PDA

View Full Version : The Spring of 2013 - HLR's prep



HangingLegRaise
01-21-2013, 02:17 PM
Sup Journalers. :byeb:

So, I'm HangingLegRaise and this journal is going to be surrounding the last 13 weeks (out of 20) of my prep leading up to my second ever competition.
I guess it's best for me to start with a little bit of history. I was a fat kid all through high school, habitually spending hours and hours on the computer playing World of Warcraft, drinking cases of coke and eating wringles. Needless to say, I got ragged for it a lot in school, never had many friends, and had an all around low self esteem.
Through experimenting with psychedelic drugs and meditation (sometimes both at the same time), I started to realize the possibilities of living that I wasn't living up to (and wouldn't be if I kept on going down the road I was travelling on). Bodybuilding to me is about self-discipline and discovery. I believe that a healthy body means a healthy mind and vice-versa, and that the margins of both can forever be expanded through confidence, introspection and humility.
I competed in my first natty competition back in 2011, in which I won the junior category. Although I was happy with the conditioning I came in (simply because I'd never been that lean before) I flattened out and lost too much muscle from pushing too hard. Also, I had some excess skin issues around my mid-section from never having been that lean before.


The following pictures are 10 weeks outs vs. 1 week out circa the summer of 2011
141318141319141320141321


These two pics are the mid-point of the above, about 6 weeks out.
141322141323


And, here's the end result. Like I said, I messed up by coming in flat from trying some last minute hocus pocus that I should've stayed away from (fiddling with water too much).
141324141325141326


I have some progress photos from this current prep I am in on my camera, but it's an old camera, so I've lost the cable that connects it to the computer. I'll be sure to go buy one and have some NEW photos up in here later.

HangingLegRaise
01-21-2013, 02:18 PM
Oh yeah and, if you hadn't figured it out yet, I'm natty.

HangingLegRaise
01-21-2013, 02:24 PM
January 21st! My first RXjournal entry.

No am cardio.
LEGS! :beerbang:
training off of my first meal.

15 minutes of biking (about five minutes) active stretching and a quick leg extension/leg curl super set for the joints.
Back Squats (just hitting parallel, not going below) - warm up, 3 sets of 10 reps, last set was a triple strip set doing 10 reps, stripping, 10 reps, stripping, 10 reps, pause, partials until I couldn't get out of the bucket and ditched the barbell on the safety pins.
Horizontal leg press (narrow and low foot stance) - 1 set of 20, 1 set of 15, 1 set of 10, pause, 4, pause, 4, pause, 2 negatives.
Leg extension, walking barbell lunges, goblet squat tri-set (my favourite ;D) - 3 rounds of 10-15 reps each, last round everything was to failure + partials to failure.
Seated hamstring curl (nothing magical about this one) - 3 sets of10 slow, controlled reps, squeezing at the top plus 20 partials.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.mymj.nl/michaeljordan/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/michael_jordan_wallpaper_4.jpg

Jordan Coburn
01-21-2013, 02:46 PM
Nice legs and overall shape. Whats the diet like?

I'll be following!

HangingLegRaise
01-21-2013, 03:42 PM
My diet's moderately low carbs, moderately high fats (and obviously protein). I've been dieting for 7 weeks now, and I'm only just now at 13 weeks out adding in cardio, 20 minutes post-workout 4 days a week.

Average day of eating:


Meal 1: 4 whole eggs, 4 oz turkey bacon in extra virgin coconut oil w/ baby spinach and a few cherry tomatoes wilted in the pan.

Meal 2 (pre w.o): 1.5 scoops whey isolate from true-nutrition.com, about a half a cup of cream of rice w/ a tablespoon of either raw almond butter or raw macadamia nut butter mixed in.

Meal 3 (post w.o): 5.5 oz tilapia, 9 oz cooked white rice.

Meal 4: 5 oz top sirloin medallion beef w/ a cup of diced pineapple and 2 cups of steamed broccoli

Meal 5: 5 oz chicken breast, cut up into an iceburg lettuce salad w/ raw mushrooms and 4 oz avocado

Meal 6: egg whites and an oz. of walnuts, chamomile tea, then pass out BED (the best part of the day).

Off-days I reduce my carbs to about 60% of what they are here.

Every two-three weeks (whenever I feel overly tired, flat, exhausted, etc) I have a carb refeed meal at night; usually sushi. I LOVE MY SUSHI!

D-NUTZ
01-21-2013, 04:39 PM
Do I know you from somewhere?

HangingLegRaise
01-21-2013, 04:47 PM
Do I know you from somewhere?

idk, do you go to Curves too?

D-NUTZ
01-21-2013, 04:54 PM
idk, do you go to Curves too?

Ah no. Planet Fitness here.

Curves scares me.

HangingLegRaise
01-21-2013, 04:56 PM
I love Curves. My trainer Leslie says I'm making great progress. We're looking at reworking my carbs to include special K bars.

HangingLegRaise
01-22-2013, 09:39 AM
January 22nd!

Fucking cold as tits today. -15 Celsius before the wind chill...
Because of that, thank God it's an off day, I'm not up for walking to the gym in that.

Sitting at 175 this morning.

inspiration of the day:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=iluqmUGG6Yo

HangingLegRaise
01-22-2013, 09:48 AM
Just to put it up here, my split:

Legs
Off
Chest & Calves
Back & Abs
Off
Shoulders
Arms
(repeat)

This split works for me mostly because I can hit the big three Monday through Thursday while I'm at school, then Friday through Sunday when I work 9 hours a day I just have arms and shoulders, two body-parts that I look at as just accessory work once I've crushed legs, back and chest.

HangingLegRaise
01-22-2013, 02:43 PM
Relaxed back shot, 20 weeks out vs. 15 weeks out.
141377141378

(I realize the lighting is different, but whatever)

HangingLegRaise
01-23-2013, 05:01 PM
January 23rd!

Chest Day!
Trained in the middle of the day, failed at dodging the busy hours at my university gym. So many bros

Flat Dumbbell Press (nothing too heavy, reps for speed, aiming for 0 failed reps in prep for the next exercise) - warm up, 5 sets x 8, 6, 4, 3, 3. Super huge pump after this.
Incline Barbell Press (counting 1 second pause at the bottom of every rep) 5 sets x 8, 6, 5, 5, finishing with 5, 15 second pause (moved up rack pins), dead-stop partials off the pins till complete failure.
Flat Dumbbell Flies - 3 sets x 10, 8, 6, 10 second pause, 3, 10 second pause, partial presses till failure.
Dips - 4 sets x 20 + partials.
Seated Calve Press & Standing Calve Raise S.S. - warm up, 4 sets x 8-12 HEAVY, deep stretching reps & 10 slow, hard contractions
20 minutes of incline treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.ebodybuildingblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Free-Arnold-Schwarzenegger-Wallpapers-41.jpg

D-NUTZ
01-23-2013, 05:44 PM
I feel you. My gym has gotten a lot better now that most athletes train later in the day.

HangingLegRaise
01-23-2013, 06:07 PM
I like training in the morning (when I'm feeling awake enough for it), which is impossible at school because the football team take up all the squat/power racks from 7am till almost 10am, then there's a good window of opportunity till about 2pm, but from then on good luck!

HangingLegRaise
01-23-2013, 06:07 PM
The thing that really pisses me off about my school gym is they close early Fridays, then SUPER early on Saturdays (4pm...) yet they're open 'till 11pm every other night, including Sunday. What the fuck is that?

Jordan Coburn
01-23-2013, 06:32 PM
I remember when I was doing my undergrad it was a mega pain trying to train around the bros and the fucked up hours too. Keep pounding away man. Noticeably leaner from the back, btw.

HangingLegRaise
01-23-2013, 07:03 PM
Thanks man. The thing that shocked me about that comparison was how much fluff dropped off my midsection.

HangingLegRaise
01-24-2013, 05:05 PM
January 24th!

Back day baby!
Training in the middle of the day, lots of bros so I decided to rock a cut off to break some hearts hahaha.
I'm always very mindful of using very specific grips angles and what-not when I train back. Today's no exception.
Kind of high volume.

Bent-over Barbell Row (Bent at 45 degrees, shoulder width, over-hand grip, pulling into the waist, dead-hang at the bottom of every rep, explosive concentric) - warm up, 185 x 6, 205 x 6, 225 x 6, 225 x 6, pause, 4, strip to 205, 4, strip to 185, 4, pause, 5 dead-stop reps off the floor. That last set SUCKED!
Pull-ups (Narrow, neutral grip, super slow negatives) - 5 sets x 6.
Cable Rows (Medium, over-hand grip, pulling to the sternum, normal tempo) - 3 sets x 12, 12, 10, strip, 12, strip, 12, strip, 10 super slow negatives.
Underhand Pull-downs (Cable machine, fixed with my body leaned back, Yates-esque tempo) - 3 sets x 15, 15, 12, pause, 6, pause, partials till failure.
Snatch Grip High Pulls (See video) - 4 sets x 8, 8, 8, 8.
Back Extensions (holding 45s, adding one every set), 3 sets, 10, 10, 10, strip, 10, strip, 10.
20 minutes of incline treadmill cardio.



Snatch Grip High Pulls:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mkiCRE6AYY&list=UUhfrJg4nRaTCcKjUKbGQa2A& index=2



inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/29582_10151351883023901_1023756476_n.jpg

HangingLegRaise
01-24-2013, 05:22 PM
Just did an ice-water plunge... fun times were had *sarcasm*

D-NUTZ
01-24-2013, 05:34 PM
Those high pulls are brutal.

HangingLegRaise
01-24-2013, 07:02 PM
Hell yeah they are. You'd think "hey, they're a deadlift right? I can go pretty heavy" but no, lol. I only went up to 215 today, it's all about the shrug at the top. And they're great for building grip stretch, especially if your gym has solid plates.

HangingLegRaise
01-25-2013, 11:05 PM
January 25th!

Sitting at 174 this morning.
Off-day, but I did have my lovely 9 hour Friday-night shift.
Hope everyone had/is having an awesome Friday.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.listofimages.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/boxing-muhammad-ali-ring-sports.jpg

HangingLegRaise
01-26-2013, 07:58 PM
January 26th!

Not sure what I weigh this morning, I don't have a scale at the place I sleep on the weekends. Legs very lean and cut this morning but flat in the upper-body, will have pics up tomorrow or Monday.

Shoulder day!
Trained after a nice long 9 hour shift.
Flat as FUCK this morning from my chest and back workout this week, so today was just a pump workout (albeit intense) with some heavy presses in the middle.

Dumbbell Side Laterals (strict, squeezing at the top, not letting the dumbbells touch my side) warm up, 3 sets x 12, 10, 8, rest-pause, 6, rest-pause, 4, rest-pause, 20 partials. (15 second rest-pauses).
Dumbbell Shoulder Press (90 degree bench, pausing at the bottom) warm up, 3 sets x 6, 8 + partials, 8 + partials, strip, 8.
Upright Barbell Rows (strict, no body-swing, shoulder width, pulling all the way to the throat), 4 sets, 15, 12, 8, 8, strip, 8, strip, 8, super wide grip partials till failure.
Seated Dumbbell Front Raise (very strict, pausing at the top, dead-hang at the bottom), 3 sets x 12, 8, 8, rest-pause, 4, rest-pause, partials till failure.
Bent-over Dumbbell Rear Lateral Raise - 4 sets x 12, 10, 8, strip, 8 (x2)


inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/296811_410856082327115_1563413568_n.jpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnCFWlso-UQ

HangingLegRaise
01-26-2013, 08:05 PM
20 minutes incline treadmill post-workout too.

Jordan Coburn
01-26-2013, 08:11 PM
Nice volume. I like drop sets on laterals right into partials as well. Pumps the shit out of them.

HangingLegRaise
01-26-2013, 08:23 PM
Hell yeah. I've seen people do partial stuff for shoulders as their set, but idk, I feel like they're best used just as an intensifier. My favourite intensifier too! (especially on squats ;D)

Jordan Coburn
01-26-2013, 08:50 PM
Hell yeah. I've seen people do partial stuff for shoulders as their set, but idk, I feel like they're best used just as an intensifier. My favourite intensifier too! (especially on squats ;D)

I agree. I like them at the end of a set of normal rom reps or on the back end of a superset.

HangingLegRaise
01-26-2013, 09:07 PM
One of the most painful things you can do is do a triple drop set where you do full rom, high rep partial rom and then full rom with REALLY slow negatives. After high rep partials your muscle won't want to fully contract to save its life haha

Jordan Coburn
01-26-2013, 09:12 PM
One of the most painful things you can do is do a triple drop set where you do full rom, high rep partial rom and then full rom with REALLY slow negatives. After high rep partials your muscle won't want to fully contract to save its life haha

Jesus...that sounds brutal haha. Btw: i noticed in your stage pics that they were marked OPA...Ontario physique association?

HangingLegRaise
01-26-2013, 09:48 PM
Yessir

HangingLegRaise
01-26-2013, 09:49 PM
They water-mark all their photos so you have to actually BUY them... cheap bastards. So, I just took screen-shots of my picture haha.

HangingLegRaise
01-27-2013, 07:56 AM
January 27th!

About to hit some a.m. arms, I just do super-sets of tri's and bi's for the pump, so nothing special there.
20 minutes incline treadmill post-workout



inspiration of the day:
http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5bui6i2qg1rs4ej4o1_1280.jpg



ps: new "Top Gear" airs tonight, for anyone who's into that show.

D-NUTZ
01-27-2013, 12:13 PM
SS have worked best for me with arms.

