Wednesday, Oct. 2, ’13: Chest, Back, Abs

I had contemplated changing my training schedule to take every fourth day as a rest day, but I’m way too motivated for that right now. Plus, it simply doesn’t feel like it’s needed at this time, so I may end up going with a rest day every seventh day for the time being. We shall see…

Chest: Incline presses (4×30,20,15,10 + X Reps); Flat flyes (3×10 + X Reps); Leaning one-arm KettleBlock flyes (3×10)
Back: Bent-over rows (4×30,20,15,10); Pullovers (3×10 + X Reps); Bent-over bent-arm laterals (3×30,20,15 + X Reps)
Abs: Knee ups (3×20 + X Reps), Full-range crunches (3×20 + X Fade)

Note: My current program is based on the 4X/TORQ and Super TORQ techniques, and various intensity techniques from Beyond X.

Summary: I got going a little bit late today, but you know what? It didn’t matter. My gym is literally 30 seconds from my office now, including the time it takes me to put shoes on. I love that! I’m a big fan of iTunes radio so far, too, but that’s another story.

As I knew would come to pass, the 50- and 40-rep sets are getting hard to look forward to, so I went to a standard-ish TORQ sequence, but added a fourth set, then did either a 3-set 4X sequence, or standard TORQ. The variety of exercises and techniques made for a great one today.

With no cable crossover machine, it’s a bit hard to really isolate the contracted phase on chest, so I improvised with Leaning one-arm flyes. The standard PowerBlocks work well, but I decided to play with the KettleBlock handle, and that proved to be a winner based on the range of the exercise.

Kettle Block

The KettleBlock handle slides right in and works just like a standard PowerBlock handle. Note the extension on the rack for storing the empty handle.

For those not familiar with the move, you stand next to an upright (such as a power cage or, in my case, support beam), and hold it about shoulder height with your inside foot against the upright, then lean as far over as you safely can. Holding the weight in the other hand, simulate a one-arm incline flye, raising it up to just above eye level. I prefer to stop the eccentric (negative) stroke just before the resistance falls off at the bottom. It’s a great movement even in gym with other options.

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Tuesday, Oct. 1, ’13: Legs

Well, that was tougher than expected. Partially due to missing my last leg workout, but also because of the barbell hack squats, which I haven’t even thought of doing for the past several years…

Quads: Hack squats (5×30,30,20,20,15 + X Reps)
Hamstrings: Stiff-legged deadlifts (5×30,30,20,20,10 + X Reps)
Calves: One-legged standing calf raises (4×30,20,15,10 + X Reps); Seated calf raises (5×50,40,30,20,10)

Note: My current program is based on the 4X/TORQ and Super TORQ techniques, and various intensity techniques from Beyond X.

Summary: I’ve been looking forward to this workout for a couple of days, as the impending old-school barbell hack squats were something I haven’t done in probably 6-8 years. You can tell by looking at my rep ranges listed above. Ha! I was shooting for the usual 50,40,30… Super TORQ range, but fell short. It wasn’t because of the weight being too heavy, but rather it was because of my lungs! Barbell hacks call in a lot of back and forearm work for support, so they’re nice and taxing.

Legs felt great, though, and this could very well be the cure for all my upper- and mid-back issues, but time will tell. Stiff-legged deadlifts weren’t new, but they were still tough simply from the fatigue build up from hacks.

I ended up doing two exercises for calves, as I was so happy to be able to use some variety now. I haven’t had a chance to build a decent calf block yet, so I was going to use the stairs… Then I realized the base of my bench was a perfect choice as a replacement. I also hadn’t done seated calf raises in a while, but was able to use the base of the bench again, teamed up with an old dining chair sitting in the basement. I’d never done them with dumbbells, so I was way off in my weight choices, so I had to go full-bore Super TORQ since I accidentally got 50 on the first set. No complaints, though, as they felt great. 

That dining chair is definitely only a temporary fix for seated calves, as it was creaking and groaning a bit with the weight it had to deal with.

