Phew, it’s been a while since i last wrote in a log. Numbers have gone up since i last did so hopefully that means something.
Weight: 220 (Up from 190 this year)
Bench : 195 (Highest tested, but i hit this for two singles)
Squat : 265 (Knee surgery/ injuries holding me back, but i’m on the upswing)
Dead : 365 (Long ass arms)
Long story short i’m still very much a beginner. Only really been training for a year, maybe 1.5. Been in the gym forever but I’ve always just dicked around.
Today’s workout:
DE Lower
Box Squat
1x5 @ 95 - Knees felt like shit.
1x5 @ 135 - Hips felt like shit.
8x3 @ 135 - Working on sitting back in squat, actually pausing. Hips and knees feel better.
Hips still feel very tight and bottom of box-squat, abs probably weak.
RDL
1x5 @ 135
1x5 @ 225
2x3 @ 275*
1x1 @ 315* - Wasn’t too hard, just never do these. Upper-back completely gave out, but lower and mid back were not rounded. Legs barely got worked.
*Used cheater-straps.
Leg Curl
3x10 @ 90 - Was not as easy as it should have been.
Abs
Didn’t happpen.
Comments:
Feelin’ fine. Looking to put videos up soon, you form Nazi’s had better chime in.
Diet - Didn’t eat much before, huge ass burrito after.
Mood - felt a little worn down, crazy weekend.
[u]PR UPDATE[/u]
Bench : 200 As of 7/12
Squat : 265 as of 7/14
Box Squat (Paused) : 275 (9/1/10)
Dead : 365?
Warmups
1x5 @ 135
1x5 @ 155
1x1 @ 185
1x1 @ 195 - PR - Nearly killed me last week, super easy this week.
1x0 @ 205 - Wasn’t ready for this one
1x0 @ 205 - Was incredibly close to this one, stuck a couples inches off chest.
1x1 @ 195 - PR
1x1 @ 200 - PR +5 lbs - Sticking point killing bar speed, but still crushed lift.
1x2 @ 185 - PR +1 Rep
2 Board presses
4x10 @ 135 - Pretty damn hard, first time i’ve ever board pressed.
Comments:
Good bench day, vids later of 195 and 205.
Mood - Feel fine, little tired
Diet - ate pretty shitty, diet consists of chicken fingers from publix for breakfast, half a pizza for lunch, and… fuck. That’s it. I’ll probably eat some more soon.
Same story man, been in the gym my whole life but always ran and curled, nothing more lol. Been taking it serious for almost a year now, got tired of being the skinny kid
Damn, good work other than the diet lol. Chicken fingers and pizza? EAT MORE!
[quote]TylerPK4L wrote:
Video from yesterday: - YouTube [/quote]
I felt this lift looked decent, you can see the sticking point became prevalent and 5+ pounds on this i stuck pretty hard (even though i got it). Still trying to understand leg drive, any critiques? (if no one posts anything i’m going to assume i have completely perfect form.)
The leg drive is something you really know you have, you FEEL it. About a month ago, my bench had been stalled for a while and was actually regressing. One day it just clicked and the weights flew up 10 times easier than before.
Also something you wanna make sure to do, squeeze that shit as hard as you can from the liftoff until you rack it. It will help you stay tight and mentally you will be more explosive (for me at least). Even on your ramping/warmup sets, do them as if they weighed 315 and would crush you
I swear, in one deadlift session I hit 365 X 6 just from getting in the zone and pulling all my warmup sets like they were working sets. My 1RM just a few weeks before was 350, not a bad 15 lbs and 5 reps lol.
ME Squat
1x5 @ bar
1x5 @ 95
1x5 @ 135
1x2 @ 185
1x2 @ 205
1x1 @ 225
1x1 @ 255
1x1 @ 275 PR + 10
1x1 @ 225 Form sucks ass
1x1 @ 225 Form a little better
1x5 @ 135 Very difficult to use hams/glutes/abs to sit upright
Hyper
3x10 @ bw + 55lbs Very difficult
Abs
3x10 Strict
3x5 @ bw + 25lbs
Exhausted
Mood - Actually got sleep last night, so good
Food - Munched on cheerios in class this morning, pound of chicken beforehand, 50 grams pro + banana after. pound of steak for dinner.
[quote]mmatt wrote:
I know you didn’t ask for form advice, but you definitely take too many steps out. That’s a lot of wasted energy. [/quote]
I fully welcome advice from anyone, really. And i do agree with you, i’m just weird about having my feet just right and i keep stepping back until i have them where i like them.
You look like you’re folding over at the bottom. If you kept a strong arch throughout, the weight would feel easier and your upper body would come up as one unit, not straining to straighten out and rise up at the same time. It is a recurring issue for me also. These cues have helped me so far:
Chest up
Look up
Squeeze your shoulder blades hard (pull in and down)
Push stomach out
Sit back into the hole, pushing knees out
Chest rises as hips come forward
Push hips forward to lockout
Hopefully someone more knowledgeable drops by to offer more advice on this issue. It’s a common and frustrating flaw in squat form.
[quote]mmatt wrote:
I know you didn’t ask for form advice, but you definitely take too many steps out. That’s a lot of wasted energy. [/quote]
I fully welcome advice from anyone, really. And i do agree with you, i’m just weird about having my feet just right and i keep stepping back until i have them where i like them. [/quote]
A guy I trained with told me I had the same problem a while back. To solve the problem, I made it a priority, meaning I focused on it each and every rep. Hope that helps
[quote]TylerPK4L wrote:
Video from yesterday: - YouTube [/quote]
I felt this lift looked decent, you can see the sticking point became prevalent and 5+ pounds on this i stuck pretty hard (even though i got it). Still trying to understand leg drive, any critiques? (if no one posts anything i’m going to assume i have completely perfect form.) [/quote]
Good job on the PR. One thing that helped me was moving my feet out a bit (wider) when I bench (before I’d benched with my feet underneath the bench like you are doing.)
I felt this lift looked decent, you can see the sticking point became prevalent and 5+ pounds on this i stuck pretty hard (even though i got it). Still trying to understand leg drive, any critiques? (if no one posts anything i’m going to assume i have completely perfect form.) [/quote]
Good job on the PR. One thing that helped me was moving my feet out a bit (wider) when I bench (before I’d benched with my feet underneath the bench like you are doing.)[/quote]
Yeah sure, i’ll try that out. I actually first tried that when i was trying to learn leg drive.
So far on bench:
-Squeeze shit out of bar
-Play around with leg position.
Rack chins
1x5 Double overhand
1x5 Double underhand
1x4 Doulbe overhand - not sure if i’m actually getting better at these or not. I keep fucking with the incline bench and bar position.
Front raises
1x10 @ 25 lbs
3x5 @ 25 lbs
Seated side raises (or whatever the hell they are called)
3x10 @ 15lbs
Should have done something else, but too tired.
Notes: Too much band tension, but i didn’t feel like taking off the average bands and putting mine on after every set. Next time i’ll probably just use my monster mini’s.
Diet: Leftovers beforehand, ice cream after. I should probably go to Publix.
Mood: Shitty, need sleep. Fuck accounting.
