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JustJ
11-08-09, 10:36 pm
Alright, so I've been off the forum for quite awhile. I think mostly due to lack of motivation and half-assed workouts. Basically my weight has fluctuated this year back and forth and all around between 212 and 190, due to illnesses and bad habits and whatever else. I finally got my weight back up again and have been holding it. I'm shooting to get to at least 220 (that's the goal for the moment anyway). I've been interested in powerlifting for quite some time now, but wasn't sure if I would give it a try or how to go about it. I finally started doing a lot of "research" and checked out a meet, and decided I wanted to give it a shot. I was planning on doing a meet somewhere in the summer of 2010, but as far as meets in my area and other personal conflicts, the only meet (so far) next year that I can do is in February. That gives me quite a few less months of training then I had hoped for. I also realize that as soon as I was interested in powerlifting, I should've started training that way, not just wait until I had a meet picked up- That way my lifts would've been a helluva lot better than they are right now. But, you can't change the past and I have to work with what I've got. I started specifically training for the meet about a month and a half ago, first starting off with 5/3/1 and now I've got a couple weeks left on a powerbuilding type routine. I think I'm going to run 5/3/1 one more time, then go into this sort of modified squat/deadlift cycle. I couldn't really find a bench cycle I liked, but did find one and am going to give it a shot. This is all very new to me and very experimental. I realize I'm not that strong, but I want to do this for myself- I want to set PR's and beat my PR's, that's all. So my goal for my first meet is mainly just not to bomb. So, this journey will be up until my first meet, then with results and hopefully videos. After that I'll probably start another journey leading up to my next meet (whenever that may be). Well, this was really long-winded. Posts will start tomorrow.

TXPWRLFTR
11-09-09, 10:26 am
Hope the best for you.
Pick what works for you in your quest...there is not a "powerbuilding template" that will get you there...read up on what people do, try what works for you and go forth with it. Ask questions...those that understand will take the time to answer your questions or give sound advice in your quest. 5-3-1 is a great template and Jim has narrowed it down to specifics.

Good luck in your quest. How far are you from Sacramento? Super Training Gym is a great place if you can get there...Mark Bell is a great guy. Hit him up as they usually host meets there. I know Cali has lots of USPF, APF meets there.

Look forward to reading your progress.

Greg

JustJ
11-09-09, 8:34 pm
Hope the best for you.
Pick what works for you in your quest...there is not a "powerbuilding template" that will get you there...read up on what people do, try what works for you and go forth with it. Ask questions...those that understand will take the time to answer your questions or give sound advice in your quest. 5-3-1 is a great template and Jim has narrowed it down to specifics.

Good luck in your quest. How far are you from Sacramento? Super Training Gym is a great place if you can get there...Mark Bell is a great guy. Hit him up as they usually host meets there. I know Cali has lots of USPF, APF meets there.

Look forward to reading your progress.

Greg

Thanks man, I appreciate that. Yea it's all a learning experience right now- training and everything.

I'm a couple hours from Sacramento. Mark Bell sounds familiar. I was originally planning on doing a Sacramento meet, but I have my son Saturday-Sunday and seeing as how meets take all day I wouldn't make it back until late that night if I went to Sac, and I can't do that. So..I've got to try to stay as close to home as possible.

I'm really looking forward to the meet though, and just want to get my registration in so that I have that no-turning-back feeling.

JustJ
11-09-09, 8:37 pm
Box Squats- 6x2@ 315 lbs
Leg Press- 5PPSx12, 6PPSx10, 7PPSx8
Hamstring Curls- 190x12, 205x10, 220x8

Pretty good workout today. The 315 on the box squats felt pretty easy; definitely had more in the tank. Was thinking about dropping box squats except for my recovery week (8x2@ 50% was the plan), but I think I'm going to stick with them, and on the recovery week use a below parallel box. My main issue with the box squats is I'm not sure how much I can actually free squat, and I don't know how often I should "test" it to seem where I'm at.

ghost
11-09-09, 9:09 pm
Subbed!

JustJ
11-11-09, 11:35 pm
Floor Press (pause on pins): 6x2@ 175 lbs.
Standing Military Press: 95x12, 115x10, 125x8
Overhead Rope Extensions 60x12, 70x10, 80x7
Pushups: BW x 35, 28, 25

Bench is and always has been the weakest of my lifts. I underestimated my percentages though when planning this training cycle, and even though I bumped it up the first week it's still a little low. Was planning on doing close grip incline bench but some guy was hogging it doing 2 inch partials. I decided not to do dips, and don't know if I will be doing them in the future- I've tried high rep, low rep, bodyweight, heavy weight, and they haven't ever done much for me in terms of size or strength carryover to the bench.

J Wong
11-11-09, 11:45 pm
www.wildirongym.com

Vaze_06
11-12-09, 2:11 am
welcome back bro, hows everything?
and good luck with your meet

JustJ
11-12-09, 6:31 pm
www.wildirongym.com

Thanks, I actually e-mailed that gym earlier this year and they never got back to me. Saw some of their guys at the meet I went to. Unfortunately, their gym days/times are when I have my son, so I can't go there.

JustJ
11-12-09, 6:33 pm
welcome back bro, hows everything?
and good luck with your meet

Everything's good for the most part, just pushin along as usual. And thanks, wish I had more time to train for it, but it will be an experience.

JustJ
11-13-09, 9:03 pm
405 lbs. for 6 singles
Lat Pulldowns: 150x30 total reps
DB Rows: 80x10 90x10, 100x8
Ez BB 21's: 50, 55, 55
Shrugs: 225x12 for 3 sets

Twisted my ankle yesterday. Not too bad, but enough to worry me about my upcoming squat day. Gonna skip calf raises tomorrow. 405 felt slow for the first single, after that they didn't feel too bad. Seems my sticking point is about mid-shin since that's where I noticeably slow down before getting it up for lockout.

D-NUTZ
11-14-09, 5:40 pm
Great stuff man! Keep it up.

JustJ
11-14-09, 8:27 pm
Great stuff man! Keep it up.

Thanks! I'm just pushin to get these numbers up...Always welcome for any advice

JustJ
11-14-09, 8:32 pm
Face Pulls: 70x15, 80x12, 90x11
Wide Grip Upright Rows: 70x12, 70x12, 80x10
Grip Machine: 2 plates for 3 sets of 10
Weighted Sit Ups: 3x15 with a 25lb. plate
Back Extensions: BWx3x15

Was feeling kind of sick this morning but this is just kind of an extras day anyway. Liking the wide grip upright rows though.

D-NUTZ
11-15-09, 10:55 am
Another good day..hope your feelin' better.

TXPWRLFTR
11-16-09, 2:00 pm
Good work. Keep at it.

prowrestler
11-16-09, 3:01 pm
subbed now

JustJ
11-16-09, 8:50 pm
Thanks for the support guys.

Box Squats: 335x1, 355x1, 365x1, 370x1
Leg Press: (Rest/Pause) 7PPSx8/4/3
Leg Curl: (Rest/Pause) 225x8/4/3

So this week is supposed to be maxing out on one set. So I thought 335 would be hard- it wasn't. Bumped it up to 355- Easy. 365- Easy. 370- Tough, maybe could've done 375/380. Either way, I was pretty happy with that.

I heard when maxing you should limit the amount of other work you do (anyone have any comments on this), so I figured a rest/pause set for my other exercises would suffice (though I guess some could argue it's an "intensity" technique and therefor stressful).

C.Coronato
11-17-09, 4:53 pm
Looking real good J.

D-NUTZ
11-17-09, 7:28 pm
Looks good JustJ!

TXPWRLFTR
11-17-09, 7:55 pm
How do you feel you benefit from the leg press? I am just curious as I don't really do them when I train legs. Have you thought of just doing the squats then following up with glute ham raises or straight leg deads? and then some pull thrus?

aside from that, looks good bro.

JustJ
11-18-09, 12:31 am
How do you feel you benefit from the leg press? I am just curious as I don't really do them when I train legs. Have you thought of just doing the squats then following up with glute ham raises or straight leg deads? and then some pull thrus?

aside from that, looks good bro.

To be honest, I really don't know. I used to only do squats. Last training cycle I was doing goodmornings (which I plan on adding back in and making a staple). I refuse to do leg extensions, and I do hamstring curls but they feel kinda sissy. I tried lunges for a bit but wasn't a huge fan. So I was just looking for something else to throw in to work the legs. I think I'm going to start doing glute ham raises instead of the leg curls. What are pull throughs? I don't want to be doing leg presses for no reason, like I said I just couldn't think of something else better in place of it.

TXPWRLFTR
11-18-09, 12:37 am
Pull throughs are done with a cable or a band. You have the cable between your legs and you pull it through your legs and stand up at the top...then you bend over and let the cable go back and repeat...vary the stance to the resistance...really hits the lumbar area and hammies...

JustJ
11-18-09, 12:39 am
Floor Press: 135x1, 185x1, 205x1, 210x1
Incline Hammer Strength: (Rest/Pause) 2PPSx9/3/3
Cable Pushdowns w/Triangle Bar: (Rest/Pause) 100x12/4/3
Skullcrushers: 50x12

Warmed up on flat bench. My technique is getting better (far from perfect but it feels better), but I am unsure as to whether to drive my heels into the floor the whole time, or keep my heels up and only drive them down when trying to get the bar to touch. Anyway, did my floor press for a few singles...Was hopin it would be a little easier than it was. Feel like I wreck my shoulders with the floor press- Dunno if it's the exercise, or if it means I am shoulder dominant when pressing. Tried skullcrushers with my elbows flared rather than tucked to the sides and it felt better. Still not sure what to do to help bump my bench up- I don't expect to be a great bencher and especially not overnight, but I keep hoping that something will click that just gives me that extra boost and allows me to keep progressing.

Vaze_06
11-18-09, 8:14 pm
keep on working hard and it will pay off bro. u're on the right track so its alllll goood =p

D-NUTZ
11-18-09, 8:46 pm
Just keep working man! Im not the strongest bencher either....practice makes perfect man!

ForearmFreak
11-18-09, 11:06 pm
slow and steady my brother..just don't forget what you stepped in the gym for..remember your goal!

TXPWRLFTR
11-19-09, 3:37 pm
The heel is up to you bro. I personally drive my heels into the mat the whole time. I try to reach back as far as I can and get set. Of course I set up high on my traps and squeeze my shoulder blades in as much as I can. I keep my elbows tucked in somewhat and grip the hell out of the bar. Stay tight through the whole rep(s).

Work on it religiously and the bench will go up...of course really hit the triceps and lats too. Vary what you want in your training. Find what works for you. And ask questions!!!

Best of luck to you bro.

JustJ
11-19-09, 11:52 pm
keep on working hard and it will pay off bro. u're on the right track so its alllll goood =p

thanks V. hoping to add some more pounds for the meet


Just keep working man! Im not the strongest bencher either....practice makes perfect man!

thanks...definitely been focusing more on technique lately than weight. deloading next week then back to 5/3/1 so we'll see how my bench is doing then.


slow and steady my brother..just don't forget what you stepped in the gym for..remember your goal!

for sure...i come down pretty hard on myself if i'm not where i want to be by a certain time or if i feel i should be doing better. however, bench is the one lift where i'll take even the smallest gains.


The heel is up to you bro. I personally drive my heels into the mat the whole time. I try to reach back as far as I can and get set. Of course I set up high on my traps and squeeze my shoulder blades in as much as I can. I keep my elbows tucked in somewhat and grip the hell out of the bar. Stay tight through the whole rep(s).

Work on it religiously and the bench will go up...of course really hit the triceps and lats too. Vary what you want in your training. Find what works for you. And ask questions!!!

Best of luck to you bro.

hmmm. guess i'll have to keep messin with it. i feel like with heels up it shortens my stroke a little, but i feel more stable with heels down. i'm gonna be switching up my back routine a little soon here so we'll see if that helps. also plan on making close-grip incline presses a staple

JustJ
11-20-09, 8:40 pm
Dead: 315x1, 365x1, 405x1, 425x1
Chin-Ups: (Rest/Pause) BWx9/3/3
WG EZ Bar 21's: 55 for 3 sets
WG Upright Rows: (Rest/Pause) 80x9/3/3

Think I might have been able to get a little more out of my deadlift (only 5 or 10 lbs). Next week is a deload week. Still playin with that...Used to take a full week off...Last time I did light squats on Monday and 1 or 2 other real light leg exercises, then on Wednesday did light bench and deads and a couple other light exercises, then took the rest of the week off. Suggestions welcome.

prowrestler
11-21-09, 11:54 am
nice deadlifts man

JustJ
11-23-09, 7:56 pm
nice deadlifts man

thanks. i realized also that i do my deads with hardly any bend in my legs, so i'm gonna start trying to squat down lower and see if i can pull more with that minor tweak

JustJ
11-23-09, 7:59 pm
Box Squat: 8x2 @ 185lbs.
Leg Curls: 2x15 @ 120 lbs.
Planks
Grip Work

So, this is my deload week. I'm only going to the gym one more day this week then taking 4 days off and starting again on Monday. I figured speed squats at about 50% wouldn't be a bad idea for a deload, and I thought I'd try a below parallel box. I've only barely been hitting parallel, so I think I'm going to be using the below parallel box from now on. They were definitely harder, but I'm hoping it'll elicit a "grow-or-die" response and my body will adjust to them and catch up quickly. Plus, I'd rather know that I can reach depth and get out of the whole, even if it means my squat might be a little less than I hoped when the meet rolls around.

