One step closer…
I’ve been experimenting with the weights now for several years, and the one thing that usually pushes me away from the gym is the inability to witness results. Well, I’m certainly glad to see that the hard work and effort being made at the gym is beginning to pay off! This week’s round of workouts was nothing short of AMAZING! I employed several different new (for me, at least) techniques and was able to get a full body pump like none other that I have witnessed. Here’s a breakdown of the week:
Monday (Chest) - I’ve been reading Big Cat’s I.C.E. program on Bodybuilding.com and decided to put to work some of the suggestions that he lists. Specifically, I started this chest workout with DB Flyes and REALLY got a good burn in the pecs…and, for the first time in performing flyes, I felt the burn around the outer portion of my chest. Needless to say, I was REALLY pumped after this exercise and ready for the rest of the workout. My pressing exercises went well; however, I was BEAT and should have gone a bit lighter with the weight so as to really feel the pump. At any rate, I was still able to maintain the intense pressure on my pecs. I decided to finish things out with dips, and at this point, my pecs couldn’t take any more! …great start to the week!
Tuesday (Back) - I’ve always felt that when doing deadlifts, one should go heavy or go home; however, as of late, I’ve been trying to keep the rep range relatively high (10 to 15) for this exercise, which CLEARLY will limit how heavy I go. At any rate, I was REALLY pleased with my DL routine this week, being able to complete a set of 10 at 315lbs…it’s definitely time to ratchet things up a bit. The remainder of my back workout was just INSANE! Again, employing a technique espoused by Big Cat, for all of the remaining movements, I really focused on bringing the elbows back as far as possible and getting a good squeeze in. I felt my lats work like NEVER BEFORE on the lat pull-downs, seated machine rows, and bentover BB rows. …another GREAT workout!
Wednesday (Legs) - OK! So, at this point, my chest is more sore than ever and my back is REALLY tight! I contemplated changing the line-up and possibly taking the day off; however, I opted to drive on. In my earlier training routine, I was hitting legs twice a week with one day primarily focused on hamstrings and the other primarily focused on quads. With me moving to just 1x leg day a week, I’ve opted to focus that workout on either hams or quads for that week while still hitting both. This week, the focuse was hamstrings, and I DEFINITELY hit this muscle group hard. The stiff-legged DLs really worked well, and I felt them TREMENDOUSLY. Going with the tri-set (Stiff-legged DLs, lying leg curls, and leg extensions) was exhausting, but really seemed to work well. Unfortunately, by the time I got to Squats, I really didn’t have much in me. My stomach was bothering as well, and I just couldn’t shake it. I think in the future, when I perform this workout, I’ll use the leg press in lieu of the squats. At any rate, I was happy with the overall workout….
Thursday (Shoulders) - I was REALLY worried about performing this workout, because my chest was still feeling VERY TIGHT, and when I woke up this morning, suddenly my shoulders were aching a bit. I’ve had shoulder strains in the past, and I REALLY want to stay healthy during this round of heavy lifting. I went forward with performing this workout, and I’m TREMENDOUSLY glad that I did. Once again, Big Cat changed my lifting forever! I’ve been unsuccessful and putting on any REAL size on my shoulders now for quite some time, so I’m ALWAYS open to new ideas/techniques for getting this bodypart to grow. Well, I think I found it. By performing my DB overhead presses first and REALLY focusing on contracting the shoulders at the top, I got a burn like none other! I finished this workout with a series of isolation lifts and was REALLY impressed by what a difference this slight change made to my shoulder training. At this point, I couldn’t wait to get in my last weight training day!
Friday (Arms) - My arms have been another sore point for me, because I’ve not been able to get them to grow as I would like. I’ve decided to continue training both bi’s and tri’s on one day; however, just as I’m doing with my legs, I’ll change the focus from one week to the next. This week, it was time for Tri’s to go first. I was REALLY pleased with the pump that I got from my tri routine, so much so, that I worried that I might not have the energy to knock out bi’s…not so! Hitting the barbell curl first, I got a pump in my bi’s like none other! I was able to keep the pump going throughout the rest of the workout, and I was SMOKED!
Sunday (Cardio) - I added a cardio routine today just because I was feeling good, and it was an opportunity to get some long slow distance work in.
Well, that’s the recap for this week. I completed my weekly photo shoot this morning and couldn’t believe how much size I’ve packed on in such a short period…and, I’m staying relatively lean. Assuming I’m able to maintain these pumps and stay healthy, I’m excited about the prospects of my final physique. The TRUE determining factor will be my diet and whether I’m able to continue "feeding the beast".
