John Hansens Training Diary Week of Dec 9th 2007

by: John Hansen - December 15th, 2007

John Hansen’s Diary – Week of 12-9-07

Monday, December 10th, 2007
I was back in the gym today to begin Week 6 of my training cycle. I’ve got five more weeks of training before I take a week’s vacation. I’m trying to increase my strength and, hopefully, my muscle mass over this 10 week cycle without increasing my bodyfat.

Today was my chest and triceps workout at the gym. I was stronger on nearly every exercise but my left elbow was really bothering me today during the workout. It was hurting on the pressing movements for chest and it was really hurting during my triceps workout. Here is how the workout went today:

DB Bench Press 75x12, 100x10, 125x6, 125x5
Incline Barbell Press 185x12, 225x10, 265x5
Incline Flyes 80x10, 85x8, 85x8
Close-Grip Bench Press 135x12, 185x10, 205x8
Seated DB Extension 95x12, 100x10, 110x10
Bench Dips BWx15, 80x12 followed by BWx10
x 2 sets

My bodyweight this morning was up a little to 215.5 pounds with the waist holding steady at 35 ½”. My waist has been 35 ½” since last Friday so maybe I can get it down this week. Here is what I ate today:

Meal 1 – 1 egg, 9 egg whites, 1 cup of oatmeal, ½ cup blueberries
Meal 2 – Protein Drink consisting of 2 scoops Whey Gold Standard, 1 T. flaxseed oil
Meal 3 – (Pre-workout) – 1 serving of Whey Gold, 1 serving creatine
Meal 4 – (During workout) – 1 serving Vassive EA8, 1 serving Vassive-NO
Meal 5 – (Post-workout) – 2 scoops 2:1:1 Recovery, 1 serving creatine
Meal 6 – 4.34 oz lean ground turkey, 127 grams sweet potato, 3.03 oz broccoli
Meal 7 – Protein Drink consisting of 1 scoop Pro Complex, 1 scoop Casein Protein
Meal 8 – 6 oz marinated salmon, 1 cup green beans
Meal 9 – Protein Drink consisting of 2 scoops Casein Protein, 1 T. flaxseed oil

Today’s diet added up to 2843 calories with 312 grams of protein, 226 grams of carbs and 69 grams of fat. This breaks down to 44% protein, 32% carbohydrates and 22% fats.

Tuesday, December 11th, 2007
We trained back and biceps today. My lower back was feeling a little weak so I spent a few minutes before the workout doing some floor exercises for the lower back to strengthen it up. I also did my yoga for 20 minutes this morning before I left for the gym. I wanted to make sure I protected my back today because I was planning on doing barbell rows and deadlifts.

I haven’t done this workout for almost a month (November 15th) because I did the “girlie man” workout the last time I was scheduled to do this workout. My back was a little strained from the previous leg workout two weeks ago and I didn’t want to risk straining my lower back by doing barbell rows or deadlifts. Today, I was going to do the REAL workout and get back to basics. Here is how the workout went:

Close-Grip Pulldowns 130x15, 180x10
Barbell Rows 185x12, 225x10, 255x7, 255x6
Seated Cable Rows 250x10, 250x9, 250x8
Deadlifts 225x12, 315x9, 345x7
Incline Curls 45x10, 50x8, 50x7
Barbell Curls 95x10, 115x8
Hammer Curls 45x10, 50x8
Standing Calf Raises 320x15, 420x12, 500x10
Seated Calf Raises 100x15, 150x12, 200x8

I went a little lighter today than I did on this workout last month. I only went up to 255 for Barbell Rows and I stayed at 250 (the full weight stack at the gym) for Seated Cable Rows. The Deadlifts didn’t feel really strong so I only went up to 345 on the last set, doing them real slowly to feel it in the lower back.

On biceps, I did go slightly heavier than I did last month. I went up to 50’s on Incline Curls and 115 pounds on Barbell Curls. I finished off with Hammer Curls and then did calves because I skipped them yesterday. I did three sets of Standing Calf Raises and three sets of Seated Calf Raises to finish off the workout.

My bodyweight and my waist were about the same as yesterday. I weighed 215 pounds this morning and my waist was still at 35 ½”. My diet was a little off today because I stopped by Potbelly’s again for lunch after the workout instead of having my normal meal of lean, ground turkey, sweet potato and broccoli. I had my standard Tuna Salad on Whole Wheat with only lettuce and tomato but I added a cup of Chili along with the always present Oatmeal-Chocolate Chip Cookie. We’ll see what this does to the waistline tomorrow.

Wednesday, December 12th, 2007
Wow, my weight was up a pound and a half today to 216.5 pounds but the waist expanded an extra ¼” to 35 ¾”! I’m sure this was due to the high sodium from the Potbelly’s meal yesterday.

I went back on my normal diet today because it was a day off from training. However, I did go out to dinner in the evening to Japonais, a very popular sushi restaurant in Chicago. The sushi wasn’t bad but I did add a couple of Chocolate Martini’s to the meal. Here is what I ate today:

Meal 1 – Protein Drink consisting of 1 scoop of Whey Gold, 1 scoop Pro Complex
Meal 2 – 1 egg, 9 egg whites, 1 cup of oatmeal, ½ cup blueberries
Meal 3 – Protein Drink consisting of 1 scoop Pro Complex, 1 scoop Casein Protein, 1 T. flaxseed oil
Meal 4 – 3.88 oz lean ground turkey, 148 grams sweet potato, 3.03 oz broccoli
Meal 5 – Protein Drink consisting of 1 serving Pro Complex, 1 serving Casein Protien
Meal 6 – Cheat Meal at Japonais Restaurant
Meal 7 – 6 oz marinated salmon, 1 t. peanut butter

Friday, December 14th, 2007
I missed the workout yesterday because I didn’t get enough sleep and I took a nap in the afternoon instead of training at the gym. Since Matt did shoulders and calves yesterday, I did legs with him today and I’ll do the workout I missed tomorrow.

