ok guys, my exams just ended yesterday and it rocked. this sitting's paper was easier than i would have expected it to be... woohoo!!

without further ado, i hereby declare the start of my one-month-long holiday... and also the beginning of my HVT workout based on darklight's journal and his guidance.

Stats:
Body Type: Ectomorph
Height: 178cm
Weight (6 months ago): 56kg
Weight (1 week ago ): 69kg
Body Fat (6 months ago): 10%
Body Fat (1 week ago): 11%

Arms: In good shape
Chest: Chest, what chest? Its all bones...
No. of Abs Pack: Nil/Low Visibility T.T
Legs: Currently on hiatus

Goal: Health and Fitness

Journal Format:
Day/Date
Exercise Name
Weight x Reps

Tuesday - Chest Day (9 December 2008)

Smith Machine Flat Bench Press
Warm Up
30 lbs x 10
30 lbs x 10

Workout
80 lbs x 10
90 lbs x 10
95 lbs x 10
80 lbs x 8
*insert 20 secs rest here*
80 lbs x 4

(Total Volume: 3610 lbs)


Smith Machine Incline Bench Press
40 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 12
45 lbs x 12
50 lbs x 12

(Total Volume: 2020 lbs)


Machine Chest Press
26 kg x 10
26 kg x 12
33 kg x 10
33 kg x 14

(Total Volume: 1364 kg)


Cable Crossover (Weight stated = total weight)
10 kg x 15
15 kg x 10
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15

(Total Volume: 600kg)


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 55 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 80 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Normal china-style meal, rice + dishes (standardized approximate protein intake: 20g per rice meal)
Tea-time: Whey protein (25g protein), fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 350ml milk (10g protein), anything else I can grab hold of

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

That's all for today.

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 9 2008, 10:28 AM

How was the workout? How'd it feel? =)

good luck in HVT and hope you enjoy it as much as i do~

at first i thought i wouldn't make it through the workout. but towards the end my muscles felt really different lol, as if i could go on for longer. maybe i'm just not pushing enough weights. i'll increase it next week based on my findings from today.

when i got home i took off my clothes to have a shower, and i looked into the mirror and was like, "holy shit, that guy there can NOT possibly be me!" cuz my chest was really pumped up post-workout. if only it could stay that way for longer. hahaha... now its shrunk back to its usual size, looks really pathetic now.

by the way, all the machines in myfitness didn't clearly state the measurement of their stacks. there's just numbers, i don't even know if its measured in pounds or kgs. come to think of it, maybe i didn't really pushed 26 or 33 kgs for the machine chest press. it could've been 26 or 33 pounds instead lol, what a bummer.

by the way, i'm expecting to enjoy doing HVT. it feels more fun and natural compared to what i was doing previously.

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 9 2008, 02:17 PM

NEED OATS.

yeah, replace the milo with bread or something solid

i'll try to add bread into my preworkout tomorrow then. i don't like oats lol, i hope i'm not missing out on too much.

by the way, the i don't know the weight of the machine's weight stacks. today i asked a PT what the numbers on the stacks mean - do they refer to pounds or kgs, or neither? the PT seemed baffled by the question but he eventually told me that it was measured in KGs, but i'm still skeptical about this as the maximum number on the cable row-cum-pulldown machine only goes up to 21, which, if measured in KGs, wouldn't even be comparable to half the weight darklight uses

the machines are from LifeFitness btw.

this is the first time I'm doing back exercises other than pendlay's so by tomorrow my back will definitely be sore like never before.

Wednesday - Back Day (10 December 2008)

Wide-grip Lat Pulldown
Warm Up
3 plates x 10
5 plates x 10

Workout
9 plates x 10
8 plates x 10
8 plates x 12
8 plates x 12

(Total Volume: 362, err, plates? )


Seated Cable Row (Hammer Grip)
7 plates x 12
8 plates x 10
8 plates x 10
8 plates x 12

(Total Volume: 340 plates)


One-arm Dumbbell Row
30 lbs x 10
8 kg x 15
10 kg x 12
10 kg x 12

(Total Volume: 496 kg per side)


Close-grip Lat Pulldown
8 plates x 10
6 plates x 12
7 plates x 12
7 plates x 12

(Total Volume: 320 plates)


Dumbbell Shrugs (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
30 lbs x 10
25 lbs x 15
25 lbs x 15

(Total Volume: 1050 lbs per side)


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 63 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 60 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Nasi Lemak (20g protein)
Tea-time: Whey protein (25g protein), fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 350ml milk (10g protein), anything else I can grab hold of

Total protein intake: 135g

(Yes, my diet will be almost exactly the same as yesterday )

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 10 2008, 02:17 PM

It's rather impossible for a big plate of a pull down machine to hold only 1kg/plate, it must be 10kg/plate. 210kg

But I remember seeing darklight mentioned that the pulldown machine at his gym is 210lbs for the whole stack .. so you know, it might be lbs.

This post has been edited by JustForFun: Dec 10 2008, 08:58 PM

LOL i think its even more impossible for the plates to weigh a whopping 10kg each

10lbs sounds more feasible

i'm going to have to ask a different PT tomorrow for clarification.

IMO though, its really senseless to not state the weight of each plate. and its even more senseless for the gym's PT to not know the weight of their weight stacks.

ur stats looks pretty much the same as mine...69kg and 178cm but u are having only 10% BF!!! mind showing a pic?

dude i checked out your thread, you have some serious progress there, congrats! that's like my dream body you have on you

btw, what's your current stats?

honestly, i'm too ashamed of my body to post a pic of myself. the only part of me that looks like a bodybuilder is my biceps. they've always been naturally over-sized without any training. in a way, it makes my body look disproportionate. that's why i always try to steer clear from biceps exercise, except for hammer-grip chin-ups once in a while.

my BF was 10% even before i started exercising. talk about being skinny

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 10 2008, 09:44 PM

Haha spooky his 10% is not those muscular type ... He's too skinny to even have fats...

Yeah! Nice to hear. I'm uploaded a pic of my training partner doing 345lbs deadlift in just 2.5 months of HVT. And he has NEVER done deadlifts before. It's at my journal. That is how strong HVT can make you. Be patient my friend and it'll come.

Heh, oats rule preworkout bro.

Yeah. Damn machines. They should just have standardized poundages.

darklight, i just replied in your thread lol. damn, that's his first time at deadlift and he's already lifting heavier than i do

most of my weight probably comes from bone and other muscle density. definitely not coming from the chest though

Thursday - Shoulder Day (11 December 2008)

Seated Smith Machine Shoulder Press (this felt bloody awesome)
Warm Up
15 lbs x 10
15 lbs x 10

Workout
60 lbs x 10
60 lbs x 10
65 lbs x 9
55 lbs x 10

(Total Volume: 2335 lbs)


Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
10 kg x 10
9 kg x 10
9 kg x 10
8 kg x 12

(Total Volume: 376 kg per side)


Dumbbell Lateral Raise (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
7 kg x 8
7 kg x 9
7 kg x 9 (done one arm at a time)
6 kg x 9

(Total Volume: 236 kg per side)


Reverse Dumbbell Flyes - Sucking D1ck Position (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
6 kg x 10
5 kg x 10
5 kg x 10
5 lbs x 16

(Total Volume = 196 kg per side)


-End of Workout-
Total Workout Time: 56 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 80 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo, 1 Natural Valley Carbohydrate Bar (30g protein, 50g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Whey protein (25g protein), fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 350ml milk (10g protein), anything else I can grab hold of

Total protein intake: 140g

Note: I upgraded my preworkout meal for today Apparently my dad bought some low-GI carbohydrate bars from Carrefour... Honey, oats and something else flavour.

