Back at it

I don't usually lift on the weekend because I have to work! I was back at it today with my chest workout.

Bench press dumbells: 5x10-20 (20's for warmup, 30's and 35's)

Incline Machine 5 x 10-15 (10 on each side for warmup, 25 for the rest)

Isolateral chest press 5 x 10-15 (35's to warmup, two sets of 55 and two sets of 50

Machine Flyes  5 x 10-15 (60's to warm up, 70 for the rest)

I felt the workout was alright today. I had a hard time pushing myself through. I wanted to start doing pushups today but forgot! next week I will add that in.

Lagging Body Part Day

Today I'll be training my lagging parts. This week, those parts include calves, lats, top of my triceps, and forearms.
I don't have a set workout for this! I'm just gonna go in and figure it out as I go. I have ideas. Not sure how much I'll train each part.

ARMS

I was so proud of myself today during my arm workout! The pump in my arm was fucking huge which is always awesome. I was really motivated to make the workout good and it turned out very well. Here's what I did!!!

Dumbell shoulder press: 4 x 8-12 (25's and 30's)

Arnold Press: 2 x 8-12 (25's) I only did two sets because I felt a lot of pressure in my shoulder and      decided that was a sign to stop. Maybe I should do the arnold press first??

One-Arm Leverage Shoulder Press: 4 x 8-15 (20 and 25 pds) 4 sets on each arm

Rear delt Flyes on Incline Bench: 5 x 10-20 (15's and 20's)

Bicep Barbell Curl: 4 x 10-12 (20 pound barbell)

Bicep Barbell Curl on Incline Bench: 4 x 10-20 (20 pound barbell)

One arm cable curl: 4 x 10 (35 and 50 pounds) 4 sets of each arm

Dumbell Skull Crushers: 4 x 10-20 (25's, 30's, 35's)

One Arm Tricep Skull Crusher: 3 x 10 (10 pound dumbell)

One arm Tricep Extensions: 4 x 10-20 (5 pounds and 10 pounds)

Abs

3 sets of sit ups till failure
2 sets of oblique crunches till failure
1 set of toe touchers till failure
1 set of knee ups till failure

Notes:
I maybe should I have done Arnold presses first. I felt like there was a lot of pressure in my arm so I had to stop the sets early. Also, I'm realizing that holding the muscle contraction at the top of the movement is very important. I squeezed at the top of my bicep curls and the pump was great.

One arm tricep extensions are helping with the very top of my tricep (right under my armpit) I never seem to hit that part of my tricep correctly.
I didn't get to do tricep pulldowns which are my favorite :(

I love doing shoulders... I love seeing the definition come in. It really motivates me to keep going.

Yesterday's Workout

I went in with a fairly positive attitude yesterday to do my leg workout. I had two main goals: target quads and increase squat depth. I walked out of the gym feeling dissatisfied. It seemed like I spent forever on squat depth and got nowhere. I tried a variety of things.. nothing seemed to work. I want to make sure that, before I add more weight, I have proper form down and depth in my squat. Lack of depth just makes the exercise pointless and doesn't really challenge your quads to grow. 

Today when I walked into the gym, I attempted a few squats even though my legs were sore and... amazing.. my flexibility and form seemed much better and stronger. I was so happy. I want to ask a trainer at the gym to watch my new form to make sure I'm keeping my back straight. I hope to god I'm doing this right. 

The other goal I had, targeting quads, didn't seem to happen either. I woke up today with my glutes and hams sore as hell. I don't understand why. My guess is they were used to compensate for my lack of squat depth. Tomorrow I will work on squats some more.. if I'm not too sore. 

Leg Day and Squat Depth

I've been doing squats for awhile now but one thing I lack is the proper depth in the squat while maintaining a straight back. My feet and knees are in proper place. It's just a matter of practicing depth. Here's what I need to do

http://www.leanitup.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/angles1.jpg

Motivation (lack of)

My mom has been struggling with cancer for a few years now and although she puts on a smile and tries to stay positive, she has her bad days. Seeing her like that makes me sad and unmotivated.

Leg workout

Today I'm going to try to split my work leg out into quads on one day and hamstrings and glutes another day. Hopefully I can get better results by just focusing on one area.

Just an after thought.

Form is more important than amount of weight. If good form can't be kept at a certain weight, decrease the weight until you achieve the best possible form. Decreasing weight doesn't mean weakness, it means training in a smart and effective way. There's no point in doing sets with large weights and poor form.

Back Day

Lat cable pull downs: 4 x 10-20 reps (80-95 pounds)
T bar rows 4 x 10-12 (15-25 pounds)
Dumbell rows 4 x 10-12 (35-45 pounds)
Barbell row 4 x 12-20 (45-65 pounds)
Seated row 4 x 10-12 (60-65 Pounds)

Notes:
I didn't eat enough before I went to the gym so I felt a little weak. Also the gym was hot as fuck and I was covered in sweat.

Matt pointed out that I need to keep my shoulders from turning inward. I need to keep my back straight,  chest out, and shoulders straight.

Also Matt noticed I sometimes let my whole body pull the weight rather than letting my back do all the work.

My back needs to be the primary muscle group used so when I do t bar rows, I can't let my chest come off the padding or else I start using my lower back and shoulders to use the weight. T bars are a middle back exercise.

Dumbell rows seem to work best when I hold for a second at the top of the movement. I feel the full contraction in my back.

Most important thing I need to always keep in mind: Focus on the contraction and hold it for a brief pause.  

I met the amazing Dana Linn Bailey and her husband at the Arnold Expo this weekend!

I waited in line for about four and a half hours to meet her but she was incredibly kind and sweet when I finally got to take a picture with her. She's a huge inspiration to me!!

This chest workout wrecked me! Still sore!

Yesterday was my chest day and my workout left me worn out for the rest of the day and sore as fuck this morning. Here's what I did: 

1. Dumbell Flyes: 5 x 10-15 (15's used for the first set , 25's for the rest of the sets)*I actually did 22 reps with the 15's as a warm up*
2. Incline Dumbell Press: 5 x 10-12 (20's for first set, 25's for the rest) *15 reps with the 20's for warm up*
3. Decline Press: 4 x 10-12 (25 pounds on each side for the first set, moved up to 35 for one set and then 40 pounds for the last two) *20 reps with the 25 pounds for warm up*
4. Bench Press flat with smiths machine: 5 x 10-12 (bar + twenty pounds, bar + 30 pounds) *just the bar for twenty reps to warm up*

Notes: 

• I don't really like doing decline press so sometimes I half ass it. I should have forced myself to do another set. I did one set of warm up and 3 working sets. I should do at least four working sets. I sometimes struggle to figure out how I should sit to make this press work best. Yesterday I sat with the handles at chest level and my shoulders back. It must have worked because the top part of my chest is sore as fuck!
• I was very motivated today after going to the Arnold Expo over the weekend. I met Dana Linn Bailey who is such an inspiration to me. 
• I'm starting to rely more on dumbells and barbells to train rather than machines. I like learning to control the weight in my hands. I feel like machines are much easier!! Easier = not enough of a challenge.

First Post

I created this blog so I can track and share my workouts and progress. I have been lifting since July 2014 but I really haven't recorded my week-by-week progress and how I've changed. Some of my workouts are posted on BodySpace but I don't really like the layout of the mobile app. I'd rather be able to just freely write and make notes about my sessions. I'll try to post my workouts each day! I workout about 4-5 times a week. Thank you to all those who have been supportive of me so far!