[Frag Hag]

OK, i originally wasn't going to make a log, but i figured my routine could use some critique. My stats are as follows:

5' tall
152 pounds
24% bf?
Any other stats i should include, let me know.

My goal is to cut down to 12% bodyfat, losing about 20 pounds of fat and keeping my muscle. Ideally, i'd like to put on some muscle at the same time, but i know how difficult that is to do on a cutting diet, so i'm not getting my hopes up. My long-term goal involves putting on as much muscle as possible without using steroids, but i want to get the extra unnecessary weight off first, for my knees' sake.

Which brings me to my main obstacle; my joints. They hurt and burn!! I'll be working through tendinitis in both knees and osteoarthritis in my left elbow, so some days my workouts may be cut short due to joint pain.

I've been doing compound exercises in a 10x3 pattern (10 sets of 3) in the highest weights i can possibly manage. Lifting heavy is key in my workouts and it's what i look forward to every day. If i get comfortable with a working weight, i add 5 pounds or so and keep going. I work in a three-day split, which consists of an upper body day, a lower body day, then a rest day. I try to keep my workouts to an hour long, though sometimes i go longer than that. If it takes less than an hour, i take it to mean i need to up the weight, though it could mean that i don't have enough exercises to go through. I can only do exercises that can be done with a bench and a barbell or dumbbells, because that's all the equipment i have. I work out at home, not being able to afford a gym membership. Actually, my apartment complex has a small gym that's free to residents, but it's all machines and cardio, no free weights. I could theoretically use the weight machines, but i try to use the free weight equivalent whenever i can.

This workout plan has worked well in dropping a previous 20 pounds, but i've been stuck around this weight for a month or so, so it's probably gotten stale. I really like the 10x3 pattern i've been using so far and i would really hate to lower the working weights, but i'm open to suggestions for changing it up.

My diet consists of as many lean protein sources as i can get my hands on, complex carbs like breads and grains, and the occasional pasta dish for breakfast. I aim for 1500 calories on workout days and 1200 on rest days, with at least 120g of protein every day. Other than that i don't have any real nutritional guidelines, except to take my supplements. Which are:

fish oil
whey protein
glucosamine-chondroitin
naproxen sodium (anti-inflammatory. Not really a supplement, but i NEED it!)
hot-roxx (a fat burner)
se7en (a supplement i'm trying out this month, seems to help muscle-building in women)

One more item of personal preference: i loathe and detest cardio. Any type of impact exercise makes my knees complain and the anti-inflammatory i take for arthritis makes me wheezy. Put me on a treadmill and i'm just going to turn the incline to max and walk, so i figure this time could be used more productively for weight training anyway. Lifting gets my heart rate up just the same, so there doesn't seem to be much difference in how it affects me. It may sound unreasonable, but i'd like to lose this fat without the high-impact stuff.

Well, i hope i didn't bore anyone reading this with all these details. I figure if there's any place it's acceptable for me to make novel-like posts, it's this one, cause it's my log and i can do whatever i want! Muwahahahaha!

If there's anything missing, let me know. Thanks for reading!

[Frag Hag]

Yesterday's workout went like this:

Military press:
10x3 @ 60
Bench press:
10x3 @ 80

1562 calories eaten, with a whopping 162 grams of protein!

My husband racked the weights for me while i prepared my elbow (before a workout, i wrap it in a heat pad to loosen it up, it helps cut down on the crunching), but he mistook a couple of 15-pound plates for 10-pounders, so instead of my usual working weight of 70 pounds, i made an unintentional leap of 10 pounds! The whole time, i was thinking "damn, i'm really weak today, i don't remember benching being this hard!" I only noticed the plates after i was done, and then it made a lot more sense, lol. It was nice to know i could do 80 pounds, but it threw off my workout; after the benches, i had no energy left for curls and i had already spent an hour lifting, so i cut this workout short. Better luck next time.

[Frag Hag]

Tonight was a typical leg day.

squats:
10x3 @ 100
deadlifts:
3x3 @ 100
7x3 @ 105

Diet was less than spectacular. 1614 calories :/ with 131 grams of protein. Bah! Tomorrow is a new day.

[mr_bhana]

great 1st post! ive read about the 10x3 WO seems hardcore!! Seems like you got alot of joint problems, is there a reason for this? Previous job or something. il be following!

[Frag Hag]

Thanks! I picked the 10x3 because it looked the most hardcore, lol.

I wish i knew why my joints were this way, lol. When i was 17 or so, for some reason my left elbow started making this sick crunching sound when i used it, so i got it examined and they said it was osteoarthritis caused by the surface of the bones being irregular. They weren't sure if it was a previous injury, lack of blood circulation to the joint killing the cells on the surface, or if it just developed wrong. My right arm is fine, though. My knees are probably unrelated, and still kind of a mystery. I was overweight, but not THAT overweight, and heavier kids than me had no problems. They just started hurting around college. Doctors just kind of looked at it, said it was tendinitis and told me to deal with it. Recently my right knee's starting to crunch, so... that's not good! lol. It's a major reason why i started weightlifting, to make them stronger.

Anyway, that's the why and how of my joints. Oh yeah, and apparently i've got iron-deficiency anemia, but i'm fixing that by eating plenty of steak!

