Not sure where you’re at geographically, but I found that in LA (which had one of the harshest lockdowns in the US) there were still underground gyms open - they just didn’t advertise it.
Do you have a bar at home? Heavy chains from hardware stores are probably 25% the cost of plates if you’re in a pinch. Sorry to hear about the lockdowns man - it isn’t fair to anyone.
Congrats
Ontario, Canada. I don’t live in a huge city, so not much of a selection around me. A couple people I talk to at my gym have some home set ups with a little bit of weight. I’ll have to try and figure something out!
Thank you, much appreciated.
January 4/21
Last session before lockdown. Went off program again went for a bench PB.
Competition Bench
365x1
385x1
405x1
420x1
420 definitely wasn’t an all out max. It moved steady, no grinding. But I couldn’t have done a second rep. My left elbow was flaring up again because of squats the day prior.
I’ll try and see about uploading videos somehow to link in here.
please do - that is a heavy ass bench!
I’ve found it easiest to upload video to youtube then link here, but someone yesterday did the same with imgur i think.
Here’s the 420 bench. It’s a bit sloppy off my chest because my elbow was flared up and it was giving out near the bottom.
605 squat. I usually use a tripod to record but I forgot it, so I asked some young guy if he could help. He stopped it mid way up. I think I cut this squat like an inch high. I’ve only done a couple heavier singles the past 4 weeks, so the skill is a bit rusty. Nonetheless, it moved good and my hips didn’t shoot out of the whole and I kept my back positioning upright.
I can only imagine a few scenarios that could make me as disappointed as this… like a teenage daughter saying she’s pregnant, or having a child say they want to go to college for Art History.
On a serious note: you made both of those look way too easy man, well done!
Hahah! I did tell him he only had 1 job. If it was to make a tiktok I’m sure it would’ve been perfect. More will come though, so I’m not too upset.
I appreciate the kind words
Hey everyone, back from a little hiatus from posting. Been pretty busy with life, but still lifting.
Some updates:
I opted out of Nationals this year. The location is pretty secluded if you’re not flying, and it just wasn’t worth the price tag to go. If I knew I would’ve placed or had a chance at making the Canadian team it would be a different story, but as of now, just not worth it and I’m ok with that, it’s giving me time to get some volume and hypertrophy blocks in.
I’ve switched to sumo deadlift and have committed to it, also committed to hook grip. Both are progressing nicely. I think this will give me a much higher ceiling than sticking to conventional.
I’ll post my Wednesday lift shortly. I also have my primary bench tonight, so I’ll update that too. Excited to be logging again!
March 2/22
Primary Deadlift/Tertiary Squat
Sumo DL
545x1@RPE8
455x4x3 sets
435x4x3 sets
Hooked the 545, highest I’ve been able to hold onto so far, previous best was 495. Sumo is starting to feel good, the pain with hook isn’t bad, I was having issues with the bar rolling but top set was secure. Back down sets were done with straps. Every week both are starting to feel better.
3-0-3 High Bar Tempo
315x6x3 sets
These were nice and easy, got some solid extra volume in.
Hyperextensions
45x12x5 sets
looking strong hep
Hey everyone,
It’s been a long time! I’m excited to start posting my training again, a lot has happened since my last post and I’d love to say I’m leaps and bounds stronger than I was before, but not sure if I can haha.
Quick recap of the last 8 months! I’ll try to keep it in order.
And now here we are. Provincials is 7 days away. I’ll have to try and do a quick recap of how training went!
So training recap, I was unsure if I wanted to do Provincials this year, i ended up pulling the trigger, I believe, 11 weeks out. So a little bit of short notice. It would’ve been nice to have a few more weeks but that’s on me, I got impatient and did a strongman comp instead, which was fun in its own right, and that just took away prep time for this.
Training kind of looked like this,
Tuesday - secondary bench, back, triceps
Thursday - Comp Squat
Saturday - Comp Bench, back, triceps
Sunday - Comp Dead, Secondary Squat
I wanted to put emphasis on intensity rather than frequency/volume, just to experiment.
Competition movements were a top single @RPE8, followed by 5x5 for the first 3 weeks, 4x4 for the next 3 weeks, then the final 4 weeks tapered from 3x3 to 2x2.
Training went really good for the first 4-5 weeks, I then took a deload, got sick for over a week, and since the deload, training has been not great (specifically deadlift). Not getting good sleep, feeling really crappy and not explosive, lots of brain fog etc. these are all tell tale signs of over training and too high of intensity. However, I just had constant tunnel vision of hitting specific numbers and trying to force progression, I think I hindered myself.
My last squat and bench session before my taper went good, my openers moved fast. So we will see on Sunday how effective my training was this time around, once I can shed all this fatigue, I’m already feeling better and not so sluggish.
I’ve already programmed my training for nationals in Feb 2023, which I’m more than certain I will go to. And I’ve dialled back the intensity and upped volume and frequency, as I know that type of training works very well for me.
That’s all for now, there’s lots to say but I’ll keep it there. I’ll likely fill everyone in for my training to come, for nats, this week sometime.
Gonna be following again ahah