PR's and Feeling Like Crap

I’ve noticed that when I make a PR I feel like crap for a few hours afterward.
Has anyone else noticed this??

No, but sometimes I’m feeling crap and cant get my form right. Then I’ll find the groove with low weight and I still feel like crap, so I amp the weight up. I then get my 1rm for a good few reps, by the end of the workout I feel great - not cause of a PR cause numbers dont mean a lot to me.

Some of the best workouts I’ve had have started feeling crap, so I’m at the other end!

When I hit PRs or are at least close to them I usually feel pretty awesome afterwards, as long as it wasn’t a 20RM squat PR or something along those lines.

[quote]Rek wrote:
I’ve noticed that when I make a PR I feel like crap for a few hours afterward.
Has anyone else noticed this?[/quote]
No, I’ve never noticed that you felt like crap after making your PR.

sorry bro

maybe you feel like crap because you used maximal effort, so your all tired and feeling like crap, maybe when your pushing through your PR you hold your breath as a way of using maximal strength, i think its called “vascular manuver” or sumthing like that, have you ever gone through a tuff conditioning workout and after that you just dont feel right, like you dont want to puke, but you jus dnt feel right.

well i hope you get what im saying, just my 2 cents

happy holidays to you and to all

That feeling is what I normally get from hill sprints. I just stare into nothing and feel like falling asleep for the rest of the day.

[quote]Ben_VFR85 wrote:
That feeling is what I normally get from hill sprints. I just stare into nothing and feel like falling asleep for the rest of the day.[/quote]

ya, it’s kinda like that. Almost feels like after a fight or flight response. Maybe I get a adrenaline rush and I feel that way as I come down.

I usually feel amazing and slightly high.

[quote]Rek wrote:
I’ve noticed that when I make a PR I feel like crap for a few hours afterward.
Has anyone else noticed this??[/quote]

This is usually caused by “hammering” your nervous system.

This is typical…when you either:

-Get towards the end of a cycle/phase (i.e. hit “new territory” with your PR’s)
-Are doing far too much max work and volume
-Doing far too much max work and volume AND not taking time off training (e.g. 1 week after 12 weeks of high intensity)

Now a cycle should last something from 12-24 weeks (3-6 months) on average without needing a break/deload. If you are not lasting that long, and/or, stagnating on the same weight for 2 to 3 weeks in a row (and/or, going up and down constantly - taking 2 steps forward and 2 back), you are doing too much volume, and/or doing too much max load work (not considering diet). If you are really good at autoregulation (quoted below by CT), then you can go on for weeks and weeks without needing time off (and making better progress than most). Someone who’s good at programming their training (as they go along), will do a slightly different type of stimulus every few weeks to avoid overly “frying” the nervous system. For example, some may concentrate on doing high reps (e.g. 8-12 - like about 75% 1 RM) for a few weeks, then medium reps (e.g. 4-6 reps - like about 85% 1 RM) for a few weeks and cycle the two.

Whatever you do, DO NOT do EVERY set to failure. If you do want to go to failure, do it on your last set of an exercise…and not every time. You should be stopping shy of failure most of the time (leave something in the “tank”). CT has said before on a similar subject:

“if an exercise caused an extra 2% stimulation (e.g. failure training), and yet required an extra 20% recovery, you’re not going to make good progress”

Remember, progress is key, not doing maximal loads. Relatively speaking, here’s 2 examples:

Example 1
3 sets (all sets taken to failure, weight kept constant)
1st Set - 8 rep max
2nd Set - 6 rep max
3rd Set - 6 rep max

Example 2
3 sets (most taken near failure, weight kept constant)
1st set - 6 reps
2nd set - 6 reps
3rd set - 6 reps (failure)

On example 2, there will be more strength and growth (even from not doing as many maximal sets) because recovery and overcompensation will be more guarenteed.

Quote from CT on autoregulation etc:

Hope this helps! :slight_smile:

2nd on the setting PRs on days I don’t feel 100% at the start.

[quote]kerplunk wrote:

[quote]Rek wrote:
I’ve noticed that when I make a PR I feel like crap for a few hours afterward.
Has anyone else noticed this?[/quote]
No, I’ve never noticed that you felt like crap after making your PR.

sorry bro[/quote]

lol

[quote]its_just_me wrote:

[quote]Rek wrote:
I’ve noticed that when I make a PR I feel like crap for a few hours afterward.
Has anyone else noticed this??[/quote]

This is usually caused by “hammering” your nervous system.

This is typical…when you either:

-Get towards the end of a cycle/phase (i.e. hit “new territory” with your PR’s)
-Are doing far too much max work and volume
-Doing far too much max work and volume AND not taking time off training (e.g. 1 week after 12 weeks of high intensity)

Now a cycle should last something from 12-24 weeks (3-6 months) on average without needing a break/deload. If you are not lasting that long, and/or, stagnating on the same weight for 2 to 3 weeks in a row (and/or, going up and down constantly - taking 2 steps forward and 2 back), you are doing too much volume, and/or doing too much max load work (not considering diet). If you are really good at autoregulation (quoted below by CT), then you can go on for weeks and weeks without needing time off (and making better progress than most). Someone who’s good at programming their training (as they go along), will do a slightly different type of stimulus every few weeks to avoid overly “frying” the nervous system. For example, some may concentrate on doing high reps (e.g. 8-12 - like about 75% 1 RM) for a few weeks, then medium reps (e.g. 4-6 reps - like about 85% 1 RM) for a few weeks and cycle the two.

