Football Epilogue

The style of my personal belt. Comfortable and keeps my back un-tweaked. I've been doing a more rigorous leg workout recently. This has included some pretty heavy sets of squats, 335lbs x 5 reps on my workout yesterday and deadlifts (250lbs). For the first time in years I've felt the need to wear a lifting belt. The gym is a bit different of a place nowadays than it was in, what I'll call, my athletic prime (college/HS). The main difference for the purposes of this article is there used to be an abundance of lifting belts; usually on some dedicated rack. My gym today has two belts. Both fit me which is fortunate since my personal belt is currently misplaced. They are hidden on a shelf with miscellaneous other odd and ends and antiquities of the gym: wrist rollers, warped clips and some 1" inner diameter plates. Still I felt the need to save my back so I wear the belt, but I also began wondering if there was an official position on belt use. I dredged-up the fol...

Squats, deadlifts, cleans and a two mile run. Oh My! Actually, I'm not too sore from the workout and even felt a little bit of a runner's "high" creep in during the jog. I don't like that it takes 10 minutes or so of running for it to start feeling comfortable, but only training can reduce that time. My big concern with lower body lifting is the amount of weight I might gain, but really that's kind of a bogeyman. Ultimately, it will come down to diet and if I grow a little muscle in the legs, that's just more bulk to eat fat. It didn't stop me from dreaming I topped the scales at 400 lbs last night (whew, I woke up to find I"m still over 100 lbs short of that number). Next up, I have a "biometric screening" as part of my health insurance at work. That's where the weight has me a little worried. Like anything though, this thing is a journey and not a destination. "Fat Joe" will happen on occasion, followed by "s...

This weekend I have a full body workout planned that's sure to leave me feeling tired, but accomplished. It will involve cardio, core muscle lifting, stability and balance exercises and interval training. The equipment needed is readily available, but non-conventional (from a typical "gym-rat's" perspective). It includes: A heavy bag, in particular one from Waste Management A wheelbarrow A shovel A lawn mower Bolt cutters A good pair of gloves This could be a group training session with plenty of hydration offered, but I'm looking forward to getting it done! I may have to splurge on a massage once it's all done.  :)

Workout #2 of the HIITs program under my belt and I have that good old day-after stiffness. I was in and out of the gym in under 45 minutes. The workout (sets x reps, weights as close to failure as possible) : Lift Sets Repititions Deadlift 3 10 Squat 3 10 Calf Raises 2 20 Dumbell (DB) Overhead Squat 2 8 Lunges 2 10 Leg Curls (one leg at a time) 2 8 Step Ups 2 8 A 5 minute warm-up and cool-down bookended the workout.