Saturday 21 December 2013

An update

There has been a lack of updates mainly due to me not doing anything that exciting.

I think you have the idea of what I do training wise.
Three training session per week, focus on heavy compound movements with isolation in there as well.

My food is pretty basic also. I only eat processed foods once and a while and have a few treat at the weekend. Other than that it's natural foods cooked well. My main focus with food in the couple of years off is to get the calories up while still staying within a decent weight limit. For me I won't sit any heavier than 70kg max. Thats over 10kg from stage weight and I find getting weight off a challenge. I will do this by slowly adding food, rather than just eating 4000 calories.

Supplements wise. I will be very basic on this front.

My sponsorship with Smart tec has ended so I will have to be careful with what I buy due to cost.

I plan to use. A protein blend or whey, creapure creatine and Branch chain amino acids during training.

Which I will be buying from www.bulkpowders.co.uk  SG39238 
fOR Money off

Other than those three. I will get glcosamine, multi vit and vitc. Just a supermarket own brand. Maybe vitamin d in the winter months.

So that's my off season plan. Very simple. Get bigger, get stronger and have some fun.

I had a delivery this week from Muscle food and was very impressed with the quality.

My reveiw can be found here. SG667 will get you some free food.
http://www.naturalmuscle.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=3042.0

Saturday 30 November 2013

Smart tec Complete fx

Complete Fx is Smart tec's all in 1 formula

All in 1's are a one stop shop for the consumer wishing to get all their sports nutrition without having to worry about mixing together lots of different individual supplements.

What are the key Ingredients

40g of premium protein, essential for growth and repair of muscle

5g of creapure creatine. The purest creatine. Helping with explosive strength and endurance


3g of Arginine AKG, 1g of Beta Alanine and 1g of Taurine per serving to boost nitric oxide production and buffer lactic acid resulting in increases in physical energy, mental focus, volume tolerance and recovery capacity.

Avena Sativa and ZMA to support natural testosterone production

Add to this a great taste and mixability and you have the perfect post workout shake or in between meals solution

30/11/13

A solid week of training, nothing to set the world  on fire but decent non the less.
Injury is nearly healed so I will try a few deadlifts on Tuesday and see how it feels.

This weeks Training
Back 

Chins
me x 15
me x 6
I have a goal of getting to 20 reps of chins, not far off now.

Bent over rows
60kg x 20
60kg x 20
80kg x 12
80kg x 12
80kg x 10

dumbell rows
50kg x 10
50kg x 8

tried rack deads but the fact the rack won't go low enough and I'm mega short meant that they didn't work very well.

Smith shoudler press
50kg x 10
70kg x 6
70kg x 5 then a double drop set

seated laterals
14kg x 10
14kg x 8 then a few partials

rope crunches x 4 sets

My glute issue is getting much better, not wanting to do anything potentially risky this week but bent over rows were out last week and felt fine today.

Chest and arms

15 degree incline press
2 warm ups
80kg x 4 to heavy for me
70kg x 5,5,5,4

flys 2 sets
had my partner provide extra resistance in the negative by pushing against my arms.

incline press
50kg x 7 then 4 drops

alternate dumbell curls
1 warm up
18kg x 8
18kg x 6

rope hammers 
20kg x 5 then 4 drops
each rep was from a dead stop

pushdowns
2 warm ups
30kg x 10
32.5kg x 10

incline close grip bench
50kg x 9
60kg x 6

overhead rope ext
10kg x 20, just fancied a nice pump

Job done. The 5x5 took up a bit of time and meant the rest of the workout seemed a little rushed. Got through and felt it was productive.

Guess I am never going to be the strongest presser but it gives me something to work on. Last year off I defiantly thickened my chest, quite a bit. Thats my main priority along with thicker abs and not getting to fat Grin

Legs

I have been free from pain for a good week now, injury wise so I thought a session based on squats and form would be good.

