Strength III, Workout A-4
Warm-up - CP1:
--forearm-to-instep lunge with rockback heel stretch, 5 reps each leg
--backward lunge with twist, 5 reps each leg
--calf stretch, 10 reps (2sec hold)
--forward inchworm, 5 reps
--inverted hamstring touches, 5 reps each leg
Work:
--squat (3/2/1/3/2/1, 201, 240RI) - 3 @ 235, 2 @ 245, 1 @ 255, 3 @ 240, 2 @ 260, 1 @ 280
--quarter-squat (2/2/2), 201, 180RI) - 1 @ 325, 2 @ 315, 2 @ 315
--squat (6/12, 201, 90RI) - 6 @ 225, 12 @ 135
--seated good morning (6-8/6-8, 211, 90RI) - 8 @ 65, 8 @ 75
--Swiss ball crunch w/ medicine ball throw (4/4/4/4, 10X, 90RI) - 8 @ 8lb, 8 @ 8lb
Notes:
--And so the squat portion of NROL Strength comes to a close. I'll address the numbers first as there's a rather lengthy "why" to the relatively heavier loads today. I 1RMed at 280lbs and probably could've added another 5-10lbs today, but I had no idea it was feel so light. I did fail my second quarter-squat rep--I guess I just got too greedy. I took it out on a heavier next-to-last full squat set as well as medicine ball throws (no additional load, but I could tell I was in much better form and focus). I will mention that I spent most of today reading as much as I could that's been written by Dave Tate, which has only swayed me back in the direction of Westside-style training rather than a keto-friendly regimen after the summit. This will end up being a very late decision. At any rate, one article he wrote talked about his approach and setup for a squat: his thought process, his form checklist, his upper-body progression. I used that today, and the below story aside, I think it helped a lot. I can't wait to get back under the bar.
--Now, for the "why." First, a not-to-scale diagram of the free weight area in my usual gym:
As you can see, nothing too terribly special, just another commericial gym layout. I was in the power rack today for my final structured squat session for probably three weeks. I was gunning for a PR, of course, so I was already geared up (literally--I had on my "If I owned a gym..." shirt). I couldn't've picked a better day for it because, if you'll recall, the last item on the list is: "Curls in the squat rack... F*** NO." I don't remember the last time I was in such a zone. As I plowed through the third set and re-loaded and waited for the fourth, Doughboy (30s, 6-0ish, 275ish, fat with toothpick arms) and Peri(winkle) (late 40s, bald, runner's shape with a LITTLE meat, light blue shirt) loaded up the squat rack for--you guessed it--curls. Okay, fine, whatever, happens all the time, and I picked a good day to wear my shirt. As I waited for my fourth set, which involved leaving one dime and one quarter on each side of the power rack (a total of two each), sitting on the pegs as per their intended use, without a word/glance/nod/grunt even though I'm standing halfway in the cage, Doughboy waddles over and grabs the dime on the right side of my rack, a dime I would need for my next set. I stared him back to the squat rack, caught Peri's eye (who quickly glanced down), threw my clipboard on the floor, and made a beeline for the plate tree to get another dime. On the way to and from, I kept my eyes locked on their station, looking away only to make sure I didn't skewer myself on a racked barbell somewhere. I nosily racked the dime on its former mate's peg and did my fourth set. Lo and behold, during the next rest interval, Doughboy returned the dime and grabbed the quarter just below it. As soon as he turned to go back to the squat rack, I took a step toward the squat rack and yelled across the room while pointing, "Hey, assholes, there's a plate tree behind that column!" No response, so I again made a beeline to the plate tree, grabbed a quarter, held it high and pointed at it until they looked at me, then repeated my dime-fetching return trip, threw the quarter on its peg, turned, took a step toward them, and stood with my hands on my hips, shoulders back a little more than usual so they could clearly read my shirt during their furtive glances in my direction. They didn't even return the quarter, but they did have the gumption to setup two benches over and do--of course--DB curls, which was pretty awesome because not only did I continue to stare a stream of molten lead through each one of them, but I also nailed that 280lb squat with room to spare, broke one of my own cardinal gym rules and slammed the bar on the pins, walked forward, and maintained my gaze on them any time I faced them until they left. Hell, even when I was logging my numbers, I made sure to face them with my shirt plainly visible. Too bad they didn't have cell phones in sight. (I passed them at the cable crossover station on the way out and, for a split second, thought of going up to them and thanking them for helping me with a PR, but then I figured they wouldn't know what I was talking about, which was fine since the fear in their eyes was more than enough reward for today.)
--I'll let the girl tell about the trainer-in-training if she feels so inclined; otherwise, I might tell it later. It's a decent vignette, but frankly, my hands are still shaking--over an hour later--from the combination of adrenaline, anger, and endorphins (I dunno how many times I've edited this post for typos, and I'm probably still missing some). I'm going to go find a beer.