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Chapter LV: Impressing the Gym Gods
I've changed 2 gyms in as many months as I've attempted to optimise my routine. This has been a bit of a pain, but the upside is that every time I change gyms I get to talk to a cute girl who works at the new place. Of course, the universe being equally balanced between yin and yang, any conversation I have with said cute girl must be in Japanese and she must use many words that I don't understand.
As a result of not hitting the weights as much as I should have, the gym gods have punished me, like Obama punished the rednecks, by coming after the only thing I truly cherish: my guns. I will seek to rebuild their favour however with a good routine and diet, making a special effort to impress them by hitting all my macros. I will also eat vegetables.
But above all, I'll lift heavy things.
Workout A
Bench press 5x5 40kg
Squats 4x5 65kg
Bent over row 5x5 50kgI've changed 2 gyms in as many months as I've attempted to optimise my routine. This has been a bit of a pain, but the upside is that every time I change gyms I get to talk to a cute girl who works at the new place. Of course, the universe being equally balanced between yin and yang, any conversation I have with said cute girl must be in Japanese and she must use many words that I don't understand.
As a result of not hitting the weights as much as I should have, the gym gods have punished me, like Obama punished the rednecks, by coming after the only thing I truly cherish: my guns. I will seek to rebuild their favour however with a good routine and diet, making a special effort to impress them by hitting all my macros. I will also eat vegetables.
But above all, I'll lift heavy things.
Chapter LVI: Beer
I woke up this morning to a sound of a knock at my door. It was the postman, with brand new shipment of expensive weight gain powder. Now I know what you're thinking - you get deliveries on a Sunday? And the answer is yes, yes I do. But recently I've been wondering, do I really need expensive weight gain powder? I might have discovered an alternative. And that alternative is called beer.
Yes, for every 500ml bottle of Asahi Superdry beer I drink, that's 210 calories. That means in order to get the equivalent energy of one weight gain shake, I only have to drink 6 bottles of premium beer. Delicious and refreshing.
Still, six bottles is a lot to drink in one sitting, so it's probably better to space it out over the course of the day. A beer with breakfast, a mid-morning beer, a beer with lunch, a chilled afternoon beer, and a couple of beers post-workout. This also ensures that instead of being drunk every evening, I'm only slightly drunk all day. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I can only come up with positive things to say about this wonder diet.
Workout B
Squats 5x5 65kg
Deadlift 1x5 80kg
Military Press 5x5 30kg
I woke up this morning to a sound of a knock at my door. It was the postman, with brand new shipment of expensive weight gain powder. Now I know what you're thinking - you get deliveries on a Sunday? And the answer is yes, yes I do. But recently I've been wondering, do I really need expensive weight gain powder? I might have discovered an alternative. And that alternative is called beer.
Yes, for every 500ml bottle of Asahi Superdry beer I drink, that's 210 calories. That means in order to get the equivalent energy of one weight gain shake, I only have to drink 6 bottles of premium beer. Delicious and refreshing.
Still, six bottles is a lot to drink in one sitting, so it's probably better to space it out over the course of the day. A beer with breakfast, a mid-morning beer, a beer with lunch, a chilled afternoon beer, and a couple of beers post-workout. This also ensures that instead of being drunk every evening, I'm only slightly drunk all day. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I can only come up with positive things to say about this wonder diet.
Chapter LVII: Squat form
My weight starting off on the squats again was a little high, last time managing only 4x5. Rather than failing outright, my form gets compromised towards the end. Worked up to 5x5 this time but still had an issue on the last couple sets. I'll repeat next time until I can do them all with proper form.
Workout A
Bench press 5x5 42.5kg
Squats 5x5 65kg
Bent over row 5x5 52.5kg
My weight starting off on the squats again was a little high, last time managing only 4x5. Rather than failing outright, my form gets compromised towards the end. Worked up to 5x5 this time but still had an issue on the last couple sets. I'll repeat next time until I can do them all with proper form.
(edited 6 years ago)
Chapter LVIII: Goodbye West Tokyo
Good workout and the last time at my intermediary gym. Starting from Friday I'll be training at a gym right here in Shinjuku. Training today, it felt like everyone knew it was my last time. Some people seemed like they wanted to stop and say something, but the words wouldn't come out. We all trained together solemnly in silence, no one wanting to give voice to the sadness of the situation.
Felt some real progress today. This time I nailed the squats so I'll up the weight on Friday. Checked my weight after my workout, I'm back up to 73.5kg, which is up from last week. I'll be measuring weekly and aim for a small increase (0.25kg-0.5kg) each time. I've also been maintaining a food log to keep check of my energy input.
