JLay87's Workout Journal

[ENIGMA16]

So I just got Starting Strength and switched over to its program so I figured I might as well make a new thread for my workout journal. I have no idea how often I'm going to update this because I am writing everything down in a notebook (which I find helps me get to the gym and meet my goals better, for some reason), but I figured that the accountability of having a journal here would help.

Workout A
Squat 3x5
Bench Press 3x5
Deadlift 1x5

Workout B
Squat 3x5
Press 3x5
Power Clean 5x3

Basically just going to be alternating between these workouts MWF. Once I get into this routine a bit I'm planning on adding some assistance exercises, but I just wanted to keep it as simple as possible for now.

I'll also be adding 5 lbs to each lift every workout until I plateau, so that should give me pretty fast progress (especially if I stick with it as I'm expecting to).

Right now I've set the following goals for this week:
-Get to the gym on Monday and Wednesday (mine's closed on Friday for the holiday, unfortunately).
-Don't eat fatty/unhealthy foods (this is probably going to last a few weeks; I want to get them out of my system so that my body doesn't demand them as much, which should help cut down on cravings. After that I'll probably have cheat days.)
-Don't bite my nails (I've been trying to cut down on this for years; I usually last a month max before I start over, so hopefully I can break that record.)
-Don't spend any money unnecessarily at school (usually spend money on food/drinks that I shouldn't spend as I bring food from home. I've remedied this by not bringing my credit card to school and not having cash in my wallet. That way if I absolutely need money I'll have to take it out of the ATM and get charged $2.)
-Meditate at least once daily (started this last week and it's really helped me clear my head before going to sleep - I have trouble getting to sleep because my mind starts going when I get in bed - and also noticed that I've been a lot more relaxed.)

Monday:
Squat 3x5 @ 175
Bench Press 3x5 @ 115
Deadlift 1x5 @95

The deadlift was incredibly easy, so I might go up 10 lbs next time.

Since I've never done the Press or Power Clean before, I'll have to figure out on Wednesday a good starting weight.

 

[Kerpal]

 

[ENIGMA16]

So I lifted last Monday but didn't go Wednesday because the gym closed earlier than I thought (couldn't make it because of work). This weekend I didn't really eat healthy (but not too unhealthy), so I basically made the decision to postpone until after Thanksgiving. So tomorrow I'm starting for good.

My goals are pretty much the exact same except I'm going to start HIIT as well. So my main goal is to make it to the gym 5 days this week. Otherwise all of my other goals are the same. Going to try to get more sleep, too.

 

[ENIGMA16]

Today was absolutely terrible. Left work early because I was sick as hell, but managed to make it to the gym out of sheer determination to get there all 5 days this week. Was only able to get through my squats before almost passing out, though. That's still a big victory to me.

 

[Cure]

mate, with the diet, dont plan in "cheat days", why would you plan to fill your body with junk calories?
Remove them completly and accept that occasionally you will slip up, its only human, the other day I bought and ate a whole box of chocolate eclaires!

Other than that, SS is a great routine, Im on it and love it. Good luck! keep us updated, having to report progress here will keep you motivated.

Cure.

 

[ENIGMA16]

mate, with the diet, dont plan in "cheat days", why would you plan to fill your body with junk calories?

Remove them completly and accept that occasionally you will slip up, its only human, the other day I bought and ate a whole box of chocolate eclaires!

I get that. Sometimes though your "slip ups" are planned, which is what I was talking about. Like going out and drinking a ton of beer one night.

Did HIIT today, but wasn't really able to manage keeping up with what I wanted to do; I pushed myself too hard and I'm still sick, so it really sucked. Will probably be easier when I get better.

 

[ENIGMA16]

Decided I'm not going to do HIIT until my legs get adapted to the program; otherwise my legs are incredibly sore and I feel like it would just get worse to the point where I couldn't walk if I kept up both. Probably won't take long. Will do light cardio (prob 10mins @ 6mph on the treadmill) TR from now on.

EDIT: So I just got back from the gym. Someone gave me a few tips on my squat so now I'm doing it flawlessly and it feels much better.

What sucks, though, is that this was my first time doing the Press. I did just the bar at first to see if I had the motion down, and everything seemed fine. Then loaded it for a warmup set. My second warmup set was heavy enough so I determined it to be my work set (I was originally going to start at 115 but it was getting heavy at just 85!). So anyways everything seemed to be going fine but at the end of my first set upon locking my arms my right shoulder sort of clicked and I felt a sharp pain in it towards like the back. I stopped there because I didn't want to injure myself (or injure myself further, if this is actually that bad).

So I don't know what I did wrong because my form felt just fine, and I wasn't having problems with just the bar. It feels like if you take your right arm, hold it out in front of you palm down, then turn it 90 degrees at the elbow and move your fist downwards - I get the same pain from doing that. But that's a twisting thing, and I wasn't twisting.

Any ideas? I'm going to read up on this a ton because I don't want this to happen again.

 

[Quiksilver]

Yeah put some ice on it you haven't already, shoulder health is very important so don't take this lightly. Rest + hot/cold packs are all you can do right now. Reassess it in the morning after a nights sleep.

