Tuesday's Workout, Slightly Redone: 5x5

Like the title says, I slightly re-did my workout.  I felt it necessary, what with me needing to be strong and powerful.
So I added in some extra abdominal work, as core is essential to movement (without a strong core, you're not a strong you), and I cut down my rest time for my big exercises, to emphasize working under stress.
So, here's my workout:

Abdominal Work:

• 30 second front plank
• 30 second back plank
• 30 second side plank left
• 30 second side plank right
• 3x(Leg Raise x7, Hanging Knee Raise x5)
• 2x (Hanging Knee Raise x5)
• 3x 30 second Ab Wheel Rollout

Main Strength Workout: 5x5 with complementing moves

• Bench Press with Push Up: 160-6/160-6/155-6/155-6/155-6
• Squat with Box Jump: 175-7/175-7/175-7/175-7/175-7
• Pull Up (AMAP) with TRX Row: 7-7/6-6/6-6/6-6/5-6
• Deadlift with Swiss Ball Curl: 195-6/185-6/185-6/185-6/185-6
• Dead Clean and Press with Handstand Hold: 95-30 sec/100-30 sec/100-30 sec/100-30 sec/100-30 sec

Joint Integrity/Convict Conditioning:

• Vertical Pulls: 55/55/55
• Shoulderstand Squat: 50/50/50
• Various Grip Work

Hope y'all liked this!  Let me know how I can improve this blog!

Motivational Monday: Enjoy Life

Motivational Monday for y'all.  Towards the end of last week I was feeling quite exhausted, so I wasn't keeping up with my blog.  Apologies!  I'm re-doing my workout routine and will be hitting it hard tomorrow.  So for now I'm resting and relaxing.
That brings me into my M&M for the week: enjoy life.  If you're at all like me, you have a tendency to work too hard and not stop to smell the roses.  This is very true of myself, as I work all the time (ask my friends and co-workers; I'm always on the move).
Doing so many things, I sometimes miss all the good things that life has to offer.  That's why I was very thrilled when I learned that, early last week, two of my very good friends, Kelsey and Liam, became engaged.  So I drove 2 hours to see them this past Saturday for an impromptu engagement party, which pretty much consisted of a group of about 20 or so going to a bar and buying the newly engaged couple drinks.  I had a few drinks myself to celebrate the festivities (had an Irish Monk...very tasty), and we just all had fun relaxing and enjoying one another's company.  I went to bed at 3 am, then woke up around 9 am, having not slept very well, as I usually go to bed by 10 pm.  But I tell you, it was one of the best times I've had in a long while.
The point of this slightly long babble is that you have to stop and smell the roses, and remind yourself of why you're working so hard.  Maybe you work hard for a roof over your head.  Perhaps you work hard to prove yourself to yourself or others.  Whatever the reason, you have to sometime stop and take a break from what life is throwing at you.  Enjoy life!  It's ok; your life isn't going anywhere.
Just enjoy, then go back to life.  It's a great recharge.
Also: Happy Engagement to my friends Kelsey and Liam and happy early wedding to Casey and Dillon and Craig and Lauren.  Enjoy each other, and enjoy life!

Physical Perfection Phase 1: Week 2: Cardio and the 100-Up Part 2

Ok so I gotta do this really quickly since I'm about to pass out.
Today I did another 3 mile run, with some sprints put in between.  All in all, it hurt.  A lot!
Also, here's my joint integrity work:

• Vertical Pulls: 3 sets of 50
• Shoulderstand Squat: 3 sets of 50
• Various Grip Work

And I also did my plank work: 30 second front plank, back plank, and right and left plank.

Ok then, off to bed!  ...zzzzz.....

Physical Perfection Phase 1: Week 2: Cardio and the 100-Up

For today's workout, I found myself doing some cardio.  Nothing too much; about 3 miles in about 26 minutes.  It was mostly to flush all of the crap out of my system, and to prepare for the next three days of Hell that I'm about to put my body through.
However, what I found very interesting was that the running was very therapeutic.  It provided me with time to relax and just be with my thoughts (with music playing).  I found myself focusing more on form than anything else, and decided to start a routine of running that I found a couple of months ago called The 100-Up.  It was a technique developed by W.G. George in the 19th Century that focused on the form of running, and supposedly helped him become the greatest mile runner in his time, even though he worked as a chemist's apprentice for 14 hours a day.  It has claimed to produce better running with less effort, and even help eliminate injuries.  I'm going to try the 100-Up for 30 days (ending on March 1st) and seeing if there is any improvement.
In addition to that, I did some lovely joint integrity work:
Three Headstands, all at about 2 minutes, which gave me a huge rush of energy.
Three sets of short bridges (or hip bridges); 50 for each set.
I also did some neck strengthening work.
And I did my ab work:

3x (Hanging Leg Raise x7, Hanging Knee Raise x5)

2x (Hanging Leg Raise x5)

Plank; Back Plank; Side Plank Right and Left: all 30 seconds

More tomorrow!  I'm doing a lot of filming and working out tomorrow!

Workout Wednesday! Who Says Women Can't Lift and Be Sexy?!

