[muerteverde]

Lightweight, baby. (IT's A RACE)

My stats:

Height = 5 feet 10 inches

Current weight = 163 lbs (a few extra lbs of fat at the midsection)

Age = 25.5 years

Best lift = weighted chinups (max is a +95 lb lift last year)

Fan of the deadlifts (PR is 350 lbs)

Can close the CoC 1.5 right now and hope to close the CoC by mid August. In August 2006 I could not even close the trainer, so I am very pleased with my improvements in handstrength since then.

The First Workout

Last night was my first night back in the gym after a few months off. I have been working out at home with weighted pushups, 100 lb sandbag, chinups, hiking, and sledgehammers, and light dumbells since October.

The lightweight challenge is my motivation for getting back into lifting. Also, I have the free time to devote to it now because my internship is over and I have my degree.

I plan on going M W F and doing lighter recovery workouts in between, but this week will be Tuesday Friday because the gym was closed on Monday and I will probably need those extra rest days on the first day back.

My first workout (23/01/08):

Chins
set of 18 unweighted as my warmup
2 sets of 6 with 50 lbs.

Dips
3 sets of 6

Squat
4 reps at 135 lbs
4 reps at 155 lbs
4 reps at 185 lbs
1 rep at 205 lbs
1 rep at 215 lbs <--- this is my current max now, and is at the peak of what I was able to do about six months ago when I was squating (until I hurt my knee). I was very happy with a 215 the first day back.

Standing Overhead Press
3 reps at 65 lbs
1 rep at 95 lbs
1 rep at 105 lbs <---- I have only ever done this with dumbells before so the barbell felt awkward. So this is my current max. This was an attempt to gauge where I am right now with this, not to get a serious workout. I should be able to improve this lift a lot, and I need to work on my form. It didn't feel right on my shoulders though. I can SOHP my 100 sand bag, and the barbell should be easier than that, so there is room for improvement here.

Abs
12 reps at 50 lbs (decline board)
6 reps at 60 lbs
10 reps each side - side bends with 40 lbs
(I went easy on the abs, but wanted to just get something in with them).

Mainly, this workout was about my squat and my legs felt it hard. I am a little sore today and VERY tired in the leg region. Friday I will test my deadlift.

I will post in the Lightweight Challenge Thread after I have some deadlift numbers to post on Friday.

[Diomedes]

Good luck getting back into the swing of things. How'd you injure your knee?

[muerteverde]

Originally Posted by Diomedes

Good luck getting back into the swing of things. How'd you injure your knee?

Thanks!

I have had so many injuries it is hard to keep track anymore. This time it was a tendon in my knee that bothers me when I run if my shoes aren't right and I had a bad pair of shoes for a while and it threw my knee out of wack. I had to take about 2 months off from running too, during the summer, which is the best time for running. I have to do special stretches for it whenever I run or lift now (my sister injured that same spot and her physical therapist showed her some stretches that work well).

[Bizarro]

Good luck Muerteverde and try and stay healthy. I remember you had a couple deadlifting injuries (back too arched, back rounded you said). Hopefully you can progress now and work up to 405. When doing overhead lifts try and concentrate on pressing the bar over your head, instead of just up and in the front of your face.

[muerteverde]

Originally Posted by Bizarro

Good luck Muerteverde and try and stay healthy. I remember you had a couple deadlifting injuries (back too arched, back rounded you said). Hopefully you can progress now and work up to 405. When doing overhead lifts try and concentrate on pressing the bar over your head, instead of just up and in the front of your face.

Thanks for the advice about my SOHP form, I do need to work on that. I will be studying some videos and working with lower weights on my off days to try to improve the form because right now, something feels wrong somehow, but I have to observe more before I will pinpoiunt the problem. What you said makes sense though, and I will keep that in mind.

[muerteverde]

Day 2 of my lifting program. This workout is from Friday the 25th of January, 2008.

I wanted to concentrate on my deadlift tonight, but not go so heavy as to break anything, because I haven't been in the gym since, I believe, October. My legs were still a little sore and, inexplicable, my forearms were very sore. This I cannot explain because I went really easy on the hammer twisting this past weeked and hadn't done anything with forearms all week.

Pullups and chinups
All unweighted
10
8
6
8
6

Deadlift
My upper back is a little sore the morning after, but not too bad. This is not high volume or high weight, but just to get my foot in the door again. The first few reps felt awkward again, but I got the feel of it by the end and it went more smoothly.
4x225 lbs
4x275
2x300
1x305
8x275

Dips
All unweighted (not the day for concentrating on my dips)
4
6
4

SOHP
What is weird is that I can do more than this in the overhead dumbell press... at home I have old 35 lb dumbells that I can press up EASILY for sets of 10 or more, but that barbell feels much harder and the 65 lb felt tough at the end there.
4x95
2x95
1x95
1x95
6x65
6x65

Abdominals
Side bends
12x40 lbs twice each side
15x60 lbs once each side

Decline full situps
12x50 lbs
12x60 lbs
20x50 lbs
12x50 lbs

I thew in some gripper machine there. I didn't use the CoC grippers because of the soreness in my forearms, but taking a few days (or a week) off has only ever helped me with the grippers, so I am not worried at all.

