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April 25, 2022
[B]Snatch Grip Deadlift:[/B] 275 pounds - 3 sets x 5 reps
[B]Paused Low Bar Squat:[/B] 185 pounds - 3 sets x 5 reps
Everything moved pretty good today. Really happy to have hit the 3 sets of 5 on squats without needing to grind much.
Here's video of one of the squat sets, since I don't think I've posted any squats in a while:
[youtube]wfOxWe8_Ofg[/youtube]
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April 26, 2022
[B]Paused T-Shirt Bench Press[/B]: 165 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Paused Close Grip Bench Press:[/B] 130 pounds - 4 sets x 6 reps
[B]Lat Pulldown:[/B] 4 Chain - 3 sets x 15 reps
The pressing movements were surprisingly easy today. T-Shirt Bench was in the 7-8 RPE range, and close grip got never got above around a 6 RPE.
Been just doing a lot of minor variations on pulldowns and rows lately, varying angles, grips, range of motion, bars, etc.
Tomorrow is the final workout of this cycle - will be doing some deficit deads and RDL's.
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April 27, 2022
[B]Deficit Sumo Deadlift:[/B] 330 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Romanian Deadlift:[/B] 230 pounds - 4 sets x 6 reps
Played around with how close I was setting up to the bar on the deficits. Got too close on a ramp up at 275 and struggled to get it off the floor. Adjusted on the final rep at 330 and if flew up - probably around a 7 RPE.
This was the last workout of this cycle. I'll probably take a rest day tomorrow and then do a mini deload where I just work up to a max on a main lift each day, and maybe do some dynamic work.
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Pardon my ignorance but what is a t-shirt bench? You referring to a bench shirt as in equipped lifting?
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1660470213]Pardon my ignorance but what is a t-shirt bench? You referring to a bench shirt as in equipped lifting?[/QUOTE]
For a T-Shirt Bench the bar should just barely touch your shirt (it shouldn't rest on your chest).
[U]April 29, 2022[/U]
[B]Bench Press:[/B] 185 x 1
Plan for today was a max attempt on bench, followed by some dynamic bench. Didn't quite work out that way though. I had to stop midway through my ramp up to do something. Then had Kung Fu class. Ramped up again after getting home and hit 185 pretty easily (video below), and decided I'd go for a PR at 200. When I was setting up for it I tried to get a tighter arch rather than just doing what I normally do, and tweaked something in my back. Had to get out of that position right away. It's feeling fine now, but 200 will have to wait for another day.
[youtube]C6I_XjrhDqI[/youtube]
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[QUOTE=CW47;1660480373]For a T-Shirt Bench the bar should just barely touch your shirt (it shouldn't rest on your chest).
[U]April 29, 2022[/U]
[B]Bench Press:[/B] 185 x 1
Plan for today was a max attempt on bench, followed by some dynamic bench. Didn't quite work out that way though. I had to stop midway through my ramp up to do something. Then had Kung Fu class. Ramped up again after getting home and hit 185 pretty easily (video below), and decided I'd go for a PR at 200. When I was setting up for it I tried to get a tighter arch rather than just doing what I normally do, and tweaked something in my back. Had to get out of that position right away. It's feeling fine now, but 200 will have to wait for another day.
[youtube]C6I_XjrhDqI[/youtube][/QUOTE]
That's the first time I ever heard of a t-shirt bench, interesting.
That's a bummer about not being able to go for 200lbs. At least you're feeling better and I'm sure next time you'll crush 200.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1660480743]That's the first time I ever heard of a t-shirt bench, interesting.
That's a bummer about not being able to go for 200lbs. At least you're feeling better and I'm sure next time you'll crush 200.[/QUOTE]
The goal of a t-shirt bench is essentially the same as a Spoto press. They help with controlling the weight and maintaining tightness in the lower portion of the lift. The T-Shirt bench just has a fuller range of motion. And no worries on the 200 bench. I feel it's definitely there already, it's just a matter of having things come together. I'll get it soon enough.