Reminder to self: Must use lighter weights x more reps for the last 2 exercises next week

---

Added on December 11, 2008, 10:54 pmgod damnit, i'm struck with fever and sore throat. doctor told me not to exercise tomorrow. i'll see how's my condition when i wake up la.

on another note, my back and shoulders are aching like hell now. i hope that's a good sign.

i'll most probably end up doing leg on saturday, and skip arms day for this week. monday will be my chest workout again, won't want to end up having sore arms and being unable to lift.

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 15 2008, 12:58 PM

This is sooo f*cked up man! I've been down in bed the whole Friday, which really stinks. I felt like a decomposed body. It didn't felt good at all. I only woke up three times to take three meals just so I can take my medication.

On Saturday I couldn't go for leg day because the after-effects of fever were still lingering on me. More demotivated than a pile of dung. Sh*t, I missed my first week's leg day!

On Sunday, well, rest day in preparation for the week ahead. Influenza struck the same day. Annoyed my ass to Mars.

Monday. That's today and its my chest day. I couldn't sleep well because my sleeping hours have been screwed by the pills. I finally fell asleep only at an ungodly hour, and I woke up only much, much later in the morning -- still feeling very much unwell.

My pre-workout meal was compromised. I couldn't take the energy bar because I felt like puking after having downed 4 eggs and a glass of Milo. I quickly grabbed my stuff and stepped out of the house before my conscience could tell me to sit in and rest for the day. Its chest day, and there's no way I'm missing out on a chest day, not even if I'm bloody well sick!

As a reward for my stubbornness, I felt like fainting all through the session. But somehow, I still managed to wham those weights out, albeit a little unsatisfactory. The flu and that lump of phlegm stuck in my throat was a major distraction, but towards the end of the workout they became more and more unnoticeable.

Another point of annoyance is the PT and his female trainee. I waited for like 20 f*cking minutes just so they could take their time hogging the cables. 20 minutes, 3 sets of really meager weights, and an abundance of meaningless conversation in between them nearly tugged my last straw out. Watching that PT touch his trainee unnecessarily with that perverted face of his didn't help either. I'd fatwa them if I could.

I hope tomorrow I'll be in a better mood. Monday Blues, you know.

Monday - Chest Day (December 15 2008)

Smith Machine Flat Bench Press
Warm Up
20 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
85 lbs x 11
95 lbs x 10
95 lbs x 10
85 lbs x 8
*insert 20 secs rest here*
80 lbs x 2

(Total Volume: 3675 lbs)
(Marginal Increase: 65 lbs)


Smith Machine Incline Bench Press
50 lbs x 10
55 lbs x 10
60 lbs x 10
50 lbs x 12

(Total Volume: 2250 lbs)
(Marginal Increase: 230 lbs)


Machine Chest Press
33 kg x 10
33 kg x 10
33 kg x 10
26 kg x 16

(Total Volume: 1406 kg)
(Marginal Increase: 42 kg)


Cable Crossover (Weight stated = total weight)
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 16
10 kg x 17

(Total Volume: 630 kg)
(Marginal Increase: 30 kg)



-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 75 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 80 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk, 2 slices of Wholemeal bread (40g protein, 70g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Normal china-style meal, rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 140g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 16 2008, 12:42 PM

Okay although I am very very new to HVT, I feel there is a need for me to tailor it more towards my lifestyle. Just some very slight changes.

Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Back
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Shoulders
Friday - Legs + Dips (3x??xBW)
Saturday - Rest
Sunday - Frog Style Swimming (the only style I know besides froggie is the Sinking Style)

There were some bananas in the kitchen and I had originally planned to take them as part of my preworkout, alongside with eggs. I forgot and made a glass of Milo instead

My barbell rows was a failure. My form felt totally off. A.k.a., I don't know how to do it xD So I'll try to see if I can learn more about it, to maybe do it again next week. Otherwise I'll just have to ditch it.

By the way, I figured out the weights of each plates. I tried hanging on to the pulldown machine, lifting my legs off the ground so that the plates were supporting my full body weight. At 15 plates the plates rose very slightly. At 16 plates, the total weight of the plates were heavier than I was and the plates didn't budge from my bodyweight. Considering that I am about 155 lbs, it should be safe to assume that 1 plate = 10 lbs.

Tuesday - Back Day (16 December 2008)

Wide-grip Lat Pulldown
Warm Up
30 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
90 lbs x 10
90 lbs x 10
90 lbs x 10
70 lbs x 15

(Total Volume: 3750 lbs)


Seated Cable Row (Overhand Grip)
80 lbs x 12
80 lbs x 12
70 lbs x 15
70 lbs x 15

(Total Volume: 4020 lbs)


Close-grip Lat Pulldown
70 lbs x 12
70 lbs x 12
70 lbs x 12
60 lbs x 15

(Total Volume: 3420 lbs)


Barbell Rows (Reverse Grip) (FAILURE!)
40 lbs x 12
40 lbs x 12
30 lbs x 12
30 lbs x 12

(Total Volume: PHAIL!)


Dumbbell Shrugs (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
30 lbs x 15
25 lbs x 17
25 lbs x 18

(Total Volume: 1325 lbs per side)


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 67 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 70 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Pizza (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 16 2008, 12:54 PM

Weird you're able to do heavier wide grip pull down than close grip pull down .. For me close grip is much easier I can add another few 10lbs ...

And by the way I just noticed that i was doing the pull down wrongly for so damn long ... All the while I've been using my arm to pull it down and then push it down further ... In the end no growth to lats , part of the reason is that I'm lifting too heavy that it leads to wrong form .. so today I deloaded and focus on form more ... Although the intensity is a lil bit lower but I feel much more pump on my lats ..

usually during the last 1 or 2 rep i can feel that my lats won't pull anymore, and i can actually feel that i'm relying much more on my arms for the last (usually one) rep, and my body will curl slightly forward. once i get that sensation i'll stop and end the set there.

i don't know if i'm doing it right or not as well... its not easy to focus on using only the back muscles. but it is easier to focus on the back when doing lighter weights though. btw, i feel i use the back muscles more efficiently when i'm doing wide-grip pulldowns.

maybe i should do what you're doing and go for lighter weights, more reps instead and see how it goes.

btw, at the end of every exercise i feel my biceps to be slightly numb... do you get that feeling? but i think it's normal to partly use the biceps muscles for pulldowns as, afterall, it is still a compound exercise. do correct me if i'm wrong, i'm not too sure about this.

as for why i can do wide-grip heavier than close-grip, i don't really know either

about that personalized routine in my previous post... i am contemplating swapping shoulder and leg days, ie. leg day on thursday, then shoulders on friday. this is so i can recover my leg muscles by sunday for swimming (since frog style makes heavy use of the legs). do you guys think its a viable decision?

ps. i just read darklight's journal about the abs on arms day thing. i don't have highly visible abs but i'm not all that concerned about that -- same goes to my arms. maybe i'll do abs on my swimming day instead

or, alternatively i'll just stick to working 5 days per week for 5 muscles groups and cancel out swimming. i have 24 hours to think this through lol.

