Lambda's Training Log

[Lambda]

Hello there and welcome to my training log.

Background
I have always been small, tiniest or among the tiniest all through school and beyond. While I did start to grow vertically I still remained very thin and I still is. I have started to go to the gym a couple of times in the past (several years ago now) but it never stuck, either my training partner stopped going or I quit due to other reasons. One of those reasons was that I got diagnosed with http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulcerative_colitis,it is a bowel disease, and it usually results in weight loss and fatigue. It is a chronic disease which means I will always have it but usually it lies sleeping with only minor effects on my stomach and bowels, but from time to time I get a flare up which usually means cortisone and other medications and rapid weight loss. This is part of the reason I would like to gain weight and muscles; if I get really bad or need surgery I will be in much better shape to handle it well and recover faster if I'm healthier. The other reason is that I sleep better when I work out, it is nice in ordinary life to be a little stronger than I am now when it comes to lifting things and finally I won't look so thin.

Training and Nutrition
I'm a nerd, which has both disadvantages and advantages. The disadvantage is that I work with computers and I usually sit in front of one at home too, years of doing that combined with little appetite has resulted in a thin extremely untrained guy. The positive side is that while I did not continue training in the past I still continued to be interested in the theoretical parts of nutrition and some training. So after some years of reading Pubmed and other forums, learning to filter the bullshit and the outdated information I think I've learned to see whats decent and whats bad. That said, I will really try out Stronglifts 5*5 beginner program. It both looks fun and excellent for what I want out of the gym. I might have some problem with stalling early due to being very weak in some of the exercises, but I will cross that bridge when I get there.

I will not count calories at a the beginning, I will instead try to eat more by adding breakfast (yeah, I know I suck that I don't eat it already) and eating more when I can. If that does not work I will start counting to see where I'm really missing. I might add some whey protein and creatine later, depending on how my stomach reacts to them.

Stats
Age: 27
Sex: Male
Height: 179cm
Weight: 56kg (I said I was thin)

Goals
I would like to weigh over 65 kg on New Years Eve, there is no special occasion or suit I need to get into but it feels like a natural milestone. I think this is doable barring any really bad flareups from the Ulcerative Colitis. Strength stats are harder due to me not knowing what is possible for me at this moment, I will be very satisfied if I have gone to the gym 3 days a week until New Years Eve (and beyond of course).

When I read this again I realize that I sound whiny when I describe my background, this should not be interpreted as such though. I think it has to do with English being my second language and that makes it harder to describe things (I do love Firefox spellchecker though). Anyway I'm really excited and happy and a lot of people are way worse of than me and has accomplished amazing things.

[Lambda]

Workout 1

Warm up 5 minutes
I started with warming up on a bicycle in the cardio room and quickly realized that me starting training was really needed.

Squats at 20kg
5 5 5 5 5
I knew my legs were pretty weak but me not being used to squats (just tried them before) made them actually shake from that low weight. It felt good though. Not sure how or if I will raise weights next time or continue to work with the bar a couple of more times and try to get more depth.

Bench Press at 20kg
5 5 5 5 5
Pretty easy, I guess my maximum at the moment lies around 45ish. I think I can raise slowly and by the time I hit 45 I will be able to take more.

Barbell Row at 20kg
5 5 5 5 5
I was not sure how I should bend my legs and my back to get a good form. I also realized I need to stretch my legs better due to them feeling weird when I tried to get a better form.

Dips
6 4 4
I cheated some by using my feet to push some and not getting enough depth. Felt weird in my shoulders more than anything.