Today’s leg workout went really well. I went heavier on a couple exercises including Front Squats and Walking Lunges. Here is how the workout went:

Hanging Knee Raises BWx40, BWx30
Crunches – Bench BWx35, BWx25
Leg Curls 110x12, 130x10, 140x8
DB Stiff-leg Deadlifts 100x12, 125x10, 130x7
Leg Extensions (Body Master) 130x20, 170x15, 200x12
Leg Press 450x15, 630x12, 810x12,
860x10
Front Squats 135x12, 185x8, 205x8
Walking Lunges 115x12, 125x12

My weight in the morning before breakfast was at 213.5 pounds and my
waist was at 35 ½”. I ate pretty good today but I did go to the Patio
restaurant near my house for lunch. Other than that, I stayed on my diet.
Here is what I ate today:

Meal 1 – 1 egg, 9 egg whites, 1 cup of oatmeal, ½ cup blueberries
Meal 2 – (Pre-Workout) – 1 serving Whey Gold Standard, 1 serving creatine
Meal 3 – (During Workout) – 1 serving Vassive EA8, 1 serving Vassive-
NO, 1 serving Waxy Maize
Meal 4 – (Post Workout) – 2 scoops 2:1:1 Recovery, 1 serving creatine
Meal 5 – Chicken Sandwich and Soup at the Patio Restaurant
Meal 6 – Protein Drink consisting of 1 scoop of Pro Complex, 1 scoop
Casein Protein, 1 T. flaxseed oil
Meal 7 – 6 oz marinated salmon, 1 cup green beans
Meal 8 – Protein Drink consisting of 2 scoops Casein Protein, 1 T. flaxseed
oil

Saturday, December 15th, 2007
Today is the end of the sixth week of training. My goal during this 10 week
training cycle is to increase my muscle mass and strength without adding
any excessive bodyfat. I’m not trying to bulk up, just slowly increase my
size and strength without getting any fatter.

I took measurements at the end of the first week of this training cycle back
on Saturday, November 10th, 2007. Now, it is five weeks later and I wanted
to compare the results. My bodyweight this morning was at 212.5 pounds
with my waist still holding at 35 ½”. I took my measurements and weight
today at 1pm so the weight and waist were a little higher. Here is the
comparison from today to five weeks ago:

Saturday, Nov. 10th
Weight – 210.5
Chest – 47 ½”
Waist – 35 ½”
Arms – 18 ¼”
Thighs – 25 ¼”
Calves – 16 ½”
Forearms – 14”
Neck – 16 ½”
Bodyfat – 11.2%
Muscle Weight – 186.5 lbs.
Fat Weight – 24 lbs

Saturday, Dec. 15th
Weight - 217.5
Chest - 48"
Waist - 35 1/2"
Arms - 18 1/4"
Thighs - 25 3/4"
Calves - 16 3/4"
Forearms - 14 1/4"
Neck - 17"
Bodyfat - 11.2%
Muscle Weight - 193 lbs
Fat Weight - 24.5 lbs

I was pretty happy with these measurements. I’ve been gradually increasing
the poundages in my workouts over the last five weeks so it’s good to see
that this has translated to more size. The most positive feedback from this
comparison is that my bodyfat percentage is the same while my weight is
seven pounds heavier. This might be slightly misleading because I may have
weighed myself in the morning for the first set of measurements but, even if
I did, I am still several pounds heavier after five weeks of training and my
bodyfat is the same.

In addition to the increase in lean muscle, I also added size to my chest, legs,
calves, forearms and neck. I was glad to see my chest and legs go up a full
half an inch. I think this is from being able to do consistent leg workouts for
the first time in a few months after recovering from the tendonitis in my
right knee. With my chest, I am now able to do barbell movements for the
pressing exercises like bench press and incline press. For the last couple of
months, I was limited to dumbbells because of my bad left elbow.

I went to the gym today to do the shoulder and calf workout I missed on
Thursday. I went up to the 100 pound dumbbells for the first time in months
on the Seated DB Press and I increased the weight on Upright Rows and DB
Shrugs. Matt was in the gym today so he sat on my back for Donkey Calf
Raises so I got a good calf workout in also.

Seated DB Press 45x15, 70x12, 95x10, 100x7
Seated Side Laterals 40x12, 45x10, 50x9, 50x8
Upright Rows 125x10, 145x8
Lying Side Laterals 30x12, 35x10, 35x10
DB Shrugs 110x12, 135x10, 135x10
Donkey Calf Raises 190 plus 45 x 25, 190 plus 135 x 25,
190 plus 135 x 25
Leg Press Calf Raises 540x12, 630x10, 630x8

My diet was pretty good today but I did go out for dinner at night and had a
steak and baked potato dinner. I’ve made a resolution that I will not eat at
either the Patio or Potbelly’s restaurants for lunch over the next four weeks
so I can get leaner before my vacation to Costa Rica.

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