Rugby + Trying to Lift Heavy

[tomahawk1984]

I suppose an intro is needed.

My name is Liam, I'm 26 and play tight head. I have played since I was 18. Went to Loughborough University and had the honour of playing for the best rugby university in the UK for 2 years.

Towards the end of my second year I suffered a pretty serious back injury and only played 3 games over the next 4 years. Last season was my first full season since I first hurt my back. Although I did fracture my cheekbone which sidelined me for 10 weeks after Christmas.

Pre-season starts at the end of June but I am competing in the UKs Strongest Athlete competition on 10th July.

My best lifts are:

Squat - 1x260kg/572lbs (video below), 5x227.5kg/500lbs
Bench - 1x150kg/330lbs, 10x125kg/275lbs
Deadlift - 1x220kg/484lbs, 10x175kg/385lbs (video below)
Military Press - 1x112.5kg/247.5lbs, 10x90kg/198lbs
Log Clean and Press - 1x120kg/264lbs

I want to hit a 600lb squat before UKSA and after that I'll concentrate on pre-season.

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[tomahawk1984]

Bench

1x10 bar
2x5 60kg
2x5 80kg
1x5 95kg (65%)
1x3 110kg (75%)
1x9 127.5kg/280.5lbs (85%)

Red colour highlights a PR. I've hit a PR every session this year, something like 65 in a row. Times are good.

Left elbow had a little pain otherwise I think I was good for 10+. Training max for this wave is 147.5kg/324.5lbs.

Log Hang Clean and Press

2x5 40kg
2x5 60kg
2x5 80kg
1x9 80kg/176lbs

I've changed up my technique because I suck at push press. Using the viper press that Big Z and Derek Poundstone use. 9 reps were done in 31 seconds. UKSA calls for max reps in 60 seconds, I'm aiming for 15+.

Example of the viper press

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[tomahawk1984]

Squats on Monday didn't go well. Hips and glutes were really tight. I didn't warm up enough and after my 3rd rep with 180kg I felt a sharp pain in my lower back.

Basically, I have been skimping on mobility work and this has been a wake up call. Pain is better today but I really stuggled to walk yesterday but I was on my feet all day today with a lot less pain. No idea when I'll be able to train again.

[tomahawk1984]

Back is feeling better. Walking pretty much pain free but there is still pain when I move my hips. Will do some light bench on Saturday and keep on stretching and icing.

[tomahawk1984]

Mobility work! Took about 12 minutes to get through everything. Back feels much better but I think I'm going to give squats and deadlifts a miss this week and do some lighter unilateral work.

Bench

1x5 60kg
1x5 75kg
1x5 85kg
1x5 102.5kg
1x3 117.5kg
1x6 132.5kg/291.5lbs

Bench was fine up until 117.5kg. I felt no pain in my back but was notably looser than usual so I racked it after 3 relatively sloppy reps.

My legs are pretty short and I bench up on my toes. This means I have zero heel drive so I practiced setting my feet wider and getting them flat. Had a quick go with 1x100kg and it felt pretty good. Tried the same with 132.5kg but my feet shot out from underneath me on the first rep. I had to re-adjust my feet and managed to get 5 more reps out.

Tate Press

1x15 15kg
2x12 20kg

Supersetted with

Rope Recline Rows

3x8 BW

Cross Body Hammer Curls

1x15 10kg
2x12 12.5kg

Supersetting with

[b]Band Push Downs]/b]

3x20 Red band

First time I've done any beach work for ages.

I did a couple of lengths of sled dragging but my back was tired so I left it there.

[tomahawk1984]

No squats today. Back is a lot better but it's still uncomfortable at the bottom with just body weight.

Bulgarian Split-Squats

3x8 BW
3x8 16kg

Feet raised press ups

6x10 BW

Single Leg RDL

3x8 BW
3x8 30kg

Chins

6x3 BW

All done in a big super set.

Barbell One-Arm Snatch

2x3 40kg both arms
2x1 50kg both arms
1x1 55kg both arms
1x1 60kg right arm

55kg flew up. 60kg was a grind, not sure you could consider it a snatch but I got it up.

[tomahawk1984]

Warm up + mobility + soft tissue

Bench

2x5 60kg
2x5 80kg
1x5 100kg
1x5 110kg
1x3 125kg
1x5 140kg/308lbs

Really pleased with this. Still struggling with leg drive.

