Lifting, Expounded. in Exerbabble III

Who knows where I’ll be in six months, so should write some of this out. Rather than assume the routine will always be the routine. I could get hit my a car tomorrow and not be able to lift ever again.

Just saying. Never take the mundane for granted.

It’s such simple advice, but always bring a notepad and pen to the gym. The paper can add fiber to your diet, and you can practice kegels with the pen.

…

…Yeah, hi. I don’t understand how people go without a log. Even if you know your routine, well. How do you know you’re progressing? Unless it’s bare bones, it’s hard to remember all the numbers. And if it’s the SAME THING every single time, that would drive me up a wall.

That’s why my personal hell would have a dreadmill and no clock.

Anyway, I’m still starting and finishing with reverse flies. It’s an experiment, and it seems to be sustainable. I’ve literally seen guys with overdeveloped front delts. In the unlikely event I grow shoulders, my posterior delt won’t be a weakness.

Still to this day, for whatever reason, my left side is slightly stronger than my right. The only exception seems to be grip strength. (I am, alas, not a southpaw, though I wank like one.) To this end, I start with my right side, and then “match” with my left side. Maybe it’s all the reverse flies I’ve been doing lately, but it feels easier pulling back “with my elbow” past my back than it has in the past.

Just as solid as last week. Tempo remained consistent - controlled descent, and pause at the chest. As always, I bench without a spotter. Only ask for a spot on PR attempts. I think I’ve had to do the Roll of Shame™ once. With the weights I use, rolling it down my legs isn’t a big deal. As well, the bottom position is slightly below my sternum.

I’ve had chicks heavier than what I bench straddle me.

I didn’t even notice during my workout that my pulldown is the same weight as my bench, but with more reps. I’ve known for years that I row more than I bench, but seeing it back-to-back like that always amuses me. Again, maybe I’m getting more posterior deltoid activation, but I can feel it easier to tuck my elbows down and back. Fun fact: in addition to shoulder abduction and external rotation, the posterior deltoids are also a shoulder extensor.

Sure, I took kinesiology, but I retained the knowledge because I’m a nerd. I already have two Star Trek tattoos, maybe I should get a strict science-related tattoo…

Overhead presses are notoriously difficult to progress on. I’ve had to accept they hit the anterior deltoid more than the lateral deltoid. Translation: don’t be afraid of benching, and just do some lateral raises for aesthetics.

By this point, I checked the clock and annotate the time. Just short of an hour.

Now, years ago, I would have either stopped, or done more compounds. Thing is, I found that doing more compound exercises, say… some more rows and some push-ups, for example. I would feel burned out. I systemically wouldn’t have any energy.

My experiment with adding isolation, however. It’s… like hitting the big systemic systems, and then finishing off the aesthetics one-by-one. And I’d swear I’m looking better than I did when I “only” did compounds.

Skinnyfat belly, aside. Shhh. Heard a rumor some chicks dig chubby guys. ; )

I hate curls. Well. Hate is a strong word. I’ve grown to hate them not-as-much. Why do I hate them? Well… they feel uncomfortable?

I’m sure that sounds strange.

It’s the lactic acid. You get to 10 or so, and then… to make progress you have to keep grinding out through the discomfort. As I do them more, it bothers me less and less, but. When I enter my third set, I know “this is going to suck.” But, it’s still less uncomfortable than the dreadmill.

I’d been using a different machine, so had to adapt. I dabbled in a split-stance today, feathering the cable between my legs. I tend to lean forward slightly to take out the anterior delt, so this makes that easier. I may not go back to the previous apparatus - I could feel it a LOT more in my lateral delt today. Mind-muscle connection isn’t everything, but it’s something.

And getting a pump isn’t everything, but it’s something. : )

I’m getting better at keeping my shoulders back-and-down. Previous weeks, I was feeling a discomfort in the top of my right deltoid. Which made no sense. That has since stopped. Though, it correlates with me not doing laterals supersetting with inclines prior. Hard to say.

I do know these have gotten easier since I’m not doing bb inclines prior. Next two workouts will be 50 and 60 lbs respectively. I expect to bump the weight next week. 20 reps may bleed into “endurance”, but you can’t argue with the lactic acid build-up. Ew.

Since the apparatus (I don’t know what else to call it) is set at the highest pin, I simply turn around, take a breath, and then do face pulls. Great for shoulder health.

And my second round of reverse flies.

It’s been cold (for this part of the country), so sometimes when I come in and start flies, well. It is this interesting feeling because the rest of me is cold, and JUST that small area on the back of my delts feels warm.

But by the end of a workout, doing these three sets feels like something else. Hard to describe. The mind-muscle connection is just dialed in. Really focused on keeping my scapula back-and-down. As always, when I hit concentric failure on the 12th rep of the last set, I just rest-paused to 15. Typically two calm breaths, two more reps, two calm breaths, then two final reps.

And by that point, you couldn’t really convince me to do anything more if you tried. It’s…

It’s not a feeling of being destroyed, not at all. I remember early in my lifting when I would limp out of the gym. Leg days, really. Limping, because I wasn’t trained. Now, I can thrash my legs, and I’m always walking just fine. And sure, after some taxing sets, I might find it difficult to raise my arms a little, but given a minute or two, I’m just fine.

It’s like the body adapts or something. : D

I added a reminder to my phone to post my current workout in six months. Ha ha. Only I would understand a shorthand like J2ILC1W2UA. Looks like a goddamn serial number, or a password from hell.

And if I get a case of the lazy, well.

Hrm, I don’t have a punch line. It would be sad.