Mister C's College Workout Journal

Members Area My Training Journal
21

Thursday - 10/19

Even though I had a midterm today and a ton of reading to do, I still made it out for my workout that I missed yesterday. Lifting went pretty decently. After lifting I had originally planned not to run because I thought I wouldnt have time, but then I figured what the hell, I might as well do some sort of running work. I hopped on a treadmill for 10 minutes and knocked out 1.5 miles. I know it was good to do some sort of running, but I like running on a track better. Also, running on a treadmill is so much easier than real running it’s not even funny.

AM Workout 9:30 - 11:00
Squats 4x8 155, 185, 195, 200
DB Bench Press 4x8 60, 60, 60, 65
Pullups (overhand grip) 2x10 @ BW; 7,3 @ BW
DB Curls 4x8 w/ 30lbs DBs
10 min 1.5 mile run on treadmill with another 5 minutes for warmup and cooldown
Abs: 300
10 minutes static stretching

22

Monday - 10/23

Didn’t do my 3rd workout again last week, and because of the fraternity I only got 6 hours of sleep from Friday until Sunday night. Obviously, I wasn’t functioning perfectly today, but I went in and lifted nonetheless. I met up with one of my friends there and played a game of racquetball with him, and so that’s my cardio for today.

PM Gym Session 1:00 - 3:00
Bench Press 4x8 145, 155, 165; 1x5 165; 1x3 165
DB Shoulder Press 4x8 30, 40, 35, 35
Preacher Curls (wide-grip) 4x8 55, 55, 55, 55
Chest Flies 3x10 85, 70, 70 (on machine)
2 Games of Racquetball
Abs:450
10 minutes static stretching

23

Tuesday - 10/24

Played intermural soccer again today, and this time I did not get taken out of the game at any point. It was such a great workout and it felt awesome to have enough fitness to play the whole game through and to still be faster than everybody else out there on the field. I was making plays all over the place, even though I was left fullback. We played to a 0-0 draw, and then won the game on PKs, 1-0.

After that I went back to the dorms into our little gym and did a quick, easy workout, and I’m feeling really good about what I did today.

PM
Intermural Soccer 40 minutes
WG Pullups 2x6
Chin-Ups 2x8
Dips 4x6
Pushups 4x10
Abs:200

24

Thursday - 10/26

Got in a strong lift today and I ran on the treadmill again. I’m starting to see that I’ll be doing shorter treadmill like things to stay in shape now simply becase of the issue of time. Pledging the fraternity is a time-killer, and so for the next month or so I’m just gonna do what I can.

AM Gym
Squats 4x8 175, 185, 195, 205
DB Bench Press 4x8 60, 60, 60, 60
Seated-Cable Rows 4x8 110, 120, 130, 130
1.5 mile run on treadmill
Abs:300
10 minutes static stretching

25

So basically at the end of October I was basically shit on with so much stuff that I completely stopped working out. I’ve been out of it since then, not getting enough sleep, letting my strength slip, watching as the muscle gradually melts off my body. The exact thing that I promised myself would never happen once I got to college has.

I now weigh 154 pounds, have dropped 2 inches in my waist size, and can visually see where my body has lost all its muscle. I no longer win every foot race in intramural sports, and was easily knocked around in our soccer game yesterday. I hate the way I feel.

At the same time, I have committments to keep. Keeping my GPA above 3.5 is a full-time responsibility in itself, and I have various committments with my family (grandfather in failing health) and my girlfriend, who goes to school 30 minutes away. I feel like I’m being pulled in so many directions that I can’t fit in any time to workout.

So my question posed, and I’m hoping that maybe some here can help, what do I do? Given my situation, does anyone have any idea about how I should kick-start my training and regain the form that I once held? I want back the 165lb, 7% BF, 235lbs bench press, 225lbs clean, small high-school track star form. I want it back, but I don’t even know if I can do it anymore. I hope it’s not too late for me on this one, because that would be shame. Suggestions anyone?

26

Glad to see you back my man. How’s USC? I probably will be at SDSU in the fall semester, pending all my transcripts go through.

