[quote]Most Major wrote:
So you met your raw squat goal, great work! What’s the geared goal(s) then?
Getting into the gear is almost harder than performing the actual lift, eh? How are you liking the gearwhore lifestyle again?
Also, I’m finding myself pulling open the calculator application to convert your kilo numbers to pounds. A page or so back I was looking at your squats thinking, “Pretty sure he can squat over 200 pounds, wonder why he’s doing less. Oh, riiiiiight. Metric.”[/quote]
Thanks man, nailing 200kg felt really good! I want to squat 300kg in gear by the end of the year, which I think will be easily achievable, and 320 (just over 700lb) would be fantastic! If I work hard on changing my technique to suit the Ace shirt I reckon I could get a 200kg bench too…
I’m enjoying the fact that being in gear lets me handle so much more weight, and I’m silently proud of the battle scars and bruising on my hips, lats and triceps from the briefs and shirt. I do NOT enjoy sessions that last over 2 hours because you spend so much time getting into the gear in the first place though - but you’ll know all about that eh?
[quote]Element_26 wrote:
[quote]Most Major wrote:
So you met your raw squat goal, great work! What’s the geared goal(s) then?
Getting into the gear is almost harder than performing the actual lift, eh? How are you liking the gearwhore lifestyle again?
Also, I’m finding myself pulling open the calculator application to convert your kilo numbers to pounds. A page or so back I was looking at your squats thinking, “Pretty sure he can squat over 200 pounds, wonder why he’s doing less. Oh, riiiiiight. Metric.”[/quote]
Thanks man, nailing 200kg felt really good! I want to squat 300kg in gear by the end of the year, which I think will be easily achievable, and 320 (just over 700lb) would be fantastic! If I work hard on changing my technique to suit the Ace shirt I reckon I could get a 200kg bench too…
I’m enjoying the fact that being in gear lets me handle so much more weight, and I’m silently proud of the battle scars and bruising on my hips, lats and triceps from the briefs and shirt. I do NOT enjoy sessions that last over 2 hours because you spend so much time getting into the gear in the first place though - but you’ll know all about that eh?[/quote]
I do indeed. About to head over to the gym for DE squats this morning, I’ll probably be there 3-4 hours, between spotting the other guys and doing my own training.
The bench shirt I use is pretty loose, which is good I suppose for a gear newb. Sounds like yours is pretty tight, so you’ll need some more time to get the groove back. Either that or get a new shirt.
[quote]Most Major wrote:
[quote]Element_26 wrote:
[quote]Most Major wrote:
So you met your raw squat goal, great work! What’s the geared goal(s) then?
Getting into the gear is almost harder than performing the actual lift, eh? How are you liking the gearwhore lifestyle again?
Also, I’m finding myself pulling open the calculator application to convert your kilo numbers to pounds. A page or so back I was looking at your squats thinking, “Pretty sure he can squat over 200 pounds, wonder why he’s doing less. Oh, riiiiiight. Metric.”[/quote]
Thanks man, nailing 200kg felt really good! I want to squat 300kg in gear by the end of the year, which I think will be easily achievable, and 320 (just over 700lb) would be fantastic! If I work hard on changing my technique to suit the Ace shirt I reckon I could get a 200kg bench too…
I’m enjoying the fact that being in gear lets me handle so much more weight, and I’m silently proud of the battle scars and bruising on my hips, lats and triceps from the briefs and shirt. I do NOT enjoy sessions that last over 2 hours because you spend so much time getting into the gear in the first place though - but you’ll know all about that eh?[/quote]
I do indeed. About to head over to the gym for DE squats this morning, I’ll probably be there 3-4 hours, between spotting the other guys and doing my own training.
The bench shirt I use is pretty loose, which is good I suppose for a gear newb. Sounds like yours is pretty tight, so you’ll need some more time to get the groove back. Either that or get a new shirt.[/quote]
Yeah mine was loose enough for me to touch with 150kg (330lb) when I was first using it. Now that I’m bigger, I think it’ll stretch out with a little use over the next few weeks. I hope so anyway!
