Lift!

knightky bought me a gag gift for Christmas: a copy of Muscle & Fitness magazine. This is the sort of magazine that is filled with photos of heavy steroid users, sexist articles (the men are buff, but the women are just skinny with big tits), and over-the-top ads for supplements. One is even called Hemo Rage (and comes in flavours like Sucker Punch and Malicious Melon. I laughed.).

But hidden amongst all the overstated ads and macho hyperbole is some useful information. An article called "Break Your Legs," which promises to "make leg day suck at home, too," I learned about one-legged Romanian deadlifts.

I also found an article called "Beginner's Luck" which is an 8-week program to building muscle.

Distilled down, here are the first four weeks:

Day	Exercise	Sets	Reps/Time
1	Squat	3	5
	Bench press	3	5
	Deadlift	2	5
	Dumbbell incline press	1	8-10
	One-arm bent-over dumbbell row	1	8-10 per side
	Plank	2	30 sec.
3	Squat	3	5
	Bench press	3	5
	Deadlift	2	5
	Pull-up	1	8-10
	Standing dumbbell overhead press	1	8-10
	Standing barbell curl	1	8-10
5	Squat	3	5
	Bench press	3	5
	Deadlift	2	5
	Overhead squat	1	8-10
	Romanian deadlift	1	8-10
	Side plank	2	30 sec. each side

And here are weeks 5-8:

Day	Exercise	Sets	Reps/Time
1	Squat	3	5
	Bench press	3	5
	Deadlift	2	5
	Dumbbell incline press	1	6-8
	One-arm bent-over dumbbell row	1	6-8 each side
	Plank	2	60 sec.
3	Squat	3	5
	Bench press	3	5
	Deadlift	2	5
	Pull-up	1	6-8
	Standing dumbbell overhead press	1	6-8
	Standing barbell curl	1	6-8
5	Squat	3	5
	Bench press	3	5
	Deadlift	2	5
	Overhead squat
	Romanian deadlift	1	6-8
	Side plank	2	30 sec. each side

Now, here's my issue. This looks like a good routine to acclimatize myself to doing some very heavy lifting. But with the plank sets, at the very least, I know I'd be regressing. I already hold planks, side planks, and reverse planks for 90 seconds each time I work out. So for you muscleheads out there, would you say I should keep doing my planks the way that I am used to, step them up, or is there some sort of benefit I'm just not seeing to scaling them back?

I intend on maintaining my plyometric training: jumping jacks, dragons, kick squats, Hindu squats, etc. I need that explosive strength in my legs for my dance, and also because I'm a huge fan of mighty gams.

I plan on monitoring my diet a bit more strictly again, to ensure I'm getting enough protein to build the muscle I want to build. I don't have a very big appetite, so I think this has been my biggest obstacle to building muscle, all along.

Let's see if I can get myself in my best physical shape this year. And maybe, just maybe, I'll hold my own at a fitness competition.

Tonight's Bootcamp Class

Here's the workout, if you'd like to try it out:

Repeat two to three times, then fill out the rest of the hour with extensive stretches.

20 jumping jacks
60 second plank
5 squat, hold 5 seconds, then jump
60 second reverse plank
20 lunge with knee lift to the front, touching to opposite elbow
60 second side plank
20 lunge with knee lift to the front, touching to opposite elbow
60 second side plank
10 bootstrappers
20 suicide pushups
20 crunches, slow count
20 side crunches (don't believe the instructor. This will not remove love handles. You cannot spot-reduce fat, except through liposuction. It will give you a stronger core, though.)
20 side crunches
20 superman back extensions
20 dips