I am 28…I will be a finely tuned athletic machine when I turn 30. It will be a day of achievement rather than remorse. I will be strong, fit, athletic and explosive.
Lifting plan for the next year:
Dec. 1 - April 31: Madcow 5x5 Intermediate (modified)
May 1 - ?: Upper/lower split w/ emphasis on general fitness.
Conditioning:
Explosive speed work
Some long distance work
Agile 8
Current stats after 6ish months of lifting (Dec. 2, 2013):
Height - 5’8"
Weight - 193 pounds ------> 195 pounds (April 23)
Squat - 265 x 3 ------> 315 x 1(Current PR March 21)
Bench - 205 x 3 ------> 225 x 1 (Current PR April 17)
Deadlift - 225 x 4 ------> 245 x 4 (Current PR March 26)
Military press - 150 x 2 ------> 160 x 3 (April 13)
Front squat - 205 x 5 ------> 205 x 5 (Current PR Feb. 10)
Weighted dips - 15lb x 5 ------> 30lb x 8 (Current PR Feb. 12)
Squat: 135, 155, 185, 205, 235 x 5
Bench: 95, 115, 135, 160, 185 x 5
Rows: 45, 55, 65, 75, 95 x 5 (Progressing slowly on these because I hurt my back doing them a couple years ago)
Situps: 3 x 25
After a week long Thanksgiving layoff the squats and bench were harder than expected. Major soreness the following day.
Squat: 115, 135, 155, 155
Military press: 55, 75, 105, 125
Deadlift: 135, 135, 185 x 4 (Another lift I’ve struggled on…I can do more, but not moving up more until my back stops doing all the work)
Chinups/lat pulldowns: 1 x 8 chin, 1 x 6 chin, 1 x 10 lat pulldown
Situps: 3 x 25
Squat: 115, 145, 175, 205, 245 x 3 , 175 x 8
Bench: 90, 115, 135, 155, 190 x 3, 135 x 8
Dumbbell row: 4 x 12-15
Weighted dips: 3 x 8
Bicep curls: 3 x 8
Tricep extensions: 3 x 8 (will update weight after I do them)
when you say “elite” do you mean you will make an elite total in powerlifting? or do you mean you will be what you consider elite? No disrespect, just wondering, because you are far away from an elite total. I like your attitude, but 30 is not old by any means, I will be 35 next month and this year I will be under going a huge neck surgerey, I plan to make a big come back, bigger lifts then i have now.
What are your goals? Not crazy about your 1 year plan… in my opinion, people who program hop to much dont always do the best progress, personally I like to ride out a program for atleast 6 months… ideally a year for real gains.
But thats just me.
First off, thanks for the advice. It will give me something to consider.
And no I’m not training to be “elite” in powerlifting. Elite in this thread title means a top notch athlete. I know “elite” might be a big of an exaggeration on what I can achieve in two years, but I want to the strongest, fastest, most explosive athlete I can be. Think football player, MMA fighter, etc. type of athleticism.
I’ve already been doing basic 5x5 stuff for a few months, so about 12 weeks of this will really be an extension of that. And I will do the Madcow Intermediate longer if I continue to get results.
The main thing I want is strength, but I’m a chubby bastard with love handles and manboobs right now. Strength is priority No. 1, but I do want to look like a solid athlete and I feel like boring But big is the best of both worlds.
And once I start Olympic lifting that is going to be my lifting style of choice for several years. I
Boring but big is a good one for strength and lots of mass. You will get gains for sure. As for athleticism, have you looked at 531/cross fit? Its in the second book. It was fun and you will get athletic for sure. I loved it.
[quote]Zen of Explosion wrote:
First off, thanks for the advice. It will give me something to consider.
And no I’m not training to be “elite” in powerlifting. Elite in this thread title means a top notch athlete. I know “elite” might be a big of an exaggeration on what I can achieve in two years, but I want to the strongest, fastest, most explosive athlete I can be. Think football player, MMA fighter, etc. type of athleticism.
I’ve already been doing basic 5x5 stuff for a few months, so about 12 weeks of this will really be an extension of that. And I will do the Madcow Intermediate longer if I continue to get results.
The main thing I want is strength, but I’m a chubby bastard with love handles and manboobs right now. Strength is priority No. 1, but I do want to look like a solid athlete and I feel like boring But big is the best of both worlds.
And once I start Olympic lifting that is going to be my lifting style of choice for several years. I[/quote]
I haven’t seen it but I’ve read good things and I like the structure of his basic programs. And for what it’s worth, I have decided to structure my training differently after my post. I will stick with Madcow until all or at least 3 of my lifts have stalled, then I will do a 3-day variation of 5/3/1 for like 8 or 9 months.
Squat: 120, 145, 175, 205, 245 x 5 (Felt good but I found myself leaning forward and using toes too much. SIT BACK, chest up, explode through your heals)
Bench: 90, 115, 135, 155, 185 ( Did 185 2 weeks because I actually used 5 pounds extra first week and was harder than it should have been).
Row: 55, 70, 80, 95, 110
Situps: 3 x 25
Back extensions: 1 x 20 with bodyweight, 1 x 10 with 10 lbs, 1 x 10 with 20 pounds.
