I slept in this morning, hoping to be rid of the last vestiges of my cold. It mostly worked, I feel a lot better than I have the past couple days. I will be hitting the gym during my lunch break.
My major focus today is to try out lighter warmups. My plan is:
SQUAT: 115, 125, 135 / 175 (work)
DL: 115, 125, 135 / 165 (work)
BENCH: 65, 75, 85 / 110 (work)
Seems like it might prevent fatigue from happening too quickly. We’ll see how it goes.
I just got back from the gym… It was a mixed bag. I utilized goochadamg’s advice and did lower weights for warmups.
LIFTS:
BACK SQUAT:
(warmup) 115 1x5, 125 1x5, 135 1x5
(working) 175 3x5
→ I tore my boxers during the second set, lol. Got a number of stares. Now that’s intensity.
DEADLIFT:
(warmup) 115 1x5, 125 1x5, 135 1x5
(working) 175 3x5
→ Finally, these are starting to overtake my squats. Not bad for a guy who’s back was written off many years ago.
BENCH:
(warmup) 65 1x5, 75 1x5, 85 1x5
(working) 115 1x5, 115 1x4, 115 1x3
→ I almost didn’t add the extra 10 lbs. I wasn’t sure if I could do it, but I felt I had to try - and I failed.
DIPS:
BWx3, BWx3
→ no change. Grrr.
So, should I keep the bench weight at 115 for my next workout, or should I drop it back to 105 (which I know I can get)?
I also did 10 minutes of HIIT on the stationary bike, in 30/60 intervals. It kicked my ass, but I love it.
Question on deadlifts:
During a set, how fast should the movement be? Should it be a slow up/down count, or is it a faster movement? Also, how long between reps?
I generally have been doing them with a moderate speed, with just enough time to hear the plates clatter between reps.
EDIT: also, would I make better progress doing a 1x5 on the DL with heavier weight, or a 3x5 with a lower weight?
I just checked your log. . . you only need to do ONE work set for deadlifts. This will probably allow you to go heavier.
-Matt
[quote]slimsaw00 wrote:
I just checked your log. . . you only need to do ONE work set for deadlifts. This will probably allow you to go heavier.
-Matt[/quote]
Cool. I’ll try it on my next DL day. Thanks!
My workout will be during my lunch break. I’m finally feeling better from this damn cold.
Weigh-in this morning: 195 lbs
No change from last week, but I’m not going to complain. I took measurements last night (I forgot the paper, so I’ll post tonight or tomorrow), but both my waist and my belly have gone down by 1 inch in the last 2 weeks.
Deadlifts do tend to beat people up pretty bad, so they sometimes get done relatively infrequently and with lower volume. However, that’s when you actually get so good at doing them you’re using your whole body to it’s fullest.
I’m not so sure you’ve reached that point yet. You might benefit more from the higher volume; the more you practice, the better you get. 
Sweet man! I’ve recently started the same combo: SS+AD
I should log here too.
Good luck, and don’t forget to EAT!
From experience, I would suggest being sure to keep up water intake, and perhaps green tea.
One of the issues I have with the AD is it lacks alkalinity. I am making sure to get most of my carbs from greens like spinach. Other than that, I’m pretty sure the AD prescribes eating to maintain (BWx18 for calories) for a month before adjusting.
Just the mere change in diet and heavy lifting is going to make changes.
[quote]darwin420 wrote:
Question on deadlifts:
During a set, how fast should the movement be? Should it be a slow up/down count, or is it a faster movement? Also, how long between reps?
I generally have been doing them with a moderate speed, with just enough time to hear the plates clatter between reps.
EDIT: also, would I make better progress doing a 1x5 on the DL with heavier weight, or a 3x5 with a lower weight?[/quote]
Darwin: if you’re doing Starting Strength, stick with the program: 1x5 for Deadlift and go heavier. Movement should be such that you are using proper form. I don’t recall talk about speed in SS, but I’d have to go back and look.
Also, agreeing with another poster, taper your warmups.
The last two warm up sets before the work sets should have 3 reps and 1 rep respectively from what I’ve read.
[quote]goochadamg wrote:
Deadlifts do tend to beat people up pretty bad, so they sometimes get done relatively infrequently and with lower volume. However, that’s when you actually get so good at doing them you’re using your whole body to it’s fullest.
