Andalite's Deadlifts and whatever-Hypertrophy-I-can-get-away-with journal

[Andalite]

Back & Biceps Let's GROW!

Updating this a bit late…

Weighted Pull-ups:
+70 x 2 x 2
+45 x 5 x 2

Lat Pulldowns:
87.5 x 20
100 x 20
112.5 x 15
112.5 x 20

Dumbbell Rows:
60 x 20 x 4

Cable Rows:
80 x 20 x 2
90 x 15
100 x 15

Hammer Curls:
25 x 10 x 2
Preacher Curls:
20 x 10 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

Shoulders Traps & Triceps

last week..

Unilateral Overhead Press: 50 x 10 x 4

Dips: BW x 8 x 4

Dumbbell Upright Rows: 20 x 15 x 3

Dumbbell Shrugs: 90 x 15 x 3

Tricep Extensions: 20 x 10 x 3

Pressdowms: 80 x 12 x 3

Neck Training

Video:

[Andalite]

485 x 3 Deadlifts Building Volume

This is from today..

Deadlifts:
455 x 2
485 x 3
475 x 1
475 x 2
475 x 3
475 x 1
Volume = 12 reps

M73 W1

Video:

[iron619]

It looks like we are both doing "bodybuilding-ish" days/splits. All this type of work is considered accessory/repetition effort work within Westside programming.

I like how you still did some heavy work (heavy chins) in the beginning as "strength" work. I will likely do the same, but also focus on volume and exercise variety.

You thinking of the pencil in the middle of your back is a great cue to develop the mind-muscle connection, as well as getting the quality reps in. I try to apply these types of cues for all my lifts.

Your deadlift set with 485x3 is great! Are you also doing the high rep work for lower body days, or is this mainly for upper body days?

Personally, I would skip that neck training/zombie training exercise--not worth the time.

You are I are both equally weak on bicep curls .

[Andalite]

It looks like we are both doing "bodybuilding-ish" days/splits. All this type of work is considered accessory/repetition effort work within Westside programming.

True but westside doesn't need to rely on curls ahhaha

I like how you still did some heavy work (heavy chins) in the beginning as "strength" work. I will likely do the same, but also focus on volume and exercise variety.

Yes I don't want to lose out on my Weighted Pull-ups.

You thinking of the pencil in the middle of your back is a great cue to develop the mind-muscle connection, as well as getting the quality reps in. I try to apply these types of cues for all my lifts.

Yup. Me too. Cues are so important I get very irritated when I hear cues like "light weight" or some such ****. It's not light. It's heavy. Tell me to be tight. Not to expect the weight to be light and give it a half effort wtf!

Your deadlift set with 485x3 is great! Are you also doing the high rep work for lower body days, or is this mainly for upper body days?

I am going balls to the wall on rep work for Front Squats I'm gonna post my sunday workout video below..

Personally, I would skip that neck training/zombie training exercise--not worth the time.

I get tweaks in my neck sometimes while doing OHP work. This makes sure that doesn't happen and dude I like having a big thick..neck hahaha It's not set in stone though. I skip it when I can do something better.

You are I are both equally weak on bicep curls .

oh yeah! bicep curls omggg hahaha

[Andalite]

275 x 2 185 x 12 x 4 Front Squats 95 x 15 x 3 RDLs Leg Day

this is from Sunday…

Front Squats:
185 x 12 x 4
275 x 2

Romanian Deadlifts:
95 x 15 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

Big Back Big Biceps

This is from tonight..

Weighted Pull-ups:
+70 x 2
+70 x 2
+80 x 1 Relative Max
+45 x 5
BW x 12

Lat Pulldowns:
87.5 x 20
100 x 20
112.5 x 15
112.5 x 20

Dumbbell Rows:
50 x 20 x 4

Cable Rows:
80 x 15
80 x 15
90 x 12
70 x 15

Hammer Curls:
25 x something x 2
Preacher Curls:
20 x 8 x 3

Hip Extensions:
BW x 8

Video:

[Andalite]

Shoulders Traps Triceps

This is from Wednesday night..

