4/4/2014 - Lower Control
pause squats:
6*4 at 225
pause deads:
4*4 @ 315
3 sets of seated leg curls then 3 sets of ab rollouts from knees (20, 15, 15; 50 total reps)
Speed felt good today, solid session. Tried to focus on feeling the weight in my heels and getting into a position where I could feel like I was leg pressing the weight up. Worked ok, will experiment more with this in future workouts.
Played tennis once or twice since my last workout. Took a couple days completely off as well.
4/8/2014 - Lower
Squats:
5*5 with 225
Deads:
5*3 with 335
Hack squats:
3 sets of 8 with 2 plates and a 25 on each side. Tough sets
Seated calves:
4 sets of 10-15 with 2 plates, last set I did one drop down to 1 plate
Finished with 3 sets of 20 ab wheelers, in between sets of which I did some body weight anterior tibialis raises. Basically just dorsiflexed my feet for high reps.
Good workout. Speed was solid for squats, good for deads also, although I was intending to do upper body so I left my chalk in the car, so the bar was slipping in my fingers on a couple of reps. Not a big deal though as all sets were still solid. I will be continuing to rep that weight on hacks for a while. My form has felt really good squatting the last couple of workouts. I have been thinking of getting the weight over my heels, and allowing my body for get into a position that feels like my glutes and quads are contributing their share to the left. I squat with a high bar placement, and place my feet just outside shoulder width. Anyways, my form feels good, which had better be the case considering the light weights I am using.
I did two lower body workouts last week, but only one for the upper body, so I was planning on hitting upper body today. When I got to the gym however, it was moderately busy and all the flat and incline benches were taken. Not only that, but the squat rack closest to me was empty. Boom, lower body was about to happen. I will say that I am anxious to press, row, etc. tomorrow. I have been thinking lately that 3 days a week of lifting might not be a bad idea. I don’t feel run down lifting 4 days a week, provided my nutrition and rest are normal, but I really want to hit it when I am only lifting 3 days. Just something that’s been on the mind.
4/10/2014 - Upper
Bench:
5*7 @ 185
BB Row:
5*7 @ 185
DB Press:
10 + 3 rest pause with the 50s
curls:
12 + 5 RP set with the 55s
85 reps with the bar (PR?)
3 sets bent laterals and 3 sets of cable rows
Solid day. Will hit my bench numbers from today a couple more times easily before I go for 5*8. Decided to lighten the weight and try some rest pause sets with my DB work, since I’m only doing one working set. My back has been getting a lot of work lately in upper body workouts, on top of deadlifting twice a week. I am thinking about subbing incline in for spoto presses on my second bench day. I may tweak a couple other things as well, more to follow.
4/14/2012 - Lower
Squats:
5*5 at 225
Deads
5*3 at 335
4 SS of seated calves with dorsiflexions
3 sets of 10 hack squats with 2 plates and a 25 per side
3 sets of 20 ab wheels
Good workout. Speed was pretty good, I felt explosive. All this despite not reeling great goin
Into the workout.
4/16/2014 - Played some basketball for about 2 hours, a little longer than I probably should have. Probably gonna be playing most Tuesday nights from now on.
4/17/2014 - Upper
Bench:
3 sets of 8 with 185, then a set of 4, then a set of 5
BB Row
2 sets of 8 with 185, then 7, 6, and 5
did about 12 with 135 after that
supersetted weighted dips and pullups of various grips:
-dips were done with a 50 lb DB held in my ankles, last set was unweighted; 12, 11, 6, 6, 8
-alternated b/w pullups and chinups; reps decreased from 9 to around 5
Finished with 4 sets of bent laterals.
Decent workout. Felt average going in. Decided to start doing sets of 8 on bench until I can get all 5 sets. Last rep of the 3rd set was a grind so the next set sucked. Rows were ok, but pretty sloppy toward the end of the sets.
I am trying to simplify my sessions, but I kept thinking about my arms haha. So, I’ll be doing chins and dips on upper body days because they’re solid, foundational movements that will help me keep getting stronger, but stimulate the arms more, in my experience than other compound movements.
4/17/2014 - Lower
Squats:
-Warmed up to a solid single with 295. Moved nicely.
-3*10 with 205
SLDL:
-3*8 with 275
Calf work
-5 sets of seated calves (12-20 reps) SS w/ ankle dorsiflexions
3 sets of lying leg curls
Solid day. Because the previous two weeks have been somewhat lackluster, as well as the fact that I am tweaking my routine slightly, I have been slightly sore. I wouldn’t be surprised if I felt less sore after this workout than I did before, but we will see.
I could’ve warmed up to 315, but my speed slowed slightly with 295 and I wanted to avoid any grinding. I wanted to do my work sets with 225, but sense got the better of me and I went with 205. This was wise, because I am unused to squatting for this many reps, and I was gassed from 205. I had planned on doing 2 or 3 sets of pause squats after the 3*10, but scratched that as I got a feel for the workout.
I also skipped pause squats because I knew the SLDLs would be tough, and they were. These actually felt really good, and I will probably up the volume here (slightly) after I am a little more comfortable with my technique.
Calves were pumped nicely, and leg curls felt good on my left hamstring which has been tight lately. No abs today. Forgot to mention, but I did a couple sets of box jumps at the beginning of the workout.
This post will be an overview of my new template, and why I made some changes, as well as general updates. You could call it a progress report of sorts.
I will start with my current routine:
Lower Day 1:
-Squats - 55 with 225 (These have been solid lately, I will likely bump the weight up to 245 in a few weeks.)
-Deads - 53 with 335
-Hack squats - 3*8-12 (Go up in weight once I can get 12 for all 3 sets.)
-Calves
-Abs (ab wheel)
Upper Day 1:
-Bench - 58 with 185 (working towards this)
-BB rows - 56-8 with 185
-Weighted dips SS with pullups/chinups
-Optional work for rear delts (almost always done) OR arms
Lower Day 2:
-Squats - work up to a single (EDM) then 310 (will bump the weight from 205 to 225 in a few weeks as I adjust)
-SLDL - 3-48
-Leg curls
-Calves
-Abs
Upper Day 2: This day in particular is not completely final.
-Incline bench - Likely a 5*5 scheme here.
-Rows - possibly BB like day 1, but DB/cable/Meadows rows are all options as well.
-Chins/Dips SS (not sure if I want both days to be weighted, or one upper day to just be BW here)
-Rear delts
Lower body changes:
Essentially no change for Day 1. I decided to drop Day 2’s pause variations for the time being so that I could spend some time with higher rep squats and SLDLs. I have never regularly squatted in this high of a rep range, and I like training my hinge with SLDLs as they make my regular DL feel solid.
Upper body changes:
I could not help but feel like I was doing too much bullshit on these days. I was not burned out or anything as I did low volume for a lot of my assistance movements, but there was room for improvement here. For Day 1, bench and BB rows remain, while DB OHP/DB curl/BB curl/cable rows/face-pulls are replaced by chins and dips with the option to finish with rear delts. Day 2 is similar to day 1, but with incline bench and possibly a different row variation.
Overall:
I feel good about these changes. I believe I successfully simplified my program. On paper it seems messier than it really is. I could place calves/abs/rear delts on a separate day, but they really take nothing out of me by comparison, and I am much more likely to do these things while I am already at the gym. My workouts have been around 45 minutes for lower and 50-60 for upper, and I think these changes will help me get that down to around 45 as well. Not a big deal, but I like to get out in under an hour, and if I am close to 45 I know that I am being efficient. Over the past year my training has looked as follows: Meadows inspired BBing (Spring 2013-End of summer 2013) → CnP inspired full body (Fall 2013) → Candito Upper/Lower (End of 2013-March 2014) → Candito Upper/Lower with Paul Carter BaseBuilding programming ideas → Simplified Upper/Lower split.
I like the Upper/Lower split. I will probably use it until such time that I am strong enough that I can’t recover as quickly from these sessions (probably when I have added 50-100 lbs to my lifts). The other days of the week are used for yoga and/or conditioning, which, for me, means sprints, tennis, basketball, or any other random sport. As you can probably see, I would really like to improve my lower body lifts, especially my squat.
4/18/2014 - Upper
Incline Bench:
-4 sets of 5 with 175
-1 set of 9 with 135
Cable Rows:
-5 sets; 20, 15, 12, 10, and 10 reps; increasing weight for the first few sets
NG pullups (9, 8, 6, 5, 4) SS with BW dips (23, 16, 12, 10, 10 [i think])
3 sets of straight arm bent laterals, 1 destroyer set on an incline bench
Solid workout. I’ll get 5*5 with that weight on incline sooner rather than later. The motion felt fine but I could tell that I hadn’t done it in a while. Cable Rows for 10+ reps were great, especially since I was pretty fresh, and I usually place this exercise later in workouts. However, I was definitely tired by the time I got to chins/dips, as well as sore from my last upper body workout. Bent laterals were done strict for around 20 reps. The destroyer set was a set of maybe 25 swings with the 50s, maybe 20-25 with the 30s, then 10 full ROM w/ a squeeze at the top with just my arms.
I’m really enjoying the tweaks I’ve made to my training. Finished in about 45 minutes today. This weekend I will hopefully get in both a sprint and a yoga session.
4/19/2014
Ran 2 miles, half of which was at an easy pace and the other half short/fast fartleks. Ran 4 sprints after.
4/21/2014 - Lower
Squats:
5*5 with 245
Deads:
5*3 with 335
Hacks:
2*10 with 2 plates and a 25, then a set of 6 where I failed on 7
Decent day. Decided to up the weights with squats. Definitely not as explosive, but speed was ok. Slowed slightly, relative to the rest of the workout, on last reps of 4th and 5th sets. Deads felt solid. Got stuck in the bottom while doing hacks. Definitely felt the squat weight increase by this point. Got the work done though, this workout accomplished its purpose.
4/22/2014 - Upper
Bench:
3*8 with 185, then 6 reps, then 5
BB row:
3*8 with 185, then 7, then 6
Dips/NG Chins
Weighted: 5/5, 4/4, 3/4
Body weight: 20/7, 15/5
3 sets of straight arm, bent laterals
Good workout. Getting close to 5*8 with 185 on bench, and rows felt good today, although a few reps were sloppy. Weighted dips were done with a 90lb kettlebell, and NG pullups were done with a 30 pounder. Need to improve here.
4/24/2014 - Lower
Squats:
Worked up to a decent single with 315.
3*10 with 225
SLDL:
3*8 with 275
That’s it. Decent day. I had not eaten a lot because I had a test before this, and my stomach didn’t want anything in it. 275 and 295 both moved pretty well, so I decided to see how it felt on a day that I didn’t feel great. It was not a complete grinder but it wasn’t anything special. Then I went ahead and upped the weight on squats, which was doable, but hard as shit. These sets of 10 leave me gassed, and I am trying to complete them fairly quickly (around 2-2:30 rest today). Form was ok, but I resorted to a little good morning action on some reps as I fatigued.
By the time I got to SLDLs, I did not have much left. Did 3 sets and left.
4/25/2014 - Upper
Incline Bench:
5*5 with 175
Cable Rows:
5 sets of increasing weight: 20, 15, 9, 9, 9
BW dips/pullup SS
Bent lateral raises, strict, 4 sets, reps b/w 15-25
Good workout. Will keep working with this weight on incline until I am crushing it. Cable rows felt pretty good, went one spot heavier for each set. Dips and pullups were good, although my pullups really suck these days. I realize that I am not entirely fresh by the time I get to them, but I want to be banging out sets of 8-12 here. I have always been able to do about 12/13 pullups when fresh, and I’d like to be able to 20. Maybe I am too fat. Shite.
4/26/2014 - Sprints. Jogged over to the park by my house and ran 15 of them. Didn’t take too much rest, basically walked back, took a couple breaths, then went.
4/28/2014 - Lower
Squats:
5*5 with 245
Deads:
5*3 with 335
Actually felt really good today warming up. I am in the middle of exam week and only got 5 hours of sleep last night. We’ll see how I feel come Thursday. Anyways, squats were mostly good and decently explosive. Still not as fast as with 225 (obviously), but they are decently quick. Of note is that my left knee buckled back (almost like hyperextension of the joint) as I was setting up for my fifth set. No real pain (yet), but it did cause me to lose some tightness/focus.
First set of deads felt heavy, subsequent sets felt really good. Speed was good. Got in and got out in around 35-40 minutes. No time for extra BS today. Solid 80%er.
5/5/2014 - Lower
Squats:
5*5 with 245
Deads
5*3 with 365
Hacks
ten, ten, nine with 2 plates and a 25
Decent first day back after a somewhat unintentional week off. Had a brutal week and a half of exams followed by an out of town wedding. Ill get back in the swing though. Squats felt ok, most reps were pretty good. Deads were fairly heavy, probably don’t need to pull this heavy. Form didn’t break down but some of the reps, really only on the last set, were slow. Seriously pushed hacks to the edge, still have work to do at this weight. I want to start implementing carries in my routine, just need to figure out the best way to do it.
5/6/2014 = Upper
Bench
All sets done with 185: 8, 8, 8, 7, 5
Cable Row
20 with 120
15 with 140
10, 10, and 10 with 160
Dips/NG chins
3 with 90/10
3 with 90/6
2 with 90/7
20 with BW/5
18 with BW/4
3 sets of straight arm bent rear laterals (wtf?) for high reps
Not bad. Bench went fairly well, despite not feeling completely in the groove today. My shithead brother barely touched the bar on my fourth set for what would have been 8. To be fair, it was moving pretty slow, but I had it. Pretty weak shit on dips today, but I am definitely still figuring this movement out. I have been using the 90lb kettlebell because it is easy to get into position, but I wonder if using plates would be easier to control.
5/8/2014 - Full Body
Squat:
3*10 with 225
Incline press:
4 with 175
12 with 135
9 with 135
6 with 135
(Don’t actually remember the numbers but it doesn’t matter because it was a shitty session.)
Cable Row:
5 sets of 10-20 reps
This was not a great day. The squats felt pretty good, but I suppose I am unaccustomed to pressing after squatting, which caused my incline work to suffer. I was also mentally out of it, as I was leaving for a music festival/camping trip/bachelor party weekend right after the gym. This past weekend was ridiculous and it did a number on my body. Definitely affected my subsequent training session…
5/13/2014 - Lower
Squats:
5*5 with 245
Deads:
5*3 with 355
Interesting day. Could’ve been worse, all things considered. My form felt really good on both movements, but they were far from explosive. No real grinders other than the last reps on the last couple of sets of deads, but I felt fairly slow today. I was a little pissed, but then I realized that the point of these submax loads was to improve my daily max. All the cards were stacked against me today, and I was still able to get the work in with at least some force.
So, my program is great, and I really enjoy training. However, I need to take care of my nutrition on a more consistent basis.
5/14/2014 - Upper
Bench:
8 with 185
8 with 185
7 with 185 (failed 8)
4 with 185
5 with 185
BB Row:
7 with 185
7 with 185
6 with 185
6 with 185
11 with 135
Dips/chins:
5/6 with 90/30 lb KBs
3/4 with 90/30
3/5 with 90/30
25/7 with BW
12/4 with BW (gassed)
3 sets of rear delts
Decent day. Bench was a little heavy, as did rows. Dips and chins felt decent though, and bench wasn’t horrendous. It just wasn’t a great day. Going to continue eating a good amount as I have been over the past couple of days. I might just go ahead and do my normal Lower day tomorrow and Upper day Friday, like I would have if I hadn’t missed Monday. If i feel shitty for some reason, I’ll take the day off and do yoga or something.
5/15/2014 - Lower
Squats:
3*10 with 225
SLDL:
3*10 with 225
4 sets of calves/ant. tib. raises
Squats were brutal but solid. SLDL were similarly hard, although I think this lighter weight for 10s instead of 275 for 8s may have been a little more productive. They were hard but I felt really locked in as far as my technique goes. Hamstring and some calf soreness today. About to head in and do an upper body session right now, trying to do work on the incline bench today.
5/16/2014 - Upper
Incline BB:
4 sets of 5 with 175
1 set of 4 with 175
Cable Row:
5 sets of 10-20
Dips/NG Chins (all BW):
25/5
20/5
14/5
12/4
10/4
3 sets of rear delts
Crazy pump today. I get a good chest stretch from incline, and the rest of the exercises are all really good for me personally (that’s why I do them). Also, BW chins and dips give my whole upper body an intense pump. Last rep of the 4th and 5th sets on incline were serious grinders, but I didn’t fail. I was not taking a lot of time between exercises either. I wish I had a fifth in me on the last set, but I’ll come back and nail it next week.
This weekend will involve sprints tomorrow (Saturday) and yoga on Sunday, with the possibility of bonus yoga on Saturday. I also plan on crushing some food while I am visiting my dad for the next couple of days. Should be ready to have a great week in the gym next week.