Month 3: Death by Dehydration

The pyramidal period of your workout regimen has paved a vital path on your road to greatness, but now, we up the ante a bit, Veggiesaurs.

During the past two weeks, the lovely Rayan Kattoua and myself have concocted a deadly routine that sees you good and defined by the end of it, using naught but simple physiological deduction, like we do here at Veggiesaurs.

The Physiology

When isolating a muscle during a workout, say your biceps, blood rushes to that muscle due to its increasing oxygen demand, the veins and arteries are good and patent for delivery of blood, the muscle fibers fair and tense to withstand the pressure applied to it; once blood and nutrient flow is adequate, the muscle will gain a natural, very temporary pump, the skin will react with a mild increase in elasticity, due in part to sodium retention and assorted electrolyte retention.

SO, in theory, if one could dehydrate the muscle during this period, expending all electrolytes and water, whilst keeping the muscle fibres good and tight, one would gain a slightly lighter, but apparent, prolonged pump, not only will it look good for a good while after the workout, after repeated bouts of dehydrating the muscle, one can work under extreme circumstances due to the involvement of compensatory mechanisms to keep the body going.

How it's done

Attire and displaced cardio.

Yes, attire and displaced cardio.

Putting said theory to the test, Rayan and I donned much thicker garb to the gym, as opposed to shorts and tank tops, we spruced up with thick hoodies and sweatpants; as opposed to cardio before the workout, we would perform extended cardio after  the workout.

The change we saw from the first couple of days were a deciding factor in our deciding to stick to this routine for the coming three months, and as usual, you'll be joining us come Saturday.

The routine

The workout is exactly the same as your pyramidal routine, only they will not be done in pyramidal fashion, they will be done in normal, single sets, with a 30 second breather (Tone) and a one minute breather (Build) between each set, using the aforementioned weight pattern for those who look to build or tone.

Notes 

• It is imperative that you employ a set of pull ups or push ups on pull and push days, respectively, by replacing the last exercise of every routine with them.

• I say dehydrate the muscle, not yourself, drink PLENTY, if not more, water then you would usually drink during this routine, as the amount of perspiration is immense and requires constant rehydration.

On Stretching

Stretching guarantees you won't pull a muscle, it guarantees proper form if done adequately, but don't take it from me, Kermit the Frog is an authority on stretching, here he demonstrates fifteen different stretches, what they work and how they work them.

Enjoy!

On push ups and pull ups

With the pyramidal sets still ongoing, and after a fair amount of time at the gym, you have familiarized yourself with most workouts required to keep you both fit and healthy, and where that's all good and well, it means next to nothing if you cannot lift your own weight.

The set up

Push ups and pull ups are two of the greatest challenges the beginning fitness enthusiast has to overcome, and it takes time, it takes determination, and ALOT of effort to get it right and eventually pull off a decent number of reps using the multiple variations of both exercises.

the workouts you have been performing have slowly been setting you up to perform these bad boys, but you'll never be able to form-fittingly pull one off until you actually incorporate them into your workout.

Incorporate

So let's try this, for this week, eliminate one exercise from the given schedule and perform one set of either push ups, or pull ups (Push ups are best performed at the end of chest and shoulder day, pull ups ideally done on back and arm days)

Below are links showing the multiple variation of the two exercises, from beginner, to advanced sets, go slow, don't get injured, and keep it in form, you'll thank me later.

Push ups

Pull ups

Godspeed, Veggiesaurs!

On venous return

Circulation

Circulation, simply put, is the process in which arteries send oxygen rich blood from the heart to the body, veins send deoxygenated blood back to the heart for reoxygenation and the cycle repeats itself.

The blood flowing through you is not exempt from the laws of physics, it abides by the same laws of gravity that you do, the blood flow to your lower limbs requires a large amount effort on the bodies part to return it in adequate amounts to the heart, this effort comes from nerve stimulation of the veins, inducing contraction, and largely, your calves.

On calves

The gastrocnemius, or calf muscle, is the mainstay of external pressure exertion upon the veins, sending blood back up towards the great veins and eventually, the heart.

Should veins depend solely on nerve stimulation for return to the heart, inevitable weakening of the veins and inadequacy of their valves occur, leading to droppage of blood back to the lower limb, resulting in a burning feeling in at certain parts of your lower limb when any effort is performed that only subsides when at rest, and, if left unchecked, will persist through rest and will only be relieved by lifting the paining limb at a vertical angle, allowing gravity to do the job your veins could not, returning blood to the greater veins.

The pudding

During a workout your circulation rate increases to meet the bodies high oxygen demands, eventually you reach a point when you can work no further due to an immense burn and muscle failure, aside from the process of acid seeping into the muscles, which I will explain in later posts, the burn is largely due to deoxygenation and lack of upkeep of blood to the heart.

So, since the neural pathway of venous contraction is beyond our control, why not isolate our calves, work them more than once a week, in order to increase the mechanical pressure on our veins, get the blood to our hearts faster and with less neural effort, and as a result, experience prolonged workouts and prolonged stamina before burning out?

Give it some thought, Veggiesaurs, stairs are your friends, leg day should NEVER be neglected, I will post the workout plan for the week, tailoring it to increasing our peripheral venous return, stay tuned!

On month 1

Current Weight   85 Kg                                                Current Waistline: 35"

The first month has been an enlightening one for both me and the initial Veggiesaur recruits, finding their weaknesses and exploiting them, realizing their strengths and building upon them, and feeling the difference in daily life, both fitness and health wise.

I am pleased with my initial recruits, your results are promising, but we're still at the base of the mountain, we have a long, long way to go.

Another two weeks of focal pyramidal sets will continue to work us to extremes before we drop the weights and enter the aerobic phase, which may seem like a promising break, will sweat you to a puddle of fit nothingness, I will update throughout the week; Godspeed, Veggiesaurs!

Switch it up, reverse or alternate the schedule, surprising your body out of a routine and maximizing results!