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Bram Turismo

Bram Turismo

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Well, currently I'm on my own routine, and shortly Uni begins, so I'll never have time to spend a hour or two in the gym every day. So I thought I'd keep it to mondays, wednesdays and fridays, and here are the exercises I currently keep myself busy with:

Benchpress: 3 sets, 8-10 reps
EZ curls: 3 sets, 10 reps
Standing military press: 3 sets, 8-10 reps
Laying leg raises: 3 sets, 10 reps
Deadlifts: 1 set, 8-10 reps

I cycle alot, so I thought it would be best to keep heavy leg exercises to a low-medium. I'm looking for a good work-out that'll train my whole body, so nothing gets left behind :)


Thanks!
 
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That's a pretty short routine. What are you hoping to accomplish with your time in the Gym? When you say "Train your whole body" are you looking to loose fat, have more muscle show through, or look bigger?
 
Mainly to grow muscle, but also build strength. The goal isn't off course to become overweight either :) I can always throw some other exercises, maybe some skullcrushers could be in order or some bent-over rows 👍
 
You've got 3 days a week you'll be in the gym, about an hour each time.
Plus on other days you'll be out on the cycle.

That sound about right?
 
I can't tell if you're being sarcastic now or not. I never said I would be cycling everyday, I said I cycle a lot, thus heavy leg training is out of order unless when I'm on off-season during the winter. Also, I strongly believe it doesn't take 5 days a week in the gym to get decent results. Since when do students have enough time to spend 2 hours in the gym, 5 days a week? Sorry if I'm sounding like an idiot right now, but I felt slightly offended by that last post of you. Perhaps I misunderstood it, and therefore my apologies if it did.
 
My apologies for sounding sarcastic. I'm not being that. In any way shape or form. There is no offense intended, at all.

The questions I asked have a specific reason. Let me explain a bit.

If the above is true, you've got a 3 days in the gym for about an hour each day. This lets me know how much time you plan for exercises. Since you are doing the cycling (a good thing) you get the cardio your body needs, and it doesn't land on days that you will be doing weights.

Thus established, I can now give you a bit more proper advice on what I think you should do. The original questions were asked to help figure out what you intend to do in the gym.

As for how much time you spend in the gym, I don't spend two hours a day 5 days a week. I'm usually in the gym for a max of 1.5 hours, and have dropped back to 4 days a week. Yet I'll still make the gains I want.

So here's what the workout is starting to look like, based on what I've gathered from the questions above.

Day 1: Chest, Abs
Day 2: Back, Calves
Day 3: Biceps, Triceps, Shoulders

"Off" days, get some cycling in, preferably two good long rides.
Also, get some rest days in there. Your body recovers and rebuilds during those rest days.

Dividing it up the way that it is, will give you better results in a shorter time, rather than repeating exercises with only a few days in between.

Day 1: Dumbell Bench Presses, Incline Barbell Presses, and Dumbell Flyes. Crunches, 10 sets of 10reps.

Day 2: Bent-over rows (can be switched with Low Cable Pulley Rows) and Deadlifts. Calves are tough. Seated Calf raises are the best for building size.

Day 3: Barbell Curls, and Concentration curls. Close Grip bench Press and Skull crushers (Nose Breakers). Upright Rows, Dumbell Side Laterals and Seated Dumbell Rear Laterals. Shrugs (Run the Rack, 15 reps per weight).

One of the key ingredients is minimal time between sets, and intensity. Training for size and muscle is different than training for power. Minimal time between sets will keep your heart rate up and help increase your metabolism. Increase metabolism will help burn fat and trim body fat.

If this sounds good, we can talk Sets, Reps and Weights next.

Again, I wasn't being sarcastic, I was just trying to figure out what I could work with as far as your schedule dictated.
 
Sorry DA, that was an excellent post to clear that matter up, invisible +Rep 👍

What you brought up is pretty much what I planned to do, but I'm a little bit afraid of doing so much work per bodypart. I've always been shrouded in mystery as to how I can deliver enough power to perform e.g. all three of those chest exercises with some good weights. If I do flyes first, won't that harm my performance for inclines after that? Anyway, I might as well give it a try, and go down on weights to make sure I can complete everything. 👍
 
No Problem.

The Flyes are more of a finishing exercise. They help with the stretching and as such will be less weight. Using dumbells for the presses will give you a fuller range of motion. The Inclined presses will help build your front Deltoid (shoulder). If you'll notice there isn't any exercise on the shoulder day, just Side and Rear Deltoids.

4 sets of Dumbell benches, 8-10 reps each; 3 sets of inclined, 8-10 reps; 2 sets of Flyes 10-15 reps. Totalling 9 sets for Chest. Which you shouldn't need to exceed if your Concentration and focus are good and you really get everything out of the set you possibly can.

