EZ-bar shrugs: 90 x 20, 100 x 20, 110 x 20

Then my workout partner/training client said he was debating whether or not he wanted to do abs since there was 15 minutes until the gym closed. I hadn't thought about abs to be honest, so I said "Fuck yeah we're doing abs! Get your ass over there on the mat!" I guess you could call it a giant set of sorts...but not really. Went like this.

Medicine ball crunches x 15, Toe touches with med ball x 15, torso twists w/med ball x 15, leg raises x 20.
Then did a plank on a swiss ball for about a minute and a half.
Then the gym closed.

Pizzalamp
12-08-07, 11:53 pm
Good shoulder day. Had to change some stuff up. Needed something new. Kind of bored with the same shit. So I went back to old school. Pulled out some standing overhead barbell presses. And it went a little something like this.....

Standing overhead BB press: Warmup set w/bar x 20, 90 x 15, 110 x 10, 130 x 8
Can't go too heavy with this exercise because of the dangers posed to the lower back.

Machine laterals: 130 x 12, 150 x 8 + 2 + 2 (rest pause), 170 x 6

Hammer Strength seated overhead press: 100 x 20, 190 x 8, 280 x 4,
(I realized after the first set I had failed to put enough weight on....)

Rear delt machine rows: 140 x 12, 160 x 10, 170 x 8

Hammer Strength standing shoulder shrugs: 280 x 15, 330 x 10, 370 x 8
Supersetted with EZ-bar shrugs: 90 x 20, 100 x 20, 110 x 20

Then my workout partner/training client said he was debating whether or not he wanted to do abs since there was 15 minutes until the gym closed. I hadn't thought about abs to be honest, so I said "Fuck yeah we're doing abs! Get your ass over there on the mat!" I guess you could call it a giant set of sorts...but not really. Went like this.

Medicine ball crunches x 15, Toe touches with med ball x 15, torso twists w/med ball x 15, leg raises x 20.
Then did a plank on a swiss ball for about a minute and a half.
Then the gym closed.

i just checked out ya journey and im def subbed
that was a great shoulder workout man-very impressive stuff
i feel ya pain w/ the knees ive been dealing w/ sore knees for over a year now-needless to say leg days are killers for em

Hellreaver
12-09-07, 2:52 am
i just checked out ya journey and im def subbed
that was a great shoulder workout man-very impressive stuff
i feel ya pain w/ the knees ive been dealing w/ sore knees for over a year now-needless to say leg days are killers for em

Well, I don't really consider it that impressive lol. I should be lifting a lot more weight, but I've been out of the Iron game for about 9 months. No gym close by and work was taking up too much of my time. Back into it now though. Gonna grab my AnimalPak again in the next couple days. I didn't want to start off with it, simply because I tend to push myself to the max when I am on it. You can bet in the next couple months, you'll see some numbers jump. Right now got some extra weight too, but not too much. Of course, with my idols in bodybuilding being Frank Zane and Jusup Wilkosz, I'll always consider myself fat, lol.

Hellreaver
12-09-07, 11:33 pm
Fuck. Pushed it to the limit on my arms again. Felt good. Shit, it felt great. Had to choke down vomit halfway through my workout. Still staying off the supplements for the moment. Might grab a pak of Animal and get back on the can this week though. I think my body is sufficiently rehabbed from nearly a year off of training to start hitting heavy ass weights again. Well, here's the rundown for today....

Had to switch things up for my arms. Felt the same exercises were starting to get stale. Still supersetting bi's and tri's, but I started with close-grip bench today.

Close grip bench press: Warmup of 90 x 15, 155 x 12, 185 x 10, 225 x 6.
Supersetted with
Standing barbell curls: Warmup of 55 x 15, 95 x 8, 95 x 8, 115 x 5.
(The curls were a little cheat, but not much, although the very last curl was sloppy.)

Overhead dumbbell triceps press: 80 x 12, 90 x 10, 100 x 8.
Not supersetted.
Hammer curls to the chest, running the rack: 50 x 5 + 45 x 5 + 30 x 8,
50 x 6 + 40 x 7 + 30 x 8, 45 x 7 + 35 x 6 + 30 x 7.

(During this set is where I choked down that feeling of vomiting.)
Machine triceps dips/pressdowns: 180 x 15, 200 x 12, 225 x 10.
Supersetted with single arm machine preacher curls: 50 x 8, 60 x 8, 70 x 6.

Was running out of time before my gym closed, so had to hurry with these bitches...

Sitting cable extensors (for the forearm extensors) drop set: 50 x 10 + 40 x 8 + 30 x 6.
Supersetted with dumbell wrist curls on a flat bench: 55 x 8 + 40 x 6 + 30 x 6.

Ran to the EZ-Bar rack and pumped this shit fast..
Reverse EZ-Bar curls drop-up set: 40 x 10 + 30 x 15 + 40 x 8 + 30 x 10.

Well after that, I realized my arms were missing and I figured I might find that they ran home ahead of me cause they sure as hell were done lifting...

Oh, and the gym closed on me again.

