While I have hit 13 reps of front squats before, I see this as a pretty huge PR: there’s a big difference between getting 13 reps on a max reps attempt compared to getting 12 reps in a third work set. A huge improvement from my squats (3x5) earlier this week, which I put down to being back in the swing of training (that 3x5 wasn’t easy!).
I was planning on trying for a PR on swings too, but I tweaked my lower back going deep on the squats and wanted to play it safe. Overall I’m extremely happy with this session.
I didn’t manage to get any supplements today so I might have to put that idea on hold. Out of the two shops near me one seems to be closing down and the other had a really poor selection (no pre-workout and protein bars with 50g of carbs lol).
Tricep Extension/Dumbbell Curl Superset
Light weight x high reps
Bodyweight: 94.8kg
I did this session with Rattlehead - had a great catch-up. I’m extremely happy about hitting 3 clean reps of 100kg bench, as after I finished the Simple and Sinister routine I lost a lot of pressing strength and couldn’t manage a single at this weight. The dips have clearly worked well at getting my pressing strength back up to scratch, as this really isn’t all that far off what I could do at my peak. Also I’m pretty sure my friend’s weights aren’t accurately labelled as I got 16 reps of 85kg in the past which just can’t be right - I think they must be closer to 75kg.
The pull-ups were done spread out throughout the session, so the rest times were really long, but it felt good to get two sets of 8 instead of having to drop the reps.
I managed to get hold of some pre-workout and quest bars today. Seem to be good!
A 100 kg Bench Press for a triple is awesome considering you don’t train really train bench press. Great choice with the Quest Bars. I always buy a box to hopefully last me a few weeks but they are so good the box of 12 get gone pretty quick. Keep up the good work!!!
Bodyweight: [/b] 94.9kg - a slow but steady improvement.
Training: I’m really happy with training this week - especially following a week off. I hit upper body three times and lower body twice, including a bench PR (of recent times) and a kettlebell front squat PR (overall volume of work sets).
Nutrition: Very good this week, I feel like I’m getting back into the habit of making sensible decisions.
[quote]jblues85 wrote:
A 100 kg Bench Press for a triple is awesome considering you don’t train really train bench press. Great choice with the Quest Bars. I always buy a box to hopefully last me a few weeks but they are so good the box of 12 get gone pretty quick. Keep up the good work!!![/quote]
Thank you very much jblues, I’m very happy (and surprised) about it! I think I’ve always relied quite heavily on my triceps when pressing (although my grip is fairly wide) and so getting stronger on dips has had a really good carryover.
I did this after my last nightshift, after being awake for 20 hours, so I wasn’t expecting greatness. Just a nice brief session to keep things ticking over. I usually lose weight on night shifts but I don’t think I have this time.
I’m extremely happy with this workout because I was very tired from my nightshifts (back on day shift today), but got 125 solid work reps in with the rows. As I’ve noticed before, pull-ups maintain my rowing strength but the reverse is not true: I’m extremely happy with 5x5 40kg as I haven’t done heavy rows in ages.
I got bored and decided to do a little more work. I’ve been thinking about push exercises for when I move in August and don’t live so close to a gym. In terms of avoiding a new gym membership my options seem to be ring dips, handstand push-ups and one-arm push-ups. I think I’m leaning towards one-arm push-ups at the moment as they don’t involve as much technical proficiency and practice as the handstands and they feel better on my shoulders than the ring dips. I lost the ability to do them after my run of simple and sinister but all of these dips recently have brought them back. My shoulders felt the strain a little, but I think that was a form thing. Overall I’m happy with these.
I was going to try 5x10 on the squats today but I quickly realised that wasn’t going to happen! The first set of 8 was a struggle and the last was a real grind. Not a terrible session though!
I originally planned on training upper body today and lower body tomorrow, but I’ve just changed jobs and I’m about to move flat and I’m about to start nightshifts so everything is all over the place at the moment. I need to go into work at 9:30am for a 2 hour induction tomorrow and then be back at 9pm for a 12 hour nightshift - but I haven’t moved flat yet and so live 90min away! The next week is going to be tricky.
This session was a struggle to be honest, but I hit my target reps so I can’t complain. My recent period of solid linear progress has definitely stalled now.
Training: Poor. 4 sessions but all below usual intensity and volume. No regression though.
Nutrition: Pretty poor.
Overall a less than stellar week, but given everything that’s going on I can’t really complain. Just need to keep things ticking over for the next couple of weeks then when everything has settled down really hit it hard again.
Had a very busy weekend of nights, and so felt pretty knackered for this one. Pull-ups started strong but didn’t stay that way. Dips felt tough, so I did sets of 10, but then got a bit of extra energy and hit a set of 15.