DB Rows

3x10 45kg

GHR

3x10 BW

After this I started to do some single leg glute bridges to see if there was any pain in my back when I extended my hips. Turns out I have no glute activation in my left glute and very little in my right glute. I was struggling to do glute bridges on a 10 inch box with a 10kg sandbag.

Cue lots of glute activation work - this is now going to be a part of my warm. The coach at my gym thinks it could put 50+lbs on my squat if I can get them firing efficiently.

Log Clean and Press

3x5 80kg
2x1 100kg
3x1 122.5kg/269.5lbs

80kg was really fast, 100kg wasn't much slower. The clean with 122.5kg was a lot more comfortable than 120kg a few weeks ago. The press wasn't as comfortable, probably due to benching earlier.

Sandbag Run + Prowler

Shoulder 75kg sandbag and run 15m then push prowler back (low handles) 15m

3 rounds

[tomahawk1984]

A combination of my back and holidays meant I haven't hit the gym for a couple of weeks. Back with a bang today.

Deadlifts

2x5 60kg
2x5 100kg
1x5 140kg
1x3 180kg
1x1 200kg
1x1 230kg/506lbs

500lb deadlift!!! Felt OK, might have had a little bit more in me but happy to leave it there.

Bench

2x5 60kg
2x5 80kg
1x21 100kg/220lbs

My previous best with 100kg was 13 reps. The gym record is 22. If I learn to pace myself better I think I could beat it soon.

In other news it turns out the log I have been training with is 30kg, not 40kg. This means all my previous log work is 10kg too heavy.

[tomahawk1984]

Military Press

1x5 40kg
1x5 60kg
1x3 80kg
1x1 100kg
1x1 115kg/253lbs
1x0 120kg/264lbs

Really pleased with 115kg. Really developing a sticking point somewhere between my eyes and the top of my head.

Fat Grip Seated Overhead Pin-Presses

2x5 60kg
2x5 80kg
1x3 100kg
1x0 120kg

120kg wouldn't even budge. Considering I failed 120kg at my forehead with momentum I suppose its not a surprise 120kg wouldn't move.

GHR

2x15 BW

[tomahawk1984]

Got to the gym on Monday. since I'm not at home or at my parents I had to play 'gym bingo'. I lost. This place had rows of treadmills and cross trainers but no squat rack. Do these people not understand that Monday is squat day?

Inspired by a session a friend of mine had ages ago my training went like this.

Steinborn Squat

3x5 60kg
2x5 80kg
3x20 100kg

I didn't fancy going any heavier than 100kg. Although loading the bar on my back felt OK I didn't want to push it.

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Got some very odd looks. The burn after the 3rd set was bad.

Bulgarian Split-Squats

3x10 20kg

I do these mainly to stretch my hip flexors.

DB Rows

3x20 35kg

These were the heaviest DB's in the gym so I just went for reps. Upper back was sore after this.

Face Pulls

3x20 10kg

[tomahawk1984]

Still not at my regular gym. Spending the weekend at my parents and there is a decent gym round the corner.

Went in today with no plan. Turned out to be a great session.

Bench

1x5 60kg
1x3 80kh
1x3 100kg
1x1 120kg
1x1 140kg
1x1 155kg/341lbs
1x1 160kg/352lbs

Think I had more in me but the bench and the floor was a bit slippy. My feet moved from underneath me on the 160kg.

Log Clean and Press

1x5 50kg
3x1 95kg
2x1 105kg
1x1 115kg/253lbs

This was done on a 50kg metal log. Compared to the wooden log I am used to it is very slim. This presented problems when I lapped the log because my wrists weren't straight. Cleaning the log to my shoulders was really tough. The press was cake.

Squat

1x6 65kg
1x5 105kg
1x5 145kg
1x3 165kg
1x12 185kg/407lbs

First time I've squatted out of a monolift. Still walked the weight out but everything felt weird. I was squatting with two big guys who place their hands out wide meaning the rack was pretty narrow which messed with my set up initially. Also had a problem racking the bar.

Went home after this. Possibly the best session of the year.

Pre-season starts on Tuesday. It's going to be horrible.

[tomahawk1984]

Event training! UKSA is on Sunday.