JustJ
11-25-09, 8:04 pm
Bench 8x3 @ 135
Dead 1x5 @ 225
Triangle Bar Pressdowns: 2x15 @ 90
Neutral Grip Chins: 3x5 @ BW

Second deload day. Did sort of speed benching for my bench work. Kept the weights about 50% and the volume down. Still playing with my bench technique. Thought I'd try heels up with my feet far back and close to the bench, kind of hugging the bench with my legs. Felt pretty good- Got a better, felt a lil better as far as leg drive, so we'll see how it holds up with heavier weights.

Won't be back on until Monday so Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

prowrestler
11-26-09, 5:39 pm
solid work man

Vaze_06
11-26-09, 10:17 pm
solid work man

kidding me right!? its fucking deload!! lucky if he didnt fall asleep while lifting lol
tho even bitching, well done!

JustJ
11-27-09, 3:01 pm
kidding me right!? its fucking deload!! lucky if he didnt fall asleep while lifting lol
tho even bitching, well done!

hahaha! yea honestly i'm not a fan of deloading at all, that's why i usually would just a week- if i'm going in there barely doin jack shit i figure i might as well not be there at all. the only reason i've started going in during a deload week was that i heard if you take 10 days off strength levels can drop up 10%, so i figure a full week off is playing with fire.

JustJ
11-27-09, 3:04 pm
well, looks like there is no meet in february. i had planned out a 12 week peaking cycle for the meet that i thought existed (but apparently doesn't). as of right now, there is supposedly one in sac in may (though the date isn't listed). in the mean time, i'm going to have to wait until the actual schedule for 2010 is posted. if a meet closer to home doesn't pop up before may, then i'll be going to sac.

point of this post: not going t use my 12 week cycle until i'm 12 weeks out from a meet. instead, i'm going to be running 5/3/1 next (the boring but big template) with one assistance exercise per day (except back day, because i want to do pulllovers supersetted with chins and t-bar rows). so, that will start monday.

JustJ
11-27-09, 3:19 pm
and right after i post this, i get the e-mail: the february 20th meet is still on, they're just trying to solidify the venue.

so monday will be the start of my 12-week cycle, with a deload every 3 weeks. basically, i'll be starting at around 50% (except on my deadlifts due to alternating with rack pulls) and working up to 100% about 2 weeks before the meet.

JustJ
11-29-09, 11:13 pm
so i was doing some reading today- both articles and forum posts- about not training to failure. now pretty much since i started lifting (or at least after the first 6 months or so), i trained every set of every exercise to failure. what i read was how doing this wreaks havoc on the CNS and muscles recover faster then the CNS so this can cause your following workouts to suck. Another idea was that after your warm up sets, you're not doing your work sets to failure until the final set; you leave a couple reps in the tank on each set, then on the final set you push to failure and since you still have some gas from not going to failure on your previous sets you'll get more reps on your final heaviest set. some of this makes sense to me, and some of it seems just a half-assed way of doing things. now, my 12-week cycle i'm going to be starting i'm starting at a low percentage and then finishing at 100% on the big lifts, so these won't really be messing with my CNS too much until that last week or two. however, i was thinking about trying this "not going to failure until the final set" business just to see what it does (since different things work for different people) and i figured it might help with my recovery because i won't be overly taxing myself with every lift during a workout.

basically just wanted people to chime in on their thoughts/experiences about this.

JustJ
11-30-09, 8:13 pm
Box Squats (Below Parallel): 4x5, 1x1 @ 205 lbs
Good Mornings: 135x10, 155x8, 175x7
GHR: BWx3x10

So first day of my 12 week cycle. Disappointed in myself at how hard those box squats were...Guess that's what I get for never going below parallel. Some reps felt easier than others, then on the last set I just failed out of nowhere. Any tips on the ascent? I felt like if I raised my traps up first/almost "military pressed" the bar before pushing with my legs that it was easier. Stopped short of failure on the good mornings. First time doing GHR's so I just did bodyweight. Had a shitty day at work and really just wanted to get out of the gym.

C.Coronato
12-01-09, 4:20 pm
Shitty days happen bro ..

Youll get past it, and forget about it.

Keep rockin.

JustJ
12-02-09, 12:52 am
Shitty days happen bro ..

Youll get past it, and forget about it.

Keep rockin.

Thanks, it was a rough day at work and I think it just carried into my workout. Thinking about maybe picking up some Animal Test when it gets a little close to meet time. Still frustrated with my pathetically small arms, but since I'm working towards a meet I figure they should be on the backburner until after the meet, as embarassing as they are.

JustJ
12-02-09, 1:40 am
Surprise right? That's been my theme lately. I felt a little uneasy upon reviewing my 12 week cycle. I am now getting some help from TXPWRLFTR, and as such will be prepping more intensely about 9 weeks out (unsure yet if I'll be doing a 9-week cycle or just running Westside during the last 9 weeks). So, I figure I already got in a squat workout and don't want to waste the next few weeks, so I'm going to do another cycle of 5/3/1 following the Boring But Big Template. Yes, I know program jumping is bad and it is a habit I am still trying to break. However, powerlifting is very new to me and as such this is a huge learning experience and I am experimenting and taking advice where I can get it.

prowrestler
12-02-09, 1:49 am
keep truckin thru. you dont always get what u expect

JustJ
12-02-09, 9:19 pm
Bench: 195x5, 210x5, 220x5
Bench: 130x10 for 5 sets
V-Grip Cable Pressdown: 90x13, 90x12
T-Bar Rows: 1Platex10, 2Platesx10, 3Platesx10, 4Platesx3, 4Platesx0

So, I know purists will say "well if you change/add exercises, it's not 5/3/1 any more." But, I also like the adage "Do what works for you." So, I added in pressdowns and substituted t-bar rows for db rows. Last rep of 220 was hard...If I stop about half an inch above my chest I feel like I can go for reps, but getting to my chest and pausing, no matter how light the weight, it just gets 10 times harder. Still playing with technique...Feet out wide, in front, and heels on the floor I get pretty good leg drive, but lose a lot in my arch. Anyway, I was a sucker to think the 5x10 at 50% would be easy...My tri's were fried at the end and I barely made it through...Had to do some half reps on the last set just to finish! The 3 plates on the t-bar row felt great, then I added the 4th and realized I had no anchorage on the rear of the bar so it just kept lifting up...I'll correct that next workout. All in all, the workout felt great.

JustJ
12-05-09, 3:14 pm
Deadlift: 360x5, 380x5
Deadlift: 5x8 @ 210
Shrugs: 225x10, 275x8, 315x6

Accidentally read my next deadlift workout starting set so I started on my second set. Wasn't about to drop the weight back down so I only did two out of three sets. Two things I learned: I LOVE deadlifting but HATE deadlifting for reps. And that if I keep my belt on during my whole workout I get an excruciating headache. When shrugs rolled around my lower back so fried it was hard to hold the weight standing upright so I just did what I could. Lower back/upper back/traps are sore as hell today. Bout to head to the gym for some work in a few.

JustJ
12-05-09, 7:35 pm
Military Press: 105x5, 110x5, 120x5
Military Press: 5x10 @ 70 lbs
BB Pullover Supersetted with Chins: 40x15/BWx6 for 5 sets
Alternating Hammer Curl with Regular Curl: 20x10, 20x10, 25x8

So, I think I underestimated my military press because it felt pretty light. I suck at chins so I figured bodyweight would suffice, plus if I had to put on a weight belt and add plates to it, it would kind of defeat the purpose of trying to make it a superset. With the curls (and all isolation arm work in general), I'm trying to really focus on the muscle and doing a squeeze/pause at the top; not too concerned with weight.

T o m m Y
12-05-09, 7:55 pm
Looking good bro.

JustJ
12-07-09, 8:04 pm
Box Squat: 295x3, 315x3, 335x3
Squats: 5x10@ 185
GHR: 3x10@ BW

Pretty quick workout today. Squats felt great all around; on the box and without. I don't like the GHR at my gym so I think I'll start using the lat pulldown bench instead. Other than that, not much to say.

J A Y
12-07-09, 8:13 pm
looking good man, nice n simple, gets it done!

D-NUTZ
12-07-09, 8:39 pm
looking good man, nice n simple, gets it done!

Correct. Nothing better than that.

JustJ
12-09-09, 8:47 pm
Bench: 210x3, 220x3, 235x3
Bench: 130x 10, 10, 9, 9, 10
Triangle Bar Cable Pressdown: 100x15, 100x13
Plate Loaded T-Bar Row Machine: 1Px10, 2Px10, 3Px10, 4Px7

god i hate benching, because i am so terrible about it. also, i think 5/3/1 is great for my squat, maybe even my deadlift (though i prefer singles), but not my bench. I feel like my bench has gone down, and it sure as hell isn't getting any stronger.

side note, i had a trainer there talking to me today, asking about my training, and we got on the subject of how weak my bench is. i mentioned i'm more concerned with strength than anything else, and he told me i should do circuit training or shorter rest breaks. nice guy, but i don't think any of those tips are gonna build a big bench.

T o m m Y
12-09-09, 8:53 pm
Stick with it man,you just started 5/3/1 a week ago...

My bench sucks ass too..i had a 245 max when i started 5/3/1 5 months ago and i just maxed out at 275 two weeks ago...Give it some time brotha..

JustJ
12-09-09, 9:13 pm
Stick with it man,you just started 5/3/1 a week ago...

My bench sucks ass too..i had a 245 max when i started 5/3/1 5 months ago and i just maxed out at 275 two weeks ago...Give it some time brotha..

yea but ive done 5/3/1 before, and benched more than 235 for reps and it was hard as hell today. i get what you're saying though...i'm gonna ride it out

TXPWRLFTR
12-10-09, 3:25 pm
Stick to it bro! You will get it.
Also try board and floor presses...I think 5/3/1 incorporates them too.
Don't rush into it, do what you have to do and let it come to you.
No doubt the bench will increase.
Keep us posted bro.

JustJ
12-10-09, 6:20 pm
Stick to it bro! You will get it.
Also try board and floor presses...I think 5/3/1 incorporates them too.
Don't rush into it, do what you have to do and let it come to you.
No doubt the bench will increase.
Keep us posted bro.

thanks. ive done floor presses before, but my sticking point is on my chest. if i don't touch and keep the bar like 1" above my chest i can rep out way heavier weight, but as soon as i touch its all over (starting to consider shirt benching haha). i figure im (obviously) just going to keep training it and accept that its not my best lift and may progress slower than my others.

J A Y
12-10-09, 7:10 pm
thanks. ive done floor presses before, but my sticking point is on my chest. if i don't touch and keep the bar like 1" above my chest i can rep out way heavier weight, but as soon as i touch its all over (starting to consider shirt benching haha). i figure im (obviously) just going to keep training it and accept that its not my best lift and may progress slower than my others.

i feel exactly the same way with my bench, so i can sympathise but also have the same mindset, just ride it out! patience and hard work and it will pay off!

keep up the good work bro!

T o m m Y
12-10-09, 7:15 pm
Weighted Dips!
5x8-10 reps..

Thats all i pretty much did every cycle.

But yes i would throw in floor presses as well..

JustJ
12-11-09, 12:13 am
i feel exactly the same way with my bench, so i can sympathise but also have the same mindset, just ride it out! patience and hard work and it will pay off!

keep up the good work bro!

thanks, i'm just gonna keep pluggin away...can't expect it to sky rocket over night, plus since i've always sucked it, i haven't trained it as hard cuz i wanted to avoid it....how stupid was that?


Weighted Dips!
5x8-10 reps..

Thats all i pretty much did every cycle.

But yes i would throw in floor presses as well..

really? i've done weighted dips and never really found any carry over. i might try them again though. one thing i think i need to do is close grip benching...i can almost bench as much glose grip (hands touching the smooth of the bar) as i can with a wider grip. then again, maybe if that's the case i don't need to focus on close grip ha

T o m m Y
12-11-09, 12:37 am
thanks. ive done floor presses before, but my sticking point is on my chest. if i don't touch and keep the bar like 1" above my chest i can rep out way heavier weight, but as soon as i touch its all over (starting to consider shirt benching haha). i figure im (obviously) just going to keep training it and accept that its not my best lift and may progress slower than my others.

