1st Week

Monday:

Both Squatting and Front Squatting felt shitty. I can get to just about an inch above parallel before the hip pain, but Lunges felt fine. Guess I will be doing some single-leg work.

Tuesday:
Bench: worked up to 215x5. First time doing full-on bench training in a few weeks. First few reps were crazy fast, but then started to slow down. If I really hammer my overhead press, then my bench should see results.

Thursday:
Deadlift: worked up to 405x5. Harder than it should have been - mainly because my leg strength is down.

Friday:
OHP: worked up to 135x3. Doing them from the clean seems to be much stronger than from the rack, but I have no clue why. Silly rep competitions were also held on the bench and barbell curl today.

Diet: Is going well. I can see top 2 abs now, in addition to the serratus and obliques that I could see before. Difficult to not eat everything in sight though.

Deadlift/Bench Assistance 9/30/11

Good Mornings (no belt)
5x5 at 275 lbs

These felt easy but it might have been because I wasn't going deep enough. Will try heavier ones with a belt in the future.

Standing Press
5x5 at 95 lbs

Barely got the last rep. Sets became progressively harder.

Light Bench
3x8 at 95 lbs

Overhead press left me completely drained. This was actually kind of tough.

Max 9/27 Bench and 9/29 Deadlift Assistance

Bench

185x5

195x5 4 sets

Less than I thought I'd do, but still not bad, and all were good work sets.

Close-Grip Bench

175 5x5, failed last rep of last set, so not a bad weight, I'll keep using it until I get stronger.

Bored Press

205x2 VERY hard, didn't go for the 3rd

195x3 very hard

195x2 failed 3rd rep

Depressing, Dave blames weak triceps and Sheiko and I'd have to agree; it was like my arms just wouldn't extend. I'll work on it.

Shrugs, curls, rows etc

G'Margles

255x5

275 3x5

Unbelted, and rather solid. Me gusta.

SLDL

225x5

255 3x5

Banded Hypers, traversus, and miscellaneous shenaniganry.

Bench assistance

Strict OHP
160x5
160x5
160x10 @9+ PR +5 lbs

BW pullups
x10,8,8,8,5

Skullcrushers, brocepts

I love OHP

Deadlift Lunges

Deadlift:

365 x 1 ?

Lower back was not feeling it, sadly. Although, pulling two weeks in a row would surely have been death.

Good Mornings:

225 x 5

315 x 5

365 x 2?

These too didn't feel so hot. My lower back kept seizing up even with a bunch of stretching. The weight wasn't too bad though.

Lunges:

225 x 5

275 x 5

295 x 5

Ah, the old no-nerves standby. Felt pretty good.

Banded Hypers:

all the bands x 17, 40, 30

Finished with some foam roller transversus.

9.29.11-Bench

Bench Press:
warmups
185@9-
195@9+
200@10 ties PR
205xf (got it about 2 inches off the chest but to tired from 195 to get it up)
My lockout is MUCH stronger than my off the chest. Once I get about 4 inches off the chest, I feel like I could lock out about 225 lbs. Any suggestions for getting my pecs stronger so I can get to the 4" and easily lock it out? I'm doing some pause bench and flyes...

Incline Bench:
115x8@9
135x8@10-
135x8@10

Shoulder Press, Flyes, Shoulder Raises, other pec/shoulder/triceps machines.

Ryan Dead Assist 9/29/11

GMs (wide stance)-
265 x8
275 x5
315 x5
335 x5

Stiff Legs-
275 x8
295 x8
295 x5

Banded Hypers
Abs

This Past Week

Here are some updates from this past week:

Squat

I was able to work down slightly deeper in the super centurion with straps down but I'm still about 5 inches high. Worked up to two singles at 510. I'm still tending to let my back fold over about midway down, which really does nothing to help hit depth. Not sure how much it's going to take to get depth with straps up.

Bench

I took the weight up a little in the Katana. Worked up to 345 and was able to get it to about 3 inches from the chest. The shirt was pulled down so it was a little tighter and it was also seated nicely in the shoulders.

Deadlift

Did block pulls with 335 for sets of 5. Still working on keeping the back flexed and arched for every rep. Next two weeks will be speed pulls followed by heavy deadlifts the next week.

Bench Assistance

Worked up to 135 for 2 x 5 on standing press. Nothing else too exciting. Hammer curls?

Luke 9-29-11 Lower Back

Lifted early because I'm going to Stanford this weekend

GMOPs (Pin 10)

275 x 5

315 x 5

355 x 5 (pin 9, too high)

365 x 5

Stiff Leg Deadlift

225 x 8

275 x 8

295 x 6 tired

Hyper Extensions

Abs

Cheryl's Training Week 2

Week 2 - Sept 19

SQUAT
5x4 Squat - 155, 165, 175, 185, 190 (PR) <-- current max 200
3x3 Pause Squat - 155, 155, 155 (PR)

Later in the week...
3x5 Front Squat - 135, 145, 155 (PR)

BENCH
5x4 Bench - 115, 120, 125, 130 (3), 125 (PR)
**Felt a pull in my pec, no assistance work. Finished it off with a 400m 3 plate prowler pull.

DEADLIFT
3x3 Deadlift - 195, 195, 195
5x5 Deficit - 135, 145, 155, 165, 175

Superset - 10 mins max rounds = 7 rounds
10 Heavy KB Swing (45lbs)
+ 50m Prowler Push (275lbs)

OLY
Power clean skill work

Cheryl's Training Week 1

Have been following a split that's PL + crossfit for an upcoming competition. All lifts below are in conjunction with daily metabolic conditioning.

Week 1 - Sept 12

SQUAT
50 Backsquats @ BW (#125) for time
3x3 Pause Squat - 135, 145, 155

BENCH
5x5 Bench - 115, 115, 115, 120, 120 (PR)
3x3 Pause - 115x3

DEADLIFT ASST.
5x5 GM - 115, 125, 135, 145, 145
5x5 Deficit - 135, 145, 155, 165, 175

OLY
Max Power Clean Triples - 113, 118, 123, 128, 133 (PR)
Snatch Balance - 65x3, 75x3, 85x2x2
Snatch Grip Rack Jerk - 65x3, 75x3, 85x2, 95x2

PRing and cutting things short

Squat
275 x 5 x 5

Pause squat
185 x 5
195 x 5
205 x 5
215 x 5
225 x 5

squat jump and abs


Bench
175 x 5 x 5
Both the main lift 5 x 5 sets are volume PRs. Huh.

Close grip bench
135 x 5
140 x 5
145 x 5 x 3

Pendlay row
155 x 5 x 5

Pin press
135 x 5
145 x 5 x 2
because I don't got no boards
biceb superset

Ryan Bench 9/27/11

Bench-
195 x5
205 x5
215 x5
225 x5
230 x5

Close grip-
185 x8
At this point my shoulder was very aggravated

3 Board Press-
225 x5
Very aggravated

Chest support rows
2 plates x8
2 +25 x8
3 x8x2

Shrugs 3 sets
6 plates x20x2

GHR Abs x3

Bench 5

Bench:

275 x 5

285 x 5

295 x 5, 5

300 x 5

A pretty surprising workout. Minimal elbow pain and rotator cuff felt ok.

Close-grip bench:

225 x 5, 5, 5

These make my rotator cuff feel uncomfortably stretched for some reason. It doesn't hurt, but I went light due to the unusual feeling.

3-board:

315 x 5

345 x 5

365 x 5 @ 10+

Pretty gassed by the end.

Pull ups:

bw x 18, 12

Finished with more ball bridges and some overhead shrugs.

Squat 5

Squat:

405 x 5

425 x 5

455 x 1

My lower back was seizing up on these so I stopped at 455. The weight wasn't bad though.

Leg Press:

6 plates? x 10, 10, 10

Did some leg extensions followed by ball bridges and pnf. Kind of a disappointing workout.

Luke 9-27-11 Bench

Shitty bench day, maybe because of weight loss, maybe because of 5 hours of class and little sleep, maybe because of excessive dart playing, maybe because of equipped squats. I feel like I lost all progress from over summer. I am now trying to eat a ton to counter my weight and strength loss.

