Core Work and Surgery

Today, I focused on core and abs alone to give my body a complete rest day for my workout tomorrow. Here is some of the core movement I performed:

Planks
Side Planks
Side Leg Raises
Side Knee Raises
Lumberjack Low to High
Arm on Ball Roll Outs
Side Planks Leg Kick Outs

This was a fantastic core day, really tried to focus on my side walls and serratus muscles. The reason why I took the day off from lifting is because tomorrow I am performing “The Whole Nine Yards”. This is a full body workout that Greg Plitt posts on his website, Gregplitt.com. The reasoning to my full body workout is that I’m having nose surgery on Thursday due to my deviated septum, collapsed nasal passage, bone spur, and chronic sinusitis. Migraines are insane with this, and sinus infections are intensified.

Check out this picture of my CT scan, the bubble on the right is supposed to be clear – but it’s filled with fluid. My sinuses are completely filled with liquid, fluid, gung, etc.

Wish me luck, also if you want to see the workout I am doing then check out Greg Plitt’s website or look up the preview clip on YouTube. I love all of his workouts and motivational quotes and metaphors of life. I’ll be out of lifting for 1-2 weeks. Wish me luck and stay tuned for more informational posts while I’m recovering.

Leg Destroyer

This is your life. You choose what path you travel down. Face your defects and embrace them; prepare to dominate them. Your mind is what controls your body, visualize yourself accomplishing your goals – then do it. Don’t follow after someone else’s shadow. Be the leader in your own personal goals.

Pre-Workout: 3 capsules of NO3 Chrome Black, and 1 scoop of C4 – Cellucor Supplements.

Deep Barbell Squats:
20 x 45 lbs
12 x 135 lbs
8 x 225 lbs
5 x 285 lbs
5 x 310 lbs
5 x 330 lbs
Note: Hit another PR on squat! Two weeks in a row and still growing! These Squats were a bit deeper than my normal Squats and I still increased my poundage by 5 lbs!

Barbell Step Ups:
10 x 115
8 x 165
8 x 195
Performed 8-10 each leg.
Note: Really felt the contraction on my quads for this one, felt awesome!!

Wide Stance DB Squats:
20 x 45 lbs
15 x 45 lbs
12 x 80 lbs
Note: I really focused on my quads contraction; and the separation was highly prominent! Felt great!

One Arm DB Swings:
12 x 45 lbs
12 x 45 lbs
12 x 45 lbs
Note: 6 on one leg then switch, then I did 6 holding it with both hands.

Slow Controlled Leg Extensions:
15 x 45 lbs
12 x 90 lbs
12 x 125 lbs

Post-Workout: 1 scoop of Scivation Whey as well as 1 scoop of Vitargo S2. 30 minutes later, 20 grams of protein in my chicken breast on two slices of wheat bread with a spinach salad topped with chopped almonds and peanuts. Delicious!

The DB swinging work really tightened my core! Once I get my gym membership, this will be replaced by kettlebell work!

Sunday Chest

Pre-Workout: 3 NO3 Chrome Black Pills 90 minutes before, and 1 scoop of C4 15 minutes prior to warming up.

CHEST:
•Incline Barbell Bench Press:
20 x 45 lbs
10 x 95 lbs
5 x 135 lbs
5 x 165 lbs
5 x 185 lbs
4 x 205 lbs – then 1 assisted rep
Note: This is the most amount of weight I’ve thrown around on incline. Pretty excited about my PR.

•Flat Dumbbell Flyes:
12 x 35 lbs
12 x 45 lbs
12 x 55 lbs
12 x 55 lbs – 9 x 45 lbs – 8 x 35 lbs
Note: After I completed my drop set, my chest was swollen! Feeling great by this point.

•Decline Dumbbell Pull Overs:
12 x 55 lbs
12 x 55 lbs
9 x 55 lbs
Note: REALLY felt the stretch on the chest, lats, and serratus muscles! This exercise is definitely one to try, make sure to decline the bench and stretch it as far as possible!

SUPERSET
•Reverse Grip Bench Press:
15 x 95 lbs
15 x 95 lbs
•Plyo Push Ups:
Bodyweight x failure
Bodyweight x failure

CORE/ABDOMINAL TRAINING: performed as circuit, complete 3 total rounds of this:

1. Lower Ab Ball Rolls:
15 x bodyweight
2. Sit Ups:
15 x bodyweight
3. Russian Twist:
24 x 10 lbs
4. Bar Dips:
Bodyweight x failure (Keep body in shape of L)
5. Ab Roller:
10 x bodyweight
6. Renegade Row:
10 each side x 25 lb DBs

Post-Workout: 1 scoop Scivation whey and 1 scoop of Vitargo S2. 30 minutes later, chicken slices, almonds, brown rice.

