Cyberwar's Log

Training Logs
1

Stats:

  • Male, 20 years old
  • 6’ 1" / 185 cm
  • 205 lbs / 93 kg
  • Front squat: 5x92,5 kg
  • Bench: 2x2 @ 95 kg last time I trained it
  • Pull-ups: 17 strict reps done by military form standards (full stretch, chin over bar, no kipping at all)
  • Progress pictures in my hub, if anyone finds that relevant.
  • Currently in the military, hence my nickname.

I have lifted free weights for exactly 2 years now. I’ve trained 3 years in total I think, but I was stupid enough to trust gym employees and spent only time on machines until I started to figure stuff out on my own. I have been reading T-Nation for 2 years, but I decided to join first now as I’m not a complete newb anymore (or so I like to think). I’ll try to make this log a little bit interesting by uploading training clips, pictures or whatever.

The routine I am currently following is a lower body strength spec (thanks Christian Thibaudeau!) aimed at my front squat and deadlift. There’s a possibility that I will have to abort it and start all over because of summer vacation in a couple of weeks, but I am sticking to it at the moment as the routine feels downright awesome.

Here’s my routine:

DAY 1. Deadlift and assistance work
DAY 2. Upper body pushing
DAY 3. OFF
DAY 4. Front squat and assistance work
DAY 5. OFF
DAY 6. Upper body pulling
DAY 7. OFF

DEADLIFT SESSION:
A) Deadlift standing on a podium
Week 1: Ramping sets of 3 reps
Week 2: Ramping sets of 2 reps
Week 3: Ramping sets of 1 rep
*At week 4 replace the deadlift on a podium with regular deadlifts
Week 4: Ramping sets of 3 reps
Week 5: Ramping sets of 2 reps
Week 6: Ramping sets of 1 rep

B) Romanian deadlift 4-5 sets of 5 reps

C) Back extension 1-2 sets of max reps

D) Glute-ham raise 1-2 sets of max reps

FRONT SQUAT SESSION
A) No-hands front squat (http://jva.ontariostrongman.ca/FS.htm)
Week 1: Ramping sets of 3 reps
Week 2: Ramping sets of 2 reps
Week 3: Ramping sets of 1 rep
*At 4 weeks switch to regular front squats
Week 4: Ramping sets of 3 reps
Week 5: Ramping sets of 2 reps
Week 6: Ramping sets of 1 rep

B) Jump squat with 30% of the max weight you used for front squats 5 sets of 5

C) Back squat 1 sets of max reps with the max weight you used for front squats

D) Leg extension 1-2 sets of max reps (shoot for anything between 8 and 15)

2

Last weeks messy recap of main lifts (not all exercises are written down):

FS session:
Ramped up to 3 x 90 kg no hands front squat

Upper body push:
Ramped up to 4x60 kg military press
Ramped up to 8x40 kg flat db bench

Deadlift session:
Ramped up to 3 x 90 kg podium deadlift - tried this one for the first time and I had the platform set too high I think
5x5 romanian deadlift (70 kg, 75 kg, 77,5 kg, 80 kg, 82,5 kg)

Upper body pull:
3x8 Barbell row (70 kg, 75 kg, 80 kg)

3

DEADLIFT DAY

Podium deadlift
2 x 60 kg
2 x 67,5 kg
2 x 75 kg
2 x 82,5 kg
2 x 90 kg
2 x 100 kg
2 x 105 kg

Romanian deadlift
5 x 77,5 kg
5 x 82,5 kg
5 x 87,5 kg
5 x 92,5 kg

Video of last set. I think I had a litte flexion in my lower back. Should have bent my knees a tad more.

Back raise
20 x 15 kg

Glute ham raise
5 x bw
6 x bw

Hanging leg raises
3x12

4

UPPER BODY PUSH

Military press
5 x 30 kg
5 x 37,5 kg
5 x 45 kg
5 x 52,5 kg
5 x 60 kg - 1 rep PR

Flat DB bench
30 kg
35 kg
10 x 40 kg - 2 rep PR - video clip
5 x 42,5 kg - felt strong so I ramped it further up - PR as well

JM-press
8 x 50 kg
8 x 60 kg
6 x 65 kg

Dips
8 x bw
8 x bw

Leaning lateral raises
15 x 10 kg
15 x 12 kg

5

Military press 5x60 kg video

6

FRONT SQUAT DAY

No hands front squat
5 x bar
5 x 40 kg
2 x 60 kg
2 x 65 kg
2 x 70 kg
2 x 75 kg
2 x 80 kg - started to feel the weight here
2 x 85 kg
2 x 90 kg
2 x 92,5 kg

Jump squat
3x5 @ 30 kg

Only did 3 sets because of time.

Back squat
10 x 80 kg

Horrible technique. I’m not built for backsquatting. I’ve tried lumberjack and db squats instead, but it didn’t work out. I gotta figure this one out until next week.

