Fallen Angel picking herself up!

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1862
Macros: 228g Carbs/ 119g Protein/ 45g Fat

On a Sunday we would normally attempt to do some cardio; however, after tweaking my back last week on T25 of all things I am not touching it at the moment.

We popped into town to get a final couple of Christmas presents. I really don’t like going round shops; much prefer online shopping. However, one present was an item of clothing so I needed to pay cash so that my Mum can take it back if need be. All done now, phew!

Cookie came into town with us. She absolutely loves people (and other dogs) and she didn’t know who to say hello to first! This is her once we got back home



This afternoon Alan and I decided to practice our form just with the bar/light weights and video each other so we can check how we’re doing. I felt this was really productive and gave us some useful information on how to correct and improve our lifts, and hopefully reduce the risk of injuries. We both definitely need to be more aware of our backs and not rounding them on the deadlifts. Squats both looked alright as did the bench press. We'll also need to video our lifts when we're using our proper weights as I guess that's where form can suffer more. Despite using light weights the exercises still niggled my back slightly. Nothing painful just a mild ache, but I will keep an eye on it.

Meals today:
Breakfast: Peanut butter oatmeal
Mid-morning: Muesli with almond milk
Lunch: Meat-free sausage casserole with tomatoes, paprika, butterbeans, onions, and mushrooms
Dinner: Cod curry with Indian spices, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, and basmati rice
Snacks: Two rice cakes with peanut butter, 4 squares dark chocolate, porridge oats with chocolate protein powder

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1902
Macros: 230g Carbs/ 123g Protein/ 46g Fat

Well today didn't get off to a great start. My mobile phone alarm didn't go off which resulted in a mad dash to get into our workout gear, sort out the fuzzballs and start training. We ended up starting half an hour later than usual; if I didn't have to go to work I wouldn't be bothered!

I did my dips and abs when I got home after work. Instead of doing negative dips, I decided to try assisted dips where you use a resistance band to ‘kneel on’ while you push yourself up and down. These proved difficult but I felt they worked better than just doing the negatives; I’m determined to conquer them! Abs were difficult tonight too. I wonder if it’s because I did them after work when I was tired; they were especially tough this evening!

Meals today:
Smoothie: banana, almond milk, vanilla whey powder
Breakfast: Peanut butter oatmeal
Mid-morning: Muesli with almond milk
Lunch: Meat-free chicken curry with spices, tomatoes, stir fry veg, chickpeas, and basmati rice
Dinner: Meat-free Keema curry with korma paste, tomatoes, stir fry veg, and basmati rice
Snacks: Two rice cakes with peanut butter, 2 squares dark chocolate, porridge oats with chocolate protein powder

Incline Barbell Bench Press (3 warm-up sets first)
46.5lbs x8 reps
46.5lbs x9 reps
46.5lbs x8 reps

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press (weight is per dumbbell)
25lbs x6 reps
25lbs x8 reps
25lbs x7 reps

Flat Barbell Bench Press
51lbs x10 reps
51lbs x8 reps
51lbs x8 reps

Dip (chest variation)
Bodyweight assisted dips x3 reps (2 sets)
Bodyweight assisted dips x2 reps

Ab circuits
55lb Cable Crunch x10 reps
Hanging Leg Raise x13 reps
Air Bicycles x30 reps

55lb Cable Crunch x7 reps
Hanging Leg Raise x11 reps
Air Bicycles x30 reps

55lb Cable Crunch x9 reps
Hanging Leg Raise x9 reps
Air Bicycles x30 reps

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1948
Macros: 221g Carbs/ 146g Protein/ 47g Fat

I’m wondering if this week is working against us at the moment. This morning the alarm went off (hooray!) but the house was freezing. I went downstairs and the electric had gone off at some point so the heating hadn’t come on and the fridge/freezer was off! Luckily nothing had melted but still.....arrgggh!

I decided to try the deadlifts today. My back is still aching slightly but there’s no pain as such. I concentrated really hard on form, taking my time to get in the right position before lifting. I used a lighter weight than I had previously but not so light that it didn’t feel like I was working. If anything the deadlifts actually felt as though they helped loosen off my back and there was no discomfort whilst doing them; I only did 6 reps in each set so as not to try my luck though. I filmed myself doing the lifts and can really see a difference in my back position when I purposefully focus on it. It ‘feels’ like I am arching my lower back too much but when I look back at the video my back looks flat. I’d read this in Starting Strength that some people have to feel as though they are over-arching the lower back in order to have the back in the correct position. I also focused on the feelings in my glutes and hamstrings before I made the pull to ensure I was activating the muscles.

