Natural Al's DC training Journal

[MisterMagoo]

i wanna see a vid of your training sessions dude. they sound so hilariously brutal i can't imagine. i tried a DC style workout once, a long time ago, on bench and nearly died.

[natural al]

i wanna see a vid of your training sessions dude. they sound so hilariously brutal i can't imagine. i tried a DC style workout once, a long time ago, on bench and nearly died.

well let's put it this way, I'm in and out in about 35 minutes, about a week ago I finished my chest, shoulder and back workout and walked downstairs and jumped on a bike, my heart rate was still 131 BPM, I go fast as hell when I train and I sweet my ass off.

I used to work out in the same gym as a guy who won the masters nationals a couple of years ago and he told me a couple of times that it looks like I'm killing myself in the gym

[natural al]

yesterday:

decline's on the smith machine-315*11 rest paused, lost a rep on these...gonna give it another shot before I drop it, it seemed really f'n heavy for some reason, I started worrying at about rep number 6 but I still thought I could get it...totally failed trying for rep number 12..oh, well.

I did my widowmaker and got 18 reps with 142.5


lateral machine 102.5*15RP with a static and a stretch

pulldowns to the front-233*16RP with a 35 second stretch at the end ( I just added the lat stretch and am building up slowly)

BB Row-280*4 and 230*10 with a reverse grip

I then did 3 sets for my abs max-ot style..I was gonna do cardio but I was f'n wasted.

[natural al]

sat I did chest, shoulders and back....good workout.  I was in and out really fast.  I used the precor machines for chest and shoulders...these are pretty good machines, not the typical machines you think of when you think of a bench and shoulder press machine.  I did beat my log book on them so that was good, I also got my 20 reps on my chest widowmaker and did my stretch, I upped the weight for the stretch and only got 45 seconds but my chest was trashed when I was done, probably one of the best chest workouts I've ever had.  I did behind the neck pulldowns, I beat my logbook so that was great.  I did t-bars for my back thickness, I'm getting really heavy with these but I beat the book (4 45's, a 25 and a 5lber) but I'm gonna keep the weight the same next workout and watch my form a little better, I just didn't like the way I did the reps. 

I've been doing max ot cardio for a few weeks now and I think it's going really well.  I had a preiod of time when I switched cardio routines where my bodyweight just jumped way up there....I still dont' understand what happened but it's back about where I want it to be.

really everything's looking good, my chest has come up a little, abs are nice and thick but my waist is smaller.  Tri's don't seem to be suffereing due to no direct work.  Everything is progressing the way I want.

I still have a couple of issues I need to work out, I'm doing front squats for the first time and I'm still trying to find my niche on them, I'm just taking it slow with these....

[natural al]

last workout I did:

spider curls-75*18RP with a 30 second static and a 1 minute stretch.

reverse cable curls-26.5*30 reps with each arm

paramout calf sled-190*9 with some partials

seated leg curl-192.5*14RP with a 20 second static and a stretch

high rep leg presss-350*52

my stomach cramped when I was doing the leg press...really bad, I thought an alien was gonna jump out, don't know why that happened 

[slaveboy1980]

last workout I did:

spider curls-75*18RP with a 30 second static and a 1 minute stretch.

reverse cable curls-26.5*30 reps with each arm

paramout calf sled-190*9 with some partials

seated leg curl-192.5*14RP with a 20 second static and a stretch

high rep leg presss-350*52

my stomach cramped when I was doing the leg press...really bad, I thought an alien was gonna jump out, don't know why that happened 

do a light set of abs before you do the legpress. (light and not close to failure)

[natural al]

yesterday was brutal, it was hot as hell and humid as hell so even though the rec center I train at is air conditioned it was still sticky....plus my asthma has been brutal for the past 2 weeks, there's something in the air that's just tearin me up.

dip machine-205*14 RP-this is brutally heavy for me with the way I do them, I go fro a really deeeep stretch at the bottom and hold it for a sec and then explode down and lower the weight really slow and controlled.

widowmaker-142.5*21...I was supposed to bump the weight up to 145 but I put the wrong weight on the machine and didn't realize until I was almost done with the set....oh, well.  I did a stretch afterwards and my chest was trashed.

press behind the neck-185*15 RP with a static and stretch.

pullover-95*18, got an extra rep.  this is another movement where I'm almost topped out at, just keeping the reps high with the heavy weight is a killer.  this movement just takes on a life of it's own when you RP it.

seated row-298*4 and then 185*12, I changed the way I'm doing the 2nd set so I lowered the weight to try things out.

