Paul's Journal

Hi all!

About me:
37 yo Male, married 13 years, 1 child (girl 5yo), computer geek, ex-High Caliber athlete who has REALLY let himself slide. Took a good look at myself after my 37th B'Day (October) and said, 'man, you are not going to make 40 like this' So I got a buddy at work to join me at a gym across from our building at work and we've been hitting it every day since the 2nd week of Nov.

Then:
310lbs, resting HR 92, no endurance, back pain, no energy, depression, etc.. HORRIBLE DIET!!!

Now:
290lbs
Max Bench: 290
LOTS more energy, no back pain
Resting HR 80
Squat: 255 (Working slowly due to knee issues)
Slightly Horrible diet :-)

Short Term Goals:

31 Jan: 292lbs (met that!!!!!)
28 Feb: 285
31 Mar: 275

Long Term Goals:
31 Dec 2004: 265 Lbs (Edit: Amended to 265 as I did not quite take into account the increased muscle mass that I have added)
Definition
Resting HR 65

My workout schedule:
Mon:
Chest/Tri
Tue:
Back/Bi
Wed
LEGS!!!! (I hate/love squats)/Shoulders
Repeat
Thurs-Sat

3 exercises per body part, 9-12 sets total, mix up exercises to attack each muscle groups from different angles to avoid them getting used to a certain exercise. I use dumbbells except squat and flat bench. Only use machines for legs.

15-20 min of cardio (alternating between treadmill walk/jog and cross trainer) before each workout except leg day, that's about a 5-10 min warmup, then stretch, then start work out. Also, do 2 different ab exercises in each workout, 3 sets of each.

I've only been keeping a workout log for the last three weeks but I will be posting that here for your comments and suggestions. My main focus is keeping the workouts going, improve my resting metabolic rate and drop the flab. My eating, compared to the recommended habits, is a total disaster and I am working on changing my thinking and behavoir when it comes to what I eat and when. I do drink TONS of water so that's not a problem.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Paul Wolf

Edit: I forgot one HUGE reason also, I never want to say to my kids again that daddy's too tired to do something with them.

Welcome to DB pwolf66.

I'll comment when I can. At the moment, you started off on the right foot (not literally )

Doing cardio is really going to help get the fat off as well as lower that resting heart rate and give you a lot more endurance and energy.

When you keep changing your diet.. you will see the most drastic change.

Depending on your intensity and how efficiently you train, that will ultimately determine the outcome. But from the sounds of it, you are starting off great.

Just keep working on the cardio.. 3 weeks and you see improvements.. wait till 3 months. Just keep at it. This whole thing is a life process not what can I do in 6 months and now I'm here... done.

Motivation is gonna be those kids. I'm sure they will be relentless!

Marc C. David
Support DB! Buy your supplements at Supplements101.com

Hey pwolf66, welcome!

This whole thing is a life process not what can I do in 6 months and now I'm here... done.

Wish someone would have told me that about 4 days ago!

Of course, you might not need cardio if you've got kids.....just chase them around for 30 minutes a day! LOL

Took yesterday and today off. Right elbow was getting a little tweaky. Iced it down, stretching. HIt legs tomorrow (can't wait to hobble out of the gym) soooooo glad/not glad I added squats 2 weeks ago, the pain, it feels so good :-)

Took a good look at my training journal and realized I was adding weight WAAAAAAAY too fast, gonna slow it down some. Go for more 12-15 rep sets.

Diets still a work in progress, added regular suplements this week (Chondroitin, Vit C/B Complex etc..)

Kinda twitchy, missing 2 days :-) but I know that I've gotta give my elbow a break.

Paul Wolf
BTW never gave my height 6'3"

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Today's workout, weather is terrible, I hate WINTER & SNOW!!! BAH.
Elbow's been tweaking a little so I took 5 days off.

Chest/Tri today

Chest
Flat Bench DB Press
70x8,70x8,70x8 (2 sec pause at the bottom, getting ready for a bench contest in March)
Incline DB Flye
35x8,35x8,35x8 - real slow to REALLY make it hurt :-)
Incline DB Press
55x8, 55x8, 55x(8-2)

Crunch
25xBW,20xBW,20xBW

Tri
Standing Cable Rope Extension - This one always hits me about 45 seconds after my last rep :-)
80x12,80x12,80x12
Seated DB Extension (2 Handed) - yeah I know, 2 exercises to hit the same area, but this one really hits the long head
10x50,10x50,10x50
Tricep Kickbacks - Hold for a 2 count at the top with tricep fully flexed
8x20 (Died on this set), 8x15 (Ouchy, ouchy, ouchy :-] )

Was going to do more ab work but let myself be talked into a 15 min ab class, OUCH!!!!!! For got what it felt like to want to throw up :-)

