Hey, have you been working out?

[Al B. Sure!]

Don't know, I won't even begin to guess at body fat percentage based on a picture. I'm amazed you talk so much but you don't even have calipers to measure your body fat which is really basic.

That **** aint even accurate. And I don't even care about body fat %! What do you not understand about that? I'm not you. I keep saying I care about functionality, not about my awesome OMG HYOOGE BICEPT PEEK!

[DriXnaK]

Body fat percentage is functionality you idiot. lol Wow...Also, calipers are some of the most accurate measurements out there unless you have access to a fully submerged water body fat percentage test. I think you just don't want to face the reality of the numbers and the reality that you have probably put on 90% fat not the 50% you are dreaming of. I can tell that just by your lifts.

[SpencerH]

Al B. sure

Its just a guess but after looking at the weights you seem to be using for other lifts, I'd say that you're probably not squatting deep enough to warrant using the weights you are for that exercise. I see lots of beginners putting too much weight on the bar then doing a quarter squat. Its not that heavy partial squats are worthless, it's just that they're usually not worth the spinal compression (I used to do walkouts and 1/2 squat reps with over 700 in order to "psych-up my confidence" prior to powerlifting competitions. My advice for casual lifters is to leave the ego behind and either do a full squat with a weight they can control or use a leg press (or both).

[Al B. Sure!]

Al B. sure

Its just a guess but after looking at the weights you seem to be using for other lifts, I'd say that you're probably not squatting deep enough to warrant using the weights you are for that exercise. I see lots of beginners putting too much weight on the bar then doing a quarter squat. Its not that heavy partial squats are worthless, it's just that they're usually not worth the spinal compression (I used to do walkouts and 1/2 squat reps with over 700 in order to "psych-up my confidence" prior to powerlifting competitions. My advice for casual lifters is to leave the ego behind and either do a full squat with a weight they can control or use a leg press (or both).

No. I'm squatting below parallel.

[Jon Miller]

Attempts again:

6/4/4 pullups
8/8/8 machine squats (170/180/180) - I was about parallel, but they weren't deep
14/8/5 dumbbell bench (32/32/32)
5/4/4 chinups
vertical press

I started spacing out during chinups, so ran out of time for spine rotations.

During the vertical press, when I was doing 16 kg (standing) I felt/heard like a little crack in my left shoulder (sort of like when you crack your fingers, except I don't do that). I worry a bit about it right now, next time 16 kg will be sitting.

I still did the 20 minutes cardio and stretches, don't feel anything really abnormal right now.

JM

[Pekka]

What's with the intensive male sexual atmosphere between al b sure and drixnak? "You're fat!" "I'm strong", "FAT FAT FAT" "I wouldn't even want to be that cut"... what's this? Chaser after a bear? Give it up and get a room already....

Anyways, can't do 6 times a week anymore... getting too tired with the baby and all. Just too tired. So I have to cut but I was in a need for changing my program anyway, it was getting a bit boring and I need new stimulus. So I've decided to go twice a day, two times a week, then two times a week on top of that so that's 6 times total, still, but with a different spread. Focusing more on upper body strength (that's strength to all of you chasers, plus I'm straight and have a family already, sorry). So that's for the gym, but I've decided to step up my cardio training, morning run, possibly HIIT. Say, nothing like a 500 meter easy jogging, 500 meter full speed, repeat for 2.5 km. If feeling like a masochist that is. And swimming because I hate running. I have no goals except to feel good. And of course to be healthy and stay healthy.

I'll see how that feels, I think I have to cut some more though... I want to see where I put my emphasis on. Gym or outdoors.

[SpencerH]

No. I'm squatting below parallel.

OK

One suggestion I'd make about your squat routine. If you want to break through a "sticking weight", change up your routine. A lot of lifting heavy weights is a mind game (hence the walkouts and partials I mentioned earlier which was about 100lbs more than I'd do in competition). You need to convince your mind that squatiing heavier than 245 is not a problem. You seem to do sets of 5 all the time. Mix it up! If you can do 245x5 then you should try 255 for fours or 265 for threes instead. One partner I trained with would do 315 for sets of twenty but couldnt go over 400! He started training with me, especially doing low reps, and within a short time he had pushed through his fixation with squatting four plates a side.

[Al B. Sure!]

Thanks, Spencer. I'll probably try some of that.

[Al B. Sure!]

