This week's workout log

[Zach Trowbridge]

9/17
Back
Barbell Rows - 135x12, 155x11, 168x8
T-Bar Rows - 100x12, 105x10, 105x8
1-Arm Cable Rows - 30x12, 35x12, 45x12
Smith-Machine Deadlifts - 135x12, 185x10 (done as almost an afterthought, very light sets)
Biceps
E-Z Bar Curl - 80x12, 80x10, 85x8
1-Arm Scott Curl - 20x12, 25x8, 25x8
1-Arm Cable Curl (done on FreeMotion Dual Cross) - 12.5x12, 15x10, 17.5x9
Forearms
Wrist Curls - 65x12, 65x12, 70x6
Reverse Wrist Curls - 45x12, 45x10

9/18
Chest
Incline DB Press - 50x12, 55x12, 60x6
Flat DB Press - 50x12, 50x11, 50x8
Bodyweight Dips - 11, 10, 10
Kneeling Cable Crossover - 12.5x12, 15x12, 20x10
Triceps
Overhead DB Extension - 55x12, 65x12, 75x7
V-Bar Pressdown - 100x12, 110x12, 120x10
1-Arm Reverse Pressdown - 10x12, 12.5x12, 15x10

9/19
Quads
Squats - 155x12, 175x10, 185x7
Leg Press - 270x12, 320x10, 360x8
Leg Extensions - 50x12, 60x12, 80x9
Hamstrings
Lying Leg Curl - 75x12, 80x12, 85x8
Seated Leg Curl - 90x12, 100x8

9/20
Delts
Seated DB Press - 45x12, 50x9, 50x5
1-Arm Lateral Raise - 20x12, 25x10, 25x9
3-Way Delt Raise - 5x12, 10x10
Cable Upright Row - 50x12, 60x12, 70x12
Back
Hammer-Strength High Row - 90x12, 100x10 (each side)
Machine Pulldown - 120x12

Not the best week other than leg day - not running on a lot of sleep from having a 2-week old baby. 

Short-term goals: 200+ ATF squat, 450 leg press, 185 bb row, 100 overhead db extension, 75 incline db press.  Currently 166 lbs at 11% bf, 5' 8", 24 years old.  Lost 18 lbs over the summer from a kidney infection, have put about half that weight back on.

[Zach Trowbridge]

9/24
Back
Assisted Pullup Machine - 60x12, 50x12, 40x10
Barbell Row - 135x12, 155x11, 165x8
T-Bar Row - 100x12, 110x8, 110x6, 10 sec rest, 110x2
1-Arm Cable Row - 50x12, 55x10, 60x8
Reverse-Grip Pulldown - 105x12, 120x12
Biceps
Seated Dumbbell Curl - 30x12, 35x10, 40x8
1-Arm Scott Curl - 20x12, 25x9, 25x8
Seated Hammer Curl - 30x12, 35x10, 40x8
Forearms
Wrist Curl - 70x12, 70x9
Reverse Wrist Curl - 45x10, 45x7

[Zach Trowbridge]

9/25
Chest
Incline DB Press - 55x12, 60x8, 60x6
Flat DB Press - 55x11, 55x8, 55x7
Weighted Dips - 20x12, 20x8, 20x8
Pec Deck Flye - 50x12, 70x12, 90x8
Triceps
Overhead DB Extensions - 65x12, 75x8, 75x7
Pullover/Press - 30x12, 45x8, 45x8
1-Arm Reverse Pressdown - 12.5x12, 15x11, 17.5x8

9/26
Quads
Squats - 155x12, 175x10, 185x8
Leg Press - 320x12, 360x8, 360x8
Leg Extensions - 60x12, 80x10, 100x7
Hamstrings
Lying Leg Curl - 80x12, 85x12, 90x7
Dumbbell SLDL - 70x12, 80x10

9/27
Delts
Seated DB Press - 45x12, 50x10, 50x6
Seated Lateral Raise - 25x12, 25x12, 30x8
Reverse Pec Deck - 90x12, 105x12, 120x9
Machine Press - 60x12, 70x12, 80x8

