A new beginning in 2015

[Plateauplower]

Nice volume on that session. I'm guessing I'm going to have to do the same on squats, I might have to go lower than 2 plates, but Im just going to have to work reps until my back can handle the load again. Hope the knee feels better. That setup looks so nice, I would love that as an option...heat and all its about -40F with the windchill here today. Took my breath away when leaving the gym.

[baker]

Really like the home gym set up. Very colorful. I'd love to have something like that one day.

[fittofattofit]

Saturday Bumped

Saturday 14th February 2015

167lbs

Messing around with the home gym

Bench Press
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
8 x 50kg (110lbs)
5 x 60kg (132lbs)
5 x 60kg (132lbs)
5 x 60kg (132lbs)
Pussy weights I know
Gotta start somewhere

Squats
5 x 60kg (132lbs)
5 x 80kg (176lbs)
5 x 90kg (198lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)*vid
5 x 100kg (220lbs)*vid
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
Trying to get deep
Short pause

Wide grip pull-ups
6 x BW
6 x BW
6 x BW
6 x BW
6 x BW
6 x BW
Slow.
Dead hang to chin-over bar

60 minutes

I had to work from 8am until 2pm on Saturday so the plan was to get familiar with the home gym in the afternoon (on a 40ºC/105ºF day )
I played around with the bench position to find out what was the most comfortable for the bench in the rack, where to place my feet, where to place the support bars, etc. All very light weights for you guys but heavy for me but I was happy with the form and my shoulders didn't object too much
With the squats: my right knee has been very painful for the last few days so I decided to concentrate on depth and form rather than going too heavy. I kept it to 100kg (2pps) and with a slight pause at the bottom, that was plenty hard enough for me without aggravating the knee .... I'm very conscious that I'm scheduled to have a squat session with JP on Monday, and that on Friday I'll be hitting the slopes in Jackson Hole so I want my knees to be in good shape
These are the first vids I've taken in my home gym .. 2nd and 3rd sets of the squats. 'Yes' I need a haircut, and 'Yes' I'm carrying some padding, and 'Yes' I need to tighten that bar against my traps



http://youtu.be/mMG7M-ggNzk

Anyway, hope you have a good weekend guys

Nice workout Andrew. Nice to see some home gym footage. In my brain, it thinks squats at 2pps isn't so bad....but after last weeks 5x5 I have to say it was hard as faak. My legs are still messed up lol. Squats looked awesome to me, great depth and control. Man, jealous of those calves!! That's what I have been trying to acheive!!! Maybe 10 or so more years lol

I'm the same about 2pps ... it's not a heavy weight but I figure that the smart way for me to train is to leave the heavier reps and max efforts for the sessions when I'm with JP, and to use the sessions at home to work on form and volume ... I really don't want any fail reps at home. There are so many reasons that I need to hold back, but carrying 3 chronic injuries -- right knee, right glute/piriformis and right lumbar facet joint --- makes me want to work on mobility and strength without aggravating them. That being said: going deep and taking that pause to get rid of any rebound really is quite tiring.

looks like you will be having hours of fun with your new toys.. Nice easy win in the cricket today BTW.

Thanks Jon .. I'm planning to get plenty of use out of them although I'm still working out a regime and sometimes the distractions at home mean that I'm not as efficient as I'd like. The Aus-England match was good I'd have been down at Adelaide Oval today to watch India vs Pakistan but I've got too many things that I have to do

If those squats were any more controlled you'd be a robot : eek: Nice session Andrew. Sounds like life still keeps on delivering right now for you. Remember to breath.

Thanks Dave ... I'm trying to keep it lighter but deep and slow so that I'm maintaining that TuT but not putting any strain on the knee or back

'He keeps me moving! When I'm on my own I'm a a slack bastard'

Gotcha. So I just need to get one of these JP's downstairs, check.

I'd love to have JP training me every day (although I'm sure my connective tissue would go on strike) .. unfortunately I still have to work to pay the bills. Retirement seems so attractive atm

Nice volume on that session. I'm guessing I'm going to have to do the same on squats, I might have to go lower than 2 plates, but Im just going to have to work reps until my back can handle the load again. Hope the knee feels better. That setup looks so nice, I would love that as an option...heat and all its about -40F with the windchill here today. Took my breath away when leaving the gym.