Squats were hard this morning but I guess they will be now I’m lifting heavier weights. I’m going to ask Alan to film me next time to ensure my form is okay. I guess reviewing form is an ongoing process

I started off a bit lighter on the barbell rows, again to ensure good form, but they were a bit too light. The second set proved too heavy as it was compromising my form so for the final set I went in the middle of the two and seemed to have found a happy medium! The dumbbell rows will have to stay as they are as I still struggle with the final couple of reps, plus my left arm seems weaker than my right. I’m guessing it’s normal for the non-dominant hand to be weaker??

Meals today:
Pre-workout smoothie: banana, almond milk, vanilla whey powder
Breakfast: Peanut butter oatmeal
Mid-morning: Muesli with almond milk
Lunch: Meat-free chicken curry with spices, tomatoes, stir fry veg, chickpeas, and basmati rice
Dinner: Haddock kedgeree with spices, onions, mushrooms, basmati rice, and a boiled egg
Snacks: Two rice cakes with peanut butter, 2 squares dark chocolate, half a protein cookie


Barbell Deadlift (3 warm-up sets first)
60lbs x6 reps (3 sets)

Barbell Squat
89lbs x5reps
89lbs x7 reps
89lbs x8 reps

Barbell Row
60lbs x10 reps
71lbs x10 reps
65.5lbs x10 reps

One-arm Dumbbell Row
25lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Seated calf raise (weight is per dumbbell)
38.5lbs x15 reps (3 sets)

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: Who knows
Macros: Your guess is as good as mine

There’s no point in writing my calories and macros in today as they’d only be estimates. I went out for a ‘Christmas lunch’ with the team I work with so it would only be a guess as to what that contained! Also, this evening I went for dinner with some old work colleagues, but I managed to find the nutritional values of the dish online as it was a chain restaurant. I had smaller portions of my breakfast/mid-morning meals as I knew that my ‘eating out’ meals would be bigger than I’d usually have. Weirdly, not being able to know exactly what I have eaten today isn’t as big a deal as I thought it might be. Maybe having the odd occasion of ‘not knowing exactly’ will be good for me psychologically and will prove that nothing bad is going to happen and I won’t wake up a stone heavier! I do prefer to track though because if I’m not seeing the results I would like then I can at least be sure of where I am in terms of nutrition

I need to check my form on the Military Press so I’m going to ask Alan to film me. I may need to drop the weight slightly; I feel as though I am over-arching my lower back as I raise the bar up. I’ve increased my weights on the rear delt raises but want to stick with the same weights on the side laterals for the moment.

Meals today:
Breakfast: Peanut butter oatmeal
Mid-morning: Muesli with almond milk
Lunch: Poached salmon fillet with salad and balsamic dressing
Dinner: Vegetable biryani with basmati rice, sweet potato bhajis, poppadom, mango chutney and mint and yoghurt dip
Snacks: Half protein cookie, hot chocolate, peanut butter and two rice cakes


Standing Military Press (3 warm-up sets first)
39.5lbs x7 reps (2 sets)
39.5lbs x6 reps

Side Lateral Raise (weight is each dumbbell)
14lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Rear Delt Raise (weight is each dumbbell)
17.5lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Barbell Shrugs
71lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Ab circuits
Hanging Leg Raise x12 reps (3 sets)
Air Bicycles x30 reps (3 sets)
Russian Twist with 15lb dumbbell x30 reps (3 sets)

[LunaLifts]

Fluffy!!! What a cute dog.

Sorry I haven't been around. Sounds like you're doing well. I haven't been tracking either. Feels really good to have a break from it. As long as the scale is moving in the right direction, and I make sure to eat multiple sources of protein every day I'm good. I think it's a good thing mentally, it helps to not get too obsessed with tracking, and numbers. It's a useful, and important tool, but like I said, it's nice to have a break too.

My military press has been an issue too. I dropped down after going up too fast, but somehow hit the wall again. Though I'm wondering if the bar is making a difference mine is a 6ft oly bar, and Jay has this curl bar: link. The grip might be effecting it, and I'm not sure that my hand placement is the same since the bar can only be gripped in a certain spot to be comfortable. I can't bring my bar there as there's not enough room, and it'd be more of a hassle than it's worth. It'd be nice to know if it's a bar problem, or a me problem though. Guess I'll find out today since I'm at home for my upper day.

