Blegh. Had an okay week last week. I barely squeezed in a run at the end of the week. Good thing was that I ran a route that I did before, only this time I was able to run non-stop. Pretty pysched about that. Last week was also the week where I switched to a 6-rep program for my weights. So far it seems pretty good. Anyway, here's the breakdown:
Sunday: None
Monday: None
Tuesday: Shoulders/Legs/Arms
Wednesday: None
Thursday: Chest/Back
Friday: None
Saturday: Run
I know, the breakdown was soooo mindblowing huh? I had just come back from a long weekend, but the lack of cardio is disappointing. The 4-5 day rest from weights was very well appreciated though. Muscles felt better during last week's workout. I'd like to say I did well with my diet last week, but I didn't. I didn't have time to shop for groceries, so I was out of a lot of food for my snacks and lunch. Big hit was the bread, since I eat at least one PB&J sandwich a day as my mid-afternoon snack (one slice of bread, kinda my natural protein bar). Wound up eating bagels for a couple of days. Was not happy about that.
I'm trying for a better week this week. I'm also hoping to improve on my runs. My 3-mile runs are just under 30 minutes, so that's about a 10 minute mile. Not fast by any means, but I am pleased that I can run 30 minutes straight now. Hoping to improve my speed and endurance. Then, I'll start considering doing some 5K's (~3.1 miles).
As for goals, I'm doing 6-8 reps of 170 - 180lbs at the chest press machine. I know that's not quite the same as doing bench presses, but I think I can safely say I have reached my short-term goal of benching my weight. New short term goals would be to bench 200lbs and get my 5K under 27 minutes. Longer term goal would be to run 10 miles. Men's Health does this Urbanathlon and I'd like to do that next year. This year is too close for me to train for (it's next month).
Last weigh-in:
170.0 lb
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Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
So much eating...
Just got back from a weekend of eating and drinking. A friend got married and it was close to my cousin in LI, so naturally I stayed there. That just lead to three days of eating and drinking. Craziness. Here's the breakdown:
Sunday: None
Monday: Chest/back/abs
Tuesday: Run
Wednesday: Pullups, heavy weights, shoulders, biceps/triceps
Thursday: Run
Friday: None
Saturday: Run
I anticipated I would have no time for my workouts, so I improvised a weight workout on Wednesday to incorporate my shoulders and my heavy weights. So I was able to put some attention on most of my body prior to my 4-day binge. I also thought it was a good time to give my muscles some rest from weights, so I didn't really mind the long stretch of no weights too much. I packed some workout clothes in case I ran, and my cousin did drag me out for what I thought would be a quick three mile run. Now, I've never really lasted more than 30 minutes of straight running, and at my average speed, that's about three miles. Well, he wound up pushing me to run 4.6 miles. Insane. But it felt good at the end to have realized I did that.
In addition to reaching a new limit, at the wedding I was placed at the same table as a strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS). We had a good amount of conversation about working out. Coupled with some thoughts from my cousin later, I came home with some insight about my workout program. And since I've been on my current program for a while, it's time to change it up anyway. Anyway, both the CSCS and my cousin think that low weights and high reps aren't really necessary. The CSCS said that most people can benefit fine with heavier weights and low rep ranges (6-10). I mean, if you're a bodybuilder, maybe some even lower reps will help, but 6-10 seem to be sufficient. The CSCS goes on to say, that if you need other specialized workouts, he would put them in as needed (agility drills for athletes, etc). For him personally, the CSCS cycles between power and strength workouts month to month. He does mostly circuits with little rest, so he hasn't done cardio for a while, but he believes cardio has its place.
So with all this new knowledge, I've decided to change my workout. I still like pushups and pullups, so those will stay in. Cardio hurts, but it definitely helps me, so that's staying in. Here's an outline of what my new workout would look like:
Day 1: Pushups, pullups, other body-weight exercises, ab work
Day 2: Cardio
Day 3: Shoulders/Arms
Day 4: Cardio
Day 5: Chest/Back
Day 6: Cardio
Day 7: Rest
I will do legs at least once a week. This looks very similar to my previous workout, but with the exception of my body-weight day, I will aim for higher weights with 6-10 reps. I will superset whenever I can so my workouts will be shorter. We'll see how this goes.
Last weigh-in:
168.0 lb
I actually weighed on Wednesday in my workout clothes and got 166.0 lb. I added 2.0 lb since I normally weigh with all my stuff. I have a feeling the number should be closer to 171.0 - 172.0 lb after all the eating and drinking.
Sunday: None
Monday: Chest/back/abs
Tuesday: Run
Wednesday: Pullups, heavy weights, shoulders, biceps/triceps
Thursday: Run
Friday: None
Saturday: Run
I anticipated I would have no time for my workouts, so I improvised a weight workout on Wednesday to incorporate my shoulders and my heavy weights. So I was able to put some attention on most of my body prior to my 4-day binge. I also thought it was a good time to give my muscles some rest from weights, so I didn't really mind the long stretch of no weights too much. I packed some workout clothes in case I ran, and my cousin did drag me out for what I thought would be a quick three mile run. Now, I've never really lasted more than 30 minutes of straight running, and at my average speed, that's about three miles. Well, he wound up pushing me to run 4.6 miles. Insane. But it felt good at the end to have realized I did that.
In addition to reaching a new limit, at the wedding I was placed at the same table as a strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS). We had a good amount of conversation about working out. Coupled with some thoughts from my cousin later, I came home with some insight about my workout program. And since I've been on my current program for a while, it's time to change it up anyway. Anyway, both the CSCS and my cousin think that low weights and high reps aren't really necessary. The CSCS said that most people can benefit fine with heavier weights and low rep ranges (6-10). I mean, if you're a bodybuilder, maybe some even lower reps will help, but 6-10 seem to be sufficient. The CSCS goes on to say, that if you need other specialized workouts, he would put them in as needed (agility drills for athletes, etc). For him personally, the CSCS cycles between power and strength workouts month to month. He does mostly circuits with little rest, so he hasn't done cardio for a while, but he believes cardio has its place.
So with all this new knowledge, I've decided to change my workout. I still like pushups and pullups, so those will stay in. Cardio hurts, but it definitely helps me, so that's staying in. Here's an outline of what my new workout would look like:
Day 1: Pushups, pullups, other body-weight exercises, ab work
Day 2: Cardio
Day 3: Shoulders/Arms
Day 4: Cardio
Day 5: Chest/Back
Day 6: Cardio
Day 7: Rest
I will do legs at least once a week. This looks very similar to my previous workout, but with the exception of my body-weight day, I will aim for higher weights with 6-10 reps. I will superset whenever I can so my workouts will be shorter. We'll see how this goes.
Last weigh-in:
168.0 lb
I actually weighed on Wednesday in my workout clothes and got 166.0 lb. I added 2.0 lb since I normally weigh with all my stuff. I have a feeling the number should be closer to 171.0 - 172.0 lb after all the eating and drinking.
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