Didn't feel like reporting most of last week's stuff. I got some good massage work done on Friday. Today I begin a simple, straightforward program. Some will recognize it. Nothing crazy or special.
DAY 1
Squats 5x5
2-Board Bench 5x5
Seated Rows 5x5
DAY 2
Squats 5x5 (about 80% of DAY 1)
Overhead Lockouts 5x 10sec holds
Deadlifts 5x5
Chinups 5x5
DAY 3
Squats, up to heavy 5x
Db Bench Press 5x5
Chest-Supported DB Rows 5x5
Again, not too harsh on the overhead stuff. I'm excited to start this.
Yes. I was debating making those singles or doubles instead. I've never had much fun or luck with anything higher than doubles on deadlifts. This week I'll be conservative on the weight and see how it feels.
This went well. I was conservative on the weights, but it was still work. Toughest part was actually the last set of the presses. I'm getting some slight glute medius pain pattern action down my left side. I'll take the tennis ball to it tonight and see if I can nix it. I think I'm gonna like this routine.
*Easy. But my hips will thank me. It's also about 80% of what I did on Monday, so true to the program.
Overhead Barbell Lockouts
5x 10secs - 165
*Too easy again. I'm playing it conservative this first week, so I'l definitely be jumping up next week on these.
Deadlifts
5x5 - 225
*Easy, but my hips were fatiguing. Core was tiring too. I'll keep these relatively low. I also did these double overhand, whcih wasn't a challenge at this weight, but I'll try and stick with that over the next few weeks to work on grip strength.
Chinups
5x5 - bw+25
*Not too easy. Last 2 sets were difficult, simply from fatigue.
This day will be good for me, cause it will force me to stay moderate on the weights and nail down my form issues. I feel "worked out" but not blown out.
I like doubles and triples for pulls.
I like that because then when I do 5-6 reps I feel like I'm really pushing it.
That's a whole lot of 5x5 dude. Stay focused.
__________________
And major action will certainly make you feel a bit uncomfortable, which is absolutely fine. You've gotta get excited about feeling uncomfortable, you've gotta love feeling slightly uncomfortable, because you know that you're stepping outside the boundaries that you used to create.
Zach Even-Esh
I've made some huge mistakes, but they were necessary, because without them I wouldn't have learned anything.
-Dave Tate
*I struggled with these. Started on a bad note, as I whapped the bar against the rear pins on not only the first rep, but also the second. After some cursing and adjusting, I found a groove. Last two sets were slow and not fun.
Seated Rows, pronated grip:
3x5 - 175
2x5 - 165
*Off. The 175 was ugly, so I backed off to 165. There was NO groove on these for some reason.
Rollouts
3x10
Various scap and cuff work.
I feel good now that it's over. No pain, tris are FRIED. Glad the squats went as well as they did.
are you getting a lift off on the bench? if so, get them to lift it to you a bit further.. if not.. get a liftoff or your asking for shoulder trouble for sure.
nice work. I see your squat going up a hell of a lot in this program.
Good points, Frank. It's difficult to get a lift sometimes because I have to fit mine in in off-peak (or closed) hours. Peak time usually means I'm working. My squat is feeling really good these days.
Yesterday:
Squats:
5x5 - 195
*Really warm in the gym. No circulation. Still, these were fine.
Overhead Lockouts:
4x10secs - 185
1x10secs - 205
*Once I got the groove on these, I slapped on the extra 20 pounds. The first 2 sets were really wobbly.
Deadlifts:
1x315
1x335
1x355
1x375
1x335
*Went with singles, because after last week's session, I had some sort of adductor/hamstring going on for a while. These felt really heavy, though. I think the heat in the gym and the busy work day around it sapped some of my "pop".
Chinups:
5x5 - bw+35
*No problem. I was tired and hungry, but they weren't bad.
*These were tight and good. The last reps were tough, but no pain or loss of form.
2Board Presses:
4x5 - 245
4x245
* I got a lift off on 3 of these, which helped a lot. I dry-humped the hell out of the last 2 reps, but whatever. Next week I'll try and get all 5x5 at 245.
Seated Rows, pron. grip:
5x5 - 175
*Got these in after all. I used straps on the last 2 sets cause my energy and grip were mysteriously nowhere to be found.
I'm feeling pretty positive about this program so far! Things are moving up each week, with very little joint irritation.
*These were difficult. I was wobbly, and in between the 3rd and 4th sets I had a 4-second hold that just collapsed. My left side was giving on me most of the time.
Deadlifts:
5x1 - 355
These kinda sucked, but oh well.
I skipped the chins because my left biceps was going nuts, and I was also running out of time. This day is just too damn long!
I saw my massage guy, and he found some good (i.e. bad) stuff in my left hip.
They were dead on, lots of fun! Mustaine has some classical guitarist playing rythmn guitar now (he actually takes a lot of leads too). The guy is technically phenomenal, even if he lacks a little of the "soul" of thrash. He kinda plays and looks like he belongs in Dream Theater (i.e. a bit on the "uptight and nerdy, too-clean and poofy" side).
But man, when the band hits the grooves and breakdowns, nobody can beat them!
In Flames was there, and even though I don't like their studio stuff, live they were fun to see. Children of Bodom were fine, though a bit sloppy... plus I've seen them play those same songs about 4-5 times before.
Best part was my cousin was there with me. He's liked Megadeth since even before I did, and we've listened to lots of the same metal for years. He had never seen them live, so it was a big deal.
2Board Presses: Awful. Not even gonna report numbers. I ended up backing off and doing higher reps. My left arm felt weak, my form was all over the place, I had no energy... I simply can't lift in between clients.
*My form is really starting to click. This was my light day, and it's almost as much as my starting "heavy day". Ha.
Overhead Lockouts:
5x5 - 155
*I decided to do actual pressing lockouts, rather than timed holds. It went ok, but left shoulder didn't like it. My whole left arm/shoulder has been iffy for a week or more now.
Rack Pulls, just below the knee:
1x275
1x315
1x365
1x385
1x405
1x425
*Instead of pulling from the floor and possibly further irritating this hamstring attachment issue, I went with rack pulls. These were fucking fun. Nothing record-breaking, but I didn't feel so damn limited by pain.
Curls, external rotations, etc. No chins again this week. My left side just won't take it. It's ok, because chins are one my strongest lifts already.
I also did 5x10 on reverse crunches and 4x10 on ab-wheel rollouts in between sets.
Dropped the volume today. I'm going to check some PR's next week, and feeling on the verge of some burnout (i.e. old injuries taking too much stress). When I get back from visiting my brother I might start Maximum Strength.
I hit a couple of reps at 255 about a year and a half ago. Various injuries kept me from benching for a long time, and then I stayed away from it for even longer. So 265 wouldn't be a HUGE PR, but it would be significant because it'll be the first one in a LONG time.
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