Check this out bro...

I hop this helps..

http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/pressing_power

JustJ
12-11-09, 12:46 am
Check this out bro...

I hop this helps..

http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/pressing_power

good read, thanks. i think it comes down to this: 1) i'm weak, 2) my technique sucks, 3) my position on the bench.

i'll work on 2 and 3 and hopefully 1 will follow :)

T o m m Y
12-11-09, 12:50 am
How is your set up on the bench?

JustJ
12-11-09, 1:17 am
How is your set up on the bench?

try to squeeze my shoulder blades and get an arch in both my upper and lower back. was trying to bench with my feet tucked way back and on the balls of my feet. i feel really unstable that way compared to my feet flat, and upon checking fed rules, it looks like i have to have my feet flat anyway. still playing with grip width and how i lower and raise the weight. was inhaling as i lowered the bar; gonna try inhaling and holding my breath before i start lowering. also heard that flexing the lats as you try to push the weight off your chest will help...gonna try that (so many things to think about and remember while doing a lift!). think i may be too far up on the bench when lifting off or getting a lift off...might be a minor thing, but at this point i'm willing to try anything that might help.

Vaze_06
12-11-09, 2:55 am
hmmm benching?
this can help out too...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUcjOIZc80c&feature=channel_page

JustJ
12-11-09, 8:42 pm
hmmm benching?
this can help out too...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUcjOIZc80c&feature=channel_page

thanks V, thats one of the better videos ive seen. and some of it i actually realized today, which im going to talk about in my next post. :)

JustJ
12-11-09, 8:57 pm
Deadlift: 340x3, 360x3, 380x3
Deadlift: 5x8 @ 210 lbs
Shrugs: 22x3x12

Deads felt good; easy and fast off the floor. Caught myself rounding my back which is new (started now that I'm squatting down lower when starting my deads) so i corrected that.

I had two revelations today at work regarding my bench press. both are pretty simple, but very important.
1) since i want a bigger bench, i try to tell myself that i can lift more than i really can. even when i do a weight that is a lil to heavy, i still try to increase it next time because i want to have a bigger bench. well, i finally decided i need to check my ego, and drop the weight on my already weak bench. i need to start using weight i can handle with good form, and progress from there, slowly and evenly, even if it means my bench is lower starting out than i'd like and that it will take awhile to bring it up- at least i know i'm doing it right and i will have a better chance at succeeding this way.
2) tucking the elbows. now, i have consciously been doing this since i first learned about it. the thing is, ive been doing it wrong. i was so focused on just getting them tucked, i wasnt thinking about the bar position/path or my arm position. basically, the way i was doing it was causing me to lower the bar with my forearms angled back towards my head and with the bar touching around nipple line. i figured this out at work today when i was mimicking the bench movement while sitting in my chair. i know now that i need to keep my forearms straight (i.e. perpendicular to the floor) and bring the bar lower on my stomach, which for me is about mid-belly. i have very long arms, even for my height, and i heard that a good spot to aim for while benching is the imaginary line that crosses from the bend in your elbow across your body when you are standing up, which is about mid belly, and when benching that is exactly where i lower the bar to and have my forearms straight. so after my deadlifts i tried this out with just the bar and low and behold it felt a lot more natural. i am not saying this adjustment is going to skyrocket my bench. all im saying is that at least i'm figuring out what is wrong with my technique and correcting, so that as i try to get a heavier bench, hopefully i'll be doing it right, rather than trying to get a heavier bench while doing it wrong. i'm going to lower the weights i use during my last week of 5/3/1 to get a good starting point with weight i can handle well and using my new form, and take it from there.

wow that was long winded.

JustJ
12-12-09, 9:15 pm
Standing Military Press: 110x3, 120x3, 125x3
Standing Military Press: 5x10@ 70 lbs.
BB Pullovers Supersetted with Chins: 45lbs./BWx 12/6, 12/6, 12/5, 12/5, 12/5
Hammer Curls/DB Curls (alternating reps): 25x9, 8, 8

Dunno if it's the weather or what but my joints felt stiff today and just warming up with the bar was hard as hell. luckily, this was short lived and my presses were flying up. stil just focusing on that mind-muscle connection on curls and really squeezing it/pausing at the top.

o yeah! picked up a christmas present for myself today....two cans of animal test and a can of m-stak for after. super stoked about this and will probably start running the test when i start my 8-weeks out routine.

strivin for more
12-13-09, 7:45 pm
likin those deads man! keep it up!!

JustJ
12-13-09, 11:57 pm
likin those deads man! keep it up!!

thanks. thats the one and pretty much only thing i dont like about percentage based training, is when ive lifted more before and know i can lift more. thats what im looking forward to about switching to a westside template.

J Wong
12-14-09, 12:04 am
Good work!

JustJ
12-14-09, 7:33 pm
Good work!

thanks. lookin forward to switchin over to westside and workin up weights rather than using percentages

J A Y
12-14-09, 7:35 pm
im interested to see how the westside works out! good stuff j

JustJ
12-14-09, 7:39 pm
Box Squat: 275x5, 315x3, 360x5
Squat: 3x10@ 185
GHR: BWx10, 8

final week of 5/3/1. now this is the third time i have done 5/3/1- once 3 days a week, once 4 days a week, and this time 4 days a week following the BBB template. i feel like i am getting wrecked here; i'm fatigued and my elbow is acting up. from my little 5/3/1 experience i have determined this (at least for me): 5/3/1 3 days a week is great, maybe even would do 5/3/1 BBB 3 days a week, but 5/3/1 BBB 4 days a week messes me up. so i def plan on doing 5/3/1 again the future, but will go back to 3 days a week. anyway, on to the workout: my final set was supposed to be 350, but i had done 370x1 before so i decided to do 360. got 360x5 pretty easy and possibly could've gotten 6. cut the 185lb sets from 5 down to 3, since like i said i'm feeling kind of wrecked. GHR's felt weird today. in general i was planning on cutting the assistance work down a bit during this final week, and since my elbow is hurting i'm cutting out the 5x10 sets for bench and shoulder....don't want any unnecessary injuries.

first ABC meet this saturday!

D-NUTZ
12-14-09, 8:20 pm
Good workout J!

JustJ
12-14-09, 8:34 pm
thanks man, i was happy hittin the 360 for 5. forgot to use the PR! though haha

strivin for more
12-15-09, 9:56 pm
360 by 5? i look forward to the time i can do that. hahah.

JustJ
12-16-09, 12:35 am
im interested to see how the westside works out! good stuff j

me too. ive been thinkin bout it for a bit, before i even decided i wanted to do a meet (wish i started training for powerlifting sooner) but wanted some guidance and whatnot. TXPWRLFTR has helped me a lot and with his help i'm gonna be using a modified westside template that he set me up with, with a few very minor tweaks of my own.


360 by 5? i look forward to the time i can do that. hahah.

thanks, i appreciate that. i know to some it isnt impressive, but im happy with it. considering 3 months ago when i first started box squatting i could only do 275 by 5

Psycho77
12-16-09, 10:10 am
I'm seeing some solid lifting in here. 360for 5 squats, 380x3 and then some.

Cans of test huh. A well deserved Christmas gift bro.

JustJ
12-16-09, 8:21 pm
I'm seeing some solid lifting in here. 360for 5 squats, 380x3 and then some.

Cans of test huh. A well deserved Christmas gift bro.

thanks man. hopin they just keep goin up for the meet. ive got numbers in my head i wanna hit at the meet, but dont want to sell myself short either so im just gonna keep tryin to add the weight.

and yea im stoked about the test...hopin itll give me a lil strength bump.

JustJ
12-16-09, 8:25 pm
Bench: 190x5, 200x3, 210x3
Straight Bar Pressdowns: 100x16, 110x13, 120x12
Machine Plate Loaded T-Bar Rows: 1Px15, 2Px12, 3Px10

quick workout today. like i said, my elbow is hurting and i definitely felt it on the bench- so glad i didnt do the 5x10 sets after. did what i said and checked my ego and lowered the weight on bench. form was way better, and brought the bar to mid belly which helped a lot. blew it on the last rep of the 210- i brought it more towards my chest than my belly and then flared my elbows too early so i barely got that third rep. either way, im just happy i did it and did it right. i want to say my goal is to add 5lbs per week to it up until the meet, but we will see what happens. havent done straight bar pressdowns in a long time...dont know why, i love em! def gonna be a staple. and the t-bar rows...whatever. ha. gonna pick up some glucosamine this week and thank god next week is a deload so hopefully my elbow will get better...im debating on just taking the whole week off or going in and only using the bar just doing form stuff.

T o m m Y
12-16-09, 8:26 pm
solid box squats bro

D-NUTZ
12-16-09, 8:32 pm
Nothing better but a effective AND quick workout. Good one J!

JustJ
12-18-09, 8:34 pm
Deadlift: 320x5, 360x3, 405x3
Rack Pulls (Above Knee): 455x5, 475x3, 495x2
Plate Loaded Grip Machine: 2Px10, 2Px10, 3Px5

405 for a triple was pretty easy. have stuff to do tonight so i had to cut the workout short (besides, got my first ABC meet tomorrow, gotta save a lil energy for that). shouldve put the pins down a notch lower on the rack pulls.

side note, my grandad passed away last night. we weren't real close, and i hadn't seen him in a few years and the last convo we had wasn't too great, but its still weird. he was awake monday and my dad flew out to see him tues but he was already unconscious and passed away last night- didnt even know my dad and his brother were there. i feel bad because im sure my dad had stuff he wanted to say to him and get in a last goodbye. sucks. on top of that my great uncle isnt doing too good and i took a big pay cut at work. aside from my son being born this year, 2009 has sucked and my family has taken its share of hits. hopin 2010 will be better.

D-NUTZ
12-19-09, 8:44 am
Sorry to hear J. Your family is in my prayers. Stay strong bro.

JustJ
12-19-09, 10:40 pm
Rack Pulls (Below the knee): 405x9 PR, 495xMISS, 405x6
Seated Cable Row: 150x10, 180x10, 205x8 PR
Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns: 150x10, 165x10, 180x7 PR
Bent Over BB Row: 225x6, 245x5, 255x5 PR
Standing Military Press: 135x6, 145x3 PR drop set to 135x5, push press 135x8

Awesome day! First Bay Area ABC Meet. It was me, SolidTongan, Alquemy, and SJChris408 and we killed it! Everybody was setting PR's left and right! Best workout I've had in a long time and everyone was cool as hell. I had to cut out before we finished shoulders cuz I had to go to dinner with the fam for my mom's birthday, but regardless, it was a badass day. Here's a link to some of the pics Chris took and Alquemy took some video so hopefully those will be up soon too.

http://s736.photobucket.com/albums/xx3/sjchris408/

T o m m Y
12-19-09, 11:00 pm
nice pr's bro

JustJ
12-20-09, 6:46 am
so now the meet has been pushed from the 20th to the 27th of february still with no location. whatever, guess that means i get a 3 week cycle, 1 week deload, 3 week cycle, then a week of openers then a week of meet prep. next week is a deload before i start westside, so i probably wont bother posting for the next week. i may still check in on peoples logs, but otherwise ill see you all in a week.

J A Y
12-20-09, 10:49 am
so now the meet has been pushed from the 20th to the 27th of february still with no location. whatever, guess that means i get a 3 week cycle, 1 week deload, 3 week cycle, then a week of openers then a week of meet prep. next week is a deload before i start westside, so i probably wont bother posting for the next week. i may still check in on peoples logs, but otherwise ill see you all in a week.

stay focused J, Looking forward to your return.. last session looked solid! some nice PR's in there man!

Vaze_06
12-21-09, 2:13 pm
wow.. PR Session... way to seriously kill it bro!!

JustJ
12-21-09, 7:14 pm
So as of next Monday I'll be out 9 weeks out from my meet. For anybody how cares, I thought I'd kinda break everything down here. I'll be following a modified Westside template with some very minor tweaks (big thanks again to TXPWRLFTR for his tremendous help and answering all of my questions). The tweaks I am making are as follows: a couple different exercise choices, some grip training, and the rep range. I had read that for those who have never done Westside they should spend the first couple months working up to a 5-rep max. So this is what I will be working with. Also, I read that if you train alone, it's a bit safer (common sense) to work up to a 3-rep max rather than a 1-rep max. So basically my schedule will be 3 weeks on/1 week deload/3 weeks on/work up to openers/light work prior to the meet. As for dietary and supplement changes, I had been taking one serving of muscle juice (990 cals not counting the other shit I throw in) and splitting it in half. I have decided to take two full servings a day. Also, as of next Monday, I will be starting Animal Test. I'm hoping with the Test and extra cals from Muscle Juice that I can put on some good weight and some extra strength prior to the meet. Oh, one other thing...I've been using wrist straps for awhile (I know I know), but will be ditching them from here on out (or at least until after the meet)...I ordered some chalk so everything should be cool from here on out.