Next workout Friday.
Workout B
Squats 5x5 65kg
Deadlift 1x5 85kg
Military Press 5x5 32.5kg
Bent over row (-10%) 5x5 50kgGood workout and the last time at my intermediary gym. Starting from Friday I'll be training at a gym right here in Shinjuku. Training today, it felt like everyone knew it was my last time. Some people seemed like they wanted to stop and say something, but the words wouldn't come out. We all trained together solemnly in silence, no one wanting to give voice to the sadness of the situation.
Felt some real progress today. This time I nailed the squats so I'll up the weight on Friday. Checked my weight after my workout, I'm back up to 73.5kg, which is up from last week. I'll be measuring weekly and aim for a small increase (0.25kg-0.5kg) each time. I've also been maintaining a food log to keep check of my energy input.
Next workout Friday.
Original post by miser
Chapter LVIII: Goodbye West Tokyo
Good workout and the last time at my intermediary gym. Starting from Friday I'll be training at a gym right here in Shinjuku. Training today, it felt like everyone knew it was my last time. Some people seemed like they wanted to stop and say something, but the words wouldn't come out. We all trained together solemnly in silence, no one wanting to give voice to the sadness of the situation.
Felt some real progress today. This time I nailed the squats so I'll up the weight on Friday. Checked my weight after my workout, I'm back up to 73.5kg, which is up from last week. I'll be measuring weekly and aim for a small increase (0.25kg-0.5kg) each time. I've also been maintaining a food log to keep check of my energy input.
Next workout Friday.
Workout B
Squats5x565kg
Deadlift1x585kg
Military Press5x532.5kg
Bent over row (-10%)5x550kgGood workout and the last time at my intermediary gym. Starting from Friday I'll be training at a gym right here in Shinjuku. Training today, it felt like everyone knew it was my last time. Some people seemed like they wanted to stop and say something, but the words wouldn't come out. We all trained together solemnly in silence, no one wanting to give voice to the sadness of the situation.
Felt some real progress today. This time I nailed the squats so I'll up the weight on Friday. Checked my weight after my workout, I'm back up to 73.5kg, which is up from last week. I'll be measuring weekly and aim for a small increase (0.25kg-0.5kg) each time. I've also been maintaining a food log to keep check of my energy input.
Next workout Friday.
Tracking food on myfitnesspal?
Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Motorbiker
No I made a spreadsheet.
Chapter LIX: Yotsuya
First workout at the new gym. Made the mistake of doing squats first (while none of the 3 power racks were in use), then going to do bench, then coming back to find all the racks were in use. For like an hour.
Because of that I ended up missing bent over row because I didn't have time to wait around forever. But mostly not a big deal as I found alternative equipment to do the other exercises with. Not 100% sure on the exact weights used as the mini straight bar/EZ bar didn't have their weight written on them.
I feel that my squat form has improved substantially since I started. When I began in January, I didn't have the flexibility to do a good squat so I was compromising somewhat on the depth and correctness of the movement. Now I can squat below parallel and without having to take such a wide stance or push my knees out so much diagonally. As I up the weight, I find form is the first thing to go out the window (although this has improved too), so I'll keep a careful eye on this.
Used kettle bells for shrugs and calf raises. The cable machine I think has a more accurate weight reading than my previous gym's machines. Despite only weighing a little over 70kg, I could pull the 70+kg weight settings without lifting myself up, which made me suspicious.
New gym's one seems heavier.
Next workout tomorrow.
Workout A
Bench press 5x5 47.5kg
Squats 5x5 67.5kg
Barbell shrugs 3x8 64kg
Straight bar 3x8 20
Calf raises 3x8 64kg
Skullcrushers 3x8 15kg
Hyperextensions 2x15 10kg
Cable crunches 3x15 40.5kg
First workout at the new gym. Made the mistake of doing squats first (while none of the 3 power racks were in use), then going to do bench, then coming back to find all the racks were in use. For like an hour.
Because of that I ended up missing bent over row because I didn't have time to wait around forever. But mostly not a big deal as I found alternative equipment to do the other exercises with. Not 100% sure on the exact weights used as the mini straight bar/EZ bar didn't have their weight written on them.
I feel that my squat form has improved substantially since I started. When I began in January, I didn't have the flexibility to do a good squat so I was compromising somewhat on the depth and correctness of the movement. Now I can squat below parallel and without having to take such a wide stance or push my knees out so much diagonally. As I up the weight, I find form is the first thing to go out the window (although this has improved too), so I'll keep a careful eye on this.