I’m not so sure you’ve reached that point yet. You might benefit more from the higher volume; the more you practice, the better you get.
[/quote]
I really like the DL. Being a person recovering from a host of back injuries, every little weight increase is a major accomplishment and makes me laugh at all the people who said I’d never be able to do it.
I think I’m going to try at the 1x5 (as specifically written in the program) and see where that takes me. If I see better gains without sacrificing form, then that’ll be enough to convince me.
[quote]bigdawg011 wrote:
Sweet man! I’ve recently started the same combo: SS+AD
I should log here too.
Good luck, and don’t forget to EAT!
From experience, I would suggest being sure to keep up water intake, and perhaps green tea.
One of the issues I have with the AD is it lacks alkalinity. I am making sure to get most of my carbs from greens like spinach. Other than that, I’m pretty sure the AD prescribes eating to maintain (BWx18 for calories) for a month before adjusting.
Just the mere change in diet and heavy lifting is going to make changes.[/quote]
I started the log because I thought I would need the motivation to keep going. Now it’s more for me to voice my questions and get a good host of answers. I really do love this forum.
My water intake is 3-5 liters a day. I love the stuff. Green tea is another favorite, and I usually have it with dinner.
Yeah, I kinda found myself on the AD by accident, initially, because I went low-carb, below-maintenance calorie intake before I even know the AD existed. When I found out about it, I modified my own diet to fall in line with the AD, and by that point I had made the transition. It’s worked great for me, though - 20 pounds lost in the first month, and almost 2 inches off my waist, with all my lifts progressing.
I’m going to be shifting away from it, though. Now that I know how my body used to react to carbs, I know I can’t have a huge carb intake on a daily basis. So, I’m going to slowly increase my carb intake, to find my full tolerance. I’m also going to up my kcal intake to ~2500 (my food log will start next week). After reading more and more, I really think the best course of action is to go front on into building my body, rather than worrying about losing so much fat first.
[quote]bigdawg011 wrote:
darwin420 wrote:
Question on deadlifts:
During a set, how fast should the movement be? Should it be a slow up/down count, or is it a faster movement? Also, how long between reps?
I generally have been doing them with a moderate speed, with just enough time to hear the plates clatter between reps.
EDIT: also, would I make better progress doing a 1x5 on the DL with heavier weight, or a 3x5 with a lower weight?
Darwin: if you’re doing Starting Strength, stick with the program: 1x5 for Deadlift and go heavier. Movement should be such that you are using proper form. I don’t recall talk about speed in SS, but I’d have to go back and look.
Also, agreeing with another poster, taper your warmups.
The last two warm up sets before the work sets should have 3 reps and 1 rep respectively from what I’ve read.[/quote]
I always try to maintain proper form (and kick myself when it falters). I’m still very much a beginner, but I’ve been studious in learning as much as I can.
I’m going to move down to 1x5 on the DL. Also, I think my warmups will go something like: 1x5, 1x3, 1x1 (alternatively 1x6, 1x4, 1x2). This will probably prime me more for the working sets.
[quote]darwin420 wrote:
goochadamg wrote:
Deadlifts do tend to beat people up pretty bad, so they sometimes get done relatively infrequently and with lower volume. However, that’s when you actually get so good at doing them you’re using your whole body to it’s fullest.
I’m not so sure you’ve reached that point yet. You might benefit more from the higher volume; the more you practice, the better you get.
I really like the DL. Being a person recovering from a host of back injuries, every little weight increase is a major accomplishment and makes me laugh at all the people who said I’d never be able to do it.
I think I’m going to try at the 1x5 (as specifically written in the program) and see where that takes me. If I see better gains without sacrificing form, then that’ll be enough to convince me.[/quote]
In hindsight, it doesn’t make much sense to do 3x5 since you’re squatting heavy on the day you deadlift. You are deadlifting 3 times in two weeks, too, so that’s fairly frequent.
So, yeah, I guess 1x5 is the way to go.
[quote]goochadamg wrote:
darwin420 wrote:
goochadamg wrote:
Deadlifts do tend to beat people up pretty bad, so they sometimes get done relatively infrequently and with lower volume. However, that’s when you actually get so good at doing them you’re using your whole body to it’s fullest.
