[quote]mattis wrote:
Way to go chobbs. What program are you doing?
Just got back from the gym. Got a solid rep-PR in the bench. 165 lbs for 12 reps. I reallyreallyreally wanna get that 2 plate bench press soon! soo close[/quote]
Honest to god, I dont know if it has a name, I was just reading an article on her and it had a chart with the best strength sets and reps and rest periods and I just tried to match the best for my goals. I’ll try and find it again, no promises though.
[quote]Struan wrote:
And sorry I’ve hijacked this thread! Please keep posting PRs! This was a great thread idea and I think Chobbs did a great job of making beginners like me comfortable posting about lifts they’re proud of.
Thanks brotha
Chobbs, If you’d prefer I start a new thread for the question above, I’d be happy to. Seems like there might be some interest.[/quote]
You do whatever the hell you want lol
Heres the table
[quote]LoRez wrote:
[quote]Chris87 wrote:
My opinion is that form should be perfect on all warm up and lighter sets.
For hard sets (really heavy, or a rep max), just “good” form is sufficient. Good meaning that your form is solid and not dangerous, but it’s not gonna be perfect.
When you’re pushing your limits, it aint always gonna be pretty. But it shouldn’t be ugly either.[/quote]
That sounds like solid advice… except it’s really vague. I think if you defined “dangerous”, that would help a lot. Just something like answering “what does ‘dangerous’ look like if you’re doing deadlifts/squats/bench/ohp?” I think knowing that would be helpful to a lot of us.[/quote]
Sure no problem. Just remember that these are my definitions, so they are gonna be based on what happens when my form breaks down. They may not apply to everyone.
Deadlift- lower back rounds at all, or upper back rounds significantly. Also if my hips rise too fast to the point where it looks like a stiff leg dl
Squat- significant upper back rounding. If my upper back rounds to the point where I have to shift my hips foward to get under the weight, it’s too much. Also if knees come in significantly.
Bench- bouncing the bar, or if ass comes off the bench
Press- obviously no leg drive, or lean back. Other than that I don’t know because if I can’t get it off my chest, I can’t press it.
[quote]Struan wrote:
[quote]Chris87 wrote:
[quote]Struan wrote:
[quote]louiek wrote:
[quote]Struan wrote:
I decided to go a bit heavier on Barbell Rows than I normally do. I’ve hadn’t gone above 135 before this. The criticism I always hear about Barbell Rows is that nobody can do them right because they go too heavy, so I was reluctant to put more weight on the bar. But I gave it a shot and kept the reps low. I ended with 185x3, video below.
Is this form acceptable? I know I kind jerk my body at the end to finish the rep.[/quote]
Not enough body language IMO. Heavy weight is good for rows. Nothing wrong with using some body language. The biggest, strongest men in the world don’t do strict barbell rows. They use some momentum to get the weight up. Kroc rows, for instance. They get you huge.[/quote]
Thanks. I will keep this in mind. I’ll give 185 for 5x3 a try next time and work my way to 5x5.
An observation and question for the thread:
I’ve just recently started video taping my compound lifts (squat, bench, deadlift, press, barbell and one-arm rows) and I’ve noticed that my form stays pretty good, even on sets when I think that it’s gone to shit while I’m doing the actual lift.
I feel like my obsession with keeping my form close to perfect has led to me not pushing my limits in terms of weight. Or reps, especially for the squat and deadlift. Has anybody else noticed this? Should I just stop pussy-footing and go up in weight even if I’m concerned my form won’t be as good?[/quote]
My opinion is that form should be perfect on all warm up and lighter sets.
For hard sets (really heavy, or a rep max), just “good” form is sufficient. Good meaning that your form is solid and not dangerous, but it’s not gonna be perfect.
When you’re pushing your limits, it aint always gonna be pretty. But it shouldn’t be ugly either.[/quote]
Then I stopped squatting for the workout. My question is, should I be going for the 295 or 305, knowing that my form won’t be text book and might be toing the unsafe line?
Put another way, should my mentality be: I’m going for a “perfect form PR” or should it be “I’m going for a PR even if it gets sloppy, so long as I get my ass to below parallel, then stand back up.”
[/quote]
I believe you called it at the right time. Especially with the 5/3/1 program. The goal is to get in a heavy single, not to hit a new 1rm each time. Just move something heavy and call it a day.
You’re mentality should definitely be a lot closer to “perfect form PR” than “anything goes”. Again, it doesn’t have to be PERFECT, but it should be pretty good. These singles aren’t 1 rep maxes. They should feel in the 95% range, which is heavy, but you should have no doubt you can get it with good form.
[quote]LoRez wrote:
[quote]Struan wrote:
And sorry I’ve hijacked this thread! Please keep posting PRs! This was a great thread idea and I think Chobbs did a great job of making beginners like me comfortable posting about lifts they’re proud of.[/quote]
x2.