[FallenAngel80]

Hi Luna! Yeah see whether or not it's the bar. I know when I looked at how wide my grip was it did make some difference. I think I had too narrow a grip before. That being said, I still struggle after about rep 5, so I think I will have to lower the weight so that I can correct my form as it left my back a bit sore and I want to minimise any problems! Let me know how you get on

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: Bleurgh!
Macros: Lah di dah!

No university today as I have finished until January. As we’re going to my mum’s this weekend to do an ‘early Christmas’ we did our arm day today and will do leg day tomorrow so that we can have our two rest days over the weekend.

I met a friend for lunch today so, again, I can’t be entirely sure of calories. Salmon fillet again but fish is the only meat I eat and I want to get my minimum level of protein in. Plus I just love salmon anyway. The cake was damn good too

Meals today:
Breakfast: Peanut butter oatmeal
Mid-morning: Sriracha tuna (with mayonnaise, sriracha sauce, and Italian seasoning)
Lunch: Salmon fillet with new potatoes and side salad, and a slice of coffee and walnut cake
Dinner: Five-egg white omelette with baked beans
Snacks: Two squares of dark chocolate, porridge oats with chocolate protein powder


Barbell Curl (3 warm-up sets first)
33.5lbs x7 reps
33.5lbs x8 reps (2 sets)

Close-grip Bench Press
51.5lbs x8 reps (2 sets)
51.5lbs x7 reps

Alternating Dumbbell Curl (weight is each dumbbell)
15lbs x7 reps per arm
15lbs x8 reps per arm (2 sets)

Seated Tricep Press
24.5lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Standing Calf-Raise
71lbs x15 reps feet straight (3 sets)
71lbs x15 reps feet turned outward (3 sets)
71lbs x15 reps feet turned inward (3 sets)

[LunaLifts]

Not a fan of salmon myself, I tend to like the lighter fishes, tilapia, haddock, flounder, and lighter tunas. Currently shoving tilapia down my throat hole, lol. Eating out is always fun though, nice being able to enjoy a meal without having to cook or clean up.

The bar made a huge difference! I'm thrilled to know I don't just have chitty shoulders, lol. Did ten reps per set, and wasn't failing so hard like with the other one x8 reps. The weight of the curl bar is lighter, so more of the weight is in the plates themselves, and the weight is further from my shoulders because of the bar length, so I think those are the big factors in why the straight bar is easier. I think the grip placement is pretty close to the same when I use either one, feels about the same anyway. I don't mind if it's more difficult with the other bar, as long as I know I'm not actually losing strength.

[FallenAngel80]

Never had tilapia, I'll have to hunt some down and give it a go

I certainly can't afford to eat salmon all the time lol. We tend to have tuna, haddock, or cod which are nice too.

Great news about the bar! Goes to show it can make such a difference. Unfortunately only a 7ft bar will fit our power cage so I am stuck with the bar, but I do suspect it's the weights so I'll update once I've tested them out

[LunaLifts]

BJs has these packs of frozen tilapia loins which tend to be thicker, and easier to cook than fillets. For me anyway, I prefer pan cooking to baking, it's a delicate fish though so the fillets tend to get beat up pretty good unless baked. Plus it's more affordable that way, and they come in separate packages so it's easier for thawing single portions. I've only seen them in BJs though which is a wholesale store, maybe Costco and other similar stores have them.

7ft oly bars are usually consistently 45lbs. That's quite a bit of weight. Have you tried taking more rest time between sets? Maybe you can get out a few more reps, and just moderately lower the rest time back down bit by bit until you're able to lift it at your usual rest time with the amount of reps you're aiming for.

[FallenAngel80]

I'll have a search for the fish, thanks. I tend to cook ours in a pan within a sauce (poaching I guess) but have to be careful not to have it on too high a heat as it breaks them up otherwise. We get frozen fish too as it comes in fillets and easier to portion out than a whole fish

It's not an oly bar, so only weights 17.5lbs. Crikey, I think I'd be pretty stuffed with an oly bar then! I suspect I might not be taking adequate rest time between sets (my impatience!) so could try that too. Need to check the form too though as it just feels like my back is taking a lot of the strain which suggests I'm perhaps going too heavy at this stage on the OHPs.

[LunaLifts]

Yeah if it's hitting your back you should check the form. If you don't track rest time I recommend it. I've been doing better since I started making sure I got a full minute between sets (I don't track between exercises though, between changing weights, sipping water, changing tunes, it varies). I get impatient too, but it's worth knowing you're being consistent.

