Calling anyone interested in a friendly strength competition for this spring/summer

[SaviorSelfJT]

We posted at the same time. What is your 1RM on deadlift? It's not impossible I could beat you on that one but it'd take a huge stride of progress.

I don't really know. If I had to guess maybe 500 if I chose an ideal day to test

I'm not using straps anymore and I'm trying to do the lift properly (using my hamstring and lower back to lift the weight)

I say that because I used to be very quad dominant and basically "squatted" the weight up when I deadlifted. I'm doing less squats and way more posterior chain stuff like good mornings and I've been seeing progress. But deadlift has still always been my worst lift

[MyEgoProblem]

I might only be competing with myself here unless someone is really similar to my lifts

Problem that I would have with rows is that it gets really hard to not cheat them when going heavy. If doing them from the floor its easier to keep them in check though


@CW47, have you tried to do dead hangs from a pullup bar? Lots of people swear by it for making their shoulders better

I was gonna play but new job ect.. Barely been lifting.

Probably got you by a 50-100 on squat and dead but you make that back on bench & press :-) solid numbers. Could have been a close total

Alas not competing tho.

[CW47]

I might only be competing with myself here unless someone is really similar to my lifts

Problem that I would have with rows is that it gets really hard to not cheat them when going heavy. If doing them from the floor its easier to keep them in check though


@CW47, have you tried to do dead hangs from a pullup bar? Lots of people swear by it for making their shoulders better

Well, the answer is no, but I just did them at the end of my workout after reading this. Definitely give a nice stretch to the shoulders and back, and good grip work too.

I just finished my Dynamic Upper day. Been ramping up the benching volume, and it hit me like a ton of bricks today.

Bench Press: Been doing 6x6's for 7 or 8 weeks now. I think I started out at 125 pounds and have been increasing 5 pounds per week. Almost stalled out at 145, but then 150 and 155 have felt no harder than that. Making good progress so far. Once I stall out on the 6x6's I'll drop down the weight and do 8x8's.

Paused Bench - Wide Grip: Widened grip each set. Finally went too wide on the final set and fell 1 rep short of my goal. I re-racked, narrowed the grip slightly, and did the final rep easily. Pinkies on the rings seems to be about as wide as I can go without a noticeable loss of strength. Main focus on both of the first two lifts of the day was maintaining upper back tightness throughout, and that went very well.

Floor Press: Close Grip w/Chains My body totally gave out on this. Anticipating that this workout would be more demanding than last weeks, I had actually reduced the weight. Still didn't come anywhere close to the 3x10 I had planned - ended up at 6, 7, and 6 reps in the 3 sets. I honestly can't recall the last time I crashed and burned like this. Workout ended about an hour ago, and I'm still feeling shaky now, so it's time for some food. The good thing is that my next Upper session is all Incline and Overhead work, so it will be a full week before I flat bench again - plenty of time for recovery.

Here's video of my final 6x6 set on Bench.

[SaviorSelfJT]

Did some curls in todays workout, how do these look @Eli? 115x13: https://streamable.com/zyzvou
A little more cheated than I thought but its not like reverse grip cleans either
My fatceps were just under 18 inches after lifting, maybe if I did some tricep stuff they would have been over

I was gonna play but new job ect.. Barely been lifting.

Probably got you by a 50-100 on squat and dead but you make that back on bench & press :-) solid numbers. Could have been a close total

Alas not competing tho.

Thanks man. And yeah its crazy how just a little external stress can affect training. I had a little setback a little while ago cause of some life changes....wasnt eating enough, lost weight, and couldn't give enough effort in training and lost a bit of strength

Well, the answer is no, but I just did them at the end of my workout after reading this. Definitely give a nice stretch to the shoulders and back, and good grip work too.

Did you feel a little discomfort in doing them? I think the key is your supposed to relax your shoulders and let it kind of pull your arms out a little. And maybe a minute a day of dead hanging if you can do it.