Option 1
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Back
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Shoulders
Friday - Legs + Dips (3x??xBW)
Saturday - Rest
Sunday - Frog Style Swimming


Option 2
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Back
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Legs
Friday - Shoulders + Dips (3x??xBW)
Saturday - Rest
Sunday - Frog Style Swimming


Option 3
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Back
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Shoulders
Friday - Legs
Saturday - Arms/Abs
Sunday - Rest


any comments guise? would be highly appreciated

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 16 2008, 04:32 PM

Ok, its my leg day today. Haven't done any leg workouts in a looooooooooooong time. My legs were wobbling like jelly after every set of squat. Had to crawl my way back to a bench to take a seat. Leg curls felt surprisingly easy, as compared to leg extensions which felt impossible to grasp.

After the workout I ended up walking home with my legs almost collapsing beneath me. Really unstable. It was so embarrassing, I was walking as though I'd just been gang-raped or something. Well, on the bright side at least my legs didn't give away while I was crossing the road. Lesson learned, I'll drive to the gym on leg days instead.

Thursday - Leg Day (December 18, 2008)

Smith Squats
Warm Up
40 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
90 lbs x 12
100 lbs x 10
110 lbs x 10
90 lbs x 12

(Total Volume: 4260 lbs)


Leg Curls
33 kg x 15
40 kg x 15
47 kg x 12
47 kg x 12

(Total Volume: 2223 kg)


Leg Extensions
33 kg x 12
33 kg x 12
26 kg x 14
26 kg x 14

(Total Volume: 1520 kg)


Standing Weighted Calf Raise Machine
34 kg x 15
43 kg x 13
43 kg x 13
34 kg x 15

(Total Volume: 2138 kg)


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 60 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 70 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 2 Bananas (22g protein, ??g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Fried rice + dishes (15g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 127g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 18 2008, 12:07 PM

HI wallpaper, thx for droppin by & givin me advices, i really appreciate it.

My weight now is same as yours when you started working out. What do you think helped most in your weight gain/bulking ? If i can gain 2kg+ every month, i would be very happy indeed.

Must be a man like u & rev up my leg work

Workout looks good but lol... mate, you don't need to keep calculating the total volume every workout. I never do that. As long as i know I made some form of PR's.
Seriously, if you keep calculating the total volume all the time, you're just gonna be as rigid as Madcow/Rippetoe trainees.

Ahhh okay darkie, sound and solid advice there, thank you! Now I have a reason to ditch the calculator

i have difficulty walking now... i reckon my legs will be a complete sore by tomorrow morning. And if it doesn't recover in time for Sunday this week, I will drop swimming altogether and go for Option 3.

I don't usually do leg work actually, this is my first time in quite a while So I am hoping my legs will grow at a faster rate, so I can hit BW Squats x 10 ASAP.

What made me gain weight was probably because I wasn't eating well enough last time, and also because I didn't exercise much, aside from the occassional futsal game. So the moment I picked up those dumbbells, my weight climbed rapidly.

Sadly the weight gain isn't showing enough in my physical appearance. Some of my friends have noted that I don't look as skinny as I did before, but personally, I think there's not much Wow! factor in my changes - I look practically the same, and still considerably skinny, or normal at best.

I saw your journal and your body looks much better shaped than mine, so I'm sure you'll end up somewhere satisfactory. Have fun bulking

You just started out and you want to compare with a 5 years bber ( or more ? read it somewhere lmao ) ...

As long as there's improvement it will move you further .. Every time I touch my chest and feel that it's getting bigger and harder days by days ... It's a big motivation lol .. Alto my family is sick of me doing that

Time and consistency. There's nothing else i can say. =) Don't expect extreme results in just a few weeks. Are you deadlifting too? Every alternate week i deadlift on back day, the do GVT for leg presses on leg day the next day. Add in some for variety. If you need a deadlifting form video, let me know.

This post has been edited by darklight79: Dec 19 2008, 10:21 AM

Don't worry, I know better than to compare my physique with an experienced bodybuilder. What I was pointing out was merely the relativity between my physique and my weight gain

Okay, I will do deadlift next week then. Haven't done it in a while so I'm looking to do 1x5x160 lbs only. I feel uncomfortable using different grips on both hands, so I do my deadlift with only an overhand grip. Doing deadlifts at heavier weights hurt my fingers, is it supposed to hurt?

I've seen your deadlifting video btw. My current deadlift form feels right, but I wouldn't know for sure lol.

Anyway, it's my shoulder day today! Workout felt good. Especially satisfied with my lateral delt raises. Form felt perfect, weight felt just nice, targeted muscles felt good after every set.

For rear delts I wanted to do reverse flyes in sucking d*** position, since I can pull it off with a consistent form. Unfortunately my legs ached like hell when I attempted to get into position. In the end, I settled for a reverse bench press while leaning forward on a "chair". I'm not sure if I got the form right, but I made sure to avoid using my lats and focused on using my delts. At the least, it did not feel wrong, at least to me... Will return to reverse flyes next week for a more guaranteed form.


Friday - Shoulder Day (19 December 2008)

Seated Smith Machine Shoulder Press
Warm Up
20 lbs x 10
20 lbs x 10

Workout
60 lbs x 11
65 lbs x 10
65 lbs x 10
55 lbs x 11


Machine Shoulder Press (Hammer Grip)
15 kg x 15
15 kg x 13
20 kg x 10
20 kg x 13


Dumbbell Lateral Raise (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
4 kg x 10
4 kg x 10
4 kg x 10
4 kg x 10


Reverse Bench Press (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
4 kg x 10
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 10


Seated Smith Machine Shoulder Press (This was done JustForFun -- pun intended )
40 lbs x 10


-End of Workout-
Total Workout Time: 59 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 70 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: BBQ PARTAYYYYY!!! (20g protein) (I'll just assume its 20g for convenience)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

Picture of my right deltoids: (WARNING: Not Impressive)

U have nicee delt ! I need to to lateral raise too !

The last version was choppy due to bad internet connection on my side. I've updated it, had my form checked out and it's fine:-



Yeah, the overhand grip is better. Using a mixed grip results in torque imbalances later on. Invest in a good pair of wrist straps.

This post has been edited by darklight79: Dec 19 2008, 01:46 PM

Good video. Much better quality. Damn, that looks sooo heavy! Personally I wouldn't dare to try 1 rep deadlifts yet.

How much is a pair of wrist straps and where can I get them? Are they necessary for deadlifting heavier weights? I hope they're not too costly...

Thank you for the compliment, I will work harder to make it more visible Actually, I never did any lateral raises before, not until last week haha.

Btw, since my middle chest is so pathetic, I plan to add in an extra exercise for next week after cable crossovers. I don't know what it's called, but you do it lying flat on a bench, hold one dumbbell with both hands over the center of the chest, let the weight go over and behind your head and then pull it back to starting position.

Anyone knows what this exercise is called, and if its good for building the middle chest or not? Thank you!

Ego do sell them ... harbinger. Darklight's deadlift is legendary

Egonutrition? Actually I have never seen any of its outlets before... How much do they sell it for?

http://egonutritions.com/shopping/index.ph...=index&cPath=15

Yeah, I hated the quality of the first one. The internet connection that day was fukked. Plus youtube had technical problems too.

Of course straps are necessary. Your goals are bodybuilding oriented, not powerlifting. Straps are tools as a means to an end. Spending time just to develop grip strength is a huge waste of time imo.

Dumbell pullovers? Alternate that with cable crossovers every 2 weeks then. Don't add too many exercises.

Not yet. Wait till I hit 600lbs. =) I'll get there with HVT style, with non of those powerlifting with bands and chains etc. Lol.

