Lower Body Training

I finished up my last training session of the week a little while ago.

1) Speed Deadlift w/ 35lb plates for greater ROM - 170 x 10 x 1 (10 singles)

2) Front Squat 105 x 3 x 5 (105 lbs, 3 sets, 5 reps each), 85 x 10 This was my first time doing front squats in months. I needed a change of pace from back squats.

3a) RDL w/ 35lb plates for greater ROM - 185 x 2 x 8
3b) Steep Decline Situps - 2 sets

This weekend we're going to explore a local state park and do some hiking and bouldering. Other than that, I also plan on spending some time at a local park playing frisbee golf and maybe throwing around the football.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Upper Body Training & Losing Weight Without Exercise

First things first - make sure you check out today's blog post at The Fat Solutions => Yes, You Can Lose Weight Without Exercising.

Now, on to today's training session.

1a) TRX Pushup - 3 x 6, 1 x 12 (I adjusted the height of the TRX to make the sets more or less challenging)

1b) Chest Supported Row - 4 sets

2a) 1 Arm DB Overhead Press - 2 sets

2b) Chinups - 2 sets

3a) TRX Extensions - 2 sets

3b) Fat Bar Curl - 2 sets

Afterwards, I played some racquetball.

Right now I'm enjoying training with slightly higher reps on my upper body training days. My lower back doesn't feel as fatigued and I'm enjoying the change of pace.

Tomorrow, I squat.

I Love Deadlifts : )

Oh Tuesdays. How I love them because I get to deadlift! ; )

Got this morning started off in an interesting way - thunderstorms and tornado warnings, and no electricity for a while.

Now on to today's training session:

1) Rack Pull from mid shin - 275 x 2 x 5 (275 lbs, 2 sets, 5 reps each)

2) Deadlift using 35lb plates for greater ROM - 215 x 8

3a) DB Shrug - 2 sets
3b) Negative Ab Wheel Rollout/On Knees - 10/10, 10/10 (I did 10 negative ab wheel rollouts, rested a few seconds, and then did 10 rollouts from my knees, for 2 sets)

Working on a great new blog post that should be up tomorrow. Don't miss it.

Hiking, Football & Training

So this weekend we spent a lot of time outside. On Saturday we had a cookout at a local park, threw the football, and I spent some time playing with my nieces.

On Sunday we went hiking and then watched Tennessee whoop the Eagles. : )

Great weekend filled with family and fun.

Now on to today's training:

-40 minute walk this morning

And then I did this a few hours later:

1a) Standing Press - 85 x 6/5, 75 x 9

1b) Weighted Wide Grip Pullups - 10 x 2 x 6 (bodyweight + 10 lb plate, 2 sets, 6 reps each), bodyweight x 9

2a) Parallel Bar Dips - 10/8

2b) Inverted Row - 12/10

3a) Rope Pulldown - 2 sets

3b) DB Hammer Curl - 2 sets

Tonight I'm going to play some racquetball.

No Results After Years of Training + Today's Training Session

I saw a guy at the gym today that I used to see practically everyday at a different gym five years ago.

This guy trains really hard every week and never misses a workout, and I know he eats really well. He busts his butt every time he's in the gym.

But . . . he looks exactly the same as he did 5 years ago. He hasn't gotten any bigger, and I don't know if he's gotten any stronger. Five years have passed, and he looks the exact same.

Now, he may be fine with this and he may not want to get any bigger. However, he has always trained with bodybuilding splits - a day for legs, chest, backs, arms, etc. He trains with a lot of volume and traditional bodybuilding techniques (drop sets, pre-fatigue, etc).

Here's the lesson - if he trained for strength and focused solely on big, compound movements, and decreased the volume, I guarantee he could add several pounds of muscle to his frame.

For the majority of the population, bodybuilding splits are worthless. Use total body workouts or upper/lower body splits. That's it.

Now on to today's training session.

1) Speed Deadlift with 35 lb plates (for greater ROM) - 165 x 10 x 1 (165 lbs, 10 singles)

2) Squat - 140 x 7, 155 x 2, 120 x 10

3) RDL w/ 35 lb plates - 185 x 8

4) Steep Decline Situps - 3 sets

Tonight I'm going to play racquetball, and tomorrow we're going to mess around at the local park playing basketball, soccer, football, and whatever else we can think of doing. : )

Have a great weekend, everyone!!!

A Little Change Up for Today's Upper Body Session

For yesterday's activity I went for a brisk 40 minute walk in the morning. I can't think of a better way to start the day than a nice walk in the beautiful Fall weather. Later on I washed and waxed my truck for a good 3.5 hours. That was more of a workout than I thought it would be.

Okay, so I changed things up a little for today's upper body training session. This is normally my bench day, but I'm taking a break from heavy bench presses for a while. Yes, I say that now, but I very well may change my mind in the next couple of weeks.

I'm trying to give my lower back a break during the week so I can go all-out on my deadlifts. Benching like a powerlifter (with an arch in your back) can make me feel beat up if I do it too heavy too many weeks in a row. My main concern right now is getting a bigger deadlift, so I'm willing to scale back on everything else to accomplish that goal.

