Author Topic: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again  (Read 44062 times)

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #50 on: March 09, 2020, 07:58:03 PM »
Sunday off

Worked quads and calves

3 X !0 increased the resistance 10 - 50 lbs.

Seated leg extensions
Machine leg presses
Abductors
Adductors
Front squats
Standing calf raise
Leg press calves
Seated calves

Recumbent bicycle 22 minutes, level 8

All in all a very good workout. Lots of energy. Probably could have upped the resistance more on the front squats but I want to concentrate on going deep and when I use a lot of weight, I tend to slack off on this.

Weight down a couple of pounds @ 179

Had Popeye's chicken tenders w/bbq sauce and coleslaw and large Arnold Palmer right after working out because I was hungry.

Saw on the news where business at the restaurants in Portland's China Town are suffering because of fear of the coronavirus. Some Asians have been targeted and harassed. People are so dumb and panic doesn't bring out the best in us. The gym I worked out at today has a large Asian clientele. There was the usual number of people at the gym. Maybe folks who exercise are a little smarter than those who don't.  :)

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #51 on: March 10, 2020, 06:07:46 PM »
Worked triceps, biceps and forearms

3 X 10 (what else?)

180 lbs

Worked triceps first because the bicep machine was occupied by an old man who didn't seem like he was in any hurry to finish up.
Triceps cable press downs.
One arm bicep curls (the machine was free).
Overhead triceps extensions
Straight bar cable curls
forearm barbell curls
Reverse cable curls with the straight bar

25 minutes on the treadmill

-Had a molar prepared for a porcelain crown right before going to the gym. Wasn't sure if I felt like working out. Fortunately, all went well.

After working out I had a Subway turkey, provolone, bacon and avocado wrap with lettuce, tomato, red onion and ranch sauce. It was pretty good and it was loaded with turkey.     

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #52 on: March 11, 2020, 07:18:45 PM »
Worked triceps, biceps and forearms

3 X 10 (what else?)

180 lbs

Worked triceps first because the bicep machine was occupied by an old man who didn't seem like he was in any hurry to finish up.
Triceps cable press downs.
One arm bicep curls (the machine was free).
Overhead triceps extensions
Straight bar cable curls
forearm barbell curls
Reverse cable curls with the straight bar

25 minutes on the treadmill

-Had a molar prepared for a porcelain crown right before going to the gym. Wasn't sure if I felt like working out. Fortunately, all went well.

After working out I had a Subway turkey, provolone, bacon and avocado wrap with lettuce, tomato, red onion and ranch sauce. It was pretty good and it was loaded with turkey.     

Subway? No Italian delis in that area of the country?

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #53 on: March 11, 2020, 11:51:40 PM »
Subway? No Italian delis in that area of the country?

There's a great Jewish deli in Portland called Kornblatt's which is unfortunately on the other side of town. We have Italian restaurants, but no deli's that I know of.

I believe early Italian immigrants settled in the east more so than the west. I don't remember any Italian deli's growing up in L.A. There were tons of Jewish delicatessens though and Jewish neighborhoods both in L.A. and in Portland. West Linn is home to Bugatti's Italian Ristorante where dinner run upwards of $100. The last time I ate there, half the mussles they served me were still closed. I sent the plate back.
 

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #54 on: March 12, 2020, 12:00:42 AM »
Switched days and worked back today instead of hams and calves.

The usual 3 sets of 10 increasing the resistance whenever it felt too light.

Front lat pull-downs
Bench rows using a machine that duplicates the movement
Low cable rows
Reverse grip lat pull-downs
Standing one arm cable rows
Overhead standing cable pull-downs

20 minutes cardio using the rowing machine

All in all a good workout. Had a vegan protein drink prior to working out and a Starbucks' protein lunch box following the workout (fruit, cheese and whole wheat crackers), with a grande chai tea latte.   

IroNat

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #55 on: March 12, 2020, 03:48:02 AM »
Those are very good workouts, Prime.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #56 on: March 14, 2020, 06:41:30 PM »
On Thursday I worked Hams and calves.

Weight today a little down at 180.

3x10 with 30 second rest between sets with the exception of the reverse hack squats when I gave myself a 120 second rest between sets:

lying leg curls
Seated leg curls - increases in resistance continue to be slight.
Seated hip abduction and adductions - I've been able to add a fair amount of resistance to these, probably because I started off doing them with very little weight.
Reverse hack squats - Currently using 210 lbs.
Standing calf raises - at 90 lbs added weight
Leg press calf raises
seated calf raises - no increase in resistance

25 minutes upright stationary bike set at 6

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #57 on: March 14, 2020, 06:51:05 PM »
Today I worked delts, traps and abs.