10/1
Back
Chinups - 8,8,6
Barbell Row - 165x8, 175x6, 185x4
T-Bar Row - 110x8, 120x6, 130x4
Close-Grip Pulldown - 120x8, 135x6, 150x5
Biceps
Barbell Curl - 85x8, 95x4, 95x4
Alt DB Curl - 40x8, 45x6, 50x3
Hammer Curl - 30x8, 35x8, 40x7
Forearms
Reverse Curl - 65x8, 65x8

10/2
Chest
Incline Barbell Press - 115x8, 135x8, 155x4
Flat BB Press - 135x8, 155x5, 155x4
Pec Deck Flye - 90x8, 100x8, 110x7
Weighted Dips - 45x6, 45x5
Triceps
Rope Pressdown - 80x15, 90x12, 100x8
Overhead DB Ext - 70x8, 75x8, 80x7
Pullover/Press - 45x8, 55x5

10/4
Quads
Squats - 185x8, 195x5, 205x4
Leg Press - 360x8, 380x8, 410x5
Leg Extension - 100x8, 120x7, 120x7 - 60x5 (drop set)
Side Lunge - 10x12, 15x12
Hamstrings
Lying Leg Curl - 90x8, 95x8, 100x7, 110x4 - 65x6 (drop set)
Glute/Ham Ext - bodyweight x 8, 8

10/6
Delts
Seated BB Press - 95x8, 105x8, 120x4
Standing Laterals - 30x8, 30x8, 35x5 - 15 partials
Reverse Pec Deck - 135x8, 135x6, 140x5 - 2 partials

[Zach Trowbridge]

I figured it might be more interesting to elaborate on things more than just putting the numbers up, so I added a little feedback to each workout.

Lately I've been working on the 4-8 rep range for most everything with few exceptions.  I've been going in 4 week cycles of 10-15, 8-12, and then 4-8.  At the end of the month I'm probably going to try Dorian's Blood & Guts routine for a while to see if low volume works better for me now.

10/8
Back
Chins - 8, 8, 7
Barbell Row - 165x8, 185x5, 185x4
T-Bar Row - 115x8, 125x7, 135x4
Close-Grip Pulldown - 135x8, 150x6, 157.5x4
Biceps
Barbell Curl - 75x8, 80x8, 85x6
Alt DB Curl - 35x8, 40x7, 45x4
1-Arm Hammer-Strength Preacher Curl - 20x8, 25x8, 30x5
Forearms
Reverse Curl - 45x8, 55x8, 65x6
Behind-Back Wrist Curl - 85x8, 85x8, 95x6

Back is my worst bodypart, appearance-wise and strength-wise, at least I think so.  I'll probably add some weight for the chins next week and bring the reps down to 4-6.  I've been doing BB rows at a 45 degree angle with an underhand grip and little swaying.  185 is tough, which says a lot about how weak my back is.

I dropped the weight on my biceps work this week because I've been swaying a bit much.  Again, not good when I struggle with sub-100 lbs on barbell curls.

10/9
Chest
Incline BB Press - 115x8, 135x8, 155x5
Flat BB Press - 155x8, 165x4, 165x3
Pec Deck Flye - 120x8, 135x7, 135x6
Weighted Dips - 45x7, 45x5
Triceps
Rope Pressdown - 90x15, 100x10, 100x7
Overhead DB Ext - 75x8, 80x8, 90x5
Close-Grip EZ Press - 85x10, 105x6, 105x5

Getting back into using barbells after having used dumbbells exclusively for about 2 months.  Would go heavier if I had a spotter, but I get paranoid about not getting it back up if I go for more reps.  Incline pressing my bodyweight (just under 170) for 6-8 reps would be a decent short-term goal for me right now, but again the lack of a spotter makes it tough to push myself.

