The Flywheel Effect.

[QUOTE=JohnButz;1626087233]Outstanding deadlift PR Bro![/QUOTE]
Thanks man! Always feels good to set a new PR. :)


[B][U]December 20, 2020[/U][/B]

[U]Max Bench: 1 Board Bench Press[/U]
[B]165 pounds x 3 rep[/B]
Shot for a 3 rep max today. It was more of a grind than I really wanted, but I still had at least 1 rep in the tank. My previous max on this lift was 170x1 on September 26. Good progress.

[U]Incline Press: 30 Degree - Close Grip[/U]
[B]115 pounds - 5 sets x 5 reps[/B]

[U]Kneeling Overhead Press[/U]
[B]105 pounds - 9 sets x 2 reps[/B]
Not sure why, but this totally wiped me out. Struggled to get through. I actually failed the first rep on one of the middle sets and had to reset and try again after a minute.

[U]Pendlay Row - Wide Grip[/U]
[B]145 pounds - 7 sets x 3 reps[/B]

[U]Hanging Leg Raise[/U]
[B]Bodyweight - 5 sets x 10 reps[/B]


The video shows only the Board Press.
[youtube]O4nofeZpNqw[/youtube]

Looking good!

Stringing together a lot of solid training.

Very effing nice on the 335 pull, the 195x2 squat, and that board press.

You made that whole 335 pull look like you had another 40 pounds left to go.
That squat double was fast as hell. You might have been "hit or miss" with your form that day but you damn sure got one of the "hits" recorded with that double lol. How wide is your stance for squats? it is hard to tell in the video but it looks like you prefer a narrow stance about shoulder width.
While I have never put much effort into board press I thought your 165 triple was pretty spot on as far as form and technique. Only in your third rep do you thrust up more with the hips than towards your shoulders. The first and second reps though you buried yourself into the bench and the weight flew up! Getting stronger and better, bro! Killing it!

[QUOTE=Filmbuff81;1626153453]Looking good!

Stringing together a lot of solid training.[/QUOTE]
Thanks! It's paying dividends. ;)


[QUOTE=400Lb Gorilla;1626212343]Very effing nice on the 335 pull, the 195x2 squat, and that board press.

You made that whole 335 pull look like you had another 40 pounds left to go.
That squat double was fast as hell. You might have been "hit or miss" with your form that day but you damn sure got one of the "hits" recorded with that double lol. How wide is your stance for squats? it is hard to tell in the video but it looks like you prefer a narrow stance about shoulder width.
While I have never put much effort into board press I thought your 165 triple was pretty spot on as far as form and technique. Only in your third rep do you thrust up more with the hips than towards your shoulders. The first and second reps though you buried yourself into the bench and the weight flew up! Getting stronger and better, bro! Killing it![/QUOTE]
My squat is so weird... Those reps at 195 were okay, but still didn't feel quite right. There are just small shifts in balance that are mostly imperceptible on video, and they end up making a big difference. My tendency is to lean forward ever so slightly at the bottom, and if I do I feel a huge difference in my strength (or lack thereof, more accurately) out of the hole.

As far as stance, it feels most natural with my feet slightly wider than shoulder width, and I'm strongest when they're slightly narrower than shoulder width. My stance width varies a little bit from one session to the next depending upon how flexible or tight I'm feeling, but is usually somewhere close to shoulder width. I'm sure the inconsistency in stance, along with other things, contributes to my overall inconsistency with the lift. I'm planning to do a lot more standard squats next year so that I can really get comfortable with the lift. But even with how much I complain about my squat, I've been making fantastic progress on it. It's just the perfectionist in me coming out.

I'm really liking the low rep/high set work you are doing. Awesome job man!

[QUOTE=JohnButz;1626271373]I'm really liking the low rep/high set work you are doing. Awesome job man![/QUOTE]
Yeah, I've been doing stuff mostly in the 8-15 rep range for about 6 months now, and needed to change things up. I've never done work in rep ranges this low for most exercises, so it's been a good experience. I've learned which exercises it works well for, and which it doesn't.

After this week I'll be transitioning back to higher rep work again for a while. As I continue to refine my programming, one of the things I'm working on is building in waves for assistance work. I just need to figure out whether I'll be better off waving the set and rep ranges within each cycle, or waving them from one cycle to the next. I'm testing out waves within a cycle right now, so we'll see how that goes and adjust as needed.


