A little too far removed from the roofing lifestyle. I feel like I got hit by a train today. Roofing is one of those things that doesn’t seem too terrible while you’re doing it, then the day after you realize just how hard you worked.
Still trying to get all of the cedar dust out of my nostrils… this coming week is going to be rough, I can already tell.
2LL4
OHP
85x3
100x3
110x3
120x1
10x5 at 100lb
SS
Incline DB press 1x20, 1x16
Pull up 7,6,6
BBS sets were a grind from the start. Rest times went from 2 mins to 3.5 mins by set 4.
Saturday had a pretty big impact on my stuff today. Joint pain still, and my appetite has been a little lackluster, so I’m assuming I’m under recovering. Weighed 214 before bed, so the scale is a little light. Might also be hydration though. Will check again towards the end of the week.
Work sucked today, super busy as it’s been getting below 50 here at night. I spent the first 1.5hrs today on the phone just fielding service calls.
Plan is to crush this week and then no alcohol this coming weekend to help recovery, get through next week and have a much needed deload.
2LL4
Deadlift
240x3
275x3
305x3
345x1
5x5 at 275
SS
RDF x3
Band curls x 3
HLR 3x15
345 moved very quickly. Feeling good today.
Quick side note(s)
Purchased (6) 3’x4’ horse stall mats, 1/2" thick last weekend. Picking up a few sheets of plywood this weekend and going to build a DL platform, and a squat/bench platform. The hardwoods are bowing like crazy under my squat rack. I’m not concerned about preserving them as they’re going to be ripped out at some point soon, but with the weight on squat and DL going up, I’m legitimately concerned about busting through the floor. End goal is to install a unit heater in the garage and move all of my shit out there, make a few level platforms on one side, and lift in there. Going to start pricing out a few things to make that happen.
Woke up today and the base of the right side of my neck, where it meets my trap, is hurting like crazy. Difficult to look up or to the right. Did some wrenching yesterday and a few times where the pipes let free were pretty quick and intense. Wondering if that has anything to do with it.
Benching later.
Last night’s dinner seems like something a 5th grader would come up with.
Cuban pizza and 7 chicken wings
2 bowls of cereal with milk and 2 scoop metabolic drive
So pizza, chicken wings, and essentially cereal with chocolate milk.
2LL4
Bench
145x3
165x3
185x3
205x1
5x5 at 165
165x3
205x1
Bench pin press
3x10 at 145
@Lundrball @T3hPwnisher (and anyone else for that matter) uploaded a couple vids of 165 and 205 if you wouldn’t mind making some criticisms.
No extra assistance as my neck/trap is still lit up pretty bad. Got progressively worse throughout the day. Deload week can’t come quick enough.
On another note, I need to get some more bicep and tricep work in!!! My arms looking tiny info the videos, and in one of them it looks like my forearms are as big as my biceps lol.
Nice.
I often add cereal after dinner in the evening, but I’ve never dared add protein to it!
I can’t take credit for it, pwn gave me the suggestion. I highly recommend it, though he ate it post workout… I guess my dinner is technically my post workout meal? That’s how I justify it anyway.
Nothing too bad. You’re reaching to unrack, guessing losing position. Try adding blocks below your bench and feet to lower pegs in relation to bench. No leg drive. Look at the angle of your leg, hard to transfer force from pushing on the floor in that setup. Bar path is drifting back a little. There’s vids galore out there but off the top of my head Mark Bell back when Silent Mike was at Supertraining. Those two had great series of tutorials. Also get some yoga mats below the rack to keep from sliding until you get your platform built.
You are SUPER far away from the bar when you unrack and are basically doing a pullover into position, which is most likely causing you to lose tension. Once again, I’m not a great bencher, but look at how little the bar moves from when I unrack it
I get wanting to have clearance from the j-hooks, but that’s putting you at a disadvantage from the start. I’d put my head much further up the pad.
Glad the cereal and protein powder works for you. I still love that trick. Been using it on the road.
Beastly looking with the axle and weight stack. Nice work grinding that last rep out.
