That’s really interesting, thanks. Adding in the pull-ups sounds like a really good idea, it is definitely my favourite upper body lift. Sounds like a great plan you’ve got, good luck with it 
Been a busy couple days.
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I’m giving up on really training the power clean, push press combo for now. My shoulders don’t seem to be ready. I might still do a couple here or there, but it’s not going to be programmed in.
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Our massive reorganization at work finally went into effect. Same office, different boss, different projects.
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I went out of town for the weekend to a friends place for his birthday. Lots of drinking, lots of cooking, and even some volleyball. Not great sleep.
Anyway, training.
Friday: Slight incline bench press. Ramped to only 120lbs for 3. I was debating even mentioning that here, it sounds (and was) pretty pathetic considering my prior training.
Monday: 2nd rowing session from the Concept 2 manual.
3 minutes at 20 strokes per minute, comfortable pace
3 min at 22 spm, harder pace
3 min at 24 spm, comfortable pace
3 min at 24 spm, harder pace
10 min at whatever pace (it ended up being something like 22 spm at a 3:25/500m pace)
And I screwed around with some PCPPs with an ezbar in the office gym, and overhead walks. Two 25s + whatever an ezbar weighs. (I just looked it up… could be anywhere from 15 to 25 lbs, I’ll just have to go weigh it later.)
Tuesday: Slight incline bench press.
Ramp to 3RM: 65, 85, 105, 115, 125, 130, 135, 140 x 3; 145 x 2
Clusters: 125 x 6, 4, 4
WTF: 100 x 5 reps, hold halfway up for 4, 4 reps, hold for 3, 3 reps, hold for 2, 2 reps, hold for 1, 1 rep
I jumped into a Max Pump layer instead of HDL, but with HDL weights. I got confused here for some reason.
In general, I think I’m going to try the “slight incline, SGHP, slight decline, SGHP, deadlift” layer setup for now. And also work in some concept 2 rowing in there. I’m not quite sure how to work in the rowing with the SGHP and deadlift. I’ll figure it out though.
Liking the workouts.
About the lower back/love handle fat issue, I’m in the same boat. Veins in lower abs, delts, biceps, with flab around the sides and lower back.
But just keep trucking. In reality, now that my upper back/rear delts/lats are bigger then last time I was my current BW, it doesn’t bother me as much.
Progress photo. Lighting was different than the others, so not really a fair comparison.
Eventually I’ll get around to taking a real progress photo and measurements again. Give me a few weeks.
You’ve really improved, man.
[quote]spar4tee wrote:
You’ve really improved, man.[/quote]
Thanks.
Training tonight:
SGHP
Ramp: 95, 115, 125 x 3; 135, 135, 145 x 1
Clusters: 130 x 8, 135 x 5, 5
HDL: 95 x 3 x 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
I bought and used gloves on these. The internet seems to be full of reasons not to do that, but I just don’t want more blisters from the bar. I don’t have knurling out to the ends, so my snatch grip is half on the knurling, half off… and that leads to pinching and blisters. Gloves kept that from happening – although, I’m thinking about returning these and replacing them with a pair of Mechanix gloves…
Someone posted a refresher on CT’s “original” layer system proposal. I’m going to just do that for now until I find a reason not to.
[quote]Bench incline tilt
Snatch grip high pull
REST
Bench decline tilt
Front squat or Trap bar deadlifts
REST
Snatch grip high pull
In fact the guy with the greatest gains overall so far is doing it like that.
[/quote]
Except, probably just doing regular deadlifts.
He also said lat and bicep work can go on the “off” days. I might do that, or I might just use that as the day to fit in the C2 rowing workout. Still not sure how I’m going to program that in there… but my endurance sucks, and I’m going to use that to fix it.
Woke up all stiff and sore in my mid back, upper back, and glutes. I guess the SGHPs actually did something, even if I didn’t really feel it yesterday.
Today:
3rd session on the Concept 2 rower.
4 x 5-minute sessions
2 minutes at 20spm, 10 seconds faster than my 10-minute split time from last session (so, 2:15ish)
2 minutes at 22spm, same pace
1 minute at 24spm, same pace
2 minutes light easy rowing for recovery
repeat
Since the pace stays the same, it varies between slow but strong stokes, to lighter but faster strokes.
