(Michael Gilerman)( Gym Rat Project)

 This morning was another solid, lengthy lift for me that felt very good. Again, I took a lengthy amount of time for a dynamic and static stretching warmup. I have noticed when I take a very long time to warmup I feel less sore, and get better results in the gym. From now on, I hope to make this a key part of my lifting at home and wherever I end up. The workout went from 8-10:45 am and consisted of: 5 sets of barbell hang cleans (5 reps, 4 reps, 3 reps, 3 reps, 3 reps) 5 sets of bench presses (5 reps, 4 reps, 3 reps, 3 reps, 3 reps) 5 sets of 10 barbell good mornings (empty bar no weight) 5 sets of 6-8 high incline dumbbell bench presses 5 sets of 8 single leg Romanian dead lifts 5 sets of 8 cable face pulls Superman’s Ab work I burned 698 active calories and 915 total calories during this workout. In addition, I spent an additional two hours finishing my plan, presentation, and senior project paper. What a project and I’m excited that I finished it on a high note.  Hours:5 T...

 Today was an unreal day in the gym for me and the lifting crew. I started the day off with a good meal from the dining hall, and good hydration. After breakfast I started with a very lengthy warm up to make sure I was fresh and ready for my workout. The warmup lasted an hour and consisted of static stretching, dynamic warmup, plyometrics, and squat technique primers. My workout was as follows: 1 hour of static/ dynamic warmup with 1 round of plyometrics: 10 squat jumps 10 split squat jumps 10 box jumps 10 lateral explosive step ups  5 rounds of 10 Medicine Ball Squat Throws (15 lb big ball) 5 sets of Barbell Back Squats (225 for 5) (240 for 4) (270 for 3) (275 for 3) (275 for 5) 5 sets of 5 Dummbell One Arm Rows 5 sets of six dumbbell step ups 5 sets of 8 supine rows 5 sets of 10 dumbbell reverse flys 5 sets of 10 sumo ball pushups 30 minute ab circuit The afternoon consisted of a 1 hour run and stretching  and rolling out for me, as well as continuing to work on my work...

 Another solid week in the books for our lifting crew. Previously, I had never felt such contraction in my muscles I never felt that I was actually hitting the muscle group, but over the last two weeks I can physically feel my legs getting stronger. In addition, I feel more explosive both laterally and vertically and I know my cardio is where it needs to be this time of the year. Each day there’s a heavy focus on the lower body through squats, lunges, and other exercises while also mixing in plenty of upper body work to make sure that is not lagging behind. But make no mistake, the lower body is definitely the priority. I’ve really loved and been proud of how I’ve been able to push through soreness and fatigue in some of my lifts. I am well aware not every lift is going to be perfect and pretty so I am pretty happy with how I’m pushing through adversity and fatigue. The diet was up to par this week, and I’m still burning lots of calories each day. My only complaint would be my wate...

 Well, Day 12 was Saturday morning and it definitely wasn’t what I expected or hoped for. I started off the morning feeling well after my vaccine the day before. I started with a few sets of shoulder presses , and I felt good throughout my work sets and joker sets and hit my target weight and reps. After though, my whole body felt sore and achy and the rest of the workout was a real grind for me. But like everything in life, you have to push through the adversity. The workout was 2 hours long, and pushed me to my limits with my achiness. The workout was as follows: 1 hour of rolling out + static stretching 9 sets of 3-10 barbell shoulder presses superset with pull-ups  3 sets of 10 incline dumbbell rows superset with 3 sets of 12 supine rows 3 sets of 10 bicep curls superset with 3 sets of 12 tricep push downs. Ab circuit Overall, I couldn’t be too happy because I obviously couldn’t bring the intensity and drive I always bring into this workout. But I feel super accomplished t...

 Today was an odd day for the lifting crew, as the gym was opened an hour after our arrival. While this was not ideal for us, it gave me more time for a dynamic warmup and stretching. I didn't lift today as the muscles and body felt pretty fatigued as I destroyed my legs yesterday. Today was a focus on stamina and endurance. I hammered the bike for 1.5 hours then finished with 20 minutes on the treadmill and 20 minutes of an ab routine. The focus is to keep my cardio up to snuff in the offseason as it is easy to get attached to the lifting, eating, no cardio lifestyle. That lifestyle results in the addition of bodyweight and that is not my goal. My philosophy is to train hard, lift heavy, eat smartly, and keep my cardio up to snuff. There's nothing worse than as an athlete going for a jog and ending up winded and tired. That's why I always try to keep my cardio up to snuff. Bike Circuit: 10 rounds jog 10 resistance- 1 minute sprint 15 resistance- 1 minute 1 hour cooldown jo...

