Bean's Get Lean Stay Lean Get Massive Journal

[Bean]

Hello, posted just a few times so im quite new, im hoping this journal'll keep me disciplined, and motivated , any feedback on anything would be great.

Not trained for 3 weeks and ate alot of cake an stuff not even bothered with any bodybuilding like meals so ive put on about 2 stone of fat and lost a stone of muscle

byphotos.com/album/4705777 <-- copy & paste plz
their not great pics, hopefully i'll get myself in to some kind of shape. Please let me know if u think a bodypart is lagging or anything. Click the thumbnails to enlarge.

what do you think my bodyfat is? i dont think my bodyfat calipers are anywhere near right.

Anyway my training plan will be:

Mon: Shoulders/Triceps
Tue: Back/Rear Delts
Wed: Rest
Thur: Chest/Biceps
Fri: Legs
Sat: Rest
Sun: Rest

Large Muscles: 4 exercises, 3 sets each, pyramiding up in weight, down in reps going to failure on the last set of the exercise.
Small muscles: 3 exercises, 3 sets each, as above.

1st week: stop short of failure by 1 or 2 reps on the last set
2nd week: going to failure on most, without psyching myself up.
3rd-10th week: going for it training to failure on last set of every exercise.
Drop sets every so often at the end of the cycle.
No Cardio (cos works active enough)
Mostly free weights.
No more than 1min rest.
3 warm up sets for first exercise of workout.
5mins cardio + 5mins stretching before and after.

This is what ive been doing for the past year or so, changing the reps about any where between 4 to 20 reps.
Hopefully i'll be in the gym tuesday (its shut on monday so i'll start a day late) if i dont catch my mrs virus.

I'll post back asap
Thanks

[Scratchy]

Good luck dude.

Good bi's but I'd say that your pecs are slightly behind the rest of you, looking at the pics. Let us know how you're getting on!

[Gareth83]

looking good mate!!

[turtleboy]

yep looking good fella!

legs are your strongest point (imo). how long have you been training?

[edit]

BF.... not really sure i would guess at about 11 -12% cos apparently your abs start to come through at that %age.

[Ollie]

Quote

BF.... not really sure i would guess at about 11 -12% cos apparently your abs start to come through at that %age.

Very poor guide imo...completely depends on your genetic makeup and where your fat is distributed

[Bean]

Quote

I'd say that your pecs are slightly behind the rest of you, looking at the pics.

thanks bud cos i love training chest an ive got a reason to batter it now, i cut my chest volume down to half for about 6months last year cos i thought it was too far ahead, must've just been in my head cos i couldnt've changed that much i dont think.

i started training 5 years ago but probably only trained 3 years out of it all together cos ive had alot of set backs, cut tendons in my right hand, then my left hand a year later, done my lower back in 3 years ago an havent deadlifted since (every exercise has to be braced too), and lived in the ymca for about 7 months about 4 years ago so was on my ****. one good thing out of it though.. i must warm up an cool down more than mr motivator.

thanks for all the comments, cant wait for monday!

[Bean]

1st week done! felt good to be back in the gym too. Here it is then:

ctf=close to failure (only able to get 1 or 2 reps more)
m=machine, s=stack, b=bar

MONDAY: SHOULDERS & TRICEPS
DB Laterals: 2.5'sx20 / 5'sx15 / 5'sx15 / 5'sx15
Machine S Press: mx15 / m+8x15 / m+16x12 / m+24x10
1 Cable Laterals: 1stx15 each / 2ndx12 each / 2ndx10 each ctf
V-bar Pushdowns: 40kgx20 / 50kgx12 / 60kgx10 / 70kg x8
Lying EZ BB Ext: B+8x15 / B+16x12 / B+24x10
Smith CGBP: 40kgx20 / 50kgx15 / 50kgx14 ctf
Frame Crunch: 15 could feel point of old injury in back & missed last 2 sets
Hands to Knees: 12 / 12 / 12

Thinking of adding an exercise to Tri's cos i think they're lagging, 12 work sets would be the most ive done for a small body part. In the past ive just done 2 sets to failure on the last exercise instead of one. Would really like to have just an arms workout but id have to put shoulders after chest then and i really want to keep them at the start of the week and 1st in the workout so theyre prioritised, i think shoulders make a physique if u know wot i mean.

