Squat
45, 135, 185, 2255 2753 - this will be referred to as warmup in the future
32594
Kelso Shrugs (done on chest supported T-bar)
90, 135103
The warm up also included leg swings and a little bit of curls and extensions for the elbow. I did some foam rolling earlier in the day. I’m not gonna continue to post all this little shit, unless it becomes necessary to battle the aches and pains.
The squatting went fine, I was actually surprised how quick the first couple sets went. The last rep of set 3 and the last 2 reps of set 4 was when the bar speed slowed slightly through my sticking point. I did use wrist wraps to prevent any wrist issues due to the higher rep scheme. No belt. Sorry, also no camera, forgot it at home. Next time…
I recently got “Kelso’s Shrug Book” in the mail and decided to implement his namesake, basically a horizontal shrug or retracting the scapulae. I think I may like these as a less intense, direct back exercise. Felt a pretty good stretch in the lats. IDK, I only got through the first chapter of the book so far.
Weight was 203 this morning. Will update periodically.
[quote]mahwah wrote:
I did plan on having some other bench work in there, I just wasn’t very thorough with that last post. Advice on intensity, any max work (1’s, 3’s, 5’s) or should I stick with higher reps?
[/quote]
I would say do whatever will maintain your Bench and aggravate your elbow the least. I actually did the Smolov Jr. for Bench but only did half the working sets, and only 1-2 days per week depending on how I felt. I pretty much stretched it throughout the program. I like keeping the reps in the 3-6 range, and not having to think much, just follow the program. I would definitely advise against running the Jr. as is. I just wanted to maintain, and I think I did.
The reason I did this was because I was I hurt my back at my last meet, and was starting Smolov 1 week later, and wasn’t sure I would be able to complete the Smolov for Squat. So I started full Smolov Jr for Bench at the same time. When I realized that I would be able to Squat, I dropped the Jr. (sort of).
Squat
45, 135, 185, 2255 2753 - this will be referred to as warmup in the future
32594
Kelso Shrugs (done on chest supported T-bar)
90, 135103
The warm up also included leg swings and a little bit of curls and extensions for the elbow. I did some foam rolling earlier in the day. I’m not gonna continue to post all this little shit, unless it becomes necessary to battle the aches and pains.
The squatting went fine, I was actually surprised how quick the first couple sets went. The last rep of set 3 and the last 2 reps of set 4 was when the bar speed slowed slightly through my sticking point. I did use wrist wraps to prevent any wrist issues due to the higher rep scheme. No belt. Sorry, also no camera, forgot it at home. Next time…
I recently got “Kelso’s Shrug Book” in the mail and decided to implement his namesake, basically a horizontal shrug or retracting the scapulae. I think I may like these as a less intense, direct back exercise. Felt a pretty good stretch in the lats. IDK, I only got through the first chapter of the book so far.
Weight was 203 this morning. Will update periodically.[/quote]
Great book. I bought it a few months ago and I really like all the shrug variations, especially the Lat shrug and the snatch-grip shrug.
1 db Row (no straps)
125, 1355 [b]13510 (PR +10#)[/b]
I wasn’t real sure how to approach this workout. My thoughts right now are that the incline db will be my main lift for three weeks. When I get my week off of squats for testing and the 2 switching weeks, I’m gonna switch to bench. Not sure yet on the intense cycle, thinking floor presses. Don’t really know what assistance movements to use to be nice to the elbows. I will play that one by ear.
I will definitely be getting an exercise in on the back of Monday’s 4 sets of 9, most likely some back work. If tomorrows 5 sets of 7 goes well, I may tack on something there as well. So maybe something like:
Monday - sqt and light back
Tuesday - bench work
Wednes - sqt and light back
Thurs - off
Fri - sqt
Sat - sqt
Whatdaya think?
Oh, and not really sore from yesterday’s squatting. I am tight though, through the hamstrings and adductors.
Got a massage yesterday, and boy did it do the trick. Went in feeling fresh, like it was the first squat session of the week. I will definitely continue the Thursday deep tissue sessions.
Weight felt good. Belted up on the 3rd set just to clean up the reps a bit.
Tomorrow will be the first true test of the program.
So, yeah, squatting 2 days in a row kinda sucks. The warm ups dragged ass but once I got up to weight I was in the right frame of mind to get it done. I also encountered my first ache, and surprisingly, it wasn’t the elbow. It was the right knee. Nothing too bad, just a dull ache that a couple ibuprofen took care of. Gonna start icing it down, maybe the other one too. Beat it to the punch.
