Oldtimer1

[oldtimer1]

Delt and triceps day: 

No warm ups listed. Some exercise I use them but for the majority I don't.

Dumbbell delt press standing 1 x 10 (I try to go all the way down. I know the current school of thought is to use heavier dumbbells and do half reps)
Dumbbell delt laterals  1 x 20
Rear delt laterals 1 x 14
Face pulls 1 x 20
Barbell shrugs 1 x 13

Tricep pushdowns with a V shaped bar 1 x 19
Single dumbbell with two hands behind the head seated resting the upper back on a turned around scott benchn 1 x 13
Rope pushdowns 1 x 12
Dips 1 x 14 (Tried to go super low)

Weighted crunches 1 x 60
Pulley crunches 1 x 70

Dumbbell pullover 1 x 12 (I use two dumbbells lying on a bench and I do this more as a rehab exercise to loosen the shoulders and the the abs.)

I was supposed to do some cardio after this but I was shot. Taking a shower I noticed a lump under my armpit in the lymph node area. Called the oncologist and he said come in today. The health stuff never ends.

[IroNat]

Hope the lump is nothing.

Be careful not to overtax yourself and impair your immune system.

You train hard.

[oldtimer1]

Hope the lump is nothing.

Be careful not to overtax yourself and impair your immune system.

You train hard.

Oncologist and my primary wanted me to get a flu, shingles, pneumonia, covid booster and RSV shot because of my compromised immune system. I can croak if I catch something if my body can't fight it off. I was getting one a week. He said he believes the vaccines blew up my lymph nodes in my arm pit of my left arm. I naturally thought it was something serious.

The shingles shot gave me a terrible fever but it broke in one day. I got a slew of blood tests coming but he thinks the vaccines are  the reason. He told me to hold off on the covid booster because I had covid in August into September for around 6 weeks or so. I have to have some natural immunity from that. My wife caught covid same time as me. She was sick for a week and I was the sickest I ever was in my life with two ER visits when I thought I was on my way out, lol. 

On a side note I did absolutely nothing today in terms of exercise. The lump in my arm pit is freaking me out but my oncologist is board certified in three fields. If he said it was my body's reaction to all the vaccines then I'll take his word on it. He said the lump should come down. If the blood tests come back and it's the cancer gaining in numbers he will put me on chemo right away. The last test the numbers were low for cancer cells.

[IroNat]

Yikes.  No wonder you had a reaction with all those vaccines in a short time.  That's got to screw with your immune system big time.

I got the shingles vax last winter.  Just some soreness at the injections site with the first shot.  Two shots six weeks apart.

Got my flu shot last month.  No reaction.  I asked for and got the regular flu vax not the new supercharged one they want to give seniors.
Let them test that out on everybody else and see what happens.

I've never had the Covid shot or the RSV.  Will not get the mRNA vax.  Too much evidence of immune system problems with it.

Also have never had Covid.

I take a multi-vitamin every other day.  Every day magnesium, quercetin/bromolein, 10,000iu vit D3, and fish oil.

Also I eat no processed foods, seed oils or sugar, although I'll loosen up a bit on the weekend and have a couple bagels.  I eat meat, whole eggs, nuts, salad, green veggies, occasionally squash.

Have a couple shots of whiskey or liquor a week.  No beer.  Too many carbs and it raises estrogen levels.

[Donny]

Yikes.  No wonder you had a reaction with all those vaccines in a short time.  That's got to screw with your immune system big time.

I got the shingles vax last winter.  Just some soreness at the injections site with the first shot.  Two shots six weeks apart.

Got my flu shot last month.  No reaction.  I asked for and got the regular flu vax not the new supercharged one they want to give seniors.
Let them test that out on everybody else and see what happens.

I've never had the Covid shot or the RSV.  Will not get the mRNA vax.  Too much evidence of immune system problems with it.

Also have never had Covid.

I take a multi-vitamin every other day.  Every day magnesium, quercetin/bromolein, 10,000iu vit D3, and fish oil.

Also I eat no processed foods, seed oils or sugar, although I'll loosen up a bit on the weekend and have a couple bagels.  I eat meat, whole eggs, nuts, salad, green veggies, occasionally squash.

Have a couple shots of whiskey or liquor a week.  No beer.  Too many carbs and it raises estrogen levels.

stay clean too many people i know have now problems after the Vaccination(s) Boosters etc.
I have never had Covid & was never injected with the poison.

[IroNat]

stay clean too many people i know have now problems after the Vaccination(s) Boosters etc.
I have never had Covid & was never injected with the poison.