JustJ
12-21-09, 7:15 pm
wow.. PR Session... way to seriously kill it bro!!
Thanks...it was a ton of fun


stay focused J, Looking forward to your return.. last session looked solid! some nice PR's in there man!
Thank you...I was happy, it was nice havin like-minded people pushin you


Sorry to hear J. Your family is in my prayers. Stay strong bro.

Appreciated. Sucks it had to be around the Holidays.

T o m m Y
12-21-09, 7:35 pm
Looks good bro,cant wait to see how you progress..
I did westside last year for awhile..

JustJ
12-21-09, 7:50 pm
Looks good bro,cant wait to see how you progress..
I did westside last year for awhile..

howd it work out for you? ive heard the volume can be rough...im a little nervous about switching to it so close to the meet for that reason. i suppose i could always cut back on the volume if need be

T o m m Y
12-21-09, 7:59 pm
it worked good man,i got pretty freaking strong..

JustJ
12-21-09, 8:18 pm
it worked good man,i got pretty freaking strong..

thats what i wanted to hear!

JustJ
12-23-09, 12:04 am
Here's a vid from our ABC Meet:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2bac47lxAM

D-NUTZ
12-23-09, 8:44 am
Here's a vid from our ABC Meet:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2bac47lxAM

Cool video J. If you don't mind me asking, what one are you?

TXPWRLFTR
12-23-09, 8:58 am
Good video bro.
Best of luck to you.
Look forward to the progress.

JustJ
12-23-09, 6:18 pm
Cool video J. If you don't mind me asking, what one are you?
i'm the small guy in the animal shirt haha


Good video bro.
Best of luck to you.
Look forward to the progress.

thanks man. its getting closer. i just wanna get my lifts up some more and stay injury-free

strivin for more
12-23-09, 9:32 pm
like the vid! keep it up.

SolidTongan
12-26-09, 2:47 pm
Hey, bro...

I'm lookin' into tha powerlifting thing... maybe next year. The whole Animal Powerlifting team sounded nice!

Solid lifts in here, bro! Keep it up!

JustJ
12-26-09, 3:33 pm
Hey, bro...

I'm lookin' into tha powerlifting thing... maybe next year. The whole Animal Powerlifting team sounded nice!

Solid lifts in here, bro! Keep it up!

sounds good. keep me posted. i know, i thought itd be cool to have a group of us to do meets together, represent Animal and have that team support for a comp.

and thanks, hopefully this animal test and the westside template will help me get some extra pounds in before february 27th. my wrist has been hurt this week and ive been sick, so hopefully monday will be better.

Psycho77
12-26-09, 9:31 pm
Rack Pulls (Below the knee): 405x9 PR, 495xMISS, 405x6
Seated Cable Row: 150x10, 180x10, 205x8 PR
Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns: 150x10, 165x10, 180x7 PR
Bent Over BB Row: 225x6, 245x5, 255x5 PR
Standing Military Press: 135x6, 145x3 PR drop set to 135x5, push press 135x8

Awesome day! First Bay Area ABC Meet. It was me, SolidTongan, Alquemy, and SJChris408 and we killed it! Everybody was setting PR's left and right! Best workout I've had in a long time and everyone was cool as hell. I had to cut out before we finished shoulders cuz I had to go to dinner with the fam for my mom's birthday, but regardless, it was a badass day. Here's a link to some of the pics Chris took and Alquemy took some video so hopefully those will be up soon too.

http://s736.photobucket.com/albums/xx3/sjchris408/


Sick lifting, Justj. PRs on every lift!

JustJ
12-27-09, 10:17 pm
Sick lifting, Justj. PRs on every lift!


thanks man. i was deloading this week but basically just took the week off since my wrist/hand was hurting so much i couldnt press 115, and then i ended up getting sick. back to the gym tomorrow and starting animal test. pretty psyched.

JustJ
12-28-09, 5:00 pm
CG Bench: bar x 10, 95x5, 135x5, 165x5, 185x5, 195x3
DB Floor Press: 5x5@ 60 lbs
DB Lat Raises: 15x12, 20x10, 20x10
Dips: 4x6@ BW

Weight: 214

For reference, my close grip is about a thumbs length away from the smooth. I'm still sick and definitely felt it during my workout as I felt weak and winded. DB floor presses gave me tremendous pain in my right shoulder, so I'm going to switch to BB floor presses from the pins. First day of Animal Test, so I will be weighing in every week to see how its affecting my weight, and strength will be obvious in PR's. My weight is down a couple pounds from being sick for the past few days and barely eating, but I'm glad it wasn't down more because normally if I get sick or barely eat it's not uncommon for me to drop 5-10 lbs.

Vaze_06
12-28-09, 5:57 pm
so.... u would be 4 pounds away from being a woman... Oh Noes!!!!
ahaha, nice work out. hope u feel better soon

D-NUTZ
12-28-09, 6:36 pm
Nice workout J!

JustJ
12-29-09, 12:43 am
so.... u would be 4 pounds away from being a woman... Oh Noes!!!!
ahaha, nice work out. hope u feel better soon

maybe i'm slow, but i don't get it?

Vaze_06
12-29-09, 1:05 am
Any man under 200lbs is a woman

glad i could help... lol

JustJ
12-29-09, 6:30 pm
Any man under 200lbs is a woman

glad i could help... lol

ha i kinda thought thats what you were referring to, but you said 4 lbs...and im 214...so yea
:P

JustJ
12-29-09, 10:29 pm
Lat Pulldowns: 90x12, 120x7, 150x13, 160x12, 170x10, 180x9 PR, 180x7
BB Row: 135x5, 185x12, 190x10, 190x10, 195x10, 200x10
BB Shrugs: 135x10, 185x15, 195x13, 205x12, 215x11, 225x15 PR
EZ Bar Curls: 60x14, 70x10, 80x7, 90x4

Did a wider grip on my bb rows, dunno if I like it. Had to cheat a lil on my curls...Lost some strength there. Think I need to start adding in some cheat meals (my diet isn't that clean, but I still have room to cheat and am thinking I could benefit from the extra cals). Staying outta the gym until Fri...Everyone have a safe and fun New Year's!

strivin for more
12-30-09, 11:33 am
Lat Pulldowns: 90x12, 120x7, 150x13, 160x12, 170x10, 180x9 PR, 180x7
BB Row: 135x5, 185x12, 190x10, 190x10, 195x10, 200x10
BB Shrugs: 135x10, 185x15, 195x13, 205x12, 215x11, 225x15 PR
EZ Bar Curls: 60x14, 70x10, 80x7, 90x4

Did a wider grip on my bb rows, dunno if I like it. Had to cheat a lil on my curls...Lost some strength there. Think I need to start adding in some cheat meals (my diet isn't that clean, but I still have room to cheat and am thinking I could benefit from the extra cals). Staying outta the gym until Fri...Everyone have a safe and fun New Year's!

eat up man, and at least you got some PR's. thjose are always good.

Vaze_06
12-30-09, 6:56 pm
if I get sick or barely eat it's not uncommon for me to drop 5-10 lbs.

ha i kinda thought thats what you were referring to, but you said 4 lbs...and im 214...so yea
:P

214lbs - 10lbs (cauz i like extremes) = 204lbs

204lbs - 4lbs = 200lbs

= BORDERLINE!!!

learn to count =]

nice work out. happy new years to u too

Psycho77
12-30-09, 9:29 pm
so.... u would be 4 pounds away from being a woman... Oh Noes!!!!
ahaha, nice work out. hope u feel better soon

so glad I dont have this problem. hehe

Psycho77
12-30-09, 9:31 pm
Lat Pulldowns: 90x12, 120x7, 150x13, 160x12, 170x10, 180x9 PR, 180x7
BB Row: 135x5, 185x12, 190x10, 190x10, 195x10, 200x10
BB Shrugs: 135x10, 185x15, 195x13, 205x12, 215x11, 225x15 PR
EZ Bar Curls: 60x14, 70x10, 80x7, 90x4

Did a wider grip on my bb rows, dunno if I like it. Had to cheat a lil on my curls...Lost some strength there. Think I need to start adding in some cheat meals (my diet isn't that clean, but I still have room to cheat and am thinking I could benefit from the extra cals). Staying outta the gym until Fri...Everyone have a safe and fun New Year's!


Still a good workout and you got some PRs for it. Hope you feel better, J. Happy New year's!

JustJ
12-31-09, 4:34 pm
Bench: bar x 10, bar x 10, 95x5, 8x3 @ 115 lbs
Straight Bar Pressdowns: 100x9, 110x5, 110x4, 60x14
DB Shoulder Press: 40x14, 45x10, 50x7, 55x6 PR

I have to say, I like DE benching...it's nice to be explosive (yea i know its super light) and focus on my form/tehcnique. Pressdowns were hurting my elbow. I know my shoulder presses are nothing to brag about, but considering my pressing in general is super weak and i did bench and pushdowns prior to the DB presses, I'll take it. In relation to that though, I think I'm going to drop shoulder pressing for now. I used to not do it just because, and started a few months ago. I love military pressing but I have dislocated both my shoulders and am worried about rotator cuff injuries, and since I'm already benching twice a week I can see the shoulder pressing being more of a hinderance than a help. So I think I'm going to stick with lat raises on ME day, and maybe just some light or band face pulls on DE day.

Again, thanks for the New Year's wishes everybody! Have a great one and stay safe! Kill it in 2010!

JustJ
01-02-10, 6:05 pm
Box Squat (Below Parallel): bar x 10, 135x5, 165x5, 185x5, 205x3, 225x1 PR
Good Morning: 135x8, 185x6, 205x5 PR
Pull Through: 50x15, 80x15, 100x15

Not much to say. Never done more than 205 on ATG box squats, so that was nice. Was gonna go for a double but knew I'd get buried. Never gone that heavy on GM's and it didn't feel too tough at all...Probably because I'm used to doing them after deadlifts when my lower back is fried, whereas this time it was pretty fresh. First time doing pull throughs so I kept it light. I like them better than GHR's. Getting back on track with my diet on Monday.

SolidTongan
01-02-10, 6:58 pm
Good job with the PR's, bro!

strivin for more
01-03-10, 3:35 pm
good squat day... im seein lots of red!

J A Y
01-03-10, 3:51 pm
good squat day... im seein lots of red!

x 2

good work J

JustJ
01-03-10, 7:33 pm
Good job with the PR's, bro!


good squat day... im seein lots of red!


x 2

good work J

thanks guys. tryin to push stuff since its gettin closer, but still experimenting and switching things up when i feel something else would work better.

TXPWRLFTR
01-03-10, 8:49 pm
Nice work bro!

JustJ
01-04-10, 8:01 pm
Nice work bro!

thank you sir.

JustJ
01-04-10, 8:06 pm
CG Bench: Bar x 10, 95x5, 135x5, 165x5, 185x5, 200x4 PR
BB Floor/Pin Press: 5x5@ 135
Straight Bar Pushdown: 100x17, 110x13, 120x12, 130x8 PR
Front Plate Raise: 25x16, 35x12, 45x12 PR

Weight: 214

My PR's were moreso rep PR's than weight, but still. I was going to explain why I make certain changes (exercises or rep schemes), but if you see anything and wonder "....why?", just ask. Bodyweight is still the same, but I'm not too upset about that since I've been doing more sleeping than eating the past 2 weeks. I'm back on track with my diet and hoping with the extra cals and Animal Test that I can get up to an even 220 by my meet.

Vaze_06
01-04-10, 9:47 pm
3/4 .... thats 75%... *shakes head*... ever heard of the saying ''aim for perfection''?! lol
that im curious so i'll ask Why? why certain changes senor? lol
yeah.. im done rambling! well done

JustJ
01-05-10, 7:13 pm
3/4 .... thats 75%... *shakes head*... ever heard of the saying ''aim for perfection''?! lol
that im curious so i'll ask Why? why certain changes senor? lol
yeah.. im done rambling! well done

actually 3/3 so 100%! cuz the floor presses were only supposed to be done at about 60%, making it impossible to achieve a PR.

so there.

haha

JustJ
01-06-10, 8:40 pm
Nuetral Grip Chin Up: BWx14 PR, 6, 7, 5, 5, 5, 4, 4
Bent Over Row: 135x5, 185x13 PR, 195x11 PR, 205x10 PR, 215x9 PR (these were just rep PR's for those weights)
BB Shrug: 135x5, 185x15, 205x15, 225x15, 245x13 PR
Wide Grip BB Curl: 45x5, 65x11, 75x9, 85x6, 90x6

nothin really to say about this.

D-NUTZ
01-06-10, 8:40 pm
Looks red J! Good workout!