HangingLegRaise
01-27-2013, 08:37 PM
Arms!

Cable Preacher-curl s.s. with Rope Press-downs - 3 x 10-12 & 10-12, finished with partials on the last set of each.
Weighted Dips (body up-right, dumbbell between my feet) s.s. with Dumbbell Curls - 20 lbs + bodyweight for 4 x 10 & 10-12.
Cable Overhead French-curl s.s. with Cable Straight-bar Curl (facing away from the rack, cable going between my feet) - 3 x 10-15 & 10-15, finished with a triple drop on the last seat of each.
Barbell Skullcrushers s.s. with Hammer Curls - 3 x 8-10 & 8-10, finished with partials and strip set on each.
20 minutes incline treadmill cardio

HangingLegRaise
01-27-2013, 08:40 PM
SS have worked best for me with arms.

I find volume's what works best for my arms, the super-sets just keep it interesting.

HangingLegRaise
01-27-2013, 09:09 PM
Pics from 13 weeks out (last weekend).
141608141609

HangingLegRaise
01-28-2013, 01:56 PM
January 28th!

Leg Day!
Training in the a.m. off my first meal.

Barbell Back Squat (shoulder width stance, just looking to hit parallel and explode up) - warm up, 4 working sets x 8, 6, 6, 5.
Front Squat (hip width stance, heels raised, very deep, 2 second pause at the bottom of every rep) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 15, 12, 11.
Leg Extensions (Full r.o.m. first and then partials, upping the weight for the partials) - 3 sets of 10/10, 10/10, 10/10, strip, 10 partials, strip, 10 full r.o.m.
Leg Curl (Seated machine with the seat all the way back, squeezing at the top of every rep) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 12, 10, 10 + partials, strip, 10 + partials, strip, 8 + 20 partials.
Romanian Deadlift (standing on a block, narrow stance, pausing at the bottom) - 1 warm up, 3 working x 12, 6, 6, strip 8.



inspiration of the day:
http://i1224.photobucket.com/albums/ee379/ZBlacktt2/kai_gr10.jpg
http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=348737.0;attach=38 3394;image
http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=348737.0;attach=38 3521;image
http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=348737.0;attach=38 3053;image

HangingLegRaise
01-29-2013, 04:55 PM
January 29th!

Off day.
Some leg shots from this morning on an empty stomach, suuuuuper flat from leg day yesterday.
141675141676141677141678141679141680

HangingLegRaise
01-30-2013, 02:30 PM
January 30th!

Chest and calves!

Incline Dumbbell Press (Nothing too heavy, just to get the blood flowing) warm up, 4 working sets x 8, 8, 8, 6, 15 second rest-pause, partials till failure.
Flat Barbell Press (Explosive off of rack pins) 4 sets x 6, 5, 5, rest-pause, partials till failure (x2).
Weighted Dips (Stretching the peck) 3 working sets x 10, 8, strip, partials till failure (x2).
Dumbbell Flies off the floor (Exercise mat under my upper back for shoulder mobility and to open up the rib-cage, very important not to touch the floor with your elbows, open your arms and sternum up very wide at the bottom and pause for greater time under tension) 3 sets x 12, 8, pause, 6, pause, 4 (x2)
Cable Flies - 1 working set x 16, pause, 8, pause, 5
Seated Calve Press & Standing Calve Raise S.S. - warm up, 4 sets x 8-12 HEAVY, deep stretching reps & 10 slow, hard contractions
20 minutes of incline treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://vonsfitnesstips.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/monday-motivation-12.jpeg

HangingLegRaise
01-31-2013, 02:44 PM
January 31st!

Back Day! I fucking KILLED it today, I wish I could've gone on forever.

Deadlifts (Conventional, squeezing the shit out of my back throughout) warm up, 4 working sets x 8, 6, 6, 25 (15 pause 10). That last set MURDERED me.
Pull-ups (Shoulder width, overhand grip, pause at the bottom, explosive up) 3 working sets x 5 for speed.
One-arm Dumbbell Rows (Staggered-feet, 45 degree to floor, holding for count of 1 at the top) 3 working sets x 10, 10, 20 (10, pause, 6, pause, 4).
Cable Row (Close grip, squeezing, super strict) 3 working sets x 12, 8 + 2 cheat reps, 8 + 2 cheat reps, strip, 16 (10, pause, 6) + partials till failure.
Cable Pullovers (Straight bar) 3 working sets x 12, 8 + 8 partials, 8 + 16 partials.
20 minutes incline treadmill cardio.


inspiration of the day:
I saw a hearse pass down the street today when I was in the gym, and it made me think of a close family-friend's funeral, motivated the hell out of me. I was reminded of how hard our elders work to make our lives better, and - sometimes - how little we appreciate it.

data4
01-31-2013, 03:32 PM
January 31st!

Back Day! I fucking KILLED it today, I wish I could've gone on forever.

Deadlifts (Conventional, squeezing the shit out of my back throughout) warm up, 4 working sets x 8, 6, 6, 25 (15 pause 10). That last set MURDERED me.
Pull-ups (Shoulder width, overhand grip, pause at the bottom, explosive up) 3 working sets x 5 for speed.
One-arm Dumbbell Rows (Staggered-feet, 45 degree to floor, holding for count of 1 at the top) 3 working sets x 10, 10, 20 (10, pause, 6, pause, 4).
Cable Row (Close grip, squeezing, super strict) 3 working sets x 12, 8 + 2 cheat reps, 8 + 2 cheat reps, strip, 16 (10, pause, 6) + partials till failure.
Cable Pullovers (Straight bar) 3 working sets x 12, 8 + 8 partials, 8 + 16 partials.
20 minutes incline treadmill cardio.


inspiration of the day:
I saw a hearse pass down the street today when I was in the gym, and it made me think of a close family-friend's funeral, motivated the hell out of me. I was reminded of how hard our elders work to make our lives better, and - sometimes - how little we appreciate it.

Good work man. Its always nice to have insane training during prep. Keep up the grind. The weeks will fly by!

Jordan Coburn
01-31-2013, 03:38 PM
glad to see that training is still going well! keep up the good work!

HangingLegRaise
01-31-2013, 04:02 PM
Good work man. Its always nice to have insane training during prep. Keep up the grind. The weeks will fly by!


glad to see that training is still going well! keep up the good work!

11 weeks to go baby!

HangingLegRaise
02-02-2013, 09:34 PM
February 2nd!

Carb refeed day! I just hit some sushi post-workout.. mmmm....

Shoulder day!

Dumbbell Side Laterals (strict, not letting arms touch my sides, pause at the top) warm ups, 4 working sets, 25 x 10, x 10, x 10, 45 x 30 partials/strip 15 x 15 very slow full r.o.m.
Dumbbell Shoulder Press (pause at the bottom, explosive) warm ups, 4 working sets x 8, x 8, x 7, x 20.
Supinated Dumbbell Front Raise (very strict) 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8/strip 10
Bent-over Dumbbell Lateral (partials) 3 working sets x 20, x 20, x 20.
Cable Upright Row (very strict, pausing at the top) 3 sets x 12, 10, 10.
20 minutes incline treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.ironmanmagazine.com/blogs/lonnie/wp-content/uploads/862rb0708-lee-banks.jpg

HangingLegRaise
02-03-2013, 06:59 PM
February 3rd!

Arm Day!
Awesome pump today from all those carbs last night hahaha.

Cable preacher curl s.s. w/ Rope press downs - warmups, 3 working sets x 10/12, x 10/10, x 8 + 2 negatives/ 12 + partials till failure
Weighted Dips s.s. w/ Dumbbell Curls (body very upright on the dips)1 warmup, 3 working sets x 15/12, x 12/10, x 8 + bw x 8/8, strip 8Cable Barbell Curl s.s. w/ Overhead Dumbbell extensions 3 work sets x 15/12, x 15/12, x15 + partials, strip 6 negatives/10, strip, 8.
Dumbbell Skulls s.s. w/ Dumbbell Hammer curls 3 working sets x 10/10

HangingLegRaise
02-04-2013, 01:39 PM
February 4th!

Leg Day!
I killed it again today, it's days like that you wish could go on forever.

Leg Extensions - warmups, 2 working sets strictly for a pump x 12, x 10.
Horizontal Leg Press (narrow and low stance, 3 second negatives, pause at the bottom) - warm ups, working up to a hard 10 reps, then rest paused that till failure 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 23 (12, pause, 6, pause, 3, pause, 2 very slow negatives).
Front Squat (narrow stance, heels raised, 3 second negatives, pause at the bottom) - 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 8 strip 8 (1.5 reps).
Single Leg Curls (on a leg extension machine) 3 working sets x 12, x 8 strip x 8, x 8, pause, 4.
Walking Lunges (barbell, long wide strides) 1 warm up to get the rhythm, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 strip to bodyweight x 12.
Bodyweight Ham-curls (10 second negatives, pushing off a bench for the concentric) 2 working sets to failure.


inspiration of the day:
http://www.bodybuilders.gr/competitions/2012-olympia/prejudging/kai-greene-mr-olympia-2012-4.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=nrfDS-Q64Z5ZWM&tbnid=zTFWgsR5w5SdXM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bodybuilders.gr%2Fforum%2Fsho wthread.php%3Ft%3D31877&ei=WAAQUayKNauQyQHK-4CoAg&psig=AFQjCNHvqrmtsPtagbV5DeZlQIHuc29zyg&ust=1360089560921368)

HangingLegRaise
02-05-2013, 08:55 AM
No training today, but I thought I'd share this video series:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjRZHC7RRSU

HangingLegRaise
02-05-2013, 04:17 PM
Update:


I just got my exam schedule for the end of the semester, and unfortunately one of my exams lands on the same night as the athlete's meeting for the competition I was gunning for... What do you guys think, should I try to get it deferred? or should I look into doing the natty show 4 weeks prior to this one I was going to enter? The problem with that is I'm looking to move apartments at the end of April and that might add a lot of unnecessary stress. or do I just keep the cut up, skip the competition and take advantage of a clean rebound to compete later in the summer?

HangingLegRaise
02-06-2013, 05:06 PM
February 6th!

Killer chest & calves day today, awesome pump, awesome power.

Incline Barbell Press (slow negatives, pause, explosive eccentrics for speed) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 5, x 5, x 5, x3 strip x8 pause, partials till failure.
Flat Dumbbell Press (started with neutral to pronated grip for 2 sets, didn't feel it then did standard presses) - 2 working sets of twists x 10, x 8, 2 working sets of regular x 8 pause 10 partials, x 6 pause partials to failure.
Weighted Dips (10 second pause in the middle of every set) - 3 working sets x 10 pause 10, x 10 pause 10, x 10 pause 10 pause 10 partials (fail).
Over-head Rope Stretches s.s. w/ Machine Press (felt really good on these, see video) - 4 working sets x 10/10, x 10/8, x 10/7, x 10/6 strip 6 strip 8 and partials till failure.
Bent-knee Calve Press - 3 working sets x 30, x 30, x 30.
Straight-leg Seated Calve Press - (very heavy stretch) 4 working sets x 10, x 10, x 10, x 10 and partials till failure.
20 minutes incline treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://i34.tinypic.com/2rddxf9.jpg

Gerb
02-07-2013, 12:25 AM
Update:


I just got my exam schedule for the end of the semester, and unfortunately one of my exams lands on the same night as the athlete's meeting for the competition I was gunning for... What do you guys think, should I try to get it deferred? or should I look into doing the natty show 4 weeks prior to this one I was going to enter? The problem with that is I'm looking to move apartments at the end of April and that might add a lot of unnecessary stress. or do I just keep the cut up, skip the competition and take advantage of a clean rebound to compete later in the summer?

My advice, always push shows back if things come up, don't move them forward. And school first, you got your whole life to compete. (Dad Gerb advice)

HangingLegRaise
02-07-2013, 02:47 PM
My advice, always push shows back if things come up, don't move them forward. And school first, you got your whole life to compete. (Dad Gerb advice)

Definitely makes sense. I generally do well in school, so I'm not worried about how it might effect my studying and performance on the exam, just whether or not I should fight to get it deferred. I think I'm still going to give getting a deferral a try, but if it doesn't go through right away I won't fight for with my life.

HangingLegRaise
02-07-2013, 03:01 PM
February 7th!

Back day, pretty standard.

Deadlifts (controlled, squeezing really hard with the back, only kissing the ground gently) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 6, x 5, x 3, x 7.
Underhand Pullups (pumping, pausing at the bottom, very little rest between sets) - 4 working sets x 8, x 6, x 6, x 5 (+ 2 negatives).
Pendlay Rows (Shoulder width grip, pausing on the ground , explosive) - 4 working sets x 6, x 6, x 6, x 6.
Cable Row (very strict pausing to squeeze and stretch with every rep, neutral close-grip) - 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 (+ partials to failure) strip x 8 (+ partials to failure) strip x 10 (+ partials to failure).
Pull-down Machine (See picture below, facing away from the machine pulling straight down) 2 working sets x 8 (+ 8 partials), x 10 (+ partials) strip x 20.
20 minutes incline treadmill

http://www.allaboutfitness.com/images/ap-pl-lat.jpg



inspiration of the day:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N769bZ_tmjA

Jordan Coburn
02-07-2013, 03:45 PM
Good looking back day man. I often do pulldowns facing away from knee pads too...way better mmc for some reason.

First time i competed was when i was in uni too. If I could do it over again I would have just waited...that said you look waaaaaay better then me at that point so its your call. Either way keep up the great work.