Treadmill - 12 min
Interval training
2 min walk (4.0)
2 Min jog (6.0)
2 min walk (4.0)
2 Min jog (6.0)
2 min walk (4.0)
2 Min jog (6.0)

LEGS TOMORROW!!!!! :-)

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Well, I was upset (nay I was pissed) that I missed my leg workout yesterday so I decided to really punish myself today :-)

Thursday (Chest/Tri)
Flatbench BB Press with a twist (every rep with a 2 sec pause at the bottom, bar 1 inch about chest)
135x8,185x8,225x4,185x8,135x12
Incline DB Fly
35x12,40x10,40x10
Incline DB Press
45x12,55x12,60x10

Standing Overhead Cable Rope Extension
90x10,80x12,80x12
Seated 2-H DB Extension
50x10,50x10,50x8
1 Hand Cable Pushdowns (Right side was DOOOOONE!!! )
R/L
30/30x10,30/35x10,30/35x10

Sitting here at my desk and my tri's are spasming.

Plus todays weight: 288!!!!!!!!!!!!

That puts me 4 lbs AHEAD of my 31 Jan goal WOOOOHOOOOO. And only 3 away from my 28 Feb goal, time to reevaluate those goals.

I'm getting psyched for Sat cause that's LEG DAY!!!! gonna be walking funny all day.

Paul Wolf

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Great news! Sometimes the missing a workout and getting down on yourself really works if it motivates you to excel. I missed mine today.. family obligations. But that fact just makes me want to do it even more.

Sounds like you had a superb workout. Very cool.

Marc C. David
Support DB! Buy your supplements at Supplements101.com

OK saturday dawned cold and windy as all heck (good thing I have lots of ballast)

Had my RMR done, the numbers:

RMR: 2460 Calories
Weight: 290
LBM: 209
Fat (): 81
BF%: 28.2!!!!!!! Not for long!!!

So with that news in hand, grrrrrrr, off to workout.

Legs
Squat:
135x10,185x8,205x8,225x6 (Aggravated the heck out of my levator scapulae that I pulled shovelling snow this week) had to stop, too much pain supporting the bar

Seated Calf raise: These I really punish myself with, I go for a 2 second pause at the bottom AND the top, I just love to see people just whipping these out with rediculous weight, hello? try going for max contraction at the top
70x15,90x15,110x15 (these HUUUUUURT SOOOOOO GOOOOOOD

Leg Curl
120x12,120x12,130x10

Shoulders, I was concerned about doing any thing here.
Lateral raise - had to go real light without lotta pain.
15x12, 15x12
Seated DB Mil Press - Ditto
45x8,45x8
Front Plate Raise - went lighter than normal but tried to max contract at the top
25x12,25x12,25x12

Had to pack it in at that point. Went home. Iced it, and rested.

Got up this morning, shoulders feeling much better but since it's a rest day, we'll see tomorrow. But tomorrow's chest/tri so it should be OK. I HATE SNOW!!!!!!

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Fantastic post! I'm serious when I say.. if you keep this up.. you will reach your goals. The one thing most people can't do is continue to do this for years. But if you just take each workout one day at a time.. I bet in 6 months, your posts will be soooo different.

Marc C. David
Support DB! Buy your supplements at Supplements101.com

Trust me MDA, just in the little over 2 months that I've been hitting it, I have noticed ALOT of changes. More energy, etc.. My workout intensity keeps increasing, I find myself able to grind out just one more rep/negative/set etc.. and am now throwing different exercises/methods at my muscles ( except for the whole snow shovelling thing) and they are responding like gang busters. Doing the flat bench BB press and holding for 2 seconds at the bottom, WOW, those hurt but MAN did I feel a pump when I was done with those.

This week might be more cardio and hitting more ROM intensive exercises to give my shoulder time to get back in working order. If it interferes with tomorrows work out at all, that is what I'm gonna shift to.

Thanks for the feedback!!!!

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

2 Feb 04

Kinda nervous about today's workout given my shoulder.

Got on the treadmill, started a jog, ouch, not liking the bouncing.

Chest
Started with FB BB press
135x12 (no shoulder issues at all ), 155x12, 185x8, 205x8, 225x4
Incline DB Fly
40x10,40x10,40x10
Incline DB press (Really felt good here)
55x10,60x10,60x10

Standing Overhead Cable Rope Extension
80x12,90x9,85x10
1 Hand Cable Pushdowns
30x12,35x12,40x12
Close Grip Bench Press (Smith)
95x12,115x10,95x12

Not a bad day. Intensity started off slow on Flat Bench but picked up on Inclines.

Still a little worried about my shoulder. We'll see how it does it does with tomorrow's Back/Bi workout.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

3 Feb 04

Back/Bi day

Shoulder's feeling pretty good right now.