30/04/11
Presses
Presses:
20x2x8
40x2x5
55x3
65x3
75x3
Pull-ups:
BWx2x5
BW 5x2x5
BW 10x3x5
Dips:
BWx8
BW 10x5
BW 15x5
BW 20x5
BW 22.5x5
BW 15x5
EZ Bar Curls:
3 sets
Dumbbell Lateral Raises:
3 sets
Went out last night with some friends, didn’t get much sleep, had a poor session. Ah well, at least it wasn’t an important day…
02/05/11
Deadlifts
4’’ Block Deadlifts:
60x2x5
100x5
140x3
160x3
180x3
200x1
220x1
240x2
Cambered Bar Good Mornings:
70x8
90x8
110x6
120x5
Reverse Hypers:
105x3x8
Cable Side Bends:
160lbx3x6
Today we set up the bar on top of a 50kg plate, a 25kg plate and a thin sheet of plywood. That meant that it was raised about 4 inches off of the ground at the start of the lift; a little higher than a couple of weeks ago. I was satisfied with 240 for a double, and got some decent assistance work in.
This week I have to go on a short trip to Germany for work. It means I’ll have to train very early tomorrow morning so that I can get to the airport in the afternoon, but we get back early afternoon on Friday so it shouldn’t be too disruptive.
03/05/11
Bench Presses
Bench Presses:
20x2x8
(Added 2 sets of chains per side)
20x5
40x5
60x3
80x3
90x1
100x1
105x1
70x12
Pull-ups:
BWx50 (spread across 7 sets)
Overhead Triceps Extensions:
3 sets
Face Pulls:
3 sets
Had to do a very quick session early this morning, and it turned out to be extremely productive. 105kg plus the chains equalled my previous best, but I did it without a hand off this time. The burn out set with 70kg was fun and left my triceps feeling absolutely hammered.
I got home from Germany yesterday and was greeted by a package containing my new squat suit sitting on my bed. I’d ordered a Metal Pro Squatter (the original, not the Ace) a couple of weeks ago, and asked Metal to add velcro straps to make adjusting/getting into it easier. I tried it on immediately of course, and found that the size 56 is pretty much perfect. It’s not as insanely tight as my 48 Metal Ace briefs, but that’s good because I’ll need it looser when I’m wearing suit and briefs together. I was itching to try the suit out yesterday, but will save that for my next cycle as I wanted to keep working depth in the briefs yesterday.
06/05/11
Squats
Box Squats:
20x2x5
60x5
100x3
140x3
160x2
Still high (but deeper than last week) squats:
(Added Metal Ace briefs)
180x2
220x2
240x2
SSB Squats:
70x10
110x2x6
120x6
130x3
140x2
Glute/Ham Raises:
BWx15
BW 15x2x12
Pikes:
BWx3x8
Weight felt quite light - even at 240 - and depth felt a little better than last week. I wanted to try some heavier loads, but just could not walk out 260 in the briefs. My training partners and I tried to rig up some kind of DIY monolift using chains and the safety pins, but it wasn’t particularly practical or safe for me or the spotters. I grudgingly stopped at 240 then, and got some heavier work in on the safety squat bar to make up for the underwhelming geared efforts.
Will be looking at finding a more practical monolift solution this week, as the nearest gyms with a monolift are a pretty long way away from where I am.
08/05/11
Presses
Fat Bar Presses:
15x2x8
35x5
55x5
65x3
75x2
Fat Bar Push Presses:
75x6
Pull-ups:
BWx2x6
BW+10x2x5
BW+15x2x3
BW+20x5
Dips:
BWx10
BW+15x2x5
BW+20x3
BW+25x3
BW+32.5x3
Kroc Rows:
100lbx32
This was a fantastic session - I got some kind of PR on everything and thoroughly enjoyed lifting with the bigger group we had today. There was a good energy in the gym, as one of my training partners (an MMA fighter) had brought half of his extended family along with him to train. They were benching, so I decided to get out of their way by doing my pressing with the fat bar (my pressing this cycle has been shit, so I figured it didn’t really matter anyway). I ended up getting a double with 75 (cleaned first rep from floor) and then followed that up with a set of push presses at the same weight.
After that we did a bunch of assistance stuff - I got a 2.5kg weight PR on the dips, some kind of PR on chins (I wanted +20kg for a triple on my last set but got into a challenge with the skinny MMA fighter and managed 5) and a rep PR on the Kroc rows. Don’t you just love those sessions where you’re really dialled in?!
10/05/11
Bench Presses - Deload
Neutral Grip Dumbbell Bench Presses:
45lbx2x10
75lbx15
80lbx2x10
Pull-ups:
BWx4x8
Overhead Triceps Extensions:
70lbx3x10
Ghetto Chest Supported Barbell Rows:
85x3x12
Rear Delt Flyes:
25lbx2x10
EZ Bar Curls:
43x2x10
Tick.
