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FIT BY 40

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Gareth

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INTRO

Greetings. Welcome to my training log. My name is Gareth and I'm a 39yr old guy living in Perth, Australia.
I'm putting this log up in an effort to gain some accountability in my training. For a long time now I've been trying to get into strength training but find myself struggling to stay consistent and I've not made much progress because of this. Well, I'm turning 40 in a couple of months and it's time I got serious.

BACKGROUND

I've been swimming for the last few years, but mainly over summer. Between November and April when my local pool is open I'll swim every day I'm not working ( 7 days a fortnight). But over winter when my local pool is closed I have to drive 25mins to the nearest pool and I only end up swimming 1-2/week. I've been doing a little strength training lately, but not on a consistent basis.

GOALS

My goals are very modest, I mainly want to be fit and healthy. I found an article by Dan John on strength standards, so I've based my goals around that.
  • 15 x bodyweight bench press
  • 5 x chinups with 32kg
  • 5 x press single 32kg kettlebell
  • 2x bodyweight deadlift
  • 15 x bodyweight squat
I also have some running and swimming goals.
  • Trail run 1.5hrs. Not bothered about pace, I just want to be able to run.
  • 1500m swim in 25mins (1m40s/100m pace).
Also, I need to put some meat on my bones. I'm 183cm (6'0") and 73kg (160lbs) with a 32" waist and approx 12% bodyfat, so pretty skinny. I won't be "bulking", I'll just eat more on the days I train and see how things go.

ROUTINE

I've written my own program based on my goals. I work 12 hour shifts and when you add the commute I only get 2hrs to myself each day if I want to get 8hrs sleep. Of course, I never get 8hrs sleep and that's half my problem, I always feel burnt out and miss training because of it. I also work a weird roster because of the 12hr shifts, I work 7 days out of 14. Previously, I've tried to train on days that I work, but it just doesn't work for me.

I've based my routine around the squat, press, chinup, kettlebell swing and TGU. I want to build up to doing high volume swings so I'll program them accordingly.



FINAL THOUGHTS

Well, tomorrow will be my first session on this new routine and I'll be posting my progress for the world to see (first time for me). I'm hoping the accountability will lead to progress, so we'll see. All comments and chat welcome.

G
 
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WEEK 1 DAY 1

Barbell squat 50kg 3 x 5
Chinups 16kg added 3 x 5
Bodyweight chinups 3 x 10
Two handed kettlebell swing 24kg 5 x 10

Run : C25K WK1D1

Really happy about smashin this out today. Just got back from my run, feeling good!
 
WEEK 1 DAY 2

SWIM : 3km freestyle/breastroke mix

3 x 5 16kg goblet squat
5 x 10 16kg KB press, both sides
5 x 10 16kg 1H KB swing, both sides
5 x 1 16kg TGU, both sides

Enjoyed the light day today.
 
Hey @Gareth - this looks like a pretty cool schedule you've come up with to fit your work schedule.

I'm curious about your goals though - you list goals for deadlift and bench press, but don't currently work them in your plan. I like that you're hyper focused on some specific movements, but was wondering if this is the first phase of a larger plan?

As a thought - have you seen the Daily Dose Deadlift Plan? It could be a nice way to introduce deadlifts into your program without causing too much fatigue.

Finally, I wanted to say welcome to the forum and I hope you continue to log your workouts here! I love seeing everyone's progress and how we all train.
 
@Groove Greaser : Hey mate, thanks for the warm welcome... I've done a lot of reading on this forum, I like it, there's a good vibe here, a lot of knowledge and impressive athletes, great inspiration.

My longer term plan is to rotate lifts every 12 weeks, so I'll swap the overhead press for bench press, back squat for front squat, etc. I haven't seen the Daily Dose Deadlift plan, however, I've heard of people pulling decent numbers after building up to heavy kettlebell swings so I'm going to give that a shot. I'll checkout the link though, thanks for that.

I noticed you've got a workout log, I'll check it out on the weekend and say hello.

G
 
WEEK 1 DAY 4

RUN : C25K WK1D2

I was meant to swim after work today, however, I've been rostered an extra shift tomorrow so I decided to run instead (swimming just takes so much longer). Tomorrow's strength session will get pushed forward one day.
 
WEEK 1 DAY 6

RUN : C25K WK1D3

Barbell squat 57.5kg 3 x 3
Chinups 24kg added 3 x 3
Two handed kettlebell swing 24kg 8 x 10

Pretty much at my max on the squat and chinups here, could maybe get an extra rep on the first set. Good workout!
 
WEEK 1 DAY 7

Kettlebell press 24kg 5 x 2 both sides
Kettlebell press 16kg 3 x 10 both sides

SWIM : 2.5km freestyle drills

5 x 10 16kg 1H KB swing, both sides
5 x 1 16kg TGU, both sides

First time I've attempted to press that 24kg, happy to get 2 reps each side. Easy swim today.
 
WEEK 2 DAY 3

RUN : C25KW2D1

Didn't do my strength session today. Just didn't have the energy. Will add back squat and chinups to tomorrows workout.
 
WEEK 2 DAY 4

57.5kg squat 5 x 3
Chinups 24kg added 3 x 3
Kettlebell press 24kg 5 x 2 both sides
Two handed kettlebell swing 24kg 10 x 10

SWIM : 2km swim mix freestyle/breakstroke/drills.

Great workout today. Missed the getups because my left shoulder was a bit sore.
 
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WEEK 2 DAY 5 (yesterday)

RUN : C25K W2D2

Running in the rain on a Saturday night. Good times.
 
WEEK 3 DAY 1

RUN : C25K W2D3

50kg squat 3 x 5
Chinups 16kg added 3 x 5
37.5kg Barbell Press 3 x 8
Two handed kettlebell swing 24kg 10 x 10

I'm liking hitting all 4 exercises on the same day. I did the squats after my run and then superset'd the chinups and OHP. Switched to barbell press instead of kettlebell for a bit. Gonna make some tweaks to my routine.
 
WEEK 3 DAY 4

Can't make it to the pool after work today, unfortunately, have to take my parents to the airport. I'll swim tomorrow instead.
 
WEEK 3 DAY 5

RUN : C25K WK3D1

50kg squat 4 x 5
Chinups 16kg added 4 x 5
43kg Barbell Press 3 x 5
Two handed kettlebell swing 24kg 10 x 10

Didn't swim today, was a bit tired after the swings and skipped it. Got the next 6 days off work so I'll add extra training.
 
WEEK 4 DAY 3

RUN : C25K W3D2

57.5kg squat 5 x 3
Chinups 24kg added 4 x 3
OHP 47.5kg 3 x 3
Two handed kettlebell swing 24kg 10 x 10

Didn't wanna do it, did it anyway. Happy about that.
 
WEEK 4 DAY 6

Bombed out on my training after work tonight, just wasn't feel'in it. Didn't get much sleep last night, stayed up watching World Cup, tired all day. Not sure I'm gonna be able to stick to this schedule.
 
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