Today I decided to see where my 1RM deadlift was at.
Workout went like this:
Walked on an incline for 5 minutes to get my body warmed up a bit
Did some “bodyweight deadlifts” to get the motion started
Bar x 12
135 x 5
185 x 3
225 x 1
245 x 1
265 x 1
275 x 1
285 x 1
295 x 1
300 x 1
At 300 lbs., my legs were starting to feel unstable and I could really feel my form turning to shit, so I decided to stop there. Even still, I put 30 lbs. on my DL max, so I was pretty happy with that.
Felt like I had some more energy even after deadlifts, so I did pull ups:
Squats:
135 x 3
135 x 3
160 x 3
190 x 5
215 x 3
240 x 4 (PR!)
Assistance work: Squats @ 165 lbs.
5 x 10
Assistance work: Standing calf raises
135 x 10
185 x 10
205 x 10
225 x 6
245 x 6
Assistance work: Blast strap fall outs (abs)
1 x 10
1 x 10
1 x 8
1 x 8
1 x 5
Damn it! Lost 5 pounds somehow, even though I look slightly more muscular and gained a bit of strength. Back to the grind… (“the grind” being forcing food down my throat lol)
No, I guess I always felt like I was cheating by using that grip, but I suppose it really doesn’t matter. Next time I hit up the gym I will try that grip and see how much it adds to my deadlift strength.
Deadlifts:
135 x 3
135 x 3
185 x 3
215 x 5
240 x 3
270 x 3
Assistance work: Pull ups
BW x 6
BW + 5 x 6
BW + 10 x 5
BW + 25 x 3
BW + 25 x 2
Assistance work: Face pulls
60 x 10
90 x 10
105 x 8
120 x 5
70 x 10
90 x 10
90 x 10
Assistance work: Kneeling palof press
45 x 8
60 x 8
75 x 10
75 x 4
75 x 10 (standing)
During the face pulls, I felt like I was using more of my body to “swing” the cable weight up instead of focusing on the back muscles. I backed off the weight a bit and really emphasized a controlled pull with my back muscles. I must remember to do this every time.
Squats: BW x 10
Bar x 5
135 x 5
185 x 3
225 x 1
235 x 1
245 x 1
255 x 1
260 x 1
265 x 1 (YES!!! Hit my personal goal!)
Assistance work: Squats @ 170 lbs.
3 x 10
Assistance work: Standing calf raises
135 x 10
225 x 10
245 x 9
250 x 7
255 x 6
I had planned to make a video of my 265 lbs. squat PR but unfortunately the batteries died right when I was about to record. Doh! Oh well… I hit my goal so I’m super stoked! Will make sure to charge the cam next time I attempt a max lift.
Bench press: Bar x 10
95 x 5
135 x 5
165 x 3
185 x 1
195 x 1
205 x 1
215 x 1
220 x 1
225 x 1 (PR)
Assistance work: Incline bench press
95 x 10
135 x 9
145 x 6
155 x 4
160 x 3
Assistance work: Dips (body weight)
1 x 10
1 x 8
1 x 7
1 x 5
1 x 7
Assistance work: Peck deck machine
105 x 10
120 x 10
135 x 10
150 x 8
165 x 5
Assistance work: Jack knives (ab work)
1 x 10
1 x 8
1 x 7
1 x 5
1 x 7
Today was a good day for me. First, a little back-story: When I was a junior in high school, I took the optional weight lifting class that my school offered (which is how I “accidentally” found out how much I actually enjoy the activity). Back then my only goal was to be able to bench 200 lbs. which I never fully accomplished. I think I may have squeaked out one crappy rep @ 195 but never could obtain what I thought was the holy grail weight for me–200 lbs.
Well, after a year and a couple months of consistent training following a hiatus from it since 2004, I finally achieved that high school dream and then some. I managed to put up 225 today… definately wasn’t my best looking form but I still managed to get it all the way down to the chest and back up (without legs flailing or ass off the bench). There was a short moment where it seemed stuck in place right in the middle of the lift, and I was putting 100% of my effort into that one. Considering that, I decided not to attempt any higher for now since I didn’t have a spotter.
Still didn’t reach my present goal of 235 bench press, but still a good day and workout all the same.
Bar x 8
65 x 3
85 x 3
95 x 3
105 x 1
115 x 1
120 x 1
125 x 1 (PR)
Assistance work: Front shoulder raise
15 x 10
17.5 x 10
20 x 10
22.5 x 8
25 x 7
Assistance work: Lateral raise
15 x 10
17.5 x 10
20 x 7
22.5 x 5
20 x 7
Assistance work: Preacher curl
20 x 10
25 x 10
30 x 10
35 x 6
40 x 7
Assistance work: Hammer curl w/ pause
20 x 10
22.5 x 10
27.5 x 6
30 x 5
32.5 x 5
The video is at an admittedly bad angle, but the five douche bags training next to me were jumping all around and I was afraid they would accidentally step on my camera. I will get better video next time. I exceeded my goal for military press which is great. Time to set new goals.
Assistance work: Pull ups
BW x 6
5 x 5
5 x 10
3 x 25
3 x 25
Assistance work: Face pulls
60 x 10
75 x 10
75 x 10
90 x 9
105 x 7
Assistance work: Kneeling palof press (ab work)
45 x 10
60 x 10
75 x 10
75 x 10 (standing)
Great workout. Felt like I could have pulled a few more reps out of the 250 DL if I had some chalk (grip was giving out cause of sweaty palms).
I thought I should add another exercise for hamstrings since DLs were the only movement I was doing for them. Squats also make them sore but I felt like they needed a bit more isolation. Glute ham raises are amazing now that I understand how to do them. Haven’t felt my hamstrings work like that in… well, ever.
Still having problems with face pulls, though. Seems like once I get to a “decent” amount of weight I can’t isolate my back at all–it feels more like my whole body is moving the weight instead of my back.