Okay I will try that. But normally I don’t need squat shoes to bring my knees forward. I think it is more of a technique issue. I usually don’t like heeled shoes for pressing but if it helps with the clean it is worth it.
God damn I wish I had a bigger log. I need more money!
Will do!
That looks brutal. I am not sure about doing this shit without a belt but I will try it, at least with lighter weights at first
Thanks man, I hope you are good too!
Okay, I will try that. I have noticed that I am generally a rather “slow” lifter. That means I squat relatively slow, bench rather slow etc… Do you think I might benefit from more explosive type training exercises?
Great point and you are spot on! I am no coward when it comes to lifting and being injured but I do get nervous before attempting to clean the log and I have all these doubts in my head. Probably more than with any other lift. I just don’t have a lot of confidence in me when it is about that lift.
For example I have put some (respectively to my strength level) heavy weight over my head and I have never feared a shoulder injury. I have a lot of confidence in my abilities when it comes to this lift.
I really need to get out of my comfort zone here!
Thanks to all of you! Really great to have the opportunity to get help from some experienced guys like you!
So yesterday was deadlift day again. Which means I wanted to quit lifting, lose 80 pounds and join chess and half marathon. This turns into a weekly habit. I deadlift, get punched down and start hating everything, then I take a week to recover from the fiasco and deadlift again. Well anyway, I think I can still reach my goal for the contest. I want to be able to do 181 kg comfortably. A single is enough.
1 axle tire deadlift
121 kg x 2
141 kg x 1
141 kg x 2
151 kg x 2
151 kg x 2
151 kg x 2
161 kg x 1
161 kg x 1
161 kg x 1
161 kg x 1
151 kg x 1
2a ssb pin good mornings
42 kg x 6
42 kg x 6
52 kg x 6
2b kettlebell swings
28 kg x 8
28 kg x 8
28 kg x 8
2c axle shrugs
61 kg x 12-15
61 kg x 12-15
61 kg x 12-15
3a valslide leg curls
12, 12, 12
3b kneeling ab wheel roll outs
10, 10, 10
3c paloff press
6, 6, 6
Notes:
Deadlifts work my soul most
the strength is there, 161 kg is not a maximal effort. It is more about technique and form. Both aren’t there
sorry for crying all over my log every time I deadlift
Wow my back is sore today! Luckily not in the “shit I broke my back” or " I need to see my physio ASAP" way but in the “I am walking funny because of the incredible DOMS” way.
Not sure if I will have the time but if so I will do a light workout tomorrow and then my “event day” on Sunday. I am looking forward to that even though I am not sure how it will go with my erectors being as sore as they are.
Had shifts at my second job yesterday and today. Yesterday my lower back was so sore that it made work really hard. Today I had to train early in the morning because of my shift and I have to study in the evening. That’s not cool on a Sunday ;D
1 Log clean singles
EMOM for 10 minutes @ 81 kg
2 car push
2 sets.
3 sandbag over bar. Max reps in 60 seconds
9 reps. Ninth just on the timer
Notes:
log cleans felt a lot better! Thanks for the tips and the video, @strongmanvinny2. These kind of cleans suit me a lot better. I had my belt on backwards, which was terrible but I wanted to use a belt because I will press with a belt and need to get used to it.
Training started around 10 p.m. after being out of the House for 13 hours and working 10 of them it is a little hard to get going but whatever.
1 Log Clean and Press
71 kg x 1
81 kg x 1
86 kg x 1
91 kg x 0 (failed the press)
91 kg x 0 (failed the press)
91 kg x 1 - New PR!
2 barbell push press
80 kg x 5
80 kg x 5
90 kg x 3
3 lat pull down
3 x 10-12
4 Push ups
20
Notes:
Happy about the PR. I wanted this badly!
now it is about getting my groove right and working on technique and confidence. I want this to be a clean lift and a sure thing.
my back is feeling yesterday’s fails, so that is not that cool. I am wondering if I am taking too much risk. My girlfriend seems to think so. Well it is what it is. My back isn’t terrible, Just my mid back is complaining a little bit. Hope that doesn’t interfere with deadlifts.
otherwise sleep quality has been bad for a while now.
Worked out with my girlfriend today. She benched though and did light deadlifts when I was finished with mine.
1 axle tire deadlifts
121 kg x 2
141 kg x 1
151 kg x 1
161 kg x 1
171 kg x 1 -PR
171 kg x 0
151 kg x 3
141 kg x 5
2 romanian deadlifts
100 kg x 8
100 kg x 8
3a chest supported row
40 kg x 8
50 kg x 8
3b valslide leg curls
10
10
Ab circuit: 20 sec of each
shoulder taps
side plankes (both sides)
Planke slides
Did 3 rounds, don’t know the actual names.
Notes:
Pulled 171 kg for a PR but with a nightmare of technique. So I have been thinking. In my contest I can choose between 181 kg or 151 kg for reps. Until now I planned to pull 181 kg for at least a single. Today I changed my mind. I think it is not worth risking my back to grind towards the 181 kg for a not official contest that is held for fun. I want to certainly do my best but after today I think it might get very close to even get to the 181 kg and that is with complete disregard to safety. The 171 kg was all I got, at best 2 kg more but certainly not 10. So I might up my mind, swallowed my pride and now I will train to get 151 kg for reps.
