Week 15 and ‘before’ pics

Well Week 1 was a major success in my book.  I dropped 8 pounds, got rid of all the bloated feelings, and stuck to my eating and training plans completely.  This week was just a repeat of the first week.  Same eating plan and same training schedule.  Here is what I am up to in the gym:

Monday:  Back and Biceps (40 minutes cardio)

Tuesday:  Shoulders and Triceps (40 minutes cardio)

Wednesday:  Abs (40 minutes cardio)

Thursday:  Legs (40 minutes cardio)

Friday:  Chest (40 minutes cardio)

Saturday: Abs (40 minutes cardio)

Sunday:  OFF

I’ll post the actual exercises next week…my quads are still recovering!

And now for the pics.  I took these after 2 weeks.  There is plenty of progress, but I am a long way from where I want to be. 

It took some time and energy trying to find the right light to take the pics.  I need to spend some more time or else go outside and try the natural light.  And then perhaps some time determining poses.  I will take pics again in 2 weeks, so hopefully more progress to follow. 

16 Weeks To Go

April 4th marks Day One of the 16 week contest preparation.  I can remember the days and weeks leading up to this time.  I was nervous and excited.  I spent some time figuring out a last meal, but in the end I was ready for everything to begin.  It was surreal to sit and wait for 4-6 months planning and suddenly the day was here.  I did have a few cokes, some cookies and a meal at McD’s, so hopefully that fix keeps me sane for 16 weeks!

So yesterday…I woke up at 5:45am, threw on some clothes, cooked my first meal, and headed to the gym for my fasted cardio.  Forty-five minutes on the bike.  I showered and headed upstairs to eat my eggs and protein shake.  By the time I finished the first meal I was warming up some chicken and broccoli for the second.  I should mention that most of my days consist of protein, protein and more protein.  Some green veggies are thrown in, but if it’s a protein I eat it. 

Training on Monday was tough.  High reps with a focus on squeezing each rep.  We did back and biceps…the kicker was 3x30 on the back extension with a 25lb plate.  It was the first time I thought, ‘What am I getting in to?’ 

To be honest, there is so much to remember and plan I’ve barely had time to think about anything not prescribed.  No more days where if you forget a meal at home you improvise or go grab something similar.  I have a strict meal plan and there is no deviation from it until the contest is over.  It took me 4 hours on Sunday night to cook my food, package my food, set each day’s food in the fridge, and double check and triple check that I didn’t forget anything.  I was a nervous wreck just hoping that I didn’t forget anything.  

Tuesday was the same meal plan.  I cooked several chicken breasts and top sirloins on Sunday, so it was easy to pack my food.  Everything else is grab and go style.  Training was shoulders and triceps.  My training partner, we’ll call him WC, is on the same training program.  He will be competing in the same show.  His eating plan is a little different as he needs to cycle carbs more often to hold his size.  It’s much more tolerable to bust my tail in the gym when someone else is there.  Plus we can complain about cravings to someone that is going through the same thing.   

Friday’s Competitive Edge

Logging my workouts and seeing the progress is a huge morale booster especially on a day like Friday.  I always get wrapped up at work with a million things and the weekend is knocking on the door so my head is never focused.  That is….until this workout plan….shoulders, triceps and calves!  An odd combination but it seems to bring out the best in me.  My training partner and I play the typical game of ‘Who’s going first?’ on a day like this.  You never want to go first…it gives the second guy a chance to squeeze out one more rep or to add that extra 10 pounds just to prove who is stronger.  Really ticks me off!  Well I didn’t go first today and it pushed me to go after weights I’ve never done before.  I’ll get to that later…

Eating:

Meal 1:  6 eggs, 4 pieces of toast, 2 turkey sausages

Meal 2:  50g protein shake, LBAs, apple

Meal 3:  Protein bar, 1 cup oatmeal, 3 spoons of natty peanut butter

Meal 4:  50g protein shake, LBAs, apple

Meal 5:  Stir-Fry (Chicken, green veggies, small amount of stir fry sauce) and brown rice…couple glasses of wine (It was a Friday!)