Some people were put in an impossible position of losing their job if they refused the mRNA vaccine. 

Terrible coercion.

[oldtimer1]

Doing nothing today too. I'm tired and feeling aches. Probably from my last vaccine.

My reactions with vaccines. Of course it could be different for you.

1. covid: felt sick for 4 days

2. flu: Zero reactions

3. Pneumonia: No reaction

4. RSV:  Slight fever and aches. 

5. Shingles: First shot practically nothing. Second shot was a bad one day fever.

The covid shot isn't a fix but it will lesson the illness.  My retirement job is in a passport office. It's like the United Nations of people from all over the world. I'm exposed to so many people. A lot of old people since they don't work their exposure to others is limited to going to the super market and other short treks. I hear old people all the time bragging how they haven't had a cold in years. Yes, it's because you increase your odds by being around a lot of people.  I train at home now and I don't have to use a dumbbell that 50 people touched before in the last 24 hours.

I completely understand those that don't want to get it.  Covid is mutating like the flu. It will be around forever with the new mutations (variants). If you were vaccinated a couple of years ago you probably have zero protection for the new variants. The covid virus is much weaker than it was when it first hit our shores. Like I said before. It was the sickest I have ever been in my life. Probably because of my blood cancer and not being able to effectively fight it.

 I'm not the vaccine enthusiast but my primary and oncologist said it would be a good idea to get them all because of my condition. I caught RSV about two years ago. It's a cold. If I can get a shot to stop it I'm going to get the vaccine.  Who wants a cold?

[oldtimer1]

Neglecting this training log. After Christmas I will get back to it. Today I walked fast for 4.7 miles on a trail by my house. Threw in some strides (Not quite a sprint). Maybe six strides, I lost track. I pick out a landmark and semi sprint to it. The distances were 200 yards down to 40 yards. Those distances were all estimates for the strides.

 Fast walking is really magic for melting off fat. You use primarily fat for fuel instead of glucose and you burn approximately 100 calories a mile. So I had a roughly a 500 calorie deficit if you throw in the almost sprints. After Christmas if healthy I hope to get the diet on track along with cardio while lifting. For me that's when the magic happens, lol. Burn about 500 from cardio, eat 500 calories less a day and lose maybe 300 calories from lifting. The fat just melts off.

One thing that's really is a pet peeve of mine is guys throwing on a fit bit or using their phone saying they did 5-10 miles of cardio for just being alive for 16 hours. No, only count dedicated cardio. Cardio has to be continuous and not broken up like life is. The only other cardio I can think of that works is high intensity cardio like doing 8 x 400 meters with fast walking for the break interval. It's delusion that fat house wives do. "I got a fit bit and I don't have to do cardio because according to my fit bit or phone counting steps I get enough cardio in my life as it is." 

Needless to say how you look in the summer will depend on what you are doing right now in the winter. Guys and women who do little during the winter then in May go balls to the wall so they will look good during the summer. It's not going to work unless you are taking drugs or you're 25 years old. Want to look fit and like an athlete this coming summer? The real work begins today and not five months from now. 

[oldtimer1]

Did the same as yesterday. Walked fast for 4.7 miles with a seven  stride semi sprints from 300 yards to 40 yards today.  Just trying to hold it together through the holidays.  After I will get back to real training if health allows. I know I'm up then down but right now my health is good today.  I think tomorrow I will do the same again.  I will pick up lifting on Tuesday December 26th.  I'm looking at all my options regarding lifting and I'm leaning toward really high reps but doing it in a manner that Steve Holman recommends. Something like 4 x 15 per exercise with the first three sets stopping at 15 reps and finishing with a set to failure using the same weight through out. I have to break out of the lifting rut I'm in.  Trying new programs is the way to go I believe but after lifting for so many decades I know I'm set in my ways. 

Someone told me to try this but it sounds extreme. Do three set but all to failure. Aim to fail at something like 50 reps. Rest 30 seconds and go again then fail at something like 35 reps. Rest again and fail at something like 15 reps. Sounds too extreme.

 I remember what the great Bill Pearl said. He said don't train to failure at all. Train hard but never to failure. Sounds like a pleasant way to train but I just don't get how anyone with a work ethic could do that? I think he worked out long and just completing a work out was a feat of endurance.

[oldtimer1]

Broken record here. The calm before the storm.  Did the same cardio again mentioned above. Threw in some heavy bag work at the end. I try to limit the heavy bag work to once a week because it can be hard on the joints because of it's ballistic nature. One more day of cardio tomorrow probably then I will work in lifting again.

Merry Christmas you filthy animals. No place it applies more than this site, lol.

