Brendbro's 'almost too weak to lift' Log

[brendbro]

had a big presentation to get prepared for today so didn't have time to log my DL's on monday

Deadlift3
*warmups excluded
120x3
137.5x3
155x7
120x6x3 *3 sets conventional
- fuk after watching these back they looked ugly. to be fair its now a couple days later and ive only felt leg DOMS so that's good.
- nonetheless i am pretty unhappy with the back rounding that was going on, which wasn't happening during my last 1's session where i hit better than todays numbers, which tells me that it was likely that i haven't kept up with mobility work and that ive hurt my groin a bit. something i need to seriously keep focused on but fukk with all the assessment sht i gotta get done its proving difficult. gotta get it done though

leg curl - 5ppsx5x8
pull ups - BWx8,5,5,5 *last 3 were wide grip
BE - BWx8, 5kgx2x8
planks - 25kgx3x0:30

OHP5
barx10
30x5
40x5
45x5
52.5x5
57.5x12
62.5x5
45x6x5
- great day of pressing. 57.5kg for 12 is a new PR. though i had to set it down and rest like 20 seconds at the 8th rep coz i was using a slightly wider grip than i wanted and it threw me off a bit. but w/e im still gonna take it

pull ups - 15lbx5x5
seated row - 60ppsx5x10
db shrugs - 15kgx3x10 *static holds
face pulls - 20x3x12
tricep pulldowns - 40kgx3x12
HLR - BWx3x15, 10lbx10

+ cardio - 600 cals

[brendbro]

Squats 1
barx2x5
60x2x5
80x5
100x3
110x5
125x3
140x3 PR
110x3x5
- omfg big milestone for me - triple plate squat for a triple! hella happy with that.
- felt confident when i unracked, weight felt lighter than i anticipated, and on the descent it felt good but i fcked the ascent up by letting my chest cave slightly. still finished the rep but it threw my confidence a little, managed to work through it for the 2nd and 3rd rep.
- gonna start a mini cut today too. weight today was 78.3kg [172lb] but i think my actual weight is slightly lower then that. ill probly go for 8ish weeks and not planning on losing much on the scale.

leg curls - 5ppsx3x12
+ cardio / study - 600 cals

[psychodiver9]

Congrats on the milestone/pr

[brendbro]

Bench 1
barx5
50x5
67.5x5
77.5x3
87.5x5
67.5x3x5
- everything felt pretty good today. this weight feels very light but my weakness in bench is definitely my set up. AMRAP 1rm set felt fine too.

bb rows - 80x3x5
chin ups - 20lbx3x5
planks - 25kgx3x0:30
face pulls - 20kgx3x12
chin ups - BWx15 *just wanted to see roughly how many i could get at once

definitely going to try and do more chin ups from now on in place of pull ups. im waaaay better at them and can quite easily get MMC with back

Congrats on the milestone/pr

cheers. feels good but only more progress to be made

[brendbro]

78.1kg today

Deadlift 1
60x2x5
100x3
127.5x5
145x3
162.5x5 sumo pr
downs
127.5x3x3 *conventional
- mch happier with deadlifts this week than last week. keeping up with mobility seems key. upper back still slightly rounded on some reps but so much better than last week.
- i think ive solved why as well; if i try and get my hips too close to the bar at the starting position my upper back ends up rounding.. basically i need to start with my hips a bit further back. my sumo form is much more akin to semi-sumo rather than a full sumo position.
- was only aiming for 3 for my amrap set but 5 went up fairly well.

