Ben's Quest for Strength, Size and Conditioning

[ben3133]

Thanks Ben!

I went for a run today planning on trying to beat my time, but stupidly decided to take my dog for the run... and half way through the run my dog decided it was tired and wanted to go home, so I ended up having to stop and take it home so it didn't get run over... Felt less tired than usual though! (I probably still ran 2km)

[BenT]

Not exactly the most ideal training partner eh? :P

Well, at least you got out there, active and running. Active recovery at the very least.

[liftingbuddy1]

Squats
June 12

Hey Ben, just noticed that you posted this workout on the 11th, but the workout is dated for the 12th...a little clarification? :p :)

Mike

[theACEofSPADES]

Squats
June 12

Squats [Rippetoe's: 3x5@107.5kg]
3x102.5kg
3x105kg
3x107.5kg
3x107.5kg
3x107.5kg
3x107.5kg
3x107.5kg
2x105kg --failed

Comment:
This was fun! I had to work hard to get all the reps, but I managed to do every set except for the very last without failing. After the first set of 107.5kg I didn't think I'd be able to get 108.75kg for 3 so I didn't up the weight. It was probably a good decision not to do so as it would have reduced the number of sets I could have done. Definitely no assistance work needed after this!

Damn thats what I cal volume!

Nice job

[ben3133]

Not exactly the most ideal training partner eh? :P

Well, at least you got out there, active and running. Active recovery at the very least.
Yep, that's what I was thinking - so long as I run, my fitness improves, so it doesn't realllllly matter - although I would like to be beating previous times.

Hey Ben, just noticed that you posted this workout on the 11th, but the workout is dated for the 12th...a little clarification? :p :)

Mike
I go to gym in the mornings mostly - the morning of the 12th in Australia is the night of the 11th in America :)

Damn thats what I cal volume!

Nice job
Thanks!

[ben3133]

Deadlifts
June 15

Deadlifts [Rippetoe's: 1x4@140kg - poor form]
3x120kg
3x125kg
3x130kg
3x135kg
3x140kg
1x145kg
1x145kg
1x145kg

Comment:
Straps haven't arrived yet :(
Very happy with how this went! I imagine that if I hadn't done such a heavy ramping I could have gotten even heavier for the singles. I think the only issue I have with 3 plates is psychological - it looks so heavy that it makes me nervous haha.

[BenT]

Great job on the deadlifting!

[cosjav]

Your getting some crazy volume in these past couple of workouts :eek:
Good stuff mate, looking good ;)

[liftingbuddy1]

Nice workout there Ben. Those are some really heavy singles there, is that a new PR or PR territory? :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Great job on the deadlifting!

Your getting some crazy volume in these past couple of workouts :eek:
Good stuff mate, looking good ;)
Thanks guys - I really like this higher volume heavy weights stuff - it's complicating my decision to do 5x5! :p But I think I will just stick with 5x5 as that way I can see the structured progress throughout, get to do each lift more than once a week etc.

Nice workout there Ben. Those are some really heavy singles there, is that a new PR or PR territory? :)

Mike
Thanks Mike :) I guess you could call it a PR - I've never lifted for singles before, and the 1x4@140kg I did on Rippetoe's was without the heavy ramping and with poor form - so if you take all that into consideration it is a PR :) Also I've never tried to move that much weight either so not sure if I could have done it in the past.

The reason I'm being slightly conservative for these two weeks is because I don't want to injure myself before I go away as that would really suck... not that I want to injure myself any other time but now I have to be extra careful haha.

[ben3133]

Bench/Row
June 17

BB Bench Press (+2.5kg)
3x75kg
3x77.5kg
3x80kg
3x82.5kg
3x85kg
3x85kg

Hammer-Grip Pullups (1 second pause at bottom)
4xBW+25kg
4xBW+25kg
4xBW+30kg
4xBW+30kg
4xBW+30kg
4xBW+25kg

DB Static Holds
45kg each hand x max time
45kg each hand x max time
45kg each hand x max time

Comment:
Had a 3 hour exam this afternoon and went straight to gym afterwards so my pre-workout nutrition wasn't very good.
* I was surprised about getting 2x3x85kg, I didn't think I'd even manage 1 set of it after doing the 82.5kg as I wasn't feeling very strong today. I could have done (in retrospect) 1x5x85kg instead of 2x3x85kg so I definitely have gained some strength.
* 3 people were using the chinup bar of the power rack and I didn't feel like working in with them, so I went and did hammer-grip ones instead. I've never done these before but I liked how they felt - I felt it completely in my lats. I was going to do a more gradual jump from 25kg to 27.5kg and then possibly 30kg, but the 27.5kg dumbbells were being used so I skipped straight ahead. I did these with a 1 second pause at the bottom, no sets were to failure (I may have been able to squeeze out a 5th rep on the last 3 sets if I wanted to... not sure).

I got some funny looks doing the hip abductor machine too!

[sirr0bin]

Great workout, your bench and chin ups are very strong!

[theACEofSPADES]

I hate static holds!

[cosjav]

awesome post exam workout :D
how'd the exam go?

[BenT]

Nice workout ben. How did the exam go?

[ben3133]

I hate static holds!
I've never done them before... I got the idea from you haha! I didn't mind them, it was a pain getting those DBs up off the floor though (no spare bench)

Great workout, your bench and chin ups are very strong!

awesome post exam workout :D
how'd the exam go?

Nice workout ben. How did the exam go?
Thanks guys!
The exam went fine, I left early so I could hit the gym before peak period :p

On another note... my straps arrived today! :D

[PaC-mAn8]

Dude..your bench is awesome Ben.

[ben3133]

Not compared to the majority of other people :(

[PaC-mAn8]

Not compared to the majority of other people :(

compared 2 me, yes. :(

[ben3133]

compared 2 me, yes. :(
Everyone has their own strengths - your leg press is miles ahead of mine!

[liftingbuddy1]

That's a strong Bench you have there Ben. Yeah, I tend to raise an eyebrow when I see those old guys hopping on what some members here like to refer to as the vaginator! :D ;)

Mike

[ben3133]

Squats
June 19

Squats (+2.5kg)
3x102.5kg
3x105kg
3x107.5kg
3x110kg
2x110kg --failed
3x107.5kg
3x107.5kg
3x107.5kg

Comment:
PR today :) I went into the second set of 110kg a bit too confident so didn't rest enough between reps and couldn't get the third rep. It was tough going after that fail - on the very last rep of the last two sets the bar started going down half-way up the concentric phase, but I managed to push through and complete the rep :)

[ben3133]

That's a strong Bench you have there Ben. Yeah, I tend to raise an eyebrow when I see those old guys hopping on what some members here like to refer to as the vaginator! :D ;)

Mike
Thanks Mike :) I'm doing it for rehab! :p (it was super weak, I used the same setting as some woman haha)

[liftingbuddy1]

Wow, nice Squats there! 110kg....for a triple followed by a double? That's some weight there! :)

Mike

[liftingbuddy1]

Thanks Mike :) I'm doing it for rehab! :p (it was super weak, I used the same setting as some woman haha)

Lol. Better injured and recovering than dead, right? :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Wow, nice Squats there! 110kg....for a triple followed by a double? That's some weight there! :)

Mike
Thanks - I had that second triple though!! :( If only I wasn't so happy with getting the first triple I wouldn't have done the second lot so quickly - I even thought to myself after rep 2 of the second lot "that was stupid"...

Lol. Better injured and recovering than dead, right? :)

Mike
Exactly! It doesn't really bother me, I do what I'm told for rehab no matter how stupid it seems.... to an extent :p

I'm undecided about whether or not that was my last workout before I go away. Monday I have a big exam so not to sure if I'll hit the gym Sunday (deadlift day), and I won't have time Mon/Tues/Wed.. (I leave on Thursday)

[sirr0bin]

Good squats, that's a nice weight!

[BenT]

Good job on the squats ben...

If I were you, I'll try to fit in a short and sweet workout on Sunday, just to break the monotony of revision as well as quench the thirst for training.

[ben3133]

Good squats, that's a nice weight!

Good job on the squats ben...

If I were you, I'll try to fit in a short and sweet workout on Sunday, just to break the monotony of revision as well as quench the thirst for training.
Thanks guys. I hope I'll be able to get in a short workout on Sunday for the reasons you said, all depends on how my study is going as I have to pack and work (job) that day too!

[ben3133]

This will be my last post (in my journal and others) until I get back.. I leave tomorrow. I think when I get back I'll do the same thing I've been doing these last few workouts to regain strength quickly, and then I'll switch over to 5x5. While I'm away I will hopefully be able to control my diet so I don't lose/gain weight, but we'll see!

[PaC-mAn8]

those are some nice squats ben.

[BenT]

Going off on holiday ye?

Have fun and take care!

[ben3133]

I'm back! Possibly going to get back into gym tomorrow, otherwise it will be the following day :D

[PaC-mAn8]

Jeeeeez Ben...where ya been man?

[ben3133]

Israel... wtf happened to your reps haha

[PaC-mAn8]

Israel... wtf happened to your reps haha

israel...wtf?

ya like?

[theACEofSPADES]

There are no excuses

[ben3133]

ya like?
Huge jump... nice!

There are no excuses
4 hrs sleep in the past 48 is no way to start back at the gym after 4 weeks off :p

[cosjav]

Good to see u back mate :) Lookin forward to seein some comeback workouts ;)

[ben3133]

My plan is to do one rotation of

Bench/Row
Deadlift
Squat

In that order - my right quad still feels quite sore (I got corked) so will give it a bit of time to recover. After this, time for 5x5.

[liftingbuddy1]

Lol....good to see ya back! :)

Mike

[PaC-mAn8]

Make sure to find my new journal Ben.

[ben3133]

Bench/Row
July 22

BB Bench Press
3x70kg
3x72.5kg
3x75kg
3x77.5kg
3x80kg
3x82.5kg
3x85kg

Chinups/Hammers (hammers with 1 second pause at bottom)
4xBW+25kg (hammer)
6xBW+25kg (chin)
4xBW+25kg (hammer)
6xBW+25kg (chin)

DB Static Holds
40kg each hand x max time
40kg each hand x max time
40kg each hand x max time

Comment:
My overall strength was better than expected after 4 weeks off and poor nutrition the past few days.
* My aim on bench was to just see how heavy I could get lifting in sets of 3. Very happy that I managed to hit 85kg again, although the final rep was the first time I ever have genuinely thought I was going to get stuck under the bar.
* My strength was noticeably down on the chins/hammers, but I expect (read: hope) this will increase quickly back to it's previous levels. The last rep of each set was poor.