Holy shit, this thing is tough. I was sweating for a good 20+ minutes after I finished and showered.
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After work.
I think I’m still going to train for the press, lol. I’m going to use one of Charles A. Smith’s “beginner” progressions, and train this everyday.
Basic rules: Start with something you can press easily for 5 reps. First session, 5 sets of 3. Next, 6 sets of 3, so on, to 10 x 3. Then, 5x4, up to 10x4. Then 5x5 up to 8x5. Add 10 pounds, repeat. 20 sessions at each weight.
Today was 95 x 5 x 3. I was debating starting at 115, but might as well start lighter.
Daily might be too frequently, but we’ll find out, won’t we?
1st half of my workout today:
Strict Press, 95 x 6 x 3
18 reps total, training load 1710
Bought a pair of Mechanix gloves to replace the half-fingered lifting gloves I just bought. I just want my whole finger to be protected from that damn half-knurled, half-smooth end of my bar.
I had the cashier cut the zip tie for me. I mentioned I stopped carrying my knife around awhile back; he said “why would you do that? it’s not that safe anymore, probably ought to upgrade to a pistol.” Lol, go America!
2nd half later… [Edited to add]
Slight Decline Bench from Pins
Ramp to 3RM: 95, 105, 115, 125, 135, 145, 155 x 3
Clusters: 140 x 5, 6, 6
HDL: 100 x 3 x 5,4,3,2,1
Much better numbers. And I’m learning to stop the moment they slow down just the slightest. That last rep 155x3 had a touch of a grind at the end, so I stopped there instead of pushing to 160.
I did these with gloves – because I wanted to know what it was like. I kinda liked it. Does that mean I’m going to hell?
83 reps total. 21 in the ramp; 17 in the clusters; 45 in the HDL. Training load? I’m too lazy to calculate.
Hey buddy. Just stopping by to say hello. Keep up the great work!
[quote]howie424 wrote:
Hey buddy. Just stopping by to say hello. Keep up the great work![/quote]
Thanks for stopping by; I’ll probably be asking you questions along the way on your log.
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Press training now, deadlifts later.
Press 95x7x3.
These felt kinda bad. Hadn’t eaten anything yet today, and my shoulders were in more pain than normal. Could be some carryover from the decline presses yesterday (which felt fine in my shoulders.) Could be too much volume for my triceps. Could be not enough food. Whatever.
It’s still way too early to say whether training these daily is too frequently. But… if I can keep this up [daily], and that pressing schedule actually works for me, this should put my 1RM something around 185-190 in 6 months. Maybe even higher.
Far more importantly… I’m making good progress cleaning out my garage between sets. Once the garage is clean, I can clean out my apartment (into my garage), and get things how I want them.
Can you describe the shoulder pain you’ve been getting? Does it feel like a muscular pain or actual joint pain?
I get joint pain in my shoulders if I press with too high a frequency or volume, and I’ve cut right back because I just don’t think it’s worth it.
[quote]furo wrote:
Can you describe the shoulder pain you’ve been getting? Does it feel like a muscular pain or actual joint pain?
I get joint pain in my shoulders if I press with too high a frequency or volume, and I’ve cut right back because I just don’t think it’s worth it. [/quote]
It’s joint pain. Well, tendon or bursa pain most likely. Not muscular.
Location-wise, it’s at the lateral edge of the shoulders, on the outside edge of where the clavicle and humerus meet. I feel pain when my upper arms are out to the sides and at a parallel with the floor. There’s also a touch of pain at the very top of the press, although I’m not exactly sure where – I don’t feel like pressing something again right now to find out.
I laid off of all lifting for over a month and nothing got much better. When I came back, push pressing hurt during the actual lifting, leaving me with a numb pain for almost an hour afterward. Strict pressing is much better with no noticeable lingering effects.
Today was worse than normal, pain-wise. I’m not really sure why.
I have an appointment with my doctor on Monday for other things, so I’ll talk to him about it. He might know a good sports medicine guy or something.
I actually had some food in me today this time. I was supposed to DL yesterday, but I didn’t get around to it; I was working on other projects, and by the time I did get around to it, it was too late (for my neighbors… I mean, I personally don’t mind deadlifting after 10pm, but they probably do.)