HangingLegRaise
02-07-2013, 05:02 PM
Thanks for that dude. I keep doubting my conditioning for some reason still... lol

HangingLegRaise
02-09-2013, 10:41 PM
February 9th! 10 weeks out.

Shoulder day, broke a PR on shoulder presses today... which I definitely wasn't expecting in the middle of my diet.

Seated Side Laterals (very strict) warm ups, 4 working sets x 15, x 15, x 12, x 10 (+ 20 partials) strip x 6 (+ partials till failure).
Dumbbell Shoulder Press - warm ups, 3 working sets x 9, x 8, x 6 strip x 10 strip x 15
Front Raise with a Plate (Raising up and twisting the plate at the top, AWESOME contraction) 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 10 strip x 10.
Rear Delt Dumbbell Swings s.s. w/ Rear Lateral Raises (High rep, heavy partials s.s. with powerful contractions with a lighter weight. D-NUTZ knows what this is all about) 2 working sets x 30/10, x 30/10.
Rear Peck-Deck (Just going for a squeeze) 3 working sets x 12, x 8, x 8.
20 minutes incline treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.rachelwalkeronline.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/396335_10150538039062544_605377543_8815268_5697957 01_n.jpg

D-NUTZ
02-09-2013, 11:13 PM
Swings are my fucking favorite for rears. Super high reps.

HangingLegRaise
02-10-2013, 07:39 AM
They definitely bring the pain haha. Nothing like that feeling of your whole upper back being on fire.

Jordan Coburn
02-10-2013, 10:56 AM
hit up some swings after back yesterday. fucking brutal.

HangingLegRaise
02-10-2013, 07:05 PM
February 10th!

Arm Day, did something a little different today. Awesome pump.

Cable Concentration Curl (da pump) warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 9, x 9 + negatives.
Standing Dumbbell Curl s.s. w/ Rope Hammer Curl (Very controlled, pausing and squeezing all over the place) 4 working sets x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/8, x 10/8 + partials.
Incline Curl (stretching, keeping wrist supinated the whole time) 3 working sets x 10 + partials, x 10 + partials, x 10 + partials.
Single Arm Cable Pressdown (just warming up before the tri-set, going for a slight pump) 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8.
Close Grip Bench, Dumbbell Skull and Overhead Extension Tri-set (The goal with this is to get a heavy stretch under weight on the CGBP keeping my elbows in tight, getting a powerful contraction on the dumbbell skulls and then stretching out the tricep with the overheads) 4 working sets x 8/8/8, x 8/8/8, x 8/8/8, x 8/8/8.
20 minutes incline treadmill.

Cardio and diet changes slightly today.


inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/555983_10151436045205155_253085281_n.jpg

D-NUTZ
02-10-2013, 07:14 PM
Ew cardio.

HangingLegRaise
02-10-2013, 07:24 PM
lol, it's really peaceful for me. I listen to lectures on my ipod.
I'm moving from 20 minutes low intensity 4x post workout per week to 25 minutes low intensity once a week postworkout and 15-20 minutes of HIIT 2x a week

the bull eso
02-10-2013, 07:38 PM
You got a solid log going here and have inspired me to step up my game.... Keep up the great work! I'll be following and supporting...

HangingLegRaise
02-10-2013, 09:04 PM
You got a solid log going here and have inspired me to step up my game.... Keep up the great work! I'll be following and supporting...

Thanks man. 10 weeks to go! :beerbang:

HangingLegRaise
02-11-2013, 01:42 PM
February 11th!

Killer leg session this morning, despite my hips feeling a little out of whack.

Barbell Back Squats (I just went to hit parallel on these and explode up, didn't go heavy just to take it easy because I wasn't feeling well aligned so I stuck to 225 for reps) warm ups, 3 working sets x 20, x 20, x 20. The first set was with a few short, 3 second pauses, second set I had to pause a little longer and then on my last set I had to completely rack the weight twice for a count of 5 because I couldn't stand with the weight on my back anymore haha.
Horizontal Leg Press (3 second negatives with a low and narrow stance, heavy, stretching out my quads after all those squats) 4 working sets x 12, x 10, x 8, x 6.
Leg Extensions (finishing quads with a powerful squeeze) 2 working sets x 30 (15 full rom 15 half), x 50 (15 full rom 15 half 20 quarters).
Seated Leg Curl s.s. w/ Walking Lunges (barbell on my back) 3 working sets x 12/10, x 12/10, x 10/10.
Bodyweight Reverse Hamstring Curl (10 second negatives) 2 working sets x 6, x 6.



inspiration of the day:
http://pics.musculardevelopment.com/photos/transferred/JEB_0850wtmk_MKADCDRVIA.JPG

guruhonza
02-12-2013, 08:30 AM
3x 20x 225 what a suicide attempt! You work really hard. Great diary so far.

You are one of my favourite "muscle boards" members here on rxmuscle and MD too.
Can I have several questions for you?

1) Kai Greene is your favourite bb, right?

2) What's the most important for you as a fan about bodybuilder? His mass, conditioning, shape, freaky bodyparts or else?

3) How many podcasts/radio shows do you follow? I guess it's more than HMR and JRE.

HangingLegRaise
02-13-2013, 02:44 PM
3x 20x 225 what a suicide attempt! You work really hard. Great diary so far.

You are one of my favourite "muscle boards" members here on rxmuscle and MD too.
Can I have several questions for you?

1) Kai Greene is your favourite bb, right?

2) What's the most important for you as a fan about bodybuilder? His mass, conditioning, shape, freaky bodyparts or else?

3) How many podcasts/radio shows do you follow? I guess it's more than HMR and JRE.I have a low resting heart-rate so stuff like that's not a problem for me.
Thanks for the complements dude.

1) Definitely one of my top 2 current pros.
2) it sounds weird, but their personality/work ethic. I remember there were a load of lifestyle vids following Roelly in team-andro in 2009/2010 and that really made me respect him as a bodybuilder. Funny guy too.
3) HMR, the new college muscle radio, joe rogan experience and bill burr's monday morning podcast. that's about it.

HangingLegRaise
02-13-2013, 02:57 PM
February 13th!

Chest day, felt cloudly and tired as fuck, but I got the job done nonetheless.

Incline Dumbbell Press (nothing too heavy, staying very controlled for a good squeeze) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 8, x 6, x 6, x 5 strip 8 + partials to failure.
Flat Barbell Press (3 second negatives, pausing at the bottom, powerful positive, just going for speed not failure) 3 working sets x 5, x 5, x 5 strip 10.
Flat Dumbbell Flies ("cluster sets" 10 second rest pause in the middle of every set) 3 working sets x 10 - 10, x 10 - 6, x 10 - 6 - partials till failure.
Over-head Rope Stretches s.s. w/ Dips - 4 working sets x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10 + partials to failure.
Seated Calve Press s.s. w/ Standing Calve Raise (Super heavy on the calve press, leaning forward for maximal stretch and then squeezing very hard on the standing raises, stretching deep between every set and then repeating) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10 + partials to failure/10.
Incline Treadmill HIIT Cardio (5 minute warm up, 10 rounds of 20 second maximal efforts, 60-80 second rests just waiting for heart-rate to settle down).



inspiration of the day:
http://pathcalledpersistence.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/tumblr_lruyw8gfzq1qc9ekbo1_500.jpg?w=1000&h=

D-NUTZ
02-13-2013, 08:14 PM
I love the way you did flat barbell. I feel like It has helped my pecs a ton.

HangingLegRaise
02-13-2013, 10:34 PM
Flat barbell has been the most essential movement to my chest training from day 1, but I've recently moved away from doing it heavily and just using it to work on power instead. I do a lot of my power movements like that, going for speed rather than failure so that power translates to heavier weight on other, better hypertrophy movements, especially deadlifts. I never go to complete failure on conventional deadlifts anymore.

HangingLegRaise
02-14-2013, 11:54 AM
February 14th!

Back and abs this morning. Lowered my volume a bit this week to accommodate adding HIIT in yesterday. Will go back to my usual volume in a week or two.

Deadlifts (Slow negatives, barely even kissing the ground. Going for control and stimulus under heavy weight, not failure) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 5, x 5, x 5.
Dumbbell Rows (Staggered stance, dead-hang at the bottom, squeezing for long negatives) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8, x 7 pause x 5 strip x 5.
Wide Lat Pull-downs (Pulling straight down to face from the elbows) 3 working sets x 10, x 8 + partials, x 8 + partials strip x 6 + partials strip x 8 + partials.
Cable Row s.s. w/ Rope Pull-overs (Strict Cable rows, pull-overs done bent over to near-parallel with the floor) 3 working sets x 8/12, x 8/12, x 8/12 pause 10 + partials to failure.
Hanging Leg Raises :) 4 working sets x 15, x 15, x 15, x 10.
Rope Crunches - 4 working sets x 25, x 25, x 20, x 25.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.wallz.eu/photo/549928.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&docid=w_pGwy2qHiy3vM&tbnid=PcoBz21tkgzCZM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wallz.eu%2Fdesktop%2F549928%2 Fulver.jpg-wallpaper&ei=rBYdUdWEJ-WFyQHC3YGgDg&bvm=bv.42452523,d.aWc&psig=AFQjCNFbb2RB-EFTMnROn9mCwy1RuqGH9Q&ust=1360947241825444)


I don't know why, but I love this picture

HangingLegRaise
02-14-2013, 11:55 AM
Found the exercise guide .pdf for Ben Pakulski's MI40 program online. Enjoy if you're interested.
http://theblane.com/docs/training/ExerciseGuide.pdf

HangingLegRaise
02-16-2013, 10:27 PM
February 16th!

Shoulder day. Pretty tired from working, but I more than got it in. No training partner today though, presses weren't too heavy.

Rear Peck Deck (Going for the hardest contraction I can get) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 12, x 12, x 8, x 8 + partials strip x 8 + partials strip x 8 + partials.l
Seated Dumbbell Press (90 degree bench, pausing at the bottom) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8 strip x 10 + partials to failure.
Dumbbell Front Raise (very strict) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10 strip x 10 strip 10.
Dumbbell Side Laterals - 3 working sets x 10, x 10 strip x 20 half reps strip x 10 super slow reps (two sets of this).
Stepmill HIIT Cardio (20 seconds max effort, 1 minute rest for 10 rounds).



inspiration of the day:
http://muscletime.com/index.php?view=image&format=raw&type=img&id=48198&option=com_joomgallery&Itemid=202 (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=2WPLjpj0pjstIM&tbnid=DOPeoC4IhHx5NM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.bodybuilding.com%2Fshowthre ad.php%3Ft%3D141462691%26page%3D1&ei=C04gUdVnoYXJAdurgNAD&psig=AFQjCNGuJWfLkZwOmNfX5NdCyFSKqFpCEw&ust=1361158027044104)

HangingLegRaise
02-17-2013, 07:31 PM
February 17th!

Arm day. Tired from work again, but tomorrow's a holiday, no work and leg day! Fucking ZOO in the gym. I hate LA fitness...

Tricep Pressdowns - warm ups, 4 working sets x 12, x 10, x 8, x 8 strip x 10 strip x 10 + partials to failure.
Standing Dumbbell Curl s.s. w/ Dips - 3 working sets x 10/20, x 10/20, x 10 strip x8/20.
Arnold Curls s.s. w/ Over-head Extensions (elbows really close to my head on the extensions) - 4 working sets x 10/12, x 15/10, x 15/10, x 15/10.
Incline Dumbbell Curl s.s. w/ Dumbbell Skullcrushers - 3 working sets x 8/8, x 8/8, x 8/8.
Cross-body Hammer Curls - 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 strip x 8 strip x 8.
25 minutes incline treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_g93bcGvgWBo/TBtrjKw5_ZI/AAAAAAAAItk/es4q5OOslV0/s400/SethFeroce-MD-PerBernal-619.jpg

HangingLegRaise
02-18-2013, 05:23 PM
February 18th!

Leg day baby! First day training with a partner in AGES, so of course it was a barn burner. My hips felt kind of off still, so I didn't go too heavy on my squats but I got some strong ones in.

Back Squat (steady negatives, hitting parallel and going for powerful positive) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 9, x 9.
Front Squat (heels raised, slow negatives, 2 second pause sitting at the bottom) - warm up, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 8 strip x 6 (1.5 reps)
Lying Leg Curl (Squeezing at the top) - warm up, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 6 + 15 partials strip 8 + 15 partials strip partials to failure.
Wide Leg Press (Feet placed really high and wide, very deep range of motion, focusing on hamstrings) 4 working sets x 20, x 15, x 12, x 12 strip x 8 strip x 10 strip x 20 partials.
Leg Extensions - 2 working sets x 12 + 12 partials, x 10 + 15 partials strip x 10 + 20 partials.
DONE.



inspiration of the day:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfuMnhnlDoQ

D-NUTZ
02-18-2013, 06:19 PM
Its monday dude...you needed to do chest.

HangingLegRaise
02-18-2013, 06:41 PM
Its monday dude...you needed to do chest.
rofl. Funny story. It's a holiday in Canada right now, so of course the gym was PACKED. My training partner and I were so worried about not being able to get a power rack because of how busy it was, but 99% of the people in there were training chest rofl, the only people using the racks were girls (because of course, every day is leg day for a girl).

HangingLegRaise
02-20-2013, 02:02 PM
February 20th!

Chest, calves and HIIT.
Dead. Fucking. Tired. Very low carbs yesterday, because I didn't really move at all and spent the whole day writing. Weights were still pretty good though, it just took a little bit to wake myself up. Carb refeed day probably coming soon!