I’m not that proud of my lifts yet, but I will be as they get better. I’m happy I finally got a 1x bodyweight squat for 20 reps though. And I’ll be really happy when I do 20 reps on a 1.5x bodyweight squat. If I do things right, I should be able to do that in 3-5 weeks from now.
Probably more importantly to me is that I’m starting to see my physique develop in the direction I want. That’s a bit harder to measure though.[/quote]
Never be ashamed of your lifts. Only be upset if they are going down. Im sure that <1% of people in the world can squat their BWx20 anyway.
I’m guessing you’re doing the 20 rep squats program right? I ran it a few years ago, lots of fun
328 for 3 today on my last set of deads. Stoked that I got 3, getting over 325’s been a bitch for me.
Yesterday morning weighed in at 180.2. Finally hit that 180 mark, psyched about that too.
keep this thread going!
PRs from this morning:
Press - 120x3
DB Row- 80x20
The Press PR was very easy, no grinding or slowing down of bar speed at all. Hopefully this means that my Press won’t be so embarrassingly lower than my other lifts (relatively).
[quote]Chris87 wrote:
[quote]LoRez wrote:
[quote]Struan wrote:
And sorry I’ve hijacked this thread! Please keep posting PRs! This was a great thread idea and I think Chobbs did a great job of making beginners like me comfortable posting about lifts they’re proud of.[/quote]
x2.
I’m not that proud of my lifts yet, but I will be as they get better. I’m happy I finally got a 1x bodyweight squat for 20 reps though. And I’ll be really happy when I do 20 reps on a 1.5x bodyweight squat. If I do things right, I should be able to do that in 3-5 weeks from now.
Probably more importantly to me is that I’m starting to see my physique develop in the direction I want. That’s a bit harder to measure though.[/quote]
Never be ashamed of your lifts. Only be upset if they are going down. Im sure that <1% of people in the world can squat their BWx20 anyway.
I’m guessing you’re doing the 20 rep squats program right? I ran it a few years ago, lots of fun[/quote]
Thanks man. I just hit 165x20, just now. I’m still going up 10lbs a workout on the squats, somehow.
Yeah, I’m doing a slightly tweaked version of John McCallum’s “original” 20rep program.
3x12 OHP w/6sec pause at the top, 1x20 squats, 1x20 straight arm pullovers, 3x12 guillotine press, 3x15 bent rows, 1x15 stiff-leg deadlift, 1x20 pullovers. And I’m doing some bi/tri stuff after this if I’m still alive.
It’s rough, but it’s working, and that’s what really matters.
Lots of good work going on here.
Keep it up, gang.
325 for 7 sets of 2, then I decided to nut up or shut up so I grabbed a belt (dont use one unless I go over 365) and decided to go all out, and I got 325 for 8 with a double overhand grip, I was pretty pumped to say the least.
I got 305 for 2x2 on dead lifts today, which was good. The problem was, I’d though I had 285 on the bar. Cause, we all know that 275+30=285 right? /facepalm
Kind of killed my body for the rest of the workout TBH.
Great work guys
After Friday’s crap workout I maxed out bench Saturday evening for kicks. I don’t have a spotter so I called it at 250; I may/may not have been able to get 255 (I’d give it 60/40 against) but hey at least I can still bench more than BW 
weighted dips +55 for 5 on last set. after bench too. gotta get those tri’s up some more still
Decided to have a bash on the Hammer Strength iso-row today and managed 165 kg (363 lbs) x 10.
Felt happy with that
[quote]paulwhite959 wrote:
After Friday’s crap workout I maxed out bench Saturday evening for kicks. I don’t have a spotter so I called it at 250; I may/may not have been able to get 255 (I’d give it 60/40 against) but hey at least I can still bench more than BW :)[/quote]
Don’t you have safety pins in your rack? Well done on the BW+ bench.
yeah, but the way they fit doesn’t work just right. They can either be like halfway down my torso (so the weight would still hit me pretty good) or just too tall for me to actually touch my chest on the bench. It isn’t a super big deal–I usually just set them low, and figure I’ll just lower one side of the bar and slide it over them if I figure out I can’t make a lift. But at least I found out what I set to find out :0
[quote]paulwhite959 wrote:
yeah, but the way they fit doesn’t work just right. They can either be like halfway down my torso (so the weight would still hit me pretty good) or just too tall for me to actually touch my chest on the bench. It isn’t a super big deal–I usually just set them low, and figure I’ll just lower one side of the bar and slide it over them if I figure out I can’t make a lift. But at least I found out what I set to find out :0[/quote]
Are you arching your chest when you bench? My understanding is that if you arch your chest properly, powerlifter style, you should then be able to stop the arch and lower the bar on the pins. But I don’t bench that way, so I’m just guessing here.
I haven’t been able to really get the hang of that, so I’m flat on the bench. I’ve read articles about it, but actually doing it seems to elude me so far.