Bench
45 x 10
135 x 5
160 x 5
180 x 3
205 x 3
230 x 1
255 x 1
165 - 5 x 10
Superset 10 95 lb dumbbell rows with working bench sets
Superset 20 45 lb dumbbell lunges with first 2 BBB sets
2 x 20 25 lb plate raises
I slept like shit last night and my work schedule dictated that I had to train this afternoon instead of this morning. I can’t train with food in my gut because holy ballsack did I feel like a fucking slug. Combine that with half my body cramping at once between sets and I really shoulda pushed this to tomorrow. Oh well, onward/upward
Still lifting and running Perverted Leviathan but haven’t felt like logging on here. Got one session of the Leader left and am planning to hit it today.
It’s been tough finding motivation to lift on this program, so I’ve been working with a powerlifting buddy of mine (who also happens to be the wellness coordinator at work) on a program I’m writing to run this summer. Want the chance to push strength without sacrificing muscle or making myself feel like shit.
Plan is to pair squat/bench and deadlift/press. Work up to a heavy single (leave a rep in the tank), do 3-5 back off sets of 3, 5, or 10 reps (maybe a Widowmaker if I wanna push muscle more or singles if I do decide to do a powerlifting meet). Superset lower body lifts with hanging leg raises, superset upper body lifts with chins or rows. Day 3 is 5 x 10 superset work for muscle and balance. And there will be a minimum of one cardio day per week, likely distance runs or hill sprints.
If this doesn’t go well, it’s because I lose sight of leaving a rep in the tank on the heavy singles
Been dealing with heart palpitations real bad this week and went down a big ol research rabbit hole to try and understand what’s going on. Found something interesting across multiple university/NIH studies that I feel like I should put here. I don’t get much salt because I have high blood pressure, and I feel like when I get less salt, my BP is higher, heart rate is more fluttery, and I’m more anxious/feeling worse. For instance, my palpitations go away within 15 minutes of having an LMNT packet.
What I found from the research studies is that chronic low sodium led to significantly higher angiotensin and increased sympathetic nervous system activity.
What’s the plan to fix this then? Starting each day with 1/2 tsp salt in 16 oz water. Tried 1/4 tsp in 8 oz today and it helped but I think I’ll still be short on daily salt with that dose. Probably doesn’t help that I’m on Losartan, which has a decent amount of potassium in it, and that’s making my body shed salt more than a normal person
Squat
Work up to 385 x 1
Back-off sets - 310 - 3 x 3
All sets superset with 10 hanging leg raises
Bench
Work up to 270 x 1
Back-off sets - 160 - 3 x 10
All sets superset with 10 Kroc rows (95 pound DB)
Got through this in 75 minutes counting my warmup. I would imagine that speeds up once I get used to the program and get better at picking my jumps. I finished feeling really good but could tell I got some good work in.
Deadlift
Top single: 405
Back-off sets: 285 - 5 x 5
Superset 10 hanging leg raises with every set
Press
Top single: 150
Back-off sets: 105 - 5 x 5
Superset 6 chin ups with every set
Lats locked up on my last 3 so I switched to wrist rollers for them
Work felt great, body feels great. Chin ups were really hard because I hit the driving range Tuesday and my forearms were absolutely roached. Still hurt today even. So far really enjoying this program and my body already feels different.
Superset 2
Plate Raise - 25 lb bumper - 3 sets, 56 total reps
Nordic Ham Curls - 3 x 10
Superset 3
Lunges - 55lb dumbbells - 3 x 20
Hanging knee circles (rotation) - 3 x 5 reps in each direction
Lotta work in not much time here, felt nice to push some things and hopefully get outta the “he might lift” category into the “yeah he lifts” promised land.
Deadlift
Top single: 425 lbs
Back-off sets: 340 lbs - 3 x 3
Superset: 10 hanging leg raises
Press
Top single: 150 lbs
Back-off sets: 120 lbs - 3 x 3
Superset: 6 chin ups
Deadlift felt incredible - smooth and strong. Press is getting there but it’s still the lift I feel the worst at. Both upper body main lifts and squat just haven’t clicked yet with the increased weight/frequency and decreased volume. Usually it happens around week 3-4 where some miniscule detail in my form changes and I magically get 10-15% stronger instantly. I know it’s coming and I’m trying to be patient.
My rotational strength and stability SUCK and I’m tired of it. This work was rough, which tells me I need to do more of it. Cardio was tough as well but I’m a little better at that stuff
Squat
Top single: 385
Back-off sets: 270 - 3 x 5
Superset: 10 hanging leg lifts
Bench
Top single: 260
Back-off sets: 180 - 3 x 5
Superset: dumbbell rows - 95 lbs x 10
We had our first rec softball game on Sunday and I was dealing with some of the worst soreness I’ve ever felt. Hands, elbows, obliques, glutes, quads, hammies, calves, feet were all killing me. And I just felt CNS fatigue. So, rather than push as much weight as possible, I stopped a little short of my previous week numbers. Still got good work in and got comfy under the weight. It’s weird, but I’m proud of myself for not going full Neanderthal and pushing as much weight as possible at the cost of an injury or even more delayed recovery. Plan is to shift my heavy days to Wed/Sat so I have more time between heavy athletic activities and heavy lifting.
Dips - bodyweight - 3 x 20
Curls - 15 lbs - 3 x 20
Full range plate raise - 25 lbs - 3 x 20
Straight arm cable pulldown - 35 lbs - 3 x 20
Leg curls - 55 lbs - 2 x 20
Leg extensions - 70 lbs - 2 x 20
Straight sets:
Jumping rotational lunges - bodyweight - 2 x 20
Plate twist and press - 25 lbs - 2 x 20
Horizontal plate swings - 25 lbs - 2 x 20
Low-high-low plate swings - 25 lbs - 2 x 20
Given my level of soreness, I shoulda done 2 sets for everything. Trying to get some work in and get blood in the muscles, but I ended up having to push the final sets pretty hard. Still enjoyed it and got it done
I hit a wall this week worse than I have in a long time. Super sore, real tired, real foggy in the head too. So I took 2 days off to rest up and eat up and I plan to hit the GarageRocker Special W3D2 today
Did what’s gonna be my final day of the GarageRocker Special today. Deadlifted 435 and failed 155 pressing. I was still beat up and didn’t listen to my body on either lift, so I’m gonna take that to mean I probably don’t have the maturity or mentality for a self-regulating program. It was fun, produced good results in a short time, and it burnt me out real bad.
Ok pity party over, gonna go back to my usual summer 5/3/1 variation - two days for busy dudes. PR set followed by 5 x 10 with opposite lift (deadlift on squat day, etc). Core superset with lower body lifts, back superset with upper body lifts, curls and triceps after upper body days, calves after lower body days. Sometimes you gotta take a break from what works well for you to remind yourself why it works well
This is an interesting variation. Is that somewhere in Wendler’s work, or is it a different kind of GarageRocker Special?
I ask because I’ve been grooving on 5/3/1 full body variations—where it’s upper main/lower supplemental (and vice versa)—for several months now, but I’ve not considered the squat/deadlift or bench/overhead pairings… Or at least, not that I recall.
Good stuff in any case. Definitely excited to see where it takes you!
I’m trying to remember if it was from the Wendler Forum or if it was on here, lemme see if I can find it. If you wanna look yourself it was called 5/3/1 for busy and inconsistent guys
Played my beer league softball games this morning and actually remembered to not go balls out every single play. Did it matter? Fuuuuuuuuuuuck no because in my first at bat I pulled my quad, asscheek, and oblique while jogging to first base. I don’t feel like I’m old enough for this to happen
