Early morning run; Late morning Chest, Back and Abs, Nov 30, 2011

Cardiorespiratory Endurance:
Wednesday, 5:30am 2 mile run.
Shorter run today, only 2 miles but I increased the pace to compensate for the decrease in distance.  Friday morning will be a longer run again.


Resistance Training:
Today I started with back then moved to chest and finished with abdominals. Here's another of Poliquin's pull-up routines that I found to be quite effective. It's versatile with changes in grip, a good tempo and short rest times.  These are non-assisted, dead-hang pull-ups and chins.  No cheating, but you can reduce the reps if you're not to this level.


Back

One set of wide pronated grip pull-ups     8 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of supinated chin-ups                 6 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of narrow neutral grip pull-ups     5 reps        rest 45 seconds    

One set of wide pronated grip pull-ups     7 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of supinated chin-ups                 5 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of narrow neutral grip pull-ups     4 reps        rest 45 seconds
One set of wide pronated grip pull-ups     6 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of supinated chin-ups                 4 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of narrow neutral grip pull-ups     3 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of wide pronated grip pull-ups     5 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of supinated chin-ups                 4 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of narrow neutral grip pull-ups     3 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of wide pronated grip pull-ups     3 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of supinated chin-ups                 3 reps        rest 45 seconds    
One set of narrow neutral grip pull-ups     2 reps        End of exercise   

*Neutral grip just means semi-supinated grip (i.e. palms facing each other)

This routine gives about 67 pull-ups total.  It can be modified to do more or less depending on individual capability.  When i'm in peak shape I push for the 100 pullup mark.  Something to remember is that pull-ups are to the upper body what squats are to the lower body.  Forget the lat pull-down machine, there is no singular exercise that is more effective for building upper body functional strength.

Chest

Here is another variation on a 6-12-25 routine. 

A1 Incline Bench Press - 6 reps

Rest 10 seconds

A2 Push-ups - 12 reps

Rest 10 seconds

A3 Dumbbell flys, flat bench - 25 reps

Rest 2 minutes then repeat for 4 sets total

Abs

A1 V-ups on flat bench, 20 reps, no rest

A2 Flutter kicks, 50 reps

Rest 1 minute, repeat for total of 4 sets

B1 Straight leg raises on vertical knee-up / ab tower, 20 reps

Rest 10 seconds

B2 Ab roller wheel extensions, 12 reps at 3-1-X-0 tempo (3 seconds on the eccentric, 1 sec hold, X = concentric portion as fast as you can manage, 0 rest at top of movement)

Rest 90 seconds repeat for 3 supersets.

Regards/

J

Calves and Quads, Nov 29, 2011

Today's Leg Routine:

I split quads and hamstrings into two separate workout days mainly because I'm too smoked after quads to do any meaningful work on my posterior-chain and vice-versa.   I also split for the sake of time since I don't have the time to stay in the gym for 2 hours or more.  I WILL do calves both days though, which usually includes a high-volume day and a low-volume day.

I start out with calves because I don't want them to be an afterthought. Too often they are a neglected body part. Unless you're genetically gifted, it takes a lot of patience to dedicate the time and attention to detail that calf-work requires. I'm tired after quads and will not feel like doing a full-on calf routine if I wait till the end.

Calves
3 Supersets of seated calf-raises and donkey calf raises
A1 Seated calf machine raises - 12 reps, slow and controlled, especially on the eccentric portion of the movement. Then superset with donkey calf raises.
A2 Donkey calf machine raises - 40 - 50 reps, rest pause if needed to get to 50 or absolute failure.
2 minutes rest then repeat this superset for a total of three. Plenty of stretching in between each set.

Calf / toe presses on Hammer Strength Uni-Lateral Leg Press* machine. This is one long extended drop set. Each leg moves independently on this machine so it's perfect for single leg work and rest-pause / drop set routines if you have a partner to pull plates for you.  It's important to use a weight that can be handled for this kind high-rep drop set exercise. Personally I had about 210 lbs per leg, with a plate arrangement that would allow me to drop-set the weight quickly and easily as needed.

B1 Toe press, individual leg - 10 reps each leg, alternate all the way to 100 reps.  This means 10 mini-sets of 10; one leg/calf resting while the other leg is working then switch. I maintained the same weight (without dropping) for the first 3 sets of 10-per leg before I began to drop weight in 5 lbs increments all the way to 10 sets of 10 reps per leg.  Remember never to sacrifice repetitions for weight.  The reps here are key more so than the weight itself.  After this superset was done, I assisted my workout partner through his drop sets (which took about 5 min or so) and then repeated this exercise a second time.

*I used this machine because the gym was so crowded I could not use the equipment that I had intended to use when I got there. I was a little irritated but didn't want to just wait for the machine I wanted.  As it turns out this Uni-Lateral Leg Press machine by Hammer Strength worked great for me. It allowed me to work each leg individually which I hadn't done in awhile.  It also hit the angle just different enough that i experienced some rapid new growth from it, like the growth you get when you first start working out as a newbie.  The sets were brutal and both my soleus and gastrocs were worked pretty hard. I was very pleasantly surprised that my calves responded the way they did. Learn something new everyday I suppose.

