My Workout of the Day for Thursday, April 30, 2009

Leg Day…

Squats: 225 X 5, 300 X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5 (+25 lbs)

One-Leg Presses: 365 X 8, X 8, X 10 (+20lbs)

Romanian Deadlift: 275 X 8, 275 X 8, 275 X 8 (+20 lbs)

Bench Hamstring Plank: 3 sets of 10/leg, alternating legs, no rest between sets

Done and DONE!

I’m making solid progress. I’m pretty sure that 400lb squat is within my reach.

Sorry Everyone…Gotta take a break.

Hopefully i’ll get some more interesting stuff up tomorrow, but there are too many real-world responsibilities today to keep up with. I just proofread part II of my motivation article and, to put it gently, it’s “not my best work.”

I’d rather hold on to it and deliver something quality either tomorrow or monday. I will, however, wow you with some fun videos of exercises you can try at home or next time you go to the gym, and link to this week’s precision nutrition article (also replete with exercise videos.)

The “Infamous Trx Workout”

…and some videos

At first i didn’t like the guy in the split-squat video, then i realized he and i are very similar and was forced to like him. My clients will probably recognize this exercise and cringe at the memories.

I have read a lot of Nick Tumminello’s stuff, and i respect where he’s coming from. Gotta keep learning, you know? Well, clients of mine…you might want to familiarize yourself with this one.

My Workout for Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Seated OH Barbell Press: 185 X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5

Upright BB Rows: 160 X 7, X 7, X 7

DB Lateral Raises: 38 X 8, X 8, X 8

Bent-Over DB Lateral Raises: 20lb X 12, X 11, X 11

BB Shrugs w/wrist straps: 355 X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5

Abs:

3 sets of 10 hanging knee raises

3 sets of 10 bench cable crunches

3 sets of 20 decline crunches

3 sets of 20 crunches

New Breakfast Shake Recipe

I’m no gourmet…but if you want lots of calories quickly this will definitely do the trick. Or, you could 1)reduce the quantities of the ingredients or 2)refrigerate the extra for subsequent breakfasts (this is untested so far, but it should work fine- the lecithin will keep it from separating.)

It tastes pretty good, with a little “oatiness” like oat milk, if you’ve ever had that. More importantly, the macronutrient ratios are pretty good for a breakfast and you can take it with you easily. As i’m experiencing right now, though, it makes you really cold for a while!

1 Cup Frozen Unsweetened Blueberries

2 Cups Skim Milk

2 T Soy Lecithin Granules

1/2 Cup Instant Oats, Uncooked

1 Scoop Optimum Nutrition Whey Protein, Vanilla Flavor

1 Cup Lowfat Cottage Cheese

1/2 Cup Plain Wheat Germ, Toasted or Raw (Your Preference)

Throw it all in the blender (I suggest blueberries first, then dry stuff, then milk on top to keep the blueberries from freezing into a solid block while you put in the other ingredients.)

Blend Until Smooth. Do I need to mention to put the top on the blender?

The whole thing is just over 1,000 calories. The macronutrient breakdown is 40% Carbohydrate, 36% Protein, and 23% Fat According to fitday.com.

The carbs will take quite a while to burn so you’ll be well nourished until your mid-morning snack time.

Enjoy!

My Workout for Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Back Day! But it sure does look (and feel) a lot like leg day at first.

Deadlift: 225 X 5, 345 X 5, X 5, 355 X 5, X 5, 360 X 5 (+25 lbs, +30 lbs)

Bent-Over Barbell Row: 245 X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5, X 5 (+10 lbs)

Wide Grip Pullups: BW+10lbs X 7, X 7, X7

1-Armed Cable Rows:#20 X 10, X 10, X 10

I used wrist straps for the deadlifts and barbell rows in my workout today; my forearms were feeling pretty spent for whatever reason and i didn’t want grip strength to be the limiting factor.

Rearranging the workout order last week was such a success (i swapped legs on tues/back on wednesday to back on tues and legs on wednesday and felt stronger than ever on the back day) that i’m going to make one more similar tweak this week.

I’m doing back today; i’ll do shoulders on wednesday, legs on thursday, then arms on friday as usual. With that order, the really taxing workouts (legs, back) are divided up with an “easier” workout both the day before and following them the next day. No major muscle groups will be worked two days in a row (such as when i was doing legs then back, with squats and deadlifts on consecutive days.) Abs will be done M/W/F with the easier workouts.

Hopefully, this will allow me yet another jump in my recovery and, therefore, progress. I’m feeling pretty strong today, so i imagine i’ll be feeling rather destroyed later from an intense workout. Shoulders tomorrow will be a welcome respite…

Don’t Miss Today’s Posts:

Below my workout posting is Part I of my 3-Part Motivation and Goal Article.

Below that is a cool video you won’t want to miss. If it’s motivation you need- this woman can help give you some.

Have a great workout!
-Winslow

My Workout for Monday, April 27, 2009

It’s every guy’s favorite- chest day!

