Winter Training Log

Over the past six weeks, I have been trying to get myself ready for equipped lifting. My strategy for this was to use high weight and low reps as much as possible to condition my body to the heavier weight that I will lift in equipment. So, instead of following the traditional 5-3-1 training cycle, I used 3-1, 3-1, 3-1. I also started eating as much as possible to gain weight. I also did not do any physical activity besides lifting. The only exception to this was week 6, when I played 18 holes of golf before doing bench singles. During fall, I would play basketball for an hour on Monday nights before practice, so I never had really good squat workouts. Before starting this six week period, I was not training very hard. My singles had been falling in weight over the previous twelve weeks. So, I decided to go all out knowing that it would be the only hope I had to qualify for nationals in February. My final sets every time were done at 10 or 10+ on RPE. By the end of these six weeks, I reached one of my major goals and deadlifted 500.

Week 1:

Squat 265x3, 275x3, 285x3

Bench 185x3, 195x3, 205x3x2

DL 385x3, 405x3x3

Week 2:

Squat 275x1, 315x1, 335x1

Bench 205x1, 225x1, 225xf

DL 405x1, 425x1, 445x1

Week 3:

Squat 265x3, 275x3, 285x3, 295x3

Bench 185x3, 195x3, 205x3, 215x3

DL 405x3x2, 415x2

Week 4:

Squat 275x1, 315x1, 335x1, 355xf

Bench 205x1, 225x1, 235xf

DL 405x1, 435x1, 475x1

Week 5:

Squat 275x3, 295x3, 315x3

Bench 185x3, 205x3, 215x3, 225x3

DL 405x3, 425x3

Week 6:

Squat 315x1, 335x1, 355x1

Bench 205x1, 225x1, 235x1, 245xf

DL 405x1, 435x1, 475x1, 500x1

Bench. Tues. 12/27.

Bench 4x4
135 (@8+), 140 (@9), 145 (@10-), 145 (@10-)

Floor Press 4x2
135 (@8), 150 (@9+), 150 (@10), 145 (@9)

Dumbbell Bench 4x8
40dbs (@ 7), 50dbs (@9), 50dbs (@9), 50dbs (@10)

Power Curls 3x3
-> all w/ Ez-curl bar
-> +30lb.es (@9), +32.5lb.es (@9+), +32.5lb.es (@9+)

Rear Delt Fly Machine 2x12
-> both sets with 10lb.es
(superset with cable rows...)

Cable Rows (medium grip) 2x10
120, 120

Squat. Mon. 12/26.

Back Squat 4x4 (belted)
185 (@9), 195 (@9+), 205 (@10), 195 (@9+)
-> (form still shabby, torso bent over a lot)

Box Squat 4x2 (belted)
155 (@9), 165 (@9+), 175 (@9+), 185 (@10-)

Form Focus Squats 2x8 (belted)
135 (@7), 135 (@7)

Standing Calf Raises (w/ shrug machine) 3x10
BW, 1pes, 1pes
-> (not too heavy, achilles tendons felt so-so)

Rotary Torso Machine 2x16
70, 70

Bench Assistance. Fri. 12/23.

Incline Bench 4x5
115 (@9-), 115 (@9-), 125 (@9+), 125 (@9+)

Weighted Dips 4x3
BW+25lbs (@9), BW+25lbs (@9), BW+35lbs (@10), BW+35lbs (@10)

Lat Pulldowns (close-grip)
140x12, 170x6, 140x13, 180x5+f

Iso-Lateral High Row Machine
1p+35lb.es x12, 2.5pes x6, 1p+35lb.es x14, 2.5pes x6

Cable Rows 3x12
80, 120, 100

Grip Strengthening Holds 2x(10 sec.)
-> both sets of 4pes on shrug machine

Bicep Curls 2x9
25dbs, 25dbs

Rear Delt Fly Machine 2x12
-> all w/ 10lb.es

Luke 12-28-11 Legs

Low Box Squat

315 x 3 @ 8+

335 x 3 @ 9+

345 x 2+fail I was mentally and physically tired and did not care enough to get that 3rd rep

