Training Log - June 25 2008 (PM)

Pretty light. Not much in terms of "progression" from previous sessions. The "filler" exercises were harder.

Bulgarian Split Squats:

30 kg, 3 sets of 5 for each leg.

Rest 90 sec

Filler - Dips while hanging in air (no support). As I'm not used to doing them, I had the first three assisted by jumping, and 20 kg twice respectively. The next 3 sets were "ok".

Rest 90 sec and repeat

Single Leg (Romanian) Deadlifts (SLD):

20 kg, on opposite hand.

Rest 90 sec

Filler - Barbell bicep curls with a 50 lb (22 kg) EZ bar. Nothing much to gain, but no time lost waiting for the full 3 minute-ish rest period.

Rest 90 sec and repeat

Notes:

1) Bulgarian split squats are familiar but not the same as lunges. I have a problem of anterior tilt during the eccentric phase, causing my torso to become more slanted than the Tower of Pisa by the time my knee touches the floor. A bit of slanting is expected, but I was slanting more than this girl with good form. I'll have to solve the too much anterior tilt first before I increase the weight (more psoas stretches, maybe I'll add in rectus femoris stretches too).

2) I didn't progress much on the SLD's. Instead of increasing weight, I changed from a pair of 10 kg's to a 20 kg in the opposite hand. This acts to really fire up those hip abductors to ensure balance, making the exercise harder without increasing weight. Maybe I'll progress slowly with this next week.

3) True tricep dips are hard; when hanging, you'll really use all of your strength on lifting your body weight. So for a person on the heavy side like me (fluctuating body weight, lowest 85, highest 88 on any given day), that's like using your triceps to push 60-ish kgs of weight. I should have done these earlier during the elective posting "holiday".

Had a nice chat with one of the PT's here. He noted that I was very different from the other serious gym goers, in that I have a fetish-like love for single limb work, especially for my lower limbs. I've yet to see anyone perform single leg squats, Bulgarian squats, or SLD's, which he recognized instantly during my sessions. I told him that it came from an improvisation of training at home/hostel, in which you don't have heavy weights to access; single leg work is inherently harder with the same weights, and more physiological (you run with 1 leg on the ground, with two it's hopping). We also talked about the fact that there's no power rack to really squat (Smith machines don't count).

He and another staff also noted about the erratic appearance of Naufal, and kept asking me about him. I guess I'm too close to him, making us appear like a couple from Brokeback Mountain. Well, I'll be the male in that relationship. Hehe.

I think my final decision as to where I'd like to work may depend on which gym has a power rack. Life's like that.

P.S. Of course I'm not that simplistic.