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AugustaAdaByron's (Ada's) Balancing Act


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I like your "right to change my mind" cutting rules :). If we have a scale defenestrating contest, can I join in? Also, I wasn't sure what "BIA" stood for, so I came up with some possibilities:

  • Barely Informative Accountant
  • Bloody Irritating Antagonist
  • Breaking Improves Attitude
  • Believable Insidious Anachronism
  • Blunders Instantly (Always)

If it makes you feel better, I'm still reading a kilo or two high after holidays and travel, myself. Remind me not to step on the thing until the end of this challenge.

 

On a happier note: yay for deadlifts and chalk! I didn't know they made liquid chalk. Seems like it would be less messy, too.

-:- THE LIONESS -:-

Challenge 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.10, 2.11, 2.12  

 

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Defenestrating... I hadn't heard that word before :redface:  but I like it! Yes, please feel free to join in.

 

I'd say "Barely Informative Arsehole" is more accurate (I tried to find more words that start with A to describe it but all of them contained the word ass in some way, sorry).

 

BIA = Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, a way to measure body fat using electrical impulses. And it has been completely useless and uninformative, I don't know why I still keep looking at it.

 

I'm about the same weight I was when I left (63.6kg) and it says that I've only been losing water weight and that I have 4% bf more than when I left (even though I've been drinking close to 3litres of water the past days).

 

Oh well, who cares about the scale... gym time! :D

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Workout from Thursday 15/1

 

 

Bench

 

20kg        x10

31kg        x9

33.5kg     x9

35kg        x7 (felt like there was an 8th there)

36kg        x3x2

37.5kg     x2

 

I'm not sure if it's just the cut or the still sore from Tuesday triceps or the very long break between the 35kg set and the next one. What I'm sure though is that I prefer to increase the bench than to decrease my bf%. I'll keep the cut until Saturday evening and then I'm back to eating as usual (and probably more because I will not be able to track for about a week).

 

 

Front squats

 

20kg         x10

35kg         x8

37.5kg      x6

40kg         x5

42.5kg      x4

45kg         x3

 

 

Alternating Standing DB Presses

 
5kg           x8
6kg           x8
7.5kg        x6
8.5kg        x6
 
 

I'm going to miss the next 3 sessions because I have to be away for work. The (probably too ambitious) plan is to do push-ups, bench dips, short bridges, planks, lunges, and try pistol squats while I'm away. Basically the idea is to make my (upper) body as angry with me as much as I'm with it right now so any ideas are welcome :tongue:.

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Defenestrating... I hadn't heard that word before :redface:  but I like it! Yes, please feel free to join in.

 

I'd say "Barely Informative Arsehole" is more accurate (I tried to find more words that start with A to describe it but all of them contained the word ass in some way, sorry).

 

BIA = Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis, a way to measure body fat using electrical impulses. And it has been completely useless and uninformative, I don't know why I still keep looking at it.

 

I'm about the same weight I was when I left (63.6kg) and it says that I've only been losing water weight and that I have 4% bf more than when I left (even though I've been drinking close to 3litres of water the past days).

 

Oh well, who cares about the scale... gym time! :D

 

Defenestrating is a fun word, but rarely appropriate to use in a given conversation, so I pounced at the opportunity :).

 

Ah, got it. Yeah, I doubt your lean mass dropped that much since you were lifting and eating over the holiday...

 

 

 
I'm going to miss the next 3 sessions because I have to be away for work. The (probably too ambitious) plan is to do push-ups, bench dips, short bridges, planks, lunges, and try pistol squats while I'm away. Basically the idea is to make my (upper) body as angry with me as much as I'm with it right now so any ideas are welcome :tongue:.

 

Also: push-up variations (diamond, elbows close to your sides, etc.), pike push-ups, and some sort of upper-body pull (inverted rows, DB rows with a suitcase, pull/chin-ups/deadhangs/negatives) if you can figure out a way to do them... I always have trouble finding a good set-up for the later. Have a good trip!