[U]April 30, 2022[/U]
[B]Sumo Deadlift:[/B] 425 pounds x 1 rep [[B]PR[/B]]
This was a 10 pound PR. More than anything it tells me that I have the potential to do a fair amount more on any given day. I was not feeling 'on' today at all. Setup was out of whack, energy was low, etc. I pretty much just brute forced this off the ground from a bad position, and without even pulling out the slack. No doubt I have another 20-30 pounds there on a good day. Very happy with the 10 pound PR though, as it shows that my current training approach if being effective.
[youtube]phogkt39kzE[/youtube]
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May 1, 2022
[B]Overhead Press:[/B] 115 pounds x 1 rep
Simple, minimal workout today. The rep at 115 moved smoothly so I went for a 5 pound PR at 125. It didn't happen. Still accomplished my goal for the day.
I'll do a max squat tomorrow, take a rest day, and then start my next cycle.
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May 2, 2022
[B]Low Bar Squat:[/B] 285 pounds x 1 rep
Really happy to have hit this today. It's the most I've squatting in quite a while. Been doing very minimal squatting this year. Considering that, this was a great result. Probably had close to a PR in me today if I had pushed it, but there was no reason to. I'll be interested to see how my squat progresses over the next cycle as I reincorporate it into my training regularly.
[youtube]MCzWBGgBuNo[/youtube]
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Great stuff man and those PRS definitely show you have some more in you.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1660653903]Great stuff man and those PRS definitely show you have some more in you.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, on a good roll right now. ;)
[U]May 5, 2022[/U]
[B]Floor Press:[/B] 140 pounds x 8/7/7 reps
[B]Larsen Press:[/B] 135 pound - 3 sets x 8 reps
[B]Cable Row:[/B] 4 Chains - 3 sets x 15 reps
For the first time in quite a while, my primary bench day was NOT easy. I'm transitioning back to a narrower grip to give my shoulders a rest and build up triceps strength. Definitely weaker with this grip right now, so I anticipate the bench days will be a bit tougher until I reacclimate.
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May 7, 2022
[B]Snatch Grip Deadlift:[/B] 275 pounds x 8/7/7 reps
[B]Paused Sumo Deadlift:[/B] 275 pounds x 8 reps
Snatch Grip deads kicked my butt. Realized afterward that I read the program wrong and had more weight on the bar than I should have. Had 3 sets of 8 scheduled on the paused sumo deads. Got the first set in and then got pulled away and wasn't able to get back to finish. Probably not a bad thing though, since I still ended up with pretty severe DOM's the following morning.
Relative stayed with us this weekend, plus Mothers Day - result was I had no opportunity to lift. Should hopefully get back on schedule today.
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May 9, 2022
[B]3 Count Paused Bench Press:[/B] 170 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Close Grip Bench Press:[/B] 120 pounds - 3 sets x 8 reps
[B]Lat Pulldown:[/B] 4 Chains - 3 sets x 15 reps
The 3 count bench is now pretty much maxed out - this single was close to a 9 RPE. I have it scheduled once more in this cycle at 175, which I expect will be at or over a 9 RPE. I'll probably swap it out for something else after that.
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Snatch grip deadlift and paused sumo deadlift in a training session, nice! That's a good cardio session with the reps lol.
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After all those deads I wanna sleep
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1661029983]Snatch grip deadlift and paused sumo deadlift in a training session, nice! That's a good cardio session with the reps lol.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Filmbuff81;1661030093]After all those deads I wanna sleep[/QUOTE]
Thanks guys. I was feeling just fine...until the following morning, lol.
[U]May 10, 2022[/U]
[B]Paused Low Bar Squat:[/B] 160 pounds x 8/7 reps
[B]High Bar Squat:[/B] 155 pounds x 8 reps
I went into this workout not expecting to be able to complete the whole thing. I programmed it as if I were fully acclimated to squatting (even though I know I'm not right now), and planned to slowly work up to full capacity. Program for today called for 3 sets of 8/7/7 on paused squats, and then 3 sets of 8 at 160 on high bar squats. Next week I will probably start out at 155 on the paused squats and try to get 3 sets in, then see what I can do with high bar afterward.