Unilateral Overhead Press:
50 x 10
50 x 11
50 x 11
50 x 10
Volume = 42

Dips: BW x 9 x 4

DB Shrugs: 90 x 17 x 3
DB Upright Rows: 20 x 17 x 3

Tricep Extensions: 20 x 13 x 3
Pressdowns: 80 x 12 x 3

Weighted Planks:
+90 x 15s, +45 x 20s
+90 x 20s, +45 x 15s
+90 x 25s, +45 x 20s

Video:

[iron619]

Sets of 12 on front squats are brutal! I like how you did the 275x2 to reinforce power maintenance, though I would have done that lone set of 2 first, then the sets of 12. I bet your quads were burning from this one.

Nice work on those pullups, too.

Since you recently started this type of training, do you feel or see much of a difference yet?

[Andalite]

Sets of 12 on front squats are brutal! I like how you did the 275x2 to reinforce power maintenance, though I would have done that lone set of 2 first, then the sets of 12. I bet your quads were burning from this one.

Yup they were burning. I like doing the heavy set at the end though. I know it's weird.

Nice work on those pullups, too.

I need to improve quality. I am going to start doing that.

Since you recently started this type of training, do you feel or see much of a difference yet?

Lots of muscle gain actually. In the sense I am looking thicker and more in shape than before. Diet has been the same though. Oh and my legs are huge haha

[Andalite]

505 x 2 Baby Steps Deadlifts

I managed to grab my perfect pre-workout meal of half a bagel with cream cheese and I included some Front Planks in my mobility drills and general warm-up for today's Deadlifts. I am happy that I was finally able to brace my core the right way!

Deadlifts:
455 x 2
475 x 2
505 x 2
475 x 1
475 x 2
455 x 2
455 x 1
Volume = 12 reps

Video:

[Andalite]

185x12x4 275x2 50 reps Front Squats Quad Pump

This is from last Sunday…I'm late @ updating this log.

Front Squats:
185 x 12 x 4
275 x 2

Romanian Deadlifts:
95 x 15 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

Back & Biceps Hurried Workout

Tuesday's workout…

M72 W2

Weighted Pull-ups:
+70 x 2
+45 x 5
+70 x 1
+45 x 4
BW x 12

Lat Pulldowns:
87.5 x 20
100 x 20
112.5 x 15
112.5 x 20

Dumbbell Rows:
50 x 20 x 4

Cable Rows:
80 x 15
80 x 15
90 x 12
70 x 20

Hammer Curls:
25 x 12 x 2

Preacher Curls:
20 x 10 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

Bodybuilding Day Shoulders Traps Triceps Abz

Wednesday..

Unilateral Overhead Press:
50 x 11
50 x 11
50 x 12
50 x 10
Volume = 44 reps

Dips: BW x 10 x 4

DB Shrugs: 90 x 18 x 3
DB Upright Rows: 20 x 17 x 3

Tricep Extensions: 20 x 14 x 3
Pressdowns: 80 x 12 x 3

Weighted Front Planks:
135 x 10s, 90 x 10s, 45 x 10s
135 x 15s, 90 x 15s, 45 x 10s

Video:

[Andalite]

455 x 5 + 4 + 4, 465 x 2 Deadlifts on High Volume

This is high volume training for Deadlifts. I am on Week 2 of Eric Troy's Maintenance Mode Cycle and my personal goal was to get 15 good quality reps over 4 sets. I managed to get the same volume @ 455 as last time but for the last heavy set I added 10 lbs and concluded with 465 x 2. The burn-out set with 405 was super difficult and took a lot out of me. Good workout on the whole and the pre-workout meal of bagel and cream cheese is the bomb!

