my training partner is a real monster…he was a 700 lb squatter/DLer when he was younger…
squats - competition depth
135x5
135x5
225x3 very easy
225x3
225x3
225x1
275x1 very easy
315x1 very easy
325x1 not too hard, but probably ugly form
275x5
225x10
kb snatches 16kg x 50; 16kg x 25; 16kg x 25; form has really improved on these (no more bruised arms)
kb swings 16kg x 35 (60 sec); 16kg x 30 (50 sec); 16 kg x 30 (55 sec)
i was worn out after the kb stuff. it’s fun, but i feel like i need to lay down and have a heart attack when i’m done - and i don’t even do that much…
FRIDAY 11DEC09
pull-ups, wide grip
BWx5
BWx5
BWx3
BWx1
BWx21 (rep out)
chest supported rows
135x3 heavy/impossible
90x10 very hard
90x8 very hard
commando pull-ups
BWx5x5
military press (smith)
135x5
135x5
225x5
225x3
225x1
275x1 easy
280x1
285x1
16kg KB snatches: 2 sets of 50
this was a hard day. opening up with pull-ups for reps totally fried my upper back. i normally do pull-up variations for 1RMs, and the rep out really kicked butt.
ended up ripping a huge blister on my hand doing the second set of KB snatches. i was feeling good though, and would have gone for another set of 50 (although i can honestly say i would not have finished).
i’ll have to wear gloves any time i do KB stuff. i NEVER wear gloves, but i only do KB work for conditioning - and if this blister isn’t healed by monday, DLing is gonna suck…
Works like a charm until your blisters heal up. I did the same years ago when I was doing high rep/high volume muscle-ups in the tropics. Plus, you won’t look like a glove wearing sissy!
Monday: weighed in at 166 lb this morning
Sumo DLs
135x5
135x5
135x5
225x5
225x3
225x1
315x1
365x1 very easy
420x1 pretty easy - 2.53 x body weight (nothing special, but I’m happy with it)
16kg KB snatches: 3 sets of 50
Not a PR day, per se - but I’ve never pulled this much at this weight before. There were a couple of guys around and consensus was that I left some weight on the platform today. 420 felt pretty easy. I think I could have gotten 430 if I went all the way to the edge. Felt a little pressure in my lower abdomen, so I decided to call it quits and not rep out.
I’m getting better and better at the KB stuff. I wasn’t really huffing until the end of the third set.
Big thanks to Ricochet for the KB/sock tip. Works like a charm.
weighed in at 166 again this morning.
decline BP
135x5
135x5
135x5
225x5
225x3
225x1
275x1 very easy
295x1 a real grinder
225x10
16kg KB snatches: 3 sets of 50
wed
squats
135x5
135x5
225x5
225x3
225x1
275x1
315x1 easy
325x0 ugly miss
325x0 ugly miss
out of time. one of those days that occurs once in a while. i couldn’t get comfortable under the bar, and started questioning everything. my set up for a lift is usually a non-issue - i do everything the same every time. today, nothing felt right and even my breathing after unracking the bar didn’t feel natural (during that moment when you are making eye contact with the head judge and waiting for the squat command).
bad bad bad mental day at the gym. truth be told, i have always suffered from this kind of thing. in high school, i was a very good tennis player. one summer, i couldn’t hit the side of a barn with my forehand (my best weapon) and the racket never felt good in my hand. i thought that kind of thing was far back in the rearview mirror, but maybe not.
chest supported rows
90x8 explosive lifting
90x8 explosive lifting
90x8 explosive lifting
135x1 easy
180x1 easy
200x1 easy
commando pull-ups
BWx5
BWx5
BWx3
+45x1
+90x1
+115x1
dimmels
225x20
245x20
245x20
back extensions
BWx10x3
close grip pull-ups
BWx5x3
16kg KB snatch x 40
forgot to record my weight
wed: 165.0
thurs: 165.2
about 10 more to go. i think i’ll be in good shape for the next meet on jan 30 if i can make it through this weekend and christmas without eating too badly.
fri: 165.0 lbs
taking the day off from training. expecting 12"+ of snow tomorrow, so i’ll make it up with a non-traditional workout.
Dude… eating heavily polluted snow is going to cause weight gain for sure… oh, you mean shoveling snow don’t you… I’ll bet then you’ll lose 2 pounds after the snow storm!
Regarding the Commandos are you feeling them more in your biceps and delts or in your lats and/or rhomboids? Just curious…
How is the KB bruising coming along?
i’m getting much better at the kb snatches. no more bruises, alhough i am really just muscling them up at around reps 40-50 in the third set. once i feel good getting all three sets of 50 at 16 kg, i’ll move up to the 24 kg bell.
yeah, now every news station is forecasting 20" . it will probably be multiple shoveling workouts!
i really feel the commandos in both my lats and biceps. the next day i’m tired in both areas for sure.
my last post must be lost in cyberspace somewhere…
I have a meet coming up on Jan 30, a push/pull event. I’ve never tried to peak for a meet before, but I thought I’d give it a shot this time around. To that end, I am trying out the base cycle of the SMOLOV routine - using deadlifts. Many people have posted that it cannot be done, but I am going to give it a run.
Yesterday (Monday)
Sumo DLs
135x5
135x5
225x5
225x3
225x1
315x1
315x1
295x9x4 SMOLOV sets (based on a current 1RM of 420)
Wow - this routine is a tough SOB. I usually limit my working sets to a bunch of heavy singles and max attempts, rarely going beyond 5 reps. As such, getting to 6 was easy. 7-9 were a mental battle. My mind wanted to give up in the 3rd & 4th sets. I grinded out the reps.
Smolov will not be easy…very challenging, like the Squats & Milk routine in that regard. I’ll get some upper body work on the off days, probably Tues & Thurs.
Mon afternoon weight: 163.2
Tues morn weight: 164.8
Great job, that was 57 reps of hell.
SMOLOV ain’t fun… how long were your rests between the sets?
I have read somewhere about performing a SMOLOV Set via Cluster Sets of 5-Second Rest Pause Singles… using a quick stand-up stretch, reset of the hands, and/or body correction (repositioning) after each and every rep keeping it under 5-seconds. I think Dave Tate advocates it and pulling for singles in general in order to avoid form deterioration and to maintain a proper strict pulling technique.
Looking good on the weight…
i probably took 5 min or so between sets. it was really testing my conditioning. i’ll try to do them as singles. that makes a lot of sense.
i am already wondering if i can recover quickly enough to complete the base cycle. my back is a little tired today, but not really sore…
I have been pretty much pulling every other day now for almost three months… and that is always with a push afterwards and on top of a heavy free running and calisthenics training schedule on the off days.
It took me about a week to adjust but that tiredness should go away if you recover properly.
I am not pulling as heavy as you but I absolutely do think if you really want it to succeed you can do it (make it work) no problem.
well…the smolov routine kicked my butt. didn’t bother to post last week re: the second workout. i was scheduled for 315x7x5, and only completed two sets. couldn’t budge the bar on the third set. i have a meet coming up, so i’m just going to concentrate on heavy singles.
monday 28DECo9 weight: 165.0 (put on a few over x-mas)
sumo DL
135x5
135x5
225x5
225x3
225x1
315x1
315x1
365x1 super light
405x1 very light
425x1 difficult, but a good lift
16kg KB snatches: 3 sets of 50
very pleased with the single at 425. it was hard, but as always - no hitching. in a sense, this was a PR - the last time i pulled this weight, i was about 10 lbs heavier.
ugh, another post lost in cyberspace. i’m too lazy to retype everything.
Happy New Year!
Weight: 162
Rack-pulls from just below the knee
(DLs as a warm-up)
315x1
405x1
455x1
495x1 easy
515x1 easy
535x1 easy
(departed the power rack, as many people were waiting to do curls)
Chest Supported Rows
135x5
135x3
135x1
180x1
205x1
Commando Pull-ups
BWx5
BWx3
BWx1
BW 45x1 very easy
BW 90x1 very easy
BW 135x1
My calculations were a little off. It was in my head that 5 plates were 505, not 495. I though that I had pulled 545 from the pins, but it was 10 lb short.
Worked out a different club than usual. The experience level was much lower. I overheard some dumb stuff today:
“Yeah, that was all you”, as a BP was bounced off the chest and rowed to lockout
“If you want to get stronger, lift at a slow tempo” - this was actually from a trainer
“Do this for a bigger chest”, from a guy who had moobs and couldn’t bench his own BW
“Who is lifting this?” (looking at my 535 lb barbell)…“Me” (littlest guy in the place)