Great workout, really felt strong as well as seeing size improvements and larger pumps!

I’ll be buying some Optimum Nutrition Whey as well as my first tub of Casein. The whey will be in white chocolate, and the casein will be in peanut butter chocolate. I’ll be posting how the taste is! Stay tuned for more pictures!

Afternoon Sprint

Warm up, 5 minutes of jogging then dynamic stretching.

•2 x 100 meter sprints at about 85-95 %
•3 x 60 yard sprints 100%
•2 x 40 yard sprints 100%
•3 x 20 yard sprints 100%

I let myself have about 2 minutes in-between. My focus is getting faster, and you need an adequate amount of time between sprints so that your ATP has time to replenish.

Took the day off from lifting. Sometimes less is more, and my body is telling me to relax.

Testing NO3 Black Chrome – Bis, Tris, Abs

Pre Workout: I was lucky to have NO3 Black Chrome by Cellucor sitting on my front door step when I got home to train. I took 3 capsules on an empty stomach, 60 minutes before my workout. This is a creatine free and stimulant free pre workout supplement with NO3 technology. Then, 15 minutes before my 6o minutes was up, I took 1 scoop of Cellucor’s C4 Extreme. Scroll to bottom for my review!

Triceps:
Close Grip Bench Press:
15 x 45 lbs
12 x 95 lbs
10 x 115 lbs
8 x 135 lbs
8 x 155 lbs
5 x 185 lbs – 5 x 135 lbs – 10 x 95 lbs – Dropset
Note: This is one of the best mass builders for the triceps, and since I had not done this exercise the last 3 or 4 triceps day, I decided to go all out.

Dumbbell Skullcrushers:
10 x 30 lbs
10 x 35 lbs
8 x 40 lbs
Note: Definitely started to see the pump from the NO3 Black Chrome kick in. I was blown away. Triceps were tired from close grip bench press, but still managed to throw some weight around.

EZ Curl Bar Overhead Triceps Extension:
10 x 55 lbs
10 x 65 lbs
8 x 75 lbs
Note: Performed this with extreme strict form.

Dumbbell Triceps Kickback:
12 x 15 lb DB
12 x 15 lb DB
12 x 15 lb DB
Note: Tried to pump as much blood as possible, with only 20-30 second rest periods in between.

Biceps:
Straight Bar Shoulder Width Curl:
20 x 45 lbs
10 x 95 lbs
10 x 105 lbs
8 x 105 lbs
Note: One of the biggest pumps I have ever had in my entire life due to the NO3 Black Chrome.

Dumbbell Seated Rotating Curl:
10 x 30 lb DB
10 x 35 lb DB
8 x 40 lb DB

Surfing the Rack:
40 lb DB x failure
35 lb DB x failure
30 lb DB x failure
25 lb DB x failure
15 lb DB x failure
Note: Perform any type of curls – rotating curls, regular curls, hammer curls, etc.

Preacher Curl:
12 x 55 lbs
10 x 65 lbs
8 x 75 lbs
8 x 75 lbs – 2 negatives performed right after

Abdominal Circuit:
1. Holding Barbell Leg Lifts
95 lbs x 12
95 lbs x 12
95 lbs x 12

2. Ball Sit Ups
12 x bodyweight
12 x bodyweight
12 x bodyweight

3. Side Planks
20 seconds
20 seconds
25 seconds

4. Russian Twist
24 x bodyweight
24 x bodyweight
24 x bodyweight

5. Renegade Row
15 lb DB x 10 each side
15 lb DB x 10 each side
15 lb DB x 10 each side

After I finished my ab circuit, I did 50+ varied hand placement for push ups.

DB Pull Over:
12 x 40 lbs
10 x 55 lbs
10 x 55 lbs
Note: After this, I was entirely destroyed both mentally and physically…I would have done more with the DB Pull Overs, but will do the Pull Overs earlier in the workout next time.

