Squat shoes are A-okay. There is a max heel lift though.
I was referring to the wraps. I assumed you meant knee wraps, which are a no-no for raw. Certain sleeves are okay. Or did you mean wrist wraps? They’re okay.
[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Squat shoes are A-okay. There is a max heel lift though.
I was referring to the wraps. I assumed you meant knee wraps, which are a no-no for raw. Certain sleeves are okay. Or did you mean wrist wraps? They’re okay.[/quote]
ahh… No, I mean knee sleeves. I’ve never used wraps, so I call my knee sleeves “wraps” incorrectly. Blond moment. I have read up on the max heel allowed in the USAPL. I’m looking at maybe splurging for the SST Pro Series shoes, which are especially appealing as they have custom widths and I have pretty damn wide feet. I’m pretty set on getting them at this point - that is, if Titan ever gets back to me on the actual width of the E and EE size 8 woman’s shoe… It’s been almost a week now… starting to get p/o’d enough to refuse to buy from them.
Cal - Is the piano wire for beating them or choking them??? 
MiM - Yeah, AK winters are a bit chilly. I grew up in the interior, with down to -70, so where I’m living now, which may only reach -40 for a few days on a really cold winter, is comparatively warm. But I’m still sick and tired of the months of dark and cold.
Masch - Thanks!
Snap - I’m staying raw for the time-being. I feel like I have enough to work on right now without trying to learn how to best use equipment. 
I woke up this morning to find that at some point during the night I had managed to magnificently tweak my muscle around my shoulder blade (scar tissued up like a muthafucker from an old rugby injury - don’t play in the scrum, that’s all I’m sayin’). This tweak/knot from hell in my muscle there apparently translates to the most awesome neck knots - which then translate to nausea all day at work. Despite this ridiculousness, it was bench day, so I foam rolled until almost in tears, did some stretching and light face pulls and got to the gym.
In other news, we’ve decided to spend some gift monies on trying out the Anaconda protocol. I tailored the protocol to my size (using half the amounts on the site). We’ll see how it works. Today was the first day of use, and I definitely felt like I had more energy… would have pushed much harder if I wasn’t trying desperately hard not to be stupid and jack myself up.
Bench Press
Warm-ups: 60x5, 70x5, 85x5
Work Sets: --(full pause on the first rep of each set)
100x3
115x3
130x3
135x1 --(just for fun)
Bent over Row (on this spiffy machine in which you put your chest against a pad and pull at an angle)
45x12
70x6 (ouch on the shoulder/neck, so back down I went)
45x10
45x10
Seated, back supported, DB Should Press
30x10
35x8
40x6
Pull Downs
90x10
105x8
120x6
Incline DB Press
35x10
40x8
45x6
Seated Pulley Row
90x10
105x8
120x6
Supersetted with straight arm pull downs (imagine a zombie walk, grab a bar attached to a pulley, keep your arms straight and pull down)
40x10 and 50x10
And then much stretching to try to loosen everything up. I didn’t hurt the shoulder or neck at all, so I’m considering the day a victory.
wow! i haven’t be in your log for a while, and i’ve missed seeing your awesome workouts!! congrats on everything pretty much!!
holy cow…um…i never stopped to realize just how weather spoiled i am, and even i complain in the winters here in denver…WOW. Alaska is NO joke! I hope you get to relocate—i won’t lie, i think that whole 40 below scene is ridiculous.
and hurray for new tattoo too! i wanna see! you have some puuurdy ones already
Squat day. The shoulder/neck was much improved when I woke up this morning and has just been extremely tired and moderately knotted all day (as opposed to the cluster it was yesterday).
Squatz
Warm-ups: bar x 5 for 2, 80 x 5, 100 x 5, 120 x 3
Work Sets:
140 x 3
160 x 3
180 x 3
1/2 squats @ 225 for 5 rep’s - this is my theoretical max, so I thought I’d hold the weight on my back and work the rack a bit.
Good mornings - 135 lbs x 10, x 8, x 6
Abz
bed…
Injuries in your sleep are the worst! My husband woke up with a pulled muscle in his shoulder/back this AM which was super painful.
I will be very interested to hear how you guys like the Anaconda. I go really light on the supps (fish oil, whey protein, Surge) but am always interested in the link between nutrition and performance.
Strong training here.