Workout Wednesdays are back, and this one is for the ladies out there!  A very popular fitness myth is that if women lift weights, they will gain a lot of muscle and beef up just like the guys.
The truth is that, unless you're taking steroids, you will not.  The reason: the primary muscle-building hormone known as testosterone (you know, that one that makes guys act all macho and stuff) simply isn't as high in women as it is in men.  As a result, you will not beef up like Arnold in Terminator. 
What you will achieve though is a sexy, toned and athletic look.  Plus you will also be able to do some pretty cool stuff, like the girl in this video here.  She's doing a renegade row (a full body exercise that puts special emphasis on the back to pull the weights from the floor to your torso; and the abdominals which are used to help brace your body), and she's rowing TWO 32 kg (about 71 pound) kettlebells.  And she's doing it on an incline, which is even harder!

And check out how toned and sexy she is!

This is proof positive: ladies, if you want to really get that athletic look that men just swoon over...hit the weights.  Just do it.  It'll make us push ourselves to work harder in the gym (and maybe lose that beer belly!)

Physical Perfection Phase 1: Week 2: The Spartacus Workout Cometh

So for today, I did lighter weights, but with the intention of keeping things aerobic.  In other words, moving with strength both in the muscles and in the cardiovascular capacities.
So check out what I did: my own version of the Spartacus Workout (or Version 1.5 as I call it).
All you need is a set of dumbbells (I used a set of 20s and 15s) and a TRX for the rows (or a bar suspended between two posts if you want it).  Because I had one, I also used a 20 pound kettlebell.
Here's how you do it: you perform each of the 10 exercises for 60 seconds with 15 seconds rest in between each.  After you're done, rest a minute or two, and repeat the process two more times.  Ready?  Here we go:

• Squat Jump (switching to squat when you lose form)
• Sprinter's Lunge
• Single Arm Dumbbell Snatch (I used a kettlebell this time around): 20 pounds
• T-Push Up: 15 pound dumbbells
• Split Jump (switching to reverse lunge when you lose form)
• TRX Row
• Archers Squat (this is a new move, and I'll demonstrate it in a later video)
• Push Up with Row: 15 pound dumbbells
• Dumbbell Lunge and Rotation: 20 pound dumbell
• Dumbbell Push Press: 15 pound dumbbells

Also, to keep my abs in check, I did this:
Plank; Back Plank; Side Plank Right and Left: all 30 seconds
And as for joint integrity...

• Wall Push Ups: 55/55/55
• Knee Tucks: 40/40/40
• Calf Strengthening Work

Until tomorrow, enjoy this video of my Spartacus Workout 1.5, minus the Archer's Squat.  

Work it!

Physical Perfection Phase 1: All In Week 2!

Week 2 of my challenge.  Since I was a bit of a slacker as far as posting last week, I'm gonna be extra good this time.  First though let's check my stats:

• Height : 6'2
• Weight: 167.7 pounds 
• Body Fat Percentage: 6.4%
• Neck: 16 inches 
• Shoulders: 47.75 inches 
• Chest: 40.5 inches
• Waist above navel: 31 inches 
• Waist at navel: 31.75 inches 
• Waist at widest hip: 39.25 inches
• Right Leg at Widest Point: 23 inches
• Left Leg at Widest Point: 23 inches
• Right Calf at Widest Point: 15.5 inches
• Left Calf at Widest Point: 15.5 inches
• Right Bicep Unflexed: 13 inches
• Right Bicep Flexed: 15 inches
• Left Bicep Unflexed: 13 inches
• Left Bicep Flexed: 15 inches
• Right Forearm at Widest Point: 12.5 inches
• Left Forearm at Widest Point: 12.5 inches

And let's check out my body!

Aw yeah!

With that being said, here is my redone workout program.  Because I wanted to get more work in less time, I varied up my reps and did a superset complex workout.  For those of you who like the nerdy, scientific versions, it means that I did two exercises one right after the other; the first one was a weight-based exercise; the other was a complimentary exercise.  Let's check it out:
Bench Press and Pushup: 6 sets of 5: 160 pounds and 6 pushups (sets 1-3; 5-6) 160 pounds and 7 pushups (set 4)
Deadlift with Swiss Ball Curl: 6 sets of 5: 195 pounds and 7 swiss ball curls (sets 1-4); 195 pounds and 8 swiss ball curls (set 5); 195 pounds and 9 swiss ball curls (set 5)
Mixed Grip Chin Up with V-Handle Pulldowns: 7 pull ups and 100 pounds (sets 1-2); 6 pull ups and 100 pounds (sets 3-6)
Squat with Squat Jump: 6 sets of 5: 175 pounds and 7 28" box jumps (all sets)
Power Clean with Handstand Hold: 6 sets of 5: 95 pounds and 30 second handstand hold (all sets)
And check out my new abdominal work:
3x (Hanging Leg Raise x7, Hanging Knee Raise x5)
Plank; Back Plank; Side Plank Right and Left: all 30 seconds
I also decided to keep up with my joint integrity work:

• Vertical Pulls: 3 sets of 50
• Shoulderstand Squat: 3 sets of 50
• Various Grip Work

More tomorrow!