[chaos]

That second shingles shot seems to be the bad one. Almost everyone I know that has had it gets some sort of reaction to the second shot. Hope you're feeling better. Keep it up!

Merry Christmas!

[oldtimer1]

That second shingles shot seems to be the bad one. Almost everyone I know that has had it gets some sort of reaction to the second shot. Hope you're feeling better. Keep it up!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! My wife had little reaction to it. I heard of a woman being sick for three days after getting it.  Not happy about it but having a one day fever isn't so bad in the scheme of things. One day sick and a couple days of feeling wiped out is a good trade off against getting shingles. Some describe it as getting a bad burn from a flame for six months. Some even get it in their throats and on their eye lids.

[oldtimer1]

I debated in my head whether to include this in the training log. I got the idea from Clarence Bass who does it. I'm sure guys with big flat feet and thick ankles have no trouble doing this exercise but I do. Balance goes with age. Two things you need as you age is balance and quick feet to catch yourself when you stumble. A very important thing to have as you age. The quick feet can be fixed with something like power cleans or sprints. Balance is another thing to work on separate.

 I'm sure there are many ways to go about this but this is the simplest. When I take a shower I stand on one foot like a drunk test.  First time I did it I couldn't do it for 10 seconds. Again guys with big flat fat  feet and thick ankles probably have no problem.  I worked my self up to 70 seconds and I actually think my weak ankles are stronger now.  I think I will do this for the rest of my life now before I turn the shower off. If you try it and fail make sure the foot you raise comes down quick and you have something to grab. 

[IroNat]

The shingles vax is one of the most risky vaccines as far as bad reactions.

They don't tell you that when you get it.

[oldtimer1]

The shingles vax is one of the most risky vaccines as far as bad reactions.

They don't tell you that when you get it.

Heard a lot about bad reactions to the Shingles shot. Then again the wife got the shingles shots with me and had minimal problems while I got a fever. I heard from two different docs that said in general the worse the reaction the better the response of your body's defenses. They said old people never seem to get a huge reaction to vaccines because they produce less antibodies. The pharmacist told me with both shingles shots about the harsh reactions to it. That's why they give a an extra strong dose of the flu shot to those over 65. 

In RNA vaccines if I got the facts right give you a piece of the the RNA single strand of the disease so your body reacts with it's defenses. Then in the future your body knows how to fight the disease. My daughter told me old people barely react to the covid shot while many young people get sick for a day or two after the shot.

[oldtimer1]

Another cardio day doing my walk/ run routine. Time to get back to lifting.

[oldtimer1]

Chest and arm day: Got hurt. No warms shown on the amount of sets.

Bench 2 x 6 then 1 x 1 (I can count less than 10 times I have benched with a bar in the last 10 years. One shoulder has a torn labrum and the other a partial torn rotator cuff. I usually use dumbbells for chest presses. I really felt strong today with no pain. I was very excited.))

Barbell incline press 2 x 6 ( Wow, so far both shoulders are holding up.)

Dumbbell flies 1 x ? ( Damn the pain hit me hard on my right shoulder. Fuck at least I dumped the dumbbells on the first sign of pain)

Decline dumbbell presses 2 x 8 (If you have shoulder issues the decline press are a God send. It's a shoulder saver for sure)

Traditional tricep push downs 2 x 10
Close grip barbell bench 1 x ? ( shoulder screamed. Fuck again. Stopped after around 4 reps. What did I do?)
Seated tricep extensions with an EZ bar 2 x 8 (leaned against a turned around scott curl pad)
Reverse grip with a D ring tricep extensions pulley 2 x 10 (If you have elbow problems try these. Zero elbow problems with this)
Weighted deep dips 1 x ?  ( I planned on doing 2 sets of 10 but after four reps my shoulder screamed. The earlier flies really fucked me up. I got about four reps and it was too painful. I decided to mess around a little more and call it a day.

Two arm dumbbell curls 1 x 20 then 1 x 15. ( Just for a little pump with light weight)


Hip abduction with a band. 1 x 10 ( I find when my hips bugs me this always feels fantastic. I put a band around a pole in my basement and attach the other end to my ankle moving my leg away from mid line as in abduction. Adduction doesn't have any pain relief for me from hip problems. It would make sense to train both directions but I know what works for me when my hip bugs me. Abduction works.  )

I did three rotator cuff exercises for one set a side. I know I could have choose a fourth pattern of rotator direction but I called it a day.