[theACEofSPADES]

very nice volume!

[ben3133]

Deadlifts
July 24

Deadlifts
3x120kg
3x125kg
3x130kg
2x130kg

Comment:
Today didn't feel very good at all. My grip is something that drops away very rapidly when I don't use it so I was having a lot of trouble with holding onto the bar today. Because of that it was causing me to lose control of my form, and so I decided (after the 3x130kg) to do doubles at the same weight, hoping that my grip would hold strong for 2 reps - after the first set of 2x130kg however I decided that I was just going to stop to be safe as I was not happy with what my form was turning into. I'll continue to do a bit more grip work during the week to try to boost my grip strength quickly.

[liftingbuddy1]

Deadlifts
July 24

Deadlifts
3x120kg
3x125kg
3x130kg
2x130kg

Comment:
Today didn't feel very good at all. My grip is something that drops away very rapidly when I don't use it so I was having a lot of trouble with holding onto the bar today. Because of that it was causing me to lose control of my form, and so I decided (after the 3x130kg) to do doubles at the same weight, hoping that my grip would hold strong for 2 reps - after the first set of 2x130kg however I decided that I was just going to stop to be safe as I was not happy with what my form was turning into. I'll continue to do a bit more grip work during the week to try to boost my grip strength quickly.

Good numbers on the Deads after the layoff. You'll get your strength back real soon man! :)

Mike

[theACEofSPADES]

x2 what Mike said. Now you just gotta power clean that weight and your set :D

[ben3133]

Thanks guys. I will power clean some time in the future! Right now I'm just finalising my plans for 5x5, will post it up for comments soon.

Sorry I can't rep you back... need to spread first :)

[cosjav]

Thats a decent weight for a first attempt after 1month.. I cant remember, was it u that purposely didnt use straps with deads because u wanted ur grip strength to improve?

[ben3133]

Yep that's me. I now have straps but am going to be careful when using them to make sure grip strength continues to improve.

[BenT]

Those are pretty good numbers, especially after taking into consideration your month-long holiday.

Good work!

[PaC-mAn8]

Those are pretty good numbers, especially after taking into consideration your month-long holiday.

Good work!

x2.

[ben3133]

Squats
July 26

Squats
3x100kg
3x102.5kg
3x105kg
3x107.5kg
3x110kg

Comment:
Very happy with squats! :) After the set of 107.5kg I could feel my hamstrings didn't want me to continue so I took a slightly longer break (3min) after the set and stretched, and was able to complete the 110kg without problems. I think I had another rep in me on the last set which is nice to know as well!

My new gym days for 5x5 are going to be Thursday/Saturday/Monday, so on Monday I will be doing one more of these workouts, and then will commence 5x5 on the Thursday. On Monday I'll be doing deadlifts as that was the only day I wasn't happy with, and hopefully after that my grip will be good to go!

[BenT]

Nice squatting ben.

Got a quick question for you - do you go ATG or parallel on your squats and how wide is your squat stance?

[liftingbuddy1]

Heavy Squats, Ben! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Nice squatting ben.

Got a quick question for you - do you go ATG or parallel on your squats and how wide is your squat stance?
I go to parallel as I can't (anatomically) get ATG without causing my lower back to round. The width of the stance - if you hung a string down from the very outside of my shoulder it would touch the inside of my foot.

Heavy Squats, Ben! :)

Mike
Thanks Mike :)

[ben3133]

Deadlifts
July 28

Deadlifts
3x120kg
3x125kg
3x130kg
3x135kg
3x140kg (straps)
1x150kg (straps)

Comment:
My grip strength was a lot better today, but still not 100%. I wasn't able to get 140kg up at all without straps due to grip so I strapped up.

Next workout will be the first of 5x5 :D

[liftingbuddy1]

Wow, nice Deads! 330 is heavy weight...not that I would know it. :D

Mike

[sirr0bin]

Heavy deads, good luck with 5x5 :D

[theACEofSPADES]

Damn everybody's stronger than me in deads

[ben3133]

Wow, nice Deads! 330 is heavy weight...not that I would know it. :D

Mike

Heavy deads, good luck with 5x5 :D

Damn everybody's stronger than me in deads
Thanks guys! The 330 was with straps so it's not as good - my reason for using straps on the last two sets (instead of just stopping when my grip gave out) is that by that stage I had given my grip enough work to boost it for next time, and just wanted to make sure my posterior chain strength was up to scratch.

[ben3133]

Workout A
July 31

Squats
5x50kg
5x63kg
5x76kg
5x88kg
5x101kg

Bench
5x39kg
5x49kg
5x58kg
5x68kg
5x78kg

WG Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW+11kg

Assistance Work
3 sets of DB lateral raises

Comment:
I'm not used to 5 reps per set! No real problems though, I can tell the effort that the sets required was due to the number of reps, not the weight, so it should get easier quickly. I've started with "week 3" of 5x5 instead of "week 1", and have replaced rows with WG pullups. At the end of each workout I will be throwing in a bit of assistance work.

[BenT]

Workout looks good Ben.

I assume you're following a routine - is it madcow's 5 x 5?

[cosjav]

5x5 looks really tough, ur pumping some good numbers ;)

[ben3133]

Workout looks good Ben.

I assume you're following a routine - is it madcow's 5 x 5?
Thanks. It is madcow's, with slight modification here and there. I didn't want to fiddle too much because obviously I don't compare to him/them in terms of experience, so I have only tweaked a few things that I believe will benefit me over the suggestions given in the original template.

5x5 looks really tough, ur pumping some good numbers ;)
Thanks! Nothing special on this workout, unfortunately PR's wont be set until I do workout A for the third time.

[theACEofSPADES]

strong volume. how long that workout take

[liftingbuddy1]

Nice volume and good Squats! Why didn't you start with week 1? :)

Mike

[ben3133]

strong volume. how long that workout take
Thanks. It took about 45 minutes, but I expect that once the ramping sets become harder (meaning they won't be treated like warmup sets in terms of rest between sets) that it may take up to an hour.

Nice volume and good Squats! Why didn't you start with week 1? :)

Mike
Thanks Mike. I didn't start with week 1 as I believe that 4 weeks of easing into it is not necessary - I find that my body is able to adapt to volume changes easily within 2 weeks. Hopefully I made the right choice - we'll see!

[liftingbuddy1]

Thanks Mike. I didn't start with week 1 as I believe that 4 weeks of easing into it is not necessary - I find that my body is able to adapt to volume changes easily within 2 weeks. Hopefully I made the right choice - we'll see!

Ahh, I see. Well, I've not done that exact program, but most of the people who have agree that the first few weeks are easy and light in weight, but necessary to progress. Anyway, I hope starting at week 3 works well for you. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Bummer.... I'll see what happens then!

[liftingbuddy1]

Bummer.... I'll see what happens then!

Lol...don't worry Ben, I'm sure you will be able to handle the increase in weight without trouble as you did Starting Strength not too long ago. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Treadmill Run
August 1

Time: 20mins, various inclines.

Comment: I'm going to try to resume doing cardio during the week as well as gym, predominantly for fitness.

[ben3133]

Workout B
August 2

Squats
5x50kg
5x63kg
5x76kg
5x76kg

Standing OH Press
5x30kg
5x37kg
5x43kg
4x49kg --failed

Deadlift
5x83kg
5x99kg
5x116kg
5x122kg --calculated this wrong, I should have done 132kg

Assistance Exercises
Dip Belt Donkey Calf Raises
Rear Delt Raises

Comment:
* Squats were easy
* I forgot that I was planning on starting OH press from week 1 instead of 3, so this was too heavy. I will go back to week 1.
* Except for the miscalculation for the last set of deadlifts (I was wondering why the last jump was so small!) deadlifts went fine and were easy.
* I tried dip belt donkey calf raises for the first time and really liked them. Need to be careful how often I work calves though as I have a healing plantar fasciitis.

[ben3133]

Workout C
August 4

Squats
5x50kg
5x63kg
5x76kg
5x88kg
3x103kg
8x76kg

Bench
5x39kg
5x49kg
5x58kg
5x68kg
3x80kg
8x58kg

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
3xBW+13kg
8xBW
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Cable Ab Crunches
Incline DB Curls
CGBP

Comment:
* The 103kg squat set was easier than the set before it so my body is still adjusting to higher volume. No problems though.
* Bench was fine.
* I changed the order of sets for the pullups as since I'm not (=can't) ramping weights doing all the BW sets followed by the heavy set didn't make sense. It worked a lot better this way.
* I've never done incline DB curls before but thought I'd give them a go to see what they were like - I didn't get a very good MMC (felt it more in my forearm than biceps) so won't be doing these again. I hate arm work, but what needs to be done needs to be done.

[liftingbuddy1]

Solid workout today, Ben! The numbers are looking good. :cool:

Mike

[ben3133]

Workout A
August 7

Squats
5x52kg
5x65kg
5x78kg
5x91kg
5x104kg

Bench
5x40kg
5x50kg
5x60kg
5x70kg
5x80kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
5xBW+13kg
5xBW+1kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Cable Ab Crunches

Comment:
Not much to be said about today - a strong workout overall, great MMC on the ab crunches. I felt a bit stupid doing the pullups with the added 1kg but it had to be done!

[cosjav]

I felt a bit stupid doing the pullups with the added 1kg but it had to be done!

LOL, I added 1.25Kg once and this guy just stared at me the whole time as though "what the f*#k is he doing"...
At least u did +13Kg b4 it :D

[ben3133]

Haha - I just hid the weight in my pocket, I didn't want to make it any more obvious that I was adding 1kg than I had to!

I'm going to start using straps for the pullups as that way I will be shifting more of the work onto my lats (I'm not having any grip problems).

[liftingbuddy1]

I'm going to start using straps for the pullups as that way I will be shifting more of the work onto my lats (I'm not having any grip problems).