Sumo Deficit Deadlift

225 x 5 standing on 2 plates

275 x 5 standing on 1 plate

these were way harder than they should have been and are much harder than the suited version

Weighted Hypers

2 plates x 20

2 plates + 25 x 15 x 2

Transversus a la foam roller

Luke 12-27-11 Bench

Bench

195 x 3 @ 8+

200 x 3 @ 9+

205 x 5? spotter touched literally every rep. I got the first 3 by myself pretty much but I felt like throwing in some more since he was helping.... even after I said don't touch it.

Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press

50's x 10

60's x 10, 8

Dips, Ultra wide grip pull ups, Abs, sub-scap pull ups superset

Squat 12/26/11

Squat:
155 x 3 x 3
Harder than it should have been, but still definitely a PR.

Pause Squat:
135 x 2 (fail, unbelted, ...)
135 x 3 x 3 (belted)
At this point I felt somewhere in between nausea and passing out, so I decided to call it quits on squat.

Press:
50 x 3 x 3
Some light press.

Luke 12-24-11 Legs

Got into gym at 3:45 to find out that it closed at 4. Rushed workout with no rest. I did machines to not stress my achilles.

Leg Extensions

2 leg x 2

and single leg x 2

Leg Curls

2 leg x 2

and single leg x 2

Adductors and Abductors

Weighted Hypers

Cable Crunches

Luke 12-22-11 Bench

The bottom outer sides of my feet and my achilles tendons have been hurting ever since I hiked to Havasupai in the Grand Canyon. I did 24 miles with a backpack on friday and saturday and I'm still in pain. I don't want to do lower body until I figure out what's wrong. Tendinitis maybe?

Bench went really shitty.

185 x 5 @ 10

Dumbbell Bench

55's x 10

65's x 10 x 2

Skull Crushers

Barbell Curls

Shoulder Raises

Flys superset

Deadlift Assistance. Thur. 12/22.

Sumo Rack Pulls 4x2 (belted)
355 (@9-), 365 (@9), 385 (@10), 365 (@10)
-> (I was happy with a 385 double. That is a seasonal PR).

Good Mornings Off Pins 4x4 (belted)
-> (with pins at 11th hole, which is a little higher than last week)
185 (@7), 215 (@9), 235 (@10-), 255 (@10)

Stiff-Leg Deadlifts 3x8
205 (@8), 205 (@9), 205 (@9+)

Transversus Cable Crunches on Aerobics Ball 3x15
100, 130, 150

Bench. Tues. 12/20.

Bench 4x2
155 (@10), 145 (@9+), 145 (@9+), 145 (@9+)
-> (PECS & TRIS STILL REALLY SORE, COULDN'T DO AS MUCH WEIGHT TODAY).

Floor Press 4x4
115 (@7+), 130 (@9), 140 (@9+), 145 (@10)

Power Curls 3x4
-> EZ-curl bar + 25lbs each side, EZ-curl bar + 30lbs each side, EZ-curl bar + 32.5lbs each side

Dynamic Barbell Shrugs
225x30, 245x25, 205x40

Cable Rows (medium grip)
120x12, 140x5+f, 90x20

Squats. Mon. 12/19.

**** TRICEPS, PECS, & LOWER BACK STILL VERY SORE FROM ASSISTANCE WORKOUTS. THIS CERTAINLY LIMITED TODAY'S PERFORMANCE & MY SQUAT FORM WAS HORRIBLE (LEANING OVER, ETC) ****

Back Squat 4x2 (belted)
205 (@9), 215 (@9), 215 (@9), 220(@10)

Box Squat 4x4 (belted)
135 (@8), 135 (@8), 135 (@7), 135 (@7)
-> kept lighter in order to practice good form & keep torso upright.