Tyre Flips

250kg Tyre

5x1
1x3 9.63 seconds
1x3 9.79 seconds

Feeling better about the tyre flips. I've had moments where I thought I wouldn't be able to finish because my tyre flips have been so bad.

Farmers Walks

15m - turn - 15m

2x1 50kg each hand
1x1 70kg each hand
2x1 90kg each hand

90kg is tough. The weight was rolling out of my hands. This will be my toughest event.

Log Clean and Press

3x5 80kg - concentrating on speed
1x1 100kg
1x1 120kg/264lbs

120kg was a strict press. Relatively easy.

[JT4Rugby]

Event training! UKSA is on Sunday.

Tyre Flips

250kg Tyre

5x1
1x3 9.63 seconds
1x3 9.79 seconds

Feeling better about the tyre flips. I've had moments where I thought I wouldn't be able to finish because my tyre flips have been so bad.

Farmers Walks

15m - turn - 15m

2x1 50kg each hand
1x1 70kg each hand
2x1 90kg each hand

90kg is tough. The weight was rolling out of my hands. This will be my toughest event.

Log Clean and Press

3x5 80kg - concentrating on speed
1x1 100kg
1x1 120kg/264lbs

120kg was a strict press. Relatively easy.

Like the look of that session looks like fun. I am aiming to get together a log for clean and press and another tire (my current one is only about 90kg). Strong lifts, keep it up

[tomahawk1984]

Like the look of that session looks like fun. I am aiming to get together a log for clean and press and another tire (my current one is only about 90kg). Strong lifts, keep it up

Thanks. I think stuff like this is great for rugby. A lot of the professional clubs use these kind of lifts and it can build a lot of power.

[tomahawk1984]

Got to the venue at around 8.45am and weighed in at 128.7kg/283lbs. That will be the over 90kg division for me then. There were 10 people in the over 90's. A lot of people who were around 95kg decided to cut weight to enter the under 90's.

My back was still sore from hurting it on Monday. I managed to get a sports massage on Saturday and my glutes, hamstrings and calves felt great. The prognosis was that I had tweaked a ligament in my SI joint. There were sports therapists on hand and I got a rub which eased the aching.

http://i508.photobucket.com/albums/s326/tomahawk1984/treatment.jpg

I got some liquid carbs and protein in a shake and ate half a banana. The first even was tyre flips followed by a sprint so I hit some fast deadlifts, stretched and did some light runs. The competition started at 10am.

Event 1 - 250kg Tyre Flips + Sprint

The distance was 30m in total. Flip the tyre 3 times and sprint the rest of the distance.

I haven't really practiced tyre flips much. I hit some singles and a couple of trebles last week and felt confident that I could get a decent time.

http://i508.photobucket.com/albums/s326/tomahawk1984/TyreFlips.jpg

My first flip was slow and the tyre bobbled on the landing which cost me at least half a second. The next two flips were much cleaner and the sprint was no problem.

Time - 13.25 seconds. Position - 4th. Points - 7. Overall Position - 4th

Event 2 - Farmers Walk with 90kg in each hand

Coming into it I thought this would be my worst event. My grip has been struggling over the last couple of weeks and it was another event I hadn't spent much time on.

The first two events were done in alphabetical order so I had the advantage of seeing where other people were going wrong. The farmers handles were long and snaked around a lot after the turn. A few people who were on for quick times dropped the weight because the snaking simply ripped the weight out of their hands.

I was convinced my grip was going to fail at some point so my plan was to go as hard and as fast as possible.

http://i508.photobucket.com/albums/s326/tomahawk1984/FarmersWalk.jpg

My start was quick and the balance of the weight felt very comfortable. I hit the turn and jammed the handles together to try and dampen the snaking on the way out. I couldn't lock my right wrist and the weight swung round and hit my right calve. Amazingly my grip was rock solid and I managed to straighten up and get over the line.

Time - 18.53 seconds. Position - 1st. Points - 10. Overall Position - 1st (17 points)

I was delighted with how the farmers walks had gone and had the advantage of being in the lead going into what was by far my best event.

There was a 20 minute break and I drank some isotonic juice and started to warm up for the log clean and press. Didn't do too much, just some press ups and some band work.

