Stairmills

Wednesday I climbed up on the stairmill at Gold's Gym, it would be my last workout of the week. I chose the one on the end next to a guy who looks exactly like Georges St. Pierrre, a mixed martial artist and welterweight champion. A man who epitomizes the male physique in my opinion. Here is a picture for you!

This guy looks exactly like him, and even has an accent. I think the only difference is my guy is slightly shorter.


Although there are 13 stairmills, and he is the only one there, I always get on the one next to him. Not just because he is stunning looking, but because he climbs off after a few minutes, takes of his sweatshirt, walks over to the huge fans and flips them on, then he walks back. I like to watch him, and I like the fans, our stairmills are smack dab in front of them.


As I climbed up he glanced over and said "morning". I responded with a good morning and started walking. I then started up a conversation, I was curious. You don't see many males on stairmills, and he was there on the same schedule as me, something was not typical about this guy. 


Kristy: "Are you training for something in particular or do you just enjoy the stairmill?"


Guy: "I have a shoot coming up."


Kristy: "A photo shoot? I see!"


Guy: "I was gonna do the Contra Costa, but I was ready three weeks early. I thought I would do Taos but I have to leave for Europe."


Kristy: "I am doing the Contra Costa."


Guy: "Your'e a bodybuilder."


Kristy: "No, Figure. I wanted to move to Physique but I couldn't get big enough."


Guy: "Your'e hard for Figure."


Kristy: "Yes, but that's what I like and I always place."


Guy: "Well I will be at judging. Good luck."


We both finished up our walking, he lasted longer than me, I only went 30 minutes. It helps to hear form others in the same arena as me, someone who can look at me and tell me I am "too hard". 


The goal in Figure is not to be ripped and "hard" but at 5% bodyfat, I think I would be considered just that no matter who is looking at me. And I have always come in at that low of bodyfat or lower, so that seems to be where I look the best. 


I am looking harder and harder everyday as I start to dry out (reduce my water intake). I am getting excited about Saturday.

Quads

Saturday is quads again, I have been "over training" for several weeks, hitting hamstrings twice a week and quads twice a week. Soon, I will change that and go back to one quad day, one hamstring day and then a combo leg day (both quads and hams).


This over training has resulted in my legs being sore in one place or another constantly, and I mean all the time. Seems I get a moment when they start to feel OK, then I hit them all over again.


Saturday I arrived at 6:00 a.m. opening and warmed up on the treadmill, then stretched. I walked down towards my favorite power rack and as I got there Alan stuck his face in mine and says "Are ya deaf!!?" He had been following me trying to get my attention, but my music was way too loud. He was going to San Francisco and wanted to know the name of a restaurant we had talked about.


I then started in on my squats. I noticed that both of my quads were bruised, odd. They both had bruises in just about the same location. I couldn't figure out why.


I warmed up quite a bit, 45 pounds, 65 pounds, 85, 95, 115 and finally started in with 135 pounds, 10 reps. I am concentrating on maintaining the same strength in each leg as I rise up from the squat, I have been "shimmying" as one leg is stronger than the other, and I get partially up then veer to the left and then up, an odd movement and not desirable.


I actually think I may have conquered it today! But we won't find out till Roy watches me from behind on Wednesday.


I finished 3 sets and moved to the Leg Press. Again, several warm ups and then 4 sets of 10 reps at 450 pounds (plus the weight of the machine).  I know I should be able to do more on this, but it is only the second week I have used it, and haven't used it in ages since before this. 


Then up to the Leg Extension. Again, not something I typically use, and I may start using it before squats, I haven't decided yet. Warm up then 5 sets of 10 reps at 110 pounds. I am actually seeing more muscle and definition in my quads, I am super excited!


I have a busy day with my brother planned, so need to get some cardio or conditioning done now, I will not be able to do anything later. Saturdays the entire Basketball Court is taken over by men playing.....basketball! Can you imagine? So I really cannot go use the facility, I decide to hit the stairstepper for 20 minutes.  I forgot how boring it can be, at least on the stairmill my feet move! But they were all full so this is all I could do.