Deadlift Layers
Ramp to 1RM: 135, 185 x 3; 225, 275, 295 x 1
Clusters: 265 x 4, 3, 3
No HDL.
I stopped the ramp at 295. That rep actually felt bad in my abs/stomach. Like, my actual stomach. The intra-abdominal pressure made me feel sick and just felt bad so I called it there.
Standing Press (hang clean before each set)
95 x 8 x 3
I assembled my other plate stand between sets. Now I have one for each side of my rack. Still have to do some cleaning to get it placed right, so it’s not yet functional, but it’s almost there.
Non-lifting entry.
- Rugby
I really enjoy watching rugby. I watched another game yesterday, just the first google result for this year’s Rugby Championship (the southern hemisphere one). I don’t care for watching any other sport… but rugby is somehow awesome.
This game had kind of a slow start due to penalties, but the first half was fun to watch, and the last 5 minutes were very aggressive.
I have no team loyalty… I just like watching it.
- Chinese Food
My Chinese cooking is getting better. I’m doing it about as traditionally as I can. Carbon steel wok, high-BTU gas burner, and even a proper Chinese chef knife. This is NOT the same thing as a cleaver… it’s a very thin blade.
I made gong bao ji ding for the 2nd time last night… the original dish that eventually became “Kung Pao Chicken”. Sichuan peppercorns are neat, since they’re the “numbing spice”. As in, your mouth goes numb and tingly, like sticking your tongue on a 9v battery tingly. So you’re eating something and your mouth is burning from the spicy heat, then it goes all numb… so you eat more until your mouth is on fire, and then it goes numb…
(These are chilies, not Sichuan peppercorns)
So yeah, training.
Standing Presses
95 x 9 x 3
Did these in a little over 10 minutes, since I had to get to a meeting. Rest between sets was basically me just counting slowly down from 30. A bit harder with less rest time, although toward the end my shoulders felt amazing.
Related, my doctor has referred me to a sports medicine clinic for my shoulders; appointment is on Thursday.
Later today… SGHPs.
Ramp to 3RM: 95, 115, 125, 135, 140 x 3
Clusters: 125 x 5, 7, 6
HDL: 95 x 3 x 5,4,3,2,1
Alternating Hammer Curls
10 x 6 x 10
The SGHPs got hard early, probably since I did deadlifts yesterday instead of resting. Sore hamstrings and such.
And the hammer curls, lol. Girlfriend will be here in 10 days, then we’re going to the beach the following week. So… just going to play with some pump work to get things to look good temporarily. I squeezed the DBs as hard as possible, explosive up, 1.5-2 seconds down. Arm pumps are fun, lol. Been awhile.
Standing Presses
95 x 10 x 3
Glad that’s over. 10 sets takes a long time. Moving to 5 x 4 tomorrow.
I realized I’d been pressing these with an overhand grip. I switched to a thumbless grip for a few sets and those went up even easier. Then I tried the hang clean with a thumbless grip, and that worked fine for about 2 sets… and then it slipped. Whoops…
I caught it though, no big deal.
Slight Incline Bench later…
I watched Generation Iron tonight. Decent movie as a documentary, and a good expose of the personalities of the participants.
Ramp: 95, 115, 125, 130, 135 x 3; 140 x 1
Clusters (4 this time): 120 x 8; 125 x 7, 7, 7
HDL (2 this time): 95 x 2 x 5,4,3,2,1
Ramp didn’t go so well, probably worn down from the press training earlier. No problem, that’s to be expected. Clusters felt good.
Shoulders still meh. Seeing the sports med clinic tomorrow at 9:30.
Saw sports med today. The doctor’s guess right now is rotator cuff tendinitis/tendinosis. Nothing too serious. Basically, rotator cuff muscles didn’t do their job to stabilize the scapula, and so I managed to impinge the tendons.
He asked me what my training looked like.
“Well, pretty much just one lift a day. Decline bench, incline bench, high pulls, deadlifts.”
“How many reps? How many sets?”
