Bodybuilding.com’s Project Mass – Day 10 & 11

Greetings, all.

Two days ago was Heavy Legs, and I’m paying that price today. For me, the worst soreness, if it’s gonna be bad, is 2 days after. Then yesterday I went after my Traps with a vengeance and they’re sore from the top down to the middle of my back. Needless to say, I’m beat the hell up, and my body is constantly trying to put me into sleep mode.

Yesterday the workout went something like this…

Bent Over Rows – 225×4, 230×4, 4, 4, 4

A week prior was able to do 4 sets of 4 at 225, but the form started to fall apart at the 3rd set. However yesterday I was able to keep the form tight for all 5 sets, with an extra 5lbs attached.

Asst Pull-Ups – 66×5, 5, 5, 5, 30×5

I’m thinking instead of 5lbs a month, I may jump it up to 5lbs a week, see what happens. My strength is shooting up a lot faster than I imagined.

Bicep Curls – 45×5, 5, 5, 5, 50×5

Finally, after years of having pathetic strength in the curl department, I’m doing decent.

Barbell Shrugs – 225×8, 8, 8, 8, 275×5, 5

I make sure to squeeze at the very top for a few seconds, because it makes the lift more intense, which is needed since the range of motion is so short. I also prefer the Barbell as opposed to dumbbells because I feel it more in my upper back, and the deeper portion of the traps.

20 minutes of incline cardio.

Today was Bodybuilding Style Push Day.

Over Head Press – 135×5, 5, 5

Flat Bench – 225×5, 5, 5

I felt like I could have hit 6 or 7 reps on the Flat Bench, and the OHP would have gone a bit easier too if my traps weren’t sore. Really, if you want to increase your strength on something, I urge you to do at least twice a week.

Incline Bench – 115×10, 10, 10, 10, 10

When it comes to the bodybuilding style lifts I rest only 30-60 seconds to up the intensity, and try not to care at all about the weight.

Standing Shoulder Lateral Raise – 17.5×10, 10, 10, 10, 10, 12.5×7, 7.5×7

For the first three sets I switch up the style. First set is standard, second set I twist at the top like I’m pouring out water, third set I lean forward a bit and bring the dumbbells all the way in front of me instead of just to the side. The final two sets are standard, and then after the final set I do two drop sets.

Single Arm Dumbbell Skullcrushers – 25×10, 10, 10, 10, 10

An arm only gets rest when the other is working, and this gets brutal, fast.

Standing Side Triceps Extension – 10×10, 10, 10, 10, 10

As with the Skullcrushers, an arm only rests when the other is working. After the crushers and this, your triceps will have an insane pump.

Incline cardio for 20 minutes.

Bodybuilding.com’s Project Mass – Day 4

A photo posted by Caliber Winfield (@caliberwinfield) on Feb 2, 2016 at 5:16am PST

Greetings, all.

I’ve decided to alter the original Project Mass a bit. Everything is going to pretty much stay the same, however on the Hypertrophy days I’m gonna replace a few hypertrophy compound exercises to strength building. Right now getting my numbers up is the most important thing to me, and what I think is the best course for my body type. Also, lifting for strength helps to build thick, dense muscle fibers. But don’t get it twisted, I will be doing plenty of bodybuilding, as it’s my first love.

Another aspect of my workouts is that I’m using free-weights 99% of the time. That’s the best way to build real, practical strength, and real, practical muscle. If I have no choice then I’ll go with machine or cables, but I’m going to do my best to keep it exclusively free-weights.

Speaking of which, yesterday I talked about my goals as far as numbers for the next 3 months. Well, I also have a few goals in terms of size. My calves are a little over 19 inches, and I want them at 20, so they’ll match my arms. My chest is around 48, and I want an even 50, and I want to bring my forearms up from 12 1/2 to 14. So, I have quite a bit of work ahead of me. I’ll be doing my best to document it all here, on instagram @CaliberWinfield, and of course the Geek’s Fitness youtube page.

Today’s workout went a little something like this…

Over-Head Press – 135×5, 5, 5

Once I was good and warmed up, I felt like I could have taken 135lb for a ride of at least 10 reps. My strength is shooting up with the quickness lately, as I was doing 120lb for sets of 3 about 6 weeks ago. I love the OHP.

Flat Bench – 225×5, 5, 5

Again, 6 weeks ago I could barely do 225 for 3 sets of 2 reps.

Incline Bench – 115×10, 10, 10, 10

Once it comes to the bodybuilding style lifts I don’t care much about the numbers, and focus completely on the muscles working through the full range of motion. Also, on compound hypertrophy movements I only rest for 60 seconds.

Sitting Shoulder Lateral Raises – 15×10, 10, 10, 10

Love these. Only rested for 30 seconds.

Dumbbell Skull Crushers – 25×10, 10, 10, 10

I use to always do cable exercises for my tricep movements, which was a big mistake because my left triceps is not only smaller, but weaker as well. These burnt like crazy, great exercise.

Side Triceps Extension -10×10, 10, 10, 10. Only rest an arm got was when the other was working.

These are great for bringing out the outside head of the triceps. You stand at a cable station, with your side facing where the handle is, then reach up with the opposite hand, grab the handle, and with your arm tight at your side, bend your arm until it’s straight. It also helps to twist your hand, so at the top, when your arm is bent 90 degrees, have your palm facing your chest, and when you twist your arm downward, twist your hand until your palm is facing behind you. It sounds a bit confusing in text, so I promise I’ll make a video of it here soon.

20 minutes of incline walking.

Pre-Workout: 20g of protein, 12oz of Gatorade & BCAA, 5g of Creatine.
IntraWorkout: 24oz of Gatorade & BCAA, also sipping on 40g of whey isolate.
Post-Workout: 30g of Whey Isolate, 5g of Creatine.