Today's a rest day, whee! I'll post my calories later.

[kenney]

looking forward to seeing some decent results here. joint problems really are a bitch. my girlfriend has problems with her knee, she got it checked out the other week and was told its because she used to play a shit load of hockey, then suddenly went to very little excercise. i cant remember what her problem is called though. will definitely be following this

[Frag Hag]

1278 calories with 122 protein!

[islander]

nice frag shit i gotta try these dead lift things! how the hell are you eatin so much protein!? i dunno why but i have a hard time with it. i was doing the pyramid thing for a change 12 lighter 8 med 6 heavy 12 light (hopfully usally get to 10 tho) seem to bulk pretty fast this way. got routine done fast. but ive got back to the ol 3x12 maxin out at 12, i like it better. but now i add a 4xsupermax at the end. hmm so what this se7en stuff all about? you might want to add some omega 3,6,9 for your joints too. if to expensive just add some groundflax about 3tbsp a day to your diet might help. my mom found devils claw, a herbal thing, helped her when she got arthritis really bad.

[YM123]

the log is looking good,, just curious if you have got problems with your joints i probably wouldn't do 10 x 3, i would switch it to a higher rep range to help ease the joints a little, if i were you i would stick with 10 - 12 reps,, just a suggestion

[Frag Hag]

I use whey protein to fill in the gaps in my diet, each scoop has about 20 grams, so it really adds up. I usually have a protein shake as soon as i wake up because it's fast-digesting, so it'll keep me from eating my muscles. I usually wake up starving!! Then i usually have a shake for my next meal too because i'm too lazy to cook, lol, and it'll tide me over till my husband makes me some food. I guess having protein shakes whenever i'm hungry or lazy helps me meet my daily requirements pretty easily! Yesterday, he made a big pork roast, so that was pretty much all i ate. Kinda fatty, but i just barely managed to stay within my calorie limit, so it was good! Ever since i realized it was okay to eat all the meat i want (health-wise), i've been pretty carnivorous, lol. When we don't have fish, the fish oil takes care of the omega-3's, that helps my joints a lot.

Se7en is a supplement that supposedly will help you burn fat and build muscle, which works well for men but for some reason works extremely well for women. No idea the chemistry behind it, but i suspect it's for some hormonal reason. I'm trying it out for a month because on the bottle it says "for best results use continuously for a minimum of one month." I'm kinda skeptical about it because the place where i read about it is, of course, the place that sells it, t-nation.com. They have a way with marketing, so i hope i'm not being taken in with some snake oil. I have noticed my body getting harder, but i've also been improving my training, so it's hard to tell whether it's the se7en or my training.

Had a good workout today:

bench press:
2x3 @ 70
8x3 @ 75

military press:
10x3 @ 60

reverse curls:
2x3 @ 20
4x6 @ 20

From what various doctors have told me, the best thing to do for any joint is strengthen the muscles around it. I remember asking my physical therapist if walking or running more would help my knees, but he said it wouldn't improve the strength, only endurance. So i figured something that would increase the raw strength, 10x3, would help them best, even if it seems counter-intuitive to put more weight on them. Nevertheless, i've been thinking of increasing the reps for the sake of shaking up my routine. I toyed with the idea of 5x6 instead of 10x3, as you can see from my curls. They gave me a great pump! I'll probably have to mess around with the other weights to see what my 6 rep max is, but i was really happy with the curls. I wasn't keeping track of time, but the workout probably lasted about an hour.

[Frag Hag]

Finishing up today with 1568 calories and 136 grams of protein!

[Frag Hag]

Leg day today... meh. What i initially thought would be an awful workout turned out decent, i guess. At least i'll be really sore tomorrow!

deadlifts:
5x6 @ 100
hamstring curls:
5x6 @ 25
one-legged calf raises:
5x6 @ 30

Today was a lonely day, as my dear symbiote left early this morning to study for a final, and pretty much kept at it all day. Since we don't have a squat rack, usually when i do squats, he cleans the weight from the floor and he hands the barbell to me while i'm facing away from him. But i didn't want to bother him today because he looked really into the studying. By the time he could tear himself away from the books, he crashed pretty hard, so i figured i should make do without my human squat rack. I considered doubling up on the deadlifts, but instead i just kind of banged 'em out in a hurry. Our bench has a hinged thing on the end of it for doing leg extensions and hamstring curls, so i put that to use. And i did some calf raises, holding a dumbbell on one shoulder, alternating each set.

I hate calf raises! There's a tendon or something in the arch of my foot that feels like it's going to burst out of my skin when i do them. No amount of stretching seems to help. I really hope that's not a warning sign of something about to snap, cause i've got enough wrong with this decrepit body as it is! I think i like deadlifts a little less, too. They left the criss-cross pattern of the barbell grip imprinted on my hands after each set of 6. Yeah, i think i'll do this 5x6 thing for a while, see if it makes a difference.

I'm being naughty and skipping the sugary post-workout treat, since i'm probably gonna go to sleep pretty soon. Just some slow-digesting protein and omega-3 fats for me. Finishing up today with 147 grams of protein and a holy craptastic 1245 calories