Could have just been a tendon clicking and a little inflammation, but you want to keep your rotator cuffs healthy and it could have been a rotator injury. Go to doctor/physio if it still feels weird in the morning.



When you do that movement again just start with the bar and add 5-10lbs each time.

My dad had to end his tennis career because he went on court without warming up his shoulder and did some damage to his rotator; result he had to find a new profession and his arm feels a little weird when he raises it over his head.

So yeah, be careful with them shoulders.

 

[ENIGMA16]

Yeah I've known a few people that have injured their shoulders to the point of surgery, which is why I stopped my workout immediately and came home. After sleeping on it, though, it just feels like a dull ache. Tomorrow I'll probably go back and do my normal workout (Workout A instead of B, which doesn't involve the Press) and I'm sure it'll be okay.

I decided to start eating eggs in the morning instead of an english muffin, so I've almost completely cut carbs out of my diet (except for fruits/veggies, of course). The only carbs I get are from the 2-3 sandwiches a day I eat, and I have this low carb bread so it's not that much really. Might cut that out completely too and just bring salads, cans of tuna in oil, fruit, etc... I'll have to see how that goes first, though.

I've been drinking a ton of milk, too.

I'm not going to do any cardio today because my calves are really sore from the past few days; I think HIIT overworked them on Tuesday.

 

[Quiksilver]

Glad the shoulder is okay, I'd avoid any pressing movements for a few days though, from what you described sounds like a muscle strain.

Good work on the diet too. Don't buy the tuna in oil, get it in brine or water. The oil that it can come with is just rancid canola oil. Canola = bad, rancid = bad.

Other than that, lookin good

 

[ENIGMA16]

Good work on the diet too. Don't buy the tuna in oil, get it in brine or water. The oil that it can come with is just rancid canola oil. Canola = bad, rancid = bad.

Hah but it's so good! I guess I could just mix it in olive oil myself, but it's so handy to just take a can of it and eat it after a workout. Oh well.

 

[ENIGMA16]

Last Week's Progress

Monday
Squat 3x5 @ 175 lbs
Bench Press 3x5 @ 115 lbs
Deadlift 1x5 @ 115 lbs

Wednesday
Squat 3x5 @ 185 lbs
Press 3x5 @ 85 lbs <- Injured my shoulder here so stopped

Friday
Squat 3x5 @ 205 lbs
Bench Press 3x5 @ 125 lbs
Deadlift 1x5 @ 150 lbs

I did do HIIT on Tuesday, as I said in an earlier post, but I'm going to omit it until my legs are able to handle doing it on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which will probably be in a week or two. Instead, I'm going to just do light cardio on a treadmill on these days (10-20 minutes jogging).

I've been drinking a ton of milk and my diet has been pretty healthy (except this weekend, but it was healthier than my weekends usually are haha). My diet on a typical weekday looks like this:

Meal #1 - Breakfast
4 Egg Omelette
1 Cup Fat Free Yogurt
1 Cup Milk
1 Multi
2 Fish Oil Capsules

Throughout the Day I eat 2-3 sandwiches (ham, fat free miracle whip, low calorie bread) and 1-2 apples.

For dinner I have been having some steak or chicken, some veggies and a large glass of milk.

For snacks at night I'll usually have apples, yogurt and milk.

I don't know if I'm eating enough to build mass, but I'm also worried about eating so much I gain bodyfat, which I'm trying to lose.

 

[EFFORT]

Instead, I'm going to just do light cardio on a treadmill on these days (10-20 minutes jogging).

What are you trying to accomplish with the jogging/HIIT?

I've been drinking a ton of milk and my diet has been pretty healthy (except this weekend, but it was healthier than my weekends usually are haha). My diet on a typical weekday looks like this:

Meal #1 - Breakfast
4 Egg Omelette
1 Cup Fat Free Yogurt
1 Cup Milk
1 Multi
2 Fish Oil Capsules

Throughout the Day I eat 2-3 sandwiches (ham, fat free miracle whip, low calorie bread) and 1-2 apples.

For dinner I have been having some steak or chicken, some veggies and a large glass of milk.

For snacks at night I'll usually have apples, yogurt and milk.

I don't know if I'm eating enough to build mass, but I'm also worried about eating so much I gain bodyfat, which I'm trying to lose.

The yogurt, Milk, ham sandwiches, and night time apples, yogurt and milk will add fat to you. I recommend spending some more time on planning your diet like you did for meal 1, what about 23456? ...it seems like your just winging it right now.

bold

 

[ENIGMA16]

What are you trying to accomplish with the jogging/HIIT?

HIIT is supposed to help me burn bodyfat, but I can't keep up with that and lifting right now. All of that working out coupled with the fact that I'm an active person tend to destroy my legs; they just can't keep up with it right now. So I'm just planning on running on Tuesdays and Thursdays to maintain where I'm at (especially because winter's coming up and I won't be outside as much).

The yogurt, Milk, ham sandwiches, and night time apples, yogurt and milk will add fat to you.

