GIFt us your lifts! (or other achievements!)

@stljam i am ald fashioned with notebook to write down my training.
I have always my 3 day routine written down for that week.

So when i do my day 1 training, and i hit my rep target, i already write down for next week what weight to do. Helps me with my OCD in this

WTG!

@kinetixtrainer2 @nossmf I'd appreciate some thoughts on my hevy posting. I'm back lifting for the first time in years and lifting with a torn left labrum. Bench and incline bench are no go as they cause pain even with just the bar. The seated chest press allows me to stay in a plane that works. Same with the seated row and the seated lat machine external rotation. Most overhead exercises are a no go.

I'm lifting every 3 days doing the same routine, doing 3 sets, trying to stay 10-15 reps or so and then building up.

I also have lower lumbar back and sciatica issues and it seems to tolerate the hip and leg slide well.

I figured I would do this for 5 or 6 weeks to build up some strength and routine before venturing into other things.

Any thoughts or exercises I should consider? I miss being able to do all that I used to be able to do.

Ok, glad for that clarification about the 8 sets being a workaround for recording, that was the first thing which stuck out to me.

Please note that the old adage of 1-5 reps strength, 6-12 reps size, 15+ reps endurance has been largely debunked. (I can attest to this because I once added almost 50lbs to my squat PR after spending two months doing nothing but 20-set reps.) The real secret has to do more with the degree of muscular exhaustion involved. Somebody lifting a 5lb weight a thousand times before they collapse will have similar muscle-building stimulus in terms of hormone release and adaptive response (aka muscle building) as somebody doing a 50lb weight until exhausted after 10 reps, but obviously the heavier weight/fewer rep set will be completed faster.

However, the problem many lifters encounter is not truly reaching the proper point of exhaustion, usually not lifting heavy enough or for enough reps to truly hit the sweet spot. Note I am NOT talking about lifting to failure all the time; that path leads to overtraining. But how many lifters take the same weights to the same reps week in, week out, and not actually making any gains, all because they need to push a little harder and raise the weight, or the reps, or the time under tension, etc. As long as you push until you honestly have only 1-2 RIR (reps in reserve), you will improve.

(Incidentally, for those who have been on MFP sabbatical, I authored a few threads to help new lifters learn a thing or two. You can peruse them here:

How to set up a weightlifting routine
30+ Tips to Increase Strength Training Intensity
Weightlifting mistakes: a confession
Why have I stopped gaining strength?

But I digress…)

Anyway, back to the question about using different rep ranges. Here's my current pull routine which I performed this morning:

Cardio (Warmup): Jogging, 10 min

Strength: Pull Day

BB Row 5x5
Cable Row 4x15
Pulldown 4x10 (wide grip, narrow, reverse, neutral)
BB Shrug 3x10
Face Pull 3x10 (3s pause)
Preacher Curl 4x10, 15, 20, 25
Hanging Knee Raises 2x25 «superset» Plank 2x90s

As you can see, I use a variety of rep ranges in a single workout, but no matter the range in question, I work until that exercise has only 1-2 RIR. Similar to @Minion_training_program I will increase the weight used if I can comfortably get target reps +2, for every set, for two workouts in a row. In other words, once I get the BB Row for 5 sets of 7 for two consecutive workouts, then I increase the weight for the third week and beyond. It has to be two weeks in a row for me to believe it's a true strength increase; I may have one week where I have great sleep, low stress, a good meal, and just feel like the Incredible Hulk and blast my way through one workout, then it's back to normal for the next week.

Please note that if I don't feel strong one week, I give myself permission to lower weights used, on any given exercise (or the entire day if needed) by 10% for a week, no questions asked, just go back to normal the next. But if I'm down 10% in consecutive weeks, then I have to honestly evaluate if I need to permanently lower the weight used. (This happened to me on my bench press, which dropped to nearly 20% lower as I have been losing weight. But I kept at it, and have been slowly regaining again, and am now down only 10% from where I was to start the year.)

*****

Ok, lots of talk, but not all of it helpful to @stljam . So let me give a couple constructive observations:

First, you did good to start the day with legs, they are (usually) the biggest, strongest muscles in the body, and often involve the heaviest weights of the day. Hitting them first when you're still fresh not only lessens the chance of injury, but also initiates a flood of hormones in the body which every other body part will appreciate.

When doing minor muscle groups (biceps, triceps) it's almost always best to do large compound moves before doing single-muscle isolation moves. You did this correctly by doing rows (back + biceps) before the curls (biceps), but you got the order backwards by doing pushdowns (triceps) before chest press (chest + triceps). Unless a personal trainer told you to do them in this order, I would move the pushdowns later in the program. (I would also move the lat machine before the curls.)