Hellreaver
12-12-07, 2:29 am
Well, today was a day off for me, but unfortunately, I had to go to do a presentation for the company in front of some of our corporate big wigs. Well, to my surprise, I found a little-known legend who works at one of our clubs as a weekend sales manager in Laguna Niguel. I recognized him and talked to him during one of our breaks. Some of you old-schoolers may know him, or you might not. His name is Chuck Williams. He's competed in Mr. America, Mr. Universe, and in the 1984 Mr. Olympia, where he placed 14th. Why did he place 14th? Well, research the competitors for 1984 Mr. Olympia...Lee Haney (the winner), Jusup Wilkosz (one of my idols), Albert Beckles, Roy Callender, Samir Bannout, Bob Paris, Sergio Olivia, Tom Platz, Chris Dickerson, Boyer Coe, Bill Grant, Charles Glass, Hubert Metz, Robby Robinson (whom he beat), and more. These guys are huge legends in the old school of bodybuilding. There was so much talent that year. Still, Chuck looked damn impressive! Here is the video of him for his 1984 Olympia showing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPJmx0B937A You can see he trips up at the beginning, but otherwise his showing is solid. However, for the Olympia, you have to be perfect. Anyways, just thought I'd share this part of my journey with you all. You can bet your ass I'm going to be making a short trip to the other club to train with Chuck sometime in the near future!

Hellreaver
12-13-07, 12:34 pm
Here it is baby. Finally picked up a can of AnimalPak on my day off yesterday. Gonna start it up again beginning with today. Can't wait. The reason I've been off the pak for a while is because I was out of the lift game for a while and I knew as soon as I started the pak again, I'd be going full-out intensity. Wanted to ease back into it slowly and get my body and muscles used to hard lifting again. But fuck that. I've eased in. I'm ready. Time to be a real Animal again. I'm fucking excited.

Pizzalamp
12-13-07, 8:37 pm
Here it is baby. Finally picked up a can of AnimalPak on my day off yesterday. Gonna start it up again beginning with today. Can't wait. The reason I've been off the pak for a while is because I was out of the lift game for a while and I knew as soon as I started the pak again, I'd be going full-out intensity. Wanted to ease back into it slowly and get my body and muscles used to hard lifting again. But fuck that. I've eased in. I'm ready. Time to be a real Animal again. I'm fucking excited.

excellent bro

Hellreaver
12-14-07, 6:58 pm
Ok, forgot to post last night's workout. It was some good shit. Starting to approach some respectable lifts. Popped my animal pak after lunch, and I'm on my lunch break right now, so after I finish eating I will pop my pak again 30 minutes later (as prescribed). Later in the evening, I was excited as hell. My workout went a little like this...

DB flat bench press: Warmup of 40x15, 80x12, 90x10, 100x6, 105x4
Hammer Strength Decline Press: 230x12, 270x10, 320x8
Double arm cable chest pressdowns: 100x15, 120x12, 140x10 (I was one plate away from maxing the machine stack, should have just loaded the last plate. I think the weight listed is per handle. Not sure though.)
Incline seated cable flyes: 110x12, 100x15, 90x20
Suppersetted with bodyweight dips: 6, 8, 7

That was it. chest was demolished and time to go home. So now I'm finished eating up some carbs and calories. Gonna mix a protein shake and head back to work. Then gotta take my animal pak soon and wait for the work day to end so I can train my back. Mmmm, deads here I come!!

Pizzalamp
12-14-07, 8:26 pm
Ok, forgot to post last night's workout. It was some good shit. Starting to approach some respectable lifts. Popped my animal pak after lunch, and I'm on my lunch break right now, so after I finish eating I will pop my pak again 30 minutes later (as prescribed). Later in the evening, I was excited as hell. My workout went a little like this...

DB flat bench press: Warmup of 40x15, 80x12, 90x10, 100x6, 105x4
Hammer Strength Decline Press: 230x12, 270x10, 320x8
Double arm cable chest pressdowns: 100x15, 120x12, 140x10 (I was one plate away from maxing the machine stack, should have just loaded the last plate. I think the weight listed is per handle. Not sure though.)
Incline seated cable flyes: 110x12, 100x15, 90x20
Suppersetted with bodyweight dips: 6, 8, 7

That was it. chest was demolished and time to go home. So now I'm finished eating up some carbs and calories. Gonna mix a protein shake and head back to work. Then gotta take my animal pak soon and wait for the work day to end so I can train my back. Mmmm, deads here I come!!

great man
i love that hammer decline u can get such a great squeeze on it
and u gotta love dips best way to finishchest imo

Hellreaver
02-15-08, 9:23 pm
Ok, haven't posted in a while, but no worries, I have still been lifting. So I did a leg workout two days ago, and I'm sore in places I've never been sore before....Forgive me if I don't get all the numbers accurate, but I'll try. It went a little something like this:

Warmup on cybex leg press w/4 plates for 15
Leg press:
8 plates x 12 reps
12 plates x 10 reps
14 plates x 8 reps
16 plates x 6-8 reps

Leg Extensions Superset W/Bodyweight squats:
110 lbs (I think?) x 15 reps + 20 squats
130 x 12 + 15 squats
130 x 10 + 15 squats

Seated Leg Curls:
Don't quite remember the weights or reps here. Did 3-4 sets of heavy weight.