Thanks Tim .. your squats are very deep and controlled as they are and 2pps would be easy work for you. My technique up to now for my heavy reps has been to 'dive-bomb' and work on the rebound but, given that I've got knee, glute and back issues that won't go away I've got to work at mobility and strength. I really like that gym set-up and as long as I have a fan blowing I don't mind training in the heat

Really like the home gym set up. Very colorful. I'd love to have something like that one day.

Thanks .. I could have got black plates but the coloured ones always look so cool What I really want to do now is to get my deadlift up to the point where I need to but two more plates

[fittofattofit]

Sunday 15th February 2015

Bro session

Wide grip pull-downs ... FST 7
12 x 140lbs
10 x 150lbs
10 x 150lbs
10 x 150lbs
10 x 150lbs
9 x 150lbs
8 x 150lbs
30-45 seconds between sets

Reverse pec deck rear delt flyes ... FST-7
8 x 100lbs
8 x 95lbs
8 x 90lbs
8 x 85lbs
8 x 80lbs
8 x 75lbs
8 x 70lbs
30-45 seconds between sets

EZ bar curls ... occlusion training
25 x 45lbs
15 x 45lbs
12 x 45lbs
12 x 45lbs
12 x 45lbs
Tourniquet on for 5 minutes
30 seconds between sets

Triceps extensions ... BenP style ... occlusion training
30 ... 30 ... 30 x 40lbs
30 ... 30 ... 30 x 40lbs
30 ... 30 ... 40 x 40lbs
Tourniquet on for 5 minutes
30 seconds between sets

Pec deck flyes
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
10 x 120lbs
8 x 120lbs
45 seconds between sets

Wide grip pull-downs
20 x 100lbs
20 x 100lbs
20 x 100lbs
45 seconds between sets

50 minutes

Hot again today at 100ºF so I made a trip to my local gym to get in some bro work with the cables. I haven't done the occlusion work for a while and boy could I feel the burn. In the car on the drive home I could feel my biceps and triceps fasciculating. All done pretty quickly and got a great shoulder and arm pump. I've also decided to get in control of my diet ahead of a week skiing with the boys which will mean a free-for-all as regards cals. I was starving by the end of yesterday and when I was feeding the dog his dry food it actually smelt really good ... I found myself thinking 'I could eat this if I had to' ... one of the unmentioned side-effects of cutting. My vegetarian daughter was grossed out when I told her.

Plan for the week is squats with JP on Monday; back/deads with JP on Tuesday and Bro session Wednesday before flying off to the US on Thursday

[grouchyjarhead]

Good squatting the other day, keep it up.

[Payton1221]

Bench Press

Squats

Wide grip pull-ups

http://youtu.be/mMG7M-ggNzk

Solid workout!

Have you had to dump the weights squatting yet? Perhaps you squat inside the rack when you get to your typically higher numbers, but I paid for an hour of training from a Crossfit gym owner (who really knows what he's doing regardless of the typical Crossfit hate), and having little experience squatting, he showed me how easy it was to dump . . . of course, bumper plates make it easier on your floor ;-)

[Plateauplower]

Nice bro session! I hate starting a diet, once you get rolling it gets pretty easy but the first few weeks are pretty hard. I remember thinking how good food that I normally wouldn't like tasted. I wasn't competing with the dog for his kibble, but was pretty hungry. Also I don't recommend you eat the dogs food, we saw what happened last time you took food from him.

[fittofattofit]

Solid workout!

Have you had to dump the weights squatting yet? Perhaps you squat inside the rack when you get to your typically higher numbers, but I paid for an hour of training from a Crossfit gym owner (who really knows what he's doing regardless of the typical Crossfit hate), and having little experience squatting, he showed me how easy it was to dump . . . of course, bumper plates make it easier on your floor ;-)

Thanks Mark ... in fact I always squat away from the rack when I'm with JP so I've dumped the bar literally dozens of times with as much as 360lbs on my back. As long as you don't 'squat-morning' it's very safe to just let the bar roll off your shoulders backwards, and in fact, dumping it in a rack sometimes risks the bar bouncing back into you if you lose your balance. And yes .. bumper plates and rubber flooring make it so much less destructive

Nice bro session! I hate starting a diet, once you get rolling it gets pretty easy but the first few weeks are pretty hard. I remember thinking how good food that I normally wouldn't like tasted. I wasn't competing with the dog for his kibble, but was pretty hungry. Also I don't recommend you eat the dogs food, we saw what happened last time you took food from him.

