PMW961 and the Long Road to 1700

[pmw961]

Hey guys,

By way of introduction, I am a former college offensive lineman so naturally I had a love of the weight room. Now that my career is over, I've been searching for a way to keep competitive. I've stayed active in the gym so I decided to start competing in powerlifting. My goal is to reach a 1700lb total - ambitious I know but why not go for it? I'm starting with Bill Starr's 5x5, commonly known as MadCow with 1RM of 455/335/475 for a 1265 total. I hope you enjoy the journey.

[pmw961]

April 3, 2017 -- Day 1

Squat: 195x5, 240x5, 290x5, 335x5, 385x5
Bench: 140x5, 170x5, 205x5, 240x5, 275x5
Row: 105x5, 130x5, 160x5, 185x5, 210x5
Weighted Hypers: 90x11, 90x10
Weighted Sit-Ups: 45x12, 45x12, 45x12, 45x12

Also added some prehab exercises beforehand (TKE's, shoulder internal/external rotation, etc.)

[pmw961]

April 4, 2017 -- Day 2

Not a 5x5 day but I did some GPP/Prehab/Conditioning work

-10 100m sprints, 1 minute recovery
- 3x10x18lb medball slams
- 3x5 drop box jumps
- 3x1minx15lbs dumbbell holds
- 3x12x25 four way neck
- 3x20 banded hip thrust
- 3x15 banded Palloff press
- 3x15x75 cable wood choppers
- 4 round BW circuit (AFAP)
- 15 pushups
- 30 squats
- 60 jumping jacks
- 2x100 feet power lunges

[pmw961]

April 5, 2017 -- Day 3

- Squat: 195x5, 240x5, 290x5, 290x5
- Overhead Press: 85x5, 100x5, 120x5, 135x5
- Deadlift: 255x5, 305x5, 355x5, 405x5
- Pullups: 3x6xBW
- Situps: 3x12

Let me know if you guys are interested in the prehab/mobility work I do as well and I'll post it.

[pmw961]

April 5, 2017 -- Day 4

More prehab work to start the day and then another GPP workout

- 4 400m sprints
- 3x10 plyo push-ups
- 3x5 DB weighted broad jumps
- 3x15x15 reverse grip DB wrist curls
- 3x15x30 DB wrist curls
- 3x12x40 4 way neck (15lbs forward)
- 3x10 swiss ball leg curls
- 3x10 ab roll-outs w/isometric hold
- 4 round BW calisthenics circuit (AFAP)
- 10 burpees
- 30 squats
- 60 front jacks
- 5x40feet bear crawl

Finished off with mobility/stretching

[pmw961]

April 7, 2017 -- Day 5

Squat: 195x5, 240x5, 290x5, 335x5, 395x3, 290x8
Bench: 140x5, 170x5, 205x5, 240x5, 280x3, 205x8
Row: 105x5, 130x5, 160x5, 185x5, 215x3, 160x8
Weighted Dips: 45x8, 55x8, 65x7
Barbell Curls: 3x8x85
Triceps Extensions: 130x8, 150x8, 170x8

Weight moved pretty good today. I have some pretty good soreness going in my legs. Need to keep up the emphasis on mobility and recovery moving forward.

[pmw961]

April 8, 2017 -- Week 1 Day 6 (Day 6 Total)

Kept things pretty light today. I did an active recovery pool session today. Worked through some high knees, lateral hops, tuck jumps, etc. You get some good resistance with plyometric movements but it's also ultra-low impact due to the water which I find to be great for off days. I finished off the pool workout with some sprints and laps for conditioning. Also ended up walking around the zoo today for about 3.5 hours and wandered Costco and grocery stores for another 2 so a very active rest day.

[pmw961]

April 9, 2017 -- Week 1, Day 7 (Day 7 Overall)

Another active rest day today - no training at all. I played a round of golf in the morning and did some yard work in the afternoon to keep moving. Also added some light stretching to work on mobility.

[pmw961]

April 10, 2017 -- Week 2, Day 1 (Day 8 Overall)

Squat: 195x5, 245x5, 295x5, 345x5, 395x5
Bench: 140x5, 175x5, 210x5, 245x5, 280x5
Row: 110x5, 135x5, 160x5, 190x5, 215x5
Weighted Hypers: 90x12, 90x10
Weighted Sit-Ups: 50x12, 50x12, 50x10, 50x10

Squats and rows were moving pretty good today. Bench felt a little sluggish but still had a little left in the tank. Last week I did the weighted sit-ups with a plate on the ground. I switched it up to a barbell and a decline bench this week and will keep that moving forward.