Bench

185 x 5 @ 9-

190 x 5 @ 9+

195 x 5 @ 10-

185 x 5 @ 9+

185 x 5 @ 10- pathetic. I hit 185 x 10 and 195 x 8 2 weeks ago.

3 Board Press (closer to 4 board using yoga block)

225 x 3 x 4 @ 10- My lockout is no longer strong

Dumbbell Tricep Extension

32.5's x 8 x 3

superset with cable row

200 x 8 x 3

Bench Tuesday 09-27-11

Bench
135 x 5
140 x 5
145 x 5
150 x 5
155 x 5

Close Grip Bench
115 x 5
125 x 5, 5, 5
130 x 5

Pendlay Rows
Shrugs

Bicep Curls
Abs

Bench 5x5. Tues. 9/27.

Bench 5x5
135, 135, 135, 145, 150
-> (feeling good!! I'm very confident for bench!! the last set at 150 felt good - I am improving my arch and my tuck).

Semi Close-Grip Bench 5x5
125, 125, 125, 125, 135
-> (w/ grip @ ~a thumb length away from smooth part of bar)

3-Board Press 4x3
145, 145, 155, 165

Cable Row 5x5
140, 120, 120, 120, 130

Hammer Curls 2x12
-> all w/ 25dbs

Shrug Machine (facing in) 2x5
-> all w/ 4 plates each side

Grip Strengthening Work (Forearm Holds)
-> Gripper Level #1.5 x 20 sec. hold (for each hand)

Wrist Extensors 2x10
-> w/ green bands

Squat 9.27.11

Singles Week. Time to hit some PRs

Squat:
warmups
295@9
315@9+ ripped my boxers hitting the hole in this one
335@10++ highschoolmusical, but still a 19 lb PR nonetheless?

Quad machine, calf press, leg press

Bench

Bench-
255x5
265x5
275x5
275x5
280x5 PR + 5 lbs @  9 +

CG bench
225x5,5
245x5

3 board-
275x5,5,4
so gassed

Seated Rows
5x10

Shrugs, Biceps, Abs

Bench 5 Cycle 1

10/27/11

Bench

205 x 5 @ 7

215 x 5 @ 8
215 x 5 @ 8+

225 x 5 @ 9

225 x 5 @ 9+ felt good today

3-Board

245 x 3 @ 8+

255 x 3 @ 9+

265 x 3 @ 10++++

255 x 3 @ 10

Bent-Over Row and Pendlay Row

155 x 5 x 5

Skull Crushers

75 x 7

75 x 6

65 x 8

Shrugs, Biceps, Abs

Bench 9/27/11

Bench
5x5 at 145 lbs

3-Board Bench
5x3 at 195 lbs

Cable Rows
5x5 at 120 lbs

Tricep Isolation
3x8 at 15 lbs

Full-Body Curls
5x5 at 60 lbs

Shrugs
5 sets at 315 lbs

Squat 9/27/11

Squat (knees wrapped)
5x5 at 275 lbs

Band-Lightened Squat
3x5 at 365 lbs

Leg Press
4x10 at 270 lbs

Calf Stuff
Abs
PNF

lower body

Lunges- x per leg
185x5 per leg
185x5 per leg
185x10 per leg

The best i had done i few weeks ago was x6, so this is a big PR. my glutes are getting a lot stronger
I wanted to puke on the last set

Leg Prass
4x10

Good Mornings parallel to floor
225x10,10,10

These felt better than when i did them 2 weeks ago, my back feels almost equally sore on both sides, something I havent felt in a long time

Glute machine and ABs

Glutes are equally as strong.
No more pain inside the hip joint
only problem left to fix is lower back imbalance/tightness. which is on its way, today was proof.

Luke 9-26-11 First Equipped Squat

Squat

45 x 10, 8, 135 x 6, 225 x 3, 275 x 2 (added belt and wrist wraps) 315 x 1

365 x 3 (added super centurion straps down)

405 x 5 @ 10- bar slippage by 3rd rep for every set. I think I was able to hit depth on these or at least I was close.

405 x 3 @ 9+

405 x 3 @ 8+ knees wrapped B-

385 x 4+1 @ 8

Band Lightened Squats with fitwell black bands

405 x 5

455 x 5

475 x 3 bands were uneven throughout each set so I stopped this nonsense

Leg Press

worked up to 6 plates per side x 10

Ball bridges

Squat box jumps

Squat 5 Cycle 1

10/26/11

Squats

straps down

285 x 4 @ 10

315 x 5 @ 9+

315 x 2 @ 10 then since i'm sick I felt like I was on the verge of puking so I stopped and upped the weight

345 x 4 @ 9+

345 x 5 @ 9 Knees wrapped

I need to remember to keep my upper back really tight especially with the suit on.

I waited with the 8 PM group for another hour and a half and then headed over to Wooden so I was pretty cold at this point.

Band-Lightened Squat

two reds each side

315 x 5 @ 9

335 x 5 @ 9

365 x 5 @ 9

Leg Press, Abs

Sick Squat Monday 09-26-11

Squat
185 x 5
205 x 5
215 x 5
225 x 5
235 x 5

Pause Squat
185 x 3, 3
205 x 3, 3
225 x 3

Leg Press
Box Jumps
Abs

Bodyweight: 163.5 lbs

Squat 5x5. Mon. 9/26.

Back Squat 5x5
195, 195, 195, 195, 195

Pause Squat 3x3
145, 145, 145

Barbell Lunges 3x5 (each leg)
95, 95, 115

Weighted Sit-Ups
20db x9+2f, 20db x6+f
-> (w/ db behind neck)

Max 9/26 Squat

Sckwquoatz

265x5

275x5 very solid, last couple sets were 10- territory but with good form

Paws Squats

195x3

205x3

225x3

Painful (good pain) after regular squats, so went light at first, then upped the weight once I saw how fast the bar speed was.

Lunges

3x5 at 155

Yee buddy

Jumps 3x10

Burrito

Ryan Squat 9/26/11

Squat-
245 x5
255 x5
265 x5
275 x5
285 x5

Went a little too light on these

Pause squat-
225 x3
245 x3
265 x3

Lunges-
135 x5
115 x5x2
these sucked

Plyos, Abs

Start of the Year Maxes

Squat: 335 lbs
Bench: 195 lbs
Deadlift: 355 lbs

Bench Assistance

(on Saturday)

Standing Press:

185 x 1

205 x 1

225 x 1 @ 10

too busy to get the full workout in.

(on Sunday)

Went light since I need to do regular bench on Tuesday.

Incline Dumbbell Bench:

90 x 8

95 x 8

100 x 8

Not sure how I got so strong on these?

Dumbbell Triceps Extensions:

30 x 10

40 x 10

50 x 8 (PR?)

Pull ups:

bw x 15, 8, 10

Shrugs:

405 x 10

495 x 10, 8

It feels like I'm going to pass out after these sets.

Standing Curlzzz w/ EZ bar:

65 x 10

85 x 10, 10, 8

Finished with some overhead shrugs and rotator cuff work

Deadlift

Kind of a quick workout today.

Deadlift:

606 x 5

628 x 5 @ 9+

Finally... pulling felt very good today. 606 was nice, so I went up 10kg and that was just as easy. The first rep at 628 was super fast, which was a change for me, since usually the first rep is a grinder. I also tried a new piriformis stretch, which might have also helped limber me up for the pulling.

Lunges:

135 x 5

185 x 5

225 x 5

Banded Hamstring Curls:

4 sets

Bench Assistance. Fri. 9/23.