Standing Single Leg Curls:
60 x 10 reps (I was rotating in with another guy, so I just left the pin where it was)
50 x 10
40 x 12, then dropped the pin to 20 lbs and banged out another 8 reps per leg.

Prone Leg Curls (Have to bring up my hams, they be laggin!)
110 x 12
130 x 10
130 x 8

Donkey Calf Raises on Cybex Machine Superset with Standing Calf Raises:
4 plates x 12 + 110 lbs on Standing raises for about 5 slow, exaggerated reps
6 plates x 10 + 130 x 5 slow reps
8 plates x 8 + 130 x 5 slow reps

Seated Calf Press:
275 x 15
290 x 12
315 (I think) x 8-10

That's it for legs. That was a bitchin workout, but I loved it. Hit quads, hams, and calves. I might start splitting things up next week, though. We'll see how I feel.

Pizzalamp
02-15-08, 9:30 pm
damn man that was a crazy workout

i wish we had 1 of those cybex leg presses in my gym

Hellreaver
02-15-08, 9:38 pm
Ok, so that was the leg workout 2 days ago. This is my workout last night:

Shoulders

Warmup on seated DB overhead press:
50 lb DB x 15 reps
60 x 15

Hammer Strength Seated Overhead Press:
4 plates x 15 reps
6 plates x 10 reps
6 plates and 2 quarters (That's 3 plates and a quarter per side) x 8 reps

Standing Lateral DB Raises:
25 x 12
30 x 10
35 x 8 (Not as much as Pizzalamp, but I'll work my way up!)

Seated Alternating Front DB Raises:
20 x 12
25 x 10
30 x 8

Machine Reverse Flyes:
120 x 15
140 x 12
160 x 10

Seated Free Motion Cable Row Machine (Keeping elbows high and out to hit the rear delts)
Alternating:
110 x 8, then hit 4 more reps bilaterally
130 x 8, then hit 4 more bilaterally
130 x 6, then hit 4-5 more bilaterally
100 x 12, then hit 4 more bilaterally

Abs

Hanging knee raises:
20 reps
10 reps

Decline Crunches:
15 reps
15 reps

Prone Leg Raises:
20 reps
10 reps (lower back was aching to much to continue)

Machine Ab Crunches:
90 x 15 reps
90 x 15 reps

Triceps Rope Cable Crunches:
120 x 12
120 x 12
(I don't really like these. I never really feel it in my abs. I'm sure I'm not doing the exercise correctly.)

Cardio
20 mins on the eliptical at about 130 heart rate

That's it for last night. I'm off to do tonight's workout, even though I can barely walk from my damn leg day! Tonight is back, I might throw in some biceps, because I feel like my biceps are lagging. It's been about 3 days since I did arms, and my arms recover quickly, so I should be good. Also gotta hit the cardio machine....more abs tomorrow night lol. I'll post the workout as soon as I get back.

Hellreaver
02-15-08, 9:39 pm
damn man that was a crazy workout

i wish we had 1 of those cybex leg presses in my gym

Yeah, they are awesome. Btw, I usually do bodyweight lunges from the leg press to the leg extension machine, but I didn't feel like doing it that night.

Hellreaver
02-16-08, 1:44 am
I forgot to mention, last night after shoulder I did traps. I always do traps with shoulders. This is what I did:

Warmup of 90 lb EZ bar shrugs x 10. Slow, exaggerated reps

Seated DB Shrugs:
80 x 15
105 x 12
105 x 10
105 x 10

Triple Sets of Standing Hammer Strength Shrugs leaning forward, then a set leaning backwards, then Standing EZ bar shrugs with slow, exaggerated reps, squeezing hard at the top:
4 plates and 2 quarters x 12 + same weight x 12 + 90 x 10
Using all the same weight
10 reps + 10 reps + 10 reps
10 reps + 8 reps + 10 reps

By changing the angles while doing the shrugs, I can hit the traps slightly differently, and I feel it gives me a more complete development. Leaning slightly forward hits a little more to the top of the traps, while leaning back hits more of the middle and lower portion of the traps. Hope that makes sense...

Hellreaver
02-16-08, 2:15 am
Ok, just got back from my workout. Wasn't so great. This is the recap:

Back

Started off warming up with some behind the head pulldowns:
90 x 15
110 x 12
130 x 10

Bent-over Barbell Rows:
2 plates and 2 quarters x 15
4 plates x 12
4 plates and two dimes x 5
Now after the fifth rep, I felt like something started to pull in the area of my right lumbar (Lower back you brainiacs). So I immediately set the weight down and stopped with rows. I assessed the situation and decided to travel on, even though there was some slight discomfort in my back because I wasn't about to blow my entire workout.

Supersets of Hammer Strength Pulldowns and Hammer Strength High Rows:
2 plates and 2 quarters x 15 + 2 plates and 2 quarters x 12
4 plates x 12 + 4 plates x 10
4 plates x 10 + 4 plates x 10

Moved on to T-Bar Rows but couldn't go heavy at all because of the pain:
2 plates and a quarter x 8
Same weight x 8 reps
Same weight x 10 reps
I considered stopping the workout there, but I sucked it up and pressed on. The next exercise had me scared, but fear is something I know of.