Back
Superset seated rows with wide grip pulldowns.
Seated rows: 155x12, 165x12, 165x12
Wide Grip: 120x12,120x12, 120x8 (WOWWEE was I beat )

Stiff Leg Deadlifts
115x10,135x10,185x8

Gotta work on my grip strength

Bi
Seated Incline DB Hammer Curls
25x12,25x12,25x12

Reverse Grip EZ-Bar Curl
55x12,65x10,55x12

Preacher Bench DB Curl (this one was 8 full ROM + 8 bottom half)
20x8,20x8,20x8

Crunch 25,25,25

All in all a good workout, adding the deadlifts really tired me out but feels good.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

4 Feb 04

Feeling beat from yesterday, forgotten how exhausting Deadlifts can be

Legs/Shoulders

Started with squat, not sure how my shoulder would handle the load.

Squat:
135x10 (felt pretty good),205x10,245x10,275x6, L Knee was complaining, shoulder was good.
Standing Calf raise
180x10,180x8 (calves just died)
Leg Curl
120x12,120x12,120x12 (Ouchy but in a good way)

Shoulders
Lateral DB Raise
20x12,20x12,25x10
Maybe not a good idea for these, shoulder was complaining
Front Plate Raise (Good old fashioned exercise, one I just love doing, looks soooooo easy but it ain't)
35x12,35x12,35x12
Seated Miltary DB Press (Only to upper arms parallel, shoulder doesn't like anything more than that)
50x10,50x10,50x10

10 Min ab class that made me want to cry

Had a couple of people at work ask me if I've lost weight, that made me feel good, plus I can see that my face is not as wide, definately a good thing.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

5 Feb 04

Workout partners deserted me today, and I had such high hopes, still the show must go on.

Shoulder update: still sore but no sharp pain

Chest:
FB BB
135x12,135x12,185x10,225x7,275x1,135x12 (With 2 sec pause at bottom)
Incline DB Fly
40x12,40x12,40x10
Incline DB Press
60x12 (felt light today, moving UP!!! ),65x12,70x8

Tri
Standing Overhead Cable Extension
85x12,85x12,85x10
Seated 2H DB Extension
40x12 (Seeing how the shoulder was),50x12,55x10 (Wall!!!!!)

And to destroy my chest, went back and did 135x12 FB BB with 2 second pause

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

6 Feb 04

Another wonderful day. 1/4 inch of ice this morning, did I mention that I HATE WINTER!!!!!!

Again no partner, grrrrr

Back:
Seated rows:
165x12,175x12,185x12
Wide Grip Pull Downs
120x12,120x12,120x12
SLDL (These are rapidly becoming my favorite exercise)
95x12 (Warmup), 135x12, 185x10,225x8 (Grip was a problem, gotta get it stronger)

Biceps:
Seated Incline DB Hammer Curl
25x12,30x12,30x12
Reverse Grip EZ Bar Curls (Standing)
60x12,60x12,60x12
Preacher bench EZ Bar curls
65x12,65x8 (Ouch, done fer)

Wrist Rolls (PVC Pipe)
5x5,5x4,5x3 (Ouch, ouch, ouchy, ouch)

Noticed one thing tho, I completed my workout in about 50 min, when I have a partner it's about 1:10min, gonna have to get them to get moving.

I've got next week on this routine, then I take a week off from weight work and then I start the MAX-OT program!!!! grrrrrrrrrrrr

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

7 Feb 04

Leg Day

Had a short but intense workout today

Squat:
135x12,185x12,225x10,275x8
Seated Calf Raise
70x15,90x15 (Had to quit cause left calf was cramping like a mother)

Shoulder:
Front Plate Raise:
35x12,45x12,45x8
Milt DB Press
50x12,50x12,50x8
DB Shoulder Shrugs
70x12,70x12,55x15 (Gonna have to figure out how to hit the traps with this one, 70 didn't feel like enough weight but my grip can't go much higher, tried behind the back BB shrug but noticed that a lot of the weight was supported on my legs)

Paul

Weight: 292 (Gotta step up the cardio, gained 4 pounds in the last week, mostly muscle tho, still it's putting behind my Feb goal of 282)

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

10 Feb 04

YEEEEEEEOUCH!!!!!!

Missed yesterdays chest WO, so I decided to combine the missed WO and todays in antagonistic supersets. 60 Seconds rest between each set or superset. 90 seconds rest between exercise groups.

SS#1
Seated Cable Row: 165x12,185x12,185x12
FB BB Bench Press: 135x12,185x10,185x12

SS#2
DB Incline Bench Press:55x12,55x12,55x12
Wide Grip Pulldowns :120x12,130x12,130x10

Stiff Leg Deadlifts (Should have started with this one, as my grip was just destroyed at this point)
135x12,225x8,135x8

SS#3
1 Hand Cable Pushdowns: 35x12,40x12,45x12
EZ Bar Reverse Bicep Curl: 55x12,55x12,75x10

SS#4
Preacher Hammer Curls: 60x12,70x12,60x12
Skull Crushers (Tri's) : 60x12,70x8,60x12

Was done in 45 min

Can I take this moment to say that....