Leg extension
15 x 70 kg
15 x 80 kg

Steep hill sprints
10 x 30 m

Mostly for rehab

7

Barbell row
10 x 70 kg
10 x 80 kg - 4 reps more than last week, PR!
8 x 85 kg - Sloppy form at the end

Narrow grip pull-ups
6 x bw
6 x bw + 10 kg
6 x bw + 20 kg
8 x bw

Rear delt flyes
2 sets

EZ curls
10 x 27,5 kg
10 x 35 kg
10 x 40 kg

8

DEADLIFT DAY

Warm up
Rehab
Dynamic stretches

Podium deadlift
1 x 70 kg
1 x 77,5 kg
1 x 85 kg
1 x 90 kg
1 x 97,5 kg
1 x 102,5 kg
1 x 107,5 kg
1 x 112,5 kg

Romanian deadlift
5 x 80 kg
5 x 85 kg
5 x 90 kg
5 x 95 kg
5 x 100 kg

Natural glute ham raise
6 x bw
8 x bw

Back extension
15 x bw
20 x bw + 15 kg

PR’s all the way.

9

Tight schedule today, and I was not feeling too well so I did not push myself that much this time. I went in with the intent to lift the same weight as last time, and accomplished.

Military press
3 x 30 kg
3 x 37,5 kg
3 x 45 kg
3 x 52,5 kg
4 x 60 kg

Flat DB press
6 x 32,5 kg
6 x 37,5 kg
5 x 42,5 kg

Dips
2x10

Lateral raises
2 sets

10

FRONT SQUAT DAY

No-hands front squat
1 x 60 kg
1 x 65 kg
1 x 70 kg
1 x 75 kg
1 x 80 kg
1 x 85 kg
1 x 90 kg
1 x 95 kg

Jump squat
4x5 @ 30 kg

Front squat
2x10 @ 60 kg

Back squats and lumberjack squats didn’t work out, and this is the only bilateral substitute.

Leg extension
15 x 70 kg
15 x 80 kg

Running
2 x 60 m sprint
4 x 100 m sprint
Finished off with some jogging

My elbows hurt because of the running. I wonder how pressing will be tomorrow.

11

I’m back from vacation. I trained at the hotel gym, but I had to go off the program due to the fact that they didn’t have a olympic barbell. Dumbbells also only went up to 32 kg, so I ended up doing 15 rep incline presses and 20 rep db rows and the like.

Front squat
3 x 60 kg
3 x 65 kg
3 x 70 kg
3 x 75 kg
3 x 80 kg
3 x 85 kg
3 x 90 kg
3 x 95 kg

Heavy.

Jump squats
4x5 @ 30 kg

Leg press
15 x 80 kg
15 x 120 kg
10 x 160 kg
10 x 200 kg
5 x 240 kg

Tried a decent leg press for the first time in a very long time. I’m supposed to do an all out set here but since it was a new exercise I ramped the weights carefully.

Leg extension
15 x 80 kg
13 x 85 kg

Hanging leg raises
3x10

12

Yesterday

Military press
5 x 30 kg
5 x 37,5 kg
5 x 45 kg
3 x 52,5 kg
5 x 60 kg PR

DB press
8 x 30 kg
6 x 34 kg
6 x 40 kg

I was really weak on these this time

Lateral raises
15 x 8 kg
12 x 10 kg
10 x 12 kg 10 x 8 kg

PJR pullover/Dips
8 x 30 kg / 8 x bw
8 x 30 kg / 7 x bw

13

Deadlift
3 x 70 kg
3 x 77,5 kg
3 x 85 kg
3 x 92,5 kg
3 x 100 kg
3 x 107,5 kg
3 x 115 kg
3 x 122,5 kg

Romanian deadlift
5 x 80 kg
5 x 85 kg
5 x 90 kg
5 x 95 kg
5 x 100 kg

Seated leg curl
15 x 40 kg
15 x 60 kg
8 x 80 kg

Back extension
2 sets

Hanging leg raises
3x12

Bad training. I travelled today, ate little and in addition I got a cold :confused:

14

Barbell row
10 x 60 kg
10 x 70 kg
10 x 80 kg

Pull-ups dropset
15 kg - 10 kg - 5 kg - bw

I got like 8 reps with 15 kg

Narrow cable rows
10 x 50 kg
12 x 40 kg

Focus on technique and contraction → low weight

Rear delt flyes
2x15 @ 5 kg

Hammercurls
10 x 10 kg
10 x 14 kg
8 x 20 kg
8 x 24 kg

New gym while on vacation back home, so most of the equipment is new and unfamiliar, and it affects the lifts. Db grip is a lot thicker, machines are new, nowhere to do glute ham raises etc. Can’t wait until I get back to base where I am used to the equipment.

15

Military press
5 x 30 kg
5 x 37,5 kg
5 x 45 kg
4 x 52,5 kg
6 x 60 kg - PR

Flat DB press
6 x 26 kg
6 x 32 kg
6 x 38 kg
5 x 42 kg - I’ll call it a PR

Still not used to these dumbbells. Grip is thicker, and the weights have ball bearings, so they revolve just like on a bar.