I think I'm finally coming to the realization I'm not a kid anymore. I have health problems. I'm going to have to plan smarter and think in terms of longevity.  I will tell  you what I come up with but I'm already thinking what needs to be done. I'm not a bodybuilder but I am into fitness. I have to train with that first and foremost when planning a training routine. I have to eliminate high risk exercises that have a higher probability of damaging me. I have some positive vibes about what my plans are. I know no one cares but I will post what I am doing very soon. Tomorrow is hopefully a slow long run. The day after I will make the necessary changes and regroup regarding weight training. Hopefully the pain in my shoulder will be down enough to train effectively. 

[oldtimer1]

Taking a break from weight training for a week or two. I'm not going to log workouts till I return to lifting since this is a lifting site, sort of. Going to concentrate on running for awhile. I don't know if it's my health, age or just a lack of consistency, my running ability is taking a huge dive. Going to work on it for two weeks to get back into the swing of it.  Today I ran two miles at a slug pace. I guess I will get my answer quickly if my running doesn't return to a decent level soon. I have more blood tests coming up in January and February.

[oldtimer1]

Well I'm back, lol.  I trained back and chest. The usual and I ditch the plans to change up somethings. Maybe next week. I can't keep banging my head against a wall with training to failure all the time. I have to break down and do some volume where every set isn't to death.  Felt somewhat strong today. Deads are still weak but I can live with 2x4 with 280lbs at the end of the workout when I'm shot. Have to get that low weight up.  Tried to do all my exercises strict with a full range of motion and a medium speed cadence. Not slow mo but not super fast either. I hate listing weight used because so many guys use everything at their disposal to cheat so they can use a big weight. Listing my weights used becomes meaningless. For example I use slow negatives on deads. On one arm dumbbell lat rows I dead hang the weight and pull it as high as possible. I see guys in the gym that do neither. It looks like a monkey humping a football as they take a giant dumbbell and proceed to something they call a dumbbell row. Lighten the weight and train stricter. Your muscle only knows if it's working hard.

Pulldown with a M.A.G bar supinate grip 2 x 10 (no warm ups shown here or below. For this exercise I did one warm up. I stay upright doing these. I wonder if I would have better results if I did the lean back like 99% of the gym does. )

Seated lat pulley rows holding a V handle 2 x 12

Dumbbell lat row with one knee and one hand on a bench 2 x 10

Narrow pulldown with a M.A.G. bar supinate grip 2 x 10

Decline dumbbell chest press 2 x 8 (shoulder pec tie is hurting. These allow me to train the chest with zero pain.)

Incline dumbbell bench 2 x 8 (Used a lighter weight and a strict performance of the exercise so I wouldn't aggravate my shoulder. Thinking about using a more shallow incline than I normally do. Someone on youtube made a convincing theory that a very low incline hits the upper pecs better than the tradition inclines do. I have never used a high incline and I hesitate to give an estimate on degrees. I'm guessing wildly I use a 35 degree incline. Thinking that a even more shallow incline would be safer for the shoulder. Maybe it will hit more upper pec and less front delt and rotator cuff. I can only experiment. )

Decline dumbbell flies 2 x 10 (Never done them before. Saw a picture of Roger Callard doing it. Thought if declines benches don't hurt my shoulder pec tie in maybe these would work too.  For the most part they did. Very little pain. Thinking a safer way to get the same benefit would be hands facing decline press with a wide arch. I will try that next time and maybe ditch flies for awhile till my should feels better.  Again saw someone doing these on a youtube and it made sense but I haven't tried it. Dumbbell flies can be a shoulder wrecker and maybe hand facing decline presses with a wide arch could work. I will let you know if it works for me.) 

Push ups 2 x max (One conventional and the other with perfect pushup handles. The perfect pushup handles provide a deep stretch.)

deadlifts 2 x 4 (Again no warm ups shown. I do a warm up set with 225lbs. On my last rep I put the weight down a little hard and my wife was shouting down the stairs, "Are you alright?"  She hasn't been in the basement literally in years. Told her recently I could be dead from heart attack down there and you wouldn't know it till the morning.

Weighted lower back hyper extensions. 2 x 15 ( I know some use a barbell like Yates but I found for my strength levels a 25lbs behind my head works. On rare occasions I use a 35lbs plate. Saw a picture of Mentzer with a 110 barbell behind his traps. That's some serious strength after deadlifts on a horizontal hyper extension bench.  The new 45 degree benches stink. The resistance disappears nearing the top.

Ab wheel 1 x 28 reps
Pulley crunches 1 x 50

A friend told me years ago, "Working out is like hitting yourself in the head with a baseball bat. It feels so good when you stop."