Used kettle bells for shrugs and calf raises. The cable machine I think has a more accurate weight reading than my previous gym's machines. Despite only weighing a little over 70kg, I could pull the 70+kg weight settings without lifting myself up, which made me suspicious.
New gym's one seems heavier.Next workout tomorrow.
Original post by miser
Chapter LIX: Yotsuya
First workout at the new gym. Made the mistake of doing squats first (while none of the 3 power racks were in use), then going to do bench, then coming back to find all the racks were in use. For like an hour.
Because of that I ended up missing bent over row because I didn't have time to wait around forever. But mostly not a big deal as I found alternative equipment to do the other exercises with. Not 100% sure on the exact weights used as the mini straight bar/EZ bar didn't have their weight written on them.
I feel that my squat form has improved substantially since I started. When I began in January, I didn't have the flexibility to do a good squat so I was compromising somewhat on the depth and correctness of the movement. Now I can squat below parallel and without having to take such a wide stance or push my knees out so much diagonally. As I up the weight, I find form is the first thing to go out the window (although this has improved too), so I'll keep a careful eye on this.
Used kettle bells for shrugs and calf raises. The cable machine I think has a more accurate weight reading than my previous gym's machines. Despite only weighing a little over 70kg, I could pull the 70+kg weight settings without lifting myself up, which made me suspicious. New gym's one seems heavier.
Next workout tomorrow.
Workout A
Bench press5x547.5kg
Squats5x567.5kg
Barbell shrugs3x864kg
Straight bar3x820
Calf raises3x864kg
Skullcrushers3x815kg
Hyperextensions2x1510kg
Cable crunches3x1540.5kg
First workout at the new gym. Made the mistake of doing squats first (while none of the 3 power racks were in use), then going to do bench, then coming back to find all the racks were in use. For like an hour.
Because of that I ended up missing bent over row because I didn't have time to wait around forever. But mostly not a big deal as I found alternative equipment to do the other exercises with. Not 100% sure on the exact weights used as the mini straight bar/EZ bar didn't have their weight written on them.
I feel that my squat form has improved substantially since I started. When I began in January, I didn't have the flexibility to do a good squat so I was compromising somewhat on the depth and correctness of the movement. Now I can squat below parallel and without having to take such a wide stance or push my knees out so much diagonally. As I up the weight, I find form is the first thing to go out the window (although this has improved too), so I'll keep a careful eye on this.
Used kettle bells for shrugs and calf raises. The cable machine I think has a more accurate weight reading than my previous gym's machines. Despite only weighing a little over 70kg, I could pull the 70+kg weight settings without lifting myself up, which made me suspicious.
New gym's one seems heavier.Next workout tomorrow.
You don't need a rack for beer over rows. You need a bar and the floor.
Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Motorbiker
I considered using the mini straight bar but it didn't look suitable because it's quite narrow. I also wondered whether it was okay to use it that way since I've never seen anyone using a mini bar with heavy 15kg/20kg weights.
Are you saying it's fine with a mini straight bar?
Original post by miser
I considered using the mini straight bar but it didn't look suitable because it's quite narrow. I also wondered whether it was okay to use it that way since I've never seen anyone using a mini bar with heavy 15kg/20kg weights.
Are you saying it's fine with a mini straight bar?
Are you saying it's fine with a mini straight bar?
I would probably use an Olympic bar. I thought you were waiting for the rack itself. Not just the bar. That's my bad. I misunderstood.
Normally there are extra bars for benching, deadlifting etc.
Although if you're only rowing 60-80kg it would be fine using a small bar.
Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Motorbiker
I would probably use an Olympic bar. I thought you were waiting for the rack itself. Not just the bar. That's my bad. I misunderstood.
Normally there are extra bars for benching, deadlifting etc.
Although if you're only rowing 60-80kg it would be fine using a small bar.
Posted from TSR Mobile
Normally there are extra bars for benching, deadlifting etc.
Although if you're only rowing 60-80kg it would be fine using a small bar.
Posted from TSR Mobile
Nah, the only Olympic bars they have are in the racks or on the benches (this has been the case for every gym I've gone to), without a wide enough area for extra Olympic bar stuff. All the deadlifting I've seen in Japan has also been done in a rack.
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind in the future, but I'll do all my rack stuff first I think from now on to avoid this problem if I can.
Original post by miser
Nah, the only Olympic bars they have are in the racks or on the benches (this has been the case for every gym I've gone to), without a wide enough area for extra Olympic bar stuff. All the deadlifting I've seen in Japan has also been done in a rack.
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind in the future, but I'll do all my rack stuff first I think from now on to avoid this problem if I can.