Incline Bench 4x5
115, 115, 115, 115

Low Pin Press 4x5
135x4+f, 135, 125, 125

Close Grip Cable Rows 3x15
120, 110, 100

Pullover Machine 3x10
-> all w/ 2 plates each side

Shrug Machine 3x20
-> all w/ 3 plates each side

Standing Cable Abs 2x20
70, 60 + a 20 sec. hold at end

Grip Strengthening Work (Forearm Holds)
-> using IronMind Captains of Crush Grippers
Trainer x 30 sec. each hand, Level 1.0 x30 sec. each hand

Wrist Extensors
-> w/ Expand-Your-Hand-Bands
Yellows x 12 reps, Yellows x 7 reps + 3f, Greens x 20 reps

Deadlifts & Car Pushing. Thur. 9/22.

Deadlifts 4x5
255, 275, 275, 295

Car Pushing (with a Chevy Malibu)
--> 3-4 people per set
... our highlight was a 3-man team consisting of Tr'Vel, my brother Nick, and myself hitting 1:06 on the short track for our second push

Bench assist

Did some light stuff

Strict ohp
Barx10,10
95x10
115x10
140x10

Incline bench
185x10,10

1 arm row
5x10

9/23

Kinda bored after lunch, so:

Standing Press:
90x5, 5
110x3
125x1
140x1x6 @ ~9

The non-revolving barbell makes these annoying to clean. Sets 1-4 of 140 were pretty dialed in, and 5&6 were a bit grindy. I definitely want to break my press PR of 145x3 this quarter, and hopefully an increase in shoulder/upper back strength will bring my bench up too.

Car Push

4 Man push-
Victor and I + 2 recruits
Record Short track 50.2 secs

then went and did Single leg RDL's
105x20,20,20

9/22

Earlier:

1-Arm DB Press:
25x5
40x5
55x3x5

1-Arm DB Row:
55x15
75x10
90x5
105x5
125x5

BB Curl:
75x5
90x3x5

Later:

Car Pushes - did not vomit or pass out (PR)

9.21.11-Bench

Gave 2 units of blood on Tuesday, still don't think I was at 100% for today's workout, but whatever.

Bench:
165x3@9
175x3@10-
180x3@10+ Really (pleasantly) surprised I was able to get that 3rd rep out.

(3 second) Pause Bench:
145x3@9-
150x3@9+
155x3@10

Incline Bench:
115x8@9f
135x6@10

DB Flyes, Flyes Machine, press machine, shoulder press and raises, triceps machines, etc.

Luke 9-21-11 Club sports jamboree

Tandem Deadlift with Greg

455 x 1

545 x 1

635 x 1

725 x 4

also I tried on my gear, I was able to get my suit on after a day and get the straps up with help. I don't think I will be able to deadlift in it because I won't be able to reach the bar. I can get the shirt over my elbows, but not seated in my armpits. I think I will be able to get it on with help, but it will be tight.

Bench sort of

Last chest day in 4-star, so I figured i should take advantage of the dumbbells on the off week

Dumbbell Bench:

80 x 5

100 x 5

110 x 5

120 x 5

130 x 5* @ 10+ (PR?)

Spotter helped slightly on the last one :( Maybe I would have gotten it?

Stability Bench:

165 x 10, 10, 10

These felt a little shaky at first, but much better by rep 5. No rotator cuff issues either.

Dips:

bw x 13, 20, 30, 25

PAHMP

Pendlay Rows:

135 x 5

205 x 5

255 x 5

275 x 5 (+30 PR)

Gotta get better at these. Decided tonight was the night.

Finished with some pnf. Wanted to do abs, but my left ribs are still hurting from squatting :/

Bench 5x5. Tues. 9/20.

Bench 5x5
135, 135, 135, 135, 135

3-Board Press 4x5
135, 145, 145, 145

Shrug Machine 4x10
-> all w/ 4 plates each side (facing window)
(my spine felt the strain of heavy shrugging on every single rep after shrugging for higher reps all summer long)

One Arm Rows 3x6 (each arm)
-> all w/ 85db

Bicep Curls (standing)
60x8, 60x6, 50x9

**** (feels good to get back to heavy barbell training) ****

Squat 5x5. Mon. 9/19.

Back Squats 5x5
185, 185, 185, 185, 185

Ab Wheel 3x10
-> all reps with resistance

Hill Sprints 2x60m
-> (on bruinwalk)

Deload Bench

Bench
135x10
185x10
225x15 @7

Pullups
X10,10,8,7

Rear delts
Abs

9/19 & 20

Monday:

Drove down from NorCal and did the following with 115lbs at the Activities Fair:

No-handed Front Squats & Back squats
Snatches
Overhead presses

Tuesday:

Worked out at my apt. I brought down a spare DB handle that I had at home. Normally unused, since it fits the small-holed weight plates, but my apt complex has ~200lbs of small-holed plates. This means that I have access to a DB that potentially holds up to 155lbs of weight, and a barbell (non-revolving) that holds up to 210lbs of weight.

1-arm DB Press/1-arm DB Row:
25x6/6
40x6/6
55x6/6, 3/6
70x1/6x3

1-Arm Db Row:
105x6x2

BW Dips/BB Curls (75lbs)
10/6x3

I did some BW dips on the railing of the staircase in the fire escape at my apt. The 90 degree angle of the railing is actually amazingly comfortable for dips - much more so than parallel bars. I suppose I can eventually weight them using a backpack or something.

Later: (because I was bored)

Standing Press:
75x8, 8
125x2x6

Barbell Row:
125x6x2
175x6x3

BW Dips:
10, 8, 4, 4, 4

Squat Assistance

Did some non-traditional lifts on the off week before the cycle starts back up. My right knee feels messed up at the moment.

Band-resisted Squats:

225 x 2, 2, 2

275 x 2, 2, 2

315 x 2, 2, 2 @ 7

365 x 2 @ 8

I'm guessing around 150 lbs. of resistance at the top? 4-star got two new power racks, which made it tough to tell. The bands full deload at the bottom, which was nice. The last set felt crazy heavy though.

SS-bar Pause Squats:

225 x 3

275 x 3

295 x 3

315 x 3

I think I bruised my left floating rib on one of these sets, because it got really hard to breath and i felt like passing out after finishing. It hurts just sitting here.

Leg Prass:

490 x 10, 10, 10

Finished with pnf.

9.19.11--Squat

Squat:
warmups
275x3@9
285x3@10-
295x3@10

Box Squats:
225x3@9
235x3@9+
245x3@10-

Hip Abductors
Hip Adductors
Calf Presses

Bench Assistance

Didn't make it to the gym thurs-saturday to get the deadlift workout in :(

Incline Dumbbell Bench:

95 x 3

105 x 3

115 x 3 @ 9+

120 x 3 @ 10+

The 120s were much harder that 115s, but I'm still pretty pleased I could do 240 on this.

Dumbbell Shoulder Press:

70 x 8

80 x 8

90 x 8

Dumbbell Bench:

90 x 8

95 x 8 @ 10-

100 x 8 @ 10

My form is all over the place on these due to my shoulder still mending.

Pull ups:

bw x 15, 8, 8

Wide-grip cable row

200? x 10, 10, 10

Used the rusty cable machine at 4-star. who knows what resistance the machine alone adds, haha.

Incline Curls:

30 x 10

40 x 8

50 x 4

Finished with some rotator cuff work.

9/16 and 9/18 new gym, last workouts

Since, I got to Scottsdale, AZ, I've been checking out a bunch of gyms in area. The powerlifting gyms from powerliftingwatch.com in Phoenix aren't so close, and since this will not (hopefully) be my permanent home and I could leave any moment, I decided to look at regular gyms. (I've also been looking at Crossfit gyms).

The last regular gym I went to, Maximum Fitness, had a prowler, a SS bar laying around next to the oly platform, and a reverse hyper. I think I've found my place. One of the trainers passing by me commented "nice squats young lady" and, after talking to him, turned out to be a former powerlifter and a disciple of Louie Simmons. Looked him up...kind of a big deal, no?

These will be my last couple workouts, combined below, before I go idle for 3 weeks. Hopefully I can get back on track when I get back from Europe and prepare myself for the November meet. I'll have six weeks to get back into competition shape. Possible? Maybe?