[pmw961]

April 11, 2017 -- Week 2, Day 2 (Day 9 overall)

Another GPP day for me and off from lifting. Same workout as last Tuesday.

- 10 100m sprints, 1 min recovery
- 3x10 med ball slams
- 3x5 drop box jumps
- 3x1minx17.5lb DB holds
- 3x12x45 4 way neck (20 forward)
- 3x20 banded hip thrust
- 3x15 banded Pallof press
- 3x15x80 cable woodchoppers
- 4 rounds calisthenics circuit
- 15 push-ups
- 30 squats
- 60 jumping jacks
- 2x100ft power lunges

[pmw961]

April 12, 2017 -- Week 2 Day 3 (Day 10 overall)

Squat: 195x5, 245x5, 295x5, 295x5
OHP: 90x5, 105x5, 125x5, 140x5
Deadlift: 260x5, 310x5, 365x5, 415x5
Pull-Ups: BWx7, 2x6xBW
Sit-Ups: BWx17, 2x14xBW

Light squat day so bar was moving pretty fast. OHP was smooth today and deadlifts flew off the floor. I definitely under-estimated my deadlift strength when setting my 5RMs compared to my other lifts.

[pmw961]

April 13, 2017 -- Week 2 Day 4 (Day 11 overall)

Another non-lifting, GPP Day

- 4 400m sprints
- 3x10 plyo push-ups
- 3x5x15 DB weighted broad jumps
- 3x15x17.5 reverse grip DB wrist curls
- 3x15x35 DB wrist curls
- 3x12x45 4 way neck (15lbs forward)
- 3x15 swiss ball leg curls
- 3x6 ab roll-outs w/isometric hold
- 3x15 TRX knee-ins
- 4 round BW calisthenics circuit (AFAP)
- 10 burpees
- 30 squats
- 60 front jacks
- 2x80 feet bear crawl

Abs were really sore today so I had to cut the reps down on the roll-outs. I'm also having some calf cramping issues the past two days. Don't know what that's about.

[pmw961]

April 14, 2017 -- Week 2 Day 5 (Day 12 overall)

Fasting today for Good Friday so I switched today's lift with tomorrow's active recovery workout. I got in the pool for about 30 minutes. Single leg exercises below were done for a length, all others for a lap unless otherwise noted.

- ~5 minutes dynamic stretching
- High knees
- A-Skips
- Forward bunny hops
- Backward bunny hops
- Lateral Hops
- SL forward hops
- SL lateral hops, outside leg lead
- SL lateral hops, inside leg lead
- 2x15 tuck jumps
- 2x10 SL tuck jumps
- 2 laps sprint conditioning
- 2 laps swim conditioning

This is the second week I've done my active recovery in the pool and I'm really enjoying it. I feel like I get some good quality work in, my heart is racing at the end of the conditioning, and I don't stress my joints. This is especially important to me because I had a long history of knee issues back in my playing days and I still have tendonitis flare up from time to time.

[pmw961]

April 15, 2017 -- Week 2 Day 6 (Day 13 overall)

- Squat: 195x5, 245x5, 295x5, 345x5, 405x3, 295x8
- Bench: 140x5, 175x5, 210x5, 245x5, 285x3, 210x8
- Row: 110x5, 135x5, 160x5, 190x5, 220x3, 160x8
- Weighted Dips: 70x7, 70x5, 70x6
- Barbell Curl: 3x8x85
- Triceps Pushdown: 3x8x85

Core weights were moving really well today (extra off day?). I was at a different gym today so that's why my Pushdown weight went down this week. My sister-in-law also needed a workout partner for a kickboxing class so I did that for an hour post-lift today as well in addition to my normal recovery routine.

[pmw961]

April 16, 2017 -- Week 2 Day 7 (Day 14 overall)

My only lifting today will be the fork and spoon to my mouth! Happy Easter everyone!

I did do some light stretching for recovery though.

[pmw961]

April 17, 2017 -- Week 3 Day 1 (Day 15 Overall)

Squat: 205x5, 255x5, 305x5, 355x5, 405x5
Bench: 145x5, 180x5, 215x5, 250x5, 285x5
Row: 110x5, 140x5, 165x5, 195x5, 220x5
Weighted Hypers: 2x12x135
Weighted Sit-Ups: 2x12x60, 2x10x60

I over-ate quite a bit yesterday and felt a bit sluggish still when I woke up this morning. Squats were decent and it felt good to be back working with 4 plates. Bench press was a struggle today. I may have been a bit unconservative in setting my initial 5RM. I tried changing up the weighted hypers to using a barbell but I ran into issues with surrounding equipment and my arms being too long to get a good ROM. I'll be switching back to holding plates next week.