Squats 3x5x255 then with 3 minute rests between sets I kept trying to get 1 good deep rep with 5 lb increases... 1x260 1x265 1x270 1x275 1x280.
Bench 3x5x180
Deadlift 1x5x255 same as squats but with 10 lb increases... 1x265 1x275 1x285 1x295 1x305 1x315

I totally failed at 285 on the squats... I could have probably gone higher on the deadlifts but my grip was getting to be the limiting factor and then I tore the crap out of the skin under my fingers on that last rep, complete with blood on the bar Couldn't get 325 up except like an inch off the ground.

[SpencerH]

Thats a start; confidence is half the game. I've trained with lots of steroid and HGH abusers and I'd say that a lot of the drugs value for younger lifters comes from the increased aggression/confidence.

You may want to vary your workout intensity. If you squat max, dont deadlift max on the same day (its ok once in a while though). The idea is to vary your workouts to train one muscle group with maximum intensity (and their are different ways to achieve that) and "rest" the others. For example, I tend to do light squats (8-10 easy reps with my ass nearly on the ground) with heavy deadlifts (1-3 reps/set until I reach that days goal) and vice versa. I bench varying light, moderate, and heavy days on seperate days from back and legs.

[Jon Miller]

Any advice for me?

jM

[MOBIUS]

I forgot to mention, the modest increase in Cardio in my gym sessions have massively improved my 5-a-side soccer fitness! I was awesome (by my standards) on Monday...

[Jon Miller]

6/4/4 pullups
5/5/5/5 leg press 139/149/159/168 (I don't really remember the middle two weights, they were equal distant roughly)
1/0/12/7 dumbbell bench press (34.5/34.5/32/32)
5/4/4 chinups
stomach
6/4/8 vertical press (16/16/13.5)

I was really surprised on the 34.5 dumbbell press, it is the most I have ever gotten up on dumbbells. It is also the first time I haven't been able to do 10 of whatever I could get up, I went down and started going up again and then I lost it and dropped them. My next try didn't go near as well, and I returned to 32 to finish up. I expect I had adrenaline initially and was a bit shocked and didn't put enough into my second rep (not being able to lift it was expected).

JM

[SpencerH]

Jon

Its hard to know what to say. My first thoughts were that you're just not doing enough work but I looked back a couple of pages and saw that you had a thyroid deficiency and I dont know how that effects you. In general though, a good rule of thumb is work out each body part twice a week with roughly 9 sets/bodypart (not counting warm-ups). Not every set has to be maximum intensity but if one does 3 exercises with 3 sets then try to do the last set to exhaustion (no matter how many reps it is).

I'm 51, and I've not been able to really push it for about 10 years. Here's the chest and arm workout I just finished

Stretched at home
Cycled on machine burning ~100 cal in about 10 min
Bench Press Warmups
4x 15 X 135 lbs (four different handgrip widths from ~14" to max allowed for powerlifting)
4 X 3 X 225 (four different handgrip widths all benchs are with a 1 sec pause on the chest)
1 x 3 x 255 (I only do this set cos I need the xtra warmup these days)

Work sets (wide grip only with a 1 sec pause on the chest)
5x 275
4x 285
3x 295

My rotators felt kinda stressed at this point so I shortened the accessory work (normally I'd do more tricep and bicep exercises)

3 X 10-15 reps with 4 45 lb plates on a dip machine (real weight is hard to gauge but it's moderate intensity)
4 x 10 reps tricep pressdown (last set is whole stack ~ 95 Kg and high intensity but strict so dont hurt rotators)
5 x 10-20 reps light cable curls (each set to exhaustion increasing weight each set starting at around 40lbs)
12 sets of light shoulder work (3 exercises) aimed at rehabing/maintaining my rotator cuff

If I read your last post you did 1 rep with 34.5 (Kg or lbs?), then 0 reps then you went down to 32 and did 12! then a final set of 7! That's just weird (if I have the sequence correct)! If you can do a set of 12 at 32 then you should be able to do at least 10 at 34! If you cant do that, then you need to work on your confidence (cos you can do it !!!!!!).

[Jon Miller]

Thanks

These are kg (in europe right now). In 2008 I was stuck for a year doing 15/15/15 of 70 lbs or 65 lbs depending on how well I had been working out recently, I really pushed in late winter/spring of 2009 and got up 75 lbs on 5 separate occasions, on all occasions I did 6-10 reps.

It's odd and very frustrating.

I have had issues with getting exhausted during workouts (even with eating ~1 hour before hand, if I didn't do that then I really couldn't do much). I am hoping that it is at least partly due to the thyroid issues.

Body parts are biceps, triceps, chest, back, shoulders, and legs?

Right now I am trying to get up to doing cardio 4+ times a week, once I am back there I should probably try to increase my weight lifting frequency.

JM