The Flywheel Effect.

[CW47]

Cambered Bar Bench
160 pounds x 1 rep
110 pounds - 3 sets x 3 reps (Close Grip, Feet Up)

Conventional Deadlift
415 pounds x 1 rep

Ramp up on the bench went well. After the rep at 160 I opted to do some back off work rather than push for a PR.
Deads were good also. Tied my PR with it moving noticeably better than last time. I actually thought is was a PR initially because I hadn't updated my PR chart. I'm happy with it regardless.

[CW47]

Decline Bench Press
215 pounds x 1 rep [PR]

Yoke Bar Squat
255 pounds x 1 rep [PR]

Hamstring Curls
75 pounds - 2 sets x 10 reps

I got the decline/ab attachment for my bench so was able to do decline press properly. It felt much better than the setup I used previously. Still not a big fan of it.
Squats were great. For sure wasn't maxed out even though this was a 10 pound PR.

[CW47]

Bench Press
195 pounds x 1 rep
155 pounds - 3 sets x 3 reps

16 inch Box Squat
315 pounds x 1 rep [PR]

Kind of regret not going for a PR on bench. I probably had a decent chance of setting one. 195 went up very smoothly. Opted to focus on getting in some volume instead.

Squat was great. Hit a 10 pound PR and honestly still had probably another 10-20 pounds there if I had pushed it.

[CW47]

Ocotober 25, 2022
Reverse Cambered Bar Bench
170 pounds x 1 rep
140 pounds - 2 sets x 5 reps


October 26, 2022
30 Degree Incline Bench
145 pounds x 1 rep / 180 x Fail / 175 x Fail
95 pounds x 15 reps

Extremely busy time for me right now. Was unable to finish my workouts both of the last 2 days. I may do lower body first tomorrow just to be sure I fit it in.
My schedule should ease up significantly next week. I'll be looking to transition back to a higher volume program sometime soon since time will be somewhat less of an issue.

[CW47]

12 Inch Box Squat
275 pounds x 1 rep

Floor Press
185 pounds x 1 rep

Just "punching the clock" today. Schedule is pretty hectic. Have my sons 2nd birthday tomorrow, so not sure if I'll get in a workout or not.
The squat matched my PR. It was my worst rep of the day (felt off right when I started the descent). Still managed to get it up easier than the last time. I think I've said this before, but I feel like I can probably add another 30 pounds to my squat just through technique improvements. It's definitely the least refined lift for me out of the big 3.

Floor press was around an 8.5 RPE. Still feeling fatigue on the pressing movements since I've been pushing them relatively hard almost every day this month. I'm trying to pull back a bit and recover enough to go for one more round of PR's on a few selected lifts (pretty much doing the same thing on the lower body lifts).

[CW47]

Cambered Bench Press
175 pounds x 1 rep [PR]
140 pounds x 3 reps (medium grip, paused)

Sumo Deadlift
415 pounds x 1 rep / 465 pounds x Fail

Wasn't even planning to go for a PR on bench today but I worked up to a paused rep at 170 pounds which went up without too much difficulty. Then I realized that had matched my PR so I loaded up another 5 pounds and did another rep.

Deadlift didn't feel great in the ramp up today. 415 moved a little slower than normal. I probably should've just stopped there or done a final rep at 435. Really wanted to take one more shot at a PR before my programming changes though... Couldn't break 465 off the floor today.

Still planning at least 1 or 2 more max workouts and then my programming will change. I spent this entire year focusing on Bench and Deadlift. I'm going to shift my focus to Squats and Overhead Pressing for a while now.

[CW47]

October 31, 2022
Bench Press: 205 pounds x 1 rep [PR]

November 1, 2022
Low Bar Squat: 315 x Fail


Tight schedule the last 2 days but managed to fit in 1 lift each day, trying to hit my final PR's on the main lifts.
Got the new PR on bench. The couple days off of benching helped a lot and I was fresh.
Felt okay but not great on the squat ramp up. Failed the PR attempt twice. Got really close on it. To be honest, this wasn't even a good squat day for me. On many days I'm confident I'd hit 315, but it is what it is. There will be more chances to hit it in the future.

Most likely I'll pivot into a new program through the end of this year. I'm thinking it's a good time for me to try to cut weight before starting to really ramp up the volume around the beginning of the new year. The plan for now is to probably program 4 days - squat, bench, dead, overhead press. Not pushing too hard on the main lifts and then getting in a reasonable amount of accessory work. I know that mentally if I try to push too close to failure on the main lifts it's likely that I'll start taking in more calories so that my performance doesn't suffer, which would be counter productive. It's likely that I lose more strength by taking this approach, but it's probably the better option. As I've already mentioned, I intend on focusing on my squat and overhead press in 2023, so this should be a pretty good way of making that transition since I'm relatively untrained in those lifts.


My son came in and gave me a couple of encouraging whacks on the leg during the bench PR, lol.

