Monday 2/9/15
BW 295
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 3’s week
Bench Press - TM 290
Forgot to check my spreadsheet, had to guess percentages.
135x5
185x5
225x3 set 1
245x3 set 2
260x6 set 3
225x9 FSL set
Kroc Row
100x20
100x20
DB Bench Press
3 sets of 75x10
Need to step up and do more work on this day and make time for KB swings.
Tuesday 2/10/15
BW 295
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 3’s week
Squat - TM 460
135x5 paused
225x5 paused
275x5
315x3 set 1
365x3 set 2
415x3 set 3
455x1 Joker single
Romanian Deadlift
3 sets of 185x10
Kettlebell Goblet Squats, Fifty pounder
3 sets of 10
10 min sauna
5 min hot tub
Thursday 2/12/15
BW 296
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 3’s week
Press - TM 200
95x5
115x5
140x3 set 1
160x3 set 2
180x4 set 3
205x1 5lb PR
215x1 FAIL
135x10
115x10
115x9
115x9
115x10
I did a few reps paused at the bottom on some of my x10 sets. I need to do more reps like that.
Lat PD, Neutral Grip
5 sets of 180x10
EZ bar curl
3 sets, 40lbs+bar, slow negatives.
I need to do more of these too.
Friday 2/13/15
BW 296
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 3’s week
Deadlift - TM 550
135x5
225x5
315x5
385x3 set 1
440x3 set 2
495x3 set 3
Jack shit assistance
Monday 2/16/15
BW 297
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 5/3/1 week
Squat - TM 460
135x5 paused
225x5
255x5
295x3
345x5 set 1
390x3 set 2
435x1 set 3
Instead of pushing set 3 for reps, I did some “Joker sets”. I was feeling great and felt like putting this extra BW I’ve accumulated in the last few stressful weeks to some use.
455x1
475x1 10 lb PR
495x1 30 lb PR
Video to follow.
Romanian Deadlift
3 sets of 185x10
Supersetted with…
Leg Press
3 sets of 290x10
Riding pretty high right now. Side note: I need to ditch the vibrams. These are getting worn-down and when I have 455 or heavier on my back they do NOT stay put. My foot was sliding outwards on all of the lifts caught on video below.
Here’s 455.
Here’s 475.
And my best lift of 2015 so far, 495 for one…
Thanks, Mr. Wendler!
Tuesday 2/17/15
BW 296
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 5/3/1 week
Bench Press - TM 290
135x8
185x5
225x5 set 1
245x3 set 2
275x2 set 3
225x10 FSL set
Kroc Row
2 sets of 100x20
DB Bench Press
3 sets of 75x10
Thursday 2/19/15
BW 296
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 5/3/1 week
Deadlift - TM 550
135x5
225x5
315x5
410x5 set 1
465x3 set 2
520x3 set 3
545x1 Heavy Single
Jack shit assistance.
Friday 2/20/15
BW 296
5/3/1 Cycle 5, 5/3/1 Week
Press -TM 200
95x5
115x5
135x5
150x5 set 1
170x3 set 2
190x2 set 3
135x10
115x10
115x10
115x10
115x10
Lat PD, wide pronated grip
5 sets of 170x10
Standing EZ-Bar Curl with 50 lbs on the bar
Two sets of ten
One set of eight
20 mi sauna
10 min hot tub
Wednesday 2/25/15
BW 297
5/3/1 Cycle 5, Deload week
Squat - TM 460
135x5
225x5
275x5
Bench Press - TM 290
135x5
155x5
185x5
I have been doubling-down on lazy this week. Motivation is kaput. Winter doldrums setting in, I suppose…
Until it dawned on me that I have not been taking my vitamin D for at least a week. I’m not sure why I stopped. Winter-induced sloth, I guess. Hopefully resuming will kick me up a notch or two.
But fuck it, you know? It is cold. Real fucking cold. I had this great idea to go to an indoor water park and hotel resort in New Hampshire this weekend, but many, many people thought of this before me and it is sold-out for the near future.