8:05 and I am done! Home for coffee and breakfast of 1 cup egg whites scrambled, 1 whole fried egg on top and a small serving of steel cut oats with peanut butter....


In the shower I figure out why I have bruised quads, it's the Donkey Calf Raises. The 3 plates hanging down between my legs. The chains from the dip belt hit right where the bruises are. I have got to change my calf training on Monday.

Change of Pace

I go through this every year, and you would think I would have it under control by now but I still do not. I am feeling Big with a capital "B". Yeah, I am not trying to make anyone feel bad, I know I am not BIG, but I am big for me. The funny thing is, I am trying to get bigger! It's just hard to accept it. I work so hard to get small, then I turn around and try to get big...go figure (no pun intended).

As you know, I am thinking of competing on Womens' Physique instead of Figure, but that means a lot more muscle, a lot more weight. Putting it on invariably causes some fat gain too, and realistically you don't want to maintain a stage ready physique year round, it's not practical or emotionally advised.

My weight went from 118 on October 1 up to a high of 133 and I have maintained at about 130, 131 for quite some time. I look pretty good but when I see photos of myself at competition time it's hard to accept my newer "softer" look, although I do really like the bigger arms , legs and butt. I guess it's just the soft belly I don't like. Get rid of that and I am a happy camper! 

I always change up my training, that includes what I do with Roy and on my own. As much as possible, I will keep with his current protocol, for instance, I train shoulders twice a week, but only once with Roy. The second day is on my own and I try to re-create what we did. Ideally I would increase weights or reps but sometimes it's just not possible (I need a spotter, physically or emotionally), so I stick to the same. I try to stick to the same for legs too. Back is always on my own, but I try to follow the protocol, if we are doing fewer reps on everything else, I will do the same for back.

What I do vary is my mornings when I am at the gym and not lifting, because I will train with him that evening or afternoon. For quite some time I was hitting the stairmill and then training abs, I would do this Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings since those are the days I train with Roy later, and I would also throw in stairmill on weekends too after lifting.

He and I both agree (as did SC) that abs really pop when you have super low bodyfat, so crunching away day after day isn't what will make a difference. Abs come with squats, deadlifts, pull ups, full body moves, not all those ab exercises everyone toils away at day after day. I do plenty of squats, believe me!

At my last competition I was encouraged to "bring up" my quads and calves, that means make them bigger, and I have been diligently working on them and my quads look tremendously better. We train my quads and hams so hard that some days I don't know who enjoys it more, me, or Roy! 

A couple weeks ago I stopped my stairmill and and abs. I changed it up to train my calves and do the same type of conditioning I learned from Jerome at kickboxing. 

So I train calves then hit the basketball court and recreate the conditioning routine that Jerome taught me. It includes running, jumping, squats, burpees, push ups, crunches, boxing, jump rope and whatever else I feel like throwing in. It's hard, much more difficult than any old stairmill!

We will see how it all goes, I don't want to create too much of a calorie deficit or I won't gain muscle, I have to find that sweet balance we are all looking for, and then hold on tight!

Saturday's Leg Workout

Some days when I get to the gym I feel so alive it's really hard to contain myself. This past Saturday was one of those mornings. I had slept well, I was awake before the alarm sounded.

I watch people in the gym, and I know most of them are not lifting right. They may be swinging their weights around, using weights that are too light or too heavy, not performing the move correctly, you name it. Most people just go through the motions to get it over with. It is supposed to be difficult you know!


I am making an effort to time my sets, it's easy when I train with Roy because he can stand there with the stopwatch, it's harder by myself, but I did a good job this Saturday.


Roy said for hypertrophy I need to aim for sets with a time under tension of 40 to 70 seconds, and to do that I need to lift explosively and lower very, very slowly. It's exactly opposite of what most people do.


Try it. Take whatever exercise you are doing and do 8 to 10 reps, but make each set last a minimum of 40 seconds. It's freaking hard!