JustJ
01-06-10, 9:00 pm
Looks red J! Good workout!

thanks. it wasn't a bad workout, i guess i just wasn't too pumped about today.

JustJ
01-08-10, 8:53 pm
Bench: bar x 10, 95x5, 8x3@ 115
JM Press: bar x 5, 95x10, 135x7, 155x6
Face Pulls: 40x10, 80x15, 90x12, 100x14 PR

Never done JM presses before. My form wasn't great but i def felt it in my triceps and they didn't seem to bother my elbows near as much as skullcrushers. Been doing a little ab work lately. Used a foam roller today for the first time ever, think I should make it a regular thing.

T o m m Y
01-08-10, 9:23 pm
Where did you use the foam roller on your body??

I bet it hurt some huh bro?

JustJ
01-08-10, 9:25 pm
i just rolled my back across from upper to lower a number of times and then layed on it on my side and went from my hips down to my knees. and yea, it hurt more than i thought. im not really sure if theres anything else to do with it? like rolling my arms or calves? like i said ive never touched one until today

T o m m Y
01-08-10, 9:29 pm
i just rolled my back across from upper to lower a number of times and then layed on it on my side and went from my hips down to my knees. and yea, it hurt more than i thought. im not really sure if theres anything else to do with it? like rolling my arms or calves? like i said ive never touched one until today

Yeah,You can roll your calvesand stuff..
Just google foam roll ex. and it will come up with a bunch..

Try rolling your IT Band...Talk about pain.....

JustJ
01-08-10, 9:31 pm
Yeah,You can roll your calvesand stuff..
Just google foam roll ex. and it will come up with a bunch..

Try rolling your IT Band...Talk about pain.....

thats exactly what i did ha. but i figure this foam rolling business might be helpful

J A Y
01-09-10, 3:39 am
enhancing your recovery capabilities with a foam roller can only be a good thing! good to see the jm presses didnt irritate your elbows too J...

D-NUTZ
01-09-10, 8:46 am
Look strong and i see some red. Good day.

JustJ
01-09-10, 6:20 pm
enhancing your recovery capabilities with a foam roller can only be a good thing! good to see the jm presses didnt irritate your elbows too J...

true. not sure how many times a week i should be doing it though. and yea that was what i hated about skullcrushers...killed my elbows. think i'm gonna do the JM presses on the smith machine next time though...ive seen dave tate do them that way and it seems safer than risking dropping the bar on my throat ha


Look strong and i see some red. Good day.

thanks. it's getting there. kinda wish i had more time before the meet but oh well. they still dont have a location yet!

JustJ
01-09-10, 6:29 pm
Rack Pull (below the kness):
bar x 10
135x5
185x5
225x5
275x3
315x3
365x3
405x2
455xMISS
445x1 PR

GM:
135x5
185x8
205x6
215x6 PR

Pull Through:
80x15
100x15
120x15 PR

First time doing deadlifts without straps (well, at least when the weight got a little heavier, I would never use them on the lighter sets). Brought out the chalk. I was using a double overhand grip up until after 405, then switched to mixed. When it was double overhand on the 405 my grip gave out and I only got 2 reps. Once I switched to mix my grip didn't feel too bad, though I don't think it would've held up for reps, so I just went for the single. Think I could've gotten 455 but I didn't set up great. The 445 was tough but not too bad. Had a really bad pain in the lower left side of my back that ran down my glute to the top of my hamstring. It got better as the workout went on but I'm gonna keep an eye on it since I sure as hell don't want an injury.

D-NUTZ
01-09-10, 8:14 pm
Daayyyuum..more red bro. Nice one.

strivin for more
01-09-10, 10:25 pm
lovin the red.... and god damn, i cant even do double overhand at 315, yet alone 405. i have to have mixed. nice job though!

JustJ
01-10-10, 1:31 pm
lovin the red.... and god damn, i cant even do double overhand at 315, yet alone 405. i have to have mixed. nice job though!

thanks man. yea i was worried about how my grip was gonna hold up since i'd been using straps for so long. i'll probably still use straps when i go for reps, but since it's so close to meet time i'm not gonna touch em.

J A Y
01-10-10, 1:41 pm
Rack Pull (below the kness):
bar x 10
135x5
185x5
225x5
275x3
315x3
365x3
405x2
455xMISS
445x1 PR

GM:
135x5
185x8
205x6
215x6 PR

Pull Through:
80x15
100x15
120x15 PR

First time doing deadlifts without straps (well, at least when the weight got a little heavier, I would never use them on the lighter sets). Brought out the chalk. I was using a double overhand grip up until after 405, then switched to mixed. When it was double overhand on the 405 my grip gave out and I only got 2 reps. Once I switched to mix my grip didn't feel too bad, though I don't think it would've held up for reps, so I just went for the single. Think I could've gotten 455 but I didn't set up great. The 445 was tough but not too bad. Had a really bad pain in the lower left side of my back that ran down my glute to the top of my hamstring. It got better as the workout went on but I'm gonna keep an eye on it since I sure as hell don't want an injury.

be very very very wary of that pain, It sounds just like the one i got before my last meet, i trained around/through it and eventually it caught up with me when squatting... put a major dent in what i was hoping to achieve!

apart from that, good shit J

JustJ
01-10-10, 2:19 pm
yea it def scares me. the weird thing is is that it feels very similar to a pain that ive had off-and-on on the lower right side of my back for the past year and a half. except all of a sudden, my right side is perfectly fine and now its on the left.

strivin for more
01-10-10, 9:10 pm
thanks man. yea i was worried about how my grip was gonna hold up since i'd been using straps for so long. i'll probably still use straps when i go for reps, but since it's so close to meet time i'm not gonna touch em.

i here ya. i gave up using em for the most part, and my forearms are ALWAYS killin me now a days. hahha.

TXPWRLFTR
01-10-10, 9:21 pm
Nice work. Try manual traction for your lumbar area...helps relieve pressure to the discs.

Vaze_06
01-11-10, 12:55 am
nice session dude

JustJ
01-11-10, 8:36 pm
i here ya. i gave up using em for the most part, and my forearms are ALWAYS killin me now a days. hahha.
yea i woke up the next day and was like "why the hell are my hands and forearms so sore?!" then i remembered...no straps ha


Nice work. Try manual traction for your lumbar area...helps relieve pressure to the discs.

thanks. what is manual traction? (i could prob just google it huh?)


nice session dude

thank you miss

JustJ
01-11-10, 8:46 pm
CG Bench:
bar x 10
95x5
135x5
175x3
205x2
95x25

Straight Bar Pushdown:
110x15 PR
120x12
130x9 PR
140x7 PR

Front Plate Raise:
35x13 PR
45x12
50x9 PR

Weight: 215 +1

Shitty workout today...At least the bench portion. I got off work an hour late, then I went from 135 to 175 instead of 165 and only did 3 reps instead of 5, and from there I was just all messed up in the head for my bench. Did the 205 and when I unracked it my setup got all messed up. I was over it. Thought I'd get 5 reps for sure so I was disappointed. Not to mention seeing I'm not gaining weight despite adding in an extra 1000 cal shake a day (though I admit I haven't been super consistent with my diet lately) was frustrating too. Whatever.

T o m m Y
01-11-10, 8:51 pm
CG Bench:
bar x 10
95x5
135x5
175x3
205x2
95x25

Straight Bar Pushdown:
110x15 PR
120x12
130x9 PR
140x7 PR

Front Plate Raise:
35x13 PR
45x12
50x9 PR

Weight: 215 +1

Shitty workout today...At least the bench portion. I got off work an hour late, then I went from 135 to 175 instead of 165 and only did 3 reps instead of 5, and from there I was just all messed up in the head for my bench. Did the 205 and when I unracked it my setup got all messed up. I was over it. Thought I'd get 5 reps for sure so I was disappointed. Not to mention seeing I'm not gaining weight despite adding in an extra 1000 cal shake a day (though I admit I haven't been super consistent with my diet lately) was frustrating too. Whatever.

Hmmmm,did you have a max already on cgbp or were you going for a max?

JustJ
01-11-10, 8:58 pm
Hmmmm,did you have a max already on cgbp or were you going for a max?

nah i was goin for a 3-5 rep max. and it didn't happen haha. not to mention i had thought i was gonna go for 210 today, but then read my log book and i was like ah damn, 205 it is. so then to not even hit the target reps on 5 lbs less than i thought i was gonna do, was just a disappointment.

T o m m Y
01-11-10, 8:59 pm
nah i was goin for a 3-5 rep max. and it didn't happen haha. not to mention i had thought i was gonna go for 210 today, but then read my log book and i was like ah damn, 205 it is. so then to not even hit the target reps on 5 lbs less than i thought i was gonna do, was just a disappointment.

Bro yeah that sucks,go for it next time you bench or do you switch movements every week?

JustJ
01-11-10, 9:03 pm
Bro yeah that sucks,go for it next time you bench or do you switch movements every week?

this 3 week cycle i just stuck with it the whole 3 weeks. after my deload week though im going to switch it every week, so i'll get another shot. i also think my setup may have been at fault...i had finally found a setup that was working for me, but then on my DE day i was playing around with it again and i tried it that way today and it sucked.

T o m m Y
01-11-10, 9:08 pm
this 3 week cycle i just stuck with it the whole 3 weeks. after my deload week though im going to switch it every week, so i'll get another shot. i also think my setup may have been at fault...i had finally found a setup that was working for me, but then on my DE day i was playing around with it again and i tried it that way today and it sucked.

Yeaaaaaaaaah i hear you on the set up,it took me forever to find what works for me and doesnt..Im actually going to try another set up nexttiem i bench and see if that better then what im doing right now..So thats all good then bro,you will get that shit next week!

Whats your set up like now then?

JustJ
01-11-10, 9:13 pm
Yeaaaaaaaaah i hear you on the set up,it took me forever to find what works for me and doesnt..Im actually going to try another set up nexttiem i bench and see if that better then what im doing right now..So thats all good then bro,you will get that shit next week!

Whats your set up like now then?

thanks man, hopefully. well in the past i tried getting a big arch with my feet back on the balls of my feet...didnt work for me, i was so unstable and had no leg drive. plus then i found the fed i'm gonna compete in (USPF) the feet have to be flat on the ground. so i was still arching, and keeping my feet kinda wide but as far back as they could go without the heel coming up....that seemed to work pretty good. today i tried it with an arch and my feet way out in front of me and wide, but that way i feel like i lost my arch (i don't have a good one to begin with) and i felt like i was "too far away" (if that makes sense, by having my feet that far in front of me) to get any leg drive or anything.

T o m m Y
01-11-10, 9:17 pm
thanks man, hopefully. well in the past i tried getting a big arch with my feet back on the balls of my feet...didnt work for me, i was so unstable and had no leg drive. plus then i found the fed i'm gonna compete in (USPF) the feet have to be flat on the ground. so i was still arching, and keeping my feet kinda wide but as far back as they could go without the heel coming up....that seemed to work pretty good. today i tried it with an arch and my feet way out in front of me and wide, but that way i feel like i lost my arch (i don't have a good one to begin with) and i felt like i was "too far away" (if that makes sense, by having my feet that far in front of me) to get any leg drive or anything.


My feet are underneath me on my toes,i have found thats how i can get my best arch..I would say try that and it will probably work for you but the fed your training for wont allow it..

JustJ
01-12-10, 1:26 am
My feet are underneath me on my toes,i have found thats how i can get my best arch..I would say try that and it will probably work for you but the fed your training for wont allow it..

yea i can get a better arch that way, but i cant seem to get leg drive. but yea, USPF dont allow it. im trying to find a happy medium.

JustJ
01-13-10, 12:07 am
already planning some changes for my next 3 week cycle:
- switching ME bench exercises every week instead of every 3 weeks
- putting JM presses on ME day and straight bar pushdowns on DE day
- getting rid of "back" day for a DE squat/deadlift day
- high pulley cable curls
- db lat raises along with the front plate raises (since my shoulders are lacking)

T o m m Y
01-13-10, 12:26 am
already planning some changes for my next 3 week cycle:
- switching ME bench exercises every week instead of every 3 weeks
- putting JM presses on ME day and straight bar pushdowns on DE day
- getting rid of "back" day for a DE squat/deadlift day
- high pulley cable curls
- db lat raises along with the front plate raises (since my shoulders are lacking)

I would do tricep ext's and rolling db ext's instead of pushdowns on DE days..
Also,put your db raises and stuff on DE days if you already havent..
Jm presses on ME days is good,also you might wanna throw some brd's in there..

JustJ
01-13-10, 8:44 pm
I would do tricep ext's and rolling db ext's instead of pushdowns on DE days..
Also,put your db raises and stuff on DE days if you already havent..
Jm presses on ME days is good,also you might wanna throw some brd's in there..

what are rolling db ext's?
yea i was thinking i might keep the front plate raises on ME day and lat raises on DE day.
brd...? board presses?