Squats

155x5

165x5x2

175x5x2

Pause Squats

155x3x3

Transversus Bosu Ball Abs

Bench

85x5

90x5x2

95x5x2

Pause Bench

85x3x3

SS1:Pendlay Rows

85x8x3

SS2: Standing Press

45x10x3

SS3: Box jumps

Transversus Foam Roller Abs

9/17 Pseudo-training

In Tahoe relaxing before school starts, so I did some cleans & presses with my two rocks. I'd say the small one is about 75lbs and the big one is probably a bit over 100lbs

Small Rock for 5 sets of 5 reps

Big Rock for 7 sets of 1 rep (had my sister take a pic on one of them)

Luke 9-17-11 Bench Assist

Incline Bench

165 x 5 @ 9+

170 x 5 @ 10 PR

170 x 5 @ 10 spotter touched bar on last 2 reps

I think I was weaker than expected because of sitting in the sun at the football game

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

50's x 8

55's x 8

60's x 8

Dumbbell Bench

60's x 8

75's x 8

80's x 8 (had help up for 1st rep)

Wide Grip Cable Row SS1

150 x 8

180 x 8

200 x 8

220 x 8

Close Grip Lat Pulldown SS1

200 x 8

220 x 8

240 x 6

Scap Pull Ups SS1

Biceps Abs superset

Bench assist

Standing OHP
145x5
165x5
185x7 @ 9+ PR

2 board
275x5,5,5

BW Pullups
X8,8,8,8

Overhead shrugs, Biceps

Everything felt really light today.
Ohp185x7 Was really nice

Weekly Update

Hi everyone. Here are some highlights from this past week training. It was kind of boring except for today's suit work.

Tuesday Deadlifts

One of the guys at OCSC suggested I do block pulls from below the knee but focus on using only the back and keeping it flexed hard throughout the pull. This is meant to strengthen the lower back through the portion where the bar slows down which is right around knee level for me. Worked up to 295 x 5 for 3 sets on these. Will be working up in weight in the coming weeks.

Wednesday Bench

185 x 4 sets of 3

Just some technique weight. I worked on keeping my arch, keeping my shoulders back, and leg drive. I did some rows and biceps after this but purposely kept it light because I'm starting up with geared training again Saturday.

Saturday Squat

I bought some suit slippers from Inzer and they definitely help make it easier to get the suit on. I kept them on throughout the workout to let the suit ride up in the crotch as much as possible. I went straps down, and all my squats were still at least 5-6 inches high which is expected since it's only the second time using the new suit. Worked up to 470 x 2. The super centurion size 40 seems to be a pretty good fit for me and it gives some serious power out of the hole. I came down with the weights slow but they all moved fairly quickly on the way up.

I'm excited to see the UCLA team grow even more this year. It seems like you guys are staying pretty organized and should have a pretty good turnout at all the zero week events.

Bench Assistance. Fri. 9/16.

Incline Bench 4x5
120, 120, 120, 120

Db Shoulder Press
40dbs x6, 40dbs x5, 35dbs x7, 30dbs x 10

Pendlay Row 3x8
115, 105, 105

Shrug Machine
3pes x12, 2.5pes x15, 2pes x25

Lat Pulldowns 2x20
110, 110

Nail Bending
-> took 10-12 compression attempts to almost fully bend the nail from being straight to both ends near touching
-> used the "white" Iron Mind nail (which is the easiest one they have haha goodness)

Turkish Get-Ups (Core)
20db x 6 reps, 20db x 6 reps

Cherry Pickers
45db x20, 35db x 40

Gear update

My gear arrived today from Titan. It only took them 10 days from when I ordered it for them to make it and deliver it. The problem now is I'm still at home and the gear is at my apartment without me. I'm looking forward to trying it on (ha) and getting all the scrapes and bruises (not) and squatting 500 and benching 300 (hopefully)

UPDATE: Titan has increased their prices by about $15. This may not apply to the student discount however.

Fuck. Yeah.

I'm sick right now- low energy and congested, but like so many great lifters before me, I decided to lift some heavy fucking weights anyway. I realized it was my last chance to workout this summer at 24 hour fitness and it was time for some PR's.

Squat

45 x 10

135 x 6

225 x 3

275 x 2 (added wraps and belt)

325 x 1 @ 7

375 x 1 @ 8

405 x 1 @ 8+/9- slightly high, but really easy

425 x 1 @ 10/10+ (10 pound PR) definitely sunk this one deep, but both knees came in and the bar may have dipped on the way up. It didn't feel overwhelmingly heavy, just heavy enough to break down my form.

Sumo Deadlift

135 x 6

225 x 3

315 x 2 (added belt)

365 x 1 @ 8

405 x 1 @ 8+

435 x 1 @ 9+

455 x 1 @ 10 (15 pounds off my PR, but most I've hit since mini meet) this was not an all out effort, but it felt heavy in a shitty way. Sumo used to only feel heavy on the ground, but now that I don't have that issue so much anymore it feels very heavy throughout the whole lift.

well since I didn't hit a sumo PR I thought at least I could hit a conventional PR

Conventional Deadlift

405 x 1 @ 8 (10 pound conventional PR)

445 x 1 @ 9 (50 pound conventional PR)

475 x 1 @ 10+ (85 pound conventional PR, 5 pound all time PR) This one was really hard. I tried twice and couldn't pick it up the first time, but then I decided to pick it up. The lift was shaky between shins and knees, but lockout was smooth. I was struggling to hold it at lockout, but I think I held it long enough for a down command. I think I may switch to conventional, but for equipped I will use sumo because my suit is wide stance.

foam rolling, transversus, stretching

Death By Prowler

Lunges-
Warmups
Theraband Walks
135x10 per leg
185x8 per leg
225x6 per leg PR

"Death By Prowler" Jim Wendler style
160lbs x 2 30 yard Laps
250lbs x 2 30 yard Laps
340lbs x 2 30 yard Laps
430lbs x 2 30 yard Laps
520lbs x 2 30 yard Laps
~ 23 Mins, didn't really go for time, but this was hard. my glutes were already on fire before these.

Squats & Deadlifts. Thur. 9/15.

Back Squats 5x5 (belted)
185, 195, 185, 185, 185
(focusing on good form)

Deadlifts 5x5 (belted)
255, 275, 275, 275, 275
(focusing on good form)

Back on the Map!! Wed. 9/14.

Hello fellow lifters!! I am back on the map!! During this summer, the majority of the time I was lifting during lunch breaks and nights off while working at a summer camp. I have been doing more reps and a lot more dumbbell work to try to maintain weight and for the past month and a half, I've been training every other day in an attempt to accumulate more mass. Main upper body lifts I've used have been dumbbell pressing, dumbbell rowing, shrugs and power cleans and front squats to mix it up for lower body.

Beginning of Summer: 139 lbs BW
Summer Peak: 145 lbs BW

--> 6 lb gain!!!

This past week I didn't lift at all ... and after a rest week I came back and tested to rep maxes:

Bench
135x11 --> Rep PR!!!!

Pullups
BWx15
(thought I would get more, my rep max is 20)

Shrugs N Bros

9/14/11

Shrugs

I worked up to 455 for a couple sets of 3. These were dirty and I wanted to do more weight but wasn't sure I should continue to get dirtier.

Pendlay Rows

Just wanted to comment that I don't feel these in my hamstrings; but, I do love the exercise.

There was a sick bro doing REVERSE GRIP BENCH! I've seen a lot of weird stuff at gyms, but seeing reverse grip bench outside of Kyle's presence is a new one.

9.14.11--Bench

Feeling a little better than yesterday. Got an early gym workout in. Really happy with how I benched today, weight was going up easier than it ever has. Maybe this is because I weigh 185 lbs now, which is still a good 10-15 more than my normal weight last year, but still, I think I'm making nice strides in my accessory work and it's helping a lot. Also, my new roommate is pretty strong, but had never done free weights before we started working out together, so I'm constantly pushing myself to do more weight than him (then again, I weigh 35 pounds more than him haha).

