Yet Another Set/Rep System

Training Training Logs
41

BW: 180

Today was a speed workout day. I haven’t done one of those in a while.
1LSLDL: 125 X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3. - Not done for speed.
BS: 110X3, 3, 3, 3, 5, 5, 5, 5, 1.
MP: 30#/ X 3, 3, 3, 5, 5, 5, 5, 1.
DL: 170# X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WGIBP: 75X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WG Pull-down: 100X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
Leg Curl: 85X 5, 3, 3, 3. - Not done for speed. Just an indication of how under developed my hamstrings are.

It was very good. I left feeling energized and bit pumped. That pumped feeling is still slightly present, two hours after finishing. I’m looking forward to next week’s speed workout.

42

Monday:
BW: 178
DL: 45X5, 135X5, 225X5, 295X4, 340X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
WGPU: BW X 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4.
WGIBP: 150X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.

43

Today:
BW: 179
BS: 45X5, 135X5, 185X4; 225X3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
DBMP: 60#-Stapled(S), 55X3, 3/60S, 55X3/60S, 55X3/60, 55X3/60, 55X3/60, 55X3/60, 3, 3.
BOR: 70# X 20, 10, 5, 3, 2, 10, 5, 3, 2, 10.

I have never hit a more clear plateau than where I’m at now with the dumb bell military press. I’m amazed that I can hit multiple sets of three reps with 55s and get stapled with 60s. I wondered if it was an acclimation issue and tried doing three at 55 and then see what happened with 60. Nothing. I could barely move the dumbbells off my shoulders. So, I think I shall create a couple adjustable weights (empty plastic bottles with a cord attached to the lid, filled with change to the desired weight) and see if I can move 56# next week.

I’m curious if this might be a golgi tendon organ issue where the safe set point is right around 55# for each shoulder. My usual method of resetting these to a new tension is stretching. But that doesn’t seem to be the answer for this instance. Next week with this exercise should be interesting.

44

Yesterday:
BW: 179
Complex: BOR, DHC, Reverse Curl and Anyhow, BS, Good Morning
45X 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

45

BW: 179
Speed workout today.
1LSLDL: 130X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
BS: 115X5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
MP 35#/X5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
DL 170X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WGIMP: 75X5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WG Pull Down: 100X5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
BB Curl: 50#X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.

46

Monday: 10/17/11
BW: 179
DL: 45X5, 135X5, 225X5, 295X4, 345X3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
WGIBP: 155X3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
WGPU: BW 10: 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.

The wide grip inclined bench press was tough at the end. The wide grip pull up was pretty easy all the way through. I’ll bump the weights for both exercises next time.

47

Wednesday 10/19/2011
BW: 179.

BS: 45X5, 135X5, 185X4, 230X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
DBMP: 55.5#/X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
BOR: 75# X 20, 15, 10, 5, 3, 2, 10, 5, 3, 2.

Okay, I’m sneaking up on my military press sticking point. I’m going to increase the weight by a half pound a week until I reach 60#.

48

BW: 179

I made today a complex and muscle confusion day.

Push-up followed by a wide-grip pull up: 20
Turkish Get-Up: 20#X 4, 25#X 5
Jump Squat, Squat, Squat with 10 sec hold at bottom: BW X 8
Overhead Squat: BW X 8
Push-up followed by a wide-grip pull up: 20
Turkish Get-Up: 20#X 4, 25#X 5
Jump Squat, Squat, Squat with 10 sec hold at bottom: BW X 8
Overhead Squat: BW X 8
Sprints: The track is about a tenth mile oval. I sprinted half and then walked half: 6

49

Mostly speed day
BW: 180
Weight up, abdominal definition down, woke up thirsty; time to get more salt in my diet.

1LSLDL: 135X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
These really hit the low back nicely.
BS: 115 X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
DBMP: 30#/ X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
DL: 170 X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WGIBMP: 75X 5, 5, 5, 6, 7, 10.
WGPDwn: 100X 5, 5, 5, 6, 7, 10.

50

Simple complex:
DBS, TSw3PU, ABR, WGPU: 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

I haven’t done this one in a while. It felt good, even though it was a lot less reps than previously. It’s nice to get the blood pumping.

51

BW: 181
DL: 45X5, 135X5, 225X5, 295X4, 350X3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
IWGBP: 160X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2.
WGPlU: BW 25X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.

The exciting news is that there is now the hint of a whisper of an outline of an eight-pack. Seriously, observing fat going away is like watching snow melt. I’m just happy the fat loss is happening within the context of a diet that works well for me.

52

BW: 179
BS: 45X5; 135X5; 185X5; 235X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
DBMP: 56#/ X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, S/S, 2.
BOR: 80# X 20, 10, 5, 3, 2, 10, 5, 3, 2, 10, 5, 3, 2.