BBB squats - 75x5x10
*first time trying BBB (50% of 1rm) and wanna get more frequency in so figured id give them a go after DL's today. lower back felt decent after DL's so figured why not. they were tough and i was sweating after but felt great!

leg curls - 5ppsx3x12 *getting great MMC with my hammies on leg curls lately

cardio / study - 550 cals

[brendbro]

OHP 3
barx10
30x5
40x5
47.5x3
52.5x3
60x10 PR
65x3
47.5x6x5
- fuk yeah! hit 60kg for 9 for an all time PR just last week and now for 10! definitely felt like i had 1 more in me, though it woulda been a grinder so i left it. very happy with that. will upload a vid if i get a chance
- 1 joker set and 6 sets of 5 downs after

bb rows - 80x3x5 *underhand
chin ups - 20lbx3x5, BWx3x5 superset w/
HLR - BWx3x15
shrugs - 12.5kgx3x12 *static hold
face pulls - 20kgx3x12
tricep pulldowns - 40kgx12,12,8

+ cardio - 500 cals

[brendbro]

Squat5
barx2x5
60x5
80x5
97.5x5
112.5x5
127.5x7 PR
135x1
97.5x3x5 *high bar close stance
- felt decent today. but altered form a little bit and the final set felt harder than it should have. i think i may have 8 or 9 in me but it torched me, maybe because im cutting now.. either way i'll take it.
- 135 for an easy single after and then down sets. decided on trying some big but boring deadlifts today considering i did squats after deadlifts earlier in the week.

BBB deadlifts - 85x3x10
*i was sweating prtty hard here, left it at 3 sets and then did a few singles here and there conventional watching form. muehue

leg curls - 5ppsx3x12

+ cardio / study - 500 cals

[brendbro]

Bench 5
barx5
50x5
60x5
70x5
80x10
85x5
90x5
60x3x5
- first decent bench session in a looooooong time. didn't expect to get 80 for 10. 2 joker sets after and didn't think id hit 90 for 5 either. so all around happy

chin ups - 12.5kgx5x5, BWx10, 8, 7 *wanted to get 50 total, with half of them weighted. real happy with how these are feeling, glad i switched to chin ups over pull ups
seated row - 70ppsx3x5
face pulls - 20kgx3x12
preacher curls - 75x6
db curls - 35lbx12 + 25lbx8 + 20lbx8
planks - 25kgx0:40 *wanted to get more in but gym was closing so had to get on outta there

[brendbro]

holy wow just realised ive had this log for 3 years now.

Deadlift 5
60x2x5
100x5
115x5
132.5x5
150x8 *sumo pr
165x1
115x5x3
- hell happy with how DL's went today. really trying to nail my form down and keep my spine neutral and today was probly the best they've looked, so that makes me happy.
- 150 for 8 reps is not an all time pr (best was for 11 conventional), but it is a sumo PR, a PR for cutting, and the quality im definitely thinking has improved. i think i had 1 or 2 in me but man they exhaustd me. srsly they are tiring me the fuk out

BBB squats - 75x5x10
leg curls - 5ppsx5x8

+ cardio - 450 cals

[brendbro]

OHP 1
barx10
30x5
40x5
50x5
57.5x3
62.5x8 PR
50x5x5
- OHP felt great today. all warmup / working sets felt hella easy.
- final set i actually hit 7, and misgrooved the last one which threw me off completely, and reracked. had 20-30 second rest and then hit 2 more relatively easily, so ill count it as 8 as i'm positive i would have had around 8 in total but hit 9 to compensate. blerg

bb rows - 82.5x3x5
chin ups - 20lbx3x8, BWx3x6 ss w/
HLR - BWx3x10
face pulls - 20kgx3x12
shrugs - 12.5kgx3x12 *static hold
trice pulldowns - 7plsx4x10

+ stretching / cardio - 535 cals

[ilove2run]

Woop, Woop, PR! I've done that before (hitting the rack) throwing you off when you know you have that last one in you.

Checking in: How's grad school holding up?

[brendbro]

hell busy atm so im going to crossover to a 3 day week programme as soon as i have time to find one i like, until then ill just do benching after squats on 5/3/1

Squats 3
barx2x5
60x5
80x5
105x3
120x3
135x3
105x3x5
- was hoping to hit 135 for 6 but only got it for 3

bench 3
barx5
50x5
65x3
75x3
85x6
90x3
- benching felt pretty easy and nice so it kinda made up for the shtty squats
- definitely had about 2 more in me on the AMRAP set.

chinups - 15kgx5x5 *chin ups felt pretty easy too
deadlift - 100x5x2 *(attempting) to do speed and form work on these.