“It ends up being around 75-80 reps at varying intensities.”
look of confusion “Huh, ok”
He’s put me on a steady dose of YTWLs and twice daily “prescription strength” ibuprofen. I.e., 3 motrin/advil twice a day. And no overhead pressing. Sad face.
He said it should be getting better within 2 weeks.
SGHPs
Ramp to 2RM: 95, 105, 115, 125, 130, 135, 140 x 3; 145 x 2
Clusters: 130 x 8; 135 x 7; 140 x 7; 145 x 6
HDL: 100 x 2 x 5,4,3,2,1
I forgot I was ramping to 2RM, not 3RM until I got to the end.
During the clusters I felt stronger and stronger, I think as my form was getting ironed in. Weird how I somehow did 6 cluster reps with my 2 rep max. Something was clearly off. I wonder what my 2RM really is then.
I think I’m going to start logging a few recipes.
Tonight I invented some fried rice dish, combining a few techniques. “Fish Fragrant” fried rice is what I’ll call it. Since, well, the core flavors come from the way you make Sichuanese Fish Fragrant Pork/Fish/Eggplant/etc.
First of all, this assumes you’ve got about1.5 cups of rice or so sitting in the fridge at least overnight. This suppoisedly develops the starches.
Slice up 1 chicken breast (one of the big ones, like 300g) in half horizontally, then into thin slices
Throw it into a bowl with:
- 1.5 tsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
- 1 tsp Chinkiang black vinegar
- .5 tsp sesame oil
- 1.5 tsp potato flour or cornstarch
- 1 tbsp water
Mix it all with your hands, set aside, wash your hands and the cutting board.
Chop up 2 medium cloves of garlic (or 1 large and 1 small, whatever). Chop up half that amount of ginger. Chop up a scallion. Put the white parts of the scallion, the garlic and the ginger into one bowl. Put the green parts into another.
Scramble two eggs in a bowl.
Fire up the wok burner and heat up the wok. Using the wok spoon, make sure the wok is all coated with oil. Pour that oil out.
Add about 2 tbsp of oil to the wok, and heat until smoking. Add the chicken, toss and cook until everything is white and mostly cooked. Remove and set aside.
Add another tbsp of oil to the wok, and a heaping teaspoon of doubanjian paste. Fry and mix until it’s fragrant and broken down (so, 30-45 seconds). Add the ginger, garlic, and white parts of the scallion. Fry this until it’s fragrant (so, again, another 30-45 seconds).
Add another tsp of oil and the eggs. Stir and toss until the eggs are mostly cooked.
Add the rice. Toss and stir everything together, then drop the temperature. Let this sit for about 20 seconds, then toss and stir, repeating this process for a couple minutes. Basically, just cook/fry the rice.
Add the chicken back in, and add about a tsp of soy sauce. Toss and stir together, then turn the heat on high. Keep tossing and stirring for another minute or so. Add the green parts of the scallions and toss one last time.
Use the wok spoon to remove the fried rice. Let it cool, and then eat it.
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Wow, ok, that sounded complicated.
Basically…
- cut up meat and marinate it
- cut up vegetables and seasonings
- coat wok with oil
- cook meat 90% of the way
- prepare the “yu xiang”/“fish fragrant” seasoning
- cook the egg 90% of the way
- add the rice and fry it for awhile
- add the meat back in and cook it all together
- add in a little color and freshness, and serve
Pretty much every fried rice dish is made this way. Step 5 is the only really unique part of this dish. The marinades differ, the seasonings and vegetables differ, the meats differ, but this is basically how it’s done.
Slight Decline Bench from Pins
Ramp to 2RM: 95, 115, 125, 135, 145, 155, 160, 165, 170 x 2
Clusters: 155 x 6, 4, 2 (stopped due to elbow); 150 x 6
HDL: 100 x 2 x 5,4,3,2,1
My right elbow started noticeably hurting halfway through the 2nd cluster. This is the first time in a long while that I’ve held off on a set due to my elbow. Also having a slight twinge on my right shoulder upper biceps tendon area, possibly due to trying to compensate for my elbow.
When I keep my form tight, specifically, tensing the glutes, the bar seems to go up much easier. Irradiation maybe?
Was a good workout though, much stronger than anything so far. I’m closing in on 185 for these, which is just one of those benchmark numbers.