Official De-Lurk

Training
61

[quote]kimbakimba wrote:
Frozen, great training in here! For a second triceps exercise, I heartily endorse weighted dips. I love those nasty things.[/quote]

Yeah… I tore a ligament in my shoulder playing rugby a few years ago, and dips just seem to aggravate my shoulders because of the scar tissue making the range of motion different on one side than the other.

I plan to try them again, maybe with less range of motion, at some point. It’s a good idea though. I’ve been working on my shoulder, and I think I may try to work dips in again after the next powerlifting meet and see how they go now that I’m stronger. Thanks for the idea. :slight_smile: Now I’m getting excited about it… lol

62

Dips are tricky - aside from upright rows, they’re one of the worst exercises you can do if you have troublesome shoulders. They involve some internal rotation of the humerus, combined with protraction of the shoulder blades. Add in some forward lean as you get tired (it’s hard not to lean forward if you’re using a dipping belt) and there’s a whole lot of stress on the rotator cuff.

I love me some heavy dips but it’s like giving chocolate to a diabetic - you’ll enjoy it at the time but there’ll be a whole world of hurt later.

63

[quote]Cal Jones wrote:
Dips are tricky - aside from upright rows, they’re one of the worst exercises you can do if you have troublesome shoulders. They involve some internal rotation of the humerus, combined with protraction of the shoulder blades. Add in some forward lean as you get tired (it’s hard not to lean forward if you’re using a dipping belt) and there’s a whole lot of stress on the rotator cuff.

I love me some heavy dips but it’s like giving chocolate to a diabetic - you’ll enjoy it at the time but there’ll be a whole world of hurt later.[/quote]

That’s pretty much exactly what I’ve found. :slight_smile: I love them, weighted or unweighted, but every time I add them back in they f-up my shoulder.

64

Deadlift day

Warm-ups:
135x5 for 3 sets
140x5
155x5

Work Sets:
190x5
205x4
220x3
230x2
245x6 (not the first time I’ve lifted 245, but it was the first time I’ve ever done more than one rep with it.) :slight_smile:

Auxiliary Work:
Glute Ham’s - 5 sets of 10 (on an improvised set up involving tucking my feet under the edge of my squat rack - wicked ouch)
Conventional Deadlifts - 135x10 for 2 sets (felt soooo good to do my conventional pull again) :slight_smile:
Abs - two sets of ab wheel type things with my blast straps followed by sets of twenty sit-ups with heels tucked over the bottom of the squat rack (takes the hips out of the sit-up)
Stretching

and then back to work… grrr… work…

65

Great training Frzn! Nice DLing and added reps is good stuff.

I’m with you on the carbs - I feel they improve my lifting immensely. Too bad they make my abz disappear…

66

wow - you added 5 reps to 245! good stuff.

67

[quote]kimbakimba wrote:
Welcome! I’ll look forward to following your training.

[quote]Frzn_Arctc wrote:
If I’d know it was just genetics (that apparently didn’t decide to kick in until my mid-twenties) I would have just eaten all the friggin’ ice cream, cookies, pizza, cake, etc that I’d wanted during the last seven years and been happy knowing my “skinny bitch” gene would just kick in later in life. All those years wasted…

Stupid…[/quote]

Entertaining rant. I get a variant of “skinny bitch” alot. Never mind that I don’t get to eat what I want (mmmm…baked goods) and bust my ass in the gym. Honestly, I just laugh it off.

[/quote]

Haha yes, entertaining for sure! Hello, from one skinny bitch to another :slight_smile:

I looked at your photos… wow you’ve made so much progress! Really awesome!

68

So it’s been a while. My job occasionally has crazy periods where the best I can do is keep my head above water, try to get sleep when I can, and get through. My last weight workout was bench press, on July 3rd. Got up to 130 for four reps and was just so exhausted that I didn’t have anything left in me. Too tired to concentrate and hold my form. At the point where I realized I was missing spaces of time in between lifts, I decided I probably shouldn’t be putting a bar above my face and called it good for the day. :slight_smile: Since then I’ve worked over 140 chargeable hours in two weeks, so it’s only proceeded to get worse. However, it looks like I’m over the hump now and on the downhill run. I got home from work before 10pm for the last two nights in a row. Got 7 hours of sleep on Thursday night and almost eight hours last night. :slight_smile: I’m feeling much better. The good news for my lifting in all this is that I was only two workouts away from the start of de-load week for my routine, so, in effect, I’ve really only missed de-load week (which somehow is better in my mind than missing heavy lifting weeks). Tomorrow is the start of a new month of 5-3-1, with Deadlifts. Up to the point where I couldn’t fit in lifting I was happy with my reps at the weights I was using, so I’m moving the weights up again this month. :slight_smile: Can’t resist. :slight_smile:

The next powerlifting meet is in November, so I’m looking at peaking programs. I didn’t do any sort of peaking for my first meet, so this is something I’m reading up on and asking people about. If you’ve done peaking for meets I would love to hear your thoughts. :slight_smile:

I am hanging around 130, fully carbed up and after over a week of “recovery” (although, I don’t know how much recovery I got while sleeping 3-4 hours a night). Despite work being ridiculous, I still managed to bring my own lunches everyday and not eat crap. So I should easily be able to make the 123 class for the meet. :slight_smile:

This last month, and these last two weeks especially, were a bit of a road bump, but I’m back on track and looking forward to moving weights again.