So on that note, here's what I did today.

1a) TRX Pushup - 5 x 8 (5 sets, 8 reps each)

1b) Chest Supported Row - 5 sets

2a) TRX Extensions - 3 x 10

2b) Fat Bar Curl - 3 sets

This was a higher volume day than normal, but I wanted to give my body and joints a break from heavy lifting. I kept the pase quicker than normal, and really enjoyed that training session.

Afterwards I played a little racquetball, and I may end up playing again tonight.

Deadlifting in My New Vibrams

Here's the training session I finished up a little while ago.

1) Deadlift singles, 255 x 3 singles, 265 x 1

2) Rack Pull - 295 x 5, 275 x 6

3) Negative Ab Wheel Rollout/On Knees - 9/9, 9/9

Tough training session so I didn't do anything else afterwards.

Make sure you check out Calling All Beautiful Badasses.

More Pressing & Pullups

Oops.

I forgot to post yesterday's workout. I'll get to that in a second.

On Saturday we went to Garden of the Gods in Southern Illinois for some hiking and craziness. I wanted to be a little crazy and climb on some rocks and see how far I was willing to push myself. I didn't do anything too crazy, but had an amazing time. The weather was perfect and it was so beautiful there. I posted some pictures on my Facebook page.

That reminds me: are we friends on Facebook? If not, go HERE.

Here's what I did yesterday to kick of this training week.

1a) Standing BB Press - 90 x 4 x 3 (90 lbs, 4 sets, 3 reps each), 70 x 10

1b) Weighted Wide Grip Pullup - 10 x 2 x 5, bodyweight x 9, chinup bodyweight x 9

2) Rope Pushdown - 3 sets

After that I played some racquetball.

One more thing, make sure you check out Calling All Beautiful Badasses. I want YOUR videos or videos of a Beautiful Badass that you know.

Squats & Hiking

I forgot to post yesterday's training. Oops.

Here's what I did yesterday afternoon to finish up this weeks' training.

1) Squat - 140 x 6, 150 x 3, 120 x 8

2) RDL (I used 35lb plates for greater ROM) - 175 x 10

3) Steep Decline Situp - 20 lbs for 2 sets

After that, I played racquetball for a while.

Next week I'm going to add speed deadlifts back in on this day.

Okay, now I'm off to go hiking! ; ) Have a great weekend, everyone!

Vibrams, Bench Pressing & Racquetball

I got my first pair of Vibram FiveFingers yesterday. I absolutely love them and look forward to wearing them tomorrow when I do squats and RDLs. I highly recommend them.

On to today's training:

1a) Bench - 135 x 4 x 2 (135lbs, 4 sets, 2 reps each), 120 x 5, 115 x 8

1b) DB Row - 60 x 11, 65 x 7, 55 x 12

2) Fat Bar Curl - 3 sets

After that I played racquetball for 30 minutes. My mind was going crazy and I came up with some great topics for blog posts at The Fat Solutions. Stay tuned. : )

Deadlifting

1) Deadlift - worked up to 255 for 3 singles

2) Rack Pull - 285 x 2 x 6 (285 lbs, 2 sets, 6 reps each)

3a) BB Shrug - 190 x 2 x 12
3b) Negative Ab Wheel Rollout/Rollout on Knees - 9/9, 8/8

After that I played racquetball for a while. Last week I think I did too much volume on the deadlifts. I'm going to cut down on the volume with my deadlifts, and probably my squats and see what happens.

Presses & Pull-ups

I had a wonderful weekend. On Saturday we played frisbee golf. I'm not really good at it, but it sure is fun. It's nice to get outside, enjoy the fresh air, get some sunshine, and enjoy a fun activity with excellent company.

Oh, and to make things better, the Titans whooped the Cowboys yesterday!

On to today's training.

First thing this morning - 30 minute brisk walk

Training:
1a) Standing Press - 90 x 3 x 3 (90 lbs, 3 sets, 3 reps each set)

1b) Wide Grip Pullups - 3 x 8, Chinups - 2 x 8

2) Cable Pressdown - 90 x 3 x 10

After that I played some racquetball.

I can tell a difference from cutting out the finishers from my training and instead going for brisk walks a few times each week in the morning and doing more fun activities. I'm enjoying the change for now. : )

FULL Squats & More

Another great day of training to end the week.

1) Squat - 140 x 2 x 4 (140lbs, 2 sets, 4 reps each), 120 x 6 I've been asked before how low I squat. Technically you could say I perform full squats; I got well below parallel. Why? Because stopping when my hips are just below my knees doesn't feel natural. Besides, I have the mobility to perform full squats, so the real question is "why not"?