Event 3 - 80kg Log Clean and Press

We were still going in alphabetical order so I got to see the different techniques on show. We were supposed to compete two at a time - head to head - but someone broke the second log in the warm ups. One guy who was unlucky to crash in the farmers walk put up 11 reps and this was still the mark to beat when it was my turn.

I was nervous stepping up to the log. Every gameplan I came up with involved winning this event.

http://i508.photobucket.com/albums/s326/tomahawk1984/LogPress.png

I hit 10 reps in 30 seconds and started to slow down. I was going to stop on 12 reps but there were a couple of decent pressers still to come. I hit 14 reps in total to make sure. If I was really pushing it I think I could have got 16 or 17 reps.

Reps - 14. Position - 1st. Points - 10. Overall Position - 1st (27 points)

Had a 45 minute break for lunch. I had more isotonic drink and forced down a banana. I really struggled to eat, possibly due to a combination of nerves and bloodflow being diverted to everywhere but my gut.

Took a walk round the block with my girlfriend and we talked about anything but the competition. It was good to get some fresh air.

Event 4 - 90kg Rope Pull

This was the first event where we competed two at a time. It really added to tension and the crowd really got involved. We also competed based on placing so I went last against second place.

I haven't got access to the videos yet but some people were saying that my competitor set off before the start command. It wouldn't have mattered much because my technique was pretty poor. The rope was swinging from side to side and I was stumbling backwards.

Time - 20.78 seconds. Position - 4th. Points - 7. Overall position - 1st (34 points)

After this event I was ahead of 2nd place by 1 point and 3rd place by 2 points. Everything was up for grabs going into the medley. Just what everyone wanted (except me!).

Event 5 - Medley

This involved a 25m sprint, pick up a 75kg sand bag and run 25m and then drag a 150kg sled 25m backwards. This was always going to be tough, even before the nerves when I was standing at the starting line.

This was done head to head. The guy placed in 3rd put in a clean run with no mistakes, it didn't look massively quick and I was confident that as long as I beat my competitor I would win overall.

I decided upon a 3 point stance, we use this a lot in rugby and I was hoping to channel the same focus and intensity I have when it comes to smashing opposition players.

http://i508.photobucket.com/albums/s326/tomahawk1984/Medleystart.jpg

The sprint went well. My lighter competitor looked shocked that I reached the sandbag at the same time as him. I move deceptively quickly for someone weighing in at close to 130kg.

I picked the bag up and set off. Everything I had planned to do with the bag (either shoulder it or bear hug it) went out the window and I was running with the 75kg bag held out in front of me. The inevitable happened and I threw the bag to the floor. I was certain the other guy was going to come tearing past me so I got the bag up as quick as possible and ran it in.

It turns out that I was miles ahead and I put everything I had into the sled drag. It started well but I could feel the lactic acid in my quads. I had a quick look over my shoulder and the finishing line looked miles away.

http://i508.photobucket.com/albums/s326/tomahawk1984/Medleyfinish.jpg

My lungs were hurting and my steps were getting more laboured. Once I physically crossed the line I fell backwards, pulling the sled over the line as I went.

By the time I climbed to my feet my competitor was still 5m away from the finishing line. The sandbag and the sled drag had taken its toll and he was really suffering. The noise from the crowd was immense and all the other competitors were cheering him in. My lasting memory from this competition will be the comaraderie between the competitors. It was amazing.

Time - 34.60 seconds. Position - 5th. Points - 6. Overall position - 1st (40 points)

I won by a single point. If I had been 0.04 of a second slower in the medley I would have finished in 6th place and the winner would have been decided by a heavy forward sled drag with 200kg loaded.

This competition was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It will be even tougher than next year and I've got lots to work on.

[tomahawk1984]

I am broken. My first rugby preseason session was very tough. My legs felt like jelly after 5 minutes of sprints and I had to take a lot of rests.

My lower back is still sore. I'm going to take a break from squats and deadlifts and do some heavy sled drags instead. Hopefully this will give my back a chance to recover while still getting some volume in.

I also need to hit the prowler pretty hard but that can wait until next week.

[Triskelion]

Great job getting first place man. Glad I read this log, I need to hit the gym more!!

[tomahawk1984]

Great job getting first place man. Glad I read this log, I need to hit the gym more!!

Thanks!

[tomahawk1984]

Lots of rolling and stretching.