Very smart move. This is how I do my pullups now and it's very effective. Albeit my pullup strength sucks, but I can feel it in the lats better! :)

Mike

[theACEofSPADES]

Strong volume

[ben3133]

Workout B
August 9

Squats
5x52kg
5x65kg
5x78kg
5x78kg

OH Press
5x29kg
5x35kg
5x41kg
5x46kg

Deadlifts
5x85kg (OH grip)
5x102kg (OH grip)
5x119kg (OH grip for 3)
2x136kg
--grip died so quickly strapped--
5x136kg

Assistance Exercises
Leaning DB lateral raises
Dip belt donkey calf raises

Comment:
* Squats were easy today as expected.
* Still getting back into the correct form for OH press - the final set was challenging. This was "week 1" of OH press. If "week 2" next week is still challenging I will repeat "week 1" after dropping the 5RM max weight that the spreadsheet uses.
* I wasn't happy with the last two sets of deadlift, they didn't feel very strong. My lower back gets a bit tight from all the squatting, I'm not sure if that has something to do with it.

[ben3133]

Workout C
August 11

Squats
5x52kg
5x65kg
5x78kg
5x91kg
3x106kg
8x78kg

Bench
5x40kg
5x50kg
5x60kg
5x70kg
3x82kg
8x60kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
3xBW+15kg
8xBW
5xBW+1kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
EZ-Bar curls
CGBP

Comment:
I didn't sleep well last night so didn't have much energy today. I still managed to get all the reps, but everything felt weak. The pullups felt like they targetted my lats much more since I did them strapped.

[cosjav]

Good stuff rippin through the workout while tired ;)

[theACEofSPADES]

Lots of volume there. Lets get some pictures up!

[liftingbuddy1]

Sorry I haven't posted in here in a bit, Ben. Stupid User CP never shows your journal :confused: (yes, I've been sub'd.)

Anyway, good work with the Squats and Deads. Like you already said, the Squats will have definitely affected the Deads, which you did later on. Maybe you should just increase the rest time between exercises. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Good stuff rippin through the workout while tired ;)
Thanks!

Lots of volume there. Lets get some pictures up!
Hmm I'll see what I can do!

Sorry I haven't posted in here in a bit, Ben. Stupid User CP never shows your journal :confused: (yes, I've been sub'd.)

Anyway, good work with the Squats and Deads. Like you already said, the Squats will have definitely affected the Deads, which you did later on. Maybe you should just increase the rest time between exercises. :)

Mike
That's a good idea. I decided after yesterday that instead of doing every set one after the other as soon as I've changed the weights that I will start timing the rest periods so I have enough energy left over at the end. Same thing with the rest between exercises - before I was just moving straight to the next, loading up and lifting - I don't think I've ever given myself a proper rest between exercises, I'll try it out next time! Just a regular rest period? A few mins?

[BenT]

Nice workouts.

I hear you on the lack of sleep issue - I seldom get enough sleep on workdays, and so I'm always feeling it when I go for my gym workouts during lunch. Sometimes I just feel like I'm going through the motions.

[ben3133]

Workout A
August 14

Squats
5x53kg
5x66kg
5x80kg
5x93kg
5x106kg

Bench
5x41kg
5x51kg
5x61kg
5x72kg
5x82kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
5xBW+15kg
5xBW+4kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip belt donkey calf raises

Comment:
Great workout today.
* The final set of squats was tough, I haven't done this weight for 5 reps since Rippetoe's.
* The final set of bench went up much more smoothly than the 3 reps of 82kg I did in the last workout. It was still tough, but even rep 5 was considerably easier than rep 3 of the last workout. PR on this - the heaviest I've done before was 3x82kg.
* I'm liking the feel of pullups with straps. I'm still perfecting how to use them for pullups but they're serving their purpose even while I'm not there yet.
* I highly recommend dip belt donkey calf raises - I have seen definite changes in the size/definition of my calves since I started doing them (even if it is psychological!!)

Uploading new pics now...

[ben3133]

New Photos
August 14
New photos taken today. You can compare with photos on page 1 - but even though it is 6 months between photos I had two 1 month breaks during that time.

Back
http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii161/ben3133/140808-Back.jpg

Biceps
http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii161/ben3133/140808-Bi.jpg

Lats
http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii161/ben3133/140808-Lats.jpg

Triceps
http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii161/ben3133/140808-Tri.jpg

Legs
http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii161/ben3133/140808-Quads.jpg

If I remember I'll jump on the scale tomorrow morning when I wake up and see how much I weigh.

[cosjav]

lats are looking huge mate, good stuff :eek:

[ben3133]

Thanks!

*bump*

[theACEofSPADES]

Damn you looker bigger than your listed weight. Nice V shaped upper body, thats good for swimming.

[ben3133]

I wish I looked like that without flexing! Just weighed myself - I currently weigh 173lbs.

[ben3133]

Workout B
August 16

Deadlifts
5x87kg
5x104kg
5x122kg
3x139kg
-- grip died, quickly strapped and then --
3x139kg

Standing OH Press
5x29kg
5x35kg
5x41kg
5x46kg

Squats
5x53kg
5x66kg
5x80kg
5x80kg

Assistance Exercises
Cable lateral raises
Cable ab crunches
Rear DB flies

Comment:
A decent workout.
* Deadlifts were decent. I decided to attempt the final set without straps because my grip didn't feel tired on the set before, but as you can see my grip didn't hold up. I think I will just use straps for the final set no matter what.
* OH press felt much, much better today.
* Squats weren't heavy, but it was harder than it should be as I'm trying to stop myself going below parallel. From past experience, I can't anatomically go below parallel without rounding my lower back and giving myself a psoas bursitis. I can feel a bursitis trying to come on so am trying to cut it off. What made squats harder today than they should have been is that I was pausing for almost a second at the bottom to check my depth. Hopefully I'll get used to judging this new depth correctly so I'll be able to rebound up in future.
* All 3 assistance exercises felt great. It was the first time I'd done rear DB flies, I got quite a nice burn!

[theACEofSPADES]

Do you use the over under grip? I switched to that and it really helped

[ben3133]

I use double overhand until it gets heavy, then switch to over-under (on the 122kg set this time).

[liftingbuddy1]

Awesome pics, Ben. Lol, I'm sub'd to your journal, but it seriously isn't showing up in my damn user cp...I don't get it :mad:. Anyway, you're incredibly lean! Abs looks great too....and it's been said, you have crazy huge lats! :eek:

Good job on the Deads. In response to the rest period between exercises, depending on the exercise, I'll just walk to the apparatus and start or will wait a minute or two. Hope you find whichever one works best. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike. I think lighting is probably a factor in those pictures as I can't see that definition when walking around... unfortunately! That lat picture surprised me too - I think something that makes them look bigger is that I've always had a small waist. I think I'm going to try to up my caloric intake a bit more because (as you said) I'm still quite lean, and also coming into the "real" (heavy) 5x5 I'll need a bit more.

I started timing my rest periods between sets and exercises like you said and I think it's working out much better - so thanks!

Maybe try unsub'ing and resub'ing to my journal and that might fix the problem?

[liftingbuddy1]

Thanks Mike. I think lighting is probably a factor in those pictures as I can't see that definition when walking around... unfortunately! That lat picture surprised me too - I think something that makes them look bigger is that I've always had a small waist. I think I'm going to try to up my caloric intake a bit more because (as you said) I'm still quite lean, and also coming into the "real" (heavy) 5x5 I'll need a bit more.

I started timing my rest periods between sets and exercises like you said and I think it's working out much better - so thanks!

Maybe try unsub'ing and resub'ing to my journal and that might fix the problem?

Oh I see. Well, consider that your pics are a lot better than you give them credit for. I've noticed that whenever I take pics, I look much better in person than in the pic itself :D. So, in that case, you are very modest! Yeah, more cals will definitely be needed since you're going heavy.

Glad it helped. Hope your workouts get better and better!

I'll try it and see if it helps. Thanks, Ben! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Workout C
August 18

Squats
5x53kg
5x66kg
5x80kg
5x93kg
3x109kg
8x80kg

Bench
5x41kg
5x51kg
5x61kg
5x72kg
3x84kg
8x61kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
3xBW+18kg
5xBW+3kg
8xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip belt donkey calf raises
EZ bar biceps curl
CGBP

Comment:
* Very happy with squats today, I think I've sorted out the depth issue, and I definitely had a few more reps left in me on the 109kg set.
* The heavy set of bench today was tough as expected but I got all the reps so I'm happy. All the other sets were easier than their relative (eg. first and first, second and second) sets have been in the past.
* Pullups were a bit weird today. For some reason I was closing my eyes when I was doing them so found myself wondering why I'd stopped moving... only to open my eyes and see I was as high as I was ever going to get unless I turned it into a dip at the top (can't remember what this is called?). Whilst the BW+18kg set was heavy it wasn't too tough.

[liftingbuddy1]

Solid workout, Ben. The Squats look great. :cool:

Mike

[PaC-mAn8]

O hi :)

[cosjav]

* Pullups were a bit weird today. For some reason I was closing my eyes when I was doing them so found myself wondering why I'd stopped moving... only to open my eyes and see I was as high as I was ever going to get unless I turned it into a dip at the top (can't remember what this is called?).

Muscle up :D Nice :D

[ben3133]

Solid workout, Ben. The Squats look great. :cool:

Mike

Muscle up :D Nice :D
Thanks!

O hi :)
He's back! :D

[PaC-mAn8]

Yupp!

Ben...your lats are friggen AWESOME!

How ya been man?

[ben3133]

Thanks! I've been very busy now that I'm back at uni but still managing to fit in time to hit the gym as planned and get most of my meals in. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to keep this up until the end of the semester, so all good :)

More importantly... where have you been?!

[ben3133]

Workout A
August 21

Squats
5x54kg
5x68kg
5x82kg
5x95kg
5x109kg

Bench
5x42kg
5x53kg
5x63kg
5x74kg
5x84kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
5xBW+18kg
5xBW+5kg
5xBW
5xBW

Comment:
PR's all around :)
* After the final set of squats I still felt like I had a few more reps left in me which is a nice feeling!
* My bar control today on bench press wasn't very good, it was wobbling side to side. I think the bench was on an uneven surface which was probably the reason but I didn't realise at the time.
* The heavy set of pullups was hard today. Also someone corrected my form after set 3 so for the final 2 sets it was a bit better - I wasn't leaning back enough / keeping my chest high enough.