Today was bench day and the third day of trying out the Anaconda protocol. I have to say, so far I’m sold. I’ve noticed a definite increase in, well, stamina/energy during workouts. I can grind farther into reps and have more energy at the end of the workout, always thinking, “I could do one more set”. And despite the increased volume and new exercises I’ve been doing as auxiliary, and the fact that I’m low calorie right now, I haven’t been ridiculously sore after these workouts. The real test will come on the first heavy duty squat and deadlift days. We’ll see how it goes, but so far, lookin’ good.
Bench Day
Warm-ups: barx5, 60x5, 70x5, 85x5
Work Sets:
110x5
120x3
135x2
Bench with full pause, following cues called by my spotter:
135x1
135x1 → (butt came off the bench on this one, so I adjusted my form and found a way to get my feet even farther back… It’s gotta look sick, 'cause I feel like a pretzel, but there’s no way my ass is coming off the bench when I’m that arched.)
125x1 → with new and improved form. Was a VERY easy press, long pause. I think this’ll be my opener, unless 135 becomes a lot easier between now and 10/31.
Bent Rows (on spiffy machine that is too big for me)
45x12, 70x8, 90x6
Seated Shoulder DB Press
35x10, 40x8, 45x4
Pull-ups (Wide grip)
BW x 5
BW+10 x 3 (PR. Never done weight on wide grip pull-ups)
BW+25 x almost 1 → I didn’t get my chin above the level of my hands, so doesn’t count… but damn, it was close. This will be. my. bitch. soon.
Mid-incline DB Press
40x8, 45x6
Pull-overs (on a plate loaded machine)
90x5x3
Flys
15x10, 20x7
done… outty
Deadlift day tomorrow. And at the moment I’m thinking climbing later that afternoon. We’ll see what I think about that after the workout.
oh, yeah… and I took tattoo pictures before we left for the gym… to follow soon.
He added the beginnings of the old dragon that’ll be a major part of the piece and recolored my butterfly (which I first got from the same artist over eight years ago).
I think the next session will be adding the body of the dragon, which will come down my right side, from the head, go behind the old Celtic back piece, and then the tail will turn and come back under the Celtic piece to end up following the curve of my upper right ass cheek. There’ll be a medium sized Chrysanthemum on the other cheek to balance it out. And then a Koi pond scene with a water fall effect on my right leg and hip that will have flow such that the Koi appear to be swimming up the waterfall, up my thigh/hip, and towards the dragon (following the story of the Koi fighting upstream until only the strongest, the one that persevered and fought and never gave up, achieved the top of the waterfall and became the dragon.) Really, I just love the art. But the story makes me happy as well.
Love it!!!
Deadlift Day
Warm-ups
135x3 x 2 sets
165x2
185x1
Work Sets
215x1
235x1
265x1
275x1 → Felt good, so I did another
275x1 → Felt really easy, again, so I thought, “Fuck it, I want 295” (my exact thoughts, I swear)
295x1 → Fuck. Yeah. PR +15 lbs b – And, that felt like I had much room, so …
315 x … Fail. But it was damn close. I broke it off by about an inch or more, but was just a little off balance and a little off on my form and couldn’t push through my heels like I had been. I think this is right on the edge of my real max right now, but that makes it the perfect goal for the meet. Or before… before would be good too.
275x1 → Just to drive it home in my head that this is a light weight. I think this should be my opener, as long as I’m in a good head space at the time.
Auxiliary - Conventional deads super-setted with straight leg DLs at the same weights
135 x5 DL and x5 SLDL
185 x5 Dl and x3 SLDL
Abs & stretching
I feel good. And yes, the 295 vid is coming, promise.
Grrr…
Wow, just wanted to say that you’re new backpiece is going to look freaking AWESOME when it’s done! I love the way you describe it, and I can totally picture the Chrysanthemum in there too, which will be a great touch.
Oh, and your numbers are unreal too!
Ink
you made that look like nothing!!
Holy crap. watching your vids makes me want to go lift heavy stuff ASAP!
Not sure what I’m most jealous of the art or the PR. Way to freakin go FA.
now I need to catch up.
Wow! Gorgeous back, gorgeous tat, beautiful lifting. Also you have got really pretty skin. Anyway, I am all around inspired by your log.
That was just a beautiful lift.
Do you ever find your body art to be a problem working in a conservative field (or at least in my experience accounting is sort of like that)?