Legs ext
ss
hamstring curl
10kg x 20
20kg x 20
30kg x 20

hamstring curl
37.5kg x 8
37.5kg x 8

squats
bar x 20
60kg x 10
60kg x 10
60kg x 10
80kg x 8
80kg x 8
100kg x 10
100kg x 7

Every rep was bang on and obviously shy of failure. To be honest I think going to failure on squats is blinking dangerous. I'd rather have another rep in the bag and them all be perfect than go for that last rep and it be a touch of and get another injury.

Hamstring curl
35kg x 20,, rest paused out the reps

calf press on the plate loaded leg press
ss
standing bodyweight calf raises

4 sets back to back. Burned big time

A lot of stretching and there is a slight tightness in the lower back just above where the glute was knotted but really nothing to worry about. Quite happy that I got through the session.

Sunday 24 November 2013

24/11/13

With a month till Christmas it's time to really crack up the intensity before we have some down time and rest.

This was last weeks training

The glute is getting better. Generally pretty pain free. Sitting all day makes it a bit sore but it loosens. Really giving it time to heal. Foam rolling, hot baths and deep heat are helping as well.

Back and Shoulders today

Chins 
me x 11, 4,4,4

row row machine
70kg x 9
70kg x 8

dumbell rows
36kg x 12
36kg x 15

All reps were very clean, nothing risking at all.

Dumbell shoudlers press
1 warm up
30kg x 9
30kg x 6

seated strict laterals
10kg x 11, 10,11

cable shrugs
30kg x20
35kg x 20
Can't do deads so wanted to get some blood in the traps

Did some rope crunches

Really like the faster pace of doing sessions this way, we can always go for lower reps when we feel the need and there is not pressure of log book beating when you don't feel right. If we are strong we will go heavy if it's an off day or we have a twinge, higher reps more sets

Chest and arms today
Taken chest away from shoulders as chest is a weak point for me and I want to have it as a priority

15 degree press
bar x 30
40kg x 20
60kg  9
80kg x 2 ds 60kg x 5

incline machine press
60kg x4 ds 50kg x 5 the first set was to heavy for me
50kg x 6

flys, 1 set, started at incline, then flat then decline
12,10,9

ez curls
25kg x 20
35kg x 10
45kg x 5

pushdowns
10kg x 30
15kg x 15
25kg x 10
25kg x 9

dumbell preachers
8kg x per hand x 12
8kg x x10
few rest pauses

decline skulls
35kg x 12
35kg x10

That was that. Finding a bit of pyramiding throught the weight is helping with the elbow niggles and I feel more ready when the sets get heavier. I might not be quite as strong but I feel a lot less like my muscles will tear and I feel the stress in the muscle rather than the joints
 

Legs today
This time last week, I really tweaked the already injured glute minor so I was a tad nervous.

Leg press
2 plate 50 reps
3 plates 20 reps
4 plates 20 reps
5plates 20 reps
5 plates 10 reps low, 10 reps mind, 10 reps high

leg ext
ss
seated hamstring curl
Just went back and forth. Sets of 10. Must have be 6 sets each

seated calf raise on smiths
130 x 25 rp

Did a lot of stretching, during and after the workout. The glute is much better. It's more of a slight soreness when I have been sitting still rather than a sharp pain. 

Next weeks going to be the same kind of workout plan and then another sports massage on the Saturday. Should be sorted by then to do some sensible squats and deads

Sunday 17 November 2013

A Slightly PAINFUL WEEK

A big of news before the training.
After the leg session last week, I got up from my chair at work and my back felt stiff. A bit of foam rolling and It felt fine, I was just careful with it. Well this Friday during a set of dumbell deads I felt a pain in the top of my left glute. After a very painful day at work Friday I had a sports massage and I seem to have a big knot in my left glute minor. The sports massage and acupuncture has given me a lot of freedom back and now, no pain. So this week will be a very careful week in regard to selection of exercises.