Bench:
warmups
155x5@8+
165x5@9
170x5@10- (ties PR)

(3 second) Pause Bench:
145x3@9-
150x3@9+
155x3@10- PR I believe

Decline Bench:
135x5@9
155x5@9+
165x5@10 (really tired by this point)

DB Shoulder Raises (lateral supersetted with front)
10sx8x3 for each exercise

Cable Flyes, Triceps Machine, Dips Machine, Shrug "Machine," other various chest/tris/shoulders exercises

Were we supposed to max?

Squat
315 x 1 x 3 @9+

Low pin squat
225 x 5
235 x 5 x 2
245 x 5

Zercher squat
225 x 6 x 3

abs


Bench
215 x 1 x 3 @9+ to 10
Spotter helped way too much for the second and third, but I probably would've failed the third

Neutral grip dumbbell bench
65 x 5 x 2
70 x 5 x 2

Dumbbell skullcrushers
25 x 8 x 4

Pendlay row
155 x 8 x 4

Shrugs
up to 425 x 2

Injury updates

So my hip is still kind of messed up. I may have come back into lifting a bit too fast & furious. The good news is that I can do front squats and deadlifts without pain.

What this means is that starting in the fall I will be following the split as best as I can, substituting front squats for regular squats, and otherwise working around the hip irritation.

In other news, it looks like the November meet is pretty much out for me (unless I go bench-only lol). And aside from the 22:30 crew, I may be a ghost to most of the team with EMT training Monday - Thursday from 18:00-22:00 starting Monday of 1st week.

Bench 1

Bench:

275 x 1

295 x 1

315 x 1 @ 10-

320 x 1 @ 10

325 x 1 @ 10

These felt much better than the benches at nationals. Lots of good explosion at the bottom and some drive at the top. Shoulder was still sore and the biceps ached, but not too bad.

Overhead pin press:

135 x 5

185 x 3

205 x 3

215 x 3

225 x 3

I didn't have a spotter so I did these just to get some heavy tricep lockout work. Felt hard.

Pendlay Row:

135 x 5

185 x 5

205 x 5

225 x 5

245 x 5 @ 9+

I did these with a loose belt for a change, and whoa, did they feel better. 245 was hard, but not nearly as sloppy as was in the past. I still feel these a lot in my hamstrings. Does anyone else?

Dips:

bw x 10, 30, 25, 25

The first set always feels terrible. Warming up?

Finished with crunches, pnf, and rotator cuff work.

Luke 9-13-11 Bench and Vacation

I went to Mammoth and Yosemite with my family for the past 5 days. Yesterday I did the Nevada falls hike which is 1900 ft of elevation gain (and loss) over 3 miles (each way.) This was the most strenuous hike I've done in a while, but with my conditioning from bike riding and strength from powerlifting, the uphill was a breeze. Nevertheless, my ass is sore.

I got home today and wanted to hit up the gym so I did bench after skipping press and lower back days. I think I will combine squat and deadlift on thursday when I am less sore.

Bench

45 x 13, 45 x 10, 95 x 8, 135 x 5, 165 x 1

195 x 8 @ 10- PR (10 pound PR, previous best was 195 x 5)

Pause Bench with self imposed 2-3 second pause

185 x 5 @ 10- PR

185 x 5 @ 10+ last 3 reps felt @ 10

Skull Crushers

80 x 10 x 2 felt hard today

EZ Barbell Curls

80 x 10

Shrugs

455 x 3

505 x 3

535 x 3 barely could move it

T-bar Rows

worked up to 5 plates (225) x 6

also I fell on my ass on 4 plates when the handle slipped lol

Abs

Sick Squat Brah 9.13.11

Woke up this morning feeling really sick. I guess it's time for my yearly "get sick and lose 10 pounds." Although, I could probably benefit from losing 10 pounds because I'm consistently weigh around 188 lbs.

Squat:
warmups
245x5@8 (these felt really good)
265x5@9
275x5@10 ties PR, probably did not have depth on most (really tired after this, part because sick, part because belt slipped on first rep, part because gym so effing hot)

Calf Presses

Abs

had to quit workout early because of sore throat/general exhaustion

Bench

Bench, briefly paused
275x3
285x3
300x3 @10- 5 Lb pR


Weighted pushups w/ 30 lbs chain ammo
4x15

These destroyed my lats also

Pullups
X8,5,5,7

Overhead shrugs

Squat singles 9/12

Squat:
255 x 1
275 x 1
295 x 1

My upper back is still really hurting when I put any weight on the bar, but for not squatting so long because of it 295 was surprisingly easy, so that's good at least.

Front squat:
135 x 5
145 x 5
145 x 5

Leg Press:
365 x 5 x 3

No one was there except Kevin and Max, who left after singles, so I was all by myself and didn't know what the workout was lol

Afterwards I did some abs and then went to TKD practice.

Squat 1

Squat:

415 x 1

435 x 1 @ 10-

455 x 1 @ 10-

475 x 1 @ 9+

495 x 1 @ 10

My lower back is doing that shaking thing where it catches and then releases half way through. It terrifies the spotters (also, me).

SS-bar pin squats:

225 x 3

275 x 3

315 x 3 @ 9

365 x 2 @ 10+

EFFFF. I used a lower pin then last week. Things were feeling good and I hit 365 x 3 last week, so I thought I might jump straight to it and go up from there. However, I nearly passed out from hitting the second rep. I think I remember it being hard last week too, but I didn't write down my RTS levels, which wrecked my weight planning this week.

Zercher Squats:

225 x 8

275 x 8 @ 8+

295 x 3

The pad rolled out on the last set, so I just stopped.

Finished with ab wheel and pnf stretching. also, some overhead shrugs

lower body

Crossover Lunges-
115x10,10,10 per leg
been ramping 10lbs per week.

Single Leg Pistol Squat
x8,8,8 Per Leg

Good mornings, parallel to floor
225x10,10,10

standing abs

These workouts are so boring. but I'm feeling better.. 80-85% today. I have little to no pain. the only thing that isn't correct is my left lower back was more pumped than the right side after the GM's

Bench Assistance

Incline Bench:

225 x 5 @ 10-, 10, 10

Oof these were hard

Shoulder Press:

65 x 8

70 x 8

75 x 8

Dumbbell bench:

95 x 8, 8, 8 @ 10, 10, 10-

These were much harder than i expected due to my triceps being gassed.

Wide-grip lat pull down:

250 x 8, 12

270 x 8

Wide-grip cable row:

150 x 10

160 x 10

200 x 10 @ 8

Easier than i thought

Scap pull ups hurt, so I switched to overhead shrug.

Finished with incline curls and ball bridges with the bosu ball, which was much harder.

Ryan Bench Assist 9/10/11

Incline-
155 x5
175 x5
185 x5
195 x5

Arnold Press-
40's x8
50's x8x2

DB Bench-
60's x8
70's x8
80's x8

Lat Pull Downs-
heavy x8x3

Wide grip cable rows-
150 x8
160 x8
170 x8
180 x8

Scap Pull ups x3
biceps x3
Abs x3

Deadlift

Deadlift:

Sumo felt terrible, so I went with conventional, which felt mildly better

384 x 1

475 x f, 1 @ 10

I couldn't pick up 475, but then i got irritated and picked it up.

SS-bar box squat:

315 x 3

365 x 3

385 x 3 @ 10-

These were bruutal.

Shrugs:

585 x 4

675 x 4

725 x 3

efff. 725 was heavy.

Finished with ghr abs, banded hamstring curls, and some light leg press to stretch out the lower back.

9.9.11--Deadlift

Deadlift:
135x5
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x3@9
335x3@10 (believe it or not, this ties a PR. My 1 rep max is 415. I need to do more heavy deadlifts, rather than just relying on nose tork and Vit slaps to get my weight up.)

GMOP:
135x5
185x5
225x5

Hamstring Curl Machine, Back Hyperextensions, Lat Pulls, Transversus, Biceps, Rows

Then I went to the driving range and hit balls hard

Lower body

PT asked me how i felt 0% being when i came in to 100% I said 75%
Wanted to try 2 legged movements Went up to BW in squats.. she believes in nature proper squats are corrective in nature.

