Welcome to my online journal. The goal here is to provide other neophytes with ideas and information about fitness, exercise, health,
and nutrition. Me being a 'guinea pig' as we follow along with the various health and fitness philosophies we often hear about.
PS - Be sure to check out hockey's upcoming hottie....Sidney Crosby!!
I am on the verge of starting off a brand new workout routine. This program is called HST (Hypertrophy Specific Training). Its not
what I would consider a "common sense" approach to strength training, but is instead based on some good scientific research, showing
great results. The basic approach is to select a group of 6-10 exercises that encompass the whole body. These exercises would be
performed in a full body workout, using different weight blocks that target certain percentages of your max reps. Its a tough program
to describe but from what I have read, it can really add on the muscle mass. Stay tuned for more updates!
This is has been a pretty good summer when it comes to my fitness goals. I have been able to stick to my routine, making slow but
steady progress in term of the weight used for each exercise. Last week my toughest workout was shoulders as I have been neglecting
them a little bit. Overall though I am very happy with the progress. It is probably time to take a couple of weeks off and start
off a new workout routine for the fall.
This last week I surpassed my previous best for the squat. It took a couple of months to get back to that level but it felt damn good!
The one exercise still lagging a bit is the bench press but I hope to get through that plateau over the next few months.
I am pleased to say that my progress has been quite good so far. I am getting pretty close to the poundage I was handling before my injuries,
especially in squats and the bench press. I have also started using creatine - the first time in a few years and I definitely feel a bit
more of a pump. The muscles seem fuller and I am sure that some of the increased weight that I have been handling has been as a result
of the creatine supplementation.
About 6 weeks into my workout program, I feel great! I am at about 75% (in terms of poundages) for most exercises but most importantly
the squats are coming along better than expected. I am hoping to be back at peak form within the next two months. I have also found that the nutritional
supplements I added have really helped with strenght, size and recovery. I now have a good multi-vitamin, fish oil, whey protein, creatine and glutamine as
my supplement staples. I have found that Bodybulding.com has the best prices and service when it comes to supps. It also helps that you can sometimes save over
10% thanks to the many Bodybuilding.com coupon codes.
So I have now completed two weeks of my revamped workout routine. It feels good to see the weight on the bars steadily increase when I am
doing some of the bigger muscle movements...squats and bench press for sure! Soreness is subsiding, though the wide-gripped pullups I
did on the first day have left me with sore shoulder/chest muscles.
I have finally started my workout routine. Monday was lower back and legs (squats), Wednesday was chest and shoulders and Friday will be
arms and upper back. Boy I am sore...its so good to be back into the routine of working out and eating right!
Well, spring is just around the corner! And even though it doesn't look like I'll be doing any competitve shows this year, I can't wait
for the weather to get better and the softball season to begin! Just have to be careful about not having too many
lagers after the game. This'll probably still be the best shape I've been in, going into the season. Can't wait to kick some butt!
A week or so ago the Wall Street Journal printed excerpts from a medical report/autopsy of Dr. Atkins, conducted after he passed away after
being in a coma from head injuries. The report found evidence of multiple heart attacks and a body weight of about 250 pounds. The
report has brought a lot of anti-Atkins people out of the woodwork but has also raised a lot of questions about its validity. Not to
mention the absurd disregard for the man's privacy...releasing medical records to the public. Let's see how this works out - a more
moderate diet that uses certain Atkins principles but is not as extreme might prove to be ideal. Something like the
South Beach Diet maybe?
The last week has been somewhat of a bummer. I tweaked my back doing deadlifts...real stupid stuff, too much weight and bad form. I have
been told by the doctor to cut back on all physical activities and wait for some tests to determine the extent of the damage. The pain
was quite bad for a couple of days but has now subsided. Either way, this puts a huge damper on my competition plans for this spring
and summer as I am unable to continue with my workout program.