Flat Dumbbell Press (Going for a powerful contraction) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 9, x 5, x 5, x 5.
Incline Barbell Press (Resting at the bottom, stretching under heavy weight and going for speed not failure) - 3 working sets x 6, x 6 pause x 6 off of pins, x 6 pause x 6 off of pins + partials to failure.
Decline Dumbbell Twist Press (Pronated at the bottom, stretching for a count of 2, squeezing up to neutral) 4 working sets x 10, x 8, x 6 + partial presses, x 6 + partial presses.
Flat Machine Press (Life Fitness selectorized machined) - 3 working sets x 10, x 8 + 4 partials, x 6 + 12 partials strip x 6 + 10 partials strip x 6 + partials to failure.
Seated Calve Raise - warm ups, 3 working sets x 30, x 30, x 30.
Leg Press Calve Raise - 3 working sets x 15, x 15, x 15 pause x 15 pause x 10 pause x 10 + 20 partials.
HIIT Cardio on Elliptical (5 minute warm up, 20 second maximal effort, 60-70 second rest for 10 rounds, 2 minute cool down).



inspiration of the day:
http://24.media.tumblr.com/f45eff2fbcdccef27736f9f849626475/tumblr_mfx0qhnzE01rs4ej4o1_500.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=6z4hLTtmvJVM4M&tbnid=DHut0joT6OZyXM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdrwannabe.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F393 34562129&ei=nx0lUdeqH4LfrAHvl4DYDw&psig=AFQjCNFAzhfkVJenJFsJ0IawKTzzRpepxw&ust=1361473311572821)

http://www.rebodybuilding.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Roelly-Winklaar-rebodybuilding-14.jpg

HangingLegRaise
02-21-2013, 02:11 PM
February 21st!

Back and Abs. Feeling awesome today, energetic and pretty strong. I hope the rest of you guys have killer training sessions today.
8 weeks, 2 days out. My abs are starting to come in tighter and tighter, just a bit of lower abdomen fat to kill off right now, but legs, back arms will come with that obviously. Legs seperating all the way up to the top even on my front relaxed right now. Hamstring detail showing up.

Wide Pull-ups (Going for speed to warm-up and get a pump, not failure) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 6, x 6, x 6, x 6 + 15 partials.
T-Bar Row (Barbell in the corner, very strict, pausing at the top and bottom) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 10, x 8, x 6, x 8 strip x 8.
Wide Grip Cable Row (Over-hand grip on a straight bar. Strict, no body momentum. Pausing for a count of 2 at the bottom, not focusing on holding it at the top so much as powering the weight up the negative and the stretch. I felt really good on these so I kept working more than I normally would) - 4 working sets x 7, x 7, x 7 + 3 dead stop reps strip x 8 + 5 dead stop reps (did this twice).
Dumbbell Pull-overs (Constant tension, focusing on pulling by contracting my scapula) - 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 strip x 16.
Deadlifts (Just stimulating and squeezing with speed) - 3 working sets x 6, x 6, x 6.
Hanging Leg Raises (very strict, lifting legs just to parallel) 5 working sets x 12, x 12, x 12, x 12, x 21 (failure).
Bench Leg Raises s.s. w/ Crunches - 3 working sets x 15/12, x 15/12, x 20/12.



inspiration of the day:
http://goldenmuscles.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/m255.jpg

HangingLegRaise
02-23-2013, 08:39 PM
February 23rd!

Shoulders and HIIT today. Felt pretty tired and beat from work today, but that didn't stop me hitting a shoulder press PR (PR for this prep):cool::cool::cool:

Peck Deck Rear Fly (Going for a strong contraction with fast positives, slow negatives) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 8 strip x 8 strip x 8.
Dumbbell Shoulder Press - warm ups, 2 working sets x 7 (PR), x 6 + 2 forced negatives.
Dumbbell Front Raise (Very strict, no body movement, pronated at the top) 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 10 s.s. w/ underhand e.z. curl bar front raises for constant tension 10 reps.
Dumbbell Side Lateral (Very strict) 3 working sets x 12, x 15, x 15 pause x 6 pause x 6 pause x 25 partials.
Dumbbell Shrugs (3 second squeeze) 4 working sets x 15, x 12, x 10, x 10.



inspiration of the day:
http://images.t-nation.com/forum_images/7/f/7ffca_ORIG-2010_08_05_Hoffman_by_Moss_for_Universal_06.jpg

HangingLegRaise
02-24-2013, 07:05 PM
February 24th!

Arm day, my triceps felt really sore after my back day Thursday (I have no idea why), so I took it a little easy on them even though they were feeling better today.

Close Grip Bench Press (for speed) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 5, x 5, x 5, x 5.
Rope Press-down s.s. w/ Rope Overhead Extensions - 2 working sets x 12/12, x 12/12.
Arnold Curls (count of two at the top, really squeezing the shit out of my outside head) warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 9 + 9 partials.
Machine Preacher Curls (medium grip, arms parallel) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10 + 20 partials strip x 10.
Straight Bar Curls (Curling all the way up to my face, but very strict still) 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 + partials to failure.
Incline Hammer Curls s.s. w/ Reverse Grip e.z.-bar curl - 3 working sets x 12/10, x 10/10, x 10/8.
25 minutes incline treadmill cardio (low intensity).



inspiration of the day:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dXWHE9rxC6M/TVcPPs_La8I/AAAAAAAAQ0E/XfbCsQC6Z1Y/s1600/2010%2B08-05%2BHoffman%2Bby%2BMoss%2Bfor%2BUniversal%2B04.jp g

buster12
02-24-2013, 08:54 PM
Nice journal. Love the inspiration pics. Your name seems familiar. Did we know each other back a few years? Lol

HangingLegRaise
02-24-2013, 09:18 PM
Nope. Only other place my name might be recognizable from is MD. I post there too.

HangingLegRaise
02-25-2013, 10:58 AM
February 25th!

Ama-fucking-zing leg session this morning. Absolutely killed it. I didn't know what I was going to do today, but I pulled an ace-card out of my ass I suppose.

Diet's going so well without refeeds right now that I decided to skip them unless they are absolutely necessary and push to be in contest shape in 2-3 weeks from now (4-5 weeks out) and then steadily fill myself up into the show :beerbang: BRING THE RUCKUS!

Seated Ham Curl (sitting as upright as possible, pausing for a 2 second contraction) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 12, x 9, x 8 failure strip x 8 strip x 8 + 20 partials failure.
Horizontal Leg Press (going for power. very, very deep, pretty standard shoulder width, middle of the platform stance, 3 second negatives with a 2 count pause at the bottom and explosive positive) warm ups, 4 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10, x 8.
Bucket Back Squats (very slow, very controlled negatives with a 2 count pause at the bottom) warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 strip x 6 1.5 reps.
Two-part Leg Extensions (pumping partials withe very third rep being a full rom, strong contraction and slow negative) - 2 working sets x 15, x 18 strip x 12.
Walking Lunges (barbell on back, back perfectly upright to focus on quads) - 3 working sets x 12, x 9, x 9.



inspiration of the day:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrKJCccqCcw
http://www.bodybuilding.com/contest_media/18072/9009/d/img_19121298228689.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=zjnc4_xVapaFGM&tbnid=VD74gYoGt6OQGM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcontest.bodybuilding.com%2Fgaller y%2Fcontest%2F18072%2Fcontestant%2F9009%2Fmode%2Fj im%2F&ei=BYorUbqFOYjFyAHu6oBw&psig=AFQjCNHiMGpL5nmeoSxjDQv8o-uWqEiV6w&ust=1361894277966066)

HangingLegRaise
02-27-2013, 02:26 PM
February 27th!

Killer chest and calves day today! I was so mentally and physically pumped from walking through a snow storm to get to the gym that I didn't even need to warm up on the step mill and just went right into rotator cuff/shoulder warm ups and started killing it.

Slight Incline Dumbbell Twist-Press (Only one failure set, just pumping up the chest) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8 + partial presses failure.
Flat Barbell Bench Press (Slightly narrower than normal grip, pyramiding up in weight) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 6 strip x 8 strip x 8 + partials failure.
Dips (Very short rest periods) - 3 working sets x 15, x 15, x 15 (all sets including partials to failure).
Over-head Rope Stretches s.s. w/ Incline Press Machine (pyramiding up in weight, constant tension in a partial range of motion on the presses) - 4 working sets x 10/15, x 10/15, x 10/12 failure, x 10/10 pause x 6 failure.
Two-part Calve Press Machine (Strong contraction with toes pointed in then deep stretches with a neutral stance) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 20/20, x 20/20, x 20/20, x 20/20.
HIIT Treadmill Cardio (5 minute warm up, 15 second maximal effort sprints, 60-80 second rests waiting for my heart rate to settle, 2-3 minute cool down). I actually lost count of how many rounds I did, I usually do 10, so I just went until I felt dead; probably 11-12.



inspiration of the day:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-0bww9UGVx4/S9pYmvXMJbI/AAAAAAAAELs/ptFFYws99BM/s1600/eduardo+correa302.jpg

HangingLegRaise
02-28-2013, 03:07 PM
February 28th!

Back and abs day today. Wasn't really even awake until after my entire first exercise, so I just treated that as a warm up and killed everything else as best I could.
Funny story, all the power racks were taken when I went to do deadlifts, so I just borrowed a bar from an unused decline bench station and used the fitness-gymy looking, black rubber plates (which are pretty small for 45s) rather than the standard sized olympic plates, so I ended up doing from a 2" deficit unintentionally, rofl.

Wide-Gripped Pull-ups (Just working on some fast eccentrics for a warm-up, pausing at the bottom to stretch my lats out a bit. No failed reps at all.) - 4 sets x 5, x 5, x 5, x 5.
Bent-Over Dumbbell Row (Hip raised high with torso about 30 degrees to the floor; a position similar to the bottom of a Romanian Deadlift, very minimal body movement, very controlled squeeze at the top for a count of 1.) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets x 7, x 7, x 7 fail pause x 4 fail strip x 4 fail.
Close-Grip Cable Row (leaning forward very slightly to make my body perpendicular to the cable's plane of motion) - 3 working sets x 8, x 8 failure, x 8 failure leaning forward even more x 20 partials.
Straight-Arm Cable Pullovers s.s. w/ Underhand Pull-down (very strict, focusing on a huge t.u.t.; deep contraction on the pullovers, stretching under heavy weight on the pull-downs) - 3 working sets x 15/12, x 15/12, x 15/12 (+ partials after failure on each set of pull-downs).
Unintentional, Dead-stop Deficit Dead-lifts (~ 2" defecit, dead-stop at the bottom, maximal speed on the positive) - lots of warm ups, 2 working sets x 5 (5 seconds between each rep), x ??? (one long all out set of 1 maximal effort rep every 10-15 seconds until form broke).
Hanging Leg Raises :cool: - 4 sets x 12, x 12, x 12, x 12 + burnout partials.
Rope Crunches - 3 sets x 20, x 20, x 30ish (at failure to hold contraction).



inspiration of the day:
http://i723.photobucket.com/albums/ww235/chrisaceto/_DeviceMemory_home_user_pictures-12.jpg
http://i723.photobucket.com/albums/ww235/chrisaceto/_DeviceMemory_home_user_pictures-13.jpg
all hail Correa!

Jordan Coburn
02-28-2013, 03:15 PM
that deadlift set sounds nasty!...i'll have to try it.

HangingLegRaise
03-01-2013, 08:56 AM
that deadlift set sounds nasty!...i'll have to try it.

They are man, by the end you're just kneeling there between reps in a puddle of your own sweat lol.



Adding EC stack in today, not much, just a little to help push the fat-burning along.
I'm also considering adding in an extra training session/more volume because my recovery is going so well right now. I could probably push a little harder with the weights. The only thing is I don't know where I would fit in an extra training session (even a light pump workout), what do you guys think? (*cough* D-NUTZ) Right now my split is:

Legs (in the a.m.)
Off
Chest, calves and HIIT cardio (in the p.m.)
Back and abs (in the a.m.)
Off
Shoulders, sometimes traps and HIIT cardio (in the p.m.)
Arms and low intensity cardio (in the a.m.)
--- repeat ---

HangingLegRaise
03-01-2013, 09:04 AM
The first idea that comes to mind is moving shoulders to chest day (and calves somewhere else), then on my shoulder day I can do a light chest/back session comprised of antagonistic super-sets. My upper-body is the real battle right now, because nothing seems to stay very full for long. Legs on the other hand are always full, regularly and evenly stimulated by leg day, deadlifts on back day and HIIT sessions.

HangingLegRaise
03-02-2013, 11:04 PM
March 2nd!

Training off my first meal, missed the Arnold and just got off work :/
Lots of volume today.

Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press (worked up to a weight I could handle for a strong 6 without a spot then did 3 sets of triple drops, 0 failed reps, just strong contractions, very strict form) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 6 (to test out the weight), x 6 strip x 8 strip x 8 (x3).
High Side Laterals (raising the dumbbells powerfully to eye level, holding for a contraction and steadying down) - 3 working sets x 12, x 8, x 8 strip x 10 strip x 15.
Rear Peck Deck Flies (Squeezing the rear delt for a count of 2) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 10 failure + partials pause x 4 + partials.
Two-Part Rear Dumbbell Lateral (first bending my arm on the way up for a strong contraction, second straight arm swings for constant tension/stretch) - 3 working sets x 10/10, x 12/12, x 10/20.
Upright Rows (Wide grip, finishing off the shoulders, moving on to trap contraction) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10 pause x 8 with a narrower grip failure.
Dumbbell Shrugs - 2 working sets x 20, x 24 (fail).
HIIT Cardio Session - 10 rounds.



inspiration of the day:
http://pics.musculardevelopment.com/photos/transferred/_PB61271_TGCMBRDVXY.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-03-2013, 11:16 PM
March 3rd... The longest day of my life

Arm day. Meow.

