i’ve been in sports all of my life. in high school, i was an all-conference DE in football and ran hurdles in track. in both sports, i was extremely dedicated and a gym rat. those 2 things really helped me on the playing field because i was a 6’3 185 lb DE. also, i’ve been a lifeguard for 5 years, so i have a well-rounded athletic ability. after high school, i was on and off with training, but this past year and a half i’ve been getting into training again. right now, i’ve been in the best shape since high school and plan on getting in even better shape.
Height: 6’3
Weight:180
Body fat %: about 7 or 8%
Training Max’s:
Floor Press: 202.5
Squat: 265.5
Deadlift: 265.5
Bent-over, underhand row: 150
I’m using floor press and the row because my ROM in my shoulders are pretty poor. i’m doing stuff from Assess & Correct to help with that.
Goals:
get to 195 lbs. w/ the same body fat %.
better ROM in shoulders & hips
become a better runner/swimmer/paddler
15 PERFECT pull-ups
i don’t really care how long it takes to get these goals, i just want to achieve them in the best & safest way possible.
one thing i forgot to say was that i’m doing the 2 day split because i have to train for lifeguarding on a regular basis. i’m combining Floor Press & Squat and Bent Rows w/ Deadlifts. i’m also using Nick Tumminello’s Unconventional Ab exercises. i’ve been using these since the article came out and i’ve seen major improvement in my core strength and function. if you haven’t tried these yet, try them!
Floor press: probably could have gone for 13 or 14 but my form was getting worse so i stopped
Squats: my legs are lacking some serious endurance. but good news is i can only go get better from here
Warm-up: need to come up with a solid full body warm-up. i was doing an upper body/lower body split so i didn’t have to worry about combining the two warm-ups.
Good mornings: i need to go down in weight and focus on form. it was a little sloppy and uncomfortable. if the decrease in weight doesn’t help, i gotta find a new exercise
in response to your post, rephore, i thought floor press was a better exercise choice compared to bench for me. i have tight shoulders and doing regular bench starts to bother them after about 2 months. since 531 is a long-term program, i would get less wear and tear on my shoulders by using floor press. also, i have noticed more chest and tricep development from floor press compared to regular bench, especially in my triceps which has always been one of my weak points in my physique.
on 8/4 i did my second day which looked like this…
I had to cut out exercises because I had to get in and get out of the gym. also, i cut down my rest periods so i probably could have better numbers with my rest.
Rows: awesome exercise choice. i could really feel my entire back being worked, especially my lats and rear delts.
Deadlift: i was doing trap bar deadlifts for about 2 months prior to switching back to regular deads. my form was a little out of whack for the warm-up sets but cleaned up by the end. also, my grip strength dropped after doing trap bar deads so i have regain that strength back.
Overall: despite some of the minor setbacks, it was an excellent workout. i just gotta get used to deadlifting again.
Complex: I haven’t done a complex in a long time and i forgot how grueling they are. Also, I forgot to use light weights. The first set i used 95 lbs and was gassed, so i switched to 65 lbs.
Lifts: since this was my 1st time doing this day, i threw stuff together to see what would work. I determined a few things: 1) no supersets 2) legs first, then upper body 3) used weight assisted pull-ups. they may make me look like a pussy, but my form needs some serious work.
A1. Floor Press: 80, 100, 120, 150, 170, 190 for 10
A2. Chins: 6 * 4 to 6
B. Squat: 105, 135, 160, 200, 225, 250 for 4
Notes:
I really fucked up with my time management so I had to cut out more stuff than usual; however I had an awesome lift overall.
I added the complex to the beginning of my workout because it seems to activate my muscles better than the stuff i was doing
Squat: the endurance is still lacking, but form is improving. I’m going to keep the weight the same for the next cycle because my numbers were lower than i wanted. One thing that I have noticed since i started squatting was immediate improvement in my deadlift at the bottom half of the lift. I’m definitely getting stronger in the squat, but I won’t notice until i repeat the next cycle.