Lateral raises
12 x 8 kg
12 x 10 kg
12 x 10 kg

Skullcrushers
10 x 27,5 kg
10 x 27,5 kg
10 x 32,5 kg
10 x 35 kg

Yay! Finally, after two years with sporadic experimenting i found out a great way to do these without elbowpain. They worked my triceps great, and pain was non-existent.

Dips
10 x bw
10 x bw

16

Front squat
5 x bar
2 x 40 kg

2 x 60 kg
2 x 65 kg
2 x 70 kg
2 x 75 kg
2 x 80 kg
2 x 85 kg
2 x 90 kg
2 x 97,5 kg PR!

Could have gotten more, but I feel that the front squat is the kind of lift where you don’t want to push it too far. I’ll rather blast all out next week!

Jump squats
4x5 @ 30 kg

I haven’t increased weight on these, but I still feel I have become better

Leg press
15 x something
15 x 160 kg
10 x 200 kg

Leg extension
15 x 70 kg - slow negative
15 x 80 kg - all I had, probably PR

Hanging leg raises
2 sets

Trained with a friend today, so the breaks were longer than I usually would do.

17

I’m back at base now, so diet and training has gone back to normal.

DEADLIFT DAY

Warm-up
Some prehab/rehab for hips (I have some tight muscles that causes one leg to act a tad bit longer than the other)
5 min on elliptical
Dynamic lower body drills

Deadlift
2 x 70 kg
2 x 77,5 kg
2 x 87,5 kg
2 x 95 kg
2 x 102,5 kg
2 x 110 kg
2 x 117,5 kg
2 x 127,5 kg - PR, but I could have done more, but stopped for the prescribed number of reps since the last one was relatively slow.

Romanian deadlift
5 x 90 kg
5 x 92,5 kg
5 x 97,5 kg
5 x 102,5 kg
5 x 107,5 kg - PR

Back extension
15 x 15 kg
20 x 20 kg

Natural glute ham raise
5 x bw
7 x bw

DIET TODAY

Breakfast:
4 eggs
2 slices of bread
2 big slices of ham + cheese
Tomato and cucumber
A glass of milk

At school
2 youghurts
Banana
Coffee

Lunch
2 eggs
4 slices of bread
Mackerel
Veggies

At school
2 carrots

Dinner
Salmon, 250 g
4 potatoes
Gravy
Sauteed veggies

Strawberries and watermelon for dessert

Training

Post work-out
30 g of protein isolate (50/50 whey/casein, 90% purity) mixed in milk
300 g chicken
Spaghetti + Pasta sauce, enough to fill a big plate.

Before bed
300 g cottage cheese, and probably something more for the taste

18

2 days ago: Upper body pull

BB rows
8 x 70 kg
8 x 80 kg
8 x 85 kg

Pull-ups (semi-wide)
8 x bw
8 x bw + 5 kg
8 x bw + 10 kg

Chest supported row
10 x 40 kg
10 x 50 kg

Unilateral machine row
2x10 @ 30 kg

DB Hammercurls
8 x 17,5 kg
8 x 20 kg
7 x 25 kg

Today: Front squat day

Front squat
1 x 60 kg
1 x 67,5 kg
1 x 75 kg
1 x 82,5 kg
1 x 90 kg
1 x 97,5 kg
1 x 102,5 kg PR
0 x 110 kg

Explosive front squats (forgot my shoes → couldn’t do jump squats)
3x5 @60 kg

DB squat
15 x (2x35 kg)
15 x (2x37,5 kg)

Leg extension machine was broken, so I had to skip it.

Hanging leg raises
15
15
20 with straps - PR

Planks
30 seconds
1 minute

19

Military press
5 x 30 kg
5 x 37,5 kg
5 x 45 kg
5 x 52,5 kg
6 x 60 kg - Same PR as last time, but the bar I used this time is actually thicker and about 2 kg heavier (I don’t count them)

Flat DB bench
5 x 25 kg
5 x 32,5 kg
5 x 37,5 kg
7 x 42,5 kg - PR! 2 reps more than last time

Unilateral cable lateral raises
12 x 10 kg
10 x 13 kg
8 x 15 kg
10 x 10 kg

Dips
10 x bw
8 x bw 7,5 kg
6 x bw 15 kg
6 x bw 20 kg

Skullcrushers
10 x 27,5 kg
8 x 32,5 kg
6 x 35 kg

20

Deadlift
1 x 80 kg
1 x 90 kg
1 x 100 kg
1 x 110 kg
1 x 117,5 kg
1 x 125 kg
1 x 135 kg
1 x 140 kg
1 x 145 kg
1 x 150 kg
1 x 155 kg
1 x 160 kg - PR!!! This is about 30 kg more than I ever had on a barbell!

Romanian deadlifts
I skipped these since I deadlifted a lot more than planned having little time

Glute ham raises
5 x bw
6 x bw

Back extension
15 x bw
15 x bw 25 kg

Hanging leg raises
30 reps with straps

Planks
2 sets - too easy