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May 11, 2022
[B]Floor Press:[/B] 140 pounds x 8/8/7 reps
[B]Larsen Press:[/B] 130 pound - 4 sets x 8 reps
[B]Cable Row:[/B] 4 Chains - 3 sets x 15 reps
After feeling like a struggle last week, this went relatively smoothly today. Must be acclimating to the narrower grip already, which is encouraging. Also continuing to work on technique with small adjustments that seem to be helping.
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May 12, 2022
[B]Snatch Grip Deadlift:[/B] 265 pounds x 8/8/7 reps
[B]Romanian Deadlift:[/B] 235 pounds - 4 sets x 8 reps
This wiped me out. Guess it's to be expected with this volume on deads. Kung Fu class tomorrow, so it will probably turn into a rest day just because of time limitations.
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[QUOTE=CW47;1661141863][B]Floor Press:[/B] 140 pounds x 8/8/7 reps
[B]Larsen Press:[/B] 130 pound - 4 sets x 8 reps
[B]Cable Row:[/B] 4 Chains - 3 sets x 15 reps
After feeling like a struggle last week, this went relatively smoothly today. Must be acclimating to the narrower grip already, which is encouraging. Also continuing to work on technique with small adjustments that seem to be helping.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=CW47;1661205533][B]Snatch Grip Deadlift:[/B] 265 pounds x 8/8/7 reps
[B]Romanian Deadlift:[/B] 235 pounds - 4 sets x 8 reps
This wiped me out. Guess it's to be expected with this volume on deads. Kung Fu class tomorrow, so it will probably turn into a rest day just because of time limitations.[/QUOTE]
Nice training man.
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May 15, 2022
[B]Incline Bench Press:[/B] 160 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Close Grip Bench Press:[/B] 125 pounds - 3 sets x 8 reps
[B]Lat Pulldown:[/B] 4 Chains - 2 sets x 20 reps
Took an extra day of rest and I was feeling fresh. Incline bench was smooth - around an 8 RPE. The rest of the workout went very well also.
[youtube]6Fucj_J3x8U[/youtube]
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1661250213]Nice training man.[/QUOTE]
Thanks! Trying to just stay consistent right now, and it's paying off.
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May 16, 2022
[B]Paused Low Bar Squat:[/B] 155 pounds x 8/8/7 reps
[B]High Bar Squat:[/B] 155 pounds 2 sets x 8 reps
Quite happy with this. Added an extra set on both exercises. If I can continue to do that I'll be where I want in a couple more weeks, and then hopefully can start adding weight to the bar.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1661453083]Nice squatting.[/QUOTE]
Thanks. It felt great!
[U]May 17, 2022[/U]
[B]Floor Press:[/B] 140 pounds - 3 sets x 8 reps
[B]Larsen Press:[/B] 130 pound - 5 sets x 8 reps
Really interesting that the first week of this cycle was the hardest and this third week (and final week of this mini-cycle) was the easiest. The weight honestly felt pretty light today. I think I actually may have done 6 sets on Larsen Press. I was using a counter, but when I clicked it and it said I had completed 5 sets I could only remember doing 4, so I did 1 more.
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I remember training a couple times with the guy they named the Larsen press after. It's crazy seeing as his legs are pretty much the size of kid legs and doesn't use them during his benching yet still is strong in the bench. He lived in Oregon at the time unsure on where he is now.
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[B]Bench Press:[/B] 145 pounds - 3 sets x 3 reps
[B]Conventional Deadlift:[/B] 315 pounds - 3 sets x 3 reps
[B]Low Bar Squat:[/B] 175 pounds - 2 sets x 3 reps / 195 pounds x 3 reps
First workout in a week, which is very unusual for me. We had family staying with us. I also came down with something that I'm still recovering from, so today was the first day I felt like I could do any lifting.
Worked up to some triples on the competition lifts to reacclimate. I left multiple reps in the tank on each set. It all felt relatively easy, but the work still made me sick to my stomach.
Mostly likely no workout tomorrow night since we have plans to go out. I should be back at it for a few days after that, before going out of town again for the holiday weekend.