Here is last weeks workouts

Back and biceps 

Had to be careful as my left lower back is really tight. So playing it safe.

Chins
me +10kg x 5 rp 2 rp2
then did 2 sets with bodyweight

lying on a bench rope pulloevers
15kg x 20
15kg x 20

low row machine
this was one set
30kg x 10
40kg x 10
50kg x 10
60kg x 10

streched

ez curls
40kg x 11 rp 5 rp3

hammers
20kg x 15

then did some abs

Back hitting chest, shoulders and triceps. After doing chest and arms with Mr Fruin on Saturday and Bodybionic in Thatcham

Bench
85kg x 4 rp 1
ds
60kg x 5

front shoudler press
40kg x 11 rp 5 rp 5

skull crushers
40kg x 12 rp5 rp 4

tri set
flat dumbell press
laterals
overhead cable ext
did that 3 time

Now I still have this lower back twinge and I think this trying to beat the log book every week is going to cause me or Bnej and injury. I feel we are walking a fine line between safe and unsafe.

We both want some more volume and I need to be able to change the workout based on how my body is feeling.

So I will be doing workouts a bit more on the fly. Still based around free weight compounds and heavy weight. Probably more in the way of working up to the weight. So days we feel strong we can hit it heavy, if not more volume and drop sets

Legs today
Doing a bit more volume now. Bit faster workouts.

Leg ext
10kg x 20
20kg x 10
30kg x 10
40kg x 10

hamstring curl
10kg x 20
20kg x 10
30kg x 10
40kg x 7

leg press
2 plates x10
3 x 10
4x 10
5x10
6x8

calf press
150kg x 9
150kg x 8

cable pull through
20kg x 10
20kg x 8

Saturday 9 November 2013

Another week of Log book beating

Tuesday
Back and Biceps

Vertical traction machine
As always warm ups
70kg x 11 rp 6 rp 3

t bar rows
70kg x 10 rp 6 rp3

cable curls
25kg x 9 rp 5 rp2

reverse grip ez bar
30kg x 15

then supersetted
bent over rows and dumbell pullovers. 3 sets, blowing like a steam train  Grin

Thursday
Push workout today

Shoulder warm ups.

Incline dumbells
36kg x 7
36kg x 4
Staying with these next time, reps a bit low

Smiths front
65kg x 6 rp2 then didn't even get one rep on the last rest pause,so the weight stays the same.

Warm up elbows with 50 reps of pushdowns mega light
close grip bench on smiths
55kg x 8 rp 2 rp2
will go for 60kg next time

So a good workout, pretty strong and chest is very much a weakness for me. Looking at my class from the UKDFBA, the other guys were really thick and conditioned.

Friday
Legs Today

Finally the gym have a mirror in front of the squat rack and the smiths machine. Makes a huge difference.

Warm up 30 reps on leg ext and hamstring curl. I also deep 20 deep reps on the leg press

Squats
bar x 20
60kg x 10
100kg x 6
These were all warm ups
140kg x 6
80kg x 22 reps

hamstring curl
40kg x 11 rp 4 rp 3

leg ext
just did one set to failure with a few forced reps for fun

seated calf raise on smiths
3 plates a side 3 reps. Dead stop at the bottom and full flex

That was a good session. Volume felt a bit low.

Sunday 3 November 2013

Product Review L-GLUTAMINE FX

L-Glutamine FX is 100% pure l-glutamine.

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in human muscle, it's responsible for repair and recovery, helps the immune system stay strong and really helps digestion.

People at work know when dieting i quite often just put a teaspoon of glutamine in my mouth and wash it down with water. This really helps the sweet cravings and hunger when your dieting and also stops muscle breakdown.

This off season I have been very fortunate to be supplied a good amount of glutamine Fx by my sponsor Smart tec. So for the forseeable future I shall be getting in 30+ grams a day to see if that benefits me.

I will be posting about this in future blogs.

http://www.smarttecnutrition.com/