Thanks Tim .... I need to get my diet started properly. I couldn't believe how good that dog food smelt, but if I do help myself I'll sneak it out when he's not looking

[EjnarKolinkar]

It will be my turn for the 105 all too soon. A sick part of me is almost ready for it, after living in the desert for so long 40's are "cold". The sane part of me just wants to move to Seattle.

Paused squats looked great, smart move!

[robosphere]

Those squats look great.What's the benefit of the pause at the bottom? Just to avoid a bounce-type cheat?

[Caractacus]

Hmm, just took a look at the cat's kibble.

It's got hairball medicine in it that makes his litter box smell like a gas attack though, so maybe not.

Nice squats

[raynerd]

Sweet bro session Andrew. Pump must have been unreal. Stay away from Cujo's kibble, it may result in a lost appendage. Sounds like a fun trip coming up!

[SteveWright1]

Squats looked very controlled Andrew, nice job on 5 x 5 at 220lb


have eaten tinned dog food ( for a bet) its not terrible and in fact if it had been in pastry I would have sworn blind "Frey Bentos" had made it LOL?

[fittofattofit]

It will be my turn for the 105 all too soon. A sick part of me is almost ready for it, after living in the desert for so long 40's are "cold". The sane part of me just wants to move to Seattle.

Paused squats looked great, smart move!

I love the hot weather but it has to be dry heat .... humidity kills me.
And the paused squats really help me .... it paid off today with some good squats with JP and my knees feeling good

Those squats look great.What's the benefit of the pause at the bottom? Just to avoid a bounce-type cheat?

Thanks. Yes .. the pause at the bottom both allows me to get stretched and deep and prevents me loading up the glutes and hammies too much for the rebound

Hmm, just took a look at the cat's kibble.

It's got hairball medicine in it that makes his litter box smell like a gas attack though, so maybe not.

Nice squats : )

At least eating the dog's food has cured my worms
Thanks!

Sweet bro session Andrew. Pump must have been unreal. Stay away from Cujo's kibble, it may result in a lost appendage. Sounds like a fun trip coming up!

Thanks Shawn .. and yes, I'm looking forward to the tip ... boy's trip so my knees and liver will be getting a pounding (lots of protein in WY though)

Squats looked very controlled Andrew, nice job on 5 x 5 at 220lb


have eaten tinned dog food ( for a bet) its not terrible and in fact if it had been in pastry I would have sworn blind "Frey Bentos" had made it LOL?

Thanks Steve ... I'm working on building strength and it would be a good goal to be able to get 5 reps like that out at 315 by the end of the year.
I suspect that a lot of what ends up as 'sausage mince' isn't much worse than what goes into dog food
I once ate a hotdog that had a short-and-curly embedded in the meat .... just don;t want to know the story of how it got there








Today's session!

Tuesday 17th February 2015

165lbs

Squats with JP

Warm up
1 and 1/4 squats .... 12 x bar
Good mornings .... 12 x bar
Overhead squats .... 12 x bar

Squats
5 x 60kg (132lbs)
5 x 100kg (220lbs)
3 x 120kg (264lbs)
3 x 140kg (308lbs)
1 x 150kg (330lbs)
1 x 160kg (352lbs)
last two 2 x BW
160kg best squat for 6 months

Superset
Bulgarian Split Squats .. BB
8 x 60kg (132lbs) each leg
8 x 70kg (154lbs) each leg
8 x 70kg (154lbs) each leg
really felt good and stable
with deadball cleans
8 x 45kg (100lb)
6 x 55kg (121lb)
6 x 55kg (121lb)
the best these have felt