TUESDAY: BACK & REAR DELTS
Seated Bent Over DB Raises: 1kgx20 / 2kgx20 / 2kgx20 / 2kgx20
Wide Pulldowns: 50kgx20 / 80kgx20 / 100kgx15 / 110kgx12 ctf
Braced 2 DB Rows: 12.5'sx15 / 15'sx10 / 17.5'sx8 /
1 DB Rows: 5x20 / 7.5'sx17 / 10'sx15
Close Cable Rows: s+20kgx20 / s+30x10/ s+40x10 / s+50x12 ctf
Back Ext: 15 / 15 ctf and pinchin pain so missed last set

Really havent got alot of lower back work due to not bein able to deadlift so gonna have settle just adding volume to my extensions an keepin away from failure cos i feel twinges close to the end of a hard sets, but at least i did a bit wasnt in agony


THURSDAY: CHEST & BICEPS
DB Incline: 5'sx20 / 10'sx15 / 15'sx15 / 17.5'sx15 / 20'sx12 / 25'sx10
BB Bench: B+20x20 / B+40x20 / B+50x15 / B+60x12 /
DB Flyes: 15'sx20 / 20'sx20 / 25's x15
Cable Flyes: 15kgx20 / 20kgx20 / 25kgx15 /
EZ BB Preachers: Barx25 / B+10x20 / B+20x6 ctf
Alt DB Curls: 7.5'sx10 each / 7.5'sx10 each / 7.5'sx10 each
EZ BB Curls: Bar+15x12 / B+20x10 / B+25x8 ctf
Forearm Curls: Barx40 / Bx30 / Bx20 ctf
Forearm Ext: Barx20 / Bx30 / Bx18 ctf
Incline Crunch: 12 / 12 / 12
Hands to Knees 12 / 12 / 12

Want to bench 100k for 10 reps in the next 3 months, got close nearly a year ago but didnt happen

FRIDAY: LEGS
Hamstring Curls: 1stx20 / 2ndx12 / 3rdx10 / 4thx 8 ctf
1 Ham Curls: 1stx6 each / 1stx6 each / 1stx6 each ctf
Leg Ext: 1stx20 / 2ndx15 / 3rdx12 ctf
Leg Press: m+80x15 / m+110x12 / m+130x10 easyish
Smith Squats: B+40x15 / B+50x12 / B+60x10 ctf *
DB Lunges: Missed
Calf Raises on Hack Machine: m+10x20 / m+30x12 / m+40x12 / m+50x12 ctf
1 Calf Raises: m+10x8 each / m+10x8 each ctf


*Was daunting i was just waiting for my back to twinge cos i had a weird feeling in it all workout, will up the reps to 20 to 30 for squats for a while.
Was hard to hold back on the weight cos the machines are old and the stack starts heavy already.
Missed lunges for a number of reasons: Quads are a strong point for me an would like to bring up my lagging parts and there wasnt much left in em after the other exercises; because of my bad back i try to fatigue the muscle as much as i can so im strict with rest time to try to hold back the big weight by keep rests short and push on even if im dizzy.
Reet! im knackered now!

Cant wait for monday! ta for listening! any comments welcome

[Resurrected]

Some good progress made there.

One question why pyramid the weights?

[Bean]

Ive got alot of old injuries that i want to fend off so it warms up the muscle more & theres more bloodflow too and like with my bad back on squats im trying to fatigue the muscle as much as i can so im not lifting as big a weight as if i just went straight into my heaviest set. I know it sounds like im going about it backwards but as long as im pushing the bounderies of what a muscle can do (raising the weight) within a set style i think it'll still grow. I know 1 or 2 sets heavy would recruit more fibers cos of more weight but if i did that type of training now id fall apart. I suppose i could do all exercises as 3 sets of the same weight but i like how pyramiding up sets u up psychologically, i still like to peak at a high weight too.

