Summer Ready: Lifting!

I mentioned in the last Summer Ready post that I'd been following the Lee Hayward 12 Week Workout Plan and that's very true. I've sort of needed a plan of attack to get my body right. I'm pretty down with all things fitness-- I "get" nutrition, both in the idea of understanding it as well as eating right. I try to keep a balanced diet as best I can, combining my proteins and my carbies (both simple and complex) and eating them when they will be most effective (post workout, after a night of binge drinking, etc).  

Lee's plan has you continually lift heavy, adding weights nearly weekly. How's that? By lifting heavy, but not to failure. It has also allowed me to lift virtually injury free. That's pretty awesome, because in general, my form sucks. Oh, I focus on it, but often I look like a retarded mallard when dead lifting, and I have to stare at the mirror to make sure my ass is getting low enough when I squat.

I followed the 12-Week plan to the letter (getting a little screwy in the last two or so weeks because of the National Marathon), and saw my arms increase in size as well as my legs decrease. Also, my ass got a little nicer. Hell yeah. 

I'll be keeping track of my lifts here, give 'em a try yourself. Here was yesterday's:

Exercise	Weight	#Completed
Squat [5 sets of 5]	270	5
Standing Calf Raise [5/10]	180	5
Chin Ups [4 until fail]	---	4,5, 5,5

I "super set" the squats, calf raises and chin ups back to back. The calf raises were done with the same weight as the squats, so that made it easier to go a little faster. I worked up a nice sweat, and my calves really responded to the weight. Don't cheat yourself out of maximum height with the calf raises, and do hold them at the top of your lift for a second. You'll notice a difference quickly. 

My chin-ups aren't quite to where I'd like them to be, but I'm still working on them. My lower back is getting stronger, and now that Ganesh lives on my shoulder and lats, I suppose I should work to give him more canvas by getting stronger. 

Exercise	Weight	#Completed
Dead Lifts [5/5]	180	5
Leg Lifts [5/30]	---	5

I wore a lifting belt for the first time today when doing my dead lifts. Dead lifts always scare me a little, but Aric who has the body of, like, the Hulk (only not green and stuff) and swears by them. So, I swear by them. I'd been doing stiff-leg deads for the past few weeks, so it was nice to get back to the full dead lift.  I again super-setted-- this time the deads and the leg raises.  Its important to to keep the thighs a little above parallel when doing the deads, unlike the squats, which go below parallel.