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind in the future, but I'll do all my rack stuff first I think from now on to avoid this problem if I can.
Yea but if someone isn't using that bench or is in the rack but not using the bar then you can take the bar and deadlift or row on any flat surface usually.
Chapter LX: Squatting carefully
Lots of girls using the power racks today. Powerful women always have a certain presence about them. It makes me want to... be careful.
Squats difficult towards the end but completed. Deadlift I reduced weight slightly because I was concerned over form. Going to have to check some videos I think. I'm doing all the accessory lifts slower and with more control, but less weight.
Next workout Wednesday.
Workout B
Squats 5x5 70kg
Deadlift 1x5 80kg
Military press 5x5 35kg
Bent over row (-10%) 5x5 52.5kg
Straight bar 8,8,5 22.5
Bar hold 3x10s 80kg
Close grip bench press 3x8 30kg
Cable crunches 3x10 31.5kg
Lots of girls using the power racks today. Powerful women always have a certain presence about them. It makes me want to... be careful.
Squats difficult towards the end but completed. Deadlift I reduced weight slightly because I was concerned over form. Going to have to check some videos I think. I'm doing all the accessory lifts slower and with more control, but less weight.
Next workout Wednesday.
Chapter LXI: Stress
One of my ascetic practices is sleeping on a hard bed. This is mostly a good idea, since it teaches you how to pretend that you're comfortable even when you're actually uncomfortable. The other night however I woke up suddenly to my left calf cramping up tighter than a [punchline redacted]. It felt like the tendon was going to snap! Naturally I blamed my bed, but on second thought maybe the bed is blameless and my calf had just had a stressful day.
Whatever the cause, I can still feel it sore today (2 days later). It reminds me of the time I was so hungover my hands spasmed for several minutes and I couldn't hold my mug of hot water and lemon. In short it's an experience I wouldn't wish on anyone.
Despite this, today's gym was good. Everything is back to improving. My arms are still spindly but muscle definition is there, especially post-workout.
The scales revealed another 300g weight gain this week. My current eating mentality is, "quick, I have to eat enough to be able to lift 2.5kg heavier in 2 days!" The urgency works. Maybe that's what stressed out my calf.
Workout A
Bench press 5x5 47.5kg
Squats 5x5 72.5kg
Barbell shrugs 3x8 65kg
Straight bar 3x8 22.5kg
Calf raises 3x8 65kg
Skullcrushers 3x8 20kg
Hyperextensions 2x17 10kg
Cable crunches 3x10 33kgOne of my ascetic practices is sleeping on a hard bed. This is mostly a good idea, since it teaches you how to pretend that you're comfortable even when you're actually uncomfortable. The other night however I woke up suddenly to my left calf cramping up tighter than a [punchline redacted]. It felt like the tendon was going to snap! Naturally I blamed my bed, but on second thought maybe the bed is blameless and my calf had just had a stressful day.
Whatever the cause, I can still feel it sore today (2 days later). It reminds me of the time I was so hungover my hands spasmed for several minutes and I couldn't hold my mug of hot water and lemon. In short it's an experience I wouldn't wish on anyone.
Despite this, today's gym was good. Everything is back to improving. My arms are still spindly but muscle definition is there, especially post-workout.
The scales revealed another 300g weight gain this week. My current eating mentality is, "quick, I have to eat enough to be able to lift 2.5kg heavier in 2 days!" The urgency works. Maybe that's what stressed out my calf.
Chapter LXII: Back on the gain train
Definitely growing stronger, I can feel it. Each time I hit the squat rack I can lift more. Previously when I reached 75kg with squats, it took me several workouts to be able to manage it and progress, but this time I feel comfortable continuing to increase. I put it down to improvements I've made to my diet. When I hit 80kg I will be back into PB territory.
Military press is also going very well. Was 2 reps short of 5x5 but will get it next time. 40kg will be a new PB.
Cut it a little short this time because I had plans to meet someone in Roppongi. Next workout Tuesday because the gym is closed Monday.
Workout B
Squats 5x5 75kg
Deadlift 1x5 85kg
Military press 4x5,1x3 37.5kg
Bent over row (-10%) 5x5 50kg
Bar hold 3x10s 85kg
Definitely growing stronger, I can feel it. Each time I hit the squat rack I can lift more. Previously when I reached 75kg with squats, it took me several workouts to be able to manage it and progress, but this time I feel comfortable continuing to increase. I put it down to improvements I've made to my diet. When I hit 80kg I will be back into PB territory.
Military press is also going very well. Was 2 reps short of 5x5 but will get it next time. 40kg will be a new PB.