3 X 10 reps with a 30 second rest between sets:

No marked increases in resistance today

Overhead presses
Seated lateral raises
Bent lateral raises - a little increase in resistance here
Shrugs
Skipped the upright rows. Didn't realize it until after doing cardio. Figured out that somehow when I started a new page, I left this exercise off which is why I haven't done them.
Nautilus ab machine, currently using 110 lbs resistance
Nautilus low back machine, using 110 lbs resistance

22 minutes on the treadmill walking at 3.7 mph with the incline set at 3.5

Weight 180 again

The gym was really empty when I arrived at 3:00 p.m. I figured it must be people's reaction to the coronavirus, however it picked up by the time I left. This is such a large gym that the machine aren't right on top of each other, which right now is terrific.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #58 on: March 16, 2020, 05:56:34 PM »
Trained pecs

Was able to up the resistance at least 5 lbs. on everything but inclines. They have always been my weakest movement.

3x10 with 30 second rest between sets:

Seated bench press
Seated incline bench press (stuck to what I lifted last time).
Seated decline bench press (actually added resistance on these).
Dips (machine dips are becoming a favorite movement).
Machine pec flys
Pullover on Nautilus

Weight 182

22 minutes on the recumbent bike. Quads felt tight at the conclusion. While I was peddling my ass off, I watched this fellow do a set on one side of the gym and than walk slower than I thought possible to the drinking fountain on the other side of the room. He kept doing this over and over. He was very muscular in the chest and arms. Hard to tell about his legs because he wore baggy shorts which hung past his knees. Maybe there's something to be said for lazily walking around the gym between sets. It would drive me nuts. I like get where I'm going. No need to hit the drinking fountain because I have my water bottle with me.

Can't workout here at L A Fitness tomorrow, which is a bummer because I really like working quads on their equipment. All their locations are closed as of this evening at 8:00 p.m. until April 1 because of the coronavirus. Fortunately, 24 hour fitness is taking a different tactic. They are staying open but stepping up keeping equipment sanitized. so far Oregon City Nautilus also hasn't made a decision to close. This leaves me with some choices. I really don't want a vacation from the gym right now because I am really getting into my routine.

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #59 on: March 16, 2020, 06:35:26 PM »
I'm jealous you have access to a Nautilus pullover. One of my all time favorite exercises. I can get my hands on  a Hammer strength pull over for only $275 but it's a big monstrosity. Renting a U haul taking it apart and reassembling it just seems like a real hassle.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #60 on: March 16, 2020, 07:02:33 PM »
I'm jealous you have access to a Nautilus pullover. One of my all time favorite exercises. I can get my hands on  a Hammer strength pull over for only $275 but it's a big monstrosity. Renting a U haul taking it apart and reassembling it just seems like a real hassle.

You must at least have room for it or you wouldn't consider it. I'm jealous. There is virtually no place at home that I can set up a gym except my slot in the garage. If all the gyms close, it's back to body weight or light dumbbell workouts. Bummer! If I evicted my kids and grand kids, I'd have plenty of space. But, I'm not about to do that.

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #61 on: March 16, 2020, 07:06:22 PM »
You must at least have room for it or you wouldn't consider it. I'm jealous. There is virtually no place at home that I can set up a gym except my slot in the garage. If all the gyms close, it's back to body weight or light dumbbell workouts. Bummer! If I evicted my kids and grand kids, I'd have plenty of space. But, I'm not about to do that.

I have an approximately 1500 square foot basement with high ceilings. I have plenty of room for it. You can have a really nice gym though on a postage stamp. Power blocks with their bench with the chin/ dip attachment. With that you can do so many things.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #62 on: March 18, 2020, 06:50:44 PM »
Yesterday evening I snuck out and went to the Oregon City Nautilus Plus gym to workout. All in all, there was maybe 10 or 12 people there in what is a very large facility.

Worked quads and calves

3 X !0 increased the resistance on some exercises and not on others because of the change in equipment most of which is plate loaded.

Seated Nautilus leg extensions
Leg presses
Hack squats (actually lowered the resistance because I remembered that his hack squat machine makes my knees hurt, which impedes my going deep unless the weight is light).
Standing calf raise
Leg press calves
Seated calves

Recumbent bicycle 22 minutes, level 6 (Every other cardio station had a sign posted on it saying it was not to be used to maintain social distancing....pretty clever).

Working out here, which for a longtime was my only gym membership, brought back memories of lots of good workouts over the years and the good people I've met, some of whom are no longer alive.

Weight 185....scale probably needs calibration.

I think my son-in-law figured out where I'd gone. I'm going to take tonight off. We'll see about the future. Right now seniors are advised to stay home except if there's an emergency. Emergency! Emergency! I must go to the gym! Don't think anyone is going to buy this.  :)

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #63 on: March 18, 2020, 06:58:48 PM »
There's a great Jewish deli in Portland called Kornblatt's which is unfortunately on the other side of town. We have Italian restaurants, but no deli's that I know of.