[BenT]

Comment:
PR's all around :)


Nice!

Good job.

[cosjav]

Rippin it mate, thats a top workout ;)

[theACEofSPADES]

Should have added more weight to the squats if you could have done more.

[ben3133]

Nice!

Good job.

Rippin it mate, thats a top workout ;)
Thanks guys.

Should have added more weight to the squats if you could have done more.
I'm using the 5x5 excel calculator to tell me what weight to do - I figure it's better to stick to it because then I'll be able to progress for longer.

[liftingbuddy1]

Very nice Squats!! Keep sticking with the numbers that the program gives you!! You'll make such amazing progress, Ben and you already are!! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike :)

[ben3133]

Workout B
August 23

Squats
5x54kg
5x68kg
5x82kg
5x82kg

OH Press
5x30kg
5x36kg
5x42kg
5x48kg

Deadlifts
5x89kg
5x107kg
5x125kg
5x143kg

Assistance Exercises
Cable lateral raises
--supersetted with--
Incline rear DB flies

Comment:
A pretty good workout - not really much to comment on.
* Squats were easy.
* OH press felt good today, definitely able to continue upping the weight.
* Hit a new PR on deadlifts. My form felt solid on the PR set too!
* I nearly threw up doing the assistance superset... but got through it.

[liftingbuddy1]

Solid Deadlift PR!! 3 plates! :cool:

Mike

[ben3133]

Workout C
August 25

Squats
5x54kg
5x68kg
5x82kg
5x95kg
3x111kg
8x82kg

Bench
5x42kg
5x53kg
5x63kg
5x74kg
3x86kg
8x63kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
3xBW+20kg
5xBW+5kg
8xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip belt donkey calf raises
DB shrugs

Comment:
* The PR on squats didn't feel all that hard, I don't think I'll have a problem getting 5 reps on Thursday :D
* The PR on bench also didn't feel as hard as last week's PR which is a good sign.
* The heavy set of pullups was haaard! I'll be interested to see if I can get all 5 reps on Thursday. I haven't started timing the rest between sets on these yet so the rest periods are probably too short. If I remember I'll start doing it on Thursday as that should help.

I'm glad I'm doing pullups instead of rows - my lower back is getting worked very hard with all the squatting/deadlifting.

[ben3133]

I'm going to be taking a week off bench pressing because my sternoclavicular joint is giving me problems. The ligaments around it are naturally a bit lax and so with all the heavy benching it's getting a bit too loose and a bit sore.

[cosjav]

massive PRs mate, too good :D

[BenT]

Sucks to hear about the joint, but great work on the PRs Ben!

I have absolutely no clue where exactly that joint is, hope it doesn't derail your training too much.

[ben3133]

Thanks guys.

http://www.fairview.org/healthlibrary/content/sterno.gif
(no separation for me)

[ben3133]

Workout A
August 28

Squats
5x56kg
5x70kg
5x84kg
5x98kg
5x111kg

Wide Grip Pullups (with 1 second pause at bottom)
5xBW
5xBW+20kg
5xBW+8kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Rope pushdowns

Comment:
* Squats were ok. I could have gotten more than 5 reps on the 111kg set I'm pretty sure, I wasn't even at the stage where I had to encourage myself mentally during the lift. (if that makes sense)
* Again pullups were tough, but the 5 reps of 20kg were a little bit easier than the 3 of 20kg last time, so that's good.
* I did some rope pushdowns so that my triceps got some work without involving my SC joint.

[liftingbuddy1]

Your Squat comments make perfect sense to me! Good job with the numbers overall. Wide Grip Pullups with a plate strapped for 5. That's some real solid work there, Ben. I could never imagine myself doing that. I'm going to have to start doing a mix of BW pullups and weighted ones! Keep up the hard work; your patience is clear and it will make all the difference (positively) in the end. :cool:

Mike

[theACEofSPADES]

Wow that would suck to break your collar bone...:eek:

[ben3133]

Your Squat comments make perfect sense to me! Good job with the numbers overall. Wide Grip Pullups with a plate strapped for 5. That's some real solid work there, Ben. I could never imagine myself doing that. I'm going to have to start doing a mix of BW pullups and weighted ones! Keep up the hard work; your patience is clear and it will make all the difference (positively) in the end. :cool:

Mike
Thanks Mike. I'm sure you'd be able to do weighted pullups as heavy as me if you started doing them! :p You have great back strength so I'm sure it wouldn't take long to reach the weight either. Re the patience comment - it's more that I'm forcing myself to think with head and not my ego, because I don't want to stop the heavy benching but I think I'm going to have to.

Wow that would suck to break your collar bone...:eek:
For me it won't be a break, it will be a dislocation. If I had the choice I'd actually prefer to break the collarbone than dislocate it. The reason being that all that has to happen if I break it is they'll put a plate it, it'll heal and end of story. The problem with a dislocation of the SC joint is that because of the way the joint is set up in terms of articulation and supporting structures, there is very little in the way of surgical treatment (meaning I would be stuck with overly lax - instead of just lax - ligaments forever) and the treatment that is available is not compatible with heavy pushing movements.

[ben3133]

Workout B
August 30

Squats
5x56kg
5x70kg
5x84kg
5x84kg

OH Press
5x30kg
5x37kg
5x43kg
5x49kg

Deadlift
5x91kg
5x110kg
5x128kg
5x146kg

Comment:
* Squats were easy which was nice because my quads were still stiff from last time.
* OH press felt good, I was a bit iffy about doing them because of my SC joint but decided to because they aren't as bad for it as benching. The iffiness was in the back of my mind the whole time which held me back I think. (not that I missed out on any reps)
* PR on deadlifts :) I've noticed much better core control on deadlifts since I resumed squatting 3 times a week and starting working on some gymnastics core exercises. (Olympics inspired haha)

[liftingbuddy1]

Wow....SOLID Deads! Great weight for a 5-repper. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike, I definitely had more in me!

[ben3133]

Workout C
September 1

Squats
5x56kg
5x70kg
5x84kg
5x98kg
3x114kg
8x84kg

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
3xBW+23kg
5xBW+8kg
8xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip belt donkey calf raises
Rope pulldowns
EZ bar curls

Comment:
I didn't sleep well last night and woke up with a cold so I wasn't expecting to have a very good session.
* I think I could have gotten 5 reps on the 114kg set.
* Pullups are still very hard, but I'm getting them done.
Still feeling nice and nauseous 30 mins after the session finished.

On Thursday I'm going to see what incline bench press is like for my SC joint, and if it's ok I'll switch to doing heavy inclines. Otherwise I'm going to be doing higher rep flat.

[theACEofSPADES]

you woke up with a cold? strange

[PaC-mAn8]

Very good stuff Ben.

Keep it up ma man.

[cosjav]

Looks like the type of cold that doesnt suck out ur energy, still hitting ur PRs :D

[ben3133]

you woke up with a cold? strange
???

Very good stuff Ben.

Keep it up ma man.
Thanks!

Looks like the type of cold that doesnt suck out ur energy, still hitting ur PRs :D
Haha - actually after I got home from gym I was DEAD. Completely. I sat in my lectures at uni staring into space, got home, quick dinner, and in bed by 8pm. Today it's only some throat irritation and super tiredness.

[liftingbuddy1]

Solid Squats, Ben. How's the program feeling? :)

Mike

[theACEofSPADES]

I've never woken up with a cold. Usually it slowly develops so I know it's coming. Being chinese we have this special soup that we drink when we're sick [which isn't often, and it taste nasty] but then we're fine after that. :D

Never taken pills for colds or allergies before.

[ben3133]

Solid Squats, Ben. How's the program feeling? :)

Mike
Thanks Mike. The program is feeling great! Very happy with the progress and it doesn't feel like it is as taxing on my CNS as Rippetoe's was towards the end when I was lifting heavy. Guess I didn't need those first few introductory weeks after all ;)

I've never woken up with a cold. Usually it slowly develops so I know it's coming. Being chinese we have this special soup that we drink when we're sick [which isn't often, and it taste nasty] but then we're fine after that. :D

Never taken pills for colds or allergies before.
Fair enough - I want a magic soup! :p

[ben3133]

I've decided not to go to the gym today because my flu (no longer a "cold") is getting worse. Hopefully I should be good to go back on Saturday, in which case I will be repeating last weeks lifts so I don't miss out on anything in the progression.

[cosjav]

I've decided not to go to the gym today because my flu (no longer a "cold") is getting worse. Hopefully I should be good to go back on Saturday, in which case I will be repeating last weeks lifts so I don't miss out on anything in the progression.

damn.. hope u kill it off quick :)

[ben3133]

Workout B
September 6

Squats
5x56kg
5x70kg
5x84kg
5x84kg

Standing OH Press
5x31kg
5x38kg
5x44kg
5x50kg

Deadlift
5x94kg
5x112kg
5x131kg
5x150kg

Comment:
Still only feeling about 70% but I was stubborn and went to the gym anyway... so bear in mind for all my comments that I had a lot less energy than usual.
* Same sets as last week. Squats were easyish.
* Moved onto the next week of sets. OH press was ok.
* Moved onto the next week of sets - no idea why. Not happy with my form on the heavy set of deadlifts, I didn't have the energy so my technique suffered. I will be repeating this weight next week.

[Patrick999]

Some good stuff mate. Am myself going to be doing SS then will be moving on to 5x5 reseting when that change occurs.

Been out for so long that I could only bench 35kgs yesterday, although my wrist is still sore from when I sprained it or w/e I did (didn't go docs:[)

Will most likely start monday if my arm lets me.

[ben3133]

Workout C
September 8

Squats
5x56kg
5x70kg
5x84kg
5x98kg
3x114kg
8x84kg

Cable Crossovers

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
3xBW+23kg
8xBW+8kg
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip belt donkey calf raises
Floor presses
Dry retching

Comment:
Very average workout. I thought I'd be back to normal at the gym because I was feeling about 90% better, but I guess not because I spent my time between sets coughing. Very tired the whole workout too. The weights were the same as last time.
* Didn't have much enthusiasm for squats today whereas usually I love them.
* I tested out incline BB/DB bench to see if they were going to be ok for my SC joint, but it turns out they aren't. Then I tried cable crossovers, and got a fantastic MMC with no SC subluxation so these will be staying.
* By the time it came to the pullups I was ready to go. Technique was probably only 80% on these because of fatigue. I wasn't concentrating and did 8 reps of the +8kg instead of 5 (the 8 reps was meant to be just BW) - I was wondering why it was harder than usual!
* Nice heavy floor presses today.

