back to back but ohhh so good!

i just exercised yesterday so i should not do it today. however, because of my work schedule im not resting today. if you do back to back all the time it would not be good.  sometimes just shocking the muscles by doing something different is ok, though. yesterday was what i call a mostly pushing day while today will be a mostly pulling day
     the other good thing that im excited about is dropping some weight and doing better form. i like this cuz  i will have much more movement and will feel the whole move better than just tossing heavy weights around on the borderline of injury and discouragement.
deadlift 8x150
dumbbell curl 8x30
concentration curl 8x30
barbell curl 8x70
barbell row 8x70
inverted row 50
dumbbell reverse grip benchpress 8x30
crunches 90
military press 3x70
deadlift one of my very weakest moves. i will be dropping significant weight next rotation. i need to get deeper and in more control of the weight. for an inspiration ill read dave drapers weekly blog. just down to earth and keeps on trucking
dumbbell curls great form today if i do say so myself. it is hard to say but proper full movement makes the targeted muscles feel it more than just tossing it.
concentration curl just feels comfy but i really am concentrating on good form and exaggerated full movement done fairly slowly
barbell curl more stressful than i thought but at least no cheating. strict form.
barbell row using shoulder width grip. lifting as high as i can since the weight is so light for this exercise
inverted row ill be changing this out next rotation
dumbell reverse grip bench press just a strange different move i picked up on the internet
crunches my goal is eventually 100 then ill think of another movement. ooooph that smarts
overhead press if you look through the web youll see that many many lifters recommend overhead presses. so i do incorporate this move. now i will have better control (i hope). yeah, i did have much better form. it also feels good to do full movements instead of partials at the outer limit of safety
    thats about it for this diary
fred from nashville
   

up the intensity!

ok , today we up the intensity by adding 5 lbs more per movement. intensity helps. you can do it several ways like speed, sets, reps or weight . this week its weight. in a few more weeks you will see the number of reps sky rocket.
the exercises of the day
squat 8x130
calf raise 8x130
bench press 8x160
arnold press 8x30
seated dumbbell extension 8x30
kickbacks 8x30
dips 12
pushups 14
military press 5x100
squat didnt feel too bad. always aiming to get lower in the movement
calf raises i normally do that movement without resting after the squats. otherwise i rest a minute or 2 before the next exercise
bench press for the last few weeks every bp has been a personal record. are they perfectly done? no! the 1st one i lower as deep as possible, the others are quick partials. when i reach 170 i will cut back drastically so i can do "perfect" ones
arnold press upping the weight by 5lbs per dumbbell makes a   b   i    g     difference in effort.
seated dumbbell extension not a tough exercise but always gives a nice burn and my tris feel it the next day
kickbacks again makes my tris burn
dips if you have shoulder problems (like me) you will feel them . be careful
pushups just feels good, strong and still easy. good form(even for me)
overhead press okay thats the end of trying at 10 lbs for now. next week ill be way lower in weight, but higher in form, control and safety
well, thats it for this week. tomorrow ill do my "pulling " exercises
fred from nashville

a new routine !!! and the importance of previewing your blog

well. here we go. a new wednesday routine. this will be for the middle of the week for 6 weeks. how did i arrive at it. well, i knew i wanted to use dumbbells so i surfed the web taking a few exercises from here and there until i felt i had a viable set up. the first day is always an experiment in the amount of weight to use and how it feels.
     last blog i got a big head so i just wrote it and sent it. then i read it. oy! please preview ,then send it. good lesson. but after all im a new guy at this and it is an experiment.
here we go:
bench press 8x25 too light. next week will be 30 lbs. remember these are all dumbbells; not barbells
flys 8x25. go for form . try to feel it all the way. careful of shoulders
upright rows 8x25 ill be lifting as high as i feel comfortable.if you have an arthritic shoulder like me make sure you are not hurting it but rather are strengthening it.
seated press 8x25. i started pressing movements much too late in my routines of the past. i feel this or something similar should be used quite often.
alternating curl 8x25. just feels good. and gets the biceps warm.definitley heavier next week
kickbacks 8x25. try to feel your triceps at the end.
kneeling one arm row 8x25 way too light. add 5 lbs next week
stationary lunge 8x25 yuk! my weakest area. i think the exercise you hate the most you need the most.
ooooh. what rotten form. well, im just learning this. it almost feels like one legged squats. us more mature folks really need get strong legs. for sure for sure.
well, thats it . next wednesday we will add 5 more lbs to some exercises and add another set to the whole routine. i will, also, go through the routine without rests between reps. oh yes, it gets more demanding.
fred from nashville