Quads 
The following quad routine is a 6-12-25 routine.  It's an advanced routine published by Charles Poliquin, one of the top strength coaches in the world.  I've never used one of his routines that didn't work well for me, as long as I did it properly.  I have modified it slightly to fit my goals. I am just starting this one so I am still tweaking it and figuring out my working weights.  For example, I will probably increase the weight on the lunges next time to 100 or 110 lbs, as long as I don't sacrifice form and number of reps.

Barbell squat - 6 reps, 225 lbs. slow and controlled
rest 10 seconds
Walking lunges - 12 reps, 90 lbs barbell (this one I did 12 steps in one direction and 12 back across the gym floor to my starting point; 12 per leg, 24 total;
rest 10 seconds
Leg extensions - 25 reps, 110 lbs, the weight here should be high enough that you're reaching muscular failure around the 25th and final rep.

Rest 2 minutes and repeat 3 times. I ended up having to reset on set number 2 because some ass-clowns were sitting on the Leg extension machine just socializing until I asked if I could work in a set and suddenly they were too busy to allow me to do that.  I really dislike amateurs who just take up my oxygen and waste the time of those of us who are there to actually be productive in the gym.

Lift or GTFO!!

My Two-Cents; Personal Training Certs

To anyone interested, here's a few links that I found interesting and helpful back when I was first looking into Fitness Training. This is by no means any kind of authoritative list, but it should provide some good background knowledge for anyone who may be thinking about getting into the fitness industry as a trainer.  At the very least it can help you if your having trouble falling asleep!

This link below provides some decent general insight and helpful knowledge from a professional point of view as well as from reader/trainer input:
http://www.starting-a-personal-training-business.com/best-personal-trainer-certifications.html

Here's another one to provide some direction:
http://personaltrainingcertification101.com/2011/03/02/best-personal-trainer-certification-comparison.html

The online certification that I am most familiar with is ISSA.
http://www.issaonline.com/


An additional one that I have had recommended to me is AFPA:
http://www.afpafitness.com/index.php


ISSA is not bad though I don't agree with ALL of their science. They are not quite as extensive as any of the Poliquin certs.  However they ARE a very good starting point for someone just getting into it.

Poliquin certs are probably near the top of the list when it comes to serious minded athletes. Street credibility among REAL fitness-minded clientele is high with these certs.  Additionally these certs have multiple levels of course.

The Poliquin are generally more expensive to get certified in and they DO require you to know your stuff. You can't slide by on these certs with half-assed knowledge.

http://www.charlespoliquin.com/
http://www.charlespoliquin.com/Education/PICP.aspx

Some of the questions to ask yourself are:
1) How serious am I about this?
2) Is it something I am going to stick with or will I eventually lose interest in it?
3) Does this type of thing come easy for me, in other words is it intuitive for me or do I not usually GET IT unless I REALLY study or think hard about it?
4) Am I willing to go all the way and give it the due diligence necessary to REALLY be a good trainer, not just
  some flunky who couldn't do anything else?
5) What niche market am I going to target or what type of clientele am I going to focus on?

Some other links that are good info:
http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance_interviews/an_interview_with_charles_poliquin

http://www.militaryathlete.com/

Here's a guy who has multiple advanced certs and might be good to read about his bio.  I do NOT know him but found the website and thought it might provide some insight:
www.joedowdell.com/bio.html

This stuff should help get you started if you have more than a passing interest in it.

R/
Jason

ENDURANCE TRAINING

November 28, 2011
Pace: Intermediate. Just over 7 minutes per mile


It was quite cold this morning during my run.  I am still in Kuwait at the moment trying to finish up in order to De-Mob. Only 4 miles today but it felt good. Shaved almost 3 minutes off my time from last week but I was pushing a lot harder today. Felt the muscle weight I put back on though. Had to work a little harder in order to compensate for that as well. Had some guys try to pass me. But it wasn't happening. There was a brief moment of doubt. Their speed and ability seemed pretty close to mine. It finally came down to guts and nuts. They were on my heels pretty hard at the start of the final mile. I finally dropped 'em. Lungs were screaming but when I came over the line, I was all alone. Semper Fi. 

My Two-Cents; Supplements

As a "fitness geek", I get asked questions a lot about different supplements, which one's are best and what does what.  Although I have been in the fitness industry for a number of years now, this is my first post and I am by no means the "duty expert" on ALL things fitness.  What I CAN offer to anyone interested enough to read further is to keep in mind that supplements are called 'supplements' because they are supplementary.  NOTHING takes the place of proper diet and exercise. This I will swear by.  70% DIET, 30% EXERCISE.  More to follow.