Okay, very interesting Dumb Bell military press data. The 56# was challenging. At the 12th set, I got stapled, I couldn’t get bells to hardly move. The thirteenth set, two reps. What this says to me is the initial mechanism for pressing the dumb bells, supraspinatus and the upper traps, is all or nothing. It also tells me that right now, I am truly at some sort of a sticking point. 55.5# and I get all the reps and sets. Add a half pound and I miss a set. There might be a confound in doing inclined bench press on Monday, but I doubt it. I think this is just where I’m at right now. I don’t know if I’ll add a half pound or not next week.

53

Friday, October 28, 2011
BW: 178

1LSLDL: 140 X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
BS: 120 X 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6.
MP: 30 X 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6.
DL: 175 X 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6.
WGIBP: 80 X 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6.
WGPlD: 100 X 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6 6.

It was a good workout. I’m really liking the speed work and am still figuring out the rep set scheme and balancing it with time.

54

BW: 180. Again, a weekend with little salt and the bw goes up.

DL: 45 X 5; 135 X 5; 225 X 5; 295 X 5; 355 X 3, 3, 2.
Damn. I tweaked my back on the third set. I was focusing on my grip because of the knurling on the bar. My gym doesn’t allow chalk and there are a few different types of knurling on the bar. The best combination of knurling and gloves wasn’t available (I should have waited for one to become available), so I was using a different bar and trying to find a good combination. If I went without anything, I’ll eventually rip some skin off my hands and/or make a blood blister. If I use something too slippery, then I run the risk of dropping the bar. Anyway, I was focusing on the grip and neglected to properly activate my transversus abdominus. So I tweaked my lower back. Fortunately, I’ve been here before and knew enough to stop dead lifting. I should be able to clear this out by my next dead lifting session.

IWGBP: 160X 3, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1.
GPlU: BW 35 X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.

The inclined WG Bench press didn’t go nearly as well as last week. I can attribute it to three possibilities. One, the low back tweak. Two, somewhat poor sleep this weekend. And or three, sketchy nutrition.

Overall, I think I’m at my edge in a number of exercises. These are some of the things what can happen when I’m at my limit.

55

BW: 180

BS: 45X5, 135X5, 205X4, 240X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
DBMP: 56#/ X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
BOR: 85# X 11 4 5/20, 10, 5, 3, 2.

I was fairly low energy for this workout and cautious about my lower back. Things went slower than usual. However, I made the reps in the BS and DBMP. I didn’t get stapled this week in the DBMP like I did last week at this weight. I’m moving on. I completely missed the first twenty reps at 85# with the left hand today. Then fatigue caught up with me and the idea that I was going to do 85# again next week regardless of making more reps, and I bailed on the last forty-five reps. It was a good decision.

56

Friday, November 4, 2011
BW: 179

DL: 45X5, 135X5, 175X5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
MP: 30 X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
BS: 120 X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WGIBP: 80X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
WGPlD: 100X 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5.
1LSDL: 45X3.

57

BW: 177

DL: 45x5, 135X5, 225X5, 315X4, 355X 3, 3, 3, 3.
IWGBP: 160X 3, 2; 145 X 3, 3, 3.
WGPlU: BW 40: 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
Heavy Bag: 5-10 minutes.

Okay. I dialed it back today for a few reasons. One, it was my first time back in the gym, really, in a week. Two, I tweaked my back while dead lifting last time. I wanted to be conservative and check things out. Three, I’m in the process of recovering from a tango festival. For the bench press, I reduced the weight because the reps were such a struggle at 160. I guess I’m dealing with a metaphor in my life where I get things done, but it really takes a lot of effort. I still want to use progressive resistance as my main training principle. It’s just that I’ll progress the weights a little slower; at least for the time being. Hitting the heavy bag was fun. I haven’t done that in a while.

58

BW: 178
BS: 45X5, 135X5, 225X4, 245X 3, 3, 3, 3, 3.
DBMP: 56.5#/ X 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3, St, 1.
DBRow (timed): 40# X 35 in 40 sec, 25 in 30 sec, 17, 20.
Heavy Bag: 5 - 10 minutes.

I’m dialing back my workouts for now to about half of what I was doing previously. Some of this is due to time and some of it is I feel a bit over trained. Or under recovered, lack of sleep. The refrain of my life. I need to change this.

59

Saturday, November 12, 2011
Back to complexes for an experiment in DHEA production.

DBS w/ 50#, JS with 2 Push ups, AR / WGPlU.
11/7, 10/7, 9/7, 8/7, 7/7, 6/6, 5/5, 4/4, 3/3, 2/2, 1/1.

Long story short: DHEA is sort of a base hormone and a marker of aging. I recently read that 30 minutes of “vigorous” exercise done daily for at least a month will raise DHEA levels. I had noticed previously through some tantric practices that my tantric experiences were more intense after doing complexes. DHEA accumulates in the septum of the brain (an area very involved with orgasms). So, I’m trying to increase my DHEA levels with complexes, lower my physiologic age, and improve my tantric experiences. How far out is all this? Not that I care what you think. :slight_smile:

60

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Complex: DBS w/ 50#, JS with 2 Push ups, AR / WGPlU.
11/7, 10/7, 9/7, 8/7, 7/7, 6/6, 5/5, 4/4, 3/3, 2/2, 1/1.