Training like this is quite new to me though, i did used to do 2 sets to failure for each exercise, 4 exercises for large bodyparts and 3 for small with 3 warm up set at the start of a bodyparts workout, with the same split i have now.

I might replace the pics at the star with ones of me now while ive filled up with glycogen n stuff so i can really tell how much ive progressed in future.

[Bean]

ctf=close to failure (only able to get 1 or 2 reps more)
m=machine, s=stack, b=bar

MONDAY: SHOULDERS & TRICEPS
Smith S Press: Barx20 / B+5x20 / B+20x12 / B+30x12 ctf
DB Laterals: 2.5'sx20 / 7.5'sx8 / 7.5'sx8 / 7.5'sx10 ctf
EZ BB U Rows: B+30kgx12 / B+40kgx7 tf / B+30kgx12 easy
V-bar Pushdowns: 20kgx20 / 30kgx20 / 55kgx12 / 65kg x10 / 75kgx8 tf
Seated EZ BB Ext: B+8x20 / B+14x15 / B+20x12 ctf
Smith CGBP: B+20x20 / B+30x15 / B+40x10 ctf
Knee's in air Crunch: 15 / 12 /12 ctf
Ab Frames: 20 / 20/ 20 easy

TUESDAY: BACK & REAR DELTS
Seated Bent Over DB Raises: 1kgx20 / 2kgx20 / 4kgx15 / 4kgx15 / 4kgx12-15 tf
Braced 2 DB Rows: 7.5'sx20 / 10'sx15 / 12.5'sx15 / 17.5'sx12 / 22.5'sx7 tf
Smith BB Row Braced: Bx15 / B+10x15 / B+20x15 / B+300x12 tf
Wide Chins: BWx4 / BWx4 / BWx4 ctf
Close Grip Pulldowns: 90x15 / 110x12 / 120x12 tf
Back Ext: BWx12 / BWx12 / BWx12 / BWx12
DB Shrugs: 17.5'sx20 / 20's x18 ctf

THURSDAY: CHEST & BICEPS
Smith BB Incline: Bx20 / B+15x20 / B+30x15 / B+40x9
Mach Bench: 50x10 / 60x8 / 70x6 tf
BB Declines: B+40x12 / B+50x10 tf
Incline Flyes: 15'sx12 / 17.5'sx10 / 20'sx10 tf
Alt DB Curls: 7.5'sx15 each / 10'sx12 each / 12.5'sx8 each
DB Incline Curls: 5'sx10 each / 7.5'sx8 each / 10'sx10 each
Olympic EZ BB Curls: Bar+17.5x10 / B+22.5x8 tf / B+22.5x6 tf
Forearm Curls: Barx40 / B+5x30 / B+7.5x20
Forearm Ext: Barx25 / Bx25 / Bx15 tf
Incline Crunch: 12 / 12 / 12
Hands to Knees 12 / 12 / 12

Incline was quite difficult, i dont think incline on the smith agrees with me.

SATURDAY: LEGS
Hamstring Curls: 1stx20 / 1stx20 / 2ndx15 / 3rdx12 / 4thx10
1 Ham Curls: 1stx7 each / 1stx7 each / 1stx10 each
Leg Ext: 1stx20 / 2ndx15 / 3rdx12 / 4thx17
Leg Press: m+80x15 / m+120x15 / m+130x12 / 140x13 ctf
Smith Squats: B+45x15 / B+55 x12 / B+65x10 ctf
BB Lunges: B+24x24 / b+16x20 / B+24x16
Calf Raises on Leg Press: m+40x20 / m+50x15 / m+60x12 / m+70x10 / m+80x13 ctf
1 Calf Raises: Missed (had to start work )

Did quite well holding back from going to failure, felt the urge to squeeze more out, held back on legs more than the others cos i think theyre a bit of a strong part for me. I wonder sometimes though if theyre a strong part BECAUSE ive always held back on them. Maybe i'll drop an exercise for every bodypart and see if i improve more. After another 8 weeks i think i'll try it.