Bench

1x5 60kg
1x5 80kg
1x3 100kg
1x1 120kg
1x1 140kg
1x1 150kg
1x0 167.5kg/385.5lbs
1x6 100kg + 1 Chain
1x6 100kg + 2 Chains
1x4 100kg + 3 Chains

Despite feeling a little tired the weights were moving really well. My single with 150kg was really smooth and felt very comfortable. For the 167.5kg I had a side spot, unfortunately the spotter on my left was over enthusiastic on the hand off and near enough took the bar out of my hand. I lost all tightness in my back and should have re-racked. I didn't and couldn't get the weight more than a few inches off my chest. Got some decent cramp at the base of my lats.

The chains were just a bit of a play around. Never used them before but I now understand how you have to accelerate all the way through the lift.

Sled Drag

Sprint forward. As much rest as needed.

2x10m 90kg
2x10m 110kg
2x10m 130kg
2x10m 150kg
2x10m 170kg
2x10m 190kg
2x10m 210kg

This got the blood pumping and started to feel it in my hamstrings. Hopefully this will help with my acceleration.

[tomahawk1984]

Videos from Sunday!

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[JT4Rugby]

Awesome stuff, your one strong guy. Im currently looking at universitys and Loughborough is right up there it looks like a great uni.

[tomahawk1984]

Awesome stuff, your one strong guy. Im currently looking at universitys and Loughborough is right up there it looks like a great uni.

Cheers. Loughborough is brilliant. I would recommend it to anyone. What are you thinking of doing?

[tomahawk1984]

Backward Sled Drag

1x1 50kg
1x1 70kg
1x1 90kg
1x1 110kg
1x1 130kg
1x1 150kg
1x1 170kg
1x1 190kg
1x1 210kg

This absolutely nailed my quads. Got a bit of a pump in my lower back too, something I wasn't expecting.

GHR

4x8 BW

I haven't done these in a little while and I've put on some weight and a combination of these two meant I found these very tough.

Kettlebell Swings

1x10 24kg
1x10 32kg
1x10 40kg
1x10 48kg

The 40kg was done holding a 20kg KB in each hand. I didn't like the way the KB's were tracking so I need to work on that a little. The big KB was tough, really have to drive your hips through otherwise you won't get it past your hips.

Conditioning

A1 45m Farmers Walks with 57.5kg in each hand
A2 20 reps on Battling ropes

3 rounds

The farmers were done on a 15m track so there were two turns. My grip and traps were fried after this. Battling ropes kill me.

[tomahawk1984]

Bench

1x8 bar
1x8 60kg
1x5 80kg
1x5 105kg
1x3 120kg
1x6 135kg/297lbs

I've got a little back injury at the minute (hence sled work instead of squats and deadlifts) and it is affecting my bench set up a little. I was happy with 6 reps but the last 2 or 3 were sloppy because I wasn't as tight as I should be.

2 Board

1x6 120kg
1x6 130kg
1x5 130kg

Need to sink it a bit more. This is right around where my bench stalls so I'm going to attack this hard.

Metabolic Circuit

A1 Reverse Lunges 4x8 BW
A2 DB Rows 4x8 40kg
A3 KB Swings 4x8 24kg*
A4 Recline Ring Face Pulls 4x6 BW

*KB was pushed down at the top of the swing to overload the eccentric.

Prowler

6x30m High handles with 2 plates added.

1 rep per minute. If a rep took 10 seconds I had 50 seconds rest.

I am going to be doing a lot of this. I will work up to 10 reps then add some more weight.

[tomahawk1984]

mpromptu session!

Started off by doing some explosive work - Medicine ball throws, medicine ball throws + sprints, sprints on their own. I really liked this way of warming up and think I'll do it before each session.

Log Clean and Press

36kg log x lots
2x3 56kg
1x3 66kg
1x3 76kg
1x2 96kg
1x0 126kg

Turns out the log was misloaded. My fault, I should have checked. Felt the difference on the clean but tried to get it up. Didn't happen.

Farmers Walk Relay

57.5kg in each hand. There was 4 of us and we just went when it was our turn. Started with 1 15m trip and added a trip each rep.

1x15m
1x30m
1x45m
1x60m
1x75m
1x45m

Total = 270m

Managed to complete the 5th set but my forearms were fried and only got half the 6th set. Really enjoyed this and will look to do more of it.