NO3 Black Chrome is definitely worth it, such amazing results – I had the largest pump I have ever experienced in my whole life. I thought my skin would tear, I was so pumped. Tomorrow is leg day and shoulder day. I can’t wait to see how my shoulders/traps look tomorrow! I will be posting a video review of how much I love this product! If you are looking for an N.O. pre workout supplement, I highly recommend this product. I may try no C4, and just 4 capsules of No3 Black Chrome. The pill size isn’t huge, so it’s easy to swallow, which is a plus!
If you are cycling off of creatine, or stimulants, this product would be perfect for you. Even if you want to stack ANY pre workout this NO3 Black Chrome, then this is definitely what you want. Stay tuned for a video review for a little bit more information on this!

Intense Back Session

1 scoop of Cellucor Pre workout.

My gym pass expired today, so I was forced to workout in my basement. I was limited to what I could accomplish. I started off on

Hangclean:
10 x 135 lbs
6 x 185 lbs
5 x 215 lbs
2 x 225 lbs
Note: Couldn’t hoist much today due to legs being extremely sore from yesterday. Trying to get back to 245 x 5, last year.

Max Pull Ups:
22 pull ups medium grip

Bent Over Row:
8 x 135 lbs
8 x 155 lbs
6 x 185 lbs
3 x 205 lbs – then managed 2 more reps with less strict form.

Seated Dumbbell Row:
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
Note: Super set with exercise below.

Bent Over DB Back Flyes:
10 x 25 lbs
10 x 25 lbs
10 x 25 lbs

Really limited with my exercises. I couldn’t do any type of machine row or lat pull down. Disappointed, but will get a gym membership soon.

Don’t mind the towel! After my shower back shot.

Heavy Leg Day

Pre-workout:
2 Scoops of Novem

Barbell Squat:
15 x 45 lbs
12 x 135 lbs
8 x 225 lbs
5 x 275 lbs
5 x 300 lbs
5 x 325 lbs
Note: Hit a PR today on squat! Pretty exciting, felt really good. Started off tired, but toward the end started to feel great.

Machine Plate Loaded Calf Raises:
15 x 50 lbs
10 x 100 lbs
10 x 120 lbs
10 x 120 lbs

Leg Press:
12 x 355 lbs
10 x 385 lbs
12 x 405 lbs
Note: This is a machine leg press, a little different. I wish I had access to a plate loaded, but I busted out 12 reps on 405.

Dumbbell Straight Leg Deadlifts:
10 x 60 lbs DBs
6 x 75 lbs DBs
6 x 90 lbs DBs

Leg Extensions (Plate Loaded):
10 x 70 lbs
10 x 90 lbs
10 x 110 lbs

I’m a hard gainer in my legs, sadly. But I’ve been seeing some great results, lifting heavy to increase my rep range.

Abdominal Circuit – Each exercise performed immediately after the next, in a circuit.

1. Decline Leg Lifts:
Bodyweight x 15
Bodyweight x 15
Bodyweight x 15

2. Hanging Leg Raise Twists:
Bodyweight x 12
Bodyweight x 12
Bodyweight x 12

3. Single Arm Cable Rope Oblique Crunch:
12 x 45 lbs
12 x 45 lbs
12 x 45 lbs

4. Ball Crunch:
Bodyweight x 12
Bodyweight x 12
Bodyweight x 12

Note: I performed a little bit of a different circuit than the usual, I felt my upper abdominals really contract and am still feeling it.

Post-Workout:
2 Scoops of Scivation Whey with 2 tablespoons of all natural peanut butter mixed it. Then 1 scoop of Vitargo S2.

Check out this shake I made this morning for a quick breakfast:
1 scoop of Hydrowhey
1 tablespoon of all natural peanutbutter
1/2 table spoon of grape seed oil

It was delicious, wish I had the money for Hydrowhey, just an awesome protein.

Developing the Chest

Pre-Workout:
45 minutes before I consumed 1 scoop of 100% Gold Standard Whey Mocha Capp. It was delicious, you cannot go wrong with ON supplements. 15 minutes before I downed 2 Scoops of Scivation Novem Pre Workout. And since I received free samples from ON, I sipped Amin.o. Energy throughout my workout, supplying me with 10 grams of Amino Acids! I felt great!!

Chest Workout:

Incline Barbell Bench Press:
20 x 45 lbs
12 x 95 lbs
5 x 135 lbs
5 x 170 lbs
5 x 180 lbs
5 x 190 lbs

Pull-Ups Varied Grip:
1. 22 Medium grip
2. Close reverse grip
3. Neutral grip
4. Wide grip
Note: Performed as many reps as I could possibly do. I threw pull-ups in because on Saturday I have a pull-up competition. If any of you go to the Dayton Air Show, they have pull-up stations where you can win t-shirts and what not.