Workout:

Smith Machine Overhead Press:  4x15,10, 8, 6

DB Lateral Raises:  3x15, 10, 6

Smith Machine Upright Row:  2x12

DB Skullcrushers:  3x15, 12, 6

Standing Calf Raises:  3x15

So what happened with shoulders?  In trying to lift heavy each week you feel strain and tension on the muscle that you are not used to feeling.  It’s more weight than you’ve ever done and you think back to the week before when you thought that weight was heavy.  It’s that split second when you un-rack a weight and think ‘Damn that’s heavy!’  On a good day it feels light and easy and on a bad day you begin doubting yourself as soon as it’s in your hands.  With the OH Press on the Smith Machine I went through the first 3 sets focused on the tension, trying to get the stretch out of each rep, and feeling the muscle fire as I drove it back up.  Last week I had maxed out my last set at 275 and remembered feeling good.  Set 1….105lbs (first set is always super easy).  Set 2…155lbs.  Set 3….225.  I was adding up the weight to get to 285 for the fourth set, but knew I needed more if 275 was easy last week.  My lifting buddy did 245 for his final set, so I was already ahead of him.  It’s Friday, I felt good…why not go as high as I think I can….and suddenly 305 popped in my head!   Why not?  Worst case the spotter has to step in.  As I un-racked the weight I felt the strain and didn’t doubt myself.  I focused on one spot and began pressing the weight.  I got 5 out of the 6 reps with no assistance.  The final rep I paused for a quick second at the bottom and lost focus.  That was a 30 pound gain and completely against my plan of adding 10 pounds a week.  On week one of this program my final set was at 215!  Huge gains!  It was just what I needed to send me into the weekend.     

Thursday’s Juggle

I remember when the trainer would give me a new workout plan and the first day I wanted to look at was ‘Leg Day.’  Ugh!  I had strict rules regarding leg day that were even more strictly enforced….

1.  No lunges.

2.  No high reps.

3.  If there is ever a week where I need to skip a workout…it shall be leg day!

Rules 1 & 2 are now negotiable…but rule #3 is now a joke.  Skip leg day?  Why would anyone ever do that?  My hope is that the plan is SOOOOO intense that I finally get that ‘morning after’ feeling where it hurts to get out of bed.  I crave that feeling!  It rarely happens anymore.  But when it does I usually have a grin on my face and a grateful ‘you got me good’ for the trainer.  I now look forward to leg day.  I can feel the muscle tear!  What a good feeling! 

So today included a half day conference off site in the morning.  The conference lasted 4 hours…a room with 75 people and one speaker….would anyone notice me making a protein shake?  Fortunately there was a small break and I rushed out to my car and chugged the shake….ahhhhh!  Much better!  Perhaps protein shake breaks are becoming the new smoke break!  Much healthier!  This could be the start of a revolution!  A business idea!  Picture this….airports….people travel for 2-3 hours, get off the plane, and rush to my  little stand where I can fill them up with protein shakes!  I’d make a fortune!

Enough dreaming!  Today went like this:

Nutrition:

The conference messed me up.  I was starving when we got out and I had to drive back to the office.  I scarfed down a protein bar and my pre-workout shake and bolted for the gym.  There was no way I could eat oatmeal and still have time for the workout.  Dinner was awesome…perhaps one of my favorite meals.  I’ll post pics of my dinner next time….

Legs:

Squats:  4x15, 10, 8, 6 (If you don’t go parallel it doesn’t count)

Leg Press:  3x15, 12, 10 (Last set is a rest pause)

Leg Ext:  3x12 (Last set is a 2-drop set)

Leg Curls:  3x12

That’s it!  Leg day is never too complex.  We are usually in and out of the gym in 30-40 minutes.  Tomorrow is STC…Shoulders, Triceps, Calves!     

Tuesday = Pullups

Gone are the days when I eat for fun!  I occasionally have a candy bar or fast food to fulfill a craving, but now I eat to satisfy some intake of carbs/fat/protein.  It's odd...food I never thought I would eat is now a staple to my daily nutrition.  For example...oatmeal!  Water and oats!  That's it!  I add a couple scoops of natty peanut butter to help get it down (therefore adding some protein/fat)...but it has to be one of the most boring meals I consume.  I remember when I first started training and eating right and the trainer would say 'Listen to your body' and 'Only eat when you're hungry.'  I had no clue what he meant.  After several years of listening I can tell when my body wants carbs and when it wants protein and when it doesn't want any food at all.  I sabotage myself all the time, but those days are becoming more and more rare as I have created this new goal.  I know when those days are coming and I either A) beat myself up for it, B) say what the heck and enjoy myself, or C) plan ahead and have my meals ready to go.  Choosing A or B usually leads to a sore stomach!  Off-season eating is a little different.  Even when I'm not hungry I still eat.  I'm always full and by the time I finish one meal I am getting ready to fix the next one.   