My oly bar is 6ft and 27lbs, and my boyfriend's curl bar is 11lbs (not sure on the length 5ft-ish?). Amazing how much they can vary, even some that are the same length are different.

[FallenAngel80]

Yeah I do need to track my rest time and make sure it's long enough.

The other bar I use for curls/deadlifts is 6ft and 16lbs so yeah, always best to check the weight as it can vary so much!

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1899
Macros: 218g Carbs/ 124g Protein /50 Fat

Leg day today. I went a bit lighter on the RDLs to watch my form, and certainly felt the stretch in my hamstrings more than I have previously. I will increase the weight next week. My back feels fine now, but it’s been a wake-up call to get my form on point.

I didn’t really feel like I had much energy in the tank to increase my weights on the front squats this morning so I will go heavier next week. I think not having our usual rest day yesterday has caught up with us, but at least we have the weekend off.

I’ve decided not to post my list of meals anymore; they are pretty much the same everyday anyway and it’s actually more relevant just to record the macros. If I do have any food which is super nice/different then I will post a photo for people to drool over

We’re heading to my Mum’s early tomorrow morning so I may not post on here for the next couple of days while we’re there. However, get-togethers with my family tend to be an awkward affair for reasons far too complicated to burden everyone with here. My younger brother is the only reasonably sane one but he can’t be there! So, to amuse myself I may post about the various foods I’m consuming. If not, then I’ll be back in a couple of days. Wish me luck

Barbell Squat (3 warm-up sets first)
89lbs x8 reps (3 sets)

Front Squat
61.5lbs x10 reps
61.5lbs x9 reps
61.5lbs x10 reps

Romanian Deadlift
71lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Barbell Hip Thrust
71lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Ab Circuits
55lbs Cable Crunch x15 reps (3 sets)
Air Bicycles x30 reps (3 sets)
Russian Twist with 15lb dumbbell x30 reps (3 sets)

[LunaLifts]

Glad your back held out better to the lighter weight. It's definitely best to get that form down, I learned the hard way. >.<
I do a lot of eating the same things too. I've posed a few food journal entries on here, but mostly if I'm having something different, or just made something for the first time/haven't posted it before. Even then I don't remember to post new ones often.

Best of luck! I probably won't be on much after today, just happened to be home for a couple days. It'll just be when I have the patience to deal with our laptop at le boyfriend's place. I think a lot, if not most, people feel kinda awkward with family get-togethers. I get anxiety about it, and it's my own family, lol. If it's not generally awkward, there's at least that one awkward relative. I'm sure it'll be fine, and you'll have a good time.

[FallenAngel80]

Thanks Luna

Don't get me wrong I love my family, but boy are they difficult to be around! Causes me anxiety too, but I can cope for Saturday to Sunday, plus Cookie is a good distraction and the attention is on her a lot

Hope to see you on here again soon

[swooshie]

Good luck with the family, FA! Like Luna said, I think everyone has some sort of anxiety related to family gatherings.

Happy Holidays!

[FallenAngel80]

Thanks Swooshie. Yeah, the more I speak to people the more I realise that families are a source of anxiety for a lot of others.

It's early Sunday morning here. It's been how it always is - a lot of focus on food by my mum and the constant offering of it. It's not just me she does this to, but it taps into my old control issues around food; if I feel I'm being pushed into something regarding food then I am more likely to push back. This is especially as she has brought up my previous eating disorder a few times in recent months, so it's all tied together.

Still, we'll be leaving in a few hours so I have survived another year! Can't wait to get home and start training again tomorrow

[Echo814]

Glad you were able to survive the family, I can understand they have concerns but sometimes that concern can push people back into the old mindsets.

Military press or OHP are a pain to be sure. I have found a few videos on form that have helped a lot. If you are using the barbell this one is great, I love their entire series. Look up Mark Rippetoe as well, great strength coach.



Think about ques the entire time you are lifting. It has helped me a lot, almost got 75lbs on OHP today after watching some of these, filming my own and catching things and fixing them.

Puppers is way to cute BTW

[FallenAngel80]

Thanks for the video, that's certainly given me stuff to consider in terms of form. I've subscribed to that channel so will check out more of their videos

Think about ques the entire time you are lifting. It has helped me a lot, almost got 75lbs on OHP today after watching some of these, filming my own and catching things and fixing them.

What is 'ques' or did auto-correct change the word that was meant to be there? Do you mean form?

