Coops road to beefcakeness (New Pics, 1/08/07)

Damn, you'll get there! Keep sloggin'!  

"If there's nothing else that's relevant, I'll be leaving now"

"Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground"

So here is the deal, not sure what to think about my pic post... Z is way cool and posted but others have not, which leads me to a couple of conclusions....
 
A: People are thinking wow... he will be a beast someday, but he is a shmuck so I dont want to say anything
B: OMFG.... I can't believe he posted those here... freaking fat ass... spend more time in the gym and not here...
C: No one reads my journal, and even though my view count went way up, it was just me logging in to stare at myself
 
So not looking for handouts here, but I am leaning towards #B... tis cool though, just makeme work harder..  #C is also a strong option as well

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

I noticed the same thing when I posted pics in my training log.  I think you forgot a couple of options.

D.   Jeez, all that work, and that's it?  Nothing like those "before" and "after" pics in the ads.

E.   I'm a lazy ass.  I can't stand it that he's made so much progress and I haven't.  I'm staying quiet.

F.   I don't see any difference.  But I'm not saying so.

A reminder to our faithful readers:  Any constructive feedback, good or bad, HELPS us to reach our goals!  If something's not working, we need to know!  If it is, we need to know!  Our own navel gazing is often done through rose- or grey-colored glasses.  So weigh in!!!

"If there's nothing else that's relevant, I'll be leaving now"

"Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground"

So I was sick for a few days, this last weekend on legs day I got really sick to my stomache and almost upchucked on the damn rack... not the best legs day I have had... was feeling so sick and dizzy I had to quit early which is the first time that has ever happend to me... which pissed me off cause I really really like legs day.... I think I got really dehydrated, dont think I was drinking nearly enough water... took a few days to calm my body down, was feeling really trembly until last night...

SO after 3 days off I am back in the gym, I am really starting to grow fond of back/shoulder/bicep day which a few monthsago I hated with a passion but with the addition of standing rows and bent rows, I have started to feel it in areas I didnt before.

Back/ Shoulder/ Bicep

Standing Row:
65-12/ 75-10/ 85-8

Bent Row
65-12/ 75-10/ 85-8

Seated Row
125-12/ 135-10/ 145-8

Cable Curls
100-12/ 120-10/ 130-8

Lat Cable pull:
195-12/ 200-10/ 205-8

Precher curl
95-12/ 100-10/ 105-8

Lateral Raises
95-12/ 105-10/ 115-8

Shrugs
180-12/ 270-10/ 360-8 *The last one was **** form... Gotta only go to 320 next time... wasted set..

So tonight is legs night, lookin forward to killing some hams and quads, always the high point of my week!

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

Thanks Z!

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

Your progress is insane, and something to be jealous of. Option A is half right, you're definately going to be a beast someday (soon)!

Thanks soul, much appriciated!
 
So last night was legs night... oh how I love legs night, except when the wife tried to spot me when doing squats.... from the side.... when I was trying to rack it back up... ok here is a side note for any spotters out there.... people grunt when they have 225+ pounds of weight on their shoulders after their 4th set of squats slowely hobbling to the hooks to rack the bar..it doesnt mean they need help.. grunting is a part of sounding beefcake like...  dont push up the left side and almost kill your spotee... I think my wife wanted to insurance money for xmas or something...  anyhoo.....
 
Legs
 
Squats: 155-12/ 185-10/ 225-10/ 225-7
 
Stiff legged dead lifts: 95-12/ 105-10/ 135-8
 
Dead lifts: 125-12/ 145-10/ 165-8
 
Leg Press: 170-12/ 220-10/ 310-10
 
Standing cavles: 225-12/ 245-10/ 265-10
 
Tonight is chest night... yay...

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

Today was a good day, lost my notebook so I wont update what I did... think I left it at work, but I'll find it tomarrow I think... I did alot morre weight than usual and back is sore...
 
