Push-Ups Revision

I'm in Week 19 at Day 2 and I realized I hadn't been making the large rep sets. The formula I had made increased too rapidly at one point and now it's too high of a goal to even be reasonable. I intend to get to 200 continuous reps in one set, but for now, 145 is my highest. So I'm dialing back the last set, and have added three sets: close-grip push-ups, decline close-grip push-ups, and a second set of three-chair push-ups.

I think I might try to find a way to elevate my feet even more for a decline to help me advance to handstand push-ups.

Routine Flaws

I just came upon FiftyPullups. It states several times: 7 weeks to 50 pull-ups, but when you look at the actual program, it's actually 17 weeks and that's if you can do 13 pull-ups in one session at the start. There's also prep weeks that include negatives, and if you were to do them as well, it would be 23 weeks total (6 months) and the highest rep you do is 35. So even after 6 months, you're taking a long shot in trying to hit 50 reps. That's a similar problem with HundredPushups, it claims it can get you to 100 reps in a row, but in the program, the highest rep is 60. And somehow you're supposed to bang out another 40 reps after doing 60 for the first time.

Dips

I realized I hadn't included anything on dips on this site yet. I had never been able to do them prior to high-rep push-ups. They were never a goal or something I planned to add to my routine. At first I was only doing push-ups, then I added pull-ups, and one day I tried them since I knew I should have the tricep strength to do them. I matched how many pull-ups I did, and I've been doing that since then. At first, the pull-up counts were smaller, and the dips were easy, so I'd do them very slowly in an isometric style, but the quantity is finally ramping up, and I'm speeding up.

I wasn't a fan of chair dips as I didn't feel I was able to get full range of motion, but on parallel bars, you're lifting your entire bodyweight, and you're able to get such a nice stretch out of your chest. I love sinking low in the dip.

Pull-Ups Chart

I've added a Week 4.5 to the Pull-Ups Chart. Sometimes there's just too big of a gap in the pattern between weeks and you need to create a workout between your last one and the one just beyond your reach. I've always enjoyed performing pull-ups, but on Wednesday, I did 41 total in 7 sets.

Similar to the high-rep push-ups I perform, entering the 40 range in pull-ups, I feel like I've hit a new plateau. In this state, I don't feel like I have strength, I'm rather dazed and hazy, but I have a confidence in my abilities and I know that I can do the next set. It's a sort of endurance that knows no end. It's like the autopilot feeling I've mentioned. I can't wait to hit three digit pull-up counts. I attribute my recent success in pull-ups due to concentrating on my lats, and flexing them often throughout the day, so that each time I perform a pull-up, I can flex my lats to boost me like a rocket over the bar.

I'll be making a Week 5.5 as well, and after Week 6, I'll devise a formula that has a smaller increase in reps with each week. In my experience, I've found that increasing what you do each week by just a little amount gives you guaranteed results, whereas trying to set big goals more frequently and advance more rapidly leads to injury, failure, and ultimately a weaker mental game.

Log Update

575 push-ups
85 exercise ball ab moves

My last workout, Wednesday, caused intense soreness in my right bicep. I didn't think I'd be able to workout today, but I decided to cut the pull-ups and dips, and only perform push-ups and use the exercise ball since my tailbone is black-and-blued from choosing too hard a surface for ab exercises.

Abs

I devised a list of 25 ab exercises from 3 workout tapes: Abs

Incline Push-Ups

I'm still not fully knowledgeable on whether or not incline push-ups are useful to work your lower chest. Declines work the upper chest, so logic tells me incline works the lower chest. I haven't assigned any sets to the inclines, but if I fail a set, I'll finish it with incline push-ups. This doesn't happen often, but it's worked in my favor. If you never fail any sets, then I'd suggest doing 30 or so either before or after the majority of push-ups.

Planks

I haven't done planks or my core routine in 3 weeks and 3 days. I feel a bit embarrassed, but I'll explain. I also dropped doing regular crunches 2 weeks and 2 days ago. The planks seemed to sap more strength than I was planning to exert for them. Especially on the side flags with your hand on the ground and arm locked. I didn't like how much arm strength it used. As far as the regular planks, they were always such hell to endure and I think may have been a source of back pain from poor form.