-:- THE LIONESS -:-

Challenge 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.10, 2.11, 2.12  

 

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Workout from Sunday 25/1

 

 

Bench

 

20kg        x10x2

30kg        x9

32.5kg     x9

35kg        x6

37.5kg     x3

37.5kg     x2x2

 

 

Squats

 

20kg       x10

40kg       x8

45kg       x6

50kg       x5

55kg       x4

57.5kg    x2

 

 

Tricep Extensions

 

2.5kg      x8

4.5kg      x8

5kg         x6x2

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Workout from Thursday 29/1

 

 

Bench

 

20kg           x11

30kg           x9

32.5kg        x9

35kg           x6

36kg           x6

37.5kg        x3

38.5kg        x2

40kg           x1

 

40kg felt like there was a second rep there but I failed 42.5kg.

 

 

Deadlift

 

55kg          x5

65kg          x5

72.5kg       x4

77.5kg       x3

82.5kg       x2

 

Deadlifts felt waaay too heavy

 
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Wow... I could hear a pin drop. Anyway...

 

Almost two weeks ago I moved to a different country with a new job.

This week I found a gym and started lifting again.

 

 

Tuesday 10/2

 

Bench

 

20kg          x10x2

28kg          x9

30kg          x8

32kg          x5x2

34kg          x3x2

 

 

Deadlifts

 

50kg          x5

55kg          x5

60kg          x4

65kg          x3

70kg          x2

 

To my disappointment the gym doesn't have appropriately sized 20s so the bar is lower than it should be. I tried to put it on some plates and then do deadlift but it's still too low. 

 

I also did alternating standing DB presses but I didn't write down the weights and I forgot them.

 

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Thursday 12/2

 

Both my arms and my legs were sore from Tuesday.

 

 

Bench

 

20kg        x10x2

28kg        x9

30kg        x8

32kg        x4

32kg        x3

 

I felt too sore and due to previous bad experience with the bench I decided to cut it short and give my muscles some time to recover properly.

 

 

Squats

 

20kg         x10

30kg         x8

35kg         x7

40kg         x6

45kg         x4

50kg         x3

 

On the last rep of the last set my knee caved in. I'm not sure how/why that happened and it's not visible on the video. I think I need to keep my knees in mind every time I do squats. It didn't look like I was twisting my torso too much but that could be because of the angle of the camera.

 

 

DB Rows

 

11kg        x8

13kg        x8

15kg        x6

17kg        x6

 

 

Also, I asked one of the trainers and she showed me how to do cable tricep extensions with rope. 

 

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Workout from Saturday 14/2

 

 

Bench

 

20kg          x10x2

28kg          x9

30kg          x8

32kg          x4

32kg          x2

 

I got really disappointed and it didn't make much sense to me to continue anyway so I stopped. Next time I'll go back to 5x5 at 30kg.

 

 

Squats

 

20kg           x10

30kg           x9

35kg           x7

40kg           x6

45kg           x5 

50kg           x4

 

I was paying more attention this time and my left knee didn't go in. However, both my knees went slightly in at the last reps of the last set.

 

 

DB Rows

 

15kg           x8x2

17kg           x6

19kg           x6

 

 

Tricep Rope Pulldown

 

1               x10x2 (I've no idea what the numbers on the machine stand for)

2               x8

2               x7

 

 

Overhead Press

 

20kg         x5x5

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Glad to have you back! Don't be too discouraged by bench--I'm sure your body is all kinds of tired from the move and new job.

 

For the deadlifts--any chance the gym has some conveniently sized blocks (like the ones that are used for weightlifting)? Or could you stack multiple plates?

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-:- THE LIONESS -:-

Challenge 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.10, 2.11, 2.12  

 

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Glad to have you back! Don't be too discouraged by bench--I'm sure your body is all kinds of tired from the move and new job.