I can't remember the anatomy of it buts its supposed to create a little space internally on the other side of your shoulder that usually gets compressed cause of all the pressing movements we do. Or something like that, idk

[EliKoehn]

Well, in my take that's an impressive amount of weight to curl at all... good job. Wouldn't call that strict form though. But you know what, as long as no one else even cares about curls in the first place, I'll do them the same way and see what I can get. I'll find a day on my block where bicep volume is expendable. My best curl was 135 x 6.

Seriously looking forward to the deadlift challenge.

[SaviorSelfJT]

Well, in my take that's an impressive amount of weight to curl at all... good job. Wouldn't call that strict form though. But you know what, as long as no one else even cares about curls in the first place, I'll do them the same way and see what I can get. I'll find a day on my block where bicep volume is expendable. My best curl was 135 x 6.

Seriously looking forward to the deadlift challenge.

Dang, I don't think I can curl 135x6 right now but I bet I'm close. Maybe for the comp we try to do most reps with 135 with a little bit of back allowed, but they must still be full reps. Have to be a little bit of an honor system to not let them be too cheated I guess


Is your sig accurate; still 475 on deadlift?
There's 20 weeks to oct 4th, and I deadlift once each week. I'm basically raising the weight every 3rd week, so that's 60lbs of extra weight on my work sets assuming everything goes perfect. That could have me doing 495x5 at the time of comp, though thats a super optimistic prediction. More like best case scenario with the timeline

[EliKoehn]

Dang, I don't think I can curl 135x6 right now but I bet I'm close. Maybe for the comp we try to do most reps with 135 with a little bit of back allowed, but they must still be full reps. Have to be a little bit of an honor system to not let them be too cheated I guess


Is your sig accurate; still 475 on deadlift?
There's 20 weeks to oct 4th, and I deadlift once each week. I'm basically raising the weight every 3rd week, so that's 60lbs of extra weight on my work sets assuming everything goes perfect. That could have me doing 495x5 at the time of comp, though thats a super optimistic prediction. More like best case scenario with the timeline

I agree, we'll allow for some body English and eyeball a verdict with an upload (we'll need others' assessment, of course).

Yes, that's accurate. That was my old max last summer and I retested it a few weeks ago (and logged it here with a video), and even though I got it originally, the more recent lift was cleaner. That also felt as heavy as I could go without form deterioration. Also got 405x5, which is a far-cry from 10, but not entirely out of the ballpark.

Unlike what you've said about tending towards making your deadlift more of a squat-oriented motion, I err on the side of it being a pure hinge, with high hips and little knee flexion. Been deliberately working on this and bringing my legs into the lift more (a lot of this seems to be addressed by setup), so perhaps once I can properly utilize my legs and give my back a more advantageous angle for lockout, I'll be hitting some higher numbers soon.

Meantime though, my legs are quite posterior-dominant and I still have weak quads and poor strength executing the squat movement. On EC's recommendation, I'm doing this six week program primarily to remedy that weakness and also to gain some familiarity with structured programming.

How long have you been deadlifting? Awesome if so, but I would find someone quite an anomaly who could add weight past novice territory every three weeks without stalling.

[EliKoehn]

Squats get real today

290 x MR10, followed by 5 x 3 short rest at 295... The game is on.



Going to go with deficit DLs. Thinking I'll just stand on 45s but let me know if you all know a better way to go about it.

[ECGordyn]

Squats get real today

290 x MR10, followed by 5 x 3 short rest at 295... The game is on.



Going to go with deficit DLs. Thinking I'll just stand on 45s but let me know if you all know a better way to go about it.

Cool jam there. Here's one of my hype tunes.



Yeah man this and the next squat day are man-makers. Keep that chicken breast ready in the car, maybe wrap it in bacon and cheddar. Might add some extra cals this week and then dial them back a bit towards the end of next week.

[jademonkey]

I might only be competing with myself here unless someone is really similar to my lifts

Problem that I would have with rows is that it gets really hard to not cheat them when going heavy. If doing them from the floor its easier to keep them in check though


@CW47, have you tried to do dead hangs from a pullup bar? Lots of people swear by it for making their shoulders better

What's your weight? I mean if your huge then your numbers are more in line with the rest of the crowd!