Here is the happy part though, I'm down to 21.7% BF. This equates to about 6 pounds of fat lost and 3-4 pounds of muscle.... this is sucking... its either I am not loseing or loseing too fast and lose muscle.... I swear to go I am going to... work harder I guess... but here is the happy part, I am almost in the teens for BF% as well as in weight will be in the 2 teens... lower than I have been at in nearly a decade... I figure Ill take another month and a half of cutting then its time to start the bulkfest..

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

"If there's nothing else that's relevant, I'll be leaving now"

"Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground"

ORIGINAL: Coop

So here is the deal, not sure what to think about my pic post... Z is way cool and posted but others have not, which leads me to a couple of conclusions....

A: People are thinking wow... he will be a beast someday, but he is a shmuck so I dont want to say anything
B: OMFG.... I can't believe he posted those here... freaking fat ass... spend more time in the gym and not here...
C: No one reads my journal, and even though my view count went way up, it was just me logging in to stare at myself

So not looking for handouts here, but I am leaning towards #B... tis cool though, just makeme work harder..  #C is also a strong option as well

I must confess, I don't really follow everyone's training log with any kind of consistency.  I barely pay any attention to my own these days .  So don't feel left out. Greg won't let me grouse about my lack of progress, 'cause I'm such a stud muffin (or so people keep reminding me).  Truth be told, the only thing that has improved about my physique since January of this year has been my tan and my photographic skills, LOL.  I've actually given back a lot of the muscle I gained, and now I've got the uphill battle of gaining it back, just to get back on the road to sick beefcakitude.

But, if my fans think I'm improving, then by God, I must be!

That said, I do see an improvement here -and I'm not just saying that to pad your ego.  Shedding unwanted bodyfat is a screaming pain in the ass.  Gaining muscle mass is a screaming pain in the ass.  Some of us got luckier than others in the metabolism department, but at the same time, we got screwed over on proportions and bulk.  While you may look at me and say, "that bastard doesn't know how lucky he is, with that constant low bodyfat percentage", I'm looking at you, saying, "that bastard doesn't know how lucky he is, having biceps larger than 13 inches".  So let's agree to be mutually envious of each other's strong points, and maybe we can preoccupy ourselves long enough to not notice it until you've lost 20 Lbs of bodyfat, and I've picked up a few inches on my guns

As long as you're tracking body composition changes, and not merely being a slave to the bathroom scale (like the billions of other serial dieters out there), you are better off.  And, let's not forget, slow steady progress lasts longer and feels better in the long term than anything you could accomplish in 30 days with "no money down".

Keep blastin' it, bro.  If a sarcastic, skinny, vegetarian punk like me can get there, so can you!  I don't want to hear anymore self-doubts from anyone following this thread (or authoring it) until we're all blistering hot, drop-dead gorgeous slabs of buff studliness!  It's OUR TURN, people!  BRING IT!

Yes, that's me in my avatar, and NO, I don't look like that today. That was taken back in Jan '07, and I lost most of that progress when I slacked off last year. I'm on my way back, tho, and I'm using that photo for inspiration.

Thanks man!
 
10% or less will be here before the end of the year, I just gotta keep kicking my ass daily...then the whole how the hell will I eat that much question is going to come up

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

Good night again, was a bit sore from last nights back/shoulders and last legs day I didnt have good form on my deadlifts so my back was sore... so tonight I dropped the weight a bit and kept my head up....
 
Tonight was great love the king of all workouts leg's night, I am so pumped I am going to go get my wife and...... go to sleep I am tired LOL... no energy for anything else
 
Barbell Squats:
155-12/ 175-12/ 205-10/ 225-8
 
Stiff leg dead lifts:
105-12/ 115-10/ 125-8
 
Dead Lifts:
115-12/ 125-10 .... ok starting to get tired
 
Legg press:
180-12/ 270-10/ 320-10
 
Standing Calves:
200-12/ 220-10/ 240-8
 
Abs....

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

So worked chest last night, I have been noticing that chest nights have been getting reallly tough... Chest seems to be the one thing that I take myself to exhaustion every set... I shoot for 12, I get to 10 then total fail.... and so on and on... Got some rants at the end of this, so if you wanna hear me whine keep reading.... I think some of this frusteration is I am going all freeweight now, and this amount of weight just makes me feel weak...
 
