Back and triceps

 This week on Fit with Chris I will be sharing my back and triceps workout I did this past week.  Like always, I begin with a little bit of stretching and then I started my warm up with lat pull downs doing four sets of 15 to 20 repetitions (reps). After that I moved to doing single arm dumbbell rows starting light and increasing the weight each set doing five sets of 10 reps.

                I then went in to doing bent over barbell rows. These are great for strengthening your back, to really feel it work I have to bend over almost at 90 degrees when performing the rows. Because of being bent over it is important not to lift too heavy of weight to protect the back. I then did a superset with horizontal cable rope rows and tricep pushdowns. With the cable rows and tricep pushdowns I did five to six sets of 20 reps alternating between each different exercise ending with a drop set for each one too.

                After that I moved to doing a superset of tricep extensions with the rope on the cables that works the outer tricep muscle and standing lat pull downs with the EZ curl bar. The sets and reps were the same as the previous superset five to six sets of 20 reps and on the last set doing a drop set. And to finish off the workout I did a superset of 50 pull ups and four drop sets of single arm cable pushdowns.

                That is it for my back and tricep workout this week. Thank you for reading my blog and if you have any comments or ideas you want to share with me please feel free to do so. Tune in next week were I will be sharing my leg and shoulder routine.

Sources: (http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/exerciseImages/sequences/54/Male/m/54_2.jpg)( http://www.fullworkoutroutine.com/ArticleImage/6-best-arms-excercise-your-not-doing-in-gym/one-arm-reverse-grip.jpg)( https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzS7ZtjeDxYNoMdxteicHD6YKn29zbRRqrgTjPrBN6dwUXCmOG3b6ZyepnyOlsCt5W4geWoFtDybnjbShVl45fYVclVMmA8leDxJ2y7Tiw3aZuysvxMCeYXKJLZvRhQqclZ8_PTzceyXJj/s1600/pull-up-strength.jpg)( http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/exerciseImages/sequences/20/Male/m/20_2.jpg)( http://media.nola.com/running_impact/photo/dumbbell-rowjpg-fd0622c97acefb6e.jpg)( https://www.buyfitnessonline.com/catalog/images/Body_Solid_PowerLine_GLM83.jpg)( http://www.bmfclub.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/tricep-pushdowns-pakulski-quest-to-be-the-best-300x188.png)( https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/aa/eb/e9/aaebe96247c8d7fe5b2f7ce5e49b4bcb.jpg)(http://www.gympaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/standing-lat-pushdown-back-exercise-gympaws-gym-glove.jpg)

Chest and Biceps

               This week I want to talk about something amazing, supersets. A superset is when you do two workouts that work opposing muscle groups. For example doing a push exercise like pushups and then immediately after that push set you do a pull exercise like preacher curls. And alternating back and forth between those two workouts is called a superset. I have incorporated supersets in my workouts and I have notice amazing growth in muscle growth and stamina.

               

              Now I want to talk about my chest and bicep workout that I did this last week. I began with stretching my arms and chest and then moved in to doing dumbbell press and barbell drag curls.

I did four sets of 20 plus repetitions (reps) alternating back and forth between the two workouts. Then I moved to doing dumbbell flys and standing concentration curls. When doing the dumbbell flys I made sure that I felt that stretch in my chest before I contract my chest and when doing the concentration curls I make sure that I feel that squeeze when I curl up the dumbbell. I did five sets of 15 reps and when I alternate the movements I am making sure I squeeze at the point of contraction for each exercise.

                

Next on the list of workouts is incline dumbbell chest presses superset with reverse barbell curls. I did five sets of 12 to 15 reps focusing on going slow when lowering the weight and having explosive force when bringing the weight up. The last I finished with was dips and preacher curls doing 4 drop sets alternating with each exercise.

  

              And that is it for the chest and bicep workout I did this week. If you try my workout I would love to hear from you about how it went and if you have any comments on my workouts that I share please feel free to share. Be sure to visit the blog this next week, I will be sharing my back and triceps workout.