Get some really good stretching between sets, as that will help with less pain the following day. After 6 weeks, you change up the exercises to stop muscle memory and keep building.

4 sets of Bent-over rows, 20 reps, 15, 10, 6; 4 sets of Deadlifts, 15 reps, 10 reps, 8, 6 reps.
Calves. I love to superset these muscles, as I have disporportionately large calves. Unflexed, they're a hair over 18". To hit them properly, I do a standing set, 25 reps, with next to no weight, then right into seated raised for 10 reps with 150+ lbs. then stretch. I do a total of 4 sets. Adding weight each time to the seated raises, until I get 215 for 4 reps. I keep the standing sets at very low weight and only use that to exhaust the upper portion of the calf.

Barbell Curls 4 sets, 15 reps, 12 reps, 10 reps, 8 reps. Concentration curls, 4 sets with the same weight 20-30lb dumbells and really focus on squeezing the muscle. Aim for 15 reps with the same weight. Close Grip Bench, 15 reps, 10 reps, 8 reps, 4-6reps (these build big arms). Skull Crushers, 15 reps, 12 reps, 10 reps, 8 reps. When you bring the weight up, don't come to completely UP/Down, keep some resistance on the muscle. Bring it to 85 degrees instead of 90 from the floor.

Shoulders are my weakest point. Keep good strict form with these as its really easy to swing the weight. Upright Rows, 4 sets, side laterals 4 sets, Rear laterals, 4 sets. Aim for 15 reps to start, by the 4th set, you should be down to 6 reps.

Please ask any questions you want. As well, talk with Pako, he can give you more info on building mass that I can and he's got a lot of experience, which can help you also. I used to lift years ago, and when restarting recently, alot more of it has come back to memory.

Good luck, and enjoy the gym.
 
Hey guys,

You can step away from reading the first post as I haven't been to the local gym even once since I arrived at my appartment. The local gym is just far too expensive (25 dollars per workout!) so I've begun swimming instead. Last week I've been swiming pretty much everyday. Yesterday was a rest day since Mondays are reserved for the swimming club.

Anyway, it's a different lifestyle I'm having since I'm all by myself now, no parents to make dinner for me. I always have breakfast, no matter what, drink lots of water and milk, eat fruit everyday, and for dinner I always have either rice or potatoes. I eat loads of chicken, but I try to have some variation.

Besides swimming, I do push ups at home since I've never been good at them so I set myself some realistic goals; To push up 10 times for 3 sets without the knees on the floor. I know this is pathetic, but it's my weakest point and I really need to start at some point to set greater goals in the future. Later on I'm taking with me some dumbbells form home so I can do some curls, perhaps some flyes and shoulder exercises.

Today at school I recieved a body scan and had some surprising results:

Weight: 88,2 kg
Height: 1m 86,5 cm
Body fat percentage: 20,2%
Metabolic rate per day: 2119 calories
Metabolic body age: 27
Muscle mass: 67 kg (of total bodyweight, intestines included)
Bone mass: 3,5 kg (of total bodyweight)
Stomach fat: 4 (healthy levels are between 1-12)

So I'm 20 and I'm housing inside a 27 year old body, perhaps due to the fact I was severely overweight at the age of 6 to 15. This test really put a damper on my mood today, but I only want to exercise even more.

My current goal is to get better at swimming, get better at doing push ups, and bringing the bodyfat percentage down. I do push ups everyday, and when I swim, I swim 1,000 metres. The goal is to bring this count up once my pace increases.

I'm also concentrating on getting a good technique during my breaststrokes and I immediatly notice that when I concentrate on a good technique, it is more exhausting. When I leave I feel weak in my legs and back, and often am I sore in my arms, back and calves the day after. So I feel swimming really does me good, especially since it takes away a good deal of stress I recieve with all the university projects and homework.

My nutrition isn't that bad; Never eat candy, but I could try and cut down on some snacks I have (like peanutbutter on my sandwich instead of meat or cheese). At the moment I don't now whether I should go for a protein shake after my swimming sessions; the person that tested me today said that alot of proteins are vital for my training, to grow my muscles after each session, and they neutralize the sugar in my blood so it prevents me from feeling the need to eat more often. Others say it's all a hype, and that it only increases the amount of fat I take in.

I am open to any suggestions at the moment, whether it be training program, nutrition, tips on techniques, or just tips in general. Be aware though that going to the gym is not an option, I don't have enough money to go there, even it is 3 times a week, that's still going to cost me 75 dollars per week. There is an option for 75 dollars per month, but that is a 12 month contract, so even if there are times I'm not going, I'm still paying for it. And I do not want to be bound to such things that cost me money when I'm not there because I'm working on a project, or studying for an exam.
 
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Michael Phelps is a great example of what swimming can do for you.

Swimming is one of the most physically challenging exercises you can do. If you've got access to a good pool, spend as much time in it as you can.