I also discovered that I need to switch to an ez curl bar for the overhead extensions - the 90-lb dumbbell kept hitting the back of the bench I was using.  And close grip presses are great when done at the end of a routine - my triceps were burning like hell with a pretty light weight.

On the bright side, I had my bodyfat measured with the usual 4-site skinfold and while my bodyweight has gone up from 158 at the end of June to 169 with shoes and clothes today, my bodyfat went down from 12% to about 10.5%.  So at least I've got that going for me.

[Zach Trowbridge]

10/11
Quads
Squats - 185x8, 195x3
Hack Squat - 140x8, 160x8, 180x8, 200x6
1-Leg Press - 90x8, 90x8, 110x8
Leg Extension - 120x8, 140x6, 140x5
Hamstrings
Lying Leg Curl - 100x8, 105x8, 110x6

Shitty workout today.  I'd already delayed my leg workout by a day because I wasn't feeling all that motivated to work out on Wednesday, so I pushed it back to yesterday.  Warming up on squats my back was feeling pretty stiff and it was hard to go below parallel even with an empty bar.  First working set with 185 was harder than it usually is, so I took an extra minute's rest before the next set.  Only got 3 with 195 when I've been getting 5 or 6 when my knee started hurting, so I racked it early.  Decided to skip the last set of squats with my back and knee getting pissy at me.

Did an extra set of hack squats to make up for the last set of squats.  Surprisingly no knee pain on the hacks even though I was going ass-to-calves.  Haven't done hack squats in a while so I went a little light.  Followed with single leg leg presses for a few sets, then finished quads with low-rep leg extensions, which work surprisingly well I thought. 

Only made it through 3 sets of hamstring curls before I got grabbed by the sales manager to go talk to a new training client (I'm a personal trainer at my gym) who had just purchased a shitload of sessions, so the rest of my workout got cut short. 

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being best workout ever, this one is probably a 3.  Hopefully next week will get better.

[Zach Trowbridge]

10/13
Delts/Traps
Seated Barbell Press - 95x8, 115x6, 125x3
Standing Lateral Raise - 30x8, 35x6, 35x6, 15 partial reps
Reverse Pec Deck - 135x8, 140x6-80x6 drop set
Barbell Shrug - 135x8, 155x8, 185x8, 205x5

Last week was the first time in months that a shoulder workout made me sore, so I was looking forward to today.  End of the 2nd week using 4-8 reps and it's working better than expected.  Most weights are increasing every workout, a nice change of pace.

I haven't done barbell presses seriously for a loooooooong time, and I'm an idiot because of it.  I love these.  Probably could have gotten 5-6 with 125 if I'd had a spotter handy, but since I was going down to collarbone level I got stuck on #4 about at chin level.  Oh well, try again next time.

I've changed form on side laterals to kind of how Jay Cutler does it - lift mostly with the elbows, close to a 90 degree bend at the elbow, hands hang down a bit.  Lets me go a little heavier and I feel it more in the side head without the traps coming into play.

I've ignored trap work for a while so I threw in a few sets of shrugs to finish, and did more than I thought I would.  Probably would have done 2 plates a side if I'd brought straps, but my grip is shit.

I'm hoping to hit 135 lbs for barbell presses by the end of my 4-week cycle before I start Dorian's Blood & Guts routine.

[Zach Trowbridge]

10/15
Back
Pullups - 10x8, 10x5, 10x4
Hammer-Strength Iso Row - 115x8, 125x6, 125x5 (per side)
Cable Row - 120x8, 135x8, 165x7
Close-Grip Pullup - 7, 4, 4
Biceps
Barbell Curl - 80x8, 85x6, 85x4
Alt Dumbbell Curl - 40x8, 40x6, 3 rest-pause
1-Arm Machine Curl - 30x8, 40x5
Forearms
Reverse Curl - 65x6, 2 rest-pause
Behind Back Wrist Curl - 95x8

My hip's been hurting like hell the last couple days any time I bend over at the waist, so bad sometimes that I loose my balance and fall to one side.  So I had to ditch barbell and t-bar rows this week, and will probably have to ditch squats on leg day as well.  It sucks, but it's probably necessary for the hip to feel better.