Source: (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZLHorUI-aioaZIQzB3qMUXH5UsCsuFbmSPblPrsre2LPwikJLrJsAafoaA8SFFwyO9Bn5WwIV0Spn6rFd46eitTR03FDJRao2gAu3VMvz33Ea9oW0lp32auHvdoB_ULbMpAlb39RYhiEp/s1600/BB+MRU128.jpg)( https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/f0/80/81/f080810611aaba494b492ba39b33e60a.jpg)( http://www.peakdesire.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Concentration-curls.jpg)( https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3yTDPLRg4sNOZq_EzKH20Vwa__afo9qdwjSSyN5QiBJjO1zAanhajOs5U4Nsfl8hpSNRjSUnYz50Y6X_N_RIEeb6o4vx2wZiCpokoYaCEuRNBJkXUu2hyphenhyphenIezOTDCvpxRNtPb854coE0U/s1600/dumbbell-flys.jpg)( https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/96/c5/31/96c531b18ba6a44dadda84c75b54c0e7.jpg)( http://bodybuilding-wizard.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/neutral-grip-incline-dumbbell-bench-press)(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/5e/d7/42/5ed7426d61d08277193de7707535403b.jpg)(http://www.blastyourbiceps.org/affiliates/photos/arnold-dips.jpg)

ABS

                This week I want to talk about ab workouts. There are so many different types of workouts to choose from and sometimes the best ones to choose are the most basic. When I begin my ab exercise I always start with doing Planks. Planks are really simple, you lie on the floor and put all your weight on your elbows and toes keeping your back straight and making a straight line from your head to your toes. I began with three to four sets of planks for one minute each set. And be sure to rest a minute after each set of every workout.

                After Planks I stayed on the floor and did something called Knees to Elbows. Starting in the Plank position you slowly bring one knee up to touch or almost touch your elbow and you do that for each side. I did Knees to Elbows for a minute each set and I did three sets and if I feel really good I will do an extra one or two sets. These are great for the core; when I do them I really can feel it in my upper and lower abs and my obliques. I then jumped right in to doing Mountain Climbers which are very similar to Knees to Elbows but you do it at very quick pace. The amount of sets I did were three sets for a minute each.

                Next ab exercise I did was Leg raises which is just lying on the ground and, keeping your legs straight, lifting your legs up to a 90 degree angle and lowering them back down to the ground in a controlled motion. Again I am doing around three to four sets for a minute each set concentrating on keeping my core tight as I lift and lower my legs. This exercise will give your lower abdominals a great workout. After the Leg raises I moved on to doing weighted crunches with a medicine ball. When doing these crunches I made sure to have a bar or have someone that would hold down my feet so that I could keep my feet down when I crunched. Weighted crunches are a great classic ab workout that targets the upper and lower abdominals.

                Heel touches are next on the ab list exercise, to do them you lie on your back and go side to side and reach and touch the heels of your shoes. I did heel touches for three to four sets for a minute each set really concentrating on squeezing those obliques. Doing heel touches is a fantastic way to work on those side abs and help you feel that breathtaking feeling you only get from ab workouts. Moving over to the cable machines I finished with weighted cable crunches with the rope. I absolutely love doing these, because I really feel it in my upper abdominals when I do them. When I did these I did four sets of 25 repetitions and increased the weight after each set to intensify the workout a little more.

                That is it for my amazing ab workout from this last week. Please feel free to comment and tell me what you think about my workout and if you tried it I would love to hear how it went. If you have any suggestions on future post topics please do not hesitate to comment. Stay tune for next week when I will talk about Supersets and a great chest and bicep workout.

Sources: http://www.passion4profession.net/muscles-exercises/Oblique-abdominal-exercises-l.jpg, http://c1healthcentre.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Planks.jpg, https://www.trainonline.com/images/exercises/male_plank-knee-to-elbow_2.jpg, https://raykliu.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/mountain-climbers-5.jpg, https://fitnessinvogue.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/weighted_crunch_0.jpg, http://hiitacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/leg_lifts-1024x459.jpg, http://munfitnessblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Cable-Kneeling-Crunch-Sexy-Woman.jpg          

Shoulder Day

In this post of fit with Chris I would like to share a fantastic shoulder workout that I did this past week. The first thing I did was stretch out my shoulders pulling a muscle in your shoulder can hurt like crazy and can sometimes take a while to heal so do not forget to stretch and warm up. When beginning a shoulder workout I like to start with Arnold Presses. When I started I did three to four sets of 15 to 20 repetitions (reps) making sure that I do the motion of the press with control to get the right form then I increased the weight and did three sets of five to eight reps. Form is very important with this movement, it is basically a dumbbell shoulder press but you twist your wrist during the press to exercise your front and middle deltoids.

                I then proceeded to do Military barbell presses with lighter weight around 60 pounds so that I can perform the press in front and behind my head. Doing this will really target those front and middle deltoids. In this Military barbell press I did four sets of 15 to 20 reps both in front and behind my head. When lifting behind the head it is important that you are careful and make sure the form is good so you do not hurt your shoulders.