High Bar Squats 2x8 (belted)
135 (@7), 135 (@8)
-> kept light to focus on form & keep upright.

Form Focus Squats 1x8 (no belt)
135 (@9)

Calf Raises (on the Pony Express Machine) 3x15
20 lbs, 20 lbs, 20 lbs
-> kept light for achilles

Rotary Torso Machine (Core) 3x16
70, 70, 70

Bench Assistance. Sat. 12/17.

Incline Bench 4x5
115 (@8+), 125 (@9+), 125 (@9+), 125 (@9+)

Weighted Dips 4x3
BW+15lbs (@8), BW+25lbs (@9), BW+35lbs (@10-), BW+35lbs (@10-)
-> (elbows felt good!!)

Db Chest Flys 4x10
-> all w/ 20dbs
-> (all w/ elbows slightly bent)

Close-Grip Lat Pulldowns
140x12, 170x6, 130x13, 165x6

Db Pullovers
50db x12, 60db x6, 45db x12, 55db x7

Iso-Lateral High Row Machine
2pes x12, 2.5pes x5+f, 1p+35lb.es x12, 2p+15lb.es x5+f

Db Bicep Curls 3x10
-> all w/ 20dbs

Deadlift Assistance. Fri. 12/16/11.

**** (TOOK 5 DAYS OFF AFTER THE MEET) ****

Sumo Rack Pulls 4x4 (belted)
315 (@8), 345 (@9), 355 (@10), 335 (@9+)
-> (my calluses near the bases of my fingers were starting to kind of blister underneath so I had to drop the weight for the last set, I was very satisfied with 355x4 though when a month ago I only got 3 reps with that weight).

Stiff-Leg Deadlifts 4x5
205 (@8), 205 (@8), 205 (@8), 205 (@8)
-> (calluses still hurting from the heavy rack pulls so I did slightly lesser weight, probably could have done 225 for all sets but stayed lighter to save hands).

Good Mornings Off Pins 4x8
-> (using the 10th hold up from the floor on the squat rack at the local gym here)
-> (pins were just a little bit above my torso being parallel to the ground)
135 (@8), 135 (@8), 135 (@8), 135 (@8)
-> (my lower back was fried from the rack pulls & stiff-legs)

"Pony Express" Machine Calf Raises 4x10
-> (no weight on the first set & did the remaining sets with only 20 lbs)
-> stayed really light so as not to aggravate my achilles tendons, the goal is to slowly restrengthen calves without re-inflaming the old achilles strains)
(calves were a little tight)

Cable Abs 4x15
50, 60, 70, 70

UCLA Powerlifting Invitational. Saturday, Dec. 10, 2011.

****(I rested the week before the meet, however I also did not lift for a full week ~3 weeks before the meet as well [due to the week of Thanksgiving] and I believe this threw off my strength peaking cycle and undermined my performance at this meet)****

**WEIGH-IN: 63.9 kg (or 140.9 lbs)**

**SQUAT**
-1st Attempt: 92.5 kg (or 203.75 lbs)
... [Good Lift with 3 white lights, easy opener]
-2nd Attempt: 107.5 kg (or 236.75 lbs)
... [Good Lift with 3 white lights, very tough, RPE @10]
-3rd Attempt: 117.5 kg (or 259 lbs)
... [No Lift with 3 red lights, couldn't even get out of the hole, failed at the bottom and was leaning forward/ was caved in too much]

**BENCH**
-1st Attempt: 65 kg (or 143.25 lbs)
... [Good Lift with 3 white lights, easy opener]
-2nd Attempt: 75 kg (or 165.25 lbs)
... [No Lift with 2 red lights to 1 white light (center judge), lifted my butt off the bench but still locked it out, RPE @ 9+]
-3rd Attempt: 80 kg (or 176.25 lbs)
... [No Lift with 3 red lights, failed off chest, couldn't even press it more than 2-3 inches up]