Didn’t have time to log my training and my phone broke so I lost my notes and am writing this out of my memory. I have a lot of stress right now (not only the bad kind) and money problems/ debt is increasing which sucks but hey, things can be - and have been - infinitely worse.
Trained with my friend again after our seminar.
1 push press (barbell)
80 kg x 1
90 kg x 1
100 kg x 1
105 kg x 1
110 kg x 0
107,5 kg x 0
100 kg x 3 - actually a PR even though nothing special
80 kg x 10 - maybe a PR
2 lat pull down
4 sets
3 incline barbell bench press
60 kg x 10
80 kg x 5
4 slingshot bench press
100 kg x 6
100 kg x 8
5 standing cable pull over
4 sets
6 trx row
4 x 12
7 smith machine high incline
15 kg per side x 8
30 kg per side x 3
15 kg per side x 10
8 more back/ rear delts
9 biceps of death. Like things got PAINFUL.
about 150 reps rest pause with weights going down and up. hard to explain.
Notes:
the miss on the push press was 100% mental. I psyched myself out. There was a split second of doubt when I descended but none of you is surprised that this is enough. Right now 110 kg is about confidence and routine and also hitting it on the right day. I am not actively pursuing it at the moment because of the contest but I know that it is there. I just have to prove it.
did a lot of stuff that I wouldn’t normally do. Partly because my friend trains more physique oriented (a strong dude nonetheless) and it was fun to follow his lead and partly just for the hack of it. I heard big Z talk about high incline smith machine presses and just needed to try for myself - ended up not liking it, just like regular incline presses.
Have been sleep deprived and tired all day. Still got in a session with my girlfiriend at a gym that we normaly don’t use but it was the only one that was open that late. We were pushed for time but the workout wasn’t bad.
1 deadlifts off a mat probably comp height
120 kg x 1
130 kg x 1
140 kg x 1
150 kg x 1
160 kg x 1
170 kg x 1 -FAST! And not that rounded. Much, much more pleased with this than usual!
152,5 kg x 5 - hard
2 power cleans
50 kg x 5
60 kg x 2
70 kg x 2
80 kg x 1
80 kg x 1
80 kg x 1
3 pendlay rows
80 kg x 8
80 kg x 8
70 kg x 8
4 leg press (not enough time for squats), plate weight only
160 kg x 15
200 kg x 15
Notes:
I completed a deadlift day without hating myself and everything around me!
the 170 kg were easy and fast as fuck but I capped it here to keep the form (well as good as I can anyways). I am sure there was 175 kg and probably 180 kg if I put it all on the line today.
not enough food and water today. Blood sugars dropped below the surface at the end of the workout and I felt really shitty and ready to pass out any minute.
Was tough to get through this. Not because it was a hard workout, just because I feel like I have been hit by a hammer. Really beat up at the moment. My hip hurt for some reason all day. I was dead tired going into this and I feel like my CNS is pretty down. Deload is scheduled for next week.
1 log lift
71 kg x 1
81 kg x 1
86 kg x 1
86 kg x 1
86 kg x 1
86 kg x 2 (one clean, 2 presses)
81 kg x 3 (once clean, 3 presses)
1b pull ups
6 x 1 - yep, we are down to ugly singles. Maybe those shouldn’t even count as pull ups because I stop at about eye/ nose level. But hey, one goal at a time…
2a banded swiss bar bench press (about 20 kg band tension at the top)
50 (+20) kg x 5
70 (+20) kg x 5
90 (+20) kg x 5
80 (+20) kg x 5
2b lat pull down
6 x 8 with 60 kg
3a face pulls
3 x 15
3b lateral raises
10 kg x 12
7,5 kg x 12
Notes:
loved the banded swiss bar bench press
meant to write down a lot of my thoughts and ramble stuff that went through my head during the workout but I am just too exhausted.
I should still give myself credit for going in today. It may not have been the most healthy choice but no one should be able to doubt my discipline and my will when it comes to this!
Today’s workout motivation was provided by my girlfriend. I talked to her on the phone earlier and she just came back from a 3 day march/ test where they had to march a certain distance while carrying their equipment plus a large wooden object (just to make it harder) all while completing multiple tasks that would test their ability to be a leader and see how they react in stress situations and under fatigue. She was praised by the instructors/ superiors for how well she handled all the tasks she was given and was allegedly the only women who was carrying the “log” around as much as all men.
I know that she is a though person and very athletic but all of that was done just a few weeks after injuring her ankle. A few weeks ago she was walking on crutches and beside upper body strength training she was not able to do any sports or train in any way. Besides her feet consisting of only blisters and not being able to remove her socks she sounded in pretty good shape.
I am massively proud of her and I always admired her for the strong and lovely person she is.
So after that phone call I thought: What are some damn deadlifts in comparison and got my arse down to the cheese factory!