                The next workout I did was lateral dumbbell raises with light weight. This is a great middle deltoid workout, I did four sets of 12 to 15 reps making sure that I keep my back straight. When lifting it is important to focus on raising your arms like there are strings connected to your elbows lifting them. Again it is very important to lift weight that is light enough that form is not hindered. Last I did rear deltoid flies for five sets of 12 to 15 reps when doing this exercise I made sure that I was bent over enough that my chest was touching my legs or close to that.

                That is it for that shoulder routine, I hope that you enjoyed reading about this and interested in trying it. Be sure to remember that form is very important not only to help you build muscle but it helps you avoid lifting wrong and hurting yourself. Please feel free to comment about my blog or ask questions about the things I have talked about. Stay tune for next week when I will share a great ab workout. 

Leg Day!!!

What is the one day that everyone tries to avoid during the workout week? The answer is Leg day. I cannot tell you how many times I go to the gym and workout and see these big chested muscly armed guys that have what I like to call “ chicken leg syndrome” where they are all big and buff in the upper body but the legs are skinny and really sad looking. There are too many people that go to the gym and think that it is okay just to work upper body only. No, it is not okay that is the worst way of thinking. Your body needs to have symmetry your legs should be big enough to match with your upper body. This is why leg day is so important. I am going to share a leg day workout that I did this past week that really kicked my backside.

                The first thing I did before starting my leg day workout is to make sure I stretched really well for about five to 10 minutes. After I felt loose and ready to go I jumped on the leg extension machine. I always start with the leg extension machine, I did four sets of 20 repetitions and then I moved on to the leg curl machine. On the leg curl machine I also did four sets of 20 repetitions and made sure that I was able to feel the pump in my legs before I moved on to other workouts. After the leg curls I started in to the squat rack doing front squats. Front squats are similar to normal squats where you squat with the bar on your shoulders but instead of the bar being on your back you have the bar on the front of your shoulders. Doing front squats is a really great way to strengthen your legs as long as you keep your form looking good. In my front squat workout I used light weight and did four sets of 10 repetitions.

                Dead lifts are next in my workout, I did three sets of 15 repetitions. When doing dead lifts you need to make sure your form is correct or else you can hurt your lower back. I would suggest using lower weight till you are able to lift with better form then as you get stronger move up in weight that is how I started. Next in the workout plan is the leg press, I did two sets of 15 repetitions then added more weight and then did two sets of eight repetitions and then I added more weight and did two sets of five repetitions and then lowered the weight and did a drop set.

                The last thing on the workout agenda is Calve raisers. I stayed on the leg press machine to do my calve workout, I did six sets of 15 repetitions. As I did the workout I repositioned my feet in different ways to really exercise the different muscles in my calves. First I pointed my toes parallel like I would when squatting and did two sets like that. Second I pointed my toes inward so they made an upside down V and I did two sets with my feet in that position. In the last position I pointed my feet out making a V shape with them. As I did these different positions I must admit I felt kind of like a ballerina but the effect that it had on my calves was well worth it.

            And that is it for my Leg work out for this week. Thank you for reading, stay tune for next week when I will talk about a shoulder routine that will help you build muscle and tone up your shoulders. Please feel free to comment on my posts, I am more than happy to respond and if you have any ideas or suggestions I am open to hear them. Again thank you for reading and remember to never skip leg day.


Sources:(http://www.mensfitness.com/sites/mensfitness.com/files/styles/photo_gallery_full/public/9-machines-to-avoid-front-squat.jpg?itok=vmthbJJO)(http://workoutlabs.com/wp-content/uploads/watermarked/Leg_press.png)(http://workoutlabs.com/wp-content/uploads/watermarked/Seated_Leg_curl.png)(http://workoutlabs.com/wp-content/uploads/watermarked/Seated_Machine_Leg_Extensions.png)(http://static.wixstatic.com/media/983e66_0b9250802e484f82a0c4abb91d68d757.jpg)(https://i.ytimg.com/vi/PLtAYmjLwqQ/hqdefault.jpg)(http://media3.popsugar-assets.com/files/2013/08/02/858/n/1922729/e54a4fd1eb3f3248_internal-rotation/i/Calf-Raises-Internal-Rotation.jpg)(http://media1.popsugar-assets.com/files/2013/08/02/858/n/1922729/35c88ec584b712f0_external-rotation.xxxlarge/i/Calf-Raises-External-Rotation.jpg)