12/05/11
Squats - Deload
SSB Box Squats:
30x5
70x5
110x5x2
Glute/Ham Raises:
3 sets
Reverse Hypers:
2 sets
Pikes:
2 sets
14/05/11
Presses - Deload
Standing Dumbbell Presses:
45lbx10
55lbx2x8
60lbx8
Pull-ups:
BWx35 (spread across 5 sets)
Kettlebell Swings:
32x2x20
40x20
Face Pulls:
110lbx3x12
EZ Bar Overhead Triceps Extensions:
38x2x12
43x10
Deload done.
16/05/11
Deadlifts
Reverse Band Deadlifts:
60x2x5
100x5
140x3
(Added green bands)
180x3
220x3
240x3 (PR)
260x2 (PR)
280xF
(Added Metal Pro Squatter)
280xF
Cambered Bar Good Mornings:
70x10
90x8
110x6
Cable Side Bends:
170lbx3x6
Reverse Hypers:
3 sets
Mixed bag of a session tonight. My previous best reverse band deadlift was 250kg for a very, very tough single, so getting a comfortable double at 260 was a big PR. I expected that though, as the last time I did these was back last summer, and my conventional pull has come a long way since then.
Anyway, the plan was to work up to a toughish triple using a raw, conventional stance and then put on my new Metal Pro Squatter to (a) see how it fit; and (b) get a feel for pulling sumo in a new suit. Of course, I got into a bit of a battle with my training partner, and so after my triple at 240 (which would have been my last conventional stance set), I had to follow him up to 260. Unfortunately, as you can see from the video, I clipped the bottom of the rack with one of the plates lowering the first rep of this set, which threw off my body position. I might have got a triple had I not done that - who knows. Anyway, my training partner only did a single, to save himself for a run at 280. So of course, I had to match him. The weight came off the floor well enough, but my back was in a pretty ugly position (similar to the attempted third rep with 260) and I missed just sort of lock-out. Pissed off, and desperate to make amends, I put the suit on anyway and went again. As before, the weight broke off the floor just fine, but I didn’t drive my hips through early enough and just could not lock out those last few inches. Suit felt great though.
Videos from last night. Here is an attempted triple at 260, which ended up being a double:
And this is a missed single with 280 which kind of looks a little bit locked out from this angle!
Nice pulls! Getting down to sumo position in a suit is freakin hard, no?
[quote]Most Major wrote:
Nice pulls! Getting down to sumo position in a suit is freakin hard, no?[/quote]
Absolutely! The weird thing is that I was absolutely sure I had a really good upper back arch at the start of the pull. When I saw the video I realised that my conviction was… misplaced.
18/05/11
Bench Presses
Bench Presses:
20x2x8
60x5
80x3
100x3
120x1
(All subsequent sets performed to a 2-board)
140x1
(Added Metal Ace shirt)
160x2
180x1
190x2
200x1 (PR)
Pull-ups:
BWx50 (spread across 7 sets)
Close Grip Bench Presses:
(Performed with doubled mini bands)
70x11
Overhead Triceps Extensions:
70lbx3x10
Face Pulls:
110lbx3x10
The first couple of sets in the shirt were pretty awkward, but I found the sweet spot on the set with 190kg (partly due to a vastly improved set up). The single with 200kg felt very good, and I probably had more weight in me. I decided to leave it at 200kg for the day though, as I really want to dial in perfect technique with the shirt.
The burn-out set with 70kg plus the bands was pretty fun.
19/05/11
Squats
Box Squats:
20x2x5
(Added green bands)
20x3
60x3
100x2
120x2
140x1
(Added Metal Pro Squatter - straps down)
160x2
180x2
(Straps up)
200x1
SSB Squats:
70x10
90x10
110x2x6
Glute/Ham Raises:
BWx15
BW+15x2x12
Pikes:
BWx2x8
This was my first time squatting in my new suit, and I was delighted with how it went. It’s much looser and gives less support than my Ace briefs, but I can tell that when paired together it will be a great combination. I was almost able to hit depth with 160kg plus the bands with straps down, but was a few inches high with 200kg and the straps up. I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do with suit, briefs and knee wraps on!
22/05/11
Presses
Fat Bar Push Presses:
15x2x8
35x5
55x5
65x5
75x5
75x6
Pull-ups:
BWx4x8
BW 10x5
Dips:
BWx10
BW 10x2x8
BW 15x3x8
Fat Bar Rows:
75x8
75x8
75x10