Rack Deadlifts:
2 plates x 12
4 plates x 10
6 plates x 8 + 2
6 plates and 2 x 6
Back didn't give me too much pain for that exercise, for which I was pretty relieved. Moved on with my workout.

Biceps

Standing Alternating DB Curls w/wrist twist:
Warmup with 25 x 12
40 x 8
45 x 7
55 x 5

Single Arm Preacher Curls with 45 lb DB:
10 reps w/right arm, 7 reps w/left arm. WTF?
8 reps
8 reps

Superset Hammer Grip Preacher Curl Machine and Single Arm Bisolator Curls:
110 x 10 + 140 x 8 (Note, the 140 is the weight for both arms, I believe)
110 x 8 + 140 x 7
110 x 8 + 140 x 10

Forearms

Seated Cable Wrist Extensions supersetted with Standing Cable Reverse Curls. 60 lbs each:
15 reps + 12 reps
12 reps + 10 reps
10 reps + 8 reps

Behind the back Barbell Wrist Curls supersetted with Single Arm Wrist Curls on a bench w/45 lb DB:
2 plates x 12 + 8 reps
2 plates and 2 quarters x 6, dropped the quarters and did another 3 reps + 6 reps
2 plates x 10 + 5 forced reps

That's all folks. Hopefully my back isn't too hurt. I was able to complete my workout, so I don't think it was too bad. I'll just rest it a lot. Tomorrow is chest, triceps, and cardio, so I should be ok if I keep it relatively moderate weight.

simpleguy
02-16-08, 9:38 am
good workout bro... pretty high volume , it's good you can take it... keep it up

Pizzalamp
02-17-08, 12:11 am
DAMN!!!!!!!!!! CRAZY BARBELL ROWS!!!!!

CRAZY WORKOUT!!!

thats smart u stopped when u felt the pain-i hope your back is okay tommorow

Hellreaver
02-17-08, 2:28 am
DAMN!!!!!!!!!! CRAZY BARBELL ROWS!!!!!

CRAZY WORKOUT!!!

thats smart u stopped when u felt the pain-i hope your back is okay tommorow

Well, back feels a little better today, but I went ahead and canceled my workout for the night. Better to play it safe, give it another day of rest. I'll just hit it tomorrow and stay safe.

Hellreaver
02-17-08, 6:38 pm
Well, back seems to feel a bit better day by day, so I'm gonna go ahead and head to the gym. Not doing anything that directly involves the back, so I should be ok as long as I don't push myself too hard, and I stay to stricter form. Chest, triceps, abs, and cardio today. Will post workout when done.

Hellreaver
02-17-08, 11:29 pm
Well, finished my workout for the night. So grueling. It was good though. Made it through without too much pain. I did chest, triceps, abs, and cardio today. Here's the breakdown:

Chest

Flat Bench Press:
Warmup of 2 plates x 15 (all the way down to touch the chest, slow, controlled)
2 plates and 2 quarters x 12 reps
4 plates x 10 reps
4 plates and 2 quarters x 8 reps
I decided to stop there since I didn't feel it was safe to continue to my usual 6 plates with my back being injured.

Hammer Strength Seated Decline Press:
4 plates x 15
4 plates and 2 quarters x 12
6 plates x 10
8 plates x 8

Standing Cable Decline Chest Pressdowns:
80 x 15
110 x 12
130 x 10
I didn't go too heavy on this. I didn't feel the exercise was stable enough with my back.

Standing Cable Incline Chest Pressups (almost like flyes):
40 x 12
60 x 10
60 x 10


Triceps

V-bar Cable pulldowns:
120 x 12
140 x 10
160 x 10 (That's bottom of the stack)

Rope Cable Pulldowns (Split the rope all the way at the bottom):
80 x 12
100 x 10
100 x 10

Superset Single Arm Pulldowns Pronated grip and Supinated grip:
40 x 12 + 20 x 12 (This is each arm)
40 x 10 + 20 x 10
40 x 8 + 20 x 8
40 x 8 + 20 x 8

Seated Triceps Dips Machine:
190 x 12
210 x 10
160 x 15


Abs

Hanging Knee Raises:
15 reps
15 reps

Decline Crunches:
20 reps
20 reps

Swiss Ball Crunches:
15 reps
15 reps


Cardio

Eliptical Machine:
20 minutes on the fat-burn program. It's a light cardio
10 minutes interval cardio going at:
5.5 mph x 2 minutes
3.5 mph x 2 mins
6.5 x 2 mins
3.5 x 2 mins
7.5-8 mph x 2 mins
Cooldown

That's it animals. A light workout, but a good workout. Now I'm sitting here eating some small hickory farms sausages and cheese bricks. Yum.

Pizzalamp
02-17-08, 11:54 pm
damn man
great workout
some heavy numbers yikes!!!

i like how youre very alert w/ the pain in your body
very smart

Hellreaver
02-18-08, 12:59 am
Been in the iron game for about 7 years. About 3 serious ones. So I know my body pretty well. Now If I could just be disciplined in diet, I'd be a monster and lean as hell. But I'm lazy, and can't buy the right food without money.