Box Jumps-
up to 45" box PR

squat
135x10
245x10,10

Wore the Addistars, I forgot how comfortable these were to squat in, my ass was like 3 inches from the ground tho lol

BW GHR
4x10

Squat

Lower back slightly fried from pulling 2 days ago.

Squat

275 x 3 @8+

295 x 3 @9+

315 x 3 @10 -elbows touched thighs on last rep

225 x 8, 8

Finished with 3 sets of BW GHRs, 2 sets of transversus and some stretching. I was in a hurry today.

9.7.11--Bench

Bench:
155x5@9-
165x5@9
170x5@10 (ties PR)

Close Grip Bench:
135x5@9
145x5@9+
145x5@10

Incline Bench:
115x8@9+
125x6@10 (by now my triceps were fried)

Various Pecs, Shoulders, and Triceps machines

Shrugs

Luke 9-7-11 Bench

I did a shorter deload/ transition workout

Bench

45 x 10, 95 x 7, 135 x 5,

185 x 10 @ 9+ (10 lb PR) also a 2 rep PR, felt pretty easy until the last rep. This is kinda a milestone for skinny non PL bench onlys who do the same workout everyday

Foam Roller Bench (had 3 different sets of spotters)

225 x 5 @ 8+

235 x 5 @ 9 spotter had hands on bar whole time

245 x 1+fail incompetent foam roller holder

Skull Crushers

80 x 10 x 3 slight pain in left elbow depending on form

Pendlay Rows

135 x 8

155 x 6, 8 not really feeling the pendlers today.

Shrugs

455 x 5

500 x 3+2 hit rack and had to reset pull

Bench

I missed bench on Monday and am leaving for D.C. tomorrow night so I had to settle for this as my only upper body training for this week. I'll squeeze in some squats before leaving tomorrow as well.

Bench

205 x 3 @9-

215 x 3 @10-

220 x 3 @10 (PR) -last rep was very ugly

185 x 2

Barbell shrugs

455 x 10

495 x 10

545 x 10

605 x 10

Pullups

BW x 20, 12 -not bad for a 203lb fatass

Dumbbell shoulder press

50s x 10

55s x 8

60s x 8

USAPL 2011 Raw Nationals Meet Report

Finally getting around to writing the report...

Weigh-in: 194. I think I might have cut a bit too much on accident. I took a hot bath the night before, which felt great but I think I was more dehydrated than I would have liked. Pounding water felt meh, but by the time warm ups rolled around, I was back in the game.

Squats:

512 x 1

540 x 1 @ 10

551 x 1 @ 10

Warming up was fairly interesting. Guys in the back room were warming up with 525. The warm ups felt good though. Opener was light. 540 was harder than I expected. I twisted a bit, which made it slow. I originally thought 556, but I went with 551 to stay safe. 551 felt easier than 540, so I might have had 556 in me after all. Oh well, better to have that extra 10.

Bench:

304 x 1 @ 9

319 x f

319 x 1 @ 10+

Warm ups went well with minimal should discomfort (though it was still there). Opener felt light. The first attempt at 319 just stalled hard. EFFF. I was expecting to hit that with some effort, but not fail. I think this is where the weight cut hit me hardest (as always). It was do or die on the third, so I just kept grinding no matter what. I am honestly amazed it kept moving. I was pushing and it just felt like it was moving but i didn't know why...

Deadlift:

650 x 1

688 x 1

716 x f (.9)

With 650, I went from like 15th to 2nd, haha. The right judge red-lighted me for apparently dipping at the top. I didn't see it in the video (the bar only moves slightly sideways as I rock into place). I was not in the mood.

I was thinking 699 on the second, but the competition was insanely fierce so I went conservative with 688. The lift was hard, but definitely not a max effort. It also sent a message to those after me to choose their third attempt knowing I could pull more.

For the third, I told Matt and Greg to put in whatever I needed to win. Had Anthony Parella hit his third, I would have needed 727. However, he didn't so we went with 716 (there was some confusion though, because Matt thought Tony had hit his third, so we had to redact the change to the third attempt.) In the end, I couldn't pull it all the way but managed to get it almost to lock out. I was still pretty happy with this. It was a long day, with the meet running 7 hours at that point and after a heavy squat, 688 wasn't too bad.

Overall, very happy with the meet. I would have liked the win, but it was a good battle with Tony and he is an awesome dude to compete with. Clearly, I'm not going to win a national championship with a 319 bench, so getting my shoulder healthy is key. Also not neglecting my upper back work so I can finish those pulls.

PRing some ways, being terrible in others

Squat

285 x 3

295 x 3

305 x 2

This might still be a PR. Actually was going to go for a third rep but I didn't really push for it since I didn't have a spotter. Does that still count as flat out failure?

Low pin squat

225 x 5 x 2

235 x 5

245 x 5

Set these right at parallel. Are these supposed to feel like box squats? Because I was gassed

Zercher squat

225 x 6 x 2

235 x 6

Bench

175 x 3

180 x 3

185 x 3 @9

Baby steps, almost literally

Neutral grip dumbbell bench

60 x 5

65 x 5 x 3

Pendlay row

145 x 8

155 x 8 x 3

Shrugs

up to 405 x 2

Bench Tuesday 09-06-11

Bench
145 x 3
155 x 3
160 x 3

Foam Roller Bench
160 x 5
170 x 5
175 x 5

Skull Krushers
Pendley Rows
Shrugs
Abs

Bench 3

Bench:

275 x 3, 3, 3

285 x 3

295 x 3

Pain was @ 3. The spotter noticed that my left arm was flaring more than my right. Perhaps I'm compensating due to my sore shoulder. I need to video it to see.

Foam roller press:

295 x 5

315 x 5

335 x 5

These felt better. Spotter said I was even on both arms, so I think I must be twisting at the bottom, which makes sense since that's where it feels most uncomfortable.

Triceps extension:

30 x 12

Eh, felt weird, so I stopped.

Dips:

bw x 15, 20, 20

Pendlay Row:

135 x 8

185 x 5, 5, 5

My middle back is mildly sprained and my lower back is sore as eff, so I just skipped shrugs for the time being. I'll probably work them in on friday.

Finished with some foam roller transversus, banded rotator cuff, and pnf stretching.

Deadlift

Block pulls (from below the knee)

335 x 5, 5, 5

385 x 1

415 x 1

415+2 chains x 2 @10

415+2 chains x 2 @10

I think each chain weighed around 15-20 lbs

GHRs

BW+mini band x 4 x 10

Kneeling abs

4 x 10 at 102.5lbs

Finished with some stretching

9.6.11-Squat

Air conditioning was broken at the gym, which led to sweaty situations...

Squat:
warmups
255@8
275@9-
285@9
295@10-
305@10

I'm squatting facing the mirror, because it's the only way I have a chance of knowing if I'm hitting depth... Might have been a little high, but I'm more or less in 2 white 1 red territory

Box Squats (kind of a high box, about 1 inch above parallel):
185x3@9
205x3@9+
225x3@10-

various leg machines

abs

Ryan Bench 9/6/11

Bench-
215 x3
235 x3
250 x3**

**Pretty lame, but on my third rep (which I had 100% confidence that I could have gotten), when I drove with my legs, my upper back slid up and killed my arch, so I couldn't finish the rep. Reps 1 and 2 were easy and relatively quick. Sucks.

Foam roller-
265 x5x2
275 x5x

Tricep Overhead Extension-
20's x8
25's x8
30's x8
32.5s x8

Pendlay rows-
135 x8
165 x6x2
175 x6x2

Luke 9-6-11 Squat

My breast nuggets are still sore from incline bench on sunday. I felt super exhausted after work (biked 12 miles today) so I took a 30 minute nap before gym. I felt surprisingly good at the gym though.

I ordered my gear today. Although I believe that raw lifts are a much truer measure of strength than equipped, USAPL collegiate nationals is backward and ignorant of this fact, thus I must compete in gear to have any chance at placing.