[oldtimer1]

My alarm when off and it was dark out. Set the alarm early before work. I thought I have to get out of bed and get my running gear on for a long run. I said fuck it and slept in two more hours. Dreamt I was roaming a strange neighbor hood looking in store fronts from the old city I grew up in. Yes, I know I'm fucked up.  Wonder what Frank Zane would say about that dream? I think I'm pretty disciplined for the most part. I was just tired. Too much Holiday stuff.

Going to get my act back together tomorrow.

[oldtimer1]

Leg day: Have you noticed by you everyone coughing and hacking? I live in NJ and I'm seeing a lot of it. It freaks me out.
No warm ups shown. Felt a little sluggish but I got the work out in.

Leg press 2 x 12 (low back board and a complete bend of the legs. I know every leg press has a different feel. Mine I can actually bend my legs fully instead of just hinging at the hips.)

Machine squats 2 x 10 Excellent movement. If your gym has a squat machine give it a shot and squat low. Ass to grass. Hard to explain but I squat lower than the machines safety catches. I can see myself being stuck in the complete bottom of a squat with no way out. I might go back to conventional barbell squats because I have safety racks. The machine though is so comfortable with big pads and a hands forward handles. The best squat machine I have tried is the Powertec one. I like it even better than the Hammer strength one. I have a Tough stuff brand. Wish I would have bought the Powertec one.

Dumbbell lunges 2 x 8 (Weak on these. Hoping to improve shortly.

Leg extensions 2 x 20
Seated leg curls 2 x 15

Hanging leg raises 1 x 30 (semi straight legs)
Hip ups 1x35

Standing calf 2 x 15
Seated calf 2 x 15
tibialis 1 x 20

Four way neck machine 2 sets a side (One set is a circuit of front, two sides and rear. I keep the reps high. I found the neck responds best to high reps and I would think you don't want to do low reps with crazy heavy weight where your cervical spine is involved.)

[oldtimer1]

Cardio day:  You thought I was slacking off. I know the pace I used is sad but I'm a work in progress, lol. I will pick up the intensity gradually in the coming weeks/ months. I used a treadmill instead of a track for my intervals. All the high school tracks by me will get a person arrested for trespassing if they find you on the track. A lap refers to 440 Yards, it is slightly longer than  400 meters. I like this workout because it reminds my body what for me is fast running. Of course in my younger years it was a lot faster, lol. I remember one run in my 20's where I dipped into the 51 second speed for a lap. To be young again.   

8 x 440 intervals:

1. Lap (440 Yards) at 3.8 MPH
2. Lap at 6.2 MPH (9:41 per mile pace)
3. Lap at 3.8 MPH rest interval
4. Lap at 6.3 MPH (9:31 Pace)
5. Lap at 3.8 MPH rest interval
6. Lap at 6.5 MPH ( 9:14 Pace)
7. Lap at 3.8 MPH rest interval
8. Lap at 6.7 MPH (8:57 pace)
9. Lap at 3.8 MPH
10.Lap at 6.9 MPH (8:42 pace)
11.Lap at 3.8 MPH
12. Lap at 7.1 MPH (8:27 pace)
13. Lap at 3. 8 MPH
14. Lap at 7.3 MPH (8:13 pace)
15. Lap at 3.8 MPH
16. Lap at 7.5 MPH (8:00 pace. Last 200 yards I increased it into the seven something pace)
17. Lap at 3.8 MPH

Finished hitting the heavy bag for two three minute rounds. Found some protein powder in the pantry. It was vegan and I thought why not finish it up? I don't use powders anymore but use Fairlife pre mixed.  Tastes beyond amazing and a little bottle has 30 grams. Any way I mixed this stuff up and I knew immediately why I stopped using powders. They are hard to mix and tastes like garbage. 

[IroNat]

Impressive, OT.

[oldtimer1]

Impressive, OT.

I'm trying.  Not going to waste a minute while I feel good.

[oldtimer1]

Delt and arm day: No warms ups shown.


Standing dumbbell press 2 x 10 (on second set failed at 8 reps)
Dumbbell laterals 2 x 10
Rear delt dumbbell laterals seated 2 x 10
Face pulls 2 x 12
barbell shrugs 2 x 10


Traditional pulley tricep push downs 2 x 10
Two hand with one dumbbell behind head tricep extension 2 x 12
Weighted dips 2 x 10


Barbell curls 2x10
Alternate DB curls 2x8
Dumbbell drag curls 2 x 12


wrist curls 2 x 25
wrist extensions 2 x20
Ivanko grippers 2 x 20


Weighted crunches 1 x 70
pulley crunches 1 x 60