Thanks man. It was legit just the first video I found on my youtube channel after searching “bench”, haha.
@Lundrball @T3hPwnisher thanks guys, I’ll put those suggestions to good use. I’ll move my head further up on the pad for sure. I also noticed pwn how quickly you initiate your first rep, like its all one movement, from unrack to rep. I piss around at the top trying to get tight again.
I’m going to do a little research and check on different bench heights as well… I’m just guessing but I think my bench is a good couple of inches shorter than I need it to be.Its an incline bench, and while I like it for that fact, it moves around quite a bit and when I lay on it, my knees are at or above the height of my chest(which, after countless youtube dives, seems to not be good for leg drive?) I’m pretty sure I’d be better suited with an actual flat bench that has adjustable height, if there is such a thing.
I’ve been whining about having to lift the bar out of the rack for a while now and I have put those yoga pads under the bench but that doesn’t help with my leg positioning. I think I need either better ankle mobility (again, is there such a thing?) To plant my feet square on the ground, or a taller bench for that same reason.
I’m going to be picking up some plywood for the platforms this weekend, so I’ll see if I can make something to stick under the bench to raise it up without it raising my feet off the floor.
Again, thanks for the tips.
Edit: nevermind, just looked up bench height, mine is 17" minus whatever compression my fat ass creates on the pad… standards are 17-18".
Look up Thompson Fat Pad, likely an investment but they’re great. If the two at my gym are tied up I’ll go do something else until they open up. For years at my previous gym the squat rack was similar to yours with fixed pegs. I also lost tightness unracking heavy squats, sucked. Power rack to adjust j hooks is so much better.
I’ll look into that, thanks.
I’ll put the half rack in the “things I wish I had known” category. Hopefully building a platform will help with all of this.
2LL4
Squat
220x3
250x3
285x3
315x1
220x20
Got in, did the shit, and got the fuck out. I’m exhausted.
3LL4
OHP
85x3
100x3
110x3
120x1
10x5 at 100
Pushups 3 sets
DB hammer curls 3 sets
2 min rest on BBS sets, last set was a real grind. May not do BBS next leader due to time constraints.
Edit: I have a feeling rest periods are going to have to increase on BBS stuff.
That press is hard to grow. Of all my nebulous “goals”, a 135lb press (then 135 for reps)is probably the most top of my mind right now; yet so far away.
Once, a heavyset guy came into the gym, threw 135 in, and began warmups strict pressing it, high reps. I watched in horror as he moved easily up to 225, and possibly beyond (memory blocked).
Swallowing my pride, I asked him how he trained the press. His answer?
“I don’t really lift. My friends were doing it so I tried it, and it turns out I’m really good at it”.
In fairness he easily outweighed my by 100+lbs but still…
Do you have a particular press goal? Or just, more x more?
Press and bench have always been rough for me. I have a self diagnosed issue with my left arm which flares up from time to time. When I’m pressing I can really feel whatever “it” is sucking power from my left arm, so I’ve been adding in db stuff to try and get my left arm stronger. My proportions don’t necessarily help me out in either department, but I’d figure after ~30 months of lifting my press numbers would be way better than they are.
Judging just by what I’ve read on here, higher bodyweight=better pressing. Been gaining weight trying to test that out for myself, and I think it’s working, but as of right now I’m pretty fatigued. I think after deload the anchor stuff will be good.
I mostly bench and press because it’s in the program and my chest and shoulders are severely lacking in the size department haha.
No real short term goals for press, I’d like to hit a 2 plate bench just to get it over with… but in a few more months of Leviathan I should get there just through the programming.
My main goals as of now are DL and squat orientated, just because I absolutely love those lifts… Since day 1 I’ve been aiming for a 405 pull, which I absolutely think I have in me now, but I’ll be patient.
I second the motion that Press is a bitch. I really enjoy pressing, but I suck at it (96 months of lifting compared to your 30 and I’m not much better off than you are) and I want to get a lot better. There’s a lot more of a form aspect to it than most would imagine, you have to find your optimal press form to make progress.
Also, given what I’ve seen of your deadlift, you definitely have 405 in you now.