I also don't like max rows because I feel it's kind of a continuum cheat→strict and it's hard to set a hard line.
I like weighted chins but not sure I'll get around to finding a good way to add weight.
I'll probably do 1rm OHP. I really need to program these in again soon.
I liked 1rm strict curl last year but no one else ended up doing it. It also takes some time to work on. I'd like to get 1 plate though.

------
Drove down to visit fam in Arizona over the past week and both weekends. Got a couple random workouts in with my brother, not logged. Chest, back, arms. I threw in a couple sets of hex DL and barbell hack squats just to get something for legs.

Back in the gym today, bench was feeling pretty weak after the trip and a lot of poor eating and drinking choices. Should feel better after I recover lol.

[SaviorSelfJT]

I agree, we'll allow for some body English and eyeball a verdict with an upload (we'll need others' assessment, of course).

Yes, that's accurate. That was my old max last summer and I retested it a few weeks ago (and logged it here with a video), and even though I got it originally, the more recent lift was cleaner. That also felt as heavy as I could go without form deterioration. Also got 405x5, which is a far-cry from 10, but not entirely out of the ballpark.

Unlike what you've said about tending towards making your deadlift more of a squat-oriented motion, I err on the side of it being a pure hinge, with high hips and little knee flexion. Been deliberately working on this and bringing my legs into the lift more (a lot of this seems to be addressed by setup), so perhaps once I can properly utilize my legs and give my back a more advantageous angle for lockout, I'll be hitting some higher numbers soon.

Meantime though, my legs are quite posterior-dominant and I still have weak quads and poor strength executing the squat movement. On EC's recommendation, I'm doing this six week program primarily to remedy that weakness and also to gain some familiarity with structured programming.

How long have you been deadlifting? Awesome if so, but I would find someone quite an anomaly who could add weight past novice territory every three weeks without stalling.

I think the cause of my quad dominance (and poor deadlift) is how my squat technique is. I have more of an "olympic" style squat: vertical torso and going straight down instead of sitting back if that makes sense. Most people can get adequate hamstring/back work from squats to drive their deadlift. A few months ago I realized I needed more hamstring/work if I wanted to get my deadlift up. I don't think you can just change your form on a whim, instead it seems you have to bring the weak muscles up and then naturally your form will evolve to take advantage of them

I've been an on/off lifter for a very long time, like lift for a year then quit for a year. I've been lifting continuously since mid/late 2018 I think and taking it seriously. I've done deadlifts for most of that time, but I've always sucked at them

What's your weight? I mean if your huge then your numbers are more in line with the rest of the crowd!

I also don't like max rows because I feel it's kind of a continuum cheat→strict and it's hard to set a hard line.
I like weighted chins but not sure I'll get around to finding a good way to add weight.
I'll probably do 1rm OHP. I really need to program these in again soon.
I liked 1rm strict curl last year but no one else ended up doing it. It also takes some time to work on. I'd like to get 1 plate though.

My stats are about 5'7 and 200lbs. I want to put on more weight (maybe to 220) as long as I don't become a complete fatass. Larger muscles, wearing bigger clothes, lifting more weight etc is such an addicting feeling lol

I've done weighted chins by putting plates in a backpack

[WolfRose7]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlRrIsoDpKg

How does one realistically cheat this?

[EliKoehn]

C6W Week 2, Monday

Squat:
290 x MR/10 - achieved 10 @9 w/ moderate form deterioration on final reps
5 x 3 at 295 (60 second rest intervals)

Deficit Deadlift:
3 x 8 at 315

A.S.
Optional Exercise 1 (Seated Calf Raise)
3 x 12 w/ 45 added (paused)

Optional Exercise 2 (Leg Extension)
3 x 12 at 100



The angle is poor for assessing depth. A couple of those might still have been shallow, however. Apologies for the terrible video quality. Wanted to attempt this one with my music so I asked a friend to record and turns out the video quality doesn't carry over well via text, so we're going back to the 2000s on this one lol. At rep 7, you can see my back lose tension and start extending slightly to move the weight. That is poor form but I'm not sure how bad this was overall, for a max effort set to 10. That rep range with this weight is completely new territory for me, so while I acknowledge the form will need revision, it felt great finding this wasn't so insurmountable and getting it in one try. Criticism welcome - and I realize for the deadline 1RM it's competition form or bust.

