Training Day Eighty Seven

Just when things are starting to calm down, it starts getting messy again. Today, I get a phone call from my girlfriend. She's having some sort of chest pain while at work. We call the health service number and they tell us to go to the emergency unit. Only problem is that she's still at work and I have to work the entire evening/night. So, right now my thoughts are with her as she works her last couple of hours before heading of to the emergency unit in Halmstad. Luckily, my mom is going with her as support while I'm at work. However, I still decided to carry out today's workout, even though these things are constantly nagging in the back of my head. Just because life decided to take a different path, doesn't mean I have to follow. It's time to work harder until things are back on track again.

Today's delts and calves workout:
- 5x5 Front shoulder press (Smith machine)
- 3x8 Lateral dumbbell delt raises
- 3x8 Bent-over one-arm cable reverse fly
- 2x12 Behind the neck shoulder press (Smith machine)
- 12x8 Standing calf raise machine
- 2x25 Standing calf raise (On plank)

Posterior pic taken this morning (prior to heading to my workout).

All things considered, this was a good workout. I've already said that the delts and calves workout has slowly become a new favorite workout for me. The delt part was especially thorough, while the calves part was slightly sloppy. Nothing to get upset about though.

Training Day Eighty Six

Had a busy day yesterday and fell asleep last night while feeling completely drained. Therefore today's laid back attitude was a welcomed experience. The only "must-do" for the evening was a gym instruction which was executed straight after my workout.

Today's hamstrings and triceps workout:
- 6x8 Stiff-legged deadlifts
- 6x8 Seated leg curl
- 2x20 Lying hip raises
- 5x5 Dips (with weight)
- 3x8 Lying barbell triceps extension (EZ-bar)
- 3x12 Cable triceps pushdowns (With rope)

Triceps pic taken at home prior to heading to my workout

To be completely honest, the hamstrings workout has always been a problematic workout. It's not that I've never enjoyed doing it, but it just feels awkward. I've never really had an hamstrings workout that felt amazing, and today was no exception. The triceps part however was quite the opposite. Started out with some pretty solid dips and finished things off with a good ol' pump building exercise.

Training Day Eighty Five

Yet another day at work followed by a workout later in the evening. I was already feeling a bit of tension in my lower back when I got home from work. Hence, my girlfriend gave me a massage before I headed off to the gym.

Today's back, trapz and forearms workout:
- 6x8 Cable row machine (Wide grip)
- 3x12 Back extensions machine
- 3x5 Chins (Supinated grip)
- 3x12 Bent over cable pullover
- 4x12 Barbell shrugs (Smith machine)
- 3x12 Reverse biceps curl
- 3x12 Standing supinated barbell wrist curl (10 sec rest between sets - holding the bar)

Lat spread pic taken prior to heading to my workout.

Had a pretty decent workout today. I was especially surprised during the bent over cable pullover, where I had some pretty solid sets that targeted the lats perfectly. The previous chins were pretty sloppy though. All in all a good workout.

Training Day Eighty Four

Two days in a row I enjoy life slightly more than usual, and that's cheat day accompanied by next day's workout. So, here we are, at training day eighty four, which also means chest and biceps.

Today's chest and biceps workout:
- 5x8 Dumbbell chest press
- 3x8 Incline chest press machine
- 3x12 Chest fly machine
- 3x12 Butterfly machine
- 5x12 Biceps curl (EZ-curl)
- 3x12 Preacher curl machine
- 1x5 1x4 1x3 Bent over one-arm concentration curl (No rest between sets)

Side chest pic taken at home this afternoon (prior to workout).

Yesterday may have been a cheat day, but that's definitely not what today was about. The initial chest workout was strict and the biceps part even more so. I had an amazing pump throughout the entire workout and I'll be sure to feel some tension in the muscles tomorrow. God I love chest and biceps!

Cheat Day Eleven

It's time yet again to revisit an old cheat day. On one of my first cheat days I had my favorite pizza. But, now, it's time to stir things up a bit and pimp it out. And what's more pimpilicius than feta cheese? Hence, tonight's diet deviation is a kebab and ham pizza with some feta cheese on top. Oh yeah!

