Upper Body Training & Sprints

Started off the morning walking around and then playing football with my dog.

1a) Press - 75 x 3 x 3, 65 x 8 Again, I took the weight down
1b) Various Grip Chins - a lot

2a) Parallel Bar Dips - 4 x 7
2b) Various Grip Chins - a lot

3) Hill Sprints - 6 sprints

I really missed sprinting so I did them twice this week. I love running and my legs and hips feel great afterward, even into the next day.

After the training session I played some more football with my dog.

Just a reminder - the sale on Fat Loss Detour ends tomorrow. Don't miss it.

Happy New Year, everyone! Have a great weekend and be safe.

Squats & Sprints

Today's training session:

1) Squat - 115 x 3 x 4 I altered my stance a little and stopped once I just broke past parallel. I'm keeping the weight really light and focusing on my form. I suck at squatting, but I'm determined to change this. Deadlifting is still my main priority, so I'm going to work up slowly with my squat.

2a) Double Kettlebell Full Front Squat (one kettlebell in each hand held at shoulders) - 3 x 10

2b) Ab Wheel Rollout - 3 x 10

3) Hill Sprints - 6

I completed the entire workout in a little under 30 minutes, excluding warm-up.

I finished things up by playing some football with my dog. This consists mostly of me punting the football and her retrieving it. : )

There's a reason why I'm lowering my training weights and stopping my sets with a couple of reps "left in the tank".

Why???

Find out here => Check Your Ego

Floor Presses & Upper Body Stuff

First thing this morning I went for a 30 minute walk with a weight vest. I would estimate the weight I used to be about 15 pounds or so.

Then a few hours later I performed this upper body training session:

1) Floor Press - 95 x 8, 105 x 2 x 3 (105lbs, 2 sets, 3 reps each)

2a) Pushup w/ weight vest - 4 x 10
2b) TRX Inverted Row - 4 x 10

3a) TRX Triceps Extensions - 4 sets
3b) BB Curl - 4 sets

Great training session. Everything felt great.

Don't forget, Fat Loss Detour is on sale at a discounted price until January 1st, 2011.

Back to Training!

I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas! We had an EPIC time this weekend. : )

So last week I deloaded, which means I back in the swing of things this week.

I kept the weight down and focused on my form since I took last week easy.

1) Rack Pull - 255 x 2 x 5
2) Deadlift - 225 x 3, 185 x 7

3a) RDL - 135 x 3 x 10
3b) Hanging Knee Raises - 4 sets

Everything went great, and I LOVE training in my own garage gym.

By the way . . . Fat Loss Detour is on sale until January 1st, 2011. This is the first sale I have ever had since the debut last year. If you are curious about trying Fat Loss Detour, now is the time. CLICK HERE.

Merry Christmas!

So today was the last day of my deload week. Now it's time to finish baking and go hang out with the family.

Good food. Great company. I couldn't be happier. Oh, and definitely some football. ; )

Here's what I did a little while ago:

1) Deadlift - just did really light deadlifts 135 x 3 x 3

2a) Push Press - light sets of 5 reps
2b) Chins - 4 reps per set

3a) Parallel Bar Dips
3b) Chins

Kept everything light and easy.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Deload . . . Almost Done

So yesterday I just did an easy bodyweight workout. I considered going for a walk, but I wanted, and needed, a change of pace. So I did some jumps, pushups, etc. Nothing too strenuous, just enough to get the blood pumping and to get me moving.

Today I did a quick and easy lower body deload.

1) Snatch Jumps - sets of 5
2) Full Squat - sets of 5
3) Goblet Squat - 3 x 10

Quick and easy. I can tell my body needs the deload week, although I am quite ready for it to be over so I can start lifting heavy once again.

Make sure you check out Part 2 of my interview => The Best Exercises, Fat Loss and Cardio Myths.

Now I'm about to go house hunting once again. Probably the last time for the rest of this year.

Upper Body Deload

So, even though I have a new toy to play with, I still managed to make myself perform my scheduled deload workout.

1) Floor Press - just worked up to 85 x 2 x 5

2a) Pushups - 4x
2b) Inverted Rows - 4x

Quick and simple.

It's been a very busy day for me so far, and I'm still not done.

Have a great day!

My Awesome Gift!

First off, today started the first day of my deload week.

Here's what I did:

1) BB Snatch Jump - did a few sets of 5 reps
2) Deadlift - 135 x 5, 145 x 5, 155 x 5
3a) Trap Bar Deadlift - 3 sets
3b) Steep Decline Situp - 3 sets

Jump Rope Intervals to finish it off.

I just got done putting together my Christmas gift. It only took 2 hours. : )

If we're friends on Facebook, CLICK HERE to check it out. If we're not friends yet, go to http://facebook.com/niashanks.

Upper Body Training & The Dark Side of Cheat Days

Happy Friday, everyone!

I hope you had a wonderful week and have a fun and exciting weekend planned.

Here's what I did today:

1a) Push Press - worked up to 90 x 6
1b) Chins

2a) Press - 60 x 2 x 10, 55 x 2 x 10
2b) Chins - 80 total

3a) Close Grip Floor Press - 95 x 2 x 6, 85 x 10
3b) DB Curl - 15 x 3 x 11

Now head on over to my other website and check out The Dark Side of Cheat Days.

