Jan. 13
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
65kg x 3
90kg x 5
100kg x 3
110kg x 4
A1 front squat
45kg x 10 x 5 sets
A2 hanging leg raise
bw x 6, 6, 5, 5, 5 (+1 rep)
A3 jump rope
bw x 45 x 5 sets
(60 mins)
Not the best day. I expected more squat reps. I had to dump the 5th. My belt was set too low on my waist and I didn’t feel like I was getting any support. Gotta remember this for next time.
The deload is coming just in time. I need a break. I’ll probably take a couple days off and do two deload workouts before starting the next cycle.
Jan. 16 DELOAD
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 5
32kg x 6
45kg x 6
53kg x 5
61kg x 5
deadlift
45kg x 5
65kg x 5
81kg x 5
95kg x 5
111kg x 5
A1 stability ball back extension
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A2 push-up
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 50 x 3 sets
(45 mins)
Good day. Deload weights felt just right. Not too heavy, not too light. I’ll do one more day like this before starting the next cycle.
Jan. 18 DELOAD
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x 5
32kg x 5
36kg x 5
40kg x 5
44kg x 5
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
60kg x 5
72kg x 5
84kg x 5
A1 inverted row
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A2 sit-up
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 50 x 3 sets
(45 mins)
Looking forward to the next cycle.
Jan. 20
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 5
32kg x 5
45kg x 3
53kg x 5
60kg x 5
68kg x 9 (150 lbs)
A1 db bench
23kg x 10 x 5 sets (+1kg/db)
A2 bb row (pendlay)
49kg x 10 x 5 sets (+4kg)
A3 jump rope
bw x 50 x 5 sets
(55 mins)
Good. That is one of my best efforts on bench. That is 2 more reps than last week at the same weight. The bar felt light in my hands the entire time too. Just ran out of gas on the 9th.
I lowered my bench by about 1cm. This made the liftoff feel bit better and I was able to set my feet better and force a tighter arch. Such a tiny adjustment, but it really feels like an improvement. Hopefully I’m on to something here.
Db bench was smooth. I’ll fix this weight for this cycle and push it up another 1kg per db for next cycle if all goes well.
I like rowing from the floor in this Pendlay style. I can row a lot more when I just bend 45 degrees, but I feel these hit my scap area much better. These two styles are something I can rotate from time to time I suppose.
Jan. 22
warmup/mobility
deadlift (conventional)
49kg x 5
65kg x 5
85kg x 3
98kg x 5
114kg x 5
129kg (284 lbs) x 10
A1 straight-leg deadlift
68kg x 10 x 5 sets (+4kg)
A2 bb curl
25kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 50 x 5 sets
(70 mins)
Good day. This lift just keeps climbing. I adjusted my setup here a bit. Shins even closer to the bar and hips higher than normal. This felt pretty good.
I only mix my grip on the top set, but on the 114 I practically hanging on to the bar by my fingernails. If this becomes a problem I’ll probably just do the second set mixed as well.
The top set took quite a bit out of me. The assistance superset was pretty nasty as a result.
Jan. 24
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x 5
32kg x 5
40kg x 5
46kg x 5
52kg x 8
A1 chin-up
bw x 5, 5, 5, 5, 4 (+1 rep)
A2 db press
16kg x 10 x 5 sets (+1kg/db)
A3 jump rope
bw x 50 x 5 sets
(50 mins)
Good. Same reps as last time with more weight. Can’t complain about that.
Everything else was fine.
Jan. 26
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
65kg x 3
80kg x 5
91kg x 5
103kg x 10
A1 zercher squat
45kg x 10 x 5 sets
A2 decline sit-up
bw x 10
4kg (chest) x 10 x 4 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 50 x 5 sets
(65 mins)
103 x 10 is probably my best yet. Stance was fine and the bar didn’t feel particularly heavy, but my belt was killing me. I might have to loosen up again. I just can’t seem to find the right setup. Need to experiment a bit more here.
I added some hip flexor/piriformis stretching before squatting. My form felt as good as it has been in awhile. Need to stick with this.
I didn’t feel like front squatting, so I tried out zerhers. They weren’t too difficult as the ROM is much less than for front squats. They also feel a lot more like deadlifts than squats. Not bad though.
I’m going to stick with sit-ups instead of leg lifts for awhile. Putting a plate on my chest is kinda lame, but I always mess up my neck when I put a plate on my head.
Jan. 29
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 5
32kg x 5
45kg x 3
55kg x 3
64kg x 3
72kg x 8
A1 db bench
23kg x 10 x 5 sets
A2 bb row (pendlay)
49kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 55 x 5 sets
(55 mins)
Good day. Despite feeling pretty sluggish, that was probably my best bench performance yet. At first I didn’t think I’d get much more than 3 reps, but even as I lost a lot of bar speed, I was still able to crank out reps.
Jan. 30
deadlift
45kg x 5
65kg x 5
90kg x 3
106kg x 3
122kg x 3
138kg x 7
A1 straight-leg deadlift
68kg x 10 x 5 sets
A2 bb curl
25kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 55 x 5 sets
(65 mins)
Feeling good. Lockout of the last few reps was pretty difficult, but I could still get the bar off the ground without much trouble. This is new.
Feb. 1
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x 5
32kg x 5
44kg x 3
49kg x 3
55kg x 5
A1 chin-up
bw x 5 x 5 sets (+1 rep)
A2 db press
16kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 55 x 5 sets
(50 mins)
Not bad. Another rep woulda been nice, but I managed to equal last time which is fine.
I’m pretty sure that’s the most chins I’ve done in 5 sets too. Gotta keep this up.