Cable Concentration Curl s.s. w/ Rope Press-down (holding contractions) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 12/12. x 12/10, x 10 failure + 6 partials/8 failure + partials to failure.
Straight Bar Curl s.s. w/ Dip Machine - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 8 + 8 partials/12, x 8 + 8 partials/12, x 6 failure + 8 /8 failure strip 10 strip 12.
Incline Curl s.s. w/ Overhead Dumbbell Extension - 3 working sets x 15/12, x 12 failure/15, x 9failure/8 + 2 forced reps.
Dumbbell Skullcrushers s.s. w/ Hammer Curls - 2 working sets x 12/15, x 9/10.
25 minutes treadmill cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hGS_EO_pP1Y/TfizGSMQzII/AAAAAAAAKC0/Zjh7t0DJRfI/s1600/EvanCentopani-MD-PerBernal-433.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-04-2013, 11:53 AM
March 4th!

Killer leg day, walked in not knowing what I wanted to do; I thought of staying away from too many squats today, but completely changed my mind once I started warming up. Ain't nothing like hitting a squat PR while dieting... :beerbang:

Back Squats (Slow negatives, just going to parallel, fastest positive possible, no lock out) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 8, x 7, x 8 PR failure strip x 8 failure strip x 20 failure.
Standing Hamstring Curl (Using a leg extension machine, squeezing hard at the top) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 9, x 8 failure, x 7 failure + 16 partials.
Horizontal Leg Press (Middle of the platform, medium stance, slow negatives, no lock out) - 1 warm up, x 15, x 10 failure, x 8 pause x 4 pause x 2 10 second negatives.
Leg Extensions (Going for a hard contraction) - 3 working sets x 20, x 15, x 12 failure + 12 partials strip x 8 failure + 10 partials drop the seat all the way back + 10 partials.
Front Squat (Heels raised, working on stretching everything out) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 9 failure strip x 7 1.5 reps.
Bench Leg Raise s.s. w/ Crunch (legs raised on the crunch) - 3 sets x 20/20, x 20/20, x 15/15.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.ifbbpro.com/wp-content/uploads/image/2009/results/2009tampapbw_pakulski.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=kX9gdjzB9yE76M&tbnid=TFIj4WG0ysTFwM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwADgb&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ifbbpro.com%2Fresults%2F2009-tampa-pro-bodybuilding-weekly-championships-part-1%2F&ei=ZtE0UY-bE6S3ygGwiIDAAQ&psig=AFQjCNE_ADDxcLD1p429jmkrYOOs97tICg&ust=1362502374357373)

HangingLegRaise
03-04-2013, 05:56 PM
http://charleslowthianphotography.com/wp-content/files_mf/charles_lowthian_kai_greene_1kg02.jpg

Jordan Coburn
03-04-2013, 07:20 PM
way to stay strong buddy!

D-NUTZ
03-04-2013, 07:35 PM
What was the PR dude?

Nice looking workout

HangingLegRaise
03-04-2013, 10:12 PM
280 x 8, weighing 168 this morning. The set was a PR for this prep, not in general, I couldn't hit that for 5 at the start of this prep.
It was nothing super crazy really, but I used to have hip issues that prevented me from back squatting at all untill December-ish 2012 (still do sort, I just have to be careful with what kind of weights I do).

HangingLegRaise
03-04-2013, 10:12 PM
I should probably take some pics this week, It's been a while lol.

HangingLegRaise
03-06-2013, 08:32 AM
March 6th! 6 weeks 3 days out.

Some pics this morning. Pretty flat from only ~60g of carbs yesterday (from broccoli, nuts, and avocado lol), so I'm off to hit chest right now.

145075145076145077145078

HangingLegRaise
03-06-2013, 08:34 AM
Weighing 168 this morning.

HangingLegRaise
03-06-2013, 02:22 PM
Chest, calves and HIIT today. Killed it. I woke up with the desire to go train, even though I usually don't feel my strongest first thing in the morning (except for leg day).

Slight Incline Dumbbell Press (squeezing at the top, steady tempo, nothing too crazy for this movement) - 3 warm ups x 20, x 20, x 12, 3 working sets x 8, x 7, x 7 + partials failure.
Flat Barbell Press (Explosive, pausing at the bottom, only going for speed, and only one failure set) - 2 warm ups x 8, x 8, 3 working sets x 8, x 6, x 4 failure strip x 8 half reps + quarter reps to failure.
Cable Flies (pausing at the top and bottom, supinating wrists on the positive, goal is tosqueeze and stretch in a full range of motion) - 1 test set x 12, 3 working sets x 12, x 9 failure, x 9 failure strip x 10 failure strip x 10 + 20 partials.
Over-head Rope Stretch s.s. w/ Flat Machine Press - 3 working sets x 10/10 + 10 partials, x 10/8 failure + 10 partials, x 10/18 failure.
Leg Press Calve Raise s.s. w/ Standing Calve Raise (heavy stretch w/ parallel stance/hard contraction pigeon-toed) - 4 working sets x 15/12, x 12/12, x 12/12, x 9/12.
HIIT Treadmill Cardio - (5 minute warm up, 20 second incline sprints, 60-75 second rest x 10 rounds, 3 minute cool down).



inspiration of the day:
http://gallery.rxmuscle.com/newgallery/DSC_4167_ZPDUCNLBLF.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-06-2013, 03:12 PM
Changing up the diet a little bit today. Changing out beef and pine-apple for salmon in meal #4 on training days Monday through Thursday (Friday, Saturday and Sunday I need that little bit of extra carbs).

Meal #1: 4 whole free range eggs and 4 oz turkey bacon cooked in coconut oil w/ lightly wilted spinach.
Meal #2 (pre-w.o): 60g cream of buckwheat w/ 1 tbsp almond butter and 0.25 cup of blueberries mixed in and 1.5 scoop of whey from true-nutrition.
Meal #3 (post-w.o): 5 oz tilapia, 9 oz white basmati rice.
Meal #4 (Monday through Thursday): 6 oz cooked salmon, 2 cups steamed broccoli.
Meal #4 (Friday through Sunday): 4.5 oz eye round beef, 2 cups steamed broccoli, 5 oz pineapple.
Meal #5: 5 oz chicken breast, 4 oz avocado and 1 cup of mushroom in a romaine lettuce salad.
Meal #6: Protein ice cream (0.5 cup of egg whites whipped and frozen w/ 0.5 scoop of whey and 1 oz walnuts mixed in).

HangingLegRaise
03-07-2013, 03:22 PM
MM shot from this morning
145533

Dear God... please send me a cure for my shoulders and arms...

HangingLegRaise
03-07-2013, 03:37 PM
March 7th!

Back and abs this morning, felt pretty fired up today even, trained off of my first meal. A little higher volume than usual.

Underhand Sternum Pull-ups (Decently wide grip, straight-bar, trying to pull the bar down to the bottom of my chest) - 5 working sets x 8, x 7, x 7, x 6, x 6 failure + 10 horizontal pull-ups failure.
Single Arm Dumbbell Row (Staggered stance, raised hip, torso almost parallel to floor, very strict, working on controlling the weight at the bottom and top) 1 warm up set x 10, 4 working sets x 8, x 7, x 8 failure + 2 cheat reps, x 15 failure + 5 partials.
Close Grip Cable Row (Neutral grip, working on powerful positives and trying to hold the weight at the top) - 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 6 pause x 4 failure pause x 2 negatives + dead-stop singles failure.
Wide Grip Pull-downs (Facing away from the machine, body straight up, working on t.u.t. through the largest range of motion possible) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10 failure strip x 10 (1.5 reps) failure + partials to failure with original weight.
Deadlifts (Pulling from 5" off the ground) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 13 (singles every 10 seconds).
Hanging Leg Raises (power, holding negative as long as possible) - 4 working sets with straight legs x 10-12 each.
Decline Crunches (t.u.t.) - 2 working sets x ~20 each.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/images/2010/taking-y3t-for-test-drive-introduction_a.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-09-2013, 11:57 AM
March 9th!

Shoulder day. The bad news: I'm dead tired. The good news: I just hired Shelby Starnes to help oversee my last 4 weeks of prep, including "peak weak" stuff.

Bent-over Dumbbell Laterals (parallel, grip, working on getting a good pump and that's it) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 12, x 12, x 15, x 15 failure + partials.
Seated Dumbbell Press (90 degree bench, nothing super special, stimulating with the same weight as last week, but tapered down on volume) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 8, x 7, x 7 failure + partials.
Dumbbell Lateral Partials s.s. w/ Seated Kettlebell Laterals (constant tension for the partials, squeezing hard at the top of the k.b. laterals, pyramiding up on partials, same weight for k.b. laterals) - 3 working sets x 15/10, x 20/10, x 30/10 pause 6 pause 6 failure.
Supinated Dumbbell Front Raise (crossing the dumbbell from my side to across the middle of my body) - 3 working sets x 15, x 14, x 20 + constant tension front raise with ez curl bar.
Behind-the-back Smith Shrugs (3 second squeeze and stretch) - 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8.
HIIT Cardio on Elliptical (5 minute warm up, 15 second maximal effort, 60-70 second rests, 2 minute cool down) 10 rounds.



inspiration of the day:
http://forum.bodybuildingpro.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=22432&stc=1&d=1342997338

HangingLegRaise
03-10-2013, 09:13 PM
March 10th!

Can't complain, got it in.
Tried something a little different for arms today, rather than just normal super sets, all sets had a 30 second pause between them, just going back and forth.

Close Grip Bench Press (Pausing at the bottom, speed) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 8, x 8, x 6, x 6 strip x 8.
EZ Curl Barbell Curl - warm ups, 4 working sets x 12, x 10, x 8, x 8.
Machine Preacher Curl (powerful contractions) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 8 + partials to failure.
Rope Press-down (powerful contractions, holding the rope about half-way down) - 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 10 + partials to failure.
Incline Curl (t.u.t.) - 4 working sets x 12, x 12, x 12 + partials, x 12 + partials.
Over-head Dumbbell Extension (One Dumbbell, two hands, t.u.t. in the stretched position) - 4 working sets x 15, x 8, x 9
Cable Skull Crushers - 3 working sets x 20, x 20, x 15 + partials.
Hammer Curls - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10 + straight bar reverse curls.
Low Intensity Cardio - 27.5 minutes on the incline treadmill. inspiration of the day:http://www.muscle-insider.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/canadian_profile_node/frank_mcgrath.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=WBGwPuXo88v_DM&tbnid=cMVH0hLHW0p_mM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.muscle-insider.com%2Fcanadian-profiles%2Ffrank-mcgrath&ei=6y09UbezEYfuyQHdxoGoDg&psig=AFQjCNFbqPbbb12XP9GHf8d7HZTbXrcWTw&ust=1363050347324071)

HangingLegRaise
03-11-2013, 12:37 PM
March 11th!

The good news, I KILLED legs this morning, got a good 9 hour sleep and woke up with a fire inside. A little ab work too. The bad news is, I broke my camera right when I went to take pictures to send to Starnes... sigh lol.

Standing Leg Curl (Using a Leg Extension Machine, trying to squeeze at the top, just going for a pump) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 8 + 16 partials, x 8 + partials.
Horizontal Leg Press (Middle of the platform, medium width stance, going for power) - 1 warm up, 4 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8 failure, x 6 pause x 2 pause x 1 failure.
Bucket Back Squats (Slow negatives, going as deep as possible, pausing at the bottom, working on t.u.t. in the bucket) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 11 failure strip x 8.
Leg Extension s.s. w/ Leg Press (Squeezing for a count of 3 on the extensions, half reps on the leg press, low narrow stance) - 2 working sets x 12/12, x 11 failure/13.
Bodyweight Reverse Hamstring Curl (Just working on stretching the hams out) - 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 11 failure + partials failure.
Bench Leg Raises s.s. w/ Crunches (legs held up on the crunches) - 4 working sets x 20/15.



inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/295540_405221082847698_317125770_n.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-13-2013, 02:33 PM
March 13th!

Hit chest and Calves this morning. Absolutely zero energy today, but still strong. Good signs in my opinion.

Slight Incline Dumbbell Press (nothing crazy, going for a pump and squeeze at the top, only 1 failure set) - 3 warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 7, x 8 pause partials failure.
Flat Barbell Press (Pyramiding up, pausing at the bottom, trying to work on power behind every rep, last set was with the same weight as my first working set) - 2 warm ups, 4 working sets x 8, x 6, x 4 pause x 2 failure pause x 2 (negatives) failure, x 10 pause x 10 failure + partials.
Weighted Dips (Reverse pyramid) - 4 working sets x 8, x 10, x 12 failure + partials, x 15 failure + partials.
Peck Deck s.s. w/ Over-head Rope Stretch (t.u.t. pausing at the top and bottom of every rep for a 2 second count) - 2 working sets x 12/x 10, x 10 failure/x 10.
Peck Deck s.s. w/ Flat Machine Press & Over-head Rope Stretch (same as above) - x 10/x 8 failure + partials/x 10.
Standing Calve Raise (No weight, powerful contractions, every 10th rep was a super slow negative w/ a 10 second stretch at the bottom) - 3 working sets x 20, x 30, x 30.
Stationary Bike HIIT Cardio (4 minute warm up, 20 second maximal effort, 60-75 second rest, 2 minute cool down) - 11 rounds.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.bodybuildingforums.com.au/attachments/bodybuilding-news/1822d1345427347-bodybuilding-offical-inspiration-thread-bodybuildingwarzone.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-14-2013, 02:46 PM
March 14th!