Cookie is indeed cute, but a constant ball of energy! I can't keep up with her at times! She enjoyed the weekend and being round other people; she doesn't stop moving when she's around a group of people. She slept all the way home in the car and we hardly heard a peep out of her once we were home!

[LunaLifts]

Nice video, I know I'm doing the lift itself correctly, but I never considered the position my elbows were in at the bottom. Gonna check that tomorrow.

Glad you were able to survive the weekend, Angel. Having a pup around always helps, they don't say awkward/annoying stuff. lol. Sounds like she was all tuckered out from the excitement.

[FallenAngel80]

Hey Luna, yes Cookie was a really good distraction. She's a bit livelier today but still recovering I think!

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1879
Macros: 246g Carbs/ 118g Protein/ 40g Fat

I had doubts as to how the session was going to go this morning. I had a sore throat develop last night and felt mentally tired this morning. I think the anxiety of the weekend plus the long drive home didn't help. I'm ready for a break and am hanging on for the next three days to finish work.

Despite me feeling less than 100%, I managed to break through and hit 10 reps on my incline AND flat bench press! For my incline I hit 10 reps on the second set but I tried again for the third set just to make sure, and got it. For the flat bench press the first set was pretty easy so I increased slightly, but managed to hit my reps again on the final two sets so I'll increase again next week.

I've been at the same incline weights for a couple of weeks (three weeks for flat) so it was an amazing feeling to finally nail them. It seemed to come out of nowhere; I was really psyched about it

My dips are still cr@p. I wonder if I just don't have any energy left by the time I do them. Does anyone else do these, are they essential?

Incline Barbell Bench Press (3 warm-up sets first)
46.5lbs x8 reps
46.5lbs x10 reps (2 sets)

Incline Barbell Bench Press (weight is each dumbbell)
25lbs x6 reps (2 sets)
25lbs x8 reps

Flat Barbell Bench Press
51lbs x10 reps
52lbs x10 reps (2 sets)

Dip (chest variation)
Body weight band assisted x2 reps
Body weight band assisted 1 rep
Body weight band assisted x2 reps

Standing Calf Raise
71lbs feet straight x15 reps (3 sets)
71lbs feet turned outwards x15 reps (3 sets)
71lbs feet turned inwards x15 reps (3 sets)

[LunaLifts]

Nice job on the presses!

I don't like dips, and they can be rough on the shoulders. If you want to hit tris, BB rows, tricep pullsdowns, dumbbell overhead pulls, and skull crushers are all better options imo. You have it as a chest variation though, but it still hits the triceps so if you're working them the day before it may be the issue. I don't train chest much, usually push ups (with wider hand placement), and chest press are my exercises. Chest flyes are burny, but you have to be careful as the weight gets high, messing up can really hurt the shoulder.

[FallenAngel80]

Yeah I do tris on Fridays (arm day) so I guess there's no real issue there if I'm doing the dips on Mondays? But I don't think I'm doing them particularly well.

I try and lean forward so it hits the chest but I have so much trouble pushing myself back up I'm not sure I'm benefiting from them! I actually feel rather pathetic because I am so bad at them ha ha!

I think they are an 'optional' exercise in the programme I am doing, but maybe I should keep on going and see if I can increase my reps....it might be a slower process than I would like!

*Patience is a virtue, patience is a virtue* !!

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1862
Macros: 223g Carbs/ 133g Protein/ 40g Fat

I made an effort to go to bed earlier last night; I need to do this more as I’ve not been going to bed until 11pm some nights and then we’re up at 5.30am. Despite my good intentions I ended up waking up a few times with my sore throat. This morning I felt like the cold bug had hit me more and I was lacking in energy and motivation. My squats were more of a struggle and I almost found myself not wanting to do them which is a unlike me. I don’t like being ill! Plus, it’s coming to the end of the year and I’m very aware of needing time off work so perhaps this is all mixing with me feeling rundown. Still, tomorrow is my last day at work for five days, so that is a bonus.

I have one week left of this phase of the programme and we then have a de-load week which I think will do me good, although I’ll no doubt be frustrated at lifting less weight!

I upped my weights for my deadlifts today, took them slowly whilst focusing on form and did the whole 10 reps for each set. It felt much better.

I’ve been thinking about the potential limitations of this programme, and will search around these forums, but thinking out loud.....so, when I get my weights on the exercises up to a weight where there is no way I can reach 10 reps as it would just be too taxing on the body, what then? Would I drop my maximum rep to, say, five in order to be able to lift heavier?

