Apr. 18
mobility/warmup
deadlift
45kg x 7
65kg x 3
90kg x 3
105kg x 2
121kg x 5
137kg x 3
153kg x miss
Lousy. I’m surprised I missed that top set. I was a bit cautious as my form has been suspect, but I still thought I’d get a few reps. Called it a day there.
I’m beginning to realize that I don’t work very well when training near my 1RM. My form really goes to all hell and I just don’t make good progress. The past cycles of 531 are pretty good evidence of this. I made great progress on the first few cycles, then when the weight got heavier my PRs started slowing down.
I need to reset more often or just increase my lifts by smaller increments each cycle. I like this second option. As it is I’m going to try another program for a few weeks once I finish this cycle.
Apr. 20
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x some (BTN also)
32kg x 5
40kg x 10
45kg x 10
45kg x 8
db lateral raise
3kg x 10
5kg x 10
6kg x 10
bb shrug
45kg x 5
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
76kg x 11
bb curl
bar x 5
24kg x 10
28kg x 10
32kg x 8
concentration curl
10kg x 10
11kg x 10
12kg x 10
sit-up
bw x 10
2.5kg (on head) x 10
5kg (on head) x 10
plank
40, 35, 30 seconds
(50 mins)
That was fun. I’m going to give bodybuilding style training for awhile. I’ve got a 4-day bodypart split in mind. I’ll be ramping movements to a top set of 8-12 reps. Once I hit 12+ reps I’ll increment the lift for the next week. For now I’ll be doing 3 work sets per movement, but I might bump that up to 4 at some point.
I’ve never trained like this and I wanted to see how it suits me. I did enjoy having a lot less downtime to rest and being able to get through a lot more movements than normal. That is a refreshing change.
The split I have in mind will be roughly this:
-
shoulders/biceps(/abs)
military press
db lateral
shrug
2 curls
abs
-
back
deadlift
row
chins
face-pull
-
chest/triceps
bench
db incline bench
dips
tri extension
-
legs
squat
lunge
sldl
calves?
If this does not feel right, I might do:
- back/biceps
- hamstrings
- chest/triceps/shoulders
- quads
Apr. 21
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 5
60kg x 3
84kg x 10
90kg x 8
95kg x 8
db lunge
27kg x 5 (per leg)
30kg x 5 (per leg)
35kg x 7 (per leg)
bb calves raise
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
73kg x 12
straight-leg deadlift
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
73kg x 12
(50 mins)
Ouch. It seems I’ve been a bit optimistic about the size of my working weights. I didn’t expect the ramp sets to take so much out of me. But whatever.
Squats were done high bar and with full depth. I haven’t done high bar in quite a long time.
Apr. 23
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 6
32kg x 5
45kg x 4
55kg x 10
63kg x 10
70kg x 8
db incline bench
17.5kg x 10
20kg x 10
21kg x 9
db fly
3kg x 10
5kg x 10
7.5kg x 12
lying ez bar triceps extension
21kg x 10
23.5kg x 10
24.5kg x 12
1" depth push-up
bw x 7, 6, 4
(50 mins)
Pretty good. I managed to keep a good portion of my benching strength even with the two ramp sets. Everything else was fine.
I’m considering ramping down on the first movement. This way I’d do four sets. This would allow me to hit rep records on the top set and my rest time would be reduced on the down sets a bit.
Apr. 26
mobility/warmup
deadlift
45kg x 5
65kg x 3
90kg x 2
100kg x 10
110kg x 10
118kg x 7
bb row (45 degrees)
64kg x 10
72kg x 6
68kg x 10
chin-up x 5
pull-up x 3
face-pull
doubled brown x 10, 15, 20
(50 mins)
Pretty good. Again, I’ve been optimistic about my strength after ramping. I’ve got a pretty good idea what weights to work with now. Although I’m still considering ramping down and this should alter things…
I’m also considering moving some lifts around on this split. The deadlifting totally thrashed my rowing and chinning strength. I wanna make sure I’m hitting my upper back hard.
edit: maybe it’s enough to just put the deadlift after chins and rows. Hm.
Apr. 27
mobility/warmup
military press
bar x some (BTN also)
36kg x 5
50kg x 8
45kg x 7
40kg x 10
delt triad (lateral raise, front raise, press)
3kg x 10
5kg x 10
6kg x 12
bb shrug
40kg x 5
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
76kg x 12 (+1 rep)
bb curl
bar x 5
24kg x 10
28kg x 10
32kg x 9 (+1 rep)
concentration curl
10kg x 10
11kg x 10
12kg x 11 (+1 rep)
(45 mins)
Pretty good. I tried ramping down the first movement. It was not too bad. However if I keep with the 100%/90%/80% scheme there is no way I’m going to hit 10 reps on all three sets if I start as heavy as I plan.