I believe early Italian immigrants settled in the east more so than the west. I don't remember any Italian deli's growing up in L.A. There were tons of Jewish delicatessens though and Jewish neighborhoods both in L.A. and in Portland. West Linn is home to Bugatti's Italian Ristorante where dinner run upwards of $100. The last time I ate there, half the mussles they served me were still closed. I sent the plate back.
 

Italian restaurants are a fraud if they aren't run by Italians.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #64 on: March 19, 2020, 04:37:50 PM »
Worked triceps, biceps and forearms

3 X 10

184 lbs....scale is accurate because it matched my weight on the doctor's office scale just an hour before.

I was all over the place with the resistance since I haven't used some of this equipment for a long time. Sometimes, I increased the weight with each set. Other times, my original weight selection was right on.


One arm bicep curls (on the Nautilus)
triceps cable press down
EZ curl cable biceps
Overhead triceps extensions (Nautilus)
forearm curls (on Nautilus)
Reverse EZ bar cable curls

25 minutes on the treadmill

I had a doctor's appointment today for a tetanus/diphtheria shot and a blood draw to check my hematocrit level. Since I already escaped the house, I snuck over to the gym for my workout. My son-in-law is just going to have to get used to the fact that I am disobedient and stubborn and I'll damn well go to the gym if I want. LOL! I had a super spectacular workout session. I've worked out on some of the equipment at this for over 30 years. It's fun getting reacquainted with it.

Singing: It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #65 on: March 19, 2020, 04:52:41 PM »
Worked triceps, biceps and forearms

3 X 10

184 lbs....scale is accurate because it matched my weight on the doctor's office scale just an hour before.

I was all over the place with the resistance since I haven't used some of this equipment for a long time. Sometimes, I increased the weight with each set. Other times, my original weight selection was right on.


One arm bicep curls (on the Nautilus)
triceps cable press down
EZ curl cable biceps
Overhead triceps extensions (Nautilus)
forearm curls (on Nautilus)
Reverse EZ bar cable curls

25 minutes on the treadmill

I had a doctor's appointment today for a tetanus/diphtheria shot and a blood draw to check my hematocrit level. Since I already escaped the house, I snuck over to the gym for my workout. My son-in-law is just going to have to get used to the fact that I am disobedient and stubborn and I'll damn well go to the gym if I want. LOL! I had a super spectacular workout session. I've worked out on some of the equipment at this for over 30 years. It's fun getting reacquainted with it.

Singing: It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.


Keep it up. Sounds like a great workout. How was your hematocrit? The cardio increases red cell count.  With your split are you working out body parts once a week or twice?

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #66 on: March 19, 2020, 05:06:46 PM »
Keep it up. Sounds like a great workout. How was your hematocrit? The cardio increases red cell count.  With your split are you working out body parts once a week or twice?

I don't have the test results yet, I don't think. I'll check later to see if they are posted online. My hematocrit is too high according to my urologist. I hope it hasn't gone up because I'm doing cardio at the end of every workout. The split works each body part once a week. No doubt, there's some overlap because secondary muscles are involved in the movement, i.e. arms and back, hams and quads and pecs and delts. I try to space quads and hams a couple of days apart to insure better recovery. About the only stand alone exercises are abs and obliques. Calves get worked twice each week. I should measure them because the pants I wearing today feel tight in the lower leg, specially around the calves.

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #67 on: March 19, 2020, 05:52:06 PM »
I don't have the test results yet, I don't think. I'll check later to see if they are posted online. My hematocrit is too high according to my urologist. I hope it hasn't gone up because I'm doing cardio at the end of every workout. The split works each body part once a week. No doubt, there's some overlap because secondary muscles are involved in the movement, i.e. arms and back, hams and quads and pecs and delts. I try to space quads and hams a couple of days apart to insure better recovery. About the only stand alone exercises are abs and obliques. Calves get worked twice each week. I should measure them because the pants I wearing today feel tight in the lower leg, specially around the calves.