Topping: Tomato Sauce, Ham, Kebab, Garlic Sauce and Feta Cheese.

The last time I had my cheat day pizza I estimated it at about 1100 - 1500 calories. Today I've added some feta cheese to the equation. But, since the original estimation had quite a wide range I'd still say that the pizza ends up at about 1500 calories the most. That means I'm having a maximum of 1500 extra calories today. Well-earned considering the amount of physical activity that's been going on lately.

As for tonight's entrainment I'm going back to the old action classics. Stallone and my personal favorite Mr Snipes duke it out in the good old Demolition Man. Pizza and an early 90's action movie... It just doesn't get any cheesier than that.

Training Day Eighty Three

It's finally here, the day I've been waiting for: cheat day! But, before I got to sit down and enjoy a nice calorie rich meal, there was a workout to be carried out - quads and abs.

Today's quads and abs workout:
- 6x8 4x12 Squats (Smith Machine)
- 2x12 One-legged leg extensions
- 5x12 Ab crunches machine
- 2x12 Twisting hanging leg raises (2 sets for each side)

Quads pic taken in the mirror prior to my workout.

As a change I decided to have my two major meals prior to my workout today. Reason was because it's cheat day and that means yet another big meal (which I ate post workout). I don't know if it was the two major meals, or something else, that contributed to the fair amount of energy for today's workout. It came, however, as a positive surprise considering the fair amount of leg work I've been dishing out at work. Tomorrow's workout should quite possibly be a rather pump-filled experience.

Training Day Eighty Two

Rain... the Swedish version of summer and the usual weather for each Midsummer's Eve. But, there's a bit of sunlight in all the rain, and that's today's workout: calves and delts - a personal favorite of mine.

Today's calves and delts workout:
- 5x8 Calf raises (Smith Machine)
- 4x8 Standing calf raise machine
- 6x12 Calf raises on plank (10 sec rest between sets)
- 4x8 Front dumbbell delt raise
- 4x8 Lateral dumbbell delt raise
- 4x8 Seated bent over reverse dumbbell flyes

Front pic taken at home prior to my workout.

I'm dishing out fairly good workouts as far as my energy supply in concerned, especially considering the amount of work lately. Having that said, I'm already thoroughly looking forward to this Sunday's cheat day. Tonight I'll be doing a minor deviation from the diet since it is a day of celebration. Enjoy your Midsummer's Eve everyone. I know I will!

Training Day Eighty One

Busy is the word for the day as I've been working double shifts (two separate work places). I had to cram in a workout between going from one work to another. Hence, today's workout was done with high intensity in order to save time.

Today's hamstrings and triceps workout:
- 6x8 Seated leg curls
- 6x12 Standing leg curls using leg extension machine
- 6x8 Incline bench french press (EZ-bar)
- 1x12 1x8 1x6 Dips
- 3x8 Cable pushdowns (Rope)

Triceps pic taken at the gym after my workout.

It's seems as it's favorable for me to have a busy day as I tend to perform rather well once I hit the gym. Today was no exception. Had a good few sets on hamstrings and followed that up with an awesome triceps workout. Things are going well.

Training Day Eighty

This is one of those days where you start out with a headache, and you just know that it'll be with you for the rest of the day... and it has. Not the best start of the day.

Today's back, traps and forearms workout:
- 6x8 Lat pulldowns
- 3x20 Horizontal back extensions
- 3x8 Row machine
- 5x8 Standing dumbbell shrugs
- 3x12 Standing supinated barbell wrist curls (10 sec rest between sets - not dropping the bar)
- 3x12 Standing reverse biceps curl (10 sec rest between sets - not dropping the bar)

Back double biceps pic taken this evening (after my workout).

Today's workout was pretty decent considering the blistering headache going on in my head. The few sets for the back and the few exercises were due to me not wanting to stress my body any further. Had some really good reverse biceps curl sets though.

Training Day Seventy Nine

Today's workout can be summarized with one word: Awesome! I'm not sure what they put in my Sushi yesterday, but whatever it was, it's working. Gotta love those carbs!