Dumbell Flat Bench Press:
10 x 70 lbs
8 x 80 lbs
6 x 95 lbs

Hammer Machine Bench Press:
10 x 45 lbs each side
6 x 90 lbs each side
6 x 125 lbs each side
6 x 135 lbs each side
Note: Focus on the contraction at the top, but still trying to push some heavy weight around. Trying to get stronger, so my rep range can increase, thus increasing hypertrophy.

Pec Dec Machine:
10 x 50 lbs
8 x 100 lbs
8 x 120 lbs
6 x 130 lbs – 6 x 90 lbs – 8 x 50 lbs – Drop set.
Note: Really felt this one, my pecs were burning and felt cramped at the end of each set. Really pushed through and accomplished good things on this today.

Lower Chest Cable Flyes:
10 x 50 lbs
8 x 60 lbs
8 x 65 lbs

Performed as a superset
Dips: Overhead Rope Extensions (Triceps):
10 x 50 lbs hanging 15 x 70 lbs
8 x 50 lbs hanging 12 x 80 lbs
15 x bodyweight 8 x 90 lbs (Performed this 3x)
Note: Triceps were pumped, even though it was their first real working set the whole workout. My idea is that I pound my chest heavy and hard on Monday, and barely hit my triceps. My triceps will grow back stronger and faster, since they weren’t demolished early in the week.

Abdominal Session:

Hanging Leg Raises X Cable Crunches with Rope: 3 supersets
Did as many leg raises as I could each set, and for the cable crunches I had the rope at 90 lbs and performed 15 reps.

Legs on Ball, Hands on Ground X Russian Twist: 3 supersets
Performed 12 reps on the ball rolls, and then over 20 reps on the twists each set.

Frog Crunches X Flutter Kicks (Both performed on Bench): 2 supersets
Frog Crunches 15 reps each set, and flutter kicks until I died out.

Dumbbell Pullover:
10 x 60 lbs
12 x 50 lbs
12 x 50 lbs
14 x 40 lbs
Note: I threw this into the abdominal session because I love the feel of it right at the end of an abs session. Feeling my serratus muscles squeeze and contract along with my chest. I love doing these, and I did a different rep scheme than the rest of the work out.

While trying to gain weight, I’m maintaining a lean physique and I’m pretty satisfied with my results!

Afternoon Sprint Session

Ah, Monday’s session of sprinting. Today was a focus on the endurance of speed. I sprint longer distances but not as explosive. This allows me to maintain my form and keep my heart rate fairly high. Here was my sprinting session:

•Jogging for 5 minutes
•Dynamic Stretching for about 10 minutes
•4 sprints of 80 meters at about 85-90%
•4 sprints of 20 yards

It was a quick but tiring workout, especially since it was about 95 degrees out. I prefer to sprint rather than steady pace cardio, because of the benefits of sprinting. Sprinting can actually build hamstrings and quads, while steady pace cardio is difficult to not sacrifice muscle. This is my running Haven!

Easy Like Sunday Morning

Sunday morning, ah…after going hard for six straight days it’s time for a relaxing day. The most important factor in lifting, letting your body recoup and build itself back up. You’re muscles don’t grow in the gym, they grow with rest and sufficient nutrients. The “pump” in the gym is the blood flowing to the torn muscle fibers, trying to heal them. A little off topic there, but informational nonetheless. Here was my breakfast this morning:

3 whole eggs with 1 egg white
1 1/3 cup of oatmeal
1 red delicious apple
1 1/2 scoop of Amin.o. Energy
Multivitamin and fish oil pills

I received over 75 grams of complex carbs from the oatmeal. Trying to gain some mass, but is sadly hard for me to do. I received 21 grams of protein from the eggs and also 18 grams of GOOD fats. The oatmeal added in 12 grams of protein. I had a well rounded meal with a serving of fruit.
Next meal will consist of a little more than 45 grams of protein to make up for the lack of it in the morning. Whey protein shake, almonds, and brown rice.

Actually, for my second meal I had 1 scoop of Scivation Whey along with 3 pieces of wheat bread with 2 tablespoons of almond butter.
Protein: 43 grams
Carbs: 48 grams
Fats: 16 grams
Good meal! My next meal will include veggies and more greens with a meat based protein source..chicken, fish, etc.

Update: NO3 Black Chrome will be here this upcoming week! Stay tuned!