Workout Log 2.46.1 - Chest, Biceps, Triceps

Back home and back at it.  Today I wanted to so something I like to do and that challenges me.  Still no cardio today but I am thinking about a new stationary bike come next week.

Motivation: 10 - man I have missed this.

Focus: 9.5 -- really on it today.

Goals: Complete workout, Good mind-muscle connection, good preparation.

Preparation: Meditation - 5 min., Stretching

Weight Training:
Chest
1. Bench Press: 115lbs: 15-15-12
2. Incline Dumbbell Press: 40lbs.: 15-12-12
3. Dumbbell Flye: 30lbs. 15-15-15
Biceps:
1. Preacher Curl: 40lbs.: 15-15-15
2. Hammer Curls: 30lbs.: 15-15-12
3. Alternating Dumbbell Curl: 20lbs.: 15-15-15
Triceps:
1. Close Grip Bench Press:115lbs. 15-12-12
2. Dumbbell Extension: 70lbs.: 15-15-12
3. Single Arm Dumbbell Extensions: 30lbs. 15-12-12

Training Notes: Hit all my goals today.  DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) was good sign that things were solid today.  Good motivation and focus.  One of the best workouts I have had from the standpoint of enjoyment. It is good to be back home.

Body Stats - Year 2, Week42

Weight: 273.0 (Last week: 270.6lbs.)
Body Fat %: 6.23 (Last week: 5.56%)

A small step backwards, but not completely unexpected.  There are two reasons I am not surprised: 1) I am coming off a cold and now my body is in rebuild mode - I have experienced this before.  2) The weather - the human body changes as things warm up - fat expands too.  Makes measurements grow.  Experienced that before too.  Just a couple more reasons why body stats only really provide a basic general idea of what is happening but should never be a real basis for motivation.

Workout Log: 2.42.4 - Abdominals

Abdominals.  To be honest I don't training these much except during cutting.  The rest of the year there are several lifts that hit them, namely the big two of squats and dead lifts.  In addition, there is probably not a single exercise I can think of that abs are not used as a stabilizer group.  That said the goal for me with abs is to see them.  I actually have always had strong abs with good endurance.  The only real problem about getting fat is that they get covered over.  Getting a six pack, by all accounts is about two things: nutrition and fat burning and that means low carbs, sugars and salt with cardio.  Problem -my main source of cardio is broken so I decided to improvise and basically make rest periods today really short as well as have a ton of exercises.

Motivation: 10 - I was ready to get at it today.

Focus: 9 - Solid, not much mind wandering, mostly every exercise came so fast in the rotation I didn't to have much time to think of other things.

Goals: Complete Workout, Good-Mind Muscle Connection, Good Preparation

Preparation: Meditation, - 5min.; Visualization with Stretching

Weight Training: 15-25 reps, 30 seconds between sets, 60 seconds between exercises
Upper Abs:
Medicine Ball (15lbs.) Crunches Arms extended: 25-25
Crunches: 25-25
Weighted Crunches: (45lb. plate): 25-25
Lower Abs:
Medicine Ball Reverse Crunches: 25-25
Hip Thrusts: 25-25
Leg Raises: 25-25
Obliques:
Barbell Twists: 25-25
Side Bends: 30lbs.: 25-25
Barbell Side Bends: 25-25
Combos:
Air Bike: 25-25
Double Crunches: 25-25

Training Notes:
OK.  I also find Abdominals easy from a lifting stand point.  Maybe some trainer could design me a workout that would challenge me, but so far anything I have tried does not stop me from finishing.  Right now I am in a quandary about what to do after my Romania Trip: 1) - Come back and strength lift so that year three will be all mass building or 2) - do a cut for 7 weeks to try to lose more fat and tighten up my loose skin.  Both would have benefits. 

Workout Log 2.42.3 - Back, Biceps and Forearms.

Yesterday's workout handed me a large problem: My stationary bike broke, the pedal and the pedal arm simply snapped off.  That meant a cardio issue not just for today but the future.  Yeah, there is a treadmill in the shop too, but I am not sure how my knees and ankles will take it.  That is part of the reason for the bike.  To overcome this problem I decided to superset my workout.  Supersets are putting to exercises together and taking no break.  The only rest you get is a short one between the double set.  It really can shake things up for your muscles but it also can be a workout for the heart and lungs as well.

Motivation: 9 - it was a little harder to get motivated because I had to rearrange my plans on this one.  I hate that but I roll with it because the alternative is to do nothing.

Focus (New): I want to start asking a different question: How focused was my workout today? Today was a 5 out of ten because I was focused some times and other times my head was out of it and somewhere else.

Goals: Good Preparation, Good Mind-Muscle Connection, Complete Workout

Preparation: Meditation - 5 min. Visualization/Light Stretching

Weight Training:
Superset #1:
Deadlift: 135lbs.: 15-15-15
Alternating Dumbbell Curls: 26lbs.: 15-12-12
Superset #2:
Bent Over Row: 135lbs. 15-15-15
Preacher Curl: 46lbs: 15-12-12
Forearms:
Behind Back Wrist Curls: 115lbs.: 15-15-15
Wrist Roll Ups: 8lbs. (3)

Today was difficult and in part is that my preparation usually includes 10 min. warm up cardio to get the blood pumping.  Without it, I felt a little down and it did not get better.  Despite that I still finished. 