Okay, I will consider getting the strap. For the dumbbell pullovers, I'll dot hat tomorrow and see if I have enough energy left for cable crossovers. After all its only once a week so I want to make sure I kill my chest haha. Will it be bad to include too many exercises on one muscle group per session?

Today I underperformed. Very unsatisfactory. For some reason I didn't seem to have the energy to whip those reps out, and to make matters worse, I ended up using more triceps than I would have wanted to. My triceps were feeling the heat by the end of the 3rd set of my first workout. So basically, today is a chest/triceps day instead. Because I overworked my triceps in the first exercise, it affected my later workouts as well. However, I will try to be optimistic and lie to myself that I worked my chest so damn well, so much so that my triceps had to kick in to lend a helping hand.

After 2 sets of dumbbell pullovers, I decided I didn't like it as much as I had wanted to. So I reverted back to doing cable crossovers, which, personally, I think is a rather fun and enjoyable exercise.

Btw, I overestimated the weight I could do on incline bench and ended up performing below expectations for that

After I reached home, I decided I am still not satisfied with my workout, so I did a bodyweight push-up x 12. Call it a warm down, if you will.


Notes to self for next week:
Warm up with 20 lbs x 10, 40 lbs x 10 instead.
Don't push myself too hard on the flat bench press.
Consider replacing machine chest press with decline bench press.
Stick to cable crossovers.
Do dumbbell pullovers if I feel like it.


Monday - Chest Day (22 December 2008)

Smith Machine Flat Bench Press
Warm Up
30 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
90 lbs x 11
100 lbs x 10
100 lbs x 10
80 lbs x 9
*insert 30 secs rest here*
50 lbs x 9


Smith Machine Incline Bench Press
65 lbs x 9
60 lbs x 9
60 lbs x 10
50 lbs x 12


Machine Chest Press
40 kg x 10
33 kg x 11
33 kg x 11
33 kg x 11


Dumbbell Pullovers
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15


Cable Crossover (Weight stated = total weight)
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 16


Machine Chest Press (done JustForFun )
26 kg x 12


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 62 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 80 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, Nature Valley Energy Bar (25g protein, 30g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

I think u did well actually cos you have increased the weights this week.. After this initial challenge, u wil b better prepared for the next encounter.

hey man, i don't think that's underperforming at all. you've managed to up the weights a bit from your previous workout - thats great in itself. i think darklight has said that HVT is instinctive, going with the feel.

sometimes i too feel somewhat weak, tired etc on a particular day - no sweat, all of us have that one day off. just come back the following hitting hard and strong. also feel free to keep increasing the weights you do, even though if it means cutting down a two or three reps. you'll be able to build upon that the next time you do a chest workout.

what i normally do is alternate machine chest press with incline dumbell bench presses every other week as it helps to build the upper part of your chest as well as balance.

pushups are fine, in fact at the end of each chest workout i usually do one or two sets until failure to really exhaust the muscle. anyhow, keep us updated.

Well said brotha! HVT rocks.

Well, I myself don't do that many different types of workout. I only do 4 or at most 5 different workouts ( rarely ) because I need to pump too much energy into each workout of 5x10 ( I keep it heavy ) .... Til the fifth set I will lose all my energy and my forms go wrong and get frustrated in the end ...

Thank you, guys, for the advice and encouragement! I really appreciate you guys dropping by and giving a helpful word or two

Well, its my back day again today! Initially I had wanted to do deadlifts at the end of the workout, but after completing all 4 sets for cable rows I realized that I will not have the energy to do deadlifts, unless I sacrifice one other exercise. At the end of the workout, I couldn't even grip a dumbbell properly, what more to hold on to 160 lbs. So I decided to skip deadlifts instead.

Darkie, how do you manage your deadlifts without sacrificing another exercise?

Today I may not have improved much, poundage or volume-wise, but my goal for today was not to lift heavy. My goal for today is to lift just the right weight to be able to execute the movements with an improved form. And today, I achieved that goal. My back muscles felt the hardship I wanted it to feel and that is all I ask for. On the contrary, I noticed that I had relied much less on my biceps and forearm as compared to last week, which is a really good thing.

I substituted close-grip pulldowns for machine pulldowns (no cables) today. And MAN, did it felt good. It hit the lats even more effectively than the cable pulldowns ever did, so much so that it is an all-new sensation to me.

Overall, my form has been gradually improving since the first week and I hope to keep improving in the future. Muscle-mind connection is definitely better than when I first started out, although still very much imperfect.

Needless to say, I enjoyed today's back workout very much.


Tuesday - Back Day (23 December 2008)

Wide-grip Lat Pulldown (Cable)
Warm Up
30 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
70 lbs x 15
80 lbs x 12
80 lbs x 11
70 lbs x 15


Seated Cable Row (Overhand Grip)
70 lbs x 15
70 lbs x 18
80 lbs x 13
60 lbs x 15


Lat Pulldown Machine
25 kg x 15
30 kg x 12
30 kg x 12
25 kg x 15


One-arm Dumbbell Row
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15
10 kg x 15


Dumbbell Shrugs (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
25 lbs x 18
25 lbs x 18
25 lbs x 18
10 kg x 18


Lat Pulldown Machine (done JustForFun, yet again with the repetitive pun...)
40 kg x 7
30 kg x 11


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 70 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 70 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Anything edible in Sunway Pyramid (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 31 2008, 01:05 PM

24 sets in 70 mins...not bad..try to cut down the rest time...i`m resting 20 seconds nowadays(~20 sets each workout session)...and limiting my workout to 45 minutes. I am seeing some results though....

20s rest..that is very high intensity

but i found that if i rest too less, there is no enough for my strength recovery and cant lift well in next set

If I'm not wrong darkie has a special day just for deadlifts ...

But I thought he said to do deadlifts on alternate weeks, on back days?

I tried resting for shorter periods but it is just as yeah_guyz said, I won't be able to push out much in the next set. Somehow my muscles recover reaaaaaaaally slow... =(

Haha ... I count on sauna for recovery ... Plus the slimming effect .. wonderfulll

yeah i get what u mean. i have that problem too...i can push more for the next set if i rest 1min, but my workout will be stretched and my body will cool down easily after that ....

sauna? it is only to lose the water and not the fats isnt it?

Merry Christmas guys!

Today there is a drop in performance AND volume compared to the previous two workouts. Needless to say I sure as hell am unsatisfied with myself today. I need moarrr powah!

The only exercise with clear improvements is the dumbbell lateral raise.

For the smith shoulder presses and the machine presses, there is a jump in weight but a drop in reps (an especially huge one for the machine presses). In this case the weight increase does not really justify the lower reps.

On the bright side, my form felt perfect today. But that, in itself, does not justify the huge drop in performance as well... But its okay, next week will be better, I hope

I will be leaving for Taiping for a few days stay starting tomorrow morning so while I'm there, there will be no eggs, no milk and no powder for me to consume. I will be stuck to having only 3 or 4 meals per day. In other words, my diet is screwed. Big time.

To mitigate losses from the diet drawback, I will just have to try and stuff myself up to the max with every meal I get.


