Jettisoned Ponderings

Morning Weigh In: 180.5lbs
Bodyfat %: ?
Feeling: Good

Workout: (Abs omitted today), Legs/Fast (Warm-Ups Not Shown)
1-0-1, 45 Degree Calf Press: 4×12@300 (Full Weight Stack)
1-0-1, Prone Leg Curls: 3×12, 100/110/120
1-0-1, Abductor: 3×12, 110/110/120
1-0-1, Seated Leg Extensions: 3×12, 190/200/210
1-0-1, 45 Degree V Stance Leg Press: 1×12@360, 1×15@500 (Yay Bonus Reps!)

Weight is down a little today since I fell asleep watching American Gladiators last night, so I missed out on some of my calories for the day and woke up feeling a bit dry. I’m off work today though so I can make it up and be right on time with all my meals today. Abs were left out as they’ve been feeling pretty shot and low back’s still tender from yesterday’s workout. Just went straight to work on the legs today. Only did 1 warmup set each for calves, hams, and quads and rest times were kept pretty short. Workout today was done in about 50 minutes since we had to wait a while for the leg press to free up. I wanted to see how my quads felt after bumping up on the extensions and 360 felt quite easy. Went ahead and shot for the 500 century mark and was quite happy to have enough in me to bang out a few extra reps! I could’ve tried for a few more, but my goal is not high reps with a few exceptions. I cut myself off at 15 and note to bump the weight up more next time. Feels good to really be getting back to where I used to be. Legs should be in good shape to start doing squats more in another month or so when I switch back to doing more free weights again. For now, I’m still enjoying the isolation work and focusing on weak areas.

Morning Weigh In: 181.5lbs
Bodyfat %: ?
Feeling: Chipper

Workout: Abs, Back, Triceps, Shoulders/Slow
2-1-2, Crunch Machine: 5×12@135
1-0-1, Low Cable Side Crunches: 5×20@75
1-0-1, Bench Crunches: Omitted Today
4-1-4, Hammer Rows: 3×12@100
4-0-4, Tricep Pushdown Machine: 3×12, 165/180/195
3-0-3, Side Lying Incline DB Raises: 2×10@12.5
4-0-4, Hi X-Cbl Straight Arm Lat Pulldowns: 3×12@40 (Per Side)
3-0-3 (Each Half), EZ Skullcrusher/Pullovers: 1×12@45, 1×8@45

My medial tricep attachments have been bothering me the last few days and the skullcrushers were really irritating it, so I had to cut those a little short today. Court has to work at 8am a few days a week now, so today was the first really early morning workout. Had to nix the bench crunches just due to lack of time. Helps that meals were prepared last night though and it was all ready to go this morning. I have the luxury of not working till 11 or 12 so I still have time to make my food for the day. On a different note, holy cripe weight jump! I won’t say I’m not surprised, to be honest. To think that less than a week ago I was weighing in at 176, to see 181.5 this morning made me ecstatic! Of course, when I weigh in in the mornings it’s always after nature’s duties to have minimal water weight and such. I did miss my afternoon shake yesterday and with less than an hour before dinner when I got off work I opted to save it for my meal before bed. So this put about 120 carbs in my system within 15 minutes of passing out. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t miss out on the extra 400+ calories from it. I know part of the weight jump is having so much more food in me, but I don’t seem to be retaining any extra water at all. So I’m excited things are off to a great start. I can’t wait to see what the coming weeks will yield and to see the changes in upcoming progress pics!

Morning Weigh In: 179.5lbs
Bodyfat %: ?
Feeling: Spontaneous

Workout: Chest, Biceps, Shoulders/Slow
1-0-1, Hybrid Crunches (Leg Raise w/Hip Raise): 5×15@5
4-0-4, Reverse EZ Bar Curls: 3×12@45
3-0-3, Wide Grip Decline Bench: 3×12, 145/150/155
3-0-3, Wide Grip High Rows: 3×12@60
4-0-4, Straight Barbell Curls: 3×12, 40/50/50
4-0-4, Supine Grip Incline DB Front Raises: 3×12, 10/12.5/12.5
6-0-6, Pec Deck Flies: 2×12@70
Holy cripe today’s workout gave me the fullest pumps I’ve had in months! Not sure how much of that has to do with the TREN or what, but they were almost painful at the end of a couple sets. Looked great in the mirror though!