+ cardio / study - 590 cals

Woop, Woop, PR! I've done that before (hitting the rack) throwing you off when you know you have that last one in you.

Checking in: How's grad school holding up?

good man. sorta. have had too many stress out moments to remember. but only 12 weeks left so it's kind of at the count down period where sht is about to get real and i gotta put the game face on. im analysing data atm which is proving really interesting / intriguing so that is kind of helping the process run a bit better. how bout you man, you must be coming to the close of the holiday period?

[hcoyle545]

hello my fren. seems like you're one of the only guys still doing work in here from the threads I subbed to

how you been?

[ilove2run]

hell busy atm so im going to crossover to a 3 day week programme as soon as i have time to find one i like, until then ill just do benching after squats on 5/3/1

Squats 3
barx2x5
60x5
80x5
105x3
120x3
135x3
105x3x5
- was hoping to hit 135 for 6 but only got it for 3

bench 3
barx5
50x5
65x3
75x3
85x6
90x3
- benching felt pretty easy and nice so it kinda made up for the shtty squats
- definitely had about 2 more in me on the AMRAP set.

chinups - 15kgx5x5 *chin ups felt pretty easy too
deadlift - 100x5x2 *(attempting) to do speed and form work on these.

+ cardio / study - 590 cals




good man. sorta. have had too many stress out moments to remember. but only 12 weeks left so it's kind of at the count down period where sht is about to get real and i gotta put the game face on. im analysing data atm which is proving really interesting / intriguing so that is kind of helping the process run a bit better. how bout you man, you must be coming to the close of the holiday period?

My program hasn't even started yet , starts the 2nd of September

[ilove2run]

Where'd you go!?!?!?!

[brendbro]

Where'd you go!?!?!?!

Fuuuu sorry dude, I moved out of home and the Internet is taking weeks to sort out. On the upside there are less distractions so been getting lots of work done (although more distractions living with mates now so it probly evens out).

Just quickly updating on my phone now to say should be getting net in 4-5 days and will update with workouts etc then. Doing sheiko again and lifting has been going ****ing awesomely!! Keen to get some vids up too

[ilove2run]

Fuuuu sorry dude, I moved out of home and the Internet is taking weeks to sort out. On the upside there are less distractions so been getting lots of work done (although more distractions living with mates now so it probly evens out).

Just quickly updating on my phone now to say should be getting net in 4-5 days and will update with workouts etc then. Doing sheiko again and lifting has been going ****ing awesomely!! Keen to get some vids up too

Glad you are still alive and didn't die from grad-school overload.....lol....making me nervous for my program to kick up here in 15-days!

[brendbro]

good golly have just got internet back. here's a quick update;

- just finished a run of sheiko 29. started off great but got insanely difficult toward the end, hips were absolutely destroyed and now i know not to cut on sheiko again.. or at least, take more breaks.
- still going to be cutting for another 8-12 weeks and im trying to decide on a new programme right now. my thesis is due in less than 2 months so its kind of hard to know how much free time / intensity i can manage. right now im thinking 5/3/1, sheiko again but 2 day breaks in between each session, or something 3x a week full body like MC or somethin.
- regular logging will re ensue

oh yeah and i moved outta home

Glad you are still alive and didn't die from grad-school overload.....lol....making me nervous for my program to kick up here in 15-days!

the level of nervousness should equate to how competitive the course is. more competitive = hell of a lot more anxiety about doing your best imo.

[brendbro]

squat5/bench5
squats
92.5x5
105x5
120x10 pr
downs - 92.5x3x5

bench
65x5
75x5
85x5
* did not do amrap set as i wasn't feeling confident about my shoulder

shrugs - 60kgx3x10
seated row - 65kgx12,12,12,8
leg curls - 30kgx3x10
face pulls - 29kgx3x10
db curls - 14kgx12 + 12kgx8 + 8kgx10

cardio - 600 cals

- so my session's have been quite late/early as of late. tonight i was there 1:30-3:30am. very much enjoy it as it leaves the entire day free for me to get work done and the gym is typically always empty.
- as for squats. 120 for 10 was hard but mainly in terms of endurance. my previous best was 120 for 8 so im happy with that. i think my squat strength has really improved over this year to the point where 120 is not too difficult a weight for me anymore where as late last year it was close to my 1rm lol.
- i did film myself from the back and notice i am significantly falling to my left side at the bottom... i.e. my right glute is collapsing in almost. kinda like my hips are crooked i definitely feel like it may be chronic tightness as i have noticed i get significantly more soreness from foam rolling in my right hip.. but if there is any advice i would very much appreciate it. my gut instinct tells me it began as a structural thing (i.e. my hips were slightly off kilt which is quite 'regular') and that predisposed me to problems i.e. extra soreness and tightness in that hip. over time and without proper mobility and safety precautions its become pretty problematic

[brendbro]

deadlift 5
112.5x5
127.5x5
145x5 + 2
145x7
112.5x3x5
- kind of a derpy session. i wanted to give conventional a try again and it felt good but only hit 5 on my amrap for 145 and the bar at the new gym im at is fcking annoying coz the grip is in the wrong spot so i can't hold on properly anyway so i did another set at 145 sumo and got a relatively easy 7 with straps lmao

ohp 5
barx10
30x5
40x5
47.5x5
52.5x5
60x10
47.5x3x8
- woot. like 6ish weeks into my cut and tied my all time best ohp 60x10 and it was pretty easy! had another in me but it woulda been a grinder
chin ups - 12.5kgx5x5
seated row - 65x5x10
face pulls - 20kgx15,12,12
tricep pulldowns - 40kgx3x10
+ cardio / study - 610 cals

[brendbro]

squats 3
barx5
60x5
80x4
100x3
112.5x3
127.5x6
100x3x5
- not sure if this is a pR but it felt hard but i kept relatively tight throughout most reps. after checkin vid my chest defs caved in more than id like on the last rep but ima take it
- can feel myself getting sick. body feels weak, coughin n weazin shtt

linear leg press - 93kgx30, 133kgx12, 173kgx2x8, 133kgx12, 93kgx30
low back thing - 33kgx12
ab crunch machine - 7ppsx2x20 ss w/
hammy curls - 30kgx2x30

+ cardio - 200 cals

[brendbro]

my updates will be more and more sporadic from here until mid october; thesis due date is in sight and sht is getting fkkking real. course work also due, stressed as fuk but been meditating 2x a day which is keeping the anxiety relatively at bay.

bench3
warmups excluded
70x3
80x3
90x5
95x1
bb rows - 60x15, 80x5x5
db shrugs - 40kgx3x10
ab crunch machine - 7ppsx20,20,10, 5ppsx10,10
tricep press - 50kgx2x15, 71kgx5, 10
bicep machine - 30kgx2x15
*this was me testing out some of the machines at my new gym

deadlift 3
warmups excluded
120kgx3
137.5kgx3
155x3, 5
- fukked up first set as my hands were sweaty and the weight slipped from my hand on the 4th rep. put straps on and got 5 on 2nd set. kinda bummed but oh well, net total of 8 on a 3+ set
new rows - 40kgx10,60kgx8,10,10
*these were done with a barbell on the ground with weights on one side and using a close grip seated row grip attachment thingy to pull it up... not sure what rowing movement that is classified as. either way they felt great and will be sure to start doing them more often.

ab crunch machine - 7ppsx20, 20, 5ppsx20
seated leg curl - 50kgx15,15,20
*actually really liking the ab crunch machine as i can easily get a lot of ab doms on it. same with seated leg curls... i have so much trouble activating my hammy's its not even funny so any exercise that lets me do it with relative ease is something i definitely need right now

+ hiit cardio - 300 cals

as soon as im freed up with time and i am finished cutting im moving onto PHAT. im excited as fuk!

[brendbro]

been quiet for too long.

just recently finished my honours degree. thesis all done, and course work finished. results are out in a week so im anticipating that.

other than that, this break has been well needed and i've been using my time to catch up on some reading, writing, music, and work outs.

ive been on PHAT for 7-ish weeks now and am STILL cutting although its been a pain in the ass with the amount of events i've had. nevertheless i will continue until probably late january coz i got a coast trip then i want to be lean for. after that it will be smooth sailing.

i am eager to return to more powerlifting oriented lifting but am worried about form and structural imbalances in my hips and shoulder - when i squat, my hips tilt slightly so that my left side comes down first, whereas my right shoulder is slightly out of place from my left. i have no doubt these two issues are probably interrelated, and that my shoulder being slightly out of place is probably the reason for my injury earlier in the year. that injury was also what taught me to be much more careful with all my movements and is one of the reasons im not currently squatting. i realllllly want to again but im worried that my hip issue is a cause for worry and will lead to long term injury.

anyway, just some thoughts. will update with my next session if i get one in tomorrow.

[brendbro]

so my training atm is going to be a mix of 5/3/1 and PHAT. today was 5/3/1 bench with chest/arms hypertrophy day off of PHAT as assistance exercises. good news is although i'm well into my cut i hit an easy PR on the bench today and shoulder felt decent!

bench 5 / chest & arms hypertrophy
barx5
50x5
65x5
75x5
85x10 pr
60x3x3

db bench - 25kgx3x3
uni chest press - 12ppsx20, 13ppsx15,14
chest cable flyes - 25psx15,14,13
bb curl - 30kgx12,12,12
db curls - 12.5kgx12,12

[brendbro]

squats 5
97.5x5
112.5x5
127.5x6
*first squat 5/3/1 session in 20 weeks of cutting and only lost a rep from last time so im pretty happy.. altho this was fukkin hard

leg press - n/a
leg extension - n/a
lying leg curl - n/a
hanging leg raise - n/a
DB stiff legged DL's - n/a
planks - n/a

Nov 27
PHAT upper power

bb rows - 90x3x5
pull ups - BWx15,11,9
iso row - 60kgx3x12
shoulder press - 90ppsx18,15,12
curls - n/a

^^^ these workouts were recorded on my iphone which was stolen over the weekend (was in sydney) so i can't remember #'s.. anyway onto today's workout

Dec 4
deadlift 5
115x5
132.5x5
150x9
*prety happy given how far into my cut i am, and i think that is a sumo PR for me too

squat press - 4ppsx3x13
leg extension - 30kgx25,25,21
*legs were soo fried afterward
lying leg curl - 30kgx3x10 + 25kgx10

[brendbro]

bench 3
barx5
50x5
60x5
70x3
80x3
90x7
60x6x3

hammer strength chest press - 14ppsx15,15,13
cable flyes - 25ppsx15,15,20ppsx15
rope pulldown - 20x20,30x17,13
preacher curls - 75ppsx4x5

[ilove2run]

Ayyyy ohhhh. Looking quite lean in some recent FB pics there, Brendan [no homo lol].

But looks like you survived, how did all the research end up going? We need to catch up.

I'm almost home free from term 1 here at my grad school. 1/4 way through my Masters! Lolz.

[brendbro]

god damnit. i got sick over teh weekend so pushed me back a couple days. anyway.

quick back work Dec 6th
barbell rows
80x3x5
90x5

pull ups - BWx12,9,9
*i can usually do more for bodyweight but i had a huge fukkin meal before this session and it definitely bogged me down a little bit when i usually do these fasted or with just a shake in me.

isolated row - 60kgx13,12,12,9+3
*session was done super quick so these were with like under 30 second rest.