Thursday - Shoulder Day (25 December 2008)

Seated Smith Machine Shoulder Press
Warm Up
20 lbs x 10
20 lbs x 10

Workout
65 lbs x 11
65 lbs x 11
70 lbs x 8
60 lbs x 8
60 lbs x 4


Machine Shoulder Press (Hammer Grip)
20 kg x 10
20 kg x 10
20 kg x 10
20 kg x 11


Dumbbell Lateral Raise (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
4 kg x 12
4 kg x 12
4 kg x 12
5 kg x 8, 4 kg x 3


Reverse Dumbbell Flyes - Sucking D1ck Position (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 13
4 kg x 11
5 lbs x 13


Light Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Weight stated = per dumbbell) (done JustForFun)
8 kg x 10
8 kg x 12
7 kg x 12


-End of Workout-
Total Workout Time: 58 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 70 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Turkey + Spaghetti (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Not confirmed yet (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

Sauna = detoxification ... and many other benefits. The main reason I do sauna is for the muscle recovery ^^

This post has been edited by JustForFun: Dec 25 2008, 12:38 PM

Sauna does that? I wish I had the time for sauna too, but after my workouts I have to rush back to have my postworkout...

Yes sauna is definitely worth the time. Well .. I go back home to have my shake and then return to the sauna room to do sauna, no big deal because I'm working out at condominium gym so I can just walk there in few minutes time ..

Off to sauna now

After having a 5 hour sleep last night, I woke up in a hurry and rushed myself to the gym. I had to complete my leg day and leave for my hometown immediately. Basically, my workout session today was pretty much on fast forward. The entire thing lasted for only 40 mins -- that's record time for me.

The only reason why I'm still sitting here in front of the PC typing is because that pig of a sister of mine just woke up from her slumber. Explains everything, doesn't it?

Anyway I am very happy with today's achievement. If you will notice, there is a huge jump in volume and strength in all exercises (with the exception of calf raises). I'd say its thanks to what darklight calls the "muscle memory". I don't expect my future improvements to be so obvious and exaggerated.


Friday - Leg Day (26 December 2008)

Smith Squats
Warm Up
40 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
100 lbs x 13
110 lbs x 12
120 lbs x 11
90 lbs x 13


Leg Curls
47 kg x 15
47 kg x 15
47 kg x 15
40 kg x 15


Leg Extensions (At this point I felt like vomiting)
33 kg x 15
33 kg x 15
33 kg x 15
26 kg x 12


Standing Weighted Calf Raise Machine
43 kg x 15
43 kg x 15
34 kg x 15
(At this point I felt much too giddy to continue)


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 40 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 65 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: ?? (??g protein)
Tea-time: ??
Dinner: ?? (??g protein)
Supper: ?? (??g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: ??g

I'm back from my vacation! Not a very eventful one, but a relaxing trip, that was. I swam on Sunday despite my leg still being sore from the workout. And it still is now T.T

Today is my chest day and frankly I am quite disappointed that there wasn't very much improvement from last week. In fact there is a decline in performance. This is especially obvious for the machine chest press - I couldn't seem to do what I could normally (easily) do, I wonder why? Volume for the incline and flat bench press has noticeably dropped as well but what the heck, I'm still glad that there is a chest day and I managed to kill my chest today.

When I was in Taiping btw, I had my weight measured on those 20 cent per go weight scale. The digital meter read 69.4kg. Fcuking 69.4kg, ONLY!! I would've expected to hit 71 kg or at the very least, 70 kg, but to still be stuck in the 69's was a huge letdown. Oh well, I'll measure it again at the end of this week. Probably the standard of the scales differ -- the scale from my gym might show a different result from which weight progress can be better judged.

For now, I'll be off to Mid Valley.


Tuesday - Chest Day (30 December 2008)

Smith Machine Flat Bench Press
Warm Up
20 lbs x 10
40 lbs x 10

Workout
90 lbs x 12
100 lbs x 11
100 lbs x 9
90 lbs x 8
100 lbs x 5


Smith Machine Incline Bench Press
60 lbs x 10
65 lbs x 10
65 lbs x 9
55 lbs x 9


Machine Chest Press
33 kg x 11
33 kg x 11
40 kg x 8
26 kg x 13


Cable Crossover (Weight stated = total weight)
10 kg x 16
10 kg x 16
10 kg x 16
10 kg x 16


Dumbbell Pullovers
10 kg x 25
10 kg x 20


Cable Crossover (Done as an extra)
10 kg x 15


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 65 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: 90 secs


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 2 Bananas (22g protein, 40g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Anything edible in Mid Valley (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 132g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 30 2008, 11:40 AM

Welcome back !

No need worry. Ur a true blue 100% certified loyal to the core bodybuilder, so u'll b back to peak form real soon

I think ur diet not supplemented with ur usual protein etc, dats y weight gone down, n due to depleted energy store not enough nutrition for the workouts.

When i went for my 1wk vacation in thai, my weight gone 0.5kg though i ate non-stop at the roadside stalls.

There's nothing to worry about. Sometimes you feel like crap, just reduce the weight and grind out more reps. Go with the flow.

If you're already hitting hard enough which it seems to me that you did and you didn't get good growth ... It's time to check your diet :S ...

Weight ... is nothing to worry about. Maybe you have a lower body fat now but since you started with 10% ... lol.

Yeah. The commonest mistakes trainees do is they don't take in enough protein during a layoff.

I don't think the problem was you not gaining any weight at all. Because of the way you trained (high reps, very low rest periods), it probably resulted in you gaining muscle AND losing fat at the same time.

A better measure would of course be a bodyfat% measure for before and after, that way you can tell if you're gaining muscle or not.

Just my 2 cents.

Thanks for the encouragement bro!

Actually I was considerably well-fed during my vacation. Lots of good Chinese-style seafood I managed to keep a healthy dose of fruit intake as well. I did not have 5/6 meals a day but I had instead bigger portions of meat for lunch/dinner. Protein intake might have dropped because of a lack of source of protein in between meals.

Yeah I thought of doing this but in the end I wanted to see if I really am under-performing or not by using the same, if not more, poundages as before to gauge myself. Wrong move. Lol. I was also worried that if I kept the reps high and the weights low I will 'lose touch' and be weaker in the next session. Can that possibly happen? I'm afraid of reducing the weights for fear that I may never get back there again

Yeah, you said it. The thing is I started with about 10% so it won't be easy for my BF% to witness a drop. Diet feels okay to me, so it might or might not be the problem. Overall I'm disappointed by the weight gain but I'm not too worried about it... yet. Lol. Physique have, however, definitely seen some slight improvement since I began HVT

I will measure my BF% and weight tomorrow at the gym if I can remember to. Otherwise I will just measure it at the end of this week. I think it would be more accurate for me to use the same scale to gauge my progress. It has been 4 weeks since I last measured my weight, and 3 weeks since I began HVT. Maybe I'm setting my expectations too high... I was aiming for 72kg by the end of 4 weeks of HVT. Now I think I'll have to lower the bar

My guess is that there has actually been an increase in weight but it is not obvious when comparing the measurement I got at Taiping with the measurement I got from the gym. Possible explanation would be that my gym's weighing scale is inaccurate, reading my weight higher than it actually is, and thus the seemingly low increment in weight when measured by a different scale. Either that, or I really did not gain much weight lol. Hopefully my BF% has decreased due to the higher reps workout but at 10% BF I think it will be quite difficult for it to drop. Especially since I consume carbs like water hahaha xD

One of my goals at the very beginning of bodybuilding was to hit 70kg. That was quite a few months ago and now I am finally on the brink of achieving it. Can't wait haha

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 30 2008, 08:44 PM

You're super duper Ecto man ... eating that little amount of things ... you can't grow ( I'd say your diet is kinda messed up with that little amount of calories ).