And I did several jumprope sprints with my new jumprope from Ironmind in intervals of 45 seconds. Next time I can put it up to 1 minute.

This first week was irregular because the gym was closed Monday, I was just coming back, and I wanted to get some tentative max numbers tested. This is what I have worked out as my workout to try in the coming weeks though. This is a departure from my past routines that were closer to a 2 day split. If

Monday - Focus on squat and heavy abs, throw in medium weight chins

Wednesay - Focus on pushing: bench, SOHP, weighted dips. If body allows, do unweighted pullups. Lots of jump rope.

Friday - Focus on deadlift and heavy chins. Shrugs, farmer holds, and CoC grippers to support.

Saturday and Sunday - At home, overhead dumbell press and pushups. Hiking int he hills. Maybe unweighted chins if I feel good.

I can deviate from this with supplemental excersizes from time to time if I feel the need. Sandbag tossing, deadlifint, or squating for example, and the occasional set of curls.

[muerteverde]

Third workout. Monday the 28th of January.

I focused on squats tonight and my legs are so tired it is difficult to stand up or walk. I will feel this all week, I'm sure. The crazy part is how little weight it to took to wreck me. I have a LONG way to go.

Squats
3x135 lbs
3x155 lbs
3x185 lbs
1x200 lbs
1x200 lbs
5x155 lbs
5x155 lbs

Pullups
8 unweighted
6 at +25

Abdominals
20 reps, 50 lb decline, 1 set

Strict Press (not for a workout really)
10x45
10x55

Heavy rope (sand filled)
2 sets of 50 revolutions
1 set of 60 revolutions

Wednesday will be pushing day. Bench, dips, strict press, etc.

[C.Beeby]

Do you have a sport?

I ask out of curiousity, and because I think it's a shame when people know what they are doing, and don't use it to destroy things.

GOOD LIFTING, looking forward to competing against you.

[muerteverde]

Originally Posted by C.Beeby

Do you have a sport?

I ask out of curiousity, and because I think it's a shame when people know what they are doing, and don't use it to destroy things.

GOOD LIFTING, looking forward to competing against you.

I trained wrestling, BJJ, and judo before and have always done running, swimming and weight lifting. Right now I am just doing lifting and cardio though. There aren't many god martial arts schools around here and I am too poor now. So I am just concentrating on my fitness. Hopefully, when I switch jobs I will move closer to a judo, bjj, wrestling, or other grappling school.

Day Four of my workout program
Wednesday the 30th of January

This was pressing day. In the past, I have done pulling/pushing splits in my program so that squats went with bench and chins went with DL. But here I put all upper body pressing on Wednesday. Dips, SOHP, bench and some light chins in there just for fun.

SOHP
2x95 lbs
1x95 lbs
1x95 lbs
2x90 lbs
2x90 lbs
2x90 lbs
6x65 lbs
6x65 lbs

Next Wednesay, I am going to forego the heavier weights at the beginning and start out with 75 lbs and do larger volume with that. My back is feeling week, as well as the rest of me in this lift. It is feeling a bit more comfortable now though.

Bench
5x135 lbs
5x155 lbs
5x135 lbs
5x135 lbs

Dips
1 set of 10 reps
3 sets of 6 reps
2 sets of 4 reps with +25 lbs

Pullups/chinups
Mixed in aproximately 5-7 sets of 8 between my pressing movements

My chest is sore today, the day after. Tomorrow was supposed to be DL and heavy chins, but I might have to cut out the heavy chins if my chest is too sore for it. But there is an ice storm coming, so the gym might be closed anyway.

As far as the contest goes, I have noticed that I have a fatty deposit around my midsection that will give a huge boost to my Wilks when I run it off in a few months. So watch out!!

[muerteverde]

Day 5 - Monday the 4th of February

I had to skip Friday because the gym was closed due to imclement weather. So I just skipped a DL day and moved on to squats on monday.

I threw in some medium weight chinups too, but didn't want to overdo it so I wouldn't be feeling sore on Wednesday. I went a bit easy on squats just because my legs were destroyed after the last two weeks. Today, the day after, my legs feel tired and a little sore, but not anything like the past two weeks. I do have a LONG way to go yet though :-S

Squats:
4 reps at 135 pounds
4 reps at 155 pounds
5 reps at 165 pounds
5 reps at 165 pounds
5 reps at 165 pounds

Chins:
10 unweighted
8 chins at +50
8 chins at +50
8 unweighted

Dips:
10 unweighted

Abdominals:
10 reps each side 55 lbs side bends
12 reps steep decline situps at 50 pounds

2 sets of 1 minute jump rope

My upper body feels great today -- I do not feel the effect of the chins at all and should have gone a bit harder. But my legs, ugh, with that small amount of weight moved, I am still feeling it. Next week, I want to throw in another set of squats and do all my working sets at 170 lbs. Eventually I will have better recovery time.