Deficit deadlifts were interesting. Probably 20-25% harder than conventional off the floor. Also the one minute intervals, while challenging and leaving me drenched in sweat, weren't completely tortuous. It's relieving to know, simply plugging in your numbers and taking it one set at a time is all you have to direct your focus on, and knowing it's designed to carry you to real improvement in the long term.

Fatigue leaving the gym is still even better than last time, so it looks like I'm already reaping some conditioning benefits. Hoping the trend continues as these get even heavier.

EDIT: @EC, the chicken never tasted so good lol

[SaviorSelfJT]

IMO it looks like a fairly narrow stance -- combined with the back angle seems like theres no room to go lower otherwise your belly would run into your thighs.
Also a pretty horizontal back at the bottom, may be why you are posterior dominant. I think squat form is primarily determined by anatomy so maybe not anything you do can do about it. FWIW the way I think about squatting is "sitting straight down in between my feet" rather than sitting back

If you want to see my form, here's my 465lb squat: https://streamable.com/zrwbfp
With how little work I'm doing on my squat I'm unlikely to break this unless I change how I'm training I think

[ECGordyn]

...It's relieving to know, simply plugging in your numbers and taking it one set at a time is all you have to direct your focus on, and knowing it's designed to carry you to real improvement in the long term....

Yes that's a great feature of any program, especially the C6W as it's streamlined to a short-term goal so you quickly see progress.

Squats look great, Eli. Does look like you shift your feet around rep 4. To follow on what Savior said, I find a bit wider stance gives me better form with my high bar.

If you want to see my form, here's my 465lb squat: https://streamable.com/zrwbfp
With how little work I'm doing on my squat I'm unlikely to break this unless I change how I'm training I think

Very deep and admirable squat.
Vids on Youtube are a bit smoother if you'd want to post there instead.

[WolfRose7]

Good squats all round,
I'd agree on maybe bring the heels out wider for those Eli, probably more air needed.. But thays always going to die on 10 rep sets.

And I'd call that a nice 2nd attempt Savior.
If Ego stops being lazy maybe he can push your squat 😂.



Been fitting in my mid week bench early before work, bit rough when idiots in another flat wake you up mid sleep. But it's moving okay.
Relatively light for some of you lads, but we gradually moving back towards that 140 goalpost

[MyEgoProblem]

If Ego stops being lazy maybe he can push your squat

Can still take 200kg for a ride any day of the week

Its down brn but wouldnt take long b to be b back to 90%+ of my pr.

[ECGordyn]

Coincidentally did 2ct bench too today.

[DoMoreWeighLess]

I'm going to follow this thread for motivation. Keep working hard gentlemen

[DoMoreWeighLess]

C6W Week 2, Monday

Squat:
290 x MR/10 - achieved 10 @9 w/ moderate form deterioration on final reps
5 x 3 at 295 (60 second rest intervals)

Deficit Deadlift:
3 x 8 at 315

A.S.
Optional Exercise 1 (Seated Calf Raise)
3 x 12 w/ 45 added (paused)

Optional Exercise 2 (Leg Extension)
3 x 12 at 100



The angle is poor for assessing depth. A couple of those might still have been shallow, however. Apologies for the terrible video quality. Wanted to attempt this one with my music so I asked a friend to record and turns out the video quality doesn't carry over well via text, so we're going back to the 2000s on this one lol. At rep 7, you can see my back lose tension and start extending slightly to move the weight. That is poor form but I'm not sure how bad this was overall, for a max effort set to 10. That rep range with this weight is completely new territory for me, so while I acknowledge the form will need revision, it felt great finding this wasn't so insurmountable and getting it in one try. Criticism welcome - and I realize for the deadline 1RM it's competition form or bust.

Deficit deadlifts were interesting. Probably 20-25% harder than conventional off the floor. Also the one minute intervals, while challenging and leaving me drenched in sweat, weren't completely tortuous. It's relieving to know, simply plugging in your numbers and taking it one set at a time is all you have to direct your focus on, and knowing it's designed to carry you to real improvement in the long term.