Body Stats - Year 2, Week 41

Weight: 270.6lbs. (May 14th - 274.6)
Body Fat%: 5.56 (May 14th - 5.91)
Despite being sick, I have done alright the last two weeks except I didn't lose all the weight I did of body fat and by my calculations I lost a couple pounds of muscle.  Still have time though to stimulate them back.  I am actually only seven pounds away from being lighter than last year's cut which was 263.2lbs.  Even then, I though I thought I could lose more, it was just that  the rigours of cutting got to me at that point.

A word on body fat percentage.  I don't really know how accurate the actual percentage is as I: a) do the three site method myself and 2) I am a pretty big guy, so 15lbs. of fat on my body does not take up as much percentage as it would on someone smaller.  The one thing I can say for it is that I have been consistent as possible in measuring it, so the one thing it does show is when it goes up or down.

From a motivational standpoint, I am really in neutral about stats, they help gage what is going on with my body internally, but my real test is to stand in front of a mirror.    

Body Building for Christ: My History, My Vision and My Blog

For over a year and a half, I have been engaged in the pursuit of a bodybuilders body.  Mostly my motivation has come from a desire to make what I see in the mirror better each day.  In large part this has been successful, but I acknowledge that there is still a long way to go.  In the past I have seen some good results but I want more.

So far I have for the most part followed other people's plans that I find in the magazines and websites. Most of this I have viewed as an experiment to see what works for me.  There are still a lot of things to try and so that will probably continue for at least another year.  When I started I weighed 327lbs. and was almost 30% body fat.  Now I am roughly 275lbs. and under 10% body fat for the most part.  I have been cutting the last six weeks so that last number is lower still. 

My ultimate goal for the future is to compete, but I also understand I have  long way to go.  In need more muscle size for sure, my loose skin to tighten up and my training and nutrition to be more and more disciplined and intense.  In the meantime, I am going to focus my sights on learning the bodybuilding cycle and techniques for training and nutrition.  Ultimately I have learned that this is a game of knowledge and applying that knowledge.

This blog is more about accountability and that learning process than anything else.  It is my desire to post on my person quest, my supplements, my magazine reviews, my nutrition, my training and bodybuilding in general as far as news, opinion, issues and contests.  In so doing I hope to have journal of sorts to help me sort things out.  If it also happens to make a little money because people are interested in what I have to say, even better.  If I also inspire someone else to take up the journey as well, then even better than that.

My main passage of scripture that guides me is 1 Corinthians 6:19-20: Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own.  For you have been bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body.  The ultimate thing being to create a temple of the Holy Spirit that he will be proud to dwell in.  May God grant my the knowledge and wisdom I need to succeed.

Welcome to The Temple Builder for Christ

This Blog is spin off from the Rabyd Theologian 2.0. and contains my posts from that site involving bodybuilding, nutrition, motivation, magazine reviews, etc. The point being to have a unique home for those type of posts.

In addition, I want this to be a place of accountability for myself as I continue on my a lifelong journey of being a bodybuilding Christian pastor.

I also hope to write on the issues of the health and fitness world and how I think they affect Christians who both train and compete.

Blessings and Enjoy!

The Naked Truth: The Secret to Motivation in Health and Fitness

Most people struggle to stay motivated in any fitness endeavor. When people visit Bodybuilding.com or other sites like it there is always a thing called a motivation gage and people can input what their motivation level is on a scale of 1-10. Mine very rarely drops below 8. It hovers at 9 and hits a regular 10 all the time. I have been asked by some how do I do that.

I wish it could be some psyche-out thing I learned or some mental trick there is I do, but the real truth is I get naked on a regular basis in front of the bathroom mirror. For a while I even thought I was nuts, until I read Jack LaLanne's book called Live Young Forever and guess what he considered to be the number one motivation technique he had ever heard of and knew that it worked? That's right, go to the bathroom, lock the door, take off all your clothes and take a long look in the mirror and then get mad at what you see. Ever time you even feel your motivation slipping, go to the bathroom, lock the door...well you get the idea.

Ultimately the best tool in fitness motivation is not a bathroom scale or body fat calipers, but a mirror. Accountability helps but our human perception has an instinctive understanding when we look at the human body whether it is healthy or not and that includes our own. Ultimately, motivation comes from facing the truth in a mirror and not as James says we do so often:"forgetting what we see". It is facing the truth of what we see that ultimately motivates us to change anything and our bodies are no different.

Now body image is a big concern here as most women and some men still see themselves as fatter than they are and people can a very twisted fun house mirror image of themselves. That aside though, the quest to make your body look good in that mirror motivates like nothing else and that is why it still remains a potent part of any person's focus and motivation in reaching their fitness goals.

That is the naked truth.