You need to eat a lot .. I mean A LOT ... You aren't even hitting 1g/lb of body weight man ... Just eat away. I'd suggest you at least 1.5g/lb of body weight .... optimally 2g. Eat whatever protein you can gain access to, peanut butter, almond, granola, EGGS ( though it sucks but I have to highlight it ... VERY good source of protein if not the best )

Remember calories intake > calories output too if you wanna gain ( Go for protein/fat calories )

Edit : Your estimation of protein intake might be wrong.

This post has been edited by JustForFun: Dec 30 2008, 09:16 PM

Back day today. I did deadlifts first this time. The last time I did this was a month or so ago. Grip felt great and improved. I used to have problems with my grip last time, but not today. Not until the second set, at least... The second set's 4th rep, the bar was literally spinning in my fingers. Left hand started to lose grip. Went for another rep. This time, while coming down, my left hand gave in, let the bar slip off, and I dropped the bar. As a result some skin peeled off my left hand. Now I can't even take a shower comfortably

I find deadlift annoying to do btw. The reason is because the weight plates at my gym are shaped in an octagon and hence during the lowering motion when the plates come in contact with the ground, the flat surfaces of the plates will obviously not be 100% parallel with the floor and thus the plates (and the bar) will start rolling slightly to adjust itself and as a result, its position will be slightly off for the next rep. Sometimes it rolls inwards and knocks me in the shin, too.

Btw for deadlifts I don't really feel I am working much of any of my muscles. I only feel that it hits my legs. Could be my form, I might take a video next time I do it. I keep my lower and upper back straight and chest out/shoulder blades squeezed when I execute the deadlift. Somewhat like a reverse squat.

As for the other exercises, there has been good improvement except for the wide-grip cable pulldowns (a huge, HUGE drop in volume). An explanation would be that I usually do that as my first exercise, but this time I do it as my last exercise, and also the addition of the deadlift at the start of my workout might have affected it as well. To compensate, there is a good increase in performance on the machine pulldowns.

I didn't time my rests in between sets today. Felt like following my instincts and my feel. Its probably better this way. My workout took a relatively shorter time today as compared to last week.

I also had my weight measured at the end of the workout. Surprise, surprise. Two measurements and I get an average of 67.4kg and 12.00% body fat. Analyzed, it means that there is a considerable decrease in muscle mass since I began HVT. This is puzzling becuase of the following factors:

Before HVT
I did cardio (jogging) in place of squats.
I did higher weights, with lower reps.

After HVT
I dropped cardio.
I started doing squats again.
I did more exercises/sets on an average-per-week basis.
I used lower weights with higher reps.
Strength has increased since I began HVT.
Physique has improved slightly (by my own judgement).
Food intake has definitely increased from before.


From the above, you can see that there should be no reason for a drop in body weight and an increase in body fat. It doesn't makes sense at all. In fact, things should work the other way around. But the fact is the fact -- my weight has dropped and my BF% has increased. Therefore there is definitely a problem somewhere. Diet-wise, my food intake has increased from before so it would be odd to deduce that it is my diet that is causing the decrease in weight.

However, I will listen to what JustForFun had said in his post before this. Since I am free today I will try to come up with an improved diet plan, but I will need some advice from you guys. I am thinking of dropping rice in my lunch and dinner, and replacing that with more meat/vege instead. Is that a viable change?

Btw JustForFun, thank you for the feedback. My estimates of protein intake for all meals should be quite accurate except for the lunch and dinner. Eitherway it does not hit 1g/lbs of BW, let alone 1.5g as you have recommended. I will ponder over this today and see what I can do to increase my protein intake.

On another note, my class time table has been released. And I must say it is completely crappy. My routines are screwed. The timing of the classes from day to day varies and is not consistent at all. I will have to be much, much more flexible in the coming days if I want to keep up with HVT -- diet-wise and workout-wise. The long classes might take a toll on me as well.


Wednesday - Back Day (31 December 2008)
Deadlift (Weight excluding bar)
Warm up
90 lbs x 5
90 lbs x 5

Workout
160 lbs x 6
160 lbs x 3


Seated Cable Row (Overhand Grip)
80 lbs x 15
80 lbs x 15
70 lbs x 16
70 lbs x 15


Lat Pulldown Machine
30 kg x 15
35 kg x 12
40 kg x 9
35 kg x 12


One-arm Dumbbell Row
30 lbs x 15
30 lbs x 13
10 kg x 16
10 kg x 15


Dumbbell Shrugs (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
25 lbs x 20
25 lbs x 20
25 lbs x 20
10 kg x 20


Wide-grip Lat Pulldown (Cable)
70 lbs x 12
60 lbs x 13
60 lbs x 13
60 lbs x 13


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 70 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: Didn't bother to time, followed my instincts today


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 3 Bananas (23g protein, 50g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 133g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Dec 31 2008, 01:12 PM

The mirror is your best judge of progress. You're still being too obsessed with calculations.

Haha probably its because I'm an accountant xD Mirror tells me there's progress worthy of 3 weeks HVT. I could use more lower chest though. Will try decline bench in my next chest session. Btw, the lighting really does affect how I look in the mirror. Under the sunlight I look more frail and scrawny. Under room light, especially if its yellowish, I look much more well-built and muscular. To be prudent, I'll take the sunlight look as the more accurate image of myself.

My time table will be as follows: (not final)


Different colours indicate weekly cycles.

Diet will be something like this:

Diet 1 - Workout days/No classes
(Saturday, Sunday, Thursday)

Preworkout: 4 eggs, Oats
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk
Lunch: Rice + Dishes
Tea-time: Fruits + 2 Eggs
Dinner: Rice + dishes
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein


Diet 2 - Workout days/Afternoon Classes
(Monday, Wednesday)

Preworkout: 4 eggs, Oats
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk
Lunch: Hawker/Cafeteria Food (with extra meat)
Tea-time: Fruits + Anything edible
Dinner: Rice + dishes
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein


Diet 3 - Non-workout days/Full-day Classes
(Tuesday)

Breakfast: 4 eggs + Milo/Bread
Lunch: Hawker/Cafeteria Food (with extra meat)
Tea-time: Fruits + Anything edible
Dinner: Rice + dishes
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein


Diet 4 - Non-workout days/Morning Classes
(Thursday)

Breakfast: Bread/600ml Milo/Anything else on the table
Lunch: Hawker/Cafeteria Food (with extra meat)
Tea-time: Fruits + 4 eggs
Dinner: Rice + dishes
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein

I will go have a look at what oats there is in Carrefour. Any recommendations, brand, etc? What are you guys' usual "dosage" for preworkout? Lol.

Yes, I know, not much improvement in my diet from before, >.< but I will see if there is anything else that can be done or not. I'm guessing dropping rice in lunch and dinner altogether just so I can feed on more meat would be a bad idea though.

Also, my family keeps nagging me to not take eggs because they are apparently high in cholesterol. From reading this forum it can be seen that majority of the forumers here believe that the cholesterol worries are unfounded, ie without basis. Is there any way I can convince my family (and myself at that) that the eggs will not be a cause for future problems with cholesterol?

I might begin arms/abs day on either 3rd or 15th Jan. If I find that it affects my chest performance which falls two days after, I will drop it for good and instead do some triceps on chest day, and some biceps on shoulder day.

I have another personal class on Wednesday mornings that cannot be compromised, so depending on whether I am able to shift that class into Friday evenings or not, I might have to drop arms/abs day as well and shift leg day from Wednesday to Thursday.

