Box squat (roughly parallel) 275x3x3
Reverse band squat 315x2x3
Military press 115x5; 125x2x3
EZ bar curls 75x3x10
Overhead extensions 75x3x10
Snatch-grip DLs 275x2x8
Back in my equipped days I did box squats almost exclusively and now they feel like a really weird movement to me. Regardless, weight moved easy and knee held up just fine. I focused on getting good quality reps on the reverse band squats (used looped monster minis for ~45lb deload). Rest of the stuff was standard Day 1 just lighter, though I did switch the incline bench for military press because setting up the bench for just a couple of sets is too much of a pain to bother with. Pull-ups I’ll do tomorrow.
Spoto press 235x3x3
Deadlift 395x3x3
RDL 295x8
Band leg curls light band x3x10
Pull-ups BW x2x10
Nothing much to say about this. Easy and over in about 20 minutes. Did do the deadlifts with the power bar and no belt, so a little bit harder than expected but nothing crazy.
Bench press 225x3x5
CG bench press 185x2x5
Low Bar Squat B 245x5x3
Belt Squat 100x2x15
Band face pulls average x2x15
Band pushdowns average x2x10
It’s a good thing this week was a deload, otherwise it would have suuuuuuuuucked because my brain is absolutely fried from work. And I’ve still got more stuff to finish up by Tuesday.
Low bar squat A 295x2x3
Reverse band squat 335x3x3
Spoto press 255x5 RPE 7; 235x2x5
EZ Bar curls 80x2x8 RPE 7
Overhead extensions 80x2x8 RPE 7
Pullups BWx3x10
Prep for December meet starts next week. Might repeat the last rehab week for my knee. Everything felt fine today, but I just want to tread carefully with it.
Competition bench press 235x5x3 RPE 7
Deadlift 425x3; 390x5x3
Hip thrusts 135x4x8 RPE 7
Band leg curls light x3x8 RPE 7
Bit of a challenge because it was just 24 hours removed from the previous session and I kept the rest between sets down to 2 minutes or so. Everything still felt pretty easy overall, though it has been ages since I did hip thrusts and I had to figure out where to put the bar so it didn’t sit right on the site where I had my hernia repair last summer.
Competition bench press 265x3; 245x4x3
Low Bar Squat 265x3x3
One-arm DB press 35x4x8 RPE 6-7
Split Squat 95x2x8 RPE 7
Band face pulls light x3x12 RPE 7
Band pushdowns light x3x8 RPE 7
End of the line for this 4-week cycle, so I’ll officially move into the training cycle for the December meet. Interested to see what the setup is going to be and more importantly I’d like to get back to the point where I’m not like the average gym bro whose bar weight on the squat <= bench press bar weight.
And so it begins - first week of meet prep. I’m going to stick to the lower end of the range each week for squats because I’m really trying to focus on getting my bracing to be more consistent. Reps were nice and snappy, though my limited levels of squatting over the past several week has cost me some endurance. I increased the angle for the incline bench and started at relatively low 185 just to make sure I leave myself some room to increase the weight each week but stay in the proper RPE. No sense overshooting on an assistance exercise. Decently hot and humid day today so I was toast by the end of the snatch-grip pulls.
Spoto presses 235x5x5 RPE 7
Deadlifts 365x5; 345x5x5 (no belt, double overhand on all)
BB hip thrusts 155x4x8 RPE 7 (still figuring these out)
Band leg curls light x3x10 RPE 8
So far so good. Presses went up nice and easy. I will use the TX power bar for the first 4 weeks to get some carryover with the DL bar. Also went double overhand just because I felt like it. Hands got a little chewed up, but no problem holding on since it was only 365. Once I figured out a way to rig up a pad for the bar, the hip thrusts didn’t feel like they were going to squish my guts lol. Will say they do force you to activate your glutes.
Bench press 215x5; 205x5x5
Low Bar Squat B 255x3x5
Military press 115x5x5 RPE 7
SSB Squat 225x3x5 RPE 7
Band face pulls averagex3x15 RPE 8
Band pushdowns 3x15 RPE 8
Good close to the week. Bench sets were easy though I was a bit sore from Wednesday’s Spoto presses. Used the SSB for the first time in what seems like an eternity and it was every bit as hard as I remember it even with the light bar weight.
Low Bar Squat A 285x5; 265x4x5
Incline bench press 195x3x5 RPE 7
Snatch-grip DL 305x3x10 RPE 8
EZ bar curls 85x3x10 RPE 8
Overhead band extensions light x3x10 RPE 8
Pull-ups (legs straight ahead) BWx3x10 RPE 8
Rushed the first couple of reps on the top set of squats, but got my act together on the last three. Weight moved easy regardless. It was pretty friggin’ hot in the garage so I decided to move the snatch-grip DLs to earlier in the session, otherwise it would have been brutal to close it out with 3 sets of 10.
Spoto presses 245x4x5 RPE 7
Deadlift 385x5 (no belt, DOH);365x5x5
BB Hip thrusts 175x3x8 RPE 7
Band leg curls light x3x10 RPE 8
Bumped up the Spotos by 10 pounds and still rated out at an RPE of 7, so no problems there. Another week of deadlifts with the power bar, no belt and double overhand grip for all 5 reps on the top set. Cheated and used straps for the 365x5 sets because my poor hands had had enough.