I did some ab work max-ot style and then did about 20 min. on the treadmill-HR at about 130, I've been doing max-ot cardio but I just had a olittle extra energy so I decided to hit the treadmill.

20 min in the hot tub and I was like jell-o

[MisterMagoo]

no idea how you do your dips like that. it fucks up my shoulders BIG time. 

also, your BTN presses make me feel like a pussball considering i did them today too.

[natural al]

no idea how you do your dips like that. it fucks up my shoulders BIG time. 

also, your BTN presses make me feel like a pussball considering i did them today too.

I don't want to make myself out to be something I'm not so I just want to point out that the majority of my pressing movements are done on a smith machine, I've explained why a bunch of times so I won't bore anyone with another explanation. 

I don't really like dong PBN, I'm just doing it on this blast to see how it goes, I also only lower the bar to about ear level, anything lower than that and it just destroys my shoulders.

knowing that, it's probably alot less impressive than you originally thought...oh, well.   

[natural al]

drag curl-140*18RP plus a static and stetch

hammer curls-40*25ish SS for both arms

toe press-690*8 plus about 10 partials

sumo press-700*10 SS - didn't really like the way this went, I don't know what but it didn't feel right.

leg press-700*20RP, my knee's bother me when I do a straight set with this much weight for higher reps so I decided to rest pause these.

the same old guy that hassled me was at the rec center this morning giving me the evil eye when I loaded up the leg press, I really wanted him to say something to me casue I was gonna make him go get the manager and go off on him..  I don't bother anyone, I'm not loud, I'm not obnoxious, I rack my weights and I wipe the machine's down when I'm done.  He was pissed cause he said I was being to rough with the machine's....I've worked out there for 3 years and no one has ever said a word to me about that.  I wanna rip that guy a new ass.  I'm still pissed about that.

[slaveboy1980]

drag curl-140*18RP plus a static and stetch

hammer curls-40*25ish SS for both arms

toe press-690*8 plus about 10 partials

sumo press-700*10 SS - didn't really like the way this went, I don't know what but it didn't feel right.

leg press-700*20RP, my knee's bother me when I do a straight set with this much weight for higher reps so I decided to rest pause these.

the same old guy that hassled me was at the rec center this morning giving me the evil eye when I loaded up the leg press, I really wanted him to say something to me casue I was gonna make him go get the manager and go off on him..  I don't bother anyone, I'm not loud, I'm not obnoxious, I rack my weights and I wipe the machine's down when I'm done.  He was pissed cause he said I was being to rough with the machine's....I've worked out there for 3 years and no one has ever said a word to me about that.  I wanna rip that guy a new ass.  I'm still pissed about that.

stare back and fart whenever your close to him.

[Overload]

stare back and fart whenever your close to him.

 

I prefer the "crop duster"...

Walk by and let one rip(while walking) about 3 feet from him while he is mid-set and just continue on your way...works like a charm.

[natural al]

still training, just to lazy to update this...my bodyweight got down to 187 last week and I was actually looking decent but I had a rough weekend..lol.  I've been doing max-ot cardio and it's just kickin my ass.

I'll start this up again next week probably.

[MisterMagoo]

you should toss up a pic dude. i'm curious to see what this routine's yielded.

[natural al]

you should toss up a pic dude. i'm c.urious to see what this routine's yielded.

once I get "in shape" I will, I promise......I'm kinda "between stages" right now.  I haven't really tried to get really lean in along time so I'm re-learning somethings as I go.  Once I have a finished product I'll prolly post a pic

[Miss Demeanor]

Him, again?

Al, you have GOT to talk to the manager about him. 

Maybe it is easier for me to say that, being a woman*; we're used to having to go over peoples' heads to get what's right.

*Apparently some of the trolls think I'm a sock-puppet account.  But guess who I'm willing to share my identity with?