My order:

Titan Super Centurion Squat Suit- Size 36 (148)- Wide Stance- Blue

Titan Katana Bench Shirt- Size 40 (165)- Angled Sleeves- Blue

Titan THP Knee Wraps (most supportive and tightest)- 2 meters

It cost $237 for all items including shipping. With student discount the super centurion was $115 (regular would have been $90) the Katana was $90 (super would have been $109) and the wraps were $16.50 I think. They said they would try to get it to me by Sept 30, but orders usually take 4-6 weeks.

Squat

45 x 10, 135 x 8, 225 x 4, 275 x 2, 325 x 1

365 x 3 @ 8+

385 x 3 @ 9

400 x 3 @ 9+ (5 pound PR) maybe 2 white light depth

Lowish Pin Squats (3 inches above parallel, full pause at bottom)

315 x 3 @ 10-

315 x 5 @ 9

315 x 5 @ 8

Zercher Squat

225 x 6

245 x 6

255 x 6

uhhg these suck

Abs and Foam Roller Transversus and Stretching

Bench

DB Bench w/ 100lb DBS
3x8

Strict OHP
155x5,5,10

Weighted pullups w20lbs
3x5

Prowler rope pull rows
2x50Meter pulls w/300 lbs

Lower body PT Training

Week 2 of PT training

Crossover Lunges
105x10,10,10 Per leg

these DESTROYED my glutes/adductors/abductors


Single leg pistols
x7,7,7 per leg-  PR

Still noticibly harder on left.

Single Leg RDL's
95x10,10,10
Still Hard, not as hard as the first time but  I was dying by this point legs shaky, and out of breath

Finished with some Banded Twists for the Transversus abdominals.

Compared with The last 3 workouts before this, I'm sore more evenly in my body, as opposed to 1 glute being fried, 1 hamstring being fried. Both Glutes are sore as hell, and were working evenly, I haven't experienced this before, as well as equal hamstring distribution.My lower back is feeling more even too, that isn't quite 100% but A great step in the right direction. The weight I'm using is low, but these are hard.

Squat 3

Feeling a bit more beat up than I expected from having done lower back work only two days ago. Got a nasty case of the shakes on most of the heavy sets.

Squat:

405 x 3

425 x 3 @ 9+

445 x 3 @ 9+

455 x 3 @ 9+

465 x 2 @ 10-

Lots of personal problems today. I misgrooved the last set and had to grind it up from on my toes. I just stopped after that. No spotters and this dude was watching some car show instead of having the radio on, so it was like lifting in someone's living room. :/

SS-bar pin squats:

225 x 3

275 x 3

315 x 3 @ 9+

335 x 3 @ 10

355 x 3 @ 10

I think the pin was one higher this time, but the first two sets felt much harder. I regained some mental clarity somewhere after the second set and was able to grind up the reps. The ss-bar succccks for these when it gets heavy.

Zercher squats:

185 x 8

225 x 8

275 x 8

These felt much better than last week.

Finished with some overhead shrugs, pnf, and decline crunches

Lower body

My lower body training again has been boring.

The PT has been giving me workouts, and they work in the 10-12 range, with single leg movements.

lets say i feel like a bitch, and I almost puked after my lunges today..

i'm feeling better than ever, but im not 100%. the Soft Tissue massages on off days from PT help alot too, along with ultrasound. Really Glad I stopped going to the Chiro for the PT.

Squat Monday 09-05-11

Squat
225 x 3
245 x 3
265 x 3 <-PR

Pin Squat
185 x 5,5,5

Zerchers
135 x 6,6,6,6

Box Jumps
Foam Roller Abs

Bench

Incline Dumbbell Press:

90 x 5

95 x 5

100 x 5

105 x 5

There's no barbell incline set up at 4-star (the makeshift one scares me), so I just did dumbbell since there were heavy dumbbells.

Standing Dumbbell Press:

60 x 8

65 x 8

70 x 7.8

Tried the standing variant today and it was much harder on the lockout.

Dumbbell Bench Press:

90 x 8 @ 10, 8 @ 8+

100 x 8 @ 9

The first set at 90 felt very hard, so I repeated, but then it got much easier.

Wide-grip pull ups:

bw x 7, 8, 10, 8

Ughh.. getting fat? Why are these so hard?

Dumbbell Rows:

135 x 5, 10, 8

Got frustrated for doing only 5 reps on the first set, so I did 10 to spite the weight.

Finished with overhead shrugs and pnf stretching

Deadlift Assistance

SS-bar Box Squat:

w/ wide stance

225 x 5

275 x 5

315 x 5 @ 9

335 x 5 @ 9+

365 x 3, 3 @ 10

Ughhh. 365 was whooping me bad. I had planned to go for 5, but the third rep felt tough each time. Wide stance still feel weird. I need to do more wider stance lifts to keep my adductors trained.

SS-bar good mornings:

225 x 5, 5, 5, 5

Deadlifts:

265 x 5

375 x 5 @ 10 efff

Failed to break 265 off the ground without a belt. WTF. I need to keep stretching to pull my nerves back into line.

Finished with some hanging leg raises (4 sets). My PT recommend doing overhead shrugs to strengthen my middle traps. I did these in the smith machine with 50 pounds and it worked really well.

Luke 9-4-11 LA's 230th B-day

Worked out at 24 hour fitness in Costa Mesa/Newport Beach with Lauren.

Incline Bench

135 x 8 @ 8

145 x 8 @ 9-

155 x 8 @ 10- PR

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

50's x 8

55's x 8

60's x 8

Dumbbell Bench

75's x 5 really hard to get up, also hard as 3rd exercise

70's x 8

70's x 7

Wide Grip Cable Row (neutral grip) SS1

120 x 6

140 x 6

160 x 6

180 x 6

200 x 6

Lat Pulldown SS1

180 x 5

200 x 5

210 x 5

220 x 5

Scap Pull Ups SS1

BW x 10-12 x 4

Incline Sit Ups SS2

BW x 10 x 4

Preacher Curls SS2

75 x 8,10,10,8

Speed Squat Day - Saturday 9/3/11

12 trips with the sled (90lbs)

Box Squats
185 x 2
185 x 2
185 x 2
205 x 2
205 x 2
205 x 2
215 x 2
215 x 2
215 x 2
215 x 2
215 x 2
215 x 2
This was tiring, very little rest.

GHRs
4 sets of 10

Reverse Hypers & Abs
3 sets of 10

Stretching

Today was all about perfect form and speed. I’ve never used a monolift before but it’s not bad. I would have preferred to walk out the weight on a normal squat rack but we train in groups so I had to stay with them. I’m pretty much resetting my squat form and making sure that I develop the right symmetry to boost up my three lifts.

Yep

Dreadlift

385 x 3 x 3

385 x 2.7

Rack pulls

385 x 1

huh

Shrugs

315 x 8 x 3

GHRs

Incline bench

135 x 8

140 x 8

145 x 8

My wrist is back!

Dumbbell shoulder press

50 x 8 x 2

50 x 6

Neutral grip dumbbell bench

55 x 8 x 3

Lat pulldown

180 x 5

190 x 5

200 x 5 x 2

wide grip cable row

190 x 5

200 x 5

210 x 5 x 3

scap pull ups giant set

bicepsual

Squat

Squat

200 x 3

240 x 3, 3

Wanted to try on my new size 40 super centurion to see how it fit. I think its the right fit around the crotch. I was able to get it almost all the way up using suit slippers.

330 x 3 (straps down) - probably 5 inches high

400 x 3 (straps up) -probably like 8 inches high, barely got down

This suit is a pretty tight fit, definitely much tighter than my old suit. I can still get the straps on by myself which means it's loose up top, but it's definitely snug in the crotch/legs. I considered going down to a 38 but it would be super tight and considering I'll probably gain a little weight over the next year I think the 40 should be a solid suit once it's broken in. It'll most likely take at least 500 for me to get to parallel in it, which is a good thing.