So, say I get to 100lbs on deadlifts which means I am only able to do 6 reps….it seems daft to reduce the weight in order to be able to do 10 reps. I’m just thinking that this may happen at some point during this programme and then ‘what then?’.

Barbell Deadlift (3 warm-up sets first)
71lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Barbell Squat
89lbs x8 reps (3 sets)

Barbell Row
65.5lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

One-arm Dumbbell Row
25lbs x10 reps per arm (3 sets)

Ab Circuit
55lbs Cable Crunch x15, x14, x15 reps
Russian Twist with 15lb dumbbell x40 reps (3 sets)
Air Bicycles x36, x38, x40 reps

[FallenAngel80]

Calories: 1959
Macros: 226g Carbs/ 121g Protein/ 57g Fat

Final day at work today until next Tuesday! Felt cr@p when I woke up, full of cold, but once I was up and about I was a little better. I’m not going to let it get any worse and spoil my time off; mind over matter!

Got myself some new workout pants as I only have a couple of pairs and they’re getting worn out. I also asked for some more workout clothes from Alan for Christmas; actually, we both agreed to buy each other some workout clothing, ha! I was thinking today that it'd be nice to get some pants with 'Lift heavy sh!t' on the leg



I reduced my weight slightly on the military press and it was much better. I focused on my form from watching the video that Echo kindly posted I could tell my form had improved (e.g. didn’t feel the pressure on my lower back that I had felt before) and I got to 8 reps without struggling too much. The side lateral and rear-delt raises are feeling a bit too easy now so I’ll increase the weights next time.

Standing Barbell Military Press (3 warm-up sets first)
35lbs x8 reps (3 sets)

Side Lateral Raise (weight is each dumbbell)
14lbs x10reps (3 sets)

Bent-over Rear Delt Raise (weight is each dumbbell)
17.5lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Barbell Shrug
71lbs x10 reps (3 sets)

Seated Calf Raise (weight is each dumbbell)
38.5lbs x15 reps (3 sets)

Okay, so I edited this post because I just tried out a two-ingredient chocolate cake and had to try a slice. It's 175g chocolate and 3 eggs (separated). I need a smaller pan next time so it comes out a bit thicker but it was really good, like a brownie!

[LunaLifts]

Glad the military press is feeling better. That cake looks awesome, even looks like a brownie.

[Partyrocking]

I’ve been thinking about the potential limitations of this programme, and will search around these forums, but thinking out loud.....so, when I get my weights on the exercises up to a weight where there is no way I can reach 10 reps as it would just be too taxing on the body, what then? Would I drop my maximum rep to, say, five in order to be able to lift heavier?

So, say I get to 100lbs on deadlifts which means I am only able to do 6 reps….it seems daft to reduce the weight in order to be able to do 10 reps. I’m just thinking that this may happen at some point during this programme and then ‘what then?’.

There are a few ways to handle this. One way, is to have rep ranges already in the program. E.g. for deadlifts do 3x3-6 reps. With this, you can pick weight you can do at least 3 times, keep that weight each workout until you get to a 3x6, and then up the weight and start at 3x3.

Something like 3x3x100 > 3x4x100> 3x6x100 > 3x3x110

You could also do the opposite, i.e. start with a weight you can do 6 times, add weight each session until you can't get a 3x3 and then drop the weight and go back to a 3x6.

Something like 3x6x90 > 3x5x100 > 3x4x110> and if you fail 3x3x120, you would drop down to 100 and then aim for a 3x6. You wouldn't drop down to 90 because you already achieved the upper bound at that weight.

The other method is having a straight sets, e.g. a 3x6 every week. With this you keep adding weight until you fail, take 10-15% off the bar and then continue, so if you fail 3x6x120, you would drop down to 100-105 and build your way back up. The problem with this is that you get the same weight you failed at 2 weeks later. If you had a form issue (or a diet issue) that you addressed, this is fine, but if not, you either fail the weight again or you'll succeed just to stall again in a couple weeks.

This straight progression scheme pretty much only works for beginners and works better for lower reps than higher reps, which is why Starting Strength and Stronglifts are reps of 5.

A hack you can use is to change the rep range after you reset. E.g. if you fail 3x6x120, drop down to 100lbs and change the rep scheme to a 5x5. The added volume can help you get past the plateau.

[FallenAngel80]

Glad the military press is feeling better. That cake looks awesome, even looks like a brownie.

Yeah, not quite as squidgy as a brownie, but still nice nonetheless