69

Deadlift day, and the first day of a new wave of 5/3/1

Warm-ups
135x5 for 3 sets, 145x5, 160x5

Work Sets
170x5
185x5
200x5
210x5
225x10

Auxiliary
Conventional DL’s from a deficit (i.e. I place a step up under the bar and stand on it while deadlifting. It’s just high enough that the top of my feet barely touch the bar. fun stuff…)
135x8, 155x7, 175x4

Sumo Stiff leg DL’s (inspired by CBear’s video posted in lilpower’s log) :slight_smile:
135x10, 155x6

And in-between each set of DLs I did a set of steep decline sit-ups.

Then chicken breast and spaghetti sauce (don’t ask… I grabbed whatever left overs were within easy reach) :slight_smile:

70

Its great to see you back here. I also really hate when my work interferes with my lifting, but shit happens.

71

Nice deadlifts. I’ll be interested to follow your peaking program if you decide to try one for your meet.

72

The work may have calmed, but apparently that’s when the lack of sleep catches up with you…

Tuesday was bench day. I dragged my tired ass to the gym, convinced I was going to have a good workout whether my brain was alive for it or not…

Warm-ups: 55x5, 65x5, 70x5, 75x5, 85x5

Work Sets:
90x5
100x5
105x5
110x5
120x5 (normally this would be more than five rep’s but DAMN my back was tired from Deadlifts. Apparently when you take almost two weeks off from weights you get to enjoy that “first workout” soreness all over again… yeah, I know I should have expected it…)

Today was squat day. Got in some good work, but I’m still struggling with stopping at legal. I have practiced ass-to-grass for so long that stopping at a point in space is just… weird, and hard. I feel like I’m not even close to low enough, but then when I watch the video, I’m perfect or lower than I need to be. grrr… more practice is definitely needed. I’m considering cutting the sets on my squat day and adding another squat day to the week, same max, same rep scheme, but half the sets and increased overall volume, just to get in more volume/practice… we’ll see, I’m still considering it. Another evening a week for weights may not really be feasible.

Today’s Squatz
Warm-ups: 75x5, 85x5, 95x5, 105x5, 115x5

Work Sets:
125x5
135x5
145x5
155x5
165x5

Then, just for shits & giggles, I walked out 225 and did six deep knee bends. Not a fully legal squat in the USAPL, but close to it. That felt good, so I walked out 315 and did some power curtsy’s. That also felt good, but I talked myself out of 365 with the promise that I could do it next week. :slight_smile:

To wrap it all up - two sets of front squats with 95 lbs with sets of decline sit-ups in-between for good measure.

And then… food.

73

Board Presses yesterday. :slight_smile:

Warm-ups (full range bench press to warm-up): 65x5, 75x5, 85x5, 90x5, 100x5

Work Sets (press with one board/yoga block):
110x5
115x5
125x5
135x5
140x5

Auxiliary:
Pull-ups - one set of 6 w/ wide grip, and then two douches decided they needed to use the cable pulleys on either side of the !only! pull up bar in the gym. I was in a hurry and had to get to a friends wedding party afterward, so I switched to pull-downs

Pull-Downs - (really wide grip; I was feeling frisky and more than slightly annoyed, which always helps my lifts) 75x10, 90x10, 105x10

74

Way to go getting right back at it!

I totally wish I had your too low problem on squats. I am a huge Cheater McCheaterson and will always cheat depth without squatting to a box. grrr.

75

Deadlift Day (and then two weddings in the same day, which meant two receptions, two meals, two cakes, and two places with way too much alcohol) :wink: Post workout meals, right?

Warm-ups:
135x5 for 3 sets, 145x5, 160x5

Work Sets:
185x3
200x3
210x3
225x3
240x3

And then I had planned to do some singles, but wasn’t feeling it, so for fun I did rack pulls (which I think I’ve only done once before in my life, and barely got 225… years ago).

I didn’t do too bad (from right at the top of the knee cap):

245x6 (didn’t have any idea what I could do, so I started out safe)
265x3
315x3 (felt way too easy, so I had to add more, right?)
345x3
385x1 (was still relatively easy, so I figured, “what the hell, let’s do this shit…”)
405x1 (Fuck yeah!)

Next week I’m cutting my deadlift warm-ups to three sets, instead of 5, and doing three work sets, instead of 5, and then going for some singles, or more rack pulls, depending on how I’m feelin’. Now that I’ve rack pulled 4 plates, I want five. The goals never end. :slight_smile:

76

[quote]kimbakimba wrote:

I totally wish I had your too low problem on squats. I am a huge Cheater McCheaterson and will always cheat depth without squatting to a box. grrr.[/quote]

If only I could give you some of my depth and steal some of your cheat… I knew I was going way low on my squat when all the USAPL judges freaked out over my depth. Apparently, when your ass touches your calves, that’s low… I am terrified of not going low enough, so my first rep on each set will be just about right, but it feels so HIGH, so I start to go lower, and lower, and by rep five I’m ass to calves again. I squatted on a box for a while, but without the box, I just drop again when the weight gets heavy. grrr… I’m working on it, but it drives me crazy to be fucking with my form rather than concentrating on just squatting the damn weight.

77

You are fucking strong. If USAPL judges think you are deep, then you are deep. Nothing wrong with that.

Nice work in here.

78

You rack pulled 405!!! That is so awesome. You must be stoked.

We are both cursing our squat depth, but at different ends of the spectrum. Amusing, that.

79

It’s a great strategy to bury your first squat attempt in a meet. But touching ass to calves on subsequent lifts is a lot of wasted energy. I tend to do the same though: the heavier the weight, the deeper I go.

Amazing rack pulls. I can’t fathom your strength given your bodyweight. Freakish strength.

80

damn woman you look like a million bucks! glad u decided to delurk and grace us with ur strength. =+)