So today went like this...
I am still feeling sick and congested.  Go away stupid cold!  The mornings are the worst and I'm hoping its gone tomorrow.  Food was similar to yesterday.  It's boring, but I never have to guess about what I am eating.  Plus it makes grocery shopping a snap.  I love my job, but spending 4-5 hours at my desk and then getting in the mindset to go lift heavy is a stretch.  I've become a high maintenance gym-goer.  I now require a quick cup of black coffee along with my pre-workout mix to boost my energy levels.  Without it and I feel completely sluggish.  Black coffee....something else I never consumed!  Today was back and biceps:

Pullups:  4 to failure
Bent Over Row:  2x10, 6
One Arm T-bar Row:  1x8
Straight Bar Curl:  2x10, 6
Preacher Curl:  2x10, 6
Smith Machine Shrugs:  3x12
Stiff Leg Deadlifts:  3x15, 12, 10

Good progress on all of these today.  Last week was jacked up with the cold, so I did this same routine on Saturday at a different gym.  I was afraid these muscles would be sore from the quick turnaround, but I was able to increase weights.  After work I went to the store and bought enough food to get me through the next week or two.  Tomorrow is a much needed recovery day before leg day on Thursday.    

The start of the new year…

The last two weeks were a blur and I am glad my routine is getting back to normal.  I was able to stick to my eating and workout plans as I wanted.  It was the unplanned sickness (a cold) that drained my energy to the point of exhaustion.  Perhaps it was some much-needed recovery.  That was last week and I can still feel the muscle aches and stuffy nose lingering…not to mention the raspy smoker’s voice.

So today is Monday…and eating included:

Meal 1:  5 eggs, 3 pieces of toast                                                       

Meal 2:  50gram protein shake, 3 Tbsp of LBAs, an apple                     

Meal 3:  Protein bar, cup of oatmeal, 2 Tbsp natural peanut butter, mandarin oranges.                                                                                           

Meal 4:  50 gram protein shake, 3 Tbsp of LBAs                                  

Meal 5:  2 cups brown rice, 4 eggs, 2 turkey sausage

And here is the workout (chest, triceps, abs):
Bench Press: 4x15, 10, 8, 6
Decline Press: 3x15, 10, 5
Cable Crossover: 3x10
Cable Pressdown: 4x8 superset with Dips:  4 to failure       
Leg Raises:  3x20

The extra oatmeal prior to the workout gave an extra boost to my energy levels.  My focus for this training plan is gaining 5-10 pounds per exercise.  So far I am hitting that goal.  Bench press is the one exception.  It’s the first on the list, so I should be making the biggest gains here.  But I’m stuck.  It was going so good.  I need to work on this next week.  Perhaps drop weight on my warm-ups or try to hit a higher weight for lower reps.  Adding 10 pounds feels like I am adding 100 right now.  The trainer and I are in the process of locking down the competition and therefore the actual date.  Count back 16 weeks and we’ll know when the fun begins.    

Avoiding the Holiday Schedule

My workout schedule goes like this:

• Monday:  Chest and Triceps
• Tuesday:  Back and Biceps
• Wednesday:  OFF
• Thursday:  Legs
• Friday:  Shoulders, Triceps, Calves

We are lifting heavy right now, so the OFF day in the middle of the week is much needed.  But the holidays and other commitments means my schedule is jacked up.  For example, today is Wednesday – I did legs.  A day after doing stiff leg deadlifts on ‘Back’ day translated to a sore back and hamstrings.  It’ll be fine, and it’s much better than not being able to lift at all or missing a day….which is my fear for next week.  Work and life are always getting in the way.  It just happens, but I’ve done really good about working around these unplanned instances to stick to my plans.  I’ve learned to be flexible. And always have a backup plan.  This is especially true when it comes to eating.  Say I was to start a 10 week plan on Monday.  I look at a calendar….when are the holidays, do I have any vacations planned, weddings, anything else that may get me out of my routine.  Don’t worry, I take a couple of weeks each year completely off.  Somehow these always come up around the same time as a vacation or conference.  It’s just easier that way.  And I am competing in the show in July 2011.  Before I even committed to competing I looked at a calendar to see when conflicts would occur and how I could work around them.  So far there is a one week vacation in March that will have some impact, but hopefully its early enough.  Brutally honest….I’ve already checked out local gyms and determined how I can get my meals.