Superset
Prowler pushes
100kg+50kg sled=150kg/330lbs x 40metres
100kg+50kg sled=150kg/330lbs x 40metres
love these!
Quads, hammies, calves and HIIT
Good Mornings
8 x 60kg (132lbs)
8 x 60kg (132lbs)
Glutes, hammies, low back

Glute and piriformis stretches

45 minutes

The session
Squats
Knees felt really great after the warm-up. 1 and 1/4 squats get deep and get the stretch reflex activated and the OH squats get the knees tracking well and the hips working
140kg/3pps x 3 ... felt really good.
150kg/330lbs x 1 ... felt perfect. 2 x BW squat
160kg/352lbs x 1 ... JP said I got great rebound. I had to grind out the rep but form stayed tight. 2.1 x BW and only 5kg below my PB. Very happy.
Bulgarian Split Squats
70kg/154lbs x 12 ... JP said these were the best he'd seen my do. I felt very stable and got nice and deep
Deadball cleans
55kg/121lbs x 6 ... getting good speed. Great core work .. could feel my TAs working
Prowler pushes
Nuffsed! I love these ... really transferring power through the glutes, hammies and calves. Really leaves me gasping but it's such a great exercise

Overall
Really happy with the session. Knee felt good and squats and core felt strong. Ready for a week of hammering the snow

[jonnyboy44]

good monster leg session got to be happy with the 160s

[fittofattofit]

good monster leg session got to be happy with the 160s

Thanks Jon! The 160 felt good and I felt that I might've had an equal PB at 165 in me. The best part though was that my form held together and I think that with working on volume I might have a chance of a 180 squat at some stage ... living in hope anyway

[robosphere]

That's great! You gotta be happy about that squat number, but also it looks like you were completely loving the whole thing. Usually there's at least one dud in there, but not for that workout. That's a success.

[DocJekyll]

Nice squat session there. I liked seeing the FST-7's in that bro-session, two back. I thought i was the only guy making use of it around here.

Ever consider adding a mirror to that squat rack? Facing the wall the whole time must be difficult. Would make me MAD.

[raynerd]

Wow impressive leg work Andrew. Nice job on those massive squats. And extremely impressed with the 154lb BSS. How high is your back leg? Standard 18ish bench height? I am still a bit scared with the barbell on my back with BSS. Them wobbles! Crazy finish with the Prowlers! Incredible crushing Andrew!

[lunchbreak]

So sorry to hear the rest of 2014 didn't go well for you Andrew. I haven't been around much, no time to surf at work anymore but I drop by once in a while to see what folks are up to. Glad to see all that work on your squats is still paying dividends. Still some very nice numbers on these pages.

I am green with envy over the home gym setup. I was about to get one of my own, Kelly and I were buying a larger house with a good sized garage for a gym conversion but our buyer pulled out on the very day we were set to exchange contracts. Desperately trying to find another now! If anyone wants a 400 year old 2 bedroom Thatched cottage in Hampshire, England let me know! /hijack

[Jtbny]

Soooo many squats in here!!! I love it

That set up is cool and I really like the brick wall. Noticed something on the squats I've never noticed before; hips shooting up first. Fatigue maybe from the monster sessions you're putting in? Oh and 2x+BW squatting is pretty badass Andrew. Not sure you realize that or not but that's rare air you're in. Now time to catch that bench press up

Edit: this journal had no stars? Well my rating set it over the edge Now the rating matches the effort and work going on here!

[Plateauplower]

Wow nice session, looks like you were feeling good. Im guessing your going to be feeling that one. Whenever I feel like a I put in good work the DOMS ferry pays me a visit. Impressive squating and the accesories you do put those sessions over the top.

[mirroroferised]

Good couple sessions andrew. Enjoy your trip to the states.

[fittofattofit]

That's great! You gotta be happy about that squat number, but also it looks like you were completely loving the whole thing. Usually there's at least one dud in there, but not for that workout. That's a success.

Thanks Robo ... I was really happy with the whole session: my knee held together, back felt fine, and some things that have been hard (like the BSSs and the deadballs) actually felt good ... it's just nice to feel that things are moving forwards at last

Nice squat session there. I liked seeing the FST-7's in that bro-session, two back. I thought i was the only guy making use of it around here.

Ever consider adding a mirror to that squat rack? Facing the wall the whole time must be difficult. Would make me MAD.