[liftingbuddy1]

Hope that cold blows over so you can really get back to kicking ass in the gym! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks for the support Mike. Feeling considerably worse today so not sure what's going on!

[ben3133]

Update as to what's going on... I have a chest infection, coughing up heaps of crap so not going to be going to the gym today unfortunately.

[PaC-mAn8]

damn.

heal up big guy.

[ben3133]

Catch-up Workout
September 15

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
8xBW
3xBW+23kg
5xBW+8kg
5xBW
5xBW

Cable Crossovers

20 Rep Squats
20x90kg

Comment:
Feeling about 90% better today. Energy levels were OK, I will still a bit short of breath and coughing though.
* I'm going to drop back a week on the pullups as I don't feel like the 23kg is getting any easier.
* Good MMC again on the cable crossovers.
* I did 20 rep squats to try to get my total volume for the week up somewhere near what it usually is. It was the first time I'd done them, and it was hard as expected. I could have gone a bit heavier if I was feeling 100% as towards the end I was still doing double reps instead of singles.

[cosjav]

wow 90Kg x 20 squats and u coulda done more :eek:

too good mate :D

[ben3133]

Thanks mate - yesterday I probably couldn't have done much more because of how I was feeling, but any other day I definitely could have :)

[ben3133]

Workout A
September 18

Squats
5x57kg
5x71kg
5x86kg
5x100kg
5x114kg

Cable Crossovers

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
5xBW+18kg
5xBW+5kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Floor presses
Dip belt donkey calf raises

Comment:
* The last two reps of the heavy set of squats were tough but doable. I was still feeling the 20 rep squats from the other day before I started!
* Great MMC again on the cable crossovers. After these I went straight into floor presses to try to give my biceps a bit of a break after the isometric contraction during cable crossovers, but my pecs were more involved in the floor presses than I expected so these weren't very strong. I'll have to work out what to do for next time - any suggestions? I'd like to have "direct" triceps work because I've taken out bench press so they aren't getting hit at all.
* Form was great on the pullups today. I'd dropped back two weeks to do a bit of a reset.
* I did 4 sets on the donkey calf raises instead of the usual 2 so my calves are burning!

[liftingbuddy1]

Solid Squat work as usual, Ben. For triceps, have you tried Overhead Dumbbell Extensions or Dumbbell Skull Crushers? I've heard good things about both, though the OH Dumbbell Ext. doesn't agree with my elbows. Either way, hope you find the right exercise. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike - I've tried both of those but there are very few triceps exercises I can do that don't irritate my elbow, and both of those do :( Floor presses are pretty good because I can set the safety bar to be at a level where my elbow won't get irritated - still brings in the pecs though. And I'm happy for them to be brought in, just not once they're already fatigued... maybe I could do the floor presses before the cable crossovers?

[ben3133]

Workout B
September 20

Squats
5x57kg
5x71kg
5x86kg
5x86kg

Standing OH Press
5x32kg
5x38kg
5x45kg
5x51kg

Deadlifts
5x94kg
5x112kg
5x131kg
5x150kg

Assistance Exercises
Massive cable lateral raise drop set

Comment:
* Easy squats
* If I would have given myself enough rest time between sets, the last set of OH press would have been easy.
* I wasn't happy with my form on the final set of deadlifts so I will be dropping back a week to see if I can fix it up.
Overall, nothing special.

[ben3133]

Workout C
September 22

Squats
5x57kg
5x71kg
5x86kg
5x100kg
3x117kg
8x86kg

Cable crossovers

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
3xBW+20kg
5xBW+5kg
8xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Floor presses
Grip work

Comment:
Energy levels were a bit low today.
* The heavy set of squats today were tough, but if I had more energy going into them they would have been fine.
* Very happy with my form on the heavy set of pullups.
* I decided that I'm going to try to throw in some grip work on workouts A/C because I don't really get any on those days (because I use straps for the pullups), and I've noticed that my grip strength drops quickly if I don't work on it.

[liftingbuddy1]

Damn! Those are some strong Deads! :cool:

Yeah, I'd personally try doing Floor Press before Crossovers if the FP was hitting my chest some as well. It's the same reason why I got rid of CGBP, my chest was pretty fatigued by then, so I said good riddance! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Workout A
September 25

Squats
5x59kg
5x73kg
5x88kg
5x102kg
5x117kg

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
5xBW+20kg
5xBW+8kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Floor presses
Standing calf raises

Comment:
My legs were quite tired and sore from soccer training last night, as was my core (we did a stupid number of situps, and my abs cramped halfway through so they are still a bit tender).
* Because of the tired/sore legs mentioned above, the PR set of squats was very hard, but I got it with great form. I should also mention that my groin problems have almost completely resolved, so I am now able to go past parallel on squats (and have been for the last week or so) :)
* Pullups were reasonably easy today which was a nice surprise. I've found that doing a dead hang at the bottom of pullups was also putting stress on my SC joint, so I am now going as close to a dead hang as I can while still keeping tension on the muscles (thereby keeping most of it off the joint).

[PaC-mAn8]

Those are some sick squats Ben!

[theACEofSPADES]

Those are some sick squats Ben!

x2.

[ben3133]

Thanks guys.

[BenT]

Nice squats ben. The fact that you got the squats PR the day after soccer training makes it all the more impressive !

[cosjav]

i'll just add to the squat PR praises, well done mate :D :D

[ben3133]

Workout B
September 27

Squats
5x59kg
5x73kg
5x88kg
5x88kg

Standing OH Press
5x33kg
5x39kg
5x46kg
5x33kg

Deadlifts
5x91kg
5x110kg
5x128kg
5x146kg

Assistance Exercises
Seated DB laterals

Comment:
* Squats were easy.
* OH press felt reasonable even on the heaviest set. Next "workout B" will start setting PRs on these
* My form was better on deadlifts today - I really tore up my shins.
* I tried out seated lateral raises today as I wasn't getting a very good MMC on the cable laterals. These hit my middle delts nice and hard!

[ben3133]

Workout C
September 29

Squats
5x59kg
5x73kg
5x88kg
5x102kg
3x120kg

Cable crossovers

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
3xBW+23kg
5xBW+8kg
8xBW
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Floor presses
Standing calf raises

Comment:
* Only the third rep on the PR set of squats was tough. I forgot to do the set of 8 reps though.
* Still maintaining the good MMC on the cable crossovers, my pecs are fried afterwards.
* I'm counting the heavy set of pullups as a PR as it was relatively easy today - whereas last time I tried this weight it was a struggle.

[ben3133]

Workout A
October 2

Squats
5x60kg
5x75kg
5x90kg
5x105kg
5x120kg

Cable crossovers

Wide Grip Pullups
5xBW
5xBW+23kg
5xBW+10kg
5xBW
5xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip machine one-arm dips
Standing calf raises

Comment:
Low energy levels today - I have an exam coming up so haven't been getting enough sleep.
* I tried a different warmup method today and I think it just made my legs tired so squats were a bit tough right from the start - form was also a bit off. I will repeat this weight next time and get the form right.
* Pullups came up easier this time.
* I found a way I can do dips (well, close enough) which I'm happy about!

[PaC-mAn8]

265 lb squats for 5 reps...THATS NUTS.

Your hella strong for your weight Ben.

[ben3133]

Thanks Ahad :) I'll be more excited next week when I do it with perfect form!

[cosjav]

265 lb squats for 5 reps...THATS NUTS.

Your hella strong for your weight Ben.

X2 !
The numbers keep goin up, good stuff Ben ;)

[ben3133]

Thanks mate.

I've spent the morning vomitting, so will not be going to the gym today.

[cosjav]

Thanks mate.

I've spent the morning vomitting, so will not be going to the gym today.

damn :(
did u o/d on the booze? :p
btw, how'd the exam go?

[ben3133]

Nah it wasn't alcohol - I'm not sure what it was really. I woke up at maybe 3am and started throwing up my dinner, went to sleep, woke up and threw up again etc. Continued til about 9am. So sounds a lot like food poisoning, except there were 7 other people who ate exactly the same thing as me who had no problems.

This week is going to be a bit hectic - I may be able to get to the gym either today or tomorrow, in which case I'll be repeating workout A (my last workout). I won't be able to go Wednesday (day of exam) or Thursday, so Saturday will probably be my next chance in which case that will be a workout B. Basically, I'll be spreading this weeks worth of workouts over 2 weeks.

[ben3133]

I'm going to try to go to the gym tomorrow instead of today, as since I ate easily <1000 calories yesterday I assume my muscle glycogen stores are a bit low. I'll try to eat up today so I'm back to 100% for tomorrow.

[PaC-mAn8]

Eat up son!

[ben3133]

Workout B
October 6

Squats
5x60kg
5x75kg
5x90kg
5x90kg

Standing OH Press
5x34kg
5x40kg
5x47kg
5x34kg

Deadlifts
5x94kg
5x112kg
5x131kg
5x150kg

Assistance Exercises
Seated DB lateral raises

Comment:
* Squats were easy. Fixed up my form.
* OH press was hard, but I got it.
* Deadlifts were eeeeasy today! The 131kg set was very easy, the 150kg set was easy (so I'm counting it as a PR) :D Some big guy even came up to me and asked me for advice since he was stuck on 140kg... which was strange because I've never been asked for advice at all, let alone by someone big.

[liftingbuddy1]

Awesome work today, Ben! 330x5 is SOLID work. :)

Mike

[BenT]

Nice deadlifts!

It must've felt pretty good to have someone come up and ask for advice eh? :D

[ben3133]

Awesome work today, Ben! 330x5 is SOLID work. :)

Mike
Thanks Mike - I was very tempted to see if I could get 365 :p It's nice having someone to chase!

Nice deadlifts!

It must've felt pretty good to have someone come up and ask for advice eh? :D
Thanks! Like I said it was a bit strange - particularly because this guy always seems to walk around looking like he's in a bad mood! But yes, it was nice!