[CW47]

DB Bench Press
55's - 3 sets x 6 reps

Cambered Bar Larsen Press
110 pounds - 2 sets x 10 reps

JM Press
65 pounds - 2 sets x 10 reps

Took a few days off. The last max squat attempts I did left me sore for several days. Also had some other things I needed to take care of. Back at it now, easing into my new programming.
I didn't get close to where I thought I might with either the weight or the number of reps. Guess it's to be expected after a month of basically only singles and triples. No worries though, I'm sure I'll get my work capacity back quick enough.

[CW47]

Squat
185 pounds - 2 sets x 6 reps

Wide Stance 16 inch Box Squat
135 pounds - 2 sets x 8 reps

It's no surprise that my work capacity is terrible right now. This wiped me out.
Hoping to at least add a set to each of these next time and then start adding weight.
I also have Hyperextensions programmed for this day. I'll add those in when I feel like I can do it without vomiting, lol.

[CW47]

Overhead Press
65 pounds - 6 sets x 6 reps

Seated DB OHP
35's - 2 sets x 10 reps

Triceps Pushdown
20 pounds - 2 sets x 15 reps

Had an easier time getting through this workout. Not sure if it's just because it's less taxing muscle groups or if my conditioning is improving. Tomorrow should tell me since it's a deadlift day.
Went light on the OHP because I wanted to get in all of the sets & reps. Then went a little too heavy with the DB presses. I'll adjust next time.

Since I'm cutting weight I'll try to remember to give weight updates at least once per week. I started this week at 184 pounds. Been hovering around 180-185 for 6+ months.

[CW47]

Deadlift
275 pounds - 3 sets x 6 reps

Stiff bar, beltless, strapless. The biggest challenge for me right now is grip since I've mostly been using straps when deadlifting. I did hook grip for the first set and lost hold of the bar during the last rep. Used mixed grip on the next 2 sets and had no issues. Had 2 other exercises on the program, but the 3 sets of 6 was about all I could handle today.

[CW47]

Lunges: 25 pounds - 3 sets x 10 reps
Pushups: 3 sets x 10 reps
Pullups: 3 sets x 3 reps
Situps: 3 sets x 10 reps
Calf Raises: 3 sets x 20 reps

Adding in a more conditioning based day every fifth day to help build up my work capacity. Doing these all in a circuit. Started out quite easy and I'll add reps and/or increase the pace each time

[CW47]

Pin Bench Press
185 pounds x 1 rep
155 pounds x 3 reps

Cable Row
100 pounds - 3 sets x 20 reps

Bench was strong. Pin was essentially right at chest level.

[CW47]

High Bar Squat
265 pounds x 1 rep
215 pounds x 2 reps

Leg Extensions
100 pounds x 20 reps

Good squatting day. I'm planning to do most or all of my squatting right now without a belt so I don't need to worry about trying to hit new PR's (this tends to derail me when I'm trying to cut weight). Still got within 10 pounds of my PR which was totally unexpected. I did end up overshooting my 8-9 RPE range though I think, and I felt the impact on the back off work where I stopped after 2 reps because I thought I might fail the 3rd.

Did a crapload of Leg Extensions but didn't keep count aside from the top set. I was pretty wobbly by the time I was done.

Bodyweight is at 183 pounds - down 1 pound from the previous week. Not bad considering I had a couple of large feasts celebrating my birthday.

[CW47]

Overhead Press
105 pounds x 1 rep
85 pounds - 2 sets x 3 reps

Still proving to be a busy time for me. Trying to fit workouts in when I can. Felt especially weak on this lift today. Would have liked to gotten some more volume in but it is what it is.

[CW47]

Paused Sumo Deadlift
365 pounds x 1 rep
365 pounds x 3 reps (w/straps)

Hamstring Curl
90 pounds x 5/10/10

Did the deadlifts with a stiff bar, no belt, no straps for the top single. I dropped the bar on the way down. Added straps for the 'back off' work and kept the weight the same. Good demonstration of how much grip limits me right now.

[CW47]

Push Press
85 pounds x 6/3

Seated Shoulder Pin Press
85 pounds x 4
65 pounds x 8

DB Upright Row
45 pounds??? x 6

Long break as I continue to be incredibly busy. Hammered this out in less than 15 minutes, just trying to get some kind of work in.

Weight check in - started this week at 182. Down just 2 pounds so far after 2 weeks. I'll count it as a win if I lose or maintain this week since I'll be attending at least 2, maybe 3 holiday get togethers.

[CW47]

Front Pin Squat
185 pounds x 1 rep
135 pounds x 3 reps

Hamstring Curl
90 pounds - 3 sets x 12 reps

Think I had the pins a notch too low, but the front squat still ended up going pretty well.
Missed yesterday because of a family get together, and have another one tomorrow. Doubtful that I'll fit in a workout, but we'll see.