Morning Weigh In: 179lbs
Bodyfat%: ?
Feeling: Good, but not great

Workout: Legs/Slow
2-1-2, Crunch Machine: 5×135
2-0-2, Serratus Crunches: 3×55
3-1-3, 45 Degree Calf Press: 210/220/230
4-0-4, Prone Leg Curls: 3×70
4-0-4, Abductor: Omitted Today
4-0-4, Seated Leg Extensions: 80/80/90
6-0-6, 45 Degree V Stance Leg Press: 2×250

I’ll be running 2 bottles of American Cellular Labs’ "TREN Xtreme" over the next 45 days. From what I’ve heard, 4 caps a day is the magic number to take. 3 just isn’t quite enough and 5-6 you just feel crappy. So tonight I took my first serving to get it into my system before the morning workout. This’ll fit well with C2 going on so I can keep track. I’ve opted not to do a supp log on the forums this time around. I’ve done it before, but I think this time I’ll just keep it to BodySpace. Tomorrow starts it all of with "Tortute Tempo" (Coined Term by Pixi) for legs. Now if I can just keep my food intake ridiculously high, ideally the rest should come.

Ok, well I did a little homework and got some ballpark numbers. A little surprised, actually. I already know a few changes I need to make… By the way, http://www.nutritiondata.com/ is an awesome site! I love the BB.com nutrition database, too, but I find the nutritiondata.com is a little more user friendly and more informative. So… Here are the totals with a few changes to be more precise on portions:

~5:30am/Breakfast
4 egg white: 68 cal, 14.5g pro, 0.8g car, 0.25g fat
4 whole eggs: 404 cal, 28g pro, 4g car, 19g fat
1/4 cup shredded cheese: 100 cal, 7g pro, 1g car, 8g fat
2 tbsp picante sauce: 20 cal, 0g pro, 1g car, 0g fat
1 cup (dry) oats: 300 cal, 12g pro, 54g car, 5g fat

Breakfast Totals: 960 calories, 62.5g pro, 60.8g car, 29.75g fat

[6:00am - Workout]
1 scoop Waxy Maize w/1 litre water: 160 cal, 0g pro, 40g car, 0g fat

Post Workout (Workouts typically ~70-90 min)
Big Max 50 shake: 596 cal, 50g pro, 90g car, 4g fat
20oz 1% milk: 250 cal, 20g pro, 30g car, 6.25g fat

Post Workout Totals: 846 cal, 70g pro, 120g car, 10.25g fat

11:00ish - Lunch
2c greens (Raw Spinach in this case): 60 cal, 2g pro, 2g car, 0g fat
1/4 cup almonds: 136 cal, 5g pro, 5.25g car, 11.75g fat
1/4 cup shredded cheese: 100 cal, 7g pro, 1g car, 8g fat
8oz Steak*: 392 cal, 64g pro, 0g car, 8g fat
2 tbsp Dressing**: 90 cal, 0g pro, 9g car, 5g fat

Lunch Totals: 778 cal, 81g pro, 17.25 car, 32.75g fat

Whenever the heck work gives me a meal break:
I cannot figure this one out, so I’m going to try and ballpark a vietnamese dish I usually get (literally, a few times a week!); Pho w/rare steak. I don’t drink any extra broth, too, to avoid the extra sodium. So based on the recipes I found online, this one is closest to what the Pho shop I go to serves (If you wanna make it at home, here’s the site: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/re…pe_id=22  4849)
Large Serving: 528 cal, 62g pro, 41g car, 6g fat (usually less as the steak has no fat at all)

Break between massages:
Big Max 50 shake w/water: 596 cal, 50g pro, 90g car, 4g fat

7:30 - Dinner
Depends, but usually meat w/pasta or potatoes. So…
8oz Steak*: 392 cal, 64g pro, 0g car, 8g fat
1/2 cup (dry) wheat based pasta: 210 cal, 7g pro, 42g car, 1g fat
1/4 cup pasta sauce (just enough to coat shells): 45 cal, 1.5g pro, 6g car, 1.5g fat
OR
1 cup home-made mashed potatoes**: 174 cal,  4g pro, 37g car, 1g fat

Dinner Totals (w/pasta): 647 cal, 72.5g pro, 48g car, 10.5g fat

Before Bed:
Probolic-SR Shake w/water: 140 cal, 20g pro, 5g car, 4g fat

Summary:
Breakfast Totals: 960 calories, 62.5g pro, 60.8g car, 29.75g fat
1 scoop Waxy Maize w/1 litre water: 160 cal, 0g pro, 40g car, 0g fat
Post Workout Totals: 846 cal, 70g pro, 120g car, 10.25g fat
Lunch Totals: 778 cal, 81g pro, 17.25 car, 32.75g fat
Large Serving: 528 cal, 62g pro, 41g car, 6g fat
Big Max 50 shake w/water: 596 cal, 50g pro, 90g car, 4g fat
Dinner Totals (w/pasta): 647 cal, 72.5g pro, 48g car, 10.5g fat