Back day this morning. Hitting HIIT cardio and light ab work later tonight.

Underhand Cable Pulldown (Shoulder width, facing straight up with a slight lean in my back, squeezing and stretching for a count of 2 with controlled negatives) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 9 failure pause x 2 failure + partials.
Bent-over Barbell Row (Overhand grip, just slightly beyond shoulder width, bent over to about 30 degrees, pulling into my waist with power) - warm up, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 failure strip x 10 failure strip x 12 failure.
Close Grip Cable Row (Triangle grip, pulling to bottom of my chest) - 4 working sets x 15, x 10, x 8 + 2 cheat reps, x 8 failure + cheat reps strip x 10 failure strip x 20.
Assisted Wide Grip Pull-ups (stretching the shit out of my lats, reverse pyramid) - 3 working sets x 8, x 10, x 12 + partials.
Deadlifts (power, only one failure set) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 6, x 7, x 8 (all the same weight), x 17 pause x 10 pause x 6.
Back Extension (holding 45 plates in hand, powerful positives, dead-stop at the bottom) - 2 warm ups pyramiding up in weight, 1 working set x 8 strip x 10 strip x 10 strip x 10



inspiration of the day:
http://www.girlswithmuscle.com/images/full/663171765.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-16-2013, 11:58 AM
March 16th!

My work with Shelby Starnes starts today :beerbang:
There's nothing like waking up an hour early because of how hungry you are lol.
Shoulder day today, did something a little different, but I really liked it.

Dumbbell Side Laterals (Working on getting a pump, not touching my sides at all at the bottom and trying to hold at the top) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 15, x 15, x 20 failure pause x 20 partials strip x 15 (kettlebell, holding contractin for a 2 second count).
Wide-grip Upright Row (pyramid up, power, but making sure the body stays stiff and strict) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 10 pause x 6 failure pause x 4 failure.
Seated Dumbbell Press (90 degree seat, pausing at the bottom of every rep for a 2 second count, working on controlling the shit out of the weight) - 1 warm up, 4 working sets x 12, x 8, x 8 failure, x 8 failure.
Supinated-grip Dumbbell Front Raise (very strict, pushing the weight through my pinky and ring finger) - 3 working sets x 10, x 12, x 12.
Bent-over Rear Lateral (neutral grip, control and squeeze with a slight bend in my arms) - 3 working sets x 15, x 20, x 15.
Rope Face-pull Negatives (focusing on pulling and holding the rope ends away from one another for as long as possible) - 2 sets x ~ 8 reps each.
Incline Treadmill Cardio - 30 minutes.



inspiration of the day:
http://blog.chinatraveldepot.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Great_Wall_with_Fog.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-17-2013, 02:17 PM
March 17th!

Absolutely barren gym today, I guess everyone at the university is busy getting shit-faced at 11 in the morning. Oh well, more gym for me.
Blasted Arms today, kudos to John Meadows who I stole about 90% of this routine from lol.

Rope Press-downs s.s. w/ e.z. bar Reverse Curls (Working on just flexing the shit out of my arm, no rest in between the two; absolutely INSANE burn) - 5 "working" sets x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10.
Two-part Machine Preacher Curl (Forceful contractions, not lowering the weight all the way down for half the set, then just pumping for the second half) - 3 working sets x 6/6, x 6/6, x 6/6 + partials failure.
Close-grip Bench Press (3 second negatives, pyramiding up in weight) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 6 pause x 2 (10 second negative) + partials failure.
Incline Dumbbell Curl (focusing t.u.t. on the stretch at the bottom, arms turned outward) 3 working sets x 15, x 12 + partials failure, x 15 strip x 8 failure.
Slight Incline e.z. bar Skulls (focusing on t.u.t. on the stretch with a fast positive, lying on the floor with mats under my back) - 3 working sets x 15, x 14 failure, x 12 + partials failure.
Straight Barbell Curl (5 second negatives) - 2 working sets x 10, x 10.
Dumbbell L Press (Just going back and forth from one arm to the other, no rest) - 4 sets x 10 each arm.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (30 minutes low intensity).



inspiration of the day:
http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/678/cedhaul1.jpg

guruhonza
03-18-2013, 04:21 AM
last three Inspiration pics are awesome!

Your back looks really shredded

HangingLegRaise
03-18-2013, 11:04 AM
Ain't nothing wrong with Candice Keene ;D

HangingLegRaise
03-18-2013, 11:15 AM
March 18th!

Leg day, fucking murdered it... Not my best squatting performance, but I'd give myself an A for effort considering I was slight sick over the weekend and dropped 3 pounds in two days.

Barbell Back Squat (Quad tension, just going to parallel and exploding up) - warm ups, 5 working sets x 8, x 6, x 6, x 6, (1.5 reps with a lower weight) 10 pause 5 failure.
Wide-stanced Horizontal Leg Press (going very deep, 3-5 second negatives, final set was DEATH; I had 2 45's and 4 25's on each side and got a buddy in the gym to strip one 25 every 3-5 reps without me resting the weight at all. Huuuuuge t.u.t.) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 10, x 10, x 6, x 5 strip x 3 strip x 3 strip x 3 strip x 3 strip x 4 strip x 4.
Two-part Seated Leg Curl (forceful contractions followed by pumping reps) - 3 working sets x 6/6, x 6/8, x 6/8 + 12 half reps.
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts (pyramidding up in weight, 25s for extra depth) - 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 10 pause x 5 failure strip x 12 half reps.
Dumbbell Split Squats (no rest, just going from left to right and back again) - 5 "sets" x 10, x 10, x 10, x 10, x10.



inspiration of the day:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7051/6938161133_06dcb935db_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77416569@N07/6938161133/in/photostream/)

Jordan Coburn
03-18-2013, 12:02 PM
March 18th!

Leg day, fucking murdered it... Not my best squatting performance, but I'd give myself an A for effort considering I was slight sick over the weekend and dropped 3 pounds in two days.

Barbell Back Squat (Quad tension, just going to parallel and exploding up) - warm ups, 5 working sets x 8, x 6, x 6, x 6, (1.5 reps with a lower weight) 10 pause 5 failure.
Wide-stanced Horizontal Leg Press (going very deep, 3-5 second negatives, final set was DEATH; I had 2 45's and 4 25's on each side and got a buddy in the gym to strip one 25 every 3-5 reps without me resting the weight at all. Huuuuuge t.u.t.) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 10, x 10, x 6, x 5 strip x 3 strip x 3 strip x 3 strip x 3 strip x 4 strip x 4.
Two-part Seated Leg Curl (forceful contractions followed by pumping reps) - 3 working sets x 6/6, x 6/8, x 6/8 + 12 half reps.
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts (pyramidding up in weight, 25s for extra depth) - 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 10 pause x 5 failure strip x 12 half reps.
Dumbbell Split Squats (no rest, just going from left to right and back again) - 5 "sets" x 10, x 10, x 10, x 10, x10.



inspiration of the day:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7051/6938161133_06dcb935db_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/77416569@N07/6938161133/in/photostream/)

Sounds like a bruiser, sir! Props for keeping the intensity this close to your show. How are things going with Shelby?

HangingLegRaise
03-18-2013, 01:36 PM
Things with Shelby are going really well. The guy is super accessible and so obviously knows what he's doing that I have complete faith in the results to come. Meal sizes and structure is a little weird compared to what I'm used to doing myself, but the food's still tasty, and I can choose pretty much all my foods so long as I okay it with him. I'm eating salmon every day, I definitely can't complain about that :cool:

HangingLegRaise
03-18-2013, 02:03 PM
Also, your comment just reminded me I should probably start to scale back the intensity a bit this close to the show, rofl. Maybe...

HangingLegRaise
03-20-2013, 11:10 AM
March 20th!

Update with Starnes this morning. His response was, and I quote, "Solid update" :beerbang: If that wouldn't boost any competitor's confidence I don't know what would...
Hit chest and calves this morning, tried something a little different and started with a pre-exhaust on the peck deck, so the weight on everything else wasn't as strong as usual, but still got some good heavy work in there. I'm really not a fan of pre-exhausting anything, I think its totally over-rated, but I will throw it in every once and a while for a change of pace.

Peck Deck Pre-exhaust (Sets performed very quickly, 20-30 second rest upping the weight by one pin each time, 2 second stretch and flex on every rep) - 4 "working" sets x 12, x 12, x 12, x 10 + 20 partials.
Slight Incline Dumbbell Press (Forceful contractions held at the top, no pause at the bottom, all working sets performed with the same weight) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 7, x 7 could've maybe gotten one more, x 7 failure + partials.
Flat Barbell Press (2 second pause held at the bottom of every rep, exploding up, pyramiding up in weight) warm ups, 3 working sets x 6, x 5, x 4 failure strip x 4 failure strip x 4 failure + 2 negatives.
Dips (pump chasing) - 3 working sets x 10 + 10 partials, x 10 + 10 partials, x 10 failure + 10 partials pause x 26 half reps failure.
Standing Calve Raise (toes in, contracting HARD as a ballerina, every 10th rep held for a 10 second stretch) - 3 working sets x 30, x 30, x 30.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (low intensity, 30 minutes).



inspiration of the day:
http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mc00piOSbq1ruk8bao1_500.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-21-2013, 03:32 PM
March 21st!

Hit back this morning, pretty killer session.

Underhand Cable Pulldowns (Body straight up, pulling down to below my chest for forceful contractions with steady negatives, pyramidding up the stack to a hard 8) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 6 + 6 w/o hold at the bottom.
One-arm Dumbbell Row (just controlling the weight, drawing my elbows back as far as possible) - 4 working sets (all with the same weight) x 10, x 12, x 15 failure, x 12 failure + partials.
3/4 Deadlift s.s. w/ Wide Pullups (deadlifts just to the bottom of the knee, no rack) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 5/5, x 5/5, x 5/4 + ultra-wide partials failure.
Close-grip Cable Row (very strict, every third rep held for a super slow negative and a 5 second stretch at the bottom, same weight on every set. 9 reps was decently hard, everything after that on the last set I needed to use some momentuum to get the weight up) - 3 working sets x 9, x 9, x 18 beyond failure.
Straight-arm Cable Pullovers (10 second rest between sets) - 5 "sets" x 10 pause x 10 pause x 10 pause x 10 pause x 10.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (30 minutes, low intensity)

I'll be hitting abs later tonight.



inspiration of the day:
http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll109/EVO-PT/matt4.jpghttp://www.professionalmuscle.com/forums/attachments/professional-muscle-forum/36652d1273791174-coming-soon-matt-kroc-trains-legs-dc-style-iron-asylum-matt4.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-23-2013, 08:01 PM
March 23rd!

Shoulders today, nothing crazy, but I finally had a partner to train with so I got to go a little heavier on the presses than the last couple weeks. I really didn't need to do any additional front delt work after those presses, I was toooast.

Rear Peck Deck (Forceful contractions plus partials on every working set, just for a pump) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 6 - 12 partials, x 6 - 12 partials, x 6 - 12 partials.
Seated Dumbbell Press (1-2 second pause at the bottom of every rep, pyramiding up to a final strip set with a heavy weight) - warm ups, x 10, x 8, x 7 failure, x 6 failure strip x 9 pause x 6 failure.
High Dumbbell Side Laterals (powerful contractions as high as possible, very strict, very fast rest just for a pump) - 3 sets x 15, x 15, x 12.
Side Lateral Machine (this is what the last exercise was a prep for, huge t.u.t.) - 1 warm up, 1 working set x 20 strip x 15 back up to original weight x 20-30 partials (I lost count).
Bent-over Dumbbell Later (flex and stretch very strict and controlled on every rep) - 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 16 failure + 20 partials strip x 10 (flexing for 3-sec. count).
Incline Treadmill Cardio (30 minutes, low intensity).



inspiration of the day:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-INdAME1gxXA/TpLikfr9MAI/AAAAAAAAKjw/-mg6aaKOV8Y/s1600/SteveKuclo-MD-PerBernal-766.jpg (http://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&docid=TTv-UIslu8eCiM&tbnid=4fiXFIisHCPjYM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fforum.bodybuilding.com%2Fshowthre ad.php%3Ft%3D139436473%26page%3D1&ei=SUJOUajMIcOeywGA54DwAQ&psig=AFQjCNFxDglR1O_PPOOrRc9SIp74oDY3mg&ust=1364169562380195)

HangingLegRaise
03-24-2013, 08:54 PM
March 24th!

Arms this morning. My brachialli were so fried after this workout I could hardly grip things at work lol.

Rope Press-down s.s. w/ Hammer Curl (Knuckles pointed together on both movements, very little rest) warm ups, 5 sets x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10. No failure, but arms were BUUURNING.
Narrow Preacher Curl (not lowering all the way, full reps with very forceful contractions plus partials) - 3 working sets x 6 + 12 partials, x 6 + 12 partials, x 6 + 12 partials strip x 10.
Dip Machine (Pronated grip, not locking out, focusing on tension at the bottom with really slow negatives and pauses) - 4 working sets x 8, x 8, x 8, x 6 failure + partials.
Straight-bar Cable Curl (Facing away from the rack, focusing on tension at the bottom, half reps) - 3 working sets x 20, x 20, x 25 failure pause x 12 failure.
Incline Skull Crushers (very very short rest period) - 3 "sets" x 15, x 12 failure, x 10 failure + 25 close-grip presses.
Seated Dumbbell Curl (3 second negatives) - 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8.
Kettlebell L-Press (why the kettlebells? fuck you that's why. flex and stretch on every rep) - 3 sets x 12, x 12, x 12.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (30 minutes, low intensity).



inspiration of the day:
http://npcnewsonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/USA-Men.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-25-2013, 11:11 AM
March 25th!