You do that with squats, with bench press, with military press, you name it. You may find that you have to lower the weight you are using. My weights went down when I started training with Roy, but I look a hell of a lot better!


Here's my morning:


Stretching
Seated leg Curl 5 sets of 8 @ 100 pounds (time under tension ~36 (I was trying) (60 second rest in between sets)
Unilateral Kneeling Leg Curl 5 sets of 8 @ 20 pounds (time under tension ~32) (60 second rest)
RDL's 4 sets of 6 @ 195 pounds (time under tension 32, 31, 32, 32) (90 second rest)
Front Squats 5 sets of 8 @ 95 pounds (time under tension 48,47,48,51,51) YAHOO! (90 second rest)
Walking Lunges with 20 pound dumbbells 3 sets on each leg (10 per leg) (30 second rest)
Glute Ham Raise 4 sets of 10 body weight (60 second rest)
20 minutes on the stairmill


Protein and carb shake afterward and coffee, coffee, coffee.

Cardio

I have never really been a fan of cardio, I like lifting. But, when competing in Figure, you need to lose most of your bodyfat and that requires a lot of "energy expenditure".

I could do that lifting weights, but I also want to have muscles as big as I possibly can, so I think it would compromise my training. I am sure it works great for some people, but just not my cup of tea.

I tend to stay away from the elliptical because I find myself "skating", it isn't as difficult as the stairmill or the stairstepper. Until today.

It was Sunday, one of my looooooong days at the gym. Saturdays and Sundays I am here about 3 hours. Of course, if you add the two times I come on other days I am close!

I did my weight training, then 30 minutes on the stairmill and decided to take it outside. Courtside Club is a huge facility, there are 16 tennis courts (outdoor and some indoor), they stand on ceremony. Take a look at some of the rules of the tennis courts, I love the last one and wonder what on earth it all means? 

Dress Code

1. Appropriate attire must be worn at all times.
2. No swimsuits, cut-offs or bare feet are allowed on the tennis courts.
3. Regulation tennis shoes are required on the courts. We do not allow running shoes.
4. Gentlemen are not permitted to wear tank tops. Shirts are required while on the courts. Exceptions: Men who want to play without shirts may use Courts 3 and 4 at any time and Courts 2 through 6 from 12:00 pm - 3:00 pm, Monday through Friday.

It means I watch tennis at courts 3 and 4, or 2 through 6 from 12 to 3! ha ha

I digress. I wandered out to the deck off the cardio room. There are 6 spin bikes and 3 ellipticals overlooking the tennis courts, fire pits and bar.  

It was 8:00 am, and warm and breezy, a beautiful spot overlooking the Santa Cruz mountains. I climbed up on one of the ellipticals and pounded out an additional 20 minutes with the fresh air in my hair, filling my lungs, I felt revived!

I usually do my cardio after work, and it would be much too hot out there, but Wednesday I train with Roy after work, so you know where you will find me at 5:00am?

Outside, taking in the scenery. I wonder if anyone will be on court 3 or 4?

Leg Day

Saturday, Legs. I used to love training shoulders most, and now I am starting to really love training legs, maybe even more than shoulders.


I trained with Roy on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, hamstrings on Wednesday and shoulders on Thursday. Saturday I would hit the legs on my own, quads and hams.


Lately I have been sleeping better, I am not up as much as I had been previously so I feel more rested when I wake. In fact, I have been getting up before the alarm everyday. Today, I turned it off so the alarm wouldn't wake up David later and I got up early.  I get excited when I get to go to the gym, and luckily that is everyday!


I walked a few minutes on the treadmill, stretched then started in on my squats. I warmed up with 10 reps @ 45 pounds; then 10 @ 65; 10 @ 85; then I used 115 for the rest. I did 4 sets of 115 with a 60 second rest in between. Except when Mike came up to tell me a joke, then I rested several minutes. Oh well.


Lunges, unilateral with 20 pound dumbbells, 4 sets on each leg.


Kneeling leg curl (hamstrings), 3 sets on each leg at35 pounds.