[B][U]December 22, 2020[/U][/B]
Today's workout was all about just getting some reps in to be comfortable with the squat movement, while still making sure my body stays really fresh. It was a very minimalistic workout today, consisting of squats, squats, and more squats. ;)

I did a thorough squat warmup without the box. Worked up to doubles at 185 and 205 without a belt, and still had several reps in the tank at that weight.

[U]Dynamic Effort Lower: 20 inch Box Squat[/U]
[B]185 pounds - 8 sets x 2 reps[/B]
I'll need a very big increase in weight next time I do a 20 inch box squat. This weight was still extremely easy. Could've done speed work with at least another 20 pounds, maybe more than that.

After the box squats I did a couple of more reps at 185 and 205 with a belt on. I still feel more comfortable squatting without a belt, but I will definitely be able to lift more with the belt on, so it was good to get some reps in with it.
Overall, the squatting felt really quite good today. It's looking like I'm going to crush my current PR of 215 when I test this weekend. :)

Christmas PR gift to yourself coming up hopefully.

Squatting with a belt can certainly take some time to get used to, but it’s definitely worthwhile in the end.

Nice looking belt too.

Nice work on the squatting. Interested to see how you feel going from 8-15 to higher reps. Going to be a gasser at first.

Incoming PR for sure!

[QUOTE=Filmbuff81;1626311253]Christmas PR gift to yourself coming up hopefully.

Squatting with a belt can certainly take some time to get used to, but it’s definitely worthwhile in the end.

Nice looking belt too.[/QUOTE]
Yes, will keep working with it. I can already feel the benefits of it, and I'm sure it'll just get better as it gets broken in and as I get more comfortable with it.


[QUOTE=Raigs;1626320693]Nice work on the squatting. Interested to see how you feel going from 8-15 to higher reps. Going to be a gasser at first.

Incoming PR for sure![/QUOTE]
I actually meant that I will be going back to the 8-15 rep range after doing almost exclusively lower rep stuff for the last several weeks. I don't have much work over 15 reps, aside from a couple of exercises where I'll go up to 20. PR day is just a few days away now... :)



[B][U]December 24, 2020[/U][/B]
Wasn't able to get a workout in yesterday. Busy doing holiday prep stuff, and cleaning up snow. Also brought the little one to the doctor for his 2 month checkup and shots. He was not feeling too good afterward, so we were watching him closely (seems to be back to normal today).

[U]Dynamic Bench - DB Bench Press[/U]
[B]90 Pounds (45 pound DB's) - 9 sets x 3 reps[/B]
Tried one set with 55's, and it moved too slow, so I did them with 45's again this week.

[U]Band Row[/U]
[B]Average Band - 4 sets x 8 reps[/B]

[U]Front Plate Raise[/U]
[B]35 Pounds - 7 sets x 3 reps[/B]
Seems like a weird exercise to do low reps with, and while I probably won't do it again it actually wasn't as bad as I expected. I think a 5x5 would work reasonably well as a change up sometimes.

[U]Situp[/U]
[B]Bodyweight + 70 pounds - 4 sets x 6 reps[/B]


Left out Incline DB Press and Tricep Extensions because by left elbow and wrist are bothering me a bit. I initially thought it was from the DB pressing I've been doing the last couple of weeks, but I actually now think It's from holding the baby, lol. Not much I can do about that except use my right arm as the primary support more often.

I will take tomorrow off for sure. Saturday and Sunday are scheduled to be my Max Effort days, where I'll do my Squat and Bench Press PR attempts. Hoping to get some good food and good rest and be ready to hit it hard.

Merry Christmas Bro! Looking forward to the max attempts over the weekend!

[QUOTE=JohnButz;1626551743]Merry Christmas Bro! Looking forward to the max attempts over the weekend![/QUOTE]
Thanks brother! I was very low key, but good. Hope you had a good one as well.


[B][U]December 26, 2020[/U][/B]
Did my Squat PR attempt today, and it turned out better than I hoped and expected. I kind of dropped the ball on the warmup because I was psyching myself out. Did a full and pretty typical warmup up to 185 for a double. But then I was suddenly worried about what a weight higher than 225 would feel like on my back since I've never lifted it before. I changed over to a 20 inch box squat and worked my way up to 255 or 265. Then I wanted to do some standard squats with a belt on to get comfortable with it, but my energy was crashing because I drug the warmup out too long. I took like a 30 minute break, just sitting and relaxing. Took a couple of swigs of soda to get my blood pumping again, and then worked my way up from 135 with the belt on.