[ben3133]

Workout B
October 11

Squats
5x60kg
5x75kg
5x90kg
5x90kg

Standing OH Press
5x34kg
5x41kg
5x48kg
5x55kg

Deadlifts
5x96kg
5x115kg
5x134kg
5x154kg

Assistance Exercises
Seated DB lateral raises
Cable ab crunches

Comment:
A bit tired today. It was my birthday yesterday which I think is enough of an explanation ;)
* As I mentioned last time I'm keeping squats at the same weights for another week so I can do the 5x120kg with my form 100% correct. I knew they were going to be easy today so I more than halved my rest periods, and they were still easy.
* Only the last set of OH press was heavy - the 48kg set went up easily! Also - I just noticed that last "Workout B" I said I PR'd on 5x34kg - that was meant to be 5x54kg.
* Deadlifts were a little bit harder than last week. I still definitely have more in me though.

[liftingbuddy1]

Ahh, Ben...those Deads are moving fast! Nice OH Press PR, definitely topped last time's 34kgs! ;)

Happy belated birthday! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike! I was feeling so strong on the OH press that I decided to start off with last time's PR as my warmup set ;)

[ben3133]

Workout C
October 13

Squats
5x59kg
5x73kg
5x88kg
5x102kg
3x120kg
8x88kg

Cable crossovers

Wide Grip Pullups
10xBW
10xBW

Assistance Exercises
Dip machine

Comment:
Not a good workout.
* I had no energy on squats today - the set of 120kg I really struggled with.
* My dip belt broke so I sent it in to be replaced, so just did bodyweight pullups today. By the time I got to pullups I was feeling very dizzy so I stopped to sit for 5 minutes to try to recover. 5 minutes later I was still feeling just as dizzy, so I called it a day.

[PaC-mAn8]

Still some damn good squats.

I'm done with back squatting for a while :(

[ben3133]

I saw you had hip pain? Where abouts? If you can give specifics about where it is and what makes it hurt (eg. what parts of what movements) I might be able to offer some suggestions for recovery. (I've had a bunch of hip-related muscle problems)

I think I'm going to stop doing 5x5 - it seems like twice-weekly progression isn't happening for me as much anymore. I have a few ideas of what I want to do next - the annoying thing is I can only go to the gym 3 days a week.

[ben3133]

OK, I think I've worked out what I'm going to do :D

[PaC-mAn8]

Idk. Its weird. It only hurts when I back squat. Its just hard to explain. Feels like a pinching.

I think you should get on a 4-5 day split.

[ben3133]

Where does it hurt? On the inside of your groin, over the middle of your hip, over the outside? How low are you going when this happens?

I can't do a 4/5 day split as I can only go to the gym 3 days per week. My plan (I'll post the full thing up shortly, am in a rush atm) is to split it up into pull-power/pull-reps/push-power/push-reps and combine these in different ways with leg-power-squatfocus/leg-power-deadfocus/leg-rep-squatfocus/leg-rep-deadfocus. Sounds a bit complex... but I think it'll work!

[liftingbuddy1]

Where does it hurt? On the inside of your groin, over the middle of your hip, over the outside? How low are you going when this happens?

I can't do a 4/5 day split as I can only go to the gym 3 days per week. My plan (I'll post the full thing up shortly, am in a rush atm) is to split it up into pull-power/pull-reps/push-power/push-reps and combine these in different ways with leg-power-squatfocus/leg-power-deadfocus/leg-rep-squatfocus/leg-rep-deadfocus. Sounds a bit complex... but I think it'll work!

A bit complex? ;) Sounds really awesome, Ben! Good luck with the program and hope you set a bunch of PRs with it! :)

Mike

[PaC-mAn8]

It hurts on the outside of the hip. When I pass parallel.

[ben3133]

A bit complex? ;) Sounds really awesome, Ben! Good luck with the program and hope you set a bunch of PRs with it! :)

Mike
It's simpler when I actually write out the program for you :p

It hurts on the outside of the hip. When I pass parallel.
Is it tender to touch? (when you aren't squatting)

[PaC-mAn8]

Is it tender to touch? (when you aren't squatting)

no homo brah? ;)

lol...no, its fine.

[ben3133]

Haha. Hmm, that probably rules out a bursitis or tendonitis. It could be due to muscle imbalances and you may have caused a small tear - unfortunately I can't suggest much more without being able to examine you (no homo :p)... but if you take a week of squats, then try them out again, based on how it feels it may provide more information.

[ben3133]

OK my plan is as follows.

I will go to the gym on days 1, 3 and 5 of the week.

Legs will be done on days 1 and 5. Day 1 will be "power", day 5 will be "reps". If I do a squat focus on day 1, I will do a deadlift focus on day 5, and vice versa. Each week I will alternate this so say squats are done on day 1 of week 1, day 1 of week 2 will be deadlift focus.

Upper body will be broken up into push/pull power, and push/pull reps. Upper body will be done on days 1, 3 and 5. I will alternate between "power" and "reps", so week one would look like power, reps, power, and week two reps, power, reps.

Putting it all together:
Week 1, day 1:
Legs, power, squat focus
Push power
Pull power

Week 1, day 3:
Push reps
Pull reps

Week 1, day 5:
Legs, reps, deadlift focus
Push power
Pull power

Week 2, day 1:
Legs, power, deadlift focus
Push reps
Pull reps

Week 2, day 3:
Push power
Pull power

Week 2, day 5:
Legs, reps, squat focus
Push reps
Pull reps

[foxrider1]

hey BEN

nice work and holy **** 150kg deadlifts :O:O nice work


ok i think i have the snapping tricep triceps syndrome, idk though,

well yeah its right near the elbow ulnar nerve, and near the boney point of the arm, it only cracks a little bit,

a few weeks ago i had really sore triceps, theres no pain now, and a few weeks ago the popping was a fair bit worse, what have i got now??? its getting better i guess idk though, and when i tense, that part of my arm hurts to..

BTW sub'd

[ben3133]

Is it a crack or a snap? Big difference.

You determine whether it is your ulnar nerve or your medial head of triceps tendon by feeling for its shape/consistency. The ulnar nerve will be round, firm and ropelike, whereas the tendon will be flatter and softer. If you do have snapping triceps syndrome, the more you do exercises that cause the snap, the more inflammation is caused around the tendon and the nerve. This in turn (because of the swelling) causes the snap to become more forceful, which causes more inflammation etc. Another factor which can help in distinguishing whether it is snapping triceps syndrome or just ulnar nerve subluxation is by considering the weight/snap ratio. If it's only your ulnar nerve, the snap will remain the same in terms of forcefullness if you increase or decrease the weight on an exercise (such as dips). Whereas if it's your medial head of triceps tendon too, as your triceps are forced to work harder and harder (weighted dips for example) the snap will get more and more forceful (as the tendon is being pulled on tighter).

[cosjav]

the new program looks interesting, did u formulate it urself or adapt it from some other program?
oh and happy birthday (bit late tho :p)

[foxrider1]

are you like a physio or something lol

do you work traps brah?

[BenT]

Just had a look at the new routine that you've come up with, and I like it. Looks interesting and well thought-out. Good stuff Ben.

[ben3133]

the new program looks interesting, did u formulate it urself or adapt it from some other program?
oh and happy birthday (bit late tho :p)
Thanks :) Just made it up myself. I knew I wanted to hit everything more than once a week, and I knew I needed a bit of a change from doing low reps exclusively (but got very bored last time I tried out high reps only) so came up with this.

are you like a physio or something lol

do you work traps brah?
Med student with various injuries over time! I've never worked traps before, deadlifts always seemed to hit them. I will be doing traps on the pull-power days.

Just had a look at the new routine that you've come up with, and I like it. Looks interesting and well thought-out. Good stuff Ben.
Thanks Ben!

[ben3133]

Gym
October 16

Legs: Squat focus, power
Upper body: Power

Box Squats (box a few inches below parallel)
5x90kg
5x95kg
5x95kg
5x95kg

Wide Grip Pullups
10xBW
5xBW+20kg
5xBW+20kg
5xBW+17.5kg

One armed dips (machine)
6x70
6x70
6x70
6x70

Smith machine shrugs
12x40kg
12x60kg
12x70kg
10x90kg

Seated DB lateral raises
10x10kg
10x10kg
10x9kg

Stomach vacuums
10x10secs hold, 5 secs break

Comment:
First workout of the new plan - I liked it!
* This was the first time I've done box squats, and they felt like they worked really well. I picked up the technique quickly and so was able to concentrate on just getting the weight up.
* Technically the pullups were PRs - whilst I've done 5xBW+20kg before, I've never done it for 2 sets followed by a 17.5. (never tried either, though)
* I slept with my wrist in a funny position and so it was a bit sore so the dips were a bit uncomfortable. These worked my triceps well, and hit my pecs a bit too.
* I haven't done shrugs in a long time so wasn't sure what weight I should be using, so this was a bit of experimentation. Today I didn't use straps at all for these - I will try to avoid using straps as I want to use this to help build my grip strength. I didn't like having to shrug a weight in front of my body, so will stick to DBs from now on.
* Lateral raises felt good. I did them straight after shrugs to try to prefatigue my traps and stop them participating as much.

[liftingbuddy1]

Wow, nice workout Ben! Nice Box Squats and strong Pullups! :)

Are the one-armed dip weights also in kgs? :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike. I will definitely be able to increase the weight on everything for next time (since this was the first time doing this workout my body obviously wasn't used to it).

The dip weights are what it says on the weight stack of the machine - it says 70kg on the machine, but since it's the cable thing I'm not actually moving 70kg!

[liftingbuddy1]

Thanks Mike. I will definitely be able to increase the weight on everything for next time (since this was the first time doing this workout my body obviously wasn't used to it).

The dip weights are what it says on the weight stack of the machine - it says 70kg on the machine, but since it's the cable thing I'm not actually moving 70kg!

Next time should definitely be even better, for the reason you stated.

Ok. The reason I asked is because you didn't write "70kg", but just wrote "70", so I wasn't sure what to make of it :p....though I probably should've known considering you do everything in kgs! :D I hear you on the cable part. I've never actually thought about that until someone asked Layne about it not to long ago. Now that you bring it up again, it is definitely a valid observation.

Question about your program setup. Will you be able to recover quick enough from a RE Deadlift session in a few days before the power Deadlift session, especially if you go high rep and heavy on the RE Deads (which I know you will, unless it's more of a DE)? I don't doubt your recovery or your intensity, but it was just something I noticed. Either way, the program setup looks great and I hope it allows you to reap the results you seek. :)

Mike

[ben3133]

You never know - maybe the 70 actually requires 70kg force to move, and so maybe I could do dips with BW+60kg :p

I thought about that with the deadlifts. I think I should be ok, as I will only be doing one exercise for the RE and it won't be a deadlift (it will be a variation or assistance exercise). I'll have to see how I go in the first few weeks and then maybe change it up. I'm hoping that because one day will be RE and the other ME that I'll be ok (for example I could definitely do an RE tomorrow after the ME yesterday - just not sure if it works the other way around!). Maybe I'd be better off doing RE day 1 and ME day 5? What do you think?

Thanks as always for your support!

[theACEofSPADES]

You think those stomach vacuums work? I tried them and didnt really notice much

[BenT]

Nice workout to kick off the new routine Ben!

By the way, how did you do your box squats - touch and go, or did you pause on the box?

[ben3133]

You think those stomach vacuums work? I tried them and didnt really notice much
It was the first time I've done them - I could feel it doing something by the end. I've also heard from a number of people that they think they're great, so decided to give them a try.

Nice workout to kick off the new routine Ben!

By the way, how did you do your box squats - touch and go, or did you pause on the box?
Thanks Ben. I fully deloaded onto the box (as in sat down, take feet off ground, go).

[cosjav]

Nice workout Ben :)
What made u go for 1 armed dips?

[ben3133]

I would much prefer to be doing dips on bars, but I have elbow problems so can't do it. There is a cable dip machine at my gym similar to this

http://img.nextag.com/image/Maxicam-Tricep-and-Dip/1/000/000/601/619/60161952.jpg

but I can do the whole weight stack easily if I use two arms. So I kneel on the ground and use 1 arm :)

[ben3133]

Gym
October 18

Upper body: Reps

DB Rows
8x35kg
8x40kg
8x35kg

Cable crossovers
10x60
10x60
6x60

Face pulls
10x40
10x50
10x60

Seated DB lateral raises
10x10kg
10x10kg
10x8kg

Comment:
Thanks to Mike for a suggestion about how to improve my workout plan.
* The 35kg DB rows were relatively easy, the 40kg was a bit tough.
* PR on cable crossovers. Still getting a great MMC on these, and I have noticed my pecs responding.
* I was experimenting with the weight on face pulls. Next time I will know to use 60 instead of having to work my way up.
* I don't think I'm going to need to put the DB laterals into this workout - my deltoids were already quite tired.

[ben3133]

Gym
October 20

Lower body: Reps, deadlift focus
Upper body: Power

SLDL
10x100kg
10x100kg
5x100kg

Wide grip pullups
10xBW
3xBW+23kg
4xBW+20kg
2xBW+20kg

Comment:
Very little energy or enthusiasm today. Super stressed atm, so was getting very frustrated with the poor performance and called it a day.

[ben3133]

OK, so I've been doing a bit of thinking. Since changing over to this program (apart from the very first session - but consider what I did during that session) I've been missing doing the low rep power lifts. One important thing I realised that I'd forgotten when making the new program was that I didn't take into consideration my recovery abilities; I recover much better from low-rep than high-rep exercises. Also, considering the previous routines I've done, I get better results on low reps than high reps (and the reason I put high reps into the new program was for some variety/different stimulus). I feel that if I were to continue doing the program I planned, I would not enjoy it as much, not get as good results, and would burn out quickly. Because of this, I'm thinking that I will go back to continue the 5x5 I was doing before. Although my progress was slowing, hopefully this fortnight of different workouts has acted like a bit of a deload - at the very least, it has given my muscles a bit of a shock (as evidenced by my DOMS). Looking at this objectively - I think a psychological factor which is influencing me is in the last month or so I've had a number of people comment that I've become much bigger (well, they refer to my arms which are of course the most important part of ones physique </strong sarcasm>), and that's making me think "keep doing what you were doing!".

Thoughts?

[liftingbuddy1]

OK, so I've been doing a bit of thinking. Since changing over to this program (apart from the very first session - but consider what I did during that session) I've been missing doing the low rep power lifts. One important thing I realised that I'd forgotten when making the new program was that I didn't take into consideration my recovery abilities; I recover much better from low-rep than high-rep exercises. Also, considering the previous routines I've done, I get better results on low reps than high reps (and the reason I put high reps into the new program was for some variety/different stimulus). I feel that if I were to continue doing the program I planned, I would not enjoy it as much, not get as good results, and would burn out quickly. Because of this, I'm thinking that I will go back to continue the 5x5 I was doing before. Although my progress was slowing, hopefully this fortnight of different workouts has acted like a bit of a deload - at the very least, it has given my muscles a bit of a shock (as evidenced by my DOMS). Looking at this objectively - I think a psychological factor which is influencing me is in the last month or so I've had a number of people comment that I've become much bigger (well, they refer to my arms which are of course the most important part of ones physique </strong sarcasm>), and that's making me think "keep doing what you were doing!".

Thoughts?

I think you should definitely do what you have made success with. If 5x5 yields the strength, positive physique changes and works with your recovery abilities, then there is no need to "beat around the bush" and start something else. There are a lot of people who do well with low reps and others with high, so experimenting is always good. However, continuing to stick with something that is leaving you drained (in a bad way) is definitely not worth your time. No one on this forum or any other can dictate what works best for everyone; if that individual thinks so, then he is a fool. Ben, do what you do best - kick ass in the gym!!! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Back to 5x5 it is then :) I think what I will do as I was (I think) approaching stalling on back squats and wide grip pullups is change:
Back squats --> box squats
Wide grip pullups --> chinups

Hopefully that will allow me to go back to increasing each session while still improving my back squats - in fact at Westside Barbell I read (on their website) that they do box squats year round, and the only time they back squat is at competition.

[BenT]

Definitely agree with Mike, go with what you know works for you.

Also, I feel it's important to go into the gym knowing (or at least thinking) that the routine that you're doing is the one that you want to do, that you do not have doubts about it.

So, yeah, go with 5 x 5 since it's the one that has worked so well for you in the past, and the one that psychologically you feel is the right one for you.

[ben3133]

Very true, thanks Ben.

[ben3133]

Workout A
October 23

Box Squats (below parallel)
5x49kg
5x61kg
5x73kg
5x85kg
5x97kg

Chinups
5xBW
5xBW+25kg
5xBW+11kg
5xBW
5xBW

Cable Crossovers

Machine Dips

Calf Raises

Comment:
Good to be back to 5x5!
* My hamstrings are still very sore from the SLDLs the other day so the box squats were a bit tougher than expected. They'll be fine from now on though (my hamstrings should be 100% tomorrow).
* The 25kg set of chinups was almost definitely a 10 repper. Barely noticed the added 11kg.

[BenT]

Good workout there Ben, good job on the PR.

Strong chins as well!

[rsrose007]

http://lhnweb.info/img/276/x08y1009qdcb/23.gif

You are in good condition oly. but u need to do some diet .. also. this is good program oly.
Try these things every day. You will come to mass ...
chicken breast
1 cup broccoli
10 almonds
then every morning eat egg without boiling it.
and do YOGA . yoga makes chest, leg , etc be strong and tuff.
ok
All the Best!!!

5x5 and Hypertrophy (Stopping Insanity 1)

Also, I keep hearing "5x5 will put muscle on you if you eat enough but it is not a hypertrophy program."

1) No program will put muscle on you if you don't eat enough, come the hell on.

2) As discussed in the Training Primer, hypertrophy is mainly centered around relatively high levels of tension (load on the bar relative to your capacity) and volume of work. 5 sets of 5 reps enable both and strike a good balance (not golden, not directly from God, not the only rep and volume range you'll ever need, not magic - just a good general balance for highly productive core lifts).

3) Load progression (through adding absolute weight/tension, volume/work or a combination yielding more total workload over a period) is fundamental to hypertrophy. One of the things that enables this progression and subsequent hypertrophy is neural adaptation - rapid neural adaptation facilitating progressive loading is what is behind the newbie gains that everyone enjoys early in their training career (so yes, it matters). Sets of 5 are very good at driving the neural adaptation and far better than higher rep ranges (and so is higher frequency which is why you see 2-3x weekly sessions on the same lifts). Combine that with levels of tension and enough workload and you get a very balanced program. Keep in mind, this isn't about maximizing hypertrophy for a single workout. This is about maximizing hypertrophy over a period of time, and the continued neural adaptation allows for more load on the bar and total workload - hence hypertrophy providing your diet is geared to that goal.

4) That doesn't mean that sets of 5 are the end all be all of programming. All that means is that it's a decent foundation, it works well, there are very good reasons why it works, and I'd venture for most people, no matter how advanced or for most specialized purposes, it would be useful for at least part of the year.

5) And just for the record, a complete hypertrophy plan is likely going to require multiple phases to bring one's physique to the pinnacle of achievement - if that is the goal and someone is narrow-minded enough to believe that I'm actually talking about a career or even a yearly plan. Just to be clear - this is the type of work that gets the novice started or helps someone pile on the foundation muscle to move up a weightclass. Please read the Training Primer where I address some of this more completely.

[ben3133]

Cardio
October 24

2.8km run: 14:35

Comment: First time doing cardio for a while. I wasn't trying to do it as fast as possible, just to keep a steady pace. Overall it felt pretty good - I'm going to be trying to do more cardio on my gym off-days for fitness reasons.

[liftingbuddy1]

Strong Box Squats - especially for below parallel! Nice job with the cardio and good reasoning for it too! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Workout B
October 25

Box Squats (below parallel)
5x49kg
5x61kg
5x73kg
5x73kg

Standing OH Press
5x34kg
5x41kg
5x48kg
5x35kg

Deadlift
5x96kg
5x115kg
4x134kg
5x154kg

Seated DB laterals
12x10kg
10x10kg
10x10kg

Comment:
* Good form on box squats.
* Repeating the weight I last used on these to get used to it again. The heavy set of OH press was hard, I had to fight for every rep. If it's not any better next week, I will swap standing OH press out and do push presses instead.
* Repeating the weight I last used on these to get used to it again. The first 3 sets of deadlift I wasn't feeling strong at all, and wasn't too happy with my form. I stopped the set of 134kg after 4 reps because I felt something on my hand swelling up - turns out it was a nice big blood blister (on the spot where a callus had peeled off so was raw to start with). The set of 154kg I really pulled it together, and it came up smoother, easier and with better form than I ever have before, so I'm counting it as a PR.
* I guess you could call the DB raises a PR because I haven't done this much volume with the 10kg's before. I could have gotten 15 reps on the first set without too much trouble, but wanted to conserve energy for the following two sets.

[theACEofSPADES]

Strong deadlifts Ben. Make sure your form is still good

[ben3133]

Thanks. I'm not really sure what was going on with the lighter sets today, but the heavy set my form was pretty much perfect (IMO - obviously I can't see myself side-on).

[ben3133]

Cardio
October 26

3.2km run: 18:26

Comment: My goal is to up the distance each time, irrespective of how long it takes me. By the end of this I wasn't tired in terms of being short of breath (which surprised me), my lower leg muscles around my ankles were just very, very tight (and were tight for the whole second half of the run).

[ben3133]

Workout C
October 27

Box Squats (below parallel)
5x49kg
5x61kg
5x73kg
5x85kg
3x100kg
8x73kg

Chinups
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW+3kg
5xBW+16kg
3xBW+33kg
8xBW+3kg

Cable Crossovers
PR

Seated Dip Machine
PR

Standing calf raises

Comment:
* Box squats felt good. I got a vaccination in my glutes on the way to gym so they were a bit tender...
* Chinups were still reasonably easy with +33kg
* PR on cable crossovers and the seated dip machine.

[Leprechauns1021]

Hey..nice journal here. Seems like you're getting comfortable going back to a 5x5..so thats great bro! I'm subd, and i'll be checking back to see how you're doing. Good luck!

[ben3133]

Thanks mate. Yep, I definitely prefer 5x5. I think I've learnt my lesson in that low reps work for me, high reps dont, so I should stick to low.

[Leprechauns1021]

Thanks mate. Yep, I definitely prefer 5x5. I think I've learnt my lesson in that low reps work for me, high reps dont, so I should stick to low.
I know what ya mean..i've recently started low rep workouts, and my strength has increased drastically...and so has muscle mass. I feel it definitely works better for me as well.

[ben3133]

Workout A
October 30

Box Squats (below parallel)
5x50kg
5x62kg
5x75kg
5x87kg
5x100kg

Chinups
5xBW
5xBW
5xBW+33kg
5xBW+19kg
5xBW+5kg

Seated Dip Machine
PR

Cable Crossovers

Comment:
* Still using reasonably short rest times on box squats, and the reps are moving smoothly.
* Chinups were tougher on the +33kg set than they should have been today *confused*
* My left arm is lagging considerably behind my right on the one armed dips.
* I had no energy left by the time I got to cable crossovers (still studying for exams), so I upped the weight as I was originally going to, but kept the reps lower.

[ben3133]

I should probably also add that my intention is to ride out 5x5 for absolutely as long as I can. If I stall on one exercise, I will substitute that. For example, when I stall on chinups (I assume this will be the next stall), I'll switch to HS Iso rows.

[liftingbuddy1]

Really strong Chins! :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Thanks Mike. Still quite far off my PR of 2x7xBW+37.5kg! (or was it 35?)

[liftingbuddy1]

Thanks Mike. Still quite far off my PR of 2x7xBW+37.5kg! (or was it 35?)

I found this! Ben's workout (http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpost.php?p=177139941&postcount=240)

Mike

[Leprechauns1021]

Very solid workout! Chinups are amazing, and very nice progression on the Box Squats! I still think its pretty cool that you do the Dip machine with only one arm lol

[PhoenixUK]

Hi Ben! Just skim reading your log, going to have a proper read later. Looks like you're doing pretty well on your 5x5 routine! I'm on something similar, from stronglifts, which is derived from Starr and Rippetoe's methods. Hoping to get as good results as you have!

Phoenix

[ben3133]

I found this! Ben's workout (http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showpost.php?p=177139941&postcount=240)

Mike
Interesting... 2x9xBW+35kg... thanks!

Very solid workout! Chinups are amazing, and very nice progression on the Box Squats! I still think its pretty cool that you do the Dip machine with only one arm lol
Haha thanks. It's a bit awkward to do with one arm (I actually do 1 more rep than I write, because it takes me about 10 seconds as I try to set up my balance!), but I want to be able to do dips and if this is all I can do then it's what I'll do!

Hi Ben! Just skim reading your log, going to have a proper read later. Looks like you're doing pretty well on your 5x5 routine! I'm on something similar, from stronglifts, which is derived from Starr and Rippetoe's methods. Hoping to get as good results as you have!

Phoenix
Thanks - do you have a link to what you are doing? I'd be interested to see it if it combines Starr and Rippetoe!

[PaC-mAn8]

box sqwatz = :cool:

[PhoenixUK]

Thanks - do you have a link to what you are doing? I'd be interested to see it if it combines Starr and Rippetoe!

Well, it is based on similar principles.

http://stronglifts.com/

Basically lift 5x5, focusing on improving squat every session to drive growth. I'm still a bit of a novice in strength training so it's ideal for me! You've got some inspiring lifts, I've got a ways to go myself.

The programme is to lift 3x a week, alternating between A and B:




Workout A
Squat 5x5
Bench Press 5x5
Inverted Rows 3xF
Push-ups 3xF
Reverse Crunch 3x12


workout B
Squat 5x5
Overhead Press 5x5
Deadlift 1x5
Pull-ups/Chin-ups 3xF
Prone Bridges 3x30sec

[ben3133]

box sqwatz = :cool:
Loving them so far! It may all be in my head, but my quads seem to be loving them too! :cool:

Well, it is based on similar principles.

http://stronglifts.com/

Basically lift 5x5, focusing on improving squat every session to drive growth. I'm still a bit of a novice in strength training so it's ideal for me! You've got some inspiring lifts, I've got a ways to go myself.

The programme is to lift 3x a week, alternating between A and B
Ah I see. Are those 5x5 sets straight sets or ramping? Good luck with it!

[ben3133]

Cardio
October 31

4.2km run: 21:46
(+1km, +3:20)

Comment: Today felt really good. I wasn't short of breath when I stopped running, and my leg muscles weren't as tight as last time.

[PhoenixUK]

Ah I see. Are those 5x5 sets straight sets or ramping? Good luck with it!

same weight across all 5working sets (not including any warmup sets). Thanks, you too!

[ben3133]

Workout B
November 1

Box Squats (below parallel)
5x50kg
5x62kg
5x75kg
5x75kg

Deadlifts
5x100kg
5x120kg
5x140kg
4.9x160kg

Seated DB Lateral raises
10x10kg
10x10kg

Comment:
* Easy box squats.
* I was in a hurry so couldn't be bothered putting on the small plates for deadlifts... As a result my sets were all 2kg heavier than they were "scheduled" to be. I missed the lockout on the 160kg set, but am still very happy with how it went considering that I did 5x3plates just before it, and only a number of months ago I was struggling to 1RM 3 plates. Note to self: wear long pants next time (I had blood dripping down my legs the last two sets).

I've stopped doing the standing OH press as it was aggravating my SC joint. I was trying to find a replacement for it, but all pressing exercises aggravate the joint, so I decided I'd just leave it out and that doing lateral raises and cable crossovers would be enough to hit the anterior and middle heads of deltoid.

[theACEofSPADES]

Nice workout

WHy were you in a hurry

[ben3133]

I'm becoming caffeine tolerant which sucks because I have heaps of study I have to do. So because of that I wanted to buy some Red Bull - but by the time I decided this it was an hour before the shops were going to close, so I had to speed through my workout so I had time to go home, get my wallet, and go buy the red bull.

[ben3133]

Cardio
November 2

4.2km run: 22:32
(+0km, +0:46)

Comment: As I'm still in a bit of a hurry (have heaps of study to do this weekend, and lots of non-study things I have to go to) I literally rolled out of bed, pulled on my shoes and started running. I was hungry before I started (hungry enough that I woke up once during the night needing to eat... but I didn't, I value sleep more during exam time!) so my energy levels were a bit low, and as a result the run was average. Not too bad though considering I'm only running for distance, not time. Not really a fan of fasted cardio either.

[Leprechauns1021]

Sucks that you've been so tight on time for your workouts lately..but you've still managed to squeeze in some quality work! Cardio looks nice bro...~4.2km every other day is awesome! Do you ever do HIIT?

[ben3133]

Thanks. Yeh I'm looking forward to exams being over. I refuse to let my workouts suffer though, so will be trying as hard as I can not to miss anything out. I used to do HIIT but found it was too hard for me to recover from doing HIIT and heavy lifting - both in terms of muscle and neural recovery. Plus, I'm dead for the rest of the day after doing HIIT, something I can't afford while studying.

[Leprechauns1021]

Thanks. Yeh I'm looking forward to exams being over. I refuse to let my workouts suffer though, so will be trying as hard as I can not to miss anything out. I used to do HIIT but found it was too hard for me to recover from doing HIIT and heavy lifting - both in terms of muscle and neural recovery. Plus, I'm dead for the rest of the day after doing HIIT, something I can't afford while studying.
Ohh i see. When are you going be finished with exams?

[ben3133]

November 19 is my last one!

[liftingbuddy1]

November 19 is my last one!

That's awesome!! Which one? :)

Mike

[ben3133]

Last one for this year I meant :p

[ben3133]

Workout C
November 3

Box Squats (below parallel)
5x50kg
5x62kg
5x75kg
5x87kg
3x102kg
8x75kg

Chinups
5xBW
5xBW
3xBW+36kg
5xBW+19kg
8xBW+5kg
5xBW+5kg

Cable crossovers
PR

One-armed dip machine
Left arm: PR
Right arm: PR

Comment:
I was extremely frustrated to the point of being ready to snap before I got to the gym (for various reasons). But it gave me good energy levels...
* Squats were easy. I felt like I could have box squatted 3x120kg.
* Chinups were easy. I felt like I could have chinned 3x40kg no problem whatsoever.

[PhoenixUK]

Amazing work on the chinups! I'm fairly pathetic at them at the moment - any tips?