I have zero calves but they work.  ;D Yes, with any routine there is overlap.  I generally  train each body part directly once a week. With the few times I trained body parts twice to three times a week I made great gains. An example of this is in the past I always started back with chins. With my splits that had me doing chins once a week I never progressed with the reps in chins. When I trained back three times a week my chins went up quickly.  There might be something to increasing frequency.  In the end it's picking stuff up. In the relevance of life it's not important but for iron heads like us it is. We want to look good in the coffin.  ;D

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #68 on: March 19, 2020, 06:50:16 PM »
I have zero calves but they work.  ;D Yes, with any routine there is overlap.  I generally  train each body part directly once a week. With the few times I trained body parts twice to three times a week I made great gains. An example of this is in the past I always started back with chins. With my splits that had me doing chins once a week I never progressed with the reps in chins. When I trained back three times a week my chins went up quickly.  There might be something to increasing frequency.  In the end it's picking stuff up. In the relevance of life it's not important but for iron heads like us it is. We want to look good in the coffin.  ;D

My theory (which is decidedly not expert) is that the older we are, the longer it takes our bodies to recover. When I first started training and for many years afterwards, I trained everything at once and did it three times a week. That was what most folks were doing as well. Later I tried a 4 day split. I'd train each muscle group twice a week. Basically doing upper body one day and lower body the next. Overtime, I've probably tried just about every combination anyone might think of.

Currently, I'm doing three sets and ten for each exercise. This is pretty much how I first began training except that I trained everything every time I trained. So, I've sort of come full cycle. I'll continue this routine until it bores me or I'm not seeing any results or improvements and then I'll try something else.

IroNat

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #69 on: April 03, 2020, 12:12:41 PM »
Do a different type one each time for variety if you like.  Main thing is to get moving.  Variety is good.

Basically you want some form of squat, press, calf raise, ab exercise, and if you have dumbbells or bands do a pulling exercise or a curl of some sort.

Squat, calves, press, pull, abs.

Example:  

Thighs: Squat, lunge, wall sit, etc.
Calves: single leg, two leg, etc
Press: pushup variation
Pull: band row, db row, band pull, db curl, band curl, bunji cord, etc.
Abs: knee-up, crunch, leg raise, plank, etc.


Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #70 on: April 03, 2020, 12:16:35 PM »
Your suggestions are all great. Thanks to you I spent about 30 minutes exercising last night. I feel pretty good today.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #71 on: April 07, 2020, 03:13:09 PM »
Did a bunch of stuff for lower body last night. Woke up around 4:30 a.m. with a bitch of a back ache. Got up, took some Aleve and went back to bed. Every time I would change positions, the pain in my lower back woke me up. I was convinced I'd done something seriously wrong to my back. After being up and about for a half hour this morning, it was fine. Probably just a kink or something.

Gonna work upper body tonight along with doing core exercises.

oldtimer1

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #72 on: April 07, 2020, 04:03:35 PM »
Did a bunch of stuff for lower body last night. Woke up around 4:30 a.m. with a bitch of a back ache. Got up, took some Aleve and went back to bed. Every time I would change positions, the pain in my lower back woke me up. I was convinced I'd done something seriously wrong to my back. After being up and about for a half hour this morning, it was fine. Probably just a kink or something.

Gonna work upper body tonight along with doing core exercises.

Hope your back gets better. Back pain is a bitch.  If it's a nerve that is being pinched by stenoisis I know it's a pain like no other. My wife was crippled with neck pain that traveled down her arm. Her arm is permanently weak.  The operation which she is trying to avoid goes through the front of her neck moving the trachea and esophagus to access the spine. He wants to remove the disks involved and replace with plastic spacers. She wants to delay it as much as she can. There are heavy risks involved.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #73 on: April 10, 2020, 12:22:13 PM »
Hope your back gets better. Back pain is a bitch.  If it's a nerve that is being pinched by stenoisis I know it's a pain like no other. My wife was crippled with neck pain that traveled down her arm. Her arm is permanently weak.  The operation which she is trying to avoid goes through the front of her neck moving the trachea and esophagus to access the spine. He wants to remove the disks involved and replace with plastic spacers. She wants to delay it as much as she can. There are heavy risks involved.

My back is much better, thanks. Mine is in my lower back and it sometimes affects my hips and legs. It is degenerative disk disease, which is basically disk compression. There's probably a surgical procedure for it, but I'm not to that point. The trick I learned from my doctor is to do something to relieve the tension in the muscles and tendons caused by the nerve pain. Taking a brisk 30 minute walk usually works. Doing core exercises (mostly isometric) also helps. Those I am supposed to do several times a week to prevent it flaring up in the first place.

Worked out with light dumbbells last night, working biceps, triceps, delts, pecs, traps and back. 3X10. It was a good half hour routine. Still thinking about getting resistance bands for variety.

Primemuscle

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Re: Fresh Start at the Gym....Once Again
« Reply #74 on: April 11, 2020, 02:10:34 PM »
I did a comprehensive body-weight leg routine last night, 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 15 reps; squats using various stances, calf raises, lunges, leg extensions, standing knee ups and bent over side leg raises with knees bent (like a dog lifting its leg to pee). The lack of resistance isn't going to add muscle, but it will keep me limber and help me retain what I have. My quads actually pumped up 1 1/2" at the conclusion of the routine.