 Today was another high-intensity explosive training day for me. Luckily, I didn't feel too sore heading into the workout so that was definitely a positive. I was in the gym this morning for 2.5 hours and in the afternoon I stayed in my dorm and worked on mobility and stretching with a lacrosse ball and my foam roller working on recovering for tomorrow's lift. The workout was as follows:  30-minute warm-up/ mobility 5 sets of 5 Bodyweight Explosive Lateral Step Ups 5 sets of 5 back squats superset with 5 sets of 8 Dumbbell Lat Pullovers 5 sets of 6 per side alternating dumbbell bench presses superset with 5 sets of 10 elevated hip extensions 5 sets of 10-12 supine rows superset with 5 sets of 12 dumbbell reverse flys Cardio: 10 rounds on bike 1-minute jog at 10 resistance 1 minute sprint at 15 resistance Abs: 10-15 minutes The workout was a little more rushed than I would like, and I took less of a rest time between sets. But I was proud of myself along with my durability and ...

 Today was quite an interesting day for me. I started the day with a 192.4-pound weigh-in and felt proud of myself for the work I put in yesterday. Today I was pretty sore, I'm pretty sure I'm not hydrating enough, but I know I'm hitting the 8-hour mark for sleep. I started the day off with a good breakfast, and then I took a 15-minute ice bath to curb some of my soreness. Today my workout was an arm day with metabolic conditioning and an ab circuit.  4 sets of 8-10 EZ Bar Curls Superset with 4 sets of 8-10 Preacher Curls  4 sets of 8-10 Cable Rope Extensions superset with 4 sets of 8-10 standing curls  3 sets of 8-10 skull crushers superset with 3 sets of 8-10 Hammer Curls 3 sets of 10-12 overhead cable extensions 3 sets of 10-12 close-grip underhand curls Metabolic Conditioning: 5 sets 10 Dumbbell One Arm Hang Snatches 12 Dumbbell Goblet Squats 5 per arm Dumbbell One-Arm Standing Press 8 per arm Dumbbell One-Arm Row I followed this up with 30 minutes of Abs and 20 ...

 Today was a good day for me and I was in the gym for a long time. I was in the gym today from 8:27-11:30 AM. I put in a lot of work and I could really feel the results. Today was another explosive, intense training day for me. The exercises were as follows: 5 sets of 5 barbell hang cleans 5 sets of 5 bench presses superset with Bodyweight Elevated Hip Extensions 5 sets of 10-15 5 sets of 8 incline Dumbbell bench press superset with 5 sets of 8 Romanian Deadlifts 5 sets of 20 banded back rows superset with 5 sets of 10 Dumbbell reverse fly I then followed up with cardio on the bike: 10 rounds: 1 minute of a jog at 10.0 resistance 1 minute of a sprint at 15.0 resistance I then followed up with an ab circuit. I really felt like today was one of or if not my best day in the gym. I kept the intensity at a high level, I had a high level of energy, and I felt really locked in. The workout lasted for a total of 2 hours and 35 minutes. I burned 1,081 active calories and 1,351 total calorie...

 Today I weighed in at 193.2, I'm not surprised I gained weight over the weekend because I kind of let myself have a cheat day on Sunday.  Anyways today was another hockey-oriented explosive training day. My workout was as follows: 30 minutes of dynamic/ static stretching 1 round of plyometrics: 6-8 squat jumps 6-8 split-squat jumps 6-8 box squats 6-8 explosive lateral step-ups  5 rounds: box jump w/single-leg land  5 rounds back squat supersetted w/ quadruped reaches 5 rounds DB reverse lunges supersetted with under grip pull-ups 3 rounds of planks supersetted w/ DB reverse fly AB Circuit: 15 minutes During this workout, I burned 861 active calories and 1,093 total calories during a 2 hour and 15 minute time span. I then did hockey-specific hand-eye coordination and ball-tracking drills for a total of 45 minutes. Throughout the day, I burned 1,556 active calories and 3,545 total calories. During the afternoon, I rolled and stretched for 1 hour. Trying to get enough ...

  What a first week for my senior project, I couldn’t have asked for a more fun week out of my senior project. I got to spend every morning in the gym for as long as I wanted to without any time constraints. Every day would start the same with me and the rest of the group grabbing a complete and solid breakfast from the dining hall. We all would begin lifting anywhere from 8:30-9 AM. Each day I would do about 30 minutes of a dynamic and static stretching warm-up. I wanted to make this a priority because I knew each day I’d be in the gym for two hours or more and injury was always possible. I started off the first few days with a workout plan from Ross that was centered on lifting heavyweight for an overall strength boost. These days were a lot of fun and definitely provided an ego boost while lifting really heavyweight. I started off the week with an intense leg session that lasted a few hours and required a lot of intensity and focus. Each afternoon, my afternoon activity was weig...