Feb. 3
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
65kg x 3
85kg x 3
97kg x 3
109kg x 8
A1 zercher squat
49kg x 10 x 5 sets (+4kg)
A2 decline sit-up
2.5kg (on head) x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 55 x 5 sets
(65 mins)
Good. Probably my best squat yet. I feel like I might have had more too. It gets really tough to keep my air after 8 or 9 reps, so I usually rack it.
For the belt today I tried one notch looser and outside of my sweatshirt (normally have it inside). This worked pretty good.
Assistance circuit was quick. I went as wide as possible on the zerchers. I was able to get a setup where I could unrack them and not have to step back to start squatting. Nice.
Feb. 5
warmup/mobility
bench
bar x 11
32kg x 5
45kg x 3
60kg x 5
68kg x 3
76kg x 5
A1 db bench
25.5kg x 10 x 5 sets (edit)
A2 bb row (pendlay)
49kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 60 x 5 sets
(60 mins)
I had hoped for a 6th rep, but I barley locked out the 5th. Matched last cycle for reps though, so that’s good.
The db bench was pretty tough today. Probably due to the final rep of the bench set. I think I’ll do some push-up variation as the main assistance for bench for the next couple cycles. Time to mix it up. EDIT: I misloaded the dbs and was pressing 2.5kg/per db more than normal. Considering I got the reps, that’s pretty good.
I need to make some adjustments to my warmup routine. I think I need more upper-body specific work. At least on the bench and press days. I have some flexibility issues in my upper back/shoulders that I need to work on.
Feb. 7
mobility/warmup
deadlift
45kg x 5
65kg x 5
90kg x 3
114kg x 5
130kg x 3
145kg (320lbs) x 4
A1 straight-leg deadlift
68kg x 10 x 5 sets
A2 bb curl
25kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 60 x 5 sets
(65 mins)
Pretty good. That is the first time I’ve ever had three plates per side on the bar (I have 2.5kg collars). I had to reset after the 3rd rep and that threw me off. I feel like I coulda had 5 otherwise. Still felt good.
Feb. 9
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x 5
32kg x 5
45kg x 5
53kg x 3
58kg (128kg) x 4
A1 chin-up
bw x 6, 5, 5, 5, 5 (+1 rep)
A2 db press
16kg x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 60 x 5 sets
(50 mins)
Good. That is the heaviest weight I’ve ever pressed. It’ll be pretty good to be pressing 1 plate next cycle.
Chins are coming along nicely.
Feb. 11
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
65kg x 3
90kg x 5
103kg x 3
115kg x 5
A1 zercher squat
49kg x 10 x 5 sets
A2 decline sit-up
3kg (on head) x 10 x 5 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 60 x 5 sets
(60 mins)
Pretty good. I did manage to do 115x5 awhile back, but I’m happy to hit it again today as all my other lifts are at their highest point. I’ll just have to wait till next cycle to break my all-time squat.
Deload starts now. I think I’ll follow what I did last time. Just two days lifting and 5 total days rest before the next cycle.
Feb. 14 - DELOAD
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 5
32kg x 5
45kg x 5
53kg x 5
61kg x 5
deadlift
45kg x 5
65kg x 5
81kg x 5
95kg x 5
111kg x 5
A1 stability ball back extension
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A2 push-up
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 65 x 3 sets
(45 mins)
Nothing special. Deload timing was good. I’m glad to get a rest for a few days.
Feb. 16 - DELOAD
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x 5
32kg x 5
36kg x 5
40kg x 5
44kg x 5
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
60kg x 5
72kg x 5
84kg x 5
A1 inverted row
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A2 sit-up
bw x 10 x 3 sets
A3 jump rope
bw x 65 x 3 sets
(45 mins)
Feeling eager to start the next cycle.
Feb. 19
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 7
32kg x 5
45kg x 3
54kg x 5
62kg x 5
70kg x 10
A1 bb row (pendlay)
53kg x 10 x 5 sets (+4kg)
A2 db bench
24kg x 10, 10, 10, 10, 9 (+1kg)
A3 jump rope
bw x 65 x 5 sets (+5 reps)
(55 mis)
Great. One more rep and 2 more kilos than last “5” day which basically makes that my best yet.
I reversed the order of db bench and bb rows. I suppose this is what caused me to miss the last rep. I was a little surprised considering I got all 50 reps 2 weeks ago with 25.5. It’s not really important though.
I added a bit more stretching to the routine, so I’m up to about 10-12 mins doing warmup and mobility which I don’t mind if I’m still getting through everything in the 55 to 65 min range.
Feb. 21
mobility/warmup
deadlift
45kg x 5
65kg x 5
90kg x 3
102kg x 5
117kg x 5
134kg (295lbs) x 8
A1 straight-leg deadlift
70kg x 10 x 5 sets (+2kg)
A2 bb curl
26kg x 10 x 5 sets (+1kg)
A3 jump rope
bw x 65 x 5 sets
(70 mins)
Not bad. I was hoping for more like 10 reps, but I couldn’t lock out the 9th. That’s still one of my best efforts yet though.
The assistance was pretty rough today. I was really suffering during the jump rope.
During the SLDLs I really concentrated on keeping my scaps retracted and this made the movement hit my hammies better. Good, although it made it more difficult. I’ve probably been cheating my pulling a bit with my arms in the past.
Feb. 24
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x 5
32kg x 5
41kg x 5
47kg x 5
53kg x 7
A1 chin-up
bw x 6, 6, 5, 5, 5 (+1 rep)
A2 db press
17kg x 10 x 5 sets (+1kg)
A3 jump rope
bw x 65 x 5 sets
(60 mins)
Decent. Would like a few more reps on this day, but I’m still okay. I didn’t tighten my belt properly and I normally do get something out of it when military pressing, so I can probably do better than this next time.