[quote]FISCHER613 wrote:
exploding meaning acelerating the bar as fast as possible that is already under tension. Not blasting into loose.
I hope I did not piss you off Brett with the criticism but you lift by yourself with no one coaching your lifts as they happen.
All in all good solid lifting here man.[/quote]
Not at all. I appreciate you taking the time and I respect your knowledge. In fact I was just about to reply to your post.
[quote]FISCHER613 wrote:
constructive crticism here.
Good
I don’t mean to seem harsh here I just don’t want to hear that you fucked up your shoulder benching like that.
Good lifting though with Pr’s coming all the time .
Hope this helps
[/quote]
I’ll answer in order.
I don’t have an arch. I just take a really deep breath and hold it. My set up routine is as follows…
No that’s it!
One confusing bit though, how can I have no explosion off the chest yet have good strength out of the bottom?
Thanks for the input, I will be getting a new bench when I’ve moved and I’ll try and work on those suggestions. Feel free to look back and critique my squats and deadlift too. I’m always looking to improve. Thanks.
01/09/2011
Bike Ride - 17 miles (leisurely pace)
02/09/2011
RDLs
132 lbs x 10 w/u
220 lbs x 10-10
Deadlifts 308 lbs x 10-7 (touch’n’go)
GHR (bw) x 6-6-6
Front Squats 220 lbs x 6-6-6
Push Ups (feet raised on 22" bench) x 20-16-15 (supersetted with) EZ Curls 99 lbs x 6-6-6
Ab Rollouts x 10-10
Thought I’d try exhausting the posterior chain before squatting for a change, mainly because I’ve never done that before.
Can you tell my lifting is ‘rudder-less’ right now? Because I don’t know how much time I have left to lift, I can’t seem to focus and commit to a goal.
Might just spend the remaining time trying to get buff. What’s the point of training for strength when as soon as I stop I’m going to lose it all? Maybe I could hang on to buff longer by just watching my diet.
nice pr, Fischer’s comments are pretty on. Would like to see how you bench submaximally. When you unrack, it seems like you try to set up, i.e. engage the lats, but somewhat unsuccesfully. Also, you do an ok job tucking on the way down, but on the way up you immediately flare the elbows out so you are benching like an 80s bodybuilder. Despite this you handled the weight fine, fine tune the form and you have a lot more in you.
You have good strength out of the bottom because you built tension in your body but lose it after the first initial drive. Get blocks for now so you can tuck better and drive your shoulder blades into the pad.
bottom pin press carries over to a greater bench usually.
Oh and really squezze your ass and abs as you start applying tension and getting tight.
Edit: For clarity
Nice lifting Brett, I know what you mean about the posterior chain, I have really been working on mine. Seems I overlooked it for to long.
The best way to cure your bench woes are these High rep squats…shhhh dont let the secret out…nice work Brett, Congrats on the PR!!!
Pete - I see what you mean about the flaring elbows. I’ll try and work on that.
Dude - My new plan is to spend two thirds of leg training time on posterior chain. I think it’s holding back my squat and deadlift.
OG - Thanks. I am going to do a bit of high rep squatting, but high as in 20 reps not 50! That’s just ridiculous.
05/09/2011
RDLs
135 lbs x 10 w/u
220 lbs x 10
264 lbs x 10
308 lbs x 6
352 lbs x 3
Leg Curls
70 lbs x 6
80 lbs x 6
90 lbs x 6
100 lbs x 5
110 lbs x 3
“Wide” Squats
220 lbs x 10
242 lbs x 8
264 lbs x 6
286 lbs x 3
Chin Ups (bw) x 6-6-6 (supersetted with) CGBP 135 lbs x 8-8-8
Did a lot of things differently today. Widened my squat stance by about a foot and pointed my toes out more. Still not wide stance by most peoples standards, but pretty wide by mine. It felt OK actually. Now I understand what they all say about sitting back in the squat. When I squatted narrow I couldn’t understand how you could do that without falling backwards, but now I get it.
I noticed I had to lean much further forward as a result and felt it in my legs in totally different places, especially in the adductors. I was sensible and didn’t go heavy, I think I’ll be sore enough tomorrow as it is. Felt noticeably weaker in the hole, but I’m sure I’ll adapt quickly to the new movement pattern.
First time I’ve managed to do chins in ages, since before my shoulder trouble. Did some CGBP too. Tried to ‘row’ them down to my upper abdomen, pause and then drive up explosively towards the head. Trying to learn to keep my elbows from flaring and build some tricep strength.
FB, you feel it in your adductors more because pointing your toes out more takes the external rotators of your hips (mostly?) out of the strength equation. Personally, pointing my toes in more while maintaining the same width has had a positive effect on my right hip joint, which I have tweaked from squatting (admittedly my right hip joint is pre-disposed to being “tweaked” due to previous activities).
Read StormTheBeach’s posts in this thread, I found the info tremendously informative and beneficial:
[quote]punnyguy wrote:
FB, you feel it in your adductors more because pointing your toes out more takes the external rotators of your hips (mostly?) out of the strength equation. Personally, pointing my toes in more while maintaining the same width has had a positive effect on my right hip joint, which I have tweaked from squatting (admittedly my right hip joint is pre-disposed to being “tweaked” due to previous activities).
Read StormTheBeach’s posts in this thread, I found the info tremendously informative and beneficial:
[/quote]
Doesn’t pointing the feet out and widening the stance allow more recruitment of the glutes?