Seated leg curl (hamstrings) 4 sets at 70 pounds.


Leg extensions, unilateral 10 @ 30 pounds each, then bilateral 10 @ 70 pounds. 3 sets of each.


I finished with 5 sets of 10 on the Glute Ham Raise.


I felt GOOD! I still had energy. It was too much, I really shouldn't have done it all as the session lasted an hour and a half. Everything tells me not to train that long but sometimes when I am in the "zone" I cannot stop, I am on a high that feels so good I just keep going, today was one of those days.


I climbed up on a stairmill and walked (intervals) for 30 minutes, sweat didn't start dripping on the machine until 20 minutes into it. Cardio, still gotta do it!


I practiced posing for about 10 minutes, I should be doing more but that's all I felt like doing today. Into the meditation room to stretch my hamstrings and roll my quads, I have some very sore spots on my legs.


8:45am I am done. I got there at 6:00am. I sat in the cafe and drank my post training drink and took supplements. Grabbed a cup of coffee and home for a good muscle building breakfast.  1 cup egg whites scrambled with 1 whole egg (fried) on top, and a bowl of steel cut oats.

Living and Loving Legs!

Saturday morning and I am ready to kill the legs! I am feeling lean and mean, and bursting with power.


Today I will be doing Back Squats, Glute Ham Raise and Lunges. I talked a woman into taking my picture, she hadn't started her workout yet so I didn't think it was too much of an interruption.


She snapped it before I could really get set up, but I have my heels on two 10 pound plates, I needed to get the foot placement correct, I am squatting with a narrow stance, feet straight out, I am targeting the quads. 

I warmed up with the bar only (45 pounds), 10 reps. Then 1 set of 10 at 65, 1 set at 85 and then moved into 115 for 5 sets. So this was 8 sets.

I rested 90 seconds in between each set.

Something clicked! It was like water, a fluid motion, it was perfect, like I was a machine. Roy keeps telling me "knees out front" and somehow my head told me to only move my knees, where in the past my powerful glutes always started the motion, I moved silently down, keeping a straight back, and then up with a thrust of the hips. I wish I was filming it! 

I found myself in my own world as I rested, waiting for my timer to vibrate and set me in motion again. I was floating on a cloud!

Then on to my friend, the GHR. We have a love hate relationship. This majestic piece of equipment is one of the most coveted by everyone and one of the most hated.

Why? If you do it right it's hard as hell! Most people break at the hips, and I know when I am getting fatigued I do the same. You should be pulling your body up with your glutes, and the upper part of the hamstring, imagining they are one solid mass (at least that's how I envision it in my head). If you bend at the hips and stick your butt out, anyone can do it, and it's basically useless.

I did 10 sets of 10, only bodyweight. Try it. 10 sets, slowly, no momentum, no swinging, slow on the eccentric and as explosive as I could get on the concentric, but that wasn't much! I started to waver at the end, I didn't break at the hips, but the  movements got oh so slow. I was quite vocal, I could tell as the guys looked over their shoulder, wondering if I was going to make it. I did.

Lunges. I grabbed the 20 pound dumbbells and walked. Left leg first, it's the weak one. Slowly, all the way down, stretching back at the lowest point, maintaining a straight back, pushing off with the heel. 10 on the left, then 10 on the right, rest. 5 sets on each leg. I should have done more, I was toast though.

I still had cardio to do. It was Saturday, when all the weekend warriors come in, the cardio room would be crowded. All the pretty women in their fancy yoga outfits, I wonder what they think of me in my Underarmour underwear and bra top, not that I really care.

The stairmills were all taken, and there are 8 of them! Damn, I had to use the stair stepper. 20 minutes was enough. I kept myself entertained, sometimes laughing out loud by listening to Big Nation Radio , a rather silly but entertaining podcast which bills itself as "talk of Bodybuilding, Steroids and Porn". I was finishing up the episode about Johnny Montanta, legendary pickup artist from New York.

When you see me laughing out loud on my stairmill, you will know why!