[pmw961]

April 18, 2017 -- Week 3 Day 2 (Day 16 overall)

Another GPP workout today. My grip strength is already getting stronger just from training it for two weeks. I also made the change from drop box jumps to single box jumps to get some additional stability training out of the exercise.

-10 100m sprints, 1 minute recovery
- 3x10x18lb medball slams
- 3x5 single leg box jumps
- 3x1minx17.5lbs dumbbell holds
- 3x12x45 four way neck (20lbs fwd)
- 3x20 banded hip thrust
- 3x15 banded Palloff press
- 3x15x85 cable wood choppers
- 4 round BW circuit (AFAP)
* 15 pushups
* 30 squats
* 60 jumping jacks
- 2x100 feet power lunges w/18lb medball

[pmw961]

April 19, 2017 -- Week 3, Day 3 (Day 17 overall)

- Squat: 5x205, 5x255, 5x305, 5x305
- OHP: 5x90, 5x105, 5x125, 5x145
- Deadlift: 5x265, 5x320, 5x370, 5x425
- Pullups: 7xBW, 2x6xBW
- Situps: 19xBW, 2x15xBW

Felt a little slow today. Squats felt heavier than they should have for a light day. Deadlifts moved pretty decently though.

[pmw961]

April 20, 2017 -- Week 3 Day 4 (Day 18 Overall)

Another non-lifting, GPP Day

- 4 400m sprints
- 3x10 plyo push-ups
- 3x5x15 DB weighted broad jumps
- 3x15x17.5 reverse grip DB wrist curls
- 3x15x35 DB wrist curls
- 3x12x45 4 way neck (20lbs forward)
- 3x20 frog pumps
- 3x15 ab roll-outs w/isometric hold
- 3x15 TRX knee-ins

Didn't feel great squatting or deadlifting yesterday and my 400 times were slow this morning so I opted to drop the bodyweight circuit and bear crawls from the end of the GPP program to rest up for tomorrow's lift.

[pmw961]

April 21, 2017 -- Week 3 Day 5 (Day 19 overall)

- Squat: 205x5, 255x5, 305x5, 355x5, 415x3, 305x8
- Bench: 145x5, 180x5, 215x5, 250x5, 290x3, 215x8
- Row: 110x5, 140x5, 165x5, 195x5, 225x3, 165x8
- Weighted Dips: 70x7, 2x5x70
- Barbell Curls: 3x8x85
- Triceps Pushdowns: 170x8, 2x8x180

Still felt a little slow moving through my lifts so I'm glad I backed off a little bit yesterdray. I'm definitely ready for the weekend to get some recovery in. Next week I'm hitting my 5RMs on Monday and Wednesday.

[pmw961]

April 22, 2017 -- Week 3 Day 6 (Day 20 Overall)

Active Recovery/Pool Workout today. All exercise are one lap (one length for single leg) unless noted otherwise

- 5 min dynamic stretching
- High knees
- A-skips
- Forward hops
- Backward hops
- Lateral hops
- SL forward hops
- SL lateral hops, outside leg lead
- SL lateral hops, inside leg lead
- 3x15 tuck jumps
- 2x10 SL tuck jumps
- 15 minutes laps (conditioning)

I'm feeling better today than I have all week. I'm hoping that carries over into the next week.

[pmw961]

April 23, 2017 -- Week 3 Day 7 (Day 21 Overall)

I had a complete rest day today. Nothing but some foam rolling and stretching. My body is feeling good and I'm ready to take on my 5RMs tomorrow morning.

[pmw961]

April 24, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 1 (Day 22 Overall)

- Squat: 210x5, 260x5, 310x5, 365x5, 415x5
- Bench: 145x5, 180x5, 220x5, 255x5, 290x4
- Row: 115x5, 140x5, 170x5, 195x5, 225x5
- Weighted Hypers: 100x11, 100x10
- Weighted Sit-Ups: 60x12, 60x12, 70x10, 70x10

This was the start of week 4 which means my top set of each core lift was at my 5RM. I hit my squat and row but failed on the fifth rep of bench press. Kind of disappointing and it wasn't particularly close. I went back to using plates for my weighted hypers this week since it gives me better ROM.