**DEADLIFT**
-1st Attempt: 155 kg (or 341.5 lbs)
... [Good Lift with 3 white lights, easy opener]
-2nd Attempt: 170 kg (or 374.75 lbs)
... [No Lift with 2 red lights to 1 white light, I locked it out fully but the judges called it on hitching, although I thought it was just a very slow & very tough lockout, RPE @ 10+]
-3rd Attempt: 170 kg (or 374.75 lbs)
... [No Lift with 3 red lights, got most of the way up but could not get my hips through to lock it out]

**JUDGE'S TOTAL: 327.5 kg (or 722 lbs)**

** MY "WISH TOTAL" (if the second bench attempt & second deadlift attempt were counted as good lifts): 352.5 kg (or 777 lbs) **

--> (my "wish total" is 55 lbs more than the judge's total but still 23 lbs less than my previous [accumulated] PR's total of 800 lbs) ... (previous PR's were 255 squat, 180 bench, 365 deadlift ... meet "wish" lifts 236 squat, 165 bench, 374 deadlift) ... (and my optimum accumulated total [counting a 255 squat, 180 bench, and 374 deadlift] would be 809 lbs).

Bench 12/16/11

Not working out as much as I'd like to, but something is better than nothing. Heavy 5x5 to try to lessen that deficit.

Bench:
65 x 5 x 5

Pause bench:
65 x 3 (something pinched in my elbow here that made it excruciating at the bottom)
55 x 3 x 2 (felt okay at 55 after 5 min of massaging)
65 x 3

Pendlay rows:
85 x 5 x 4

Luke 12-14-11 Bench

Bench

185 x 5 @ 8+

190 x 5 @ 9

195 x 5 @ 9+

didn't feel too great today on the bench, maybe because I had a couple of drinks earlier

Bench off pins

up to 205 x 3

this felt really hard, I'm not sure why. I definitely need to work on my lockout these days, but this struggle was something different

Semi bent over rows keeping my upper back really tight

185 x 8

205 x 8

225 x 8

Skull crushers

70 x 10 x 3

superset with barbell curls

70 x 8 x 3

and some rear delt raises, abs, and sub scap pull ups.

Squat 12/14/11

Squat:
135 x 5 x 5
Felt light, but then my legs turned to jello for the rest of the workout.

Pause Squat:
115 x 3 x 3

Lunges:
95 x 5 x 4

Luke 12-13-11 Squat

Squat

325 x 1 @ 8-

365 x 1 @ 8+

385 x 1 @ 9 felt too hard to go up to 405

My back is still hurting from deadlift. I was not feeling great today. My squat seems to be getting weaker, I'm not sure. I can wear my belt on hole 5 now which is tighter than ever.

Low Box Squat

315 x 3 @ 9

335 x 3 @ 10-

345 x 3 @ 10-

Leg Press

3 plates + 25's per side x 10 x 2

this machine hurt my back

Cable ball transversus

Some mahines

UCLA Open Invitational 12/10/11

Body weight: 66.3 (146.1)
Weight class: 67.5 (148.8)

Squat:
67.5 (148.8)
75 (165.3) (knees came in a bit)
80 (176.4) (10 lb PR, looked cleaner, still didn't have elbows under)

Bench press
35 (77.2)
37.5 (82.7) (felt solid)
40 (88.2) (fail, would have been a 3 lb PR but just didn't set up right)

Deadlift:
107.5 (237.0) (2 red lights, sunk a little at the top)
115 (253.5) (went up cleanly)
120 (264.6) (unfortunately don't have vid of the lift and can't check form, but thanks for the backslap Ryan)

Total: 80 (176.4) + 37.5 (82.7) + 120 (264.6) = 237.5 (523.6)
Qualifying total for Collegiate Nationals: 230 (507)

Feels like:

Luke 12-8-11

Benched on wednesday

worked up to 185 x 3, felt super tired

Squat on thursday

325 x 3

365 x 3

385 x 3 @ 10+ the last rep almost stopped. this is 15 pounds off of my PR. I was still tired from lack of sleep and being sick and finals

post finals idk

did a bunch of rows and heavy shrugs

then worked up to
BW(245) + 70 lbs x 1 pullup

12/6/11
Bench
205 x 3
215 x 3
225 x 3
235 x 3
245 x 4 (tied PR) @ 10-

3-Board
255 x 3
265 x 3
265 x 3
My 3-board hasn't been good enough recently.