Push-ups, sit-ups and Pull-ups (If you can find a place to do them), combined with the swimming is a fantastic way to get in shape.

As for the protein, take in as much as you can. Your muscles grow with protein intake. However, the protein should be a supplement to a real food. The Protein mix will let your body absorb it faster and utilizeit easier. Your body will need the real food in good amounts.

What's Breakfast usually consist of? Midday meals? Dinner? What about Greens? Asparagus, Broccoli (apologize to your roommate) or spinach. For my greens, I have been eating mostly spinach, with a forkful of Salsa on it.

BTW, I'm shocked at the cost of the gym. I've got 4 gyms in the area and they range in cost from $10-$30 a month. $75 a month is obscene.

With all the swimming and cleaning up your diet, it looks like you've started back on the path to where you want to be.
 
Thanks for the response Der Alta 👍

I've always had clean eating habits actually, though I once in a while treat myself to something sweet. I don't want to end up like my father and go paranoid when shopping for dinner. I've always been told "Eat clean, exercise, but don't be too strict. Treat yourself occasionally for the hard work". In the morning I always have dark bread with meat, and cheese. To drink, skimmed milk (0,1% fat), and a glass fo water. Throughout the day I try to drink as much water as possible, especially since the test revealed my water percentage is around 55% with the recommended level laying between 50-65%. It's hard to spread meals throughout the day with all the homework and classes, but I often buy a sandwich with salad, unions, and tuna at school. When I come home I grab an apple, drink some water, pack and go swimming. When I return, I immediatly drink some water (should take some protein shake at this point) and have dinner. I tend to eat a lot of rice or potatoes for dinner, chicken or turkey for meat, fish at least once a week, and fresh salad for vegetables. I could go for spinage, but it's only available deep frozen, and I'm not too keen on frozen food.

You're not the only one to be shocked at the gym prices. Apparently it's the most expensive one in the neighbourhood. It's a very new gym, but that's no excuse to charge those kind of prices.

About the pullups; I do not have the ability to do them here, but that's why I was planning to take with me my dumbbels from home. I know curls are nowhere near a great workout as pullups, but at least I can work on my biceps, so that not only my triceps get all the stress.

On that, today I didn't do a full 1,000m. After 800m I went for some freestyle, but immediatly I got heavy cramps. I tried to relax that calve muscle for a minute, but upon continuing the cramps immediatly returned. I guess I need to drink more water, and perhaps eat a banana as well. They say bananas are excellent to prevent cramps. Oh well, I'm not surprised this happened. I've been swimming everyday now, and I know I should take a break soon and recharge myself. I know I won't gain any strength if I bust myself off every single day without rest, but I just love the feeling I get when I'm in the water and the exhaustion after the workout. My core muscles have been sore for a week already!
 
*Small update*

No swimming today, took a break. Instead I did my usual push ups, but a little different. Normaly I'd do 12,12,15 (39). But today I tried to push up untill failure which gave 20,15,10 (45) which makes up for 6 push ups more :P They're much harder though. Also, today I bought some whey protein to give it a shot. Since this is not for free as well I'll be trying to not overdo-it. I was thinking about prepping up the proteins during breakfast by adding 2 scrambled eggs to my usual breakfast. Then I take my protein shake after my swimming workouts.

Any critique is welcome! :P
 
Many thanks to DA for letting me use this thread as a blog :cheers:

November, 6th - 2009
Went for another 1,000m today. Took a break yesterday after the heavy cramps on Wednesday which made me leave the pool earlier than expected. I've been walking around with a sore calve on the right since yesterday, so I expected my swimming workout not to go so well today either. I was right, after 900m of 1,000m I just had to get out of the water. Both of my legs were completely trashed. My core muscles don't feel as good worked out as on previous days, but I think that's due to Wednesday still being in the legs.

Today I focussed on technique; gliding through the water. I think I'm getting the hang of it now, my gliding definitly has improved since I started last week Tuesday. It feels great to be the fastest guy in the pool with only a week of swimming behind me. Well, today I was fastest in the 30 minutes I was in the water. My times are getting better as well, the first day I completed 1,000m in 40-45 minutes. I think I'm around 35 minutes at the moment.

As for post-workout; Came home, it's only a 5 minute walk, took a good 40g protein shake, and had a good meal. I've started adding eggs to my meals since today. So far I haen't experienced issues with my stomach with the protein shake so that's good. For breakfast I had two scrambled eggs, three slices of dark bread, two of them topped with meat, 1 glass of skimmed milk and two glasses of water. Solid breakfast, felt stuffed throughout the entire day. For dinner I had 1 scrambled egg, chicken breast, some rice and fresh salad form the vegetable store. As desert; a good-old red apple 👍

To top it of for today, someone I know at school started swimming as of lately as well, so we got to know eachother and agreed to let eachother know when we're going to swim. Hopefully my swimming sessions get even better now that I've got a "work-out buddy" :lol:

As always; hints, tips, critique or comments are more than welcome!