Box squats (about parallel or slightly below)

135 x 5

185 x 5

225 x 5, 5

Standing abs

100 x 12

110 x 10, 10

Banded GHRs (mini band)

3 sets of 10

Ryan Bench Assist 9/2/11

Incline-
155 x8
175 x8
165 x8

Arnold Press-
40 x8
45 x8
45 x8

Dumbell Bench-
60 x8
65 x8
70 x8
My inability to pull the bar apart and engage my lats puts a lot of stress on my shoulder, so theses aren't very comfortable.

Lat Pulls-
180 x5x3

Wide grip cable rows-
150 x5
170 x8
180 x6x2

Scap-Pull Ups x3
Preacher Curl x4
Abs x3

9.2.11--Deadlift

Deadlifts: (first time since mini meet lol)
135x5
185x5
225x5
275x3@9
305x3@9+
315x3@10-
Next week I'll go up in weight. Nice to just have the weight in my hands. I'd estimate that I'd be able to pick up 375 with nose tork, but not much more than that.

Power Cleans:
95x5
105x5
115x5

Hypers:
BWx120

Bench Assistance

As far as Lower body goes, same Single leg, boring stuff on thursday
My Hip is feeling so much better, went to PT for a second time,
she massaged my tight fascia and upper glutes, The first time I went the pain was 11/10, I was crying
today(2nd time) was maybe 6/10 pain , I'm feeling a ton looser and so much less pain, noticibly less scar tissue also. Things are looking very bright..

Todays workout

Strict OHP-
155x5
175x5
185x5@8
135x3x3 for Speed
Nothing too hard, just getting back into pressing

Pullups
4x8

Shrugs
Started at 1 plate up to
700x5

Skull Crushers
4x12

Bench Assist Friday 09-02-11

Incline Bench Press
95 x 8
105 x 8
115 x 8

Dumbbell Shoulder Press
25 x 8
30 x 8
35 x 8

Dumbbell Bench
35 x 8
37.5 x 8, 8

Heavy Wide-Grip Pulldowns
Heavy Cable Rows

Abs

Bodyweight: 162 lbs

Deadlift Thursday 09-01-11

Deadlift
265 x 3
285 x 3

Deficit Deadlift
185 x 8
225 x 5,5

GHR
Abs

Bodyweight: 164lbs

Luke 9-1-11 Deadlift

Another shitty deadlift day. Looks like I may need to lift equipped to qualify for nationals as a 165, because RAW I really need at least a 450+ deadlift.

Sumo Deadlift

375 x 3 @ 9

405 x 3 @ 10

435 x 1 @ 10 I knew I wasn't gonna get this for 3, but I wanted to lift something heavy(ish)

Conventional Deadlift

315 x 3 @ 8-

365 x 3 @ 9

395 x 3 @ 10

I was pissed about how shitty my recent deadlift workouts have been so I tried conventional deadlifts to see how I was at them. The hardest part was about 3 inches from the floor to just below my knees and lockout felt super easy.

Hamstring Curls

why are these so hard x 80 pounds x 8 x 3 sets

Hyper extensions

BW x 50

Abs

9/1 Post MCAT Bench

Finished my MCAT at 5:30, drove home and walked to the gym.

Bench:
worked up to 225x1 (warm-up)
205x6, 6, 6, 6, 4

Incline:
155x7, 7, 7, 5, 5

Dips:
BWx5
+25x5, 5, 4, 4, 3

Pendlay Rows:
135x5
185x5, 5
225x5

and some other stuff

I think I should do dips before inclines, because they were crazy difficult afterwards and I really need them to get my triceps strength back up. I hate this volume, but it's worth doing if I get bigger & stronger.

Diablo Barbell - Week 1

Greetings from the Diablo Barbell!

I’ve been really lazy about posting (sry!!!) but I still kept up the lifting after the Aug meet. I’m in the Bay Area now and loving Diablo Barbell so far. I’ve quickly learned that these guys are no joke. When I walked in the first thing I saw were the red painted walls with heavy death metal playing in the background (a little different than JWC...). I’m the lightest guy in Diablo by almost 60lbs. I’m not used to being that much lighter than everybody else but it’s all good. Either way, I’m here to get strong as hell and outwilks mother fuckers! Here’s what I’ve done so far.

Squat Day - Tuesday 8/30/11

Warm Up
12 walking trips with the sled (45lbs)

Box Squat (right at parallel)
135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5
275 x 5
315 x 3
345 x 1
375 x 1
405 x 1 30lb PR (went wider and put the bar in a higher position to use my abs and hams more than before)

Good Mornings (High bar, position was parallel to the floor)
135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 5 x 4

Ab Wheel & Reverse Hypers
5 sets of 10

Stretched

Bench Day - Thursday 9/1/11

Warmed up with 12 trips w/ sled

Bench

Bar x 10
95 x 5
135 x 5
185 x 3
205 x 1
225 x 1
255 x 1 10 lb PR .
Positioned my legs wider instead of having them underneath the bench.

Tate Presses
20s x 10
25s x 10
30s x 10
35s x 10
35s x 10

Dumbbell Chest-Supported Rows (I was laying down with my whole body on a tall bench and brought the bar all the way up til it hit the bottom of the bench)
135 x 10 x 4

Delt raises with sled.
For these, I put a plate on the sled and did delt raises by first having the handles out in front of me and then pulling in a Y motion to drag the weight. I did 6 trips total.

Supersetted Reverse Hypers and Abs

Ted made it crystal clear that this place will test how bad I wanna be strong. As he put it, “Diablo will either make you or break you”. A little scary but I’m sticking with it. I wish you guys all the luck in the world with your studies and your lifts. Keep lifting strong! I’ll see you guys in November. I’ll have my squat suit tailored by then ; )

Bench Assistance

Standing press

125 x 3 @7

135 x 3 @8

145 x 3 @9

155 x 3 @10- (PR)

Dumbbell rows (straps)

160 x 10, 10

CG Bench

135 x 8

145 x 8

155 x 8

165 x 8

Barbell shrugs

405 x 10

455 x 8, 8

No chalk, but still my grip and traps both felt weak as hell today. Could be from trying to keep the upper back tight on bench day and deadlift day. Could be fatigue from the dumbbell rows. Or most likely, could be my gaping vag filled with personal problems.

Supersetted shrugs with 3 sets of curls.

Shrugs

8/30/11

Shrugs

I did these on the Smith Machine because there was a bro high-squatting in the only power rack. I'm not adding any bar weight to the numbers below.

455 x 5 x 3

8.31.11--Bench

Bench Press:
warmups
165@8
175@9
185@9
190@10-
195xf (couldn't get it off the chest, I'll hit it easily in 3 weeks though)

Incline Press:
115x8@9-
125x8@9+
125x8@9+
The weight was going up, but it is still tiring for me to do long sets. Hopefully it will be better as I get back into my routine.

DB Flyes:
20sx8
30sx8x2

Fly machine, triceps machine, some weird inner chest machine

Shrugs:
my grip took an unexpected hit over summer. I'm going to be working hard to get it back soon, starting with my deadlift workout tonight. I have chalk, so I should be pretty good, but holy shit it was hard for me to hold on to the bar last night.
225 x a lot
275 until grip failure
315 until grip failure

Knowing that my weakness in bench is off the chest, I'm really focusing more on not sandbagging my upperback, shoulders, and pecs.

Banch 5

Bench:

255 x 5

265 x 5, 5 @ 8+

225 x 8, 8 @ 8

Meh. My elbow nerves are stil somewhat painful, which is frustrating. Shoulder feels sore but not painful. I had no spotter and lift off, so I stopped going up and just did some burn out sets. 265 felt way harder than 225, which was weird. I think I'm just deconditioned to heavy weight.

No spotters, so couldn't do board press.

Pendlay Row:

135 x 5

185 x 5

205 x 5, 5

Shrugs:

405 x 5

495 x 5

545 x 5

585 x 5

625 x 5

One-arm tricep extensions.

30 x 10, 10

40 x 10

50 x 6

Switched to single arm exercises to avoid the shoulder issue.

Dips:

bw x 10, 20, 15, 10

Finished with some cable abs, rotator cuff exercises, and light bicep curls.

Overall, a super frustrating day.