Today's chest and biceps workout:
- 8x8 Incline bench press (Smith machine)
- 3x8 Seated chest press machine
- 3x8 Dumbbell flyes on bench
- 2x8 1x5 Standing dumbbell biceps curl
- 3x12 Biceps curl with super EZ-curl bar (Partial reps)
- 2x8 Standing bent over concentration curl

Side chest pic taken at the gym during my workout.

As the intro hinted today's workout was anything but bad. Had good energy from beginning to end and I felt that I could perform on both the chest as well as the biceps part. More of this, less of the opposite!

Cheat Day Ten

As I've hinted in today's training entry, today's cheat day has been highly anticipated. Things are going rather well at the moment, but, I am really tired. So, with a week of a lot of work ahead of me, I'm leaning towards carbing up a bit and hopefully have a bit of energy in the initial part. That's why today's delightful little treat is the most wonderful raw piece of food that's ever existed: Sushi!

On plate: 4 salmon, 3 shrimp, 2 tuna, 1 avocado, 1 grilled eel, 1 squid and 8 rolls

I've been looking around on the Internet a bit, and the calories contained in Sushi are estimated at approximately 50 kcal per piece. Hence, I've put my limit at 20 pieces, which equals a total of 1000 calories. A neat and tidy little calculation that might not be correct in any way. How awesome!

As for tonight's entertainment, we'll most likely end up in our couch, with the TV on and nothing better to do than just kicking back and relaxing. It's probably the best choice since I've got to get up for work rather early tomorrow morning.

Training Day Seventy Eight

I've felt rather tired lately. All things happening in my personal life combined with the strain of the diet is taking its toll. Therefore today's cheat day is highly anticipated. But first, it was time for quads and abs.

Today's quads and abs workout:
- 5x8 Squats (Smith machine)
- 3x12 Leg presses
- 3x8 Dumbbell lunges (Alternate legs)
- 3x8 Hanging leg raises / Cables crunches (Superset)
- 2x12 Crunches

Quads pic taken last night.

A single word can describe today's workout: tired. It's not that I'm sleepy, but my body feels completely drained. Doing the initial squats felt heavy even on the warm-up phase. I need a good night's rest and some extra calories to set things right again. Especially since a busy week of work is ahead of me (working every day except Tuesday).

Training Day Seventy Seven

It's been a worried few days since the event concerning my girlfriend (read about it here). I'm always trying to find a way to get my training done, but it's having to take a lower priority now. Usually I'm always able to shut things off if they surround my personal life once I hit the gym. But now, that's impossible, and I tend to carry my girlfriend's worries with me. Such a thing as not having to answer the mobile phone - which I've taken for granted - is no longer possible as she might need to call me if her condition worsens. It's with this very notion I carry out my workouts lately. You simple have to make do with what you got, because it's the only thing you're getting.

Today's delts and calves workout:
- 6x8 Behind the neck shoulder press (Smith machine)
- 4x8 Dumbbell lateral delt raise
- 4x8 Reverse fly machine
- 12x8 Standing calf raises (Squat machine)
- 4x12 Seated calf raises

Pic taken by my girlfriend this very morning.

All things aside, today's workout was pretty good. The delts part was a bit slow, but the rear portion got a good beating. The calves workout, however, was pretty neatly done. Got a few good sets in the first exercise and finished it off with grace on the last exercise. Things are moving along.

Training Day Seventy Six

Have had a pretty laid back day today. My girlfriend had her friend over for the night and I've mostly been fiddling around with the computer. Restlessness was the feeling that staid with me as I headed to the gym.

Today's hamstrings and triceps workout:
- 5x8 Leg curl
- 5x8 Stiff-legged deadlifts
- 3x12 Standing leg curls using leg extension machine
- 5x8 Triceps cable pushdowns (V-bar)
- 3x8 Incline bench french press (EZ-bar)
- 3x8 Dips (Between benches)
- 2x8 Standing over head dumbbell triceps extension

Triceps pic taken prior to heading to the gym.

Today's workout was pretty solid. Even though the body is hungry and sore, I still managed to lift pretty heavy. The hamstrings part was especially tough, but the triceps got pretty heavy as well.