1 axle tire deadlifts
top set of 151 kg x 5
161 kg x 1
151 kg x 2
2 banded ssb box squats (slightly below parallel)
62 kg (+bands) x 3
82 kg (+bands) x 3
82 kg (+bands) x 3
82 kg (+bands) x 3
3 swiss bar pendlay row
50 kg x 8
60 kg x 8
80 kg x 8
4a band single leg leg curls
2 x 10
4b ab woll outs
2 x 10
Notes:
not a bad workout even though it still is time for a deaload
changed my deadlift technique a little and was able to get my legs more into it. In a competition setting I guess I might be able to get 8 reps with 151 kg.
the box squats were ridiculously hard! Band tension was really pushing me down and I concentrated on sitting back very far which made the movement unfamiliar and difficult. Felt great though! I think I might be able to get a good use out of these and I should do them more often.
I am just trying to come to peace with deadlifts. No point in beating myself up about it. Today I tried to start with a more rounded upper back to hopefully alleviate any occurring rounding during the lift. I can’t tell how it went since I couldn’t film it.
1 car Push
5 runs. Couldn’t bend my legs anymore, so much lactic acid that I wasn’t able to walk but had to lumb around.
These were actually pretty bad runs but had a conditioning Effect.
2 sandbag over bar (55kg over 1,20m)
3 Sets of max reps in 1 minute. Have done mich better.
Pretty good training for both my girlfriend and me today. Was fun to train together.
1 log lift
61 kg x 1
71 kg x 1
81 kg x 1
86 kg x 1
91 kg x 1 - ties PR
91 kg x 0 - missed the press
86 kg x 4 - PR (cleaned once)
81 kg x 5 - PR? Not sure (cleaned once)
2a banded swiss bar bench press (about 20 kg band tension at the top)
70 (+20) kg x 3
80 (+20) kg x 3
90 (+20) kg x 3
100 (+20) kg x 3 - PR by default (second time doing this)
90 (+20) kg x 3
2b lat pull down
60 kg x 8
70 kg x 6
60 kg x 8
60 kg x 8
3 chest supported 45° row
40 kg x 10
40 kg x 10
Notes:
ran out of time at the end. A little more volume on pressing wouldn’t have hurt
pleased with the log. Clean with 91 kg is still a little ugly but the rest is pretty clean and easy. 86 kg is a sure thing and 91 kg happened on the first try as well so I am confident that it will go if the competition reaches these heights.
the top set on the swiss bar bench was pretty fucking heavy and difficult. I have to check the band tension again because if I am correct with 20 kg then that means that I have done a triple with 120 kg at the top. 120 kg is my 1RM (close grip) bench. I am probably getting stronger in pressing.
I am a little sick or whatever the start of this week. Not feeling good. I was planning on taking a deload this week anyway so I am skipping the gym pretty much all week.
BUT: I have had an idea for a new training plan that I might do after my competition. If you have the time please let me know what you think.
The program consists of 3 blocks consisting of 5 weeks.
the workout consists of 4 days a week but it could fit in 3 or 5 days
each workout consists of:
primary (barbell) movement
secondary (barbell) movement
direct assistance movement
indirect assistance movement
indirect assistance movement
the exercises will change after every micro cycle. That means I will change them out after 5 weeks. A macro cycle consists of 3 micro cycles. So after 15 weeks I retest the maxes on my main lifts and I will see what I got out of it.
progression scheme:
primary movement:
week 1: 6 x 5
week 2: 10 x 3
week 3: 6 x 2
week 4: 6 x 1
week 5: deload
secondary movement
week 1: 5 x 10
week 2: 5 x 8
week 3: 5 x 6
week 4: 5 x 4
week 5: deload
direct assistance:
week 1: 2-5 x 10-20
week 2: 3-5 x 10-20
week 3: 3-5 x 10-20
week 4: 3-5 x 10-20
week 5: 2-5 x 10-20
indirect assistance: (both in total)
week 1: 5-10 x 8-25
week 2: 5-10 x 8-25
week 3: 5-10 x 8-25
week 4: 5-10 x 8-25
week 5: 5-10 x 8-25
primary movement = close variation of the main lift (squat, bench, deadlift, push press)
secondary movement = weak point training
direct assistance = similar motion (i.e. db incline for OHP ~ pressing motion)
indirect assistance = balancing, pre/ rehabilitation (rows in the same example)
layout for a vertical pressing based micro cycle:
primary movement: log press
secondary movement: swiss bar bench press
direct assistance: one arm kb press
lat pull down
face pulls
Obviously I didn’t just invent all of this. The progression scheme for the main movement is just straight copied from @strongmanvinny2 . The rotation of the main lifts is somewhat conjuagte-esk.
I am very curious to test this. Are there any major issues I am not seeing or is there something that doesn’t make sense at all? This is one of the most complex training plan I have come up with and it would be nice to get some feedback.
I actually like this a lot. Though, do not be afraid of bad training days. I’ve had times where I scratched a workout due to circumstances and just kind of had my own free day, OR skipped the day and did it another day.
Just give it hell, but for the initial phase, perhaps start with a light training max respectively.
ANNNND, this is basically how I train, though nowadays a bit looser. Go for it!