Pretty good leg day today, considering I've had a bad kink in my right hamstring. I took the pre-exhaust route today because of that, just to make sure I was loose enough before I got to squats, and it seemed to work out. Regardless, I killed it of course.

Seated Hamstring Curl s.s. w/ Abductor Machine (Forceful contractions on both, holding for a 2 second count, using about 90% of the r.o.m. on the curls) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 6 + 12 partials/x 10, x 6 + 12 partials/x 10, x 8 failure + 20 partials/x 10.
Horizontal Leg Press (Seat very upright to really out a lot of strain on the quads, working for power, no lockout) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8 10 sec. pause x 3 failure 20 sec. pause x 3 negatives.
Bucket Squats (Shoulder width stance, very deep, pausing at the bottom, no lockout here either) - warm ups, 4 working sets x 8, x 8, x 8 ~failure strip x 15.
Two-part Leg Extensions (Partials w/ every third rep full r.o.m. and 10 second negative) - 1 warm up x 15, 2 working sets x 15, x 12 failure + 6 w/ forced reps + 15 partials failure.
Push-back Lunges w/ Dumbbells (Stepping up onto a 1.5 foot block stretching deep, pushing back) - 2 warm ups to get the form right, 2 working sets x 12, x 20-25 1.5 reps (I lost count).



inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/c0.0.403.403/p403x403/157012_4671206693870_358664600_n.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-26-2013, 06:20 PM
Dead man walking today....
Zero carbs after a week and a half of really low carbs. Thank the lord all-might, Shelby Starnes :bowdown:













:hypno:

HangingLegRaise
03-26-2013, 06:21 PM
No but seriously, Shelby's great. I'm just a bitch.

HangingLegRaise
03-27-2013, 01:37 PM
March 27th!

How I had any energy this morning I don't know. But I killed it anyways.
Fucking gym REALLY needs to turn up the heat though, wearing a hoodie and sweats and I couldn't get a sweat going because they had the fucking cool air running. WHY?!

Iso-lateral Incline Machine Press (my gym has a really old version of this machine, not a hammer strength, powerful contractions, going for a squeeze at the top) - 3 warm ups x 20, x 20, x 10, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 6 strip x 8 strip x 10.
Flat Barbell Press (nothing fancy here, just straight sets of 6 till I failed) - 2 warm ups x 6, x 6, 3 working sets x 6, x 6, x 5 failure + partials .
Flat Barbell Pin Press (Just one set here holding negatives as long as possible 'till I couldn't move the bar off the pins) - 1 working set x 8-10 "full" reps, not sure how many partials.
High Cable Crossovers (Supinating wrists on the contraction, flex and stretch on every rep) 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 10 failure to squeeze + 10 pump reps.
Peck Deck s.s. w/ Flat Machine Press (Flex and stretch on every rep on the peck deck/ t.u.t. focus on flat press with quarter reps) - 3 working sets x 10/x 20-30, x 10/x 20-30, x 8 failure + partials/ x 20-30.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (low intensity, 30 minutes).



inspiration of the day:
http://i45.tinypic.com/2mnryhz.jpg

D-NUTZ
03-27-2013, 03:19 PM
Those tits

HangingLegRaise
03-27-2013, 04:26 PM
I wish I had some tits that hard.

HangingLegRaise
03-28-2013, 10:52 AM
March 28th. No exclamation mark.

Back this morning, zero carbs. Wheeeeeeeeeeeee.

Banded Isolateral Pull-down Machine (holding powerful contractions + pump reps for burnout) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 6 + 6 pump reps, x 6 + 6 pump reps, x 8 fail + partials.
Dumbbell Row (Matt Kroc Style, all working sets with the same weight) - 2 warm up sets x 10, x 10, 3 working sets x 8, x 12, x 12.
Partial Deadlifts (lowering bar to just below the knee, pyramiding up in weight very short rest period) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 8, x 6, x 7 failure strip x 8 strip x 10.
Narrow Grip High Cable Row (Using two handles, leaning back on the pull-down machine, row down to the sternum trying to pull the handles apart, very strict) - 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 8 pause x 4 strip x 8.
Cable Pullover (body upright, straight bar) - 2 working sets x 10, x 10 bend over x 10 bend over more x 10 bend over even more x 10 + 20-30 partials.

Abs and cardio later tonight.



inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/72314_123099591208489_1246920480_n.jpg

HangingLegRaise
03-28-2013, 07:31 PM
p.m. workout:

Incline Treadmill Cardio (30 minutes at 120-130 bpm).
Hanging Leg Raises - 5 sets x 12, x 12, x 12, x 12, x 12.
Decline Crunches - 4 sets x 20, x 20, x 20, x 20.

Jordan Coburn
03-28-2013, 07:51 PM
Way to gut it out, dude!

aznaro8
03-29-2013, 02:28 PM
Just catching up on your journal bud, good job so far! Nice to see another guy from the anabolic north on here! haha Nice transformation on your 1st comp and doing well! Congrats! Looks like this one is going well to and Shelby will definitely help you bring you in the final 4 weeks. Did you diet with someone 1st time around? What did you weigh 1st comp and what do you guys figure you'll weigh this time around?

HangingLegRaise
03-29-2013, 02:51 PM
Just catching up on your journal bud, good job so far! Nice to see another guy from the anabolic north on here! haha Nice transformation on your 1st comp and doing well! Congrats! Looks like this one is going well to and Shelby will definitely help you bring you in the final 4 weeks. Did you diet with someone 1st time around? What did you weigh 1st comp and what do you guys figure you'll weigh this time around?
I did the first diet by myself, and in retrospect I don't regret it. At the time I wished I'd looked for more help, but the money wasn't there, and I learned a lot about my body and myself anyways. So it's all good.
Shelby's definitely on top of what needs to be done, every time I doubt myself updates with him pick me right back up and confirm that I'm on track.

I'll probably hit the stage around 160 this year.

HangingLegRaise
03-30-2013, 11:51 AM
March 30th!

Update with Shelby today, my cardio's up 10 minutes, no diet changes.
THANK GOD! Today is my last day of work, after today I'll be off for a month!:beerbang:


Shoulders today, going for a good pump, no crazy pr's obviously, but a pretty intense shoulder workout for 3 weeks out anyways.

Rear Peck Deck (very short rest periods) - 5 working sets all with the same weight x 10, x 10, x 10, x 10, x 10 failure + partials.
Wide Upright Row (bringing the elbows as high as possible, power, but still trying to keep my body as strict as possible)- 1 warm up set, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 6 pause x 6 failure strip x 10 failure
Isolateral Shoulder Press Machine (increasing the weight by 1 pin every set, short rest periods, aiming for constant tension) - 50 x 10, 60 x 10, 70 x 10, 80 x 10, 80 x 10 pause x 10 failure pause x 10 partials.
Partial Dumbbell Side Laterals s.s. w/ Kettlebell Side Raise (using 25 lbs & 10 lbs, constant tension first, holding 2 second contractions with kettlebells) - 3 sets 25 x 10/10 x 10, 25 x 20/10 x 10, 25 x 40/10 x 20.
Front Dumbbell Raise (very strict) - 2 working sets x 10, x 12 failure.
Dumbbell Shrugs (leaning forward, 3 second holds) - 3 working sets x 12, x 12, x 12.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (40 minutes, 120-130 bpm).



inspiration of the day:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BSG19cfGdyI/UQIc0lnjhsI/AAAAAAAAElE/ud0hdBWwF18/s1600/VictorMartinez-MD-Feb2013-PerBernal-874.jpg

aznaro8
03-30-2013, 01:45 PM
Do you mind sharing your prep week and what went wrong?

Home stretch! Almost there, keep killing it! How much cardio are you doing right now?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
03-30-2013, 09:52 PM
40 minutes low intensity a day, nothing crazy.

My last week of my first prep was horrible in every way. I don't know where to start lol.

aznaro8
03-31-2013, 08:27 AM
40 minutes low intensity a day, nothing crazy.

My last week of my first prep was horrible in every way. I don't know where to start lol.

That's not bad at all. Keep killing it and finish hard.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
03-31-2013, 02:44 PM
March 31st!

Super exhausted this morning, but a pretty intense arm workout nonetheless

a.m. cardio:
Incline Treadmill Cardio (40 minutes, 120-130 bpm)

p.m. arms:
Cable Preacher Curl (powerful contractions) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 8 + 8 partials, x 8 + 10 partials.
Dip Machine s.s. w/ Rope Hammer Curl (3 second negatives on the dip machine, stretch and flex on the curls, pyramid up) - 1 warm up, 4 working sets x 8/x 12, x 8/x 12, x 8 failure + partials/x 12, x 7 failure + partials/x 10 failure + partials.
Overhead Tricep Extension s.s. w/ Incline Dumbbell Curl (working on the bottom portion of both movements) - 3 working sets x 12/x 12, x 15/x 12, x 20 failure/x 10 failure + partials.
Straight Bar Press-down (cluster sets) - 3 working sets x 10 pause x 10, x 10 pause x 10, x 10 pause x 10.
Straight Bar Curls (heavy 3 second negatives) - 2 working sets x 8, x 8.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.davepalumbo.com/2006%20Photos/NPC%20TEAM%20UNIVERSE%20FREE/images/DSC07476.jpg

HangingLegRaise
04-01-2013, 10:43 AM
April 1st.

Last intense leg day of my prep. Not quite all out, but about 90% of what an "all out," "kill myself" leg day would be. Rather fittingly, there was a heavy snow storm this morning after a whole weekend of sunshine and warm weather. April fools on us Canadians I suppose. I love it though, nothing pumps you up for training like battling the elements on my walk to the gym.

Seated Leg Curl (back pad dropped all the way back, leaning back, powerful contractions with slow negatives) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 10 failure + 25 partials.
Back Squats (Shoulder width, toes straight forward, below parallel, all working sets w/ the same weight) - 3 warm ups, 3 working sets x 8, x 8, x 8 failure strip x 14 failure strip x 15.
Horizontal Leg Press (Seat straight up, feet low and narrow, no lockout, pyramiding up 'till failure to do 20) - 4 sets x 20, x 20, x 20, x 15 failure pause x 6 failure pause + 2 10 second negatives.
Two-part Leg Extensions (Heavy partials first, full r.o.m. contraction second) - 3 working sets x 10/x 10, x 10/x 10, x 16 failure/x 12 + partials.
Glute-Ham Raise (Using back extension machine, slow negatives, constant tension) - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 7 failure + 10 second negatives (pushing off the floor).

Abs and cardio later tonight.



inspiration of the day:
http://pic70.picturetrail.com/VOL1800/9701710/17879097/291878637.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0QYYTRNnJQ

HangingLegRaise
04-01-2013, 10:44 AM
I should mention, today's another zero carb day. :beerbang:

aznaro8
04-01-2013, 11:35 AM
Good work! If its any consolation I've been keto since 11-12 weeks out I think (so long I don't remember lol). 3 weeks out like yourself.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-01-2013, 12:42 PM
Good work! If its any consolation I've been keto since 11-12 weeks out I think (so long I don't remember lol). 3 weeks out like yourself.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Damn, how's that treating you?
I'm not quite in ketosis, from what I understand Starnes doesn't really do that. Instead, he favours really low carbs rather than zero to make you "fat-burning efficient" rather, while still giving you enough carbs to survive lol (from what I understand anyways).

aznaro8
04-01-2013, 12:55 PM
It's been a breeze most of the time. I do very well on keto as weight just melts off. Last time first 3-5 days was rough this time it was smooth transition. Been getting weekly cheats to refeed. But it's the end now and need my problematic areas to come in so those are gone. It's been tough last week though as diet starting to take its tole but willing to suffer to get the sick conditioning. I work with Shelby too and no complaints at all with him and he's been great to work with


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-01-2013, 01:37 PM
Do you find that when you get used to being keto carbs actually make you feel sluggish?

HangingLegRaise
04-03-2013, 11:08 AM
April 3rd!

Pretty good chest day for 2 and a half weeks out. Obviously strength wasn't going to be the greatest, but I wanted to slam flat barbell this morning for some reason or another... So I did! :beerbang:

Flat Barbell (5x5, no failure reps, strict steady tempo, nothing crazy) - warm ups, 5 working sets x 5, x 5, x 5, x 5, x 5 all with the same weight.
Incline Dumbbell Press (stretch and flex, very controlled, pyramiding up) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 8, x 6 failure, x 6 failure strip x 8 failure strip x 10.
Flat Machine Press (very John Meadows-esque, pyramiding up) - 3 working sets x 30 (wide, constant tension) grip, x 10 (medium, stretch and flex), x 8 (medium, powerful) strip x 10 (medium, stretch and flex) strip x 30 (wide, constant tension).
Parallel Bar Dips (stretch and flex, really trying to squeeze as hard as I can at the top) - 3 sets x 15, x 15, x 15 (very short rest period).
Over-head Rope Stretch - 40 reps, moving hands closer together every 10 reps.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (40 minutes @ 120-130 bpm).



inspiration of the day:
http://sphotos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/528853_633183840044406_484723560_n.jpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_k_AM2aljg

aznaro8
04-03-2013, 01:51 PM
Do you find that when you get used to being keto carbs actually make you feel sluggish?