T o m m Y
01-13-10, 8:52 pm
what are rolling db ext's?
yea i was thinking i might keep the front plate raises on ME day and lat raises on DE day.
brd...? board presses?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rD5Mz2262fU&feature=related

Yeah board presses..

I would put the raises on the DE day..

T o m m Y
01-13-10, 8:56 pm
Make sure your getting some good lat and upper back work in on both ME and DE days..

JustJ
01-13-10, 9:02 pm
warm-up:
wide grip pull ups bw x 10
neutral grip chins bw x8

V-Bar Pulldowns:
160x13
170x11
180x10
190x8

BB Row:
135x5
195x11
205x11 PR
215x9
225x10 PR

BB Shrug:
135x5
205x15
225x15
245x15 PR
255x13 PR

warm-up:
CG BB Curl: bar x 8
WG BB Curl: bar x 8

High Pulley Cable Curl:
60x17
85x12
100x9
115x7

Good workout. Dunno about these high pulley cable curls...There is some logic behind them and read an article regarding them recently, but I kinda wonder if for what I'm trying to achieve if I'd be better off using a BB and doing just the top half of the curl movement. I really like v-bar pulldowns...Feels like I'm hitting my lats exactly where I need some growth. Also, I think it might be time to add a BK or McDonald's item to my daily diet fo some extra cals.

JustJ
01-13-10, 9:11 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rD5Mz2262fU&feature=related

Yeah board presses..

I would put the raises on the DE day..
so both the front and and side raises on DE day?
i haven't done board presses cuz i don't have boards and train raw.
so what would you recommend on ME day?...an ME bench exercise, JM presses and....?


Make sure your getting some good lat and upper back work in on both ME and DE days..
yea thats why i like the back day, but i feel like i'm missing out by not having a DE day for my squat/deadlift

T o m m Y
01-13-10, 9:32 pm
Here ya go bro,check these 2 articles out by the man himself dave tate..

http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/the_periodization_bible_part_ii

JustJ
01-13-10, 9:57 pm
Here ya go bro,check these 2 articles out by the man himself dave tate..

http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/the_periodization_bible_part_ii

great read, thanks! i can't wait to start the next 3 week cycle...i think it's gonna be even better than this one.

T o m m Y
01-13-10, 10:26 pm
did it give you some ideas?

JustJ
01-14-10, 4:34 am
did it give you some ideas?

yup. gonna change up how i was doin things. i liked how they went this cycle, but i think some of the changes i'm gonna make after reading that will make it more beneficial from here on out.

JustJ
01-15-10, 8:35 pm
Bench:
bar x 10
95x5
8x3@ 115

Smith JM Presses:
1pps+25ps x7
1pps+25ps x5
1pps+30ps x4 PR
1pps+32.5ps x4 PR

DB Side Raise:
20x9
25x8
30x8

Face Pulls:
90x15 PR
100x14
110x13 PR

I know smith machines suck but it's a little safer for doing JM presses. Since you can't change the bar path on a smith, it took a bit to figure out where I needed to be on the bench to get the movement right- it was killing my elbow until the last set when I scooted down so that the bar was over my mouth. With face pulls, the heavier I go I have to walk away from the stack and lean back, but even though they aren't that heavy the pulley is acting up when doing them...Don't know if there's a way around this or if I should just keep the weight under 100. Tomorrow is box squats...Looking forward to it.

J A Y
01-15-10, 8:39 pm
lets see some big squats J!

Good sessions!

Vaze_06
01-15-10, 8:43 pm
i was wondering what the fuck when i saw your bench numbers... until i saw ''DE'' lol
its all good... keep up it up lazy ass

JustJ
01-15-10, 9:12 pm
lets see some big squats J!

Good sessions!

i'm hopin so man, since i'm not doin low box squats tomorrow. i have in my head what i'm hopin for, but we'll see tomorrow


i was wondering what the fuck when i saw your bench numbers... until i saw ''DE'' lol
its all good... keep up it up lazy ass

haha...still weak for DE, but that's cuz my bench sucks. lazy ass? geez what do i gotta do to win your approval? :P

JustJ
01-15-10, 9:32 pm
Anyone done his bench routine? I've heard people have seen some good gains in a short time from it...I found a write up on it and there's a 6 week version and a 4 week version...I have just enough time to squeeze in the 4 week routine so I'm thinking about working it in with my Westside template since my bench is the worst of my 3 lifts.

JustJ
01-16-10, 7:05 pm
Box Squat:
bar x 10
135x5
185x5
225x3
275x3
315x1
365x1
405xMISS

Back Extensions:
+25x12
+35x10
+45x7

Pull Through:
100x15
110x15
120x15

Partial BB Curls:
105x7x2
110x5x2

Not too pleased with today's workout. Super bummed I missed 405. I was kinda worried though because I had previously box squatted 365x5 and this time just the one rep felt really difficult. Tried partial BB curls but they killed my left wrist..I'm just trying to find a way to hit more of the upper portion of my bicep...Whenever I end up with any DOMS from curls they're pretty much always near the elbow.

I've been jumping around from program to program lately...Used to be out of pure boredom, but since I decided to do a meet it's been more about finding what works for me. I have a big complaint about Westside, and that is that you are not squatting AND deadlifting every week. Despite the rotation of different exercises that supposedly help these lifts, my lower back felt week on rack pulls last week, and I couldn't squat as much today. This could just be a coincidence, as there are always variables that affect how much you lift on a given day, but I do find it odd that with 5/3/1 my squat was just going up, and now it has gone down. This may work for others, but for me I feel like not doing both the squat and deadlift each week negatively affects my strength in both, and I had a feeling about that prior to doing Westside. Right now I am considering running a modified 5/3/1 after my deload. If I do, I'm going to do the Gillespie routine for the bench portion, standard 5/3/1 for my squat, and then sort of 5/3/1 but using singles for my deadlifts (i.e. the top percentage for week 1 for 5 singles, top percentage for week 2 for 3 singles, and top percentage for week 3 for as many as I can get or possibly a new max).

Next week is a deload week, so I'll be on here to check others logs as usual, but won't bother posting my deload workout. I've also got some Animal Pump and Animal Nitro I'll be throwing into the mix after the deload week.

Vaze_06
01-17-10, 8:50 pm
dont sweat it bro.. i think u're over analyzing.. when things are doing good, i think u except them to screw up and end up screwing up lol stop thinking and just lift. ull get it next time
tho lets see how its modified version will work for ya



haha...still weak for DE, but that's cuz my bench sucks. lazy ass? geez what do i gotta do to win your approval? :P

get my approval? AH! Mission: Impossible. sorry dude lol

TXPWRLFTR
01-17-10, 11:32 pm
BB curls? What are those? LOL, not really bro, just messing with you.
I agree with Vaze_06....just think of your set up and get those rep(s)...go on feel and go forth! Keep it simple, know your limits and at times...go for it!
The issue of deadlifting and squatting will vary from individual. Some can handle the stress and others can't. The guys at Westside and others that follow their training have their thoughts and beliefs on why they train the way they do. Feel free to call Louie Simmons and talk with him, if he has the time and is not busy he will talk to you. You can also find his articles on his website.

Once you get a program that you like you can then go from there...jumping from program to program can boost you and can also set you back...keep pushing yourself in your training. Eat, train, sleep...repeat...

You know what you have to do, and when you get stuck or have a problem...feel free to ask...many will help out how ever they can!

Lift Large brother!

Greg

JustJ
01-18-10, 3:43 pm
dont sweat it bro.. i think u're over analyzing.. when things are doing good, i think u except them to screw up and end up screwing up lol stop thinking and just lift. ull get it next time
tho lets see how its modified version will work for ya



get my approval? AH! Mission: Impossible. sorry dude lol

You're probably right. I tend to overthink things a lot.
Haha...wow...well, at least I know I'll never be good enough in your book :P


BB curls? What are those? LOL, not really bro, just messing with you.
I agree with Vaze_06....just think of your set up and get those rep(s)...go on feel and go forth! Keep it simple, know your limits and at times...go for it!
The issue of deadlifting and squatting will vary from individual. Some can handle the stress and others can't. The guys at Westside and others that follow their training have their thoughts and beliefs on why they train the way they do. Feel free to call Louie Simmons and talk with him, if he has the time and is not busy he will talk to you. You can also find his articles on his website.

Once you get a program that you like you can then go from there...jumping from program to program can boost you and can also set you back...keep pushing yourself in your training. Eat, train, sleep...repeat...

You know what you have to do, and when you get stuck or have a problem...feel free to ask...many will help out how ever they can!

Lift Large brother!

Greg

Ha! Gotta keep some direct arm work in their...My arms are pathetic! Though not a priority right now, since strength is.
Yea a long time ago I was only deadlifting every other week (can't remember if I was still squatting every week or alternating). I thought that was the way to go. Then when I started doing both it was going a lot better. I understand the idea of Westside not doing both in one week, definitely, but for me I kinda feel like it sets me back, for whatever reason. Maybe it's because I'm not advanced, whereas if I was lifting super heavy I might not be able to do both squat and dead in the same week. I may give Louie a call, even though I'll feel kinda dumb doing it since those guys are so unbelievably above and beyond my level.
I don't want to jump from program to program and end up with setbacks, that's my big fear, but like you said they can give a boost and I'm still looking for what works for me. I may end up trying a modified Westside template down the road where I do both squat and deadlift in the same week; we will see- I'm game for trying different things to find out what helps me get stronger. Plus, since nothing works forever, I may just end up with different ideas to try out once one stops working.
Thanks Greg, you've been a huge help thus far.

J A Y
01-18-10, 3:59 pm
i think vaze and greg are correct too J!

I had your exact same problem, i jumped from programme to programme and always over thought stuff, always thinking about the 'whats if(s)' and 'but(s)' and it held me back

my advice to you with 4 week left is to find a programme and stick with it, il quote what somebody else told me... 9/10 out of ten if you think a programme i going to work, it will

good luck man

Vaze_06
01-18-10, 7:45 pm
Haha...wow...well, at least I know I'll never be good enough in your book :P



wow... thats a typical women answer....
PUSSY! quit all this feeling non-sense and give us some work outs... tss!

JustJ
01-20-10, 10:53 pm
Normally when I take some time off from the gym, I feel refreshed and I don't get anxious until later in the week. I haven't been to the gym in three days and I'm feeling super anxious. So, in the meantime, I've got my training planned out, ordered some new wrist wraps, and have some Animal Pump and Nitro ready to go. Unfortunately, a location for the meet still has not been secured. I'm going to try to soak up the rest of this week off, and hope it will have done some good for me.

JustJ
01-22-10, 9:26 pm
going crazy not lifting. ordered some vanadyl sulfate. also been thinking a lot about form and cheating. i've pretty much always strived for good form on curls and lat raises, but i've seen a lot of bigger guys cheating some, obviously to put up more weight, and it makes me question the whole perfect form thing, especially on every exercise 100% of the time. i feel like cheating some on my side raises and my curls could be very beneficial to me, in terms of strength and mass gains. soooo...i'll be cheating my curls and side raises some from now on to see how they go. also going to be doing incline flyes. i know that's not really a "powerlifting" movement, but i don't like neglecting my upper chest so much.

JustJ
01-22-10, 9:43 pm
If you can't tell, I'm bored:

Mondays:
Squat 5/3/1
Goodmornings
PullThrough's

Wednesdays:
CG Bench Bill Gillespie Routine
Incline Flyes
Side Raises
Tri Extensions
Rope Pushdowns

Fridays:
Deadlift modified 5/3/1
V-Bar Pulldowns
DB Rows
BB Curls
Hammer Curls

Supps:
Animal Test
Animal Pump
Animal Nitro
Universal Vanadyl Sulfate

prowrestler
01-24-10, 1:04 pm
lookin good J, ive been mia from the forum for abit but i caught up on ur log now

JustJ
01-24-10, 8:21 pm
lookin good J, ive been mia from the forum for abit but i caught up on ur log now

thanks for catching up. i'm hopin this next month leading up to meet goes well...really looking forward to the week where i work up to openers so i really know where i'm at

ForearmFreak
01-25-10, 1:40 pm
looks like a good routine..just keep an eye on that lower back so it doesnt get over trained with the pull throughs,gms and deads all in the same week.