sunday exercises/importance of written log

for me one of the most important aspects of doing my exercises is having a written plan/log for my routine. if im able to use the pictur ad ill show you mine (dont have to show me yours). this gives me the day, the weight, the exerise, how many and a grand overview of what i will be doing for the next few weeks. for instance not only do i know what im doing today but i know (groan groan ) that next week ill add more pounds or at least shift some of my exercises.
deadlift 8x145 try to get as deep as possible. because my "gym" is on the second floor of my duplex im a little afraid to put too much weight on the bar, so when i hit 150lbs im going to switch exercises.
dumbbell curl 8x25 again, since the weight is so light im using extremely controlled and strict form. next round ill be adding 5lbs. that will make it a total of 6lbs and i will feel it more.
concentration curls 8x25 way too light, but form and control counts. next week well see how controled i am
barbell curl 8x100 only able to 4. bummer. now i will do the rest of my routine and then come back and try to do the other 4reps well, the good thing ina way is next week ill drop a huge amount of weight and start working my way slowly back up
barbell row 8x100 almost relaxing after the curl attempt!!
inverted rows 45 remember this is done lying on my bench wide grip on my barbell and doing like a modified chin. im not sure how much it accomplishes but its almost a resting exercise except for the high speed i do it at
dumbbell reverse grip bench press 8x25 form, form. explosive up very controled down and deeeeep as i can go
crunches 85 my eventual goal is 10. after that im not sure what ill substitute if anything.
standing barbell press 10x100 welllllll...one almost good one followed by 9very partials.
barbell row 4x100 okay, that finishes the rest of my HEAVY curls
i think that about does it for today

fred from nashville

what time should i exercise

     well, now im not use to exercising this late in the day. normally, i exercise early in the morning, but since i had to work today, im doing my friday routine at about 2:30 in the afternoon. just about every lifter ive talked to has a favorite day and time. but the real thing is just to do it!!
     here we go.  darn! couldnt find my gloves. yes i wear old work gloves. some folks dont . some folks do. its not important to me. just shove that metal around.
sqt 8x125 go as deep as you can. dont hurt yourself. i follow this immediately with
calf raise 8x125
now comes the bitch
bench press 8x155 one good one (or pretty good one) followed by 7 fast partials. not pretty but still much better than when i first started (think positive)
arnold dumbbell press 8x25 ahhh feels so good. probably because its so light. this too will change over the next few weeks. just watch.
seated dumbbell extensions 8x25 i love the way it stretches my triceps.
kickbacks 8x25 again, trying to emphasize the tricep burn
dips 11 boy, my rt shoulder hates this. go down as deep as possible. somedays you are the windshield. somedays the bug
pushups 13 boy that felt good. i use pushpstands because it keeps my wrists from hurting.
overhead press 3x100 way more than i should attempt. results only partials, but as i say this weight will be dropped drastically in a few weeks.
feel good now. biceps feeling like a tough guy. total time1 half hour. til next time
fred from nashville

that special wednesday exercise routine oh boy!