You can dump the rice for dinner but maybe not for lunch. Check your body fat at time and see if it's increasing dramatically. Shouldn't be a problem if you have high metabolism. If your bodyfat goes haywire and went up to 13% or even higher then that is the only time you should worry about carbs. Having around 10% bodyfat is good just maintain that, in fact having some fat will make you look bigger without the fatty and oily visual effect.

For the oats just go with the Quaker one ... if you can't afford the organic one. Natural oats are always better than the processed one but hell, where to find the natural one ?

For the eggs myth ... I don't think we have come to an end yet. There are many different studies and researches surrounding the cholesterol myth. It's up to you to believe it or not. From my experience, I've been eating 6 whole eggs/day for the past two months and the last cholesterol check ( a week or two ago ) at pharmacy shows 3.4 which is normal level.

Oh about the abs workout .... I doubt it will affect your chest performance at all ... Most abs exercise are quite light ... but arms workout .... hell of a day.

Wow.. you are very detailed indeed mr accountant ! Same like me, i have a table for what i eat haha..

Jus sth i noticed, your 133g of protein is exactly same as mine ! I'm taking 2.3g/kg bodyweight. A bit worried too hi las time but now i've added a bit, i think the ratio gone down.

Since u like tables mayb can do a breakdown for calories contributed by protein, carb & fat in each meal. Then can adjust the meals to calilbrate which one to increase/decrease.

With my ltd knowledge i understand that HVT is hi volume exercising. So burning a lot of energy. But if u stil manage to get more fat from this furious exercise, mayb your carb is real high.

Or izzit the volume is too taxing ? I read that a good rest is important for muscles to grow. If a workout is enough to work thoroughly all muscles and yet not too exhausted for the next day workout, then they have chance to recover & grow.

Anyhow the physique is the end result of all the preparations/calculations. And since ur appearance has improved, i guess jus only need some tweaking here & there.

Oh ya, happy new year to you. May this year be a productive one !

Happy New Year everyone!

Workout felt flawless today so there won't be any rant haha. Except that I had some difficulty gripping the dumbbells with my left hand because of the peeled skin from yesterday. Other than that everything else was fine


Okay, I will check out Quaker and make some comparisons the next time I visit Carrefour. My BF% seems to be increasing lol, its 12% now compared with 11% a month ago, so I might drop the rice in dinner or just reduce overall rice intake. I'm thinking of taking 6 eggs a day as well, but that is yet to be confirmed. Btw, Happy New Year bro!


Hehe I'm too lazy to go through the trouble to make a detailed breakdown for calories. In fact I don't even know what my average daily calories intake are

I was also expecting my BF% to mantain or drop, but instead it went up, which is quite odd. Maybe it is as you say, I'm taking in too much carbs

And Happy New Year to you too! May your year be filled with muscles

Thursday - Shoulder Day (1 January 2009) <-- my first workout for the year!

Seated Smith Machine Shoulder Press
Warm Up
15 lbs x 10
20 lbs x 10

Workout
60 lbs x 14
70 lbs x 11
60 lbs x 11
55 lbs x 9


Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
25 lbs x 10
25 lbs x 9
10 kg x 11
10 kg x 10

Dumbbell Lateral Raise (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 13
5 kg x 8, 4 kg x 3


Reverse Dumbbell Flyes - Sucking D1ck Position (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 15
4 kg x 13
4 kg x 12


Reverse Crunches x 40 (done JustForFun xD)


-End of Workout-
Total Workout Time: 56 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: Instinct


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (20g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 135g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Jan 1 2009, 12:19 PM

Wait, how much protein are you taking per day wallpaper89? If you're just taking 132 grams of protein a day, that's pathetic. Bump it up to around 200 grams.

Wow 200 grams is a huge jump from 130.

Actually I have no idea how much protein I'm taking in during lunch and dinner. I just take a normal portion of rice (like ordering chap fan), and then I fill my stomach with whatever meat it can take in. After that I'll just take some vegetables to fill in the gaps. So I'm not exactly sure how much protein I'm actually getting, the 20g estimate is for convenience purposes only. It could be more or it could be less than that, but I'm hoping its more haha.

For example for lunch I had some fish and lots of lala (tasted like heaven ). What's lala in English? I need to search for its nutritional value

100 g white rice = 6g protein. I have to measure how much rice am I taking for dinner later lol. I'll most probably be having the leftover lala for dinner as well.

I'll also add 2 eggs per day in tea time to make it a total of 6 per day. I hope I'm not consuming too much cholesterol that way. 2 eggs = extra 10g.

I could drink an extra 250ml milk at night to get an additional 8g protein daily, but I'm not sure if it'll make me too bloated to sleep or not

If I switch my preworkout from Milo to Oats, I might be able to get an increase in protein intake for preworkout as well but I'm not sure yet how much oats I'll be taking for preworkout and how much oats can I take in per serving.

try fitday.com to calculate your nutritional value. I found it quite useful to estimate my daily protein consumption.

I am in more or less the same situation as you do. Eating chap fan for lunch is my only option coz I am a working person. However, I do have a way to estimate the amount of protein for lunch. Just follow the guideline of 1 medium size chicken breast equals to approx 40g protein. So if you go eat chap fan, make sure the amount of chicken you eat is about the size of a chicken breast (excluding the bones).

If you happen to eat other meat, just use fitday.com to check lo.

seriously? what's the size of a medium chicken breast, something like KFC's chicken breast? 40g? if this is true then i am heavily underestimating my protein intake for lunch and dinner...

eh this is not fair. i just checked KFC's nutritional guide. how come chicken breast has more protein than wing/drumstick/thigh? is it because the breast has higher quality meat, or is it just because of the fact that the breast has slightly more meat than the other parts? because sometimes when i eat the chicken i wouldn't even know which part is it from...

however when i eat chicken rice i always opt for at least 2 chicken breasts + siew yuk/char siew. i would order more if my allowance isn't a limiting factor.

oh silly me. i just realized the huge difference in weight between breast/wing/drumstick/thigh, hence the huge difference in protein amounts.

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Jan 2 2009, 12:14 AM

yea..its about the size of normal KFC chicken breast. It's not entirely accurate, but I think it is sufficient enough to be used as a guide line. I think chicken breast is the best coz it has the least fat compared to other chicken parts.

I will avoid chicken rice if I were you. The oil they use is kinda unhealthy imo.

When I'm in college I'm forced to eat anything the hawkers have to offer, none of which I believe is truly "clean". I think chap fan would be the best choice, but the thing is I get sick of it really fast =(

Btw skipping leg workout today. Hamstrings have not recovered yet. I think it was because I swam on Sunday despite the fact that my legs were still sore from Friday's workout, and also the deadlifts. I'll do leg tomorrow though, can't afford to miss it.

Nice that u like to calculate.. If that is what ur good at, its good to see that ur using it to ur advantage. Keep it up bro.

I like calculating and analyzing figures, but only for things that I can estimate with reasonable certainty. I could be more immaculate in calculating my total carbs/protein/calories intake but I just don't see the point in it, cost > benefit lol.

Anyway its leg day today, and today also marks the end of my one-month HVT program. Overall results from HVT: Leg improved a lot. Traps much more visible. Back feels more flexible. Shoulders are even more obvious than before. Very noticeable increase in size and shape of upper chest.

All in all I am enjoying HVT so far and I will continue sticking to it until I find a need to relinquish it and try another program.

As for legs today, DAMN! How come my legs are improving at such a tremendous pace?! I don't believe it myself! The only explanation would be muscle memory I guess.