JustJ
01-25-10, 8:39 pm
looks like a good routine..just keep an eye on that lower back so it doesnt get over trained with the pull throughs,gms and deads all in the same week.

i thought about that...a lil nervous bout it, though i usually do my pull throughs pretty light and i do them more for hamstrings than lower back. what would you replace the pull throughs with? also, i decided to do the standard 5/3/1 deadlift routine...if it ain't broke don't fix it

JustJ
01-25-10, 8:43 pm
Squat:
bar x 10
135x5
225x5
275x3
295x5
315x5
335x5

Good Morning:
135x5
205x6
225x5
245x3 PR

Pullthrough:
100x15
130x15
150x15 PR

First day back! Felt great. I was hitting my depth on squats sometimes and missing sometimes. I blame this on trying a slightly narrower stance...I guess I squat pretty wide for raw, but it seems to work so I'll be going back to my wide stance next week. Did my GM's wide stance which made them a lil tougher but I loved it. Pullthroughs were pullthroughs. Did some abs at the end.

Squat question:
I've been doing low bar position squats since I was doing box squatting...I usually keep my elbows back to help hold the bar up, but I saw a vid saying to push the elbows forward...When I do this I can't keep the bar up. So am I doing it wrong or would it not count in a meet? Or should I switch to high bar squats? Thanks in advance.

D-NUTZ
01-25-10, 8:54 pm
Nice PRs bro. Can't help ya with the question, still a noobie and dont feel like i should be answering questions haha. But nice workout non the less.

JustJ
01-25-10, 9:05 pm
Nice PRs bro. Can't help ya with the question, still a noobie and dont feel like i should be answering questions haha. But nice workout non the less.

thanks man. ha no worries...i'm hopin someone will chime in. if it's just personal preference, then great, cuz i'll stick with what i'm doin, i just don't want it to not count at a meet.

J A Y
01-27-10, 5:47 pm
thanks man. ha no worries...i'm hopin someone will chime in. if it's just personal preference, then great, cuz i'll stick with what i'm doin, i just don't want it to not count at a meet.

from my experience, keeping the elbows under the bar is really what you should be doing...

i am absolutely notorious for letting my elbows come back under heavy weights when i come out of the whole and it throws me forward and i lose the tightness ... its not good... more often than not though ive read(and experienced) it wll throw/push/lean you forward because you tend to lose the arch aswell... just think the last thing you want is to be good morning the weight up, unless youve got one hell of a lower back!... and the elbows under tends to fix this problem... read it in a dave tate/ or jim w article... il try and fin you a link just to prove the point!

but as for it not counting... im not totally sure on that, may be different in different feds/places etc... as long as you squat to sufficient depth... its not a problem( i may be wrong with that bit though)... check out your feds rules

its a big month J... get yourself sorted man! i wanna see some good numbers! your doing the work

J A Y
01-27-10, 5:52 pm
here we go...

Phase I: The first thing to check for is proper body position at the beginning of the lift. Keep in mind you'll have to keep the entire body tight. If any body part is held loose it will become your weak link and you'll break down.

Before setting up under the bar you'll need to grasp the barbell and duck under it with your feet about shoulder width apart or slightly wider. While under the bar you'll have to start to really tighten up. Grasp the bar with your hands and start to squeeze it as if you were trying to bend the bar across your back. Next, pull your shoulder blades together as tight as possible while pulling your elbows forward. This is to keep the upper back locked in this position during the lift. If your elbows are flaring out, it'll cause the barbell to travel forward at some point during the lift. The key to squatting big weights is to keep the barbell path traveling in the shortest line as possible. Any deviation from this line will cause a missed lift.

....

5. Your elbows are not under the bar. If your elbows are pointed backwards (towards your butt) then you are sure to fall forward. Simply attempt to bring your elbows forward and under the bar. There is no exercise that can help correct this; just make sure you have verbal cues.

and the article...

http://www.elitefts.com/documents/falling_forward.htm


hope thats some help J!

T o m m Y
01-27-10, 6:23 pm
Also,make sure to drive your head into the bar..

TXPWRLFTR
01-27-10, 7:01 pm
As long as the bar placement is not below your shoulder blades you will be fine in the meet. Most feds don't really care where the bar is placed during the squat....of course within reason though...some rest high on contracted traps...others set bar mid traps...some rest it below traps right above the shoulder blades.

as far as the elbows go, that is up to you my friend....many squat different ways and have their beliefs in what to do with the elbows...find what works best for you. And don't be affraid to try various things in training...just don't change things up before a meet as that will mess you up at the meet.

Good luck, read up on squat articles, watch videos, and ask questions!

JustJ
01-27-10, 10:36 pm
thanks everybody. yea the elbows back thing worries me about falling forward- i feel like if the weight gets much heavier it will definitely happen, so i'm going to try high bar next week. i'm getting nervous since the meet is so close and like you said i really don't want to change things last minute, but i also don't want to come crashing forward at the meet either ha.

J Wong
01-27-10, 10:41 pm
My elbows slowly have been moving outward since my squat has gone up actually. I use to have my elbows basically directly under the bar, and now they are starting to point backwards because I am holding the bar wider... it just feels natural to me now where elbows under the bar used to feel natural to me.. it shouldn't be a big deal if you aren't doing exactly what an article says.

JustJ
01-27-10, 10:42 pm
CG Bench:
bar x 10
135x5
155x3
165x6
170x4
175x3
150x8
150x8
150x6

Incline Fly:
25x13
30x9
35x8

Side Raise:
25x10
30x8
35x7

DB Tri Extension:
30x9
35x7
40x7

Rope Pushdown:
100x15
110x12

Weight: 217 +1

Today was rough. I just felt fatigued as soon as I set foot in the gym. The bench sets were super rough despite being light weight- I found out that USPF rules state the bar has to be lowered to sternum level, no belly benching, so that's tougher now. I was supposed to rep out on the last set but had nothing in me. I remember why I don't do incline flys- Kills my shoulders and elbows. The lat raises were hurting too which I thought was weird. The tri extensions I did were where you set up like a db bench, but bend the arms inward, if that makes sense. I'm starting to really think about the whole K.I.S.S. approach to lifting...I've always kinda adopted that mentality, and I think high volume stuff is fine when you're doing higher reps, but with my poor recovery and training for strength I think extra stuff hurts me more than it helps. I'm probably overthinking it, mainly just cuz the meet is so close, but I'm almost thinking about dropping shoulder work all together, and just doing two assistance exercises after my main movement and that's it. I dunno. We'll see how Friday goes.

T o m m Y
01-27-10, 10:45 pm
Just had a off day bro,you will kill it next time..

J Wong
01-27-10, 10:45 pm
Why the hell were you belly benching? Sternum level is just around your nipple area, not the middle or top of your chest or anything.

TXPWRLFTR
01-27-10, 10:50 pm
Looking good and yes the mind will have you thinking...do I need more work? am I right there? what else? ...keep focused...one day at a time...keep training for the meet...
USPF doesn't allow bellybenching but if you are right on the xyphoid or roughly 2 inches below nipple area you should be fine. Just bring it up at the rules meeting. Is this the meet in Sacramento? I know SuperTraining will be at a meet in February. I think it is the USPF meet...could be wrong.

Nothing wring in the K.I.S.S. approach...keep training and go by feel.

Best of luck!

J Wong
01-27-10, 10:51 pm
^^ Speaking of supertraining, they are holding a meet March 13th I think. That would definitely be a great meet for you to check out or even compete in.

JustJ
01-28-10, 6:32 pm
Just had a off day bro,you will kill it next time..

yea that's what i'm thinking...next week will be better, and tomorrow is deadlifts!


Why the hell were you belly benching? Sternum level is just around your nipple area, not the middle or top of your chest or anything.

i should have been more clear...i bench more around the top of the abs, about 2-3 inches from the nipple line...i have monkey arms


Looking good and yes the mind will have you thinking...do I need more work? am I right there? what else? ...keep focused...one day at a time...keep training for the meet...
USPF doesn't allow bellybenching but if you are right on the xyphoid or roughly 2 inches below nipple area you should be fine. Just bring it up at the rules meeting. Is this the meet in Sacramento? I know SuperTraining will be at a meet in February. I think it is the USPF meet...could be wrong.

Nothing wring in the K.I.S.S. approach...keep training and go by feel.

Best of luck!

yea my mind is messing with me now...i feel like i'm not even close to ready, though i have a feeling i'd feel that way no matter what. this meet is supposed to be in san jose...it's the only CA meet in February so maybe that's it unless it's a dif fed. thanks, i'm just gonna keep going and hope for the best.


^^ Speaking of supertraining, they are holding a meet March 13th I think. That would definitely be a great meet for you to check out or even compete in.

do you know what fed? i don't see it on the USPF website

J Wong
01-28-10, 7:11 pm
I think it is SPF.

JustJ
01-28-10, 11:30 pm
o ok. yea there's a bench press challenge on feb 7th, and then the meet theyre hosting in march. i'm tempted to enter that too...

JustJ
01-28-10, 11:36 pm
let's say i were to do the meet on march 14th...that would only be 2 weeks after my 1st meet...what would you guys recommend i do leading up that meet?
i was planning on just doing light work the week after the meet then getting back into, but with only 2 weeks inbetween i really have no clue what to do

mark
01-29-10, 2:13 am
let's say i were to do the meet on march 14th...that would only be 2 weeks after my 1st meet...what would you guys recommend i do leading up that meet?
i was planning on just doing light work the week after the meet then getting back into, but with only 2 weeks inbetween i really have no clue what to do

nothing

JustJ
01-29-10, 2:54 pm
nothing

really? 2 weeks of no training seems a bit much...especially since i've read that strength levels can drop up to 10% after 10 days off

mark
01-29-10, 3:35 pm
Really?! 10% in 10 days?? Were those folks somewhat well trained folks who just competed in a powerlifting meet?? No.

A powerlifting meet will destroy your body, esp your nervous system...
It use to take me a week to get my body to recover and working properly... And then, you'll be at a week out in which case, i didn't do much of anything besides get a massage...
If you were to do anything between meets, i would do one workout for each lift, work up to a set of 5 with 70% of what you hit in the meet, 1 easy back and assistance movement, and then get the hell out of the gym...

IRBS
01-29-10, 3:52 pm
Really?! 10% in 10 days?? Were those folks somewhat well trained folks who just competed in a powerlifting meet?? No.

A powerlifting meet will destroy your body, esp your nervous system...
It use to take me a week to get my body to recover and working properly... And then, you'll be at a week out in which case, i didn't do much of anything besides get a massage...
If you were to do anything between meets, i would do one workout for each lift, work up to a set of 5 with 70% of what you hit in the meet, 1 easy back and assistance movement, and then get the hell out of the gym...

This.

After my last meet it took me almost a month to recover. I took 2 weeks off completely, then started trying to get back into training and I was smoked. You cant think of it as one day lifting, think of it as 12-16 weeks of meet prep all rolled up into that one day. My body was beat to hell.

I'm sure it would be different for a newb who doesnt have much experience though.

JustJ
01-29-10, 7:59 pm
Really?! 10% in 10 days?? Were those folks somewhat well trained folks who just competed in a powerlifting meet?? No.

A powerlifting meet will destroy your body, esp your nervous system...
It use to take me a week to get my body to recover and working properly... And then, you'll be at a week out in which case, i didn't do much of anything besides get a massage...
If you were to do anything between meets, i would do one workout for each lift, work up to a set of 5 with 70% of what you hit in the meet, 1 easy back and assistance movement, and then get the hell out of the gym...

could've sworn i read that from dave tate somewhere or something...could be wrong


This.

After my last meet it took me almost a month to recover. I took 2 weeks off completely, then started trying to get back into training and I was smoked. You cant think of it as one day lifting, think of it as 12-16 weeks of meet prep all rolled up into that one day. My body was beat to hell.

I'm sure it would be different for a newb who doesnt have much experience though.

i see. highly unlikely i'll end up doing both meets, but good info to have for down the road.

JustJ
01-29-10, 8:07 pm
Deadlift:
bar x 10
135x5
225x3
315x1
325x5
350x5
370x5


DB Row:
40x8
80x12
90x10
100x8
120x5

Hammer Curl:
20x8
30x10
35x8
40x6
45x6

Partial WG Pullups:
BW x 12

Abs

Foam Roller

Good workout today. Everything felt great. Forgot my straps which I was going to use just for the DB rows...My grip wasn't holding up with them and I know I could've gotten a lot more reps...Next time.

T o m m Y
01-29-10, 8:40 pm
Nice looking day bro..
Does your gym have chalk?

JustJ
01-29-10, 8:43 pm
Nice looking day bro..
Does your gym have chalk?

thanks, it was way better than wednesday. nope, but i bring it with me, just didn't feel like using it on the db rows.

TXPWRLFTR
01-31-10, 11:55 pm
Good work.

On the 2 meets in 2 weeks...newbie or vet lifter...only you know how you feel. Some guys can do it and others can't. Sure we can talk about CNS, time frames, etc, etc, etc...you are the one actually doing it. You might not get the numbers you wanted or you might get a PR in a lift...

In the scheme of things go based on how you feel. Look at the 2nd meet as a ME day in the gym and go for it. If you can recover from the 1st meet and feel good then go for it and if you are hesitant then don't do it. Worse thing to do is doing something half ass and hesitant.