About the bench vid, the first thing I noticed was your feet. On the base of the cage instead of on the floor. And no leg drive. Seriously, I don’t know how people bench without leg drive. I don’t think I could bench much of anything if I had to take my legs outta the equation. Okay, I don’t bench much of anything with leg drive. But you know what I mean. I think it’s really tough to try for bench PRs with no spotter to give you a liftoff. Kudos to you for doing as well as you do.
I’d really like to see your wide-stance squats. Can you video? Ultimately, I was able to handle more weight and still hit PLing depth in a wider stance because I could maintain control a little better . . . didn’t drop to the floor. You’re like me in that with narrow stance, you have the flexibility to bounce off your calves. Just depends on what your goals are.
PG - Yeah I read that thread at the time. I think they were discussing the finer points of “toes touching the rack” wide, not slightly wider than narrow as I’m doing.
George - That’s what I thought too. That’s why I’m doing it, to slightly involve the glutes and hams more and stop being so much of a quad squatter.
KP - Thanks for the kudos on the benching. A liftoff might make a slight difference in my ability to get a tight setup, but I won’t let myself use it as an excuse for not benching so much because it’s not really my limiting factor. I can unrack a lot more than I can press back up.
Tuesday 06/09/2011
RDLs
132 lbs x 10 w/u
220 lbs x 10-10-10-10
Standing DB Press 63.5 lb’ers x 7-7-7
Pendlay Rows 132 lbs x 10-10-10
Subscap Pulldowns
110 lbs x 5 (too heavy to do them properly)
88 lbs x 6-6
Face Pulls
69 lbs x 10-10
44 lbs x 20-16
DB Scaptions x 22 lb’ers x 10-10
Ab Rollouts (off knees) x 15-12
Just getting caught up. Good stuff as always. I feel the same way with the wider stance and found that it ultimately just feels better and more solid.
james
Had a few days away helping my son-in-law build a long retaining wall in his back garden. It was several 12 hr days back to back of REALLY heavy labour. The hollow concrete blocks we used were twice the size and weight of standard concrete blocks (30 lbs+ at a guess) and all the blocks, bricks, sand, cement and concrete had been dropped off 50m away from where they were needed. So everything had to be loaded into wheelbarrows (crap ones with wheels that didn’t go round properly) and pushed uphill along a deep gravel driveway before we could even start. It was tough work. We’d set reinforcement bars into the foundations to strengthen it and the blocks had to be slotted over the bar and cemented in place. Let me tell you after 8 hours those blocks felt like they weighed 200 frickin’ pounds each. After two days of that he had a numb arm!?! and I didn’t even have the lower back strength to roll over in bed at night. No kidding. I guess my idea of training RDLs two days in a row before I went away was not the wisest either.
The last day was just bricklaying thankfully which after the blocks felt like a day off. He owes me big time!
First w/o after 6 days off
12/09/2011
RDLs
132 lbs x 10 w/u
220 lbs x 10
308 lbs x 6
352 lbs x 5
385 lbs x 4
“Wide” Back Squats (with pause in hole)
220 lbs x 3
264 lbs x 3
286 lbs x 3
308 lbs x 3
330 lbs x 3
Push Ups (feet elevated 22") x 20-20-16 (supersetted with) Subscap Pulldowns 88 lbs x 7-7-7
Ab Rollouts (off knees) x 15-13
My new plan to increase my squat and deadlift is to hammer my hams, glutes, lower back and abdominals frequently. I figure I need to be repping RDLs in the 400’s to really progress. I don’t have any theory to back it up, I just made it up.
I really like these subscap pulldowns, they really feel like they hit the lower traps and all that stuff between and around the shoulder blades. My shoulders are feeling awesome right now and I put it all down to face pulls, push ups and these.
Vid of RDLs top set, new squat stance from side to check I can still hit depth and last set of squats.
I’ve noticed with the wider stance, the bottom of my elbows now hit the top of my quads. Does anyone else have this problem and what do I do about it? Do I have to widen my grip now too?
EDIT: Apologies for the Donna Summer. I’m not gay. Honest!!!
[quote]atypical1 wrote:
Just getting caught up. Good stuff as always. I feel the same way with the wider stance and found that it ultimately just feels better and more solid.
james[/quote]
Thanks. It’s really early days for me with the wider stance. Right now I feel about as stable as Bambi after a night on the town, but I do think I’ll be able to go heavier once I get the form dialled in. Haven’t gone heavier than 330 yet. Going to try for 352 next w/o.
So, disco’s just now getting to Wales? Guy named Tom Jones has some good stuff, too.
Great depth on the squats. Saw the bench vids and read the discussion. Very good stuff there. Every time I come round here you’re improving.
FB, George: the over-riding principle is that a shortened (contracted) muscle is a weak muscle -it’s work is done; while a stretched (lengthened) muscle is a strong muscle -it wants to get back to it’s normal/resting length.
Toes out lets you get lower, which lengthens all the hip extensor muscles, allowing for greater recruitment -so yes, that is true. But, if you can get to the same depth as toes out with toes (more) in, you can now add in the potential energy of the hip (and knee) external rotators; afaik, the biceps femoris part of your hamstrings is the only knee external rotator.
FB, it looks to me like your toes are still in enough that you’re still good imo. I have the same problem with elbows hitting quads -elbows forward/under the bar more helped me greatly, with the added benefit that it keeps my torso more upright (thanks MM).
retaining wall?
us kiwis got a tv commercial about that…
don’t get me wrong - rather you than me. heh.
My first thought when watching your squat vid was about your toes pointed more forward than out. What happens when you point your toes out? Just curious.
Brett, I thought those were closer to regular deadlifts. I thought Romanians were each side separately, usually dumbbells, and they hit just the hams and spinal erectors. Did I miss something?