[U]Max Effort Lower: Squat[/U]
[B]255 pounds x 1 rep[/B]
225 pounds went up fast. 235 pounds went up even faster. 245 was a little slow. Finally ended up at 255. May have had another 10 pounds in me, but after struggling to unrack the 255, I ended it there quite happily. This was a 45 pound increase of my previous all time squat PR. Wowzerz!

[youtube]t_b0XsvUt9s[/youtube]

There have been times where I seriously questioned whether I'd ever squat 225 because of how much I've struggled with the lift. At one point a couple of years ago I was nearly convinced that I'd have to stop squatting because of knee pain every time I did it. I'm so happy that I stuck with it, and am now making progress. It feels good to not hate squatting, lol. Hoping I can get close to 300 pounds next year.

Anyway, I was pretty wiped after the squatting, and having another PR attempt planned for tomorrow I decided not to do the rest of the lifts I had scheduled today. Will try to stay rested so that my energy level is high tomorrow.

[B][U]December 27, 2020[/U][/B]

[U]Max Bench: Bench Press[/U]
[B]180 pounds x FAIL[/B]
No PR today. I got the bar off my chest pretty good, but then it just stopped dead about 4 inches up, and wouldn't budge. My tender left elbow probably contributed to this (can't remove the baby carries out of my programming, so I'll just have to work around this, lol). I struggled even to unrack a couple of the warmup sets because of the left elbow. But honestly, I don't think this is the reason I didn't complete the lift. It was most likely because I used supplemental & accessory exercises that weren't super effective for me, and I may have just fatigued myself with too much heavy and low rep work over the last couple of weeks. I'll take a closer look at the programming and learn from it.

Elbow is still tender, so I wasn't feeling up to doing any more pressing today. I will start fresh again on Tuesday, shifting to higher rep work (15's and 12's primarily)

This was still a really good cycle for me, with PR's on both Deads and Squats.

Great training cycle and congrats on the PRs.

Damn 255 is strong work on the squat. Seems like the programming is working.

I lol at the baby carries I know what you mean. Got to get them gun stronger. I carry my 3 year old around a lot just to work on stamina

Solid squat workout and very nice on the 45 pound PR on the King of Lifts!

You made 255 look fairly easy and fast! I think if you had made 20 pound increases you probably would have found 265 was yours as well but doing that many heavy singles so near your max can wear you out. But, on the other hand, those singles definitely count as strength training lol. So that is most definitely a win no matter what.

Sucks about the bench fail but if your elbow is giving you issues there is no surprise to the loss of strength on bench. Tendons in that arm are probably needing a break. Take a week away from any heavy presses and shoot for hypertrophy work or avoid press altogether. And I hear you on not getting rid of the baby carries lol, some lifts are just too important to take out of your program :D

Very productive & successful cycle! Gaining personal best on the deads & squats, not an easy feat.

[QUOTE=Filmbuff81;1626766843]Great training cycle and congrats on the PRs.[/QUOTE]
Thank you. PR's are always a good time. :)

[QUOTE=Raigs;1626811333]Damn 255 is strong work on the squat. Seems like the programming is working.

I lol at the baby carries I know what you mean. Got to get them gun stronger. I carry my 3 year old around a lot just to work on stamina[/QUOTE]
Lmao! So THAT's the secret to huge guns... 24 inch pythons here I come!

[QUOTE=400Lb Gorilla;1626823723]Solid squat workout and very nice on the 45 pound PR on the King of Lifts!

You made 255 look fairly easy and fast! I think if you had made 20 pound increases you probably would have found 265 was yours as well but doing that many heavy singles so near your max can wear you out. But, on the other hand, those singles definitely count as strength training lol. So that is most definitely a win no matter what.

Sucks about the bench fail but if your elbow is giving you issues there is no surprise to the loss of strength on bench. Tendons in that arm are probably needing a break. Take a week away from any heavy presses and shoot for hypertrophy work or avoid press altogether. And I hear you on not getting rid of the baby carries lol, some lifts are just too important to take out of your program :D[/QUOTE]
Yeah, can't drop those, and wouldn't want to even if I could. My weekday workouts this week are going to be relatively light as I pivot into a new cycle next week.