Get the 1st meet under your belt...if you didn't do well in the bench then bench only in the 2nd meet...

Just remember that in the end you are the one that will be lifting. There is nothing wrong in asking for advice on this. Some will have different opinions...If you feel good and your body is revovered, go for it!

JustJ
02-01-10, 12:33 am
Good work.

On the 2 meets in 2 weeks...newbie or vet lifter...only you know how you feel. Some guys can do it and others can't. Sure we can talk about CNS, time frames, etc, etc, etc...you are the one actually doing it. You might not get the numbers you wanted or you might get a PR in a lift...

In the scheme of things go based on how you feel. Look at the 2nd meet as a ME day in the gym and go for it. If you can recover from the 1st meet and feel good then go for it and if you are hesitant then don't do it. Worse thing to do is doing something half ass and hesitant.

Get the 1st meet under your belt...if you didn't do well in the bench then bench only in the 2nd meet...

Just remember that in the end you are the one that will be lifting. There is nothing wrong in asking for advice on this. Some will have different opinions...If you feel good and your body is revovered, go for it!

Thanks. Since I have no idea what I'm in for, I like to get varied opinions, but like you said, everyone is different so I really won't know until after that first meet. I really don't think I will do both meets- basically if the San Jose one doesn't get squared away, I will be doing the Sacramento one. Problem with that is that if I did the Sac meet, I would have a deload week after this 5/3/1 cycle, then it would only be 3 weeks to that meet which wouldn't be long enough to do another 5/3/1 cycle (or a cycle of anything really), especially with having to take it easy the week of the meet.

I thought about doing only Push/Pull my first meet...But since my bench sucks I really wanna do a full meet haha

mcbeast
02-01-10, 1:00 am
Good work on those deads man.

JustJ
02-01-10, 1:13 am
Good work on those deads man.

thanks. they're pretty much my favorite exercise. they just feel more natural to me.

mcbeast
02-01-10, 1:31 am
thanks. they're pretty much my favorite exercise. they just feel more natural to me.

Yeah same here.

JustJ
02-01-10, 8:01 pm
Squats:
bar x 10
135x5
225x5
275x1
315x3
335x3
355x3

GM's:
135x5
205x6
225x5
255x3 PR

Short workout today. Coming down with something so I just wanted to get the major work in. Tried high bar squats...No good. Went back to low bar squats and they felt better than last week. I'm still hitting and missing depth...Think I'm psyching myself out and it's stupid. My hip flexors were hurting during the wide stance good morning's. Other than that, just trying to fight off this cold.

D-NUTZ
02-01-10, 8:17 pm
Nice job j!

JustJ
02-01-10, 8:21 pm
Nice job j!

thanks. kinda bummed i haven't been consistent with hitting depth...i really thought my box squats would carry over, but i feel like they gave me a false sense of ability. i still think they would be useful for speed, but not the way i used them. i'm debating if i just wanna do a push pull meet first, or if i want to go ahead and do a full meet, knowing i may not squat what i would like to.

J A Y
02-03-10, 5:25 pm
its wierd man, my squats were below par in my own mindset before i did my first meet as i injured my back but on the day it all went fine... seriously even if you miss depth in training i dont think you will when you are there... you get so pumped things just feel easier... go for it J

strivin for more
02-03-10, 8:28 pm
good prs! and as far as that whole squatting thing goes... just find whatever works my friend and use the hell out of it.

JustJ
02-03-10, 8:33 pm
its wierd man, my squats were below par in my own mindset before i did my first meet as i injured my back but on the day it all went fine... seriously even if you miss depth in training i dont think you will when you are there... you get so pumped things just feel easier... go for it J

thanks. i think a lot of it is in my head and i think i'm squatting just a little too wide.


good prs! and as far as that whole squatting thing goes... just find whatever works my friend and use the hell out of it.

thanks. i'm gonna move my stance in just a little bit and do whatever i can.

JustJ
02-03-10, 8:37 pm
CG Bench:
bar x 10
95x3
135x3
155x2
180x3
180x3
185x2
195x1
165x6
165x6
165x5
165x4

JM Press:
135x6
155x5
165x3 PR

Side Raise:
25x11 PR
30x9 PR
35x8 PR

Rope Pushdown:
100x16 PR
110x13 PR

Benching felt good today. I think I could've gotten more reps at 195 but I'm just following the program. Shoulders weren't bothering me as much today...Still think I could do without doing shoulders or just doing face pulls. Either way I think I'm close to finding the right amount of volume for my workouts.

TXPWRLFTR
02-03-10, 10:25 pm
Good work!

JustJ
02-05-10, 8:36 pm
Good work!

thank you sir. gonna e-mail USPF this week to see what's up with the SJ meet, otherwise i'll be doing the SPF meet in Sac.

JustJ
02-05-10, 8:38 pm
Deadlift:
bar x 10
135x5
225x3
315x1
350x3
370x3
390x3

DB Row:
50x5
80x20 PR
90x15 PR
100x13 PR
110x10 PR

Hammer Curl:
20x5
35x10 PR
40x7 PR
45x6
50x4 PR

Abs

TXPWRLFTR
02-06-10, 4:20 pm
Congrats on the PR's! Hopefully Steve will give you more info on the meet. Either meet, have fun at it!

JustJ
02-07-10, 9:57 pm
Meet info was finally posted! It will be March 6th at West Valley College in Saratoga and I will be competing Full Power @220. Registered tonight and I can't wait!

widdlewade44
02-07-10, 10:03 pm
Congrats on registering and all these recent PRs, keep 'em coming. Good luck on your Journey, peace.

Kevin
widdlewade44

JustJ
02-08-10, 7:51 pm
Congrats on registering and all these recent PRs, keep 'em coming. Good luck on your Journey, peace.

Kevin
widdlewade44

thanks. i'm just waitin to see how the meet goes

JustJ
02-08-10, 7:54 pm
Squat:
bar x 10
135x3
225x3
275x1
295x5
335x3
375x1

GM:
135x3
205x3
225x3

Pullthrough:
100x15
120x15

Abs

Was hitting depth until the 375. Came up about an inch short. Think it was just cuz I rushed it a little and didn't let myself sink down the last bit. Didn't feel too heavy so I'll give it a go again in a couple weeks when I test my opener/2nd attempts. Cut the rest of the workout a little short because my lower back and groin/hip flexor area were hurting a bit.

T o m m Y
02-08-10, 8:01 pm
Nice day bro..
Get it next time!

D-NUTZ
02-08-10, 8:44 pm
Nice day bro..
Get it next time!

x2. Kill it!

JustJ
02-08-10, 8:45 pm
Nice day bro..
Get it next time!


x2. Kill it!

thank you gentlemen. D-Day is just a month away.

TXPWRLFTR
02-09-10, 1:35 pm
Can't wait to read results from your meet.
Have fun at the meet!
Just remember it is you against the loaded bar!

JustJ
02-09-10, 7:27 pm
Can't wait to read results from your meet.
Have fun at the meet!
Just remember it is you against the loaded bar!

thanks. i'm hoping to get some video of it too. and yea i mean i have in my head what i would like to pull off (it's nothing spectacular) but i just wanna get this first one under my belt and then the next one will be a little more serious.

JustJ
02-09-10, 7:44 pm
since i have stalled at about 217 lbs, i figure it's time to tweak the diet again. however, since i want to remain in the 220 class for my first meet, i'm going to wait until after the meet (though tha'ts going to be tough, because who really wants to wait to get bigger?). i'm going to try drinking a half gallon of milk a day (don't think i can pull off a gallon) and add some olive oil into the mix. i figure this should help me out some.

JustJ
02-10-10, 3:42 pm
CG Bench:
bar x 10
95x3
135x3
165x1
180x3
190x2
205x1 PR
175x4
175x4
175x4
175x3

Rolling DB Ext/Side Raise (Superset):
20x5
35x6/30x11 PR
40x2/35x9 PR
30x6/40x6 PR

Rope Pushdown:
110x13
120x9 PR

Pretty sure I could've done a triple on the 205. I didn't run the full Gillespie bench workout, but I definitely plan on doing it in the future, as I think it works. Never done rolling DB extensions before- I suck a them. But, I figure if it's a weakness I better work it so they will be a staple after my meet. Left elbow was acting up again. Other than that, I was happy with my workout. Especially since I did it in the morning and I usually do it in the afternoon when I'm awake and ready.

J A Y
02-10-10, 6:06 pm
CG Bench:
bar x 10
95x3
135x3
165x1
180x3
190x2
205x1 PR
175x4
175x4
175x4
175x3

Rolling DB Ext/Side Raise (Superset):
20x5
35x6/30x11 PR
40x2/35x9 PR
30x6/40x6 PR

Rope Pushdown:
110x13
120x9 PR

Pretty sure I could've done a triple on the 205. I didn't run the full Gillespie bench workout, but I definitely plan on doing it in the future, as I think it works. Never done rolling DB extensions before- I suck a them. But, I figure if it's a weakness I better work it so they will be a staple after my meet. Left elbow was acting up again. Other than that, I was happy with my workout. Especially since I did it in the morning and I usually do it in the afternoon when I'm awake and ready.

lots of red... good stuff j

D-NUTZ
02-10-10, 8:53 pm
Nice work J. Lots of red. Strong CGBP!

JustJ
02-11-10, 6:09 pm
lots of red... good stuff j
thanks. it's getting there.


Nice work J. Lots of red. Strong CGBP!
thanks, its strong for me. long ways to go though. but i'm getting more confident.

JustJ
02-12-10, 8:21 pm
Deadlift:
bar x 10
135x3
225x3
315x1
325x5
370x3
415x1

DB Row:
50x5
90x20 PR
100x15 PR
110x12 PR
120x10 PR

Hammer Curl:
20x5
35x11 PR
40x7
45x5
50x5 PR

Abs

Foam Rolling

Done. This smokin' hot girl I've been digging for like a year and a half (she had a boyfriend) asked me out yesterday so I'm seein her tonight and am pretty stoked about that. Motivation for the workout.

JustJ
02-24-10, 12:55 am
just a quick update:
meet is a week and a half away. testing openers this week so my next update will be of my planned openers, then i doubt i'll update until after the meet.
i plan on taking a week off after the meet, then jumping back into it. i'll be adding the universal bcaa stack and storm to my supplement routine. as far as diet, i'll be adding 3 tbs of flax oil and a half gallon of milk a day. routine wise, i'll be doing 5/3/1 again, but working biceps twice a week (cable curls on squat day, hammer curls on deadlift day) using the myo-rep principle for one training cycle and then the hell raiser principle for the next, probably for 2 cycles of each. i may also try benching 3x a week for one cycle to see if i can bring up my bench a lil. that's my game plan post-meet. i'm just looking forward to doing this meet and then getting back to working on getting bigger and stronger.

TXPWRLFTR
02-24-10, 1:48 pm
Good luck brother!

JustJ
02-24-10, 8:32 pm
Good luck brother!

Thanks, it's so close now. I'm about to shoot you an e-mail.

JustJ
02-24-10, 8:37 pm
Well, I've been testing openers and they aren't quite going as I had hoped. However, I've come to terms with this and am now just concerned about getting a total and getting back to training. This has been a lot of trial and error prepping for this meet, but I feel I have learned a lot and know what I need to do for the next one to make sure I come in stronger.

Things I plan on doing:
- more front delt work (they are far too weak and hindering my pressing at any grip width)
- front squats (i need more quad work to help both my squat and deadlift)
- around 80% and up, i can usually put out a quality single even as the weight increases. however, going beyond singles at 80% and above is always tough, and i think it's due to form breaking down (may possibly incorporate westside principles of working up to a couple singles)
- 5 to 7 days off is good for me, any longer and i come back weaker

These are all things I plan on implementing after the meet. I'm excited to get my first one under my belt and to get working at beating whatever total I pull off.

Big Wides
02-24-10, 8:42 pm
hey bro, looking good and good luck at the meet. Have fun and learn as much as you can. Looking forward to seeing your progess as time goes on

JustJ
02-24-10, 8:55 pm
hey bro, looking good and good luck at the meet. Have fun and learn as much as you can. Looking forward to seeing your progess as time goes on

thanks for stopping by. i'm a total newb at powerlifting (i still consider myself pretty new to lifting in general) so i'm always looking for advice and new things to try.

TXPWRLFTR
02-24-10, 11:26 pm
You will do fine. The 1st meet has us questioning ourselves...am i doing everything right, am i training enough, etc, etc, etc.
We've all been there brother, we are here for ya!
It's a brotherhood unlike any other. I remember when I 1st started out...wow...then I asked questions, spoke with veteran lifters...what I learned from them I pass on to others.
I replied to your email. Ask away anytime brother. If I can't answer I will get an answer for you.