How's your physical and mental training in 2016 going? I've run into my fair share of would be New Years Resolution Doers at the gym lately, you can always spot newbies since the same people tend to work out at the same times so an influx of new, really intense but out of shape Don'ters is hard to miss. Last week it was a fat guy working out and grunting in a backwards cap doing curls, triceps extensions then crunches. Because crunches will work off your gut, chief. Oh wait..Then you had skinny guy lamenting about forgetting his headphones at home because they really helped him crank it up. Yeah ok buddy, crank up some shape to your noodle looking body. But hey, you want to better yourself, I'm all for it. Today it was tattoo guy with giant headphones doing curls really fast, turning his head to look in the mirror instead of just, you know, facing the mirror. I just know you won't be here in February because you had no plan or purpose to your visits and clogged it up for the rest of us. Two or ten months down the road, they'll be gone and still out of shape while I'm still doing the Damme thing simply because I like to. Working out is easy, making it a habit takes some time, just set realistic expectations like you'll work out 4 times a week, not lose 20 pounds in a month. Do some research, read some books and see what fits your body and schedule. Rome and Jean-Claude Van Damme weren't built in a day and neither will you be.
Anywho, to shake things up, I'm throwing DDP Yoga back into the mix as it's a good workout you can get done in the privacy of your own home in under 30 minutes. Plus, we all need to work on our flexibility as we age. To protect my elbows, I'm sticking to cardio or Yoga one day, weights on another. Knocking out the Diamond Dozen and workouts dubbed Energy, Fat Burner and Red Hot Core are a nice change of pace and pretty relaxing. Back in the weight room, I'm adding in an additional working set to really pump up my muscles and shock them a little bit. Size isn't my goal but I want to keep some mass. This past Sunday I hit the weights:
- Barbell back to front press/Preacher curls/EZ bar triceps extension
- Dumbbell rear delt raise/Zane incline curl/Dive triceps extensions with rope
- DB side swing/Hammer curls/1-Arm triceps extension
Each giant set was performed 4 times with reps starting at 12 and descending to 8. If you're counting, that means I knocked out 36 working sets then threw in a few extra of front delts, forearms, neck and calves just to keep things rounded. But after warming up, training, cooling off and stretching, I was still out of the joint in under an hour. Little to no rest creates the breathless state so it's taxing on your muscles and lungs.
Back at home I was discussing the Grecian ideal and how masters of muscle like Eugen Sandow, Steve Reeves, Vince Gironda, Frank Zane and Arnold Schwarzenegger referred to the body as a sculpture that should be symmetrical and aesthetically pleasing. To that end there are actual Grecian Ideal calculations based on your wrist measurement that suggest how big your chest, waist, biceps, thighs, calves and neck should be. In general, if your neck, arms and calves are the same size, you fit the ideal. In my case, each of these measured out to be 15" in a relaxed state. Now I just need to bring my waist down a few inches to really highlight the V-Taper and bring out my inner statue. Keep learning, keep laughing and keep lifting!
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