Why will they add fat? If I'm lifting like I am shouldn't all that protein go towards building muscle?

I recommend spending some more time on planning your diet like you did for meal 1, what about 23456? ...it seems like your just winging it right now.

I have a huge problem keeping up with planning out all 6 meals; I have trouble keeping up with it and it just discourages me to the point where I've given up working out altogether in the past. My breakfast is easy because I eat the same thing every morning, and my dinner consists of some kind of meat (chicken or beef) and some vegetables with a glass of milk, so that one is planned.

I'd be willing to plan the other four meals if I could come up with something that is as easy to prepare/consume as what I have going now. With sandwiches I can take 5-10 minutes in the morning to prepare them and stick them in my backpack and just pull them out whenever I want one.

My issues have been that I don't have a lot of time to prepare food and that I don't have a ton of room in my backpack to carry food.

 

[EFFORT]

HIIT is supposed to help me burn bodyfat, but I can't keep up with that and lifting right now. All of that working out coupled with the fact that I'm an active person tend to destroy my legs; they just can't keep up with it right now. So I'm just planning on running on Tuesdays and Thursdays to maintain where I'm at (especially because winter's coming up and I won't be outside as much).

Not sure how much fat you have to lose but 3 days a weeks, 30min on the elliptical with HR in the 130-150 ranges is a good starting point. Stay away from the jogging. It also doesn't seem like your at the point where the impact of the HIIT is worth its benefits so i'd cut that out as well.


Why will they add fat? If I'm lifting like I am shouldn't all that protein go towards building muscle?

The bread,ham,milk,yogurt aren't the best choices if your looking to keep fat gain at a min...let alone lose fat. Keep it simple.....Beef,Chicken,Fish, eggs and whey for protein and Oats, Brown Rice, Rice Cakes, Grits for carbs .....Fish Oil, Olive Oil for fat.....garden salad, broccoli for veggies




I have a huge problem keeping up with planning out all 6 meals; I have trouble keeping up with it and it just discourages me to the point where I've given up working out altogether in the past. My breakfast is easy because I eat the same thing every morning, and my dinner consists of some kind of meat (chicken or beef) and some vegetables with a glass of milk, so that one is planned.


I'd be willing to plan the other four meals if I could come up with something that is as easy to prepare/consume as what I have going now. With sandwiches I can take 5-10 minutes in the morning to prepare them and stick them in my backpack and just pull them out whenever I want one.

My issues have been that I don't have a lot of time to prepare food and that I don't have a ton of room in my backpack to carry food.

Your over complicating things look at it like this

Meal =

Pick one- Beef/Chicken/Fish/Eggs/Whey

Pick one- Grits/Oats/Brown Rice/Rice Cake

Pick one- broccoli/garden salad

bold

 

[ENIGMA16]

EDIT: **** it, I'll try it out next week and see how it goes. So should I cut milk out completely?

 

[EFFORT]

EDIT: **** it, I'll try it out next week and see how it goes. So should I cut milk out completely?

Yes cut the milk out completely, just eat the foods that i posted. You should really plan your diet out for exact meals and quantities. The results for most people will be a reflection of how much work they put into there diet (planning,food choices, quantities, timing, following it)

 

[ENIGMA16]

Yes cut the milk out completely, just eat the foods that i posted. You should really plan your diet out for exact meals and quantities. The results for most people will be a reflection of how much work they put into there diet (planning,food choices, quantities, timing, following it)

I understand this completely, but probably won't be able to get into this habit for a few weeks (it always takes me a little while to ease into something like this to develop new habits).

Also, what's wrong with jogging? I understand that jogging for any more than a certain period of time is harmful to your workout because it conditions your body for endurance and hence will burn less fat, but what is wrong with jogging for 20 minutes for cardio?

 

[EFFORT]

I understand this completely, but probably won't be able to get into this habit for a few weeks (it always takes me a little while to ease into something like this to develop new habits).

Also, what's wrong with jogging? I understand that jogging for any more than a certain period of time is harmful to your workout because it conditions your body for endurance and hence will burn less fat, but what is wrong with jogging for 20 minutes for cardio?

Given your goals, its an unnecessary impact to put your body through

 

[ENIGMA16]

Your over complicating things look at it like this

Meal =

Pick one- Beef/Chicken/Fish/Eggs/Whey

Pick one- Grits/Oats/Brown Rice/Rice Cake

Pick one- broccoli/garden salad

Would it be fine for me to just make some kind of chicken/rice/veggie dish and just eat that for 3-4 of my meals? Just wondering because like I said before I don't have a lot of room in my backpack for tupperware and that way I could just throw it all into one container. Wasn't sure if it was good to be eating the same thing for 3-4 meals a day, though. When I'm at home this isn't a problem, which is why I'm already able to plan out my breakfast and dinner. I just have a problem with space in my backpack, which is always full.

Another option would be to bring all my week's food to work on Monday (I work on campus) and stick it in the fridge there, which I guess would solve that problem, but then I would have to cook all my week's food on Sunday. I guess I should be doing that anyways. Maybe this will work best.