Anyway, whether the old man hassles you again or not, I suggest you DO say something to his superior.  Think of it as being proactive ... the old fart will probably pull some other crap before all's said and done, so it's best to head him off at the pass.

And P.S. -- update your workouts more often!!!!!   Sean follows your thread when he's around.

drag curl-140*18RP plus a static and stetch

hammer curls-40*25ish SS for both arms

toe press-690*8 plus about 10 partials

sumo press-700*10 SS - didn't really like the way this went, I don't know what but it didn't feel right.

leg press-700*20RP, my knee's bother me when I do a straight set with this much weight for higher reps so I decided to rest pause these.

the same old guy that hassled me was at the rec center this morning giving me the evil eye when I loaded up the leg press, I really wanted him to say something to me casue I was gonna make him go get the manager and go off on him..  I don't bother anyone, I'm not loud, I'm not obnoxious, I rack my weights and I wipe the machine's down when I'm done.  He was pissed cause he said I was being to rough with the machine's....I've worked out there for 3 years and no one has ever said a word to me about that.  I wanna rip that guy a new ass.  I'm still pissed about that.

[natural al]

Saturday I did:

dip machine-205*14RP
Widow Maker-150*20

Press Behind the Neck-195*14RP (done on a smith machine-weight only goes down to about ear level)

Dumbell Pullover-95*19RP

precor row-120*20SS

chest was jello after the widowmaker, did the stretches adn the statics.


today I did:

drag curl-150*14RP-this felt really heavy which is odd cause I did 145 last workout and I didn't really have a problem with it.

hammer curls-45*24reps with each arm-straight setted ( I might have gotten 25 with my right but I actually forgot to write it down)

toe press on the 45 degree legpress 700*8 done dc style and then I did a few partials after about 20 seconds.

sumo press-705*12SS

Leg Press 707.5*20 RP

I did some max -ot abs afterwards and have been pretty consistant with the cardio.

all's goin good.




the guy that was hassling me hasn't bothered me at all and it's been awhile.  if he says something then I'll pursue it but until then I'll chalk our run in up as out of the ordinary.  I try to keep the log up but I'm in school again, starting a new ( and way better ) job and my wife is in school again.

[natural al]

this morning:

decline-320*11RP (wanted 12 but got stuck....)

widowmaker-152.5*17 SS, then I did a 60 second stretch with 132.5lbs on the dip machine.

lateral machine-102.5*18RP with a 20 second static and a 60 second stretch

front pulldowns-235.2*18RP-finally bought some straps and it helped bigtime.

bent over rows-282.5*4 and then 232.5*10 with a reverse grip.

I slacked on the cardio for the last 2 days so thats a bummer but my right knee has been bothering me.

[natural al]

 forgot to log my last workout....sorry.

yesterday:

Precor Chest-95*18RP
WM-152.5*18SS

Precor Shoulder-65*19 with my right arm and 17 with my left both rest paused, I'll probably switch to DB press once I hit 25 reps rest paused but this machine is a nice change of pace.

behind the neck pulldown-180*15RP since I got straps I decided to really slow down the negative aspect of the movement and really fight it, before I was just powering through the set but yesterday I lowered the weight a little and really got a great workout. Dante talked about the most important part of a pulldown being the negative aspect and that made sense to me so I decided to concentrate on that from now on.

Seated Row-300*5 and then 192.5*12

I got a few more reps on my chest movements and my shoulder, I really beat the logbook on everything, did some statics and the stretches. I've been a little worn out lateley and my cardio has been suffering, I'm fine in the gym but getting on the bike first thing in the morning is getting to be pretty hard. I want to push this blast for a couple more weeks before hitting a cruise cause I've got some major changes coming up in september that might make getting to the gym pretty rough.

[flexingtonsteele]

natural al.

how is max-ot cardio performed?

[natural al]

natural al.

how is max-ot cardio performed?

max ot cardio is done as an all out 16 min. session and what you try to do is beat the amount of calories you burned the previous workout so you are constantly raising the stakes.

I've had a really rough last few weeks thats why I haven't posted anything, I've worked out a couple of times and they have been great but inconsistant cuase of a new job I now have.  I'm getting shipped to california for the next week so I'm gonna just take it easy and try to get back on track mentally, lots goin on in life right now and training seems to have really gotten pushed to the back burner. 

