red_cat’s BodyBlog

I’ve been reading my Accu-Measure calipers wrong this whole time. According to them, as of this morning, I read 6 mm….which equals 7.3% BF.

Wow. I’m not going back and adjusting any numbers. I’m just starting fresh here.

Aaaaaahahaha, get it? BACK at it…..because I worked my back today……man I’m lame.

Gotta remind myself to not do stairstepping machines on days where I do a lot of lower back work. My hip flexors were burning pretty badly and NOT in a good way! I changed up my training today to this:

I like most of it, but I think I’m going to switch out the Single Arm Rows for Close Grip Low Pulley Rows. I really liked those in my last split and I felt a much better connection with my lower lats. That’s an area I need to work on a lot. Abs today were great! I took 15 seconds between sets and 30 between exercises. That got the burn going for sure. I felt like a blazed through some of my sets and didn’t rest enough, but I still ended my workout at the same time….weird.

Long time no writing! I’ve made some good gains on strength thus far. Weight-wise I’ve put on just over 10 lbs, though this past week I stalled a little bit. I averaged just under 3,000 calories most days and lost just a bit of weight. I’m taking an extra two days off this week just so I can rest. School is catching up to me a bit and I had some gigs last week that simply wore me out. Thus, I’ll do a couple of full body workouts on T-TR, try to get more rest than I normally do, nurse an ab injury I got late last week, and come back with a new split next week. I’ll be going 5 days a week instead of just 4. I’m really looking forward to it! I’m working in a lot of training ideas I’ve learned from watching videos of Flex Lewis and Rich Gaspari, so hopefully I’ll see even more progress this time around.

Had another weigh-in today and I’m definitely gaining!! I’m not going to trust the BF% reading on the scale anymore, even with my 3% correction It told me 15.7% today….WAY off. I did two separate caliper tests (a 3 site and the Accu-Measure) and those put me at 10.55% and 11.6% respectively. Thus, I’ll say 11%!! I went back and corrected a couple of entries to make them a bit closer, but then I figured….why? The actual weight portion of the scale is very consistent, so I’ll still use that.

Gym opens at 11 today……can’t wait to hit it and try out my new homebrew recipe: 1g GABA, 2g Taurine, 2g Beta-Alanine, 2.5g CEE, 3g Dit Malate, 3g Arginine, 200mg Caffeine, and 8g Crystal Light mix.

Well, I feel like I made some good progress this week. My workouts felt more intense this week, and I increased a lot of lifts. No complaints about lifting, for sure. I’ll be getting a massage on Wednesday to help with a little lower back pain and leg pain I’ve been dealing with.

I had a GIGANTIC cheat meal today. I decided to go to Golden Corral for lunch to celebrate my paying off of one of my credit cards this past week…definitely had a LOT to eat. I probably ate 2/3 of my calories there. A lot of it was good stuff like chicken and fish, but I splurged a little on dessert. I don’t do it any other time during the week, so I’ll be fine. Saturday and Wednesday are my two days to have an "Off Plan" meal. Wednesday = Wings and Saturday = buffet!

Whoooooooooo! Feeling good after a nice chest and tri workout. I’m still getting my working weights down for some of the lifts…pushed too hard on Chest Dips and Single Arm Extensions. I think the latter is just a form thing. I’ve never tried the lift, so I’m still working on the form and doing just a bit too much weight. All the benches felt spot on, as did flys and bench dips.

Lots more people at the rec than usual, but it’s the first week. Half of them will be gone by next week, sadly. I kind of enjoy having more people there. There’s always someone for a spot and you can push yourself based on the guy next to you. Not to say I like to show off, though I do sometimes, but it gives you extra motivation when you know people are watching.

Went to help a friend get started with his lifting and weight loss. I really hope he gets involved with this site. I wrote up a simple diet for him and am gonna give him the address for wave_length’s training thread. Hopefully it’ll help him out! Anyway, I figured that, since I was there anyway, I might as well rock a little cardio. I did 20 minutes of 65-70 watts on a stationary bike, which felt pretty nice. I lifted a little bit with him, but not too much.
Just drank my pre-wo concoction to test out the new taste. I’m using Sugar Free Kool Aid to flavor it now instead of Gatorade and WOW what a difference! I had been missing my BA tingles…they’re back! I can even feel just a tiny pump not having done anything but typing and walking around my apartment. I think that all the carbs from the Gatorade had been interfering with the effectiveness of it. I can’t wait to give it a try before a workout on Monday!!

Been hitting it hard the past two days. Monday was Chest/Tris and yesterday was Back/Bis. Both days felt good, though I think I can push harder on Chest/Tris next week. My guesses on weight for my lifts was almost perfect. I FINALLY found a lift that targets my lower lats like I want to do. Low Pulley Rows are AWESOME! I haven’t worked those muscles quite like that in a LONG time.

Today is definitely a day of rest. I’m a little sore, but I could still probably lift. No reason to push it beyond 4 days a week, though. Probably gonna take a nap mid-afternoon or so and enjoy my last week without classes.

Just as a side note, Creatine Ethyl Ester is an acquired taste. lol The first day it was NASTY, even when mixed with my post-WO shake! It’s not AS bad anymore. I barely notice it after the first drink.

So I weigh in today…I LOST 2 1/2 pounds and am back down to 11% BF. WHAT!?!? lol I guess I’m not complaining, but it just seems odd to me that I’ve been consuming more calories, yet I’ve been losing weight! Maybe it’s just because I ate SO much in the weeks before that my body is kind of shicked to go back below 3,000? I dunno. I do know that I like this as a starting place for my bulk!

YEAH LEAN BULK!!!!

Wow! Time sure flies when you’ve got other stuff on your mind. This week has mostly been spent relaxing before I start my teaching assistantship on Monday. An old friend came up to visit me on Wednesday and I’ve been practicing my sax a LOT in preparing for auditions. I’ve also been putting some finishing touches on my clean bulk diet and training, and I’m ready to hit the gym on Monday and kick some ass!

Legs today were the same as last week. I really need to hit my hammies hard and get them caught up with my calves and quads.