2) RDL - I used 35lb plates for these to get a great range of motion - 145 x 12, 155 x 10

3) Steep Decline Weighted Situps - 2 sets

After that I tried to play a little racquetball. It's very tough to do after squats. : )

Oh, and for today's eating:
Meal 1 - Breakfast shake (similar to yesterday but I used frozen mixed berries this time)

Meal 2 (post workout) - cereal again; I wanted something quick and easy

Meal 3 - to be determined; I'm going out tonight and I'll probably get some salmon with steamed veggies. May not sound all that great, but I love it. Oh, and probably some coconut shrimp as well. ; )

Have a great weekend everyone!

Bench, Rows, & Curls

Yesterday I went for an easy 45 minute walk in the morning. Great way to recover from the heavy deadlifts I did the day before.

Here's what I did a little while ago:

1a) Bench Pin Press - 135 x 4/3 (135 lbs, 4 reps 1st set, 3 reps 2nd set), 140 x 1, 145 x 1

1b) DB Row - 60 x 2 x 10, 50 x 15

2a) Bench - 120 x 6, 115 x 7

2b) Fat Bar Curl - 3 sets

3) I did a few sets of singles with deadlifts with 135 pounds. Nothing tough or strenuous by any means; I was just working on my form.

After that I played racquetball for a little while. I am completely addicted to it. : )

As for what I ate yesterday:
Meal 1 - 3 scrambled Organic eggs, sliced tomato, grapes and a plum
Meal 2 - Banana with peanut butter and more grapes
Meal 3 - Veggie soup and some popcorn

Here's what I've had so far today:
Meal 1 - Fruit & spinach shake. This was made with mixed frozen fruit (peaches, mangoes, pineapple, strawberries, and blueberries), vanilla soy milk, a ripe banana, and a few handfuls of Organic spinach

Meal 2 - 2 bowls of frosted mini wheats with almond milk. So damn good.

Meal 3 - I haven't had it yet, but it will be the leftover veggie soup and probably some fruit

Tomorrow, I squat. : )

What I'm Eating, Heavy Rack Pulls & Other Stuff

Okay, once again I've been requested to post some meals I eat each day. So to kick it off, I'll share with you what I've had today and what I'm going to eat for dinner tonight.

First Meal - fruit & spinach shake: sounds kinda nasty, I know. But, I promise you can't taste the spinach. I started off with about a cup of vanilla soy milk, a cup or so of mixed frozen berries (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries), and then I threw in a ripe banana and some more blueberries. I blended that really well and then I added several dashes of cinnamon and a couple large handfuls of organic spinach. Blend until smooth and enjoy. : )

Second Meal - generic frosted mini wheats with unsweetened almond milk. This has always been my favorite cereal so I still have it about twice a week, usually after my lower body training sessions.

Tonight's Dinner - I'm gonna make us some omelets with organic eggs (WHOLE eggs, not egg whites), potatoes, green peppers, onions, mushrooms, and tomatoes. I also like to add some salsa on top. Yummy goodness. If I'm still hungry after the omelet I'll eat some fruit; probably grapes or a plum.

As you can see I prefer to eat 3 meals each day, not the typical "5-6 small meals" that most fitness experts recommend.

Okay, so now you got a glimpse of what I eat, so let's get on to today's training session.

1) Rack Pulls just below the knees - 285 x 3 x 5 (285 lbs, 3 sets, 5 reps each set)

2) Deadlift - 225 x 8

3a) BB Shrug - 185 x 2 x 10

3b) Negative Ab Wheel Rollout & Then Rollouts from Knees - 8-8, and 8-8. I performed 8 reps of negative ab wheel rollouts, rest a couple of seconds, and then performed 8 sets of rollouts from my knees. I did that twice.

After the training session I played a little bit a racquetball. I didn't have a whole lot of energy since I trained deadlifts.

Tomorrow is a much needed rest day. : )

Back to Training Hard & Heavy

After a deload week it felt great to get back to lifting hard and heavy.

Here's how I started off this week of training

First thing this morning: 30 minute brisk walk

This afternoon:
1a) Standing Pin Press starting with bar at nose level - 95 x 5/4 (95 lbs, 5 reps on the first set, 4 reps on the second set), 100 x 3 singles

1b) Pullups with various grips - 5 sets

2) Standing Press - 75 x 8/7

3) Cable Pressdown - 3 sets

Quick and tough workout. Afterward I played racquetball; that is one of my favorite activities lately.

Couple of Notes: I am not going to be performing any more finishers for a while (burpees, swings, etc). Instead I am going to go on brisk walks a few mornings per week and focus on more enjoyable physical activities like hiking, racquetball, pick up basketball, etc. You don't have to "exercise" to lose weight and improve your health. Find an activity you enjoy and do it!

Last Days of Deload Week

Okay, so today's training session was the last one for this deload week.

Thursday's Training Session:
1a) Parallel Bar Dips - 4 sets
1b) Inverted Rows - 4 sets

Those sets were done with bodyweight, and no where near failure.

Friday's Training Session:
1) Squat - 4 sets with light weight
2) Ab Wheel Rollouts - 2 easy sets

I'm ready to get back to lifting hard and heavy.

Have a great weekend!