Pizzalamp
02-20-08, 12:04 am
Been in the iron game for about 7 years. About 3 serious ones. So I know my body pretty well. Now If I could just be disciplined in diet, I'd be a monster and lean as hell. But I'm lazy, and can't buy the right food without money.

i hear ya

Hellreaver
06-23-08, 10:50 am
Boy oh boy. It's been a while. Couple months, I guess. Well, a little update on my life, in case anyone is reading. I decided to get back into the Army, again, this time in the Army Reserves, though. I was in the Army before and completed a 3 year contract as a Cavalry Scout. That's about as hardcore as you can get without going to Special Forces, although I briefly considered doing that too. In the Reserves, however, they don't have a place for my job, so I needed to train for a new one. I chose Computer Information Technology Specialist. So basically, an IT tech specialist. So now I find myself in Fort Gordon, Georgia. Hot as hell. At least my classes are at night time. The training is great, too. I'm learning a hell of a lot about computers. *Gasp* Yeah, I know, I mentioned computers and technology in a bodybuilding forum. Bad me! Well, tough shit. This is my little corner. Anyways. Unfortunately, I've been away from the gym since a little before I left California. I can already tell that I've lost a lot of mass and strength. All we do is run. Well, i just finished running and I feel good, so I'm determined to hit the gym today after lunch. numbers are going to suck shit, so don't be too disappointed in me if you read my workout post. I guess I'll start with chest today. Hope someone might be reading and can spare a little time for some encouragement, especially some of those big guys, House, Sgt. Rock, etc. That would really be great. Oh well, I'm sure those guys are busy as hell doing what they gotta do. No worries. I'll just keep on trucking, over here in my little corner of space. Peace out guys.

Hellreaver
06-24-08, 12:26 pm
Whew...didn't make it to the gym yesterday, but I made it today. So chest will now be on tues, back on wed, arms on thurs, legs on fri. Run on mon, wed, and fri. Abs on tues. Not a bad training schedule. Only thing I could wish for is a better diet, but being where I am, I am highly restricted. Cooking is not allowed. We only have a refridgerator and a microwave. So my diet is usually like this:
Broccoli and salad w/ranch dressing (sorry, I love my ranch!)
A little later I eat 2 roast beef sandwiches w/lettuce, tomato, american cheese, pickles, must & mayo.
Then it is 2 more sandwiches, usually salami with the same stuff, and some pepperoni slices on the side.
Last meal of the day is usually eggs, potato tots, one biscuit and gravy. I'm working on cutting out the gravy and biscuit.
Sometimes I eat a snack after I run. I'm going to try to make this consistent.
Unfortunately, I'm very restricted by the food that is offered from the Army chow halls. If anyone else reading this is in the Army, share some tips on how you keep your diet clean. I'd rather not eat fried chicken every meal....
I know the diet is not great, but I'm still working on it. In all the years that I have been lifting, diet has always been my main problem because I'm weak against food. I don't choose horrible foods, but they aren't great either...
Anyways, let me know what you guys think and share any advice you can give on the diet. Thanks.

Hellreaver
06-24-08, 12:43 pm
Just bought my black and red Iconic tee while listening to Metallica (Blackened). Sick. I can't wait to get this.

Hellreaver
06-25-08, 10:13 am
Alright. Made a 2 mile run today outside in the Georgia heat. Gonna eat up some carbs real quick. Two peaches, two hardboiled eggs, and a small half pint of milk. then it's off to the gym for a back workout. I think I'll go with barbell rows, dumbbell rows, seated cable rows, and rack deadlifts today. Should be a decent workout. Too bad my gym ain't that great, so I will probably have to substitute rack deadlifts for deadlifts on a smith machine. Either way, it should be a good workout. Still waiting for any advice that anyone can offer for diet ideas (see post above). Peace out Animals.

mcbeast
06-25-08, 10:16 am
Kill it bro,impressed by your back workout.

Hellreaver
06-25-08, 12:25 pm
Kill it bro,impressed by your back workout.

Thanks bro. Just got done with a back workout today. Quick and simple. Barbell rows, dumbbell rows, seated cable pull, and rack deads. No numbers for now, but soon. When I'm back up to doing barbell rows with 2 plates and a quarter per side, then I'll post numbers, lol. Grub time. Peace out Animals.

Pizzalamp
06-25-08, 7:11 pm
welcome back bro

Hellreaver
06-26-08, 12:31 pm
welcome back bro

Thanks much bro!

Hellreaver
06-28-08, 2:57 pm
Had a good shoulder workout yesterday. Smith machine overhead presses, side laterals, cable laterals, and machine overhead press. Then did some machine shrugs and dumbbell shrugs for traps. Gonna go hit arms now. On the advice of House, I ordered a couple cans of cuts, which should be here next week, and I bought some decent food today. Nuts, oatmeal, peanut-butter, and tuna. Enough to keep me away from the chinese food I hope. Well, we'll see how today's arm day goes.

Hellreaver
06-28-08, 4:08 pm
Damn, I got to the gym about 3:30. Got started about 3:35 or so. Then they announced they would be closing in 15 minutes.....Well, Sundays are my days to relax and spend time with my fiancee, so I wasn't going to wait until Sun to do my arms, and I didn't feel like just skipping them, so I busted out 4 supersets of triceps pressdowns + ez bar curls, then did 2 supersets of close grip bench press + dumbbell curls. Not bad for 15 minutes, but it wasn't the workout I was hoping for....Well, now I know the gym closes at 4 pm here....what a crock.