I think you can do it man, it’s gonna be a rough couple weeks getting back into it (i.e. DOMS big time, frustrated, etc). You’re going to have to re-adapt to the stressors you’re going to put on yourself. Speaking from experience, I took off about 2 months of no lifting from Oct-early December. Been at it about 9-10 weeks and Im already setting PRs each week, heaviest I’ve been, feel fast, no knicks or pains, etc… Just gotta be patient.

In your situation, I would go with a general template like this.

Monday- Lower Hip Dominant
Tuesday- Upper Push/Pull
Wednesday- General Prep/Circuits/Tempo/Med Ball… etc…
Thurs- Lower Quad Dominant
Friday- Upper Push/Pull
Saturday- GPP/Circuits/etc…
Sunday- Off

Now some may say this is way too much, but if you’re looking to get strong and get some size on you after a liong layoff, I think this may be an optimal way to go.

As you can see you’re spreading the intensity around throughout the week, so you are able to focus more on a specific area at one time.

Let me know what you think, then we can go from there. Anyone else have any ideas?

How’s the diet like? Recovery? What kind of facilities will you have access to? Time constraints, schedule, etc will also play a factor.

27

Thanks for the response, and sorry I’ve been so long in getting back to you but I’ve been having problems getting on the site lately.

Back in high school, that might have been how I would’ve approached my training, but I need more recovery right now due simply to the amount of stuff I have to do all the time that I didn’t have to deal with last year. I like the general design, but here is how I would tweak it for me.

Monday - Lower Hip Dominant
Tuesday - Upper Push/Pull
Wednesday - General Prep/Circuits/Tempo/Med Ball…
Thursday - Off
Friday - Lower Quad Dominant
Saturday - Upper Push/Pull
Sunday - Off

I have adequate facilities, so that’s not an issue. I can eat healthy when I think about it, so if I renew my dedication to training I can certainly renew my committment in eating clean. As for my schedule, it’s not too horrible and my classes are pretty easy to work around. More than anything, it’s about not being lazy and disciplining myself. My classes for the most part don’t start until 12 noon at the earliest, so ther eis plenty of time for me to go and workout in the morning if I just find the motivation to drag myself out of bed. I know I can do it though, and so I will.

Next question, how would we integrate running into this template? I have my own suspicions, but I like to see what others think…

28

No reponses yet?

I’ve been keeping shape this past week even though there is no set plan for me to train. Granted, it’s been rudimentary but it’s better than nothing. 3 times this week I’ve gone and done pushups, dips, pullups, and abs as little workouts for about 20-25 minutes between studying. Also, I spent some time shoveling sand and lifting heavy objects due to to some work projects going on, and so that helped as well.

Still, I want to organize what I’m doing soon so I can start following a set plan and get in shape.

On a side note, I’m pretty excited right now, seeing as I was just offerered a summer internship at a commercial real estate group here in southern california. It’s good to know I’ll be somewhat productive this summer, especially since I have never held a legitimate job of any kind in my entire life.

29

Hey man Ive been meaning to respond to you but have been pretty busy latley and also been a bit forgetful :cool: I’m about to head out to my lab exam but I will try and help you out w/ something later today/tonight.

30

it might be hard to sprint with 4 days of lifting. if you sprint just 2 or 3 days, you can tack it on to any lifting day of choice, as long as it isnt back to back. and dont worry, ive gained 15 pounds since high school and am not near 15.0 shape. :wink:

31

he could sprint 2-3 days with 4 days lifting many world class guys lift 4days per week.

32

however he isnt a world class guy so he shouldnt worry about it.

33

Those guys also train full time and don’t have the same demands on recovery, etc. What will work for someone is his situation?

34

speed on lower body days and tech/lite blk work on upper days.

35

Thanks for all the discussion everyone. I came back last week and read what everyone wrote, but I felt that I couldn’t respond yet again and bring up some more bullshit about trying to plan a template if I wasnt willing to work. So I threw together my own plan and this past week completed Week 1 of my initial 10 Week program. Right now, any work is better than no work. Here’s the plan. 10 weeks of what is basically a bodybuilding lifting template to get my body somatype back into place and build some basic general conditioning with some higher reps. I’m integrating elements of running in a week by week pattern, so that by week 4 this is what it will look like.

