transformation of a tripartite man
Incorporating new exercises to keep things interesting.
Workout for Tues, 18 Aug:
Chest
- BB bench press (Free weights) 2 sets of 60kgs x 10, 1×5, 70kgs for 3 reps (spotter required for confidence)
- DB decline press 3 sets of 50lbs x 10
- Pec dec flyes – 3 sets at 40kgs x 10
Triceps
- Skullcrushers 3 sets of 40kgs x 10
- Cable pulldowns 3 sets at 12 x 10
- Dips 3 sets x 10 (legs fully extended)
New running shoes – Nike Air Max Moto+ 5 (US size 12).
Damage = RM379.
Broke them in today, 5 miles in an hour (21 mins @ 5.5mph, then intervals). Feels good.
Weight update: 95kgs
Thurs 14 Aug 08 weights session is as follows:
Chest
DB press – 60lbs x 10, x 8, 50lbs x 10
DB flies – 2 sets of 20lbs x 10 , 25lbs x 10
DB incline press – 3 sets of 40lbs x 10
DB pullover – 3 sets of 45lbs x 10
Triceps
Cable pushdowns – 3 supersets at levels 8, 10, 12 x 10
Seated extensions – 3 supersets of 15lbs, 20lbs, 25lbs, 30lbs x 10
DB kickbacks – 3 sets of 25lbs x 10
* Getting tired way too fast on chest exercises
* Need to increase intensity for triceps
Current program:
Cardio = 4 miles x 6 days a week.
Weights on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Mons & Thurs – Chest & Triceps
Tues & Sats – Back, Shoulders & Biceps
Today’s exercises:
Back pull-up – 40kg, db row – 55lbs, pulldown – 45kg
Shoulder db press – 35lbs, front & side raise – 20lbs
Biceps db curl- 25lbs, preacher curl – 12.5kg
Weight = 97.5kg
“Your circulation has substantially improved. Walking has become easier. Your chronic cough, if any, has likely disappeared. Your overall lung function has improved up to thirty percent.”
A part of me still can’t quite believe that I’ve managed to quit smoking for three weeks now. When I question myself as to why I still doubt it, an instinctive response is that I will surely smoke again, that this “smoke-free” period will come to an end, that I’m not strong enough to quit for good etc etc. Such is the strong mental grip nicotine addiction has on you that these irrational thoughts and fears seem so real and inevitable… until you reaffirm to yourself that NO ONE or SITUATION can ever make you light up another cigarette ever again.
Quitting smoking has got to be one of the greatest things I’ve ever accomplished, the pride and satisfaction is hard to describe or explain. In some ways it’s like you’re travelling back in time to right the wrongs that caused you to pick up this stupid habit in the first place, be it your mindset or the people you chose to surround yourself with at that time. The flip side is that the future seems so much brighter, for instance, if you told me previously that I would be running the distance of a marathon every week for my cardio I would have said you’re crazy!
Yeah, I’m definitely happy and proud that I’m now an EX-smoker. Period.
Leg Press up to 220kg now, still a lot more in the tank.
Squats feel ok at 70kg, a bit wobbly at 90kg, aim for 100kg by the end of this week.
Cardio: 9 more miles since Monday for a total of 16 miles so far this week. Managed to go 30 mins @ 5.5mph non-stop yesterday, another PR for me.
Left wrist has not healed, so looks like Leg Week might extend for another week.
I injured my left wrist working out last week. It’s still smarting today so I’ve decided to dedicate this entire week to catch up on my lower body workouts, especially squats. Given the poor start to my new routine, who knows, I might just take the rest of this month to catch up on my legs and then start off the new routine in September. We’ll see how it goes.
Cardio : 7 miles (2 sessions)
Did a combination of LISS+HIIT in the 1st session and HIIT in the 2nd session. Felt pretty good, managed to go 25mins on 5.5mph, a personal best for me, I know it’s weak but for a heavy smoker (ex-smoker I should say!) who couldn’t even go 5 mins in January, I’m pretty happy.
3 x 6 x Leg Press (120kg, 160kg, 180kg)
2 x 5 x Squats (40kg)
I felt like a complete idiot squatting 40kg but my outer left thigh is still smarting from last week and besides, better to hit perfect form before increasing the weight.
“Your brain and body have now physically adjusted to again functioning without nicotine and the more than 3,500 chemical particles and 500 gases present in each and every puff.” (from whyquit.com)
It’s been 2 weeks since my last cigarette. I was hoping there would be no cravings by now but sadly that’s not the case. Actually, some of the craving episodes have been quite severe but so far, the Ricola Mountain Breeze lozenges have been doing the trick, thankfully.
The city I live in, Kuching, has been enveloped with a worsening haze the past week. The condition is due largely to irresponsible burning to clear land for crops by palm oil companies throughout the state of Sarawak as well as in parts of Indonesia on Borneo island.
When I drive around the city, the thick haze reminds me of the lungs of a smoker like myself, polluted and congested. I cannot help but draw a parallel with the tobacco companies and the similar effects of the haze and smoking cigarettes.
Why are the irresponsible acts of burning which caused the haze allowed by the authorities? Similarly, why are tobacco companies allowed to peddle their harmful products to the general public? Rhetorical questions aside, while cries of outrage over the haze have been forthcoming, I cannot but quietly contemplate why there has been relative silence over the continual and widespread presence of an even deadlier force in the form of cigarette/tobacco manufacturers and their addictive products.
Indeed, maybe I’m the quintessential ex-smoker who becomes the staunchest opposer to an addiction which had enslaven me for close to 15 years, but why shouldn’t I? Smoking kills, and we should take bolder steps to ensure that our future generation does not fall prey to this subtle yet deadliest of killers in years to come.
Had a bad workout today, maybe due to the fact that I was combining shoulders & legs for the very first time, and I was doing ATG squats again after a long break.
Workout Time : 1.5 hours (two sessions)
3 x 5 x Squats (60kg, 90kg, 60kg)
5 x 5 x Leg Presses (80kg, 120kg, 150kg, 150kg, 120kg)
2 x 10 x Leg Extensions (55kg)
3 x 8 x Front DB Raise (25lbs)
3 x 6 x Arnold Press (25lbs)
Cardio: 3 miles
Again, a sub-par performance overall. Will stick to the new routine by lifting night-time on Monday, Wednesday & Saturday next week and see whether there’s any improvement.
Finally broke through my 2.5 months weight-loss plateau today!!
OK, will log my weight sessions for 8 weeks and evaluate at the end of same.
Workout duration: 1 hour
Weights:
3 x 8 x One-arm DB row (60lbs)
3 x 10 x DB Alternate Bicep Curl (30lbs)
3 x 10 x One-arm DB Preacher Curl (30lbs) – had to assist left arm during the last few reps
Need to find alternative exercises for back as pull-up bar, cable pull-down & rowing machines are still being repaired. Left arm was surprisingly weak today, don’t know why. Still prefer to train biceps with EZ-bar. Anyway, thought I will just quit since I wasn’t having a good day, will need to address this next week.
Cardio: 3 miles in 35mins (20 mins@5.5mph)
I think it’s better to separate cardio sessions from weight sessions as I found myself unable to concentrate today and as a result, performance was below average.
Edit: Went back to gym after work and added another 2 miles of jogging, now at least I feel better about today.