Squats & My Awesome Christmas Gift

Great training session today.

1) Full Squat - 115 x 6, 95 x 3 sets

2a) Back Extension - 45 lbs x 4 sets
2b) Hanging Knee Raise - 4 x 11

Short and sweet.

Now on to my AMAZING Christmas gift I got today.

I'll give you a hint . . . it weighs 300 pounds. : )

Today I got a 300 pound barbell set. To say I'm excited is an understatement. I get Part 2 of the Christmas gift on Monday. It too weighs almost 300 pounds. ; )

Upper Body Training & Diet Confusion

First, today's training session.

1) Floor Press - worked up to 105 x 7

2a) DB Bench - 4 x 10
2b) DB Row - 4 x 10

3a) DB Extensions - 3 x 11
3b) DB Hammer Curl - 3 x 11

The entire workout took about 40 minutes.

If there is one thing that confuses people more than anything else, it's nutrition. Head on over to my blog and check out Death to Diet Confusion. That should help make things simple and stress-free.

Got Deadlifts?

Oh yes, today was deadlift day.

1) Deadlift - 235 x 3

2) Trap Bar Deadlift - 195 x 4 x 10 (195lbs, 4 sets, 10 reps each)

3) Steep Decline Situp - 4 x 10

Short and sweet, but quite tough.

That's it for today. : )

Training & This Year's Beautiful Badass

First of all, head on over to my website and check out the Beautiful Badass of the Year.

Yep, she is AWESOME!

Now on to today's training session:

1a) Barbell Push Press - 85 x 7, 75 x 7 Once again I kept the weight a little lighter and focused on being explosive
1b) Chins - done before and between sets of push presses

2a) BB Press - 55 x 4 x 10
2b) More Chins - 72 total

3a) Close Grip Floor Press - 90 x 2 x 8, 85 x 10
3b) DB Curl - 3 sets

Great training session to end the week. : )

Squats & Posterior Chain Work

Hello and happy Thursday, everyone.

Wow. I have some exciting news that I really want to share, but it's going to have to wait. I'm still putting some loose ends together, and once everything is good to go, I'll tell you what it is.

Anyway, on to today's training session.

1) Full Squat - worked up to 115 x 2 x 5 (115lbs, 2 sets, 5 reps). Once again, I focused on each rep being fast and explosive. Yes, I know that's not a lot of weight, but squatting is not my strength - literally.

2a) 45 Degree Back Extension - 35 x 4 x 11
2b) Hanging Knee Raise - 4 x 11

I was in and out of the gym in about 50 minutes, and that included a warm-up.

Tomorrow I'm going to reveal This Year's Beautiful Badass. Don't miss it. : )

Upper Body Training

Happy Tuesday to everyone!

I just finished up a great upper body training session.

1a) Floor Press - 100 x 7, 90 x 7 Again, I focused on keeping the reps fast and explosive
1b) Chinups - 4 x 6 Again, each rep was explosive

2a) TRX Pushup - 4 x 10
2b) Inverted Row - 4 sets

3a) Lying DB Ext - 3 sets
3b) DB Hammer Curl - 3 sets

Tomorrow I'm going house hunting. : )

Let There Be Deadlifts

Judging by the title of this post, I'm sure you're able to figure out my training session from earlier today.

1) Deadlift - worked up to 225 x 7 Everything felt great
2) Trap Bar Deadlift - 190 x 4 x 10 (190 lbs, 4 sets, 10 reps each)
3) Steep Decline Weighted Situps - 4 x 10

That was it, but it was plenty. : )

Right now I'm making an awesome stew for tonight's dinner and getting some work done.

Tomorrow I'm going to reveal The Beautiful Badass of the Year. Don't miss it.

Presses and Chins

Today's training session was a great way to end the week, training wise. I had to train a little earlier today because I have plans later this afternoon.

1a) Press - worked up to 75 for 3 reps. My best press is 85 pounds for 6 reps, so you can tell that this set doesn't look impressive. However, I focused on keeping my reps as fast and smooth as possible.
1b) Chins - I performed sets of chins between each set of presses

2a) Press - 4 sets of 8-10 reps
2b) More Chins

3a) Close Grip Floor Press - 90 x 2 x 7 (90 lbs, 2 sets, 7 reps), 85 x 9
3b) DB Curl - 3 sets

Once again, I didn't eat before training because I wasn't hungry. My performance wasn't effected at all. And I am NOT telling you to train fasted. I'm just telling you what I'm doing.

I eat when I'm hungry. It's as simple as that.

Squats & Christmas Gift Ideas

First, today's training session. And then, some great Christmas gift ideas.

1) Full Squat - worked up to 115 x 5. Each rep was explosive and I stopped the set when my speed slowed down. Just doing this for something different.

2a) Back Extensions - 4 x 10
2b) Hanging Knee Raise - 4 x 10

Completed the entire workout in about 40 minutes.

Check out these Christmas Gift Ideas. There's all kinds of great ideas to get for the special people in your life, or to add to your personal wish list.