I’m torn. On the one hand ramping down allows me to go heavier on the heaviest set and thus I can compare to my previous rep PRs easier. On the other, it does not fit with the rest of what I am doing. I suppose either way it’s not very important. I just have to decide what I want.
I’ve hit 55 for 7 I think, so this wasn’t exactly my best, but I kinda skimped the warmup. That’ll teach me.
I also need to swap the days around a bit. It does not make a lot of sense to do the bicep day right after the back day. At least once I get my back days a bit more intense it wont.
Apr. 29
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 5
45kg x 4
60kg x 3
76kg x 2
90kg x 1
105kg x 7
95kg x 7
85kg x 10
straight-leg deadlift
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
76kg x 9
bb lunge
bar x 6
28kg x 6
32kg x 8
db single calf raise
15kg x 10
17kg x 10, 10
(60 mins)
Decent. I’ve done 105 for 10 before, so this is a ways off, but I’ve been squatting high bar lately, and I’m a bit weaker this way. Hopefully I’ll make up the difference quickly.
Apr. 30
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 5
32kg x 5
45kg x 3
60kg x 2
74kg x 7
65kg x 8
60kg x 10
db incline bench
17.5kg x 10
20kg x 10
21kg x 10 (+1 rep)
db fly
6kg x 10
7kg x 10
8kg x 10 (+.5kg)
close-grip bench press
45kg x 10, 7, 6
lying ez bar tri-ex
21kg x 10
23kg x 8, 7
(50 mins)
Okay. It is interesting that I’ve done 74x8 after two work sets in 531, but I can only manage 7 if I work up directly to it. I guess there is some sense to that though.
I put in CGBP, but my pressing strength was wasted by that time. Maybe 5 movements is enough on this day.
May 4
mobility/warmup
pull-up x 5
chin-up x 7
deadlift
65kg x 5
90kg x 5
110kg x 3
130kg (287 lbs) x 7
117kg x 7
105kg x 10
bb row
55kg x 10
61kg x 10
69kg x 10 (+1 kg)
t-bar row
1 plate x 10
2 plate x 10
2 plate + 12.5kg x 10
(65 mins)
I’ve done 130 x 8, but that was with a belt and doing touch and go with a pretty good bounce. Today was beltless (my form sucks with a belt) and deadstop, so this is a kind of PR.
This work took too long though. The ramp down sets are nasty. I need to consider making bigger jumps. Perhaps 100/85/70 for everything would be better.
Despite the DL pr I’m feeling like I’m in a bit of a rut with my training. My body comp and conditioning still kinda suck. I guess I should consider some actual cardio days. Jogging is probably going to be the most realistic option.
Track work
jogged 10 laps = 4000 meters in 27:30.
My lower back has been a bit tweaked the past few days, so I haven’t been lifting, but I needed a bit of a break anyway.
I’m going to alter a few things on the program and get back to it in a few days. I’m hoping I can get in some regular jogging too. I need it.
May 12
mobility/warmup
A1 pull-up
bw x 2 x 7 sets
bw x 5
A2 military press (from hang clean)
bar x 5
30kg x 5
38kg x 5
44kg x 5
50kg x 11 (PR)
40kg x 8 x 2 sets
delt triad (lateral raise, front raise, db press)
4kg x 10
5kg x 10
bb curl
24kg x 10
28kg x 10
32kg x 10 (+1 rep)
pull-up
bw x 3 x 3 sets
(50 mins)
Solid. I changed the main movement loading scheme back to 531. That 50 x 11 is my best ever and 3 reps better than last time (when I went directly to 50 x 8). That is great. I did pop my right shoulder (the loose one) out on the last rep, but there was no pain. It is a little sore now, but I don’t expect any problems. This was a bit of a surprise, but a clear symptom that I’ve got a serious flexibility imbalance here.
I mixed pull-up reps in with all the military press sets. Next time I’ll do 2-3 pull-ups between every set in the workout. For some reason pull-up reps do not murder me like chin-ups do. Probably cause I’m actually using my lats. Who knows?
May 14
mobility/warmup
squat
45kg x 5
60kg x 5
73kg x 2
81kg x 5
93kg x 5
105kg x 10
81kg x 6 x 2 sets
bb lunge
20kg x 10
36kg x 8
ab wheel
bw x 10, 8, 4
(55 mins)
Good. Squats felt great. Some of my best form in awhile. Took 40 mins to get through all of that though. Whatever. I kept the assistance pretty low volume after that, but everything felt great.
I wanted to run today, but I couldn’t lift till pretty late. I’ll hit the track tomorrow instead.
May 16
mobility/warmup
bench
bar x 7
32kg x 5
45kg x 3
57kg x 5
65kg x 5
74kg x 7
57kg x 6 x 2 sets
A1 pull-up
bw x 3 x 5 sets
A2 db bench
20kg x 14, 9
A2 bb row
57kg x 10
61kg x 10
65kg x 16
(45 mins)
I was expecting a couple more reps on bench. That’s a bit low for the 5 day at the beginning of a new set of cycles. Depending on how the rest of the cycle goes I might not increment my bench. We’ll have to see. After all, I am still a bit fatigued from the squat day.