I shorted a few reps just above parallel. My thinking was that I wanted to nail my last few sets when fatigue had set in. I need to quit thinking like that and hit them all. I also noticed that I rushed a few reps. I need to take my time and treat each rep individually, especially in a 3 rep set.
Ugh, today was the worst day so far. I hate high rep squats. Now, I know some of you may call me a pussy cause its only 9 reps. Whatever, I’m a powerlifter, I lift things once. 5 is high rep work for me right now.
I got through it, despite my complaining. I do notice that I’m falling into a groove with my squat. As difficult as the set feels at the time, when I check the video there is no hesitation. I’m staying back when the weight challenges me where before it would get in front of me.
My adductors do feel like they are “overstretched”, don’t know a better way to describe it. They don’t hurt, not strained, not tight, I don’t know. My back did tighten on the last couple reps of the last set.
I did the lat pulls for some easy back work with no low back strain. I was wiped and couldn’t put a lot into them.
[quote]mahwah wrote:
Ugh, today was the worst day so far. I hate high rep squats. Now, I know some of you may call me a pussy cause its only 9 reps. Whatever, I’m a powerlifter, I lift things once. 5 is high rep work for me right now.
[/quote]
You’re right. 5 is high rep.
7 is uncalled for.
9 is cardio.
Don’t worry. The program gets easier from here on out. (heheh)
Oh, this was soo much better than Monday’s workout. Knees are good, elbows are good, groin is good, low back tightened slightly but is good. Very nice.
I tell you, there must be something to that whole “greasing the groove” concept. I feel much more in place with my squats now. Probably helps that in the last 10 days I’ve done more squats than I would normally do in 5 weeks of previous training. I’ve said it earlier this week, but I feel like my squat has gotten a lot more solid. Can you tell I’m excited? I get my massage tomorrow and I’ll be ready for the weekend sessions.
[quote]mahwah wrote:
Okay, no training today, but I did get a nice little piece of squatter’s porn in the mail today…
The straps (2.5m strangulators) came earlier in the week.
Don’t know if tomorrow is gonna be a good day to break in a stiff-ass belt?[/quote]
Pretty.
Is that a 13mm Lever belt? I just got a 13mm a few weeks ago (I’ve been using a 10mm, which will become my DL belt), and it is pretty stiff. You may want to try it on your warmup sets (even if you wouldn’t normally wear one to warm up) just to get a feel for it. If it doesn’t feel right, then make the decision. If it feels ok, then what better time to break it in than during a high volume Squat program?
It’s a 10mm. From what I have read, 13mm would have been a little too stiff for a lil 200 lb’er. Might have broken a couple floating ribs…
I’m gonna give it a shot, like you said, with my warmups. The belt I usually use stays at the gym, so it will be there if I need it. It’s kinda funny, it’s the only “good” belt in the gym. There’s all of those tapered, flimsy leather belts that everyone uses, and my belt justs waits on me for squat days, pushed to the back of the rack. Poor fella.
And speaking of equipment, I noticed that you didn’t use any cheater wraps on your testing days. 85 lbs in just sleeves, setting the bar a little high, aren’t you???
While Monday was hard work it was due to high reps, today was hard work due to heavy squats. About set 4, my low back decided it didn’t want to play anymore. I got through 4 and 5 only to think to myself, “how the hell am I gonna get through tomorrow’s lifts?” It was the first time I thought about abbreviating a session, but I figured that I should worry about Saturday when it comes and get through 390. I am very glad I did, but when I finished that last set there was not a comfortable position for me to be in. Miserable about covers it. I’m sure there are a few here who can appreciate the fact that it hurt to bend over to pick up my training book. Damn near left the plates on the bar…
What a difference a night makes. Iced the low back in rotation with the knees and elbows and all was well this a.m.
Looking back at the video, I wasn’t getting to depth on all of my reps but I have a valid excuse. Yesterday I only used the new belt for warm ups. Today, I used it the entire workout. Definitely will take getting used to and I have the bruises on my hips to prove it.
As far as the weight, it was a challenge but I have yet to really doubt the completion of any reps. I can still, although it’s happening less, muscle the weight up when it gets out in front. The triples are absolutely my favorite day of the week.