[CW47]

50 Degree Incline Press
115 pounds x 5 reps

Barbell Front Raise
45 pounds - 3 sets x 8 reps

Had planned the incline press to be max effort but I could not get setup in a way that allowed me to unrack the bar properly. I have one more option I'll try next time I attempt something like this, so hopefully that will work out. The lack of maneuverability when doing incline work is one of the few downsides of using a built in lat pulldown...

[CW47]

High Bar Squat
145 pounds - 3 sets x 6 reps

Pin Squat - Low Bar
135 pounds - 3 sets x 3 reps

Work capacity is still horrible. Goal is to do at least 3 sets of 8 on each of these, along with a couple of exercised of higher rep work. This was all I could handle today though.

[CW47]

Push Press
85 pounds - 5 sets x 5 reps

Overhead Seated Pin Press
65 pounds - 3 sets x 10 reps

Good progress. Only managed to do 9 total reps last time on the push press with the same weight. I'll shoot for 6x6 next time.
Also saw really good improvement on the pin press, hitting all of the prescribed reps & sets.
I'll probably add in some accessory work as well next time.

[CW47]

Bench Press
175 pounds x 1 rep
145 pounds - 2 sets x 3 reps

Sumo Deadlift
415 pounds x 1 rep

I've lost more top end strength than I expected.
May have had 185 on bench, but not much more. I failed a 415 deadlift without straps. Put on straps and did it but it was still difficult.
I'm expecting to lose strength on these 2 lifts since I've decided to focus on Squat and Overhead Press for the foreseeable future.

[CW47]

Seated Press
65 pounds - 6 sets x 6 reps

Seated Pin Press
70 pounds - 3 sets x 10 reps

Upright Row
2 Chains per hand - 2 sets x 6 reps

I was able to handle the overhead volume much better today. Got in all of the programmed reps and sets so I also added in some upright rows. I ended up supersetting them with the pin presses, so I used chains rather than a barbell. A bit awkward but got the job done.

[CW47]

16 Inch Box Squat
275 pounds x 1 rep
225 pounds x 3 reps

Quick and simple today. I bought a squat box form Elitefts for Black Friday and used it today. Definitely worth it due to how much easier it is to move and setup.

[CW47]

Push Press
115 pounds x 1 rep
95 pounds x 3 reps

Barbell Front Raise
45 pounds - 3 sets x 10 reps

All of my overhead work is being done with a wider grip, which I'm noticeably weaker at. Hoping to build up that weakness and get some carryover to bench. Plus it's the only I can actually do standing overhead work without hitting the ceiling - wider stance and wider grip to make lockout happen at a lower height.
Front raises were improved. I added 2 reps to each set.

[CW47]

High Bar Squat
145 pounds - 3 sets x 8 reps

Pin Squat
135 pounds - 3 sets x 5 reps

Added 2 reps to each set on both squat variants. 3x8 was my goal, so mission accomplished there. Still trying to work up to 3x8 on pin squats as well.
This workout wrecked me. I finished about 40 minutes ago and still feeling queasy. Probably has more to do with the reduced calories than the actually difficulty of the workout.

Weight Check In: At 179.8 pounds this AM. Down about 5 pounds so far.
Slow going but as long as it keeps trending in the right direction I'm good with it. Still want to drop at least another 15 pounds before reassessing.

[CW47]

Push Press
85 pounds - 6 sets x 6 reps

Lat Pulldown - Wide MAG
60 pounds - 3 sets x 20 reps

Tricep Pushdown
20 pounds - 3 sets x 20 reps

My 12 year old decided he wants to start lifting. And of course he wants to do exactly the same thing I'm doing. It's obviously not the best way to start out, but the most important thing right now is for him to just get some enjoyment out of it while also seeing a little bit of progress. Took me twice as long to get through everything because I had to completely change the setup and weights for every set of every exercise. I'm sure we'll work out a process to speed things up.

[CW47]

T-Bar Row
135 pounds x 8/6 - 8 RPE on both

Lat Pulldown - Wide Grip
100 pounds x 11/5 - Rest Pause

Leg Curl
115 pounds x 8/4 - Rest Pause

Preacher Curl
55 pounds x 8/5 - Rest Pause

Haven't touched a T-Bar Row since 2019 when I messed up my back pretty bad doing them. I was more than a little nervous but it went smoothly. Tried doing 4 plates but for some reason the 'anchored' end of the bar kept coming loose. 1 set of rest pause on everything else.

[CW47]

Reverse SSB Squat
165 pounds x 6 reps
135 pounds x 12 reps

DB Bench
50's x 13/6 reps - Rest Pause

Lateral Raise
20's x 12/8 reps - Rest Pause

Cable Pushdown
20 pounds x 13/8 reps - Rest Pause

Reverse SSB is always extremely awkward and difficult. The remainder of the workout was relatively straight forward.

[CW47]

Hyperextension
50 pounds - 2 sets x 8 reps

Helms Row
40's x 15/9 - Rest Pause

Supinated Lat Pulldown
80 pounds x 10/6 - Rest Pause

Cable Hammer Curl (Strap)
40 pounds x 8/5 - Rest Pause