My general plan for the assistance for the cycle is to do fewer sets, but higher rep ranges. Also doing some back-off sets on the main movements. For anything resembling the main movement, I’m keeping away from failure. Going to push it on the rows and curls though.
May 18
mobility/warmup
power clean
bar x 10 (from hang)
45kg x 5
65kg x 3 x 3 sets
deadlift (dead-stop)
85kg x 3
99kg x 5
114kg x 5
130kg x 8
95kg x 4 x 2 sets
straight-leg deadlift
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
76kg x 10 (+1 rep)
(55 mins)
Holy lower back pump. My deadlift form still needs some work, but today seemed better than the past few months.
I’m def weak off the floor, so I’ve been doing dead-stop DLs again. I feel like I was just avoiding my weakness with touch-and-go sets.
The layout of this day needs a bit of work. Not to mention I need some plan for the power cleans. I can never seem to fit them in a way I’m happy with. Hrm.
May 24
mobility/warmup
pull-up (between sets)
bw x 27 reps (sets of 2 and 3)
military press
bar x 8
33kg x 5
41kg x 3
47kg x 3
53kg x 8 (rep pr)
40kg x 8 x 2 sets
delt triad (lateral raise, front raise, external rotation)
5kg x 10, 10, 10 (1 set)
6kg x 10, 10, 3
external rotation
3kg x 7
bb curl
24kg x 10
28kg x 10
32kg x 10 (+0 rep)
(50 mins)
Pretty good. I’ve missed a few days with sickness and a bunch of other shit, so it’s good to get right into it.
Need to rework the delt triad. I think I’m just going to do some rear delt work here. Either face pulls or maybe try out upright rows. A bit of external rotation might be good too.
I’m going to try and add a rep to the pull-up total each week. I’d like to do the same with the curls, but I might have to add another down set to give myself a real shot at this.
May 27
mobility/warmup
power clean
bar x 10 (from hang)
45kg x 5
65kg x 3, 3, 4
sumo deadlift
90kg x 3
107kg x 3
122kg x 3
138kg x 2
105kg x 5
straight-leg deadlift
60kg x 10
68kg x 10
76kg x 11
(55 mins)
Bah. Having some problems. I was pulling sumo as I keep jacking up my back when pulling conventional, but I guess I’m somewhat weaker this way.
I also seemed to have messed up my knee. Squatting near parallel is very painful. I don’t get it. I haven’t gotten injured or anything during training. It just started acting up randomly a few days ago.
I need to solve these form issues. I think my best best is to change programs (again, ugh), but I need more submaximal reps to get things straight.
Jun. 1
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 7
60kg x 5
85kg x 2
106kg x 2 x 6 sets
bench
bar x 5
45kg x 3
60kg x 3
72kg x 3
70kg x 3 x 5 (or 6?) sets
military press
bar x 10
28kg x 10
36kg x 10
40kg x 7
(60 mins)
Giving the Extended Russian Power routine for the next 9 weeks. Let’s see how this goes. I’ll be doing a bit of extra assistance for the first few weeks, but as the volume gets higher I’ll probably drop the extra work. Also going to bench first on this day from now on.
Jun. 3
mobility/warmup
deadlift
65kg x 8
85kg x 5
105kg x 3
121kg x 3 x 6 sets
pull-up
bw x 3 x 8 sets
(50 mins)
Solid. This was a pretty decent amount of volume, but it was less difficult than I expected. Although I’m still scared of the 6x6 day in a few weeks. But no reason to get ahead of myself.
I played around a bunch with my grip, belt and stance setup for the DLs. I think I got it down. Mixed grip with the belt on the 4th hole (this means something to me) right around my belly button. My form still is better without the belt, but the lift feels quite a bit more difficult. Gotta work on this a bit.
The pull-ups were done with changing grips. In particular I did 2 rounds of wide-grip pull-up, medium-grip pull-up, medium-grip chin, narrow grip chin. Even after the DLs my narrow grip chins felt great. I really got great speed up to the bar. I think I’m finally getting my lats properly involved in this lift.
Jun. 5
mobility/warmup
squat
bar x 3
45kg x 8
65kg x 5
90kg x 3
106kg x 3 x 6 sets
bench
bar x 3
32kg x 8
49kg x 5
64kg x 3
72kg x 2 x 6 sets
external rotation
3kg x 20 x 2 sets
(70 mins)
Good. Squats were no trouble. I just had to widen my stance a bit. I was a bit wobbly coming out of the hole, but these were quite good overall.
Bench was no prob. I still might have to drop it to about 70 if I want to complete this program properly. We’ll see on Tuesday.
Still having a bit of trouble with my right shoulder/trap area. Going to experiment till I find something that helps this.