While I was doing squats a lady introduced herself to me as the new fitness manager and gave some comments on my form. She said my lower back was very steady and my legs were in good position, except that I should try keeping my knees slightly more to the inside. She also said I was doing it to fast, and that I should lower down my tempo. I did, and as a result I felt that I used more of my glutes/backside muscles to lift the bar up. She asked how I determine what poundages to use and I told her I just 'ikut suka hati', ie using my instincts, but making sure I make progress every week. She didn't seem too impressed to hear that lol.

She also revealed to me that by using a lot of smaller plates (5/10lbs) I am actually using more weight than is stated. Phew, luckily she didn't say the opposite. I don't mind doing heavier than what I think I'm really doing. It's always good to be as prudent as possible.

Anyway she recommended me to do higher weights and lower reps for squats, but since I am enjoying the results of HVT so far I will stick to doing what I've been doing. I will, however, keep what she said in mind.

I asked her about improving the chest section, and she said my chest was actually quite okay and that I have a broad chest (it must be the shirt giving a false impression). She said the reason why I look skinnier than I really am is because I roll my shoulders forward (ie slouching). She said I need to work much much more on my back muscles as my chest muscles are apparently too tight, and my back muscles are too weak, hence the forward pull on my shoulders and hence the slouch that makes me look skinnier. The only time I stand straight and don't slouch is when I'm out with friends or in college. At other times I'm just too lazy to bother lol. Gotta change this bad habit, and gotta work much, much MUCH more on my back

She also commented that my forearms are not big enough to match my body frame. Now that's motivation material. Suddenly I can't wait to do my first Arms Day on the 15th.

For leg curls, the first set felt surprisingly easy. 40kg felt like I was lifting the air. So next I did it at 47kg and I felt some difficulties and could only do 15 reps. I did another set at 47kg for 13 reps. When I wanted to lower the weights for the last set, I realized that all along I wasn't doing 47kg at all... I had accidentally inserted the pin into the wrong hole and I had been doing 54kg instead!!! Woohoo!

While doing leg extensions the fitness manager came to give more advice. She said it would be better if I warmed up with walking or slow jog for 5 mins before every workout session. I forgot to ask if walking from my home to the gym for 10 minutes counts as a warming up. Anyway while chatting she suddenly pulled the sleeves of my pants up to have a look at my quads, LOL i was like wtf!? She said my quads were okay, but my abductors were lacking.

So, she recommended me to do the hip abductor machine, which I did, after I was done with leg extensions. It felt surprisingly easy to do. For my first set I successfully did 124kg x 10, while the maximum weight the machine offers is only 138kg, which seems insufficient. Maybe its meant to be done with higher reps. Later the fitness manager came by and told me that an outer hip abduction machine was supposed to be there as well, but for some reason it isn't.

After leaving the gym, while on the way home, it suddenly started to rain really heavily. What luck... of all days the weather just had to show its darker side on a particularly taxing Leg Day. Had to force myself to walk at a faster pace, although I really didn't want to.

Workout took a much longer time than necessary because of the conversation in between squat's 2nd and 3rd set, and leg extension's 1st and 2nd set.

Preworkout was missing an egg because I ran out of eggs.

...and damn, did I just wrote a bloody essay up there?


Saturday - Leg Day (3 January 2009)

Smith Squats
Warm Up
30 lbs x 10
60 lbs x 10

Workout
110 lbs x 12
130 lbs x 11
120 lbs x 12
140 lbs x 10


Leg Curls
40 kg x 20
54 kg x 15
54 kg x 13
47 kg x 15


Leg Extensions
26 kg x 15
26 kg x 15
33 kg x 14
33 kg x 15


Inner Hip Abductor
124 kg x 10
96 kg x 10
61 kg x 12


Standing Weighted Calf Raise Machine
34 kg x 18
34 kg x 18
34 kg x 17
34 kg x 15


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 75 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: Instinct


Diet

Preworkout: 3 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (20g protein, 20g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Estimated meals for today:
Lunch: Rice + dishes (30g protein)
Tea-time: Fruits (anything in the fridge will do) + 2 eggs (10g protein)
Dinner: Rice + dishes (30g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 160g

Note: I changed the estimate protein of rice + dishes to 30g from 20g. It could very well be over 40g, considering I definitely eat more than a chicken breast's worth of meat in every meal + the protein contained in white rice, but better to underestimate than to over-estimate.

Gonna go to Carrefour in a while to replenish my egg supply and to check out the oats section. Usually I take fresh kampung eggs (they taste better, but are slightly more costly) bought from the morning market but my parents are only going there tomorrow morning.

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Jan 5 2009, 11:50 AM

I'm sick again. Down with fever, flu and sore throat. This is the first time in my life that I've been sick twice in a row within a period spanning not more than one month. So, I will give my body the much-deserved rest it needs for this week. No workout until Saturday, except for Back Day on Wednesday. Was thinking of having an 'active rest' week but decided to just take a complete week off. Workout will resume on Saturday. Hoping to go for at least 2 swimming sessions before then, if I can find the time.

Hey, is it the fitness manager 'disturb' u too much till u feelin 'weak' ? Haha... Not well still want to swim ? The water in pool not that clean cos so many ppl playin in it, might accidentally go into your nose/mouth with the germs.

Hey, oat the big pack got offer in carrefour last week ! Go stock up. But can't figure out y expiry so soon in 2009.

U take care ya.. after rest u might come back better prepared.

No lah the fitness manager didn't disturb me lol. I'll ask her if eating eggs is safe the next time I see her. When I was sick I asked the doctor and the doctor advised me to eat only maximum of one egg per day, manaboleh.jpg!

Its true that the water in the pool is dirty but... I can just hope it doesn't affect me

Have not stocked up on oats yet. Must stock up before Saturday.

There is some slight changes in my time table so there will be slight changes to my workout times and diet as well. Will have to watch over how things go.

My back still needs sooo much more work. I went for back workout today without first checking last week's records. As a result I did the workouts as I pleased. Only now that I have checked and compared have I realized that I did not make much improvements from last week. Very, very slow progress, hmm...

Anyway my next back day is on Sunday, which is only 5 nights from today. I hope my back muscles will be able to recover by then.


Wednesday - Back Day (7 January 2009)

Seated Cable Row (Overhand Grip)
Warm Up
30 lbs x 12
30 lbs x 12

Workout
70 lbs x 18
80 lbs x 15
80 lbs x 13
80 lbs x 14


Lat Pulldown Machine
35 kg x 13
30 kg x 15
40 kg x 12
35 kg x 12


One-arm Dumbbell Row
30 lbs x 17
30 lbs x 15
10 kg x 20
30 lbs x 13


Wide-grip Lat Pulldown (Cable)
60 lbs x 15
60 lbs x 15
60 lbs x 15
60 lbs x 15


Dumbbell Shrugs (Weight stated = per dumbbell)
25 lbs x 20
25 lbs x 20
35 lbs x 15
35 lbs x 15


-End of Workout-

Total Workout Time: 70 minutes
Average rest time in between sets: Instincts, but I'm guessing I took too much rest


Diet

Preworkout: 4 eggs, 1 glass of Milo (25g protein, 30g carbs)
Postworkout: 2 scoops weight gainer + 350ml Dutch Lady milk (35g protein, 60g carbs)

Meals for today:
Lunch: Chicken + rice (30g protein)
Tea-time: Tomato
Dinner: Rice + dishes (30g protein)
Supper: 300ml milk + Whey protein (35g protein)

Total estimated protein intake: 155g

This post has been edited by wallpaper89: Jan 7 2009, 08:25 PM