So, the main update -- I finished Phase 4 of NROL4W!
My main obstacle has been my thigh injury. It still hurts pretty bad -- so I'm taking the next 3 days off (which works coz' I'll be out of the country) to just rest it up and ice it down --- hopefully it'll feel better by the time I get back. If not ... I may have to go see a doctor, but I really hope it doesn't come to that!
Anyway. As a result of this injury there were a few exercises I struggled with -- particularly lunges and the single-leg squat for my left leg. I'm having trouble balancing on my left leg. I just feel a great amount of strain on my thigh muscle ... so, as I said, a bit of rest will do it good.
Other than that, I think I did pretty good on my weights. I didn't see as much improvement in terms of heavier lifting in all the exercises as in the past ... for example, the YTWL shoulder raises -- that's a total of 24 shoulder raises x 3 sets ... I started off with 5 kg/hand and really struggled to complete 24 in a row, so I dropped it down to 4 kg/hand and it was much better ... My form was good, it was challenging but not crazy tough. By the end of the month I was able to go back to 5 kg/hand -- the last reps were still a bit tough. So, only a 1 kg difference, but definitely improvement in strength in terms of completing the exercise with good form.
The other exercise I really struggled with is the wide-grip lat pull. Pulling at 41 kg is fine, but the jump up to 48 kg (nothing in between) was tough. I still haven't perfected it ... but I'll keep working on it!
In any case, I know it's not about the final number. It's about doing it right -- and I can definitely say that I have concentrated on making sure I complete each exercise to the best of my ability.
So here are the numbers:
Workout A:
| | Feb. 12, 2012 | Mar. 12, 2012 |
| One-armed dumbbell snatch | 6 kg each hand | 10 kg each hand |
| Dumbbell single-leg Romanian deadlift | 7 kg each hand | 10 kg each hand |
| Barbell bent-over row | 15 kg | 35 kg |
| Dumbbell single-arm overhead squat | 4 kg+8 kg | 5 kg+10 kg |
| Dumbbell incline bench press | 7 kg each hand | 12.5 kg. each hand |
| Plank (90 sec) | bw | bw |
| Reverse wood chop | 8 kg | 18 kg |
Workout B:
| | Feb. 14, 2012 | Mar. 14, 2012 |
| Barbell Romanian deadlift | 25 kg | 45 kg |
| Partial single-leg squat | 5 kg | 10 kg/hand |
| Wide-grip lat pull | 41 kg | 48 kg |
| Back extension | 41 kg | 72 kg |
| YTWL | 4 kg/hand | 5 kg/hand |
| Swiss ball crunch | 100 | 150 |
| Prone jackknife | 12 | 35 |
| Lateral flexion | 24 | 30 |
| Prone cobra | 18 | 30 |
After returning from Bahrain I'll probably take a week off from the program to change up my routine a bit before getting into Phase 5.
Will blog when I get back!
Ciao!
Have a wonderful trip, will look for an update when you get back!
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