LittleMan55
06-28-08, 5:02 pm
All gyms should be open 24 hrs! Way to figure out a way to hit arms though. Enjoy your time with your fiance tomorrow...

Hellreaver
06-28-08, 8:48 pm
All gyms should be open 24 hrs! Way to figure out a way to hit arms though. Enjoy your time with your fiance tomorrow...

I agree! Personally, I love working out later in the evening or at night. It's difficult to find any gyms open like that, though. Yeah, I felt a pump after that. It wasn't as great as a regular workout, but it was a small pump. And thanks BS55, I will definitely be enjoying our time together. Peace out brothers.

Pizzalamp
06-29-08, 10:32 am
Had a good shoulder workout yesterday. Smith machine overhead presses, side laterals, cable laterals, and machine overhead press. Then did some machine shrugs and dumbbell shrugs for traps. Gonna go hit arms now. On the advice of House, I ordered a couple cans of cuts, which should be here next week, and I bought some decent food today. Nuts, oatmeal, peanut-butter, and tuna. Enough to keep me away from the chinese food I hope. Well, we'll see how today's arm day goes.

cool

foods look good...u could also look into some fresh fruit and veggies...also beef jerkey is good ...if u can get to a chinese place...u could go to the diet section on menu and get steamed chciken w/ broccoli and some brown rice

Hellreaver
06-29-08, 2:33 pm
Thanks Grant. I do grab fruits and veggies from the chow hall. As for Chinese food, I really need to stay away from it. Most of the places here don't have a diet section, and if I actually go out to a Chinese food place, I'll most certainly be hitting the buffet....otherwise, I'd just order delivery anyways. Well, I feel this diet will work out pretty well for me. If I can get down to Pizzalamp's bf level, I'll be happy, lol. Right now, I'd venture to guess I', probably around 18 or 20 even. All I have is my mirror to guess from, but I know my body pretty well. At 11-13% bodyfat, I'd be looking pretty ripped. Anyways, I'll keep you updated, and thanks for visiting the journey, Grant.

Hellreaver
06-29-08, 10:49 pm
Enjoyed my day off. Munched on peanuts and already loving them. Cheated today and had pizza and mild hotwings, at the behest of my girl, lol. Tomorrow is another rest day, but no cheating on the diet. Gotta make sure to keep it strict. Like a lot of us, diet has always been my biggest problem. I just love food. Especially mexican food and chinese food. Of course, I love my steak and potatoes equally as much, but I hate fatty steaks, and it's a pain in the ass if I have to cut the fat off after it's been cooked. Anyways. Monday is a rest day also, then Tuesday will be chest day. I hit the 90 lb dumbbells last Tues, so I'll go for either the 95 or 100 lb dumbbells this Tues. When I left off with chest, I was at 120 lbers, so I should be able to get back up there pretty quick. unfortunately, the shitty gym here only has up to 110, so after that I'll just hit the barbell. Hopefully I'll be getting my two cans of Animal Cuts in the mail this week, slong with my limited edition black and red Iconic tee. I can't wait to sport that bad boy. Should be a good week. Take care fellas. Peace Animals.

Hellreaver
07-02-08, 12:42 pm
Not a bad workout. Sported my LE Iconic tee today. Missed yesterday's workout because I had guard duty in the morning from midnight to 6 am. So I started on chest today.

Incline dumbbell chest press:
Warmup of 60 x 15
75 x 12
85 x8
95 x6

Decline Chest Press on Smith Machine:
225 x 12
225 x 10
225 x 10

Decline Hammer Strength Chest Press:
60 x 10
70 x 8
80 x 6

Machine Flyes:
60 x 12 slow reps
70 x 12 slow reps
80 x 10 slow reps
80 x 10 normal reps

Definitely lost a lot of strength. Dissapointed to see how much, but it will come back. Just gotta stay focused and keep training. Cuts should come in the mail today or next week.

LittleMan55
07-02-08, 1:09 pm
Great work bro! Your right about the strength returning. Just keep putting in solid work and it will come.

Pizzalamp
07-04-08, 10:52 pm
good job w/ your workout

i love that t shirt btw

Hellreaver
07-08-08, 1:00 pm
Had a pretty good workout today. Got to make use of my new workout mp3 player, the Creative ZenStone. Nice little thing. Blasted to Metallica, Avenged Sevenfold, and Bullet for my Valentine. Chest day:

Flat Dumbbell Press
50 x 15 Warmup
80 x 12
90 x 10
100 x 8
Felt good so I banged out one last set
110 x 5

Hammer Strength Decline Press
80 x 10
80 x 8
70 x 8

Nautilus (I think) Incline Press
110 x 15
155 x 10
170 x 8

Machine Flyes
90 x 15
110 x 12
130 x 10

I felt pretty good on my tris, so I went ahead and finished them off too:

Cable Pressdowns
110 x 15
145 x 12
155 x 10
170 x 8

Dumbbell Kickbacks
40 x 10 per arm
40 x 10
40 x 10

That's it. I'm munching on some steakhouse type fries (chow hall fries for anyone in the army). I don't get these often, but when I do, I have to eat them right away or they get cold. Gonna hit the shower real quick and then eat lunch. Cup of broccoli with ranch dressing for dip. A generous salad with lettuce, diced green pepper, and hard boiled egg with low-cal italian dressing, and then later on I got my two roast beef sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, cheese, and pickle. Should get my damn Animal Cuts today, if they decide to give us our mail (yesterday they failed to show up with the mail...). Shower, food, rest, then class time. All right. See you brothers later. Peace Animals.

mcbeast
07-08-08, 1:02 pm
Heavy pressin brotha,and a good soundtrack on top of that!