I don't want to close the book on planks, but for now they're not for me. I may incorporate them later on. The regular crunches weren't targeting a large enough region of my abs. It's not enough of a compound exercise, which would work multiple muscles and regions. I've been happy with the 10-20 reps per ab exercise. The low rep count allows me to focus on form and make each one count that much more.

I actually don't like four of the ten exercises in Ab Ripper 100/200. The leg lifts, I don't feel in the abs enough, hip rock, I don't think I understand the technique, bicycle crunches, my form's too sloppy, and the whole body crunch is painful on my back. So I'll be swapping these 4 out with new ones shortly. I'll be posting the Ab Ripper X list of exercises and I'll be trying them out for the first time.

Pull-Ups Chart Tweak

I split the wide parallel pull-ups with close-grip chin-ups now. I read that the close-grip chin-ups target the biceps very well for a bodyweight exercise. I also just wanted more chin-ups in general. They're my favorite style of pull-up.

Log Update 100917

550 push-ups
35 pull-ups
35 dips
ab ripper 200 (20 reps, 10 sets)

Pull-Ups Chart

I've detailed out the pull-up chart with the different variations. Week 5 and 6 have 2 additional sets each. Pull-Ups Chart

Push-Up Chart Revision

For Weeks 16-35, I've changed the layout so that it shows the 8 sets for Day 1, and 11 sets for Day 2-3. It's the same formula as before, but visually broken up into into the separate variations.

Log Update 100910

525 push-ups, entering Week 17 and including incline push-ups for lower chest
32 pull-ups
32 dips
1 ab ripper 100 routine (10 sets, 15 reps)

Supplements

I haven't ventured far into the world of experimenting with supplements. I scored a bottle of Orange Triad from Controlled Labs, which I'm excited to implement into my routine. It's a multivitamin with joint relief, digestion control, and immunity. I'll be trying some samples of various companies within the next few weeks. I'll be reporting back on my experiences.

Core Holds

cobras (lay on floor belly down and lean on arms, navel off floor.)

superman (lay on floor belly down and lift arms and legs up towards ceiling nad straight.

hip raiser (sit on bottom, push hips ahead and up so that your legs and arms create a table with your torso the table, hold for 3 seconds.)

air plunges (lay on back, legs straight up in air, using your arms to push against the ground, raise hips off ground high as you can, lower hips slowly)

inverse push-ups back, legs bent, place hands on ground near your head, push your body up until arms almost straight, exhale going up, inhale coming down.

thumbs up (lay on belly, lift shoulders and head off ground, arms out horizontal, thumbs up)

standing knee raises (abs) raise left knee as high as possible, hold it up for three seconds

New Variations

With the major improvements I've had from adding variations to the push-ups and pull-ups, I've added a new pull-up variation, the alternating chin-up, and I've added more sets to be able to incorporate the extra variations. Eleven sets of push-ups with six variations and six sets of pull-ups with 5 variations.

Push-Ups
Set
1 decline push-ups
2 decline push-ups
3 push-ups
4 push-ups
5 triangle push-ups
6 triangle push-ups
7 three chair push-ups
8 wide push-ups
9 decline wide push-ups
10 decline wide push-ups
11 push-ups

Pull-Ups
Set
1 chin-ups
2 pull-ups
3 under/over pull-ups
4 wide parallel pull-ups
5 alternating chin-ups
6 chin-ups

Failures = Breakthroughs

When there's no roadblocks, you're just moving and flying through, building progress upon progress, but then there's that brick wall. Many a man hit that wall and get frustrated. But the wall resembles a challenge, which you must look at with fresh eyes and decipher your own way of breaking through the wall.

I just recently went through a wall, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I can see another wall though and I'm getting mentally prepared for it.

Log Update

500 push-ups, on to Week 16 of 35 on the road to 1000 push-ups
26 pull-ups
26 dips
44 squats
1 ab ripper 100 routine