The last week of 2008 I started a new workout routine and I'm excited about carrying forward to at least the first quarter of 2009. In the last several months of 2008 there was a new guy at the gym (Paul) who was doing some circuits and had recruited another gym regular (Steve) to join him. Mid-December he and I got to talking and he invited me to join them as well. Their circuits are different enough from my boring old routine that it sounded interesting.

The workout is 6 of the following circuits:

1. wide-grip pull-ups
2. seated rows
3. dips
4. overhead triceps extensions
5. close-grip push-ups
6. bicep curls

Ideally you'd do 12 reps for each set and increase the weight on each trip through the circuit. My very first time through I only made it through 4 circuits with about 8 reps for each set. The second time I made it through 5 circuits at 8 reps per set. Today I made it through all 6 circuits with between 6 and 8 reps per set. Now that I have an idea of the weights that I should be using and the number of sets needed to make it through all 6 circuits I can start working up to 12 reps.

One of the big changes between this routine and my previous routine is the amount of rest. In my previous routine I would superset two exercises of opposing muscle groups and rest between each superset. For this routine you rest very little and only between each circuit.

I was happy with today's workout -- now lets see if I can drag myself to the gym tomorrow for some lower body exercises, which I hate with a passion.

Tags: workout

Over the past four years I've been trying to gain muscle mass, to no avail. Benjamin keeps telling me that I need to eat more. Little did I know how much more.

I spent some time googling this weekend and realized that according to a best-guess estimate, I should be consuming rougly 2200 calories a day to maintain my current weight based on my usual physical activity (which doesn't include marathon training, just going to the gym and lifting 5 days a week). Furthermore it appears that to gain muscle mass I should be consuming between 3000 and 3300 calories a day.

Those numbers didn't mean too much too me - while I always read nutrition labels, I've never been a calorie counter. A quick calculation of what I ate yesterday shows that I consumed under 2000 calories. That will never do.

So today I've been trying to eat more than usual and keep track of it all. Thus far: my usual post-workout protein shake, low-fat yogurt, Clif bar, whole-wheat spaghetti & meat sauce (that would have been lunch), a coke (I went for the regular instead of the Coke Zero that I usually have), a meal-replacement shake, a package of All-Bran Bites, and another coke (two cokes in one day is an oddity). Total calories thus far at 4pm: 1441. At this rate, I won't make it past 2000 calories today either and I'm already stuffed!.

Granted, maybe since, apparently, I've been getting along with a bit less than 2000 calories a day up until now that I probably don't need to get all the way to 3300 to gain some mass, but even the upper 2000s look like they might be a challenge.

On a related note: today's workout rating: 6 out of 10 -- not one of my better days.

Tags: workout