Hellreaver
07-08-08, 1:27 pm
Forgot to post, I had two packets of instant oatmeal before the workout, and I'll eat some roasted peanuts later on as well. Dinner will most likely be some scrambled eggs with peppers and cheese, some tater tots, and some fruit.

Hellreaver
07-08-08, 1:29 pm
Heavy pressin brotha,and a good soundtrack on top of that!

Thanks bro. I'm getting the strength back, definitely. Feeling pretty good on the iron. Diet is getting better. Yeah I love the soundtrack. Also had "Fall into Sleep" by Mudvayne, "Breathe into Me" by Red, and probably my all time favorite, "Blow Me Away" by Breaking Benjamin.

Hellreaver
07-09-08, 10:55 am
Well, I went to the doctor's today. I've been having sharp pains on the right side of my upper back when I run. The doctor said she thinks it might be walking pneumonia, and there might be an infection in that area, causing my lungs to stick to my ribcage, or something like that. So I have a lot of medication and I'll go get an x-ray on friday. Still going to do a back workout today. Exercise doesn't give me any trouble.

Pizzalamp
07-11-08, 8:24 pm
Well, I went to the doctor's today. I've been having sharp pains on the right side of my upper back when I run. The doctor said she thinks it might be walking pneumonia, and there might be an infection in that area, causing my lungs to stick to my ribcage, or something like that. So I have a lot of medication and I'll go get an x-ray on friday. Still going to do a back workout today. Exercise doesn't give me any trouble.

omg be careful bro...my sister had that...she ended up getting a hole in her lung cuz it was mis diagnosed

Hellreaver
12-14-08, 5:25 am
Ok, been a little while. Did chest a few days ago. I'm doing a new split, focused on overall strength and cutting. Nothing fancy.

Thursday: Chest, Cardio
Friday: Back, Abs
Saturday: Shoulders, Cardio
Sunday: Legs, Abs
Monday: Arms, Cardio
Tues: Rest
Wed: Rest

Now, I realize that I am posting on Sunday morning, which is when I should be doing my shoulder workout, but I missed my back workout due to heavy snows. If anyone is confused, let me clarify. When I say Thursday is chest and cardio, I really mean Friday morning, about 2am or so. But this is just convenient for the way I have my daily schedule set up in my mind, so deal with it. For my chest routine on Thursday, I did:

Flat bench press on 360 smith machine.
Incline press on 360 machine.
Bilateral cable pressdowns.
Machine chest press dropsets.

45 mins cardio, 3+ miles on the eliptical machine.

The 360 smith machine is your typical smith machine, except it has the added benefit of a horizontal track as well, meaning you have to use stabilizer muscles to control the bar from swaying forward or backward, as well as control the weight up and down. It cannot move side to side, of course. This is by far the safest way to work out when you have no spotter and you still want to go heavy.

Lost a lot of strength since I was last fortunate enough to have a gym membership, so now that I have one again, I will not be posting detailed numbers until I bring my strength back up. Time to go do some deads!

Pizzalamp
12-28-08, 11:49 pm
looks good man
i know about that 360 degree smith i like it...

Hellreaver
12-31-08, 2:59 am
Alright! Got a set of Harbinger lifting straps today in the mail as a late Christmas gift. Just in time for a back workout too. It's officially my first set of lifting straps, as a matter of fact, and what a huge difference it makes! Loved them. If anyone reads this and you don't already have a good set of lifting straps, I wholeheartedly recommend getting some. They are relatively inexpensive and they make targeting your back and traps much, much easier, without your forearms exhausting first. Anyways, I had a great back workout today.

Bent-over Barbell Rows
Deadlifts
Single Arm Dumbbell Rows
Standing Dumbbell Shrugs
Standing Barbell Shrugs

Maxed out at 325 on deads for my last two sets at 3 reps and 2 reps, respectively. I feel good. Gaining my strength back. Won't be long before I am back at the level I was before, and hopefully leaner too. I still need to get a can of Cuts. Ordered 2 cans of cuts online a while back and ended up getting ripped off. Never got anything from the website, found out it was bogus. So if anyone feels like sending a charity can of Animal Cuts, feel free, haha! My next purchase will be a solid weight belt to protect my spine on those heavy deads and barbell rows as well. When you start using a lot of weight, it is always a good idea to use a belt to protect your lower back in exercises that put a strain in the lumbar region. No matter how strong your lower back is, one wrong move with 300+ lbs will send you on a trip to the hospital and months of recovery time, and that is if you are lucky! Take care, Animals, and protect yourself at all times! Let's get it on! Haha.