[pmw961]

April 25, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 2 (Day 23 overall)

GPP training today. My left knee is bothering me a little bit so I did seated box jumps to lessen the impact you get doing drop box squats.

• 10 100m sprints, 1 minute recovery
• 3x10x18lb medball slams
• 3x5 seated box jumps
• 3x1minx20 dumbbell holds
• 3x12x45 four way neck (25lbs fwd)
• 3x20 banded hip thrust
• 3x15 banded Palloff press
• 3x15x90 cable wood choppers
• 4 round BW circuit (AFAP)
  - 15 pushups
  - 30 squats
  - 60 jumping jacks
• 2x100 feet power lunges w/18lb medball

[pmw961]

April 26, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 3 (Day 24 Overall)

• Squat: 5x210, 5x260, 2x5x310
• OHP: 5x95, 5x115, 5x130, 5x150
• Deadlift: 5x270, 5x325, 5x380, 5x435
• Pull-Ups: 8xBW, 7xBW, 6xBW
• Sit-Ups: 21xBW, 2x18xBW

I tweaked my back a little yesterday playing softball but I only felt it during the OHP. The top sets of OHP and deadlift matched my 5RM and were a good fight, but I probably had another rep or two left in each. I'm looking forward to setting new PRs next week.

[pmw961]

April 27, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 4 (Day 25 Overall)

A little rain this morning forced me to shake up my cardio for the day.

• 8 rounds rowing HIIT
  - 0:20 max effort
  - 1:40 active recovery
• 1:40 active recovery
• 3x10 plyo push-ups
• 3x5x15 DB weighted broad jumps
• 3x15x17.5 reverse grip DB wrist curls
• 3x15x35 DB wrist curls
• 3x12x50 4 way neck (25lbs forward)
• 3x50 frog pumps
• 3x15 ab roll-outs w/isometric hold
• 3x15x25 TRX knee-ins
• 2x40yds bear crawl

Added a 25lb plate to my back for the knee-ins today. I'm looking to shake up some of my non-lifting day training over the next couple of weeks to get some more variety in there as well.

[pmw961]

April 28, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 5 (Day 26 Overall)

• Squat: 5x210, 5x260, 5x310, 5x365, 3x425, 8x310
• Bench: 5x145, 5x180, 5x220, 5x255, 3x295, 8x220
• Row: 5x115, 5x140, 5x170, 5x195, 3x230, 8x170
• Weighted Dips: 8x70, 6x70, 5x70
• Barbell Curls: 8x85, 2x8x90
• Triceps Pressdowns: 3x8x180

Felt a little slow on the squats and bench today. I'm going to have a quick turn-around with my next lift on Sunday since I'll be traveling towards the end of the week. I'm going to back down my pool workout tomorrow to just some stretching and light activity, no plyometrics, to make sure I'm as fresh as possible.

[pmw961]

April 29, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 6 (Day 27 Overall)

As I said yesterday, I kept today's workout really light because I have a quick turn-around with my usual Monday lift being pulled forward a day to Sunday. I got back in the pool today but really just went through a dynamic warm-up. I didn't do any plyometric work as I'm trying to fully recover from yesterday's lift.

[pmw961]

April 30, 2017 -- Week 4 Day 7 (Day 28 Overall)

Even though it's technically still week 4, I did the workout for Week 5 Day 1 since I'm traveling this week and needed to shift my training around to get all my lifts in.

• Squat: 5x215, 5x265, 5x320, 5x370, 5x425
• Bench: 5x145, 5x180, 5x220, 5x255, 4x290
• Row: 5x115, 5x145, 5x175, 5x200, 5x230
• Weighted Hypers: 2x12x100
• Weighted Sit-Ups: 4x10x70

New PRs on squat and row. Missed bench for the second week. I'll try it again next week and then reset if necessary.

[pmw961]

May 1, 2017 -- Week 5 Day 1 (Day 29 overall)

A little wet outside today so I did some HIIT cardio inside

•8 rounds dead treadmill sprints

- 12 seconds max effort

- 48 seconds recovery

- Treadmill powered off

•3x10x18lb medball slams
•3x5 standing box jumps
•3x1minx20 dumbbell holds
•3x12x50 four way neck (25lbs fwd)
•3x20 banded hip thrust
•3x15 banded Palloff press
•3x15x95 cable wood choppers
•4 round BW circuit (AFAP)

- 15 pushups

- 30 squats

- 60 jumping jacks