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May 25, 2022
[B]Bench Press:[/B] 175 pounds x 1 rep
Easy day today. Just worked up to a single at 8 RPE. Was kind of planning to do the same on deads today, but ended up not having time.
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May 26, 2022
[B]Overhead Press:[/B] 115 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Sumo Deadlift:[/B] 415 pounds x 1 rep
Pushed it a bit more today. Both of these were in the 9-9.5 RPE range. I think I should be able to hit both of these weights even on a bad day now.
Probably my last workout until either Monday or Tuesday. I have Kung Fu tomorrow evening, plus need to get packed up because I'm going out of town Saturday morning. Will be back home on Monday.
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I'm glad you're getting back into training and good to see that consistent build again.
I hope you had a good trip and solid training as always.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1662102513]I hope you had a good trip.[/QUOTE]
Sure did. Got back mid-day today and then went to a party with a bunch of people at a park nearby where we had some barbecue and the kids played on the playground and in the sand and did a bit of swimming. Got back home with enough time to get a workout in, and will definitely be going to bed early tonight, lol.
[U]May 30, 2022[/U]
[B]Floor Press:[/B] 150 pounds x 5/4/4
[B]Larsen Press:[/B] 140 pounds - 3 sets x 5 reps
[B]Lat Pulldown:[/B] 4 Chains x 15, 15, 20
Well rested and ready to get back to it. Pressing went great today.
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What do you mean by 4 chains on your lat pull-down? I figured you'd be using your weight plates since you have your pull-down attachment on your Rep rack.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1662140133]What do you mean by 4 chains on your lat pull-down? I figured you'd be using your weight plates since you have your pull-down attachment on your Rep rack.[/QUOTE]
The space my rack is in is a REALLY tight fit. I don't have enough space to fit standards weight plates on the lat pulldown because it's pretty much right up against the wall. I have some collars that are specifically made for holding chains, so I'm using those instead. I did find that Rogue sells DB bumper plates that should fit, but they're way too expensive for my taste right now. The chains are working pretty well anyway. In the second half of this video you can kind of see how I have the chains setup.
[youtube]3cJRONBwXKk[/youtube]
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June 1, 2022
[B]Snatch Grip Deadlift:[/B] 265 pounds x 5/4/4
[B]Romanian Deadlift:[/B] 250 pounds - 3 sets x 5 reps
Weight is still feeling lightish. Think I need a bit more knee bend on the snatch grip deads because part of the reason I programmed them in was to get more quad use in my deadlift. Kind of got away from getting that extra knee bend when my knee started bothering me a while back.
RDL's felt great today. I'm finally starting to figure out how to put the focus more on hamstrings when doing this variant.
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Yeah you have little clearance it looks like. Interesting seal row. It looks more upper back focused.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1662235373]Interesting seal row. It looks more upper back focused.[/QUOTE]
Yes, that was the intent. I only did them a couple of times that way though because the setup process is too involved and it was just very awkward.
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[QUOTE=CW47;1662238593]Yes, that was the intent. I only did them a couple of times that way though because the setup process is too involved and it was just very awkward.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, it looks like an awkward movement compared to a traditional seal row. Did you know you would have little clearance with that lat pull attachment when you bought it?
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1662239823]Yeah, it looks like an awkward movement compared to a traditional seal row. Did you know you would have little clearance with that lat pull attachment when you bought it?[/QUOTE]
Nope. From some of the measurements I found online I thought I'd have much more wiggle room. One of the things Rep doesn't do very well is share detailed info on a lot of their products. I may not have bought the lat pulldown if I had known. To be fair though, I'm completely happy with it, and it works very well for me despite the space limitations.
[U]June 2, 2022[/U]
[B]3 Count Paused Bench Press:[/B] 175 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Close Grip Paused Bench Press:[/B] 135 pounds x 6 reps / 130 pounds x 6/6
3 Count bench was a 9.5 RPE. Watching the video back, it was only about a 2 second pause also. Definitely have maxed out on this, and will plan to swap it out next cycle.