Thanks Doc .. I like the FST-7 for upper body, along with the occlusion work, because I get that muscle burn and pump without overloading the joints and tendons. I've had so many RC and biceps tendon injuries that I need to be conscious of maintaining that TuT while minimising the strain on the connective tissues. I've still got arm and delt DOMS
I have a mirror at my regular gym but there's none at JP's box and none at home. I've found that a mirror distracts me and messes with my head and chest position so I'm very comfortable having nothing to focus on

Wow impressive leg work Andrew. Nice job on those massive squats. And extremely impressed with the 154lb BSS. How high is your back leg? Standard 18ish bench height? I am still a bit scared with the barbell on my back with BSS. Them wobbles! Crazy finish with the Prowlers! Incredible crushing Andrew!

Thanks Shawn ... yes, back foot on an 18" box, so for me that's my toe higher than my knee (damn these short legs ..). I have to say the 70kg BB felt so light after the 160kg squats I have the occasional wobble but it just makes me re-focus on keeping the quads activated across the knee

So sorry to hear the rest of 2014 didn't go well for you Andrew. I haven't been around much, no time to surf at work anymore but I drop by once in a while to see what folks are up to. Glad to see all that work on your squats is still paying dividends. Still some very nice numbers on these pages.

I am green with envy over the home gym setup. I was about to get one of my own, Kelly and I were buying a larger house with a good sized garage for a gym conversion but our buyer pulled out on the very day we were set to exchange contracts. Desperately trying to find another now! If anyone wants a 400 year old 2 bedroom Thatched cottage in Hampshire, England let me know! /hijack

Thanks Doug, and great to see you're still around. How is your training going? A 400yo thatched cottage sounds idyllic (until you think about plumbing, dust, rodents etc) Bummer about the new place falling through. My home gym was a gift to myself after a hard year. I'm glad 2014 is out of the way but things aren't over for me yet ..... I've just seen the lawyer's letters and the arguments about money are about to begin ... all pretty distressful while I'm trying to set up my youngest daughter starting University in a week. Still, the gym gives me some place to work out my frustrations and I'm happy with the way my squats are going, even if my DLs are in a hole again

Soooo many squats in here!!! I love it : D

That set up is cool and I really like the brick wall. Noticed something on the squats I've never noticed before; hips shooting up first. Fatigue maybe from the monster sessions you're putting in? Oh and 2x+BW squatting is pretty badass Andrew. Not sure you realize that or not but that's rare air you're in. Now time to catch that bench press up : p

Edit: this journal had no stars? Well my rating set it over the edge : D Now the rating matches the effort and work going on here!

Thanks John! I'll have to check out the hips on the vid again ... I'm not surprised though: taking that pause at the bottom and getting rid of the rebound certainly changes the dynamics. I've yet to see a vid of myself doing squats with JP so I'd be interested to see what my squats are like under maximum load.
And yes .... I still bench like a pussy .. the new set up means that I have the chance to bench more often so I'm hoping to programme something that will get me started on the long road back to a respectable bench

Wow nice session, looks like you were feeling good. Im guessing your going to be feeling that one. Whenever I feel like a I put in good work the DOMS ferry pays me a visit. Impressive squating and the accesories you do put those sessions over the top.

Thanks Tim ... I'm thinking that keeping up the squats volume has helped keep the DOMS at bay. Plus I'm feeling fitter atm ... long may it stay that way

Good couple sessions andrew. Enjoy your trip to the states.

Thanks Dave ... flying off tomorrow morn

[raynerd]

Have an awesome doods ski trip Andrew! You deserve to have a blast!

[EB68]

Nice work on the 2xBW squats Andrew. I am not sure I will ever accomplish that or not at the rate I am going. Really hope you enjoy your trip to the US. Just try to not use your arm and a tree for brakes this time

[scott_donald]

yep have an awesome trip... very jealous of your trip... even though i just got back from Switzerland...

[EjnarKolinkar]

That was a great session with JP. Safe travels Andrew!

[DocJekyll]

Safe travels Andrew - enjoy the pow-derz!

[baker]

That FST-7 looks awesome, really need to give that a try on my next bro session



Travel safe!!