A1. UH Bent Over Row: 60, 75, 90, 115, 130, 145 for 9
A2. Push-ups: 5 * 12
B. Deadlift: 105, 135, 160, 200, 225, 250 for 9
Notes:
A few changes that I made and I really like: 1) cut out the ab exercises of the “big” 2 days and i’m gonna add them to the accessory day. 2) i’m loving the complexes. With both of these changes, i feel much stronger and i think i’m seeing size gains already.
I had to cut out my C lift again because i’m leaving for school today. i hope once i get up to school i’ll be on a better schedule so i can get this lift in.
Deadlift: the best part of the workout. my form felt phenomenal.
Just food for thought, maybe try incorporating a light full ROM bench, or DB movement. It seems a little risky doing only partial ROM from a muscular balance stand point.
[quote]Remu_87 wrote:
Just food for thought, maybe try incorporating a light full ROM bench, or DB movement. It seems a little risky doing only partial ROM from a muscular balance stand point. [/quote]
thanks for advice Remu_87. i incorporate push-ups and db incline press on my other days. do you think there’s sufficient ROM in those movements or do you think i should use other movements?
[quote]Remu_87 wrote:
Just until you can load properly in that ROM, what exactly are your shoulder issues? [/quote]
i have tight pec minors and mild scoliosis so i have tightness in my shoulders and hips, especially in my right shoulder and left hip. i do a good amount of mobility and flexibility work for my shoulders and hips. also, i foam roll consistently which is very helpful.
Floor Press: best lift of the cycle. I was impressed with some of my numbers in this lift, especially the 190 * 10. I was pumped when i did that.
Deadlift: this was my second best lift this cycle. I felt pretty strong in this lift and my grip has started to come back to me. I’m very excited for the next cycle.
UH Bent Over Rows: i was pleasantly surprised by this lift. My back feels so much stronger because of this lift.
Squat: worst lift of the cycle, in terms of technique and numbers.
A1. Floor Press: 80, 100, 125, 135, 155, 175 for 13 PB!
A2. Chin-ups: 5 * 5
B. Squat: 105, 135, 160, 185, 200, 225 for 11 PB!
Notes:
I had to get in and get out but definitely had a great lift! Two PB’s in one lift is awesome. I’m very pumped about that.
Squat: made major improvements in this lift; however I still have technique issues with the heavier weights. i think i’m gonna have to add in a day where i just work on squat technique and use some of the methods Dan John uses in his squat instruction video.
8/27
Complex: 3 * 8, 65 lbs., 2 minutes of rest
A1. UH Bent Over Rows: 80, 95, 100, 115, 130 for 13 PB
A2. Push-ups: 5 *12
B. Deadlift: 110, 140, 165, 180, 205, 235 for 13 PB
Notes:
another great lift. not much else to say about that.
A1. Push-ups: 10
A2. Inverted rows with Jungle Gym (its pretty much the same thing as a TRX): 12
A3. BW Squats: 15
Med Ball Circuit: 3 sets, 1 min rest
A1. Side to side chops: 5 per side
A2. Diagonal chops: 5 per side
A3. Vertical Chops: 10
I felt fucking awesome after this workout. i felt loose and and awesome.
8/31
Hill sprints
9/2
Cycle 2, week 2, day 1
Complex: 3* 8, 65 lbs, 2 min rest
A1. Floor Press: i forgot what the #'s were but I got 185 for 10 on the last one, shitty lift
A2. Chins: 5 * 5
B. Squats: same this floor press but i didnt even max out on the last lift
Notes:
I definitely fucked up my left shoulder
WORST LIFT YET. FUCK
9/3
Hill sprint: 20 sprints ~ 15 sec per sprint with ~ 1:30 rest in between each sprint
9/7
I’ve been feeling under the weather, tired, cranky, and my left shoulder is sucking. This means one thing, deload and possible change in routine. I know i should probably continue 531 and just lower the weights, but the best I felt after a lift was that bodyweight I did, as well as the hill sprint days. I think a bodyweight routine would be beneficial and my body starts feeling better. Also, I realized that my glute function blows and so does my scapula function. I think taking some time to do some bodyweight exercises, activation, and mobility exercises would do me some good.