 Today was a good old-fashioned rest day for me. I put a lot of strain on my body this week, and it was nice to sleep late, and just rest. I kept my meals pretty clean despite the abundance of unhealthy foods Proctor has on Saturdays. Anyways, I got a nice game of softball in with some of my friends and walked to the swinging bridge of a quick swim. It was good to mentally reset and get a good physical rest. Tomorrow I plan to work on agility and endurance with a treadmill circuit along with an ab workout. I also did some research on the nutrition front and have begun the process of creating my dietary plan and workout plans. I spent about an hour on each subject. Hours: 2 Total Hours: 22 Note: *Water with protein powder for dinner*

 My Apple Watch, unfortunately, died after I completed my first workout. Anyways, I weighed in today at 192.0 lbs and I'm pretty happy with how things are going right now. But today I decided to focus on more hockey-oriented training rather than overall strength training. Hockey-oriented means I'm putting more emphasis on the lower body along with lateral and vertical explosiveness. The name of the game is explosiveness and power. I started with 6 0 minutes of stretching to ensure I'd be less at risk of injury for such intense training. The training was Plyometrics 1 set: 10 squat jumps 10 split squat jumps 10 box jumps 10 explosive lateral step-ups 5 sets lateral explosive step-ups: 5 reps 4 reps 3 reps 3reps 3reps 5 sets of 5 back squats supersetted with 8 Dumbbell lat pullovers 5 sets of 6 alternating Dumbbell Presses( 12 total) supersetted with 15 elevated hip extensions 5 sets of Dumbell curl to press along with 5 sets of 10 supine rows. I then completed a Mass Buildin...

  Today I weighed in at 192.2 lbs. I'm not mad about it because I do expect my weight to fluctuate here and there, and you have to learn how to roll with the punches. Anyways, today was a grind for me and I'm starting to feel exhausted. I can admit I am not sleeping enough, and am not perfect on hydration. Today was deadlift day and I performed : 9 heavy sets of deadlifts (maxed out at 330 lbs on set 8, and dropsetted on set 9) 3 sets of 5-10 box squats- 245 lbs  walking lunges 20 steps with an 80 lb weighted bag hand-eye-coordination and ball tracking drills That session was 2 hours and 45 minutes, the longest session I've had of the week. Mostly because I was resting a lot in between deadlift sets. I felt good, but I need to be resting more. I recovered and showed up for my afternoon activity (weight room).  I don't know why but I decided I wanted intense cardio.  HIIT Circuit: Running On treadmill Jog at 6.0 speed (1 minute) Sprint at 10.0 speed (1 minute)-10 roun...

 Today was another great day in the office for the guys. I weighed in today at 191.8 lbs, so I' my happy I keep losing weight.  Anyways, today was supposed to be a rest day for me in the gym, so in theory, I should have been just stretching. But unfortunately, I couldn't sit still and decided to target my shoulders. My workout was: Standing Presses 4 sets of 8-10 supersetted with 4 sets of 10-12 incline bench lat raises Upright Row 4 sets of 8-10 supersetted with 4 sets of 10-12 seated front raises 3 sets of 10-12 Arnold presses single arm lat raises 3 sets 8-10 DB Shrugs 4 sets of 10-12. I performed these exercises with moderate to lightweight to ensure I performed several sets with a high number of reps. I chose to perform a high number of reps for all these exercises to ensure I really felt a good muscle contraction in my shoulder, and to really fine-tune the mind-muscle connection. I got a lot of burning in. my shoulders and felt really good, I closed it out with 30 minute...

  Today started off with a good sign of progress and a testament to the hard work we put in as a group yesterday. I weighed in at 192 lbs this morning, down from 194 lbs yesterday. We started the day off with a nice clean breakfast. We had eggs, sausage, and hashbrowns making sure we had a 50% protein ratio on our plates along with 20% carbs, and we hit our 30% fat target with the eggs on our plates. Today was bench day, and I was pretty tired from yesterday, but we all got after it. I felt good through the first few sets and super-setted my bench press with dumbbell one-arm rows. I got to my highest set of 180 and hoped to accomplish five reps. Last week, I, unfortunately, got only 4. I did accomplish five reps and was pretty stoked about it, but more importantly, other guys were putting up impressive weight as well. Mitchell hit a 205lb bench press for two reps, and we immediately posted it on @proctor_lifting on Instagram. I finished out the workout with incline bench presses, s...

Today was a productive day for me and everyone else in our Proctor Lifting Crew.  I started the day with a weigh-in at 194 lbs. I like that weight for me because I feel like I'm performing well athletically and my body looks good as well. But, I knew from the start of this idea I wanted to shred and lean out during senior project. I started the morning with a bottle of water right after weigh-in as I need to be consuming a 30% increase of my body weight in ounces (126.1) ounces. Anyways, today was leg day and I was a little reluctant to go heavy on back squats as I felt some soreness in my legs. Anyways, I knew I had to bring a lot of intensity today because it was leg-day, a Monday morning, and I was sore. After, the first few sets I felt fine and moved onto a 290-pound back squat for five reps. I failed at this last week and really wanted to push closer to five. Luckily, everything went well and I managed to do it for five. I was super stoked and my friends were pretty happy for ...