[QUOTE=JohnButz;1626892943]Very productive & successful cycle! Gaining personal best on the deads & squats, not an easy feat.[/QUOTE]
Yes, it was a fantastic cycle! I was expecting to hit personal bests since I really hadn't tried maxing out in over a year, but I was not expecting to improve them by as much as I did, so that was a pleasant surprise.

[B][U]December 29, 2020[/U][/B]
As I just said above, I'm taking it relatively easy on my next 2 workouts and then I'll transition into a new cycle. Going to just be doing some exercises I haven't done in a while, and keeping the weight on the lighter side.
I accomplished what I wanted today. I'll probably do something similar tomorrow (though for upper body).

[U]Dynamic Lower: High Bar Squat[/U]
[B]155 pounds - 6 sets x 2 reps[/B]
It's been a LONG time since I've done a high bar squat. It felt so weird, but got better as I did more reps. My main focus was on 'rooting' my feet, since that's something I've not been very good at. I could feel the difference immediately once I got it right. It helped with overall balance, and I was able to exert more force with my feet planted better. I'll continue working on this over the coming weeks to really ingrain it.

[U]Dynamic Lower: Deficit (3 inch) Stiff Legged Deadlift[/U]
[B]225 pounds - 4 sets x 2 reps[/B]
This turned out to be too much weight. Not because it lacked speed, but because my body just wasn't prepared. I used to do these pretty regularly, but it's probably been like 2 years since I last did them. Starting feeling it in my lower back after the second set. Probably should've stopped there or reduced the weight, but whatever. I will have a sore lower back tomorrow, that's for sure. But my lower back held up really well structurally. I just worked over the muscles good, which I haven't done lately.


I'll be making a change in my approach when I begin my next cycle this weekend. I'm using the same style of training, but I'm not going to plan out specific exercises ahead of time. I have a template with a list of generic exercises/body parts, and I'll choose them on the day. For example, my first workout of the cycle is a Max Lower day. The exercises will be: a Squat of my choosing for a 1 rep max, a lower body compound for 5x5, and then Glute/Hams, Low Back, and Lats for 3 sets of 12 each.

Knowing that I tend to be a slave to what I preplan, this still gives me some flexibility to adjust on a daily basis. I've also made further adjustments to the set and rep counts, waving them over the course of 2 cycles. But I will take those just as general guidelines as well, and change when I think it makes sense. I think this will be a good combination of structure and flexibility.

I was just listening to a podcast. They noted stiffness in pitchers elbows due to having more slow twitch muscles vs fast. And doing exercises and massages helped convert the muscles. I have to find the article for you. But this gives me a thought maybe you need to do some more fast twitch movements ie band work and see if that helps activate some muscles and release the tightness.

Excited for the new more flexible cycle

[QUOTE=Raigs;1626970093]I was just listening to a podcast. They noted stiffness in pitchers elbows due to having more slow twitch muscles vs fast. And doing exercises and massages helped convert the muscles. I have to find the article for you. But this gives me a thought maybe you need to do some more fast twitch movements ie band work and see if that helps activate some muscles and release the tightness.

Excited for the new more flexible cycle[/QUOTE]
Interesting... I was thinking it’s about time to do banded bench on my upper speed day. Let’s see if that’s helpful.
Thanks for sharing that insight. ;)

[B][U]December 30, 2020[/U][/B]

[U]Dynamic Bench: Close Grip Pin Press[/U]
[B]115 pounds - 6 sets x 3 reps[/B]
My idea behind this is that a close grip bench press is primarily meant to work triceps. The first couple of inches off the chest don't do much to work the triceps at all, and mostly uses chest strength. Doing a pin press, where the bar is about 3 inches off the chest at the bottom, puts the focus on the triceps much more.
I kind of prefer using exercises that that work multiple muscle groups (more bang for the buck). But I can see this being a good exercise on a day where I'm already doing a fair amount of chest work.

[U]Dynamic Bench: Larsen Press[/U]
[B]115 pounds - 6 sets x 3 reps[/B]
For those that don't know, this is a bench press with feet kept straight and hanging over the end of the bench. It removes leg drive, forcing the movement to rely on chest and shoulder strength. My back started cramping up for the first time ever while lifting, so that took me by surprise, lol. It's actually probably a really good companion to the close grip pin press.


I'll have a couple of rest days now, and should be super fresh for my Max Effort Squat and Bench days this weekend.

Enjoy the rest days. I love to hit the triceps after my chest is smoked. I think the CG Pin press is a great idea! I like where your head is at about hitting all the muscles in the least amount of movement. Get in and get out kinda mentality

Happy New Year CW! Wishing you the best.