👍
 
November 7th, Saturday, 2009
Surprised myself today. After yesterday I felt that I really needed a break today, but I was supposed to meet up with the guy I met earlier on. He didn't show up because he didn't wake up in time and didn't have my number so he couldn't let me know. He's going to a party tonight so I'm guessing he won't show up tomorrow as well. We'll see.

Anyway, I climbed into the pool this morning and took it with ease. No speed training because of my sore legs, so I thought I would concentrate on my pull-ins and the way I glide in the water. Once I got the hang of it, I was pleasantly surprised my legs weren't complaining too much on what was going on. I didn't count lengths since I was training on technique, but I have the strangest feeling I did over a 1,000m this morning. It's pretty weird how those days you feel worst turn out to be the best.

Had a solid breakfast before swimming, the usual eggs with bread and meat with skimmed milk one. Came home from swimming, and did my push ups. Did all of them until failure which resulted in a 15-10-10 session. Guess I should've taken them before swimming. Took my shake and a sandwhich with meat. Mixing your shakes with water is disgusting :crazy: Need to remember to buy some extra cartons of milk next time.

Feel really good at the moment, if my form is good tomorrow morning, I'm going to train some more on my gliding technique 👍
 
November 8th, Sunday, 2009
Shoulders felt sore this morning, but I went swimming anyway. 1,000m completed, felt absolutely great in the water. I've completely fallen in love with the feeling I get when I'm under water. Shoulders are wasted now, as well as my neck. So far it's going great! 👍
 
November 10th, Tuesday, 2009
Another day at the pool, so I did the usual routine. Had a buddy with me today, and he literally said "You swim like a hero" :lol: He said he meant it positive, but something about that sentence made it sound awkward. Had a good amount of fish and broccoli today, the broccolli here is so incredibly cheap, I'm an idiot for not eating it on a more regular bassis like Der Alta. :dunce:
 
November 11th, Wednesday, 2009
Went out with 4 buddies today to an all you can eat pizzeria restaurant, so I had to have a good swim session to burn the extra calories and to slighten the dent in my diet :P After swimming 1,000m the plan was to keep going for 1,500m because I felt so great. Was by far the quickest in the pool today, but it wasn't crowded :P Anyway, after a 1,000m some guy enters the pool with two hot girls. As douche as they are, all three of them swim side by side to take up all the space just so they can talk about nothing, so I just went out of the pool after a 1,100m. Did some push ups before swimming, and definitly improved since last best performance. Last best was 20,15,10, today I did 24,18,14.
 
November 13th, Friday, 2009
Friday 13th... When I left my appartment I realised I left my keys on the doorlock, and nobody was at home. Oh the irony. Luckely someone else opened up. Anyway, got at the pool really late tonight, around 8:45 pm. The first 500m I swam with other people, was 2nd fastest during that period. After that I had half the pool for myself, so I could concentrate more on my strokes than on my speed. Need to work on my frog kick technique though, I feel I'm not sending enough energy forward, thus not going fast enough as I could. At the 1,000m mark I felt so good I added another 500m to complete 1,500m in 50 minutes. Not too bad considering my dad swims 1,500m freestyle in 45 minutes, and I'm doing breaststrokes. Before the pool, I did some close grip push ups and they were really hard. I managed to squeeze out 23 reps on the first set, but in the second set I only managed 14. Didn't get to a third set because an old buddy called me up. Push up count: 23-14-X.
 
November 17th, Tuesday, 2009
Worst day ever. I took a buddy with me because he wanted to swim, and he's part of his local swimming club, so perhaps he could show me a trick or two. But to no avail. I've never seen so many people swim in two lanes. Didn't count the distance, it just wasn't any fun.

Distance completed: X
 
November 18th, Wednesday, 2009
Best. Day. Ever! Felt fantastic throughout the whole workout. After a 1,000m I felt so good I just kept on going untill I was out of time. The local swimming club was training today, so I did my best to not be intimitated by them. I even caught their coach keeping an eye on me.

Distance completed: 1,500m.
 
November 27th, Tuesday, 2009
Been having some time off last weekend and yesterday. Was great to get some activity after the math exam.

Distance completed: 1,000m.
 
November 25th, Wednesday, 2009
A good and solid workout. I've fallen in love with strawberry protein shakes and a banana :D

Distance completed: 1,500m
 
Newyear's update:

Kept on swimming all these weeks, but for now I'll be swimming a little bit less per week and start a workout routine at the gym at school. I'm still undecided whether I should re-start Starting Strength to get back as strong as I was in the summer and further, or whether I should start with higher rep workouts including more isolation exercises...
 

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