Mon: Short Speed + Back/Shoulder
Tue: Tempo + Arms
Wed: Short Speed + Lower Body
Thu: Tempo + Back
Fri: No running + Chest/Shoulders
Sat: Off
Sun: Off

By Week 6, there will be plyometrics on monday as well, and by week 8 there will be plyometrics on monday and friday. Week 10 is the last week in this type of program before I take a week to rest and recover and then plan on where I want to go from there. Also, this will be following a CF Template in that M, W, and F will be high intensity days and T and Th will be sub-maximal effort so far as lifting goes. Without further adiue, this is what the past week looked like…

Week 1
Monday:
-Standing DB Shoulder Press 15, 12, 10, 8 (27.5, 30, 30, 30)
-WG Upright Rows 12, 10, 8, 8 (45, 65, 65, 65)
-Side Raises 15, 12, 10, 8 (5, 10, 10, 10)
-Straight Arm Pulldowns 3x10 (forgot weights)
-Seated Rows 3x10 (90, 110, 120)
-Abs: 125

Tuesday:
-45 minutes indoor soccer match
SS1 Rope Pushdowns 3x12 (50, 60, 60)
SS1 Alternate DB Curls 3x10 (25, 25, 25)
SS2 Dips @ BW (12, 10, 10)
SS2 Hammer Curls 3x8 (20, 25, 25)
SS3 Incline Skull Crushers 3x10 (30, 50, 50)
SS3 Seated DB Curls 3x8 (20, 20, 20)
Abs: 300

Wednesday:
-Full Squats 10, 10, 8 (135, 135, 135)
-Leg Ext. 15, 12, 10 (100, 100, 115)
-Leg Curls 15, 12, 10 (45, 70, 105)
-SLDL 10, 10, 8 (75, 85, 95)
-Abs: 100

Thursday:
-WG Lat Pulls (front) 15, 12, 10, 8 (90, 110, 120, 120)
-WG Lat Pulls (back) 4x12 (100, 100, 100, 100)
-WG Bent-Over Rows 4x10 (65, 65, 75, 85)
-Bent-Over Side Raises 2x10 (10, 10)
-Alternating Front Raises 2x10 (10, 15)
-Abs: 300

Friday:
-Incline Barbell Bench 12, 10, 8 (95, 95, 105)
-Flat DB Bench 12, 10, 8 (40, 40, 45)
-Incline DB Chest Flies 3x10 (15, 15, 20)

As you can see, my numbers are downright embarassing, but I expect that by the end of this thing I will quickly gain back the strength I had (come on muscle memory!) and put myself in a position to make some real gains and progress. That’s all folks, and I’ll try and update this at least a couple times a week, but know that whether it’s updated or not I’m still working out and will have my own personal log. As always, feedback is greatly appreciated.

36

Quick update, I’ve been sticking with my program so far, and I feel much better already. DOMS has been a bitch lately, but hopefully it’ll die down by next week as my body fully adapts to weightlifting and everything again. Here’s how Monday and Tuesday went…

Monday (4/16)
-Standing DB Shoulder Press 15, 12, 10, 8 (30, 30, 30, 30)
-WG Upright Rows 12, 10, 8, 8 (65, 65, 70, 70)
-Side Raises 15, 12, 10, 8 (7.5, 10, 10, 10)
-Straight Arm Pulldowns 3x10 75, 90, 95 (from adjustable high pulley)
-Seated Cable Rows 3x10 (100, 110, 120)

Tuesday (4/17)
SS1 Rope Pushdowns 3x12 (50, 60, 60)
SS1 Alternate DB Curls 3x10 (30, 30, 30)
SS2 Dips @ BW (14, 11, 10)
SS2 Hammer Curls 3x8 (25, 25, 25)
SS3 Incline Skull Crushers 3x10 (40, 50, 50)
SS3 Seated DB Curls 3x8 (20, 20, 20)
Abs: 350

Later this week, hopefully thursday if I have time, will be my first tempo session of the year. I’m not sure how high in volume I’ll be going, but hopefully I’ll get at least 1400m in there for the first time out.