I feel lost now. I just don’t know what to do.
Friday 2/27/15
5/3/1 Cycle 5, Deload week
Did not deload today, nor did I do a 5/3/1 workout at all.
Press
95x5
115x5
135x5 Paused
Hex Bar Deadlift
135x5
225x5
315x5
405x3
495x1
Did not feel as in control of the weight as I do with straight bar deads.
Power Clean + Press, all reps from the floor
135x5
135x5
Power Clean
135x10
185x1
205x1
225x1 30 lb PR
To borrow NHLFTR’s term, these are, in fact, ugly upright rows. I can’t seem to get the hip thrust part of the movement down. I’m just brute forcing them up with no body contact and catching it. This is a lift I may spend some time learning how to do properly. I enjoy them.
Dumbbell bicep curls
30x10
30x10
30x6
Its finally warming up and we’ve got a real nice weekend ahead. It should hit 30 degrees, which is practically t-shirt weather to me now.
Looking strong TJS. You’ve reminded me I need to work on my ugly upright rows. You can borrow any terms of mine. As long as there’s a foot note in MLA format.
[quote]NHLFTR wrote:
Looking strong TJS. You’ve reminded me I need to work on my ugly upright rows. You can borrow any terms of mine. As long as there’s a foot note in MLA format.[/quote]
Thanks NHL Fighter. I believe it was none other than Mr. Jim Wendler who said that they are called “cleans” because the bar is supposed to be “clean” by not making contact with the body. That sounds right to me. I also think the ugly upright row from the floor to rack position has its merits as a brute-force expression of unrefined power.
Monday 3/2/2015
BW 298
I’ve been getting fatter. Stronger too, but definitely fatter. Time to make some changes. For the lifting, I will going back to a 3 day per week full body, but still sticking with 5/3/1. I didn’t have the exact template ready today, so I just approximated what I could recall.
I also lowered my TM’s on all lifts back to what they were for Cycle 3.
5/3/1 Cycle 6, 5’s week
Squat - TM 440
135x5
225x5
275x5
315x5
365x5
Bench Press - TM 280
135x8
185x5 set 1
210x5 set 2
240x9 set 3
185x10 FSL set
Bent Over Barbell Row
135x10
205x8
205x5
My left wrist was not on board with these. 135 fine, 205 hurt. Sticking with dumbbells.
Kroc Row
100x20
[quote]twojarslave wrote:
I have been doubling-down on lazy this week. Motivation is kaput. Winter doldrums setting in, I suppose…
… It is cold. Real fucking cold. I had this great idea to go to an indoor water park and hotel resort in New Hampshire this weekend, but many, many people thought of this before me and it is sold-out for the near future.
I feel lost now. I just don’t know what to do.
[/quote]
Nothing cures Seasonal Affective Disorder like watching a shirtless Morrissey roll around on the beach while playing the tambourine. This should fix you right up.
So interesting you bring up power cleans. Because I was at a meet this weekend that had a power clean competition. And not one of the competitors did them right. Oly lifts are complex for sure. Stay after it!
Thanks for stopping in, ladies. After watching your Morrisey video I was having some doubts about it all, but it was 45 degrees today and I’m back on the up-and-up. I’ve also inadvertently re-aligned my lifting schedule with the former competitive Oly lifter, who seemed thrilled at the fact that I PR’d on power cleans and want to get better at them. I just need to figure out how to program them into a 3 day full body routine.
Wednesday 3/4/15
5/3/1 Cycle 6, 5’s week
BW 297
Front Squat
135x10
185x5
225x5
Been a while since I’ve done anything more than rep-outs at 135. Wendler says back squats every day for full body, but I feel like I may get more out of doing front squats on DL day. I need to build up some strength on these and get to working with some decent weight and volume, but that should come fast if I keep at it.
Deadlift - TM 530
135x5
225x5
295x5
345x5 set 1
405x5 set 2
450x8 set 3
Press - TM 190
95x5
115x5
135x5 set 1
150x5 set 2
170x8 set 3
135x8 FSL set
30 minutes sauna
20 minutes hot tub
I missed that full-body feeling of being worked all-over paired with some heat on my muscles after the workout. I will sleep like a rock tonight.
