Is this the end of the Week 2 jinx? Good job.
[quote]JLD2k3 wrote:
Is this the end of the Week 2 jinx? Good job.[/quote]
I know the dreaded week 2 lol. Actually it’s been going pretty well.
Mesocycle 5
Week 2
Day 2 (61)
Bench
Bench Press
95 x 8
135 x 6
175 x 5
200 x 2
220 x 5 keep forgetting this is only supposed to be 3 reps not 5
232.50 x 3
247.50 x 6
185 x 6
Barbell Incline
135 x 10
165 x 8
165 x 8
165 x 8
Dips
BW+35lbs x 10
BW+35lbs x 10
BW+35lbs x 10
BW+35lbs x 8
Pec Deck Fly
120 x 12
120 x 12
120 x 12
120 x 15
CGBP
135 x 11
135 x 10
135 x 8
V-Bar Pushdown
110 x 10
110 x 10
4 sets hanging leg raise
4 sets weighted crunches
Sleep: 7h30m
Gym time 80 minutes
Thoughts
Pretty good workout. The goal tonight was to hit 7-8 reps on bench w/ spotter assistance. Unfortunately I came one rep shy; not the end of the world. Bench took forever and for some reason I had some trouble loosening up. I was gonna do more warm-up sets but decided not to. I also keep forgetting that the first set of week 2 is supposed to be 3 reps and not 5. I really gotta drill that into my head!
Mesocycle 5
Week 2
Day 4 (59)
Deadlift
Deadlift
135 x 5
185 x 5
225 x 4
255 x 2
307.50 x 3
327.50 x 3
345 x 6
Hammer Grip Chins
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
+35 x 6
+35 x 6
T-Bar Row first time really ever doing these
3 plates x 10
3 plates x 10
3 plates x 10
3 plates x 12
Bent Over Barbell Row
135 x 17
145 x 13
145 x 12
145 x 14
45-degree back extension
4x14x25lbs
14 minutes cardio
Thoughts
Deads were kind of tough. I wanted to hit 7 reps maybe 8 but I ended up with 6; still not bad. I had a rough night of sleep and had to get up early for some bloodwork so I’m sure that didn’t help matters. This was pretty much my first time ever doing t-bar rows. I think I used pretty good form; still trying to get the hang of them. I felt a nice burn kind of in the middle part of my lats.
that’s not a bad day dead lifting at all. do you feel explosive on your reps?
[quote]JLD2k3 wrote:
that’s not a bad day dead lifting at all. do you feel explosive on your reps?[/quote]
Normally they’re explosive. Yesterday they were a bit slower. I was kind of tired. I had to get up early yesterday morning to have some bloodwork done. I also had to fast for close to 12 hours prior to getting that done so maybe all that had some effect on my deads. All in all the deads were still pretty good but I do normally have more intensity and explosive movement when performing them.
Mesocycle 5
Week 2
Day 5 (60)
Standing Military Press
Standing Military Press
Bar x 10
65 x 7
85 x 6
115 x 3
130 x 3
140 x 3
147.50 x 7
105 x 8
BB Upright Row
80 x 10
100 x 9
100 x 9
100 x 9
Seated DB Shoulder Press
45 x 12
60 x 9
60 x 9
60 x 9
Face Pulls
110 x 20
120 x 15
120 x 15
120 x 16
Barbell Curl
65 x 12
85 x 9
85 x 10
85 x 10
4 sets hanging leg raise
4 sets weighted crunches
Thoughts
Good workout. I changed the rep schemes around a bit on the accessory work as I felt it was time to up the weight on mostly everything.
What setup do you use for face pulls? I’ve been using a cable station with the pulley just above my head. I’ve not really made it a part of my routine, just part of my shoulder complexes when I’ve got a few minutes and want to get some work in.
[quote]JLD2k3 wrote:
What setup do you use for face pulls? I’ve been using a cable station with the pulley just above my head. I’ve not really made it a part of my routine, just part of my shoulder complexes when I’ve got a few minutes and want to get some work in.[/quote]
I do it like this - YouTube but I start with the rope just a little bit higher.
Mesocycle 5
Week 3
Day 1 (61)
Squat
Squat (ATG)
115 x 6
155 x 5
185 x 5
205 x 2
225 x 5
255 x 3
285 x 4
205 x 6
Hack Squat
180 x 12
260 x 10
260 x 10
260 x 10
Leg Extension
100 x 17
100 x 20
100 x 20
100 x 20
Lying Leg Curl
115 x 14
115 x 14
115 x 14
115 x 10
Alt. DB Curls
40 x 12
45 x 10
40 x 12
10 minutes walking at an incline
Thoughts
I normally do an intense session of cardio after but I was too drained so I just went light. I didn’t sleep a lot last night and started feeling the effects. As for squats everything went real well. I was slightly disappointed in the last set. I was hoping to hit 5-6 reps. The first 3 went real good but I struggled a bit on the fourth and then for whatever reason I gave up and racked it. I could have pushed out another rep or two but I dunno it was just one of those weird reactions where I just racked it and gave up.
You said you didn’t sleep well, that probably affected your squats. Do you feel like hack squats do much for your assistance?
[quote]JLD2k3 wrote:
You said you didn’t sleep well, that probably affected your squats. Do you feel like hack squats do much for your assistance?[/quote]
Yeah it was tough to sleep and things have been rough. Sadly we’re going through lots of changes at work and if I’m not willing to move (which I’m not) then in nine months or less I’ll lose my job :(. So naturally that can make it a bit difficult to stay focused, get good sleep and train hard. As for the hack squat it’s hard to say. It could be coincidence or there could be a direct correlation but ever since I upped the weight on my hack I’ve been getting better results with my squat. I’d prefer to do lunges instead but I was having some trouble with my knees when doing those so I’ve stuck with hacks for the time being.
Mesocycle 5
Week 3
Day 2 (62)
Bench
Bench Press
115 x 6
155 x 5
175 x 5
205 x 5
235 x 3
260 x 2 
225 x 6
Barbell Incline
135 x 10
165 x 8
165 x 9
165 x 8
Dips
BW+35lbs x 10
BW+35lbs x 10
BW+35lbs x 8
BW+35lbs x 8
Pec Deck Fly
120 x 15
130 x 12
130 x 10
130 x 10
CGBP
145 x 9
145 x 9
V-Bar Pushdown
110 x 12
110 x 12
4 sets hanging leg raise
Sleep: 7h30m
Thoughts
Bench sucked and was my fault. Not sure if this will make sense unless it’s happened to you. So when the spotter lifts you off I guess sometimes you don’t realize it to but you’re relying on him or her too much. So when you lift off you’re not totally ready. Basically I didn’t use enough strength and force while lifting off with him and then when he released it almost completely dropped down to my chest at a rather alarming speed. I managed to get it up on my own and then do one more rep but that was it . I’m not sure now what to set my bench at for the next cycle.
Mesocycle 5
Week 3
Day 4 (63)
Deadlift
Deadlift
155 x 5
205 x 5
240 x 2
285 x 5
325 x 3
365 x 5 1 rep shy of failure
Hammer Grip Chins
+35 x 6
+35 x 6
+35 x 5
+35 x 5
T-Bar Row
3 plates x 10
3 plates x 10
3 plates x 10
3 plates x 12
Bent Over Barbell Row
135 x 10
155 x 10
155 x 12
155 x 12
45-degree back extension
4x12x25lbs
Cardio: 14 minutes Tabata
-5 min warm-up, 4 minutes at 8.9mph @6.5 incline- 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off & repeat, 5 min cooldown
Total gym time = 84 minutes
Thoughts
Good session. I know this program calls to hit failure on the final set of the final week in each cycle. Sometimes with deads I can go to failure but other times I just decide to drop the weight instead to avoid any injuries. On this particular set I probably should have went for another rep or two but I guess it never hurts to play it safe. The first 3 reps went real nice too. I’m also getting very comfortable now on the T-bar rows and will increase the weight next week.
[quote]
Bench sucked and was my fault. Not sure if this will make sense unless it’s happened to you. So when the spotter lifts you off I guess sometimes you don’t realize it to but you’re relying on him or her too much. So when you lift off you’re not totally ready. Basically I didn’t use enough strength and force while lifting off with him and then when he released it almost completely dropped down to my chest at a rather alarming speed. I managed to get it up on my own and then do one more rep but that was it . I’m not sure now what to set my bench at for the next cycle. [/quote]
Yeah, you gotta be careful with unfamiliar spotters and liftoffs. I had a guy lift it way too high and the same thing happened. If that happens again, re-rack, take a minute, reset, and do it again. Also, check out Dave Tate’s Six Week Bench Press Cure (link below) for tips on taking the bar out of the rack.
For the next cycle, keep on your progression (if you’ve been adding 10, add 10) and you’ll be fine. You’re making good progress.
[quote]JLD2k3 wrote:
[quote]
Bench sucked and was my fault. Not sure if this will make sense unless it’s happened to you. So when the spotter lifts you off I guess sometimes you don’t realize it to but you’re relying on him or her too much. So when you lift off you’re not totally ready. Basically I didn’t use enough strength and force while lifting off with him and then when he released it almost completely dropped down to my chest at a rather alarming speed. I managed to get it up on my own and then do one more rep but that was it . I’m not sure now what to set my bench at for the next cycle. [/quote]
Yeah, you gotta be careful with unfamiliar spotters and liftoffs. I had a guy lift it way too high and the same thing happened. If that happens again, re-rack, take a minute, reset, and do it again. Also, check out Dave Tate’s Six Week Bench Press Cure (link below) for tips on taking the bar out of the rack.
For the next cycle, keep on your progression (if you’ve been adding 10, add 10) and you’ll be fine. You’re making good progress.
Thanks for the helpful link man. As for the spotter, like I said to be fair it was my fault not his. But you’re right, I should have stopped after the first rep and then given it a second attempt. I did consider it but in the end I just felt like I burned through too much energy hitting those two reps. I think I also had the image of the bar flying down still stuck in my head, ya know.
Mesocycle 5
Week 3
Day 5 (64)
Standing Military Press
Standing Military Press
Bar x 10
65 x 6
85 x 5
120 x 5
140 x 3
155 x 6
115 x 8
BB Upright Row
80 x 11
100 x 9
100 x 8
100 x 9
Seated DB Shoulder Press
45 x 12
60 x 8
60 x 11
60 x 11
Face Pulls
110 x 15
110 x 17
110 x 17
110 x 17
Barbell Curl
65 x 12
85 x 8
85 x 9
85 x 10
4 sets hanging leg raise
4 sets weighted crunches
Total gym time = 83 minutes
Thoughts
Happy with this workout. For MP I had to use some lower body momentum to bang out the last two reps. I guess those are considered cheat reps but I wanted to push through and hit a few more. I also had to use some cheat reps to finish off my bb curls; arms were pretty thrashed.
Cycle 6
Week 1
Day 1 (65)
Squat
Squat (ATG)
115 x 7
155 x 5
205 x 3
232.50 x 5
247.50 x 5
262.50 x 8
195 x 6
Hack Squat
160 x 12
250 x 8
250 x 8
250 x 8
Leg Extension
70 x 17
110 x 15
110 x 17
110 x 20
Lying Leg Curl
115 x 15
115 x 15
115 x 15
115 x 13
Alt. DB Curls
40 x 12
45 x 10
40 x 12
Cardio: 14 minutes Tabata
-5 min warm-up, 4 minutes at 8.9mph @6.5 incline- 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off & repeat, 5 min cooldown
Gym time = 84 minutes
Thoughts
Struggled a bit, maybe it was the Monday blues. Oh well…
Cycle 6
Week 1
Day 2 (66)
Bench
Bench Press
105 x 8
145 x 6
175 x 5
205 x 5
220 x 5
235 x 8 only assistance on liftoff
185 x 7
Barbell Incline
135 x 8
165 x 8
165 x 9
165 x 8
Dips
BW x 10
+45 x 8
+45 x 8
+45 x 8
Pec Deck Fly
80 x 20
140 x 10
140 x 10
140 x 10
CGBP
145 x 9
145 x 9
V-Bar Pushdown
110 x 12
110 x 10
110 x 10
4 sets hanging leg raise
4 sets weighted crunches
Gym time 85 minutes
Thoughts
Good stuff tonight and a nice rebound after last night. Bench was real smooth. I could have pushed out another rep or two but I’ve been only hitting failure every third week. I’d like to get that incline up but even though the weight isn’t that heavy it’s pretty amazing the chest pump I get from it.
Nice job. Bench seems to be coming along.