Training Day Seventy Five

Was dead tired as I headed to the gym today. Woke up early with stomach cramps, which resulted in me having to go up earlier than usual. Had do to my workout prior to heading to work today (which I'll be heading to after writing this entry). On the plus side I had a talk with an old friend at the gym. That's always good for the spirit.

Today's back, trapz and forearms workout:
- 5x8 Lat pulldowns
- 3x8 Bent over dumbbell rows
- 3x8 Cable row machine
- 2x20 Lying back extensions
- 3x12 Dumbbell shrugs
- 3x12 Barbell shrugs (10 sec rest between sets)
- 5x8 Standing barbell supinated wrist curls (10 sec rest between sets)
- 3x12 Standing barbell pronated wrist curls (10 sec rest between sets)

Mobile self-timer pic with hearts and all taken this very morning.

Today's workout was pretty decent. It's quite noticeable that the carbs are low now as I tend to not be able to perform as well as I'm used to. However, the diet is going really well in itself so it's a sacrifice I'm gladly making. The last couple of exercises were stressed a bit as I had to get home and prepare for work. Other than that, everything was throughly run through.

Training Day Seventy Four

A slightly more optimistic day today considering the previous day and it's horrible adventure. Had to go to work after the gym so I packed my lunch box before heading off for today's chest and biceps workout.

Today's chest and biceps workout:
- 5x8 Bench press
- 3x8 Incline bench press (Smith machine)
- 2x8 1x5 Incline bench cable chest flyes
- 3x8 Cable biceps curl (With rope)
- 3x8 Seated dumbbell concentration curl
- 3x8 Barbell biceps curl (Partial reps - 10 second rest between sets)

Side chest pic taken this afternoon prior to heading to the gym.

Started out with a decent chest workout. I'm feeling rather tired now since I'm moving further into the diet. The biceps part was slightly better as I was able to target the muscles more thoroughly. The major plus for the evening were the partial biceps curl reps and the minus was the initial bench pressing. All in all, this day beats the prior one!

Cheat Day Nine

For those of you who read today's training entry (found here), you know that today has been horrible. Initially - prior to spending the entire day at the hospital - we had decided to go on a trip and have a nice buffet. Things didn't turn out as planned though, hence, today's dietary deviation ended up completely different: a chicken roll.

In roll: Chicken, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, feta cheese, red onion and hot sauce.

Once again I'm not entirely sure how many calories this little baby contains, so it's just pure guessing from my point. I am putting this roughly at the 1000 calories area. It could very well contain a lot more or significantly less, but my guestimation will have to do for now. Frankly, with today in mind, I don't really care how many calories it contained.

Since this entry is written just prior to bedtime, the regular entertainment accompanied by the daily feast is already over. Today, however, involved no entertainment. It was pure disappointment from beginning to end. At the very least I got to eat something I enjoyed. Hopefully next cheat day will be a little less stressful.

Training Day Seventy Three

This day has been absolutely horrible. It's a long story, but I'll try to make it short. A few weeks ago my girlfriend said that she felt some pain in the back of her knee. The pain continued and it worsened just a few days ago, at which point she went to the physical therapist. After examining her, he told her that it was baker's cyst. Apparently this was a harmless cyst, but potentially very painful. This very morning she wakes up with excruciating pain. We call the health counseling service number and they tell her to get in touch with the local hospital in Laholm. We call them up and they tell us that there's nothing they can do. We insist on coming in since she's crying in pain (they can even hear her in the background). The call ends with us getting no help other than them telling us that a visit would only leave us 300 Swedish crowns poorer. Afraid that her condition might mean something else than a baker's cyst we decide to call the health care service number again. Mostly so that we can be reassured that it's nothing more serious (such as a blood clot). The nurse tells us that the fact that we've not been allowed to come in to the hospital is horrible, and she decides to call the hospital by herself. After some arguing with the hospital staff she apparently gets through with them. In the process the nurse gets called "incompetent" too - and I quote: "You at the health care service are incompetent". This, however, means that we're now allowed to come in to the hospital and have my girlfriend properly examined. After some time with the local doctor he refers us to the bigger hospital's emergency ward in Halmstad. After spending several hours there (and doing a ultrasound scan) they confirm the worst: it is in fact a blood clot. I'm not entirely sure what to say about this, but I think the story speaks for itself.