I’m still making solid progress. The weight that i was doing 3-5 reps of 6 weeks ago has now become my warmup weight, my current 5 rep weight is approaching my previous 1-rep max. While my deadlift and squat still need some work, i’m pretty sure that i’ll hit my 315 lb bench press goal.

Today’s numbers:
Bench Press: 135 X 10, 225 X 5, 265 X 5, 265 X 4 + 260 X 1, 260 X 5, X 5, X 5 (+5 lbs and more reps at the higher weight this week)

Incline Bench Press: 190 X 8, X 8, X 6 (+5 lbs and several reps)

Cable Chest Presses: #8 X 8, #10 X 6, #12 X 8, X 8, X 8 (more reps at the highest weight from last week)

Incline Cable Flyes: #7 X 9, X 8, X 8 (up one plate and a couple reps)

Abs:
3 sets of 10 hanging knee raises
3 sets of 10 lying cable crunches
3 sets of 20 decline bench crunches
3 sets of 20 crunches

Motivation: what is it, and how can i get some?

This is part one in my 3-part series about what motivation is, where it comes from, how to get yours, and how to use it to achieve your goals.

First, let’s figure out just what motivation is. So many times i think i know something and when i get down to it and try to define it, i realize that i’m not so sure anymore. I’m probably alone in this, but i’ll define it here at the start anyhow so everybody is on the same page.

According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Motivation is the set of reasons that determines one to engage in a particular behavior.

Ok, but i want to know how to get myself to do something…

Self motivation is the ability to motivate yourself, to find a reason and the necessary strength to do something, without the need of being influenced to do so by another person. Working in a careful and consistent manner without giving up.

That seems better. It’s really self-motivation that we want; relying on others to get your life in order is a proven path to failure, so let’s not take it.

Instead, let’s look at that definition for a minute and see if that leads us somewhere:

“To find a reason and the necessary strength to do something…”

So, to get ourselves motivated, it sounds like we need to convince ourselves that we want something enough to do whatever it takes to get that thing. But how do we do that? We need to value the outcome we want more than the consequences of the outcome that we don’t want. For example: Even though it will be difficult, I want to lose 65 pounds because doing so will lower my chances of heart disease, diabetes, and early mortality and improve my quality of life.

In the context of fitness, we need to identify what it is that makes us want to get fit. The reasons we give need to be important enough to us to give us the strength to endure whatever difficulties we encounter on our  quest. That sounds a little “Lord of the Rings,” i know, but not all quests are drawn out trials fraught with terror and great personal risk.

Maybe you think it would be fun to get in shape. That’s a perfectly valid reason- and a very strong one because you will probably start to achieve that outcome immediately. Perhaps you want to lose weight so that you are healthier and hope to live longer or be able to enjoy your children or grandchildren more. Perhaps you want to excel at golf or basketball or soccer. Maybe you love to hike, but you’re too out of shape to do many of the trails you loved a decade ago and, now that you have the time, you feel it’s time to return to those places.

The key is not just to say that you want to get in shape, but be able to give reasons that you find compelling for why you want to get in shape.

OK. So now i know that i want to get in shape for reasons X, Y, and Z which are personally important to me because of A, B, and C. I am feeling motivated.  Motivated to do what? To get in shape, of course! But what does that mean? Well, you know…

Goal Setting- figuring out exactly what it is you want to do and how you are going to get it done.

Again, from Wikipedia:

Goal-setting theory is based on the notion that individuals sometimes have a drive to reach a clearly defined end state. Often, this end state is a reward in itself. A goal’s efficiency is affected by three features: proximity, difficulty and specificity. An ideal goal should present a situation where the time between the initiation of behavior and the end state is close. This explains why some children are more motivated to learn how to ride a bike than mastering algebra. A goal should be moderate, not too hard or too easy to complete. In both cases, most people are not optimally motivated, as many want a challenge (which assumes some kind of insecurity of success). At the same time people want to feel that there is a substantial probability that they will succeed. Specificity concerns the description of the goal in their class. The goal should be objectively defined and intelligible for the individual. A classic example of a poorly specified goal is to get the highest possible grade. Most children have no idea how much effort they need to reach that goal.

Douglas Vermeeren has done extensive research into why many people fail to get to their goals. The failure is directly attributed to motivating factors. Vermeeren states that unless an individual can clearly identify their motivating factor or their significant and meaningful reasons why they wish to attain the goal, they will never have the power to attain it.

Part II on Wednesday or Thursday…Thanks for Reading!

Feel free to ask questions if you have any. If you’d like to ask a question but not post to the comments, email me here. I’ll get back to you ASAP.

Wini does plank!

My 76 year-old client keeps getting stronger…here she is doing a beautiful plank hold during our session this morning.

Eat a lot…Gain Weight!

If you check my food log for the weekend, you’ll see that i was pretty good about eating cleanly, but still managed to get in lots of calories. That, coupled with plenty of rest, has pushed me to 202 lbs @ 14.9%. What a great place to start the week, feeling energized and “full” instead of “flat.”

More later…have to work now.