I'M TIRED!!!!!!

But it was a damned good workout. Think I might incorporate more of these but we'll see how i feel tomorrow.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Ah leg day, nothing quite like the feeling of anticipation/dread that Wednesday/Saturday brings.

11 Feb 04
Squat
185x10,225x10,275x10,315x6,135x20 (I have say that 315 is HEAVY!!! Gah, everything hurt after that set)
Leg Curl
120x12,130x12,130x12
Seated Calf Press
130x15,140x15,140x15

Shoulders (UPdate my shoulder's feeling sooooo much better)
Lateral DB raise
20x12,20x12,20x11
Front Plate Raise
45x8,35x12,35x12
Seated DB Military Presses
50x12,50x10,50x12

As I AIMed to Marc, I can't lift my arms but hey, that's life.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

This mans is a BEAST. His level of dedication is awesome. I can not wait until I get to go watch him compete in strength competitions.

It's only a matter of time!!!!

Laser

Showing up is half the battle.

My Bowling Business!!! H & E Bowling Supply
http://www.hebowlingsupply.com

Current Max Weights:
Bench 325
Squat 550
Deadlift 505

My goal is to get to 1400 total for the 3 lifts

ORIGINAL: LaserX2

This mans is a BEAST. His level of dedication is awesome. I can not wait until I get to go watch him compete in strength competitions.

It's only a matter of time!!!!

Laser

Gee thanks Jeff, and you racking out 8 at 315 doesn't qualify you for beast status?

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

pwolf66

I envy your dedication.
Well done!

Makes me want to kick it up a notch!

ORIGINAL: SlySi

pwolf66

I envy your dedication.
Well done!

Makes me want to kick it up a notch!

Hey, Sly, if I can help others keep it going, then that makes me feel all the better. Welcome to DB!!!!!! Look forward to hearing more from you.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Blech, talk about no energy. I think tuesday and yesterday were a little more intense than they should have been but here goes.

Chest
Flat Bench
135x12,185x10,225x6,225x5,225x5
Incline DB Fly (Really struggled here)
40x8,35x10,35x10
Incline DB Press
60x10,65x8,65x8
Flat Bench w/2 second pause 1 inch above chest
135x12

Tri
Overhead Cable Extensions
120x12,120x12,120x12

At this point I knew I was just going thru the motions. Called it a day.

Played over an hour of table tennis, so got in some cardio and a little stretching.

Come back and hit it tomorrow.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Can I mention that I HATE CARDIO!!!!!!! But the show must go on.

Friday am

Treadmill, Time 22:30 Distance 2mi, Cals: 380, maximum HR 172
Alternated 2 min of speed 4.2 walk with 2.5 min of speed 6.5 jog

gah

Paul

Burn the fat, burn the fat, burn the fat.

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

OK Time to play catch up a little here:

Friday:
Stiff Leg Deadlift
115x12,225x8,275x6,226x8 (Gotta get some straps, let go at 275 grrrr)

SS#1
Seated Row: 165x10,185x10,195x8
Wide Grip Pulldown: 130x8,140x7,140x7

EZ Bar Reverse Curl
57x12,67x8,67x8
Barbell Curl
85x8,85x8,85x8
Seated Hammer DB Curl
30x10,35x10,40x10


Saturday: rest except I bowled some with my man Laser and he's a darned good bowler
Sunday: rest
Monday: rest


Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

17 Feb 04

Just cardio

Treadmill
time: 21:57 Distance: 2.0mi Calories Burned: 407

Alternated 2min walk (4.2mph) with 4min jog (6.5mph)

Whew

Paul

Only 6 more days!!!!!

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

18 Feb 04

Once again just cardio. Do any other larger folks have issues with the belts of certain treadmills 'grabbing' when you stride? That happened a lot today and it was ANNOYING!!!!


Treadmill:
Time: 22:00
Distance: 1.91
Cals: 416

Shorter distance, more cals? Huh? Then again it's just an estimate.
Wanted to get 2miles in less than 22min but just was dragging the whole time.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

GAAAAAAAAAAH

Morning weigh in: 290, uh oh, I think my diet has slipped a little there.

Gonna be hard to hit my Feb goal of 285 if I keep this up :-(

Plus my shoulders acting up again.

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Plus can I mention that I'm at 36 hours and counting without a single soda!!! :-)

Paul

A friend helps you move, a true friend helps you move bodies.

Plus can I mention that I'm at 36 hours and counting without a single soda!!! :-)

Awesome man!

"Try and fail is the manner of losers. Try and learn is the way of the strong." -- Unknown

[image]http://img376.imageshack.us/img376/8302/opensuse2oi.jpg[/image].