Cut it a little short this time because I had plans to meet someone in Roppongi. Next workout Tuesday because the gym is closed Monday.
Original post by miser
Chapter LX: Squatting carefully
Lots of girls using the power racks today. Powerful women always have a certain presence about them. It makes me want to... be careful.
Squats difficult towards the end but completed. Deadlift I reduced weight slightly because I was concerned over form. Going to have to check some videos I think. I'm doing all the accessory lifts slower and with more control, but less weight.
Next workout Wednesday.
Workout B
Squats5x570kg
Deadlift1x5 80kg
Military press5x535kg
Bent over row (-10%)5x552.5kg
Straight bar8,8,522.5
Bar hold3x10s80kg
Close grip bench press3x830kg
Cable crunches3x1031.5kg
Lots of girls using the power racks today. Powerful women always have a certain presence about them. It makes me want to... be careful.
Squats difficult towards the end but completed. Deadlift I reduced weight slightly because I was concerned over form. Going to have to check some videos I think. I'm doing all the accessory lifts slower and with more control, but less weight.
Next workout Wednesday.
Take some videos of the lifting and post them for form feedback if you want.
Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Motorbiker
Cheers.
Chapter LXIII: Weight Gain 4000
Squats were a little too tricky to manage at the new weight whilst maintaining good form. Took off 2.5kg for the last two sets which helped a bit. For calf raises I switched to using the seated calf machine instead of using a barbell. I felt like I could get a better range of motion and the calves felt more isolated.
All my main lifts are now back on par with my previous PBs. My next workouts should see me push beyond and set new ones.
This week if anything I ate too much and put on 1kg. It's good to know I'm finally putting on weight consistently. For now my goal is to bulk to 85kg then cut to 80kg.
Workout A
Bench press 5x5 50kg
Squats 3x5 77.5kg, 2x5 75kg
Bent over row 5x5 57.5kg
Barbell shrugs 3x8 67.5kg
Straight bar 3x6 25kg
Calf raises 3x8 40kg
Skullcrushers 3x8 22.5kg
Hyperextensions 2x20 10kg
Cable crunches 3x10 36kg
Bodyweight 74.8kg +1kg
Squats were a little too tricky to manage at the new weight whilst maintaining good form. Took off 2.5kg for the last two sets which helped a bit. For calf raises I switched to using the seated calf machine instead of using a barbell. I felt like I could get a better range of motion and the calves felt more isolated.
All my main lifts are now back on par with my previous PBs. My next workouts should see me push beyond and set new ones.
This week if anything I ate too much and put on 1kg. It's good to know I'm finally putting on weight consistently. For now my goal is to bulk to 85kg then cut to 80kg.
(edited 6 years ago)
Chapter LXIV: Superbodyweight squats
Realised post-workout I hadn't updated my notes on my phone to properly reflect what I lifted last B workout. This led me to lift a little higher weights than I would have for military press, straight bar and CGBP. But given that the weights were higher, I didn't do too badly. I thought I had only made a +1 rep increase on my straight bar, but then I realised I managed +1 rep with +2.5kg weights. CGBP similarly was +6 reps with +2.5kg compared with 10 days ago.
Squats were good this time - managed all the lifts as well as maintaining form. I'm now in above-bodyweight squat territory. Deadlift was pretty tough and tired my lower back out a lot.
Recently I feel that I'm looking a lot less skinny. When I started this blog I was 67kg. At 75kg now that's an 8kg increase compared with how I used to look. Keeping the gains coming.
Workout B
Squats 5x5 77.5kg
Deadlift 1x5 90kg
Military press 5,4 40kg, 4,3,2 37.5kg
Bent over row (-10%) 5x5 52.5kg
Straight bar 8,6,5 27.5kg
Bar hold 3x10s 87.5kg
Close grip bench press 3x10 32.5kg
Cable crunches 3x13 36kg
Realised post-workout I hadn't updated my notes on my phone to properly reflect what I lifted last B workout. This led me to lift a little higher weights than I would have for military press, straight bar and CGBP. But given that the weights were higher, I didn't do too badly. I thought I had only made a +1 rep increase on my straight bar, but then I realised I managed +1 rep with +2.5kg weights. CGBP similarly was +6 reps with +2.5kg compared with 10 days ago.
Squats were good this time - managed all the lifts as well as maintaining form. I'm now in above-bodyweight squat territory. Deadlift was pretty tough and tired my lower back out a lot.
Recently I feel that I'm looking a lot less skinny. When I started this blog I was 67kg. At 75kg now that's an 8kg increase compared with how I used to look. Keeping the gains coming.
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