Competition bench 235x5; 225x5x5
Low Bar Squat B 275x3x5 (no belt)
Military press 125x4x5 RPE 7.5
SSB squats 245x2x5 RPE 8
Band face pulls light x3x15 RPE 8
Band pushdowns light x3x10 RPE 8
Even with the pauses on all 5 reps, 235 basically felt like a warm-up set (as did the back-off sets). I’m feeling better with squats and have really been trying to focus on bracing. Presses would have been a 7 across the board, but I dinged the RPE a bit to reflect some sloppy form caused by lack of focus on the 3rd set. SSB is still harder than hell.
Low Bar Squat A (no belt) 305x5; 280x4x5
Incline bench 205x3x5 RPE 7
Snatch-grip DLs 315x2x10 RPE 8
EZ-bar curls 90x3x8 RPE 8
Overhead band extensions light x3x10 RPE 8
Pull-ups (legs ahead) BWx3x10 RPE 8
Heaviest set of squats I’ve had in over 2 months and it felt like it, too. It wasn’t hard per se, but definitely a challenge, especially without the belt. I’ll put the belt back on after this 4-wk cycle and stick with the weights on the low end of the range. Rest of the session was solid overall; pull-ups with your legs straight-ahead make for a hell of full torso exercise - give 'em a shot.
Spoto presses 255x4x5 RPE 7.5
Conventional DL 405x5; 385x5x5 (no belt)
BB Hip thrusts 195x2x8 RPE 8
Band leg curls light x3x10 RPE 8
Bench variations still going in a positive direction. I called the RPE on Spotos a 7.5 because the last set was slower than I would have liked. Kept the belt off again for the pulling; top set of 405x5 was snappy and no real problem with the back-off sets.
Competition Bench Press 250x5; 230x5x5
Low Bar Squat B 295x3x5
Military press 135x4x5 RPE 8
SSB Squats 265x2x5 RPE 8
Band face pulls average x3x15 RPE 8
Band pushdwons average x3x10 RPE 8
Bench felt pretty solid and my military press is finally entering not-totally-embarrassing territory. Squats weren’t bad. Trying to get my bracing solidified and get more efficient with my setup after I take the bar off the j-hooks.
Low Bar Squat A 325x5 RPE 10; 290x3x5 (no belt)
Incline bench press 220x2x5 RPE 8
Snatch-grip DLs 325x3x8 RPE 8
EZ-bar Curls 95x3x8 RPE 8
Overhead band extensions average x3x10 RPE 8
Haven’t gone this heavy on squats since my knee started acting up after that dumb slip on the stairs a couple of months ago. First 4 reps I had pretty good cadence and not a lot of struggle, but I got out of groove on the 5th and so I had to count it as a 10 on the ol’ RPE scale. Back-off sets weren’t tough, but they were a bit on the tiring side because it was still around 80 degrees in the garage. I don’t know how much the snatch-grip DLs are helping my regular pulls, but I can really feel them light up almost the entire back portion of my torso. I’ll get to the pull-ups on Tuesday or Wednesday when I have a little more time to play with.
Spoto press 265x5x5 RPE 8.5
Deadlift 425x5 RPE 9; 385x5x5 (no belt)
BB Hip thrusts 205x3x8 RPE 8
Band leg curls average x3x10 RPE 8
First few sets of Spoto presses were easy, so I opted to lower my fatigue rating down to 1 and the spreadsheet bumped me up to a 5th set. Probably should have just left it the way it was, because that extra set pushed me past an 8 up to maybe a 9. Technically I could say it scored as an 8.2, but whatever.
I wasn’t sure how high to push the deadlifts this week since warmups felt kind of blah and I didn’t want to jump to a weight where I could only get 3 reps or fail halfway on rep 4. Last time I did something similar my lower back fatigue was a 5 for a few weeks. I ended up at 425 and although the last rep wasn’t easy, there was more left in the tank for more bar weight or another rep. Think I ended up at a happy medium. Will be interested to see how this building phase with the TX power bar and no belt helps for when I go back to the DL bar and belt for the next 10 weeks or so.
Competition bench press 265x5 RPE 9; 240x5x5
Low Bar Squat B 305x3x5
Military press 140x2x5 RPE 8,9
Had limited time today so I was only able to get the first half of the session, but I think it was the most important stuff. I’ll do some extra sets on assistance work next since it starts a deload for the main lifts. Bench felt good despite a little lingering soreness from Wednesday. Squats were kind of rough because of lower back fatigue from deadlifts, but squat day B usually feels crappy anyway lol. Had to hustle to get the military presses done and it cost me oomph on the second set.
Low Bar Squat A 255x3x5
Incline Bench 190x2x5
Snatch-grip DLs 275x3x10
EZ-bar curls 75x3x10
Band pushdowns average x3x10
Pull-ups Bwx2x10
Notes: Easy stuff for today. I put the belt on to get re-acclimated as I haven’t used it in at least a couple of months. Felt a little weird at first, but quickly got the hang of it after the first set.
