TCam's Log - Get Strong(er)

Training Training Logs
61

Friday Training: Deadlift Test

Deadlift:
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 315
1 @ 405
1 @ 435 (some guy offered some wrist straps, so I used them on this lift; popped my wrist strap cherry)
1 @ 455
3 @ 315

Incline DB Press:
10 @ 70
3 X 5 @ 80

We got to the gym about 35 minutes before closing because game day is today and we didn’t realize they were closing at 6pm. So, we were kind of rushed to just get some stuff done. I’m very surprised I pulled 455, although it was incredibly ugly, after not deadlifting heavy for 5 weeks.

Since I hit my 425 squat goal, I’m going to move that goal to 455 for the end of the year now. I won’t be neglecting anything during my deadlift/bench program.

62

[quote]TylerPK4L wrote:
Friday Training: Deadlift Test

Deadlift:
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 315
1 @ 405
1 @ 435 (some guy offered some wrist straps, so I used them on this lift; popped my wrist strap cherry)
1 @ 455
3 @ 315

Incline DB Press:
10 @ 70
3 X 5 @ 80

We got to the gym about 35 minutes before closing because game day is today and we didn’t realize they were closing at 6pm. So, we were kind of rushed to just get some stuff done. I’m very surprised I pulled 455, although it was incredibly ugly, after not deadlifting heavy for 5 weeks.

Since I hit my 425 squat goal, I’m going to move that goal to 455 for the end of the year now. I won’t be neglecting anything during my deadlift/bench program.
[/quote]

Congrats on the pulls and squats, strong lifts!

63

[quote]whup wrote:
Congrats on the pulls and squats, strong lifts![/quote]

Thanks, man! I appreciate it!

Bench Day…on a Monday. Dammit.

Flat Bench from pins at chest:
10 @ 135
7 @ 225
2 @ 275
3 @ 275 (pins raised one notch)

Cleans (I don’t know why. I was disappointed with the bench thus far):
10 @ 135
8 @ 145

Decline Bench:
10 @ 225
5 @ 275 (easy, good sign)
3 @ 315 (1 rep PR for decline!)
1 @ 335
22 @ 185 (3 rep burnout PR)

It wasn’t a particularly long session or anything, and I was very disappointed with the pin presses. But damn, I love me some decline. It gives me a chance to get the weight in my hands again without having an impossibly difficult and slow concentric portion, aka, helps my wrists get used to moving heavy weights explosively.
Plus, it’s a psychological marker for me. If I can hold 335 in my hands and press it on decline, I know I’ll be able to do it on flat very soon.

64

Sorry to whoever reads this log. I caught some sort of cold two nights ago and I still have some of the symptoms. So, I didn’t go to the gym for two days in a row. I went tonight, but it only lasted 30 minutes (I swear, this never happens!)

I’m sick, so nothing heavy day

Flat Bench:
15 @ 135 (wide)
10 sets X 3 @ 225
15 @ 135 (wide)

Potentially made up an exercise? (Chest Next Post)
4 X 10 @ 60 DB’s

EZ-Bar Curls:
5 X 5 @ 75 (Wide, Narrow, W, N, W)

The smell of formaldehyde in the morning (dissection lab exam) made me lose my appetite. And then I got caught up in cleaning my room at my apartment. I didn’t really eat anything until about 6pm. Nutrition facepalm.
I’ve had about 120g since then.

65

319×516 32 KB

Here’s the “potentially new exercise” from the previous post.

Use a hyperextension machine, set the knee pad thing pretty low on your thigh so that there is nothing supporting you past the mid-thigh, pick up dumbbells from floor, lean forward until your torso is parallel to the floor, raise and lower dumbbells either bilaterally or unilaterally simulating a rowing movement, keep torso parallel for the whole time.

If you do this correctly, you have to contract all of the core muscles (mostly of the lower back; and during unilateral movement, the obliques), hamstrings, glutes, and of course the lats, traps, rhomboids, etc.

I feel like this movement almost simulates the midpoint of a glute-ham raise plus DB rows.

So, it’s not really a “new” exercise so much as it is a combination of a few exercises.
All I know is that my hamstrings and glutes are feeling pretty rough; since they have to support a lot of weight that is far away from the center of gravity.

Try it out! Let me know what you think!

66

Day Before Halloween Day

Overhead Press:
5 X 5 @ 135, 145, 155, 135, 135

Bent Over BB Row: with spotter iso-hold for varied time
12 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 135
5 @ 185*
10 @ 135*

Skullcrusher:
8 @ 95 Narrow
10 @ 95 Wide
8 @ 95 Wide

New Exercise From Previous Post:
3 X 10 @ 60 DB’s

Pretty good workout today. I like incorporating the spotter iso-holds into more exercises.
I want to get my strict overhead press up. I hadn’t been doing it much since my shoulder injury last year.

Protein: Just over 100g so far. I gotta get back on track here.

Not-So-Random Quote: “Charlie Brown is the one person I identify with. C.B. is such a loser. He wasn’t even the star of his own Halloween special.” -Chris Rock

67

Conditioning

Today I took my 50 and 100 lb sandbags and my sled out. I hadn’t used them before today and this was just figuring out what I could do with them, so I wasn’t really planning on keeping up with what I did.

It involved sled pulls, sled sprints, and sandbag: throws (rotational, keg toss, forward pass), cleans and press, squat, and snatch.

There’s much more stuff we could have done with them, but we decided to toss the frisbee for an hour or so once we had figured out the rest.

Happy Halloween!

68

ME Deadlift

Dynamic Bodyweight Warm-up

Deadlift (sumo unless otherwise stated):
10 @ 135 Feet Together, Wide Grip
8 @ 135
5 @ 225 Explosive
5 @ 315
5 @ 365
2 @ 405
1 @ 465 (+10lb PR!)
1 @ 475 (+10lb more PR!) (Absolutely all back. The lift took about 8 seconds to complete)
5 @ 225

Grip = Ouch.

Well, I guess today was a good session. I pulled two PR’s, but the form was the only problem. I’m not going to go above 475 until I pull 475 with good form and leg drive. But, I was angry as hell about something, so the weight was still moving. lol

I’m off to study for philosophy. Kill me now.

69

Quick Bench Day

Flat DB Bench:
12 @ 65
10 @ 80
5 X 5 @ 100 (easy, all explosive reps)

Cable Low Row:
10 @ 140
8 @ 160
6 @ 180
4 @ 200
5 @ 140 (towel grip)
10 @ 120 (towel grip)

Face Pulls:
12 @ 60
5 @ 80
12 @ 80
10 @ 100
10 @ 100
10 @ 80

My grip, legs, and back are all still recovering from yesterday; so heavy back/grip work and squats were out of the question for today. And it’s Monday, so BB bench was out of it too. I only spent 30 minutes in the gym, but it wasn’t an awful day for conditionings sake.

Protein: 168g thus far. Another meal to come right now. I’ll hit 200g for sho’.

Quote: “She was a ho…for sho’” -Andy Stitzer,40 Year Old Virgin.

70

[quote]TylerPK4L wrote:
ME Deadlift

Dynamic Bodyweight Warm-up

Deadlift (sumo unless otherwise stated):
10 @ 135 Feet Together, Wide Grip
8 @ 135
5 @ 225 Explosive
5 @ 315
5 @ 365
2 @ 405
1 @ 465 (+10lb PR!)
1 @ 475 (+10lb more PR!) (Absolutely all back. The lift took about 8 seconds to complete)
5 @ 225

Grip = Ouch.

Well, I guess today was a good session. I pulled two PR’s, but the form was the only problem. I’m not going to go above 475 until I pull 475 with good form and leg drive. But, I was angry as hell about something, so the weight was still moving. lol

I’m off to study for philosophy. Kill me now.

[/quote]

Nice pull! Definitly following this log, keep up the good work

71

[quote]Raw Meat wrote:
Nice pull! Definitly following this log, keep up the good work[/quote]

Thanks, man! I appreciate the support.

72

skip down for training
[complaining] So, I just got back from the gym and I have to say, I really hate day light savings and all that shit. I’m not adjusted to it yet, so I’ve felt like going to the gym earlier than usual. Every type of bench, every type of machine, and every DB area was filled. I saw 6 different people doing hanging windshield wipers today. I saw a kid balancing on his knees on a swiss ball and tossing a medicine ball to someone as skinny sorostitutes watched the 5’4’’ 110 lb beast balance with such skill.

I walked into the room I spend most of my time in…the “power room” (which is just a power rack, a squat rack, and a smith machine in between the former 2), and both of the racks were taken (I was feelin’ some box squats today). I asked one guy if he was finishing or starting (just the bar on the rack) and he said he was just starting but I could work in with him; nice gesture. He asked me how heavy I was going and I said, “about 315, I’m going 5X5 or 10X3”, he said okay and I did my warm up to 315 because he wanted to start at 315 (I don’t warm up much, but damn he’s stupid).

So he gets under and does like 8 squats about 3-4 inches above parallel. I’m not too worried, I’ve seen a lot worse. But he takes like 4 minutes in between his sets and I wasn’t ready for that, so I ended up sittin around waiting for him as he walks around pumping himself up.

He put 335 on and did 5 at the same height. I decided to not be confrontational, but I had to at least show him proper form without being a dick. I did 3 easy reps with it ATG. He asked me why I “go so low”, and I explained to him that I wanted to at least hit parallel every time for an easy explanation and he said, “Can’t you feel parallel?” and I said, “Yeah, but I want to go as low as possible so that parallel is much easier” or something along those lines. I shouldn’t have tried to make something up, I should have just said, “It’s just better.”

He said, “Well, I can feel parallel” Sigh Me: “But you haven’t hit parallel yet” and I explained to him that you have to look at femur location. He seemed agitated and said, “I did some competitions in high school and they told us when to go down and then go back up.” At that point, I gave up. He can believe that his high school football coaches weren’t inflating numbers if he wants.

I need to start going to the gym at 9 again. No one is there at that point other than people that are at least somewhat devoted to learning new things. [/complaining]

DE Box Squat Day

Squat:
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
3 @ 315 (box)
3 @ 365
5 X 5 @ 315 (box)
10 @ 135 (box)

EZ Bar Preacher Curls:
6 @ 75 (Wide)
6 @ 95 (Wide)
6 @ 95 (Narrow)
6 @ 75 (Narrow)

Nothing else was available and I didn’t want to wait around. So I left.

Protein: 224g. About time I get back to this.

73

Bench Day

Flat Bench:
10 @ 135
10 @ 225
3 @ 295
1 @ 335 (hell yeah, back at it)
2 @ 315
2 @ 295
10 @ 225
10 @ 135

Unilateral DB Triceps Extension:
2 X 5 @ 50 (each side)

-Cable Core Work (all each side)
Pallof Press:
10 @ 100

Arms Extended Rotations:
10 @ 60

Wood Choppers:
l0 @ 70

Pallof Press:
10 @ 80

Bent BB Row:
3 X 10 @ 185

I wrote some other stuff earlier, but the post didn’t go through. I don’t feel like typing it again.

Edit: Okay, here’s what it said: Good session. I’m glad I hit 335 again today. The double 315 and triple 295 weren’t bad either. I think I can owe all of that to the setup of my arch. I hadn’t really focused on that until now. I’d always retract my scapulae, but not really focus on my legs. Before, my ass would always lift off the bench on a max attempt. Today, it didn’t.

My elbow is bothering me a bit, which is discouraging considering I took off 5 weeks from the bench. But it’s not the worst thing ever. I’ll survive.

Protein: Gettin 200g now.

74

I played flag football tonight. Mostly short sprints because I was on defense rushing.
We lost though. :frowning:

75

Upper-body/Conditioning

I went into the gym expecting to train pretty hard. I took 300mg caffeine before I left. When I got there, I went to deadlift and my lower back didn’t enjoy pretty light weights, so I didn’t feel like risking injury right now. Potentially an erector spinae or even a glute issue. I wasn’t in the mood for tweak or accessory work, so I just moved to upper body.

Deadlift:
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
3 @ 315
10 @ 135

Decline Bench:
15 @ 135 Wide
15 @ 225
4 @ 295 (No spotter. 5th rep=very failed, I had to put the weight on my chest and let it fall to one side and have someone help me get it off my hip. lol)
5 @ 255
5 @ 225
5 @ 225
12 @ 135

Preacher Curl/Standing OH Triceps Extension Superset:
6/10 @ 75
6/10 @ 95
6/5 @ 95 (Elbow started to feel weird; stopped there)

One-Arm DB Rows (each side):
10 @ 105
3 X 5 @ 120
10 @ 105

Overhead EZ Bar Decline Sit-ups:
10 @ 75
5 @ 75, 5 @ BW and got up

Cable Internal/External Shoulder Rotation:
2 X 10/10 @ 40

Voyer Shrug: Strength Training, Bodybuilding & Online Supplement Store - T NATION
2 X 10 @ 200 (total)

That caffeine hit me pretty hard today for some reason. I felt like throwing up during and after the rows. Maybe it’s just that my work capacity has gone down since I’ve been focusing on power. It probably has more to do with the chili (check next post for food porn), caffeine, and 30 second rest periods though.

I have completely failed one other time on decline bench, so even though there were a bunch of people watching (you hardly ever see anyone go above 225 there), I wasn’t really embarrassed surprisingly. I thanked the guy that helped me and shook his hand, and then moved on to the next set. Kind of says a lot about other things in life too.

It was a great workout though. I finally met Masonator too. Apparently we kept seeing each other on campus without realizing it. He’s a big mother fucker. haha

Protein: I’m sure I’ve hit 180-200g today.

Not-even-remotely-random Quote: “Whenever I meet someone who does not consider chili a favorite dish, then I’ve usually found someone who has never tasted good chili.” - Jan Butel, author of “Chili Madness”

76

1500×251 292 KB

So, I purchased a 7-quart slow-cooker the other day (buy one now, if you don’t already have one) and decided to make some breakfast casserole for this morning and then protein packed chili for tonight! Of course both are for the rest of the week as well.

Breakfast Casserole (No Pics for This One)
-40 oz. Hash Browns
-18 Large Eggs
-1.5 Cups Skim Milk (Anything over 2% apparently gets disgusting in a slow-cooker)
-2 lbs. Hot Breakfast Sausage
-1/2 Green Pepper (Will use 1 whole next time)
-3/4 Large Onion
-8 oz. Shredded Mexican-Style Cheese (could use more or less depending on taste)
-Salt and Pepper

Spray or butter crock-pot. Hash Browns on the bottom. Saut�© vegetables and brown sausage until nearly done (not completely). Mix eggs, milk, veggies, cheese, salt, and pepper. Pour mixture over hash browns. Cook for 5-7 hours on low (mine was slightly over done at 6 hours).

I finished preparing this at 11pm, set an alarm for 5am, and just turned it off when the alarm went off. Then I went back to sleep. Woke up to my room smelling delicious. The hash browns were slightly dry (I drained the sausage too much I believe; plus the slight overcooking), but the taste was great. Add jalapeÃ?±os or whatever else you desire. I’ll probably use smoked sausage and bacon next time instead of the ground sausage.

Approximate Totals (Give or take about 1%):
6,500 kCal
285g Protein
120g Carbs
305g Fat (Prior to draining sausage. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was closer to 200g)
(For shits n’ giggles) 1810mg Cholesterol; according to the carton of eggs, that’s about 2011% of my RDA. Delicious.

Chili
3 lbs. 93/7 Ground Beef
2.5 lbs. Beef Roast (anything of the “round” cut variety) (weight after trimming)
10 Strips Bacon
2 Cans of Pinto Beans
~6 Cups of High-Fiber V8 Vegetable Juice
2 Packs of Chili Mix (Will use chili powder next time)
3 Haba�±ero Peppers (only one with the seeds included)
4 Tbsp. Wheat germ (doesn’t add anything special, just some healthful stuff)

To Taste:
Hot Sauce
Ground Red Pepper
Salt and Pepper

Saut�© meat and veggies (minus beans) until meat is about 66% done and veggies are browned (I did the bacon and veggies together, and then separated the others for lack of space in the pan). Dump everything into the slow-cooker and then stir. Cooking until the meat is done and falls apart sans effort and the flavors are incorporated. Took about 5 hours for me.

Totals:
Don’t feel like calculating the calories. It’s somewhat low because of the lack of carbs.
~575g protein (~20 per cup)
~100g fiber
~100g non-fiber carbs
Fat: It’s up there, but just drain the fats from the meat if you want to make it less calorically dense.

So good. Food porn should be at the top.

77

It’s Monday, I’m Tired and Unmotivated

Squat:
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
4 @ 315
1 @ 365

Standing BB Calf Raise:
15 @ 135
12 @ 225

Standing Machine Calf Raise:
5 @ 2 Plates, Unilaterally, Each Leg
3 X 10 @ 4 Plate, Bilaterally

Cable Low Row:
3 X 10 @ 140,160,140

Felt like doing nothing today. Steelers are on MNF. But, I went to the gym and moved around a little bit.

I feel like all of this power and strength training I’ve been doing is starting to take its toll. I’ve been doing it for 90% of the past 2 years. At the beginning of next year, I’m focusing on either fat loss, hypertrophy, or sport specific performance. Leaning toward the latter because I may be starting Rugby.

That 365 was very slow and difficult. I have a 425 1RM, that shouldn’t be happening. Again, I think it has something to do with a glute issue because my 5 weeks of squat training ended, and glute training virtually disappeared.

New Daily Things (poor, okay, good, or great):
-Nutrition: okay
-Motivation: poor

78

Went to the gym early today because I didn’t want to go to class. But I also went in kind of blindly, without a plan.

Deadlift (trying to get that form down):
10 @ 135
5 @ 225
5 @ 315
1 @ 365
1 @ 315 (after some coaching, felt pretty good)

Glute-Bridge (to help keep my ass down while deadlifting):
10 @ 225
10 @ 315
5 @ 405
5 @ 405
10 @ 315

Incline DB Press:
6 @ 80s
3 @ 90s (left elbow hurts to the point of hindering movement)

One-Arm DB Row:
2 X 5 @ 120 (left grip isn’t there, correlation between elbow?)

Cable Facepull:
15 @ 70
10 @ 100
10 @ 60

I like the glute bridges a lot, so I think I’m going to try to work my way up to a 5X5 @ 405 as a side project.

I can’t seem to figure out what the deal is with my elbow. Research has shown that the non-dominant side is actually as strong, if not stronger, than the dominant side, it’s just less coordinated.

If the research is valid, I should have no problems with my grip on the left side. The elbow pain is leading me to believe that it is affecting my grip. I think I may do the opposite of my original plan to fix this. The original was to lower elbow extension and flexion isolation exercises because I thought it was an issue with doing too much extension work. I think if I strengthen both of these movements and continue working my shoulders, my elbow will feel better under a heavy bench press.

Protein: Doing well so far. It’s only 3:45pm. ~100g
Nutrition: Good
Motivation: Okay

Random Quote:
Donnie: “Why do you wear that stupid bunny suit?”
Frank: “Why are you wearing that stupid man suit?”
Donnie Darko

79

Had to study for an anatomy test yesterday. Great workout today though.

Incline Press/Deadlift

Incline Bench:
10 @ 135
10 @ 185
3 X 5 @ 225
4 @ 225
10 @ 135

HS Iso-Lateral Press:
10 @ 2 plates
2 X 1 @ 3 plates (both reps took 3 seconds to complete. I need to do more pressing from pins)
10 @ 2 plates

T-Bar Rows:
15 @ 2 Plates
12 @ 3 Plates
5 @ 4 Plates

BB Incline Pivot Press (put bar in corner, lift it):
3 X 10, 8, 7 (each side) @ 2 plates

At this point, I just wanted to practice my deadlift form for a couple sets. But a guy (tool, but at least personable) wanted to work in. He seemed kind of competitive about it, so I just had to show him up.

Deadlift:
10 @ 135
10 @ 225
10 @ 315
4 @ 405 (+1 Rep PR)
10 @ 315

Felt like puking. I’ve read that means growth hormone is a’pumpin. Competition is always helpful.

Protein: 175g so far. I’m about to eat at least 25g though.
Nutrition: Good
Motivation: Good
Random Quote: “The best way to become boring is to say everything.” -Voltaire

80

Back Day

One-Arm DB Rows (Superset, light=explosive)
10 @ 50, 5 @ 120 X 3 sets

Pull-ups:
1 X 5 (Pull-ups)
3 X 5 (Towel Neutral Grip)

Facepulls (with Towel):
2 X 10 @ 80
2 X 15 @ 60

Hyperextension Hold + DB Row (the exercise from a couple weeks ago; outlined on 3rd page here; I’ll refer to it as this from now on):
3 X 10 @ 65s

Preacher Curls:
3 X 5 @ 75 (wide)

Good, quick session. I’m going home this weekend, so I wanted to get a workout in before I left.

Protein: Maybe 80 so far. Weak, but I’ll definitely get more to eat at home.
Nutrition: Too early
Motivation: Okay