Hellreaver
07-27-10, 11:44 pm
Wow! Been a long time since I've posted on my journey. I need to start this shit up again. Just read through my numbers from a couple years ago. Not too shabby. Well numbers since have dropped and gone back up. I think I'm almost back to where I was in California. So little life update. Moved to Oregon. Enjoying life out here with family. Transferred from Army Reserves to the Army National Guard. Enjoying that. Got set up with a 24 hour gym. Love the 24 hour part, and decent amount of equipment, but nothing at all like California. Been on the Cyclical Ketogenic Diet for about 2 weeks now. During that time, I've lost 2 inches off my waist, but stayed the same weight at 230 lbs. Awesome. Means I'm losing fat, but building muscle! I'm currently only hitting the gym about 3 days per week, due to work schedules. Mon: Chest/Triceps. Tues: Back/Biceps. Wed: Shoulders/Abs. 30 mins low intensity eliptical machine on all three days. The reason I don't hit the gym on fri and sat is because I work 10.5 hour days on those two days. That might change soon, but this is the normal workout for me, for now. It is working, so I'm not complaining.

Hellreaver
07-27-10, 11:54 pm
Here is the workout for last night (technically this morning, since I usually workout from around 1am-3am).

Chest:

Flat Smith Bench
45 x 20 warmup
135 x 15 warmup
185 x 12
225 x 10
245 x 8
Lagging a lot on my bench-press strength.

Incline DB Press
65's x 12
75's x 10
75's x 8

Decline Cable Press
50's x 12
60's x 10
60's x 10

Triceps

Cable Pressdowns (strict form)
100 x 12
110 x 10
120 x 8

Assisted Triceps Dips (for the triceps these should be down upright)
Used bodyweight (230) minus 40 lbs
12
12
12

Overhead Cable Extensions w/Rope
60 x 12
60 x 12
70 x 10

30 mins low-intensity cardio on Eliptical machine.

Hellreaver
07-29-10, 10:59 pm
Forgot to post this.

Back

Assisted Wide-Grip Pullups
90 x 15 warmup
150 x 10
158 x 10
158 x 10

Wide-Grip Lat Pulldowns
110 x 12
130 x 10
130 x 10

Barbell Rows
105 x 15 warmup
155 x 12
195 x 10
195 x 10

Rack Deadlifts
245 x 12
285 x 10
375 x 10


Biceps

Alternating Dumbbell Arnold Curls
40's x 12
45's x 10
45's x 8

EZ-Bar Curls
75 x 12
75 x 10
75 x 10

Single Arm Side Cable Curls
40 x 12
40 x 10
40 x 10

Seated Reverse Forearm Cable Curls
Supersetted with
Single Arm Reverse Cable Curls

40 x 12 + 20 x 12
40 x 12 + 20 x 10
50 x 10 + 20 x 10

Behind-the-Back Forearm Cable Curls
Supersetted with
Seated Dumbbell Wrist Curls

60 x 12 + 40 x 10
80 x 10 + 35 x 10
80 x 10 + 35 x 10

30 mins low-intensity cardio on Eliptical machine.

Hellreaver
07-31-10, 6:31 am
Holy shit....this was grueling as fuck. So for this Cyclical Ketogenic Diet, it is recommended that on Friday, before your carb up starts, you are supposed to have a full body workout. This is in order to prepare your muscles for glycogen supercompensation. If you want to know more about this, check out an article by Lyle McDonald here:
http://www.thinkmuscle.com/articles/mcdonald/carb-up-and-ketogenic-diet.htm
So here is how my workout went.

Started with the largest muscles first.

Back

Barbell Rows
25 x 10 warmup
115 x 12
165 x 10
165 x 10

Close Grip Cable Rows
80 x 12
140 x 10
160 x 8

Wanted to make sure I hit every part of the back, so I threw in:

Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns
130 x 12
140 x 10
150 x 8

Chest

Dumbbell Bench Press
45's x 12 warmup
80's x 12
90's x 10
90's x 10

Decline Cable Press
50's x 12
60's x 10
60's x 8

Shoulders

Smith Overhead Press
90 x 12
140 x 10
190 x 10

Standing Dumbbell Laterals
30's x 12
30's x 10
30's x 8

Traps

Barbell Shrugs (I just left the weight on from the rows. Too tired to add any.)
165 x 12
165 x 12
165 x 12

Triceps Cable Pressdowns Supersetted with Single Arm Side Cable Curls
40 x 15 warmup + 20 x 12 warmup
100 x 12 + 40 x 12
120 x 10 + 30 x 10
140 x 10 + 30 x 10

Overhead Cable Extensions w/Rope Supersetted with Cable Hammer Curls w/Rope
60 x 12 + 60 x 12
60 x 10 + 60 x 10
60 x 10 + 60 x 10

That was it. Wiped out. Done. Fried. Almost vomited. You can easily see from the numbers how low on energy I was. Definitely a torturous workout. But, the good news is, immediately afterward, I got to start my carb up day. So I hit 3 packets of instant oatmeal for 32g carbs each. Got some potatoes, more oats, and some juice for this carb up. Poor boys gotta stick to what we can afford. At least the oats have a ton of carbs. Should be good.