On close grip I did the first set at 135 because I was lazy. Changed it to 130 for the 2nd and 3rd sets. All went well, and ended up around 8 RPE.
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[QUOTE=CW47;1662272023]Nope. From some of the measurements I found online I thought I'd have much more wiggle room. One of the things Rep doesn't do very well is share detailed info on a lot of their products. I may not have bought the lat pulldown if I had known. To be fair though, I'm completely happy with it, and it works very well for me despite the space limitations.
[U]June 2, 2022[/U]
[B]3 Count Paused Bench Press:[/B] 175 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Close Grip Paused Bench Press:[/B] 135 pounds x 6 reps / 130 pounds x 6/6
3 Count bench was a 9.5 RPE. Watching the video back, it was only about a 2 second pause also. Definitely have maxed out on this, and will plan to swap it out next cycle.
On close grip I did the first set at 135 because I was lazy. Changed it to 130 for the 2nd and 3rd sets. All went well, and ended up around 8 RPE.[/QUOTE]
Solid sh!t.
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June 5, 2022
[B]Low Bar Squat:[/B] 225 x 1
[B]High Bar Squat:[/B] 225 x 1
Worked up to singles on both variants. Oddly, high bar feels better (and moved easier) than low bar for me right now.
I needed to do something different for squatting today though because what I've been doing isn't working for me. I'm dreading my squat workouts, partially because of how fatiguing they are, and partially because I'm still experiencing discomfort in my left knee (probably tendinitis). I've skipped lifting on multiple days recently because of it, which means that it's impacting all of my programming. I'll probably change to something low volume - top single and a back off set has worked well for me in the past. Even if I don't progress on squats, something like that should allow me to maintain for now while I work on improving my other lifts.
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June 6, 2022
[B]Floor Press:[/B] 150 pounds x 5/5/4
[B]Larsen Press: [/B]140 pounds - 4 sets x 5 reps
Feels like Larsen Press is getting somewhat close to maxing out - I had some slow reps today. I should be able to do the 5x5 next week, but not so sure I manage all the sets/reps with an increase in the next cycle. We'll see though...I've felt close to maxing out before on other exercises and then ended up doing another 2 or 3 cycles without any problem.
Ended up lifting pretty late today. Actually just got done because I had to take my son to urgent care. He should be fine, but definitely was not a happy boy today.
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I hope your son is doing alright.
I notice you don't do much hypertrophy work in terms of assistance work. Is there a method behind that or is it just a less is more approach?
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1662459143]I hope your son is doing alright.
I notice you don't do much hypertrophy work in terms of assistance work. Is there a method behind that or is it just a less is more approach?[/QUOTE]
Thanks man, he'll be fine.
The strength focus is for a couple of reasons. First is because it's just what I'm motivated to do. I don't really care about what I look like, and just want to exercise consistently for health reasons. Building strength is what motivates me to do that. Hypertrophy training is something I would like to do more of because it obviously also impacts strength. Time is always the primary issue for me though. I can't count on much more than 30 minutes to get through my workouts because I'm nearly always getting these workouts in while I'm the only person monitoring the kids. I can put a video on and usually keep the baby occupied for around 30 minutes, but rarely more than that. I typically program in some hypertrophy work for every workout. I just VERY rarely actually get to it since it's a lower priority than the strength specific work. In a few years I'll hopefully be able to do it more regularly.
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[QUOTE=CW47;1662487283]Thanks man, he'll be fine.
The strength focus is for a couple of reasons. First is because it's just what I'm motivated to do. I don't really care about what I look like, and just want to exercise consistently for health reasons. Building strength is what motivates me to do that. Hypertrophy training is something I would like to do more of because it obviously also impacts strength. Time is always the primary issue for me though. I can't count on much more than 30 minutes to get through my workouts because I'm nearly always getting these workouts in while I'm the only person monitoring the kids. I can put a video on and usually keep the baby occupied for around 30 minutes, but rarely more than that. I typically program in some hypertrophy work for every workout. I just VERY rarely actually get to it since it's a lower priority than the strength specific work. In a few years I'll hopefully be able to do it more regularly.[/QUOTE]
That's tough. Is there anyway to get in work while your significant other is around like maybe first thing in the morning when she's asleep still? I'd be frustrated if I had to rush through my training like that.