Squat: 120, 150, 185, 185
Military press: 80, 95, 115, 130 x 5
Deadlift: 115, 135, 135, 185
Had a breakthr I actually felt my hamstrings working and didn’t feel like I was entirely lifting the weight with my slightly tweaked lower back. I sat back, used a wider grip to keep my back tight and chest puffed out, and most importantly I hinged my hips foward to help lift the weight which I’ve never been able to do. Hopefully I can do some kind of real weight in the future, because it pisses me off that my dead is AT LEAST 60 pounds lower than my squat because of shitty forum.
Chinups: 1 x 8, 1 x 6…Lat pulldowns for 2 more sets of 8.
Situps: 3 x 25 j
Cuban rotation w/ 5lbs: Just to stretch out the muscles.
Squat: 115, 135, 175, 205, 255 x 3 (Easier than expected…forgot to do 175 x 8 at the end)
Bench: 95, 115, 135, 160, 190 x 3, 135 x 8 (My work on form has helped…felt easy)
Dumbbell rows: 20 X 12, 25lb x 12 (4 sets)
Dips: 3 x 8 w/10 pound weight
Bicep curls/Skullcrushers superset: 3 x 8 w/ 50 pounds
Facepulls: 3 x 10 w/ 25 pounds
Weighted situps: 10 lbs (3 x 25)
Back extensions: Bodyweight x 20, 10lb x 10, 25lb x 10
I’ve been working two jobs and working about 60-70 hours per week…only slept for 3 hours last night. I was able to get the weight, but everything was a little more difficult than expected. I’m considering moving up weights a bit slower to compensate.
I have been on a hiatus from the site, but have still been hitting the gym. I will just post today’s workout and my new weights instead of searching for previous workouts.
January 2, 2014
Bench: 95, 125, 145, 170, 195 x 3 (moving up in 2.5 pound increments now)
Squat: 125, 155, 185, 225, 275 x 2
Dumbbell rows: 25 x 12, 30 x 12 (2 sets), 35 x 12 (2 sets)
Weighted dips: 20 pounds (3 x 8)
Bicep curl: 55 pounds (3 x 8)
Skullcrushers: 55 pounds (3 x 8)
Everything was a little heavier than expected. Working a lot and getting little sleep is starting to catch up to me. Luckily my schedule is changing in the next couple of weeks.
Keep up the good work! I turned 30 this year, and am in the best shape of my life. Hit some personal records all throughout the year, and put about 90 lbs on my squat max. 31 should be even better Keep pushing!!!
Military press: 65, 85, 105, 115, 135 x 5
Squat: 145, 185, 205, 235, 275 x 3 (Was supposed to be 5 reps, but I think I progressed faster than the program suggested. Will hit 3 reps again Friday, then 5 next Monday)
Pullups: 5 sets of 3 (Wide, overhand grip)
Weighted situps: 3 x 25 w/ 10 pound weight
Back extensions: BW x 20, 25 pounds x 10 (2 sets)
Bench press: 115, 145, 165, 195 x 3
Deadlift: 135, 155, 175, 215 x 5 (same problem…can’t get in position. The weight felt light as hell but my back was rounded, didn’t feel anything in hamstrings, etc.)
Front squat: 115, 145, 175 x 5, 175 x 5
Pendlay row: 65, 85, 105, 115, 135 x 5
Weighted situps: 3 x 25 w/ 10 pounds
Cuban rotation: 3 x 12 w/ 5 pounds (strictly for rehab/shoulder health purposes)
[quote]flipcollar wrote:
Keep up the good work! I turned 30 this year, and am in the best shape of my life. Hit some personal records all throughout the year, and put about 90 lbs on my squat max. 31 should be even better Keep pushing!!![/quote]
Thanks man. I’m getting stronger each week and I feel I’ll be able to squat 315 soon. I have a lot of work to do, but I am enjoying every step of the journey.
[quote]csulli wrote:
Tell us about your back injury. I think the only problem with your deadlift is you’re not pulling hard because you’re scared of hurting yourself.[/quote]
About 2 years ago I hurt my back doing bent over rows. It hurt like hell, caused me to stand straight up and I couldn’t bend forward for about 3 days. I did a lot of stretching and rehab exercises over the next year and the pain almost went away…
Then about 8 months ago when I got back into training I hurt my back on deadlift. I hadn’t done a lot of research and I was doing 4 sets of 10 with 165 pounds…I know now that it was a stupid rep range for a beginner. Anyway, my back spasmed on the way down and it is just now starting to feel normal again.
It has mostly gone away again…and you’re right, I’m scared of hurting it. This is the first time in about a decade that I’ve been committed to weight training and I don’t want a bad form back injury to halt my training again.
I’m considering doing my deadlifts with the weights elevated off the floor. I recently took a video, so I will try to upload that today so you can see it. My back was rounded and my hamstring flexibility is HORRIBLE, so I think it’s the main thing holding me back.
Military press: 65, 85, 95, 115, 137.5 x 3, 95 x 8
Squat: 135 x 5, 165 x 5, 205 x 5, 235 x 5, 275 x 3, 205 x 8
Pullups: BW x 3, BW x 3, BW x 4, BW x 4, BW x 3
Weighted dips: 22.5 pounds, 3 x 8
Bicep curls/Skullcrushers superset: 57.5 pounds, 3 x 8
Military press felt surprisingly easy…squat felt hard as shit, but I guess it’s supposed to now that I’m breaking PR’s every week. I work a double on Saturday, about 8 hours on Sunday, and another double on Monday so my next lifting day will be Tuesday. It will give me 3 full days to recover, so i expect to hit 275 for 5 reps on squat on Tuesday.
Keep pushing!!!