Some notes and an open question to anyone who wants to chime in.
I used incorrect percentages for my press on Wednesday. 170 lbs was my 3’s week weight. I should have done my top set at 160. I did not realize I had the incorrect weight on the bar and had it in my head that I should get 8 or more reps on my 5’s week weight. Which I did. And 170x8 was my best press set ever, at least according to the Wendler 1RM formula. That 8th rep was a real grinder, but I remember starting the set thinking “man this feels heavy” and “I MUST get at least 8 reps”. Which I did. Would I have gotten 8 reps if it was a normal 3’s week where I expect to get 6 or so? Who knows? I consider this is a lesson in the mental aspect of strength.
Read up on 5’s progression and use this for my Wednesday Front Squats.
I think we’ve turned a corner. Above-freezing forecast for the near future. Time to snap out of the funk. About time. It has been miserable!
I am thinking about doing Squat 5/3/1, DB Bench Press and Power Clean 5’s progression as my Friday workout (which I have to skip today and make up tomorrow). This would make my routine look like this:
Monday
Squat (Wendler percentages from full body template)
Bench Press 5/3/1
Kroc Rows or maybe those supinated barbell rows if they feel good
Wednesday
Front Squat 5’s progression
Deadlift 5/3/1
Press 5/3/1
Friday
Squat 5/3/1
DB Bench Press
Power Clean 5’s progression
Some bicep curls, calf raises, loaded carries, direct ab work and kettlebell work will be sprinkled in as time allows.
I’m butchering Wendler’s program for two main reasons - I want to do some front squatting and I want to do some power cleans. What I need to decide is if I am making a good decision by eschewing Wendler’s very popular and very successful Full Body Templates. I feel like this program is still rooted in 5/3/1 principles, but I have some doubts.
The other option is to run Wendler’s full body template as written. I’m almost sure this will be a better option, but I still feel compelled to get some front squats in with some power cleans.
Does anyone have any input or feedback on this dilemma?
Before I give feedback I have a question. Why the three days a week total body and not the four day standard 5/3/1?
[quote]JoeGood wrote:
Before I give feedback I have a question. Why the three days a week total body and not the four day standard 5/3/1?[/quote]
Time.
The four day upper/lower split worked well for me. I did it for 5 cycles and I may go back to that in the future, but it is so much easier for me to fit 3 days of consistent lifting into my life right now.
I also enjoy full body and I got very good results with a 5x5 full body routine.
I’ll chime in on the mental aspect of 531. That program is a total head game. The times I have run it, I started thinking about how many reps I wanted to get on the money set long before my workout started. I also think that when you’re prepared to do a certain number of reps, that’s how many you do.
[quote]kpsnap wrote:
I’ll chime in on the mental aspect of 531. That program is a total head game. The times I have run it, I started thinking about how many reps I wanted to get on the money set long before my workout started. I also think that when you’re prepared to do a certain number of reps, that’s how many you do. [/quote]
That’s more or less how I think of it on most of my top sets. I don’t do do-over sets, so I only give myself one chance to perform as well as I can. If I have a less than perfect set, I just move on or do a high-rep drop set.
Saturday 3/7/15
BW 296
5/3/1 Cycle 6, 5’s week
Squat - TM 440
135x5
225x5
295x5 set 1
335x5 set 2
385x7 set 3
Power Clean
135x5
155x5
185x1
I was getting a little wobbly, so I decided to shut down the power cleans. A few of these actually resembled a competent lifter performing them. I need to decide if including these is wise. Perhaps I will keep them “out” as a core lift and do them as a light weight finisher to work on form and get the heart rate up. That may be the smartest course here, as it makes no sense to push myself on them every week if I can’t do them right.
Supinated Bent-Over Barbell Row
185x10
185x10
I like these.
Dumbbell Bench Press
4 sets of 75x10
I am also officially O35 now.