its wednesday. time for the creative routine. i like to workout 3x week. sundays and fridays i follow my alternating exhaustive routine that is ongoing. but wednesdays!!!!... i use a dumbbell routine for 6 weeks at a time. this happens to be the last week of this rotation so next week will start a new innovative tortuous, fun (?), semi cardio weight routine.
     if you check out the old school lifters they generally had a routine that they did day in day out, year in year out. the key variation being progressive poundage. nowadays, you will see more and more variation. check out clarence bass, logan franklin, even dave draper. btw, these guys all have their own great websites which i readily admit are my major inspirations.
     well...here we go: this routine only consists of 2 sets but they are non stop with only a rest between sets.
     set1
dumbbell squat 35lbs ea arm x10
stiffleg deadlift 35x10
calfraise 120barbellx20
bp 35x10
milpress 30x10
1arm row 35x10
concentration curls 30x10
kickback 30x10
few minutes later :  oooooph! still panting or should i say gasping. who said you cant use weights for cardio. in fact you can check out the info about this on the web.
also, i admit that on the "milpress" i actually am doing alternating arms. well, what do you expect? im just an average guy.
 set2
yea! i made it. i try to keep my form good since these weights are pretty light, but, whatever, if i have to get a little sloppy so be it. dont stop keep going!
if you want insight from a former mr universe, check out dave draper. his main message seems to be to keep lifting no matter what.  he uses intuitive lifting now which seems to mean, do a routine with moves that you are inspired to do at the moment. of course, hes been lifting about 50 years!
thats it for now

happy new year, moment by moment lifting, how i got started

happy new year! well, its 4:20am and im getting ready to do my exercises. i use an exercise log so i know weeks in advance what exercises ill do . im getting myself pysched up now. while im getting ready i thought id review how i started exercising.
     it was about 10 years ago and i was not liking my deteriorating body. its not that i was a blob but rather that i just did not feel happy about aging (not thrilled about it today either). so i got this book called top shape by joyce vedral. she was in great shape and her book looked so simple. just get a couple of super whimpy dumbbells, a bench and start doing it. that book is very encouraging. even though my weights were light and the exercises were  mild, i got into it. since that time ive been exercising 3 times a week. it becomes a habit that you just cant, wont, dont want to give up. i dont spend hours in some strange gym, youll see. but gosh i feel better.
well, here i go:
deadlift 8x145 oh that was good to get over with. i use a trapbar which allows me to keep the weights loaded on the bar and does not hurt my wrists as bad. boy do i hate (love) that exercise!
dumbbell curls 8x 25 boy, i almost feel guilty that is such a light weight.as you will see in the coming weeks, though, that this will drastically change. im also going through a strict form phase with this particular move.
concentration curls 8x25 per arm the important thing about this is to concentrate on form and use a very controlled movement. one of my weaknesses as you will see is to just toss weights around so i can get heavier. when i switch to very light weights i can do a proper movement and really feel the exercise while being in control. watch this next exercise!!
barbell curls 8x100 oh that was a bitch!!! im still breathing hard. actually, was a personal best . have never before done 8x100. ive always had to do a couple of curls and then come back later to do a couple of more until all 8 were completed. form??? rotten! throw weights around almost out of control? yup. soon you will see a drastic drop in weight to get more control and better all over muscle response.
upright barbell rows 8x100 for some reason i have always found this exercise fairly easy. i use explosive movements or very slow movements when i do this one.
inverted rows 45 for this one i lie down on my flatbench under my benchpress bar. i then do a movement like pullups with my arms very wide. i do it fast and always feel im not getting anywhere.
dumbbell reverse grip bench press 8x25 again, way too easy. but, as ive said this too will change!using very proper form fairly slowly. the more i get into this exercise thing the more i feel that variation is a good thing. i think joe weider used to call this muscle confusion. i think this is the reason you find more varied routines. my email, pal, clarence bass has a fabulous website that explores this and many other things. you will hear me refer to clarence often. he is my ongoing hero and inspiration
crunches 85 what can i say... a pain in the butt but needed
military press 5x100 form absolutely awful! its really more of partial reps. i dont have the oooomph for even one good press. in the next few weeks you will see a huge drop in weight and a return to full contrlled movement. its funny, i feel like even this failure is still helping make progress but it can definitely lead to injury.
     well, thats it for today. i hope some folks will eventually find this little blog and find it straightforward, and maybe even fun