I’m not so sure you’ve reached that point yet. You might benefit more from the higher volume; the more you practice, the better you get.
I really like the DL. Being a person recovering from a host of back injuries, every little weight increase is a major accomplishment and makes me laugh at all the people who said I’d never be able to do it.
I think I’m going to try at the 1x5 (as specifically written in the program) and see where that takes me. If I see better gains without sacrificing form, then that’ll be enough to convince me.
In hindsight, it doesn’t make much sense to do 3x5 since you’re squatting heavy on the day you deadlift. You are deadlifting 3 times in two weeks, too, so that’s fairly frequent.
So, yeah, I guess 1x5 is the way to go. [/quote]
Yeah, that’s pretty much the same hindsight thinking that prompted me to ask the question in the first place, lol.
good luck on ur cut bro!
remember not to go overload with the carb now thats its introduced back in ur diet again. stick with fruits and veggies 90% of the time if you’re still losing weight.
ru using any fat burner? definately give HRX a try if you are not! it helps a lot
[quote]shffl wrote:
good luck on ur cut bro!
remember not to go overload with the carb now thats its introduced back in ur diet again. stick with fruits and veggies 90% of the time if you’re still losing weight.
ru using any fat burner? definately give HRX a try if you are not! it helps a lot[/quote]
Thanks! My plan with the carb reintroduction is to have no more than 50g/day starting next week. If that goes well, then the following week I’ll go to 60g/day. I’m going to up by 10g each week to find my full tolerance. I don’t think it will be much more than 60-80g/day, but I want my oatmeal in the morning again, dammit! lol
I’m using HOT-ROX, 2-3/day, depending on if I remember to bring my afternoon pill to work with me. I can’t say for sure if it’s helping, but I like the energy it gives me, so it can’t be too bad.
Todays lifts made me finally feel like I was giving it my all. I progressed on everything, and I finally hit the point where my final sets were failing, which I take it is a sign I’ve finally brought the weight up to the point where I’ll be building true muscle (correct me if I’m wrong).
LIFTS:
BACK SQUAT:
(warmup) 115x5, 135x3, 155x1
(working) 185 3x5
→ So tough, but I just barely got the last set. Not sure if I’ll up by 5 or 10 lbs come Monday.
MILITARY PRESS:
(warmup) 45x5, 55x3, 65x1
(working) 75x5, 75x4, 75x3
→ I hit my limit here. It will be fun to push through!
DB ROWS:
(warmup) 40x5, 45x3, 50x1
(working) 65x5, 65x5, 65x4
→ My left side is definitely struggling. Again, something new to push through!
PULLUPS:
BWx0, BWx0
→ these are pissing me off. I can barely pull myself out of the hang. Any suggesstions on what I can do to see gains here, or should I just keep trying?
I did 10 minutes of HIIT at 20/60 intervals, with 1 minute warmup, and 2 minute cool down. It whooped my butt.
I am feeling my workout all over my body, which is nice, because the past couple workouts I was just week from being sick.
All in all, today was pretty damn motivating! I’m getting closer to breaking the 200 lb mark! That will be a BIG achievement for me!
Thanks to everyone who’s been dropping in and offering advice, opinion, and encouragement!! Please continue, as it only strengthens my motivation!
Regarding the pullups, start with negs.
Use a chair to get you to the top of the position, then let yourself down as slowly as possible. When you get to the point where you can do one. Do one through out the day. This is called “grease the groove” (GTG). Google that and I’m sure you’ll find more tips on this. It sure helped me. I can do 10 now, but couldn’t do more than one or two a year ago if I recall correctly.
I’ll try the negs. Worth a shot!
So, tonight has been pretty hard. Some friends came over unannounced, and brought a bunch of alcohol with them. I haven’t had a drink in over a week, as I really don’t want to the alcohol to impact my training. It was really hard to tell them that, for the time being, I’m not drinking because I’m training.
They stuck around for about 15 minutes, trying to convince me to get rip-roarin’ drunk with them, and then they left.
Bastards.
Well, Darwin, some people just don’t get it. When it comes down to it, the only one who will care about your fitness and wellbeing is you. Sounds like you were strong. You are strong.