The biggest bugaboo I see from the program involves using different weights for different limbs on chest press. Adhere to the advice of any personal trainer, but from everything I have learned, you should use the same weights for both sides. This means lowering the strong arm down to the same level as the injury recovering arm. Yes, your strong side will not be challenged as much as it could, but by doing different weights you are adding risk:

• One side heavier than the other adds torque to the torso, with gravity trying to pull the heavy side harder and thus twisting the torso in that direction
• This torque can be a valuable intentional tool for healthy individuals, but during injury recovery it can cause unintended strain on recovering muscles connected
• Hefting the heavier side into place also causes unintended strain on the injured side
• From a simple cosmetic side, over time this can lead to one side looking more muscular
• From a strength perspective, even after injury recovery is complete, this can lead to one arm being stronger than the other, and in an effort to equalize things, a lifter may try to force the weaker arm to "catch up" too quickly, which can cause new injuries as muscles or tendons are not given adequate time to adapt

You would probably be much better off just lowering the weights used to whatever your weaker arm can handle. Will this cause the stronger arm to lose strength? Yes, but at a far slower rate than you may anticipate…it can be several WEEKS before a loss even begins, and several MONTHS before it becomes significant. AND the best part is, once strength and/or size have been achieved once, regaining it is often far faster than what was needed the first time, sometimes as little as half the time…meaning gains that took a year to get once, after loss, may only need six months to regain again. (Are you listening, @KickassAmazon76 ?)

Lifting three days per week is reasonable, making sure you get a full day rest between sessions. (Rest from lifting…you can do cardio that day if desired.)

As far as exercises you are not doing which may prove beneficial, I think you could benefit from doing internal/external rotations of the shoulder. You can use cables or bands, but either way these are meant to be very light weight/resistance. Stand with your upper arm along your rib cage, lower arm bent 90 degrees. Stand perpendicular to the weight stack (not facing or facing away, but at a right angle). Holding the handle with one hand, slowly rotate your lower arm away from the weight, either internal (across your body) or external (arm sticking out to the side like you're trying to hitch a ride) and return to start, 2-3 sets of 10 for each. Again, these are light weights being used; you are not trying to gain muscle, you are trying to ease the tendons and ligaments into motion. Do these at the start of the workout (before or after the leg press doesn't matter, but before any upper body work). You don't have to do them for your healthy shoulder if you don't want, but I think it can be beneficial anyway (plus it gives the weaker arm a few extra moments of rest between sets).

Ok, this turned out to be far longer than anticipated, sorry for the diatribe.

tl/dr: Use equal weights on chest press, lowering the strong arm to same level as weaker. Move the isolation moves (pushdowns, curls) to last in the workout. Include shoulder internal/external rotations before upper body work to ease delicate joint components into readiness.

congrats on being back in the gym!

My first thought is I’d like to see a width movement for your back. (Wide grip pull down). If your shoulders will allow for that movement. I know you mentioned over head movements are a no-go. If you can’t do lat pull-down variation, I would look at doing dumbbell chest supported incline seal rows. Elbows flared wide and pull to just beside the chest.

I like the use of sets up to 15 or 20 in my workouts on some movements. If your form is squared away and you’re working in full range of motion I think this rep range can be very effective and less taxing on your joints. I use it more in my smaller muscles (biceps, rear delts, lateral raises) but there are times I’ll use it with back and chest as well.

I would add leg extensions and leg curls to your routine. I’d play around with doing the extensions before your leg press to pre-fatigue them and also try them after (maybe in your next meso cycle). Hopefully the leg curls wouldn’t aggravate your lower back or sciatica. Having them is important since you don’t have any hip henge movements for your hamstrings. Leg extensions are another exercise I like to take to 15 or 20 reps.

If your shoulders will allow I’d have lateral raises and an incline chest supported rear delt lateral raise for shoulder health. Also makes for some awesome looking shoulders.

I did not read all the other posts below yours so if any of this is redundant or conflicts with their advice I’d only say, we are all different and respond to different stimuli. Consistency is the most important thing along with sleep and meal plan.

again congrats on being back at it.

I still remember the day I did a 1x100 set of squats with 225 on my back. Pauses to catch my breath were allowed, but the weight had to remain where it was…no racking the bar.

I did it. Don't recommend it, never gonna do it again. But I did it. 😮🏋🏻‍♂️💪🏻💀

It was one of only two times I've ever been unable to walk properly following a leg workout. The first was back in high school, the very first time I'd ever lifted in my life, and gym teacher led us through a brutal leg workout. The problem was the weights room was on the second floor, while the locker room was in the basement, with two flights of stairs between. I learned that day the value of the hand rail on stairs (even 30 years later, I ALWAYS have a hand on one to this day)…my leg gave out on me going downstairs, and I collapsed into the student in front of me, whose legs were also Jell-O, and soon enough we were part of a human domino chain of people all collapsing down the entire flight of stairs.

Not exactly the way to make friends and influence people, especially in high school…

Ok, that 8 sets with left and right arm makes now sense.
Altough i agree with @nossmf that with injury, it is better to lower the weight for the stronger arm, rather than do 2 different weights, for all the points he mentioned

My left arm is far weaker than my right arm to begin with (i think this is because of my bowling for 25 years right handed), and for bicep curls for instance, i could do almost 3kg heavier with right, compared to left, but i just do same weight and same reps with both arms, making my left arm catch up with my right arm.
With right arm, i do try to slow down the pace, so it will feel heavier on my last 2 reps

PS @nossmf that was a good breakdown, long read, but very good breakdown.

I would like a view from your persepctive on my training routine, if you don't mind. See if there are things i should change (not could, because you can always change things)

Will post it here tomorrow

So I'm not a lifter but Monday I took a break from cardio and just did strength, got overly into it and my workout went 43 min. instead of my usual 20-22. Still feeling those muscles two days later . . . aaand I have a sprint triathlon this Saturday. Such a beginner error to overtrain on race week. Gah!