Deadlifts:
455 x 5
455 x 4
455 x 4
465 x 2
Volume = 15 reps
405 x 8

Video:

[iron619]

Excellent series of workouts posted, Anuj!

Glad to see you can pull that 505x2 almost on any given day.

Your 455 lb work sets are roughly 90% of your max, and you have a set goal for how many reps you hit. You hit 15 total reps, but that includes the last set of 465 lbs, which is more than 90%. My question is, do you have a pre-determined number of reps you must hit at a percentage (or certain weight) before increasing the weight on your work sets?

[Andalite]

Excellent series of workouts posted, Anuj!

Glad to see you can pull that 505x2 almost on any given day.

Your 455 lb work sets are roughly 90% of your max, and you have a set goal for how many reps you hit. You hit 15 total reps, but that includes the last set of 465 lbs, which is more than 90%. My question is, do you have a pre-determined number of reps you must hit at a percentage (or certain weight) before increasing the weight on your work sets?

Well this might be confusing to explain but the basic plan in my head is to hit 455 x 15 total reps over 4 sets (not more than 4 or if more than 4 sets then 20 reps volume) and then to slowly increase the weight and get it to 465 x 15 total reps.

For example, next workout (whenever this volume week rolls around) I will be aiming for:
455 x 5
465 x 3
455 x 4
455 x 3

If this happens then the next week will be:
465 x 4
455 x 5
455 x 3
455 x 3

etc you get the point..then once I get 465 x 5 for maybe a week or two I will bump up another set to 465 from 455 and hope for the best haha!

[Andalite]

305 x 1 Overcoming Failure on High Volume Front Squats 185x12x4

I had a great time doing my Leg workout on Sunday. I started off with high volume Front Squats hitting 185 x 12 x 4 and then working up to 285 x 2 and a relative max of 305 after failing it once. After the successful 305 max I dropped down to 205 x 8 and then did some high rep Romanian Deadlifts with 115 x 15 x 3 for my hamstrings. I'm thinking about throwing in a couple of really high repetition type sets of Lying Leg Curls but I gotta speak about this to Eric first because I'm a little unsure of doing machine based work - I have this nagging feeling it can set me up for injuries on the big movements. Anyway, this workout was good because I managed to hit a relative max of 305 which is 10 lbs off my actual max of 315 on the day after a real heavy Deadlift workout and after some big rep sets. I will continue to add reps and sets before adding weight. The 205 x 8 at the end will be converted to 205 x 10 next week (hopefully).

Front Squats:
185 x 12 x 4
285 x 2
305 x 0
305 x 1
205 x 8

Romanian Deadlifts:
115 x 15 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

High Volume Back & Biceps

Back and Biceps workout from last night. I put in some real heavy Weighted Pull-ups and extremely high volume (I'm talking 20 rep sets here) on Lat Pulldowns, Dumbbell Rows and Cable Rows.

Weighted Pull-ups:
+70 x 2 x 2
+45 x 4 x 2
BW x 13

Lat Pulldowns:
87.5 x 20
100 x 20
112.5 x 15
112.5 x 15 + 7

Dumbbell Rows:
50 x 21 x 4

Cable Rows:
80 x 15 x 2
90 x 12 + 3
70 x 20

Hammer Curls:
25 x 12 x 2

Preacher Curls:
20 x 7 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

Building Shoulders Traps and Triceps

I am extremely late in uploading this video but here's Wednesday night's Shoulders, Traps and Triceps workout.

I managed to add reps to almost everything.

Unilateral Overhead Press:
50 x 11
50 x 12
50 x 13
50 x 10
Volume = 46 reps

Dips: BW x 11 x 4 = 44 reps

Dumbbell Shrugs: 90 x 20 x 3

Dumbbell Upright Rows: 20 x 18 x 3

Tricep Extensions: 20 x 15 x 3

Pressdowns: 80 x 15 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

485 x 3 Deadlifts Heavy Triples Week

Today was Week 3 of Eric Troy's Maintenance Mode Cycle for Deadlifts. I worked up to a heavy triple @ 485 and then did some doubles and another triple with 475. I am making tiny improvements to each workout and progressing very very slowly.