DAILY TOTALS: 4515 Calories, 398g Protein, 401.6g Carbs, 93.25g Fat

*8oz is the minimum, I’m not THAT picky, but try to keep it less than 12oz. Usually choice sirloin, trimmed to minimal fat, grilled, usually marinated in 1-2 tbsp light peppercorn marinade or beer!
**1 serving size of Kroger Lite Raspberry Walnut Vinaigrette
**Potatoes made by taking 5-6 average sized potatoes, cut up leaving skin on, simmer in crock pot until soft, mash, add 1c shredded cheese, 1/2 cup 1% milk, ground black pepper to taste, 1/2 clove garlic. 1 cup serving size based on info from http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c20iV.html which assumes whole milk is used. I’m guessing the cheese will make up for the fat difference between the whole milk and the 1%.

So now that my goals are posted going for Challenge #2, I’ve had to evaluate how I’m actually going to try and make them manifest. The first Challenge I focussed more on lifting stats and general weight. This time around, I want to see how much size I can gain. I’m not as concerned with the weights I lift (as long as they make steady progress), I really wanna shape my physique more. Essentially, I’m gonna be bulking for a couple months here. The heaviest I’ve ever weighed was 184lbs, and it wasn’t exactly the leanest I’ve been either. This time, I’ve set the bar a lot higher at 190lbs. So to do that, I’m gonna need to really up the calories, but do it well. I’m gonna be so fed up with oats, potatoes, pasta, and salad to boot by the time I’m done with this. I’ve learned I’m also going to need to bring more sugars into my diet, unfortunately. While I do love Pro Complex Gainer, I don’t see quite as much gains out of it since the rest of my diet doesn’t provide enough simple carbs. So I’ll need a gainer that’s got some sugar, just not loads of it. I’m also re-vamping my supp stack. I was going to use the AMS stack, but I’ve changed my mind on that in lieu of a new alternative that has been brought to my attention. I’m going to be running a cycle of TREN Xtreme from American Cellular Labs (www.americell-labs.com/trenxtreme.html). This is not to be confused with "Xtreme TREN", which is a poor potency Chinese clone. The original and good product is from Russia, the motherland of prohormones. Simply put, the product is Andro, cannot aromatize, virtually zero liver toxicity, and keeps my natural testosterone still in normal, just slightly lower than usual. So it requires no PCT, but I’ll just start introducing a good natural test booster the last week on the TREN to optimize it and not have my body making a guessing game for the next few weeks thereafter. All in all, it should work out very well provided I keep up my training and eat lots and lots of good stuff! The goals are aggressive, so hopefully I can remain relentless in pursuing them in the same manner.

Wanna know what muscles do what and see them in action? Got a problem area and can’t figure out what exercise to do for it? Take a look at this site linked below. You can select which region you want to look at, all the corresponding muscles in that area, and see a flash animation of what that muscle does based on it’s origin and insertion. It’s extremely user friendly, too.

http://www.getbodysmart.com/ap/muscularsystem/menu/menu.html

It has occurred to me that perhaps some people need to be brought up to speed with some of the true meanings of terms they may hear while visiting their local fitness establishment. Such as:

Term/Real Definition:
Personal Trainer: A master of serving pain, bars, clamps, and various other devices of agony for which people pay ultimately seeking some degree of long term pleasure; see also S&M; see also "dfitnesss24".
Extra Reps: When your trainer/partner loses count.
Squat: Restroom visit, often increased in intensity due to high fiber/protein intake.
Sissy Squat: Squat, but cheating using the handicap stall for the taller toilet and hand rail.
Power Squat: You make janitor cry.
Super Set: Any exercise followed immediately by a reverse squat/puke.
Tri-Set: Superset supplemented with a Squat due to forced core muscle engagement.
Gym Rat: People who should just be given an employee jersey and free membership, but don’t get it ’cause it’s consistent income for the establishment from their monthly dues; see also "MsFitness".
Spotter: Someone who watches out for anyone upstaging you while you lift. C’mon, we all wanna show off a little, right?
Mass Freak: People with arms the size of most people’s neck or legs; see also "Ninjabill"; see also "BodyAuditor".
Anyone else got extra terms, please add them to the list!

Got a new progress pic up and I’m happy and irritated with it. On one hand, I love that I can get my triceps to grow. I really like the separation and drop that’s coming along, but at the same time my arms aren’t balanced. I can’t seem for the life of me to get my biceps to respond. I’ve been stuck around the same lifting stats on curls and such for quite a while, and most of my size increase in upper arms is from my triceps. The progress I’m seeing from these last couple weeks is really encouraging, and I think I’m on the right track. It’s just getting very frustrating. Biceps and hamstrings, those are the two areas that I have the most problems with. Time will tell, as always, I suppose. Still irks me though…