Today's quads and abs workout:
- 5x8 Leg presses / Crunches (Superset)
- 4x8 Leg extensions / Cable crunches (Superset)
- 2x8 One-legged step-ups on bench

Quads pic taken this morning.

It was with the previous explained experience I entered the gym today. Rather angry and upset, and with my girlfriend being in poor condition, I decided to superset the most of my workout, do minimal breaks and cut it short. The workout ended up with being done in less than 30 minutes. Needless to say, the intensity was high.

My current diet: Update Four

Time for yet another change in the diet. My weight has been going down pretty steadily since I did the last change 21 days ago. Due to the weight stabilizing just under 81 kg (~178,5 lbs) I've decided that the diet is up for reconstruction. That's why I'm now tossing the broccoli out of the picture. Currently I'm eating about 400 grams a day, which brings me to a total of 80 calories. Hence, 80 calories are scrapped from the diet as the journey continues.

NOTE: Since most of you who visit my website are from Sweden, each item is clickable and will direct you to the Swedish Wikipedia site - which will explain that particular item.

MY STATS:
Age: 29
Length: 184 cm (6' ½")
Morning weight: 80,8 kg (178,1 lbs)

MY DIETARY PLAN: JUNE 10 - 2012

MEAL 1	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Peanut butter (Organic)	50 (1,7)	12,8	24,45	8	281,5
Egg	100 (3,5)	12,3	9,7	0	136
Cottage cheese	100 (3,5)	12	4	2,2	92
Frozen Strawberries	65 (2,3)	0,52	0,26	4,2	24,5
Skip Omega 3	2 Tabs	0	2	0	20
Skip Mega-Pak	1 Bag	0	0	0	0
TOTAL:		37,62	40,41	14,4	554

MEAL 2	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Cutlet	200 (7)	43,2	3,4	0	206
Egg	100 (3,5)	12,3	9,7	0	136
Cottage cheese	100 (3,5)	12	4	2,2	92
Margarine	8 (0,28)	0	6,4	0	57
Sriracha Sauce	40 (1,4)	0	0	4	20
TOTAL:		67,5	23,5	6,2	511

PRE-WO	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
MRI Black Powder	20 (0,7)	0	0	11	45
Skip BCAA No Limit	10 (0,35)	0	0	0	7,7
TOTAL:		0	0	11	52,7

POST-WO	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Skip Big Whey	30 (1)	24	1,9	2,6	117
Skip Kreatin 100%	5 (0,17)	0	0	0	0
TOTAL:		24	1,9	2,6	117

MEAL 3	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Cutlet	200 (7)	43,2	3,4	0	206
Egg	100 (3,5)	12,3	9,7	0	136
Cottage cheese	100 (3,5)	12	4	2,2	92
Margarine	8 (0,28)	0	6,4	0	57
Sriracha Sauce	40 (1,4)	0	0	4	20
TOTAL:		67,5	23,5	6,2	511

MEAL 4	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Skip Big Whey	30 (1)	24	1,9	2,6	117
TOTAL:		24	1,9	2,6	117

MEAL 5	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Quark	100 (3,5)	12,2	0,3	3,9	67
Cottage cheese	100 (3,5)	12	4	2,2	92
FUN Light Strawberry	- (-)	0	0	0,1	0,8
TOTAL:		24,2	4,3	6,2	159,8

MEAL 6	GRAMS (OZ)	PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
Quark	100 (3,5)	12,2	0,3	3,9	67
Skip Magnesium	1 Tab	0	0	0	0
Skip Zink	1 Tab	0	0	0	0
TOTAL:		12,2	0,3	3,9	67

SUM		PROTEIN	FAT	CARBOHYDRATES	CALORIES
TOTAL:		257	96	53	2090

||PROTEIN||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 63%

||FAT||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 24%
| CARBS|||||| 13%