I was very calm during this workout and really took each set as it's own. I see a lot of people making the mistake of confusing form with being able to lift heavy. You may have your form down 100% but that doesn't mean the weight is just going to fly up on it's own.

I've been able to apply Eric's teachings and I make it a point to visualize each heavy pull before I actually attempt it. The only difference in me when I pull 135 and 485 is that with 485 I am much more determined and aggressive with the weight because I know it is going to be heavy.

Deadlifts:
455 x 2
485 x 3
475 x 2
475 x 2
475 x 3
475 x 1

Video:

[Andalite]

185x12x4 305x1 205x10 High Volume Leg Day

Sunday is Leg Day and today was a super high volume Front Squat workout. I started off with 4 sets of 12 reps with 185 lbs and decided to squeeze in a couple of heavy sets @ 285 and 305 before dropping back down to 205 for a brutal set of 10 reps. Hypertrophy gains all the way! I finished the workout with 3 sets of 15 reps with 115 lbs Romanian Deadlifts.

Front Squats:
185 x 12 x 4
285 x 2
305 x 1
205 x 10

Romanian Deadlifts:
115 x 15 x 3

Video:

[iron619]

Excellent workouts, brother!

Your progression scheme described makes sense man; I might formulate something similar to try.

Do you prefer RDL over Good Mornings for hamstring work? I've always felt the opposite for several reasons. I haven't done RDLs in several years, but they are definitely working for you.

Good to see the dips aren't screwing with your shoulder; though it probably would if you go all the way down.

Visualization of the lift is huge and is often overlooked by many lifters; definitely makes a difference.

[Andalite]

Excellent workouts, brother!

Your progression scheme described makes sense man; I might formulate something similar to try.

Do you prefer RDL over Good Mornings for hamstring work? I've always felt the opposite for several reasons. I haven't done RDLs in several years, but they are definitely working for you.

Good to see the dips aren't screwing with your shoulder; though it probably would if you go all the way down.

Visualization of the lift is huge and is often overlooked by many lifters; definitely makes a difference.

thanks, Chris!

I like RDLs but I am going to switch back to Cable Pullthroughs tomorrow. I don't like barbell goodmornings...I like them only if I've got an SSB to use.

The dips are iffy but yes going all the way doing would probably tear something.

visualization makes a world of a difference!

[Andalite]

Back & Biceps

This is my Back & Biceps workout from Tuesday night. I struggled to get some real heavy sets of Weighted Pull-ups in and then moved on to high rep Lat Pulldowns, Dumbbell Rows and Cable Rows. I used the 140 lbs Dumbbells for the Rows just to mix things up.

Weighted Pull-ups:
+70 x 2
+70 x 2
+70 x 1
+45 x 3
BW x 13

Lat Pulldowns:
87.5 x 20
100 x 20
112.5 x 15 + 3
112.5 x 17 + 5

Dumbbell Rows:
50 x 20
140 x 5
140 x 4
50 x 25

Cable Rows:
80 x 15
80 x 15
90 x 12 + 5
70 x 20

Hammer Curls:
25 x 12 x 2

Preacher Curls:
20 x 7 x 3

Video:

[Andalite]

505 x 2 Deadlifts Maximal Strength & Bonus Shoulders

M74 W1

The festivities in Bombay have derailed my workout schedule and Deadlifts jumped from Saturday night to Sunday early afternoon. It was very difficult for me to be ready to lift heavy so soon after waking up, but Eric Troy's advice on doing some real heavy weighted front planks during warm-ups really helped me learn to brace my core. I am certain that without the planks I would have been floundering all over the place. Despite this, 505 x 2 was a real GRINDER. That's not a problem - it's just an observation. I'm used to grinding on heavy lifts and I am happy that I was able to do grind these two reps out: being injured is a pain and to be able to grind is a qualitative sign of improvement.