HLR - BWx15,15,10
planks - BWx1:00

Dec 9
Ohp 5
*first OHP session in ages!
barx10
30x5
40x5
47.5x5
52.5x5
62.5x8 PR
47.5x6,6,6,7
- giggity. PR!

barbell rows - 55kgx6x3
*speed work

chin ups - BWx15,10,8
isolated rows - 60kgx3x12
*really love this machine! definitely keeping it in the lineup in favour of seated cable rows

barbell shrugs - 100kgx3x8
*this was a big step for me today. haven't done proper barbell shrugs in a long time due to my injury earlier this year. up until now was just doing light weight focusing on MMC. anyway - felt great and haven't felt that much trap pain in ages.

CG pulldown - 30kgx20,18,10
planks - 20kgx3x0:30, BWx1:00

great session! as you can probably tell i'm focusing a lot on my upper back

Ayyyy ohhhh. Looking quite lean in some recent FB pics there, Brendan [no homo lol].

But looks like you survived, how did all the research end up going? We need to catch up.

I'm almost home free from term 1 here at my grad school. 1/4 way through my Masters! Lolz.

ha cheers men. my bodyweight is floating at around 74.5 - 75kg atm, which is a net loss of about 4kg in 20 weeks.. so slower than i want (which is honestly pissing me off) but i guess slow is better than too fast.

good news i actually ended up getting 1st in my class with a GPA of 7.0 (which is equivalent to 4.0 over there i believe) and 94% for my thesis. my supervisor has pointed out some journals that we're going to be sending it into to get published sometime over the next week or two, so fingers crossed!

ive got a couple of offers at different uni's to do my PhD which ill commence next february, haven't decided where yet it depends on a few factors atm. but hey everything is going pretty well and im actually looking forward to getting started.

How's masters going? I have a few friends going in that direction - over here its 4 semesters course work, thesis, and clinical work 2x a week for 24 months. Lol I am looking forward sooo much to not having any course work, so hopefully its not too painful for you

[brendbro]

squats 3
barx5
60x5
80x5
102.5x3
117.5x3
132.5x2x1
102.5x5
*so all was feeling good up until that last set... got 1 rep and it was helllllll slow and hard. definitely did not have another in me so i reracked, contemplated whether going for another was a good idea. i figured it was worth a shot given that i should have gotten this for at least 3 reps - got it for another single, this time controlled it a bit better but still was feeling completely out of it.
- a little background; this session was done on a bit of a whim at about 2am. i am still recovering from being sick, and did an hour of cardio last night, so this morning my legs were really sore. probably should have waited an extra day.
- some good news though. last set was done with a wooden beam on the floor to make sure my feet were alligned; i got a film from the back and it looked like my hip misalignment was epically reduced; still slightly there but not nearly as bad as usual. i think i will need to work on this for along while yet though.

leg press - 4ppsx3x12
leg extension - 30kgx3x21
seated leg curl - 43kgx2x20
*i was so depleted by teh end of this. srsly felt gross.

weight today was 74.3kg

[brendbro]

upper body hyper
incline bench - 60x3x10
pull ups - BWx5x10
push ups - BWx30,20,30,20
tricep pulldown - 30kgx20,18,10
sit ups - BWx106
planks - BWx1:00

- this was a bit of a 'meh' work out where i just wanted to get some extra stuff in. also trying out more calisthenics type stuff which i so far really enjoy. definitely not as a replacement for main work but as accessory and additional work i can see it becoming a more frequent thing.

cardio - 600 cals



Dec 14
Deadlift 3
60x2x5
100x5
122.5x3
140x3
157.5x6 PR * I think
downs - 122.5x2x5 + 2 conventional
- might get a video uploaded of todays session. happy with how they all looked except for amrap set. my back rounding definitely appears limited to my upper back collapsing i.e. not being able to keep my chest up. anyway as i said ill try and get a video uploaded to show what i mean.
- regardless im trying to work on my mobility a lot especially with stretching my hips to be able to begin with a wider footing; even only after a couple of days of this i saw a huge improvement in my set up in this session

hip thrusts - bar x 5x12
*trying to work on my APT a bit more seriously and ive read that hip thrusts are great for this. just did bar work today coz never done before and want to get form down properly

leg press - 4ppx12,12,15
leg extension - 20kgx2x30
lying leg curl - 30kgx2x15