10/1/13; 0945-1245hrs; Bishan Gym
Mood
Before: Great. Was looking forward to switching flat bench
for incline bench and getting a good upper body workout in.
During: Drained. Incline bench irritated my forearms too.
But mainly I just wasn’t in the zone. Physically I felt ok but mentally I just
wasn’t there. Psyching myself up on smolov days is probably too mentally
draining. Then again, I realised that the past 2 Thursdays didn’t go well
either. It seems that by the time Thursday rolls around, I’m dead.
After: Good. Dug in, made adjustments to the training
session and still got something out of it. Looking forward to smolov. It is
becoming some sort of sick obsession, suffering under the bar.
Training
Warm up: Did the shoulder savers warm up. Already felt
sluggish here but I pushed on of course. I’m not one to terminate a training
session during warm up. At least not yet. Warmed up on the incline bench and at
60kg the forearms started acting up so I stopped it.
Work sets: Not done. This forearm problem is puzzling. It
appears that as long as there is any horizontal plane involved in pressing,
there is the onset of forearm pain. OHP does not cause this issue. Whether or
not squatting has to do with it remains to be seen after this program.
Assistance: 5 sets of 10 reps standing db press superset
with 15 reps wide overhand chin ups.
Accessory: This is what turned my mood around. So now I
know, when things look bleak, train like a bodybuilder! Bodyweight dips
superset with D handle rows on the lat pulldown machine. Today I went a little
lighter, I think, and did more reps. Did these for 4 sets. Followed by front
lateral raise to overhead extension superset with straight arm lat pulldowns
for 4 sets. Reps were around 10 for both. And lastly, L-lateral dumbbell raises
superset with face pulls for 4 sets. Took a lighter weight for the raises and
did 20 reps for both. Brisk walk wasn’t done today because my lower body didn’t
feel sore and I was lazy.
Miscellaneous
I learnt again today that knowing the purpose of training is
very important. The current program is focused on squatting and this is my
purpose. The squat sessions must be completed do or die. Anything else is a bonus.
Being reminded of this today helped me re-evaluate today’s training session and
realise that upper body strength just needs to be maintained on this program
and carried out to ensure postural integrity. Bearing this in mind, I was able
to adjust the training to meet this goal and to bring me closer to completing
this program.
Diet
My appetite’s been pretty good this few days given that
training hasn’t been all that slack. So it adds up. Coming off this program
might require some changes to the diet but nothing concrete now. Just something
for me to ponder about at the moment. Also, my diet thus far has ensured
optimal recovery and also minimal body fat gain but that’s just guesswork going
on.
Preworkout/breakfast: 2 scoops protein, creatine, 4 eggs and
2 slices of wholemeal bread. 1 cup kopi o kosong ti loh before hitting the gym.
Postworkout/lunch: 1 scoop protein. Felt really weak and
tired as if I was cutting but I’m not so carbs were in order. Lots of wanton
mee.
Teabreak: 1 scoop protein and 1 scoop full cream milk
powder. Felt weak again too so I had 2 agar agar. I am lacking sugar somehow.
Or not eating enough.
Dinner: Sweet potato noodle, lots of ngoh hiang, white rice,
curry sting ray. 1 persimmon because fruits are important. 2 agar agar because
I was still hungry.
Supper: 1 scoop protein and 1 scoop full cream milk powder.