Those of you who regularly watch my DL videos (and I appreciate that because Deadlifts can get boring and I haven't made any huge strides in improvement in a long time) will have noticed that most of the time the first rep of any set is really slow for me and then the second or third are much much better. Today was an anomaly to this rule. Today the first rep was incredibly slow (both to me as a lifter as well as in actual real time) and the second was marginally slower. But, after 475 x 1 things changed and I got back to a speedy second rep.

I am really happy that despite everything I pulled 505 x 2. I think my pre-workout meal of half a bagel and cream cheese really helps to seal up my stomach and enable me to brace my core to the max.

There's also two bonus clips from last week's press training workout of me doing Unilateral Overhead Presses with 65 and 75 lbs dumbbells for 4 and 2 reps respectively.

Deadlifts:
455 x 2
475 x 2
505 x 2
475 x 1
475 x 2
455 x 2
455 x 2

Video:

[Andalite]

Legs & Back Front Squats 305x2x2 Cable Rows 70x20

i got two videos to share with y'all today.

The first is my training from last night: I did some real heavy Front Squats and got 305 for a total of 5 reps. I love it when high rep training has added size and caused hypertorphy without sacrificing any maximal end strength.

First video:


The second is of my trainee Yuvraj Jain, who pulled a new Deadlift PR of 505. I am very very proud of him and he's come a long way in the last year and a half that he has been training with me. Great work and major props to Yuvraj!

Second video:


Legs & Back

Front Squats:
Heavy
275 x 3
305 x 2
305 x 2
305 x 1
275 x 3

Cable Rows:
80 x 15
80 x 15
90 x 12 + 5
70 x 20

[iron619]

Ohhhh, a bonus video .

Your deadlifts are usually grinders, and you never seem to fail on them--nice!

5 total reps with 305 lbs great man; all reps are deep, as usual. You can most certainly nail 315 for several singles, if you so choose to.

You said that you have gained hypertrophy via increase muscle size. Did this translate to slighter heavy body weight?

Your buddy will soon surpass your strength!!

[Andalite]

Ohhhh, a bonus video .

Your deadlifts are usually grinders, and you never seem to fail on them--nice!

5 total reps with 305 lbs great man; all reps are deep, as usual. You can most certainly nail 315 for several singles, if you so choose to.

You said that you have gained hypertrophy via increase muscle size. Did this translate to slighter heavy body weight?

Your buddy will soon surpass your strength!!

hahha the bonus video was from the week before and I was WAYY too lazy to make it as a separate thingy haha

I am a grinder, yes. Slow lifter.

I haven't done 315 for multiple singles but I think in a short while I will attempt such a feat.

I haven't actually gotten heavier. I've just become bigger. Not heavier. I'll have to double-check. I'll inform you after today's workout.

I want all my trainees to get stronger than me. If they don't it means I'm not that good of a coach. I had one dude get to 565 a year ago but then he stopped lifting and he's just started. Hopefully all of them will get stronger and leave me behind in the dust

[Andalite]

465 x 3 and 455 x 12 total volume Deadlifts Building Density

The plan for Deadlifts tonight was to work up to 455 and do a total volume of 15 reps between 455 and 465 lbs over 4 sets. I got everything I wanted and I left PLENTY in the tank. A very experienced bodybuilder with a great sense of humor commented on how I was losing the plot by throwing in that high rep (8 reps) set of Deadlifts with 405 at the end.

I don't need to do intensity cycling or work with a submaximal load all the time because unlike powerlifters and strongman who are focusing on many lifts at one time I am merely focusing on ONE lift.

Deadlifts:
455 x 5
455 x 3
465 x 3
455 x 4
Volume = 15 reps
405 x 8

Video: