Westside/PLing Training Thread

Training Powerlifting
9551

A quick heads up guys… For those of you who haven’t seen the latest article louie put up on Westside-barbell.com, it’s about Dave Hoff’s training. Well worth a read.

The general gist is he does most of his squat work off foam (about 25% of his DE work is standing AND sitting on foam!!), he does GM’s and lots of squat variations, front’s, manta’s and zerchers.

DE Bench is 9x3 with minis, monster minis, chains, straight weight or a combo. ALWAYS does some form of extenstion, as high volume and intesity as possible. Then pulldowns/rows etc…

For ME upper work, Floor presses w/ or wo/ chains, same story on regular bench, does a lot of incline, decline and dumbbell work too.

His training seems really simple and really basic, with lots of “big” lifts used for assistance.

9552

ME Upper

Floor Press
95x5
135x3
165x3
185x3
205x3
225x1
245x1
265x1 5lb PR
270x0

3-Board
225x5
245x5
275x5
285x5 Baseline PR

P. Rows
205x2x8
215x2x8

Facepulls 2 Ropes
110x5x8

DONE! Pretty solid training today.

9553

Sheiko#32- W4 D2-Wednesday- 3/5/08

40 Minutes

1)Squat
(50%)190x3
(60%)225x3 x3
(70%)265 (belt)x2 x2 x2

2)Bench Press
(50%)140x3
(60%)170x3 x3
(70%)195x2 x2 x2

Foam rolling lower body

Notes: Everything was easy. My foot placement got a little off on bench, and I’m a tad worried, but I should be able to figure it out the day of the test, on Friday.

My left knee was bothering me a tad on the squats, but nothing huge.

I got to bed at 5:30AM yesterday (technically today), although I still got 6 hours of sleep. I’m aiming for 10-12 hours of sleep the next 2 nights.

-Matt

9554

Tony,

I haven’t really been following your log that closely lately, but if had to guess, I would say that you don’t have enough variety in your ME stuff. How has your weight been. Losing weight would affect stuff big time.

9555

[quote]FJA wrote:
My son who is 15 and has been weight training for about 1 year, started WS4SB III about 2 weeks ago. I have read thru DeFranco’s article on this program and website a few times and had a couple of questions.

  • In DeFranco’s template for both upper body days he requires shrugs… is this really necessary or on one day could I work a different muscle group and what muscle group would you suggest??

  • As he stops making progress in a particular lift(whether it is a max effort lift or a supplemental lift) my plan is to substitute another lift based on DeFranco’s template. Is that a resonable approach or should I swap out lifts while he is still making progress(as DeFranco suggests every 2-3 weeks for max effort lifts)??[/quote]

  1. On Lower body days it says “neck” this could be shrugs, neck harness, cleans, 4 way neck machine, etc.

On Upper body days it says “rear delt/traps” this could be shrugs, rear delt flyes, face pulls, cleans, etc.

So there is plenty of variation there.

  1. I would swap ME exercises every 2-3 weeks.
9556

DE lower
dynamic warm up
reverse hypers 2 sets

had to use safety squat bar elbow killn me

12 inch box plus foam
275 10 sets 2
2 sets glute hams
5 sets calves

9557

3/5/08: ME Upper

Bench:
45x12x2
95x8
135x5
135x3
185x3
210x1
230x1
245x0
210x1

DB Press:
80x6x2
80x8

Pullups:
+25x5 o the 5th rep my left lat/rear delt whatever muscle hurt like a bitch so I stopped.

Cable Row:
160x6
175x6
190x6
205x6

VBar Pulldown:
130x6
160x6
160x4

Reverse DB Fly:
20x8x3

Reverse Shoulder Press (Facing bench, chest on bench):
20x8x3

I felt like absolute shit after missing 245 on bench. I did 8 week cycle in hopes of getting a PR today and missed it pretty pathetically, but I was informed that I’m ridiculously crooked when I bring it down. Another thing to add to the list. Hopefully the rep work on DE will help now that I’m (more) aware…

9558

Sheiko MSIC Week 2 Day 2 Contest
2008.03.05
Weight: N/A

Bench Press
165x5
175x3
200x3x2 sets
230x3x6 sets

Deadlifts
165x5x2 sets
340x3x2 sets
405x3x2 sets
460x3x2 sets
460x0(3)
490x0(1)X3 sets
460x0(3)x2 sets

Didn�??t miss any of the zero�??d reps, but had a hard time getting into a proper �??tight�?? position for deadlifts tonight. I think it also has something to do with all the deadlifting I did last week and the fact that I didn�??t exactly taper into this routine (the deadlifting) after my injury, although this should of been easy I decided not to risk pulling from an improper position and called it a day after my second set with 460.

Face Pulls
80X15x4 sets

Rope Pushdowns
80X12x4 sets

Scap Pushups
8x3 sets

9559

[quote]Pemdas wrote:
Tony,

I haven’t really been following your log that closely lately, but if had to guess, I would say that you don’t have enough variety in your ME stuff. How has your weight been. Losing weight would affect stuff big time. [/quote]

Thanks for the reply, Pemdas.

I’m thinking the biggest thing is my schedule. I’ve been doing ME Upper (Monday), ME Lower (Tuesday), RE Upper (Thursday), and RE Lower (Friday). The more I think about it, the more I think I just don’t get enough rest between the two ME days. One thing that I’m going to try is to get back closer to a Westside template of ME Lower (Monday), ME Upper (Wednesday), DE/RE Lower (Friday), and DE/RE Upper (Sunday). The extra rest days between the two ME sessions should allow me to recover a little bit more.

Yes, I really should keep a keen eye on variety. I’m such a creature of habit that I’d like to do the same things constantly. I’ve been trying to be more mindful of changing my MEs but my accessory movements have been pretty much the same for the last few months now. I’m going to pay attention about switching those up too.

My scale has been out of battery for the last month or so so I don’t know my exact weight. However, I did a random weighing at my work gym and I was in the ballpark of what I expect my weight to be. I am still trying to gain weight after all. So, I don’t think losing weight is one of my problems. However, I guess I won’t really know 'til I replace the darn battery on my scale.

9560

[quote]Kalle wrote:

  1. On Lower body days it says “neck” this could be shrugs, neck harness, cleans, 4 way neck machine, etc.

On Upper body days it says “rear delt/traps” this could be shrugs, rear delt flyes, face pulls, cleans, etc.

So there is plenty of variation there.

  1. I would swap ME exercises every 2-3 weeks.[/quote]

Kalle,

Thanks for the response but I am not sure what program template your are referring to. On the WS4SB part III article, on Defrancos’ website, the template specifically requires shrugs be done on both upper body days(ME and Repetition); it seems strange to me and I would love to swap out a different muscle group on one of those days.

On the 2nd question, could explain the benefit of swapping ME exercises every 2-3 weeks even if he is making gains?
Thanks for the guidance.

9561

[quote]FJA wrote:
Kalle wrote:

  1. On Lower body days it says “neck” this could be shrugs, neck harness, cleans, 4 way neck machine, etc.

On Upper body days it says “rear delt/traps” this could be shrugs, rear delt flyes, face pulls, cleans, etc.

So there is plenty of variation there.

  1. I would swap ME exercises every 2-3 weeks.

Kalle,

Thanks for the response but I am not sure what program template your are referring to. On the WS4SB part III article, on Defrancos’ website, the template specifically requires shrugs be done on both upper body days(ME and Repetition); it seems strange to me and I would love to swap out a different muscle group on one of those days.

On the 2nd question, could explain the benefit of swapping ME exercises every 2-3 weeks even if he is making gains?
Thanks for the guidance.[/quote]

Sorry I was looking at the orignal WS4SB templete. Looking at III I see traps on ME and RE Upper but on ME Lower it has

A. ME
B. UL
C. Hamstring/posterior chain
D. Ab circuit

DE Lower is

A. Jump training
B. UL
C. Hip extension
D. AB circuit

I say swap out every 2-3 weeks becuase what happens if you push it a week and fail to hit a PR on week 4-5? I’d rather stop a little short go make progress on another lift than miss a lift.

Your son is young so he could probably get away with 4 weeks though. Why would you want to go much longer? 4 weeks is ALONG time to be doing ME box squats for example.

9562

Wed 3/5 M.E Upper

2 board press against mini bands raw

315x1, 365x1, 405x1, 435xmiss, 430x1
took bands off, stayed with two board raw…
455x1, 480x1

flat db press with a light band around my back 3x5 @90’s, 110’s, 120’s

Strict blast strap inverted rows with pause at top 3x8

Pretty good workout for low volume week…felt like I left a lot on the 2 board with minis because I descended too slow…I think that has been a problem for me in general in raw or shirt work, have to make myself descend faster and trust my lats instead of unneccessarily slowing it down

9563

03/06/08

ME Upper

Close Grip Bench Press

5x135
2x185
0x195
1x195
0x200
0x200

Incline Bench Press

6x125
5x125
6x115

Seated DB press

3x8x40s

1 Arm Motorcycle Row

3x8x60 (each arm)

9564

Friday, 3/7/2008: DE Lower

A. Deadlift
135 x 1 set x 8 reps
225 x 8 sets x 3 reps

B. Good Morning
185 x 5

C. Seated Good Morning
185 x 4 sets x 5 reps

D. Glute-Ham Raise
BW x 4 sets x 8 reps

Today’s session was okay. I got through everything I wanted to get through, and even tried some new things. It was just a ho-hum day.

I did get to talk to some guy who said he did some powerlifting back in the day. He taught me to use wraps while deadlifting and also used some chalk to improve my grip. I pulled 385 x 2 (410 being my max) and my grip was solid as can be. I might give wraps and chalk a try again in the future when I’m scheduled to pull again.

9565

3/7/08: DE Lower

Box Squat:
45x12
Purple Bands
45x5
95x5
135x2
185x2
225x1
275x1
295x1
315x1
345x1
365x1
375x1 (PR of some kind)

“Speed” Pull:
275x3x5 (~10second reset/rest in between reps)

Reverse Hyper Neck band thing:
Purple Band x12x4

Ab Pulldown:
90x12
90x10
90x8

Really good day. Got some solid advice on my deadlift that immediately made a difference. Debating pulling on Monday for triples, or possibly squatting triples. Have to start a new cycle of something and haven’t thought about it till right now…

9566

DE Lower

2 chains per side
45x5
95x5
135x3
185x2
245x8x2

Speed-Pulls
335x5x1
365x1
405x1

B-Split Squats
70x4x6

Ab Roller
4x8

DONE!!

9567

[quote]AshyLarry wrote:
3/7/08: DE Lower

Box Squat:
45x12
Purple Bands
45x5
95x5
135x2
185x2
225x1
275x1
295x1
315x1
345x1
365x1
375x1 (PR of some kind)

“Speed” Pull:
275x3x5 (~10second reset/rest in between reps)

Reverse Hyper Neck band thing:
Purple Band x12x4

Ab Pulldown:
90x12
90x10
90x8

Really good day. Got some solid advice on my deadlift that immediately made a difference. Debating pulling on Monday for triples, or possibly squatting triples. Have to start a new cycle of something and haven’t thought about it till right now… [/quote]

When I said that I work up once per DE cycle I didn’t mean make it a ME day. I still do my DE work only I might cut it to 5-6 sets instead of 8. I specifically said not to miss because this is a DE day not a ME day. It’s all in 8 keys to success if you go back and read it.

9568

Sheiko#32- SKILL EVALUATION- Friday- 3/7/08

3 Hours 30 Minutes

Bodyweight- 203lb

1)Squat
(50%)190x2
(60%)225x2
(70%)265 (belt) x2 x2
(80%)300x1 x1
(90%)335x1
(95%)355x1
(100%+)385x1 (10lb PR)
(100%+)390x1 (15lb PR)
395xMISS

2)Bench Press (paused)
(50%)140x2
(60%)170x2
(70%)195x2 x2
(80%)225x1
(90%)250x1
(95%)265x1
(100%+)285x1 (10lb PR)
(100%+)290x1 (15lb PR)
(100%+)295x1 (red light for ass coming up- don�??t think it�??d count)
(100%+)300xMISS

3)Deadlift
(50%)255x3
(60%)305x2
(70%)355(belt on)x2 x2
(80%)410x1 x1
(90%)455x1
(95%)485x1
(100%+)520x1 (7.5lb PR)
(100%+)530x1 (17.5lb PR)
(100%+)535x1 (22.5lb PR)
(100%+)540xMISS

Total: 1,215lb (55lb PR)

Recovery- Full Body Contrast Shower- 30s Cold/90s Hot x3

Notes: Today was more wonderful than I expected. I�??ll break it down by lift.

Squat- Was worried on my 385 that it wasn�??t deep enough so I changed the camera angle and got 390 with one of the toughest squat grinds I�??ve ever went through. I should have descended slower on 395, but it got the best of me and buried me in the hole. 390 is an all-time PR, I did 385 once when I was 215lb or so.

Bench Press- Everything felt pretty damn easy working up. 285 went up relatively easily. 290 was tough but got it. On 295, my ass came up like an inch or so at lockout, so I�??m not counting it. 300 didn�??t go much of anywhere, and I realized that I had my IPod on my chest and it was about to get crushed so I did my damnest to hold it there while my spotter grabbed it, haha.

Deadlift- The workouts didn�??t feel great. 485 was slower than during my skills eval. I felt like I could have skipped 2-3 sets in the DL warmup, but I know for next time. I was worried I wouldn�??t get 520…I did. I jumped to 530 and got it and hit 535. I�??ve never really had DLs like this before, but I pulled for a good time before it cracked the ground. 540 was too much, probably because I was tired and it was my 3rd hit of ammonia in a row, haha.

I�??m off to Cali tomorrow and I�??ll have the week mostly off.

Sheiko works. And I�??m going to stick with it once I come back.

Talk to you guys soon.

-Matt

9569

[quote]DoubleSidedTape wrote:
03/06/08

ME Upper

Close Grip Bench Press

5x135
2x185
0x195
1x195
0x200
0x200

Incline Bench Press

6x125
5x125
6x115

Seated DB press

3x8x40s

1 Arm Motorcycle Row

3x8x60 (each arm)[/quote]

I know your intentions are good and no offence intended but I mentioned this to Ashy last week in this same thread. You shouldn’t be missing this many reps, especially in training.

9570

Sheiko MSIC Week 2 Day 3 Contest

2008.03.07
Weight: N/A

Bench Press
165x5
175x3
210x3
245x3x2 sets (shirted 2bd)
275x2x3 sets (2bd)
290x2 (2bd)
300x2 (2bd)
310x2 (2bd)

Squats
165x5
265x3
300x3
365x3
425x3x2 sets (straps down, wraps)
500x3x3 sets (straps up, wraps)

GM�??s
155x4x5 sets

Felt terrible today…woke up late and only got two meals in pre-workout, definitly low performance due to reduced energy. Tomorow should be better. In other news my single ply size 42 centurion is so loose…the straps almost float off when I’m in the hole and I still wouldn’t fill it if I added 30lbs to my gut, going to try to get a 40 in time for Nationals.