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Sunday, Sep. 29, ’13: Chest, Back, Abs

Man, I hate when I miss a day of training, but at least I can usually live with that as a bonus recovery day. Missing three days, on the other hand, can drive a guy crazy! I had to work away from my office from Wednesday through Friday last week, and it just so happened that the schedule was altered each of those days, making it necessary for me to leave 3 hours earlier than planned, and get home later as well. Hence my first Sunday workout in years, but the excitement of my new gym setup played a big part in that…

Chest: Incline presses (5×50,40,30,20,10 + X Reps); Flat flyes (3×15,12,10 + X Reps)
Back: Bent-over rows (5×50,40,30,20,10); Pullovers (3×12,10,8 + X Reps)
Abs: Knee ups (3×20 + X Reps), Full-range crunches (3×20 + X Fade)

Note: My current program is based on the NEW–>4X and Super TORQ techniques, plus various intensity techniques from Beyond X.

Summary: Plans change, and sometimes that can really tick you off. Then again, maybe a few days of missing workouts is a good thing in this case, as I was so amped to train that I did it on a Sunday morning. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the PowerBlock set I’ve been lusting over showed up on Saturday. I never expected to be this riled up about training at home, but the convenience and fact that I can create my own training environment really seems to have stoked a new fire in me. Cooling weather helps, too, as I’m a big fan of cold-weather training. Having a basement gym should help in that arena quite a bit come winter.

Training was great today! That was guaranteed after missing a few days, but using real weights at home blew it through the roof. I followed my Super TORQ rounds with modified 4X. They were 3X sets with 30 seconds of rest, but I just had to use some weight, so the reps were actually to failure on each set. That made for a nice Sunday morning celebration. Best chest and back workout in close to a month!

PowerBlock U-90

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Review: The Lean Body Promise, 2nd Edition

Lean Body Promise coverA well-known problem with most diets is the fact that they fail. It happens because they don’t focus enough—or sometimes at all—on creating positive physical as well as mental change. The Lean Body Promise isn’t about just a diet, however, but is more about focusing on changing the way you think and go about trying to achieve your physical goals. And who better to guide you than IFBB Hall of Famer Lee Labrada, with more than 30 years of experience and 22 major titles to his name. [Read more…]

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Fix Your Shoulder Pain

Shoulder Pain E-bookAnyone who has spent enough time in the gym has inevitably come into some issues with shoulder pain.  Whether from bad form or bad exercises, the reason doesn’t necessarily matter… The pain sucks.

Chances are that you probably avoid certain exercises because they cause nagging shoulder pain.  You’re not alone. It turns out that close to 40% of all resistance training injuries affect the shoulder area, making it the #1 injury by a longshot.

Those numbers only represent the people who went to the doctor about their problems. If you just have an annoying ache, you could be headed  on a downward spiral if you don’t take action to keep your shoulders healthy. 

Exercise Physiologist Rick Kaselj, MS  is the go-to guy for athletes who want to get back to pain-free workouts rather than being told, “Don’t do what hurts.”  That advice only works in the short-term anyway, and too many people ignore it when they think it’s an exercise that works regardless of their pain. 

Rick is the guy who teaches other fitness professionals the newest techniques to help their own clients. He’s given over 315 live presentations to over 6065 health and fitness professionals across Canada and the USA.

Mike Westerdal, CPT—best selling fitness author and former sufferer of shoulder pain—and Rick have teamed up to release a brand new system called Fix My Shoulder Pain.

It’s not designed for inactive people, but rather it was created specifically for people who want to get back to their high-intensity workouts without being told by the doctor that they need to find a new hobby. 

The “Traditional Shoulder Pain Model” involves endless cycles of appointments, investigations, stretching and strengthening, but after having hundreds of his clients follow that model with minimal success, Rick needed to find a new model that breaks with tradition and moves clients from painful shoulders to pain-free shoulders.

This led to the creation of his trademarked SR3 Method (Shoulder Reshaping 3-part Method) which is based on one key concept: Reshaping your shoulder from a painful shoulder joint to a pain-free shoulder joint, and that’s what Fix My Shoulder Pain is all about. 

If you have any kind of shoulder pain, this is definitely worth getting. If you could learn just one technique that gives you some relief, it would pay for itself immediately.  With this, however, you learn more than that and you’ll feel like you used to before your shoulder started acting up.  

Rather than just stretching and strengthening, which only provides temporary relief, Rick’s methods actually reconstruct the shoulder joint from the outside and inside.

Fix My shoulder Pain utilizing the SR3 Method is the first shoulder-injury-repair system to help you get back to pain-free workouts by focusing on alignment, tissue quality and activation & endurance.  

Yes, the info page for this ebook and all of its freebies is pretty long, but you can just scroll down to the order button once you’ve gotten a feel for what they’re offering.  Your shoulders will thank you!

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