Fatigue leaving the gym is still even better than last time, so it looks like I'm already reaping some conditioning benefits. Hoping the trend continues as these get even heavier.

EDIT: @EC, the chicken never tasted so good lol

Hmm you seem to have the same issues I've always had with squatting. I think ankle mobility work will help your form most immediately, and then overall your squat will get better with more flexible hips. That bottom part of the lift can be tough if you don't naturally just sink into it.

Fun anecdote, I remember a skater coming into the gym for the first time and basically rubbing his ass on the ground during squats without any prior training. His ankle flexibility was insane and I never really thought about how the hobby could transfer to the gym.

[DoMoreWeighLess]

Yeah, how did that feel compared to a regular close grip barbell bench? I've thought about using a hex bar for that but I don't think it would work because of the frame underneath the handle.

And.... turns out I can't even form an "easy" arch. Thanks for the reference Wolf because it looks like I'm going to need some pointers on this setup. Still managed one more rep than last time.



Flat Bench:
16, 10, 8, 8, 8

Going in for squats and back work tonight.

If you still are trying to arch, think of it like driving your upper back into the bench. I hold on to the bar to set my back up, then I set up my legs. Ignore if you have already figured this out. I'm just reading through this thread and noticed there are a lot of questions I've dealt with before.

[WolfRose7]

Coincidentally did 2ct bench too today.

And there was me somewhat content with 90 😂

[CW47]

Squat shoes, or some other method of elevating your heels, can also help enormously with getting extra depth on squats. It’s basically a bandaid solution for poor ankle mobility, but does the job very well.
On bench, it’s not so much the arch that makes a difference for me as it is the leg drive and overall tightness that comes with it. I focus on getting the back of my neck touching the bench, and then using my legs to push my body up the bench towards my head, but then try to have my neck/shoulders dug into the bench so much that they don’t move. This creates tension both in my back and legs, and helps the lift quite a lot even without an exaggerated arch.

[DoMoreWeighLess]

Squat shoes, or some other method of elevating your heels, can also help enormously with getting extra depth on squats. It’s basically a bandaid solution for poor ankle mobility, but does the job very well.
On bench, it’s not so much the arch that makes a difference for me as it is the leg drive and overall tightness that comes with it. I focus on getting the back of my neck touching the bench, and then using my legs to push my body up the bench towards my head, but then try to have my neck/shoulders dug into the bench so much that they don’t move. This creates tension both in my back and legs, and helps the lift quite a lot even without an exaggerated arch.

Great point on the shoes. Made a huge difference for me. Would rep but I'm out for today.

Wolfrose that setup is interesting but if it helps getting into position makes sense to me lol

[WolfRose7]

Great point on the shoes. Made a huge difference for me. Would rep but I'm out for today.

Wolfrose that setup is interesting but if it helps getting into position makes sense to me lol

I'm guessing you meant ECs bench.
I've used the same setup before, over time I found I got set better myself pulling the safeties to wedge back tight.

[EliKoehn]

@Savior, that squat was awesome. I was expecting you to stop parallel, but you went as low as it appears was anatomically possible. At that weight, too, that's truly humbling and impressive. And yeah, I really would like to see Ego actually try. I believe him on his former stats being the best in this thread, which would make this a lot more fun. As long as it's not a legitimate injury risk thing, in all seriousness I'd like to see this "any day of the week" card actually in play. At that level of strength you should be competitive here without having to try that hard.

Good benches Wolf and EC.

And thanks all, on the squat. Not sure why I wasn't thinking to go wider on the setup; IIRC it wasn't even on my mind. Think gearing for the challenge occupied my mind and I should have thought of that and not lost sight of the proper setup. That still went better than I was anticipating and I'll continue to revise the form, as needed. Are stretches/accessory exercises going to do much in the way of improving hip/ankle mobility, or would I be best served simply working on tech work for the squat itself?