Not really, but the cotton mouth afterwards is horrendous even when I try and keep water and sodium high. You noticing it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-04-2013, 10:37 AM
I don't know man, at this point in the prep it's hard to pinpoint exactly why you feel sluggish at any moment in time, seems my energy levels just fluctuate to neither rhyme nor reason.

HangingLegRaise
04-04-2013, 10:50 AM
April 4th!

16 days to go, bring the pain!! Pushing my ass off right now for every three day update with Shelby right now.

I hit back this morning, nothing crazy, just going for a good pump with some decent volume.

Straight-arm Cable Pullovers (Using a straight bar, just going for a warm up/pump here) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 8 + 3 negatives, x 8 + 3 negatives, x 10 failure + 10 partials.
Bent-over Bilateral Dumbbell Row (strict, about 25 degrees to the floor, focusing on pulling into the waist) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 10, x 12 failure strip x 12 failure.
Banded Isolateral Pulldown Machine (facing away from the machine, pause at the bottom of every rep, powerful contractions) - 1 warm up, 5 working sets x 10, x 8, x 6 failure, x 8 failure strip x 10 pause x 25 (ultra-wide partials), x 30 (ultra-wide partials).
Underhand High Cable Row (pyramiding up, flex and stretching) - 4 sets x 10, x 10, x 8, x 5 failure + 3 half reps strip x 5 strip x 5.
Deadlifts (No failure, going for power, pulling off 2 inch plates) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 5, x 5, x 5.
Barbell Front Shrugs s.s. w/ Overhead Barbell Shrugs - one set to failure to squeeze for 3 second count on each.

Going back tonight for cardio and abs.



inspiration of the day:
http://www.professionalmuscle.com/forums/attachments/professional-muscle-forum/22891d1228010478-brazils-eduardo-correa-eduardo-correa2.jpg

(Are you sick of all the Correa pictures yet?)

HangingLegRaise
04-05-2013, 12:53 PM
So I was playing with some ideas this morning and I think I came up with a good split for my off-season this summer. Opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Monday: Quads (pressing focused, heavy, at least one squat variant);
Tuesday: Hamstrings & Calves (heavy on curling movements with a moderate-weight on one deadlift variant for hamstring/glute focus);
Wednesday: Chest (heavy) & shoulders (light touch up work);
Thursday: Back (Deadlifts performed for speed and power and rowing movements) & abs if the need for core work arises;
Friday: 100% off;
Saturday (am): Shoulders (moderately heavy dumbbell work) & lats (light touch up work, basically one pull-up/pull-down variant);
Saturday (pm): HIIT cardio;
Sunday: Arms (pumping work);

My goals are basically to bring up my shoulders, my back and my arms.
The only thing I don't like about this split is that I'm not so sure I actually need to change anything for legs, so I might just forget about Tuesday ham-work and just keep doing what I've been doing.

HangingLegRaise
04-06-2013, 12:24 PM
April 6th!

Two weeks out, pretty decent shoulder day today, nothing crazy though. Just trying to survive and stay full at this point lol.

Bent-over Dumbbell Laterals s.s. w/ High Dumbbell Side Laterals (very strict, short rests, looking for a pump) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets pyramiding up x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/8 failure + 2 partials.
Seated Dumbbell Press (90 degree bench, again, very strict, short rests) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets with the same weight x 6, x 6, x 6 failure + 11 partials failure.
Standing Side Lateral Partials (3/4 range, not touching sides at the bottom, really slow negatives) - 3 working sets pyramiding up till failure x 20, x 20, x 20 strip x 20 strip x 10 1 sec. paused contraction.
Rear Peck-Deck Fly (pausing at the bottom of every rep for 3 second count) - pyramiding up, 4 sets x 12, x 10, x 8 failure, x 8 failure + partials.
Dumbbell Shrugs (3 sec. paused contraction) - 5 sets pyramiding up x 10, x 10, x 8, x 8, x 6.
Incline Treadmill Cardio (40 minutes @ 120-130 bpm).

might hit some abs tonight if I get bored, seems I have nothing to do but read right now.



inspiration of the day:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z4Q_nwfHH20/TkaM2aAVyxI/AAAAAAAAC2Q/IWSk0yStslU/s1600/fouad+abiad13.jpg

HangingLegRaise
04-07-2013, 01:56 PM
April 7th!

Update with Shelby this morning. I'm getting a carb up tonight of 2 cups of rice with my last meal. Should make for a killer final squat session tomorrow morning :beerbang:
Hit arms this morning, nothing too crazy, just very intense short rest periods going for a pump.

Rope Press-down s.s. w/ Dumbbell Hammer Curls (Aiming to squeeze the shit out of my brachallis, gripping the rope in the middle not the bottom) - warm ups, 3 working sets x 15/10, x 15/10, x 12 + 10 partials/10 strip to straight bar reverse curl to failure.
EZ-Curl Preacher (using about 80% of a full rom to keep tension) - 3 working sets x 15, x 15, x 14 failure + 8 partials.
Close-grip Bench Press (slow negatives) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 8 (1.5 reps), x 6 (1.5 reps), x 6 (full reps) strip x 8 (1.5 reps).
Straight Barbell Curl (10 second rests) - 4 sets x 10, x 10, x 8 (3 second negatives), x 8 (3 second negatives).
Flat Dumbbell Skulls - 3 working sets x 12, x 10, x 9 failure + 3 negatives.
Incline Dumbbell Curl - 2 working sets x 20, x 15 + partials.

Incline Treadmill Cardio.



inspiration of the day:
http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4063/4702163200_81e9ee862e_b.jpg

aznaro8
04-07-2013, 02:29 PM
Nice! Enjoy the carb up, getting close. Keep killing it! Any updated pics?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-07-2013, 03:59 PM
I would post some pics, but my carbs have been so low I'm as flat as a squashed bug. They wouldn't really be much of an accurate depiction of me haha.



I guess Shelby's the foot and I'm the bug in that scenario, lol.

HangingLegRaise
04-08-2013, 01:10 PM
April 8th!

Crushed legs this morning, about 80% normal volume, but still pretty high intensity.

Very short rest periods throughout. 30-60 seconds on everything.
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts (I did lots of warm-ups to be safe, very strict, very deep, slow negatives, pausing at the bottom for 2 second counts) - 3-4 warm ups, 3 working sets 195 x 12, 215 x 10, 235 x 7 pause x 3.
Barbell Back Squats (trying really hard to focus on quad tension) - 2 warm ups, 4 working sets x 8, x 6, x 5, x 5.
Horizontal Leg Press (low and narrow, steady negatives, 2 second pause to flex and stretch on every rep, pyramiding up with 30 second rests) - 4 working sets x 10, x 10, x 8 failure, x 8 failure pause x 2 pause x 2.
Walking Lunges s.s. w/ Lying Curl (big steps) - 2 working sets x 12/15, x 15 failure/15.

Cardio and maybe some abs later tonight.



inspiration of the day:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/DorianYates/Dorian+Yates+Pre+1993+Olympia+-Rare+Hotel+Photos.jpg

aznaro8
04-08-2013, 11:32 PM
How was the carbup? It's go time... Kill it to the finish line. You can rest and eat in 2 weeks bud!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-09-2013, 02:18 PM
Honestly, it was in my last meal so I hardly noticed any difference before I had to pass out and sleep under the weight of it all haha.

HangingLegRaise
04-10-2013, 11:04 AM
April 10th!

Pretty good chest day, nothing crazy... being 10 days out and all lol.
Very strict flex and stretch form on every movement.
I threw in some shoulders and triceps to keep full.

Flat Dumbbell Press (pyramiding up) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets x 10, x 8, x 6 failure.
Incline Smith Press (reverse pyramid) - 2 warm ups, 3 working sets x 6 + partials, x 8 + partials, x 12 + partials.
Cable Cross-overs s.s. w/ Dips (very short rest, supinating at the on the cross-overs) - 4 sets x 10/10, x 10/10, x 10/10, x 12 failure + partials/12 failure.
Flat Machine Press - 3 sets x 15, x 12, x 8 + partials strip x 10 + partials strip x 15.
Delt Triad (seated dumbbell front raise, side raise, press) - 3 sets x 10/10/10.
Incline E.Z. Curl Skulls (focusing on the bottom) - 1 warm up, 3 working sets x 20, x 20, x 15 + partial presses.

Cardio later in the evening.



inspiration of the day:
http://pics.musculardevelopment.com/photos/transferred/_H4X5896_GKJKZVUCOC.jpg

aznaro8
04-15-2013, 02:03 AM
Final stretch. Peak week! Get your plan?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-15-2013, 12:25 PM
Yup, updating with Shelby again tomorrow.

Things are kind of rocky right now though, I had to up and leave my house from a flood on Friday morning. So, I'm not sure exactly where I'm standing with everything, still trying my best to kill it right now according to plan, but I might have to change my plans last minute unfortunately.

aznaro8
04-16-2013, 04:28 PM
Wow shitty to hear and especially this close! Hope everything's ok! How'd the update go and is this weekend a go?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

HangingLegRaise
04-17-2013, 09:55 AM
I started putting on a lot of water weight over the last week, I mean an absurd amount of water hahaha. Every morning I was up from 0.6 to as much as 1.2 lbs on an empty stomach. I looked so watery I had to stop practicing posing because seeing myself looking that watery was stressing me out and psyching me out.
I talked it over with Shelby via email and it's no big deal, starting my diuretic regime and leaving the treadmill and weights behind today, carbs and sodium/water manipulation come in in the next couple days.
The apartment was disinfected and cleaned courtesy of my property manager and while I'm away working this summer they're going to replace the carpets for me, so that's all dealt with. The stress from all that really got to me though, which is why I think I started holding so much water. And from there it just created a domino effect, because I would see how much water I was holding and stress out even more every time I looked in the mirror. All-in-all though, things are going good now, thankfully.

HangingLegRaise
04-20-2013, 05:48 AM
Carbing up...
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/552903_10200570036407089_1508900642_n.jpg

HangingLegRaise
04-20-2013, 02:35 PM
short update:
Sitting in the hotel right now, watching batman begins, just kicking it till finals, dreaming of that glass of wine and steak.

post prejudging "snack" courtesy of Shelby Starnes nutrition...
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/399844_10200572018896650_39025714_n.jpg



and here's a shot from prejudging, pretty ball-lickingly bad lighting, so I'll include a hotel shot for perspective lol. Shelby brought me in in pretty awesome condition considering how far I was behind as of 5 weeks out, fullness and dryness was about as good as I could ever ask for too, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND SHELBY STARNES! :beerbang:
http://muscle-insider.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/Watermark/IMG_6032_1.jpg
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/923332_10200572025896825_1859662598_n.jpg

HangingLegRaise
04-21-2013, 07:13 AM
Big respect goes out to Shelby Starnes for all his help, last week went super smoothly as far as diet goes, even though everything else in my life has been going batshit crazy haha

HangingLegRaise
04-21-2013, 07:17 AM
These shots were an hour or so before hitting stage for finals

guruhonza
04-26-2013, 10:06 AM
I'd expect much better conditioning with help from one of the best guru's out there. What does Shelby think about your conditioning?

edit: Do not take this bad please. I really enjoyed your journal but I expected much better conditioning.

Xandoz
04-26-2013, 10:10 AM
That meal they gave you sure looks DELICIOUS!

HangingLegRaise
04-26-2013, 04:59 PM
I'd expect much better conditioning with help from one of the best guru's out there. What does Shelby think about your conditioning?

edit: Do not take this bad please. I really enjoyed your journal but I expected much better conditioning.
It definitely shouldn't be taken as a knock against Shelby, I only hired him for the last month of my prep because I was behind. That's totally my fault, Shelby was hired to help overcome the problems I had in the middle of my prep. Next time around I'll be hiring him for a full prep for sure.

I don't take offense at all, I was disappointed in my conditioning too. I was looking ahead around the 12-10 weeks out mark, but from about 9-6 weeks out I had a lot of troubles balancing school and work. I was working long shifts over the weekends during the school year and sleeping on a couch, because I work an hour and a half outside of the town where I attend classes. I also had four floods in my basement apartment throughout the school year, three of which were during the last 10 weeks of my prep. Realistically I could've pulled out at the 5 weeks mark or chose a different competition, but I'd rather follow through, accept the mistakes and learn from them for the future.

Jordan Coburn
04-26-2013, 07:31 PM
^^ great attitude. I thought you looked pretty damn good all things considered. Prepping while working and going to school AND natty is a bitch. Props for sticking it out. You're a young guy and you learned something from this prep so just take these lessons, have a killer off season and go kill the next prep.

Keep it up bud.

HangingLegRaise
04-26-2013, 10:11 PM
Thanks Cobe, that's the way I'm looking at it to.
I had some obstacles, but I won't use those as excuses, the fault is my own and I own up to ever mistake I made. I'll be learning from them in the future.

So this thread has come to an end, I'll be starting my new log soon, which will have not only training updates, but will also have a food focus, with bodybuilding friendly recipes and the occasional cheat meal pics ;D

guruhonza
04-27-2013, 01:53 AM
From what I know about great nattys is that they are in contest shape maybe one month off and then raise their carb intake so they do not lose any muscle. They are able to work on small details but still keep the conditioning because it's the most imporant factor for natty.

I bet this was great experience for you and for next prep (which we all want to follow because you are very disciplined in writing down everything) you'll be much better. GL and thanks for this journal

aznaro8
04-28-2013, 12:24 PM
It's not about how many times or how you get you get knocked down but how you get back up and learn. Use this as a motivational tool and learning tool to have a big offseason, use the rebound and come back bigger and better!

Any plans for what's next and how you're attacking the offseason? What was Shelby's feedback?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk