Not much to say. Doing a low load week in anticipation of the anchor stage for the next cycle.
Mobility/Stretching
No Mobility.
Jumps/Throws
Skimped a bit on the jumps today.
Bench
5x67.5kg, 5x77.5, 5x85kg, 2x95kg
Got ahead of myself and 2 reps on the last set. One apparent thing was that I would not be able to do 5 reps with 95kg : ) Since this is 85% of 1RM, this probably indicate that I have to lower my training max, or at least keep it on the same level for the next cycle. As mentioned in previous entries, form has improved a lot though!
Limber 11. Feeling a lot better with the foam rolling now. I noticed that I it hurts a bit when I roll the right abductor. āHurtsā as in probably have a bit of knots in there.
Jumps/Throws
Did jumps.
Deadlift
5x115kg, 5x135kg, 5x150kg, 2x167.5kg
Lifts were good. I reckon I can do 5 reps with 167.5kg with new form, not sure if they will be good though.
So, starting the first session of the original 5/3/1. This will be fun : )
Came down from a sickness; though I was well but this was not the case. Relapsed a bit during the night. Should not have trained this day but the pull for gains was too strongā¦
Bench form was okay. Got in a bad position on the last set and āonlyā managed 6 reps on PR 82.5kg set. Guess that will have to do with the improved form and still being a bit sick. The last five sets of FSL were ok though.
Assistance
Strict Rows: 5x10x70kg
I liked the rows sets, got in a good tight position. Managed to pump out solid reps.
Super-setted the following exercises: Barbell Curl: 4x12x20kg Lateral Dumbell Raise: 4x10x10kg Hanging Leg Raise: 5x10x89.5kg
Except for the last bench set, workout went fine. The PR set was fun.
Even though I have the new form, I still am inconsistent in setting up. Need to work up a script ( and be present with it ) so that I get into the same spot everytime.
Now I feel much better. Session was okay. Felt a bit off due to sickness hangover but managed to do all sets just fine.
Mobility/Stretching
Limber 11. I am noticing a sore spot at the right abductor, so that got a bit more time today.
Having a lacrosse ball up my glutes still hurts but it gets better. Hip flexors are tight, especially the left ones. Otherwise I can see progress.
Still trying to nail form improvements where I activate my left core and hips more while activating my right glute properly. I still feel a bit wonky on the left side during the lifts. I think I am not getting tight enough in the lats.I also noticed I relax the lower core and inner hip area quite a bit, so tried to activate that more during the lifts.
Anyway, got a 8 rep on the last set which was nice. All the reps were solid and I think I might have had two more if I had continued. But feeling the post sickness fatigueā¦
Assistance
Dips : 18x89kg,15x89kg,11x89kg,10x89kg Cable Face Pull: 4x25x17.5kg
Messed up a bit and did some High Bar Squats. Missed the sunday deload due to sickness so I really wanted to do some:
5x80kg,3x100kg,3x100kg,5x100kg
No plan for these sets, just did what I felt like. Had some strains from the previous deadlifts but I was fun anyway. The beginning sets where heavy but the last set felt really solid.
Deadlifts was alright. Not getting tight enough during the lifts, which caused some wobbliness.
I can feel my left upper body getting higher up for some reason. I think I am stretching out the left side the back as a compensation from when I hade bad form earlier. Need to get that left lat tight, I think.
The last squats felt a bit heavy, so I am a little worried about sunday.
Felt nice to hit some reps on that RP; expecting to be weak from last weeks press effort where I could only press 1 rep at 62.5kg. Nothing more to add.
No limber or jumps. Going straight to the bench room.
Bench
6x70, 5x77.5kg, 6x87.5kg, 5x5x70kg
Hitting 6 reps on the 3+ PR set was nice. Got lucky and ended up in a good position where I had strong leverages and was even throughout the whole body. I can feel the form getting better and better but it is still inconsistent.
Assistance
Tilted Seal Row: 11x50, 10x52.5kg, 10x52.5kg, 8x52.5kg, 10x52.5kg
Increased the weight on the RDL but it got much harder to balance it out. I think I might lower until I hit 20 reps solid on 14kg. I guess ego wants me to increase the weightā¦ I guess I should stay until I can properly handle 14.
Good session again. Hitting the PR sets.
Still a bit inconsistent with the form on bench. Should take care of that setup script I was going to do.
Filmed the sets for the first time in a while. Thought I had good form but a lot of the old habits have crept back. Some adjustments, the ones that made my last squat session go really well, id not pan out as I had thought. That is what you get for not filming for a while! Finally made a script for setting up the squat that hopefully will create the same pattern over and over. Looking forward to film the last session with the 1+ RP set next week to see what happens. Might sneak in some squats on deadlift and press day to test it out. Still, not that happy with the PR set and how the form turned out, But I made it at least.
Assistance
Super setted chins and dips. Did assisted chins since my right shoulder started hurting, injury from an old disc golf throw that probably blossomed up again.
Threw in some booty builder/glute raises just for fun:
Booty Builder: 127kgx8, 127.5kgx8, 127.5kgx7
Still not happy with squat form, but itās going forward. I have created a script now that will probably help with the form setup. Biggest problem is core activation on the left side, keeping a tight upper back and also activating the right glute, not causing the right leg to cave with which creates a hip rotation on my left side.
Quick stretching and warmup in the bench room. Waiting for a bench.
Bench
5x75kg, 3x82.5kg, 3x82.5kg, 5x5x75kg
Managed to film the bench albeit from a lower angle which was very helpful. I noticed I had some bad setup in the hip that I could adjust which helped. I have had alot of problems with getting even tension throughout the body on both sides, something have always felt a bit off. This comes from my hip and core activation problems that have been persistent throughout all lifts. Thought I fixed some of the issues with the new form but old habits crept back. I think I can really improve form if I keep filming from this angle. Deviated from the script since I found a setup that worked better. Probably have to redo it a bitā¦
Assistance:
Barbell Curls: ( 12, 10, 10, 10 ) x 32.5kg Lateral Dumbell Raise: ( 12, 11, 10, 8 ) x 10kg Hanging Leg Raise: ( 8, 8, 9, 8 ) x 89.5kg BW ( bit of an issue with skin tear in left hand ) One Leg RDL: ( 10, 10, 10 ) x 16kg ( saving the back juice for tomorrows deadlift session )
Conclusion from session is that I need to update the script and start filming the bench. My hips are messed up which causes uneven tension throughout body which transfers to shoulders. I have corrected some of it with the new form but it is inconsistent. Need to film and keep at it.
Quick stretching and warmup in the bench room. Waiting for a bench.
Jumps/Throws
Did some initial jumps. Around 10. Should be 20.
Lifts
Trying some new formatting to make it easier to read. Easier to write in google sheets and just paste in as well : P
Lift
Reps
Weight(kg)
Deadlifts
5
127
3
145
4(1)
162.5
5
127
5
127
5
127
5
127
5
127
Parallel Bar Dips
15
89
12
89
12
89
13
89
Face Pulls
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
Barbell High Bar Squat
2
80
5
100
5
100
Session went well. Think I can raise my TM for next week fairly safe. Form was good on deadlifts. Really got into leg press mode which I have struggled with.
After looking over some of my form videos, I notice that I collapse on the left side. This causes my spine to bend a bit to the left. One reason for this is probably due to excessive tightness in the quads, lateral hips and obliques on the left side. For example, my left quad is much tighter than the right one. I have a hard time activating the left quad properly and falling back on the glute and I feel this is due to the tightness. I did some squats at the end of the session to test some corrections. I have also started some stretching and massaging on the problem areas, we will see if this helps.
I am about 1 week behind on the logs. Trying to experiment with writing the planned sets and weights beforehand in a spreadsheet and then pasting them into the log. I think this will structure the training better by having clear goals for the assistance exercises as well. Now I just do them to failure and record the reps.
Not having to write all the logs by hand into these posts will probably motivate me to write them more in the evening.
Mobility/Stretching
Quick stretching and warmup in the bench room. Waiting for a bench.
Jumps/Throws
Did some initial jumps. Can probably start doing throws soon.
Lifts
Lift
Sets
Reps
Weight
Press
1
5
47.5
1
5
55
1
4(1)
60
5
5
47.5
Assistance Lifts
Rows
5
10
70
Bicep Curls
4
10
32.5
Lateral Raises
2
12
10
Hanging Leg Raise
4
10
90
Squats
5
5
90
Quite happy with the main lift. Hitting 4 on a 1+ ARAM is ok in my book!
Adding some 5x5 squats at 75% of TM to practice the new form. Focusing on breathing out of the obliques to get even core tension during brace so that I donāt collapse on the left side. Extending the spin slightly upward in the beginning of the brace also gets me into a nice even position, so that is a good cue.
I actually managed to film this session of squats which was great!
Mobility/Stretching
Limber 11
Jumps/Throws
Did some initial jumps.
Lifts
Lift
Sets
Reps
Weight
Squat
1
5
90
1
5
55
1
3
120
5
5
90
Chins
2
6,7
89
Assisted Chins
3
10
89-24
Dips
4
14,12,15,14
89
4 reps on 1+ AMRAP. Nice. But I wanted 5 thoā¦
Adjusting to the new form with some overcompensations here and there but it is getting better. Problem is that left is keeps collapsing which causes my spine to bend to the left. Properly activating the left core, obliques and keeping the spine straight causes all the muscles to fire correctly. I bit unused to it but it keeps getting better.
One problem now is that the left quads and knee are loaded properly. This have causes some irritation and soreness in the left knee. I also have a tight left quads that probably keeps pulling the tendons. Everything around the knee is also tight. I am resolving this by foamrolling the quads during the Limber 11 section and I can see improvement! Think I will also work the lacrose ball around the knee joint as well to give the tendons and muscles there some relaxation and love.
Right. Currently doing a an extra cycle of 5/3/1 and FSL, which I increased the TM for, while I figure out the next batch of cycles. We will see how the 1+ fares at the end next week before I make an adjustment.
Iād be remiss to not point out that now while your dancing frequency is down (presumably) you could probably afford to run something harder than FSL, and/or work on conditioning.
Decided to start the new year with an extra anchor cycle before I decide what the next step should be. This post will be a wrap up of the lifts completed the first week. The assistance and mobility stuff is the same as in previous posts.
So, here are the lifts:
Bench
Deadlifts
Press
Squat
1
5
65
1
5
120
1
5
47.5
1
5
90
1
5
75
1
3
137.5
1
5
55
1
5
55
1
(5)6
85
1
(3)7
155
1
3(3)
60
1
(5)7
105
5
5
70
5
5
125
5
5
50
5
5
90
I realize now that I accidentally did week 2 on bench, deadlift and press : ) oh well. Might not be that bad.
Thinking of doing a BBB cycle but do the PR sets instead of 5 pros. But I am not sure. I think that the PR set version will end up being that same reps that the 5 pros will be.