Chest
 
Flat Bench:
135-12/ 145-10/ 155-7
Incline Bench
120-12/ 125-9/ 130-8
Decline Bench
130-12/ 135-9/ 140-6
Shoulder Press
95-12/ 100-10/ 105-8
Cable Triceps
120-12/ 130-10/ 140-8
Seated Dips
200-12/ 220-10/ 230-8 *FINALLY CAN DIP MORE THAN I WEIGH!*
 
Ok here is my rant, I'm being silly I know... But lately I have been really feeling fatigued... and frusterated... but I feel like I dont have anyone to let my frusterations out on, so that is why I do it here..... Ever since I started seeing results people around me are leaning on me for support in weight loss, and strength training... now that I have hit 76 pounds lost more so than ever.... At home I feel like the cornerstone of this new endevor, and my wife really leans on me for support with this... there are times she is tired... I need to be strong and push us both... there are times she just wants to give up and have a big ass bowl of pasta and sweets.... I generally need to be the one with the will power and pass... she see's me doing it and realizes that its not worth it for all that we have accomplished in loss to just give up now... but if I had given in, we both would have said F#%#$ it and would be headed back where we came from.. I just feel like if I let her know I am struggling too that we will both topple....
 
At work everyone is starting to call me skinny (I know... WTF are they thinking) but people are always coming into my office and asking advise, and I glady pass on many tips and things that so many people here have given (MArc, Dan, Z, CPL and many others) because if I can help them change their life, they will be happy and pass it on to someone else... But over the past week I feel like I am getting sick, I don't have loads of energy and just feel like poo... When they see me and ask how I am doing, I tell them that I am just tired that I probably just need a few days break.... The response I get is the same from all.... "Oh No dont give up, your my motivation and what your doing I'm trying to follow"... Ok first I am not giving up... secondly it sounds stupid but alot of people are watching me and expecting me to be sucessful, because if I falter, how will they ever do it... its just feels like alot of pressure..... 
 
I have goals with what I am doing that I don't even know how realistic it is... I want a 6 pack... I think its coming but is it?... I want to someday be a amature BBer.... can I do it a 27 and previously been overweight with a 44-46 inch waist... I guess I just want to look good and be able to show it off... I know all of this will take years, but will I even be able to accomlish it in years? Is it even possible? Have I set my hopes to high and certianly fail? I got to the gym 5-6 times a week a mutilate my body, and really treat every night there as an extreme night taking myself he the brink of failure each and every set... I never take an easy set, or lighten the weight so I can just do it easier.... And I am seeing results.... but am I doing this all for nothing... I dunno... Guess I will just keep going and see what I can get myself....
 
 
Well thanks for reading the worlds most depressing thread... I just need to go home and get some sleep tonight... thank god its off night... 

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.

hey Coop!

As for your goals:  absolutely.  You want it.  I can tell.  You'll get there--look how far you've come already!  Sure, the mountain will be steep at times, but nothing worth working for is easy.  And damn, you're ONLY 27.  If I started then, imagine what I would be like today at (almost) 40!  And look at Scott (Old Navy).  Yeah, you've got time, but chop-chop, anyway!

If you're feeling run-down, LISTEN to your body.  Either your nutrition is suffering (doesn't sound like it), or you need a week off from the gym.  I'm always scared to not go to the gym lest I lose the habit, so I go anyway, but just to do a lot of stretching.

As for being the strong oak--it happens in all relationships.  Sometimes you're the oak, sometimes you're leaning on it.  Don't take responsibility, though, for other people's fitness--be a catalyst, nothing more.  When you get tired of talking about it with your co-workers, direct them here!

"If there's nothing else that's relevant, I'll be leaving now"

"Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground"

I agree,it's probably a time for a break, I'm burning out at work as well..

Eat...Lift....Sleep......Repeat

Enjoy the process.. but crave the goal.