For the deadlifts--any chance the gym has some conveniently sized blocks (like the ones that are used for weightlifting)? Or could you stack multiple plates?

Thanks Alanna! :D

It's hard not to get discouraged by the bench, it seems like I'm trying very hard and for a long time to bring it up by just 1kg and the moment I stop for a while I get set back a few months. Also my weight has settled higher than it was before Christmas so if I cut like I want to the bench will suffer even more. :(

For the deadlifts I did try to use one plate at each side but it still wasn't high enough. I'll try more plates next time and may take a tape measure with me at the gym to make sure that it's approximately close.

On the bright side, I did DB rows,ohp, and triceps in one session and didn't get DOMS.

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Workout from Tuesday 17/2

 

 

Front Squats

 

20kg           x10

25kg           x8

30kg           x6

32.5kg        x5

35kg           x4

37.5kg        x3

 

They felt really heavy.

 

 

Bench

 

20kg           x10x2

30kg           x5x5

 

Bench also felt heavier than usual, especially trying to get the bar off the stands (which hadn't happened to me before at 30kg). However, I did 5x5 and it felt like there was more I could do but since none of the lifts have been going well lately I didn't want to push it. Hopefully, I'll be able to increase it by 1kg every time (festina lente).

 

 

I was planning to do deadlifts after bench but there was not enough time due to the gym closing earlier than I expected today. Instead I did DB rows.

 

 

DB Rows

 

15kg          x8

17kg          x8

19kg          x6x2

 

 

I complained last time that my weight has settled a bit higher than I wanted to (64.1kg on Sunday). Apparently complaining about it is a very effective weight loss method for me because today (without intentionally cutting) I woke up at 62.6kg which is lighter than usual.

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Workout from Thursday 19/02

 

 

Bench

 

20kg           x10x2

25kg           x3

31kg           x5x5

 

Going for 32kg next time. It should go smoothly until at least 35/36kg.

 

 

Squats

 

20kg           x10

32.5kg        x9

37.5kg        x7

42.5kg        x6

47.5kg        x5 

52.5kg        x4

 

My left knee has a mind of its own every once in a while but I did feel like my legs were steadier this time.

Maybe I'll keep the same weight on Saturday and be more careful with my knees.

 

 

Tricep Rope Pulldown

 

1                 x15x3

 

 

DB Rows

 

15kg           x8

17kg           x8

19kg           x6x2

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None in particular.

 

My initial thoughts were to do front squats, bench, and deadlifts on Tuesdays. Then bench, squats, and accessory on Thursdays and Saturdays. The reason for front squats is that I'm forced to keep my back straight so I hope it could help with back squats. Back squats did feel easier today even though there are still problems with the form.

 

As for reps, I went back to 5x5 for bench because I'm under the impression that the progress on 5x5 was faster than on the other programme. I've kept the same one for squats but only because I had started to stall at 50kg with 5x5 and I'm afraid of going back. I've no idea what I'm going to do with deadlifts. I liked the other program more than stronglifts and don't feel comfortable going directly to working weight. Since it's only once a week I've been thinking of keeping it.

 

The short answer would be: I have no clue what I'm actually doing and whether it'll work.

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Workout from Saturday 21/02

 

The whole workout didn't go very well. I woke up very early because it was too bright outside and felt like I had barely enough energy to walk. Not even the coffee woke me up (and I've been off coffee since mid-November).

 

 

Bench

 

20kg           x10x2

25kg           x3

32kg           x5x5

 

 

Squats

 

20kg           x10

32.5kg        x9

37.5kg        x7

42.5kg        x6

47.5kg        x5 

52.5kg        x4

 

 

Tricep Rope Pulldown

 

1                 x15x3

 

I was shown a minor change in the form today which is supposed to hit the triceps even more.

 

 

DB Rows

 

15kg           x8

17kg           x8

19kg           x6x2

 

Form seemed/felt better on DB rows this time.

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