Close Grip Pause Bench
155, 175, 185 x 3

BW Pullups

Bench 1

I hadn't put the shirt on since Men's Nationals 2010, so I thought I would try it out for fun.

315 x 2 @ 3 board
345 x 1 @ 3 board + 1 @ 2 board
365 x 1 @ 2 board + 1 @ 1 board
365 x 1
385 x 1
405 x 1 (402 was PR)
415 x 1



Not too shabby for 18 months of raw work. Probably had a few pounds left in the tank but I'll save that for another session.

Oddity PR

After not seriously training for the majority of this quarter (mainly schoolwork, and light lifting), I go into the gym to dick around as a study break. I do some power cleans, and eventually hit 185x1 (10lb PR). After not squatting heavy or pulling heavy for weeks.

Epic WTF moment

11.29.11--Bench

Forgot to post this last Tuesday... had a busy week.

Bench:
165x5@9-
170x5@9
175x5@10-
175x5@10
175x4@10+

Isolateral Bench and Isolateral Incline Bench
3 sets each

chest, shoulder, triceps accessories

Deadlift 12/03/11

Deadlift (Raw)
2x1 at 335 lbs
1x1 at 355 lbs

Glute Thrusts
1x8 at 225 lbs
2x5 at 315 lbs
1x5 at 335 lbs

Hamstring things
4 sets

Bench Assist. Fri. 12/2.

Band-Lightened Bench 5x3
-> all w/ minis (reds) doubled
155, 155, 155, 155, 155

Tricep Death
85, 85x22+f, 75x18+f

Bench 3x8
65x8, 65x8, 65x8+f
-> (all w/ brief press calls)

Close Grip Cable Rows 4x8
120, 120, 120, 120

Lat Pulldowns 4x8
130, 110, 110, 110

Hammer Curls 4x7
-> all w/ 25dbs
-> all reps slow & controlled

Bench Assist. 12/2/11

Band-lightened Bench:
85 x 3
90 x 3
95 x 3
100 x 3
105 x 3
All with pink.

Close-grip triceps death:
50 x 25 x 3

Bench:
55 x 9 (fail)
50 x 10 x 2

Cable rows, Dumbbell Rows, Triceps, Biceps, Abs

Deadlift 12/1/11

Deadlift:
Warmups: 95 x 5, 135 x 4, 165 x 3, 185 x 2, 205 x 1
First attempt: 235 x 1 (@8+/9-)
Second attempt 255 x 1 (@10, much more solid than before; no hitching :D!)

Power Cleans:
95 x 3 (still too heavy for worksets, darn)
85 x 3 x 4

Lunges:
95 x 5 x 5

GHRs, Abs

Deadlift Singles. Thur. 12/1.

****(to initially warm up, i did a 2 sets of 8-10 reps of body weight squats & 2 sets of 8-10 reps of squats with the bar and also leg swings)****

Deadlifts 3x1
-> Warm-Ups: 135x10, 185x3, 225x1, 275x1, 315x1
-> First Attempt: 345x1 (@9+)
-> First Attempt (again): 345x1 (@9)
-> Second Attempt: 365x1 (@10)
(the lockout was the hardest part of each deadlift).

Weighted Hyperextensions 8x3
145lbs, 145, 155, 155, 155, 155, 155, 155

Seated Hamstring Curl Machine 4x15
70, 80, 80, 80