[natural al]

so the last month or so has sucked ass training wise, like I said a few posts ago I got a new job, my wife started a few things, my kids went back to school, I started another class...

I think I've been in the gym twice but I decided I was gonna get to the gym twice a week from now on one way or the other.  I took my DC program and I picked out what I thought were the 2 best choices for each bodypart and I'm gonna rotate the 2 workouts-this is only gonna be termporary but it's a program I think I can make work even with all the bullshit goin on in my life.

I wrote everything up and off I went and it was terrible....fuck.  I wanted to start on the dip machine and some schmoe is on it....dammit so I figured I would start with a lat thickness movement and some idiot is using the only straight bar in the rec center to do seated rows...the guy weighs like 120 and he's got a whopping 80lbs on the machine so even though I don't like doing this I grabbed a close grip handle set it up with 245 and went to work, I got 14 reps rest paused, they weren't all picture perferct reps but I was pretty sloppy.  I planned on doing front pulldowns with 245 and wanted to beat 16 reps.  Then I go over to the dip machine, I've got 210 for 16 written down, I ended up getting 210 for 13 so I missed it....I never miss it by that much.  my widowmaker was worse, instead of getting 18 or 19 reps I got 13.  Behind the neck press with 210 ( on a smith machine) I wanted to get 15 reps rest paused and I got 10....seated rows I had 300 for at least 5 reps and then a 2nd set with 200 for about 12 as my goal, I got 4 reps with 300 and 10 reps with 200.  I did 2 sets of machine crunchs with 10 lbs less than I had written down and I finished up with one set using the old ab roller, I had wanted to do 2.

so my workout sucked ass, nothing went well.  what I'm gonna have to do is drop my poundages by 10% and see what happens, once I get back in the swing of things everythign should fall into place but today sucked ass.

[natural al]

dropped my weights by 20% and hit it again today, went really well...I took everything as far as I could.  I just added 1 legged leg press cause my back has been killing me with the squats.

spider curls-65*25RP with about 20 partials and a minute stretch

wrist curl-85*21RP

Paramount Calf Sled-180*8 done DC style with some partials at the end

seated leg curl-160*21RP

single leg leg press-I just added this so the weight is pretty lite and got about 20 reps with each leg, I'm gonna up the weight on a regular basis and push these as far as I can.


back on track so that's good.

[natural al]

been away for awhile but let's see if I can get this goin again.

first, like I said before, I have a "new" job and it's pretty much a dream job.  it takes a ton of my time up and my wife is doing somethings so my life is really hectic right now.  I have been training but I modified my DC program since realistically I can only get in the gym 2 days a week (yes, I actually am that busy..lol.)

anyway I rotate 2 movements now per bodypart and I'm kinda doing alot of things just by how I feel, I still try to use the DC training system as much as I can but it's really hard at this point.  hopefully after the first of the year I'll be up and running 100% again.  I've also modified my cardio routine so I"ll talk about that in the future.

here's what my last workout looked like:


declines (on a smith machine) 305*12RP

seated DB press-60*27RP

underhand pulldowns-180*18RP

BB rows-270*5 and then 235*11

I did do a widowmaker for chest but it's different than what I was doing in the past, I also did my statics and stretches as usual.  I got 10 more lbs on my decline and added 5lbs to everything else.  skipped tri's and abs cause I ran out of time and people were hogging the machines'.

I'm weighing in at 194.5 these days-my all time high this past spring was about 215 and I got down to the low 180's before everything went nuts...

I'll get this goin again cause I enjoy doing it

[natural al]

just did a cardio session cause shit came up and I couldnt' get to the gym today to do legs

anyway I'm still doing max-ot cardio (16 minutes as hard as I can always trying to beat my totals from the last session) BUT I dropped the tension down on the bike and I try to keep my rpm's above 90 so it's really more of a "cardio" workout than before cause I had the tension as high as it would go but I could only keep my rpm's in the 50's for the whole session so my lungs weren't really getting taxed the way I want them to.  having asthma I have to really try to keep my lungs really, really active in the winter or I get sick as a dog.  with the new system I'm breathing really heavy and sweating like a pig plus my heart-rate is a bit higher like this.

so I just got 217 calories burned, my max HR was 162 so it was a good session.