Michigan Muscle Boy

I'm eating too many peanuts

The Scott Bird recommended fit day comes to the rescue.  I've started this insane anabolic diet with Arnold where you are only supposed to eat 30 grams of carbs per day to start.  Well, I've been doing 60.  The culprit: the 1.5 cups (0.4 liter) of peanuts I've been eating. 

I was feeling a little boost after those peanuts.  I thought it was the fat.  I've been telling Arnold that I love fat.  Well, now we know.

It's all Arnold's fault.

Max Strength Day

So, Arnold and I did a max strength workout yesterday.  We also talked about the plan going forward, something Scott has been asking about.  We'll have more on that in a later post.  It includes elements of diet and measurement.

We stuck with Smith squats.  We're both getting good depth and range of motion.

Here's the workout:

• Smith squats (90% of 1RM): 198 lbs./3 reps X 4 sets; 178/3X1
• Single leg curls (80%): 80/6X5
• Bench press (90%): 170/3X5
• Bent underhand EZ Bar Row: 150/3X5
• Overhead dumbbell press (90%): 50/3X5
• Seated calf (80%): 190/6X5

Short But Intense

The big girl is wondering if the hypertrophy workouts are too short.  Personally, I felt like I got my butt kicked today doing 80% 1RM for five sets per exercise with 45 seconds rest between sets.  It was just hard.

Now, I think she has a bit of a point.  We're doing a small number of exercises.  If we don't do one right, well we're just in trouble.  That's why I've been so focused on the squat analysis.

Here's today's workout:

• Skull crusher (80% 1RM):  85 lbs/7 reps X 3 sets; 85/4X1; 75/3X1; 75/7X1;
• Behind neck pull down (80%): 125/7X5;
• Rear Delt Pec Deck (80%): 70/7X3; 80/7X1; 75/7X1
• Shrug (80%): 65/7X5
• Back extensions: 15X4

Tomorrow, we're on to doing six exercises for multiple sets at 90% of our max effort.  Nancy may be happy that today was a little lighter.

Thank God Scott Has His Rack Back

Scott produced an interesting squat analysis, an important component of which is illustrated at left.  Scott tested his flexibility by squatting while holding on to his power rack.  The fact that he could get pretty far down indicated to him that his issue was more technique than flexibility related.

I'm not so sure.  Squats seem to be a combination of balance plus flexibility.  They're contingent on each other.  The question is whether you are flexible in a way that allows you to maintain your balance.

I tried this same exercise today in the woods, holding on to a small tree.  I could get down, but I really had to hold on to the tree (with both hands). 

My read: sure I can flex down but not in a way that lets me retain my balance.  Scott has a number of good links on his site for improving technique and flexibility.  I'll be interested to see what he works out now that he has his rack back.

On Hypertrophy and Functional Training

This is just a quick thought inspired by some of our discussion of squat depth the last two weeks or so (see here, here, here, and here).  Ralfe summed it up best when he talked about how bodybuilders are accused of trying to get big muscles without necessarily getting the functional benefit.  For men, it really becomes clear in your forties that you lose muscle mass.  It's a big contribution to frailty and gradual loss of function that goes on with aging.  There are actually real benefits to just increasing muscle mass independent of flexibility and balance.  I don't want to ignore those two, just make the point that muscle mass is important all by itself, particularly as you get older.

Going Anabolic

So, Arnold and I talked today.  I'm going to take a shot at the anabolic diet with her.  As I mentioned in yesterday's podcast, lots of analyses can flow out of this diet experiment.

Hard as Hell H with the Big Girl

Today, we did a hypertrophy (H) workout, and I had some kind of intensity blow-out after the third exercise.  We'd done 80% lunges, sit-ups, and then 80% biceps curls, all on 45 seconds rest between sets.  After the biceps curls, I thought my arms were going to explode.  I mean really explode.  I've never felt so much muscle pain in my life.  The muscle wasn't torn or anything, it just felt explosive.

Arnold chased up some advil, and about 20 minutes later the pain was over.

We actually did manage a great workout.  It was just hard.  Here it is:

• Lunges (80% of 1RM): 143 lbs./7 reps X 5 sets;
• BOSU straight up crunches: 15 X 5;
• Free Motion Reverse curl (80%): 60/7X1; 70/7X4;
• Triceps Skull Crusher (80%): 85/7X3; 85/3X1; 75/4X1; 75/7X1
• Paramount Pec Deck Rear Delt (80%): 80/7X4; 75/7X1
• Behind Neck Pulldown (80%): 125/7X5

I managed harder work on the skull crusher this time around.

Max Strength at Gold's

Nancy and I returned to the sensational Gold's Gym in Ann Arbor for a max strength workout.  We stuck with Smith squats, mainly because we are getting superior depth.  We will likely bring back freestanding squats when we get to another hypertrophy cycle and have digested the Eric Cressey video this Fall.

We fell back a bit in squats in this workout.  I think the Gold's Smith machine has a different counterbalancing.  The main point here however continues to be depth, depth, and depth.  So, we'll take our lumps on weight.

Here's the workout:

• Squats (85–90% of 1RM): 148 lbs/4 reps X 2 sets; 158/3X3;
• Standing Hammerstrength Leg Curl (70%): 80/7X5;
• Bench Press (85%–90%): 160/4X2; 170/3X3;
• Bent underhand EZ Bar row (85–90%): 144/4X2; 150/3X3;
• Dumbbell overhead press (85–90%): 45/4X1, 50/4X1, 50/3X3;
• Hammerstrength hack calf raises (70%): 240/7X5

BTW, we recorded an interesting diet podcast at Gold's that Nancy gives some hint about in her most recent blog post.

Increasing Intensity on the H

So yesterday, we bumped intensity on the H workout during the medium week of our mixed training.  I worked out with Mary, Nancy's and my trainer.  Here's the workout:

• Skull crushers (80% of 1RM): 85lbs/7 reps X 4 sets; 65/7X1;
• Behind neck pulldown (80%): 125//7X5;
• Bent elbow dumbbell lateral (70%): 17.5/7X5;
• Shrugs (80%): 65/7X5;
• Back Extensions: 4X15;
• Abs Medley: various abs exercises

The skull crushers were really hard.  That's the highest weight I've ever done on those.

Smith Squat Analysis Up

Well, I thought Scott stated it best in his comment yesterday:

No doubt the analysis on Muscle Ventures will compare the Smith squats to the regular free-weight variety, but I hardly think mixing the two will create mass panic. Now, if you remain on the dark side ... :)

which was well seconded by Ralfe in this comment:

It is not a bad thing to alter the training of the body between machine and free weight.

We now have the analysis on muscle ventures with plenty of links to informative resources on the squat.  We're learning a lot as we go along and slowly getting better.