37

Wednesday (4/18)
-Full Squats 10, 10, 8 (135, 155, 185)
-Leg Ext. 15, 12, 10 (100, 100, 100)
-Leg Curls 15, 12, 10 (85, 100, 115)
-SLDL 10, 10, 8 (85, 100, 110)
-Abs:300

Numbers in the squat are starting to move up after just a week, so that’s a good sign. Tomorrow’s a tempo sesh in the morning and then in the afternoon I’m going back to my old school to watch a track meet my sisters running in, so I’ll go see how things are back at my high school.

38

Still been working out and things are going smoothly; it really helps to have someone else to workout with to motivate you when you aren’t feeling too great also.

Thursday (4/19)
-WG Lat Pulls (front) 15, 12, 10, 8 (100, 110, 120, 120)
-WG Lat Pulls (back) 4x12 (100, 100, 100, 110)
-WG Bent-Over Rows 4x10 (65, 75, 75, 75)
-Bent-Over Side Raises 2x10 (10, 10)
-Alternating Front Raises 2x10 (10, 15)

Friday missed for reasons out of my control, I made up for it by doing a little extra yesterday (Monday)

Monday (4/23)
-Incline Barbell Bench 12, 10, 8 (95, 105, 115)
-Flat DB Bench 12, 10, 8 (45, 45, 50)
-Upright Rows 12, 10, 8, 8 (65, 75, 75, 75)
-Side Raises 15, 12, 10, 8 (10, 10, 10, 10)
-Straight Arm Pulldowns 3x10 (80, 90, 95)
-Seated Cable Rows 3x10 (100, 110, 120)
-Abs: 50 w/ Medball

39

Like I said, I can’t update every day, but I still workout on a regular basis. This was a tough week and my numbers went up in some things and stayed the same in others. As long as I keep with it, I know progress will be made, so I’m not fretting or anything.

Tuesday (4/24)
SS1 Rope Pushdowns 3x12 (50, 60, 60)
SS1 Alternate DB Curls 3x10 (30, 30, 30)
SS2 Dips @ BW (11, 11, 10)
SS2 Hammer Curls 3x8 (25, 25, 25)
SS3 Incline Skull Crushers 3x10 (50, 50, 50)
SS3 Seated DB Curls 3x8 (20, 20, 20)
Abs: 300

Thursday (4/26)
-WG Lat Pulls (front) 15, 12, 10, 8 (110, 120, 130, 140)
-WG Lat Pulls (back) 4x12 (100, 100, 110, 110)
-Full Squats 10, 10, 8 (155, 185, 195)
-WG Bent-Over Rows 4x10 (70, ??, ??, ??)
-Bent-Over Side Raises 2x10 (12.5, 12.5)
-Alternating Front Raises 2x10 (15, 15)
-SLDL 10, 10, 8 (85, 100, 110)
Abs: 300

Friday (4/27)
-Incline Barbell Bench 12, 10, 8 (95, 95, 105)
-Flat DB Bench 12, 10, 8 (45, 45, 50)
-Incline DB Chest Flies 3x10 (20, 20, 20)
No Abs

40

Been a while since I’ve updated, and I’m not gonna waste time putting up 3 weeks worth of workouts on here. I’ve been progressing steadily upwards, but I noticed last week I was really fatigued, probably due to the fact I’ve been pushing it every week for 6 in a row without one to unload or vary it up at all. So this week is an unloading week for me, I’ve cut total reps per exercise each day in half and I’m doing weight I know I can handle without too much difficulty.

Next week I’ll be at it again at full tilt though. I’ll do a couple more weeks of the program I’m on currently for 10 weeks total. It’s a good routine to ease back into lifting, but I don’t like the fact that it’s a 5-day a week bodybuilding split. So after week 10 I’m going on some type of WS4SB training, and that’s what I’ll be sticking with over summer.

Just for comparison purposes, here’s some change in my numbers from week 1 to week 6 so far…

Full Squatx8 135 -> 205
SLDLx8 95 -> 135
Inc Benchx10 95 -> 125
Max Dips 12 -> 18
Bent-Over Rowsx10 75 -> 105
Upright Rowsx10 65 -> 85