Strength is definitely important for me as well. I also think working in the "hypertrophy" range with accessory work is also just as important because it only benefits the strength work.
It's a good thing that you're doing what you can and hopefully you can maybe look at your schedule and see about making some more time for that work to be added in.
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I could 100% get in a fuller workout. It's always a matter of priorities though.
I could probably run a marathon every day if I really wanted to, but I don't because there are other things that are more important to me. Same is true of my training.
Since the training I'm doing right now is sufficient to meet my goals I'm not willing to sacrifice more family time, sleep, or work time in favor of longer workouts.
It's a balancing act that I'm constantly reassessing though, so that could certainly change at some point.
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[QUOTE=CW47;1662527423]I could 100% get in a fuller workout. It's always a matter of priorities though.
I could probably run a marathon every day if I really wanted to, but I don't because there are other things that are more important to me. Same is true of my training.
Since the training I'm doing right now is sufficient to meet my goals I'm not willing to sacrifice more family time, sleep, or work time in favor of longer workouts.
It's a balancing act that I'm constantly reassessing though, so that could certainly change at some point.[/QUOTE]
That's definitely understandable. My apologies if I came off as an as$hole in anyway.
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[QUOTE=Anthony21;1662531393]That's definitely understandable. My apologies if I came off as an as$hole in anyway.[/QUOTE]
No, you didn't at all. No worries. ;)
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June 10, 2022
[B]Conventional Deadlift:[/B] 335 pounds + 4 Chain x 1/1/1
Not been getting in workout consistently lately. Spending my time doing walk and bike rides, and playing around outside with the kids. Also been helping out with some gardening stuff. Carried around 40 bags of dirt to our back yard and emptied them into garden beds a few days ago.
So, I'm going to need to become more flexible with my workouts. I'll move towards lower volume and higher intensity work when I can't fit in a full workout. That's what I ended up doing today. Deadlift felt strong today. First single listed above was around an 8 RPE. Last one was closer to a 9.
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[U]June 11, 2022[/U]
[B]30 Degree Incline Bench Press:[/B] 165 pounds x 1 rep
[B]Close Grip Paused Bench Press:[/B] 135 pounds - 3 sets x 6 reps
Incline was around a 9 RPE. Close grip work was tough, with the hardest reps maybe around an 8.5 RPE.
[U]June 12, 2022[/U]
[B]Yoke Bar Squat:[/B] 225 pounds x 1 rep
Made some adjustments to my stance and this felt pretty darn good today. Think I managed to get all my joints aligned pretty good and I didn't feel like I was fighting to stay in position and could just focus on pushing. Probably would have done another rep or two at a higher weight, but my son was getting restless so I just called it here.
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June 13, 2022
[B]Floor Press:[/B] 150 pounds - 3 sets x 5 reps
[B]Larsen Press:[/B] 140 pounds - 5 sets x 5 reps
[B]Triceps Rope Pushdown:[/B] 2 Chains - 2 sets x 10 reps
Pressing went great - was easier than last week. Rope pushdowns were much harder than expected, with the last rep of the second set being a 10 RPE. I'm planning to start incorporating triceps work more regularly to help build up my bench press.
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June 14, 2022
[B]Conventional Deadlift:[/B] 405 pounds x 1 rep [[B]PR[/B]]
Decided to take on Eli's challenge over on the Collaborative Training Log - [URL]https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=180960403&p=1662859143&viewfull=1#post1662859143[/URL]
I've never done more than 385 on conventional, but hadn't maxed out in a while. I ended up not being able to do it strapless and beltless. Not even sure what exactly held me back, but I couldn't break it off the floor. I suppose the straps allow me to get just a hair more upright. Did it with straps and belt and it moved very slowly - was doubtful I'd lock it out after getting it about a 1/3 of the way up, but it kept moving slowly and steadily all the way. My son woke up from his nap and I didn't even get a chance to unload the bar until 2 hours later, so my workout ended here.