[QUOTE=Raigs;1627177813]Enjoy the rest days. I love to hit the triceps after my chest is smoked. I think the CG Pin press is a great idea! I like where your head is at about hitting all the muscles in the least amount of movement. Get in and get out kinda mentality[/QUOTE]
The rest days did me some good, especially since I was short of sleep as well.

[QUOTE=JohnButz;1627178833]Happy New Year CW! Wishing you the best.[/QUOTE]
Thank you sir! Happy New Year to you as well. :D


[B][U]January 2, 2021[/U][/B]
Feels weird to type 2021, and I'll probably mess that up a few times over the coming weeks, lol.

[U]Max Effort Lower: Trap Bar Deadlift - Low Handle[/U]
[B]335 pounds x 1 rep[/B]
This was around a 9 RPE. Moved fairly slowly. I failed it once, but only because my grip gave out. The handle is bigger than a normal barbell, and I just couldn't hold on to it. Ended up using straps for the second attempt. I've never come close to a max lift on this exercise, so this will be a good starting point to build on in the future. I need more practice with it, because it feels really awkward right now.

[U]Wide Stance Deadlift w/Snatch Grip[/U]
[B]225 pounds - 5 sets x 5 reps[/B]
Really like this lift. I should be able to add weight to these over the coming weeks.

[U]Banded Hamstring Curl[/U]
[B]Mini Band - 2 sets x 12 reps[/B]
Wasn't able to get the bands setup in a way that really felt right. I'll do some more experiments with this in the future.

[U]12 inch Step Up[/U]
[B]45 pounds - 1 set x 12 reps[/B]
Changed over to these after not feeling much benefit from the banded ham curls. They worked well, and I'll keep them in for a few more weeks. Unfortunately I can't do anything higher than 12 inches without hitting my head on the low ceiling. I may need to do these on the upper level of the house...

[U]Meadows Row[/U]
[B]45 pounds - 3 sets x 12 reps[/B]


Video shows the 335 pound deadlift, and one set of the Wide Stance Wide Grip Deadlifts.
[youtube]o0z08NJEGlA[/youtube]


I've started ranking supplemental and accessory lifts into Tiers based upon how effective they are for me. I'll reference this before each workout, as I'm selecting my exercises for that day. I'll be updating the list after each cycle, and I think this will really help me in the long term to be sure I'm programming in exercises that work well for me, and actually paying attention to how well each exercise actually works over the course of weeks and/or cycles. I also have included a list of exercises that I want to try, so I'll sprinkle those in here and there, and then be able to add them to my tier list as well.

Just been reading through your log. Fantastic progress. Look forward to see where you get in 2021

Really strong workout.

I love meadows rows. I hammered them a ton this past year.

I like wide stance snatch grip DL too. Some call it the Candito deadlift. I stand a bit narrower than you do. Too wide and I feel too much quads for my target with that lift. It's like a more comfortable deficit DL.

[QUOTE=safcpaul;1627294493]Just been reading through your log. Fantastic progress. Look forward to see where you get in 2021[/QUOTE]
Thanks man! I appreciate it, and I'm looking forward to seeing where I can get to in 2021 too. ;)

[QUOTE=Filmbuff81;1627303413]Really strong workout.

I love meadows rows. I hammered them a ton this past year.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I just tried them for the first time like 2 months ago, and fell in love with them right away. They work the upper back in a way that no other lift (that I've found) does. I expect them to be a staple in my programming for quite a while.

[QUOTE=ECGordyn;1627307533]I like wide stance snatch grip DL too. Some call it the Candito deadlift. I stand a bit narrower than you do. Too wide and I feel too much quads for my target with that lift. It's like a more comfortable deficit DL.[/QUOTE]
Yes, I'm still trying to figure out what stance width is going to be best for me. I did every set with a slightly different width today to get a feel for it. And yeah, I had done a snatch grip deadlift once before, but then recently saw one of Mr. Candito's videos on it and decided to try it out with a wider stance. I'm a fan of it - a big fan. :)

Awesome Deadlift! Very strong work.

That 335 was with a trap bar? You got a pic of the trap bar? I only ask cause it looks like you were setup and pulling a normal deadlift.

But regardless of the bar, great work on that pull and the 225 wide pulls. You made them all look fairly quick and kept your form despite the high RPE number!