C6W Week 2, Tuesday

Flat Bench:
230 x 10, 245 x 8, 255 x 6-8 (8 achieved @8.5)

Pendlay Row:
185 x 10, 205 x 8, 205 x 8

Lateral Raise:
25s x 10, 30s x 8, 35s x 6

Lat Pulldown:
170 x 10, 190 x 8, 210 x 6

A.S.
Optional Exercise 1 (Strict Barbell Curl):
3 x 8 at 95

Optional Exercise 2 (Standing OHP):
3 x 12 at 95

Surprisingly, the benching was fairly challenging while the rows felt great (honestly the last rep was probably @6). A little strange since I hadn't pressed since Saturday but had plenty of back volume with heavy squats and deads yesterday. Keeping the back and hips solid and fixed and I feel the isometric load on the hamstrings before exploding upward. Working on reducing the eccentric as I find myself lowering it down slowly, still. Will upload a form video next time on these to make sure I'm not unknowingly extending my back, but these do feel really good and controlled.

Also failed my OHP finisher of 3x12 at 95 in a previous workout where I selected that, so getting that without too much difficulty is promising, even if it's not all that heavy anyway.

[ECGordyn]

@And thanks all, on the squat. Not sure why I wasn't thinking to go wider on the setup; IIRC it wasn't even on my mind. Think gearing for the challenge occupied my mind and I should have thought of that and not lost sight of the proper setup. That still went better than I was anticipating and I'll continue to revise the form, as needed. Are stretches/accessory exercises going to do much in the way of improving hip/ankle mobility, or would I be best served simply working on tech work for the squat itself?

Your next squat day has 10x3, as you know. Good opportunity to experiment with different tech changes. Try one stance for a few sets, different stance for a few, so on. Wider stance you'll get a bit more adductors.

Important thing for volume days is just getting in the work. Intensity days are where tech is more important. Don't overthink it.

[DoMoreWeighLess]

And thanks all, on the squat. Not sure why I wasn't thinking to go wider on the setup; IIRC it wasn't even on my mind. Think gearing for the challenge occupied my mind and I should have thought of that and not lost sight of the proper setup. That still went better than I was anticipating and I'll continue to revise the form, as needed. Are stretches/accessory exercises going to do much in the way of improving hip/ankle mobility, or would I be best served simply working on tech work for the squat itself?

.

front squats help. Even just holding a dumbbell or plate. Ankle stretches should become part of your routine either at the gym or before bed.

Theres also a technique where you squat on your toes, back against the wall, qnd place a bar on your knees. many ways to go about it just make sure you stretch the whole thing.

[CW47]

Nice benching @Wolf & EC. Both looked smooth and easy.

Good solid workout Eli. You've been stringing together some really well rounded sessions that I'm sure are going to pay off for you.


I did my Max Effort Lower workout today:
Sumo Deadlift: 355 pounds x 1 rep [PR]
Block Pull - 3 inch: 310 pounds - 5 sets x 5 reps
Cable Row: 100 pounds - 3 sets x 10 reps
Face Pull: Mini Band - 3 sets x 20 reps

Good solid back work today. I'm pumped about the Sumo PR. I've really not been doing sumo at all, and this 10 pound PR went up pretty easily. Was a bit ugly though. Balance was off and struggled more with the lockout than off the floor, which is not something I've experienced with this lift before. I actually failed the first attempt because grip gave out 2/3 of the way up (double overhand). Strapped up for the second attempt because mixed grip reps felt awkward today. Would've probably made an attempt with more weight if I had made 355 on the first attempt. I'm really encouraged by the PR though. My conventional and Sumo seem to be progressing in basically equal proportion for me, so this bodes well for my conventional deadlift as well.

[SaviorSelfJT]

Logging a workout here:

Presses-
up to 185x1
then 155x14 (failed 15)
Was considering trying 205 for 2 or 3 reps, but 185 felt heavy enough that it would have been a waste. Dropped weight and did reps
VID: https://streamable.com/a320hb


Deadlift-
up to 435x4
(last week I did 435x3, then before that 425x5 then before that 425x3)
(my general scheme here is start with 3 reps, then next week do another rep, after I get 5 reps, +10 more pounds and go back to 3 reps)
VID: https://streamable.com/uvpypk

RDL-
up to 315x20 (with straps)
mother of all hamstring pumps. And 5-10 minutes after this I was sweating bullets
not going all the way to the floor, just a bit past knees
VID: https://streamable.com/q0f6av