Whatever you do, DO NOT do EVERY set to failure. If you do want to go to failure, do it on your last set of an exercise…and not every time. You should be stopping shy of failure most of the time (leave something in the “tank”). CT has said before on a similar subject:

“if an exercise caused an extra 2% stimulation (e.g. failure training), and yet required an extra 20% recovery, you’re not going to make good progress”

Remember, progress is key, not doing maximal loads. Relatively speaking, here’s 2 examples:

Example 1
3 sets (all sets taken to failure, weight kept constant)
1st Set - 8 rep max
2nd Set - 6 rep max
3rd Set - 6 rep max

Example 2
3 sets (most taken near failure, weight kept constant)
1st set - 6 reps
2nd set - 6 reps
3rd set - 6 reps (failure)

On example 2, there will be more strength and growth (even from not doing as many maximal sets) because recovery and overcompensation will be more guarenteed.

Quote from CT on autoregulation etc:

Hope this helps! :)[/quote]

Wow that was one of the most helpful post’s i have seen in a WHILE.

^^^thanks heavysession

One important thing I didn’t really touch on is diet. Even the best of training will fail and make you feel like crap if you don’t eat enough, or properly. This is one of the reasons why cutting phases are so “depressing” (because too much is being done with “little going in”).

As most already know (and yet still somehow “don’t manage to get round to doing it” lol), the workout nutrition is a vital window that one cannot miss out. You should be consuming lots around this time. You may not be able to stomach much straight after a workout, but 1 hour before, immediately before, during, and then every hour after it (for 3 or so hours) are perfect times. Basically, you should consume about 2/3 of your total daily calories around this time.

If one were to take something away from this (about consuming a lot of calories), doing it around the workout period is one of the best tips (even if much lower calories were taken on off days).

That’s just macro nutrition. Micro nutrition (e.g. vitamins and minerals) are just as important. If either is lacking (even though most people are in denial, MANY are deficient), then performance, recovery, and mood (even intelligence and memory lol) will be badly impacted. People seem to forget that, as individuals involved in strenuous activity, they need MUCH MUCH more nutrition than the average person. To put that in perspective, in just one area, experts recommend AT LEAST 5 portions of fruit/veg per day…and that’s just for the SEDENTARY individuals so that they have ok health (not optimal health)! A bodybuilder would need “super” nutrition to perform well and not feel like crap.

Example “super foods” (i.e. foods that are really nutrient packed and beneficial for BB, e.g. Zinc, Potassium, Magnesium, B-Vitamins, Vitamin C, Calcium, CoQ10, Vitamin E etc):

-Oats/Wholegrain
-Eggs
-Yoghurt
-Cruciferous Vegetables (e.g. Sprouts, Broccoli)
-Blueberries
-Oranges
-Bananas
-Spinach
-Carrots
-Fish (e.g. Salmon)
-Nuts/Seeds

You could get many of these nutrients from supplements but real food is more bioflavable (absorbed 10x better) and has many more “bonus” nutrients in them that science may not even take into account at this time…not to mention, for what you’re getting, “real” food is better value :slight_smile:

Take home point on micro nutrition

Even vitamins/minerals etc will help one to have:
-a healthy big appetite
-absorb food better
-better performance/energy/anabolism/strength

Yesterday I felt like absolute crap and hit a PR+40 deadlift.

2 days ago I felt amazing and did the legpress from hell. 14 plates for 10 reps, strip a plate from each side 10 reps, and stripped again and again all the way down to 1 per side. The last 2 dropsets were 20 reps apiece. Felt like shit after and went home.

[quote]Rek wrote:
I’ve noticed that when I make a PR I feel like crap for a few hours afterward.
Has anyone else noticed this??[/quote]

your not alone on this one I have seen and personally gone through the post PR deadening. The acute effects are usually something like lethargy, trembling, maybe even slightly depressed feelings, anything like that or similar.
One thing that i can tell you is that you “over excited” your CNS and your probably feeling the effects of Central Fatigue. Its very common, power lifters usually adapt to this early on by eating an abundance of food and just the repetitive nature of their “centrally demanding” training. If I could give some advice; take a short “strength nap” after the session, have some good alkaline foods, (big veggie mix with some salmon and avocado, try using some berried fruits, almond milk and oats in your shake) hyuge eating would work as well.
Your body is absolutely capable of not letting you feel like this afterward but you have to adapt and take care of your body by recovering good, and gradually doing the maximal lifts and strategic recoveries as well
PS. try a small session in the sauna and possibly hot tub as well, these are extremely effective in muscular and/or nervous system recovery as well.