Did weighted chins with just a 10-lb plate, and got a really nice contraction and pump even though the reps were pretty damn low.  Will start incorporating extra weight more often.

Both machine rows were pretty good, stronger on both than I remember.  Not the same as the free-weight rows I usually do, but again a good pump.

I started lowering the volume on biceps and will start adding in rest-pause, partials and drop sets to get ready for the 12-week "Blood & Guts" cycle I'll be doing soon with the other guys on the "Open Challenge" thread on the training board.  A lot harder than it seems, but I'm looking forward to the challenge.

[Zach Trowbridge]

10/16
Chest
Incline Barbell Press - 120x8, 140x8, 160x4
Flat Barbell Press - 155x8, 165x3
Pec Deck Flye - 110x8, 120x6, 130x4-70x5 drop set
Triceps
Rope Pressdown - 100x10, 110x8
Overhead E-Z Bar Extension - 70x8, 90x4
1-Arm Reverse Pressdown - 20x8, 22.5x6

Lower volume than usual today, partly to prep for the "open challenge" at the beginning of the month and partly because I just had a hell of a good pump just doing a few sets for each exercise, and anything more would have been pointless.  Had more carbs in me than usual so I don't know if that had anything to do with it, but today I'm sore as shit.

Incline press continues to get better, but my flat press does suck, and always has.  I can do 80's for about 4 or 5 with dumbbells but anything over 185 for reps has never really worked.  I don't know, it just might be a movement I'll always be a pussy at.

I like using a bar as opposed to just one dumbbell for overhead extensions - it doesn't hit the seat back at the bottom, but it is harder to get out of the bottom if I get stuck, so it's a trade off. 

Bodyweight is up to a solid 170 as of this morning, with 2% less bodyfat than the last time I was at this size.  Good news for me.

[Zach Trowbridge]

10/18
Quads
Leg Extension - 140x8, 160x5-100x5-50x5 drop set
Hack Squat - 180x8, 200x6, 220x6
Horizontal Leg Press - 220x8, 260x8, 320x8
Hamstrings
Stiff-Leg Deadlift - 135x8, 185x6, 225x5
Lying Leg Curl - 105x8, 115x4-55x5 drop set

No squats because my left hip is killing me, and I had to use a shitty pin-loaded horizontal leg press because some douche was taking forever with the angled press using a 25 lb plate on each side for a half a damn hour.

10/20
Delts
Seated Barbell Press - 95x8, 115x7, 125x3
Standing Dumbbell Laterals - 25x8, 30x8-45x10 partial reps
Bent Dumbbell Laterals - 25x8, 30x8, 4 rest-pause
Reverse Pec Deck - 150x6
Barbell Shrugs - 135x8, 185x8, 225x5

Liking using less volume for shoulders, and the partial reps after my side laterals beat the crap out of my shoulders for a few days. 

[Zach Trowbridge]

10/22
Back
Weighted Chins - 10x8, 10x6, 10x4
Barbell Row - 185x7, 195x6, 205x5
T-Bar Row - 90x8, 135x7
Close-Grip Pulldown - 165x5-105x8 drop set
Biceps
Barbell Curl - 75x8, 95x6-2 rest-pause
Incline DB Curl - 30x8
1-Arm Spider Curl - 25x8, 30x4

Continuing to get stronger off the low volume work.  I do recall reading things from Mentzer, Yates, etc. that talk about how you waste a lot of energy with multiple sets that don't allow you to lift as heavy at the end, and it seems to be true.  A 20-lb increase in a week on barbell rows for the same reps is pretty impressive to me, at least, as well as a 10-lb increase for more reps on barbell curls.  Can't wait to start the full-fledged HIT routines.

[slaveboy1980]

stick to a simple upper/lower split bro. and get your numbers up.

forget stuff like how cutler does side laterals etc.